This work proposes a method for predicting the fundamental frequency and voicing of a frame of speech from its mel-frequency cepstral coefficient (MFCC) vector representation. This information is subsequently used to enable a speech signal to be reconstructed solely from a stream of MFCC vectors and has particular application in distributed speech recognition systems. Prediction is achieved by modeling the joint density of fundamental frequency and MFCCs. This is first modeled using a Gaussian mixture model (GMM) and then extended by using a set of hidden Markov models to link together a series of state-dependent GMMs. Prediction accuracy is measured on unconstrained speech input for both a speaker-dependent system and a speaker-independent system. A fundamental frequency prediction error of 3.06% is obtained on the speaker-dependent system in comparison to 8.27% on the speaker-independent system. On the speaker-dependent system 5.22% of frames have voicing errors compared to 8.82% on the speaker-independent system. Spectrogram analysis of reconstructed speech shows that highly intelligible speech is produced with the quality of the speaker-dependent speech being slightly higher owing to the more accurate fundamental frequency and voicing predictions


This study analyses the effects of residential segregation in Montevideo on the learning differences of students and examines the efficacy of the educational system's responses seeking to deal with the inequities generated by those processes. After describing the effects of the family, the school and the neighbourhood on learning, it presents hierarchical linear models which seek to isolate the effects of each of these contexts. It summarizes the challenges raised by the results to Uruguayan education's efforts to dissociate learning achievements from social origin and examines the responses of the authorities of the sector to those challenges. Finally, it reviews policy options for strengthening the role of education as the principal means for integrating new generations in the light of new problems in relation to urban segregation.


Numerical simulations are presented to study the stability of gaps opened by giant planets in 3D self-gravitating disks. In weakly self-gravitating disks, a few vortices develop at the gap edge and merge on orbital time-scales. The result is one large but weak vortex with Rossby number -0.01. In moderately self-gravitating disks, more vortices develop and their merging is resisted on dynamical time-scales. Self-gravity can sustain multi-vortex configurations, with Rossby number -0.2 to -0.1, over a time-scale of order 100 orbits. Self-gravity also enhances the vortex vertical density stratification, even in disks with initial Toomre parameter of order 10. However, vortex formation is suppressed in strongly self-gravitating disks and replaced by a global spiral instability associated with the gap edge which develops during gap formation.


The article considers the unity of executive power in the federative model of contemporary Russia to show that a single system of executive power within the Russian political-legal culture presupposes a hierarchical relationship between executive authorities of different levels. Such specifics of the relationship between the federal executive bodies and executive bodies of the subjects of the Russian Federation contradicts the idea of a vertical division of powers. The Russian model of federal relations is based on the fact that if the interests of the federation and its subjects are intertwined the best decision is not to isolate or separate the levels of power but rather to help them to interact, to provide a joint solution to the challenges of the state and its constituent parts. The author studied the federal legal acts and the practice of the Constitutional Court, in which the principle of the unity of the executive power was reinforced and evaluated. The article is based on the culturological approach as a kind of the systemstructural analysis of law and other elements of social reality. This approach allows to consider the specifics of the Russian federalism as a special model of public administration in dynamics, and the corresponding institutions in their constant interaction and development. The formal-legal method allowed to identify the legal content of the principle of the state power system unity as the 'cornerstone' of the Russian federative structure. As a result, the article presents the following cultural-historical model of the Russian federative * © V.M. Platonov, 2020. The article was submitted on 15.05.2019. The article was accepted on 10.09.2019. Платонов В.М. Вестник РУДН. Серия: СОЦИОЛОГИЯ. 2020. Т. 20. No 1. С. 145—160 158 СОЦИОЛОГИЧЕСКИЙ ЛЕКТОРИЙ relations: it allows for widespread decentralization in the political sphere (by providing a list of objects of joint jurisdiction of the federal center and the subjects of the Russian Federation, and also — by residual principle — the exclusive legislative competence of the subjects), while the federal center strengthens centralization mechanisms in the administrative sphere (through the distribution of powers within the joint jurisdiction), thus, ensuring political competition under the tough statist principles in public administration.


Traditionally, the heart failure management model has focused on crisis intervention, which allows the disease syndrome to progress to a point that requires emergent care followed by a cycle of prolonged and repeated hospitalizations (such contacts between the patient and care providers occur at times when the heart failure syndrome has deteriorated dangerously, and are only concerned with resolving the immediate crisis). Over time this approach of emergent care results in a marked decline in the patient's quality of life and creates a "revolving door" effect with the combined use of emergency department and hospital inpatient resources. The alternative is to become proactive and optimize treatment before such emergencies arise. This model relies on effective continuous outpatient and home care to stabilize the chronic condition and avoid hospital admissions. These concepts have led to the development of a new model or paradigm of outpatient strategies that have resulted in the creation of specialized heart failure disease management centers. This article discusses the economic and epidemiological forces that are driving this shift in our treatment focus and evaluates strategies that strike an optimum balance between cost containment and quality.


In the past few years, new aspects of the immunopathology of Chagas' disease have been described in immunosuppressed patients, such as fatal central nervous system lesions related to the reactivation of the parasite. This article is the first description of the genotypic characterization, at the strain level, of Trypanosoma cruzi isolated from a patient with Chagas' disease/AIDS co-infection. The presence of four hypodense lesions was observed in the cranial compute tomographic scan. the diagnosis of AIDS was assessed by the detection of anti-HIV antibodies using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blot techniques. The CD4+ lymphocyte counts were maintained under 200 cells/mm3 during one year demonstrating the severity of the state of immunosuppression. Chagas' disease was confirmed by serological and parasitological methods. Trypomastigote forms were visualized in a thick blood smear. The parasite isolated is genotypically similar to the CL strain. The paper reinforces that cerebral Chagas' disease can be considered as another potential opportunistic infection in AIDS resulting from the reactivation of a dormant T. cruzi infection acquired years earlier.


This paper is about two arrangements of hyperplanes. The first — the Shi arrangement — was introduced by Jian-Yi Shi to describe the Kazhdan-Lusztig cells in the affine Weyl group of type A. The second — the Ish arrangement — was recently defined by the first author who used the two arrangements together to give a new interpretation of the q,t-Catalan numbers of Garsia and Haiman. In the present paper we will define a mysterious "combinatorial symmetry'' between the two arrangements and show that this symmetry preserves a great deal of information. For example, the Shi and Ish arrangements share the same characteristic polynomial, the same numbers of regions, bounded regions, dominant regions, regions with c "ceilings'' and d "degrees of freedom'', etc. Moreover, all of these results hold in the greater generality of "deleted'' Shi and Ish arrangements corresponding to an arbitrary subgraph of the complete graph. Our proofs are based on nice combinatorial labellings of Shi and Ish regions and a new set partition-valued statistic on these regions.


In England and Wales, once a defendant has been found unfit to plead, the court must appoint an advocate to put the case for the defence at the ensuing 'trial of the facts' (s.4A(2) Criminal Procedure (Insanity) Act 1964). The judge must appoint "the right person for this difficult task", as the responsibility placed on the advocate is said to be "quite different" to that involved in representing a fit accused (R v Norman [2008] EWCA Crim 1810). The advocate is not bound to follow the unfit accused's instructions but must act in the accused's best interests. An unfit accused will not usually testify in their own defence, and may or may not be present in court during the proceedings.

This paper considers the lack of guidance as to the scope and ambit of the role of the court-appointed advocate in unfitness to plead cases. Some of the procedural and practical dilemmas that arise for such advocates will be discussed, and the paper will explore the ways in which their legal and ethical duties are shaped by the criminal justice system's binary approach to capacity issues. The Law Commission's proposals for the court-appointed advocate system will also be considered.


At just 4.4 percent, the contribution made by nuclear power to meeting the world's primary energy requirements is marginal and on the decline. The current nuclear power fleet is outdated with around 200 plants due to be phased out over the next ten years compared to as few as 46 new nuclear power plants under construction worldwide. Yet the nuclear industry, particularly the World Nuclear Association (WNA), is propagating the narrative that there is a plethora of countries interested in constructing their first nuclear plants. The reality is quite different, however. As few as four countries are in the process of building their first nuclear power plants and even these projects are heavily subsidized and experiencing significantly delays. As for other potential newcomers, their plans are, at best, vague, frequently abandoned, or delayed. Given the absence of economic and financial incentive, DIW Berlin has conducted an empirical analysis of other characteristics in potential newcomer countries. Our findings show that these countries tend to have a lack of democratic freedom, something which generally goes hand-in-hand with centralized power structures and weak opposition. Moreover, our analysis suggests that countries exporting nuclear technology more often than not pursue geopolitical objectives, something that currently applies to Russia, in particular. Within international organizations, especially the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) but also Euratom, Germany should be working toward ensuring that countries are not encouraged to construct their first nuclear power plants, that the necessary safety standards are met where nuclear power plants are already built or are in operation, and that as yet unresolved issues relating to decommissioning and the long-term storage of nuclear waste worldwide are addressed


The epoch-making work of Rivas, 1 reported in November, 1950, added to the armamentarium of radiologists and urologists a new diagnostic technique, which may be termed "presacral retroperitoneal pneumography." In the past three years at French Hospital, we have used this method of outlining the perirenal spaces in many cases with complete satisfaction and no untoward effects. We should like to report on a case of renal displacement and rotation which occurred as a result of the retroperitoneal insufflation of oxygen. To our knowledge, this phenomenon has not been previously observed, and, since this finding may give rise to misinterpretation, we feel that it should be recorded. REPORT OF A CASE The patient, a 33-year-old housewife, was admitted to the Medical Service seven weeks after the normal, full-term, spontaneous delivery of an infant weighing 7 lb. 10 oz. (4592 gm.). Examination in the follow-up clinic revealed persistent hypertension, and she


We compute that extrasolar minor planets can retain much of their internal H2O during their host star's red giant evolution. The eventual accretion of a water-rich body or bodies onto a helium white dwarf might supply an observable amount of atmospheric hydrogen, as seems likely for GD 362. More generally, if hydrogen pollution in helium white dwarfs typically results from accretion of large parent bodies rather than interstellar gas as previously supposed, then H2O probably constitutes at least 10% of the aggregate mass of extrasolar minor planets. One observational test of this possibility is to examine the atmospheres of externally polluted white dwarfs for oxygen in excess of that likely contributed by oxides such as SiO2. The relatively high oxygen abundance previously reported in GD 378 can be explained plausibly but not uniquely by accretion of an H2O-rich parent body or bodies. Future ultraviolet observations of white dwarf pollutions can serve to investigate the hypothesis that environments with liquid water that are suitable habitats for extremophiles are widespread in the Milky Way.


