ABSTRACT Quartz is the most abundant authigenic mineral in sandstones of the Travis Peak Formation in East Texas, but the extent of quartz cementation varies widely. To determine major controls on quartz cement distribution, this study used 431 thin sections from 1,100 m of core from 26 wells. Volume of detrital clay matrix is the main textural control on quartz cement. In sandstones lacking detrital clay, no significant correlation exists between quartz cement and grain size, sorting, bed thickness, or sedimentary structure. Depositional facies was an indirect control on quartz cement distribution because facies controlled detrital matrix content, but no significant difference exists between average quartz cement volume in matrix-free paralic (16.7%) and matrix-free fluvial (17.1%) sandstones Quartz cement increases significantly with present depth from an average of 14.6% at 1,825 m to 20.0% at 3,050 m. This trend of increasing quartz cement is interpreted to be the result of 1) an early episode of quartz cementation by meteoric water that resulted in relatively uniform distribution of quartz within the formation, and 2) a later episode related to the development of stylolites that preferentially added quartz cement in the deepest sandstones. Approximately 10 to 20% of the authigenic silica in Travis Peak sandstones was derived internally from intergranular pressure solution and stylolitization; the remaining 80% was imported from unknown sources outside the sandstones.


Agricultural policies in Rwanda focus on agricultural intensification and increased market orientation of the smallholder farm sector. Cooperatives are seen as key vehicles in this but little is known about their effectiveness to achieve these goals. In this paper we analyze the impact of cooperative membership on agricultural performance for rural households in Rwanda. Cross-sectional household data, collected in 2012, are used to analyze the impact of cooperative membership on different agricultural performance indicators. We specifically look at the diversity in cooperatives and distinguish different types of cooperatives in several ways. We use several econometric techniques to deal with potential selection bias in estimating the impact of cooperative membership, including a proxy variable method based on a willingness to pay measure and propensity score matching (PSM) methods. We find that cooperative membership in general has a positive impact on different farm performance indicators but that these effects are driven be specific types of cooperatives.


Strongly enhanced and confined electromagnetic fields generated in metal nanostructures upon illumination are exploited in many emerging technologies by either fabricating sophisticated nanostructures or synthesizing colloid nanoparticles. Here we study effects driven by field enhancement in vanishingly small gaps between gold islands in thin films near the electrically determined percolation threshold. Optical explorations using two-photon luminescence (TPL) and near-field microscopies reveals supercubic TPL power dependencies with white-light spectra, establishing unequivocally that the strongest TPL signals are generated close to the percolation threshold films, and occurrence of extremely confined (∼30 nm) and strongly enhanced (∼100 times) fields at the illumination wavelength. For linearly polarized and sufficiently powerful light, we observe pronounced optical damage with TPL images being sensitive to both wavelength and polarization of illuminating light. We relate these effects to thermally induc...


This paper is concerned with the low-frequency harmonics which originate from the rotor inverter of a doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG). By including the mechanical speed response, it expands the transformer approach previously taken to analyze the harmonic transfer in the machine. A numerical method is proposed to calculate the stator current sidebands, which can be used to predict the voltage fluctuation at the system busbar. It is shown that the pulsating torque associated with the rotor harmonics can induce speed ripple depending on the inertia, causing a significant change in the stator current spectrum. Experiment and simulation verify the analysis and the proposed calculation method.


The research in this dissertation addresses the issues in the performance evaluation of wind power systems under commercially operating circumstances. Such an evaluation is critical to a wide range of decisions including operations and maintenance planning, reliability assessment, asset procurement, and system designs. However, accurate evaluation is excessively challenging due to the unknown causal relationship between wind input and power output, the dependency of power output on numerous uncontrollable factors, and the high level of uncertainty observed in power output. While addressing these challenges, we develop a new performance measure based on production economics theories and propose effective methodologies for evaluating the performance of wind power systems. By doing so, this dissertation study aims to improve the practice of performance evaluation in the wind industry. We define an efficiency metric analogous to productive efficiency, which requires estimating a performance benchmark, i.e., the performance referring to 100% efficiency. For the performance benchmark, we develop a stochastic nonparametric estimator maintaining S-shape, the typical shape observed in the wind input-power output relationship. When applying the efficiency metric for comparing performance under different scenarios, other environmental factors need to be controlled for, as their difference could produce a difference in power output. We devise a covariate density matching method that selects subsets of data for which probability densities of the environmental factors are comparable; evaluating only these subsets, then, ensures a fair comparison. We further investigate wake situations in which the operation of a turbine could cause a significant power deficit on its neighboring turbines. In the presence of the performance benchmark introduced earlier, ii we can model the power deficit as a non-negative term subtracted from the benchmark. Based on this model setup, we develop a spline model with a non-negativity constraint imposed for characterizing such a wake effect. When each of the proposed methods is applied to operational wind data, the respective results demonstrate that each of the methods outperforms its competitive alternatives in terms of estimation and/or prediction accuracy. This suggests that the methods can reduce the unaccounted uncertainty in power output and thus provide better insight into the performance of wind power systems.


Complex II (succinate-ubiquinone oxidoreductase) from Escherichia coli is composed of four nonidentical subunits encoded by the sdhCDAB operon. Gene products of sdhC and sdhD are small hydrophobic subunits that anchor the hydrophilic catalytic subunits (flavoprotein and iron-sulfur protein) to the cytoplasmic membrane and are believed to be the components of cytochrome b in E. coli complex II. In the present study, to elucidate the role of two hydrophobic subunits in the heme b ligation and functional assembly of complex II, plasmids carrying portions of the sdh gene were constructed and introduced into E. coli MK3, which lacks succinate dehydrogenase and fumarate reductase activities. The expression of polypeptides with molecular masses of about 19 and 17 kDa was observed when sdhC and sdhD were introduced into MK3, respectively, indicating that sdhC encodes the large subunit (cybL) and sdhD the small subunit (cybS) of cytochrome b. An increase in cytochrome b content was found in the membrane when sdhD was introduced, while the cytochrome b content did not change when sdhC was introduced. However, the cytochrome b expressed by the plasmid carrying sdhD differed from cytochrome b in its CO reactivity and red shift of the α absorption peak to 557.5 nm at 77 K. Neither hydrophobic subunit was able to bind the catalytic portion to the membrane, and only succinate dehydrogenase activity, not succinate-ubiquinone oxidoreductase activity, was found in the cytoplasmic fractions of the cells. In contrast, significantly higher amounts of cytochrome b were expressed in the membrane when sdhC and sdhD genes were both present, and the catalytic portion was found to be localized in the membrane with succinate-ubiquinone oxidoreductase and succinate oxidase activities. These results strongly suggest that both hydrophobic subunits are required for heme insertion into cytochrome b and are essential for the functional assembly of E. coli complex II in the membrane. Accumulation of the catalytic portion in the cytoplasm was found when sdhCDAB was introduced into a heme synthesis mutant, suggesting the importance of heme in the assembly of E. coli complex II.


Megakalsilite, KAlSiO4, hexagonal, a 18.1111(8), c 8.4619(4) Å, V 2403.7(2) Å3, c:a = 0.4672, space group P63, Z = 24, R = 0.039 (for 3255 observed reflections collected with a four-circle X-ray diffractometer), is a new mineral species from Mount Koashva, Khibina alkaline massif, Kola Peninsula, Russia. It is of pegmatitic origin. Associated minerals are K-feldspar, sodalite, cancrinite, natrolite, pectolite, aegirine, natrite, nacaphite, vitusite, fluorcaphite, belovite, umbite, lemmleinite-K, lomonosovite, lovozerite, phlogopite, sphalerite, and galena. The mineral was found in only one hand specimen of pegmatite rock as a corroded, irregularly shaped grain 2 3 mm across, intergrown with cancrinite, sodalite, and natrite. It is transparent, colorless with a white streak, a vitreous luster, and fluoresces pale whitish green under ultraviolet light. Megakalsilite has a Mohs hardness of 6, is brittle with a conchoidal fracture, and has no cleavage. Dmeas is 2.58(2) g/cm3, Dcalc is 2.62 g/cm3. Megakalsilite is uniaxial negative, non-pleochroic, 1.538(1), 1.531(1). The strongest five reflections in the X-ray powder-diffraction pattern [d in Å(I)(hkl)] are: 3.091(100)(222), 2.612(70)(060), 1.240(60)(4.10.1,066,583), 3.18(50)(141), and 1.674(50)(173). An electron-microprobe analysis gives: K2O 29.73, Na2O 0.02, FeO 0.04, Al2O3 32.38, SiO2 37.96, TiO2 0.01, sum 100.14 wt.%. The corresponding empirical formula is K0.997Na0.001Fe0.001Al1.003Si0.998O4 (based on O = 4), ideally KAlSiO4. The name megakalsilite is derived from the Greek (great) and kalsilite, in allusion to the fact that megakalsilite shares the same chemical formula with kalsilite, but its unit cell is 12 times larger than that of kalsilite. The crystal structure of megakalsilite, KAlSiO4, has been solved by direct methods and refined to an R1 index of 3.82% based on 3255 observed [Fo > 4 (Fo)] unique reflections measured with MoK radiation on a conventional four-circle diffractometer. There are four Si sites, four Al sites, and six K sites in the structure. Megakalsilite is a tectosilicate with a framework consisting of six-membered rings of regularly alternating Siand Al-centered tetrahedra; [9]and [10]-coordinated K atoms are located in the large cavities. The six-membered rings of tetrahedra are present in two different conformations based on the following sequences of up (U) and down (D) tetrahedra: UDUDUD and UUU . The sequence of these two different rings along x (y) results in the unit cell parameter of 18.1111 Å. UDUDUD rings are characteristic for the high tridymite topology. UUU rings have been reported for KAlSiO4–O1. Crystal structures of megakalsilite and the synthetic aluminogermanate KAlGeO4 have the same framework topology.


