I attempt to resolve an aspect of the nature-nurture debate. Consider a typical nature-nurture question: Why do some individuals develop a complex trait such as depression, while others do not? This question incorporates an etiological query about the causal mechanisms responsible for the individual development of depression; it also incorporates an etiological query about the causes of variation responsible for individual differences in the occurrence of depression. Scientists in the developmental research tradition of biology investigate the former; scientists in the biometric research tradition of biology investigate the latter. So what is the relationship?The developmental and biometric research traditions, I argue, are united in their joint effort to elucidate what I call difference mechanisms. Difference mechanisms are regular causal mechanisms made up of difference-making variables that take different values in the natural world. On this model, individual differences are the effect of difference-makers in development that take different values in the natural world. I apply this model to the case of genotype-environment interaction (or G×E), showing that there have actually been two separate concepts of G×E: a biometric concept (or G×EB) and a developmental concept (or G×ED). These concepts also may be integrated via the difference mechanisms model: G×E results from the interdependence of difference-makers in development that take different values in the natural world.


Objective: To establish the level of ICT related content, context and process dimensions visavis the upscaling of ICT in health care facilities in Nairobi and Machakos counties.Design: A cross sectional study Setting: Machakos and Nairobi counties levels 4-6 hospitals Subjects: Seventy three (73) respondents drawn from the health facilities were interviewed Results: ICT content variables studied were operations computerised, ICT facilities provided and breakdown-replacement protocol. Context variables included on-job ICT trainings, ICT training sponsorships by facility and presence of institutional ICT induction program. The process variables were staff involvement in design of ICT aspects and presence of ICT policy. Among contextual factors, presence of institutional induction training program on ICT was relatively high compared to ICT training on job and ICT training sponsorship offered by facility (χ= 28.15, d.f=2, p<0.001 at 95%CI). Under process dimensions, presence of ICT policy at facility was higher compared to staff involvement in design of ICT aspects (χ =15.03, d.f =2 and p<0.001). Among the content factors, the ICT facilities provided was relatively high in all the facilities compared to levels of services operations computerised and breakdownreplacement protocol (χ=18.4, d.f =6 and p<0.005). Under the challenges, reliability of ICT infrastructure posed the greatest challenge towards up scaling of ICT among the content factors (χ=10.79, d.f. = 4, p-value=0.029). Process factor related challenges also had major impact on up scaling of ICT i.e. less up scaling of ICT that was attributed to lack of support from hospital top management team (χ 9.44, d.f.=4 and p=0.005). Comparing levels 5 and 6 facilities, the context dimension; presence of institutional induction training on ICT was the main factor that affected both facilities equally in relation to up scaling of ICT (p-value=0.021). Comparing level 4 facilities to level 6, process and content dimensions were the main factors that determined ICT uptake specifically availability of ICT policies in the institutions (p=0.011) and the levels of services operations that have been computerized (p=0.010) respectively. Conclusion: The study findings showed that content and process dimensions were the major aspects that were critical for positive up scaling of ICT in public health facilities. These factors were setting-dependent on the classification of the facility levels, in this study the level 4 facilities had poor up scaling of ICT compared to level 5 and level 6. The specific key attributes included: Strong management involvement in ICT related matters (process dimensions), availability and implementation of an ICT policy especially among level 4(process dimension), presence of an institutional induction training program on ICT (context dimension), type of ICT support provided and its reliability (content dimension) and level of services operations computerized (content). The major challenges that hindered up scaling of ICT were reliability of ICT infrastructure under the content factors and lack of support from hospital top management team under the process related factors. October 2016 East african MEdical Journal 542


ABSTRACT Evolutionary changes in lifestyle (e.g., terrestrial vs. aquatic habits) influence tetrapod limb morphology. Similar evolutionary trends in osteogenetic sequences (order of bone ossification) and bone microstructure are often shared in extant tetrapods with similar habit preferences: such data are sometimes available from extinct taxa. The pachypleurosaurids from Monte San Giorgio (Switzerland, Italy) are Triassic marine reptiles with high quality, complete ontogenetic series. We studied osteogenesis and bone histology in the four species from this locality, comparing these with data from Recent terrestrial lizards and secondarily aquatic reptiles in order to determine if the osteogenetic sequences of pachypleurosaurids were similar to either the hypothesized plesiomorphic condition for terrestrial eureptilians or those of Recent aquatic reptiles. Pachypleurosaurian limb osteogenesis occurs in two steps: (1) developmental sequences of ossification during embryology and/or in early neonates, (2a) additional primary periosteal compaction processes, and (2b) additional primary and secondary endosteal compaction processes during neonate ontogeny. Taphonomic patterns reveal information on the order of the initiation and termination of these steps, which are (A) onset of ossification, (B) onset of additional compaction processes (early phase), and (C) termination of additional compaction processes (final phase). An event pairing analysis found that ossification of forelimb elements in pachypleurosaurids precedes that of the hind limb elements in all osteogenetic stages except for initiation of ossification (A). The order of their early phase compaction processes is similar to the hypothesized plesiomorphic eureptilian condition, whereas their final phase compaction processes varies among pachypleurosaurids, with S. mirigiolensis showing minor heterochronic shifts and N. edwardsii showing many heterochronic shifts relative to the hypothesized ancestral condition. Pachypleurosaurids from Monte San Giorgio increase the number of heterochronic shifts with decreasing stratigraphic age, showing a transition from more 'terrestrial' to more 'aquatic' osteogenetic sequences in comparison to data on ossification sequences of Recent aquatic reptiles.


Background: Attention to cultural beliefs and values is a critical component of culturally competent cancer care for prevention, treatment, and control among all individuals. Yet, culturally tailored interventions have only been developed for racial and ethnic minorities. This is because cultural beliefs and values for cancer behavioral outcomes have only been ascribed to and evaluated in racial and ethnic groups. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate racial and ethnic differences in cultural beliefs and values related to religiosity, collectivism, individualism, and past and present temporal orientation for cancer prevention and control (CPC) in a national random sample of African Americans, whites, and Hispanic adults (n=1699). Respondents completed the Multi-Dimensional Cultural Values Assessment Tool (MCVAT) to assess cultural beliefs and values for CPC. Results: There were significant racial/ethnic differences only in religious beliefs and values for CPC. Compared to whites, African Americans (Coefficient=3.75, p=0.001) and Hispanic (Coefficient=2.42, p=0.001) reported significantly greater religiosity. In addition, religious values were higher among respondents who were female (Coefficient=1.10, p=0.01), those who were high school graduates or had less education (Coefficient=-1.87, p=0.001), and respondents who had incomes less than $50,000 (Coefficient=-2.23, p=0.001). Education had a similar association with collectivist values (Coefficient=-1.01, p=0.01), but only the comparison of Hispanics versus whites had a significant association with these values (oefficient=0.76, p=0.04), individualistic values for CPC (Coefficient=1.04, p=0.001), and past (OR=1.85, 95% CI=1.28, 2.68, p=0.001) and present temporal orientation (OR=1.72, 95% CI=1.21, 2.44, p=0.003). Conclusions: With the exception of religiosity, there are few differences in cultural beliefs and values for CPC between African Americans, whites, and Hispanics. Endorsement of cultural beliefs and values should not be assumed based on racial and ethnic group membership. Rather, cultural beliefs and values for CPC should be evaluated individually among patients and at-risk groups to provide culturally competent cancer care. Citation Format: Melanie Jefferson, Jodie Riley, Lashanta Rice, Chanita Hughes-Halbert. Racial differences in cultural values for cancer prevention and control: Fact or fiction. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Seventh AACR Conference on The Science of Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; Nov 9-12, 2014; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2015;24(10 Suppl):Abstract nr A55.


In the present work, studied the performance of an adsorbent such as saw dust, which is less in cost and easily available. The saw dust was used for the removal of chromium (VI) from an adsorbate solution, which was prepared as the quality of effluent of both electroplating industry and tannery industry. The adsorbentmaterial was found to be an efficientmedia for removal of Chromium (VI) ion in continuous mode using the fixed bed isothermal adsorption column. A comparative study has been done on the adsorption capacity of different sizes of saw dust. The column studies were conducted with column diameter of 7 cmand bed height of 40 cm. The flow rate of solution passing through the adsorbent bed was maintained at a constant rate of 1litre/min. It was found that the percentage removal of Chromium(VI) ion decreased initially further it was increased with the decrease in initial concentration of chromium(VI). Itwas also observed that the order of adsorption capacity of different sizes of saw dust forChromium(VI)was as follows: 0.353mm> 0.767mm>1.379mm.The results were shown that the sawdust is an efficient adsorbent for the removal of Cr (VI) from industrial effluent. The percentage removal of chromium reaches 95% with increasing contact time.


The influence of structural disorder on superconductivity is not yet fully understood. A concurrent examination of crystallographic and physical properties of LaHg6.4 reveals that this material enters a superconducting state below Tc = 2.4 K while showing crystallographic disorder in one dimension. Lanthanum mercuride, which crystallizes in a new structure type (space group Cmcm, a = 9.779(2) Å, b = 28.891(4) Å, c = 5.0012(8) Å, Z = 8), has remained out of reach for nearly 50 years. In this crystal structure, strong disorder is present in the channels that propagate along the [001] direction. By implementing a combination of cutting-edge synthesis and characterization techniques, we were able to circumvent the complexity associated with the low formation temperature and chemical reactivity of this substance and study the superconductivity of LaHg6.4 in detail.


