As a new type of NO removal system, NO reduction in N2-NO plasma was applied to solve the difficulties in the traditional methods, such as higher energy-consumption, larger equipment size and high cost, and so on. Using the experimental NO reduction system with single-pair electrode tip discharge structure, the NO reduction characteristics of N2-NO system were revealed to guide the engineering practice; the results of NO reduction with single-pair electrode tip discharge plasma also have the same instructive meaning to the NO reduction with multi-pair electrode tip discharge plasma. The amount of both active N atom and NO removal rate increased with the distance /g increasing between the two electrode tips and then dropped when the distance exceeded a certain value. The NO removal rate increased while the voltage between two electrode tips or the resident time of gas flow increased. The distance is a key geometrical variable factor that can determine the intensity of electric field between two electrode tips and the resident time of gas. In this paper, the effects of the dielectric features on NO reduction using dielectric-barrier discharge plasma system were also studied. The results of NO removal rate with different dielectrics such as Al2 O3, CaO, MgO and glass showed that the electric field intensity is different with different dielectric, because it brings different energy to particles in discharge room and thus it causes different NO removal rate.


The physicochemical properties of sodium salts fatty acid have not been
thoroughly investigated and are, therefore, not well understood In line with this,
brominated and non-brominated sodium salts of C-18 chain fatty acids were prepared
and their physicochmical properties and performance in aqueous solution have been
investigated by means of surface tension, conductivity, NMR(¹H and ¹³C) and
emulsion stability
The experimental results indicate that when bromine atom/s were present in
the alkyl chain of the fatty acid sodium salts, the surface activity increases. It was also
found that closely packed micelles were formed with the introduction of the bromine
atom/s onto the hydrophobic region of the surfactant, thus a lower critical micelle
concentration was registered. However, the presence of bromine did not affect the
formation of stable w/o emulsions.


We designed and evaluated a new test for the detection of early glaucoma damage in 133 persons who were classified as normal, suspected of having glaucoma, or having glaucoma. The test stimulates the entire visual field with a flashing white light under dark-adapted conditions. It can be performed easily by a high proportion of subjects and is as reproducible as present psychophysical tests. Glaucomatous eyes were discriminated from normal with a diagnostic power of 0.91 as judged by receiver operating characteristic analysis, and specificity and sensitivity were 91% and 86%, respectively. Glaucoma suspects with an abnormal response to the whole-field scotopic test were more likely to have other signs indicating early optic nerve injury, including a greater proportion of borderline field defects, nerve fiber layer defects, or glaucomatous fellow eyes. Assessment of whole-field scotopic sensitivity may be useful in glaucoma screening.


Conventional Learning-to-Rank (LTR) methods optimize the utility of the rankings to the users, but they are oblivious to their impact on the ranked items. However, there has been a growing understanding that the latter is important to consider for a wide range of ranking applications (e.g. online marketplaces, job placement, admissions). To address this need, we propose a general LTR framework that can optimize a wide range of utility metrics (e.g. NDCG) while satisfying fairness of exposure constraints with respect to the items. This framework expands the class of learnable ranking functions to stochastic ranking policies, which provides a language for rigorously expressing fairness specifications. Furthermore, we provide a new LTR algorithm called Fair-PG-Rank for directly searching the space of fair ranking policies via a policy-gradient approach. Beyond the theoretical evidence in deriving the framework and the algorithm, we provide empirical results on simulated and real-world datasets verifying the effectiveness of the approach in individual and group-fairness settings.


DECK (Distributed Executive Communication Kernel) is a communication layer that provides support for multithreading and fault tolerance. The approach retained in DECK is close to other distributed communication kernels like PM2, Athapascan, Nexus, TPVM or Chant in its way to integrate communication and multithreading to efficiently overlap communication by computation and provide low latency remote thread creation mechanisms. However, DECK differs from these communication kernels from the services offered and its modular architecture. The main goal of DECK is to implement a new model for the design of distributed executive kernel to efficiently use the new underlying hardware architectures (SMP architectures and fast communication adapters like Myrinet or memory oriented adapter like SCI) and provide a portable layer that abstract the problems linked with the integration of communication and multithreading while offering support for heterogeneity. A great lack in the current implementation of communication libraries or distributed executive kernel is the support for basic services at the thread level and support for fault tolerance. Indeed, communication library like PVM or MPI are often used as communication layer to ensure portability and take benefits of specific implementation to ensure a good efficiency on specific architectures however the support for fault tolerance, multithreading, scalability and interoperability are usually not offered. In the case of DECK, we propose a model where a distributed application can dynamically instantiate clusters of processes among an heterogeneous network of computers or parallel machines and this using multiple communication protocols or communication interfaces to ensure good performances regarding the underlying hardware architecture. The programming model proposed offer both classic synchronous and asynchronous remote service calls for thread creation and message passing for synchronization and data exchange. These basic functionalities, that form the low level communication and execution layer of DECK, are enforced by a service layer that propose the basic fault tolerant services like naming and group services or data management services for the marshaling and un-marshalling of complex data structures. The layered and modular approach followed by DECK enable many other extensions while keeping a high degree of portability and efficiency.


Alginates and chitosan are natural biopolymers with desirable biological properties. Sodium alginate/poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and chitosan/PEO blend films that are non-toxic, biodegradable, and biocompatible were prepared using the solvent casting method. The characteristics of the blend films with different blending ratios were investigated using a universal testing machine, differential scanning calorimeter, Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, contact angle apparatus (goniometer), and swelling test. The effect of the addition of a plasticizer on the swelling properties was evaluated for the chitosan/PEO blend films. With decreasing PEO content, the tensile strength of the blend film increased, but its strain decreased. The compatibility between sodium alginate or chitosan and PEO was confirmed, and the swelling properties could be controlled by the addition of a hydrophilic plasticizer. Therefore, the blending of natural polymers (with certain biological properties) with a synthetic polymer (PEO) could be a promising method to prepare biomedical materials with controllable properties.


The composition of five pear varieties ('Abate Fetel', 'Bosc', 'Williams', 'Conference', 'Packham's Triumph') grown in Nagykanizsa was investigated in three consecutive years (2008, 2009, 2010). A storage experiment was performed in 2008. Four winter pear cultivars were kept in an ULO store for four months and their parameters measured after two and four months. The parameters tested were: size, weight, water soluble solids, titratable acidity, glucose, fructose, sucrose, water soluble pectin, total polyphenols, free radical scavenging capacity, copper and zinc content. The fruits of 'Conference' and 'Bosc' varieties were found to contain the highest sucrose and total sugar content, while 'Abate Fetel' had the lowest sucrose and highest glucose levels among cultivars tested. 'Williams' pear was the most acidic. Brix, total sugar, sucrose and water soluble pectin were decreased during storage. Titratable acidity slightly decreased in fruits of Conference pear. Polyphenols and free radical scavenging capacity did not show a significant change during storage.


Bayesian emulation has proved to be a useful tool for working with complicated, high dimensional simulators, approximating the simulator's behaviour in a probabilistic way, enabling operations such as prediction or calibration, and therefore providing an ecient approximation to the simulator's representation of the system.
Complex systems, however, are often modelled by several different simulators, each with dierent strengths and weaknesses. Combining them to better understand the system, or comparing their behaviour as functions, is very dicult. This is largely because their input spaces cannot be directly linked.
In this thesis, we present two methods for using emulation to jointly model two simulators, allowing them to be compared. We also introduce two simulators of the ocean carbon cycle, OG99NPZD and HadOCC. The ocean carbon cycle is of interest largely because it concerns the biological processes by which some carbon is stored in the deep ocean. These simulators have dierent input spaces and model the system dierently, and standard emulation proves to be unable to compare them.
The first method for two simulators, hierarchical emulation, works with pairs of simulators for which one is an extension of the other, and therefore whose input spaces are mostly similar. This uses the relationship between the simulators to emulate the more complex as a sum of the simpler simulator and some newly created functions. Validation studies using hierarchical emulators to model two versions of HadOCC show that the hierarchical emulator outperforms the standard methods in modelling both the extended simulator and the dierence between the two.
The second, intermediate variable emulation, makes no constraint on the relationship between the simulators, instead making connections using sub-processes represented in both. This allows the representations of a system by two simulators to be directly compared; the contributions of the dierent sub-processes can be contrasted, and the sub-processes themselves can be used to gain better understanding of the relationship between the two input spaces. Intermediate variable emulators are used to compare OG99NPZD and HadOCC.
Finally, to enable an ecient and robust implementation of these methods, as well as of the standard emulation method, an object-oriented framework for emulation is presented.


