This study aimed at identifying, according to the perception of nurses working in the Family Health Program, the difficult and the easy aspects of their daily routine. This is a descriptive study with a qualitative approach. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 23 nurses. Data were submitted to thematic analysis. Results showed that nurses perceive team work as a practice for integration and cooperation among professionals. However, there are many factors that interfere in the team's actions, and therefore, interfere in their development and results.


Recent analysis suggests that the incidence of acute renal failure is on the rise(1). This is perhaps not surprising given the aging population and the complicated illness we treat. Moreover, recent data also suggests that acute renal failure may heighten the mortality of critical ill patients (2). The latter finding is strengthened by the experimental evidence showing that acute renal injury may even contributes to distant organ injury(3). Acute renal injury, particularly in the critical care setting, is also accompanied by prominent acute inflammatory reactions, supporting the argument that injury associated with acute renal injury may contribute to systemic inflammation and patient mortality(4). Currently, there are few effective treatments to prevent or mitigate acute renal failure. In this regard, the new finding that fenoldopam may mitigate mild form of acute renal failure of great interest (5). Fenoldopam, unlike other dopaminergic agents, is a selective D1 receptor agonist that continues to have vasodilatory properties even at higher doses. Thus, unlike dopamine, fenoldopam does not cause vasoconstriction, and this renal vasodilatory pharmacology of fenoldopam makes it an attractive candidate for its use in the early stages of acute renal injury and oliguria (6). The resulting renal vasodilatation, and increase in renal blood flow and urine output may abort or mitigate the incipient renal failure. Consistent with this consideration is the experimental studies indicating the salutary role of fenoldopam in models of acute renal injury(7). Unlike animal studies however, an earlier randomized control study in patients with moderately severe acute renal failure did not demonstrate any significant lessening of renal failure or patient mortality(8). In contrast, however, a recent randomized controlled trial that employed fenoldopam in a prophylactic manner demonstrated a significant reduction in the rate of occurrence of acute renal failure(5). In this study, administration of a low dose fenoldopam to septic patients with serum creatinine of less than 1.70 mg/dL was associated with a significant reduction in the rate of rise of serum creatinine compared to saline infused control patients (29 patients in fenoldopam group vs. 51 patients in saline group; p = 0.006). But the frequency of severe acute renal failure or patient mortality did not differ between the groups(5). While the latter finding may be disappointing, it should not be surprising as any underlying injury mechanisms, if severe enough and sustained, will likely cause severe injury and functional failure. Likewise, if the disease process is severe enough and again sustained, it will continue to contribute the patient mortality. The finding that fenoldopam if administered early enough may mitigate renal injury has clinical implications. The benefits may arise from salutary renal homodynamic effect and possibly from the less clinically recognized (and yet to be proven) beneficial effect of hemoxygenase-1 (HO-1) induction, i.e., the "HO-1 preconditioning effect". Several experimental studies have indicated that dopaminergic compounds, including fenoldopam, have the capacity to induce HO-1(9,10). HO-1 is a well characterized 32 kD microsomal protein whose primary function is to catabolize heme. Breakdown of heme leads to generation of iron, carbon monoxide, and bilirubin. Iron release through ferritin induction and carbon monoxide through nitric oxide generation via cyclic GMP may protect against issue injury(11). Thus, the renal protection noted in the Italian study (5) could have been due to the fenoldopam-mediated homodynamic as well as HO-1 induction effects. "Fenoldopam Prophylaxis" Works in Impending Acute Renal Failure: Recruiting the non-hemodynamic properties of fenoldopam? 2 of 3 In this issue of the journal Aravindan et al. demonstrate that fenoldopam suppresses the activation of nuclear factor B and downregulates the expression of a series of proinflammatory cytokines(12). This finding if confirmed raises the possibility that fenoldopam's protection in acute renal failure may even involve an anti-inflammatory mechanism. Thus, there are multiple theoretical reasons why "fenoldopam prophylaxis" may prove to be effective therapy in impending renal failure. Further studies of "fenoldopam prophylaxis" may be warranted in patients with high risk for acute renal failure.


A method using steady-state transforms is described which indicates how the sum function of a Fourier series may be obtained. The method can be applied to problems arising from circuits containing concentrated circuit parameters, but is not quite so useful for those having distributed parameters. Tables of Fourier series and their sum functions are presented, and several examples of the application of the method in circuit problems are given in this paper.


Background: Food iron fortification can be a good strategy to prevent iron deficiency. Iron bioavailability from cocoa powder enriched with ferric pyrophosphate encapsulated in liposomes or ferrous fumarate was assessed in rats. Methods: Three groups of rats consumed during 28 days either a control diet or two diets prepared with ferric pyrophosphate- or ferrous fumarate-enriched cocoa powder as the unique source of iron. Body weight and food intake were monitored and last-week feces were collected. On day 28, animals were sacrificed and livers and spleens were removed. Hemoglobin and total iron binding capacity (TIBC) were determined. Results: There were no significant differences in body weight and food intake. Apparent iron absorption and % absorption/intake were significantly lower in rats consuming enriched cocoa compared to the control group, without significant differences due to the iron form. Enriched cocoa groups showed significantly lower spleen iron content and concentration than the control. Liver iron was lower in the ferric pyrophosphate group compared to the other two groups. Hemoglobin and TIBC values showed a deficient iron status in ferric pyrophosphate rats. Conclusion: Cocoa powder is a good vehicle for iron fortification when enriched with ferrous fumarate compared to ferric pyrophosphate encapsulated in liposomes.


This paper investigates how environmental and socio-economic beliefs affect consumers attitude towards sustainable wine, and the main drivers during wine purchase. Data were collected with online questionnaire in 2013 from 513 Italian wine drinkers. The results of a structural equation model show that attitude towards sustainable wine is driven by both environmental and quality beliefs of sustainable wine, while is not affected by the economic dimension. Attitudes and quality beliefs affect consumer's importance of sustainable aspects during wine purchase. This paper suggests that communication strategies should focus on sustainable issues to meet the need of environmentally-conscious consumers.


Background: Neonatal gastric perforation is an uncommon surgical emergency. It is often associated with high mortality and morbidity in the past. Methods: We present a case of a full term neonate with an uncommon cause of gastric perforation. A full term baby girl with a body weight of 2.9 kg presented with pneumo-peritoneum on abdominal X-ray on day two of life. Emergency laparotomy revealed gastric fundal perforation, primary gastric repair and drainage gastrostomy were done. Results: The baby's post operative recovery was complicated with prolonged feeding intolerance with non-bilious vomiting. Repeated contrast gastrograms and follow-through revealed satisfactory contrast passage into duodenum and small bowel. Failing to respond to conservative management for gastro-oesophageal reflux disease and gastric dysmotility, a second exploratory laparotomy was performed. A pre-ampullary fenestrated duodenal web causing incomplete duodenal obstruction was found. A side to side duodeno-duodenostomy was done and the baby finally tolerated normal feeding postoperatively before discharge. Discussion: We discuss the different etiologies for neonatal gastric perforation with review of literature, and also the diagnostic difficulties in infants with incomplete duodenal obstruction due to pre-ampullary fenestrated duodenal web.


This project is the idea of producing compost in Koya University campus is the first step in producing compost in another place in the Koya city. The aim of this study is to prepare Koya University's staff to produce, either collectively or personally, their needs of compost for Koya University garden or for their personal home garden in the university campus. The principle of compost production is the same all over the word but the place, raw material, container, size, weather, duration, work division and participating in the production will change. 50% of home waste is organic coming from kitchens and gardens, and at least 30% of home waste can be used in compost production. The elements that are used in production of compost are carbon, nitrogen that comes from organic substance, humidity and temperatures from outside and organic material in addition to these, of course, microorganisms do the work of decomposing organic material. Koya has a dry hot summer and cold winter, for those composting need different treatments in summer and in winter. The conclusion of this is that production of compost is a strategy of different cities in the world for preserving the environment. In Koya, the university and their staff considered as the elite of this city, the planning of the future of this city depends on them. Composting can be one of these projects that Koya city able to be developed; either by Koya municipality or by Koya inhabitants.


ABSTRACT As a theory on violent democracies, the theory of violent pluralism is silent on the gendered realities of this violence as it plays out in Latin America. To bridge that knowledge gap, this article begins to develop a theory of the 'gender of violent pluralism'. The article builds on socio-legal research on displaced women's political organising in a violent context in Colombia (2010–2014) while also drawing on empirical examples of violence against women activists from Brazil, Central America and Mexico in the same period. The article proposes to unpack this concept as a three-pronged relationship between political organising and gendered violence: political organising as a response to gendered violence, gendered violence as an obstacle to organising and finally, political organising as a cause of further gender-based violence. Ultimately, the article is also an attempt to articulate a more general critique of the concept of violent pluralism – its conception of democracy, its possible erasure of the efforts of non-violent actors and how it calibrates the scope and intensity of political violence.