To assess the ion transport mechanism by which cholera causes the small bowel to secrete, ion transport rates and electrical potential difference (PD) were determined simultaneously in the normal and choleragen-treated dog ileum in vivo. The results indicate that, during cholera, HCO(3) is actively secreted (i.e., against both an electrical and a concentration gradient); Cl is also actively secreted, against a modest electrochemical gradient. Electrogenic pumping of one or both of these anions is probably responsible for an observed PD change of approximately 13 mv (lumen negative). Na secretion can be accounted for entirely by passive ion movement. K secretion can be partly explained by passive diffusion secondary to the negative intraluminal PD; however, its concentration in the secreted fluid is two to three times higher than expected on the basis of passive forces, suggesting a component of active K secretion. The PD response of the choleragen-treated ileum is normal in response to glucose, but there was no PD response to saline-free mannitol perfusion. This suggests that the normal differential permeability of the ileum to anions and cations may be altered by choleragen, although other explanations of this finding are also possible.


In California, for unknown reasons, the Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus swainsonii) has poor reproductive success, and its numbers have declined over the past 20 years. From June through August 1998 we monitored 70 nests of the Warbling Vireo in a previously unstudied population on the eastern slope of the northern Sierra Nevada. Nests were generally placed 7 m or higher in mature trees, situated at over 50% of the nest-plant's height, and most often in the periphery of the nest-plant's foliage. The two most common nest-plant species were the Quaking Aspen (Populus trernuloides, n -30) and Lodgepole Pine (Pinus contorta, n = 30). Such heavy reliance on a conifer by the Warbling Vireo has not been reported previously. Nest success was not significanfiy associated with habitat or nest-site characteristics; thus successful sites did not differ dramatically from unsuccessful sites. Most egg dates were concentrated within a single week (2-9 July), and most of the successful nests were in the egg-incubation phase during the first two weeks of July. Eighteen nests fledged at least one Warbling Vireo; one nest fledged a Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater). Seventy-four percent of nesting attempts failed; most failed nests showed signs of avian rather than mammalian predation. We recommend that vireo conservation efforts in the northern Sierra Nevada focus on increasing the availability of suitable nest sites by promoting mature stands of aspens and pines offering well-concealed nest sites in the periphery of the foliage, limiting forest disturbance in July during the critical nesting period, and minimizing environmental modifications that favor avian nest predators such as Steller's Jay (Cyanocitta


This study aims to describe the role of posyandu cadres in mobilizing community participation, in the role of posyandu cadres strongly influencing the participation of the community due to many obstacles that occur in the implementation of posyandu resulted from decreasing the visit of mothers in posyandu program and increase or move the visit of mothers to come To the posyandu. The method used in this research is qualitative method. Data collection techniques used through observation, documentation, and interviews with posyandu midwives, posyandu cadres, and mothers with toddlers in mobilizing community participation in the candlenut village. The result of this research is the inactivity of posyandu cadres located in Kemiri Village made mothers reluctant to come to posyandu because some mothers considered posyandu one eye and mothers rely more on personal physician, and also lack of cadre that make progress of program of posyandu Become obstructed and disorderly. In addition, the facilities provided are less, many mothers who sat idolnya because of limited seating waiting for mothers and toddlers, as for other obstacles that the program is given settled course there is no new program that can increase the visit of mothers to came to posyandu and lack of innovation from posyandu cadres.


There are important objects behind which constant supervision (monitoring) is necessary. According to regulations, on such objects the structured systems of monitoring and management of engineering systems of buildings and constructions are subject to obligatory installation. They provide supervision over the basic systems of object, using a network of geodetic and geotechnical sensors. This network, being the basic source of data about an object state, itself has defects. Nowadays not monitoring of limiting values, but revealing of tendencies becomes the purpose of the stress-strain analysis. With highest resolution and highest recording rate of current instruments the small deformations, caused by the daily temperature changes, can observed. These disturbances are present in the readings of all sensors and, therefore, may appear in the cross-correlation relations. If correlation dependences of a sensor or group of sensors with the majority of others is weakened it testifies to abnormal behavior either sensor, or object. Propose the method of supervision, which map changes in object-network state (behavior) into subspace of correlation characteristics of groups (associations) of sensors with strong correlations. The method provides supervision of changes in object-network state, it is insensitive to the spread in biases and gains of sensors, up most of defects in the network, at the same time, it is identifies and locates drifting and freezing sensors. Presents the results using the method for long-term monitoring constructions covered sports arena.


We investigated the dynamics of vortex matter confined to mesoscopic channels by means of mode locking experiments. When vortices move coherently through the pinning (shear) potential provided by static vortices in the channel edges, interference between the washboard frequency of the lattice and the frequency of superimposed rf-currents causes (Shapiro-like) steps in the dc-IV curves. These steps allow to trace directly how the number of moving rows in each channel and the frustration between row spacing and channel width, varies with magnetic field. The flow stress (∼ I c ) surprisingly exhibits maxima for mismatching (defective) structures, originating from traffic-jam-like flow due to disorder in the edges. We then focus on the behavior for higher fields, approaching the 2D melting field B m . In this regime the presence of the interference phenomenon, characteristic for crystalline motion, strongly depends on the velocity (applied frequency) at which vortices are probed. The minimum velocity to observe coherent, solid-like motion is found to diverge when the field is increased towards B m , above which the interference is absent for any frequency. This provides the first direct evidence for a velocity dependent, dynamic phase transition of vortex matter moving through disorder, as predicted by Koshelev and Vinokur.


Social surveys are often used to estimate unemployment duration distributions. Survey non-response may then cause a bias. We study this using a unique dataset that combines survey information of individual workers with administrative records of the same workers. The latter provide information on unemployment durations and personal characteristics of all survey respondents and non-respondents. We develop a method to empirically distinguish between two explanations for a bias in results based on only survey data: (1) selectivity due to related unobserved determinants of unemployment durations and non-response, and (2) a causal effect of a job exit on non-response. The latter may occur even in fully homogeneous populations. The methodology exploits variation in the timing of the duration outcome relative to the survey moment. The results show evidence for both explanations. We discuss implications for standard methods to deal with non-response bias.


Over the last decades, the number of farms has decreased while average farm size has increased in industrialised countries. We investigate whether these two concomitant trends have resulted in higher farmland concentration or not in the case of France. Deriving Gini coefficients as a measure of concentration from the estimation of parametric Lorenz curves, we show that this is not systematically the case at the sub-national scale of "departements". When studying the role of possible explanatory variables for farmland concentration, we find that milk quotas, CAP 2nd pillar subsidies and so-called structural measures (settlements and early retirement grants) have a significant impact. However, the availability and the price of agricultural land appear to be the most significant factors.


To investigate the relationship between the effects of gravity and hemodynamic responses to body tilts in the early steady-state, twelve healthy young adult males were passively tilted from the supine control position (SCP) to the 15 degrees, 30 degrees and 60 degrees head-up position (HU), and then the -15 degrees and -30 degrees head-down position (HD). Cardiac output (Q), stroke volume (SV), acceleration index (ACI) of the heart, thoracic fluid volume (TFV), blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), total peripheral vascular resistance (TPR) and ECG were measured. In the postural changes from SCP to the 15 degrees, 30 degrees and 60 degrees HU, the SV gradually decreased and the Q also decreased. The HR and TPR gradually increased. On the contrary, in the -15 degrees and -30 degrees HD, the SV increased and the Q increased and the HR and TPR decreased. The ACI increased in the HD, but decreased in the HU. The mean BP increased in the HU, but decreased in the HD. The TFV increased in the HD, and decreased in the HU. The average QRS vector was 56.1 degrees on the SCP and it increased in the HU, but decreased in the HD. In conclusion, the changes of hemodynamic parameters except in BP were linearly related to the sine of the tilt angle in regardless of HU or HD.


Over 475 individual age-determinations of British rocks, recorded in some sixty papers, have appeared during 1955–64, the decade in which isotopic dating reached practical maturity and began to have great effect in establishing the scale of events in historical geology, including that of the Pre-Cambrian. The willing co-operation of all the British laboratories in which isotopic ages are determined has enabled abstracts of these papers to be prepared for publication; the emphasis of the abstracts lies in the geological implications. In an introductory section (by P. A. Sabine& J. Watson), the number of determinations of British rocks is plotted against apparent ages. The resulting histograms are broadly similar to those derived from world-wide sources and from other countries, showing that they record not only the incidence of laboratory determinations but fundamentally significant geological events. Major peaks of activity are indicated, the implications of which are reviewed. Periods of plutonic activity are shown in the Lewisian at 2600 to 2200m.y. (Scourian) and 1600 to 1450m.y. (Laxfordian). Metamorphic rocks, migmatites, and granites from the Caledonian Belt are spread from about 750 to 360 m.y. with a weak maximum at 750 to 650 m.y. and a stronger one at 450 to 360 m.y. In south-west England metamorphic activity yields dates from 400 to 350m.y., and Hercynian granites dates from 300 to 250 m.y. Tertiary granites and allied rocks are mainly 65 to 50 m.y. old. In each abstract an attempt is made to include geographical locality, character and geological relationships of specimens investigated, method employed, and constants used, ages obtained, and conclusions drawn. Full indexes are provided.