This research is concerned with the application of statistical methodology to general insurance, in particular to the motor insurance branch. The research consists of two independent investigations in which two important aspects of motor insurance claims were studied. The aim of the first phase was to measure the influence of a given set of rating factors on both average claim size and claim frequency, and the second phase aimed at estimating an average pattern of settlement delays for motor insurance claims. In the first investigation, five rating factors were considered: mileage, zone of garage, no claim bonus, vehicle make and vehicle age. No strong evidence was found that these five rating factors had a significant influence on the average claim, but the same was not true for the claim frequency, in which such an influence was not only detected, but also measured for a limited set of the observations. An average pattern of settlement delays for motor insurance was estimated in the second investigation, based on two years of claims experience. It was shown that such a delay could give rise to a marginal profit for an insurance company, provided that the corresponding reserves for outstanding claims were appropriately invested. Due to the difficulty in getting data from the insurance industry, the two phases of the research had to be carried out using data from different sources. Thus, the first investigation was based on data from the Swedish claims experience during the year of 1977 and the second was based on data from a medium sized British insurance company relating to claims payments associated with accidents which took place in the course of the years 1972 and 1973.


The study was based on a cross-sectional design of children from six to nine year olds. Indigenous children were those whose parents had all surnames of this ethnic origin. Non-indigenous children were those with Hispanic surnames. Participants belonged to one of the three social vulnerability groups: high vulnerability (extreme poverty) living in rural communities in a southern region of the country (n = 184); medium vulnerability living in urbanized settings in the same region (n = 248); low vulnerability living in Santiago of Chile (n = 336). Food intake was estimated using a 24-hours recall questionnaire. Total energy intake was similar in the two ethnic groups in all vulnerabilities. It was observed that energy and macronutrient intake increased with the improvement of the social vulnerability: High 1679 kcal. with a standard deviation (SD) of 461, Medium 1878 (SD 484), Low 1894 (SD 495). Children in the high social vulnerability group had a total energy intake below the WHO/FAO recommendations. Consumption of milk, meat, vegetables and fruits was insufficient in all social vulnerability levels but it was closer to the recommendation in the low vulnerability group. Bread accounted for almost 50% of the total energy intake in the high and medium vulnerability groups. It is concluded that differences in the access to an adequate feeding are related to social vulnerability and not ethnicity.


This work presents the methodology involved in applying numerical electronic device simulation, and specifically, the application of this methodology to the study of piezoelectric effects in GaAs MESFETs. Firstly, a three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulation package EVEREST, developed for the simulation of silicon electronic devices, has been enhanced by the introduction and verification of models for GaAs device physics. Then a 2D finite element program for the simulation of mechanical stresses in the MESFET structure and a program for the extraction of piezoelectric charge from the numerically calculated stresses have been produced. The force load model applied to the metal/dielectric/GaAs structure is suggested as a good mathematical representation of the physical processes involved. The impact of stress induced piezoelectric charge, substrate doping and varying gate length on the electrical characteristics of epitaxial and ion-implanted MESFETs have been determined by numerical simulation using the EVEREST device simulator. Comparison between experimental data and simulation results has been presented. Finally, conclusions and suggestions for further study have been given.


BACKGROUND
Periodontal bacteria are known to invade the systemic circulation. Chronic low-level bacteremia and a systemic inflammatory response have been suggested as a pathogenetic link between periodontal disease and atherosclerosis. The purpose of this study was to examine the systemic effect of a non-surgical therapy on white blood cell count (WBC count) and differential blood count in smoking and non-smoking generalized aggressive periodontitis (GAP) patients.

METHODS
27 adult periodontitis patients (13 smokers and 14 non-smokers) with previously untreated GAP were subjected to 3 sessions of oral hygiene procedure. Afterwards, the patients were treated by scaling and root planing under local anaesthesia. Periodontal examinations were performed after supragingival pretreatment and three months after subgingival therapy. Pocket probing depth (PPD) and relative attachment level (RAL) were measured with Florida probe and disc probe. Accompanying clinical evaluation venous blood samples were taken to analyse the WBC counts and differential blood counts. For statistical analysis non-parametric tests were utilized.

RESULTS
No clinical or demographic differences were found between smokers (n=13) and non-smokers (n=14). PPD, bleeding on probing (BoP) and suppuration improved significantly after therapy both in smokers and non-smokers. Following periodontal treatment WBC counts, neutrophil and platelet counts decreased significantly in non-smokers (p< or =0.004), while in smokers only platelet counts were significantly reduced (p=0.006). Non-smokers showed a significantly higher reduction of WBC counts (p=0.005) and neutrophils (p=0.001) compared to smokers.

CONCLUSION
The results indicate that a therapeutical intervention may have a systemic effect on the blood count in GAP patients. This effect seems to differ between smokers and non-smokers.


Mortality and morbidity statistics suggest that miners and foundryworkers are more prone to bronchitis than other industrial workers but it is not yet certain that this excess is due to occupational factors. The present investigation was designed to compare the prevalence of bronchitis and respiratory disability in a representative sample of miners, foundryworkers, and other industrial groups living in Staveley, Derbyshire, a town of some 18,000 inhabitants, and to study some of the possible aetiological factors. A random sample of 776 men, stratified by age into two groups, 25 to 34 and 55 to 64 years, and by occupation into four groups, non-dusty, miners and ex-miners, foundry and ex-foundryworkers, and other dusty jobs, was used. Respiratory symptoms were recorded on a standardized questionnaire and the ventilatory capacity was assessed by means of the forced expiratory volume (F.E.V.0·75) and recorded as the indirect maximum breathing capacity (M.B.C.). Miners and ex-miners recorded a higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms and a lower mean M.B.C. than men who had worked only in dust-free occupations. In the older age group the differences were not large and were not statistically significant but in the younger men the difference in the mean M.B.C. was significant. Foundry and ex-foundryworkers with a pure industrial history recorded a similar prevalence of symptoms to the men who had never worked in dusty occupations and their mean M.B.C. was only slightly and insignificantly lower. A higher prevalence of symptoms and a lower mean M.B.C. was, however, recorded by the foundrymen who had also been exposed to other dusts or fumes and the occupational histories suggested that such exposure was more likely than foundry work to account for the findings. The number of years spent on the coal-getting shift was used to assess the importance of exposure to coal dust. In the elderly miners without pneumoconiosis there was a significant increase in the prevalence of breathlessness, accompanied by a reciprocal fall in the mean M.B.C. with increasing years spent on the coal-getting shift; but in no other group was a consistent trend found. In both age groups the prevalence of respiratory symptoms was lower and the mean M.B.C. higher in non-smokers than in smokers and ex-smokers. Heavy smokers (those smoking 15g. and over/day) recorded a higher prevalence of symptoms and a lower mean M.B.C. than light smokers, and the values for ex-smokers approximated to those of the non-smokers. The wives of the elderly men in the sample were studied to try to determine how far the apparently high rates of bronchitis shown by national mortality statistics are attributable to social factors. The findings suggested that the wives of the men who worked in dusty jobs had a somewhat higher prevalence of cough and/or sputum and of chest illness during the past three years than the wives of those who had worked only in dust-free occupations.


This paper analyses the empirical relationship between economic growth and export expansion in Mauritius as  observed through time series data. Using Granger Causality tests, the short-run analysis results revealed that there is significant reciprocal causality between real export earnings (total, textiles and manufacturing) and real GDP and between real export earnings growth (total, textiles and manufacturing) and real GDP growth. The paper highlights the remarkable economic success achieved by Mauritius through the vigorous pursuit of an export promotion strategy. Keywords: Export Expansion Hypothesis, Exports, Growth, Correlation.


1. ABSTRACT A wireless telemetry system is described for measurement of forces acting upon massive orthopaedic implants, in man, to determine the load distribution in the fixation during routine activities and how this changes over long periods. The system comprises: the permanently implanted instrumented prosthesis, modified to enclose strain gauges and electronics, a single inductive link for powering the implant and telemetering the data, a microcontroller-based signal processor, a UHF radio link, and lap-top PC for real time data logging. The subject wears a small battery-powered inductive energiser, induction coil and microcontroller during the measurements. The strain gauges and implanted instrumentation are hermetically sealed inside cavities within the prosthesis, and are connected via a feedthrough to a small implanted induction coil. This coil is located outside the body of the prosthesis to maximise the power coupling efficiency, and is encapsulated using silicone rubber. Four prostheses have so far been implanted and data recorded over 1.5-3 years for each to date. This paper will focus on the electrical aspects of the telemetry system. Extracts of the axial force, bending moment and axial torque data will also be presented for the first Mk2 instrumented distal femoral replacement, during walking.


