The ultrastructural development of endocrine cells from the corpus of fetal human stomachs is described. Samples were taken from fetuses ranging in fertilization age from 6–8 to 22 weeks.

The identifying features used for the classification of the various types of endocrine cells were their basal location in the epithelium, the presence and morphology of their characteristic granules and the sizes of the mitochondria. Five types of endocrine cells with specific granules were found: D, EC, ECL, AL and D1. The type and number of endocrine cells increased as development proceeded. The endocrine cells were confined to the epithelium, they did not reach the lumen and they appeared to develop in situ. The D, EC and ECL cells were the most numerous. The fetal endocrine cells resembled morphologically those found in the stomachs of various adult animals. The EC, ECL and D1 cells contained small slender mitochondria with few cristae. Intramitochondrial granules were absent in all the cell types. Agranular electron-lucent cells with small mitochondria were considered to be immature endocrine cells.

The advanced stage of differentiation observed in these cells suggests that they may be capable of producing and storing biogenic amines and polypeptide hormones. Their possible involvement in the synthesis of serotonin, enteroglucagon and intrinsic factor is discussed.


Abstract Data protection law has a linear logic, in that it purports to trace the lifecycle of personal data from creation to collection, processing, transfer, and ultimately its demise, and to regulate each step so as to promote the data subject's control thereof. Big data defies this linear logic, in that it decontextualizes data from its original environment and conducts an algorithmic nonlinear mix, match, and mine analysis. Applying data protection law to the processing of big data does not work well, to say the least. This Article examines the case of big medical data. A survey of emerging research practices indicates that studies either ignore data protection law altogether or assume an ex post position, namely that because they are conducted after the data has already been created in the course of providing medical care, and they use de-identified data, they go under the radar of data protection law. These studies focus on the end-point of the lifecycle of big data: if sufficiently anonymous at publication, the previous steps are overlooked, on the claim that they enjoy immunity. I argue that this answer is too crude. To portray data protection law in its best light, we should view it as a process-based attempt to equip data subjects with some power to control personal data about them, in all phases of data processing. Such control reflects the underlying justification of data protection law as an implementation of human dignity. The process-based approach fits current legal practices and is justified by reflecting dignitarian conceptions of informational privacy.


This study investigates the adaptation of lateral load resisting systems that are typical of modern steel buildings for application to improve seismic performance and design of timber structures. Emphasis was placed on the adaptation of buckling restrained braces and friction damping devices through the development and application hybrid timber-steel design procedures. A hybrid braced heavy timber frame was designed, using capacity design principles to avoid damage in the primary timber structural components and connections. Overall, the findings suggest that hybrid timber-steel buildings provide a viable seismic design alternative to steel-only structures.


Remote sensing instrumentation, data and analysis techniques for Civil Engineering applications are similar to those used in multidisciplinary remote sensing of the earth's surface. Data storage requirements necessary to retrieve and manipulate remote sensing digital data make it imperative to consider data compression and decompression techniques, especially for the next generation hyperspectral sensors.


In this work the modulation instability of quasimonochromatic wave packets propagating in conservative media with quadratic nonlinearity and linear nondamped oscillators attached to each point of a continuum is analyzed. Various density distributions of oscillators on natural frequencies are considered and carrier frequency ranges of unstable wave packet propagation are determined. It is shown that instability is closely related to the fact that the resonant dispersion relation can have many branches and thus permit phase‐group synchronism between long and short waves. A wave packet propagating under the synchronism condition generates long‐wave disturbances (with wavelengths near envelope width) and transmits up to one‐half of its initial energy to them. The possible application of this effect for evaluation of microcavities size distribution in imperfect solids is considered.


A Finite Point Method (FPM) based on a weighted least squares interpolation is presented for the simulation of electroosmotic transport in capillaries. This method requires no mesh and involves no Galerkin-type integration, making it more computationally efficient than the traditional finite element method. The FPM has been employed to solve the non-linear Poisson-Boltzmann equation for charge distribution, the Laplace equation for applied potential, and the Stokes equations for fluidic transport. These equations govern electroosmotic transport, the phenomenon used to drive fluid through electrophoretic separation systems.


Utility computing provides a pay-as-you-go approach to information systems in which application providers (e.g., web sites) can better manage their costs by adding capacity in response to increased demands and shedding capacity when it is no longer needed. This paper addresses application providers who use clusters of servers. Our work develops a framework to determine the number of servers that minimizes the sum of quality-of-service (QoS) costs resulting from service level penalties and server holding costs for the server cluster. The server characteristics considered are service rate, failure rates, repair rates, and costs. The contributions of this paper are: 1) a model for the performance and availability of an e-Commerce system that is consistent with data from a multisystem testbed with an e-Commerce workload; 2) a business-oriented cost model for resource allocation for application providers; 3) a closed form approximation for the optimal allocation of servers for an application provider based on the performance model in 1) and the cost model in 2); and 4) a simple criteria for utility owners and server manufacturers to make tradeoffs between server characteristics.