In a response to the effects of sprawl and the growth pressures that face the City of Toronto and the rest of the Province of Ontario, Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) can be implemented as a smart growth tool that can provide a meaningful sustainable alternative to conventional development practices. This research paper explores TOD in all of its capacities, context, design principles and the benefits and barriers that encourage or inhibit its execution. With a lack of effective performance measures in the current literature, this report aims to respond to the question:


Herein, we report that iron(II)/ammonium persulfate in aqueous acetonitrile mediates the Newman-Kwart rearrangement of O-aryl carbamothioates. Electron-rich substrates react rapidly under moderate heating to afford the rearranged products in excellent yields. The mild conditions, rapid reaction rates, and suitability for scale up offer immediate practical benefits to access functionalised thiophenols.


How do Parliamentary committees treat academics? What is like to feel ambushed when you hoped your opinion might make an impact in policy making? Iain McLean, Professor of Politics at Oxford University, offers some insight into the experience of giving evidence as an expert witness to Parliamentary committees, and gives some essential advice for academics who might consider offering their opinions in the future.


The problem
Recent years have shown a rise in the use of Significant Event Analysis (SEA) in cancer care; particularly relating to the events surrounding new cancer diagnoses. Cancer-specific SEA is quoted by multiple studies as a recommendation for improving early diagnosis and patient care pathways. The 2015-2020 national cancer strategy proposes that all General Practices should undertake annual SEAs of new cancer diagnoses. In 2016, the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) launched a cancer SEA toolkit. Despite these developments, the role of SEA for improving and sustaining cancer outcomes remains a subject of debate. This review aims to consolidate existing knowledge on the use of SEA in cancer care.
The approach
Four electronic databases were searched for articles pertaining to significant events in cancer care from January 1990 to July 2019. Relevant studies were also identified through reference lists; citation tracking and a conference index search. Studies have been appraised according to three characteristics: nature of the significant event; methodology applied for exploring the significant event; and evidence of improved patient care. The review is currently ongoing and the completed results will be presented at the meeting.
Findings
Following the removal of duplicates, 1027 records were identified and systematically screened. Preliminary findings suggest the included studies to be clinically and methodologically diverse. Studies most frequently adopted a qualitative design; including thematic analysis of SEA documents and semi-structured interviews with patients and stakeholders. Several large multi-site studies provide descriptive insights into the events surrounding new cancer diagnoses, emergency admissions and referral processes. Selected patient and educational outcomes have also been reported by individual studies based on SEA as an intervention. These include an increase in suspected cancer referrals; improved team-work and self-reported changes in referral practices.
Implications
Learning from significant events in cancer care is a feasible and acceptable method for quality improvement among patients, health professionals and stakeholders. SEA encourages individual practices to successfully implement action plans. Findings from multi-site SEA provide insights into positive and negative aspects of patient care pathways; providing opportunities for collective learning and re-design of local/national cancer protocols. The majority of studies did not demonstrate evidence that SEA alone had resulted in improved patient care or cancer outcomes. Further research is required into the factors affecting system-level change following cancer-specific SEA and the impact on wider indicators for quality of care.


Crime data analysis and the identification of crime 'hotspots' are now commonplace in police forces and local authorities in Britain. Significantly less attention has been paid to the systematic collection and analysis of data on crime prevention. This reflects a preoccupation with the problems (crime, anti-social behaviour) and the context in which they occur (areas with poor natural surveillance, known crime generators) but a lack of attention to the attributes of the response (what is being done where, when and in what dosage). This paper breaks new ground by relating a crime problem, domestic burglary, to a burglary-prevention intervention (Target Hardening) using data for the City of Manchester. The results show a degree of mismatch between allocation of crime prevention and concentrations of burglary. The implications for further research and developments in this area are discussed.


Background: Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) can decrease fear of hypoglycaemia (FOH) and improve glycaemic control among those affected by type 1 diabetes (T1D). No studies to date have examined the impact of using Do-It-Yourself Real-Time Continuous Glucose Monitoring (DIY RT-CGM) on psychological and glycaemic outcomes. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the effect of DIY RT-CGM compared to intermittently scanned CGM (isCGM) on parental FOH. Methods: Child-parent dyads were recruited for this multicentre randomised crossover trial. Children with T1D were aged 2-13 years and were current isCGM users. Families had 6 weeks of using DIY RT-CGM with parental remote monitoring (intervention) and 6 weeks of isCGM plus usual diabetes care (control) in a random order with a four-week washout period. FOH was assessed by the hypoglycaemia fear survey. Standard CGM based glycaemic variables were collected via Tidepool. Parental satisfaction was assessed by the diabetes treatment satisfaction questionnaire (DTSQ). Results: The study included 55 child-parent dyads; child mean age 9.1±2.8 years. There was no evidence of an effect on parental FOH, -0.1 (95% CI: -0.3, 0.1, p-value 0.4). Time-in-range (%3.9-10mmol/L) favoured DIY RT-CGM over isCGM (54.3%±13.7 vs. 48.1%±13.6), adjusted mean difference, 5.7% (95% CI 1.8, 9.6, p-value 0.004). There was no evidence of a difference between DIY RT-CGM and isCGM for time spent in hypoglycaemia. Parents reported higher DTSQ scores following DIY RT-CGM compared to isCGM, adjusted mean difference 5.3 (95% CI: 2.3, 8.2, p-value Conclusion: The use of DIY RT-CGM versus isCGM did not improve parental FOH, however time in range and parental satisfaction with diabetes treatment were significantly improved, suggesting DIY RT-CGM with remote monitoring may offer families clinically important benefits over isCGM in regards to these aspects of T1D management. Disclosure M. Elbalshy: None. B. J. Wheeler: Research Support; Self; Dexcom, Inc., i-SENS, Inc., Medtronic, Ypsomed Group. S. Styles: None. J. J. Haszard: None. B. Galland: None. H. Crocket: None. C. A. Jefferies: None. E. Wiltshire: None. P. Tomlinson: None. M. De bock: None.


Because child abuse victims are often the only available sources of information about their experiences, extensive efforts have been made to understand how to maximize their informativeness. There is now broad international consensus regarding optimal interview practices, and broad awareness that children's informativeness increases when interviewers conduct developmentally appropriate interviews with children. In this paper, we (1) summarize current understanding of how children remember, retrieve, and communicate information and (2) discuss ways in which children's memory and reporting can be fostered using techniques designed to help children recount past experiences such as the Cognitive Interview, the Narrative Elaboration Technique, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development-Protocol. Communicative success clearly depends on how well children understand their role and how effectively interviewers take advantage of children's competencies and abilities to help them maximize their informativeness. Unfortunately, agreement regarding ways in which interviews should be conducted has not been paralleled by changes in the way interviews are actually conducted in the field and more attention thus needs to be paid to training and implementation. Copyright r 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This guide provides resources for students at the University of Saint Mary and was created as a partnership with the students and faculty in Multilingual Societies: Spanish in Contact with other Languages Around the World (SPA 465).


Objective To determine quantitatively if a positive association exists between the mentoring of junior doctors and better training outcomes in postgraduate medical training within the UK. Design Observational study. Participants 117 trainees from the East of England Deanery (non-mentored group) and the recently established Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Mentoring scheme (mentored group) who were core medical trainees (CMTs) between 2015 and 2017 completed an online survey. Trainees who received mentoring at the start of higher specialty training, incomplete responses and trainees who were a part of both the East of England deanery and RCP Mentoring scheme were excluded leaving 85 trainees in the non-mentored arm and 25 trainees in the mentored arm. Responses from a total of 110 trainees were analysed. Main outcome measures Pass rates of the various components of the Membership of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) (UK) examination (MRCP Part 1, MRCP Part 2 Written and MRCP Part 2 PACES), pass rates at the Annual Review of Competency Progression (ARCP), trainee involvement in significant events, clinical incidents or complaints and trainee feedback on career progression and confidence. Results Mentored trainees reported higher pass rates of the MRCP Part 1 exam versus non-mentored trainees (84.0% vs 42.4%, p<0.01). Mentored international medical graduates (IMGs) reported higher pass rates than non-mentored IMGs in the MRCP Part 2 Written exam (71.4% vs 24.0%, p<0.05). ARCP pass rates in mentored trainees were observed to be higher than non-mentored trainees (95.8% vs 69.9%, p<0.05). Rates of involvement in significant events, clinical incidents and complaints in both groups did not show any statistical difference. Mentored trainees reported higher confidence and career progression. Conclusions A positive association is observed between the mentoring of CMTs and better training outcomes. Further studies are needed to investigate the causative effects of mentoring in postgraduate medical training within the UK.


The design of cost-effective and rapid screening sensing systems is key to deliver alternative tools for chemical analysis. Electronic tongues can distinguish complex liquids by combining cross-sensitive sensor arrays with machine learning and have been demonstrated in various chemical sensing applications. In this live demonstration, feature extraction from the transient potentiometric response of an array of low-selective miniaturized polymeric sensors is combined with a data processing pipeline for deployment of trained machine learning models on an edge device. A mobile app allows visualization of raw data and measurement results in addition to reconfiguration of the device based on user selection.