It is 2053. The Swedish government has just opened its landmark museum FOSSIL with its first exhibition Carbon Ruins. The exhibition and its grand opening is a celebration of the fact that global net-zero emissions of carbon dioxide were reached in 2050. Sweden, in line with its 2017 targets, reached net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases already in 2045, being the first country in the world to step out of the fossil age, which globally lasted between 1849 and 2049.'Carbon Ruins' aims to transport the visitor into a future where transitions to post-fossil society has already happened. By focusing on recognisable objects the exhibition bridges the gap between the daily lives of humans and the abstract impacts of climate change. The choice of the objects and the associated stories are based on climate models and expertise from the Narrating Climate Futures network. The characters and events which construct the story have been generated through participatory workshops with researchers and practitioners in food, transport, steel, energy and plastic (Less)


[1] Mossbauer spectroscopy is a powerful tool for quantitative mineralogical analysis of Fe-bearing materials. The miniature Mossbauer spectrometer MIMOS II is a component of the Athena science payload launched to Mars in 2003 on both Mars Exploration Rover missions. The instrument has two major components: (1) a rover-based electronics board that contains power supplies, a dedicated central processing unit, memory, and associated support electronics and (2) a sensor head that is mounted at the end of the instrument deployment device (IDD) for placement of the instrument in physical contact with soil and rock. The velocity transducer operates at a nominal frequency of ∼25 Hz and is equipped with two 57Co/Rh Mossbauer sources. The reference source (∼5 mCi landed intensity), reference target (α-Fe2O3 plus α-Fe0), and PIN-diode detector are configured in transmission geometry and are internal to the instrument and used for its calibration. The analysis Mossbauer source (∼150 mCi landed intensity) irradiates Martian surface materials with a beam diameter of ∼1.4 cm. The backscatter radiation is measured by four PIN-diode detectors. Physical contact with surface materials is sensed with a switch-activated contact plate. The contact plate and reference target are instrumented with temperature sensors. Assuming ∼18% Fe for Martian surface materials, experiment time is 6–12 hours during the night for quality spectra (i.e., good counting statistics); 1–2 hours is sufficient to identify and quantify the most abundant Fe-bearing phases. Data stored internal to the instrument for selectable return to Earth include Mossbauer and pulse-height analysis spectra (512 and 256 channels, respectively) for each of the five detectors in up to 13 temperature intervals (65 Mossbauer spectra), engineering data for the velocity transducer, and temperature measurements. The total data volume is ∼150 kB. The mass and power consumption are ∼500 g (∼400 g for the sensor head) and ∼2 W, respectively. The scientific measurement objectives of the Mossbauer investigation are to obtain for rock, soil, and dust (1) the mineralogical identification of iron-bearing phases (e.g., oxides, silicates, sulfides, sulfates, and carbonates), (2) the quantitative measurement of the distribution of iron among these iron-bearing phases (e.g., the relative proportions of iron in olivine, pyroxenes, ilmenite, and magnetite in a basalt), (3) the quantitative measurement of the distribution of iron among its oxidation states (e.g., Fe2+, Fe3+, and Fe6+), and (4) the characterization of the size distribution of magnetic particles. Special geologic targets of the Mossbauer investigation are dust collected by the Athena magnets and interior rock and soil surfaces exposed by the Athena Rock Abrasion Tool and by trenching with rover wheels.


This study evaluated the relationship between perceived work support, occupational stressors and burnout in a sample of 102 teachers, testing a model based on structural equations. The Labor Support Scale (ESUL), the Workplace Stress Vulnerability Scale (EVENT) and the Brazilian Burnout Scale (EBB) were applied. From the results, the EBB correlated positively and moderately with the EVENT and negatively and with a weak magnitude with the ESUL. The EVENT and ESUL presented a negative and weak correlation. Using the path analysis model, stressors at work mediated the relationship between work support and burnout. The social interaction dimension (ESUL) predicted the climate and organizational functioning (EVENT), which in turn directly impacted emotional exhaustion/professional frustration and depersonalization/detachment (EBB). The study demonstrates the importance of investigating these constructs in the school context, aiming to support the planning of interventions and the reduction of stressors and burnout indicators.


In this communication, we present a design methodology for an insensitive radiating structure for concrete health monitoring applications. It takes advantage of an optimized smaller vacuum box surrounding a patch antenna. The Ansys HFSS software is used to simulate the studies of different configurations. The patch antenna consists of a radiating metallic element with a ground plane printed on a low-cost FR4 substrate. It is optimized to be linearly polarized and to be able to operate in free space medium at the first two resonant frequencies of 1.55 GHz and 1.95 GHz. This study demonstrates that a 5 mm high vacuum box above main radiating antenna, is sufficient to reduce the influence of three surrounding dielectric materials studied in this work, such as a PVC, concrete and limestone. Theoretical predictions, for all types of surrounded materials, show reasonably good agreement with experimental results.


Studies on isolated tracheal airway smooth muscle (ASM) strips have shown that length/force fluctuations, similar to those likely occurring during breathing, will mitigate ASM contractility. These studies conjecture that, solely by reducing length oscillations on a healthy, intact airway, one can create airway hyperresponsiveness, but this has never been explicitly tested. The intact airway has additional complexities of geometry and structure that may impact its relevance to isolated ASM strips. We examined the role of transmural pressure (Ptm) fluctuations of physiological amplitudes on the responsiveness of an intact airway. We developed an integrated system utilizing ultrasound imaging to provide real-time measurements of luminal radius and wall thickness over the full length of an intact airway (generation 10 and below) during Ptm oscillations. First, airway constriction dynamics to cumulative acetylcholine (ACh) doses (10(-7) to 10(-3) M) were measured during static and dynamic Ptm protocols. Regardless of the breathing pattern, the Ptm oscillation protocols were ineffective in reducing the net level of constriction for any ACh dose, compared with the static control (P = 0.225-0.793). Next, Ptm oscillations of increasing peak-to-peak amplitude were applied subsequent to constricting intact airways under static conditions (5.0-cmH(2)O Ptm) with a moderate ACh dose (10(-5) M). Peak-to-peak Ptm oscillations < or = 5.0 cmH(2)O resulted in no statistically significant bronchodilatory response (P = 0.429 and 0.490). Larger oscillations (10 cmH(2)O, peak to peak) produced modest dilation of 4.3% (P = 0.009). The lack of modulation of airway responsiveness by Ptm oscillations in intact, healthy airways suggests that ASM level mechanisms alone may not be the sole determinant of airway responsiveness.


In the area between Stopnik, [ebrelje and Pick of [ebrelje the Ladinian clastic, car- bonate and volcanogenic rocks, in the thickness of more then 600 m, are very diversely developed. They are situated on diferent structural blocks bounded by the middle Triassic faults and overlay partly eroded Anisian dolomite in the footwall. Variegated volcanogenic sedimentary rocks with conglomerate lenses comprising the middle part of the Ladinian succession in the broader sorounding of Stopnik are very important for paleogeographic interpretation of the area. Ten conglomerate lenses were separated in the middle of volcanoclastic and volcanogenic rocks on the [ebrelje structural block. Cross sections of the conglomerate lenses are some 10 m to 550 m long and 15 to 60 m thick. Their axes are arranged in the direction NW-SE. In the lower and upper part of the lithological succession in the lenses prevail conglomerates with more ordered internal structure, denser packing of pebbles and more distinct bedding but in the middle part of the succession in lenses prevail sandy conglomerates and pebbly sandstones with less ordered internal structure, less denser packing of pebbles and less distinct bedding. The pebbles consist of diferent types of limestone, dolomite, volcanic rocks, tuffs, tuffaceous sandstone and conglomerate. They represent prevailing resedimented lower Ladinian rocks. The described sedimentary rocks are interpreted as a product of alluvial fan and fan delta sedimentary complexes, which were transgressively covered by tuffaceous muddy marine sediments passing into the Cordevolian dolomite.


Grain growth subjected to the interplay of stochastic and curvature-driven mechanisms in a single-phase system has been investigated. Numerical results have shown that when the grains are smaller than several tens of nanometres the dominating mechanism is stochastic diffusion control of boundaries. As the grains grow the influence of the deterministic curvature-driven mechanism increases and finally controls the process. In terms of finite-difference solutions to the Fokker–Planck continuity equation, the predicted grain size approaches a log-normal distribution, which agrees well with experimental observations.


Due to their dynamic topologies, providing quality of service (QoS) in wireless/mobile ad-hoc networks introduces major new challenges to the research community. Today, the only commercially available ad-hoc network products are those based on the widely deployed IEEE 802.11 distributed coordination function (DCF). However DCF is a random access scheme, which not only cannot provide any guarantees, is also well known to suffer from a problem of fairness. In this paper, the bandwidth allocation problem in the medium access control (MAC) layer of ad-hoc networks is modelled as a constrained maximization problem. Based on duality, the problem is further modelled as a cooperative game and an algorithm to solve this problem is provided, and the discussion is centered on the design and implementation issues of the algorithm.


Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a deadly chronic lung disease. Extracellular accumulation of adenosine and subsequent activation of the ADORA2B receptor play important roles in regulating inflammation and fibrosis in IPF. Additionally, alternatively activated macrophages (AAMs) expressing ADORA2B have been implicated in mediating adenosine's effects in IPF. Although hypoxic conditions are present in IPF, hypoxia's role as a direct modulator of macrophage phenotype and identification of factors that regulate ADORA2B expression on AAMs in IPF is not well understood. In this study, an experimental mouse model of pulmonary fibrosis and lung samples from patients with IPF were used to examine the effects and interactions of macrophage differentiation and hypoxia on fibrosis. We demonstrate that hypoxia‐inducible factor 1‐α (HIF1A) inhibition in late stages of bleomycin‐induced injury attenuates pulmonary fibrosis in association, with reductions in ADORA2B expression in AAMs. Additionally, ADORA2B deletion or pharmacological antagonism along with HIF1A inhibition disrupts AAM differentiation and subsequent IL‐6 production in cultured macrophages. These findings suggest that hypoxia, through HIF1A, contributes to the development and progression of pulmonary fibrosis through its regulation of ADORA2B expression on AAMs, cell differentiation, and production of profibrotic mediators. These studies support a potential role for HIF1A or ADORA2B antagonists in the treatment of IPF.—Philip, K., Mills, T. W., Davies, J., Chen, N.‐Y., Karmouty‐Quintana, H., Luo, F., Molina, J. G., Amione‐Guerra, J., Sinha, N., Guha, A., Eltzschig, H. K., Blackburn, M. R. HIF1A up‐regulates the ADORA2B receptor on alternatively activated macrophages and contributes to pulmonary fibrosis. FASEB J. 31, 4745–4758 (2017). www.fasebj.org