Many graph-based semi-supervised learning methods can be viewed as imposing smoothness conditions on the target function with respect to a graph representing the data points to be labeled. The smoothness properties of the functions are encoded in terms of Mercer kernels over the graph. The central quantity in such regularization is the spectral decomposition of the graph Laplacian, a matrix derived from the graph's edge weights. The eigenvectors with small eigenvalues are smooth, and ideally represent large cluster structures within the data. The eigenvectors having large eigenvalues are rugged, and considered noise. Different weightings of the eigenvectors of the graph Laplacian lead to different measures of smoothness. Such weightings can be viewed as spectral transforms, that is, as transformations of the standard eigenspectrum that lead to different regularizers over the graph. Familiar kernels, such as the diffusion kernel resulting by solving a discrete heat equation on the graph, can be seen as simple parametric spectral transforms. The question naturally arises whether one can obtain effective spectral transforms automatically. In this paper we develop an approach to searching over a nonparametric family of spectral transforms by using convex optimization to maximize kernel alignment to the labeled data. Order constraints are imposed to encode a preference for smoothness with respect to the graph structure. This results in a flexible family of kernels that is more data-driven than the standard parametric spectral transforms. Our approach relies on a quadratically constrained quadratic program (QCQP), and is computationally practical for large datasets.


The salty steppe vegetation of the Central Anatolian subregion of the Irano-Turanian phytogeographical region was examined synecologically and syntaxonomically. In the vegetation surrounding the salt lakes of this region, a new alliance Achilleo wilhelmsii-Artemision santonici and two new associations belonging to it were described. These syntaxa were attached to order Onobrychido armenae-Thymetalia leucostomi Akman, Ketenoglu, Quezel 1985, which characterizes the Central Anatolian steppes, and the classic Astragalo microcephali-Brometea tomentelli Quezel 1973, which includes a vast part of the Turkey's steppe vegetation.


This study analyzes the following unresolved questions: In international joint ventures (IJVs) in a developing country, how could different IJV structures address control and collaboration considerations, and what is the likely effect of such different structures on IJV productivity? Theoretically, we suggest that the ambiguity surrounding these questions reflects the tendency of researchers to view control and collaboration as opposing objectives, studying one or the other; in contrast, we provide a more integrative perspective that blends the two objectives, focusing on common underlying issues relating to enhancing partner commitment, ensuring partner knowledge contributions, and reducing partner risks. We address the most salient design consideration for IJV partners, that is, IJV ownership structure, to posit that joint consideration of the control benefit of a higher foreign ownership level in IJVs and the collaboration benefit of a more balanced IJV ownership structure results in an expected inverted U-curve relationship between foreign ownership and IJV productivity. Additionally, we posit and test how three environmental contingencies, by affecting the need for control and collaboration in IJVs, would further influence the specific shape of the inverted U-curve relationship. We find strong support for our theory using an extensive longitudinal dataset of over 5,000 IJVs in China from 1999-2003. We discuss the value of our approach and findings both for researchers and for IJV partners seeking the dual benefits of control and collaboration.


This paper deals with the hybridity of modern Korean literature as it tries to explain its anticolonial politics by focusing on the exposition of Joseon literary history and the discourse of the "serious novel" in the late colonial era by Im Hwa, who is considered as one of the foremost critics of modern Korean literature. Im Hwa characterized modern Joseon literature as the result of the hybridization of pre-modern Joseon literature and modern Western literature, thereby devaluing the perceived influence of Japanese literature on modern Joseon literature. This idea was premised on his assumption that the tradition of modern Joseon literature focused on the pursuit of "immaculate individuality." As such, he imagined the "serious novel" as consistent with the form of the Western novel of the 19th century and as a realization of "immaculate individuality." However, due to the political and ideological context of the late colonial era, the apparent modern trait of the "serious novel" was deemed to have broken loose from the ideology embodied in the notion of "East Asia" or the "New Order." As a result, the "serious novel" was believed to have resisted the formal realization of such ideology in what was at that time considered "national literature." In line with Im Hwa's argument, the ideology of "national literature" (in contrast to "immaculate individuality" which was marked by modernity), represented pre-modernity, and hence embodied ideas like collectivity and totalitarianism. Modern Joseon literature, in fact, might be viewed as the result of colonization, having developed as it did under the influence of Japanese literature. Nonetheless, Im Hwa's argument posited the possibility of a combined inscription of literary form and anti-colonial politics in the hybrid formation of modern Joseon literature as shaped by Western modernity.


BACKGROUND: Job satisfaction is an emotional reaction to the job and physical and social conditions. In other words, job satisfaction is a positive and pleasant feeling achieved from the results of individual' job results and experience. One of the factors affect employees' job satisfaction is mental health. We aimed to assess the relationship of mental health and job satisfaction among roadside rescue workers and non-rescue staff of Red Crescent society in Semnan Province, Iran. METHODS: In this descriptive survey, the data were collected using Job Descriptive Index (JDI) General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Statistical analysis was done using t-test via SPSS 16 software. RESULTS: There was a significant relationship between the mental health and job satisfaction. There were not any significant differences between the rescue and non-rescue workers in terms of the mental health (t = -1.338; P = 0.183) and job satisfaction (t = -0.507; P = 0.613). Only a significant difference was seen in workplace satisfaction which was more among non-rescue workers. CONCLUSION: In our society, the men are an important part of workforce and the support of their families; in addition, they spent more than half of the hours at work; so, considering their health and job satisfaction and making strategies to promote their mental and job conditions is important. Lower workplace satisfaction among roadside rescue workers, as staff with a hazardous and sensitive job, shows the importance of paying more attention to their work problems.


ABSTRACT:  A food blog and a catering business provide an issue-rich context in which students examine tax issues involving individuals, a partnership, and a single owner LLC. The case illustrates how advances in technology and social media occur without the issuance of directly applicable tax guidance, thus introducing students to uncertainty in interpreting the tax law and providing professional advice. The goals of the case are to increase students' (1) abilities to identify tax issues for individuals and small home-based businesses, (2) tax research proficiency, (3) written communication skills, (4) technical knowledge, and (5) experience in tax planning. The case helps students develop four of the core competencies expressed in the AICPA's (2012) CPA Vision Project, including improving students' abilities to interpret converging information, think strategically and critically, communicate effectively, and adeptly use technology. Student responses to a posttest questionnaire indicate that the case hel...


textabstractSuper-diversity may not yet be a term of art in the field of fundamental rights, courts are
undoubtedly confronted with cases that de facto concern super-diversity, understood here as
referring to various layers of ethnic population diversity and the related differential rights of the
distinctive groups. Selected cases of the ECtHR are analysed in light of a theoretical frame of analysis
concerning rights, interpretation of and legitimate limitations to rights. The comparison of the
reasoning in these cases reveals marked differences in approach. The working paper proceeds with a
call for a consistent incorporation by the ECTHR of 'super-diversity' considerations in the reasoning of
judgments on fundamental rights of the respective groups. This would not only entail a refinement
of the Court's non-discrimination jurisprudence, but also to a rise in coherence and consistency of
the Court's overall jurisprudence, in line with the rule of law. The conclusion consists of some
recommendations for the ECtHR on how it could proceed when developing its jurisprudence in this
respect.


In this paper, we present a computational/corpus study of vowel harmony, which is a phonotactic constraint that influences the choice of vowels within a word. We argue that languages with vowel harmony can be described better by statistical models predicting co-occurrence of vowels from their articulatory-phonetic features in comparison to languages that do not exhibit vowel harmony. We use a simple linear model that predicts co-occurrence of the vowels based on their articulatory features. Using child-directed speech and larger corpora of written text in four languages (Hungarian, Turkish, Dutch and English), we show that model fit is better for languages with vowel harmony compared to languages without vowel harmony. Furthermore our model also allows investigation of complex types of vowel harmony based on the phonetic features and their interactions. The aim of this study is to provide an exploratory tool for detecting and characterizing the vowel harmony process quantitatively in a language.


Obstetric care, because of the unique and varying needs specific to different patients, requires special consideration in times of a pandemic such as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Health care facilities providing obstetric care need to develop contingency plans for minimizing antenatal visits to limit the exposure of both healthy pregnant women and care providers to the virus. However, to mitigate any potential adverse effects of reduced antenatal visits, intelligent use of evolving telemedicine capabilities can protect the continuum of care despite the overwhelming burden caused by the pandemic. A collaborative work model involving health workers in the community and regional-level health centres also has the potential to prevent the catastrophic collapse of obstetric care services during a pandemic such as the COVID-19 pandemic.


