Recent advances in single cell analysis have demonstrated genetic heterogeneity amongst cells from the same tumour population. The propagating compartment in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) has been shown to undergo clonal evolution, leading to the co-existence of subclones with different copy number alterations or mutations. Certain subclones may respond differently to selective pressures such as therapy, resulting in clonal selection and relapse. However, little is known about how this apparent genetic heterogeneity translates to functional heterogeneity amongst the bulk population of ALL blasts, particularly under non-selective conditions. Although it is thought that a high proportion of blasts have the potential to engraft immunocompromised mice, it is unclear whether in practice the leukaemia is dominated by smaller numbers of clones and how this complexity changes over serial transplants or in selective environments. To address these questions, we have used cellular barcoding as a fate mapping tool to track the engraftment and evolution of individual clones within a bulk tumour population. Cellular barcoding involves labelling cells with a random genetic barcode which is delivered using a lentiviral vector, so is both stable and heritable. We created a barcode library with a complexity in excess of 100,000 and used it to label ALL primograft leukaemia samples, which were subsequently transplanted serially into NOD/LtSz-scid IL-2Rγ null (NSG) mice. Analysis of barcode composition in 3 primograft samples revealed that founder clones were highly abundant. Engraftment frequencies were estimated at between 1 in 2 to 1 in 14 (L4951, t(9;22)); 1 in 4 to 1 in 6 (L707, t(17;19)) and 1 in 19 (P929, t(4;11)). Following transplant of high cell numbers (10,000 barcoded), spleen samples contained high numbers of detectable barcodes (600-900). These contributed to the bulk population at similar frequencies, with no single barcode composing more than 5%. These clonal compositions were maintained in secondary recipients. This lack of dominance is suggestive of functional homogeneity within the propagating cell population under steady state conditions. In support of this, limiting dilution analysis revealed that all clones in the spleen have the capacity to engraft the leukaemia in the CNS and femoral bone marrow. We obtained several cases of near identical barcode composition in all sites, including one where a single barcode comprised the leukaemia in all organs. Although all subclones had the capability to reconstitute the leukaemia in all organs, we also found evidence of clonal dominance under selective conditions. Small numbers of barcodes were often dominant in femur and CNS compartments, with single barcodes comprising up to 80% of the tumour population. This occurred more frequently at high transplant doses and was not found in the spleens, so may be due to competitive pressures in restrictive microenvironments such as the femur. These barcodes did not become dominant when samples were re-transplanted into secondary recipients, suggesting the dominance was due to stochastic founder effects as opposed to intrinsic properties of these clones. In contrast, selection of clones with increased fitness was observed under dexamethasone treatment in mice transplanted with sample L707. Treated mice had a substantial reduction in clonal complexity in spleen samples, with single barcodes comprising up to 85% of the tumour. For samples with lower initial complexity, dominant barcodes were the same in multiple mice, suggesting the existence of pre-existing clones with dexamethasone resistance. In summary, we have demonstrated that many founder clones engraft and maintain the leukaemia in primary and secondary mice. This abundance of founder cells does not result in functional heterogeneity under constant selective conditions. Instead, the propagating cells are functionally homogenous, being able to contribute equally to leukaemia in the spleen and having the capability to reconstitute leukaemia in other organs. This homogeneity may reflect the typically low genomic instability in ALL. Clonal dominance only occurs under selective pressures, either stochastically through founder effects in potentially restrictive microenvironments, or selection in response to drug treatment. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


With Inter-Cloud, distributed cloud and open cloud exchange (OCX) emerging, a comprehensive resource allocation approach is fundamental to highly competitive cloud market. Oriented to infrastructure as a service (IaaS), an intelligent economic approach for dynamic resource allocation (IEDA) is proposed with the improved combinatorial double auction protocol devised to enable various kinds of resources traded among multiple consumers and multiple providers at the same time enable task partitioning among multiple providers. To make bidding and asking reasonable in each round of the auction and determine eligible transaction relationship among providers and consumers, a price formation mechanism is proposed, which is consisted of a back propagation neural network (BPNN) based price prediction algorithm and a price matching algorithm. A reputation system is proposed and integrated to exclude dishonest participants from the cloud market. The winner determination problem (WDP) is solved by the improved paddy field algorithm (PFA). Simulation results have shown that IEDA can not only help maximize market surplus and surplus strength but also encourage participants to be honest.


A just-in-time guide for revamping distressed companies Drawn from the author's decades of experience advising, purchasing, and reviving distressed companies across industries, geographies, and sizes, Reversing the Slide is designed to help executives, managers, and employees revitalize downtrodden companies. It shows how to: select the tactics appropriate for each stage of distress; understand the use of entrepreneurial concepts; avoid pitfalls common to turnarounds; determine the legal, financial, strategic, and operational steps in the process; discover why the principal of "ready, fire, aim" should guide the decision-making process in situations with time pressure and significant uncertainty; and uncover the secrets of effective leadership and governance.


—We perform data mining on the publicly available Tinnitus Archive. A number of statistically significant associations with gender were found using the Chi-squared test. These were age, onset rapidity, tinnitus localisation, number of tinnitus sounds heard, sleep interference due to tinnitus, feeling tired and ill because of tinnitus, index of noise exposure and subjective tinnitus pitch. No other associations with gender were statistically significant. In each case where a factor was found to be associated with gender, we analysed the data further by examining the standardised residuals. These showed that more men with tinnitus were younger, and more men had experience of noise exposure. Women were more likely to hear more than three sounds in their tinnitus, hear it in both ears, experience gradual onset of tinnitus, and hear it at lower pitches. Our findings are confirmed by the use of a measure derived from market basket analysis, that of lift.


We describe the ninth variant of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL) or Batten disease, due to defects in a putative new gene, CLN9. We therefore refer to the new variant as CLN9‐deficient. Two Serbian sisters and two German brothers are described. Their clinical history is characteristic for juvenile NCL. They show similar gene expression patterns. The existence of this variant is supported by the presence of curvilinear inclusions, fingerprint profiles, and granular osmiophilic deposits in neurons, lymphocytes, and conjunctival cells. Enzyme screening and sequencing of the coding regions of other NCL genes was negative. CLN9‐deficient cells have a distinctive phenotype. They have rounded cell bodies, have prominent nucleoli, attach poorly to the culture dish, and are sensitive to apoptosis but have increased growth rates. Gene expression of proteins involved in cell adhesion and apoptosis is altered in these cells. Sphingolipid metabolism is also perturbed. They have decreased levels of ceramide, sphingomyelin, lactosylceramide, ceramide trihexoside, and globoside and increased activity of serine palmitoyl transferase. Ann Neurol 2004


Abstract This study evaluated the fracture resistance and marginal fit of CAD/CAM ceramic and composite inlays. Molars (N = 80) were prepared to receive Mesio-occlusal-distal (MOD) inlays and randomly divided into four groups to be restored depending on the materials: (a) HLD: heat-pressed lithium disilicate ceramic (IPS e.max Press), (b) CLD: CAD/CAM-fabricated lithium disilicate ceramic (IPS e.max CAD), (c) NC: CAD/CAM nano-ceramic resin (Lava Ultimate), (d) RC: Indirect resin composite (Filtek P60). Each group was randomly divided into two subgroups regarding the resin cement: (a) High-viscosity resin cement (Syntac, Variolink II), (b) Self-adhesive low-viscosity cement (RelyX Ultimate). After marginal gap and cement thickness measurements, specimens were loaded to fracture in a Universal Testing Machine (1 mm/min). Intact molars acted as the control group (n = 10). Data were analyzed using one-way and two-way ANOVA, Tukey's tests (α = 0.05). Before cementation, CLD group showed significantly lower mean marginal gap (65 ± 22.4 μm) and after cementation, cement thickness was again the lowest with CLD (82.6 ± 24.6 μm) and the highest with HLD (108.4 ± 21.3 μm) (p < 0.001). The mean marginal gaps of inlays at the gingival margin were significantly higher than at the occlusal and the axial margins (p < 0.05). While material type significantly affected the mean fracture resistance (p < 0.001), the cement type had no effect on the results (p = 0.083). NC group (2486 ± 40 N) showed significantly higher mean fracture load compared to those of other three groups (1997.5 ± 60–2007 ± 30) (p < 0.05). The mean fracture resistance of control group with the intact teeth was significantly higher than those of all groups (p < 0.05) except for NC (p > 0.05).


Background
To evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture therapies for the treatment of essential hypertension.

Methods
We performed a systematic electronic search of PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Wan-fang Data Database. The main outcome indicators measured were the amount of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), a change of blood pressure, and the response rate. STATA15.0 software was used for the network meta-analysis.

Results
A total of 31 trials with 2,649 patients were included. Patients were allocated to 15 kinds of interventions. These including acupuncture types were electroacupuncture, moxibustion, warm needle therapy, sham acupuncture, behavioral therapy, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), calcium channel blocker (CCB), beta-blocker, acupuncture combined ACEI, acupuncture combined CCB, acupuncture combined behavior, electroacupuncture combined CCB, and non-treatment. The results of the network meta-analysis showed that there was no significant clinical or statistic difference in systolic blood pressure (SBP) change magnitude between acupuncture treatment and the other 14 therapies. Moxibustion may be better than acupuncture in reducing diastolic blood pressure (DBP) [mean difference (MD): 15.9, 95% confidence interval (CI): 5.96-25.85]. There was no significant difference in reducing DBP between acupuncture and the other 13 interventions. The effective rate of acupuncture combined with AECI [odds ratio (OR) =7.96, 95% CI: 1.11-56.92] and acupuncture combined with behavioral therapy (OR =3.53, 95% CI: 1.08-11.51) in treating hypertension was better than that of acupuncture alone, and there was no statistically significant difference in the effective rate between acupuncture and the other therapies.