Loan programs in two different countries, Israel and Jamaica, are compared and contrasted, in order to identify common elements of project design, selection, and institutional norms. Utilizing agency theory, this article examines what types of borrowers successfully navigate the credit market and to what extent the bureaucratic processes employed by institutions influence and bias outcomes in unpredicted ways in organizations. Entrepreneurs are well recognized as coming from a wide range of backgrounds; indeed, it is the very heterogeneity of their origins that allows many to provide the newness of perspective so necessary for their activities. However, hidden or tacit institutional biases were found to work against this diversity, limiting severely the impact of efforts to sustain an entrepreneurial culture and to promote economic development. The characteristics of the lowest level of organizational actor(s) were found to differentiate successful innovation from unsuccessful attempts. Selection of the appropriate staff was found not only to influence the quality and nature of the tasks assigned, but also the very direction and choice as to exactly what the organization would do.


The Air Traffic Management (ATM) paradigm is shifting towards a scenario where Trajectory Predictors (TP) play a key role. They rely on Aircraft Performance Models (APM), mathematical models of the performance related characteristics of aircraft. The widespread use of non-coventional take-off procedures, such as the flexible thrust method, has arose the necessity of modelling them to keep fidelity in take-off trajectory predictions. This project, carried out with Boeing Research & Technology Europe (BR&TE) and upon request of EUROCONROL, arises in response to the current lack in the APM market of a validated methodology to model reduced thrust operations. Its goal is to propose a complete and validated model to compute reduced thrust using Assumed Temperature (AT). The proposed methodology is composed by a model of AT and a thrust model properly validated for flexible thrust computations. To accomplish this goal, a new specification of the AT model that is being developed by BR&TE has been implemented, based upon a set of improvements suggested by EUROCONTROL. In order to determine a valid thrust model for flexible thrust computations, EUROCONTROL'S Base of Aricraft Data (BADA) and Aircraft Noise Performance (ANP) APMs have been validated. These validations have been carried out with different official Boeing's performance software: the Standard Take-off Analysis Software (STAS) and the Boeing Climbout Program (BCOP). As a result of the study different order polynomials that model the AT as a function of the take-off conditions have been produced. In addition, it has been concluded that ANP contains a valid thrust model for flexible thrust calculations, whereas the current version of BADA is not valid to compute thrust during the take-off phase. A first application of this method has been put into effect by developing a prototype of a Take-off Trajectory Predictor (TTP) that implements the flexible thrust model. This prototype is intended to be integrated in Boeing's trajectory computation infrastructure in the future as a take-off and landing module and needs to be improved, validated with Boeing's performance software and integrated as future work.


Virtually no attention has been paid to the problem of cyclicality in debates over access to mortgage credit, despite its importance as a driver of tight credit. Housing markets are prone to booms accompanied by bubbles in mortgage credit in which lenders cut underwriting standards, leading to elevated loan defaults. During downturns, these cycles artificially impede access to mortgage credit for underserved communities. During upswings, these cycles make homeownership unnecessarily precarious for many who attain it. This volatility exacerbates wealth and income disparities by ethnicity and race.The boom-bust cycle must be addressed in order to assure healthy and sustainable access to credit for creditworthy borrowers. While the inherent cyclicality of the housing finance market cannot be fully eliminated, it can be mitigated to some extent. Mitigation is possible because housing market cycles are financed by and fueled by debt. Policymakers have begun to develop a suite of countercyclical tools to help iron out the peaks and troughs of the residential mortgage market. In this article, we discuss why access to credit is intrinsically linked to cyclicality and canvass possible techniques to modulate the extremes in those cycles.


Purpose: To develop a planning technique for stereotactic radiosurgery using the TomoTherapy treatment planning system that consistently produces optimal plan results in minimal planning time. By creating a formulaic approach to planning, it becomes feasible to acquire a planning image and complete treatment within a single day, as required for more invasive head fixation techniques. Method and Materials:CT scans and contours for 20 patients with 1 to 6 metastatic braintumors, treated in our clinic using a linac based approach, were used to develop a planning technique and test for robustness. Target volumes ranged from 0.1cc to 10.5 cc with prescribed doses ranging from 15Gy to 24Gy. First, effects of changing pitch and modulation factor on workflow and plan quality were determined. Next, planning volumes and optimization constraints were identified to predictably shape the dose distribution to allow flexibility in planning to meet any desired clinical criteria. Results: It was found that a pitch between 0.13 and 0.18 could be used for over the range of prescribed doses to minimize beamlet computation time while allowing for delivery in a single treatment fraction. A maximum modulation factor between 1.5 and 1.8 can be used to achieve gradients comparable to linacradiosurgery without undue increase in delivery time. A small central contracted sub‐volume can be used for quick plan scaling and to specify the maximum dose to the target. Intra‐target dose inhomogeneity combined with a ring surrounding the target can be used to increase peripheral dose gradients. Conclusion: It is possible to generate a class solution for radiosurgery planning on the TomoTherapy treatment planning system to produce plans that compare favorably with cone based radiosurgery plans within a planning time that is compatible with a one‐day radiosurgery workflow. Conflict of Interest: Planning resources provided by TomoTherapy, Inc.


This article is a quantitative examination of the function of prosody in distinguishing between the genres of oral performance and expository discourse in Ahtna, an Athabascan language of south-central Alaska. Within the framework of the intonation unit (e.g., Chafe 1987) I examine features of prosody related to both timing (intonation unit length and duration, pause duration and distribution, and syllable pacing) and pitch (pitch reset, boundary tones, and intonational phrasing). I show to a statistically significant degree that most of the prosodic burden of distinguishing genre is carried by a particular intonation contour that is associated with Ahtna oral performance and causes several measurable distinctions between genres.


Background: A novel, factory-calibrated, flash continuous glucose monitoring system (flash CGM; FreeStyle Libre™ system) was approved by FDA in September 2017. The clinical benefit of flash CGM as a replacement for routine self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) for people using MDI therapy has been assessed in RCTs in T1DM (Bolinder, 2016) and T2DM (Haak,2017). In both 6-month studies, people using flash CGM achieved a substantial reduction in hypoglycemia compared with those using SMBG, without increasing HbA1c or reducing the dose of insulin. A cost calculation based on ADA recommendations is presented, comparing the acquisition cost of flash CGM with routine SMBG. Methods: The ADA Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes (2017) recommend between 6 to 10 glucose tests per day for people with diabetes who are using MDI therapy. List prices are $1.42 per strip and $36.00 per sensor. Sensor duration is up to 10 days. In the T1DM RCT, people using flash CGM also used 0.5 SMBG tests/day on average; in the T2DM RCT, people using flash CGM also used 0.3 SMBG tests/day. The calculation is based on a 30-day month. Results: Monthly cost of 10 SMBG/day is $426.00 and of 6 SMBG/day is $255.60. This is compared with the monthly sensor cost of $108.00, to which should be added the monthly cost of occasional SMBG based on utilization in the RCTs: $21.30 per person per month (PPPM) for people with T1DM and $12.78 for people with T2DM. For those testing 6 times/day, flash CGM saves over $120 PPPM compared with SMBG and it saves over $290 PPPM for people testing 10 times/day. For people testing more than 3 times/day, flash CGM has a lower acquisition cost than SMBG. Conclusion: For people with T1DM or T2DM who use MDI therapy, flash CGM has demonstrated improved adherence to the ADA recommendation as well as reduced acquisition cost when compared with routine SMBG. Disclosure R. Hellmund: Employee; Self; Abbott. Stock/Shareholder; Self; Abbott.


This paper is concerned with the numerical analyses of an S-shaped duct for the inter-channel between compressor spools. For the compactness and lightweight of an engine, the length of the S-shaped duct is desired to be minimized. Shortening the S-shaped duct, however, flow separation is likely to occur. Numerical investigation using a three-dimensional Navier-Stokes flow solver has been performed to determine the availability of the minimization of an S-shaped duct. Computations are performed introducing the experimental data as the inlet flow condition of the OGV in determining the minimum length of the S-shaped duct. Also, the leaning effect of the OGV which assists the flow to turn radially inward are studied adopting mixing-plane method to consider the rotor/OGV interaction.


If ABO antigens/antibodies play any role in the pathogenesis of acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), one would expect the highest incidence of GVHD in recipients of minor ABO-mismatched grafts, followed by ABO-matched grafts, and the lowest incidence in major ABO-mismatched transplants. To test this hypothesis 174 patients receiving an HLA-identical allogeneic bone marrow transplant (BMT) for aplastic anemia (n=32) or leukemia (n=142) were analyzed for factors associated with acute GVHD. Variables analyzed included diagnosis, sex, age, blood group of donor and recipient, ABO compatibility, Rhesus compatibility, sex compatibility, number of bone marrow cells given at BMT, year of transplant, day of engraftment, and GVHD prophylaxis. We first carried out an exploratory contingency table analysis: minor ABO incompatibility was associated with a significantly higher risk of severe acute GVHD when compared with ABO-matched and major-ABO mismatched pairs (P=0.003): 14/9, 57/67, and 5/22 patients developed, respectively, 0-I/II-IV acute GVHD in ABO major-mismatched, matched, and minor-mismatched pairs. Donors of group 0, (P=0.06), older recipient's age (P=0.08), fast engraftment (P=0.03), and older donor's age (0.08) were also associated with a higher risk of GVHD. Recipient's ABO group, diagnosis, year of transplant, Rhesus group of donor or recipient, Rhesus compatibility, sex of donor or recipient, sex compatibility, and type of GVHD prophylaxis were not predictive of GVHD. A Cox multifactorial proportional hazards analysis confirmed that ABO matching was the single most significant factor associated with GVHD (P=0.006). The cumulative incidence of GVHD grade II+ was 39%, 54%, and 82% for ABO major-mismatched, matched, and minor-mismatched pairs (P=0.01). This study suggests that ABO antigens may play a role in the development of acute GVHD.