This Article explores certain important constitutional challenges presented by bankruptcy. Article I, Section 8, Clause 4 of the Constitution provides that Congress shall have the power to make uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies. While there are many good social, political, and economic theories of bankruptcy, there has been comparatively little effort to address broadly what it means to have constitutionalized financial distress. This Article is a first step in that direction. Constitutional problems with bankruptcy are not new, but present three underappreciated puzzles: First, why did the Framers put a bankruptcy power in the Constitution, and how broadly should we construe its peculiar language today? Second, how should this power interact with structural features of our constitutional system, whether vertical (vis-a-vis states) or horizontal (vis-a-vis other branches)? Third, how should we resolve competitions between this power and substantive protections involving, for example, property, due process, and religious liberties? Recent Supreme Court decisions broadly interpreting the Bankruptcy Clause, the 2005 amendments to the Bankruptcy Code, and the continuing spate of Catholic diocese bankruptcies, among other things, give these puzzles some urgency. This Article identifies an important, and thus far undeveloped, theme in the constitutional implications of bankruptcy: bankruptcy exceptionalism. Bankruptcy exceptionalism is an operating principle that helps to explain why we have a Bankruptcy Clause and how it has sometimes permitted or compelled exceptions to constitutional rules, standards, norms, and values in order to accommodate the exigencies of financial distress. The Article argues that the bankruptcy power gives Congress broad discretion to legislate in response to financial distress, subject to certain important democratic and countermajoritarian protections


The transcription factor nuclear factor erythroid 2–related factor 2 (Nrf2) regulates the expression of genes involved in antioxidant defenses to modulate fundamental cellular processes such as mitochondrial function and GSH metabolism. Previous reports proposed that mitochondrial reactive oxygen species production and disruption of the GSH pool activate the Nrf2 pathway, suggesting that Nrf2 senses mitochondrial redox signals and/or oxidative damage and signals to the nucleus to respond appropriately. However, until now, it has not been possible to disentangle the overlapping effects of mitochondrial superoxide/hydrogen peroxide production as a redox signal from changes to mitochondrial thiol homeostasis on Nrf2. Recently, we developed mitochondria-targeted reagents that can independently induce mitochondrial superoxide and hydrogen peroxide production mitoParaquat (MitoPQ) or selectively disrupt mitochondrial thiol homeostasis MitoChlorodinitrobenzoic acid (MitoCDNB). Using these reagents, here we have determined how enhanced generation of mitochondrial superoxide and hydrogen peroxide or disruption of mitochondrial thiol homeostasis affects activation of the Nrf2 system in cells, which was assessed by the Nrf2 protein level, nuclear translocation, and expression of its target genes. We found that selective disruption of the mitochondrial GSH pool and inhibition of its thioredoxin system by MitoCDNB led to Nrf2 activation, whereas using MitoPQ to enhance the production of mitochondrial superoxide and hydrogen peroxide alone did not. We further showed that Nrf2 activation by MitoCDNB requires cysteine sensors of Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1). These findings provide important information on how disruption to mitochondrial redox homeostasis is sensed in the cytoplasm and signaled to the nucleus.


The foundation of Luecke's course M: 396 Geometry and Topology is that collaboration amongst mathematicians and biologists caused tremendous gains in DNA research. The field of topology has led to significant strides in understanding of the topological properties of the genetic molecule DNA. Through the integration of biological phenomena and knowledge of topology and Euclidean geometry, biologists can describe and quantize enzyme mechanisms and therefore determine enzyme mechanisms causing the changes. Understanding mathematical applications in contexts outside of mathematics on any level helps to explain why mathematics is a core content area in primary and secondary education. Requiring secondary educators to take such a course could result in mathematics taught with real world application on the secondary level as well as on the graduate level, as shown in Luecke's course.


Tsunami may run-up and overflow a sea wall that was designed as tsunami protection. Such overflow as happened in Japan in 2011 was capable of overturning the seawall by scouring the bed behind the sea wall. This indicates that a better design of downstream protection is required. A simulation of scouring due to tsunami at downstream of a seawall may need a long flume and relatively large flow discharge. Since along flume and sufficient pump capacity was not available, a short flume equipped with a tank was designed and used as the substitute. A water tank was placed above the flume to store water needed for the entire simulation. Before each simulation, water was pumped into the tank using a relatively small pump capacity which is normally available. Such an arrangement was possible as the duration of tsunami is normally limited, and thus the entire simulation needs a relatively small amount of water to be stored in the tank. A gate valve with an electronic controller was installed in the pipe system to control the release of water from the tank into the flume. The opening and closing time and duration of the valve make it possible to generate a certain tsunami flow hydrograph on land. A seawall model was installed in the middle of the flume to observe the behavior of tsunami overflow and the scour at the downstream of the seawall. The tsunami generator was capable of modeling the scouring at the downstream of the seawall. The dimension of the scour depends on the overflow discharge, the wall height and the material's characteristic at the downstream of the seawall. Finally, a preliminary method to reduce the scouring was developed and presented.


We conducted a study of docetaxel-carboplatin combination therapy to confirm the efficacy and toxicity in chemotherapy-naive patients with ovarian cancer. Docetaxel 70 mg/m2 and carboplatin (area under the concentration-vs.-time curve of 5) were administered consecutively on day 1 of a 21-day cycle for five planned cycles in chemo-naive patients with the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage IC to IV ovarian cancer with or without successful cytoreductive surgery at staging laparotomy. Twenty-six patients (median age, 53 years; range, 34–76 years) were enrolled into this trial at Niigata University Hospital. The major toxicity with this regimen was neutropenia. The incidence of grade 3 and 4 neutropenia were 27% (7/26) and 69% (18/26), respectively. However, the neutropenia was brief and reversible with G-CSF support. Nausea/emesis, fatigue, arthralgia/myalgias, and alopecia were the most common nonhematologic toxicities, in which no grade 3 or 4 toxicity was observed. Neurotoxicity was infrequently observed. Nine of 11 assessable patients responded to the regimen. We conclude that the combination of carboplatin and docetaxel seems to be highly active in ovarian cancer with the major toxicity of neutropenia, and the extremely low incidence of clinically significant neurotoxicity. Randomized controlled clinical trials should be conducted to define a role for this regimen in ovarian cancer.


The available methods for double-labeling preembedding immunoelectron microscopy are highly limited because not only should the ultrastructure be preserved, but also the different antigens should be visualized by reaction end products that can be clearly distinguished in gray-scale images. In these procedures, one antigen is detected with 3,3′-diaminobenzidine (DAB) chromogen, resulting in a homogeneous deposit, whereas the other is labeled with either a gold-tagged immunoreagent, or DAB polymer, on the surface of which metallic silver is precipitated. The detection of the second antigen is usually impeded by the first, leading to false-negative results. The authors aimed to diminish this hindrance by a new silver intensification technique of DAB polymer, which converts the deposit from amorphous to granular. The method includes three major postdevelopmental steps: (1) treatment of nickel-enhanced DAB with sulfide, (2) silver deposition in the presence of hydroquinone under acidic conditions, and (3) precious metal replacement with gold thiocyanate. This new sulfide-silver-gold intensification of DAB (SSGI) allows a subsequent detection of other antigens using DAB. In conclusion, the new technique loads fine gold particles onto the DAB deposit at a very low background level, thereby allowing a reliable discernment between the elements stained for the two antigens at the ultrastructural level.


Xerophthalmia classification was traditionally used to identify populations with vitamin A deficiency. Currently, night blindness and dark adaptometry have been proposed as population assessment methods. While eye signs and function tests are still used in areas where vitamin A deficiency is severe, a subclinical vitamin A deficiency is more prevalent. Serum and breast milk retinol concentrations are used to identify vitamin A deficiency risk. However, in healthy individuals, serum retinol concentrations are homeostatically controlled and do not begin to decline until liver reserves of vitamin A are dangerously low. Moreover, serum retinol and retinol binding protein (RBP) concentrations fall during times of infection. The RBP:transthyretin ratio may help to determine if serum retinol concentrations are depressed by infection. Other methods better reflect liver reserves of vitamin A, the "gold" standard. The relative dose response and modified relative dose response tests involve giving a small dose of retinyl or dehydroretinyl ester, respectively, and determining a response in the serum at about 5 h. A new response test where retinoyl -glucuronide is administered and the degree of hydrolysis to retinoic acid is measured has been investigated. Unlike isotope dilution tests, the dose response tests lack utility in defining the total body reserve of vitamin A. The deuterated retinol isotope dilution test has been used in several different groups. Recently, a new isotope assay was developed using 13 C-retinyl acetate and gas chromatography-combustion-isotope ratio mass spectrometry for analysis. Thus, having many choices of vitamin A assessment methods, laboratory sophistication and resources available will usually dictate which methods are chosen. J. Nutr. 134: 290S-293S, 2004.


The article deals with the circumstances of founding, subsequent development and the most important characteristics of the Časopis Společnosti přátel starožitností (founded in 1893). It also describes and analyses the institutional and social-political context of the important milestones in the history of this periodical that belongs to the oldest scientifi c journals in Central Europe focused on history, linguistics and cultural history. The text also deals with the infl uence of important scientists who had in the past (for example as redactors) given shape to the journal. The fi nal part of the study analyses the present state of the journal and sketches the possibilities of its further development.