In a completely randomised design, twenty four 12-months old Mongolian breed male lambs averaging 21.6 ± 0.48 kg of body weight (BW) were used to evaluate the effects of exogenous cellulase and xylanase enzyme preparations on feed intake, digestibility of nutrients, growth and economics of rearing lambs. The lambs were randomly assigned to six treatment groups with four animals per treatment. The treatment combinations comprised: i) two enzyme preparations, i.e. cellulase vs. xylanase (ENZc, ENZx), ii) two ration types, i.e. wheat straw + wheat bran (diet W) vs. barley straw + wheat bran (diet B) and iii) two control diets (diet W and diet B without enzyme preparations, –ENZ). Lambs were fed the cellulase and xylanase treated wheat and barley straws ad libitum whereas the wheat bran was offered at 400 g DM per day. Significant effects were observed for nutrient intake of diet B+ENZc, and for crude protein (CP) and neutral detergent fibre (NDF) digestibility of diet W+ENZc. The average daily gain (ADG) increased in all enzyme treated groups with highest values found in diet B+ENZc, but without significant differences found between the two enzyme preparations. Both enzyme preparations had positive effects on feed conversion ratio (FCR) of both diets, where by the highest values were found for diet B +ENZc. Enzyme preparation had no effect on the total feed cost for both diet types and showed positive effects on other economic parameters, where by cellulase yielded better results than xylanase. These results suggest that cellulase addition is effective for improving digestibility of nutrients, growth performance and net revenue ingrowing lambs.


We propose a unique cluster-based retrieval (CBR) strategy using a new cluster-skipping inverted file for improving query processing efficiency. The new inverted file incorporates cluster membership and centroid information along with the usual document information into a single structure. In our incremental-CBR strategy, during query evaluation, both best(-matching) clusters and the best(-matching) documents of such clusters are computed together with a single posting-list access per query term. As we switch from term to term, the best clusters are recomputed and can dynamically change. During query-document matching, only relevant portions of the posting lists corresponding to the best clusters are considered and the rest are skipped. The proposed approach is essentially tailored for environments where inverted files are compressed, and provides substantial efficiency improvement while yielding comparable, or sometimes better, effectiveness figures. Our experiments with various collections show that the incremental-CBR strategy using a compressed cluster-skipping inverted file significantly improves CPU time efficiency, regardless of query length. The new compressed inverted file imposes an acceptable storage overhead in comparison to a typical inverted file. We also show that our approach scales well with the collection size.


Translocation of individuals across a barrier which hampers natural colonisation is a potentially important, but debated, conservation tool for a variety of organisms in a world altered by anthropogenic influences. The apollo Parnassius apollo is an endangered butterfly whose distribution retracted dramatically during the 1900s across Europe. In Finland the apollo currently occupies only a fraction of the range of its suitable habitat and is apparently unable to re-colonise other areas. Using eggs collected from wild-caught females from the species' current Finnish stronghold, a population was reared in order to translocate larvae into an unoccupied, but highly suitable, part of the Finnish archipelago where the species historically occurred until its national decline in the 1950s. In 2009 a restricted number of larvae (1 larva/10 host plants) were released on 25 islands in the inner, middle and outer archipelago zones. In 2010, nine islands situated in all three archipelago zones were (re)stocked with a high density of larvae (1/host plant). In 2011, apollo larval populations were found only on islands in the outer archipelago zone, which were then restocked. The species remained present here in the following two years (2012, 2013) and was hence able to sustain multi-annual population establishment without restocking. Our findings demonstrate that empty suitable habitat may in reality consist of only a few sites where population establishment is possible. Hence, starting the introduction in many sites, which are putatively suitable based on biotic and abiotic criteria derived from species' existing populations, but then "zooming in" on a smaller set of promising sites showing evidence of successful establishment was key to the success of this translocation.


The current global gold rush, driven by increasing consumption in developing countries and uncertainty in financial markets, is an increasing threat for tropical ecosystems. Gold mining causes significant alteration to the environment, yet mining is often overlooked in deforestation analyses because it occupies relatively small areas. As a result, we lack a comprehensive assessment of the spatial extent of gold mining impacts on tropical forests. In this study, we provide a regional assessment of gold mining deforestation in the tropical moist forest biome of South America. Specifically, we analyzed the patterns of forest change in gold mining sites between 2001 and 2013, and evaluated the proximity of gold mining deforestation to protected areas (PAs). The forest cover maps were produced using the Land Mapper web application and images from the MODIS satellite MOD13Q1 vegetation indices 250 m product. Annual maps of forest cover were used to model the incremental change in forest in ∼1600 potential gold mining sites between 2001–2006 and 2007–2013. Approximately 1680 km2 of tropical moist forest was lost in these mining sites between 2001 and 2013. Deforestation was significantly higher during the 2007–2013 period, and this was associated with the increase in global demand for gold after the international financial crisis. More than 90% of the deforestation occurred in four major hotspots: Guianan moist forest ecoregion (41%), Southwest Amazon moist forest ecoregion (28%), Tapajós–Xingú moist forest ecoregion (11%), and Magdalena Valley montane forest and Magdalena–Urabá moist forest ecoregions (9%). In addition, some of the more active zones of gold mining deforestation occurred inside or within 10 km of ∼32 PAs. There is an urgent need to understand the ecological and social impacts of gold mining because it is an important cause of deforestation in the most remote forests in South America, and the impacts, particularly in aquatic systems, spread well beyond the actual mining sites.


It is well known that variability in the surface geology potentially leads to the modification of earthquake-induced ground motion over short distances. Although this effect is of major importance when seismic hazard is assessed at the urban level, it is very often not appropriately accounted for. In this paper, we present a first attempt at taking into account the influence of the shallow geological structure on the seismic hazard assessment for Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, using a proxy (Vs30) that has been estimated from in situ seismic noise array analyses, and considering response spectral ratios calculated by analyzing a series of earthquake recordings of a temporary seismic network. To highlight the spatial variability of the observed ground motion, the obtained results are compared with those estimated assuming a homogeneous Vs30 value over the whole urban area. The seismic hazard is evaluated in terms of peak ground acceleration (PGA) and spectral acceleration (SA) at different periods (frequencies). The presented results consider the values obtained for a 10% probability of exceedance in 50 years. The largest SA estimated considering a rock site classification of the area (0.43 g) is observed for a period of 0.1 s (10 Hz), while the maximum PGA reaches 0.21 g. When site effects are included through the Vs30 proxy in the seismic hazard calculation, the largest SA, 0.67 g, is obtained for a period of 0.3 s (about 3.3 Hz). In terms of PGA, in this case the largest estimated value reaches 0.31 g in the northern part of the town. When the variability of ground motion is accounted for through response spectrum ratios, the largest SA reaches a value as high as 1.39 g at a period of 0.5 s. In general, considering site effects in the seismic hazard assessment of Bishkek leads to an increase of seismic hazard in the north of the city, which is thus identified as the most hazardous part within the study area and which is more far away from the faults.


Leaf rust caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks belongs to the most important fungal pathogens of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and triticale (× Triticosecale). Effective resistance to leaf rust is both, cost-effective and environmentally safe. Many wild Aegilops species carry unknown resistances against fungal diseases and are characterized by a high genetic variability. The main goal of this work was to examine the resistance of (Aegilops tauschii × Secale cereale) × Triticosecale hybrids to leaf rust in inoculation tests with different races of P. triticina. Hybrid plants were selected for the presence of 2D chromosome/s in the triticale background using fluorescence and genomic in situ hybridization. The presence of leaf rust resistance genes was confirmed with closely linked molecular markers, i.e., Xgdm35 and Xgwm296. 14 genotypes of BC2F4 – BC2F6 hybrid plants with the monosomic addition of chromosome 2D (M2DA) were analyzed together with nine control lines. Resistance was determined at the macroscopic and microscopic level at the seedling and adult plant stage (flag leaf). In general, results revealed limited resistance of hybrid plants at the seedling stage, followed by an increase of the resistance level at later stages of plant development. This indicates that respective hybrid plants may exhibit APR resistance conferred by Lr22a introgressed from Ae. tauschii. On the basis of the macroscopic and microscopic analysis, this kind of resistance turned out to be additive and race-specific. We selected four monosomic 2D addition triticale genotypes highly resistant to P. triticina infection at the two main stages of plant development. From the selected genotypes, we obtained 26 doubled haploid lines among which two lines with doubled additional chromosomes 2D of Ae. tauschii can be used for further breeding to increase leaf rust resistance of cultivated triticale.


Laminitis is a common debilitating disease in horses that involves painful disruption of the lamellar dermo-epidermal junction within the hoof. This condition is often refractory to conventional anti-inflammatory analgesia and results in unremitting pain, which in severe cases requires euthanasia. The mechanisms underlying pain in laminitis were investigated using quantification of behavioural pain indicators in conjunction with histological studies of peripheral nerves innervating the hoof. Laminitic horses displayed consistently altered or abnormal behaviours such as increased forelimb lifting and an increased proportion of time spent at the back of the box compared to normal horses. Electron micrographic analysis of the digital nerve of laminitic horses showed peripheral nerve morphology to be abnormal, as well as having reduced numbers of unmyelinated (43.2%) and myelinated fibers (34.6%) compared to normal horses. Sensory nerve cell bodies innervating the hoof, in cervical, C8 dorsal root ganglia (DRG), showed an upregulated expression of the neuronal injury marker, activating transcription factor-3 (ATF3) in both large NF-200immunopositive neurons and small neurons that were either peripherinor IB4-positive. A significantly increased expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY) was also observed in myelinated afferent neurons. These changes are similar to those reported in other neuropathic pain states and were not observed in the C4 DRG of laminitic horses, which is not associated with innervation of the forelimb. This study provides novel evidence for a neuropathic component to the chronic pain state associated with equine laminitis, indicating that anti-neuropathic analgesic treatment may well have a role in the management of this condition. 2007 International Association for the Study of Pain. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.


Many software companies disseminate process knowledge through electronic process guides. A common problem with such guides is that they are not used. Through a case study, we investigated how participation in creating an electronic process guide, through process workshops, influenced the use of the guide. We studied developer and project manager usage with respect to three factors: frequency of use, used functionality, and reported advantages and disadvantages. We collected data from three rounds of interviews and 19 months of usage logs in a longitudinal study in a medium-size software company. Employees who participated in process workshops showed a higher degree of usage, used a larger number of functions, and expressed more advantages and disadvantages than those not involved. Our study suggests that employee participation has a long-term positive effect on electronic process guide usage.