Research in fluid mechanics are developed to decrease the resistance of the ships by the flow on the surface of wet surace area. Fluid on the wet surface area will be create a friction. One of solution to decrease the force of friction is modification itself. The applications of marine, resistance of the ship will be effect to the require power to move the ship on the service velocity. Decrease of the total resistance will be decrease the require power of the engine that affect to the oil consumption of the ship. Dimples is the basines that can modification the fluid flow on the wet surface area of the ships. It can reduce the total resistance. The purpose of this research are to know the information about best horizontal distance between each dimple, to know the value the friction coefficient, and the total resistance between dimple installation and non dimple or normal hull construction. The method on this research is the simulation using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Dimple using 0,5 m for diameter, 0,15 m for the depth, and 1,5 m for the vertical distance. The principle dimension for the length between perpendicular is 117 m, breadth 20 m, height 9,2 m, and draught 6,9 m. The variables is the horizontal distance with the value 3, 4, 5 m, velocity 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 knots. The results of this research are the best distance is 4 m and can reduce the total resistance 16,48 %. Keywords: Friction Force, Dimple, Computational Fluid Dynamics


The selectivity in the Pd-assisted allylic alkylation has been investigated in a system with a ligand tethered to the allylic moiety. Isolation of (η3-allyl)Pd complexes and stoichiometric reaction with malonate nucleophiles allowed separation of various factors influencing the regioselectivity in a system that cannot undergo apparent rotation. Unexpectedly, trans effects were found to have only a minor influence on the selectivity, whereas changing the tether length could shift the preference from favored internal to dominant terminal attack. DFT-assisted analysis revealed that the dominant selectivity-determining factors are the forced rotation of the allylic moiety and an important steric repulsion from a syn-alkyl substituent.


Abstract In order to use foams in subsurface applications, it is necessary to understand their stability in porous media. Diffusion-driven coarsening of a stationary or nonflowing foam in a porous medium results in changing gas pressures and a coarsening of the foam texture. A two-dimensional network simulation has been created that predicts the behavior of foam in a porous medium by physically specifying the locations of all the lamellae in the system and by solving the complete set of Young–Laplace and diffusion equations. An hourglass approximates the shape of the pores, and the pore walls are considered to be highly water wet. A singularity arises in the system of differential algebraic equations due to the curvature of the pore walls. This singularity is a signal that the system must undergo oscillations or sudden lamellar rearrangements before the diffusion process can continue. Newton–Raphson iteration is used along with Keller's method of arc-length continuation and a new jump resolution technique to locate and resolve bifurcations in the system of coupled lamellae. Gas bubbles in pore throats are regions of encapsulated pressure. As gas is released from these bubbles during diffusion, the pressure of the bubbles in the pore bodies increases. When the pressure increase is scaled by the characteristic Young–Laplace pressure, the equilibrium time for the diffusion process is scaled by the ratio of the square of the characteristic length to the gas diffusivity and two dimensionless groups. One describes the ease with which gas can diffuse through a lamella, and the second represents the amount of gas encapsulated within the pore throats initially. Given this scaling, the resulting plots of pressure versus time and normalized lamellae positions versus time are universal for all system sizes and characteristics. This is true as long as the initial lamella distribution is the same in each case.


Process plans in additive manufacturing (AM) have a profound impact on the performance of fabricated parts such as geometric accuracy and mechanical properties. Due to its layer-based, additive nature, AM processes can be controlled at multiple scales starting from the scan vector/pixel scale. However, most process planning methods in AM configure process settings at the part scale. This leaves large unexplored regions in the design space that may include optimal designs. To address these untapped potentials, we present a process planning strategy based on the concept of manufacturing elements (MELs) to harness process variables at low scales for design. First, we decompose a part design into multiple MELs that contain geometric and manufacturing information. Two-scale process–structure–property (PSP) relationships are then constructed for MELs and their assembly. Decision tools, including the compromise decision support problem, are employed to navigate two-scale PSP relationships for supporting designers in design exploration on process variables and optimization of process plans. The proposed strategy is illustrated with a process planning example for a lattice structure, which has multiple design goals and is to be fabricated using material extrusion.


