Abstract : This thesis studied the effect of microstructure on the fretting fatigue behavior of IN-100. First, fretting and plain fatigue S-N curves were determined over a large range of applied stress at an identical R-ratio and for fretting tests, done with a constant contact load. It was found that fretting fatigue reduces the cycles to failure compared to plain fatigue. The half contact width was found for the specimens, the crack initiation angle was found to be 40 deg and the crack initiation location was at the trailing edge of contact for the fretting specimens. Computational work included finding the stress profile in the contact region using an analytical method and a finite element method. The analytical method computed half contact width and was found to be in good agreement with experimental half contact width. The stress profiles produced from each method were compared and found to be in good agreement. The stress profiles were used to find the Modified Shear Stress Range (MSSR) Parameter. The MSSR parameter produced results in good agreement with the experimental data for crack initiation location and fatigue life. This study found microstructure did not have an effect on the MSSR parameter for IN-100. This study also found MSSR data developed for titanium alloys did not adequately represent IN-100. The parameter also gave reasonable agreement with the experimental finding for crack initiation angle. A microstructural evaluation was done between the 7 micron grain sized material of this study and an oblong, 10 by 50 micron grained microstructure IN-100 from a previous study. The study found microstructure did have an effect on crack initiation and crack propagation, with the coarser grain structure performing better in fretting fatigue. The coarser grain structure allowed a longer initiation and crack propagation time.


Background Gender influences platelet biology. Women have a larger platelet count, but gender-based differences in platelet function remain debated. We performed a study addressing gender-based differences in platelet function using point-of-care platelet function tests (PFT). Methods The patient population consisted of 760 cardiac surgery patients where preoperative PFT (multiple-electrode aggregometry [MEA]) were available. Platelet count and function at the ADPtest and TRAPtest were compared in the overall population and separately in patients with or without residual effects of P2Y12 inhibitors. Results Women had a significantly (P = 0.001) higher platelet count but a non-significantly higher platelet reactivity to ADP. In clopidogrel-treated patients, the platelets ADP reactivity was significantly (P = 0.031) higher in women, and platelet count was the main determinant of platelet hyper-reactivity. Within patients under full clopidogrel effects, women with a platelet count ≥ 200,000 cells/μL had a significantly (P = 0.023) higher rate of high-on-treatment platelet reactivity (HTPR, 45.5%) with respect to males with a platelet count < 200,000 cells/μL (11.9%), with a relative risk of 6.2 (95% confidence interval 1.4–29). Conclusions Our findings confirm that women have a larger platelet count than men, and that this is associated to a trend towards a higher platelet reactivity. HTPR is largely represented in women with a high platelet count. This generates the hypothesis that women requiring P2Y12 inhibitors could potentially benefit from larger doses of drug or should be treated with anti-platelet agents with a low rate of HTPR.


Goat Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis (VEE) antiserum and normal serum were conjugated and evaluated for staining sensitivity and specificity. Cross-staining with either eastern or western equine encephalomyelitis virus-infected cells did not occur. The baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cell line when combined with highly specific VEE conjugate detected 100 medium suckling mouse intracerebral lethal doses (suckling mouse LD-50/IC) of the 1B subtype of VEE virus per milliliter of equine tissue suspension. Conjugated goat antiserum was assayed for sensitivity for detection of VEE virus-infected equine serums and tissue suspensions. The BHK-21 cell line was superior to either primary duck embryo fibroblast (DEF) cells or African green monkey kidney (Vero) cells for propagating the GJ9-1BJ subtype of VEE virus.


Emergency dental and fearful dental patients were questioned in order to investigate the relationship between dental fear and different dental beliefs. The instruments used were the dental anxiety scale and the dental beliefs survey. The study also evaluated a Swedish version of the beliefs survey. The mean anxiety scale scores were 9.4 for emergency and 16.8 for fearful patients. The average beliefs survey item values ranged from 1.6 to 2.6 and 1.7 to 3.8 among the two groups respectively. There were clinical meaningful and statistically significant correlations between the anxiety scale and the beliefs survey. Each of the four dimensions of the beliefs survey (communication, control, belittlement and trust), also correlated with the anxiety scale of which the most clearly defined was belittlement.


Some microorganisms have the ability to produce enzymes that could clot milk and used as a substitute for calf rennet. Strains of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) could produce proteolytic enzymes that may have the potential to be used as a source of milk clotting enzyme (MCE). In the present study, LAB isolated from shrimp paste identified as Pediococcus acidilactici SH, was evaluated for milk clotting activity (MCA), proteolytic activity (PA) and enzyme production using different sources of nitrogen. Casein, tryptophan, trypticase peptone and tryptone soya were added to the enzyme production media, and casein was found to increase the MCA to 75.0 SU ml -1 at pH 6.0 at 50°C. SDS-PAGE of the partially purified enzyme solution produced a band with a molecular weight of approximately 29 kDa. This study indicates the possibility of exploiting LAB from food sources for the production of MCEs for dairy production. Keywords: Lactic acid bacteria (LAB), milk clotting activity, nitrogen source, Pediococcus acidilactici. Abbreviation:  MCE, Milk clotting enzyme; LAB, lactic acid bacteria; PA, proteolytic activity.


While Ambonwari children from the East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea, are growing up into their intimate environment (natural, social, cultural), they are simultaneously influencing and creating it. One of the ways of creating of their life-world is hidden in their playing. On the one hand children are through playing introduced into culturally specific and socially expected roles of men and women, which are based on the relationship between brother and sister. On the other hand children soon learn that happenings in their natural environment are nor. independent from humans and that they can influence and create them. The latter becomes most evident in two collective games: cat's cradle and the game of spinning-tops.


Growth plates taken from five- to 20-week-old Japanese white rabbits were immunostained for c-Myc protein. This was localised both in the proliferating zone and upper hypertrophic zone at five weeks, whereas after ten weeks it was found mostly in the lower hypertrophic zone. The proliferating chondrocytes tended to show nuclear staining and the hypertrophic cells cytoplasmic staining, although the terminal hypertrophic chondrocytes sometimes expressed the protein in their nuclei. In the younger rabbits, c-Myc co-localised with proliferating cell nuclear antigen, whereas in the hypertrophic zone of older rabbits, it was present in some chondrocytes the nuclei of which also contained DNA breaks. Our study suggests that, in the rabbit growth plate, c-Myc is associated with different cellular processes, depending on the age and the developmental stage of the chondrocytes.


OBJECTIVE
To determine whether mutations in different Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) genes result in different ocular phenotypes.

METHODS
Thirty-seven patients from 31 families were enrolled who met the clinical criteria for BBS and for whom a BBS mutation had been identified. Seventeen patients harbored mutations in BBS1, 10 in BBS10, and 10 in other genes (BBS2, BBS3, BBS5, BBS7, and BBS12). All the patients underwent ocular examination; 36 patients had computerized full-field electroretinograms (ERGs).

RESULTS
Visual acuity was significantly better in BBS1 patients than in patients with other BBS mutations (P=.01), and a larger proportion of BBS1 patients had good (≥20/50) visual acuity (P=.01). The ERG amplitudes were significantly higher in BBS1 patients than in patients with other BBS mutations in response to 0.5-Hz and 30-Hz flashes (P<.001 for both). All the BBS1 patients harbored at least 1 missense mutation compared with only 45% of patients with mutations in other BBS genes (P<.001); the rest harbored only null alleles. However, multivariate analysis demonstrated that visual acuity or ERG amplitude did not depend on the type of mutation present (missense or null) when controlling for BBS gene. Prevalences of bone spicule pigmentation and cataract were comparable in BBS subtypes.

CONCLUSIONS
Patients with BBS1 mutations had a milder phenotype than did patients with mutations in other BBS genes. Clinically, this manifested as significantly better visual acuity and larger ERG amplitudes.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE
These phenotypic differences can help guide genetic testing and genetic counseling for patients with this syndrome.


OBJECTIVE
The at-risk mental state (ARMS) is associated with a very high risk of psychosis, but it is difficult to predict which individuals will later develop psychosis on the basis of their presenting symptoms. We investigated psychopathological dimensions in subjects with an ARMS and examined whether particular symptom dimensions predicted subsequent transition to psychosis.

METHOD
The sample comprised 122 subjects (aged 16-35 years) meeting Personal Assessment and Crisis Evaluation clinic criteria for the ARMS recruited through Outreach and Support in South London, a clinical service for people with an ARMS. A principal axis factor analysis was performed on symptom scores, obtained at presentation from the Comprehensive Assessment of the At-Risk Mental State, using Varimax rotation. The relationship between dimension scores and transition to psychosis during the following 24 months was then examined employing Cox regression analysis.

RESULTS
Factor analysis gave rise to a 5-factor solution of negative, anxiety, disorganization/cognitive, self-harm, and manic symptom dimensions, accounting for 37% of the total variance. Scores on the negative and on the disorganization/cognitive dimensions were associated with transition to psychosis during the follow-up period (P = 0.044 and P = 0.005, respectively).

CONCLUSION
The symptoms of the ARMS have a dimensional structure similar to that evident in patients with schizophrenia except for the positive symptom dimension. The association between scores on the disorganization/cognitive and negative dimensions and later transition is consistent with independent evidence that formal thought disorder, subjective cognitive impairments, and negative symptoms are linked to the subsequent onset of psychosis.