Conclusions
The existing evidence shows that acupuncture could be used for treating hypertension, and it may have the same effects as common medication. However, due to the low qualities of the original studies, the quality of this evidence is poor. Therefore, it is recommended that more scientific research be performed to confirm the efficacy of acupuncture.


Abstract
This study explores learner experiences regarding skills acquisition of a cohort of engineering doctoral students enrolled in a New Zealand university. Employing a qualitative methodology, we interviewed 28 PhD students about the range of experiences and exchanges that comprised their pathways to skill acquisition. Students reported that research projects with application enabled the development of 'real world problem solving' by drawing on bonding and bridging network ties. Indeed, informal structures and disciplinary norms operating in the culture of postgraduate engineering research are principle contributors to successful progression, degree completion and outputs. Research practices emphasising repetition and doability establish productive environments for postgraduates, enhancing support for collective endeavours and increased outputs. In the absence of formalised skills development programmes, the approaches discussed in this paper contribute to postgraduates' timely acquisition of skills. This research can assist supervisors, academic developers and administrators from a range of disciplines in improving postgraduate research environments.


Background: Not all the techniques for the correct use of metered dose inhalers are used by patients and health care professionals. Aim: To assess the techniques and errors in the use of metered dose inhalers among patients and health care professionals. Material and methods: Evaluation of the inhaling technique, using a validated questionnaire, used by 68 patients, 30 physicians and 30 nurses working in a hospital at Concepcion, Chile. Results: The "closed mouth" technique is used by 84% of patients, 40% of physicians and 73% of nurses. The rest uses the "open mouth" technique. The aerochamber is used by 12% of patients, 37% of physicians and 27% of nurses. The most frequent inhaling errors detected were not shaking the inhaler (26% of patients, 30% of physicians and 7% of nurses), not applying the puff at the start of inspiration (28% of patients, 7% of physicians and 13% of nurses), and not maintaining an apnea after the inhalation (41% of patients, 7% of physicians and 10% of nurses). Sixty percent of patients, 67% of physicians and 40% of nurses have not received instructions about the inhaler use. Conclusions: There is a high frequency of errors in the use of inhalers and most users have not been trained in its use. (Rev Med Chile 2001; 129: 413-20)


Our atmosphere contains a substantial number of nanoparticles in which some are unintentionally produced, whereas others are intentionally produced engineered nanoparticle. Among all ENPs, the single-walled and multi-walled carbon nanotubes, spherical fullerenes, and dendrimers are attracting attention for biomedical applications, such as biosensor design, drug delivery, tumor therapy, and tissue engineering. Because of the inert nature of pristine carbon nanotubes (CNTs), it needs to be functionalized to make it reactive with other organic and inorganic materials. The functionalization leads to the addition of functional groups, e.g., C ‖ O, C ▬ O, ▬ OH, and ▬ COOH, to CNTs, which make them dispersible in solvents and suitable for numerous applications. Functionalized CNTs and their composite need to be tested for biocompatibility before real-time applications. Various toxicity mechanisms have been suggested for CNTs, including interference of transmembrane electron transfer, interruption/penetration of the cell envelope, oxidation of cell elements, and formu-lation of secondary products such as dissolved heavy metal ions or reactive oxygen species (ROS). Numerous studies have insinuated that well-functionalized CNTs are innoxious to animal cells, while raw CNTs or CNTs without functionalization mani-fest toxicity to cells at even modest dosage. Further of of


ABSTRACT The 2015 election to the Swiss Parliament marks a return to an already observed trend that was only interrupted in 2011: a shift to the right and an increase in polarization. The vote share of the nationalist-conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP) has now reached a historical height of 29.4% (+2.8). This note discusses why cantons matter in the Swiss national elections, and to what degree elections have become nationalized. Institutionally, the 26 cantons serve as electoral districts. This leads to a highly disproportional electoral system and has magnified the minor vote shifts to a slightly more pronounced shift in seats, with the right now holding a tiny majority of 101 of 200 seats in the first chamber. The two winners, the SVP and the Liberals, also had most campaign funds at their disposal. They were able to guide an extensive nationwide campaign in which they advocated their core issues instead of candidates. Other parties only advertised at the cantonal level.


This paper tests whether the job security offered by stricter employment protection legislation (EPL) undermines positive compensating wage differentials that would otherwise be paid. Specifically, we ask whether industries with relatively more need for layoffs and labour flexibility have lower wages in countries where stricter EPL protects workers from layoffs. We find this generally to be true for a large sample of industries in the major OECD countries over 1984-2005, particularly for wages of unskilled workers. However, we also find that where workers are well organised, they can take advantage of EPL to secure higher wages.


The erbB-2 (or HER-2 or neu) gene is amplified and overexpressed in approximately one-third of cancers of the breast, stomach, and ovary. Evidence is accumulating that erbB-2 overexpression is associated with decreased survival of breast cancer patients. In an effort to understand how erbB-2 overexpression might impart a more malignant potential to breast cancer cells, we have searched for evidence of changes in gene expression associated with erbB-2 overexpression. Using differential screening of a complementary DNA library we identified several complementary DNAs that represent mRNAs the expression of which may vary according to erbB-2 level. One complementary DNA was studied in detail. The mRNA encoding the ribosomal protein L19 (1.9 kilobases) was more abundant in breast cancer samples that express high levels of erbB-2 (P < 6 x 10(-7)). The level of L19 mRNA expression varied over a 1- to 64-fold range among the tumor samples. No evidence of gene amplification for L19 was identified. The L19 overexpression in these breast tumor samples was not associated with the increased expression of the mRNAs for other ribosomal proteins (S16 and L26).


The requirement of reliable data on transport properties of foods has emerged in the last decade due to their importance in the design and simulation of food processing operations. An international effort to obtain and analyze the published data has been made recently, due to the lack of reliable theoretical predictive models. In this framework, a user-friendly database system for the storage and maintenance of the transport properties of foodstuffs is proposed and developed in a Microsoft Access environment. The system allows the end-user to input and retrieve data, as well as to view diagrams with single or comparative data and predict values via a fully featured user-friendly interface. Currently the database has registered over 250 articles, which correspond to approximately 1200 records for the thermal conductivity and 1780 records for moisture diffusivity. Due to its flexibility, the system can be used as an universal template for developing similar database systems.


To perform simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) in dynamic environments, static background objects must first be determined. This condition can be achieved using a priori information in the form of a map of background objects. Such an approach exhibits a causality dilemma, because such a priori information is the ultimate goal of SLAM. In this paper, we propose a background foreground segmentation method that overcomes this issue. Localization is achieved using a robust iterative closest point implementation and vehicle odometry. Background objects are modeled as objects that are consistently located at a given spatial location. To improve robustness, classification is performed at the object level through the integration of a new segmentation method that is robust to partial object occlusion.


A survey is given which focuses on research issues involving strategic planning and artificial intelligence (AI), including the nature of the formulation task, cognitive studies of strategic planners and computer-based support for strategic planning. The author reviews the research to date, and argues that, like traditional decision support systems (DSS) research, much of the potential for future research in this area lies in modeling the ill-structured, early stages of the strategic decision making process namely, the strategic intelligence analysis and the issue diagnosis. Therefore, he discusses a specific model-based approach to the study of these early stages. Research in artificial intelligence-including investigations into diagnosis and situation assessment, analogical reasoning, plan recognition, nonmonotonic reasoning and distributed intelligence, among others-can be used to build models of strategic decision making that help researchers in better understanding this traditionally unstructured activity. >


Geographic information technology helps the oil and gas industry organize data and develop new prospects for the exploration, drilling, production, refinement, transportation, distribution of the oil as well as the preservation of the environment. The integration of geographic information systems (GIS), electronic meeting systems (EMS), and workflow concepts, introduces a new approach called SPeCS. This system intends to support the aspects of multi-objective spatial analysis within a distributed GIS with tools that can help a group to cope with all activities in this kind of project. It should aid design team members with coordination features that can vary from workflow facilities to tools that can help them achieve resolutions which shall represent the consensus in a decision-making process. This work presents the use of the SPeCS system in the BamPetro project, which explores the coordination in a spatial collaborative system that supports the georeferencing of the argumentations which were produced by the discussion involving the members of the design team. The main task of these groups is to produce a proposal for environmental preservations or changes taking into account social economics, climate, water and soil aspects.