In the past 50 years the research into the behavior of ships in seaway has shown a great deal of progress. From analytical solutions of 2-d hydrodynamics as derived by Ursell in 1949 to complex 3-d CFD numerical solutions that can be used nowadays. The first consistent approach for ship motions in time domain was derived by prof. T.F.Ogilvie [] as presented in his seminal paper in Bergen in 1964. Throughout the years however ship hull forms developed and the need for validation of computational procedures for the calculation of the ship motions has never gone away. In this paper we present a selection of results of a benchmark study performed by some 12 companies and universities using their state of the art computational tools. In this benchmark study the results of model tests of a modern container vessel are used. The results presented in this paper show that the panel method as described in this paper, based on the disturbed steady flow, leads to acceptable transfer functions for ship motions. The CFD approach used in this paper also produces acceptable motion transfer functions. However the results from the CFD computation for the internal load transfer functions do show a larger scatter when comparing with the results from model test.Copyright © 2010 by ASME


Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) is a language for describing structured information. It is generally used in the specification of communications protocols. To date, it has primarily been used in the specification of OSI application layer protocols and protocols which use basic encoding rules (BER) and its derivatives as encoding schemes. While it is difficult to understand why ASN.1 has not received more widespread use for protocol specification, one possible explanation is its perceived reliance on BER and its derivatives as encoding schemes. This work attempts to address this misconception by providing mappings for ASN.1 constructs directly onto encoding schemes other than BER. By harnessing the techniques described, ASN.1 can be used to describe new and existing protocols regardless of their encoding scheme. The effectiveness of our techniques is demonstrated using a protocol analyzer (sometimes called a packet analyzer). Protocol analyzers decode and display protocol data units (PDUs). A major limitation of many protocol analyzers is their inability to dynamically incorporate new and proprietary PDUs. A "proof of concept" for the solutions suggested in this paper is provided via a protocol analyzer capable of processing protocols directly from an ASN.1 specification.


Cloud computing promises to increase the velocity with which applications are deployed. Data Compression in cloud computing deals with reducing the storage space and providing privacy for users . Each authorized user is able to get an individual token of their file from duplicate check based on the privileges. Authorized user is able to use his/her individual private keys to generate query and hence attributes are attached along with the file. Attributes are found in the private cloud and hence control immediately passes to the private cloud, where duplicate check is performed. Data stored in the public cloud is accessed only by the authorized users by providing different encryption privilege keys. Convergent and symmetric encryption techniques produce identical cipher text that results in minimum overhead. Proof of reliability assures a verifier via a proof that a user's file is available.


The ubiquitous presence of cylindrical shapes in both natural and man-made environments makes their automated extraction a pivotal task for a broad range of applications such as robot manipulation, reverse engineering and automated industrial inspection. Albeit conceptually simple, the task of fitting cylinders from 3D data can quickly become challenging if performed "in-the-wild", when no prior is given to the number of primitives to find or when the point cloud is noisy and not oriented. In this paper we introduce a new robust approach to iteratively extract cylindrical primitives from a 3D point cloud by exploiting mutual consensus of different cylinder candidates. First, a set of possible axes is generated by slicing the point cloud with multiple random planes. Then, a game-theoretic inlier selection process is performed to extract a subset of axes maximizing the fitness against a payoff function based on the shortest geodesic path in SE(3) between pairs of corresponding 3D lines. Finally, the probability distribution resulting from the previous selection step is used to weight the input candidates and robustly obtain the final cylinder coefficients. Compared to other methods, our approach does not require point normals, offers superior resilience to noise and does not depend on delicate tuning of multiple parameters.


Importance Hypocalcemia is the most common complication after total thyroidectomy and can result in prolonged hospital admissions and increased hospital charges. Objective To determine the effectiveness of preoperative calcium and calcitriol supplementation in reducing hypocalcemia following total thyroidectomy. Design, Setting, and Participants A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a tertiary care center in 65 patients undergoing total thyroidectomy by a single surgeon. Patients were divided into 2 groups: those receiving preoperative as well as postoperative supplementation with calcium carbonate, 1000 to 1500 mg, 3 times daily and calcitriol, 0.25 to 0.5 µg, twice daily, and those receiving only postoperative supplementation with those agents at the same dosages. Data on patients who underwent surgery between January 1, 2008, and December 31, 2011, were acquired, and data analyses were conducted from March through June 2012, and from October through December 2016. Interventions Calcium and calcitriol therapy. Main Outcomes and Measures Postoperative serum calcium levels and development of postoperative hypocalcemia. Results Of the 65 patients who underwent total thyroidectomy 27 (42%) were men; mean (SD) age was 49.7 (16.7) years. Thirty-three patients received preoperative calcium and calcitriol supplementation, and 32 patients received only postoperative therapy. In the preoperative supplementation group, 15 of 33 (45%) patients underwent complete central compartment neck dissection and 11 of 33 (33%) had lateral neck dissection, compared with 16 of 32 (50%) and 12 of 32 (38%), respectively, patients without preoperative supplementation. The mean measured serum calcium level in those without preoperative supplementation vs those with supplementation are as follows: preoperative, 9.6 vs 9.4 mg/dL (absolute difference, 0.16; 95% CI, −0.12 to 0.49 mg/dL); 12 hours postoperative, 8.3 vs 8.6 mg/dL (absolute difference, −0.30; 95% CI,  −0.63 to 0.02 mg/dL); and 24 hours postoperative, 8.4 vs 8.5 mg/dL (absolute difference, −0.13; 95% CI, −0.43 to 0.16 mg/dL). In patients not receiving preoperative supplementation, 5 of 32 (16%) individuals became symptomatically hypocalcemic vs 2 of 33 (6%) in the preoperative supplementation group; an absolute difference of 10% (95% CI, −6.6% to 26.3%). Compared with the group not receiving preoperative supplementation, the mean [SD] length of stay was significantly shorter in the preoperative supplementation group (3.8 [1.8] vs 2.9 [1.4] days; absolute difference, −0.9; 95% CI, −1.70 to −0.105 days). Preoperative supplementation resulted in an estimated $2819 savings in charges per patient undergoing total thyroidectomy. Conclusions and Relevance Preoperative calcium and calcitriol supplementation, in addition to routine postoperative supplementation, was associated with a reduced incidence of symptomatic hypocalcemia, length of hospital stay, and overall charges following total thyroidectomy.


Class III multidrug resistance P-glycoproteins, Mdr2 in mice and MDR3 in human, are canalicular phospholipid translocators involved in biliary phospholipid (phosphatidylcholine) excretion. The role of an ABCB4 gene defect in liver disease has been initially proven in a subtype of progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis called PFIC3, a severe pediatric liver disease that may require liver transplantation. Several ABCB4 mutations have been identified in children with PFIC3 and are associated with low level of phospholipids in bile leading to a high biliary cholesterol saturation index. ABCB4 mutations are associated with loss of canalicular MDR3 protein and /or loss of protein function. There is evidence that a biallelic or monoallelic ABCB4 defect causes or predisposes to several human liver diseases (PFIC3, low phospholipid associated cholelithiasis syndrome, intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy, drug-induced liver injury, transient neonatal cholestasis, adult biliary fibrosis, or cirrhosis). Most patients with MDR3 deficiency have a favorable outcome with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) therapy, but some PFIC3 patients who do not respond to UDCA treatment still require liver transplantation. The latter should be good candidates for a targeted pharmacologic approach and/or to cell therapy in the future.


ABSTRACT In order to evaluate the validity of the modified McLaren model for sand transport on a tidal sand bank, 42 grab samples taken from the northern part of the Kwintebank were decalcified, sieved, and analyzed for statistical parameters. The areal distribution of mean grain size, standard deviation, and skewness were defined and used to determine the residual transport directions. The grain-size trends taken into consideration were that the sediment becomes finer, better sorted, and more negatively skewed along the transport pathways (F,B,-) and the sediment becomes coarser, better sorted, and more positively skewed along the transport pathways (C,B,+). These were compared with the transport paths inferred from bedform asymmetries obtained by side-scan sonar records. There were major differences between the sediment transport paths resulting from the two techniques. When the F,B,- trend and small dune asymmetries are compared, only 5 out of 24 cases showed agreement (±30°), whereas in 9 cases, the trends were 180° ± 30° different. There was even less agreement between the (C,B,+) trend and the asymmetry of the small dunes: only 1 out of 24 cases agreed ±30°, and almost half of the cases were 90° ± 30° different. The sediment transport directions deduced from the morphological analysis of the large dunes all point in the direction of the peak flood current. The large dunes seem to be more suitable indicators of the sediment transport paths than the small ones. However, they conflict with the vectors resulting from the (F,B,-) trend. Only one out of 20 cases agrees ±30°, while in 13 cases the vectors are 180° ± 30° different, and in three cases 90° ± 30°. Neither do the transport directions from the (C,B,+) trend agree with those deduced from the large dunes. Only one case agrees ±30°, while in four out of 20 cases the vectors point in opposite directions. In four cases the vectors are 90° ± 30° different. The asymmetric cross section of the sand bank suggests sediment transport in a northwest direction. It does not seem probable, however, that sediment transport occurs by migration of the whole sand bank. The transport directions inferred from the bank morphology are quite different from the (F,B,-) trend. In 12 out of 42 cases, the vectors agree ±30°, in four cases the vectors point in opposite directions, and in 15 cases they are 90° ± 30° different. There is slightly more agreement between the (C,B,+) trend and the transport directions deduced from the sand bank. 16 out of 42 cases agree ±30°, in nine cases the vectors point in opposite directions, and three cases are 90° ± 30° different. From this study it seems that the residual sediment transport directions can best be deduced from the morphological characteristics of the large dunes. The departures between the results of the sediment trend analysis according to the modified McLaren model and the morphology of the subaqueous bedforms are partly explained by the location of the study area near the edge of the sand bank. Probably better results of the sediment trend analysis would be obtained if samples over the whole length of the sand bank were analyzed and compared. Perhaps a smaller spacing between the samples would improve the results as well, and maybe the samples should not have been decalcified. Possibly the different transport patterns are attributed to different sediment transport processes, which makes a comparison virtually impossible.