Tokamak operation with W PFCs is associated with specific challenges for impurity control, which may be particularly demanding in the transition from stationary H-mode to L-mode. To address W control issues in this phase, dedicated experiments have been performed at JET including the variation of the decrease of the power and current, gas fuelling and central ion cyclotron heating (ICRH), and applying active ELM control by vertical kicks. The experimental results obtained demonstrate the key role of maintaining ELM control to control the W concentration in the exit phase of H-modes with slow (ITER-like) ramp-down of the neutral beam injection power in JET. For these experiments, integrated fully predictive core+edge+SOL transport modelling studies applying discrete models for the description of transients such as sawteeth and ELMs have been performed for the first time with the JINTRAC suite of codes for the entire transition from stationary H-mode until the time when the plasma would return to L-mode focusing on the W transport behaviour. Simulations have shown that the existing models can appropriately reproduce the plasma profile evolution in the core, edge and SOL as well as W accumulation trends in the termination phase of JET H-mode discharges as function of the applied ICRH and ELM control schemes, substantiating the ambivalent effect of ELMs on W sputtering on one side and on edge transport affecting core W accumulation on the other side. The sensitivity with respect to NB particle and momentum sources has also been analysed and their impact on neoclassical W transport has been found to be crucial to reproduce the observed W accumulation characteristics in JET discharges. In this paper the results of the JET experiments, the comparison with JINTRAC modelling and the adequacy of the models to reproduce the experimental results are described and conclusions are drawn regarding the applicability of these models for the extrapolation of the applied W accumulation control techniques to ITER.


The purpose of this work was to evaluate the sensitivity and the specificity of a competitive enzyme immunoassay, using as conjugate the monoclonal antibodies BM-38 and BM-40, in the scrodiagnosis of bovine brucellosis. Seventy-four sera from culture-positive cattle and 2,118 cattle sera from herds free from brucellosis and negative to the Rose Bengal plate test were examined. The competitive enzyme immunoassay, using any of the two conjugates, was able to reveal the presence of antibodies to Brucella lipopolysaccharide in all of the 74 sera of the infected cattle, resulting in a sensitivity of 100%. The specificity of the test using the conjugate BM-38 was 98.82% and using the conjugate BM-40 was 99.95%. These results indicated that the competitive enzyme immunoassay, mainly when using the conjugate BM-40, consists in a technique very useful in the confirmation of the serological diagnosis of bovine brucellosis.


This study presents a revenue maximisation strategy for market integration of a novel wave energy converter (WEC), part of the Ocean Grazer platform. In particular, the authors evaluate and validate the aforementioned revenue maximisation model predictive control (MPC) strategy through extensive simulations and by checking the underlying assumptions of the strategy implementation. Accordingly, an annual simulation of the MPC strategy is shown, which illustrates seasonality effects; furthermore, a benchmark against a heuristic strategy is presented, followed by analyses of the parameter sensitivity and the assumptions on the control loop information that the MPC receives. These efforts shed some light on the impact of variations of the considered parameters and variables on the total revenue and provide insights to optimally scale the WEC. Lastly, the challenges associated with the deployment of such a strategy are addressed, followed by concluding remarks.


We introduce an unsupervised technique for encoding point clouds into a canonical shape representation, by disentangling shape and pose. Our encoder is stable and consistent, meaning that the shape encoding is purely pose-invariant, while the extracted rotation and translation are able to semantically align different input shapes of the same class to a common canonical pose. Specifically, we design an auto-encoder based on Vector Neuron Networks, a rotation-equivariant neural network, whose layers we extend to provide translation-equivariance in addition to rotation-equivariance only. The resulting encoder produces pose-invariant shape encoding by construction, enabling our approach to focus on learning a consistent canonical pose for a class of objects. Quantitative and qualitative experiments validate the superior stability and consistency of our approach.


Abstract. High concentration of fine particles (PM2.5), the primary concern about air quality in China, is believed to closely relate to China's large consumption of coal. In order to quantitatively identify the contributions of coal combustion in different sectors to ambient PM2. 5, we developed an emission inventory for the year 2013 using up-to-date information on energy consumption and emission controls, and we conducted standard and sensitivity simulations using the chemical transport model GEOS-Chem. According to the simulation, coal combustion contributes 22 µg m−3 (40 %) to the total PM2. 5 concentration at national level (averaged in 74 major cities) and up to 37 µg m−3 (50 %) in the Sichuan Basin. Among major coal-burning sectors, industrial coal burning is the dominant contributor, with a national average contribution of 10 µg m−3 (17 %), followed by coal combustion in power plants and the domestic sector. The national average contribution due to coal combustion is estimated to be 18 µg m−3 (46 %) in summer and 28 µg m−3 (35 %) in winter. While the contribution of domestic coal burning shows an obvious reduction from winter to summer, contributions of coal combustion in power plants and the industrial sector remain at relatively constant levels throughout the year.


Many inhaled anesthetics enhance the effect of the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), supporting the view that the GABAA receptor could mediate the capacity of inhaled anesthetics to produce immobility in the face of noxious stimulation (i.e., MAC, the minimum alveolar concentration required to suppress movement in response to a noxious stimulus in 50% of subjects). However, only limited in vivo data support the relevance of the GABAA receptor to MAC. In the present study we used two findings to test for the relevance of this receptor to immobilization for isoflurane: 1) differences among anesthetics in their capacity to enhance the response of receptor expression systems to GABA: isoflurane (considerable enhancement), xenon (minimal enhancement), and cyclopropane (minimal enhancement); and 2) studies showing that the spinal cord mediates MAC for isoflurane. If GABAA receptors mediate isoflurane MAC, then their blockade in the spinal cord should increase isoflurane MAC more than cyclopropane or xenon MAC and the MAC increase should be proportional to the in vitro enhancement of the GABAA receptor. To test this thesis, isoflurane, cyclopropane, or xenon MAC was determined in rats during intrathecal infusion of artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) via chronically implanted catheters. Then MAC was redetermined during infusion of 1 μL/min aCSF containing either 0.6 or 2.4 mg/mL picrotoxin, which noncompetitively blocks GABAA receptors. There was no consistent increase in MAC consequent to increasing the picrotoxin dose from 0.6 to 2.4 μg/min, which suggests that maximal blockade of GABAA receptors in the spinal cord had been achieved. Picrotoxin infusion increased MAC approximately 40% with all anes-thetics.ThisindicatesthatGABAreleaseinthespinalcord influences anesthetic requirement. However, the increase did not consistently differ among anesthetics and did not correlate with in vitro enhancement of GABAA receptors by these anesthetics. This supports the view that GABAA receptors do not mediate immobilization for isoflurane.


Magnetotelluric data were collected as part of a multi-disciplinary exploration program for Paleozoic non-associated gas in the southern Rub al-Khali Basin of Saudi Arabia. Data collection was difficult due to the presence of large sand dunes, but the use of specially developed buffer amplifiers helped to partially overcome the very high contact resistance. Interpretation of data was carried out using 3D inversion, and this images the basement structure well. The post-basement sediments show a local increase in resistivity above a positive basement structure. It is speculated that this might be due to porosity reduction (compaction or facies changes), or to a change in fluid resistivity (salinity reduction or hydrocarbon charging).


Aim: The present study was conducted to estimate the heavy metal content in samples of Kutazghan Vati (a pill), from three different manufacturers to know about the quality control measures being followed by manufacturers for GMP. The study will also provide a platform for regulatory authorities to tighten the noose and upgrade the industry about high heavy metal levels in relation to international regulations. Methodology: Three variants of Kutajghan Vati coded as A, B, and C manufactured by different leading manufacturers was procured from local market. Heavy metals analysis was done according to AOAC (1995) for non volatile heavy metals. Results: Cadmium content of two variants A and C was within permissible limits where as cadmium content of variant B was 2.98 ppm about ten times higher than the permissible limits of 0.3 ppm set up by WHO and the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India. The lead content of variant A was 36.33 ppm that was about four times against the permissible value set up by WHO. Despite very low detection limits, mercury and arsenic were not detectable in all the three variants depicting that the formulation were free from these heavy metals. Conclusions: Despite same guidelines issued by same regulatory authorities for Short Communication British Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, 3(3): 401-406, 2013 402 production of ayurvedic formulations for permissible limits of heavy metal content, three different manufacturers marketed the same formulation with different heavy metal content which reflects that industry seems to be negligent for maintaining proper quality control. This study suggests that periodic estimation of heavy metals is highly essential for single drugs, raw drugs as well as finished products for quality assurance and safer use of herbal drugs.


Written by a social worker who has a deep and sensitive perception, based on years of experience of the needs of the mentally handicapped, this text is an admirable sequel to the author's first book The Mentally Subnormal: The Social Casework Approach. Although this book is from America, the value of the text is little affected by the occasional parochial approach. Three traditional patterns of social work are described : case work, group work and com munity care. Each and all may need to be invoked in the care of the mentally handicapped. The needs to identify and encourage assets in the individual, to establish adaptive patterns of behaviour in the family and society, to be available at times of crisis and to give practical support are all part of a refresh ing and positive approach to the subject and must surely be part of the secret of the author's success. All those involved in the rehabilitation of any dependent or minority group within a society as complex as ours should have access to this book. J. BIcKNELL.


This paper presents the ride diagram, a new way of evaluating and presenting ride comfort Furthermore, a simplified methodology is suggested to test and correlate objective measures of vehicle ride with subjective driver impressions. The ride diagram is calculated from measured cab accelerations resulting from increased levels of excitation. The basic idea is to graphically visualize how ride comfort changes with excitation. Test drivers are then asked to pair the set of tested vehicles with corresponding curves in the ride diagram. This step assures that the selected measure captures how drivers apprehend changes in vehicle ride. The suggested methodology is illustrated on trucks with different cab suspension settings. For a given test track increased vehicle speed is used to increase the excitation level. The trucks are also placed in a road simulator to enable easy variation of both excitation type and level. Measurements shown in the ride diagram are compared to mean square and PSD analysis. Results show that the ride diagram has four main advantages; it is fairly simple to interpret, it shows the absolute vibration level, it considers transient events separately and it shows changes in vehicle character with increasing excitation.