In a recent note [8], the author provides a counterexample to the global convergence of what his work refers to as "the DSOS and SDSOS hierarchies" for polynomial optimization problems (POPs) and purports that this refutes claims in our extended abstract [4] and slides in [3]. The goal of this paper is to clarify that neither [4], nor [3], and certainly not our full paper [5], ever defined DSOS or SDSOS hierarchies as it is done in [8]. It goes without saying that no claims about convergence properties of the hierarchies in [8] were ever made as a consequence. What was stated in [4,3] was completely different: we stated that there exist hierarchies based on DSOS and SDSOS optimization that converge. This is indeed true as we discuss in this response. We also emphasize that we were well aware that some (S)DSOS hierarchies do not converge even if their natural SOS counterparts do. This is readily implied by an example in our prior work [5], which makes the counterexample in [8] superfluous. Finally, we provide concrete counterarguments to claims made in [8] that aim to challenge the scalability improvements obtained by DSOS and SDSOS optimization as compared to sum of squares (SOS) optimization.
[3] A. A. Ahmadi and A. Majumdar. DSOS and SDSOS: More tractable alternatives to SOS. Slides at the meeting on Geometry and Algebra of Linear Matrix Inequalities, CIRM, Marseille, 2013. [4] A. A. Ahmadi and A. Majumdar. DSOS and SDSOS optimization: LP and SOCP-based alternatives to sum of squares optimization. In proceedings of the 48th annual IEEE Conference on Information Sciences and Systems, 2014. [5] A. A. Ahmadi and A. Majumdar. DSOS and SDSOS optimization: more tractable alternatives to sum of squares and semidefinite optimization. arXiv:1706.02586, 2017. [8] C. Josz. Counterexample to global convergence of DSOS and SDSOS hierarchies. arXiv:1707.02964, 2017.


In this paper we illustrate the contradictory consequences of female individualization by exploring young people's imagined futures, drawing on an analysis of 'lifelines' collected as part of an ongoing longitudinal qualitative study of young people's transitions to adulthood. We discuss the method and compare lifelines across the sample. We suggest that while there are areas of consensus (such as the hetero-normative goal of marriage and children by 35) the traditionally gendered transitions to adulthood are under pressure, a pressure that is exerted most strongly by working class young people. Through three contrasting case studies we illustrate how the ways in which young people imagine their futures are constrained by the resources and possibilities of their particular social locations.


Anna Kachkaeva - Dean, the Faculty of Media Communications. E-mail: email@example.com Kiriya - Professor, the Faculty of Media Communications. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com Research University - Higher School of EconomicsAddress: National Research University - Higher School of Economics, 20, Myasnitskaya str., Moscow, 101000The paper is part of a large foresight study carried out by the authors at the HSE Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge for the Russian Ministry of Telecommunication and Mass Communications. It is important that mass communication, with its virtual product is related to two other sectors: telecommunications and information and communication technology. Technological transformations affect these three industries alike; the growth of bandwidth, convergence of terminals and growth of their computational performance are transforming products and markets in all three. Long-term trends in these markets have been well defined by a range of industrial experts. The conclusion of the paper provides recommendations for the revision of public policy. The authors note only a few new tendencies in services and products. However, wide diffusion of these trends due to cheap technologies will lead to radical changes in the sector. New markets will appear as a result of expansion and adjustment of industrial relations between agents, previously independent of each other. Key trends are the abandonment of linear-media in favor of "user-controlled" consumption, with a growing amount of content produced by the user, and the spread of social interactions. The trends are interrelated and determine the transformation of business models, the sources of income, and the value of goods produced by the media industry. The most negative trend according to experts is "deprofessionalization" of content, which poses a risk for institutionalized forms of media. With such turbulent changes regulation in mass communications will inevitably undergo transformation. Henceforth it will not be able to rely upon content filtering and setting quotas. Instead the regulation should be built upon enabling a diversity of information sources to create the news agenda at the request of the audience.


The world water crisis is a crisis of governance, as has been aptly stated. Yet how does one solve a crisis of governance? Water governance comprises complex nested and interlocked sets of decisions about water. It is inherently political, and is ultimately the responsibility of national, regional and local governments, working with their own citizens and with each other, to make improvements. In this context, there is a critical need in nearly every country to assess whether current water governance structures and practices are suitable and are delivering the desired results and, if not, where they fall short. When such assessments are made regularly and for several countries, it is possible to compare water governance status and performance both among countries and in a single country over time. This paper presents an approach to establishing a system of benchmarking water governance from content analysis of official policy and legal documents and a stratified set of stakeholder opinion panels. The approach assesses both the functions involved in water governance and the processes employed in making decisions. Six countries of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region (Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Turkey and Yemen) comprise a case study to show how this approach works.


Introduction: Third molar removal under local anesthesia is one of the most common procedures in oral surgery and it has a direct effect on the patient's quality of life. This study aims to investigate the effect of surgical difficulty of the extraction of impacted mandibular third molars determined by technique and duration of surgery on the postoperative inflammatory response.

Materials and methods: A prospective observational study was conducted on 54 patients who had undergone surgical removal of impacted mandibular third molar under local anesthesia; surgical difficulty was determined by technique and duration of the surgery. The postoperative pain was recorded throughout 7 days postoperatively, while swelling and trismus were evaluated on the 2nd and 7th day after surgery. The postoperative pain, swelling and trismus were correlated with the surgical difficulty.

Result: The highest score of pain was recorded at the day of surgery and then it decreased gradually, the maximum facial swelling and trismus were at 48 hours and subsided at the 7th day postoperatively. Duration and technique of extraction demonstrated a non-significant difference on pain, facial swelling increased significantly with bone removal whereas trismus increased significantly with increased duration.

Conclusion: The degree difficulty of surgical extraction of impacted mandibular third molars measured by technique and duration had a non-significant effect on postoperative pain, whereas technique was associated with postoperative facial swelling and duration was associated with trismus.


It is now well established that nanoparticles (1-100 nm) exhibit unique chemical and physical properties that differ from those of the corresponding bulk materials. The dependence of the properties of nanoscale materials on the size, shape and composition of the nanocrystal is a phenomenon of both fundamental scientific interest and many practical and technological applications. These properties are often different, and sometimes superior, to those of the corresponding bulk materials. Due to its unique properties and high surface area, Graphene has become a good candidate as an effective solid support for metal catalysts. The Nobel Prize in Physics for 2010 was awarded to Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov "for groundbreaking experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene". The graphene-supported metallic nanostructured materials were successfully used to investigate Suzuki cross-coupling reaction as an important reaction in the field of pharmaceutical applications. In recent research, nanostructured materials were used as solid support catalysts which showed remarkable improvements in the aspects of size, surface structure, catalytic selectivity, shape and recyclability. The nanoporous structure and superparamagnetic behavior of (Fe3O4) nano particles that were used as an effective ingredient in graphene-supported palladium catalyst improved the catalytic activity and the catalyst recyclability simply by using an external magnetic field. Microwave-assisted synthesis was recently used as an efficient method to prepare various metallic nanostructured materials. These metallic nanostructured materials were used to convert CO to CO2 as an effective approach for carbon monoxide elimination due to its harmful effect on health and environment. The characterization of the unique properties of nanocrystals can ultimately lead to identifying many potential uses and applications, ranging from catalysis, ceramics, microelectronics, pigments, chemical and biological sensors, optoelectronics, drug delivery, and media storage. With the highly promising expectations of nanotechnology for new innovative products, materials and power sources it is evident that nanotechnology can bring many innovations into the defense world. Innovation in military technology can become an extension of warfare itself. Being ahead in technology provides an important advantage in armed conflict, and if the lead position is not attainable, then one should at least stay as close as possible behind.


Global climate change due to CO2 emissions is an issue of international concern that primarily attributed to fossil fuels. In this study, Genetic Algorithm (GA) is used for analyzing world CO2 emission based on the global energy consumption. Linear and non-linear forms of equations were developed to forecast CO2 emission using Genetic Algorithm (GA) based on the global oil, natural gas, coal, and primary energy consumption figures. The related data between 1980 and 2010 were used, partly for installing the models (finding candidates of best weighting factors for each model (1980-2003)) and partly for testing the models (2004–2010). Global CO2 emission is forecasted up to year 2030.


The adoption of IFRS based reporting in Australia for all reporting periods commencing 1 January 2005 onwards resulted in substantial variations to prior accepted reporting practices. One area in which change was particularly profound was in the shift to an impairment testing based regime for goodwill accounting and reporting. The IFRS framework requires substantially greater levels of disclosure about the assumptions brought to bear in sustaining a valuation for goodwill. At face value, this should have resulted in improved transparency and the availability of higher levels of decision useful information. However, a review of disclosures relating to goodwill and its impairment by a sample of large Australian reporting entities in the first year after the transition to IFRS suggests substantial room for improvement. In particular, required disclosures were frequently omitted, or suggested that the technical requirements of the IFRS goodwill impairment testing process had not been complied with. Consequently, it is concluded that at present, it is in exceptional cases rather than a matter of generality that IFRS compliant disclosures sustain improved insights and support better decision making by financial statement users.


This contribution aims to discuss how gravity‐driven processes affect the archaeological record with the goal of building a broad conceptual and methodological framework for dealing with these contexts. A wide compilation of cases regarding gravity‐driven processes is analyzed to recognize relevant environmental factors, the way they affect the properties of the record, and long‐term archaeological expectations. Only by understanding the specific mechanisms and processes that occur in each context can an accurate methodological approach be chosen on which to base interpretations. A careful taphonomic study of the spatial distribution, frequency, size, diversity, and orientation of materials comprising the archaeological record is the first step to recognizing formation processes. Actualistic studies provide a framework for discussing the timing and intensity at which processes occur. A detailed geomorphological description is required to interpret sedimentological and micromorphological analysis, which in turn helps understanding of the relative subaerial permanence of the record, its temporal resolution, and preservation potential. Interpreting surface and buried materials requires the understanding of pedogenetic processes. Broad in/off‐site spatial sampling strategies definitely yield a more realistic picture about the variety of processes in slope settings.