We introduce a novel class of sample-based explanations we term high-dimensional representers, that can be used to explain the predictions of a regularized high-dimensional model in terms of importance weights for each of the training samples. Our workhorse is a novel representer theorem for general regularized high-dimensional models, which decomposes the model prediction in terms of contributions from each of the training samples: with positive (negative) values corresponding to positive (negative) impact training samples to the model's prediction. We derive consequences for the canonical instances of $\ell_1$ regularized sparse models, and nuclear norm regularized low-rank models. As a case study, we further investigate the application of low-rank models in the context of collaborative filtering, where we instantiate high-dimensional representers for specific popular classes of models. Finally, we study the empirical performance of our proposed methods on three real-world binary classification datasets and two recommender system datasets. We also showcase the utility of high-dimensional representers in explaining model recommendations.


Objective: Alveolar ridge preservation in patients with inadequate bone volume is one treatment option for successful implant placement and can be done by using bone graft materials. On the other hand, Ceno Bone has been recently produced by Hamanand Saz Baft Kish Co. as a bone bioimplant of allograft origin. This study aimed to assess the clinical, histologic and histomorphometric results of Bone Strip Allograft (CenoBone) for horizontal alveolar ridge augmentation. Methods: In this semi-experimental clinical trial, 7 areas requiring horizontal ridge augmentation and subsequent implant placement in the maxilla were selected using non-randomized consecutive sampling. Surgeries were mostly performed via the buccal cortical plate of the edentulous ridge. The buccal bone was decorticated, Ceno Bone was fixed by titanium screws, covered with Ceno Membrane (resorbable) and sutured. Buccolingual width of the ridge was measured in stage-one surgery and six months later in stage-two surgery for implant placement. A core biopsy was also taken to assess the trabecular thickness, percentage of new bone formation, percentage of remnant particles, degree of inflammation, foreign body reaction, vitality, bone-biomaterial contact and number of blood vessels by microscopic, histologic and histomorphometric analyses of the slides. The clinical ridge width values in the firstand second-stage surgeries were analyzed using Wilcoxon Signed Rank test. Results: The mean clinical ridge width at 2mm distance from the ridge crest was 2.49 (0.72) mm in the first-stage and 4.79 (0.75) mm in the second-stage surgery. The mean clinical ridge width at 5mm distance from the ridge crest was 3.6 (0.57) mm in the first-stage and 6.3 (1.13) mm in the second-stage surgery. At both sites, application of Ceno Bone significantly increased the clinical ridge width in the second-stage surgery (both ps<0.05). Also, inflammation in most specimens (85.7%) was grade I and no case of foreign body reaction was seen. Bone was vital in all patients. The mean trabecular thickness was 87.96 (38.74)μ. The percentage of new bone formation was 58.43 (26.42%) and the percentage of remnant particles was 4.07% (2.44%). Conclusion: The results of this preliminary study revealed that application of CenoBone stimulates osteogenesis and significantly increases the clinical ridge width at 2 and 5mm distances from the ridge crest for implant placement.


The topic of finiteness is rarely broached in the closely related Indonesian-type languages, in which verbs have no morphological tense marking, nouns have no overt case marking, and there is only limited morphological agreement. As they are the typical morphological manifestations, the relevance of finiteness is difficult to discern. Sundanese is no exception to this. There is evidence, however, that finiteness is critical to the licensing of subjects in Sundanese. What distinguishes Sundanese from many other languages is that finiteness is covert rather than being overtly marked, just as has been proposed for Chinese, Lao, Slave, and others.


We demonstrate a breakthrough in the capabilities of robust, broad-parameter space searches for continuous gravitational waves. With a large scale search for continuous gravitational waves on the O1 LIGO data, we prove that our Falcon search achieves the sensitivity improvements expected from the use of a long coherence length, while maintaining the computational expense within manageable bounds. On these data we set the most constraining upper limits in the gravitational wave amplitude in the band 100-200 Hz. We provide full outlier lists and upper limits near the 0-spin-down band suitable for analysis of signals with small spin-down such as boson condensates around black holes.


We characterized the anion channel responsible for the increase in apical membrane Cl secretion using a model salt-secreting epithelium, the T84 colonic cell line. The adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP)-mediated secretagogues, prostaglandin E2, forskolin, and 8-bromo-cAMP, evoked activity of an outwardly rectifying Cl channel in previously quiet cell-attached membrane patches. The channel remained active in excised, inside-out membranes, where its single-channel conductance was 40-45 pS at 0 mV with 160 mM NaCl in pipette and bath. Selectivities were PCl/PNa = 50 and for halides I(1.8)/Br(1.4)/Cl(1.0)/F(0.4). This halide sequence illustrates that the ability of various anions to undergo transepithelial secretion is determined by the selectivity of the basolateral membrane Cl entry step rather than by the apical Cl channel. Open-channel probability increased with depolarization, an effect that would adjust the rate of Cl exit across secretory cell apical membranes with agonist-induced changes in apical membrane potential. Comparison with the properties of Cl channels detected in other cell types suggests that this cAMP-stimulated Cl channel is uniquely present in the apical membranes of salt-secreting epithelial cells.


This book examines the clothing worn by African Americans in the southern United States during the thirty years before the American Civil War. Drawing on a wide range of sources, most notably oral narratives recorded in the 1930s, this rich account shows that African Americans demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the role clothing played in demarcating age, sex, status, work, recreation, as well as special secular and sacred events. Testimonies offer proof of African Americans' vast technical skills in producing cloth and clothing, which served both as a fundamental reflection of the peoples' Afrocentric craftsmanship and aesthetic sensibilities, and as a reaction to their particular place in American society. Previous work on clothing in this period has tended to focus on white viewpoints, and as a consequence the dress worn by the enslaved has generally been seen as a static standard imposed by white overlords. This excellent study departs from conventional interpretations to show that the clothing of the enslaved changed over time, served multiple functions and represented customs and attitudes which evolved distinctly from within African American communities. In short, it represents a vital contribution to African American studies, as well as to dress and textile history, and cultural and folklore studies.


One of the diiculties of parallel programming is the gap between the desire of programmers to describe computations with manageable abstractions and the detailed description of parallelism, communication and synchronization required by most parallel programming languages. Since in a parallel program, activities are distributed across both space and time, pictures are much more meaningful than text in program construction. This paper describes a new framework for visual parallel programming based on the concurrency map. Four levels of abstraction are provided in order to reduce the complexity of the construction and to allow fast exploration of diierent design alternatives. Moreover , the same diagrams that are constructed during the development of a program may also be used to display feedback from its execution. The exibility of the framework is demonstrated by the implementation of a visual constructor for the occam programming language .


Background The associations between diabetes and mortality from a number of causes, such as cardiovascular and renal disease, are clearly understood. Concurrently, there is a growing body of evidence demonstrating an increase in cancer mortality among those with diabetes, although there is heterogeneity regarding the strength of the association and uncertainty around confounding by overweight/obesity. Around 2.9 million individuals in the UK are currently living with diabetes; this figure is expected to increase to 5 million by 2025, caused by rising rates of obesity and population ageing. The high prevalence of diabetes means that even a small increased risk of cancer mortality could equate to a large number of deaths among the diabetic population. This large cohort study utilised data from the Health Survey for England and the Scottish Health Survey, linked to mortality data, to explore overall and site-specific cancer mortality. Methods Nationally-representative, cross-sectional data from the Health Survey for England (HSE: 1994-2008) and Scottish Health Survey (SHeS: 1995, 1998 and 2003) linked with mortality records up to the first quarter of 2011 and 2008 respectively. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) adjusted for age-group, sex and smoking status and additionally for BMI category were estimated for all and site-specific cancer mortality using logistic and multinomial logistic regression respectively. To allow for a consideration of the time sequence of any association between the two diseases, individuals with cancer at baseline were excluded from the analyses. Results The study sample included 204,537 participants (6,258 with diabetes) and 5,562 cancer deaths. After adjustment for age, sex and smoking status, those with diabetes were at greater risk of dying from cancer compared with those without diabetes (OR 1.16 [1.02, 1.31]). This increase remained after adjustment also included BMI (1.19, 1.04-1.36). For site-specific cancer mortality, there were statistically significant increases for pancreatic (1.77 [1.16, 2.72], breast (1.62 [1.02, 2.65]) and lung (1.34 [1.05, 1.72]) cancer when adjustment included age, sex, smoking and BMI; as well as point estimate increased risk for cancers of the colorectum, bladder, stomach, lymphoid and haematopoietic, kidney and oesophagus. Conclusion The high and rising prevalence of diabetes is of public health concern. Those with diabetes have increased overall cancer mortality and site-specific cancers of the pancreas, breast and lung, unaffected by measurements of overweight/obesity. Although some cases of pancreatic cancer may be reverse causality, health services for people with diabetes need to be aware of the increased cancer mortality found among this cohort.


The system presented is a web application designed to aid linguistic research with data collection and online publishing. It is a service mainly for linguists and language experts working with language description of less-documented and less-resourced languages. When the central concern is in-depth linguistic analysis, maintaining and administering software can be a burden. Cloud computing offers an alternative. At present mainly used for archiving, we extend linguistic web applications to allow creation, search and storage of interlinear annotated texts. By combining a conceptually appealing online glosser with an SQL database and a wiki, we make the online publication of linguistic data an easy task also for non-computationally oriented researchers.