In this work we present SpLaSH (Spoken Language Search Hawk), a toolkit used to perform complex queries on spoken language corpora. In SpLaSH, tools for the integration of time aligned annotations (TMA), by means of annotation graphs, with text aligned ones (TXA), by means of generic XML files, are provided. SpLaSH imposes a very limited number of constraints to the data model design, allowing the integration of annotations developed separately within the same dataset and without any relative dependency. It also provides a GUI allowing three types of queries: simple query on TXA or TMA structures, sequence query on TMA structure and cross query on both TXA and TMA integrated structures. Index Terms: search tools, speech corpora, time-aligned annotations, text-aligned annotations.


With the death of Hans Burgmann, the Essene-Hasmonean hypothesis has lost its staunchest advocate and most confident voice. Here he reasserts his views, and the chapter headings usually say it all: 'The emigration to the North happened!', 'John the Baptist was an Essene!'; 'Who was the Wicked Priest?' creates some suspense, though B.'s colleagues know the answers in advance. The Enigma Press (alias Jan Zdzislaw Kapera) is a thriving Qumran industry whose products, already wellknown to Scroll connoisseurs, are available from ul. Borsucza 3/58, 30-408 Krak6w, Poland.


A genetic algorithm (GA) approach is proposed for the general resource-constrained project scheduling model, in which activities may be executed in more than one operating mode, and renewable as well as nonrenewable resource constraints exist. Each activity's operation mode has a different duration and requires different amounts of renewable and nonrenewable resources. The objective is the minimization of the project duration or makespan. The problem under consideration is known to be one of the most difficult scheduling problems, and it is hard to find a feasible solution for such a problem, let alone the optimal one. The GA approach described in this paper incorporates problem-specific scheduling knowledge by an indirect chromosome encoding that consists of selected activity operating modes and an ordered set of scheduling rules. The scheduling rules in the chromosome are used in an iterative scheduling algorithm that constructs the schedule resulting from the chromosome. The proposed GA is denoted a hybrid GA (HGA) approach, since it is integrated with traditional scheduling tools and expertise specifically developed for the general resource-constrained project scheduling problem. The results demonstrate that HGA approach produces near-optimal solutions within a reasonable amount of computation time.


This research is about the impact of the Nile treaties to the Nile communities where by the introduction begins with a general overview of water issues in the world. It also shares experiences of some of the major trans boundary rivers and lakes. There is the general knowledge of the Nile and a mention of the colonial agreements. The problem statement based on the fact that despite the availability of a big water resource the communities living along the Nile including one of its sources, L. Victoria are still very poor, suffering from food insecurity, illiteracy and diseases. The objectives mainly focus on the community wellbeing, the Trans boundary resource sharing and the community resilience. The literature review being very broad since a lot on the Nile treaties is reviewed ranging from the oldest to the most recent treaty. There are issues on riparian States, resources, and the institutional frameworks like the NBI are also reviewed. The justification argument is aimed at confirming the gap noticed after the literature review. Thus indicating that a lot of research has been done on the ownership conflict and how the conflict and the treaties affect the community. The theoretical framework is embracing the sensitivity on human dignity and community working together which is well linked to the regime theory. Regime theory has an emphasis on the collaboration, cooperation and coordination process with main propagators as Stone and Krasner. The main concepts that govern this research are the bottom up-approach majorly propagated by Lederach, increasing available water resources. In addition there is a concept of broadening the basket of benefit which actually considers other alternatives. There is also the river basin development planning and management concept which strictly focuses on planning and management strategies. The other concept is the cooperative framework that is partly implemented in the Nile Basin Initiative. The framework puts emphasis on collaboration and cooperation with fair benefit sharing. The historical details of the treaties and the countries are also shared. The sharing of information about resources is highlighted. The research findings do indicate that most community members are not aware about the Nile treaties, were never consulted just the way they were not during the Berlin conference of 1884-1885. Communities have demonstrated resilience in looking for alternative livelihood to fishing like looking for jobs after good education, political thagery, while others waste away in alcoholism and prostitution. Recommendations include reviewing of the latest treaties to correct the notion that communities don't matter, empowering communities to engage in national and international process affecting their lives.


Introduction: Trust is a social construct that is present in the day-to-day routine of humans negative events such as product failure, revelations of corrupt practices, and unfulfilled promises could distort trusting relationships, develop negative future expectations, and in due course lead to trust violations. To maintain or restore the resultant loss of trust, organizations must examine and understand how trust was violated in the first place since different means of damaged trust are likely to require different reparative responses. Objectives: This study investigates how individual trust is repaired in an organization using apology and justification as means of repairing competence -based and benevolence-based trust violations. Study Design: Using a medical practitioner working in a private medical foundation called Save the Child F oundation, this research adopts a quantitative survey methodology using self-administered questionnaires to collect data from 304 patients and workers from a fictitious medical hospital in Cameroon. Hypothesis testing was carried out using structural equation modeling and regression analyses. Results: Through a scenario questionnaire survey, the study provided support for all of the hypotheses. Hypotheses 1 and 3 focused on the strategies of repairing trust. The result shows that benevolence had a mediating effect on apology, justification and trust repair. With the help of benevolence, medical organizations can easily accept to re-engage with individuals' doctors (John Benson) after trust violation. This shows that apology and justification are a good combination factor that can be used for repairing individual trust in organizations. More also, this study shows that the verification of Hypotheses 2 and 4 confirmed that competence-based trust had an important moderating effect on the positive relationship between benevolence-based trust and trust repair. In this case, competence could be regarded as a determining factor of repairing trust that has been violated. Key words: Trust, Trust Repair, Competence, Benevolence, Justification, Apology DOI : 10.7176/JMCR/63-05 Publication date: December 31 st 2019


The key Soil Taxonomy is based upon the idea that certain properties can be used to define populations of soils from the soil continuum. The soil mapping paradigm is that similar soil populations exist within landforms. High taxonomic variability has been reported within numerous soil mapping units. The hypotheses in this paper are that for large scale mapping (i) Soil Taxonomy creates classes that are only partially related to landform and (ii) more homogeneous soil classes exist if different defining constructs are used. The objectives are to: (i) classify a sampling of soils within a 40-ha upland pasture using both Soil Taxonomy and cluster analysis, (ii) identify the distinctness and relationships of these samples to landforms, and (iii) compare the geographic distributions of soil classes identified by Soil Taxonomy and cluster analyses. Ninety-four soil properties were measured from 257 pedons along point transects. Cluster analysis identified three pedologically and geographically distinct groups. A single cluster group was identified for soils within the "ridge" landform, whereas the "backslope" landform was a mixture of all three groups. A significant relationship was found for soil attributes and slope profile curvature within the backslope landform, but predictive value was low. Soil Taxonomy produced 13 geographically indistinct classes that were partially related to cluster groupings. Cluster analysis appears to be useful for revealing patterns of soil homogeneity and for identifying relationships among soil properties and landforms. Numerical analysis may be a helpful supplementary method for correlating soil surveys with large soil databases, or for defining those soil attributes which distinguish mappable bodies from the soil continuum.


Marx generators have been traditionally relegated as pulse-charging supplies for a variety of applications including the generation of High Power Microwaves, or RF energy. Compact models have served as suitable trigger generators for larger systems. However, recent work has demonstrated the compact Marx generators for directly generating RF energy. This paper discusses two compact Marx generators developed for RF applications. General performance characteristics for each generator are discussed, as well as efforts to minimize the temporal jitter of these systems so as to make them viable sources for radar transmitters. The Gatling Marx generator is presented as a multiple generator RF source for weapons and radar transmitters. Finally, the generation of RF and microwave energy is discussed.


This PhD thesis presents two measurements of differential production cross section of top and anti-top pairs tt decaying in a lepton+jets final state. The normalize cross section is measured as a function of the top transverse momentum and the tt mass, transverse momentum and rapidity using the full 2011 proton-proton (pp) ATLAS data taking at a center of mass energy of √s=7 TeV and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of L=4.6 〖fb〗^(-1). The cross section is also measured at the particle level as a function of the hadronic top transverse momentum for highly energetic events using the full 2012 data taking at √s=8 TeV and with L=20 〖fb〗^(-1). The measured spectra are fully corrected for detector efficiency and resolution effects and are compared to several theoretical predictions showing a quite good agreement, depending on different spectra.


Abstract The ongoing ICT revolution has created a vast digital ecosystem in which an increasingly large quantity of information is produced, collected and stored. This development is the result of the digitalization of data and the decreasing cost of data processing and storage. The ability of firms to extract new insights and innovations from massive amounts of data offers significant opportunities to increase productivity and reduce in manufacturing and service costs. This is the next stage of the ICT revolution, and the radical nature of this change is becoming obvious. We are entering the era of data – Big Data.


This paper describes how recycling scrapped cars plays an important role in reducing pollution by decreasing the amount of waste that ends up in landfills. Directive 2000/53/EC regulates the management of End of Life Vehicles (ELVs). ELVs are collected and dismantled to remove the battery, tires, fluids and any parts that can be re-used and the wreck is shredded. The metallic parts are separated by physical processes and recovered as ferrous scrap and nonferrous metals, all of which is recycled. The 25% remainder is the automotive shredder residue (ASR), which is composed mainly of plastics, contaminated with any metallic and other parts that could not be separated. This is often disposed of in landfills as solid urban waste and is not recycled. ASR generation in the European Union (EU) is approximately 2-2.5 million tons/year, constituting 10% of the total hazardous waste in the EU. The study suggests that recovery rates for ELVs set in the EU Directive on end of life vehicles will not be met until the volume of the ASR is further reduced. Treatment of the ASR focuses on recovering any useable materials, reducing the volume of the ASR to cut down on the quantity that will end up in landfill, and recovering the energy from the petrochemical content of the plastics. Up-to-date there are eight post-shredder technologies (PST) used or potentially used for the treatment of ASR. The aim of this study is to give an overview of what problem the ASR presents to modern society and what the options are for processing this waste into recovered products or materials, or energy, with a minimum of useless by-products for which land filling is the only route.