Periodontitis has low-prevalence, highly severe disease manifestations with an early onset and rapid progression. The diagnosis is based on severe destruction of the alveolar bone in adolescents and young adults. Genetic susceptibility variants and smoking are well-established risk factors, but their interactions in modifying disease susceptibility have not been studied. We aimed to identify genetic risk variants of early-onset periodontitis that unmask their effects on tobacco smoke exposure. To this end, we analyzed 79,780,573 common variants in 741 northwest Europeans diagnosed to have >30% bone loss at >2 teeth before 35 y of age, using imputed genotypes of the OmniExpress BeadChip. Never versus ever smokers were compared in a logistic regression analysis via a case-only approach. To explore the effect of tobacco smoke on the expression of the G×S-associated genes, cultures of primary gingival fibroblasts (n = 9) were exposed to cigarette smoke extract, and transcripts were quantified by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. We identified 16 loci for which our analysis suggested an association with G×S increased disease risk (P < 5 × 10−5). Nine loci had previously been reported to be associated with spirometric measures of pulmonary function by an earlier G×S genome-wide association study. Genome-wide significant cis expression quantitative trait loci were reported for G×S-associated single-nucleotide polymorphisms at ST8SIA1 and SOST, indicating a causal role of these genes in tobacco-related etiopathology. Notably, SOST is a negative regulator of bone growth, and ST8SIA1 has a role in tissue remodeling. Cigarette smoke extract significantly altered the expression of 2 associated genes: SSH1 (P = 5 × 10−07), which is required for NF-κB activation and innate immune responses to bacterial invasion, and ST8SIA1 (P = 0.0048). We conclude that the genetic predisposition to early-onset periodontitis is in part triggered by smoking and that tobacco smoke directly affects the expression of genes involved in bone homeostasis, tissue repair, and immune response.


In PV systems connected to the grid requires a kWh meter to measure the amount of power delivered to the grid, and an inverter to convert the DC voltage generated by PV into AC voltage. The latest generation of Inverter using the high switching frequency to obtain the inverter with good efficiency, small in sizes and lightweight. This led to the emergence of harmonics to the grid through the instrument of kWh meter, and caused the kWh-meter is not working properly. This study is intended to obtain the minimum value of the switching frequency which affect the results of measurement of Digital kWh meters. Kwh-meter tested by varying the switching frequency which is obtained from various types of inverters and from the simulator of switching of high frequencies.


Light intensity and photoperiod are two important factors to the growth and secondary metabolite accumulation of in vitro plants, especially under photoautotrophic micropropagation. Internodal segments carrying 1 leaf of in vitro Phyllanthus amarus plants were used as explants. Four explants were put on MS medium with half strength macro elements and without sugar and vitamins, in a Magenta box-type vessel (V = 370 ml). There were two holes (Ф = 1 cm) covered by Millipore membranes (Ф = 0.45 µm) on the vessel lid. Perlite was used as supporting material. The experiment was carried out with 3 different light intensities (80, 120 or 160 µmol m -2 s -1 ) in combination with 3 levels of photoperiod (8, 12 or 16 hours per day), under room temperature of 25 ± 2 o C and relative humidity of 50%. On day 40, Phyllanthus amarus plants grew better under higher PPF and longer photoperiod. Increased fresh weight and dry weight, stem diameter and shoot lenght of in vitro plants were the highest under the PPF of 160 μmol m -2 s -1 and the photoperiod of 16 hours per day. Phyllanthin, hypophyllanthin and niranthin contents were the largest when plants were cultured under the PPF of 80 µmol m -2 s -1 and the photoperiod of 12 hours per day.


Little research has examined the incidence and dynamics of abuse between premarital partners at all levels of commitment. The present questionnaire study found the incidence of premarital abuse to be substantial and largely reciprocal in nature. Abuse typically began after some degree of commitment was established. Abuse was usually seen as caused by anger, although the effect of abuse on the relationship was not routinely seen as detrimental. It appeared that one possible explanation for abuse in these relationships was that those who stayed in abusive situations reported having fewer alternatives to the violent relationship than those who had terminated an abusive liaison. In general, the respondents had negative attitudes toward violence in relationships. However, those who had experienced abuse were more accepting of violence than those who had not experienced premarital abuse. The discussion focuses on several suggestions for further research to construct a clearer picture of premarital abuse.


The glucocorticoid receptor (GR), including both alternative spliced isoforms (GRα and GRβ), has been implicated in the development of primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) and iatrogenic glucocorticoid-induced glaucoma (GIG). POAG is the most common form of glaucoma, which is the leading cause of irreversible vision loss and blindness in the world. Glucocorticoids (GCs) are commonly used therapeutically for ocular and numerous other diseases/conditions. One serious side effect of prolonged GC therapy is the development of iatrogenic secondary ocular hypertension (OHT) and OAG (i.e., GC-induced glaucoma (GIG)) that clinically and pathologically mimics POAG. GC-induced OHT is caused by pathogenic damage to the trabecular meshwork (TM), a tissue involved in regulating aqueous humor outflow and intraocular pressure. TM cells derived from POAG eyes (GTM cells) have a lower expression of GRβ, a dominant negative regulator of GC activity, compared to TM cells from age-matched control eyes. Therefore, GTM cells have a greater pathogenic response to GCs. Almost all POAG patients develop GC-OHT when treated with GCs, in contrast to a GC responder rate of 40% in the normal population. An increased expression of GRβ can block GC-induced pathogenic changes in TM cells and reverse GC-OHT in mice. The endogenous expression of GRβ in the TM may relate to differences in the development of GC-OHT in the normal population. A number of studies have suggested increased levels of endogenous cortisol in POAG patients as well as differences in cortisol metabolism, suggesting that GCs may be involved in the development of POAG. Additional studies are warranted to better understand the molecular mechanisms involved in POAG and GIG in order to develop new disease-modifying therapies to better treat these two sight threatening forms of glaucoma. The purpose of this timely review is to highlight the pathological and clinical features of GC-OHT and GIG, mechanisms responsible for GC responsiveness, potential therapeutic options, as well as to compare the similar features of GIG with POAG.


The way long-term synaptic plasticity regulates neuronal spike patterns is not completely understood. This issue is especially relevant for the cerebellum, which is endowed with several forms of long-term synaptic plasticity and has been predicted to operate as a timing and a learning machine. Here we have used a computational model to simulate the impact of multiple distributed synaptic weights in the cerebellar granular-layer network. In response to mossy fiber (MF) bursts, synaptic weights at multiple connections played a crucial role to regulate spike number and positioning in granule cells. The weight at MF to granule cell synapses regulated the delay of the first spike and the weight at MF and parallel fiber to Golgi cell synapses regulated the duration of the time-window during which the first-spike could be emitted. Moreover, the weights of synapses controlling Golgi cell activation regulated the intensity of granule cell inhibition and therefore the number of spikes that could be emitted. First-spike timing was regulated with millisecond precision and the number of spikes ranged from zero to three. Interestingly, different combinations of synaptic weights optimized either first-spike timing precision or spike number, efficiently controlling transmission and filtering properties. These results predict that distributed synaptic plasticity regulates the emission of quasi-digital spike patterns on the millisecond time-scale and allows the cerebellar granular layer to flexibly control burst transmission along the MF pathway.


We present measurements of the spectroscopic coherence time, T2* of a Nb-AlOx-Nb dc SQUID phase qubit. T2* is calculated from the spectroscopic width of the |0rang to |1rang transition measured at 25 mK. We find that T2*increases at higher transition frequencies corresponding to measurements deeper in the potential well. The measured are consistent with root mean square current noise saturating at 4 nA.


This paper presents a compact procedure for classifying the importance of elements in a user interface based on the visual walkthrough method. This method was used during a usability evaluation of an information service for healthcare professionals. Paper printouts were given to users who were asked to highlight the parts of the system they consider most important for them. This method proved to be a quick and useful way to understand which parts of complex user interfaces are the most important for users. In addition, heat maps were constructed based on these answers and they proved to be an easy way to visualise the results both for the evaluators and the different stakeholders. These heat maps could be formed right after the last test session, on the spot of the actual test session.


Load balancing is a computer networking method which is used to distribute the load across computer clusters or multiple computers, central processing units to achieve optimal resource utilization, maximize throughput, minimize response time and prevent overload. There are various methods to balance the load. This paper discusses the design and implementation of a policy engine to dynamically balance the load over a network, using live migration feature of KVM. The goal is to provide a provisioning monitor that can dynamically make decisions about migration of heavily/lightly loaded virtual machines.


In quantitative finance, modeling the volatility structure of underlying assets is a key component in the pricing of options. Rough stochastic volatility models, such as the rough Bergomi model [Bayer, Friz, Gatheral, Quantitative Finance 16(6), 887-904, 2016], seek to fit observed market data based on the observation that the log-realized variance behaves like a fractional Brownian motion with small Hurst parameter, $H < 1/2$, over reasonable timescales. Both time series data of asset prices and option derived price data indicate that $H$ often takes values close to $0.1$ or smaller, i.e. rougher than Brownian Motion. This change greatly improves the fit to time series data of underlying asset prices as well as to option prices while maintaining parsimoniousness. However, the non-Markovian nature of the driving fractional Brownian motion in the rough Bergomi model poses severe challenges for theoretical and numerical analyses as well as for computational practice. While the explicit Euler method is known to converge to the solution of the rough Bergomi model, the strong rate of convergence is only $H$. We prove rate $H + 1/2$ for the weak convergence of the Euler method and, surprisingly, in the case of quadratic payoff functions we obtain rate one. Indeed, the problem of weak convergence for rough Bergomi is very subtle; we provide examples demonstrating that the rate of convergence for payoff functions well approximated by second-order polynomials, as weighted by the law of the fractional Brownian motion, may be hard to distinguish from rate one empirically. Our proof relies on Taylor expansions and an affine Markovian representation of the underlying and is further supported by numerical experiments.