Yamato Takeru is one of the most famous Japanese heroes. He has a carefully chosen name, which connects him with the state of Yamato, the predecessor of today's Japan. He is characterized by all the features of a mythical hero: courage, strength and ingenuity, but mythological story includes also fairy-tale motifs such as a miraculous sword, helpers, disguise, falling in love, and finally, supernatural death due to encounter with a numinous force. The oldest variants of the myth about this fearless warrior we can find in the first Japanese historical chronicles (8th century). Adding certain elements to the common ground and combining them in accordance with their own narrative aspirations, these texts gave their own recognizable variants of the myth of Yamato Takeru, which were a clear reflection of the ideology of the time. Regardless of the differences, these variants describe the achievements of Yamato Takeru as a key turning point, because in that semi-historical time that is also the beginning of national consolidation. By "calming and subduing" western and Eastern countries, he contributed to increasing the territory under imperial rule and strengthening the authority of the Yamato court. In the following centuries, new variants of the myth about this hero were created on these bases. Some are focused on territorial conquests and spreading of the influence of the imperial government, while the miraculous events related to the Kusanagi sword were more important to the others. Recently, Yamato Takeru has been used, in the same way as the other national icons, to create and highlight Japanese national identity, especially when it came to inspiring the people to selflessly lay down their lives for the country and the emperor.


Recently, microgrids have faced a great challenge for the stable operation of converter-dominant system with very high renewable penetration. The converter-based-generator reduces inertia constant. In this case, very small power imbalance can cause large frequency variation. Therefore, the accurate load sharing between generators is important for the stable operation. This paper proposes the virtual multi-slack (VMS) droop control based on the power sensitivity analysis. In other words, one physical slack generator directly controls the magnitude and phase angle of its bus voltage. At the same time, the other generators indirectly control the magnitudes and phase angles of their bus voltages by using the VMS droop control. This results in the proper load sharing between the generators in the stand-alone microgrid. That is, all nonslack generators operate as virtual slacks so that they solve the power imbalances together with one physical slack generator. The proposed VMS control is realized with the multi-slack power flow analysis, which enables adaptive droop based power allocation between the generators. Then, its effectiveness is verified with several case studies on the practical stand-alone microgrid in South Korea by using the electromagnetic transient program.


The severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) spike protein (S) is a major target for neutralizing antibody. To develop and apply a safe neutralization assay for SARS-CoV, lentiviral SARS-CoV S pseudotypes had been constructed based on a three plasmid system, which contained pVRC8304 (harboring codon optimized full-length SARS-CoV S protein), pCMV delta 8. 2 (HIV-1 gag/pol construct) and pHR'CMV EGFP (the green fluorescent protein reporter construct). The pseudo-typed lentiviral particles were used to develop an in vitro microneutralization assay that was both sensitive and specific for SARS-CoV neutralizing antibody. We used this assay to determine the titers of the neutralizing antibodies (Nabs) in serum samples from mice immunized with various rVVs expressing different S fragments of SARS-CoV. The serum antibodies derived from S and various segments of S1 region neutralized SARS-CoV in vitro. No cross-neutralization occurred with the goat antiserum prepared with inactivated HCoV-OC43 or HCoV-229E. Neutralization titers measured by this assay were highly parallel with those measured by the assay using live SARS-CoV. Because the pseudotype assay does not require handling live SARS virus, it is a useful tool to determine serum neutralizing titers during natural infection and the preclinical evaluation of candidate vaccines.


This case is useful for introducing the dynamics of not-for-profit marketing and organizational structuring. It reinforces the view of marketing as the range of activities involved in continuing to meet customer needs while generating value in return irrespective of the context--consumer, business-to-business, or nonprofit. It also demonstrates how charitable organizations could be funded as nonprofits but grow into revenue-generating organizations. St. Kizito Clinic in Nigeria had grown in the number of patient visits, number of services provided, and number of staff members since its inception 15 years earlier. The scope and quality of services were comparable to those provided by a number of competing secondary institutions. The clinic's location had evolved from a slum in a rural area to a slum in an urban area, leading to an increasing number of visits from the more affluent members of the surrounding communities. Medical Director Chiara Mezzalira, MD, faced the challenge of balancing the clinic's mission, which had as its primary audience the poor, the needy, and the underprivileged members of the society with environmental pressures wealthier clients presented. She was also mindful of the pressures from the clinic's Italian founder, the Association of Volunteers in International Services, to institutionalize proper management and accounting systems and reduce its financial dependence on the organization.


The soils of the Delbo Wegene watershed of Southern Ethiopia were characterized along toposequence for the development of land management plan for sustainable soil management practices. Four pedons along toposequence were studied. Delbo Wegene watershed is located between 06°52' 45.9'' and 06°53'34.8'' N latitude and between 37°48' 10.5'' and 37°48'42.4''E longitude, with altitude ranging from 2100 to 2300 m.a.s.l. The soils were generally dark reddish brown to very dark brown and very deep (> 150 cm). The overall friable consistency, low bulk density (1.0 to 1.26 gm/cm3), sub angular to angular blocky structure, high total porosity (53 to 61%) indicated that the soils have good physical condition for plant growth. The soils were slightly (pH: 5.8) to moderately acidic (pH: 6.4). Organic carbon content, available micronutrients and cation exchangeable capacity of the soils decrease with soil depth. However, exchangeable cations increase with increasing soils depth. Available phosphorus content of the soils ranged from very low to high. However, available Cu content of the soils were marginal to deficient. The upper and middle pedons with argilic subsurface horizons were classified as Typic Paleustults (Soil Survey Staff, 1999). These soils correlate with Cutanic Luvisols (WRB, 2006). The lower and toe slope pedons with mollic epepedon and cambic subsurface horizon were classified as Typic Haplustepts. These soils correlate with Haplic Cambisols (WRB, 2006). The result indicated that the distribution and properties of the soils vary along the toposequence in the watershed.

 Key words: Soil characteristics, soil classification, Delbo-Wegene watershed


The incorporation of labeled lysolecithin into various rat organs was studied. Lysolecithin injected was rapidly taken up by various organs and it was found that the conversion into lecithin proceeded more rapidly in the liver and intestine than in other organs. The mode of formation of lecithin from lysolecithin in various organs was also studied in vivo. Using lysolecithin doubly labeled with the glycerol and fatty acid portions, it was shown that lysolecithin injected was preferentially converted to tetraenoic lecithin in all organs examined by Lands' pathway, while the saturated+monoenoic species of the lung and brain was formed with 14C/3H of approximately 2.0 by Marrinetti's pathway. These results suggest that the lysolecithin-lecithin cycle between liver and plasma may serve to retain polyunsaturated fatty acids, and the saturated lecithin in the lung known as a surfactant may only in some parts be derived from exogenous lysolecithin.


Bessel beams belong to the class of "non-diffracting" beams, which means that the field distribution near the optical axis does not broaden as the field propagates. Higher order Bessel beams have helical wavefronts and carry an orbital angular momentum. Such non-diffracting "vortex beams" play an important role in physics and engineering. Orbital angular momentum using ultrashort wave packets has been demonstrated in recent years. However, because of spatiotemporal dispersive coupling, spatial beam shaping affects the temporal properties of the pulse. To overcome this, dispersion compensation techniques may be applied, for example, by the combination of refraction and diffraction. Here, we present a comprehensive analysis of the generation of ultrashort Airy–Bessel wave packets taking into account third-order effects, in particular. Thus, one can explore the limits of this technique. It is shown that, for pulses with a duration of less than 10 fs, third-order dispersion has a significant impact on the pulse shape: a Gaussian profile (in time) is transformed into a temporal Airy profile. Our analysis also reveals that terms of higher order, i.e., fourth- and fifth-order dispersion, etc., are less significant.


The article, based on the analysis of Chekhov's The Duel [Duеl], offers a new interpretation of Chekhov's oeuvre. Modern Chekhov studies often imply that the writer lived in the era of the end of ideologies and therefore refrained from offering any ideological recipes. In fact, nearly each of Chekhov's longer novellas debunked the nascent ideologies of the time. He warned of the perils of submission to an ideology, even though he could not predict which one would eventually dominate. Therefore, he critiqued each and every one of them. This is how ideology is tackled in his story The Black Monk [Chyorniy monakh] (an anticipation of detrimental Modernist ideas); in A Dreary Story [Skuchnaya istoria], these days often compared to the story of Faust; and in Ward No. 6 [Palata nomer shest], showing descent of normal people into insanity. Similarly, in The Duel, he depicted a proto-Nazi and Bolshevik, no less, in the character of Von Koren, who embraces Nietzsche's worldview and will not hesitate to destroy an intellectual who crossed his path.


As a label-free technology, mass spectrometry (MS) enables assays to be generated that monitor the conversion of substrates with native sequences to products without the requirement for substrate modifications or indirect detection methods. Although traditional liquid chromatography (LC)–MS methods are relatively slow for a high-throughput screening (HTS) paradigm, with cycle times typically ≥60 s per sample, the Agilent RapidFire High-Throughput Mass Spectrometry (HTMS) System, with a cycle time of 5–7 s per sample, enables rapid analysis of compound numbers compatible with HTS. By monitoring changes in mass directly, HTMS assays can be used as a triaging tool by eliminating large numbers of false positives resulting from fluorescent compound interference or from compounds interacting with hydrophobic fluorescent dyes appended to substrates. Herein, HTMS assays were developed for multiple protease programs, including cysteine, serine, and aspartyl proteases, and applied as a confirmatory assay. The confirmation rate for each protease assay averaged <30%, independent of the primary assay technology used (i.e., luminescent, fluorescent, and time-resolved fluorescent technologies). Importantly, >99% of compounds designed to inhibit the enzymes were confirmed by the corresponding HTMS assay. Hence, HTMS is an effective tool for removing detection-based false positives from ultrahigh-throughput screening, resulting in hit lists enriched in true actives for downstream dose response titrations and hit-to-lead efforts.