We investigated pressor sensitivity to infused phenylephrine (PE), 0.05 to 0.4 micrograms/kg/min, and angiotensin II (Ang II), 2.5 to 10 ng/kg/min, in 35 patients with mild-to-moderate hypertension, before and at the end of a 4-week treatment period with the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, cilazapril, 2.5 or 5.0 mg/day. Cilazapril lowered the mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 10.6/3.5 mm Hg, but had no effect on the dose-response curves of dose of PE or Ang II vs. the increase in systolic, diastolic, or mean blood pressure, or heart rate. There were also no significant effects of cilazapril on PD20 values, i.e., the dose of PE or Ang II required to increase mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) by 20 mm Hg, or on delta R-R/delta MAP (ratio of the increase of the ECG R-R interval to the increase in mean arterial blood pressure) as a measure of baroreflex sensitivity. Plasma renin activity was significantly increased by cilazapril therapy, but there were no changes in plasma concentrations of Ang II or atrial natriuretic factor. We conclude that cilazapril, an ACE inhibitor, does not alter alpha 1-adrenoceptor and Ang II receptor sensitivity to selective agonists, nor does it affect baroreflex sensitivity.


Active optical (Laser/Lidar) measurement techniques are critical for the future National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Earth, Planetary Science, Exploration, and Aeronautics measurements. The latest science decadal surveys recommend a number of missions requiring active optical systems to meet the science measurement objectives and the aeronautics community continues to use Laser/Lidar technologies to meet the aeronautics measurement objectives. This presentation will provide an overview of NASA efforts in developing and maturing state-of-the-art advanced solid-state flight laser/lidar systems for airborne and space-borne remote sensing measurements. The presentation will also provide details of a strategic approach for active optical technologies and techniques to meet the NASA's future Earth and Space Science measurements/missions needs and requirements for space-based applications.


This paper investigates the economic effects of improved broadband access at the firm level. Using a detailed micro data set from 2002 to 2017, we cover almost 20,000 small, medium and large Greek firms and test the relationship between their economic performance with the availability and use of broadband services at the postcode level. We trace the effect of increased access and speeds across industrial sectors and firm sizes. Our results highlight that increases in broadband speeds can improve the financial performance of adopting small firms (sales, profits and labour productivity) by 2% for every speed doubling beyond basic broadband access. Unlike other output metrics, small firms do not generate increasing shares of intangible capital through this adoption process. These effects, which remain strong across a range of robustness checks, suggest that the digital transition for small firms should focus on the causes of adoption (including training and skill development) and move beyond policies aimed at increased broadband availability alone.


This paper discusses the results of field research focused on educational communication in the classroom. The research involved 11 primary schools in Italy. Nearly 100 hours of videotaped educational interactions were produced. The empirical analysis of the communication processes allowed us to analyse the main structures of educational communication. Mainstream researches on education analyse this subject in terms of the relationship between an educator and his or her pupils. Educators' behaviour and practices are discussed and produce normative insights on the way an educator should perform to transmit knowledge, basic values and social norms. We are concerned about the meaning of 'relationship', that most works on education seem to be taken for granted as a trivial communicative input–output process where, upon a definite educator's input and through a specific function, pupils discharge some definite output. But educational communication cannot control its consequences; as its meanings are constructed by pupils, its outcomes are unpredictable. The data highlight the relevance of preparing educators for the complexity of the interconnections between educational relationships and communication; it would implicate the empowerment of education's reflexivity potential, giving to educators opportunities to recognize and exploit the potentialities of the situations that may emerge in educational settings.


We address issues related to sharing information in a distributed system consisting of autonomous entities, each of which holds a private database. We consider threats from malicious adversaries that can deviate from the designated protocol and change their input databases. We classify malicious adversaries into two widely existing subclasses, namely weakly and strongly malicious adversaries, and propose protocols that can effectively and efficiently protect privacy against malicious adversaries.


This study was carried out to determine the effects of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) inoculants and lactic acid bacteria+enzymes (LAB+E) inoculant on the fermentation, aerobic stability, and feed value of rye silages. Whole crop rye was harvested at dough stage. Biosil (Wuthenow, Germany), Silaprilis Pro (Timac Agro, USA) and Sil-All (Allteck, UK) were used as lactic acid bacteria and lactic acid bacteria+enzyme mixture inoculants. Inoculants were applied to silages at 6.00 log 10 cfu/g levels. After the treatment, alfalfa was ensiled in 1.0-L special polyethylene vacuum bags. The bags were stored at 20±2°C under the laboratory conditions. Three bags from each group were sampled for chemical and microbiological analyses 2, 4, 8 and 75 th days after ensiling. At the end of the ensiling period, all silages were subjected to an aerobic stability test for 5 days. In addition, in vitro dry matter, and organic matter digestibility of experiment silages were determined. The results showed that lactic acid bacteria and lactic acid bacteria+enzyme mixture inoculants increased characteristics of fermentation and aerobic stability of rye silages. Lactic acid bacteria+enzyme mixture inoculants decreased neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber and celluloses content in the silages. Lactic acid bacteria+enzyme mixture inoculants increased in vitro dry matter digestibility, organic matter digestibility and metaboze energy of rye silages. Therefore, lactic acid bacteria and lactic acid bacteria+enzyme mixture inoculants might improve the fermentation properties and feed values of rye silages harvested at dough stage.