Despite extensive genetic analysis of the dynamic multi-phase process that transforms a small population of lateral plate mesoderm into the mature limb skeleton, the mechanisms by which signaling pathways regulate cellular behaviors to generate morphogenetic forces are not known. Recently, a series of papers have offered the intriguing possibility that regulated cell polarity fine-tunes the morphogenetic process via orienting cell axes, division planes and cell movements. Wnt5a-mediated non-canonical signaling, which may include planar cell polarity, has emerged as a common thread in the otherwise distinct signaling networks that regulate morphogenesis in each phase of limb development. These findings position the limb as a key model to elucidate how global tissue patterning pathways direct local differences in cell behavior that, in turn, generate growth and form.


While a mind-altering-substance consumption alleviates current level of depression, it facilitates future depression. Our analysis incorporates this trade off and shows that the stationary state of a consistently overly ambitious sophisticated substance user is improved by impatience, and that this improvement is amplified by the ratio of the instantaneous depression-relief effect to the state-degradation effect of the substance. The analysis also shows that the existence of a supportive personal community leads to permanent cyclical substance consumption when the user is relatively patient.


Acoustic propagation in the ocean waveguide is characterized by mutual interference between the multiple ray paths connecting a source-receiver pair. In the Russian literature, these interference effects have been distilled mathematically into a single parameter, the so-called waveguide invariant defined as beta. The conventional wisdom is that the numerical value of beta is negative in deep water and positive in shallow water. In the present work, it is shown how the waveguide invariant can bifurcate and simultaneously have both positive and negative components. When bifurcation occurs, range-frequency mappings of acoustic intensity become fragmented. A method to separate the positive-beta components from the negative is sketched and applied to simulated data. Possible applications are discussed.


Aqueous dispersions of phosphatidylglycerol (PG) lipids may present an anomalous chain-melting transition at low ionic strengths, as seen by different experimental techniques such as calorimetry or light scattering. The anomaly disappears at high ionic strengths or for longer acyl-chain lengths. In this article, we use a statistical model for the bilayer that distinguishes both lipid chain and headgroup states in order to compare model and experimental thermotropic and electrical properties. The effective van der Waals interactions among hydrophobic chains compete with the electrostatic repulsions between polar headgroups, which may be ionized (counterion dissociated) or electrically neutral (associated with counterions). Electric degrees of freedom introduce new thermotropic charge-ordered phases in which headgroup charges may be spatially ordered, depending on the electrolyte ionic strength, introducing a new rationale for experimental data on PGs. The thermal phases presented by the model for different chain lengths, at fixed ionic strength, compare well with an experimental phase diagram constructed on the basis of differential scanning calorimetry profiles. In the case of dispersions of DMPG (dimyristoyl phosphatidylglycerol) with added monovalent salt, the model properties reproduce the main features displayed by data from differential scanning calorimetry as well as the characteristic profile for the degree of ionization of the bilayer surface across the anomalous transition region, obtained from the theoretical interpretation of electrokinetic (conductivity and electrophoretic mobility) measurements.


Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) is frequently found in diarrheal stools worldwide. It has been associated with persistent diarrhea, weight loss, and failure to thrive in children living in developing countries. A number of important EAEC virulence genes are identified; however, their roles in acute and persistent diarrhea have not been previously investigated. The aim of this study was to identify specific EAEC virulence genes associated with duration and type of diarrhea in Danish children. We aimed to improve the current diagnostics of EAEC and enable targeting of strains with an expected severe disease course. Questionnaires answered by parents provided information regarding duration of diarrhea and presence of blood or mucus. A total of 295 EAEC strains were collected from children with acute (≤7 days) and persistent diarrhea (≥14 days) and were compared by using multiplex PCR targeting the genes sat, sepA, pic, sigA, pet, astA, aatA, aggR, aaiC, aap, agg3/4C, ORF3, aafA, aggA, agg3A, agg4A, and agg5A. Furthermore, the distribution of EAEC genes in strains collected from cases of bloody, mucoid, and watery diarrhea was investigated. The classification and regression tree analysis (CART) was applied to investigate the relationship between EAEC virulence genes and diarrheal duration and type. Persistent diarrhea was associated with strains lacking the pic gene (p = 0.002) and with the combination of the genes pic, sat, and absence of the aggA gene (p = 0.05). Prolonged diarrhea was associated with the combination of the genes aatA and astA (p = 0.03). Non-mucoid diarrhea was associated with strains lacking the aatA gene (p = 0.004). Acute diarrhea was associated with the genes aggR, aap, and aggA by individual odds ratios. Resistance toward gentamicin and ciprofloxacin was observed in 7.5 and 3% of strains, respectively. Multi-drug resistance was observed in 38% of strains. Genetic host factors have been associated with an increased risk of EAEC-associated disease. Therefore, we investigated a panel of risk factors in two groups of children—EAEC-positive and EAEC-negative—to identify additional factors predisposing to disease. The duration of breastfeeding was positively correlated with the likelihood of belonging to the EAEC-negative group of children.


The notion that present value of cash flows is often improperly estimated in financial models concerning capital improvements and abandonments is a fundamental problem in decision analysis in management and associated decisions and affects estimation of  and valuation of intellectual property. Previous studies indicate the usefulness of estimation theory in financial in financial accounting. During the Covid Pandemic of the past few years decisions by governmental and health authorities in the United States and the World were often dictatated during the Pandemic  by short-term political influences which included disinformation by some who wished to rake advantage of the misuse of  the health Pandemic  for political gain and/or financial power and short-term financial gain. Previously this was  show to be true as the media with the aid of self-promotional activities by many who were attempting this kind of gain. Furthermore  the Pandemic in the United States and other nations is receding in drfamatic ways and many restrictions of the Endemic era are nolonger in use. This was the result of Mask restrictions and increasing but not universal vaccine programs many states and nations.


This paper examines product elimination in the UK's financial services sector. Specifically it considers how success is defined and measured. The literature explains that in financial services the ability to fully eliminate a product is difficult due to contractual and legislative barriers. This has resulted in the use of two forms of elimination – partial and full. An empirical study of retail banks, building societies and insurance organisations was undertaken. It was identified that success is defined by the specific objectives used in implementing either of these strategies. The study identified that success was measured by the extent to which product removal was achieved in line with the set objectives of elimination, and how removal resulted in performance gains for other business activities.


Industrial wireless sensor networks have attracted much attention as a cornerstone to making the smart factories real. Utilizing industrial wireless sensor networks as a base for smart factories makes it possible to optimize the production line without human resources, since it provides industrial Internet of Things service, where various types of data are collected from sensors and mined to control the machines based on the analysis result. On the other hand, a fog computing node, which executes such real-time feedback control, should be capable of real-time data collection, management, and processing. To achieve these requirements, in this paper, we introduce wireless computing system (WCS) as a fog computing node. Since there are a lot of servers and each server has 60 GHz antennas to connect to other servers and sensors, WCS has high collecting and processing capabilities. However, in order to fulfill a demand for real-time feedback control, WCS needs to satisfy an acceptable delay for data collection. In addition, lower power consumption is required in order to reduce the cost for the factory operation. Therefore, we propose an energy-efficient and delay-aware WCS. Since there is a tradeoff relationship between the power consumption and the delay for data collection, our proposed system controls the sleep schedule and the number of links to minimize the power consumption while satisfying an acceptable delay constraint. Furthermore, the effectiveness of our proposed system is evaluated through extensive computer simulations.


Tuberculosis (TB), a major disease of public health importance, continues to cause signifi - cant morbidity and mortality to populations around the world. In 2016, it accounted for 1.7 million deaths worldwide. While the mortality rate among patients undergoing TB treatment has been declining over the years, TB death rates remains high in developing countries. This chapter discusses the epidemiology of TB mortality, the pathogenesis of TB highlighting susceptibility to mortality, and the interaction of factors which determine an individual's risk to death on account of TB. Furthermore, the chapter proposes the need for a strategic research agenda on reduction of TB burden, focusing on the factors that enable or impede political will towards translating knowledge into effective action.


What can we learn about applied price theory from the Bourgeois Era? In this paper, we contend there are three important lessons that can be extracted from McCloskey's work on the Great Enrichment. First, transaction costs are not constraints, but objects of choice. Second, property rights are not merely a "bundle of sticks," in that private property rights make exchange possible, but a culture of liberal ideas makes exchange viable. Third, ideas conducive to liberalism give rise to generalized increasing returns to the scope, rather than scale, of market exchange, which generated the Great Enrichment.


Abstract On the Large Helical Device (LHD), improved confinement of fast ions by moving the magnetic axis location inward is theoretically predicted. This improvement is observed significantly in the fast-ion tail formation during the experiments of ion cyclotron range of frequency heating. The fast-ion loss effect on the tail formation is 10 times more significant in the standard configuration than in the inwardly shifted configurations. The superiority is also confirmed by the comparison of steady-state fast-ion spectra for the neutral beam (NB)–heated plasmas and by the flux decay of fast neutrals after the short-pulse injection of radial NB.