The word for society is repetition.

The notion of 'the social' as a distinct reality in its own right is a central concept in sociology. In one of the earliest methodological disputes within the science of sociology, Emile Durkheim and Gabriel Tarde put forward two radically different perspectives bout how to conceptualize this reality as an object of scientific investigation. The debate between Durkheim and Tarde has primarily been perceived as a confrontation between a 'holistic' and an 'individualistic' sociological perspective – an account which doesn't do justice to Tarde's original, but today almost forgotten, sociology of imitations. This article attempts to develop a different perspective on this dispute. The concept of repetition is taken as the starting point for the discussion, and the article argues that both Durkheim and Tarde, although with very different conclusions, invoke a concept of repetition in their attempt to construct 'the social' as an object of science.


Background Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are newly discovered noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) that play key roles in various biological functions, such as the regulation of gene expression and alternative splicing. CircRNAs have been identified in some species, including western honeybees. However, the understanding of honeybee circRNA is still very limited, and to date, no study on eastern honeybee circRNA has been conducted. Here, the circRNAs in the midguts of Apis cerana cerana workers were identified and validated, and the regulatory networks were constructed. Differentially expressed circRNAs (DEcircRNAs) and the corresponding competitively endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks in the development of the worker's midgut were further investigated. Results Here, 7- and 10-day-old A. c. cerana workers' midguts (Ac1 and Ac2) were sequenced using RNA-seq, and a total of 9589 circRNAs were predicted using bioinformatics. These circRNAs were approximately 201-800 nt in length and could be classified into six types; the annotated exonic circRNAs were the most abundant. Additionally, five novel A. c. cerana circRNAs were confirmed by PCR amplification and Sanger sequencing, indicating the authenticity of A. c. cerana circRNAs. Interestingly, novel_circ_003723, novel_circ_002714, novel_circ_002451 and novel_circ_001980 were the most highly expressed circRNAs in both Ac1 and Ac2, which is indicative of their key roles in the development of the midgut. Moreover, 55 DEcircRNAs were identified in the Ac1 vs Ac2 comparison group, including 34 upregulated and 21 downregulated circRNAs. Further investigation showed that the source genes of circRNAs were classified into 34 GO terms and were involved in 141 KEGG pathways. In addition, the source genes of DEcircRNAs were categorized into 10 GO terms and 15 KEGG pathways, which demonstrated that the corresponding DEcircRNAs may affect the growth, development, and material and energy metabolisms of the worker's midgut by regulating the expression of the related source genes. Additionally, the circRNA-miRNA regulatory networks were constructed and analyzed, and the results demonstrated that 1060 circRNAs can bind to 74 miRNAs and that 71.51% of circRNAs can be linked to only one miRNA. Furthermore, the DEcircRNA-miRNA-mRNA networks were constructed and explored, and the results indicate that the 13 downregulated circRNAs can bind to eight miRNAs and to 29 target genes. In addition, the results indicate that the 16 upregulated circRNAs can bind to 9 miRNAs and to 29 target genes, demonstrating that DEcircRNAs are likely involved in the regulation of midgut development via ceRNA mechanisms. Moreover, the regulatory networks of miR-6001-y-targeted DEcircRNAs were analyzed, and the results showed that eight DEcircRNAs may affect the development of A. c. cerana workers' midguts by targeting miR-6001-y. Finally, four randomly selected DEcircRNAs were verified via RT-qPCR, confirming the reliability of our sequencing data. Conclusion This is the first systematic investigation of circRNAs and their corresponding regulatory networks in eastern honeybees. The identified circRNAs from the A. c. cerana worker's midgut will enrich the known reservoir of honeybee ncRNAs. DEcircRNAs may play a comprehensive role during the development of the worker's midgut via the regulation of source genes and the interaction with miRNAs by acting as ceRNAs. The eight DEcircRNAs that targeted miR-6001-y were likely to be vital for the development of the worker's midgut. Our results provide a valuable resource for the future studies of A. c. cerana circRNA and lay a foundation to reveal the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulatory networks of circRNAs responsible for the worker's midgut development; in addition, these findings facilitate a functional study on the key circRNAs involved in the developmental process. Graphical Abstract


A cobalt-catalyzed oxidative coupling of benzoic hydrazides with maleimides by utilizing 2-(1-methylhydrazinyl)pyridine as a bidentate directing group has been developed. This C-H functionalization/spirocyclization cascade protocol shows high efficiency and remarkable functional group tolerance, and the ubiquitous spirosuccinimides were obtained in good to excellent yields with high regioselectivity. This strategy also provides a novel and efficient access to diverse symmetric and unsymmetrical bisspirosuccinimides.

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Rapid bacterial identification (ID) and antimicrobial susceptibility tests (AST) can have a significant impact on the management of infections, especially those caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria (1, 2, 5). However, these rapid automated methods do not overcome the need for the preparation of a suspension of the organism at a fixed density (0.5 to 0.6 McFarland standard [MF]; 1.5 × 108 CFU/ml). Subculturing the isolate to obtain the required number of colonies is the usual solution to insufficient numbers of colonies available on primary isolation agar plates, but this equates to a further 24-h delay in completing the test and, in turn, in providing results to the clinician. In these cases, the rapid automated methods offer no time advantage compared to manual methods.

In order to overcome this problem, BD, for its Phoenix automated microbiology system, has recently developed new software and a database for ID using a lower inoculation density, a 0.25 MF (7.5 × 107 CFU/ml) instead of the previously used 0.5 MF, for the inoculation of panels. The new capability to determine ID involves the use of separate ID substrate databases for substrate reactions for each method. The AST inoculation density, 5 × 105 CFU/ml, is maintained following the procedure with the 0.25 MF by transfer of twice as much ID suspension (50 μl instead of 25 μl) to the AST broth.

We conducted a prospective study over a 1-month period to evaluate and validate the possibility of using the 0.25 MF in our facility. This study compared inoculation with the currently used 0.5 MF, used for 6 years in our laboratory (3), to inoculation with a 0.25 MF for the exact same isolates (Table (Table11).

TABLE 1.

List of discordant results obtained by comparing methods with a 0.25 MF and a 0.5 MFa

Accurate ID at the species level was achieved for 95.5% of the isolates by use of the 0.25 MF and for 95.5% of the isolates by use of the 0.5 MF. Ten of 132 clinical isolates (7.3%) had discordant ID results by the two methods (Table (Table1).1). No discordant identification results were observed for Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates. Differences between the two ID approaches were not statistically significant.

Errors were less than 1.4% among 2,654 performed AST. No very major errors (the method with the 0.25 MF indicating sensitivity and that with the 0.5 MF indicating resistance) were found. Totals of 32 (1.2%) major errors (ME; the method with the 0.25 MF indicating resistance and that with the 0.5 MF indicating sensitivity) and 37 (1.4%) minor errors (mE; the method with the 0.25 MF indicating an intermediate result and that with the 0.5 MF indicating sensitivity or resistance) were obtained (not shown). There were 7 ME and 7 mE for Enterobacteriaceae, 5 ME and 1 mE for staphylococci, 18 ME and 18 mE for Pseudomonaceae (mainly P. aeruginosa), and 2 ME and 11 mE for enterococci.

Although we used the inoculation method with a 0.5 MF as the comparative method (which is not truly a reference method), we have 6 years of experience with this system and have confidence in its accuracy for most organism-antibiotic combinations. In addition, we developed several confirmatory tests for some combinations with which the system's accuracy is weaker (3).

The performance of the low-inoculum-density method based on presented results has allowed us to start to use this approach routinely in our laboratory.

(Part of this work was presented at the 107th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 21 to 25 May 2007 [4].)


The results of a field experiment in Argentina indicate that taxpayers who received a deterrent message (describing the penalties for non-compliance) are more likely to comply with payment of taxes than taxpayers in the control group. After receiving reciprocity and peer effects messages, the probability of compliance increased for some contributors but decreased for others according to their underlying distribution of beliefs. The use of messages on tax bills influences taxpayers depending on their prior beliefs, the location of their residence, and whether or not they live in the city where they have to pay the tax.


There are many complex interactions between organisms in an ecosystem. This experiment focused on the interactions between the Goldenrod plant, its gall inducer, the Eurosta solidaginis larva and its enemies, the Eurytoma gigantea, Eurytoma obtusiventris, and Morellistena unicomor. The study was done in four sites north of Toronto: Minesing (ditch), Minesing (uphill), Glengarry Notch, and North Glengarry. A total of 15 samples were analyzed for their relationship between plant density and number of galls; the correlation between the height of the plant and the number of galls; the differences in the size of galls that had one gall and multiple galls; and the differences in the size of galls between Eurosta larva and Eurytoma larva. It was found that the number of galls increases with increase in plant density, since the induction of galls increases stem production in plants. The number of galls significantly varied between habitat and soil texture. The height of the plant decreased with increasing gall numbers, due to the damage caused by gall induction. However, this factor was also explained by low availability of resources and presence of high levels of competition in the habitat. The size of the galls were bigger in plants that had multiple galls, due to the host's stress tolerability encoded by genotype; the less stress-tolerant plants were rejected by the gall-inducing insects. Finally, the gall size was determined through a balancing selection between the small gall size preferred by the Eurytoma and the large gall sizes that were more susceptible to predation by birds.