This was a single released in America on Gotham Records of a one of my songs 'Take These Chains' taken from my Independence Album which was covered by . Brooke Nickerson. I also produced the track for Brooke who is an American Artist. Brooke also joined me onstage in America in 2014 at Trip in Santa Monica and she has an album coming out very shortly which features a number of my other compositions. Brooke is signed to Gotham Records.


The education session was well received. Including the session in the youth conference encouraged the whole extended family of the diabetic child to attend. The participants had fun learning together and sharing experiences in addition to learning the basics of how to care for the child with diabetes.


Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the major alarming causes of morbidity and mortality with widespread prevalence around the world. The major risk factor for cardiovascular disease is metabolic syndrome (MetS) and is most prevalent among obesity-related comorbidities. The main causative factors linking metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease are assumed to involve the expansion of adipose tissue and chronic inflammation. In addition to storing surplus fat, adipose tissue also produces adipokines which act through autocrine, paracrine and endocrine functions in the body. Increasing evidence suggests that the altered secretion of adipokines may play a role in the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome but the mechanisms underlying are not fully known. To date, only leptin and adiponectin are the best-studied adipokines among the variety of adipokines secreted by adipose tissue. However, recent studies have implicated the novel adipokine chemerin as a regulator of adipogenesis, inflammation and glucose metabolism which demonstrates its multifaceted actions. Furthermore, they also found that elevated circulating levels of chemerin in metabolic syndrome acts as a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Chemerin has gained considerable interest due to its role as a pro- or anti-inflammatory mediator is still controversial and the effect of chemerin on glucose metabolism is a matter of debate. Thus, the purpose of this review is to focus primarily on chemerin expression, processing, signaling of receptors, biological actions and pathophysiological implications and the role of chemerin as a biomarker of cardiovascular disease in metabolic syndrome.


The recovery of metal resources from urban mines such as waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) has become an emerging issue. The establishment of technology and social systems for recycling rare metals is of especially high priority due to their worldwide shortage. This study tackles the recycling of rare metals, especially tantalum, by applying a chain-using drum-type impact mill (CDIM) for pulverization of WEEE in the intermediate treatment for physical separation of components contained in plastic routers. A life-cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted based on actual process inventories of the CDIM, segregation and concentration of electronic parts. Climate change and resource depletion were adopted as the impact category indicated by life-cycle greenhouse gas emission (LC-GHG) and characterized resource consumption in this LCA. Although the tantalum contained in WEEE is input into the copper smelting and cannot be separated from other metals in conventional recycling systems, it was demonstrated that the CDIM intermediate treatment could selectively concentrate the tantalum capacitors. The tantalum capacitors can be converted into sintered tantalum, substitutes for Ta 2 O 5 , which can reduce resource consumption potentials at the ex-pense of additional energy consumption. Most of the LC-GHG was derived from energy, especially public electricity. Decarbonization in the power grid can reduce the LC-GHG attributable to the recycling system. Rare metals other than tantalum should also be recoverable from WEEE. Physical and chemical treatment processes for metal recovery should be developed, demonstrated, and implemented in line with the recycling systems for various products.


The potential of FPGAs as accelerators for high-performance computing applications is very large, but many factors are involved in their performance. The design for FPGAs and the selection of the proper optimizations when mapping computations to FPGAs lead to prohibitively long developing time. Alternatives are the high-level synthesis (HLS) tools, which promise a fast design space exploration due to design at high-level or analytical performance models which provide realistic performance expectations, potential impediments to performance, and optimization guidelines. In this paper we propose the combination of both, in order to construct a performance model for FPGAs which is able to visually condense all the helpful information for the designer. Our proposed model extends the roofline model, by considering the resource consumption and the parameters used in the HLS tools, to maximize the performance and the resource utilization within the area of the FPGA. The proposed model is applied to optimize the design exploration of a class of window-based image processing applications using two different HLS tools. The results show the accuracy of the model as well as its flexibility to be combined with any HLS tool.


In this work, a modified implementation of secret-based authentication system
 has been proposed. The main aim was to design and implement a system tolerant
 towards typing errors. Therefore, based on data gathered in experiments, an
 algorithm capable of providing a metric of strings similarity has been developed. The
 metric was based on a concept of Levenshtein distance. The developed algorithm has
 been implemented and tested. The architecture of Pluggable Authentication Modules
 has been chosen as the base for the new authentication system. The aim of the design
 was to incorporate tolerance towards errors into one of the commonly used in
 Linux/UNIX environment PAM modules – pam_unix. The module has been
 extended to calculate similarity of the input provided by a user and the passphrase
 stored in the system beforehand. For purposes of matching the passphrase with the
 input, the passphrase has been securely stored with help of means provided by
 Trusted Platform Module. The sealing and unsealing operations have been used to
 provide secure and convenient way of storing the passphrase.
 The new error-tolerant authentication has been designed as an overlay to
 already existing authentication and activates itself only if the traditional
 authentication has failed. In performed simulations, the new system provided ability
 to significantly increase rate of successful authentications and thus shorten the time
 needed to authenticate successfully with a passphrase.


The effect of weighting on the uncertainty of the discrete time Fourier transform (DTFT) samples of a signal corrupted by additive noise is investigated. Making very weak assumptions, it is shown how the adopted window sequence and the autocovariance function of the noise affect the second-order stochastic moments of the frequency-domain data. The relationship obtained extends the results reported in the literature and is useful in many frequency-domain estimation problems. It is shown how the knowledge of the second-order moments of the transform has allowed the application of the least squares technique for the estimation of the parameters of a multifrequency signal in the frequency-domain. The estimator obtained is very useful when high-accuracy results are required under real-time constraints. The procedure exhibits a better accuracy than similar frequency-domain methods proposed in the literature. >


BACKGROUND
 Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the most common form of lupus. It is a chronic autoimmune disease that predominantly affects women of reproductive age, impacting contraception, fertility, and pregnancy. Although clinic-based studies have contributed to an increased understanding of reproductive health care needs of patients with SLE, misinformation abounds and perspectives on reproductive health issues among patients with lupus remain poorly understood. Social networks such as Twitter may serve as a data source for exploring how lupus patients communicate about their health issues, thus adding a dimension to enrich our understanding of communication regarding reproductive health in this unique patient population.

 OBJECTIVE
 The objective of this study is to conduct a content analysis of Twitter data published by users in English in the United States from September 1, 2017, to October 31, 2018, in order to examine people's perspectives on reproductive health among patients with lupus.

 METHODS
 This study will analyze user-generated posts that include keywords related to lupus and reproductive health from Twitter. To access public Twitter user data, we will use Symplur Signals, a health care social media analytics platform. Text classifiers will be used to identify topics in posts. Posts will be classified manually into the a priori and emergent categories. Based on the information available in a user's Twitter profile (ie, username, description, and profile image), we will further attempt to characterize the user who generated the post. We will use descriptive statistics to analyze the data and identify the most prevalent topics in the Twitter content among patients with lupus.

 RESULTS
 This study has been funded by the National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) through their Clinical and Translational Science Awards program. The Institutional Review Board at the University of Southern California approved the study (HS-18-00912). Data extraction and cleaning are complete. We obtained 47,715 Twitter posts containing terms related to "lupus" from users in the United States, published in English between September 1, 2017, and October 31, 2018. We will include 40,885 posts in the analysis, which will be completed in fall 2020. This study was supported by funds from the has been funded by the National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) through their Clinical and Translational Science Awards program.

 CONCLUSIONS
 The findings from this study will provide pilot data on the use of Twitter among patients with lupus. Our findings will shed light on whether Twitter is a promising data source for learning about reproductive health issues expressed among patients with lupus. The data will also help to determine whether Twitter can serve as a potential outreach platform for raising awareness of lupus and reproductive health and for implementing relevant health interventions.

 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT
 DERR1-10.2196/15623


Liquid nitrogen storage is the method of choice for long‐term safekeeping of hybridoma cell lines. Frozen aliquots of originally isolated hybridomas provide insurance against loss of antibody production and vigor during culture. There are many variations of cell freezing methods in use. However, for freezing and recovering hybridomas and lymphoid cells in general, the protocol described in this unit is simple and has been successful.


The paper deals with determination of losses of two-stage power electronic system with two-phase variable orthogonal output. The simulation is focused on the investigation of losses in the converter during one period in steady-state operation. Modeling and simulation of two matrix converters with R-L load is shown in the paper. The simulation results confirm a very good time-waveform of the phase current and the system seems to be suitable for low-cost application in automotive/aerospace industries and in application with high frequency voltage sources.