The main goal of this work is to demonstrate the correlation between the density and type of surface defects arising during the formation of a buried nitrogen-containing layer in Si wafers, and the number of buried defects formed by different dose hydrogen preimplantation. Standard commercial 12 ⋅cm boron-doped and 4.5 ⋅cm phosphorous-doped Cz Si wafers were subjected to hydrogen ion implantation at room temperature with the energy 100 keV and doses 1⋅1015 - 4⋅1016 at/cm2. Then nitrogen was introduced into silicon from a DC plasma source at a temperature of 300 oС. Finally, all samples were subjected to 2 h vacuum annealing at 900 oС. The experiments have shown that the density and type of the surface defects depend significantly on the dose of hydrogen implantation, parameters of N+-plasma treatment, and conductivity type of silicon. Optimization of the above-mentioned parameters makes it possible to create the substrates containing a buried dielectric SixNy layer and having a practically defect-free surface.


This work has the objective to analyze multibody mechanisms of inflatable structures for manned space applications. The focus is on the evaluation of the main characteristics of MaxFlex, a new module of MSC Adams including the effect of nonlinear flexible bodies. MaxFlex integrates the nonlinear Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of Nastran—SOL400—and the Adams multibody capabilities in one unique solver, providing an improvement concerning the concept and technology based on the co-simulation among solvers. MaxFlex converts the equations of motion of the nonlinear FEA into phase-space form and discretizes them according to the multibody system integrator framework. The numerical results deal with an inflatable manned space module having rigid components and a flexible coating made of Kevlar. This paper is a preliminary assessment of the computational capabilities of the software and does not provide realistic guidelines for the actual design of the structure. The analysis leads to some recommendations related to the main issues to consider in a nonlinear simulation including both rigid and flexible components. The results underline the importance of realistic deployment times and applied forces. Also, a proper structural modeling is necessary, but can lead to excessive computational overheads.


Nanosized Mn 1-xCd xFe 2O4 mixed ferrite samples were synthesized using the co-precipitation technique. The Cd 2+ ion was employed as the dopant and the values of x = 0, 0.1 0.3 and 0.5. The X-ray and IR spectra analysis were carried out to confirm the spinel phase formation as well as to ascertain the cation distribution in the ferrite samples. The magnetic study was carried out to ascertain the effect of the cadmium doping on the Ms Value.


This paper presents a first-of-its-kind micromachined tunable solenoid microinductor with tuning ratio as high as 18:1 at 10 kHz. A tuning mechanism using a permalloy linear vibromotor enables low power consumption, low driving voltage (less than 1 volt), and long travel distance. A low temperature batch process is developed to integrate the microinductor structure and vibromotor. The measured inductance is on the order of 10 nH and rolls off at 1MHz. Potential applications include performance optimization and functionality enhancement to magnetic microsensors and micromagnetic power devices, such as dc/dc converter.


Valerio M, Tomecek MB, Lovelli S & Ziska LH (2011). Quantifying the effect of drought on carbon dioxide-induced changes in competition between a C3 crop (tomato) and a C4 weed (Amaranthus retroflexus). Weed Research51, 591–600.

Summary

Recent and projected increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) and subsequent effects on climate are likely to alter competitive outcomes of weeds and crops. Rising [CO2] per se could increase the competitive ability of C3 crops relative to C4 weeds. However, such an outcome may depend on other climatic variables. In this study, tomato, a C3 crop species, was grown from emergence to anthesis using replacement series mixtures with Amaranthus retroflexus, a C4 weed species at three different [CO2], 400, 600 and 800 μmol mol−1, with and without water stress. Under well-watered conditions, leaf photosynthetic rates and plant height, leaf area and biomass all increased with elevated [CO2] for tomato relative to A. retroflexus, consistent with the kinetics of C3 photosynthesis. However, if water was limiting, a significant positive effect of [CO2] was noted for plant height and biomass of A. retroflexus with increased competition. This result may be related to a greater increase in leaf water potential with rising [CO2] for A. retroflexus relative to tomato under water stress. Overall, these are the first data to suggest that increases in atmospheric CO2 could still exacerbate crop losses from a C4 weed, even with a C3 crop, if drought occurs.


Aim and Scope: To study the scientometric assessment of global publications on Digital Health Research. Methods: The paper examines digital health research covering 6981 global publications sourced from Scopus database during 2007–2016. Results: Digital health research across 109 countries registered 8.03% growth and averaged to 7.33 citations per paper. The top 10 most productive countries individually contributed 2.75% to 33.82% share to global publications output and together they accounted for 79.30% share during the period. Their international collaborative publications varied from 3% to 14.49%. Medicine is the most studied subject with largest publication share in digital health research (53.55%), followed by computer science (33.85%), engineering (24.97%), health profession (13.24%), and others. The top 20 most productive organizations and authors together contributed 12.32% and 2.99% of global publications share, respectively, and 38.91% and 3.28% of global citations share, respectively. The top 20 journals contributed 12.32% share to the global output in journals during 2007–2016. Of the total digital health research, 46 (0.65%) were highly cited papers, citations to them ranged from 100 to 1104 per paper, with 257.76 citations per paper. Conclusion: A total of 415 authors from 242 organizations contributed 46 highly cited papers which appeared in 37 journals. Four papers appeared in CA Cancer Journal of Clinicians, three papers in Annals of Internal Medicine, two papers each in European Urology, Journal of American Medical Informatics Association, New England Journal of Medicine, Pediatrics and Stroke, and one paper each in 30 other journals.


Academic libraries are becoming increasingly involved in scholarly communication through work with institutional repositories and other open access models. While academic librarians are being encouraged to promote these new models, their opinions about open access have not been documented. This article reports on the results of a national survey conducted in the summer of 2006 of academic librarians' attitudes toward open access principles and related behaviors. While attitude responses were largely positive, there were differences in levels of support related to respondents' job descriptions and funding of open access activities. Surveyed librarians appear to be more comfortable with tasks that translate traditionally held responsibilities, such as educating others, to the open access environment. Most significant is the discrepancy between stated support of library involvement in open access initiatives and significantly lacking action toward this end. The results offer insight into how open access proponents may better focus their advocacy efforts.


Excerpt] In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the arbitration and mediation of employment disputes outside the collective bargaining context. This increase has been part of a larger shift from reliance on litigation and enforcement agency resolution of disputes to the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), a trend particularly evident in the employment field. Over the course of several decades employees have gained a long list of rights and protections included in a variety of laws, ranging from anti-discrimination statutes to pension safeguards to statutory attempts to guarantee safer and healthier workplaces. The growing use of arbitration, mediation, and related techniques to resolve statutory claims arising in employment relations is in part the consequence of the high costs and long delays associated with the use of administrative agencies and the court system to resolve disputes. The unpredictability of jury awards has also prompted employers and employees to opt for ADR. The growing use of ADR in employment disputes has occurred both inside and outside collective bargaining. In some union workplaces, the parties attempt to resolve statutory claims using the grievance and arbitration procedures in the collective bargaining agreement. In others, many, if not most, statutory claims are handled outside the collective bargaining arena, with employees pursuing their claims through the normal channels of agency and judicial resolution. In a minority but growing number of union-management relationships, the parties have created procedures for resolving statutory claims that are separate or "sheltered" from the collective bargaining agreement (Dunlop and Zack, 1997, particularly pp. 53–72; see also Zack, 1999, pp. 67–94). The growing use of arbitration and mediation to resolve employment disputes has been especially noteworthy in the nonunion sector. In the United States, as most people know, the proportion of the workforce that is unionized has been steadily declining for over forty years and currently stands at about 14 percent. Although the membership in the Canadian labor movement has not suffered as steep a decline, a similar trend is apparent there. As in organized workplaces, the growth of employment ADR in the nonunion sector is one consequence of employers' attempts to avoid the high costs and long delays of the judicial and administrative routes. Of course, some nonunion employers are also motivated by a desire to provide their employees with fair and equitable dispute resolution procedures (Bingham and Chachere, 1999, pp. 95–135).


As part of the seminar Re-reading Petrarch in the Digital Age –taught at the University of Oregon in Winter 2014– a digital close reading of Francesco Petrarca's Rerum Vulgarium Fragmenta (Rvf) led to a series of parallel and entwined activities and projects. Deeply integrated with the Oregon Petrarch Open Book Project (OPOB), the course was oriented towards the encoding of Petrarca's masterpiece based on the implementation of a network of different themes (Poet, Laura, Metaphysics Nature Metamorphoses and Urban Culture). The various occurrences and data obtained from the encoding were collected into an online database that is still operating and updatable. The results of this qualitative data collection were also compared with a quantitative computer-based research of selected keywords extracted from the various themes. From the beginning of the seminar, the class was divided into groups and each of them read the Rvf focusing on one of themes chosen while at the same time paying attention to the others. The different groups considered these themes as interrelated and interdependent. The poet is the sphere in which all the topics emerge in their specific connotations. However, his sphere is related to, dependent on and intersected with the other four spheres. The encoding allowed measuring the different manifestations, levels and meanings of the intersecting relationships. The study of the visual interpretation of the Rvf in the Inc. Queriniano G V 15 paralleled the close reading and encoding activity and helped students to develop a visual rendering of their themes and a pointed and original and creative interpretation of Petrarca's masterpiece.