Significant ecosystem changes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence (GSL), Canada, have had far-reaching effects at all trophic levels. The abundance of fin whales Balaenoptera physalus has declined significantly in the northern GSL over the past decade. This study aimed to test the hypothesis that the observed decline was correlated to changing environmental conditions. Cetacean sightings data from 292 surveys, resulting in 2986 fin whale encounters from 2007 to 2013, were used to fit 2 separate generalised additive models in terms of (1) bathymetric and oceanographic variables (the proxy model) and (2) modelled krill biomass (the prey model). The concept of 'handling time' was introduced to correct for time off search effort, applicable to other studies relying on opportunistically sampled data. While a positive correlation between krill biomass and fin whale numbers was found, the performance of the proxy model (24.2% deviance explained) was overall better than the prey model (11.8%). Annual predictive maps derived from the final proxy model highlighted 2 key areas with recurrently high relative fin whale abundance and a significant overlap with shipping lanes. While both models provided evidence for an annual decline in relative fin whale abundance, static bathymetric features were the most important predictors of habitat use, and no correlation between dynamic variables and the decline was found. High resolution prey data and a better understanding of the feeding ecology of fin whales are proposed to further investigate the predator-prey relationship and decline of fin whales in the GSL.


During the Arctic Clouds in Summer Experiment (ACSE) in summer 2014 a weeklong period of warm-air advection over melting sea ice, with the formation of a strong surface temperature inversion and dense fog, was observed. Based on an analysis of the surface energy budget, we formulated the hypothesis that, because of the airmass transformation, additional surface heating occurs during warm-air intrusions in a zone near the ice edge. To test this hypothesis, we explore all cases with surface inversions occurring during ACSE and then characterize the inversions in detail. We find that they always occur with advection from the south and are associated with subsidence. Analyzing only inversion cases over sea ice, we find two categories: one with increasing moisture in the inversion and one with constant or decreasing moisture with height. During surface inversions with increasing moisture with height, an extra 10–25 W m−2 of surface heating was observed, compared to cases without surface inversions; the surface turbulent heat flux was the largest single term. Cases with less moisture in the inversion were often cloud free and the extra solar radiation plus the turbulent surface heat flux caused by the inversion was roughly balanced by the loss of net longwave radiation.


Background As physical capability declines in later life difficulties performing a range of common tasks of daily living develop in a commonly observed sequence. Difficulty is initially reported in tasks considered hardest to perform (e.g. climbing stairs) before being reported in less complex tasks (e.g. feeding oneself). Most previous work has demonstrated this hierarchy of loss cross-sectionally and in older populations (>70 years). The aim of this study was to use longitudinal data to examine the hierarchy of loss in midlife, at an age when there may be greater opportunity for intervention to prevent disability. Methods In the Medical Research Council (MRC) National Survey of Health and Development self-reported measures of functional ability have been collected at ages 43, 53 and 60–64. Using these data we calculated the prevalence of difficulties in three of the most complex tasks (i.e. gripping, walking and stair-climbing) at all three ages. We then calculated the prevalence of reported difficulty in all 17 tasks at 60–64, using Mokken Scaling to establish the hierarchical order of these. Finally, we examined progression across the hierarchy over time. Using logistic regression we calculated the odds ratio of reporting difficulty performing tasks at the bottom of the hierarchy (i.e. feeding, washing and/or toileting) at age 60–64 by reported difficulty performing tasks at the top of the hierarchy (i.e. gripping, walking and/or stair-climbing) at age 43. Adjustments were made for sex, age, body mass index, health status and socio-economic position and, those with severe disability at 43 were excluded. Results At age 43, the prevalence of reported difficulties gripping, walking and stepping ranged between 1.3–3.0% but by age 60–64 had increased to 11.0–19.3%. At age 60–64 a strong hierarchical order to the loss of function was observed (Loevinger Scalability Coefficient H=0.56); gripping was the first task participants reported difficulty with and feeding oneself the last. Participants who reported difficulty gripping, walking and/or stair-climbing at 43 were 3.34 (95% CI: 1.71–6.50) times more likely to report difficulty feeding, washing and/or toileting at 60–64 than people who reported no difficulty at 43. Conclusion These findings demonstrate that the hierarchy of loss in functional ability is observed in younger populations. This suggests that targeted interventions to prevent mobility disability should not be delayed until old age as high risk individuals can be identified in midlife, with substantial declines in functional ability already occurring in some people by this age.


Congenital hypothyroidism (CH), one of the most common congenital endocrine disorders, causes irreversible intellectual disability in untreated patients. Today, the vast majority of patients receive early diagnosis and treatment in the context of newborn screening for CH, and achieve satisfactory cognitive development. However, a subset of patients with delayed onset are undetectable by newborn screening, and miss benefit from early intervention. Here, we report on a delayed‐onset CH patient that had two contributing factors in the pathogenesis of CH simultaneously, i.e., a genetic defect and iodine excess. The patient was exposed to excessive iodine in utero because her mother consumed massive amounts of seaweed during pregnancy. Surprisingly, the patient had a negative result in newborn screening, but developed overt CH at age 3 months. She received thyroxine supplementation until when normalization of the thyroid function was confirmed at age 3 years (i.e., transient CH). Mutation screening for DUOX2, a causative gene for transient CH, showed biallelic mutations (p.[E327X] + [H678R]). This report provides a new example of environmental modification of phenotypes of CH due to a genetic defect, which can potentially distort screening results. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


This paper analyses the impact on investments of contractual arrangements between farms and agribusiness in the Armenian dairy sector. Our empirical evidence is based on a unique survey of 300 Armenian dairy farms. The dairy sector is of particular importance as it provides vital employment and income, in an environment of weak social security and scarce job opportunities. Furthermore, milk production is predominantly organized in small-scale farms, which are most likely to be affected by adversarial financial conditions and limited in their opportunities to raise resources to invest. The results show that a large share of milk producers in Armenia is actively investing to upgrade their farm business. Furthermore, investment activity is not limited to large dairy farmers as over 30% of respondents with less than eight cows have made dairy-specific investments. We find that the linkages between farms and agribusiness – and more specifically the support programs that agribusiness firms offer to their suppliers – have been crucial in stimulating this restructuring process at the farm level. Interestingly, farmers with a more exclusive relationship to the buyer and farmers that deliver to more internationally oriented buyers are more likely to receive support. On the other hand, buyers that operate in a more competitive market are less likely to provide support to their suppliers. These findings have interesting policy implications. On the one hand, our results point to the gains that can be made from openness to international firms. On the other hand, the negative competition effect indicates that buyers are unable to enforce repayment of the provided farm services in an environment where a lot of buyers are competing for the same supply. Policy makers should look at ways of improving the enforcement capability of dairy companies under these circumstances. 1 The data used in this paper were collected in the SIDCISA (Supporting the International Development of CIS Agriculture) research project. This project was funded by EU INTAS.


ABSTRACT Objectives The Caregiver Reaction Scale (CRS) is a multi-dimensional measure of the family caregiving experience that assesses role conflict, challenges, and positive aspects of caregiving. The CRS has been validated in a sample of older adult caregivers who sought counseling, but its validity and reliability in a broader population of caregivers had not been established. This study aimed to explore how well the CRS assesses the multiple dimensions of the caregiving experience in a sample of family caregivers who match the national profile of caregivers and to confirm the validity and structure of the subscales. Methods Family caregivers (N = 452), age 18–89 (M = 48.56, SD = 17.15) were recruited online and completed the CRS and questionnaires of burden and positive aspects of caregiving. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to confirm the underlying factor structure of the CRS, and convergent and discriminant validity was examined. Results CFA supported the existing structure of the CRS; all subscales demonstrated very good internal consistency reliability (α ≤.88), convergent validity (r ≥.39), and discriminant validity (r ≤.12). Conclusions The CRS offers a valid and reliable assessment of the caregiving experience as evidenced by the convergent and discriminant validity of CRS subscales with well-validated measures of burden and positive aspects of caregiving. Clinical Implications The CRS assesses multiple dimensions of caregiving that can be used to better understand the caregiver's experience, guide clinical interventions and referrals, and identify caregiver strengths.


Molecular assemblies capable of harvesting light and using the absorbed energy have attracted great interest in recent years because of their applicability in such domains as light emitting diodes, fluorescent labelling of biological molecules, and photonic devices. Nature has also developed in plants and photosynthetic bacteria several examples of photonic nanostructures which guide light over small distances and harvest light energy, using resonance energy transfer (RET). For some time, researchers have tried to mimic the spatial arrangements of high energy transfer efficiency found in Nature. Recent progress in the application, creation and manipulation of individual or small groups of molecules are opening new perspectives for further developments in this field. These recent advances are commonly considered to lie at the root of what is being called "Nanotechnology". Although the definitions of nanotechnology are diverse, it is commonly admitted that this new domain of Science draws ideas and concepts from disciplines including engineering, physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics and computer science. The central dogma of the "bottom up" version of nanotechnology is the notion of self-assembly, which is the spontaneous assembly of materials into predetermined ordered structures or complexes. Presented here is an example from a field of nanotechnology that utilizes self-assembly onto nano-patterned surfaces to generate nano-structured systems and devices. More precisely, in the present case we target photo-active devices based on Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET), taking inspiration from photosynthetic light harvesting systems, where concentric nanometric rings of chromophores funnel light energy to a reaction center. Here, we synthesize nano-patterned chromophore surfaces which are able to collect light energy over a large surface and funnel it in regions of ~100 nm size. Our results indicate that an efficient collection and transfer of light energy can be performed by properly nano-designed surfaces, which may have practical consequences for the fabrication of light-powered active nano-devices.