A global genetic suppression network The genetic background of an organism can influence the overall effects of new genetic variants. Some mutations can amplify a deleterious phenotype, whereas others can suppress it. Starting with a literature survey and expanding into a genomewide assay, van Leeuwen et al. generated a large-scale suppression network in yeast. The data set reveals a set of general properties that can be used to predict suppression interactions. Furthermore, the study provides a template for extending suppression studies to other genes or to more complex organisms. Science, this issue p. 599 A large-scale study in yeast reveals how defects associated with a mutation in one gene can be compensated for by a second mutation in a suppressor gene. INTRODUCTION Genetic suppression occurs when the phenotypic defects caused by a mutated gene are rescued by a mutation in another gene. These genetic interactions can connect genes that work within the same pathway or biological process, providing new mechanistic insights into cellular function, or they can correct defects in gene expression or protein production. More generally, suppression interactions may play an important role in the genetics underlying human diseases, such as the diverse penetrance of Mendelian disease variants. Our ability to interpret personal genome sequences remains limited, in part, because we lack an understanding of how sequence variants interact in nonadditive ways to generate profound phenotypes, including genetic suppression. RATIONALE Genetic interactions, in which mutations in two different genes combine to generate an unexpected phenotype, may underlie a significant component of trait heritability. Although genetic interactions that compromise fitness, such as synthetic lethality, have been mapped extensively, suppression interactions have not been explored systematically. To understand the general principles of genetic suppression and to examine the extent to which these interactions reflect cellular function, we harnessed the powerful genetics of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to assemble aglobal network of genetic suppression interactions. RESULTS By analyzing hundreds of published papers, we assembled a network of genetic suppression interactions involving ~1300 different yeast genes and ~1800 unique interactions. Through automated genetic mapping and whole-genome sequencing, we also isolated an unbiased, experimental set of ~200 spontaneous suppressor mutations that correct the fitness defects of deletion or hypomorphic mutant alleles. Integrating these results yielded a global suppression network. The majority of suppression interactions identified novel gene-gene connections, thus providing new information about the functional wiring diagram of a cell. Most suppression pairs connected functionally related genes, including genes encoding members of the same pathway or complex. The functional enrichments observed for suppression gene pairs were several times as high as those found for other types of genetic interactions; this highlighted their discovery potential for assigning gene function. Our systematic suppression analysis also identified a prevalent allele-specific mechanism of suppression, whereby growth defects of hypomorphic alleles can be overcome by mutations that compromise either protein or mRNA degradation machineries. From whole-genome sequencing of suppressor strains, we also identified additional secondary mutations, the vast majority of which appeared to be random passenger mutations. However, a small subset of genes was enriched for secondary mutations, several of which did not affect growth rate but rather appeared to delay the onset of the stationary phase. This delay suggests that they are selected for under laboratory growth conditions because they increase cell abundance within a propagating population. CONCLUSION A global network of genetic suppression interactions highlights the major potential for systematic studies of suppression to map cellular function. Our findings allowed us to formulate and quantify the general mechanisms of genetic suppression, which has the potential to guide the identification of modifier genes affecting the penetrance of genetic traits, including human disease. Global analysis of genetic suppression. Genetic suppression interactions occur when the detrimental effects of a primary mutation can be overcome by a secondary mutation. Both literature-curated and experimentally derived suppression interactions were collected and yielded a genetic suppression network. This global network was enriched for functional relationships and defined distinct mechanistic classes of genetic suppression. Genetic suppression occurs when the phenotypic defects caused by a mutation in a particular gene are rescued by a mutation in a second gene. To explore the principles of genetic suppression, we examined both literature-curated and unbiased experimental data, involving systematic genetic mapping and whole-genome sequencing, to generate a large-scale suppression network among yeast genes. Most suppression pairs identified novel relationships among functionally related genes, providing new insights into the functional wiring diagram of the cell. In addition to suppressor mutations, we identified frequent secondary mutations,in a subset of genes, that likely cause a delay in the onset of stationary phase, which appears to promote their enrichment within a propagating population. These findings allow us to formulate and quantify general mechanisms of genetic suppression.


Background: Despite the progress in modern obstetric practice, preterm labor is second leading cause of death in the 1st month of life and the main cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality; it remains a difficult problem to prevent, delay or even stop. It occurs in 5%–13% of all pregnancies before 37 weeks' gestation but its incidence in twin pregnancies is about 25%. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the effect of prophylactic cervical cerclage (CC) in comparison to others methods: vaginal progesterone and bed rest in prolongation of gestational age in twin pregnancies to prevent preterm labor. Materials and Methods: A retrospective descriptive study was conducted between January 2012 and September 2018, in a private obstetric antenatal care clinic in Duhok/Kurdistan Region/Iraq. It involved 150 women with twin pregnancies attending this clinic for follow-up, they divided into: Group 1 (N-86): women who received prophylactic CC; Group 2 (N-44): those who got the vaginal progesterone supplementation of 100 mg from 20 to 34 weeks of gestation; and Group 3 (N-20): those who asked for advisement of bed rest and restriction of physical activity. Results: Most of the total sample 95.3% had dichorionic placenta, the majority of them 84.7% were the result of assisted reproductive techniques. There was no statistically significant difference between the three groups in relation to maternal age, gravid, and previous preterm delivery, but there was in relation to the gestational age at delivery. In Group 1, 93% who delivered >37 weeks, whereas 16% and 10% in Group 2 and Group 3 who delivered at this gestational age, respectively. The overall perinatal survival was 91.3% and 26.6% who admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Conclusions: The current study found that the prophylactic CC was an effective method to prolong pregnancy among women with twin pregnancies.


Abstract This case study describes the role of Chenshan Botanical Garden in the sustainable development of Shanghai City in the last six years and provides perspectives on future plant conservation and sustainable utilization. Sustainable economic growth is demanded by regions and countries with urbanization globally. Chenshan has played an important role in the sustainable development of Shanghai as a relatively newly established botanical garden. Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden works closely with the local government in the "City Green Master Plan" to increase plant diversity and join in rural park projects. It also provides technical support to city construction by introducing urban horticulture and phytoremediation. More than 20% of the plants in the most urbanized and industrialized areas in China are under threat. Chenshan has collaborated with the central government and the administration of local reserves in the conservation of 14 critically endangered plant species in East China. This has made the sustainable utilization of these plants possible. Chenshan also has a strategic vision to provide people with functional food. The secondary metabolism and gene-manipulating platforms have been already implemented to develop new varieties of plants to achieve this goal. As a botanical garden, Chenshan aims to attract and educate the public with landscapes, seasonal flower shows, and cultural events. Chenshan helps visitors understand the condition of plants and the ways to protect them. These are important tasks of botanical gardens in supporting sustainable urban development.


From the Publisher:
"Bridge the gap from existing regional wireless standards to the next generation global communication system with these selected readings, a companion text to Software Radio Architecture, by Joseph Mitola III. This single-source reference summarizes major trends in software radio technology by combining classic publications, cutting-edge overviews and promising research from leading experts in the field.
The role of software and digital signal processing in radio has grown to encompass reconfigurability at all levels of the protocol stack. Research has ignited wider commercial interest in these concepts, which have been endorsed by all segments of industry, from software applications providers to component manufacturers. The software radio approach will increase software content for commercial wireless systems and is a potential solution to the need for increased efficiency in service delivery.
This volume covers:*Concepts of software radio, including historical and theoretical foundations*Enabling technologies for realization of software radio, including radio frequency design, converter technologies, digital signal processing, and reconfigurable and programmable hardware structures *Systems and architectures based on software radio concepts*Software radio applications and economics*Emerging technologies
SOFTWARE RADIO TECHNOLOGIES is an essential resource for researchers and practicing engineers seeking an in-depth treatment of technical issues raised by software radio architecture evolution.
About the Editors
Joseph Mitola III is known as "the Godfather of the Software Radio." He is one of the most highly cited authors in the field, contributing over twodozen technical papers as well as his recent text, Software Radio Architecture, the first interdisciplinary treatment of the subject and companion to SOFTWARE RADIO TECHNOLOGIES: SELECTED READINGS. Dr. Mitola edited the landmark May 1995 special issue of the IEEE Communications Magazine and the April 1999 Journal on Selected Areas in Communications on Software Radio. He began his career with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) in 1967 and is presently a consulting scientist with the MITRE Corporation, advising the DoD on telecommunications and information-processing technology and policy.
Zoran Zvonar, noted author and researcher, has served as editor and coeditor for many distinguished publications, including the International Journal of Wireless Information Networks, the IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology, GSM Towards 3rd Generation Systems and Wireless Multimedia Networks Technologies (Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1998 and 1999, respectively), among others. Dr. Zvonar is currently an associate editor of the IEEE Communications Letters and a feature editor of the Series on Software and DSP in Radio in the IEEE Communications Magazine. He is also a systems development manager in the Communications Division, Analog Devices Inc., involved in the design of algorithms and architectures for wireless communications."


Debates on the reform of health care fi nancing in the former socialist countries during the period of social transformation were conducted as part of a wider debate regarding changes in the overall social system. Existing financing models and innovative measures were reviewed. As part of such discussions, the voluntary health insurance market also received a lot of the attention. Diff erent views were expressed in the debates that were conducted during the 1990s, from seeing a suitable supplementary source of health care funding to those who highlighted the constraints in its implementation and modest results that can be expected. As one of the criteria for assessing the suitability of this mechanism, we could review what has been achieved so far in its application. Th e paper looks at the ground covered and the situation in the former socialist countries at the end of the second decade of this century, with particular reference to Serbia and countries in its surroundings. When it comes to Serbia it can be expected that the limiting factors from the last ten years will be still manifested in the future. It is estimated that there are weak prospects of activating voluntary health insurance as a way to alleviate the problems of insuffi cient fi nancing of the health care system.


Oil palm trunk (OPT) is a solid waste obtained in large quantities after the felling of oil palm trees and is available year-round. Scientists and industrialists face difficulties in utilizing these solid wastes for different applications due to great variations in their physical and mechanical properties. Because OPT consists of lignocellulosic materials, its cellulosic material is utilized in the production of panel products such as particleboard, medium density fibreboard, mineral-bonded particleboard, block board, and cement board. In order to control the OPT waste, it is essential to consider its alternative utilization inside buildings as lightweight construction materials and furniture. The impregnation of different resins in wood and non-wood materials can improve the quality of the OPT, making it possible to utilize OPT as raw materials for different applications. The enhanced properties and good appearance of impregnated OPT have found use in high-grade furniture and housing materials. In order to further evaluate its potential, this review has been compiled for the detailed study of various properties, characteristics, and applications of OPT.