Long video content understanding poses a challenging set of research questions as it involves long-distance, cross-media reasoning and knowledge awareness. In this paper, we present a new benchmark for this problem domain, targeting the task of deep movie/TV question answering (QA) beyond previous work's focus on simple plot summary and short video moment settings. We define several baselines based on direct retrieval of relevant context for long-distance movie QA. Observing that real-world QAs may require higher-order multi-hop inferences, we further propose a novel framework, called the DeepMaven, which extracts events, entities, and relations from the rich multimedia content in long videos to pre-construct movie knowledge graphs (movieKGs), and at the time of QA inference, complements general semantics with structured knowledge for more effective information retrieval and knowledge reasoning. We also introduce our recently collected DeepMovieQA dataset, including 1,000 long-form QA pairs from 41 hours of videos, to serve as a new and useful resource for future work. Empirical results show the DeepMaven performs competitively for both the new DeepMovieQA and the pre-existing MovieQA dataset.


ABSTRACT In Turkey, about 4000 people each year die in traffic accidents and about 200,000 people each year are injured. For this reason, this problem of road traffic in Turkey is found a solution to an urgent.  In this study, in ensuring of  security of road traffic has been intended to introduce of the importance of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Antalya Province where is one of Turkey's major metropolises have the problem of heavy traffic. In this study has been made general statistical analysis in a GIS environment of road traffic accidents occurred in 2009 and 2010 years in Antalya Province Center. Also, traffic accidents has been analyzed by correlating environmental factors with parameters situated in a traffic accident data set. In the beginning of this study, by using ArcMap-10 software, the satellite map of Antalya Province has been digitized. A database has been created with Arcmap-10 software using fatal-injury traffic accident datas occurred in Antalya City Center between 2009 and 2010 years. Fatal-injury traffic accidents on "Intersection" and "boulevard-highroad-street" have seperated of each other and by using accident datas ( accident day, time interval of accident, occurrence type of accident, accident character, the number of dead, the number of injured ) belonging to accidents occurring in each one, on a satellite map in the ArcMap-10 software of accidents were conducted the statistical evaluations in both visual and graphics. In GIS, the regions where have intensive of intersection accidents have been determined. As a result, at the intersections in Antalya Province Center, it was identified 41 accident hot spots for the year 2009, and was identified 57 accident hot spots for the year 2010. A total of 23 intersections were defined as accident hot spot in both years. Also, on boulevards-highroads-streets on the satellite map in Arc-Map-10 software has been determined 29 accident-prone regions as the years.


In this chapter, I examine aspects of democracy in its various settings of everyday politics and at the extraordinary time of elections. The state of West Bengal, where this study is set, consistently produces some of the highest voter turnouts in India, despite high levels of illiteracy and poverty. The average turnout is 80 percent, compared with the national average of just 60 percent, and West Bengal also has the highest per capita attendance at political rallies in India.Democracy here is a well-grounded phenomenon in which political participation and engagement are widespread. Further, the government in this eastern state is led by the Left Front (LF), a coalition of communist and socialist parties that has governed since 1977. This is a unique case of electoral success in the sixtyone- year history of Indian democracy (or, in fact, in any other). No other elected government or political party has remained continuously in power for so long in a free and fair electoral setting


Six-minute walk testing (6MWT) and cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPX) are used to evaluate impairment in emphysema. However, the extent of impairment in these tests as well as the correlation of these tests with each other and lung function in advanced emphysema is not well characterized. During screening for the National Emphysema Treatment Trial, maximum ergometer CPX and 6MWT were performed in 1,218 individuals with severe COPD with an average FEV1 of 26.9 ± 7.1 % predicted. Predicted values for 6MWT and CPX were calculated from reference equations. Correlation coefficients and multivariable regression models were used to determine the association between lung function, quality of life (QOL) scores, and exercise measures. The two forms of exercise testing were correlated with each other (r = 0.57, p < 0.0001). However, the impairment of performance on CPX was greater than on the 6MWT (27.6 ± 16.8 vs. 67.9 ± 18.9 % predicted). Both exercise tests had similar correlation with measures of QOL, but maximum exercise capacity was better correlated with lung function measures than 6-minute walk distance. After adjustment, 6MWD had a slightly greater association with total SGRQ score than maximal exercise (effect size 0.37 ± 0.04 vs. 0.25 ± 0.03 %predicted/unit). Despite advanced emphysema, patients are able to maintain 6MWD to a greater degree than maximum exercise capacity. Moreover, the 6MWT may be a better test of functional capacity given its greater association with QOL measures whereas CPX is a better test of physiologic impairment.


Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) was transformed with a pHCD1 plasmid harboring the human β-defensin-1 ( hBD1 ) gene fused in frame behind a disulfide bond isomerase (DsbC), a His-tag, and an enterokinase cleavage site. After induction, the DsbC-hBD1 was expressed as a ~36 kDa soluble fusion protein in recombinant E. coli, which also inhibited host cell growth. After cell disruption, the soluble protein was easily recovered by Ni 2+ affinity chromatography and cleaved by enterokinase to yield a mature hBD1 of about 4 kDa. Importantly, the mature hBD1 showed broad antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive and -negative pathogenic bacteria, including Streptococcus pneumoniae , E. coli O157:H7, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Key words : Antimicrobial activity, Escherichia coli , human β-defensin-1, soluble expression.


The focus of this volume is on reflective practice. It presents a literature review relating to reflective practice and its development and an account of a research and development initiative aimed at promoting the development of reflective practice in Children"s Centres. The Introductory Chapter provides an overview of the structure and contents of the volume as well as an explanation of the context in which the research study was completed and an account of the influence of a social constructivist perspective and empowerment research on the position of the researcher and the focus of the study. It also provides details regarding the completed and proposed dissemination of findings for a variety of audiences. Chapter 2 provides a review of the literature in relation to five broad questions but with a particular focus on the role of the Educational Psychologist in supporting organisational development through developing reflective practice. Literature regarding reflective practice is reviewed and used to inform the development of the focus for the research study which is presented in Chapter 3. The study involved the design, implementation and evaluation of an intervention aimed at supporting the reflective practice of practitioners in two Children"s Centres. Realistic Evaluation principles were used to inform the design of the evaluation which measured the impact of the intervention through gathering the practitioners" perspectives. Implications for the role of Educational Psychologists in supporting reflective practice are also highlighted and discussed within Chapter 4.


Spatial data can be represented at different scales, and this leads to the issue of multi-scale spatial representation. Multi-scale spatial representation has been widely applied to online mapping products (e.g., Google Maps and Yahoo Maps). However, in most current products, multi-scale representation can only be achieved through a series of maps at fixed scales, resulting in a discontinuity (i.e., with jumps) in the transformation between scales and a mismatch between the available scales and users' desired scales. Therefore, it is very desirable to achieve smoothly continuous multi-scale spatial representations. This article describes an integrated approach to build a hierarchical structure of a road network for continuous multi-scale representation purposes, especially continuous selective omission of roads in a network. In this hierarchical structure, the linear and areal hierarchies are constructed, respectively, using two existing approaches for the linear and areal patterns in a road network. Continuous multi-scale representation of a road network can be achieved by searching in these hierarchies. This approach is validated by applying it to two study areas, and the results are evaluated by both quantitative analysis with two measures (i.e., similarity and average connectivity) and visual inspection. Experimental results show that this integrated approach performs better than existing approaches, especially in terms of preservation of connectivity and patterns of a road network. With this approach, efficient and continuous multi-scale selective omission of road networks becomes feasible.


The construct of belonging has been studied in many marginalised student groups yet has been understudied among students with intellectual disability. The present study used a large dataset from the United States to quantitatively investigate the construct of belonging among 7th to 12th grade students with the educational classification of "intellectual disability" (n = 670) who responded to a set of questions related to belonging in a nationally representative survey. The purpose of the study was twofold: (1) to identify the latent factors of belonging among students with intellectual disability to create a preliminary model and (2) use the preliminary model to compare belonging among students with intellectual disability with different demographic factors (e.g., race, sex, English proficiency). Exploratory factor analysis revealed a four-factor model of belonging and confirmatory factor analysis suggested the model was a good fit for the data, χ2 = 622.81, p < .001, RMSEA = .049, CFI = 0.879, TLI = 0.868. The study has implications for future avenues of research, including measurement development, exploring the developmental pathway of belonging, and the consequences of not belonging.


Surface enhanced Raman spectra of pyridine (Py) at Pt electrodes have been investigated as a function of potential and supporting electrolyte. The results show a large difference from those reported for coinage metal electrodes of Ag, Au and Cu, emphasising the effective involvement of chemical enhancement on Pt surfaces. At very negative (or positive) potentials, Raman spectra show the competitive coadsorption of hydrogen (oroxygen-containing species) with Py, and in acidic solutions, PyH+ ions prefer to dissociate into Py adsorbed on Pt surfaces even in the presence of chloride ions. The differences in the surface bonding strength for Py on Pt and coinage metal electrodes are explained in terms of the different electronic configurations of the metals.


Discusses the results of content analysis of the Web sites of Fortune 100 companies, carried out to identify the mix of promotional activities on their Web sites. Specifically, we performed a content analysis of Web sites utilizing categories representing a range of marketing communications, including: communicating product, pricing and dealer/retail location information, related and unrelated advertisements, sales promotion, direct marketing, basic company information and public relations. We also identified differences between and among industries based on standard industrial classification (SIC) codes. We found considerable variability in how members of the Fortune 100 used their Web sites. The Web sites ranged from very simple ones that focused on basic company information, such as company history, to quite complex Web sites that incorporated a mix of promotional elements, such as press releases, advertisements, games, free gifts and pricing information.