Numerical analysis of radial extrusion process combined with backward extrusion has been performed to investigate the forming characteristics of an aluminum alloy in a combined extrusion process. Various variables such as gap size, die corner radius and frictional conditions are adopted as design or process parameters for analysis in this paper. The main investigation is focused on the analysis of forming characteristics of AA 2024 aluminum alloy in terms of material flow into backward can and radial flange sections. Due to various die geometries and process conditions such as frictional conditions, the material flow into a can and flange shows different patterns during the combined extrusion process and its characteristics are well summarized quantitatively in this paper in terms of forming load, volume ratio etc. Extensive simulation work leads to quantitative relationships between process conditions and the forming characteristics such as volume ratio of flange to can and the size of can and flange in terms of the can height extruded backward. It is easily seen from the simulation results that the volume ratio, which is defined as the ratio of flange volume to can volume, increases as the gap size and/or die corner radius increase. However, it is interesting to note that the frictional condition has little influence on the forming load and the deformation patterns. Usually, the frictional condition is a greatest process variable in normal forging operation. It might be believed from the simulation results that the frictional conditions are not a major process parameter in case of combined extrusion processes. It is also found that the can size, which is defined as the height of billet after forming, turns out to be even smaller than that of initial billet under a certain condition of die geometry.


ABSTRACT Immunological and serological changes that occur during pregnancy can alter the susceptibility of both the mother and the fetus against various infectious diseases. The pregnant woman has an altered immune response and, for some pathologies, is at increased risk of infection and of developing complications and serious outcomes. In addition, maternal infections can result in congenital anomalies, malformations or severe neonatal diseases. Vaccination of pregnant women can therefore have a double goal: to protect the mother from diseases that could have an impact on her health and to avoid infection/disease transmission to the fetus or the newborn. Despite the potential benefits of immunization in pregnant women, it is still evident reluctance and/or refusal of vaccinations by health professionals as well as by pregnant women, who are wary of the real advantages linked to vaccines. For these reasons a group of experts has evaluated the latest scientific evidence reported in the international literature on this relevant topic.


Benzene hexachloride (BHC) was fed to mature male rats weighing 160 g at dosages of 3 and 6 mg/kg body weight over a period of 180 days. Significant decrease in testicular weight and degeneration of seminiferous tubules with deformed spermatogenic cells w<;re noted at a dose of 6 mglkg BHC. Marked increase in BHC residue in testis revealed that the drug was able to cross blood-testis barrier.


Switching behavior in electron-hole bilayer tunnel FETs is known to be unaffected by the subthreshold swing limitation of 60 mV/decade imposed by thermal injection, due to the band-to-band tunneling phenomena on which they rely. However, in this paper, we show that, once parasitic lateral tunneling processes are suppressed by means of heterogate configurations, a new physical limitation arises at the onset of tunneling in this type of transistors, resulting from the interplay between field-induced quantum confinement and asymmetric concentrations of electrons and holes inside the channel. We demonstrate that this limitation comes from the fact that, regardless of the band profile sharpness, the tunneling distance at subband alignment cannot be reduced beyond a certain limit, which we find to be dependent on the body thickness and the material properties.


Safe working in Chemistry involves critical analysis, interactive thinking and the evolving application of risk assessment to procedure, reagent and environment. It also requires cooperation and teamwork. These are transferable skills that all scientists should possess, but safety training is too often presented to undergraduate students as a set of rules with little rationale offered to justify them. Attempts to go beyond a set of rules are frequently perceived by students and academics as tedious if not outright boring – however necessary they may be. We describe the first stages of development of a safety training component for mainstream Chemistry courses that will allow students to identify safe and unsafe practices, undertake formal risk assessment, and enable them to improve the safety of their own environment. Our starting point is a Safety Training Workshop for our own 3rd year undergraduates, including case studies, a (competitive) team exercise (a lab 'scavenger hunt') and electronic self-testing, designed to alleviate the tedium. They also emphasise the cooperative nature of safe working and encourage teamwork – aspects which are normally neglected in degree programmes in Science. We also report on the positive student response.


Surgery is an essential component in the treatment of brain tumors. However, delineating tumor from normal brain remains a major challenge. We describe the use of stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy for differentiating healthy human and mouse brain tissue from tumor-infiltrated brain based on histoarchitectural and biochemical differences. Unlike traditional histopathology, SRS is a label-free technique that can be rapidly performed in situ. SRS microscopy was able to differentiate tumor from nonneoplastic tissue in an infiltrative human glioblastoma xenograft mouse model based on their different Raman spectra. We further demonstrated a correlation between SRS and hematoxylin and eosin microscopy for detection of glioma infiltration (k = 0.98). Finally, we applied SRS microscopy in vivo in mice during surgery to reveal tumor margins that were undetectable under standard operative conditions. By providing rapid intraoperative assessment of brain tissue, SRS microscopy may ultimately improve the safety and accuracy of surgeries where tumor boundaries are visually indistinct.


Summary 1. Plant-pollinator interactions are highly important because of its direct link to plant fitness and because such interactions involve species at different trophic levels. Our understanding of competitive and facilitative interactions among plants for pollination is of large importance to govern conservation of species and management of crop production. Still we know little about the scale dependency of plant–plant interactions for pollinator visitation which is central to both basic and applied ecology. 2. Here, I tested whether plant–plant interactions for bumblebee visitation and subsequent reproduction were scale-dependent by studying the ecologically and economically important red clover (Trifolium pratense) and its floral neighbourhood. I expected that high floral densities at small scale could trigger facilitative interactions due to concentration effects of pollinators. This was expected to change into competitive interactions when floral densities became higher at coarser scales because of dilution effects. I also expected that increased bumblebee visitation would increase fruit production in red clover. 3. The interaction for pollination success in red clover appeared to be scale-dependent in the landscape under study. At plot scale, the bumblebee visitation rate to red clover inflorescences increased with both intra- and interspecific floral density, indicating facilitative interaction for pollinator visitation among red clover flowers and its nearest floral neighbourhood. Increased visitation of bumblebees led to subsequent increased fruit set, but there was a saturating effect as fruit set did not increase when visitation rates exceeded a certain level. As the floral neighbourhood became denser at a coarser scale, the interactions for pollinator visitation changed towards competition. 4. This study shows that key ecological processes such as plant–pollinator interactions may indeed be scale-dependent and that the relative importance of competition and facilitation among plants for attracting pollinators may change with scale. The density of the floral neighbourhood of a focal species (e.g. key-, rare-, crop species) may thus be of large importance for its pollination and fruit production. My findings suggest that increasing floral densities at fine scales may have facilitative effects on pollinator visitation to red clover, whereas pollinators may be drawn away when floral resources become denser at coarser scale.


The University of Connecticut Department of Mechanical Engineering has developed an industry recognized Senior Design Capstone course that provides students the opportunity for a major design experience. This paper will discuss the issues and challenges associated with project demonstrated on the base of the Search for Optimal Friction Resistant Material to Cover Contact Surfaces in an Electric Manual Switch.In order to determine the viability of potential substitute materials, the team produced custom testing rigs to evaluate material wear and corrosion performance. The construction of these rigs, the fabrication of the testing coupons, testing results and the final choice of the covering material were the primary deliverables of this project. The wear rig allowed the team to determine mechanical performance on the basis of mass loss. In the evaluation of mechanical performance, the coated test coupons were revolved on a testing plate while a flat coated column contacted the surface to wear the plating. After a certain number of cycles, the coupons were subjected to environmental testing. The corrosion rig was designed to provide aggressive corrosion on the worn coupons, and was modeled after the industry standard salt fog test. The worn test coupons were immersed in a humid salt fog test chamber and held at temperature until corroded. A series of calibration checks were completed to evaluate the UConn test severity to ASTM (American Society of Testing Materials) standard testing.The surfaces before and after the corrosion process were analyzed in a number of ways. Optical microscopy, profilometry, and surface metrology techniques were employed to determine which platings were likely to meet the consumer standards necessary for replacement. The large set of data on volume loss, mass loss, and surface degradation provided good metrics for the evaluation of material suitability.The project described in this paper is based on the contribution of the students' team as well as is the result of consulting effort of the faculty who were directly involved in the course and also the other department's faculty who were consulting the detail processes. General Electric (GE) especially its Industrial Solution Division that sponsored the project, is a company that provides a wide variety of services in electrical appliances, power, and home and business solutions. It has tasked the team with identifying a suitable replacement for Hexavalent Chromium Chromate passivation. This material is plated on many components in GE electrical appliances due to its resistance to abrasion and corrosion. However, because of changing regulations and the health risks that come from dealing with HCC, the sponsor has determined that it is necessary to remove the plating from production by 2019. In order to determine the viability of potential substitute materials, the team produced custom testing rigs to evaluate material wear and corrosion performance. The construction of these rigs and the fabrication of the 400+ testing coupons, the environmental and mechanical tests results and the final conclusions were the primary deliverables of this project.The team examined three different plating materials (JS 600, trivalent chrome, and zinc phosphate) and compared their performance to that of the original HCC plating. The resulting comparative analysis drove the final recommendation of the best candidate material for the sponsor on the basis of mechanical and environmental performance.Copyright © 2016 by ASME


Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between two haplotype-tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs6658835 and rs10495098) of TGF-β2 and conotruncal heart defects (CTDs). Methods: Two polymorphisms of TGF-β2 gene were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) from 259 CTDs patients and 310 control subjects. Results: The association between SNP rs6658835 in TGF-β2 and CTDs has been found. The frequency of G allele in CTDs patients was significantly higher than that in control subjects (52.7% versus 40.3%, p < 0.001, OR =1.649). Conclusion: TGF-β2 gene polymorphisms may serve as a novel genetic marker for the risk of CTDs.