Low levels of physical activity and high levels of sedentary behavior are of public health concern in children. However, little is known about the patterns of physical activity and sedentary behavior in 6-11-year-old children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). PURPOSE: To examine patterns of physical activity and sedentary behavior in children with ASD. To examine relationships between moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary behavior and potential determinants of these behaviors. METHODS: Nineteen children 6-11-year-olds with ASD were recruited. Height and weight were objectively measured and used to determine BMI for age, and participants wore an ActiGraph GT3X activity monitor for 7 consecutive days to measure physical activity and sedentary time. Parents answered questions on demographics, perceptions of physical activity, barriers to child's physical activity, child's autism severity, and functional disability. RESULTS: Fifty percent of children achieved the guidelines for physical activity in children. Participants spent on average 76 ± 48 minutes per day engaged in MVPA, and 332 ± 65 minutes per day sedentary. There no differences between weekday and weekend MVPA, nor weekday and weekend sedentary time. Twelve participants were classified as normal weight, 4 participants were classified as overweight, and 3 participants were classified as obese. There were no differences between prevalence rates of overweight or obesity in our sample compared to national averages. No relationships were found between MVPA and sedentary time and any independent variables examined. However, qualitatively, the most common parent-reported barriers to children's physical activity were child's lack of interest, inadequate community physical activity programs, behavioral problems, not being able to find a community program that accommodates their child's physical disability, and child is too developmentally disabled. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that barriers commonly reported by parents of children with ASD may serve as targets for creating physical activity programs adapted for this population. Further, over 90% of participants wore the monitor over 12 hours on 7 days. Thus, these findings suggest that an activity monitor worn around the waist for one week is a feasible option for the measurement of physical activity and sedentary behavior in this population.


Carol Tosone, Ph.D. is Associate Professor at New York University School of Social Work and recipient of the NYU Distinguished Teaching Award. Dr. Tosone is also a Distinguished Scholar in Social Work in the National Academies of Practice in Washington, D.C. She completed her psychoanalytic training at the Postgraduate Center for Mental Health where she was the recipient of the Postgraduate Memorial Award. Prior to her appointment at NYU, Dr. Tosone was Assistant Professor of Social Work in Psychiatry at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia.


Photoelectrochemical cell (PEC) water splitting has become a favorite way for energy production in the form of chemical fuel. In this work, WO3/Bi2S3, WO3/Bi2S3/Cu, In-situ WO3/Cu/Bi2S3, ex-situWO3/Cu/Bi2S3and WO3/Cu/Bi2S3/Cu composite photoelectrodes were fabricated by facile methods like hydrothermal and drop casting followed by SILAR methods. The resulting composite of In-situ WO3/Cu/Bi2S3 exhibit superior photoelectrochemical activities compared to the other electrodes due to their efficient charge separation and transportation. Impressively, the In-situ WO3/Cu/Bi2S3photoanode achieved a high photocurrent density of 10.5 mA cm-2at 1.23 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), and photo-conversion efficiency of 4.21 % compared to the photoanodes. Furthermore, the In-situ WO3/Cu/Bi2S3photoanode also has less charge transfer resistance compared to the WO3/Bi2S3, WO3/Bi2S3/Cu, ex-situWO3/Cu/Bi2S3and WO3/Cu/Bi2S3/Cu composite. Since the Cu NPs has higher electrical conductivity, it can improvethe charge transfer to excite electrons from Bi2S3 to WO3 electrode, which may contribute to the overall PEC activity. This new composite develops superior photoelectrochemical performance, suggesting being a useful strategy for hydrogen evolution through water oxidation. Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FE-SEM) and High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope (HR-TEM) confirmed the successfully prepared materials.


Abstract. Mobile wireless networks need to maximize their network lifetime (defined as the time until the first node runs out of energy). In the broadcast network lifetime problem, all nodes are sending broadcast traffic, and one asks for an assignment of transmit powers to nodes, and for sets of relay nodes so that the network lifetime is maximized. The selection of a dynamic relay set consisting of a single node (the 'master'), can be regarded as a special case, providing lower bounds to the optimal lifetime in the general setting. This paper provides a first analysis of a 'dynamic master selection' algorithm.


This dissertation investigates consumers' prepurchase evaluations of buying books offline and online. It synthesizes the E-Commerce and perceived value literature to develop a conceptual model that explains online and offline purchase intentions. Based on this literature review, it is proposed that online and offline purchase intentions are based on perceptions of service quality, merchandise quality, price and the shopping experience costs and benefits (i.e. time/effort costs, perceived risk, and enjoyment). The conceptual model is empirically tested in two studies by using structural equation modeling. Data are collected through a survey amongst 656 customers of a multichannel bookseller and 437 customers of a pure-play online bookseller. The relative importance of the predictors of perceived value and purchase intentions are first determined by investigating the direct and indirect effects. Next, based on conceptual and/or empirical support, it is hypothesized that certain factors play a more profound role in either context. To test for the differences in the strength of specific relationships between the online and offline context, structural invariance tests are performed. Additionally, the moderating influence of the degree of prior online shopping experience is investigated for specific relationships within the online context. This is determined by testing the differences in the strength of structural relationships between experienced and less experienced buyers.


BACKGROUND: During endonasal frontal sinusotomy using the sharp spoon (endonasal frontal sinus surgery type II according to Draf or May and Schaitkin) a solid piece of bone is frequently encountered anterior to the neo-ostium. This bone may be referred to as a "nasal spine". A prominent spine may render a sinusotomy difficult or even impossible. METHODS: A maximum endonasal frontal sinusotomy was performed on 36 anatomical specimens by means of a sharp spoon producing neo-ostia of 7 x 5 mm on average. The dimensions of the remaining nasal spine were measured subsequently together with the diameter of the inferior frontal sinus, the thickness of the anterior frontal sinus wall, and the distance from the neoostium to the anterior ethmoidal artery. RESULTS: Almost every specimen (97%) showed a relevant nasal spine. The average height of the spine was 10 mm. The anterior-posterior dimension was 6 mm on average. A correlation was found between the nasofrontal angle and the a.-p. dimension of the spine: the more acute the angle, the thicker the spine was. In three out of four specimens the neo-ostium was separated by just one anterior ethmoidal cell from the anterior ethmoidal artery. CONCLUSIONS: In the majority of the specimens a sufficient endonasal approach to the frontal sinus could be obtained by enlarging the natural ostium as described by Draf or May and Schaitkin. The anterior ethmoidal artery is a valuable landmark for locating the ostium. The maximum diameter of the frontal sinus approach in frontal direction can be estimated by measuring of the nasofrontal angle.


Mathematical modelling is an invaluable tool to describe dynamic cellular processes and to rationalise cell-to-cell variability within the population. This requires statistical methods to infer unknown model parameters from dynamic, multi-individual data accounting for heterogeneity caused by both intrinsic and extrinsic noise. Here we present PEPSDI, a scalable and flexible framework for Bayesian inference in state-space mixed-effects stochastic dynamic single-cell models. Unlike previous frameworks, PEPSDI imposes a few modelling assumptions when inferring unknown model parameters from time-lapse data. Specifically, it can infer model parameters when intrinsic noise is modelled by either exact or approximate stochastic simulators, and when extrinsic noise is modelled by either time-varying, or time-constant parameters that vary between cells. This allowed us to identify hexokinase activity as a source of extrinsic noise, and to deduce that sugar availability dictates cell-to-cell variability in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae SNF1 nutrient sensing pathway.


In this article, we explore the Inuit legend of the Inuk Qajuuttaq, employing an ethnohistorical, anthropological, and archaeological approach. Qajuuttaq's legend takes place in South Greenland in the area of Narsaq around AD 1800. Our research concerns what the local population of the Narsaq area knows about Qajuuttaq and his history in 2018. Six people with knowledge about Qajuuttaq were interviewed. We document and analyze four sites connected to Qajuuttaq using archaeological methods. We conclude that important fragmentary knowledge about Qajuuttaq's life and history exists today but that modern Inuit emphasize a very different meaning and morality about Qajuuttaq, compared to when the legend was written down in 1867. Our main point is that Inuit family legends are very important entries into Inuit history and prehistory, especially if the legends are analyzed in relation to the landscapes where they took place.


Current approaches to quantify and diagnose sleep disorders and circadian rhythm disruption are imprecise, laborious, and often do not relate well to key clinical and health outcomes. Newer emerging approaches that aim to overcome the practical and technical constraints of current sleep metrics have considerable potential to better explain sleep disorder pathophysiology and thus to more precisely align diagnostic, treatment and management approaches to underlying pathology. These include more fine-grained and continuous EEG signal feature detection and novel oxygenation metrics to better encapsulate hypoxia duration, frequency, and magnitude readily possible via more advanced data acquisition and scoring algorithm approaches. Recent technological advances may also soon facilitate simple assessment of circadian rhythm physiology at home to enable sleep disorder diagnostics even for "non-circadian rhythm" sleep disorders, such as chronic insomnia and sleep apnea, which in many cases also include a circadian disruption component. Bringing these novel approaches into the clinic and the home settings should be a priority for the field. Modern sleep tracking technology can also further facilitate the transition of sleep diagnostics from the laboratory to the home, where environmental factors such as noise and light could usefully inform clinical decision-making. The "endpoint" of these new and emerging assessments will be better targeted therapies that directly address underlying sleep disorder pathophysiology via an individualized, precision medicine approach. This review outlines the current state-of-the-art in sleep and circadian monitoring and diagnostics and covers several new and emerging approaches to better define sleep disruption and its consequences.