Placental insufficiency means insufficient exchange or metabolic efficiency of this organ for the growing foetus. The placenta should not be considered as an isolated, autonomically functioning organ but rather as an integral part of a maternofoetal or foetoplacental functional unit. The extension of the concept "placental insufficiency syndrome" is in line with such a concept. Pathophysiologically we can differentiate between three main froms of insufficiency: 1. haemodynamic placental insufficiency, 2. insufficiency of the placental membrane, 3. cellular parenchymatous insufficiency. The haemodynamic placental insufficiency must be considered as an overriding principle of the insufficiency of all partial functions of the placenta. It is probable that the intrauterine growth of the foetus depends mainly on the placental blood flow factors, the oxygen uptake appearing to be the actually limiting factor. For clinical purposes it is advisable to follow the well-tried principle of dividing the placental insufficiency syndrome into three parts, namely, a chronic, a subchronic and an acute form. The possibilities of early detection, of clinical diagnosis, prevention and treatment of placental insufficiency are discussed.


Violence against women occurs in all countries and transcends social, economic, religious, and cultural groups. One of the most common forms of violence against women is violence by their husbands or other intimate male partners. Over the past two decades, violence by an intimate partner has been identified throughout the world as a serious physical and mental health concern. In the Muslim community, spousal violence has become one of the main issues of concern due to different interpretations of Islamic teaching on gender roles between men and women within varying historical and cultural contexts. Misinterpretation of the Qur'anic injunctions within the cultural context of some Muslim communities resulted in the justification of the men's abusive acts towards their spouses. In Malaysia, various laws have been enacted to curb the current problem of domestic violence including spousal violence. This paper seeks to examine the rights of Muslim women in Malaysia in particular, against spousal violence under the Syariah (In Malay language, Shari'ah is known as Syariah) and the Malaysian Laws and discuss to what extent these laws are adequate in controlling the problem of spousal violence in Malaysia. The paper also briefly highlights the issue of marital rape in Islam and whether or not it should be classified as a form of spousal violence. Finally, the paper discusses some possible recommendations as to the relevant legislation and other legal measures that may spur improvement to the present situation in reducing the number of spousal violence cases in the country.


The present study reports on the effect of glucagon on the excretion of ioglycamate in experimental intravenous cholangiography on dogs. Glucagon increased the bile flow rate highly significantly (p < 0.001). At the same time the concentration of the contrast medium decreased highly significantly (p < 0.001). The biliary tree output of the contrast medium also increased, this increase was not statistically significant. This investigation suggests that glucagon seems to have effect on the bile flow as well as on the output of contrast medium in experimental cholangiography.


Within-twin differences for crown-root length and eruption of the mandibular buccal teeth were examined for 14 DZ and 14 MZ like-sexed twins discordant for cleft of lip and/or palate. The differences were found to be greater between DZ twins than between MZ and seldom statistically significant. Relatively large variances associated with the differences are attributed to widely varying levels of postnatal care for this sample. The within-twin differences were also analyzed according to type of cleft. Cleft of lip only was found to have a lesser effect on root-crown length and percent eruption differenes than cleft or palate (or cleft of lip and palate) although again not a statistically significant difference. Height and weight were found to follow a similar pattern including large variances associated with the within-twin differences. It is therefore concluded that a dysmorphogenic effect of clefting on crown-root length, eruption, height and weight cannot be demonstrated in this sample because of large associated variances due in turn to varying levels of post-natal health care and multiple other aspects of the syndrome.


Computer base and simulation technique have been applied for modeling the semi-solid die filling and part of the solidification process of aluminum A356 alloy. A fairly simple one-phase rheological model has been implemented into a fluid flow finite element software Procast, to solve the partial differential equations. This model is purely viscous nature and is implemented in the power law cut-off model of Procast. The constitutive parameters of this model were determined for a rheocast A356 alloy. Using these parameters and comparing the simulation results with experimental data showed good correlation with the model prediction. The designed die for rheocasting was applied for the production of a small propeller with thin section.


ABSTRACT This article is an attempt to answer a number of questions asked in the literature on radicalization and extremism: What motivates foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) from Turkey to join the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)? In what kind of environment does violent extremism become the choice for Turkish nationals to join ISIS in Syria and Iraq? How can Turkish nationals who join ISIS be profiled in terms of their socio-economic and cultural traits and how do these traits compare people from other nations who join and fight in terrorist organizations? Though their numbers remained minimal compared to the overall population, how can we explain the case of Turkish FTFs, when a peaceful and tolerant 'Anatolian/Sufi Islam' has reigned in the country and Muslims are well integrated in the social, economic, and political life of the country under the 13-year long rule of Islamic-oriented Justice and Development Party (AK Party)? What do these answers to these questions mean for Turkish Islam and possible de-radicalization programs? These questions will be addressed by semi-structured interviews conducted both with Turkish FTFs who have joined ISIS and with family members of some of those who have returned from fighting with ISIS.


We investigated the changes in stand structure, nutrient distribution and various soil factors during the transition from herbaceous to forest vegetation in two successional sequences on the island of Schiermonnikoog.
A previous study indicated nitrogen to be an important limiting factor during the early stages of these successional series. Phosphorus limitation is likely to occur in (more) later stages of succession. Although we found a dramatically increasing C/P ratio in the soil along both sequences, we do not yet have further evidence for the occurrence of phosphorus limitation. The nitrogen fixing shrub Hippophae rhamrioides is likely to have a strong influence on the accumulation speed of nitrogen in the dune sequence.
During primary succession an increasing nutrient availability causes a shift in the allocation pattern of plants. A higher proportion of the production will be allocated to plant organs with a lower maintenance requirement. We discuss a model dealing with changes in biomass of several stand compartments caused by a change in resource availability. We compared the changes in biomass and nutrient contents of several compartments during primary succession from bare soil to plain- or dune forest with the trends resulting from the model. We suggest two causes of the increase in biomass, the increasing productivity which is the result of a decreasing relative allocation to the root system and a decreasing specific respiration for the whole vegetation.
For both sequences the maximum amount of root per square meter was found in the 28 year old stage. This indicates, according to the model, a shift in allocation from plant organs with a high maintenance to plant organs with low maintenance driven by an increased nutrient availability.


ABSTRACT The paper looks at how protest politics has developed in Western Europe since the 1970s and how these developments are related to changes in electoral politics. We take up arguments on the two-fold restructuration of political conflict and its different impact on protest and electoral politics. Most importantly, we highlight that the second wave of political change sweeping across Western Europe since the 1990s with increasing conflicts over immigration and European integration left different marks on protest politics as compared to electoral politics. We argue that this difference reflects the driving forces of change and their preferences for specific political arenas, as the momentum shifted from the libertarian left to the populist radical right. More specifically, the results indicate that challengers from the left and challengers from the right follow different logics when it comes to the interplay of protest and electoral mobilization. Empirically, we rely on two large-scale protest event datasets as well as on data on electoral results and campaigns from the 1970s to 2015.


As a traditional mode, Mass Production in real estate development is having changed to Housing Mass Customization. It is considered that not only production formalization and demand personalization could be combined with well by HMC mode,but also the separation degree between housing supplies and housing demand could be decreased in a great extent. The traditional pricing methods ,such as market comparison approach ,discounted cash flow and cost approximation, are not suitable for determining the price of residential development project produced by housing mass customization mode. In the paper, market behavior of HMC project is analyzed, and it is found that forward contracts theory can be applied to determine the HMC project price. In the finial, an appropriate pricing method is put forward .


We show that characteristics of stock issuers can be used to forecast important common factors in stocks returns such as those associated with book-to-market, size, and industry. Specifically, we use differences between the attributes of stock issuers and repurchasers to forecast characteristic-related factor returns. For example, we show that large firms underperform following years when issuing firms are large relative to repurchasing firms. While our strongest results are for portfolios based on book-to-market, size (i.e., we forecast the HML and SMB factors), and industry, our approach is also useful for forecasting factor returns associated with distress, payout policy, and profitability.


Arbitrariness and systematicity are two of language's most fascinating properties. Although both are characterizations of the mappings between signals and meanings, their emergence and evolution in communication systems has generally been explored independently. We present an experiment in which both arbitrariness and systematicity are probed. Participants invent signs from scratch to refer to a set of items that share salient semantic features. Through interaction, the systematic re-use of arbitrary signal elements emerges.