Magnetosphere is a region of space surrounding Earth magnetic field, the formation of magnetosphere depends on many parameters such as; surface magnetic field of the planet, an ionized plasma stream (solar wind) and the ionization of the planetary upper atmosphere (ionosphere). The main objective of this research is to find the behavior of Earth's magnetosphere radius (Rmp) with respect to the effect of solar wind kinetic energy density (Usw), Earth surface magnetic field (Bo), and the electron density (Ne) of Earth's ionosphere for three years 2016, 2017 and 2018. Also the study provides the effect of solar activity for the same period during strong geomagnetic storms on the behavior of Rmp. From results we found that there are nonlinear relations between the (Rmp) and the three variables (Usw), (Bo) and (Ne). Also we found that during the strong geomagnetic storms there is a reduction in the radius of magnetosphere.


A method for deriving time-series of attenuation on fixed satellite or terrestrial links is described. The method uses meteorological forecast data and radar data and hence permits time coincident derivations for multiple sites that include the spatial correlation properties inherent in weather systems. The success of the technique depends upon insertion of the short interval temporal properties (varying typically over 1 second to 15 minutes) that are statistically independent between stations. The methodology is described, examples of time-series derived at multiple-sites for satellite-earth links are given and comparisons with measured time-series are included. More data are required to enable long-term comparisons of cumulative statistics to be made that should lead to an improved quantitative calibration of the system, but an example of a simulated power spectrum is included that illustrates a strong similarity to measured a data. The technique has immediate application to simulation of the performance of multimedia satellite (or high-altitude platform) to earth links and has longer-term significance in terms of realtime operational use.


Sign restrictions on impulse response functions are used in the literature to identify structural vector autoregressions and structural factor models. I extend the rank condition used for exclusion restrictions and provide a necessary and sufficient conditions for point identification for sign restrictions in this class of models. The necessary condition for point identification implies that as the number of sign restrictions grows a subset with sufficient number of sign restrictions becomes binding in the limit. However, one does not need to possess information about this subset to achieve point identification. So when exclusion restrictions are not justified by theory, sign restrictions can provide an alternative way to get point-identified impulse response functions. Also further, I present a closed form representation of the set of all impulse response functions satisfying a set of sign restrictions. I demonstrate that restrictions on responses to all shocks can dramatically shrink this set when compared to restrictions only on a small number of shocks.


The aim of control the economic, social and environmental aspects connected to the construction of a building imposes a systematic approach for which it is necessary to make test models aimed to a coordinate analysis of different and independent performance issues. BIM technology, referring to interoperable informative models, offers a significant operative basis to achieve this necessity. In most of the cases, informative models concentrate on a product-based digital models collection built in a virtual space, more than on the simulation of their relational behaviors. This relation, instead, is the most important aspect of modelling because it marks and characterizes the interactions that can define the building as a system. This study presents the use of standard classification systems as tools for both the activation and validation of an integrated performance-based building process. By referring categories and types of the informative model to the codes of a technological and performance-based classification system, it is possible to link and coordinate functional units and their elements with the indications required by the AEC standards. In this way, progressing with an incremental logic, it is possible to achieve the management of the requirements of the whole building and the monitoring of the fulfilment of design objectives and specific normative guidelines. The informative model, indeed, offers through the whole building process, the possibility to list the expected performance requirements defined at the design level for the singles technical elements. Once filled in those values and given the model interoperability to analysis platforms, we can gather the results and publish them by using computational design algorithm in parameters of functional units with the aim to monitor the relation with the expressed specifications. In that way, the model assumes the role of decisional basis for the building process because it allows to gather the technical specifications of simple components and functional units and in the same time compare them to the performance requirements of building products and to all the system composing the building, both active or passive. This research is proposed as a hypothesis for the extension of the project informative content, with the aim to support the decision-making skills related to information management to ensure the success on projects. The work has been developed during a research program in partnership between University of Padova and F&M Ingegneria S.p.A., an Italian company operating on engineering and architecture. In the first phase of work the study focused on the literature analysis dealing with development and spread of standard classification codes, with more attention on OmniClass and its implementation in BIM platforms. In the second stage, it concentrated on the implementation of the standard classification system and the performance specifications on the BIM platforms used for project design and management. The result has been achieved through the use of Computational design and data integration solutions, developed with the help of visual programming language (VPL). The same solutions have been used to fill in the performances of the whole system that has been simulated with FEA software and to validate the choices in relation to the proposed aims and to the normative prescriptions by comparing requirements and performances. The project has made possible to activate a real integrate performance-based design process thanks to the realization of the map previously mentioned and to the fact that BIM technology can define the relationship between technical elements and determined spaces and, at the same time, to monitor functions and requirements on that space.


In recent years, peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing systems have evolved to accommodate growing numbers of participating peers. In particular, new features have changed the properties of the unstructured overlay topologies formed by these peers. Little is known about the characteristics of these topologies and their dynamics in modern file-sharing applications, despite their importance. This paper presents a detailed characterization of P2P overlay topologies and their dynamics, focusing on the modern Gnutella network. We present Cruiser, a fast and accurate P2P crawler, which can capture a complete snapshot of the Gnutella network of more than one million peers in just a few minutes, and show how inaccuracy in snapshots can lead to erroneous conclusions-such as a power-law degree distribution. Leveraging recent overlay snapshots captured with Cruiser, we characterize the graph-related properties of individual overlay snapshots and overlay dynamics across slices of back-to-back snapshots. Our results reveal that while the Gnutella network has dramatically grown and changed in many ways, it still exhibits the clustering and short path lengths of a small world network. Furthermore, its overlay topology is highly resilient to random peer departure and even systematic attacks. More interestingly, overlay dynamics lead to an ldquoonion-likerdquo biased connectivity among peers where each peer is more likely connected to peers with higher uptime. Therefore, long-lived peers form a stable core that ensures reachability among peers despite overlay dynamics.


Author(s): Jennings, Colleen | Advisor(s): Parker, Jennifer | Abstract: Virtual Apparitions explores the transfer of identity through networks by examining the physical manifestation of virtual bodies using platforms that support congenial, friendly, romantic, or intimate relationships over long distances. Virtual bodies, including avatars, social media profiles, or video platforms, do not relay intimacy or subtle social cues; however, as technology advances, the gaps between the corporeal and virtual continue to diminish. The work visualizes the extended social network as a physical presence through the use of video, sound, and sculpture. In the cacophony of voices, presence is indeterminable, focus is scattered, and the network pulses with artificial liveliness.


The article reflects some analyzes of the environmental legislation of the Republic of Moldova, of some ordinances and governmental decisions in relation to the state of the environmental factors in the river basins. The study is conducted in the context of the first stage of research within the institutional project "Spatial-time changes and trends of the environmental components of the Bâc river basin under the anthropic impact". The purpose of the research exposed in this material is to highlight the requirements of the legislative documents and the extent to which they correspond to economic and environmental activities in the Bâc river basin.


Article presents formal way of describing characteristics of transportation networks and distributional centres. An approach to forming structure of regional distribution systems basing on determining necessary number and types of distributional centres for given transportation tasks is presented. In order to solve the problem the optimization task adequate to considered situation was built and computed with usage of LINGO9.0.


The validity of a new technique was examined for estimating the protein-synthetic activity of various tissues in vivo. The basic assumption underlying the method is that the number of peptide chains growing on each active ribosome would increase as the protein-synthetic activity of each tissue increases. The principle of the procedure, which was devised originally by Wool & Kurihara [(1967) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 58, 2401-2407] to determine in vitro the number of functional ribosomes in skeletal muscle, is as follows. Puromycin is known to bind easily to the C-terminal end of the growing peptide on ribosomes and thus stop further chain elongation. Hence, if the number of puromycin molecules attached to the nascent peptide is determined by using radioactive puromycin as a tracer, one can estimate the number of growing peptides, i.e. the activity of tissue protein synthesis. By using this technique, it is shown that both starvation and the feeding of a protein-free diet caused marked decreases in the relative rate of formation of peptidyl-puromycin, i.e. activity of protein synthesis in liver, skeletal muscle, heart, spleen, testis, lung, kidney and intestine.


Background : Issues about job stress is more popular in the world currently. Not just for Japan, Korea and Taiwan, but also an important issue in EU countries, especially the UK and Finland Increase of awareness about job stress effects on work performance, productivity and mental health is as one reason of the phenomenon. Objective : The present study aimed to explore the issue of job stress in Japan for the reference of good practices to Indonesia. Methods : This study, based on observational studies in the period of September-December in year 2010 in Tokyo, Kawasaki and Kitakyushu Japan. Observations on Japanese Company and discussions with experts, such as: occupational physician of Riken Company, experts from:  Tokyo University and Tokyo University's occupational physician, Department of ergonomics, the Institute of Industrial Ecological Sciences UOEH (University of Occupational and Environmental Health), Institute for Science of Labor, and researcher of Japan NIOSH. Two stress management training and occupational mental health' application program were observed in the period of October-December. Result : The trend of current occupational mental health research in Japan has being moved from job stress to more advanced issues of work engagement and work-life balance. There are three approaches to prevention of job stress. Considering the three approach could improve of worker productivity and well-being. The training for Tokyo University's staffs was as one session of individual-oriented stress prevention approach. It was conducted in very interactive class lecture. During 2 hours session, the participants learned some knowledge about job stress and its risk factors, exercised to construct better cognitive for stress prevention and productivity, practiced of progressive muscle relaxation technique, group work, did some home works and filled an evaluation sheet after the session was finish. We also observed the occupational mental health program at Riken Company that was covered of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of occupational mental health program of workers mostly on job stress issue. Conclusion : It was concluded that although many efforts has made to anticipate the problem of job stress in Japan, it is still need further studies to find the most appropriate instruments for the indicator of job stress and methods of intervention which are most effective for employees and company, as well as general improvement for well-being of workers and their family as they are a part of community.