This study aims to estimate the effects of oil price shocks on seaborne trade in Iran; in particular, port throughput of three leading ports through economic fluctuations of three major trading partners of Iran, based on quarterly data for the period of 1999Q2 to 2018Q1. We apply a standard vector autoregressive (VAR) approach using Cholesky decomposition. The results indicate that with increasing oil revenues in short-run, seaborne trade be further directed towards Shahid Rajaei port while rising oil revenues changes the combination of goods handled in Emam Khomeini and Bushehr ports. In the long run, the share of oil price fluctuations in explaining the variations of Shahid Rajaei port throughput is higher than the other two. In fact, increases in oil revenues cause an increase in the volume of industrial and containerized seaborne cargo trade.


The field of carbon nanotube (CNT) electrochemistry has received increasing attention from the scientific community since 1996, when the first CNT electrode displaying electrocatalytic properties was reported. However, the large majority of the field functions on the assumption that the sidewalls of CNTs, both multi-walled (MWNTs) and single-walled (SWNTs), are electrochemically inert and only edgeplane- like defects, open ends and catalytic nanoparticles (NPs) are responsible for the impressive electrochemistry observed at CNT electrodes. This thesis aims to elucidate the fundamental electrochemical properties of SWNTs. Random, highly interconnected 2D SWNT networks (either as <1% or ~ 100% surface coverage) grown using catalysed chemical vapour deposition (cCVD) on an insulating support are used throughout. Unlike other growth methods, cCVD results in clean SWNTs, without the need for further purification and with limited metal NP content. Chemical functionalisation of <1% SWNT networks indicates that the main effect of introducing defects (either as sidewall addends or open ends) is a dramatic decrease in the conductivity of the SWNT network, with repercussions on the electrochemical performance of SWNTs. Disk-shaped ultramicroelectrodes (UMEs) fabricated using pristine <1% SWNT networks shows superb electrochemistry for simple outersphere redox couples and superior characteristics over solid conventional UMEs, such as lower background currents and faster response times. Importantly, reversible cyclic voltammetry (CV) obtained under high mass transport conditions suggests that the SWNT sidewall is more electroactive than previously thought. In addition, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) coupled with SWNT UMEs is shown to be a powerful method for determining all parameters of an electrochemical reaction in a single experiment. EIS also offers tremendous promise as a detection strategy for sensing applications. The use of a thin-layer cell (TLC) configuration, generating high mass transport rates to the SWNTs, allows for the quantitative determination of electron transfer (ET) kinetics at SWNTs. The value obtained for the rate of ET again provides strong evidence that the SWNT sidewall must be electrochemically active. While <1% SWNT networks are suitable for low concentration electrochemical detection and for the investigation of ET kinetics at SWNTs, a 100% CNT material, or CNT mat, is preferred for the detection of challenging redox molecules, such as dopamine, known to foul the surface of conventional carbon electrodes. CNT mat UMEs can be used for the electrochemical detection of dopamine at micro-molar concentrations in in-vivo mimics, with no decrease in electrode performance after extensive use, outperforming any other carbon electrode material currently available.


Objective
There is a low rate of online patient portal utilization in the U.S. This study aimed to utilize a machine learning approach to predict access to online medical records through a patient portal.

Methods
This is a cross-sectional predictive machine learning algorithm-based study of Health Information National Trends datasets (Cycles 1 and 2; 2017-2018 samples). Survey respondents were U.S. adults (≥18 years old). The primary outcome was a binary variable indicating that the patient had or had not accessed online medical records in the previous 12 months. We analyzed a subset of independent variables using k-means clustering with replicate samples. A cross-validated random forest-based algorithm was utilized to select features for a Cycle 1 split training sample. A logistic regression and an evolved decision tree were trained on the rest of the Cycle 1 training sample. The Cycle 1 test sample and Cycle 2 data were used to benchmark algorithm performance.

Results
Lack of access to online systems was less of a barrier to online medical records in 2018 (14%) compared to 2017 (26%). Patients accessed medical records to refill medicines and message primary care providers more frequently in 2018 (45%) than in 2017 (25%).

Discussion
Privacy concerns, portal knowledge, and conversations between primary care providers and patients predict portal access.

Conclusion
Methods described here may be employed to personalize methods of patient engagement during new patient registration.


Multimedia information, especially videos, is growing explosively with the rapid development of the Internet and multimedia technology. Due to its variety of image features, it is capable of reaching several hundred dimensions and even thousands of dimensions. Storing and indexing the high-dimensional feature vectors has become key technologies of content-based video retrieval. The residual quantization mechanism, which combines the asymmetric distance and set sorting algorithm based on multi-feature candidates, is improved after analyzing the characteristics of soccer videos. For soccer videos, SD-VLAD (Soft Distribution-Vectors of Locally Aggregated Descriptors), BOC (Bag of Color), and shot type are selected for describing the information of images. To address the problem that the original residual quantized inverted index can only retrieve single features, multiple feature retrieval and sorting are proposed. In the stage of candidate set sorting, a multi-feature based similarity calculation method is designed according to the shots type. The experimental results show that multi-feature hierarchical retrieval and sorting can be achieved at the cost of memory space. While ensuring query speed, the accuracy of the query is improved.


There is empirical evidence of a cross-country positive association between the number of lawyers per capita and the extent of litigation. For instance, Spain has more litigation and more lawyers per capita than most OECD countries. How should this association be interpreted? In this paper we analyse the variation in both variables across Spanish provinces during the period 2001-2010, by means of an instrumental variable approach, to shed some light on the sources of the statistical association between them. Finally, implications of the results are discussed.


We report on proper motion measurements of the forward- and reverse shock regions of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A), including deceleration/acceleration measurements of the forward shock. The measurements combine 19 yr of observations with the Chandra X-ray Observatory, using the 4.2–6 keV continuum band, preferentially targeting X-ray synchrotron radiation. The average expansion rate is 0.218 ± 0.029% yr−1 for the forward shock, corresponding to a velocity of ≈5800 km s−1. The time derivative of the proper motions indicates deceleration in the east, and an acceleration up to 1.1 × 10−4 yr−2 in the western part. The reverse shock moves outward in the east, but in the west it moves toward the center with an expansion rate of −0.0225 ± 0.0007 % yr−1, corresponding to −1884 ± 17 km s−1. In the west, the reverse shock velocity in the ejecta frame is ≳3000 km s−1, peaking at ∼8000 km s−1, explaining the presence of X-ray synchrotron emitting filaments there. The backward motion of the reverse shock can be explained by either a scenario in which the forward shock encountered a partial, dense, wind shell, or one in which the shock transgressed initially through a lopsided cavity, created during a brief Wolf–Rayet star phase. Both scenarios are consistent with the local acceleration of the forward shock. Finally we report on the proper motion of the northeastern jet, using both the X-ray continuum band, and the Si xiii K-line emission band. We find expansion rates of, respectively, 0.21% and 0.24% yr−1, corresponding to velocities at the tip of the X-ray jet of 7830–9200 km s−1.


The city of Matagalpa, due to the geological and morphological features of the territory, exposure to natural phenomena, the degradation of natural resources and rapid population growth, has endangered the welfare of its population, because of the high vulnerability and risk to the occurrence of natural disasters, principally flooding from the Grande Matagalpa River, which crosses through the center of the city, frequently leaving significant material damage and human loss. In this context, the initiative from the municipal government of Matagalpa to implement the "Rio Grande Matagalpa" project was born, financed by the European Cooperation, in order to initiate a process of flood risk management in the upper river basin and to strengthen and empower the population and the community in the prevention, mitigation and preparation against floods. As part of the project, the Joint Early Warning System (EWS) was designed, implemented and is currently operating, its purpose being to have available the information in real time, provided by automated tools and equipment, and monitored by local community organizations. The EWS is integrated into the risk management process which allows it to alert and communicate to the population about the possible occurrence of phenomenon possibly causing natural disasters, principally flooding in the city of Matagalpa.


Background: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a medium-vessel vasculitis having coronary predilection, usually affecting under-5 children presenting as acute febrile illness. Despite being a disease with long-term grievous outcome, only few published literature are available from India, even lesser from its eastern region. Methods: From January 2016 to December 2020, 30 case records of children with a discharge diagnosis of KD were enrolled in this study. Demographic profile, clinical manifestations, laboratory data, echocardiographic findings, and treatment done were extracted from the case records. Laboratory investigations were done at admission and repeated after 24 h of intravenous immunoglobulin administration as per the American Heart Association Guidelines 2004. Echocardiography was carried out at diagnosis, at 2 weeks, and at 6 weeks. Results: Out of 30 children diagnosed with KD, majority belong to 1–5 years of age group (72%) with male predominance. Complete KD was seen in 77% of children. The most common presentation was fever >5 days (100%) followed by oral changes in 26 (87%), conjunctivitis in 25 (83%), extremity changes in 23 (77%), and rash in 21 (70%) children. Desquamation of perineum and reactivation of bacillus Calmette–Guérin scar were seen in 10%. No children with complete KD and three children with incomplete KD developed coronary artery Abnormalities (CAA). Conclusion: Infants with incomplete KD have a higher incidence of CAA. Aggressive management results in better outcome.


Implicit cultural understandings challenge those working to increase public awareness and support for programs to prevent and address fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Understanding these cultural beliefs reveals key challenges that communicators face; it also helps identify opportunities to foster public engagement and build support for policies and programs that are important for reducing the prevalence of FASD as a public health issue. Through a series of interviews with members of the public in Manitoba, Canada, we identify the cultural models that members of the Manitoban public draw on to make sense of this issue. These models and their implications are used to create a set of recommendations that can improve understanding of the issue, increase issue salience, and generate support for solutions. While the research presented is specific to Manitoba, findings have significance for those working on FASD in other areas and for those working on other public health and science translation projects.


Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) was developed as an endoscopic treatment technique for superficial gastrointestinal neoplasia in Japan. After submucosal injection and circumferential incision around the tumor, direct dissection of the submucosa underneath the lesion is performed in this procedure. ESD has the advantage over conventional endoscopic mucosal resection, enabling tumor removal in an en bloc manner and pathological review of the resected one. In this special issue, Gotoda, Sakamoto and Ishihara et al. have outlined the details of gastric, colorectal and esophageal ESD with special reference to Barrett's cancer, respectively (1-3). ESD requires endoscopic skill and sufficient experience in relation to substantial risks of such complications as bleeding and perforation. Thus, a standardized ESD training system has being established to disseminate safe and effective ESD technique globally, as proposed by Gotoda and Tsuji et al. from both the representative high-volume ESD centers in Japan (2,4). In the near future, we believe global dissemination of this procedure can be a great boon for much more patients suffering from gastrointestinal neoplasia.


This paper proposes a novel intelligent fault diagnosis method to automatically identify different health conditions of wind turbine (WT) gearbox. Unlike traditional approaches, where feature extraction and classification are separately designed and performed, this paper aims to automatically learn effective fault features directly from raw vibration signals while classify the type of faults in a single framework, thus providing an end-to-end learning-based fault diagnosis system for WT gearbox without additional signal processing and diagnostic expertise. Considering the multiscale characteristics inherent in vibration signals of a gearbox, a new multiscale convolutional neural network (MSCNN) architecture is proposed to perform multiscale feature extraction and classification simultaneously. The proposed MSCNN incorporates multiscale learning into the traditional CNN architecture, which has two merits: 1) high-level fault features can be effectively learned by the hierarchical learning structure with multiple pairs of convolutional and pooling layers; and 2) multiscale learning scheme can capture complementary and rich diagnosis information at different scales. This greatly improves the feature learning ability and enables better diagnosis performance. The proposed MSCNN approach is evaluated through experiments on a WT gearbox test rig. Experimental results and comprehensive comparison analysis with respect to the traditional CNN and traditional multiscale feature extractors have demonstrated the superiority of the proposed method.


Background Massangam health district (HD), in the West Region of Cameroon, has received ivermectin mass drug administration (MDA) for 20 years, however there is evidence of continued high transmission of Onchocerca volvulus. In order to better understand the transmission dynamics in the HD and inform intervention strategies there is a need to delineate the boundaries of the suspected area of high transmission within the wider transmission zone. Methodology/Principal findings Parasitological and entomological surveys were conducted to map out the breeding sites of Simulium damnosum and evaluate the prevalence of onchocerciasis in neighbouring communities, including Makouopsap sentinel community. Potential rapids were prospected for identification of S. damnosum larvae and black flies collected to determine infectivity rates. Adults were assessed for the presence of O. volvulus microfilariae through a skin snip biopsy and examined for the presence of nodules. Anti Ov-16 antibodies were tested for in children. Four perennial breeding sites were identified on the Rivers Mbam and Nja. Large number of flies were collected along the River Mbam, especially in the rainy season, with up to 955 flies per day, suggesting this river is a perennial source of black flies. A total of 0.8% of parous flies were infective across the study area. Parasitological studies provided evidence of high rates of infection in the sentinel community and three neighbouring communities, with 37.1% of adults microfilariae positive in Makouopsap. High Ov-16 seropositivity in children also provided evidence of recent on-going transmission. In comparison, communities sampled further away from the sentinel community and neighbouring breeding sites were much closer to reaching onchocerciasis elimination targets. Conclusions/Significance This study provides evidence of a particular geographic area of high transmission in an approximate 12 km range around the sentinel community of Makouopsap and the neighbouring breeding sites on the River Nja. To eliminate onchocerciasis by 2025, there is a need to explore alternative intervention strategies in this area of high transmission.


Salicylic acid is involved in the regulation of metabolic activity and defense mechanism in plants under various stress conditions. Present study was conducted to determine the effects of salicylic acid (10 to 500 μM) on seedling growth, development and nitrogen use efficiency in watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) plants with or without nitrogen nutrient. Salicylic acid increased contents of chlorophyll, total non-structural carbohydrate and total nitrogen, as well as nitrate assimilation through the induction of nitrate reductase (EC 188.8.131.52) activity in isolated watermelon cotyledons. Accumulation of salicylic acid was two-fold higher in cotyledons without nitrate supply in comparison to that with nitrate supply. Further 50 μM of SA induced enhancement in seed germination and growth characteristics. However higher salicylic acid concentrations inhibited above physiological characteristics. Results show that, field application of salicylic acid need optimum physiological concentration (e.g., 50 μM) to increase nitrogen use efficiency particularly during germination and seedling growth.


Abstract E-business technology is playing an important role in manufacturer-reseller relationships. This research focuses on the behavioral aspects of technology deployment in channels of distribution. The paper examines the impact of inequity, relationship-technology fit, and trust on the key relationship variable of conflict. The data was collected from the resellers and multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. The results of the empirical test suggest that technology-relationship affects conflict indirectly by reducing perceived inequity and inequity directly increases conflict. Trust influences conflict both directly and indirectly by lowering perceived inequity. The paper briefly discusses the implications of these findings for practicing managers.


Metamaterials can provide many different functionalities and striking optical properties, whereby the optical control often comes from metallic building blocks which exhibit plasmonic resonances in the optical and infra-red frequency regimes. However, one of the major obstacles in the use of metallic elements is the overcoming of the losses in plasmonic structures. In this thesis, we consider how mode hybridisation can be used to circumvent these losses using cut-wire plasmonic arrays coupled to photonic slab waveguides. The resulting hybrid modes can have low loss characteristics and we investigate how the geometric parameters of the structure can be used to control the transmission and dispersion properties. We then investigate finite arrays finding they can support modes with extremely high quality factors (Q∼ 4000), which is highly unusual in plasmonic systems, and that the individual loss mechanisms can be controlled via the geometry. In the second part of the thesis we consider another type of surface mode, the spoof SPP. Theoretical methods for describing spoof SPPs in perfectly conducting materials are well established, enabling the design of an arbitrary spoof plasma frequency. However, for dispersive materials there have been a lack of theoretical studies. We begin by considering first how small changes to the spoof plasmon geometry affect the characteristics of spoof SPP waves, adapting the coupled mode method to slanted geometries and even right-angled triangular indentations, a structure not normally associated with spoof SPPs. We then develop a formalism based on the coupled mode method allowing the dispersion of real metal spoof SPPs to be understood and tuned, thus enabling control of the optical spoof SPP characteristics via both the geometry and the incorporated materials. This method also enables an in depth look at the modal losses which occur once dispersive materials are incorporated into the spoof plasmon dispersion relation and vary drastically with the groove width.


Trapped gas pockets may cause severe operational problems in liquid piping systems. The severity of the resulting transients depends on the size and position of the trapped air pocket. Previous numerical simulations by the authors have indicated that a beat is possible to develop for 'medium' size air pockets. This paper investigates the beat phenomenon in detail, both theoretically and experimentally. Trapped air pockets are incorporated as boundary conditions (discrete gas cavities) into two distinct numerical solution schemes: (1) the method of characteristic scheme (MOC) and (2) a conservative solution scheme (CSS). The classical discrete gas cavity model (DGCM) allows gas cavities to form at computational sections in the MOC. A discrete gas cavity is governed by the water hammer compatibility equations, the continuity equation for the gas cavity volume, and the equation of state of an ideal gas. A novel CSS-based DGCM solves the system of unsteady pipe flow equations and respective state equations for four dependent variables (pressure, density, cross-sectional area, flow velocity) rather than two variables (pressure, flow velocity) in the classical MOC approach. In the MOC-based DGCM, the Courant number is equal to unity. This condition is difficult to fulfil (without using interpolations) in complex pipe networks without modification of wave speeds and/or pipe lengths. The CSS-based DGCM offers flexibility in the selection of computational time and space steps, however, the numerical weighting coefficients in the scheme should be carefully selected. Both models incorporate a convolution-based unsteady friction model. Experimental investigations of beat phenomena have been carried out in the University of Adelaide laboratory apparatus (reservoirpipeline- valve system). A trapped air pocket is captured at the midpoint of the pipeline in a specially designed device. The transient event is initiated by rapid closure of a side-discharge solenoid valve. Predicted and measured results are compared and discussed. It is shown that the fully-developed beat is strongly attenuated by unsteady friction and not so by steady friction.


The dynamics of LH content in hypophysis and blood and oestrogen content in blood was studied in female rats from the 1st till the 42nd day of postnatal development. The two peaks of LH content in blood on the 18th and 22nd days correspond to the maximum accumulation of the hormone in hypophysis. The 3rd peak on the 41st day is somewhat behind the accumulation of the hormone in hypophysis (37th day). At the moment of vaginal opening, both the hormone synthesis and the secretion sharply decreased. The measurable quantities of oestrogens were found in blood beginning from the 8th day of life. The maximum level of oestrogens was noted from the 13th till the 16 day. These results suggest the absence of distinct interrelations of the feed-back type between hypothalamus, hypophysis and gonads.