1409 Retrieval Number: A2406059120/2020©BEIESP DOI:10.35940/ijrte.A2406.059120 Published By: Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering & Sciences Publication Abstract. Building codes and regulations for construction in seismic regions of many countries (including Uzbekistan) require that the floors slabs and elements of a building should possess resistance to seismic impacts, have such functions that not only distribute seismic load between the supporting elements of the building (walls, crossbars and frame columns), but also ensure the spatial operation of the building as a result of reliable bracing of these elements. Therefore, floor slabs made of reinforced concrete prefabricated elements must present rigid horizontal diaphragms (disks) that uniformly distribute seismic loads between load-bearing structures. To fulfill the above requirements, the building standards of Uzbekistan KMK 2.01.03-96 "Construction in seismic areas" oblige designers to provide the strength and rigidity of floors slabs of buildings (structures) by installation the anti-seismic bracings in inter-slab joints between the side surfaces of adjacent slabs; between the end supporting sections of slabs and the frame elements or the anti-seismic belts of stone buildings. The same standards require the presence of free lengths of reinforcement bars or concrete inserts at the ends of slabs for connecting floor slabs with each other and with an anti-seismic belt (or a framing beam); these requirements apply to the production of floor slabs using the aggregate-flow technology. An installation of bracing elements for hollow-core slabs of formwork-free shaping with adjacent structures is not provided since the slabs of a set length are fabricated on a production line by cutting a molded monolithic tape on the line. In this regard, hollow-core slabs of formwork-free shaping must have anti-seismic joint units that provide the bearing capacity of building structures of various systems at the stages of their life cycle. Typical solutions of such units for hollow-core slabs of formwork-free shaping have not been developed. An anchor node with a unit in the void at the end section of the slab has been developed for the anti-seismic bracing of a hollow-core floor slab of formwork-free shaping with adjacent building structures (through a seismic belt or a framing beam). For anti-seismic bracing in inter-slab joints between the lateral surfaces of adjacent floor slabs, a constructive solution is proposed for the cross section of a hollow-core slab of formwork-free shaping with a widened lower flange relative to the upper flange to install a reinforced concrete framing beam in the inter-slab joints. This creates a rigid disk in the building floors. Tests for pulling out anchor rods from nodes arranged in voids at the end sections of a hollow-core slab of formwork-free shaping assessed the strength and serviceability of the proposed antiseismic coupling units. The pulling out of the anchor rods in all tested units occurred before the loss of cohesive strength in the contact zone "concrete of the body of anchor unit concrete of the slab". The use of hollow-core slabs of formwork-free shaping with a widened lower flange relative to the upper flange greatly simplifies the installation of reinforced concrete framing beams in the inter-slab joints of buildings. A useful model was patented in the Intellectual Property Agency of the Republic of Uzbekistan; a constructive solution was proposed for a hollow-core slab of formwork-free shaping with a widened lower flange relative to the upper flange, application number FAP20180174 with priority date 11/08/2018. The proposed solutions for the anti-seismic ties of a hollow-core slab of formwork-free shaping with a building structure meet the requirements of the building codes of Uzbekistan KMK 2.01.03-96 "Construction in seismic areas" for transforming a floor slab made from prefabricated plates into a continuous beam slab to create a rigid horizontal diaphragm. The arrangement of the proposed anti-seismic connecting units in a hollow-core slab of formwork-free shaping does not change the manufacturing technology of this type of slabs, and allows the creation of a wide range of products for buildings and structures with various architectural, planning and structural solutions that increase the possibilities of housing, civil and industrial construction in seismic areas.


Alpha forecasting for hedge funds is much less reliable than beta forecasting, which explains the proliferation of mostly risk-based portfolio construction processes for alternatives. When implementing those processes, investors are faced with certain strategic choices, including choosing the long-term level of market exposure, or beta, on the portfolio level. There is no universal guidance that drives that choice. That said, the authors have found that for a particular—and quite popular—form of the investment objective, one can develop such guidance, derive analytical expressions for the correct level of market exposure, and create a practical portfolio construction framework that directly links the investment objectives and portfolio choice. TOPICS: Real assets/alternative investments/private equity, portfolio construction, performance measurement


Background Exposure to inhaled smoke, pollutants, volatile organic compounds, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the firefighting environment has been associated with detrimental respiratory and cardiovascular effects, making firefighters a unique population with both personal and occupational risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Some of these exposures are also associated with development of atrial fibrillation. We aimed to study the association of atrial fibrillation and occupational exposure in firefighters. Methods and Results A cross‐sectional survey was conducted between October 2018 and December 2019. Data were gathered electronically and stored in a secure REDCap database through Louisiana State University Health Shreveport. Firefighters who were members of at least 1 of 5 preselected professional organizations were surveyed via electronic links distributed by the organizations. The survey queried the number of fires fought per year as a measure of occupational exposure, as well as self‐reported cardiovascular disease. A total of 10 860 active firefighters completed the survey, of whom 93.5% were men and 95.5% were aged ≤60 years. Firefighters who fought a higher number of fires per year had a significantly higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation (0–5 fires per year 2%, 6–10 fires per year 2.3%, 11–20 fires per year 2.7%, 21–30 fires per year 3%, 31 or more fires per year 4.5%; P<0.001). Multivariable logistic regression showed that a higher number of fires fought per year was associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation (odds ratio 1.14 [95% CI, 1.04–1.25]; P=0.006). Conclusions Firefighters may have an increased risk of atrial fibrillation associated with the number of fires they fight per year. Further clinical and translational studies are needed to explore causation and mechanisms.


The conventional k-means algorithms are sensitive to the initial cluster centers, and tend to be trapped by local optima. To resolve these problems, a novel k-means clustering algorithm using enhanced differential evolution technique is proposed in this paper. This algorithm improves the global search ability by applying Laplace mutation operator and exponentially increasing crossover probability operator. Numerical experiments show that this algorithm overcomes the disadvantages of the conventional k-means algorithms, and improves search ability with higher accuracy, faster convergence speed and better robustness.


Task_D of the DECOVALEX_THMC project focus on predictive analysis of the long-term coupled processes(up to 10,000 years) in two generic repositories, FEBEX type and Yucca Mountain Project type for comparison. To better understand the coupled THM processes and their influence on the system behavior, we have introduced a set of generic coupled THM governing equations. Basing on these equations, we develop simplified models according to given Task_D model inception phase request. Boiling model and empirical bentonite swelling model are introduced into general simulation which makes model more practical. Our numerical code FRT-THM upon this practical models is developed and used in two BMT case study of Task_D. Simulation results are shown and verified in the 3rd and 4th workshop of DECOVALEX_THMC in 2005. There is a good agreement with results of different participant teams which enhances confidence in prediction of coupled THM processes.


: PSYCHIATRISTS SHOULD REVISIT THE ISSUE OF HOW TO ASSESS, OBJECTIVELY AND reliably, patients' cognitive status. Cognitive disorders, like ADHD (attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder), and the various dementias are increasing in importance, and perhaps in number. The modern study of schizophrenia has focused on cognition as an outcome predictor; even the mood disorders can be associated, over time, with cognitive impairment. And with so many perfectly good drug alternatives in every therapeutic category, medications might be differentiated by virtue of their comparative effects on cognition. The best reason, however, is this: in clinical practice, cognitive assessment is either gross and insensitive or arduous and inordinately expensive.


Background/context Google Glass made headlines when released in April 2013. The 'connected' headset with embedded 'heads up display' quickly found applications in the healthcare world and became a worldwide technological status symbol due to costing over £1000 and only being available from the United States. The HILS Technical Team pursued obtaining Google Glass long and hard, with several setbacks, but though hard work, convincing pitches and determination eventually acquired one. Description of innovation or topic The HILS Technical team saw opportunities that other clinical staff may not have, and wanted to pursue improvements in training that were born from inside the team, rather than simply assisting with other people's projects. Our innovation would be to procure, implement and evaluate a new technology of our own choosing. Improvements/outcomes (anticipated or recorded) We expect our improvements to be in two areas- To have introduced a new technology into training, making an improvement to the level of engagement in simulation activity. To have initiated a full cycle of investigation, procurement, implementation and evaluation from within the team, building the knowledge and confidence to direct our expertise to other such projects in the future. Take home messages That technical members of staff can contribute in more ways than typically thought of That with determination and persistence one can reach their goals Domestic technology can have healthcare implications


Mesoporous MCM-41 has been synthesized by sol-gel method at room temperature possessing good thermal stability, high surface area as well as retention of surface area at high temperature. The MCM-41 neutral framework has been modified and put to practical use. Al 3+ has been incorporated in the siliceous MCM-41 framework and 12TPA (12-Tungstophosphoric acid) anchored onto MCM-41 by process of anchoring and calcination to induce Bronsted acidity in MCM-41 to yield Al-MCM-41 and 12TPA-MCM-41, respectively. The synthesized materials have been characterized for elemental analysis, ICP-AES, XRD, SEM, TEM, EDX, FTIR and TGA. Surface area has been determined by BET method and pore size and pore size distribution determined by BJH method. Surface acidity has been evaluated by NH3-TPD method. The potential use of Al-MCM-41 and 12TPA-MCM-41 as solid acid catalysts has been explored and compared by studying Friedel-Crafts alkylation and acylation as model reactions. Friedel-Crafts acylation of anisole and veratrole with acetic anhydride and alkylation of toluene with benzyl chloride have been performed to obtain 4-methoxy acetophenone (4-MA), 3,4-dimethoxy acetophenone (3,4-DMA) and parabenzyltoluene (PBT), respectively under solvent free condition, and several parameters such as catalyst amount, reaction time, reaction temperature, mole ratio of reagents, etc.


In recent years, the clinical management of patients with idiopathic cholestatic liver disease has shown significant progress. Advancement of diagnostic and therapeutic approaches and better understanding of the pathophysiology underlying these diseases have all contributed considerably to this progress. In this review, we aim to touch briefly on several developments that have occurred in this regard and to discuss novel findings and interventions valuable to clinical practice.


Background Playing soccer at professional level may induce functional and structural adaptations of the neuro-musculoskeletal system based on soccer specific movement coordination due to continuous asymmetrical loadings. This may predispose young athletes in particular to pathologic conditions and increased injury risk at early stages within their careers. Objective The purpose was to quantify the static standing profile. It was hypothesized that the alignment differs between limbs (footedness) and age groups. Design Experimental, prospective cohort study. Setting Biomechanical assessment in clinical practice. Patients (or Participants) 102 uninjured male elite junior soccer players aged between 16 and 19 years old reporting no former joint injury. Interventions (or Assessment of Risk Factors) Three-dimensional motion capture (SIMI Motion 3D) analysing the static standing profile. Main Outcome Measurements 3D kinematic data of the thoracic (TH 12) and lumbar spine (L3), pelvis and hips, knees and ankles bilateral, comprising 27 variables. Results Kinematic data indicate age-specific differences for the amount of thoracic extension, knee adduction and external rotation of the supporting leg (p<0.05). Side-specific adaptations can be proven for functional scoliosis at the thoracolumbar junction and height of iliac crest (p<0.05). K-means analyses show significant differences for hip abduction and external rotation for the kicking leg (p<0.05). By means of correspondence analysis U19 players can be associated with lumbar scoliosis, knee varus for the supporting leg and knee valgus for the kicking leg. Conclusions The older the players, the more complex the functional postural adaptations. The results provide plausible explanations for increased injury risk of ACL injuries on the kicking leg, groin pain, and the need for more sophisticated injury prevention programs. From a methodological point of view, comprehensive 3D-static analysis using appropriate statistical analyses seems to be well suited for the assessment of postural deviations for large scale cohorts.