Complex artefacts, such as information systems (IS), have multiple aspects and components: business processes, databases, architecture, or software. It is generally agreed that all these should be kept consistent over time. One major issue to preserve consistency is when required evolutions affect multiple aspects or components of the system at the same time. As each evolution requirement can have an impact onto several projects, teams, engineering domains, viewpoints, or system components, the question of "is the consistency link preserved by this requirement?" has to be continuously raised. This paper presents: (i) a framework that defines challenges for RE caused by coevolution; and (ii) an approach to solve some of these RE-related coevolution challenges. The framework was developed based on our experience in three IS evolution projects: ERP installation, baselining of an IS across subsidiaries, and business process improvement driven IS evolution. Each challenge identified in the framework is discussed with respect to our experience with practice and state of the art methods. Our approach was developed for the business process improvement driven IS evolution project, then generalised for the IS baselining project. The approach is presented, and then illustrated with the case of the latter project.


Turbine is one of the key components of the ocean thermal energy conversion system (OTEC), and its aerodynamic performance and geometric dimension affect the performance of the system directly. This paper proposes a design method for the radial inflow turbine suitable for the ocean thermal energy conversion based on the parameter optimization of the ocean thermal energy conversion system. Aiming at the application characteristics of marine thermal energy conversion in a small temperature difference environment and the special thermophysical properties of the organic working fluid in this environment, one-dimensional design and three-dimensional CFD analysis of the turbine is separately done, of which the results were compared. At the same time, the performance of the turbine was verified by changing the inlet and outlet conditions of the radial turbine under the design conditions. The conclusion is that the three-dimensional CFD results of the turbine are in good agreement with the one-dimensional design, and the internal flow field of the turbine is stable, without obvious backflow and eddy current, which meets the application requirements of the ocean thermal energy conversion.


As new engineering coatings get ever thinner and more technologically advanced, there is an increasing demand for accurate assessment of the mechanical properties of thin films. The rapidly expanding field of depth-sensing evaluation and techniques related provides a quantitative method for mapping the micro/nano mechanical properties. A new type of nano test system was introduced, the technology principle and the data analysis method were described. It was used to test the performance of brush-plated nanocomposite coatings, supersonic plasma-sprayed coatings and self-repairing microcapsule for corrosion-proof coatings, including the distribution of mechanical properties across the surface and the section and nanoindentation creep. The results show that nanoindentation techniques play an incomparable role in charactering the performance of surface coatings.


The purpose of this study was to determine existing practices of young volunteer recruitment, retention and motivation in Russian noncommercial and government organizations and compare them with the best practices in American organizations. To know this information is essential for government managers and NGO leaders to successfully attract and retain young people as volunteers in their organizations. The theories of "economic man" and "altruistic man" have shaped the methodology and research design of this study. To determine the advances and limitations of youth volunteering, the authors conducted expert interviews with prominent public figures and civil society experts. To collect data on practical youth recruitment, retention and motivation, the authors organized semi-structured interviews with 16 NCO leaders in Moscow.The data have been analyzed and divided in thematic clusters. The synthesis of information permitted to determine three major types of youth volunteering, identify internal and external motivational factors, and single out Russian traditional motives, methods of recruitment and ways of interaction between managers and young volunteers. Based on data analysis, the authors have developed recommendations on best organizational policy for recruitment, retention, and motivation of young volunteers in Russia. In conclusion, the authors developed practical approaches for volunteer managers in government and NGOs is Russia, which included the combination of traditional methods as well as modern volunteer management techniques.The study expands existing knowledge on managing young volunteers, provides insights in how to better use traditional Russian collective values and connections among young people o attract and inspire them to be good citizens. Results of this study have practical value for government volunteer coordinators and NGO leaders and volunteer managers.


The solubility equilibrium of calcite is influenced by physicochemical, climatic and biological factors. Annual cycles of exceptionally prolonged drought, in conjunction with naturally occurring diffuse organic pollution, generate the unique conditions for the precipitation of lithified carbonate structures (microbialites). The aim of this article is to analyze the possible implications of calcite precipitation produced in mats of Cladophora sp. in an Andean subtropical basin, considering it is the first time this phenomenon is described for the region. We collected samples from selected sites at the Lules River Basin, in four sampling dates between the years 2003 and 2004, within a monitoring work of 15 years. Samples were analyzed using an electron microscope and X-ray diffraction analysis. We found that Gomphonema sp. attached to Cladophora sp. contributes to precipitation of calcite and formation of microbialite like structures, in the studied area. This work presents an initial discussion of the discovery of microbialites-like structures attached to Cladophora sp. mats in a subtropical Andean stream and the environmental conditions that lead to their production, as well as the possible ecological implications of these microbialites.


This work investigates the drilling performance by reaming while drilling (RWD) using a dual-body bit and compared it with conventional drilling by a standard drilling bit. The dual-body bit consisted of a 2.45-in pilot bit located at a short distance ahead of a 2.47*3.97-in reamer. Conducting a series of drilling experiments at a simulation drilling rig with full monitoring sensors, we further studied the drilling performance as a function of the distance between the pilot bit and the reamer which affect mud diffusion and the resultant change in pore pressure and stress. A method was devised to eliminate the drill-string vibration and its effect on the drilling performance and the energy consumed. The mechanical specific energy (MSE) calculated for each case was considered as a drilling performance indicator. Using two laboratory experiments as well as analytical thermo-poro-elastic calculations of the Mechanical Specific Energy (MSE), the MSE changes were monitored and recorded. Comparison of this drilling performance indicator was used in both the RWD and the conventional drilling assembly to analyze the effect of RWD. Based on the results, with increasing the distance between the pilot bit and reamer, there is an increase in improvement of drilling performance in terms of MSE reduction. The best drilling performance indicator (MSE reduction of 84%) was observed with the distance between the pilot bit and the reamer of 43.3 cm. This is considered a novel finding in reaming while drilling.


Axonometric projections together with corresponding graphs for tetra-hexa-cellequator fullerenes are constructed in the range from 48 to 72. A unified approach for drawing axonometric projections of the fullerenes was used. The process of growth of fullerenes is studied on the basis of the mechanism, according to which a carbon dimer embeds in a hexagon of an initial fullerene. As a result, there arises a new atomic configuration and there is mass increase of two carbon atoms. We obtained direct descendents of the fifth branch of tetra-hexacell-equator family which begins with C48; namely C50, C52, C54, C56, C58, C60, C62, C64, C66, C68, C70, and C72. Among them only three fullerenes, C48, C60 and C72 are highly symmetric. The symmetry can be easily discovered looking at their graphs. On the basis of this study, as well as previous investigations the periodic system of fullerenes is suggested.


The purpose of this study is to investigate the remineralization of enamel in the human tooth by fissure sealant containing various amount of hydroxyapatite. Prior to remineralization experiments, the necessary requirements of the dental fissure sealant, the curing depth and the curing time, were measured with the content of the hydroxyapatite according to the standard of ISO 6874. Various amount of hydroxyapatite was mixed uniformly using sonicator up to 20 wt% to the fissure sealant. In spite both the curing time and the curing depth were decreased with increasing the content of hydroxyapatite, all samples were satisfied the ISO requirements. Remineralization experimental samples were produced by bonding fissure sealant containing various amount of hydroxyapatite to human tooth enamel using manufacturer's information. After exposure to the simulated body fluid at 36.5oC for 4 weeks, the bonding strength and the surface morphology were examined using Instron and scanning electronic microscope, respectively. The bonding strength between the fissure sealant and the human teeth was drastically enhanced with the amount of hydroxyapatite. The remineralization zone could be observed along with the boundary of hydroxyapatite and fissure sealant using a scanning electronic microscope.


textabstractThe chloride channel CFTR (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator) and
the sodium/proton exchanger NHE3 are key proteins involved in transepithelial ion and
water transport in several epithelial tissues, including the intestine. In this thesis we mainly focus on the role of the NHERF (NHE3 Regulatory Factor) proteins as regulators of CFTR and NHE3 activity.
In chapter 2 we show that cAMP- and cGMP-dependent activation of CFTR was moderately reduced in the duodenum and jejunum (but not in ileum) of NHERF-1 deficient mice. This reduced activation of CFTR in may be explained by the ~30% reduced local abundance of CFTR protein in the jejunal crypts of the NHERF-1 deficient mice.
As shown in chapter 3, the basal NHE3 activity was decreased in the jejunum and colon of NHERF-1 null mice. In addition, NHERF-1 deficient mice displayed a reduced sodium absorption in the jejunum. These observations may be explained by the reduced NHE3 protein level in the brush border membrane fraction of jejunum and colon of these mice. The cAMP- and/or cGMP dependent inhibition of NHE3 was not appreciably affected in NHERF-1 deficient mice.
As described in chapter 4, NHERF-1 and/or NHERF-2 gene knockdown in polarized epithelial cells indicated that NHERF-2 is required for cGKII-dependent regulation of NHE3, but not of CFTR.
An overview of the proteome of the jejunal brush border of the mouse is presented in chapter 5. Finally, chapter 6 shows that the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) is a specific binding partner for cGKII. cGKII was able to phosphorylate GFAP in vitro and expression of active cGKII in cultured glioblastoma cells increased GFAP abundance. We propose that cGKII-mediated phosphorylation of GFAP results in a more stable configuration and a prolonged half-life of this protein.