The genetics underlying the evolution of novel morphological structures is a fascinating topic that has attracted the attention of many evolutionary biologists. Among the East African cichlid fauna, the haplochromines represent the most species-rich group. One of their characteristics is the occurrence of egg-spots on the anal fins of males, which mimic real eggs and play a crucial role in the breeding cycle of these maternal mouthbrooding fish. These yellow to orange egg-spots serve as intra-specific sexual advertisement to attract females and to maximize breeding success. They are a novel trait that emerged only once in the evolution of the haplochromine lineage. The main goal of this doctoral thesis was to deepen our understanding of the genetics and developmental basis of the emergence and diversification of egg-spots, an evolutionary novelty in East African cichlid fishes. Further understanding of the molecular basis novelty requires the identification of the genes and mutations that underlie these major phenotypic changes. Here we report the identification of two genes that are involved in the development of the egg-spot trait Ð fhl2a and fhl2b Ð and one possible cis-regulatory mutation in fhl2b that might have played a role in the emergence of the egg-spot trait. We further described many more candidate genes via an RNAseq survey of Astatotilapia burtoni (haplochromine species) egg-spot and anal fin transcriptome. We generated hypotheses about their possible function using Gene Ontology definitions and inter-species gene expression, establishing a database that will serve as an important resource and useful resource for future research on the emergence and diversification the egg-spot trait.


This paper deals with a systematic evaluation of the antenna impact on the gauging accuracy of industrial radar level measurements for process automation. By this means, a framework is provided by which the antenna parameters of major influence on the gauging accuracy can be identified. Guidelines are given to what extent an improvement of these parameters results in a measurable accuracy increase. Firstly, the radar system theory for monostatic level gauging and the emulation of such radar systems by software and hardware are briefly reviewed. Secondly, an analytical model of traveling-wave endfire antennas is introduced, allowing to separately study the influence of individual antenna parameters on the distance measurement accuracy. Thus, a direct relationship between characteristic antenna properties, such as the level of the pattern attenuation in the direction of a parasitic scatterer, and the gauging performance is obtained. The investigations are conducted for one specific pulse-based barycentric signal-processing scheme, which is predestined for industrial level gauging due to its low complexity and reliability. Finally, the results are verified by measurements within a compact radar test range.


The antimicrobial potential of Dacryodes edulis was investigated to determine the antimicrobial properties of the collected raw D. edulis pulp and seed extracts on some medically important human pathogens. The research was investigated against the selected human pathogens using standard microbiological and biochemical procedures. The D. edulis samples were harvested aseptically between the periods of April to June 2016 from its tree located at IBB way, Calabar Municipality, Nigeria. The aqueous and ethanolic extracts of the seed and pulp at varying concentrations of 1 g/10 ml, 2 g/10 ml, 4 g/10 ml, 5 g/10 ml was tested against some selected human pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Proteus vulgaris. The antimicrobial susceptibility results of the ethanol extracts of D. edulis seed showed marginally higher zones of inhibition to the clinical bacterial isolates tested than the ethanol extract of the pulp tested against the same clinical isolates. The organisms were resistant to the aqueous extracts of both the pulp and seed. The seed ethanol Article extracts showed a higher zone of inhibition of 21 mm against K. pneumoniae and 18 mm against P. vulgaris as compared to 18 mm as against K. pneumoniae and 17 mm against P. vulgaris showed by Gentamycin used as standard antibiotic control. The result of these has shown that D. edulis could be of immense importance in our nation's young pharmaceutical industry for the development of new chemotherapeutic agent to address unmet therapeutic needs.


This study explores the impacts of three different ensemble configurations on the predictability of typhoon-related precipitation. These ensemble configurations are constructed by; (1) using a single model starting with physically initialized ECMWF analyses assimilating five different precipitation estimates and with an ECMWF analysis itself (multi-analysis, MA), (2) using a single model with six different convection schemes and initialized with ECMWF analyses (multi-convection, MC), and (3) six operational forecast models initialized with the centers' own analyses (multi-model, MM). Ensemble precipitation forecasts are verified with help of satellite-derived precipitation estimates. Typhoon-related precipitation systems are best predicted by the MM configuration, from both deterministic and probabilistic viewpoints. The single model ensemble setups (MA and MC) contain more biases than the MM setup. A weighed ensemble, the so-called superensemble (SE), technique shows a slight increase in forecast skills, compared to the bias-corrected ensemble.


Among the complex of anthropogenic factors, one of the leading places is occupied by the "water factor" associated with pollution of water sources, shortcomings in water purification and disinfection. Discharge of insufficiently treated and untreated wastewater into watercourses predetermines abnormal changes in their chemical composition and degradation of biocenoses. Background and Aim: Municipal wastewater contaminated with organic and nitrogenphosphorus-containing compounds, as well as bacteria and viruses, also contribute to the pollution of water bodies. The main factor affecting the change in the quality indicator of water bodies is municipal wastewater. In the treatment facilities of Bukhara, about 20 thousand m 3 of wastewater, which will lead to a change in the chemical and biological composition of water. At the same time, there is no complete picture of the distribution of algae and their role in determining the ecological and sanitary state of biological ponds of the treatment plant in Bukhara, which prompted us to study these important problems. Material and Methods: Processing of the collected algological material was mainly carried out in the laboratory of algology and hydrobotany of the Institute of Botany of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan and was also partially processed at the Department of Botany of the University of Bukhara. The physicochemical composition of wastewater in biological ponds was determined by the generally accepted methodology of A. S. and Yu. Yu. Lurie. Conclusion: According to our observations, representatives of all systematic groups of algae developing in a particular reservoir participate to varying degrees in the processes of self-purification of wastewater. Even species of the same genus are characterized in different ways. This indicates the need for comprehensive and deep floristic studies of the natural algal population of water bodies used as biological ponds reservoirs, sedimentation tanks and filtration fields.


The C4A and C4B isotypes of human C4 show certain functional differences that stem from their relative preference for transacylation to amino (-NH2) vs hydroxyl (-OH) nucleophiles, respectively, on complement-activating surfaces. Comparison of amino acid sequences of the alpha-chain fragment of C4, C4d, has shown C4A- and C4B-specific sequences at residues 1101-1106 are the only consistent structural difference between isotype, i.e., Pro, Cys, Pro, Val, Leu, Asp in C4A and Leu, Ser, Pro, Val Ile, His in C4B. These residues may be responsible either in part or entirely for properties associated with isotype. To examine the functional role of residues 1101-1106 in C4B-mediated hemolysis, whole serum or immunopurified human C4 with allotypes, A3B1, A3, B2B1, or B1 were preincubated in the presence or absence of an antipeptide mAb (BII-1) specific for amino acid residues 1101-1105 of C4B. Sensitized sheep E and C4-deficient guinea pig serum was then added and lysis measured by absorbance at 415 nm. Our results show lysis of antibody-sensitized sheep E is inhibited by antibody and C4B2B1, C4B1, or C4A3B1 but not antibody and C4A3. The interference of hemolysis by BII-1 could not be explained by inhibition of activation of C4B or inhibition of C3 or C5 convertase activity. Furthermore, results from uptake experiments show that BII-1 interferes with the covalent binding activity of C4B, indicating residues 1101-1105 play a role in the covalent binding reaction of C4B to the target E-antibody complex.


This paper presents the steps of a developing research of a model to evaluate the integration level of logistics in supply chains that have the family farming producers as first suppliers. Among the objectives of the paper, there are the software description and its applications. Those chains have some particularities in the production and distribution planning of their products and, for this reason, they need the adaptation of some concepts of logistics to their context in order to be evaluated and then improved. Firstly it is presented a review on concepts of logistics and also on the peculiarities in familiar production in order to make possible a discussion on the evaluation of logistics performance in organizations of familiar producers. The steps followed in the software Agrolog modeling are detailed and the premises for its application are done. The software model proposed and its principles of functioning are presented, as well as the results of the qualitative evaluation obtained during the model validation in one cooperative of family farming producers. Finally, limitations and perspectives related to the development and application of the software Agrolog are discussed.


Since 1970 era, the discussion about fiscal decentralization becomes an important subject. A recent World Bank study found that of the 75 developing and transition countries in the world with populations greater than 5 million, all but 12 claim to be embarked on some transfer of fiscal power from the central to sub national governments. This is a revolu-tion of how people think fiscally. The subject has also attracted many researchers to explore the decentralization system. As such many researchers mainly try to focus that fiscal decen-tralization would have a significant effect on economic growth. Empirically, these research-ers also prove that the decentralization approach of a nation's fiscal structure is an effective strategy to promote economic growth. The central structure of fiscal decentralization is the degree that creates growth-promoting decentralization systems that distinguish decentraliza-tion system capabilities in promoting economic growth to a greater or lesser degree. Hence, this paper will provide the empirical evidence for selected Muslim countries where these countries adopt the differences approaches in fiscal decentralization, i.e., transition coun-tries versus countries with a well-functioning fiscal system. JEL classification: H7; O4Keywords: fiscal decentralization; economic growth


In order to enhance the capability of anti-jamming and Low Probability of Intercept (LPI) of radar system, spread spectrum signals are designed for modern radar system. Emission signal is coded with PN codes at the transmitting terminal. Spectrum of signal is spreaded and multi-signal mixed together, so it is not easy to intercept. At the receiving terminal, undesired signals are spreaded when dispreading desired signal. Signal to noise ratio (SNR) of the received signals is raised after despreading, so the detection range broadens. Computer simulations verify the good performance of the proposed approach.