PURPOSE: Lean mass is indicative of an individual's overall health, as low levels are associated with issues including sarcopenia and increased hospital length of stay. Converting lean mass to a lean mass index (LMI) allows for comparison of individuals of different heights. Four population-based studies have been done to establish fat free mass index (FFMI) percentiles. However, none have had American subjects, with the exception of a small study that utilized an uncommon body composition method. Therefore, the purposes of this study were: 1) to establish a LMI for American adult males, 2) to compare the results to previous studies, and 3) to compare LMI between age categories of this population. METHODS: Subjects were 642 men, 18 to 75 yrs of age (x = 29.6 ± 12.4 yrs), who had DXA body composition testing at the Fitness Institute of Texas. LMI was calculated as lean mass/height2. Cumulative relative frequency analysis was performed to create indices for three age categories: 18-22 (G1), 23-39 (G2), and 40+ (G3) yrs of age. LMI values for each age category were compared using ANOVA. To compare the results to those of existing studies, FFMI percentiles were calculated using age groups of 18-34 and 34-59 yrs. RESULTS: Age group LMI percentile graphs were created. Mean LMI was higher in G2 (19.6 ± 2.3 kg/m2) and G3 (19.8 ± 2.3 kg/m2) than in G1 (18.5 ± 2.1 kg/m2) (P<0.05), but there was no difference between G2 and G3 (P>0.05). FFMI percentile results from this study were similar to previous studies, except the FFMI values above the 50th percentile were greater in the 35-59 yr olds in the current study, as shown in Figure 1. CONCLUSIONS: The LMI percentile graphs, generated from a large cohort, provide a validated reference for health care professionals and clients. Contrary to expectations, FFMI did not decrease with age for this population. The FFMI percentile values were similar to those of previously published studies. Figure 1: Comparison of FFMI among five studies with male subjects, ages 18-59. 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 5 10 15 25 50 75 85 90 Percentile Comparison of FFMI: 18-34 Years UT Schutz Kim Vanitallie Coin 20-29 Coin 30-39 K g / m 2 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 5 10 15 25 50 75 85 90 95 Percentile Comparison of FFMI: 35-59 Years UT Schutz Kim VanItallie Coin 40-49 Coin 50-59


An innovative methodology for the development of a commercial low-power single-phase transformerless inverter for grid connected photovoltaic (PV) systems is described. Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) tools like MATLAB/Simulink™, PLECS™ and dSpace/TargetLink™ allow fundamental steps, such as: physical modeling and simulations, innovative control algorithms design and testing, preliminary hardware evaluation, parameter optimization and auto-generation of C-code for real-time SW implementation. A final on-site test of the real product shows the accuracy of the previous analysis.


The paper is devoted to the comparative analysis of some sparse approximation methods.
The first part of the paper describes general sparse approximation problem and two main
approaches solved it. Classification of testing pursuit algorithm is illustrated. Features of
the methods application to geoacoustic emission signals are considered in the second part.
The sparseness, accuracy and runtime of described pursuit algorithms are compared.


Bibliographic databases consist of records of publications and many are now available for online computer searching as well as being used in the production of abstracting and indexing journals. The three major online databases of interest to geologists are GeoRef (produced by the American Geological Institute), GeoArchive (produced by Geosystems, London), and the earth sciences subfile of PASCAL (produced by the Centre de Documentation Scientifique et Technique, CNRS, Paris). Online searching is very much quicker than manual searching of abstracting journals and allows more complex and complete searches to be carried out. The costs involved in online searching include database access fees, telecommunications charges, and the cost of equipment and staff time. The Science Reference Library runs a publicly available online search service with access to over 50 scientific and technical databases. 1000 searches were carried out in the last financial year.


EDITORIAL
Alginate is formed of the mannuronate (M-block) and residues of guluronate (G-block) organized in intermittent blocks in linear chain. Currently, the source of alginate is the cell wall of the brown seaweeds (Saude and Junter, 2002), where they are found as mixed salts of Ca, Na and K with alginic acid (Clementi et al., 1995). Alginate obtained from various algae sp. or among several sections in the same algae has different amount of these salts (Sabra, 1998). Alginate can be produced from the brown seaweeds and from bacteria (Donati and Paoletti, 2009).
At present the giant brown kelp M. pyrifera is the origin for commercial production of alginate. As commercial production of alginate is limited to few species of brown algae regarding abundance, location and uniform quality, the search for alternative bacterial alginate is need of the hour. Some prokaryotic microbes of two genera like Azotobacter sp. (Gorin and Spencer, 1966) and Pseudomonas (Cote and Krull, 1988; Moral and Yildiz, 2016) have ability to produce alginate. The alginate produced by Azotobacter vinelandii has similar blocks of monomer residues to that of alginate produced by seaweeds (Steinbuchel et al., 2001).
Various bacterial species are capable to produce alginate and most important among them are Pseudomonas sp. and Azotobacter sp. Many studies on molecular mechanisms of alginate biosynthesis by bacteria have been done on Pseudomonas aeruginosa which is the opportunistic human pathogen and Azotobacter which is the soil dwelling bacteria. Even though these two bacteria (Pseudomonas and Azotobacter), secrete alginate in nature by using the same molecular mechanism. Both bacterial species Azotobacter and Pseudomonas synthesize the alginate in vegetatively growing cells as an extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) (Steinbuchel et al., 2001). It has been documented that alginate obtained from Pseudomonas lack G blocks (Skjak-Braek et al., 1986) whereas alginate obtained from Azotobacter may have these blocks. There are reports about the development of thick highly structured biofilms from alginate produced by mucoid strains of P. aeruginosa (Hay et al., 2009), whereas Azotobacter produce the stiffer alginate with usually a greater amounts of G residues. These G residues remains closely linked with the cell permitting the development of desiccation resistant cysts (Sabra and Zeng, 2009). The monomer composition and molecular weight of alginates are known to have effects on their properties (Urtuvia et al., 2017).
There have been investigations about biosynthesis of bacterial alginate, their potential uses in applications requiring distinct substantial possessions (Hay et al., 2013). There are various characteristics including high molecular mass and the negative charge of bacterial alginate that confirm its hydrated and viscous nature. The broad distribution of Azotobacter and Azospirillum in various surroundings, such as water, soil and residues make it ecologically important. The broad metabolic diversity of Azotobacter spp. and Azospirillum spp. has made it capable of degrading different highly resistant substrates for increase in plant yield by increasing fixed nitrogen in the soil (Ashraf, 2016). There has been a partial association of alginate biosynthesis with the growth of bacteria.


Investigation of the multilayer 6H(n+)/3C(n)/6H(p+)-SiC heterostructure grown by sublimation epitaxy show that the injection electroluminescence (IEL) in the green region (hνmax≈2.30-2.35eV) of spectrum is dominant. This band is close to the electroluminescence peak due to defects in 6H-SiC but also can be due to free exciton annihilation in a quantum well in 3C-SiC at the 6H/3C-SiC heterointerface. At high current the IEL peak at hνmax≈2.9 eV is found. This peak (and also two another peaks in blue part of spectra: hνmax≈2.6 eV and hνmax≈2.72 eV) can be attributed to recombination in 6H-SiC. The forward current-voltage characteristics for best structures are close to those for ideal 6H-SiC pn homostructure and characterized by abrupt breakdown. A lot of structures are characterized by barrier type excess current. Structure in the region of evident 3C-SiC inclusion is characterized by high forward and reverse excess currents.


In this thesis I show how Aristotle's approach to ethics can be applied to aesthetics in order to address normative concerns relating to practices of artistic creation and spectatorship, and how R. G. Collingwood's philosophy of art provides an understanding of these practices that works as a basis for such an approach. I begin by discussing the connection between aesthetic and ethical normativity as found in the thought of various prominent philosophers, and review the contemporary work done in the name of 'virtue aesthetics'. I then explicate Aristotle's ethics, with a particular focus on his definition of virtue and his discussion of practical wisdom, and give an overview of Collingwood's understanding of art and the role of imagination in artistic expression and understanding, before synthesizing the structure of Aristotle's ethics with the content of Collingwood's philosophy of art in order to arrive at an outline of a Collingwoodian virtue aesthetics.


The costs for FDA approval are considered research and development costs. The FASB has never mentioned FDA approval costs in their pronouncements and therefore the method of treatment for these costs was uncertain. The purpose of this paper is to determine what the treatment of FDA approval costs should be and if that method is consistent with the treatment of research and development expenses. The main concern being whether to expense the costs or capitalize the costs as assets. The accounting rules were examined regarding research and development costs, and the definition of FDA costs was determined. Data from companies who incur research, development, and FDA costs was examined to determine what type of treatment they used. After gathering this information, I combined and compared it to determine that the most cornmon, if not only treatment method used by the companies was to expense research, development, and FDA costs. I ! . . . . . TABLE OF CONTENTS ACCOUNTING FOR FDA APPROVAL COSTS: CAN THEY BE CAPITALIZED?