Handling Editor: Aaron B. Shiels Abstract Hurricanes alter forest habitat by opening the canopy and depositing fresh wood and leaves. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effects of hurricane and drought-driven changes to forests on green litter decomposition, invertebrate communities, and nutrient mineralization over a short period (6 months) after disturbance. We used three complete replicated blocks with two canopy treatments: control and trim + detritus. Green leaves were enclosed in litterbags of three different mesh sizes to determine the effect of soil fauna of varying body sizes. Litterbags were retrieved from the field after 21, 35, 84, and 168 days and transported to the laboratory in individually sealed plastic bags. We extracted and identified invertebrates, measured leached and mineralized litter nutrients using ion resin membranes placed for 1 week under the leaves inside the litterbags, and determined litter mass loss. Additional resin membranes were placed in the lowest litter layer above the mineral soil. The number of arthropod taxonomic groups and nutrient mineralization differed significantly between control and trim + detritus. Regardless of mesh size, bags in control plots had consistently higher invertebrate richness than in trim + detritus plots. Nitrogen mineralization and phosphorous mineralization were significantly higher in trim + detritus in large mesh size, and decomposer arthropod abundance was highest in large-sized mesh bags. These data suggest that within functional categories, variations in feeding behavior among arthropod orders may affect the release of nutrients from organic matter. Percent mass loss did not differ between canopy treatments or litterbag mesh sizes, but instead decreased during drought. Invertebrate composition, but not abundance, differed significantly between canopy treatments with greater dominance by shredders (Lepidoptera and Diptera larvae) in trim + detritus, which corresponded to higher rates of nutrient mineralization from green leaves. These results suggest that regional drought dominated the Received: 7 September 2021 Revised: 13 January 2022 Accepted: 21 January 2022


Being politically aware and participating in politics are essential determinants of a society's democratic survival. One source of concerns for researchers of political behavior regarding post-apartheid South Africa is the low rates of youth's political participation. There is however a dearth of empirical studies in the extant literature on the university students' political awareness and their political participation in post-apartheid South Africa. This mixed-methods research was conducted to fill in this obvious gap. A study sample of 372 undergraduate students selected from one rural university in the Eastern Cape through the stratified random sampling techniques yielded the quantitative data, and the qualitative data were obtained from five (5) executive members of the Student Representative Council (SRC) who were purposively selected for semi-structured interviews. Both quantitative and qualitative data analyses were performed by employing simple descriptive and Pearson correlation statistics as well as a thematic content analytical approach. Results showed that nearly all the respondents demonstrated a high level of political awareness in terms of rights to vote and be voted for (99.4%), the importance of parliament, and the national constitution (99.1%) while the respondents' levels of political participation appeared to be below average as only (49.2%) voted during the 2017 SRC election, whereas (30.4%) of them voted in the 2014 national elections. Students' political awareness was found to be significantly correlated with their participation in political activities on-campus (r = 0.130) and off-campus (r = 0.185). In conclusion, the bivariate analysis indicated that there was a positive correlation between students' political awareness and their participation in politics (P<0.001).


Self-consistent equations for intrinsic rotation in tokamaks with small poloidal magnetic field Bp compared to the total magnetic field B are derived. The model gives the momentum redistribution due to turbulence, collisional transport and energy injection. Intrinsic rotation is determined by the balance between the momentum redistribution and the turbulent diffusion and convection. Two different turbulence regimes are considered: turbulence with characteristic perpendicular lengths of the order of the ion gyroradius, ρi, and turbulence with characteristic lengths of the order of the poloidal gyroradius, (B/Bp)ρi. Intrinsic rotation driven by gyroradius scale turbulence is mainly due to the effect of neoclassical corrections and of finite orbit widths on turbulent momentum transport, whereas for the intrinsic rotation driven by poloidal gyroradius scale turbulence, the slow variation of turbulence characteristics in the radial and poloidal directions and the turbulent particle acceleration can be become as important as the neoclassical and finite orbit width effects. The magnetic drift is shown to be indispensable for the intrinsic rotation driven by the slow variation of turbulence characteristics and the turbulent particle acceleration. The equations are written in a form conducive to implementation in a flux tube code, and the effect of the radial variation of the turbulence is included in a novel way that does not require a global gyrokinetic formalism.