PURPOSE The aim of this study was to determine the information needs of primary care physicians in Spain and to describe their information-seeking patterns. METHODS This observational study took place in primary care practices located in Madrid, Spain. Participants were a random stratified sample of 112 primary care physicians. Physicians' consultations were video recorded for 4 hours. Clinical questions arising during the patient visit and the sources of information used within the consultation to answer questions were identified. Physicians with unanswered questions were followed up by telephone 2 weeks later to determine whether their questions had since been answered and the sources of information used. Clinical questions were classified by topic and type of information. RESULTS A total of 3,511 patient consultations (mean length, 7.8 minutes) were recorded, leading to 635 clinical questions (0.18 questions per consultation). The most frequent questions were related to diagnosis (53%) and treatment (26%). The most frequent generic type of questions was "What is the cause of symptom x?" (20.5%). Physicians searched for answers to 22.8% of the questions (9.6% during consultations). The time taken and the success rate in finding an answer during a consultation and afterward were 2 minutes (100%) and 32 minutes (75%), respectively. CONCLUSIONS Primary care physicians working in settings where consultations are of short duration have time to answer only 1 in 5 of their questions. Better methods are needed to provide answers to questions that arise in office practice in settings where average consultation time is less than 10 minutes.


This article is an introduction to essays authored by speakers at Pepperdine University's Institute on Law, Religion, and Ethics inaugural conference. The theme of the conference was the question of whether religious faith, particularly the faith of Christians and Jews, can be a source of meaning for the practice of law. The conference focused on the religious concept of vocation or calling as a means of understanding the ordinary, day-to-day work of lawyers. Many of the speakers argued that work, even what is normally considered secular work, is an area of life that can and should be redeemed by God. Cochran states that most religious traditions accept the notion that all productive work can be a religious calling. In this introduction, he addresses two issues: "Why are so many lawyers dissatisfied with their work?" and "Is the ordinary practice of law something that one can do to the glory of God?". Cochran concludes this introduction with a brief summary of the essays written by the speakers at the conference.


The regulation of transcription initiation is a key feature of gene expression control. RNA polymerase II is recruited to the DNA upon assembly of the Pre-Initiation Complex (PIC), which is in turn nucleated by the binding of TATA-binding protein (TBP) to the core promoter. The modulation of TBP activity occurs in a dynamic fashion by controlling the TBP delivering and removal rates. TFIID and SAGA have a positive role on TBP activity whereas MOT1p and NC2 have a negative role. The interplay between the TBP-binding complexes TFIID, SAGA, MOT1 and NC2 regulates transcriptional output. In this thesis, a biochemical and functional analysis of TBP-binding complexes has been performed to decipher their roles in transcription initiation. Posttranslational modifications of the TBP-binding complexes TFIID and SAGA were mapped by mass spectrometry. This revealed that many residues on shared or specific subunits of the two complexes were subject to modification by phosphorylation or acetylation. The shared subunit Taf5p was phosphorylated when present in SAGA, but not when present in TFIID. The SAGA-specific subunits Spt7p and Sgf73p were hyperacetylated in chromatin binding domains. The SAGA complex is also subject to proteolytic cleavage of the Spt7p subunit resulting in formation of the related SLIK protein complex. Using mass spectrometry, we identified this cleavage site. A knock out screen combined with an in vitro protease cleavage assay resulted in the identification of the Pep4p protease to be responsible for cleavage of Spt7p and formation of SLIK. The proteolytic processing of the Spt7p subunit affects the composition of the TBP-module of SAGA by removing the binding domain for the Spt8p subunit. We have reviewed the current literature on SAGA in yeast, flies and human, and addressed how yeast SAGA has diverged into two related but distinct protein complexes in metazoans: SAGA and ATAC. Next, the genome-wide regulation of gene expression by Mot1p and NC2 has been studied using a new approach for conditional protein depletion in living yeast cells. This indicated that Mot1p and NC2 coregulate gene expression to a large extent. Both Mot1p and NC2 were required for maintaining basal gene expression and for the shut down of gene expression following induction by heat shock. Taken together, the results presented in this thesis have uncovered how the SAGA complex is converted to the SLIK complex; have identified a large number of post-translational modifications on SAGA and TFIID; and have provided further insight in the mechanism of gene repression by Mot1 and NC2. These findings should aid in our understanding of TBP function in the regulation of gene expression.


Jacobian matrix plays a key role in the analysis, design, and control of robots. For example, it can be used for the performance analysis and evaluation of parallel mechanisms (PMs). However, the Jacobian matrix of a PM generally varies with the poses of the moving platform in the workspace. This leads to a nonconstant performance index of the PM. PMs with a constant Jacobian matrix have simple kinematics and are easy to design and control. This paper proposes a method for obtaining PMs with a constant Jacobian matrix. First, the criteria for detecting invariance of a Jacobian matrix are obtained based on the screw theory. An approach to the synthesis of PMs with a constant Jacobian matrix is then proposed. Using this approach, PMs with a constant Jacobian matrix are synthesized in two steps: the limb design and the combination of the limbs. Several PMs with a constant Jacobian matrix are obtained. In addition to the translational parallel mechanisms (TPMs) with a constant Jacobian matrix in the literature, the mixed-motion PMs whose moving platform can both translate and rotate with a constant Jacobian matrix are newly identified. The input/output velocity analysis of several PMs is presented to verify that Jacobian matrix of these PMs is constant.


Despite the large differences in the polysaccharide constituents of the cell walls of eudicots and grasses, the glycome profiles are common to Golgi membranes from both Arabidopsis and maize. The plant endoplasmic reticulum-Golgi apparatus is the site of synthesis, assembly, and trafficking of all noncellulosic polysaccharides, proteoglycans, and proteins destined for the cell wall. As grass species make cell walls distinct from those of dicots and noncommelinid monocots, it has been assumed that the differences in cell-wall composition stem from differences in biosynthetic capacities of their respective Golgi. However, immunosorbence-based screens and carbohydrate linkage analysis of polysaccharides in Golgi membranes, enriched by flotation centrifugation from etiolated coleoptiles of maize (Zea mays) and leaves of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), showed that arabinogalactan-proteins and arabinans represent substantial portions of the Golgi-resident polysaccharides not typically found in high abundance in cell walls of either species. Further, hemicelluloses accumulated in Golgi at levels that contrasted with those found in their respective cell walls, with xyloglucans enriched in maize Golgi, and xylans enriched in Arabidopsis. Consistent with this finding, maize Golgi membranes isolated by flotation centrifugation and enriched further by free-flow electrophoresis, yielded >200 proteins known to function in the biosynthesis and metabolism of cell-wall polysaccharides common to all angiosperms, and not just those specific to cell-wall type. We propose that the distinctive compositions of grass primary cell walls compared with other angiosperms result from differential gating or metabolism of secreted polysaccharides post-Golgi by an as-yet unknown mechanism, and not necessarily by differential expression of genes encoding specific synthase complexes.


Recombinant monoclonal antibodies are established by screening the antibody libraries. To obtain antibodies with a high specificity and affinity, an efficient screening process with a highly diverse library including low background signals is necessary. One of the most extensively used methods is the phage display method. Although phage display screening is a powerful tool for enriching clones from vast libraries, it is not easy to iden - tify single clones with an antigen recognition function only through several rounds of biopanning. The application of colony assays for screening antibody libraries can identify clones with a high reliability by a direct observation of the antibody-antigen binding during the screening process; however, the size of the library that can be dealt with is limited. This chapter describes the colony assay as a current screening technology used in recombinant monoclonal antibody production, the possible problems in this method, and discusses the outlook for this technology.


A modular design idea oriented to client customization is proposed to achieve product diversification and personalization. The Key technology of customized design is studied to meet the market's requirement of short cycle, high quality and low cost in product design and manufacturing. In the detailed design stage, the method of Top Basic Skeleton (TBS) is applied, which improves the rapid response ability of product design and shortens the product development cycle. On this base, a rapid design method of customized vacuum casting machine is illuminated. In the dynamic and changing market environment, the rapid design method plays an important role in improving the competitive power of enterprise.


The tubal tonsils of 12 adult buffaloes of the local mixed breed were studied using light and electron microscopy. The tonsillar mucosa lined by pseudostratified columnar ciliated epithelium with goblet cells was modified into lymphoepithelial, due to its association with underlying lymphoid tissue. The lymphoepithelial further modified into follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) characterised by absence of the ciliated cells, goblet cells and the presence of more lymphocytes. The FAE exhibited varying modifications and presented M-cells intimately associated with lymphocytes. At places, the change of the epithelium also showed the presence of specialised M-cell like cells without any association with lymphoid tissue. The lymphoid tissue was in the form of isolated lymphocytes, diffuse aggregations and follicles. The goblet cells of the respiratory epithelium and the glandular acinar cells showed positive activity for the different carbohydrate moieties like acidic and neutral mucopolysaccharides, glycogen, mucins, weakly sulfated acidic mucosubstances, hyaluronic acid and sialomucins. Scanning electron microscopy of the mucosal surface presented a dense mat of cilia, and the FAE exhibited a heterogeneous population of microvillus and M-cells. Transmission electronmicroscopy demonstrated the different cell organelles of the various epithelia as well as the cellular profiles of the propria-submucosa, including the high endothelial venules where lymphocytes migration by both inter-endothelial and transvascular routes was also observed. The structural features of the tubal tonsil suggest that new strategies are required to explore this tonsil for targeted delivery of drugs and develop more effective vaccines by the intranasal route.


We consider symmetric oligopolies with positive network effects where each firm has its own proprietary network, which is incompatible with that of its rivals. We provide minimal conditions for the existence of (non-trivial) symmetric equilibrium in a general setting. We analyze the viability of industries with firm-specific networks, and show that the prospects for successful launch decrease with more firms in the market. This is a major reversal from the case of singlenetwork industries. A central part of the paper compares the viability and market performance of industries with compatible and incompatible networks, and shows that viability, output, (endogenous) demand, and social welfare are higher for the former. However, the comparison of industry price, profit and consumer surplus requires respective qualifications, of a general nature for the former two but not for the latter. Overall, these results provide theoretical grounding in a general but not universal sense for the conventional view that compatibility leads to superior performance, which was hitherto based on case studies and stylized facts. JEL codes: C72, D43, L13, L14.