Particle therapy (PT) has shown positive therapeutic results in local control of locally advanced pancreatic lesions. PT effectiveness is highly influenced by target localization accuracy both in space, since the pancreas is located in proximity to radiosensitive vital organs, and in time as it is subject to substantial breathing-related motion. The purpose of this preliminary study was to quantify pancreas range of motion under typical PT treatment conditions. Three common immobilization devices (vacuum cushion, thermoplastic mask, and compressor belt) were evaluated on five male patients in prone and supine positions. Retrospective four-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging data were reconstructed for each condition and the pancreas was manually segmented on each of six breathing phases. A k-means algorithm was then applied on the manually segmented map in order to obtain clusters representative of the three pancreas segments: head, body, and tail. Centers of mass (COM) for the pancreas and its segments were computed, as well as their displacements with respect to a reference breathing phase (beginning exhalation). The median three-dimensional COM displacements were in the range of 3 mm. Latero-lateral and superior-inferior directions had a higher range of motion than the anterior-posterior direction. Motion analysis of the pancreas segments showed slightly lower COM displacements for the head cluster compared to the tail cluster, especially in prone position. Statistically significant differences were found within patients among the investigated setups. Hence a patient-specific approach, rather than a general strategy, is suggested to define the optimal treatment setup in the frame of a millimeter positioning accuracy. PACS number(s): 87.55.-x, 87.57.nm, 87.61.


There is a continuous demand for low-cost nodular cast irons with improved mechanical properties, this being an industrial requirement both for pearlitic as well as for ferritic grades. Developments in pearlitic nodular irons should lead to alloys with higher and higher strength while retaining some ductility in the as-cast state so as to respond to demands related to castings for high power automotive engines in competition with steel castings and ADI. According to these aims, several alloying elements have been selected and added separately or combined to standard commercial nodular cast irons. In all cases, only low-level additions were made and their effects on the microstructure and mechanical properties at room temperature have been characterized and are discussed. A statistical analysis has been performed on the data obtained that accounts for changes in alloying additions as well as for variations in process parameters.


In two studies we explore how different levels of social networking sites (SNSs) use affect the psychological constructs of well-being, social connection, and social capital. Conducting two studies and using a multiday experimental design in both an individualistic (United Kingdom [U.K.]) and a collectivistic (Bulgaria [BG]) society, we investigated differences in the effects of abstaining from SNS use, overuse, and normal use. Participants (U.K. n = 116; BG. n = 120) in the two within-subject studies reported on connectedness and two types of social capital (bridging; bonding), and their well-being, on days in which they had lower use of social media, used it as normal, or overused it. Results revealed no significant differences on well-being scores across the three conditions for the U.K. and Bulgaria. Social connection and bonding social capital significantly decreased on lower use days in the U.K. sample. These effects were not replicated in the Bulgarian sample. Findings did not indicate significant differences on the scores for bridging social capital across the three levels of SNS use for the participants from the U.K. and from Bulgaria. For the U.K. sample, social connection, in particular, served as an independent mediator linking lower use days to lower well-being, in contrast with normal use days. Suddenly lowering one's social media use might lead to people experiencing less connected to others, thus impacting their well-being. However, overuse of SNS platforms is still underexplored, thus people should regulate their SNS use in an optimal way which best supports their daily lives.


The Disability Discrimination act of 2005 has mandated universities not to discriminate against students on the basis of disability. Thus people who might previously have been excluded, or excluded themselves from a desired profession because of real or perceived difficulties related to impairment are now more likely to apply and to be accepted onto courses. This challenges Higher Education policy on admissions, curriculum design and delivery.

Three funded research projects at Huddersfield and Bradford over the past four years have explored the experience of disabled students entering universities and the specific difficulties of translating inclusive practice and reasonable adjustment into placement settings outside the university.

Two tensions have been highlighted by these projects between:

performance in the relatively safe environment of the university and the world of work

the rights of disabled students to inclusion and the responsibility of the university and placement providers for risk management of public and student safety.

The work has highlighted the need for a structured pre-placement review that helps students to identify their preparedness for placement and the action planning needed to minimise risk, enabling a safe and successful outcome.


VirB1-like proteins are believed to act as lytic transglycosylases, which facilitate the assembly of type IV secretion systems via localized lysis of the peptidoglycan. This paper presents the biochemical analysis of interactions of purified Brucella suis VirB1 with core components of the type IV secretion system. Genes encoding VirB1, VirB8, VirB9, VirB10 and VirB11 were cloned into expression vectors; the affinity-tagged proteins were purified from Escherichia coli, and analyses by gel filtration chromatography showed that they form monomers or homo-multimers. Analysis of protein-protein interactions by affinity precipitation revealed that VirB1 bound to VirB9 and VirB11. The results of bicistron expression experiments followed by gel filtration further supported the VirB1-VirB9 interaction. Peptide array mapping identified regions of VirB1 that interact with VirB8, VirB9 and VirB11 and underscored the importance of the C-terminus, especially for the VirB1-VirB9 interaction. The binding sites were localized on a structure model of VirB1, suggesting that different portions of VirB1 may interact with other VirB proteins during assembly of the type IV secretion machinery.


THE near-field development of turbulent air jets with asymmetric initial velocity distributions is investigated experimentally. The jets emerge from pipes of circular cross section into a still environment. The level of asymmetry of the exit plane mean velocity distribution is controlled by the angle of pipe bend upstream of the exit. Jets with two levels of initial streamwise velocity asymmetry are studied in addition to an axisymmetric jet emerging from a straight pipe. The-Reynolds number based on exit bulk velocity and pipe diameter is 13,500. Streamwise velocity measurements, using hot-wire anemometry, indicate that the near-field turbulence structure is significantly modified by the skewed velocity distribution. On the plane of symmetry, higher levels of initial velocity skewness lead to increased disparity of turbulence intensity and unequal rate of growth on the two sides of the jet. Furthermore, higher rates of maximum velocity decay and jet growth are attained with the initially asymmetric jets. The increase in jet spread rate on the symmetry plane is found to distort the initially round cross-sectional shape of the jets beyond 10 pipe diameters from the exit plane.


The knee-jerk reaction for most companies in financial peril is to replace their current CEO with an industry insider who "really knows the business." However, insiders often make the same mistakes as their predecessors. Industry outsiders enter a company with a fresh pair of eyes and a number of other advantages. In many cases, industry knowledge is not what a company needs; it9s decisive leadership and vision. This article explores the edge outsiders bring, including immunity to old modes of thought, the ability to float above corporate politics, and fresh credibility.


A soft-cores design reuse methodology requires a hierarchical database approach and a new wave of specific tools for exploiting them in heterogeneous and network distributed frameworks. The differences between soft-cores, particularly VHDL ones, and software-like build and reuse processes set up the platform for proposing the VHDL-ICE environment as one feasible solution for an adequate adoption of the proposed approach. The availability of frameworks like this for supporting EDA on the Internet will ease the establishment of a mature adoption of soft-core design reuse in the intranets and the Internet, as part of a semiconductor knowledge management policy.


The introduction of new services requiring large and dynamic bitrate connectivity can cause changes in the direction of the traffic in metro and even core network segments throughout the day. This leads to large overprovisioning in statically managed virtual network topologies (VNTs), which are designed to cope with the traffic forecast. To reduce expenses while ensuring the required grade of service, in this paper we propose a VNT reconfiguration approach based on data analytics for traffic prediction (VENTURE). It regularly reconfigures the VNT based on the predicted traffic, thus adapting the topology to both the current and the predicted traffic volume and direction. A machine learning algorithm based on an artificial neural network is used to provide robust and adaptive traffic models. The reconfiguration problem that takes as its input the traffic prediction is modeled mathematically, and a heuristic is proposed to solve it in practical times. To support VENTURE, we propose an architecture that allows collecting and storing data from monitoring at the routers and that is used to train predictive models for every origin-destination pair. Exhaustive simulation results of the algorithm, together with the experimental assessment of the proposed architecture, are finally presented.


In 1961, Ghadimi, Partington and Hunter reported increased levels of histidine in both the urine and plasma of two sisters. This was followed in 1962 by a report from Auerbach, DiGeorge, Baldridge, Tourtellotte and Brigham of a girl with increased histidine levels. The urine of all three cases gave a reaction to ferric chloride similar to that seen in phenylketonuria, but chromatographic studies indicated that histidine was the only amino acid being excreted in excess. Auerbach et al. (1962) showed in their case a defect in the conversion of histidine to urocanic acid, probably due to a lack of histidase activity. This report concerns a case of histidinaemia associated with recurrent infections, retarded growth and a slight degree of mental retardation in a boy with brown hair and brown eyes.


This excerpt from HMOs and the Politics of Health System Reform (Chicago: American Hospital Association and Robert J. Brady Co., 1979) forecasts a period of growth for HMOs due to passage of the 1978 HMO amendments and the commitment of the Carter Administration to HMO development. HMOs have emerged as the most expedient tool to achieve some measure of health system reform.