New biostratigraphical evidence and a high-precision isotope dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry U–Pb zircon age provide refined age constraint for the Ordovician Tyrone Volcanic Group of the Tyrone Igneous Complex. In a graptolite fauna from Slieve Gallion, the presence of Isograptus victoriae lunatus, the index fossil of the victoriae lunatus graptolite zone, indicates a correlation with the Australasian Castlemainian (Ca1) Stage. The U–Pb zircon age of 473 ± 0.8 Ma dates a volcanic arc-related rhyolite body that is stratigraphically below graptolitic mudstones of Slieve Gallion. The U–Pb isotopic and biostratigraphical age constraints closely match an interpolated age for the base of the Middle Ordovician and indicate a Whitlandian age for the upper Tyrone Volcanic Group, which supports the regional correlation with the Ballantrae Complex, Midland Valley Terrane, Scotland.


• Low-fluence carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) laser irradiation of skin has previously been shown to induce damage limited primarily to the epidermis. To evaluate whether this technique was therapeutically effective for pigmented epidermal lesions, ten lentigines caused by methoxsalen and ultraviolet light therapy were treated in one patient using the CO 2 laser at fluences ranging from 3.0 to 7.7 J/cm 2 for 0.1-s exposures with 4.5-mm spot size. Based on substantial clearing in seven of ten lesions treated, 146 solar lentigines were treated in five patients at fluences of 3.0, 3.7, or 4.4 J cm 2 . Biopsies were performed on a total of 30 lesions immediately and 24 hours, seven days, and six weeks after irradiation. Of 125 lesions followed up clinically for six weeks, 12 cleared completely, 81 lightened substantially, and 28 remained unchanged. Only two demonstrated atrophic change. Hyperpigmentation or hypopigmentation did not occur. All lesions that improved had been treated at 3.7 or 4.4 J/cm 2 . Immediate histologic injury consisted of vacuolar and spindly change and subsequent vesiculation limited to the basilar epidermis. Twenty-four hours later there was epidermal necrosis with regeneration, 0.1 mm of dermal basophilia and stromal condensation, and a mild inflammatory infiltrate. These alterations were dose-dependent, with near complete epidermal necrosis and superficial dermal involvement at the highest fluence, and only focal epidermal necrosis at the lowest. At seven days, epidermal regeneration was complete with traces of melanin remaining in keratinocytes. Melanophages first appeared at seven days and persisted at six weeks, by which time the inflammatory infiltrate had cleared. No lentiginous proliferation was evident and epidermal pigmentation had become normal. Low-fluence CO2 laser irradiation is an effective means of damaging the epidermis with only minimal dermal change. This mode of therapy is an effective way to lighten the pigmentation of lentigines without substantial scarring. ( Arch Dermatol 1988;124:1219-1224)


This paper is based on a study that examined the provision of child protection information towards minimising child sexual abuse in Zanzibar. The paper provides a composite and updated picture of child protection initiatives and their challenges and proposes possible measures to be taken to enhance the situation, focusing on information provision and sharing. A survey was conducted in five local and two international organisations that deal with children's affairs. It involved information workers, university instructors, university students, officers from the selected organisations and community members. In all, 128 respondents participated in the study. The results were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. The findings show that information on child protection is available in both print and electronic formats in addition to being conventionally available and documented at the government ministries and other development partners official reports. However, the community's access to this information remains very low, relies on radio and television, which most of the time provides limited information. This makes the majority of community members to remain only partially aware of issues pertaining to preventing, reporting and responding to child protection cases. Although governmental bodies are willing to support child protection, the limited co-ordination between governmental and non-state actors coupled with low direct involvement of the community has led to inefficient use of information as a tool to fighting child sexual abuse in Zanzibar.


Currently, virtual world governance is the product of end user license agreements, contracts which attempt to provide a complete legal and enforcement system to the virtual world. This method of governance is flawed, however, and results in participant frustration. Alternative approaches that have been advanced so far include governmental regulation, which has begun in some countries. However, numerous pressures and precedent resist such an application in the United States. The following argues against keeping just the license agreements as the body of law, and also against a wholesale shift toward governmental regulation. Instead, a compromise -- establishing a standards-setting body of developers, referred to here as a virtual world council -- is the most efficient solution. This is a daunting task; however, numerous examples exist for the developers of virtual worlds to follow and they are explained below. The final proposed result is a two-tier system that retains EULAs with modifications as appropriate, and supports a common law approach rooted in standardization for resolving what EULAs cannot.


This article addresses the ecology and functioning of the World Health Organization in a time of crisis, zooming in on the pressures on both the organization and its leadership generated by the circumstance that the organization cannot avoid allocating costs and benefits when taking decisions. The article argues that the covid-19 crisis illustrates how international organizations generally and the who in particular are subjected to conflicting demands, and how this impacts on the role of decision-makers. The latter, it transpires, need to display considerable practical wisdom.


An advanced optical disk recorder has been developed for very-high-performance data capture, data storage, and data sorting applications that cannot be cost-effectively addressed by alternate magnetic or optical recording systems. The recording approach uses a three-channel, argon laser-based optical system to input/ output user data at rates up to 100 Mbps and store up to 1011 userbits per side of a 14-inch disk. This is achieved at a disk rotation rate under 30 rps and at a corrected read-bit error rate less than 10-9 by the use of an efficient data encoding algorithm, read-while-write verification, and a two-level error detection and correction architecture. The automated disk handling method achieves less than six-second access to the data from 68 on-line disks, with provision made for future interface to an external storage module to achieve automated access to several hundred disks in under 15 seconds. The recorder design provides for a growth in capability to accommodate a.0-300 Mbps user data rate for a concentric data format on the disk or a fixed, continuous rate to 450 Mbps for a spiral format with a single nine-channel write/read head, to simultaneously write to or read from a double-sided disk, and to add a second turntable. Operational reliability and maintainability has been enhanced with respect to earlier recorder designs by providing 1) more convenient access to the optics and the disk-handling mechanisms, 2) optical system alignment control loops, 3) disk write power control loops, and 4) advanced subsystem status monitoring with software-controlled fault isolation.


Given a collection of objects in a metric space, the Nearest Neighbor Graph (NNG) associate each node with its closest neighbor under the given metric. It can be obtained trivially by computing the nearest neighbor of every object. To avoid computing every distance pair an index could be constructed. Unfortunately, due to the curse of dimensionality the indexed and the brute force methods are almost equally inefficient. This bring the attention to algorithms computing approximate versions of NNG. The DiSAT is a proximity searching tree. It is hierarchical. The root computes the distances to all objects, and each child node of the root computes the distance to all its subtree recursively. Top levels will have accurate computation of the nearest neighbor, and as we descend the tree this information would be less accurate. If we perform a few rebuilds of the index, taking deep nodes in each iteration, keeping score of the closest known neighbor, it is possible to compute an Approximate NNG (ANNG). Accordingly, in this work we propose to obtain de ANNG by this approach, without performing any search, and we tested this proposal in both synthetic and real world databases with good results both in costs and response quality.


The job shop scheduling problem is an NP-hard problem and conveniently formulated as Constraint Satisfaction Problem (CSP). Research in CSP has produced variable and value ordering heuristics techniques that can help improve the efficiency of the basic backtrack search procedure. However, the popular variable and value ordering heuristics play poor in solving the large-scale job shop scheduling problem. In this paper, a new probabilistic model of the search space was introduced which allows to estimate the reliance of an operation on the availability of a reservation, and the degree of contention among unscheduled operations for the possession of a resource over some time interval. Based on this probabilistic model, new operation and reservation ordering heuristics were defined. new operation ordering heuristic selects the operation that relies most on the most contended resource/time interval, and new reservation ordering heuristic assigns to that operation the reservation which is expected to be compatible with the largest number of survivable job schedules. Computer simulations indicate that this new algorithm yields a optimal result of FT10 benchmark job shop scheduling problem under small time cost.


A sulphatase inhibitor 667 COUMATE is in clinical trials for estrogen-positive breast cancer therapy for postmenopausal women, while there are a number of similar sulphatase inbitors are under development. Schiff's bases are versatile pharmacophores in which the N atom involves in hydrogen bonding with active cell centers interfering in normal cell biology. A library of novel coumate analogues with Schiff bases were designed, and structural based drug design was performed with human estrogen receptor (PDB ID: 2IOG) (Already reported). Based on the in-silico outcomes, seven coumate-schiff bases were synthesized. The compounds were obtained in good yield. The novelty had been ascertained by sci finder software. The synthesized molecules were consistent with their assigned spectra such as IR, Mass and NMR spectral data which confirmed their formation. The cytotoxicity study was performed by MTT assay for all the synthesized compounds. Most of the compounds have good IC50 values (below 100 µg/ml).Two of the synthesized compounds COU-2 and COU-5 have shown good IC50 values such as 19µg/ml and 39µg/ml, respectively. They suppressed the proliferation of estrogen receptor overexpressed MCF-7 cells.