This article uses the Spanish Pavilion by Javier Carvajal at the 1964–65 New York World's Fair as a case study to examine the physical survival of some pavilions. Strictly speaking, a pavilion is a tent and a satellite. National exhibition pavilions are ephemeral satellites of their country, but they cannot be defined as tents if they cannot easily be dismantled, transferred, and reconstructed. The success of their second life depends on several essential aspects such us their construction technology or size, but also on other circumstances, such as how they manage to adapt to conditions different from the original ones, and their subsequent economic viability. The conflict between these factors has often led to failure. After the reconstruction in 1959 in the Casa de Campo in Madrid of the pavilion for Brussels 1958 by Corrales and Molezun, its New York counterpart enjoyed similar luck as it was rebuilt in St. Louis in 1969 as the "Home of Hispanic peoples." However, it soon failed and became a hotel. Today, only some traces of this architectural ideal are still recognizable, and instead it lives on in our memory, in some publications, and in some recent architecture as a conceptual remnant. The new conditions meant that what was devised to be ephemeral ended up being ephemeral, although its ideas have transcended time. As this is where its true survival lies, why pervert it by transforming the exceptional into the ordinary?


Insanity is repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results. Calvin: There! I finished our secret code! Hobbes: Let's see. Calvin: I assigned each letter a totally random number, so the code will be hard to crack. For letter " A " , you write 3,004,572,688. " B " is 28,731,569½. Hobbes: That's a good code all right. Calvin: Now we just commit this to memory. Calvin: Did you finish your map of our neighborhood? Hoobes: Not yet. How many bricks does the front walk have? A hash table is a data structure for storing a set of items, so that we can quickly determine whether an item is or is not in the set. The basic idea is to pick a hash function h that maps every possible item x to a small integer h(x). Then we store x in slot h(x) in an array. The array is the hash table. Let's be a little more specific. We want to store a set of n items. Each item is an element of a fixed set U called the universe; we use u to denote the size of the universe, which is just the number of items in U. A hash table is an array T [1 .. m], where m is another positive integer, which we call the table size. Typically, m is much smaller than u. A hash function is any function of the form mapping each possible item in U to a slot in the hash table. We say that an item x hashes to the slot T [h(x)]. Of course, if u = m, then we can always just use the trivial hash function h(x) = x; n other words, we can use the item itself as the index into the table. This is called a direct access table, or more commonly, an array. In most applications, though, this approach requires much more space than we can reasonably allocate; on the other hand, we rarely need need to store more than a tiny fraction of U. Ideally, the table size m should be roughly equal to the number n of items we actually want to store. The downside of using a smaller table is that we must deal with collisions. We say that two items x and y collide if their hash values are equal: h(x) = h(y). We are now left with two different (but …


The oceanic Cocos Plate subducting beneath Costa Rica has a complex plate tectonic history resulting in segmentation. New lines of magnetic data clearly define tectonic boundaries which separate lithosphere formed at the East Pacific Rise from lithosphere formed at the Cocos-Nazca spreading center. They also define two early phase Cocos-Nazca spreading regimes and a major propagator. In addition to these sharply defined tectonic boundaries are overprinted boundaries from volcanism during passage of Cocos Plate over the Galapagos hot spot. The subducted segment boundaries correspond with distinct changes in upper plate tectonic structure and features of the subducted slab. Newly identified seafloor-spreading anomalies show oceanic lithosphere formed during initial breakup of the Farallon Plate at 22.7 Ma and opening of the Cocos-Nazca spreading center. A revised regional compilation of magnetic anomalies allows refinement of plate tectonic models for the early history of the Cocos-Nazca spreading center. At 19.5 Ma a major ridge jump reshaped its geometry, and after ∼14.5 Ma multiple southward ridge jumps led to a highly asymmetric accretion of lithosphere. A suspected cause of ridge jumps is an interaction of the Cocos-Nazca spreading center with the Galapagos hot spot.


This paper presents a magnetorheological(MR) rheometer which consists of a pair of rotating parallel disc, step motor, the signal collecting device, computer software for dynamic analysis etc.. In order to assess the performance of the MR rheometer, high-order spectrum analysis tools are used. The theoretical and experimental results indicate that the rheometer is useful to test the dynamic charicteristics of the MR fluids and the high-order analysis might be helpful to describe MR rheometer dynamic characteristics. The measurement and analysis process based on virtual instruments are automatically controlled by computer in this paper.


Digital Manufacturing is a technology to facilitate effective product developments and agile productions by digital environments representing the physical and logical schema and tile behavior of real manufacturing system including manufacturing resources, processes and products. A digital factory as a well-designed and integrated environment is essential for successful applications of this technology. In this research, we constructed a sophisticated digital factory of an automotive company's general assembly shop by measuring and 3-D CAD modeling using parametric methods. Specific parameters of each objects were decided by object-oriented schema of the general assembly shop. It is expected that this method is very useful for constructions of a digital factory, and helps to manage diverse information and re-use 3D models.


ABSTRACT . The objective of this research is to understand the factors determining the farmers in selecting the soybean seed and the farmers' preference toward soybean.  Research was implemented  at Indrajaya sub district Pidie Regency.  Research method was a survey toward the soybean farmers using a simple random technique, involving total simple  of 40 farmers in the 2010 planting season.  The result of this research indicates that the dominant factors considered by farmers in selecting soybean seed at  Indrajaya sub district  were plan age, growth type, plant's branching and collapsibility.  The factors at Kota Bakti sub district ware price rate, seed shape, selling easiness, plant collapsibility, growth type and plant habit. Farmers' preference toward soybean plant was based on the factors considered by farmers.  At Indrajaya sub district, the preference was toward the seed with 35-40 days of flowering age, 80-85 days of harvest time, semi-determinate growth type, many branches and collapsibility resistance.  At  Kota Bakti sub district, the preference was toward those with yellow seed skin  color, oval seed shape, determinate growth type, price rate, selling easiness, many branches and Collapsibility resistance.


Author(s): Gotshall, Daniel W | Abstract: Sea surveys were initiated in the spring of 1965 to obtain estimates of population size, mortality rates, and growth rates of the northern California ocean shrimp population. From March 1965 through September 1968, nine surveys were conducted in a 270-square-mile area from off Mad River, California, north to Smith River, California. Four surveys were conducted in a 105-square-mile area off southern Oregon during 1967 and 1968. Estimates of the California population ranged from a low of 2.2 million pounds in the fall of 1966 to a high of 8.1 million pounds in the fall of 1967.Survival rates, derived from natural mortality rates for ocean shrimp during their second winter of life, for the 1964 and 1965 year classes were 0.68 and 0.55 respectively. Lowest survival rates were obtained from the 1963 and 1964 year classes during their third winter of life. The highest fishing mortality rates were observed for shrimp during their third summer in the fishery. Survey data indicate a relationship between annual fishing mortality rates and total trawling hours expended by shrimp fishermen. Limited data suggest a relationship also exists between the number of spawners and 1-year-old recruits as well as the existence of a density dependent relationship between population size and survival of the incoming year class.The Von Bertalanffy growth equation was applied to mean carapace lengths of 1964 and 1965 year class shrimp. Values for the constants L and K were very close while the values to t0 varied considerably.I believe the spring and summer 1965 and fall 1966 surveys produced underestimates of abundance, possibly due in part to vertical migrations of shrimp during daylight in 1965 and a horizontal shift of the population north in 1966.


The thesis examines the legal licensing framework of standard essential patents (SEPs) in the upcoming Internet of Things. In doing so it analyses the meaning and content of the commitment to license SEPs on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms, assess the adequacy of current FRAND licensing models in the changed IoT environment and suggests avenues for reform. The precise meaning and content of FRAND licensing terms to date remain unclear, and the thesis will contribute to the literature by providing a comprehensive legal and policy analysis of different elements of FRAND commitment. In particular the thesis will look at the legal nature and enforceability of FRAND commitment; the role of contract and competition laws in ensuring compliance with a FRAND commitment; the principles of FRAND royalty; the methods for calculating FRAND royalty; the appropriate FRAND royalty base; the meaning of the non-discrimination requirement of FRAND commitment; the requirement to license at every level of the supply chain, and legal remedies available for infringement of SEPs. The answer to each element will provide a comprehensive guide to the meaning of the FRAND licensing framework. After providing an insight into what FRAND terms are, the thesis will look at the suitability of the current FRAND licensing framework in the IoT environment. It will be shown that current bilateral licensing models which mainly focus on cross-licensing may not be adequate in the IoT context. The thesis will critically assess current proposals intended at reforming the SEP licensing landscape and will suggest several measures with the aim of increasing the transparency and predictability of the SEP licensing framework in the IoT.


Huntington's chorea is a genetic disorder characterized by cognitive, motor and psychiatric impairments. It is caused by a dominant mutation on chromosome 4 featuring the multiplication of a portion of the gene in which the codon CAG occurs. CAG codes for the amino acid, glutamine and so the Huntingtin protein (htt) features an excessive expression of glutamine. The abnormal protein htt is prone to accumulate in neurons eventually resulting in brain cell death and the consequent progressive symptoms of the disease. Therapies for Huntington's chorea include targeting the symptoms, the progression, and the cause of the disease, but no treatment has as yet been found to be completely effective. After describing the symptoms, genetic and proteomic basis of Huntington's chorea, this paper discusses a new approach to treatment of Huntington's chorea, RNA interference. The problems, limitations, and the benefits of RNA interference will be examined, along with avenues for overcoming the limitations of gene therapy with a transposition system, such as Sleeping Beauty. This review suggests that although substantial amount of research is still necessary before RNA interference treatment is successful, success will open new avenues for treating other degenerative nervous system diseases.