In this paper, an interleaved active-power-filter concept with reduced size of passive components is discussed. The topology is composed of two pulsewidth-modulation interleaved voltage-source inverters connected together on the ac line and sharing the same dc-link capacitor. The advantages of the proposed approach are as follows: 1. significant reduction in the linkage inductors' size by decreasing the line-current ripple due to the interleaving; 2. reduction of the switching stress in the dc-link capacitor, due to the shared connection; and 3. more accurate compensation for high-power applications, because the power sharing allows one to use a higher switching frequency in each inverter. This paper analyzes the design of the passive components and gives a practical and low-cost solution for the minimization of the circulation currents between the inverters, by using common-mode coils. Several simulation results are discussed, and experimental results with a three-phase 10-kVA 400-V unit are obtained to validate the theoretical analysis.


One of the most trying of the allergist's problems is the handling of the child with chronic asthma. This problem includes not only the usual questions of etiology and specific therapy but the added difficulty of keeping both the child and the parents steadfast in their adherence to the rigid regimen necessary. A great need of the allergist in dealing with such children has been for an efficient and easily used method of obtaining symptomatic relief in order to keep the patient comfortable during the investigation and the period of treatment. Such a method is of importance also, especially with the growing child, in preventing, or at least in minimizing, the prolonged overdistention of the lungs and the concomitant deformity of the chest which result from emphysema. As yet no drug has been found which will dissipate asthmatic symptoms as effectively as epinephrine hydrochloride. However, the necessity of administering the


Purpose: To report the results of treating resistant bacterial keratitis by corneal collagen cross-linking followed by therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty and to compare with those of therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty alone. Methods: Retrospective analysis of the medical records of 33 eyes of 33 patients diagnosed with resistant bacterial keratitis. Fourteen eyes (14 patients) were treated with photoactivated chromophore for infectious keratitis corneal collagen cross-linking (PACK-CXL) followed by therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty (TPK) (group I) and 19 eyes (19 patients) were treated by TPK alone (group II). The main outcome measures were graft clarity and the mean best corrected visual acuity at 1, 3, 6, 12 and 18 months after penetrating keratoplasty. Results: The mean age of the patients was 53.6 ± 1.9 years and 52.3 ± 1.8 years in group I and group II, respectively (p = 0.374), the mean ulcer size was 49.9 ± 16.2 mm and 54.7.1 ± 15.1 mm in group I and group II, respectively (p = 0.239), the mean corneal infiltrate size was 58.2 ± 17mm and 59.9 ± 15.7 mm in group I and group II, respectively (p = 0.384). Hypopyon was seen in 6 eyes (41.7%) in group I and in 8 eyes (42.1%) in group II. At the last follow-up visit, 12 corneal grafts (85.7%) maintained their clarity in group I while 13 corneal grafts (68.4%) maintained their clarity in group II (p = 0.037) and the mean best corrected visual acuity was 0.84 ± 0.63 log MAR in group I and 1.27 ± 0.81 log MAR in group II (p = 0.024). Postoperatively, one eye (7%) showed graft reinfection in group I that was controlled medically while 5 eyes (26.3%) showed resistant graft reinfection and ended in graft opacification in group II (p = 0.042). Conclusion: In resistant bacterial keratitis, priming infected corneas with PACK-CXL before performing TPK improve the results in such cases.


Effectiveness of chemotherapy depends on the extent to which drug molecules penetrate tissues and cells to reach their intended target and limited by toxic side effects exerted by the therapeutic agent. The application of ultrasound and microbubbles has been shown to increase cell permeability and enhance intracellular delivery of cell-impermeable molecules, a process known as sonoporation. This work investigated the potential of ultrasound and microbubbles to enhance the therapeutic effect of a chemotherapeutic agent using an in vitro cell suspension system. The objectives were to measure clonogenic cell viability following treatment with ultrasound and microbubbles in the presence and absence of a chemotherapeutic agent, and investigate the effect of cell line, treatment order and acoustic pressure. Cells in suspension — breast cancer (MDA-MB-231) and prostate cancer (PC3) — were treated with ultrasound and microbubbles (USMB) at settings of 500 kHz pulse centre frequency, acoustic pressure (240 and 580 kPa peak negative pressure), 32 μs pulse duration, 3 kHz pulse repetition frequency, 30 s insonation time and 0.5% v/v of microbubbles (DA04, Artenga Inc.) in the presence and absence of chemotherapeutic agent docetaxel (Taxotere®). Cells were treated with docetaxel for two hours. The order of USMB and chemotherapy (CM) were varied. Following treatment, cell viability was assessed using clonogenic assay. Ultrasound and microbubbles combined with docetaxel increased MDA-MB-231 cell death by ∼10 folds compared to chemotherapy alone. Clonogenic viability of ∼2% was achieved with the combined treatment (CM+USMB at 240 kPa; chemotherapeutic agent was added prior to USMB treatment) compared to ∼20% with chemotherapy alone (0.01 nmol/mL). Whereas with USMB+CM (chemotherapeutic agent was added five minutes following termination of ultrasound), cell viability of ∼5% was achieved. Comparable results were achieved at higher acoustic pressures. PC3 cell viability of ∼55% was achieved at 0.5 nmol/mL compared to ∼65% at 0.0001 nmol/mL docetaxel, indicating that MDA-MB-231 was more sensitive to docetaxel compared to PC3 cells. In PC3 cells, a viability of ∼40% was achieved with the combined treatment, independent of the treatment order, compared to chemotherapy (∼55%) and USMB (∼90% at Pneg=240 kPa) treatments. Ultrasound and microbubbles enhanced the therapeutic effect of docetaxel, a chemotherapeutic agent, with a more pronounced enhancement in the chemosensitive cell line (MDA-MB-231) compared to the chemoresistant cell line (PC3). Future work will investigate this effect in vivo.


Background: With modern advances in cardiac care, patients with congenital cyanotic heart disease (CCHD) are living longer. As a result of this, the medical community is recognizing an increasing prevalence of non-cardiac complications in these patients. One of the most common complications is development of cyanotic nephropathy, which in turn leads to polycythemia. Elevated hematocrit levels can be an indicator of this process. Due to increased prevalence and a relative lack of qualified specialists, primary care clinicians are in need of an alternative, inexpensive test to establish these patients' risk of developing cyanotic nephropathy. Measurement of hematocrit fulfills this need. Methods: An exhaustive search of available medical literature was performed using Medline-Ovid, CINAHL, and Web of Science, using the search terms heart defects, kidney diseases, and hematocrit. Google Scholar was also searched, using the terms congenital cyanotic heart disease, kidney disease, and hematocrit. Included studies were evaluated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) Working Group guidelines. Results: A total of 78 studies were screened. The cumulative result of the search gave a total of two studies meeting inclusion criteria: two cross-sectional observational studies demonstrating that elevated hematocrit levels can be a reliable indicator of risk of progression to cyanotic nephropathy in patients with CCHD. Conclusion: Elevated hematocrit levels can be a reliable prognostic indicator of the development of cyanotic nephropathy in patients with CCHD. Hematocrit evaluation is the best resource available to primary care clinicians when evaluating patients with CCHD for the risk of developing cyanotic nephropathy. Current evidence suggests that frequent hematocrit screening could lead to early identification of renal damage. By using hematocrit as an evaluation tool, primary care clinicians can positively impact the quality of life of patients with CCHD. Close monitoring of these patients with appropriate diagnostic studies, such as hematocrit, can also lead to a more manageable distribution of patients with CCHD among the healthcare system between specialists and primary care providers.


We report the synthesis of highly crystalline, small sized, α-NiS nanocrystal inks for the fabrication of a counter electrode for dye-sensitized solar cells. Monodisperse α-NiS nanocrystals (about 7 nm) are obtained via a noninjection, solution-phase chemical synthesis method. During the growth process of α-NiS nanocrystals, the Ni–oleate complex, which is generated in situ from the reaction of nickel chloride and sodium oleate, is decomposed and acts effectively as a growth source in synthesizing monodisperse nanocrystals. By controlling the reaction temperature, the resultant nanocrystal sizes and crystallinity can be well tuned. Compared to conventionally obtained NiS bulk materials, monodisperse α-NiS nanocrystals possess abundant catalytic reaction sites for dye-sensitized solar cells due to their small particle size and high crystallinity. First-principles calculations have been employed for the first time to investigate the adsorption energy of I3− molecules on the (111) surface of α-NiS with equilibrium shape. DSSCs based on monodisperse α-NiS nanocrystal ink with higher crystallinity display a power conversion efficiency of 7.33%, which is comparable to that based on the Pt cathode (7.53%), but significantly higher than that based on the bulk NiS (4.64%) and relatively low-crystalline α-NiS nanocrystals (6.32%). It can be attributed to more reaction catalytic sites due to the surface effect of small α-NiS nanocrystals, and the highest work function level (5.5 eV) that matched the redox shuttle potential. We believe that our method paves a promising way to design and synthesize advanced counter electrode materials for energy harvesting.