Research has shown that both music students and teachers think that expression is important. Yet, we know little about how expression is taught to students. Such knowledge is needed in order to enhance teaching of expression. The aim of this study was thus to explore the nature of instrumental music teaching in its natural context, with a focus on expression and emotion. Lessons featuring five music teachers and 12 students were video-filmed, transcribed, content analyzed, and coded into categories of feedback and language use. Results suggested that the focus of teaching was mainly on technique and on the written score. Lessons were dominated by talk, with the teacher doing most of the talking. Issues concerning expression and emotion were mostly dealt with implicitly rather than explicitly, although some teachers used a variety of strategies to enhance expression. Although there were individual differences among teachers, a common feature was the lack of clear goals, specific tasks, and systematic teaching patterns.


The mixed convection heat transfer details of a jet impinging targeted a moving heated plate are studied numerically under steady laminar flow conditions. The governing parameters for the present problem are: Reynolds number (Re), Grashof number (Gr), the velocity of the heated plate (U), jet width and distance from the heated plate. The results are presented to show the fluid and heat flow structure at different conditions with fixed width of the jet and fixed distance from the heated plate and different other parameters. It is observed that the bouyancy effects are more obvious at low values of Reynolds number and plate velocity and the forced convection is dominating at high values of Re and U.  At low values of the plate velocity (U/V < 0.5 with Re = 200 and Gr = 1×104) it is observed that the heat transfer is reduced due to the opposing effects of the jet flow and the flow induced by the plate on one side of the plate. However the increase of the plate velocity more than (U/V > 0.5 with Re = 200 and Gr = 1×104) the heat transfer is increased due to the combined effect of the jet flow and the stronger flow induced by the movement of the heated plate.


Using data from the National Survey of Families and Household, attitudes and behaviors measured at the first interview are used to predict the disruption of unions between 1987-88 and 1992-94. The analysis is structured in terms of three conceptual distinctions. An index of "conservative family attitudes" is constructed from items relating to approval of premarital sex, childbearing, cohabitation, independence in marriage, and divorce. Religion is considered in terms of denomination, frequency of attendance and fundamentalism. Couples' relationships are characterized in terms of behaviors likely to affect union stability, and in terms of evaluations of their relationships. These measures are then entered sequentially into multivariate hazard models predicting separation before the second interview. Strong effects on union disruption are found for each of the variables examined, net of background measures, and net of other variables within the same conceptual set. The effects of patterns of interaction are largely captured by the evaluation measures. Two sets of the union evaluations are examined separately. The first set includes a measure of relationship happiness, perceptions of whether life would be better or worse were separation to occur, and whether the relationship was seen as unfair to the respondent. The second set is composed of two variables that are more directly a part of the disruption process: whether a relationship was seen as "in trouble," and perceptions of the likelihood of separation. Conservative attitudes toward family issues have an indirect effect through relationship quality, as well as a strong direct effect on disruption net of the other variables. Effects of religiosity are substantially mediated by the value measures, but also maintain independent effects. These results are consistent with expectations that both secularization and value change involving an increasing tolerance of new family forms are likely important in the transformation of family life, albeit reciprocally related to new family behaviors.


1. It is becoming increasingly clear that besides traditional immunosuppressive agents, an array of miscellaneous influences and conditions, as well as drugs used for other purposes, can affect the immune system. The potential pathogenetic role of immunity in an ever growing number of diseases, including infections, cancer, and autoimmune processes, confers on the concept of concomitant immunosuppression or immunotoxicology its due place in the discipline of immunopharmacology. 2. Microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, and protozoa (and their products), as well as parasites, may depress immune reactivity. The mechanism of action, dose-response dependency, effect of timing, and relation to bacterial adjuvanticity need more thorough exploration. 3. The efficacy of immunosuppressive drug protocols can be improved by combining immunosuppressants without bone marrow toxicity, such as niridazole or free fatty acids, with the standard antiproliferative immunosuppressive agents. 4. Prostaglandin is a likely candidate for an essential role as an immunosuppressive effector. Its release from T-suppressor cells is triggered for example by microorganisms. Moreover, dietetic and metabolic factors, such as free fatty acids, and nervous impulses affect prostaglandin formation. If thus constitutes a link between the nervous system and, on the other hand, immunity and possibly cancer.


Reflective praxis is advocated within the current formative context to the benefit of both the quality of practice and the trainers' own self concept. Action is the main formative tool; it must be understood from its own autonomy and from the representation that teacher educators build upon it. Two main perspectives are offered: the perspective of individual action and the perspective of the action mediated by the inter-subjective relationship and by practice. The reflective praxis becomes an imperative given the cultural contingency posed by the information and communication technologies. The understanding between practices-in and practices-with is differentiated to point out that formative action is always an action mediated by technology. It is also highlighted that it is in the comprehension of practice where the epistemological continuity between theory and practice takes place. Theory provides the rational scaffolding from which the creativity in practices is built.
Key words: Reflective praxis. Information and communication technologies.


This study presents a new method for calculating beta through a back-solving process, which assumes the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) to be absolute. This process has improved asset pricing abilities and allows for the discovery of the "one true" market returns. The market portfolio returns required for CAPM to be accurate are then calculated and compared with eight popular financial distributions and five market proxies. The overall best distribution to use for CAPM market returns is the Student t-distribution. This study also contributes to the literature that the market proxies used are inefficient and adversely affect the results used in other studies to discredit the CAPM.


Two novel amiloride analogs have been synthesized during the course of efforts to develop a photoaffinity label for the amiloride allosteric domain on alpha 2-adrenergic receptors. One of these, 5-[N-2'-aminoethyl-N'-isopropyl]amiloride-N-[4"-azidosalicylamide] (A-EIA-AS), markedly accelerates the rate of dissociation of [3H]yohimbine from affinity-purified alpha 2-adrenergic receptors, an assay for allosteric modulation of receptor-adrenergic ligand interactions. In contrast, this agent does not appreciably inhibit Na+/H+ exchange, measured as 5-(N-ethyl-N-isopropyl)amiloride (EIA)-inhibitable 22Na+ uptake into cultured renal epithelial cells. A second analog, 5-[N-2'-(4"-azidosalicylamidino)ethyl-N'- isopropyl]amiloride (ASA-EIA), does not foster an accelerated rate of dissociation of [3H]yohimbine binding from the alpha 2 receptor but does block the ability of A-EIA-AS to do so, suggesting that ASA-EIA and A-EIA-AS interact at a common binding site. Interestingly, the ability of EIA to accelerate [3H]yohimbine dissociation is not blocked by ASA-EIA, a finding that may indicate that EIA and A-EIA-AS allosterically modulate alpha 2 receptor-ligand interactions via distinct or nonoverlapping binding sites.


The diversity of Internet enabled terminals is increasing continuously. Layout adaptation is becoming a crucial issue for the content providers. They have to support different client devices with minimal effort. This paper presents a document editing system that supports dynamic adaptation. It is implemented as a client-server application and uses cutting edge XML technologies.


Outcrops of the Semantan Formation (Middle to Upper Triassic) along the Karak-Kuantan Highway at km 114.7, km 115, km 140 and km 149.3 were studied. Some beds were found to contain bivalves (Entolium subdemisum Muenster, Neoschizodus sp., Costatoria pahangensis(Kobayashi and Tamura) and Costatoria chegarpahangensis (Kobayashi and Tamura)) and gastropod (?Nerita sp.), which support the Middle to Upper Triassic age for the Semantan Formation. Sedimentary facies and facies associations were examined to gain a better understanding of deep-marine sedimentation processes in relation to submarine fan models. The main facies recognized in the field include conglomerate, pebbly sandstone, thick-bedded sandstone, interbedded sandstone-shale, contorted sandstone-shale, and shale-dominated heterolithics. The facies associations include fining- and coarsening-upward fan-lobe parasequences, slump deposits, and outer fan/basin plain shales. The sediments therefore represent a range of subenvironments from slope to outer fan. Both debris flow and turbidity current deposits are recognized as the main depositional processes in Semantan Formation. Features, such as disorganized clasts in conglomerate, "floating" mudclasts, and scour-and-fill structures indicates debris flow processes whereas normal graded bedding (fining upward) and thin waning-flow sandy layers in shale indicates turbidity current processes.