This research compares the various waste management strategies in Tabriz, Iran, and selects the best one by a decision‐making method. Selection the best strategy is conducted based on the Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA). In this regard, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a mathematical technique for multicriteria decision making, and the Multi Criteria Analysis which is a developed decision‐making tool have been used. This research compares four waste management strategies including various practices such as Source Separation (SS), Biological and Mechanical Treatment (BMT), Refused Derived Fuel (RDF), Incineration and Landfilling. There are mainly eight criteria weighted based on the AHP method to select the best strategy. These criteria consist of required land for waste management, energy recovery, investment and operation costs, income to cost ratio (benefit), environmental impacts, and complexity of implementation and operation of process, public acceptance, and recycling materials. The results of this study demonstrate that the first strategy provides the best solution for waste management which includes SS, Compost production, BMT, RDF and Landfilling. Finally, study suggests various solutions that minimize environmental impacts and social cost and improve the public acceptance. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 32: 810–817, 2013


Basing on my published article titled, Non-disjunction (extra chromosome 21 (T21) and Down Syndrome (DS)) is not a maternal cause. It is a parental issue. An appeal to all mothers throughout the world [1]. I want to remind you that, since the wrong proposal of Calvin Bridge and Thomas Hunt Morgan in the spring of 1910 for the so called (non-disjunction), as an origin of Trisomy-21 and Down syndrome, a hot controversy had been raised. No scientific ideas or hypotheses were proposed exactly, to put an end to this long controversy. This longstanding (dogma) by scientists about nondisjunction (trisomy 21) as a maternal cause, had arrested a creative thought and losing decades of research (109 years) based on this wrong proposals and interpretation. Nevertheless, the false accusation against mothers as a leading cause of T21 and down syndrome is continuing till now without any scientific evidence indicating mothers' responsibility. The scientists had accepted this genetic abnormality as a result of mothers age (maternal cause), despite no scientific evidence. Almost all scientists were injustice at all either logically or scientifically to determine mothers as a direct cause for nondisjunction and T21 (DS). How could you accuse mothers to be the definite cause of nondisjunction and Down syndrome children without any scientific evidence? The scientists have not been able to explain this process convincingly since its proposal and they admitted with this failure frankly. During the time since the first proposal, there is no certain evidence to consider maternal age as a leading cause at all. It was a common knowledge to scientists that as a woman's age increases, so does her chance of having a baby with Down syndrome occurs when the egg contains an extra copy of chromosome 21. Scientists said this kind of error is more likely to happen in older eggs, due in part to the decay of proteins within the egg over time. Alfleesy noticed that this word (decay), unfortunately indicates the ignorance and failure of the scientists to the base line of inflammatory and healing process, also these processes (decay and healing) never happen inside the ovum with such mentioned manner as Calvin and others had linked it to an ovum. Also, some of them stated that the egg became rusty with time. They resembled egg like a sardine box in a small grocery, or an iron rod of a machine that gets rusty with time in storehouse. These two words (decay and rusty), are sufficient to drop any theory without any discussion, because these words are not scientifically be accepted in this method of debate and interpretation and these two words (decay of the ovum and rusty egg) were an indicator that the scientists were far from the circle medicine and a declaration of the failure of their theory. The scientists take only maternal age into account wrongly and forgot to study paternal side thoroughly. Alfleesy found that no scientific evidence for mothers to be a certain cause (maternal cause) for extrachromosme 21 and Down syndrome. Also, the process of human creation must have couples (male and female) to be completed. Finally Alfleesy announced to all mothers that they are not responsible for Down Syndrome children, and the honest scientific Journal, Women's Rights Organizations must adopt campaign against accusation for women by scientists without any evidence and to lift the injustice on the shoulders of mothers, who suffered for centuries from this injustice accusation and some of them have got psychological trauma because of this violent, unethical and harm accusation by male scientists.


The current age is characterised by many as secular, and a source of such a characterisation can be found in the Nietzschean claim that thoughts about there being some ultimate reality have to be jettisoned, and human existence and the world need to be embraced as they are. That claim is renewed by some secular thinkers who insist that education has to be reconceived in ways congenial to the new age. It is argued that central to their logic is the dichotomy between the religious and the secular or the otherworldly and the earthly, and that this dichotomy is simplistic as well as problematic. As an alternative to the 'two worlds' view, the 'two aspects' view is suggested, with an interpretation of reality that the noumenon––the non-human––has to be taken in the negative sense. Against secularising the domain of education, it is indicated that there still remains a place for education to occupy between the two poles of religiousness and secularity.