This thesis explores teachers' meanings of commitment in two township public primary schools. The purpose of exploring teacher commitment is to examine how teachers' meanings of commitment inform what they do and how they do it in the classroom. In documenting the teachers' conceptualisations of these meanings, I use re-constructed teacher stories to re-tell the teachers' experiences of a committed teacher. In reconstructing the stories of teachers' meanings of commitment, I use multiple methods of collecting data which includes artefact retrieval, collage inquiry, and unstructured interviews. This qualitative study is located within the interpretivist paradigm and uses narrative inquiry as a methodology. The four experienced teacher participants teaching in two township primary schools were purposively selected for this study. All the four teacher participants in this study have been in the teaching profession for more than fifteen years. This study employs the teacher identity theory to understand the sources of meanings that teachers give to commitment. In this study, I use the three types of perceptual relevance: interpretive, motivational and topical relevance (Schutz, 1970) to explore how personal and professional experiences enable teachers to form the meanings they give to commitment as well as their behaviour in the classroom. The findings in this study reveal that teachers' meanings of commitment are varied and can also be the same. The analysis in this study revealed that teachers are aware that their roles as teachers go beyond the book. It further includes teaching beyond the classroom, for instance, engaging the learners in extra-mural activities and providing personal and professional well-being. In dealing with complexities and challenges in the teaching profession, the teacher participants draw energy from different sources, for instance, their families, significant others and being life-long learners. Through this study I became aware of the importance of personal lived experiences and the role played by being a life-long learner in understanding teacher commitment and in informing teacher behaviour. The use of identity theory in this study revealed that the personal informs the professional, and the personal and the professional are not fixed. v However, in this study teacher further emphasises the importance of being intellectuals. In order to produce committed and caring learners, teachers need to be seen as committed and caring teachers (modelling theory, Lake et al., 2004). In understanding teacher participants engagement with learners in the classroom, the struggles that teachers face, drive teachers to engage in personal and professional well-being of self. The personal well-being is inculcated by drawing on personal beliefs, personal relationships and personal desires. The professional well-being of self is achieved through engaging in further learning.


This thesis sets out to explore the experiences of adult learners and how they have negotiated class prior to, during and after higher education. Class is a difficult subject to talk about, however, it is important that it is examined particularly in relation to the education system as much of the literature outlines that there is a direct correlation between class background and educational inequality. While the study involves eight participants and is relatively small so cannot be applied universally to working class experience, nonetheless the findings and analyses demonstrate common themes which highlight the need for further exploration of this topic. Issues such as low expectations in relation to inequality emerged from the findings rather than economic factors which are typically attributed to such phenomenon. Other issues emerged such as the sense of having to alter one's way of being in terms of accent and behaviour in order to be accepted by middle class values and norms. These findings demonstrate the need for a fresh examination of social class inequality and highlight the importance of the issue particularly now in the face of momentous shifts in society.


This paper describes the biogeography at the species level of ants from the Tiwi Islands, and represents the first such analysis for any region in Australia. The Tiwi Islands are located 20 km off the mainland coast near Darwin in northern Northern Territory, and include Australia's second largest insular landmass after Tasmania. The islands receive the highest mean annual rainfall (up to 2000 mm) in monsoonal northern Australia, and they are the closest part of the Australian landmass to south-east Asia. On the basis of ~1300 species records, we list 154 species (including nine introduced) from 34 genera. The richest genera are Polyrhachis (20 species), Monomorium (15), Camponotus (14), Pheidole (12), and Iridomyrmex (11). In all, 66% of the native Tiwi species belong to Torresian (tropical) species groups, which is considerably higher than the 44% for Australia's monsoonal ant fauna as a whole. Fifteen Tiwi ant species are not known from mainland Australia. These include a species of Anonychomyrma, which is the only record of the genus in monsoonal Australia, Polyrhachis debilis, the only representative of the sub-genus Cyrtomyrma known from north-western Australia, and the only species of the araneoides group of Rhytidoponera known from the Northern Territory. Unfortunately, the Tiwi ant fauna also includes the exotic invasive species Pheidole megacephala, which represents a serious conservation threat.


Representational theories of mind cannot individuate the sense modalities in a principled manner. According to representationalism, the phenomenal character of experiences is determined by their contents. The usual objection is that inverted qualia are possible, so the phenomenal character of experiences may vary independently of their contents. But the objection is inconclusive. It raises difficult questions about the metaphysics of secondary qualities and it is difficult to see whether or not inverted qualia are possible. This paper proposes an alternative test of representationalism. Do experiences in different sense modalities have the same phenomenal character when they share content? Psychological work on the perception of shape through vision and spatial hearing is discussed. This work shows that visual and auditory experiences differ in phenomenal character even in so far as they represent similar properties. This objection to representationalism does not invite questions about secondary qualities or depend on establishing metaphysical possibilities.


In recent years and not least after the latest financial and economic crisis, we have seen a strongly renewed interest for industrial policy to get the developed economies growing again. Politicians and their experts and advisers have been hunting desperately for new approaches to industrial policy and have increasingly started to act as political entrepreneurs. The renewed interest in industrial policy and the increased importance of political entrepreneurs urge us once again to ask the fundamental question of what should be the proper focus, measures and extent of industrial policy. Should the industrial policy be vertical and focus on specific industries and even specific companies or should it be horizontal and focus on improving the general conditions for all industries and firms? However, there is a related and partly more controversial question, namely, what is the proper spatial scale for policy interventions by political entrepreneurs? Should industrial policy focus on certain places and possibly focus on existing and/or emerging industrial clusters or should it be spatially neutral and not try to discriminate between different regions and places? The purpose of this chapter is to throw some light on all above questions but with some extra focus on the questions concerning the spatial aspects.


This article describes how employment sub-centres can be identified applying geo-spatial modelling techniques in the context of metropolitan areas in India, and how the development of these employment centres can be linked to the levels of accessibility to labour, access to transport infrastructure as well as land use mix and land use diversity. For the city of Ahmedabad, employment sub-centres are identified for the year 2010, while the progression of employment in retail, commercial and industrial sectors in each of these centres is studied for the period from 1980 to 2010. Definite the signs of sprawl-type development and polarization reversal are observed, including the emergence of new employment sub-centres across the urban area, and the rapid growth of centres further away from the central business district. Retail and commercial sectors have grown exponentially, whereas industrial and manufacturing sector's growth is stagnant. This development is mixed and heterogeneous, with the growth of the retail and the commercial sectors found to have a significant and positive relation with access to labour and transport infrastructure. These identified patterns of development provide important information to urban planners enabling them to make informed decision, for example, in locating future employment activities, identifying future transit-oriented development nodes, etc.


Bi-directional LSTMs are a powerful tool for text representation. On the other hand, they have been shown to suffer various limitations due to their sequential nature. We investigate an alternative LSTM structure for encoding text, which consists of a parallel state for each word. Recurrent steps are used to perform local and global information exchange between words simultaneously, rather than incremental reading of a sequence of words. Results on various classification and sequence labelling benchmarks show that the proposed model has strong representation power, giving highly competitive performances compared to stacked BiLSTM models with similar parameter numbers.


At times, it appears that the many definitions of configurable computing are every bit as configurable as the technology itself. For example, Wikipedia-the free, online, user-editable encyclopedia-defines configurable computing (or, synonymously, reconfigurable computing) as ".... computer processing with highly flexible computing fabrics. The principal difference when compared to using ordinary microprocessors is the ability to make substantial changes to the data path itself in addition to the control flow' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Configurable_computing).


Major brassinosteroid (BR) effects such as BR-induced growth are mediated through genomic pathways because RNA synthesis inhibitors and protein synthesis inhibitors interfere with these processes. A limited number of BR-regulated genes have been identified hitherto. The majority of genes (such as BRU1, CycD3,Lin6, OPR3, and TRIP-1) were identified by comparisons of BR-treated versus control-treated plants. However, altered transcript levels after BR application may not reflect normal physiological events. A complementary approach is the comparison of BR-deficient plants versus wild-type plants. No artificial treatments interfere with endogenous signaling pathways, but a subset of phenotypic alterations of phytohormone-deficient plants most probably is secondary. To identify genes that are subject to direct BR regulation, we analyzed CPD antisense anddwf1-6 (cbb1) mutant plants. Both show a mild phenotype in comparison with BR-deficient mutants such ascpd/cbb3, det2, anddwf4. Plants were grown under two different environments to filter out BR deficiency effects that occur only at certain environmental conditions. Finally, we established expression patterns after BR treatment of wild-type and dwf1-6(cbb1) plants. Ideally, a BR-regulated gene displays a dose-response relationship in such a way that a gene with decreased transcript levels in BR-deficient plants is BR inducible and vice versa. Expression profile analysis of above ground part of plants was performed by means of Affymetrix Arabidopsis Genome Arrays.


The birth of the Ottoman state is shrouded in legend. Whatever the truth of its origins, the Ottomans formed an Empire which almost succeeded in bringing Christian Europe to its knees. During the last decades of the 13th century, the ambitious Osman Bey's tiny mountain state took eight frontier castles plus the Turkish town of Eskisehir. In 1299 Osman seized Yenisehir after working up the Kara Su valley. With this as its first real capital, the Ottoman state emerged into history poised above the fertile shores of the Sea of Marmara.


The presence of large numbers of underprepared students and their desire for access to higher education are not recent phenomena. Today, nearly four out of ten students entering two and four year colleges and universities need remediation in reading, writing, and mathematics. Identified by a variety of terms-nontraditional, underprepared, disadvantaged, high risk, etc.-these students are seen as a burden by many in higher education. Metropolitan universities enjoy a unique place in American higher education history. It is this historical mission that is the basis for the current commitment of many metropolitan universities to open access and service to underprepared students. This article discusses why metropolitan universities have little choice but to offer programs for underprepared students and offers suggestions for ensuring success of these programs..