The majority of people continue to live in their own homes as they move into old age (Peace et al, 2007). However, the home environment may present considerable challenges to those for whom old age brings increasing frailty and disabilities. The purpose of major adaptations to the home is to remove or mitigate obstacles in the physical environment in order to facilitate activities of daily living (Heywood et al. 2002). However, the quality of adaptations may not always meet the expectations of the client. Heywood (2001) suggests that this may be due to difficulties in communication during the design process. This study elucidates the process of communication which occurs during the design and construction of home adaptations for older people. It was carried out as part of a larger feasibility study into whether information and visualisation technology might be appropriate in supporting the design and implementation of housing adaptations for older people. The purpose of the main study was to investigate how communication between the older person and professionals might be improved, possibly by providing relevant knowledge with a computer-based tool. The study presented here constitutes the first stage of the main investigation. The aim of this preliminary study was to explore how communication between older clients, their family members, staff in social services, occupational therapists, surveyors and builders took place in the briefing and design process for housing adaptations. The objectives were to identify and examine the roles of the key resource controllers involved in determining client needs and initial solutions, locate the sources and extent of knowledge related to key design and implementation issues. By mapping the flows of communication and transfer of this knowledge would determine the feasibility of developing systems and an information and visualisation tool to support the design and implementation process so that both the user and the builder are presented with the best technical answers to meet their needs.


Macroporous TiO2 films have been prepared by sol-gel method without any surfactant and colloidal templates. The gel TiO2 films deposited from the precursor solutions containing photo monomer were irradiated by the UV light for some time. The UV irradiation could induce the monomer to polymerize, which resulted in two phases in the films, one was the emerging polymer rich phase, and another was the residual monomer-TiO2 oligomer rich phase. After heat-treatment, a well-defined interconnected macroporous TiO2 films could be obtained. SEM and AFM results showed that the macroporous structures of the films could be tuned by changing the reaction parameters. The as-prepared macroporous TiO2 films exhibited much higher photocatalytic activity for the photodecomposition of methylene blue dye than that of the dense film.


The complete set of measurements that could ever be used by a passive 3D vision algorithm is the plenoptic function or light-field. We give a concise characterization of when the light-field of a Lambertian scene uniquely determines its shape and, conversely, when the shape is inherently ambiguous. In particular, we show that stereo computed from the light-field is ambiguous if and only if the scene is radiating light of a constant intensity (and color, etc.) over an extended region.


The most efficient receiver-driven multicast congestion control protocols use dynamic channels. This means that each group has a cyclic rate variation with a continuously decreasing phase. Despite promising results in terms of fairness, using efficiently these dynamic groups could be a challenging task for application programmers. This paper presents a sequencer which maps out application data to dynamic groups in an optimal way. Multiple applications such as file transfer or video streaming, can use this sequencer, thanks to a simple API usable with any buffer containing the most important data first. To evaluate this solution, we designed a file transfer software using a FEC encoding. Results show the sequencer optimal behavior and the file transfer efficiency, as a single download generates only little more overhead than TCP . Moreover, download time is almost independent of the number of receivers, and is already faster than TCP with 2 competing downloads.


The hash function design strategy SMASH was recently proposed as an alternative to the MD4 family of hash functions. It can be shown that the strategy leads to designs that are vulnerable to efficient collision and (second) preimage attacks. The mathematical structure of the SMASH description facilitates the description of the weakness and the resulting attacks, but also functions with less mathematical elegance may show similar weaknesses.


The research describes the criminal profile of 100 imprisoned partner-violent men (PVM) in Spain, and the follow-up for an average of 15 months of 40 released cases. The ability of the Brief Spousal Assault Form for the Evaluation of Risk (B-SAFER) to classify offenders according to typologies and to predict recidivism is analyzed. The results show that PVM have low level of specialization (only 45% limit their criminal activity to intimate partner violence (IPV)) and high level of recidivism (47% previously have been in prison, and 41% have prior arrest for IPV). The B-SAFER shows a high capacity to classify according to batterers typologies (accuracy of 79% with a score ≥13) in two groups: non-pathological and antisocial/pathological offenders. After prison release, 17.5% relapsed (15% in IPV), and 66% have done so within the first year. The B-SAFER had a predictive accuracy of 70% (sensitivity 100%). From antisocial/pathological group, 21% have recidivate compared to 12.5% in non-pathological aggressors, with an over-representation of antisocial/pathological subtype among recidivists (71%). The best predictive variables are the justification of violence, age at first imprisonment, and treatment. There is a 9% of recidivism among treated offenders compared to 50% in the untreated group.


Magnesium alloy sheets had to be rolled at elevated temperature to avoid cracking. The poor workability of magnesium alloy is ascribed to its hcp crystallography and insufficient activation of independent slip systems. Present authors have succeeded in 1-pass heavy rolling of AZ31 magnesium alloy sheet below 473K by raising rolling speed above 1000m/min. Heavy reduction larger than 60% can be applied by 1-pass high speed rolling even at room temperature. The improvement of workability at lower rolling temperature is due to temperature rise by plastic working. The texture of heavily rolled AZ31 magnesium alloy sheet is investigated in the present study. The texture of sheets rolled 60% at room temperature was <0001>//ND basal texture. At the rolling temperature above 373K, the peak of (0001) pole tilted ±10-15 deg toward RD direction around TD axisto form a double peak texture. The texture varied through thickness. At the surface, the (0001) peak tilted ±10-15 deg toward TD direction around RD axis to form a TD-split double peak texture. The direction of (0001) peak splitting rotated 90 deg from the surface to the center of thickness. Heavily rolled magnesium alloy sheets have non-basal texture. The sheets having non-basal texture are expected to show better ductility than sheets with basal texture.


This report presents an analysis of responses by the employees of "Vege-King" to find the best strategies t improve the customer base by taking care as how they feel working with the company. The hypothesis was taken as more satisfied employee with the company better customer service he will give. To know that various aspects were taken into consideration. As a part of my course I have done research to make this project and this project will mainly focus on finding the best strategy by taking care of the marketing mix to increase the customer base for that will the company to gain customers, regain the former customers and retain current customers. This project will help to find who are the main competitors of this company and the "target group". As, this project will highlight who are the main competitors of "Vege-King", competitors are those who are providing the same products which are offered by "Vege-King" within 5 to 7 Kilometers that are targeting the same customer which this company is targeting. Quantitative and qualitative both method of research has practiced that included surveys and interviews. Research could have few of the problem like the actual feedback from employees, limited budget and time constant. Company may not like the employees to complete the survey or questioner in the working hours. This report will give the brief introduction about the company then will show the organizational content that will include internal (things that are in control of company) as well as external analysis (things that the company have no control on). There are few limitations that has been highlighted in the report so the data that has been collected and analysed is influenced by some aspects and these things are well mentioned in limitation part. Ethically there should not be any issues to any one with the report but still steps have been performed to make sure things are done in more ethical way. The project is not very costly to do that makes sure no financial burden is put on any of the participant. Literatures are read on different marketing mix to undertake he research properly. This report will also give a look on the competitors of Vege-King and the competitive advantages of this company over others. At the end this report will show the discussion and conclusion driven from the survey done and will also give highlight recommendation for the company to have even stronger customer base. All the collected information in survey are attached in the appendix at last.


The action of pepsin on the 11-S and 7-S proteins of vetch, 11-S protein of soybean and 7-S protein of Phaseolus vulgaris was investigated. The first three proteins are hydrolyzed almost completely, the rate of hydrolysis being close to that of hemoglobin, while the hydrolysis of Ph. vulgaris 7-S protein stops after the cleavage of only 2,4% of peptide bonds. The nonhydrolyzable high molecular weight core makes up to 87% of the initial protein and differs from the latter in its electrophoretic mobility and sedimentation coefficient. The action of pepsin does not increase the digestibility of Ph. vulgaris 7-S protein by trypsin. After the consecutive action of these enzymes about two thirds of the protein remain unhydrolyzed. The digestion of Ph. vulgaris 7-S protein by pepsin is completed only after its denaturation by heat treatment or by the action of 6 M guanidine hydrochloride.


Purpose: Restoring corneal endothelial integrity by injection of in vitro propagated endothelial cells into the anterior chamber represents the alluring new treatment possibility. The aim of our study was to compare Ca signalling and intercellular communication in native human corneal endothelium with primary cultures of human corneal endothelium as a model of that potential treatment. Methods: Human corneal endothelial specimens obtained at DMEK surgery and from corneas unsuitable for transplantation were stained with Fura-2 AM fluorescent dye and mechanically stimulated with thin glass pipette. Primary cultures were prepared using suspension enzymatic isolation technique with dual media propagation approach. The changes of intracellular Ca concentration ([Ca]) were detected from 360/380 nm ratio after illumination of Fura-2 AM loaded cells with xenon fluorescent light source. For data acquisition and analysis WinFluor software (University of Strathclyde, UK) was used. Results: In all samples we observed radial spreading of [Ca] changes after mechanical stimulation, with decline of amplitude and increase in rise and activation times with distance. In native human corneal endothelial specimens the changes of [Ca] after mechanical stimulation were more prominent only in the first and second neighboring cells whereas in cultured specimens, the changes of [Ca] spread to a larger area. The cells in culture were bigger than in native samples. Conclusions: The comparison between native and cultured human endothelial cells showed that Ca signals after mechanical stimulation seem to spread to a larger area in cell cultures, which deserves further attention.