Inspired by the increasing desire to mimic the perfection of nature, micro- and nanorobots are triggering increasing interest among the scientific community. The development of such tiny machines that can autonomously perform specific and various tasks at a small scale has reached a high-level of complexity over the last 15 years although the transition from hard to soft self-propelled architectures has had the most profound impact. The use of organic components, such as polymers, is of particular interest to fulfill the lack of biocompatibility and biodegradability of inorganic-based microrobots. Additionally, the combination of self-powered micro- and nanorobots with some macromolecules' ability to be deformed and respond to external stimuli is an important topic. This review aims to critically assess the fundamental aspects of smart machines composed of polymers, examine recent advances in the combined systems at the micro- and nanoscale, and discuss the specific contribution of several polymer families. This review elucidates the role of smart polymers in the expanding field of intelligent micromachines.


ABSTRACT Old-growth forests provide unique insight into historical compositions of forests in the eastern United States. Plots established within a mixed forest community within Marshall Forest in Rome, Georgia, in 1960 (and remeasured in 1989) were reassessed to determine changes in forest composition. The community has experienced approximately 10% increase in basal area since the previous measurement period. However, changes in species importance have occurred. Chestnut oak (Quercus montana), mockernut hickory (Carya tomentosa), white oak (Quercus alba), and flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) have all decreased in importance, while pignut hickory (Carya glabra), winged elm (Ulmus alata), yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), and red maple (Acer rubrum) have all increased in importance. Additionally, there are no Pinus spp. saplings in the study area, indicating seedlings are not being recruited into the midstory. These changes indicate continued succession to a composition increasingly dominated by shade-tolerant species. The mixed forest community appears to be transitioning to an oak-hickory community. The assessment of late successional dynamics may help managers of similar forests to determine the best plan of action if they desire to maintain a mixed forest ecosystem.


: To evaluate the prophylactic effectiveness of influenza inactivated chromatographic vaccine, limited epidemiological observations were made on school children aged 11-14 years in Leningrad, in the autumn of 1981 and the spring of 1982. For immunization, made in a single administration, the vaccine composed of A (H3N2) + +A (H1N1) and containing 3.0-3.4 micrograms of hemagglutinin of each component per 0.2 ml of the preparation was used. Altogether 6928 schoolchildren were under observation; of these, 3686 children were immunized and 3242 children received placebo. The results of questioning and the analysis of morbidity rate among the schoolchildren, both immunized and receiving placebo, showed the safety and low reactogenicity of the vaccine irrespective of the time of the immunization campaign. The immunogenic potency of the preparation, as indicated by all observation results, proved to be higher in spring, than in autumn. The data thus obtained indicate that children immunized in spring were better protected and retained a higher level of protection within 12 months after immunization. The shift of the time of the immunization campaign from autumn to spring increased the immune layer in the groups of children by 16.5%. In 10 months after spring immunization the morbidity rate in influenza and acute respiratory diseases among the vaccinees was found to decrease 1.7 times.


Vesicular stomatitis virus is an enveloped virus with an external glycoprotein G and a nucleocapsid that form, together with the M protein, a tight helically coiled structure: the skeleton. Negative staining and immunoelectron microscopy studies on skeleton preparations were performed to determine the localization of the M protein. These studies have resulted in a new model for the structure of rhabdoviruses in which the nucleocapsid is wound around a core containing the M protein. This model predicts contact between M and lipid only at the extreme ends of the skeleton, which is confirmed by skeleton-liposome binding studies.


In Bankruptcy Contracting Reviewed,' Alan Schwartz purports to restate and defend the bankruptcy contracting model he presented in A Contract Theory Approach to Business Bankruptcy.2 What he in fact does is abandon key assumptions of the original model and substitute new ones. The resulting new model is driven by reputational constraints neither present nor possible in the original model. Yet it works no better than the original. The linchpin of Schwartz's response is his insistence that his original model contained an unstated assumption prohibiting debtor firms from lying. In the context of Schwartz's model, the effect of the new assumption is to bar the debtor from strategic behavior at the contracting stage-an implausibility in the context of bankruptcy. To fit this new assumption to his original model, Schwartz had to make new supporting assumptions that he ultimately could not reconcile with the original model. In addition, as Schwartz has filled in more of the details of his model, other problems of inconsistency and incompleteness have come into sharper focus. As will be apparent, Schwartz has not yet demonstrated the feasibility of bankruptcy contracting in the real world or in his revised model.


: The production of the antibiotic trichothecin and of fibrinolytic enzymes was studied in the culture of the fungus Trichothecium roseum. Correlations were established between the parameters for the biosynthesis of trichothecin and fibrinolytic enzymes and the growth rate of the fungus. Thease as well as certain ratios found between potassium nitrate and ammonium chloride in the growth medium made it possible to use the function of desirability and to synthesize preferentially either trichothecin or fibrinolytic enzymes in the culture. An approach has been suggested for passing from the measurable parameters of the biosynthetic process to conventional values of desirability.


In recent years, there have been over 50 comparative analyses carried out in which social or ecological variables have been used to explain variation in whole brain size, or a part thereof, in a range of vertebrate species. Here, we review this body of work, pointing out that there are a number of substantial problems with some of the assumptions that underpin the hypotheses (e.g. what brain size means), with the data collection and with the ways in which the data are combined in the analyses. These problems are particularly apparent in those analyses in which attempts are made to correlate complex behaviour with parts of the brain that carry out multiple functions. We conclude that now is the time to substantiate these results with data from experimental manipulations.


Despite the growing political attention paid to ecosystem services (ES), this concept remains underused to support practical decisions in conservation/development programs. One of the most important knowledge gap for a better consideration of ES in territorial decision-making is related to their spatial assessment and mapping. Yet, from a planning perspective, knowledge on non-market benefits derived from ES combined with geographic information systems (GIS) are potentially powerful analytical tools for public land managers. In this paper, we assess the management strategy of a Regional park in Eastern France, by assessing and mapping two major ES under issue in the study area: recreational attractiveness and natural habitat quality. Because the area under study is a large territory, primary valuations techniques would have been difficult to apply. We thus develop a methodology to characterise the recreation supply and demand in the area by basing predictions on a hedonic function of biophysical supply and a travel cost model, both fed by GIS. We further transfer the supply and demand functions in the whole territory covered by the park, allowing for the mapping of a recreational attractiveness index. To our knowledge this constitutes one of the first attempts of benefit transfer based on a travel cost method, and the process is reproducible for any other travel cost study. Habitat quality is computed with the InVEST module based on habitat suitability and pressures of different land use and land cover. Results of our spatial statistics analysis show that the territorial strategy is globally accurate according to the recreation strategy, however results are more ambivalent for habitat quality.


International scholarship programs for higher education attract a substantial body of funding each year from national governments, supranational bodies, large charitable foundations, higher education institutions, and many smaller organizations. With aims variously shaped by international development and public diplomacy considerations, international scholarships fund students at higher education institutions worldwide. As the investment in, and scope of, scholarship programs has expanded, concurrent commitment to analysis and evaluation of their outcomes—both to improve policy making and justify further funding—has increased. This article explores several of the key methodological and conceptual challenges in the evaluation of international scholarship outcomes, focusing on the relationship between aims and outcomes, difficulties with "attribution" and "contribution," and scholarship programs in comparison with their alternatives. The relationship between evidence gathering and policy making is considered in context of international scholarship programs, and several potentially useful future developments in evaluation approaches are suggested.


The software quality control is one of the main topics in the Software
Engineering area. To put the effort in the quality control during the
specification phase leads us to detect possible mistakes in an early
steps and, easily, to correct them before the design and implementation
steps start. In this framework the goal of SAREL system, a
knowledge-based system, is twofold. On one hand, to help software
engineers in the creation of quality Software Requirements
Specifications. On the other hand, to analyze the correspondence between
two different conceptual representations associated with two different
Software Requirements Specification documents.
For the first goal, a set of NLP and Knowledge management tools is
applied to obtain a conceptual representation that can be validated and
managed by the software engineer.
For the second goal we have established some correspondence measures in
order to get a comparison between two conceptual representations. This
information will be useful during the interaction.


This paper argues, first, that most housing problems—in Boston and throughout the nation—are ultimately the result of the squeeze between inadequate incomes, on the one hand, and the cost of profitably providing housing on the other. It is also argued that housing cost and incomes together are the most decisive determinants of the overall quality of life of families and communities. Third, it is contended that the long history of inadequate attempts to cope with the affordabiiity problem have noz only failed to solve the problem, but have indeed contributed significantly to the broader and serious problems of the overall economy, with resultant impact on Boston's budget, employment, and other vital areas, as weil as its housing market. The principal policy implications which follow from the analysis are, correspondingly, of three types. First, housing policies—at the local as well as at the state and national levels—must be coupled with and include policies for increasing and redistributing income. Second, housing policies must be formulated with explicit recognition of and attention to their potential to affect the quality of life far beyond just the goal of providing more affordable shelter for the residents. Third, there can be no solution to the housing affordability problem without a solution to the broader political and economic crisis, but at the same time there can be no solution to the broader problems that does not deal with the roots of the housing crisis. The housing affordabiiity problem in Boston is examined quantitatively through the lens of a concept called "shelter poverty"—a sliding scale of affordabiiity based on the interaction among incomes, shelter costs, and non-shelter expenditures. It is demonstrated , using this concept, that a family of four in Boston would need an income of at least $23,000 to be able to afford the median-priced unsubsidized, two-bedroom apartment available in the city in 1983, while an elderly couple would need an income of nearly $12,000 to be able to afford the median-priced one-bedroom apartment. Nearly one-third of the households in Boston are shelter-poor, most of them renters and most with incomes of under $10,000 a year. A set of policy proposals are presented for beginning to deal in an appropriate way with the housing affordability problem in the city. While the structural changes required to truly solve the problem must occur nationally, local policies aimed at both the income and housing cost side of the problem can begin to make an impact in Boston while possibly serving as models for larger-scale reform. Because of fiscal constraints and continued skepticism about the efficacy of traditional spending programs, the proposed policies focus primarily on institutional change rather than major expenditures. They include suggestions for enhancing the income prospects and employment situations of lower-income Bostonians, as well as proposals for altering some aspecis of the structure and dynamics of the local housing market. Finally, it is argued that Boston—especially through its new city administrationhas the potential to exercise great leadership and initiative nationally for a new understanding of the nature and causes of the housing problem, and thus for new kinds of policy directions for effectively addressing this profound problem of our city and our