Background Access to high quality palliative care at the end of life is becoming of increasing public health concern, and UK policy has highlighted a need to improve palliative care in the hospital setting. The majority of deaths in the UK occur in acute hospitals, and the numbers of patients dying in this setting are predicted to increase over coming years. Aim The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the perspectives of patients with palliative care needs regarding recent care received in the acute hospital setting. Methods Sixteen patients with palliative care needs participated in semistructured interviews to explore views and experiences of a recent hospital admission. Patients were identified during a survey of palliative care needs at two UK acute hospitals, interviews were conducted postdischarge. Data were analysed using the principles of thematic analysis. Results Findings indicated that most hospital admissions were emergency/crisis led, and a palliative approach to care was rarely evident. Patients reported particular issues relating to (1) continuity of care, both within the hospital setting and after discharge; (2) communication between care providers in secondary care and communication with the patient; (3) communication between primary and secondary care, and issues surrounding discharge from hospital. Implications The palliative care needs of patients within the acute hospital setting may not be adequately addressed. Improved communication and continuity of care are necessary to enhance the provision of quality palliative care. The study highlights a need to further explore palliative care provision in the acute hospital setting from the perspectives of both patients and providers, and to further define and expand the role of generalist palliative care providers in acute hospitals.


Certain classes of chemotherapies may exert acute vascular changes that may progress into long-term conditions that may predispose the patient to an increased risk of vascular morbidity. Yet, albeit the mounting clinical evidence, there is a paucity of clear studies of vascular toxicity and therefore the etiology of a heterogeneous group of vascular/cardiovascular disorders remains to be elucidated. Moreover, the mechanism that may underlie vascular toxicity can completely differ from the principles of chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity, which is related to direct myocyte injury. We have established a real-time, in vivo molecular imaging platform to evaluate the potential acute vascular toxicity of anti-cancer therapies. We have set up a platform of in vivo, high-resolution molecular imaging in mice, suitable for visualizing vasculature within confined organs and reference blood vessels within the same individuals whereas each individual serve as its own control. Blood vessel walls were impaired after doxorubicin administration, representing a unique mechanism of vascular toxicity that may be the early event in end-organ injury. Herein, the method of fibered confocal fluorescent microscopy (FCFM) based imaging is described, which provides an innovative mode to understand physiological phenomena at the cellular and sub-cellular levels in animal subjects.


The capacity for the antibiotic production in the auxotrophs of Penicillium chrysogenum with various deficiency and their revertants was studied. It was found that the capacity for penicillin synthesis was impaired to various degrees in the majority of the auxotrophs. Variants with the penicillin production levels by 13--20 per cent higher than those in the initial prototrophic strain were isolated for the first time in selection of the eukaryotes with the method of obtaining highly active revertants from auxotrophs according to the scheme "prototroph-auxotroph-prototroph".


The aim of this review is to compare the effectiveness of percutaneous vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty to treat pain and improve functional outcome from vertebral fractures secondary to osteoporosis and tumor conditions. In 2009, two open randomized controlled trials published in the New England Journal of Medicine questioned the value of vertebroplasty in treating vertebral compression fractures. Nevertheless, the practice of physicians treating these conditions has barely changed. The objective of this review is to try to clarify the most important issues, based on our own experience and the reported evidence about both techniques, and to guide towards the most appropriate choice of treatment of vertebral fractures, although many questions still remain unanswered.


This study examines the effectiveness of different fashion marketing strategies and analyzes of the consumer behavior in a cross-section of demographic settings in reference to fashion apparel retailing. This paper also discusses the marketing competencies of fashion apparel brands and retailers in reference to brand image, promotions, and externalmarket knowledge. The study examines the determinants of consumer behavior and their impact on purchase intentions towards fashion apparel. The results reveal that sociocultural and personality related factors induce the purchase intentions among consumers. One of the contributions that this research extends is the debate about the converging economic, cognitive and brand related factors to induce purchase intentions. Fashion loving consumers typically patronage multi-channel retail outlets, designer brands, and invest time and cost towards an advantageous product search. The results of the study show a positive effect of store and brand preferences on developing purchase intentions for fashion apparel among consumers.


The growing literature on multihospital systems (MHS) has concentrated on assessing system performance without a concurrent examination of the assumptions related to the conditions under which hospitals and systems affiliate with each other. Using a net present-value framework the current study develops and tests a model that explains the entry patterns of hospitals into multihospital systems. Specifically, we assess the role of the hospital's market, management activity, and mission compatibility with the system as predisposing conditions of MHS affiliation. The model is tested on a sample of 306 affiliated and 918 nonaffiliated hospitals under conditions of market equilibrium and disequilibrium, and for hospital entry into both non-profit and investor-owned multihospital systems. Results suggest that the relative impact of market factors, hospital management characteristics, and mission compatibility on MHS entry will vary systematically as a function of assumptions about the hospital's market and the type of system with which the hospital affiliates.


Designing Software Architectures will teach you how to design any software architecture in a systematic, predictable, repeatable, and cost-effective way. This book introduces a practical methodology for architecture design that any professional software engineer can use, provides structured methods supported by reusable chunks of design knowledge, and includes rich case studies that demonstrate how to use the methods. Using realistic examples, youll master the powerful new version of the proven Attribute-Driven Design (ADD) 3.0 method and will learn how to use it to address key drivers, including quality attributes, such as modifiability, usability, and availability, along with functional requirements and architectural concerns. Drawing on their extensive experience, Humberto Cervantes and Rick Kazman guide you through crafting practical designs that support the full software life cycle, from requirements to maintenance and evolution. Youll learn how to successfully integrate design in your organizational context, and how to design systems that will be built with agile methods. Comprehensive coverage includes Understanding what architecture design involves, and where it fits in the full software development life cycle Mastering core design concepts, principles, and processes Understanding how to perform the steps of the ADD method Scaling design and analysis up or down, including design for pre-sale processes or lightweight architecture reviews Recognizing and optimizing critical relationships between analysis and design Utilizing proven, reusable design primitives and adapting them to specific problems and contexts Solving design problems in new domains, such as cloud, mobile, or big data


To develop silvicultural guidelines for high-value timber species of Central African moist forests, we assessed the performance of the pioneer Milicia excelsa (iroko, Moraceae), and of the non-pioneer light demander Pericopsis elata (assamela, Fabaceae) in logging gaps and in plantations in highly degraded areas in south-eastern Cameroon. The survival and size of each seedling was regularly monitored in the silvicultural experiments. Differences in performance and allometry were tested between species in logging gaps and in plantations. The two species performance in logging gaps was significantly different from plantations and concurred with the expectations of the performance trade-off hypothesis but not with the expectations of species light requirements. The pioneer M. excelsa survived significantly better in logging gaps while the non-pioneer P. elata grew significantly faster in plantations. The high mortality and slow growth of M. excelsa in plantations is surprising for a pioneer species but could be explained by herbivory (attacks from a gall-making psyllid). Identifying high-value native timber species (i) with good performance in plantations such as P. elata is of importance to restore degraded areas; and (ii) with good performance in logging gaps such as M. excelsa is of importance to maintain timber resources and biodiversity in production forests.


The enigmatic neutrinos are among the most abundant of the tiny particles that make up our universe. They are a billion times more abundant than the particles of which the earth and we humans are made. Thus, to understand the universe, we must understand the neutrinos. Moving ghostlike, almost invisibly, through matter, these particles are very hard to pin down and study. However, dramatic progress has recently been made. In this lecture, the neutrinos will be introduced. Their behavior, so different from that of everyday objects, will be explained, and recent discoveries will be described. The open questions about neutrinos, forthcoming attempts to answer these questions, and the role of neutrinos in shaping the universe and making human life possible, will all be explained.


in perinatal mortality was achieved principally by a reduction in the number of neonatal deaths (X =6.08, P< 0.02) as the incidence of stillbirths was not changed (Table 5). Nineteen of the 31 deaths were associated with delivery occurring at or before 26 weeks of gestation. Only seven of the infants who died weighed in excess of 1000 g; two had congenital abnormalities incompatible with life, two died of infective complications already considered, one died of complications resulting from ill-advised breech extraction, and two died of severe RDS.


Uncertainty is inherent in many real-world settings; for example, in a combat situation, darkness may prevent a soldier from classifying approaching troops as friendly or hostile. In an environment plagued with uncertainty, decision-support systems, such as sensor-based networks, may make faulty assumptions about field conditions, especially when information is incomplete, or sensor operations are disrupted. Displaying the factors that contribute to uncertainty informs the decision-making process for a human operator, but at the expense of limited cognitive resources, such as attention, memory, and workload.
This research applied principles of perceptual cognition to human-computer interface design to introduce uncertainty visualizations in an adaptive approach that improved the operator's decision-making process, without unduly burdening the operator's cognitive load. An adaptive approach to uncertainty visualization considers the cognitive burden of all visualizations, and reduces the visualizations according to relevancy as the user's cognitive load increases. Experiments were performed using 24 volunteer participants using a simulated environment that featured both intrinsic load, and characteristics of uncertainty. The experiments conclusively demonstrated that adaptive uncertainty visualization reduced the cognitive burden on the operator's attention, memory, and workload, resulting in increased accuracy rates, faster response times, and a higher degree of user satisfaction.
This research adds to the body of knowledge regarding the use of uncertainty visualization in the context of cognitive load. Existing research has not identified techniques to support uncertainty visualization, without further burdening cognitive load. This research identified principles, such as goal-oriented visualization, and salience, which promote the use of uncertainty visualization for improved decision-making without increasing cognitive load. This research has extensive significance in fields where both uncertainty and cognitive load factors can reduce the effectiveness of decision-makers, such as sensor-based systems used in the military, or in first-responder situations.