Background Increased vascular tortuosity is a hallmark of ageing of the vascular system, including the aorta. However, the impact of tortuosity on aortic blood flow is unknown. We hypothesized that increased tortuosity would be associated with increased blood flow helicity and with decreased degree of blood flow turbulence as measured by the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE). Methods 4D Flow MR images covering the entire aorta from the aortic valve to the iliac bifurcation were acquired in 23 normal volunteers aged 18–30 years ("Young") and 23 normal volunteers aged 66–76 years ("Old") without aortic disease. The aorta was segmented and divided into four regions: the ascending, descending, suprarenal abdominal and infrarenal abdominal aorta. Tortuosity, helicity, TKE, flow velocity, and Reynolds number were computed for the whole aorta and for each section. Results Tortuosity and helicity were higher whereas TKE, velocity, and Reynolds number were lower in Old than in Young, for all aortic regions (p < 0.05) except for helicity in the descending aorta. Tortuosity correlated positively with helicity and negatively with TKE for all aortic regions (Spearman rho=±0.45–±0.72, p < =0.002) except for TKE in the ascending aorta. Further, helicity correlated with TKE in the descending, suprarenal abdominal and infrarenal abdominal aorta (Spearman rho=−0.56–−0.77). Conclusion Tortuosity increases with age and blood flow in tortuous aortas is more helical. Increasing helicity, in turn, is associated with decreasing TKE.


We measured apparent radiocarbon ages of live-collected, pre-bomb mollusk shells from the northern and central Gulf of California to determine the source of the reservoir ages and the reservoir age correction offsets for calibrating 14C dates of fossil samples. Reservoir ages average 860 yr in the northern Gulf and 725 yr in the central Gulf. The corresponding ∆R values (the deviation from typical worldwide values) are 540 yr and 395 yr, respectively, with variabilities (SD) of 90 and 110 yr. This variability significantly limits the precision of calibrated 14C ages. The apparent 14C age of Colorado River water (as measured in a freshwater mussel, collected in the 1890s, before diversion of river flow) is not sufficiently high (1420 yr) to account for the high reservoir ages in the Gulf. The lack of a relation between the stable isotope composition of Gulf mollusks and their reservoir ages is further evidence that the Colorado River does not make a significant contribution to Gulf reservoir ages. Upwelling of old, deep Pacific-derived water appears to be the cause of the large reservoir ages.


: Purpose: Clinical transplantation has proven to be a lifesaving method since the last century. The shortage of donors and organs pool for transplantation is a worldwide subject of discussion and legislation. Design/Methodology/Approach: Authors did a critical review and identified actual donation models in individual European countries. Findings: Critical revision of the distribution of donation models in individual European countries were presented: no country has chosen the model of strict consent, 18 countries adopted a model of opt-out, of which 13 were based on a strict model of opposition, and five decided to use an extended opposition system. The extended consent model was adopted in 1/3 of European countries (14 countries), three European countries adopted the information solution, Bulgaria is the only country adopting a higher necessity model. Authors identified in European countries opt-in to opt-out movement trend and "hard" presumed consent paradox. Practical implications: Different models adopted in European countries and the shortage of organs for transplantation implicate some countries' transfer from opt-in to an opt-out model. It can benefit in increasing organ pool. Originality/value: The article includes the first complex and critical analysis of effective organ procurement and legislation models in European countries.


This correspondence considers fault resolution as a process of applying a sequence of input vectors, called tests, to a combinational logic network in order to resolve an existing fault situation from within a given master set of faults. A functional approach based upon an extension of the well-known Boolean difference concept to fault dependent situations is described. The test sets resulting from this extension, called fault dependent test sets, are fundamental to our considerations and are shown to be obtainable in a straightforward manner from standard test sets. Two fault interrelationships are defined which are particularly relevant to the resolution problem in that they algebraically describe the inherent limitations to the degree to which the existing fault situation can be resolved from within a given master set of faults using algebraic terminal experiments and fault dependent testing. Because these interrelationships are defined from a resolution-oriented point of view, they can be seen to be somewhat more intimate than other fault interrelationships which have been previously described in the literature. Some important ramifications of these interrelationships are discussed.


A series of BixY(2-x)O3 photocatalysts were successfully prepared by a solid-state reaction and were subsequently characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra revealed that the BixY(2-x)O3 samples absorbed light in the visible-light range (400-800 nm). The XPS results indicated that active oxygen species were generated on the Bi1.8Y0.2O3 surface, which displayed a higher photocatalytic activity. When using photocatalytic degradation molasses fermentation wastewater as a model reaction, the Bi1.8Y0.2O3 showed higher photocatalytic activity in comparison to Bi0.2Y1.8O3 under visible-light irradiation.