Parents' adherence in giving antibiotics plays an important role in therapeutic management of pediatric patients with respiratory tract infections and can avoid antibiotic resistance. The aims of this research are to evaluate parents' adherence in giving antibiotic and factors associated with adherence. This research is conducted involving respondents from a primary health care center in Andalas, Padang who attended during April to August 2015. Adherence measurement has been done using pill counting method and MMAS (Morisky Medication Adherence Scale) containing 4 questions. By pill counting method, 43 respondents (65.15%) were found to be adherent in giving the antibiotic and 23 respondents (34.85%) were not. Assessment adherence using MMAS obtained 23 respondents (34.85%) had a high adherence, 31 respondents (46.97%) had a medium adherence, and 12 respondents (18.18%) had a low adherence. In this research, respondents are categorized as adherent if the rest of the antibiotics up to 20% and a score of MMAS are 0. Statistical analysis using Chi-square test, Fisher test and Kolmogorov-Smirnov have been done to investigate respondent and patient characteristic, and parents or patients habit factor associated with adherence. It can be concluded that from 66 recruited respondents, 23 respondents (34.85%) were adhere in giving antibiotic to patients. Factors associated with adherence are busy respondent, forgetful, patient seemed to recover, and patient cannot swallow.


Aims: The purpose of this article was to present a case of surgical exposure and orthodontic reposition of impacted dilacerated maxillary left central incisor. Also surgical exposure of impacted maxillary left canine followed by orthodontic treatment of canine-lateral incisor complete transposition. result : this article describe the treatment of a teenager girl who had impactions of the maxillary left central incisor and canine as well as canine-lateral incisor transposition. The dilacerated impacted central incisor was uncovered and orthodonticaly extruded into the dental arch. Then the impacted canine was surgically exposed and orthodonticaly moving the tooth palately then distally to brought it into its normal position. Conclusion : concurrent impaction and transposition of maxillary anterior teeth is uncommon and poses a challenge for the dentist. Early diagnosis and management of eruption disturbances give us both esthetic and functional outcome benefits.


The increased inflow of Hungarian sex-workers has significantly shaped Zurich's inner-city red-light district since 2008. Conversely, the social structures in the home settlements of these Roma sex-workers in Hungary have developed in a fundamentally different direction. These women – usually branded as suppressed, destitute and marginalised – act simultaneously as breadwinners, legal prostitutes, transnational mothers and labour migrants within Europe. The driving forces of this new development are outlined in this article and analysed within a new theoretical framework of migration theory. Whereas neo-classical economic theories cannot fully explain why some households of marginalised groups, such as the Roma, step into prostitution and migration, this study attempts to overcome the current research impasse regarding legal sex-work migrants by using empirical analysis with qualitative methods and a multi-sited approach. This investigation reveals that for most Hungarian sex-workers in Zurich, prostitution and mobility are parts of a coping strategy to deal with economic and social marginalisation. Therefore, the reasons for prostitution and the mobility of those women are deeply embedded in the macroeconomic, political and social exclusion of Hungarian Roma.


The pea chloroplastic fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) antisense construct reduced the endogenous level of expression of the corresponding Arabidopsis thaliana gene. The reduction of foliar FBPase activity in the transformants T(2) and T(3) generation ranged from 20% to 42%, and correlated with lower levels of FBPase protein. FBPase antisense plants displayed different phenotypes with a clear increase in leaf fresh weight. Measurements of photosynthesis revealed a higher carbon-assimilation rate. Decreased FBPase activity boosted the foliar carbohydrate contents, with a shift in the sucrose:starch ratio, which reached a maximum of 0.99 when the activity loss was 41%. Nitrate reductase activity decreased simultaneously with an increase in glutamine synthetase activity, which could be explained in terms of ammonium assimilation regulation by sugar content. These results suggest the role of FBPase as a key enzyme in CO(2) assimilation, and also in co-ordinating carbon and nitrogen metabolism.


Gillisia limnaea Van Trappen et al. 2004 is the type species of the genus Gillisia, which is a member of the well characterized family Flavobacteriaceae. The genome of G. limnea R-8282T is the first sequenced genome (permanent draft) from a type strain of the genus Gillisia. Here we describe the features of this organism, together with the permanent-draft genome sequence and annotation. The 3,966,857 bp long chromosome (two scaffolds) with its 3,569 protein-coding and 51 RNA genes is a part of the Genomic Encyclopedia of Bacteria and Archaea project.


Abstract Patients expect the provision of quality care from the healthcare system, whether they are in the public sector or the private sector. One method amongst many of ensuring the provision of quality care is through the use of medicine. This paper aims to answer the question: what is the value of medicine and how is this related to the quality of the care that patients receive? To this end, the paper explores these concepts through a structured approach, firstly discussing the value and quality of care. By drawing on debates that have taken place in the international literature and applying these to the South African environment, an approach is provided to discuss the quality of care patients receive within the context of medicine consumption. Numerous tools are provided, including the three dimensions of quality and the different perspectives on quality. To improve the quality of care, consideration should be given to the regulatory framework, continuous quality improvement models, market competition and payment incentives. The paper has not aimed to provide readymade solutions for quality gaps in the healthcare system, nor does it pretend that a solution is easily achievable without concerted effort from all healthcare stakeholders. The paper makes a contribution to the growing body of knowledge accessible to healthcare stakeholders with which to discuss the value of medicine in improving quality of care.


The bacterial second messenger c-di-GMP has been recently found to be implicated in controlling many cellular processes in bacteria, one of them is the switch between motility and sessility. When in a sessile lifestyle (such as in a biofilm), bacteria are known to be more resistant to immune defences and to antibiotics. Mesophilic Aeromonas species are known to constitutively express a single polar flagellum which allows the bacteria to swim in liquid environments. They as well are able to express many peritrichous lateral flagella which allow them to move as a group (swarm). The multiple lateral flagella although are needed for swarming, they are, however, also required for biofilm formation. this study investigates the relationship between different components within the c-di-GMP network and the lateral flagella (laf) genes expression. Diguanylate cyclases containing GGDEF domains are responsible for c-di-GMP synthesis and phosphodiesterases containing EAL domains are known to breakdown the second messenger. Thirteen GGDEF-EAL domains encoding genes present in A. caviae Sch3N were mutated by plasmid insertion mutagenesis after which the effects of these mutations were studied phenotypically and by transcriptional fusions. We have found differences among the mutants in their ability to form a biofilm and on the activities of the lateral flagellin promoters lafA1p and lafA2p. C-di-GMP is known to bind to the PilZ domain and to RNA domains (riboswitches) to exert its function. We have mutated the pilZ gene present in the lateral flagella gene cluster by insertion of a kanamycin cassette and also we have deleted the lafK riboswitch by Spliced Overlap Extension PCR. Performance of phenotypic and beta-galactosidase assays following these mutations allowed us to conclude that the lafK c-di-GMP type I riboswitch seems to act as a c-di-GMP modulator in A. caviae. In addition, the lafK riboswitch acts as an "OFF switch" which prevents the expression of LafK, the major regulator of the laf operon.


Malignant mesothelioma is a cancer of the mesothelium. Although mesothelioma is a rare malignancy, it has a poor prognosis. The incidence rate of malignant mesothelioma has been rising since the mid twentieth century century. Asbestos is the most common cause of mesothelioma. Chemotherapy combined with radiation therapy is currently the best choice of treatment and monoclonal antibody therapy is a new treatment option for the future. In the present study, we thoroughly reviewed the pathogenesis, clinical features, laboratory diagnosis, modalities of treatment, and clinical outcomes of this condition.


A common feature of many amyloid diseases is the appearance of oxidized, aggregated proteins. Methionine is one of the most readily oxidized amino acids, and its oxidative state is regulated in vivo by the methionine sulfoxide reductases (Msr). Here, we have explored the basis by which methionine oxidation is linked to amyloid disease by comparing the reduction of oxidized amyloid fibrils and monomer. We show that oxidized amyloid fibrils are not as effectively reduced by the Msr enzymes as the monomer. This work suggests a mechanism by which oxidized proteins and aggregates can accumulate as a part of degenerative disease.


This paper presents a methodology and a tool for magnetic and mechanical deformation coupling using numerical and analytical modeling. An analytical magnetic model using Coulombian approach is used and coupled with a mechanical deformation model for a cantilever beam to evaluate contact size and contact force. Such a coupling is not available using numerical solution. This paper details the deformation and contact analysis, which is validated by finite element simulation and also details the coupling approach. Such a modeling is dedicated to an optimization process of magnetic MEMS/NEMS in general and to magnetic nano switch in particular.


The article analyzes the situation of confrontation between two approaches - the natural and humanitarian and the ways of overcoming this confrontation. Both approaches are characterized and the historical circumstances in which they have appeared are reconstructed. The author singles out and analyzes the three solutions currently being discussed in the scientific literature. The first solution he calls the strategy of convergence of these approaches. The second decision is defined as a strategy to remove the confrontation between the natural-science and humanitarian approaches. It relies on the establishment that science is one. The third strategy is authoring. His studies of science and its origin have shown that when studying it, one should not immediately proceed from the fact that we know what science is, namely, it is natural science. The idea of science is gradually groping, being built as the analysis of different types of science. In addition, it was found that, on the one hand, these different types of Sciences (ancient, medieval, natural, technical, humanitarian, social, etc.) can distinguish the invariant core (a sort of "gene" of science), and on the other - that they as types differ structurally. The first strategy is estimated by the author as formal, not taking into account the opposite methodological settings of these approaches. He sees the disadvantage of the second in the fact that its followers did not reveal real differences in the natural and human sciences and ways of thinking. The third strategy is the most difficult, since it involves analysis of the formation and functioning of different types of sciences. But its implementation will allow us to interpret both approaches as organic and partly interrelated moments of scientific research and thinking. As part of this strategy the distinction of science and humanitarian approaches can be comprehended in the first place, the diversity of forms of conceptualization, which, indeed, were built in opposition to each other, and secondly, the difference in the nature of problems to be solved, researchers' attitudes, characteristics of scientific thinking, areas of application of the acquired knowledge and schemes.