Aims: The purpose of this study was Isolation and phenotypic identification of different candida species isolated from denture stomatitis patients. Materials and Methods : Over all 62 isolates of Candida species yielded from 43 patients attending prosthodontic department\College of Dentistry\Mosul university\Dental teaching Hospital. Clinically, the samples processed by traditional methods including culture characteristics, gram staining reaction , germ tube, chlamydospore formation, culture on CHROM agar Candida , Sabouraud Dextrose agar, urea's test and Carbohydrates fermentation test. Results: All isolates were accurately diagnosed to the species level by various traditional methods , among the total of 62 Candida species , the predominant type was the Candida albicans which accounted for (46.8%) followed by Candida glabrata (33.9%), Candida tropicalis (17.7%), finally the species Candida krusei accounted for (1.6%). Conclusions: Candida albicans is highly spreading among patients wearing dentures particularly those suffering from denture stomatitis in which CHROM agar Candida medium is best method for rapid identification and documentation of different Candida species .


Conscious visual perception of the constantly changing environment is one of the brain's most critical functions. In virtually every moment of every daily activity, the visual system is confronted with the task of accurately representing and interpreting scenes that change rapidly over time. Adults can judge the identity and order of changing images presented at a rate of up to 10 Hz (~50 ms per image); this limit reflects a finite temporal resolution of attention. In the research reported here, although 6- to 15-month-old infants could detect the presence of rapid flicker without difficulty, their ability to segment individual alternating states within the flicker was severely limited: Fifteen-month-old infants had a temporal resolution of attention approximately one order of magnitude lower than that of adults (~1 Hz). Coarse temporal resolution constrains how infants perceive and utilize dynamic visual information and may play a role in the visual processing deficits found in individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders.


This paper analyzes the effect of alternative transition paths after grade 9 of German lower secondary school on vocational training. Using a selection-on-observables approach I show that a delayed transition into vocational training after lower track secondary school is not a disadvantage conditional on a successful transition into vocational training. Students benefit from continuing general schooling or attending vocational school compared to transitioning directly with regard to wages paid during vocational training as well as average wages, prestige, and socioeconomic status of the training occupation. This comes at the cost of a lower probability to match the training occupation with the reported desired occupation and being less satisfied with the vocational<br>training. Participation in pre-vocational training does not lead to a different type of vocational training position than after a direct transition. However, those participants are less satisfied with their vocational training.


Harnessing energy from the renewable energy sources is coming to be more and more relevant in the coming years [1], due to this fact power energy companies and manufacturing companies producing technology facilities for the renewable energy harvesting are demanding engineers skilled in this field [2]. As a general answer to that fact, all the universities are adapting their engineering curricula to that demand creating new subjects in renewable energy (RE) technology; those new subjects needs new education tools and this motivate the investigation and creation of software simulation environment specific for those technologies with the goal of engineering education. In the present work it is shown a multi-platform software architecture specially designed for distance learning and with the target to be a complementary tool to the curricula contents of the new subjects in RE engineering with the aim to offer a virtual laboratory able to simulate the most updated energy harnessing systems. Flow diagrams, management, functionality and capabilities of this multi-platform software environment development is explained in the article.


A general formulation of classical relativistic particle mechanics is presented, with an emphasis on the fact that superluminal velocities and nonlocal interactions are compatible with relativity. Then a manifestly relativistic-covariant formulation of relativistic quantum mechanics (QM) of fixed number of particles (with or without spin) is presented, based on many-time wave functions and the spacetime probabilistic interpretation. These results are used to formulate the Bohmian interpretation of relativistic QM in a manifestly relativisticcovariant form. The results are also generalized to quantum field theory (QFT), where quantum states are represented by wave functions depending on an infinite number of spacetime coordinates. The corresponding Bohmian interpretation of QFT describes an infinite number of particle trajectories. Even though the particle trajectories are continuous, the appearance of creation and destruction of a finite number of particles results from quantum theory of measurements describing entanglement with particle detectors.


Recently, many flexible constitutive equations have been proposed for sheet forming simulations. However, various mechanical tests are required to determine the many material parameters needed for such models. In the present work, effort has been made to investigate the correlation between the polycrystal plasticity based yield loci and those determined from mechanical tests, in order to define yield functions easily and accurately with minimum amount of experimental work. The results for different materials indicate that, in many cases, the Hill'48 deviates significantly from the measured yield loci. The yield loci derived from measured texture and polycrystal plasticity perform better than the Hill'48 yield function in general. Based on the two yield loci derived from the Taylor full constraint model and the Pancake model, a new combined model is proposed. The new model uses the averaged biaxial points of the two models but keeps the shape of the yield loci derived from the Taylor full constraint model in the stretching regime. The stress factors in the uniaxial and shear mode are calculated by averaging the stress factors of the two models. The proposed new description has been validated using several steel grades.


We study the scattering of electromagnetic waves in anisotropic energetic materials. Nonlinear light-matter interactions in molecular crystals result in frequency-conversion and polarization changes. Applied electromagnetic fields of moderate intensity can induce these nonlinear effects without triggering chemical decomposition, offering a mechanism for the nonionizing identification of explosives. We use molecular-dynamics simulations to compute such two-dimensional THz spectra for planar slabs made of pentaerythritol tetranitrate and ammonium nitrate. Finally, we discuss third-harmonic generation and polarization-conversion processes in such materials. These observed far-field spectral features of the reflected or transmitted light may serve as an alternative tool for standoff explosive detection.


UNLABELLED In 1987 Elder and Duckett published a modification of the Duckett technique for hypospadias repair, substituting the transverse preputial island flap for the onlay island. This modification preserves the urethral plate and has no circular anastomoses, the most common cause of fistulas and stenosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS We present our experience in 67 cases with hypospadias (60 with chordee). The meatus was in the superior third of the penis in 15 cases, in the middle third in 29, at the base of the penis in 11, and interscrotal in 12 patients. Preoperative hormonal substitution was administer in 12 patients, correction of the chordee was possible in 66 cases, the urethral plate was dissected in 18 cases, and the Nesbit procedure in 16 cases. RESULTS A good result was obtained in 59 cases a straight penis, meatus at the tip of the penis, good calibre of the urinary stream and a satisfactory esthetic result. Our rate of complication was of 12%, five fistulas, two partial deshicences of the preputioplasty and in one case a discrete chordee. CONCLUSIONS We believe this is an surgical technique for one stage procedure in severe cases of proximal hypospadias with chordee with a good functional and esthetic result and few complications.


Polyserositis is a challenging differential diagnosis. We present a case of severe serositis in a 51-year-old Caucasian woman complicated by pericardial, peritoneal and pleural exudates in the setting of panhypopituitarism and no other obvious etiology. The patient had obtundation, pretibial edema, anemia, hyponatremia, and high levels of CA 125. Low levels of TSH, free T3 and free T4 suggested central hypothyroidism. Decreased levels of morning cortisol, growth hormone, and gonadotropins indicated panhypopituitarism. The patient reported cessation of menses after her last delivery approximately 20 years ago. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of panhypopituitarism presenting with polyserositis.


This paper is one of the six series of studies that describes the process of designing and development of an OER based course titled Academic Digital Fluency for
21st Century Lecturers at the Open University of Tanzania. Through a descriptive research design approach, the study employed documentary analysis (particularly of the proceedings and records from the course development workshops and planning meetings) and review of
literature to systematically describe the process of designing and development of the OER
course on Academic Digital Fluency. The study has demonstrated that, given the
institutional commitment at OUT and the critical role that OER will play in the university,
it was feasible to produce five (5) initial drafts of the modules of the OER course on
Academic Digital Fluency within the shortest time possible. All course designers worked tirelessly to ensure that the drafts were ready in time for review. On the other hand, the reviewers also played their part very well by providing timely and constructive comments
which enabled further refining of the contents and improvement of the courses in order to produce high quality OER course materials before being uploaded into the MOODLE Learning Management System (LMS) of the OUT. However, despite being interesting, the process of designing and development of an OER course is often quite challenging because it is an added load to the lecturers. Furthermore, it demands team work and also to
undertake a comprehensive review of literature and the available course materials. The experience from OUT was shared with the ACDE member institutions during the meeting of the Technical Committee on Collaboration (TCC) of the African Council for Distance Education (ACDE) as well as the ACDE Executive Board meeting, held in 14th July, 2014 in Nairobi-Kenya.


In this paper, the development of a monitoring system for high-power CO2 laser cutting of thick steel plates (>15 mm) is reported. The aim of this system is to increase the robustness and autonomy of the laser cutting process of thick plates, which is still characterized by more narrow process windows compared to cutting of thin sheets. The applicability for monitoring purposes of two types of sensors is investigated: the acoustic microphone and the photodiode. For both types, correlation between the sensor output and the cut quality is investigated. Both contour cutting and piercing are covered in the study. The full penetration of the piercing can be monitored by both sensors. Furthermore quantitative relations between cut quality parameters and photodiode signal parameters could be determined: the mean level of the photodiode signal correlates well with the drag of the striations and dross formation, whereas the standard deviation proves to correlate well with the occurrence of burning defects and the cut edge roughness.