This study utilises Hofstede's (1980, 1991) framework to investigate the influence of national culture on the volume of management accounting control systems (MACS) changes, and their location, nature and perceived success. We collect data on French manufacturing companies which are comparable with those collected in Canada (Libby & Waterhouse, 1996), Singapore (Williams & Seaman, 2001) and Malaysia (Sulaiman & Mitchell, 2005). We find dramatic differences in MACS changes attributable to cultural differences. A high degree of uncertainty avoidance is reflected in more changes to controlling systems, and individualism and power distance reinforce this result. A high degree of Confucian dynamism is reflected in more changes to planning systems. However, the effect of culture on changes to bonuses is limited. Individualism explains differences in the nature and perceived success of changes. Belonging to a collectivistic culture limits elimination of MACS, while belonging to an individualistic culture increases the likelihood of addition of MACS. Managers in individualistic cultures rate the success of changes more highly than managers in collectivistic cultures. More specifically, managers in individualistic cultures consider they have been most successful in introductions of new techniques while managers in collectivist cultures think they have been most successful in modifications. Other differences are explained by macroeconomic factors and similar results are observed in the location and nature of change. This study also enhances examination of the heterogeneous nature of change.


The objective of our fortification technology development has been to deliver meaningful levels of bioavailable iron via commonly consumed foods and beverages without compromising taste, appearance, and stability. However, fortification of foods is accompanied with unsolved problems such as unacceptable taste, color, stability, and bioavailability. To solve these problems, we developed a fortification technology that prevents the iron-mediated undesirable taste and appearance of the final product while preserving stability and bioavailability. Iron was stabilized by applying principles of colloid chemistry (encapsulation), chelation, and electrochemical chemistry (redox modulation). Results from color and sensory evaluations showed that formulation of products using the new fortification technology known as "GrowthPlus" eliminated detrimental effects on taste, appearance, and product stability. Bioavailability evaluation using animal models and human subjects showed the GrowthPlus technology does not interfere with the bioavailability of iron from either ferrous bis-glycinate or ferrous fumarate. Multiple intervention trials showed that repeated consumption of the redox stabilized iron in the form of a powdered fruit beverage increased iron status indicators (hemoglobin and ferritin) and reduced iron deficiency anemia significantly in school children, adolescent girls, and pregnant women.


The body has become central to practices of self-tracking. By focusing on the relations between quantification, the body, and labor, this volume sheds light on the ways in whick discourses on data collection and versions of the 'corporate self' are instrumental in redefining concepts of labor, including notions of immaterial and free labor in an increasingly virtual work environment. The contributions explore the functions of quantification in conceptualizing the body as a laboring body and examine how quantification contributes to disciplining the body. By doing so, they also inquire how practices of self-tracking, self-monitoring, and self-optimization have envolved historically.


The electrical energy is a primary prerequisite for economic growth. Modern power system operates under much stressed conditions because of growth in demand and deregulation of electric power system. Cogeneration and power generation from renewable play a key role in these scenarios. In this paper the affects of DE on the system voltage stability has been assessed. The maximum loadability margin and losses of the sample system with distributed generation has been calculated. The problem is formulated as a multi-objective optimization problem and solved by interior point method for various combination of distributed generation. A comparison of the results obtained is carried out for different location of DE. The optimal locations of DE are suggested for a sample network. IEEE 30 bus system is considered for proposed study.


The dynamic strain-induced transformation (DSIT) of ferrite from austenite in intense deformation at temperatures close to Ar3 were applied to one C-Mn steel and several Nb and Nb-Ti microalloy steels to obtain an ultrafine ferrite grain size. As another route the static recrystallisation of severely cold-rolled martensite (SRM) was utilized. It was found that in the DSIT route a fine prior austenite grain size was crucial to form ferrite with the grain size of 1-3 µm with a considerable fraction of a secondary phase, carbide aggregate/pearlite or martensite. Grain sizes achieved were somewhat finer in steels with a higher microalloying content. In the SRM route, the ferrite grain size of 1-1.5 µm was obtained by using the cold rolling of 80-90% reduction. Thermal stability of the ultrafine-grained structures, especially those from the DSIT route, was found to be excellent. In electron or laser beam welding of 1-2.5 mm sheets neither any coarse-grained zone existed in the heat-affected zone, nor did form any softened zone.


This was a longitudinal study of 3167 active or retired pneumoconiotic coalminers from Nord-Pas de Calais collieries (HBNPC, acronym in French) recognized through medico-legal decisions over three delined periods: 1942-1961, 1962-1981 and 1982-1987. Periodic medical examinations of pneumoconiotics are provided by the medical services of HBNPC for miners and exminers. Physicians involved in this follow-up programme are concerned with the high incidence of progressive massive fibrosis (PMF). The objectives of this study were to describe pneumoconiosis at time of compensation and examine factors related to the occurrence of PMF. For each subject, two radiological films were extracted from the medical files. They were reinterpreted according to the ILO classification (ILO, 1980) by three independent medical readers. Results indicated that radiological criteria for compensation had changed over time ; a marked predominice of category 212 small opacities was noted for cases compensated before 1962 and a predominice of category 1/1 among those compensated after 1981. Comparison of distribution of small opacity types in the 1942-1961 period with that in 1982-1987 confirmed the progressive fall, reported by other investigators, of proportions of predominant micronodular opacities accompanied by an increase in proportions of small irregular opacities at compensation [COCKCROFT and ANDERSON, Br. J. ind. Med. 44,484-487 (1987)]. When time interval between films was taken into account, profusion of small opacities at compensation greater than 1/1 was associated with a probability of 40% or more of developing PMF. Severity of coalworkers simple pneumoconiosis (CWSP) at compensation in HBNPC has been seen to decline since 1982 and the disease to occur mostly after retirement. The reported changes in small opacity types suggest a reduction in incidence of pure silicosis. Occurrence of PMF was correlated with profusion of small opacities at compensation.


As more industries and utilities convert to coal, ash fusion information becomes more important for boiler design (waste disposal systems). For example, burning a low fusion temperature coal can cause slagging--the buildup of molten ash on boiler waterwall tubes. Not only is boiler efficiency lowered, but downtime is also increased. Recently, potential buyers of West Virginia coal have inquired frequently about ash fusion. However, the amount of information in the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey's data base is limited to data from about 800 samples, 50% of which were collected in five counties. Thus, the survey is conducting a study of ash fusion temperatures for the state's coals, to increase available data and its geographic coverage. A Leco AF-500 automated ash fusion analyzer was used in this study, which addresses: (1) reliability of results from an automated analyzer, (2) comparison of automated data with conventional data, (3) techniques of sample preparation, high-temperature ashing, and cone preparation, (4) ash-fusion trends in the state, and (5) research developments. The research sought to develop for West Virginia coal a statistical correlation model relating ash-elemental data with fusion data, and to investigate the relationship between ash color and fusion temperature. (Light-colored ashes generally have higher fusion temperatures than darker ashes.) The ash fusion project adds vital information to our computer data base. With this addition, the survey can offer a more complete, unbiased source of information about West Virginia seams to prospective buyers of West Virginia coal. End_of_Article - Last_Page 1915------------


This paper explores an attempt to provide more deep learning experiences by making three fundamental shifts in a lecture-based modern architecture history course. The history of modern architecture, like all of history, is complex. For the beginner, it is easy become lost in the plethora of dates and images to memorize and miss important connections between individual architects, buildings, movements, technological advances, and changes in the social, cultural, and political context in which they existed. For architecture students to develop an understanding of architectural history beyond the surface-level, it is important to connect to context, to see the big picture as well as the details.


Many real-world networks are intrinsically directed. Such networks include activation of genes, hyperlinks on the internet and the network of followers on Twitter among many others. The challenge, however, is to create a network model that has many of the properties of real-world networks such as power-law degree distributions and the small-world property. To meet these challenges, we introduce the Directed Random Geometric Graph (DRGG) model, which is an extension of the random geometric graph model. We prove that it is scale-free with respect to the indegree distribution, has binomial outdegree distribution, has a high clustering coefficient, has few edges and is likely small-world. These are some of the main features of aforementioned real-world networks. We also empirically observed that word association networks have many of the theoretical properties of the DRGG model.


Background. During ice storage of fish a series of biochemical changes occur at a relatively rapid pace. The changes involve both nitrogen compounds and the lipid fraction. Lipid damage, through hydrolysis and oxidation reactions, can lead to important losses in nutritive value and quality during chilled storage. Oxidised lipids are a source of free radical compounds and highly reactive peroxides. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of two economically valuable species of Baltic fish, especially the quality of lipids, during storage in ice. Materials and methods. The analysis involved two Baltic fish: cod, Gadus morhua Linnaeus, 1758—a lean fish (about 1% of fat in flesh) and flounder, Platichthys flesus (Linnaeus, 1758)—an average-fat fish (about 4% of fat in flesh). Descriptive testing was used for quality determination of fish and the chemical changes of nitrogen compounds (TVB-N)(Total volatile bases nitrogen) and lipids (PV—peroxide value and AsV—anisidine value) were analysed. Changes of FA (fatty acids) were based on the qualitative interpretation of chromatograms. Results. In cod, peroxide value reached after 10 days a value of 45.47 mg O* ∙ 100 g–1 of lipids. In flounder peroxide value reached the maximum of 26.98 mg O* ∙ 100 g–1 after 12 days. The initial anisidine values did not differ significantly and remained at a similar level during storage. It was found that the most significant changes involved loss of EPA. After fifteen days flounder lost approximately 6.81 mg of EPA ∙ g–1 of fat (about 10% of initial amount), whereas cod about 9 mg EPA ∙ g–1 of fat (about 26.5% of initial amount). The observed loss of DHA was much lower, in particular in flounder. Conclusion. Different dynamics of oxidative changes were observed. In cod primary oxidation products increased linearly but in flounder such dynamic growth occurred after 12 days of storage still being almost twice as low as that of cod. No significant differences were observed in the secondary oxidation products between the fish. The level of PUFA and especially the level of EPA and DHA decreased. The loss of PUFA were higher in the lipid fraction of cod than flounder and were respectively about 2 pp and about 0.4 pp for each day of storage. Moreover, the dynamics of loss of EPA was greater than DHA.