Two polymorphisms, rs7597774 and rs1739843 in ADD2 and HSPB7 respectively, were found to be associated with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in European cohorts but the results were not validated in the Chinese Han population. We aimed to test the association of the two variants with DCM in a cohort of Chinese Han population. DCM (399) and control (1384) individuals were identified from the GeneID database in China, and DNA was isolated from peripheral blood lymphocytes for genotyping. Alleles were amplified by PCR, and amplicons harboring polymorphisms rs1739843 and rs7597774 were directly genotyped using high-resolution melting analysis. Statistical analysis was subsequently performed to evaluate the association of the variants with DCM. Allelic analysis demonstrated that rs7597774 was significantly related to DCM (P-adj = 0.0157), and an increased risk of DCM was specifically associated with the minor allele A (OR = 1.582). High-grade cardiac dysfunction (NYHA III/IV) was a clinical parameter significantly associated with the rs7597774 genotypes AA + AC relative to genotype CC (P = 0.021). Furthermore, DCM patients with the rs7597774 genotype AA tended to undergo more invasive medical interventions than those with the genotype CC (P = 0.008). No association was detected between rs1739843 and DCM under any allelic (P-adj = 0.407, OR = 0.920) or genotypic model. In the Chinese Han population, rs7597774 but not rs1739843 was found to be associated with DCM. This study is the first to demonstrate that underlying genotypes of rs7597774 may assist in assessing the heart functional status of DCM patients and also in the prediction of the benefit of particular therapies for these patients.


Human language, with the emergence of the Cognitive Sciences, contributes so decisively to the opening of the interdisciplinary area which is already transversely considered, the Neurosciences. All that concerns the processing of language information occupies now its own space in the exploitation and the interpretation of several ongoing processes, namely the acquisition and the learning, as well as processes involving injuries of the language. The brain is the center of interpretation which allows any researcher, from now on, to deepen and to understand the origin of such complex systems like, for example, reading and discourse. The present discussion should contribute to the debate of the theoretical and methodological foundations of language neuro-functional organization in the brain as well to the study of language teaching.


Columbus introduced maize in Spain at the end of the 15th century. At the end of 16th century, maize reached the Netherlands. However, the Dutch climate was not favorable enough to have the crop matured. Therefore, for a long time maize cultivation remained limited for study and observation. The Netherlands has not built up an old maize culture. On the other hand, Spanish and Portuguese farmers already cultivated plenty of maize in 1520. For the purpose of intensive livestock farming, the Netherlands started importing maize from America around 1850. After World War I, trade started again, but also research into the breeding of maize in order to make the Netherlands less dependent on foreign countries. After The Second World War, some farmers began to grow small-scale maize. However, it took until around 1975 before cultivation takes place on a large scale and a practical way of storage at farms has been developed. At present, maize cultivation is the largest crop in the Netherlands with over 216,000 hectares. This has led to a sharp change in the image of the historic arable landscape in 50 years.


For a week in June, the elevator door on the second floor in the Camp Hill Veterans' Memorial Building — the geriatric facility in Halifax's sprawling QEII Health Sciences Centre — opened to reveal a unique scene: an exhibit of new designs for some of the more common implements used by health care practitioners. Tools for Health brought together the results of an ongoing collaboration between hospital staff and the faculty and students of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), whose first-ever product design course yielded functional and creative innovations for everything from reflex hammers to staff uniforms and linen carts.

Each of the roughly 25 prototypes aimed to find solutions to specific problems or flaws in the delivery of health care and to make the experience less stressful and more humane for both practitioner and patient.

Graphic design student Alan White created a self-contained handwashing station to replace the random collections of small plastic bottles of antibacterial liquid usually provided in hospitals for this purpose. White was influenced early on by his mother, a former nurse. "In a hospital, hand sanitation is paramount, but there's no direction or system to get people to do it," he explains, adding that once you get someone, whether staff, patient or visitor, to remember to wash their hands, the next problem is to communicate good technique. White's solution was to make the station prominent without taking up excessive room. He decided to make it bright green, "because people associate that colour with cleanliness. It has a bright rapport with users. It's curved, organic and contemporary." The station provides a clear "how-to" through a combination of clean, colourful illustrations and easily read lettering — particularly helpful for elderly patients. Functional design details include an automated faucet that allows users to avoid touching the tap.

Student Margot Durling designed a belt to be worn by a patient, facilitating the caregiver's ability to lift, steady and walk a patient in smoother, less strained motions. "There were a lot of ergonomic improvements, keeping in mind both the caregiver and the patient," Durling says, adding that she had to keep in mind that some caregivers are elderly and frail themselves. Durling padded the belt with an inner foam lining, inserted rubber mesh to increase traction and added straps to provide support along the patient's thighs, rather than just around the waist.

NSCAD is planning to create courses under the rubric of Design for Health and to establish a business arm to produce and market the best of the students' work. White and Durling have already been approached about manufacturing their products and are looking into patenting their designs.