India is the second largest consumer of gold in the world and gold is a major contributor to the current account deficit. Much of the gold goes out of circulation and is not available to support economic activity. To encourage consumers to bring the gold back into circulation, the government of India instituted the Gold Monetization Policy in 2015. This research views the Gold Monetization Policy in India through the lens of consumer associations with gold, as well as the banker and refiner perspectives on implementation challenges. The success of this policy is important for the country to better manage its current account balance, in a milieu where gold consumption holds sociocultural importance. The research uses an empirical approach to analyse how various stakeholders have approached the policy, and provides suggestions to increase uptake of the policy. It employs a mixed method approach to understand the motivations and barriers faced by various stakeholders in the gold ecosystem. First, a nationwide survey-based study of 1171 households, across 10 states that constitute approximately three-quarters of annual national gold consumption, was conducted to understand the consumer associations with and attributions related to gold. This shows that family functions and festivals to be triggers for gold purchase, indicating ingrained the habit and planned accumulation. There is also high liquidity and safety association of gold (which is also not considered as having any substitute) along with a clear reluctance to sell gold received as a gift. Rural consumers are more reluctant to part with gold as compared to urban but are also ready to pledge gold as collateral suggesting requirement related liquidity use of gold. Second, an interview based study was conducted with senior management of 6 banks, 5 refiners and one industry consultant to understand the challenges and implications of the policy for members of the gold ecosystem. Discussions with these stakeholders clarified that banks would promote products based on this policy if they had more control on the process and if there was clear separation of risks or effective mitigation of risks relating to the operationalization of the policy. Finally, an econometric analysis of gold consumption and its potential determinants was conducted using household data from all 640 districts of the National Sample Survey for 2011-12. The analysis shows that propensity to consume gold is positively correlated with proportion of females in the household and with number of daughters in the household. Also, ceteris paribus, rural households have a higher propensity to consume gold, and Hindu households have a higher propensity to consume gold. Clearly, increasing the effectiveness of the Gold Monetization Policy depends on a deeper understanding of consumers' interactions with and sentiments towards gold. The effectiveness of the policy also depends on recognizing the challenges faced and incentives required by banks, refiners and other stakeholders in implementing this policy. This research is an attempt at developing such an understanding.


In 1961, several mass organizations in Cuba collaborated as Fidel Castro launched a national campaign against prostitution. By 1965, only four years later, the Revolution proclaimed "the elimination of prostitution" in Cuba. This article examines the Cuban Revolution's national campaign to end prostitution as a case study to investigate how gender and patriarchy affect the ways social change is operationalized. Interested in the relationship between social and cultural change, following the tradition of feminist historians, this article utilizes the oral histories of two Cuban federada women involved in the State's campaign to consider how the Revolution's macro program was implemented and carried out at micro level. The narratives of these local agents in the everyday spaces of the campaign provide a bottom-up lens which can be juxtaposed with the Revolution's proclaimed "success." These testimonios detail how gender and patriarchy played out on the ground, limiting the campaign's efforts toward social change, therefore demonstrating the tensions and contradictions of how social change is exercised within human agency and constraint.


The complete text of the historic complaint by a coalition of some 25 local, state and national women's environmental and other civil society organizations to the California Attorney General to revoke the corporate charter of Union Oil Company of California (UNOCAL). The foreword by Ronnie Dugger, Chair of the Alliance for Democracy, and introduction by author Robert W. Benson, Professor of Law at the Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, seek to place charter revocation in the broader context of the struggle for democratic control of giant corporations. The introduction also provides concrete suggestions on challenging corporate rule in other states. A practical guide to citizen action against corporations, and must reading for all who cherish the democratic ideals on which this country was founded and who are prepared to join the struggle for their realization.


The Lechmine n'Aït el Haj maar (LNH) is a mixed phreatomagmatic-strombolian vent located in the Causse of the Middle Atlas. The application of tephrostratigraphic, and geophysical studies to the volcaniclastic deposits allowed interpreting the volcanic dynamics of this volcano set up during the Quaternary. Pyroclastic deposits allow us to understand the chronology of the eruptions. These are organized in four eruptive phases. The basal sequences are phreatomagmatic, followed by a strombolian unit. The last activity of LNH is phreatomagmatic. The structural analysis revealed a localized distension signed by fracture geometry, the mixed nature of the volcanism, tectonic markers, and the mechanisms of syn-eruptive tectonics. This subsidence, controlled by the NW-SE to WNW-ESE directions tends towards a strike-slip regime fault NE–SW during the phreatomagmatic-strombolian transition. The latter is favored by the position of the LNH volcano on the path of faults of cryptokarstic origin. The LNH maar is one of numerous well preserved monogenic volcanoes of the Causse of the Middle Atlas. The appropriation of this geoheritage is very important for tourism and territorial development of the region.


A 46-year-old man complained of recurrent episodes of giddiness which was not associated with chest pain or breathlessness. There was no family history of sudden death. Clinical examination was unremarkable. 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) showed ST segment elevation in the right precordial leads, with coved ST segment elevation at its J point followed by a negative T wave with no isoelectric separation, specifically in V 2 . These ECG features are characteristic of the Brugada syndrome. He underwent a flecanide challenge which produced further elevation of ST segment at its J point and spontaneous ventricular ectopy. Electrophysiological studies induced ventricular fibrillation with 3 extra stimuli. An implantable cardioverter-defibrillator was implanted for prevention of sudden cardiac death. The Brugada syndrome is discussed.


In this paper, we provide an analysis of the information propagation speed in bidirectional vehicular delay tolerant networks on highways. We show that a phase transition occurs concerning the information propagation speed, with respect to the vehicle densities in each direction of the highway. We prove that under a certain threshold, information propagates on average at vehicle speed, while above this threshold, information propagates dramatically faster at a speed that increase exponentially when vehicle density increases. We provide the exact expressions of the threshold and of the average propagation speed near the threshold. We show that under the threshold, the information propagates on a distance which is bounded by a sub-linear power law with respect to the elapsed time, in the referential of the moving cars. On the other hand, we show that information propagation speed grows quasi-exponentially with respect to vehicle densities in each direction of the highway, when the densities become large, above the threshold. We confirm our analytical results using simulations carried out in several environments.


Retraction: The following article from the journal PROTEOMICS, 'Mitochondria, the missing link between body and soul: Proteomic perspective evidence' by Mohamad Warda and Jin Han, published online on 23 January 2008 in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com), has been retracted by agreement between the authors, the journal Editor‐in‐Chief, Michael J. Dunn and the publisher Wiley‐VCH. The retraction has been agreed due a substantial overlap of the content of this article with previously published articles in other journals.


Determining risk contributions of unit exposures to portfolio-wide economic capital is an important task in financial risk management. Computing risk contributions involves difficulties caused by rare-event simulations. In this study, we address the problem of estimating risk contributions when the total risk is measured by value-at-risk (VaR). Our proposed estimator of VaR contributions is based on the Metropolis-Hasting (MH) algorithm, which is one of the most prevalent Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods. Unlike existing estimators, our MH-based estimator consists of samples from the conditional loss distribution given a rare event of interest. This feature enhances sample efficiency compared with the crude Monte Carlo method. Moreover, our method has consistency and asymptotic normality, and is widely applicable to various risk models having a joint loss density. Our numerical experiments based on simulation and real-world data demonstrate that in various risk models, even those having high-dimensional (≈500) inhomogeneous margins, our MH estimator has smaller bias and mean squared error when compared with existing estimators.


Primary pulmonary osteosarcoma is a rare entity, with only a few cases reported in the literature to date. Moreover, secondary extraskeletal osteosarcoma of the lung following chemoradiotherapy is extremely rare and, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case. We herein present the case of an 80-year-old male patient with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), who developed what it was initially considered as recurrence of the tumor after chemoradiotherapy. The patient eventually succumbed to the disease, and on autopsy it was discovered that the lung tumor was not in fact SCLC, but rather a secondary osteosarcoma. Osteosarcoma metastasis to the lung is very rare, but must be considered in the differential diagnosis when there is relapse following treatment for primary SCLC.


The objective of this prospective study was to determine if differences exist between individuals who require an inpatient rehabilitation program after elective hip and knee arthroplasty from those patients who can be discharged directly home. Multiple variables consisting of baseline demographics, social status, insurance status, medical history, pain level, quantitative strength, range of motion, and functional ability were examined. The primary outcome measure was the discharge destination from the orthopedic service and consisted of either a discharge to home or a discharge to an inpatient rehabilitation unit. Of the 162 patients followed, 65 (40%) were discharged to an inpatient rehabilitation unit, whereas 97 were discharged to home. The patients discharged to inpatient rehabilitation tended to live alone, were significantly older (mean difference = 6.3 yr), and had increased comorbid conditions (P < 0.001 for all variables). Patients discharged to a rehabilitation unit reported significantly greater pain levels than those discharged to home (P < 0.001). The attainment of a supervision level of function demonstrated greater differences between groups than the attainment of independent function for all functional measures. A logistic regression model was developed that predicted 76% of the discharges to rehabilitation by the third physical therapy session postsurgery. In conclusion, predictive markers do exist that differentiate individuals who require further inpatient therapy services after joint replacement surgery.