Abstract The primary task confronting an examination of the claimed connection between Kant's general theory of cognition and his account of aesthetic judgment requires clarifying perhaps the most obscure component of that account, the doctrine of the harmony of the faculties. Kant's presentation of this doctrine makes it notoriously difficult to penetrate. Much of what Kant says about the harmony of the faculties – perhaps the very phrase "the harmony of the faculties" – is rather imprecise and metaphorical. Yet, the importance of a correct understanding of the harmony of the faculties to assessing both the merits of Kant's aesthetic theory and his claims for the epistemological significance of reflection is difficult to overstate, for it is precisely this state of harmony that ultimately grounds the validity of judgments of taste and does so in virtue of being a state in which the most general prerequisites to conceptual judgment are present.


Background: Academic stress is an important research topic due to the effect it has on the
quality of life of students, future professionals and therefore, adult contributors in a society.
It has been shown that students in the health field face additional stressors specific from
their careers, and suffer greater stress than the general population of the same age.
Methods: 52 students, 23 from Physiotherapy and 29 from Medicine programs were
surveyed with Academic Stressors Academic Scale (SAS) to know academic stress level
and IL-6 was quantified in serum.
Results: It was found that students who perceive the academic semester as stressful
"fairly often" and "many times", increases in 50%, 75% and 76.9% during the semester;
while "anxiety/distress" feeling was predominant. The most frequent SAS scale factors
were "methodological deficiencies", "student overload", "beliefs about performance", "lack
of content value", "participation" and "exams"
Conclusions: The study revealed an IL-6 increment, and their association with
"Methodological Deficiencies" at 1st moment. This study showed the importance of
academic stressors identification at same time that it is a call to construct strategies to
reduce stressors in University context


Eukaryotic centromeres are maintained at specific chromosomal sites over many generations. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, centromeres are genetic elements defined by a DNA sequence that is both necessary and sufficient for function; whereas, in most other eukaryotes, centromeres are maintained by poorly characterized epigenetic mechanisms in which DNA has a less definitive role. Here we use the pathogenic yeast Candida albicans as a model organism to study the DNA replication properties of centromeric DNA. By determining the genome-wide replication timing program of the C. albicans genome, we discovered that each centromere is associated with a replication origin that is the first to fire on its respective chromosome. Importantly, epigenetic formation of new ectopic centromeres (neocentromeres) was accompanied by shifts in replication timing, such that a neocentromere became the first to replicate and became associated with origin recognition complex (ORC) components. Furthermore, changing the level of the centromere-specific histone H3 isoform led to a concomitant change in levels of ORC association with centromere regions, further supporting the idea that centromere proteins determine origin activity. Finally, analysis of centromere-associated DNA revealed a replication-dependent sequence pattern characteristic of constitutively active replication origins. This strand-biased pattern is conserved, together with centromere position, among related strains and species, in a manner independent of primary DNA sequence. Thus, inheritance of centromere position is correlated with a constitutively active origin of replication that fires at a distinct early time. We suggest a model in which the distinct timing of DNA replication serves as an epigenetic mechanism for the inheritance of centromere position. for innovative investigations to NB. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.


Most modern learning problems are highly overparameterized, meaning that the model has many more parameters than the number of training data points, and as a result, the training loss may have infinitely many global minima (in fact, a manifold of parameter vectors that perfectly interpolates the training data). Therefore, it is important to understand which interpolating solutions we converge to, how they depend on the initialization point and the learning algorithm, and whether they lead to different generalization performances. In this paper, we study these questions for the family of stochastic mirror descent (SMD) algorithms, of which the popular stochastic gradient descent (SGD) is a special case. Recently it has been shown that, for overparameterized linear models, SMD converges to the global minimum that is "closest" (in terms of the Bregman divergence of the mirror used) to the initialization point, a phenomenon referred to as implicit regularization. Our contributions in this paper are both theoretical and experimental. On the theory side, we show that in the overparameterized nonlinear setting, if the initialization is close enough to the manifold of global optima, SMD with sufficiently small step size converges to a global minimum that is approximately the closest global minimum in Bregman divergence, thus attaining approximate implicit regularization. For highly overparametrized models, this closeness comes for free: the manifold of global optima is so high-dimensional that with high probability an arbitrarily chosen initialization will be close to the manifold. On the experimental side, our extensive experiments on the MNIST and CIFAR-10 datasets, using various initializations, various mirror descents, and various Bregman divergences, consistently confirms that this phenomenon indeed happens in deep learning: SMD converges to the closest global optimum to the initialization point in the Bregman divergence of the mirror used. Our experiments further indicate that there is a clear difference in the generalization performance of the solutions obtained from different SMD algorithms. Experimenting on the CIFAR10 dataset with different regularizers, `1 to encourage sparsity, `2 (yielding SGD) to encourage small Euclidean norm, and `10 to discourage large components in the parameter vector, consistently and definitively shows that, for small initialization vectors, `10-SMD has better generalization performance than SGD, which in turn has better generalization performance than `1-SMD. This surprising, and perhaps counter-intuitive, result strongly suggests the importance of a comprehensive study of the role of regularization, and the choice of the best regularizer, to improve the generalization performance of deep networks.


We examined the effects of interleukin-3 (IL-3) and c-kit ligand (KL) on the survival of differentiated hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC), the burst-forming unit-erythroid (BFU-E); colony-forming unit-granulocyte, erythroid, monocyte, megakaryocyte (CFU-GEMM); and CFU-granulocyte-monocyte (CFU-GM) and more primitive hematopoietic cells that give rise to these progenitor cells (pre-colony-forming cells [pre-CFC]). CD34+ HLA-DR+ cells, which are highly enriched for committed HPC, and CD34+ HLA-DR- c-kit+ cells, which contain the most primitive assayable hematopoietic cells, including long-term bone marrow culture-initiating cells, high proliferative potential-CFC, the CFU-blast, and the BFU-megakaryocyte, were suspended in serum-free medium in the presence or absence of IL-3 or KL. CD34+ HLA-DR+ cells incubated under serum-free conditions or in the presence of KL for 96 hours lost greater than 90% of assayable unilineage or multilineage HPC, whereas those cells incubated in the presence of IL-3 retained 40% of the number of HPC present at time 0. The effect of IL-3 on HPC survival was most pronounced on the BFU-E and CFU-GEMM present within CD34+ HLA-DR+ cells. Addition of IL-3, but not of KL, to CD34+ HLA-DR+ cells delayed the appearance of morphologic changes and DNA fragmentation patterns associated with cell death occurring by apoptosis. CD34+ HLA-DR-c-kit+ cells were incubated under similar serum-free conditions in the presence or absence of IL-3 or KL, and the frequency of pre-CFC was determined by limiting dilution analysis. The frequency of pre-CFC in cells incubated for 48 hours in the absence of serum was similar to that of cells incubated in the presence of IL-3 and approximately doubled when CD34+ HLA-DR- c-kit+ cells were incubated in the presence of KL. Addition of KL to serum-free suspension cultures of CD34+ HLA-DR- c-kit+ cells delayed the appearance of DNA fragmentation patterns associated with apoptosis to a greater extent than did the addition of IL-3. These studies suggests that IL-3, but not KL, promotes HPC survival, whereas KL plays a greater role than IL-3 in sustaining more primitive HPC, such as pre-CFC. The effects of both cytokines in mediating HPC and primitive hematopoietic cell survival appear to be related, in part, to their ability to suppress apoptosis.


BACKGROUND: Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor encephalitis is an autoimmune disorder resulting in neurologic and psychiatric symptoms. Treatment is challenging in pregnancy, because little data exist to guide management. CASE: A 24-year-old woman with a known diagnosis of anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis using intravenous immunoglobulin therapy became pregnant. Her pregnancy was uncomplicated with no relapses. She delivered at 35 4/7 weeks of gestation after having preterm premature rupture of membranes. She had a relapse of symptoms after delivery. CONCLUSION: This patient with anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis had an uneventful pregnancy with overall good outcome; however, she experienced relapse soon after delivery. This disease may mimic other autoimmune diseases, with improvement during pregnancy and risk for relapse postpartum.


Abstract It is widely recognized among stellarator researchers that the minimum distance between the plasma boundary and the middle of the coil (Δmin) is of great importance for stellarators as it impacts the machine parameters considerably. Techniques for minimizing the radial build have made impressive progress during the first year of the ARIES-CS study. A novel approach has been developed for ARIES-CS where the blanket at the critical area surrounding Δmin has been replaced by a highly efficient WC-based shield. As a result, an appreciable 20-90 cm savings in the radial build has been achieved, reducing the major radius by more than 20%, which is significant. The economic benefit of this approach is yet to be determined and the added engineering problems and complexity will be addressed during the remaining period of the study. This paper covers the details of the radial build optimization process that contributed to the compactness of ARIES-CS. Compared with previous designs, the major radius of ARIES-CS has more than halved, dropping from 24 m to less than 10 m, making a step forward toward the feasibility of a compact stellarator power plant.