Background Existing travel restrictions limit the mobility of proctors, significantly delaying clinical trials and the introduction of new neurointerventional devices. We aim to describe in detail technical and legal considerations regarding international teleproctoring, a tool that could waive the need for in-person supervision during procedures. Methods International teleproctoring was chosen to provide remote supervision during the first three intracranial aneurysm treatments with a new flow diverter (currently subject of a clinical trial) in the US. Real-time, high-resolution transmission software streamed audiovisual data to a proctor located in Canada. The software allowed the transmission of images in a de-identified, HIPAA-compliant manner. Results All three flow diverters were implanted as desired by operator and proctor and without complication. The proctor could swap between images from multiple sources and reported complete spatial and situational awareness, without any significant lag or delay in communication. Procedural times and radiologic dose were similar to those of uncomplicated, routine flow diversion cases at our institution. Conclusions International teleproctoring was successfully implemented in our clinical practice. Its first use provided important insights for establishing this tool in our field. With no clear horizon for lifting the current travel restrictions, teleproctoring has the potential to remove the need for proctor presence in the angiography suite, thereby allowing the field to advance through the continuation of trials and the introduction of new devices in clinical practice. In order for this tool to be used safely and effectively, highly reliable connection and high-resolution equipment is necessary, and multiple legal nuances have to be considered.


Assay for content of active ingredients is a critical test of drug quality; failure to meet up the standard for content of active ingredients will result to sub therapeutic quantities. Three brands (A, B and C) of carbamazepine were assayed to determine their chemical equivalence as well as their anticonvulsant activities. This was aimed at determining the possible relation between the chemical equivalence of the brands and their anticonvulsant outcomes. The brands were randomly selected from Community Pharmacies in Zaria, Kaduna State, and assayed for chemical equivalence to establish weight uniformity and identity; percentage content of active ingredients, using UV spectrophotometric analysis. Similarly all the brands were evaluated for anticonvulsant activity using maximal electroshock seizure model in chicks at doses of 20, 10 and 5 mg/kg. All the brands passed weight uniformity test as none of the tablets deviated from the mean by more than 7.5%. Similarly, their melting points were found to conform to standard average melting point (191 o C) according to B.P. official monograph. However, the content of the active ingredients for Brands B and C did not conform to official standard of 95-105% while brand A conformed. Thus, the percentage contents for brands A, B and C were 99.49%, 76.02% and 87.59% respectively. Also, all the brands at the tested doses offered protection against seizures, ranging from 70-100%; but Brand C at 5 mg/kg offered only 40% quantal protection. The three brands of carbamazepine tablets were not chemically equivalent and their chemical equivalence indices could not be said to be the determinant of anticonvulsant effect. Key words: carbamazepine, anticonvulsant and chemical equivalence


OBJECTIVE
To determine whether a two-month or longer period without official high-speed workouts (lay-up) is associated with humeral or pelvic fracture in Thoroughbred racehorses.

DESIGN
Reprospective study.

ANIMALS
Thoroughbred racehorses in California that were euthanatized because of a complete humeral or pelvic fracture.

PROCEDURE
Age, sex, activity, number of lay-ups, number of days from a race or official timed workout to fracture, number of days from end of last lay-up to fracture, mean duration of lay-ups, and total number of days in race training were compared between horses with humeral fractures and horses with pelvic fractures. A case-crossover study was used to estimate relative risk for fracture of the humerus or pelvis occurring within hazard periods of 10 and 21 days following lay-up, compared with periods following more regular participation in official racing or timed workout events.

RESULTS
Horses with pelvic fractures were more often female, older, and had 0 or > or = 2 lay-ups. Horses with humeral fractures were typically 3-year-old males that had 1 lay-up. Horses with pelvic fractures had more total days in race training, fewer days from last exercise event to fracture, and a greater number of days from end of last lay-up to fracture than horses with humeral fractures. Return from lay-up was strongly associated with risk for humeral fracture during hazard periods of 10 and 21 days (relative risk = 71 and 45, respectively).

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS
Risk of humeral fracture may be reduced if horses are cautiously reintroduced into race training after lay-up.


A rare case of retrobulbar optic neuropathy caused by an isolated mucocele in an Onodi cell is presented. A 63-year-old man suffering from left recurrent optic neuropathy had shown improved visual acuity with steroid treatment at the age of 48 and 56 years. Impaired visual acuity and blurred vision in the left eye appeared again, and a marked inferior decrease in the left visual field was noted. Although axial computed tomography (CT) showed no abnormal findings, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a small squamous-shaped lesion (17 x 17 x 7.3 mm) in the left posterior ethmoidal air cell (Onodi cell) hanging over the left optic nerve. Endoscopic sinus surgery was performed. The optic canal was extruding into the Onodi cell cavity, and the superior bony wall of the canal was eroded by the mucocele. The isolated mucocele in the Onodi cell seemed to be compressing the optic nerve downward an causing retrobulbar optic neuropathy. An Onodi cell lesion, even if it was isolated and small, would cause optic neuropathy. MRI and coronal CT scanning should be performed for the diagnosis and preoperative planning in a case of retrobulbar optic neuropathy.


The association of enteroviruses with the aseptic meningitis syndrome has been not only of academic interest, but has also offered the clinician an additional buffer against hysteria in his practice. The wide-spread publicity given poliomyelitis in the past 2 decades has raised the sensitivity of both the lay public and physicians to a hyperactive state when the diagnosis of poliomyelitis is considered. Certainly everyone appreciates and respects the seriousness of this disease in the paralytic form. However, when there is no evidence of weakness, but a tentative diagnosis of "nonparalytic" poliomyelitis is made, a chain reaction is frequently encountered similar to that when the patient does have paralytic disease. The hospital and physicians are then bombarded with questions from various persons or groups who were even in the remote vicinity of the patient. Obviously many patients in the past who had been reported as nonparalytic poliomyelitis in reality had other


The surface-enhanced hyper-Raman scattering spectra of crystal violet are experimentally measured and theoretically calculated for excitation energies spanning the two lowest-lying electronic states (12,700–27,400 cm–1). The theory and experiment are in qualitative agreement over the measured energy range, indicating that first-principles calculations capture many of the complex resonance contributions in this prototypical octupolar system. The discrepancies between theory and experiment are investigated by comparing spectra obtained in different local environments as well as from higher-order surface-enhanced spectroscopies. A comparison between relative surface-enhanced hyper-Raman scattering band ratios plotted as a function of excitation wavelength and crystal violet's absorption spectra elucidates correlations between groups of vibrations and the excited-electronic states. Our results suggest that the spectral features across the range of resonance excitation energies (∼15,500–27,400 cm–1) are domina...


This paper approaches 'evil' from sociological and social science perspectives, using them to increase our insight into the concept of 'evil' since they have long neglected direct analyses of 'evil'. For example, sociology has focused on questions of the good, treating its other as an absence or a residual category. Durkheim suggested to avoid using common sense categorisations, without exploring their social construction as social fact. Therefore, because 'evil' is a common sense conception, a rather vague and multi-form one, we can see why sociologists have ignored the concept; we have abandoned that territory within sociology. To fill this gap in the literature and make a contribution to knowledge, this paper will explore sociological and social science perspectives to the study of 'evil'. Bringing these perspectives together from disparate disciplines is not only original, but also enlightening, permitting deeper insights into the conception of 'evil'. This paper also attempts to address how 'evil' relates to pedophilia, using it as a case study to explore how it is perceived as 'evil' with the help of sociological and social science theoretical frameworks. It is argued that 'evil' is socially constructed and differs in meaning within different cultures. The paper contributes to knowledge by opening up a dialogue regarding the sociology of 'evil'.

 Key words: 'Evil', social construction, culture, pedophilia, sociology of 'evil'.


The thesis deals with the concept of presumptions, and in particular of legal presumptions, in the context of national tax systems (Italy and Belgium) and EU law.
The purpose was to investigate the concept of legal presumption under a twofold comparative perspective. After having provided a general overview of the common core concept of presumption in the European context, an insight in the national approach to legal presumptions was given by examining two different national experiences, namely the Italian and Belgian tax systems. At this stage, the Constitutional framework and some of the most interesting and relevant at EU level presumptive measures were explored, with a view to underlining possible divergences and common grounds. The concept of (national) legal presumption was then investigated in the context of EU law, with the attempt to systematize under a uniform perspective a matter which has been traditionally dealt with either from the merely national point of view or, at EU level, through a fragmented form. In this instance, the EU law relevant framework and the most significant EUCJ case-law, in particular in the field of customs duties, VAT, on the issue of the repayment of taxes levied in breach of EU law and in the area of direct taxation, were examined so as to construe the overall EU approach to national legal presumptions. This was done with the finality of determining if and to what extent a common analytical framework may be identified, from which were extracted certain criteria governing the compatibility of national legal presumptions with EU law.