Geriatrician Kenneth Rockwood, a staff physician at Camp Hill, attributes the success of the project to the "dialogue between the students, staff, researchers and patients" that resulted from the students spending course time at the Camp Hill site. Rockwood remarks, "This work is an outward and visible signal, a metaphor, saying that we can do the job better than we did before."

Sean Flinn Freelance Writer Halifax, NS

Figure. Alan White's handwashing station: Semmelweis would approve Photo by: Sean Flinn


Kümme aastat tagasi leidsid Franco Moretti ja tema kolleegid oma uurimismeetodile mahuka määratluse – kvantitatiivne formalism, vastandades seda vene formalismile, mis nende arvates oli kvalitatiivne. Formalistliku teadusprogrammi tuumaks on kunstilise teksti struktuurilis-funktsionaalne analüüs, mida formalistid ise nimetasid morfoloogiliseks, ja seda võib pidada kvalitatiivseks. Kuid väide kvantitatiivse formalismi uudsuse kohta vastab tõele vaid osaliselt. Selle tõestamiseks keskendub autor kahe Moskva Lingvistilise Ringi liikme – Boriss Tomaševski ja Boriss Jarho – kvantitatiivse poeetika käsitlustele ning pöörab erilist tähelepanu Jarho leiutisele, mida hiljem nimetati kauglugemiseks. Kahe kvantitatiivse formalismi võrdlusel pole mitte ainult ajaloolis-teaduslik tähtsus, vaid ka metodoloogiline väärtus, kuna see tutvustab palju lähenemisviise, mis osutuvad tänapäeva digihumanitaariale kasulikuks.
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Ten years ago, Franco Moretti and his co-authors described their research method as "quantitative formalism", in contrast to Russian Formalism of the 1910s and 1920s. The structural and functional analysis of poetic texts is the nucleus of the formalist agenda, and it can indeed be considered "qualitative". However, quantitative formalism's novelty depends upon narrowly construing "formalism" as it was understood by the Petrograd association Obshchestvo izucheniya poeticheskogo yazyka (Society for the Study of Poetic Language) or Opoyaz. Other formalist groups had previously approached the question of quantitative formalism, but this fact is not known to many scholars for whom the canon is limited to the Opoyaz variant of formalism presented in Tzvetan Todorov's anthology (1965) and the later collections of formalist essays, from the "standard" published by Ladislav Matejka and Krystyna Pomorska in English in 1971 to the recent collection of Russian Formalists in Estonian translations edited by Märt Väljataga in 2014.
To demonstrate the historical development of quantitative analysis within Russian formalism, this essay focuses on the approaches to quantitative poetics developed by Boris Tomashevsky (1890–1957) and Boris Yarkho (1889–1942). Both Tomashevsky and Yarkho were members of the Moscow Linguistic Circle (MLC), co-founded by Roman Jakobson in 1915; the two scholars were recommended for membership in the MLC by Jakobson himself and elected unanimously at the same meeting on 21 June 1919. In 1960, Jakobson called Tomashevsky's approach to verse "an example of the longest and, until recently, perhaps the most spectacular ties between linguistics, in particular the study of poetic language, on the one hand, and the mathematical analysis of stochastic processes on the other". This approach "gave surprising clues for descriptive, historical, comparative, and general metrics on a scientific basis". For example, Tomashevsky pioneered a statistical method of -his own invention that compares empirical indicators of verse rhythm with a theoretical model. James Bailey aptly called this approach "the Russian linguistic-statistical method for studying poetic rhythm" (1979).
His colleagues in the MLC recognized the importance of Tomashevsky's quantitative verse studies at MLC meetings in 1919–1921. A collection of his essays was published with the title On Verse (O stikhe, 1929). However, later anthologies have included only those sections of his essays that do not contain statistics, charts, diagrams, or tables. There are no book-length monograph studies devoted to Tomashevsky in any language, and his name is less frequently mentioned than other formalists'. To a certain extent, Tomashevsky remains "le formaliste oublié", as Catherine Depretto has recently put it (2018).
In his groundbreaking article on Yarkho published in Tartu in 1969, Mikhail Gasparov pointed out how Yarkho applied statistical methods with broader applicability than the study of versification alone. He used statistics for researching almost all aspects of the language of poetry and belles-lettres, motivated by a total quantification of poetics. In the paper, special attention is given to Yarkho's then-novel approach of comparing many texts using a limited number of indicators. Specifically, he conducted a diachronic analysis of 153 five-act tragedies from 23 authors, using only four formal features: the number of scenes in the play as the measure of mobility of its action, the total number of characters in the play, the number of scenes with a particular number of speaking characters, and the standard deviation from the mean number of speaking characters in a scene. This is nothing else but an early example of "distant reading", a term coined by Moretti many decades later.
The birth of new quantitative formalism outside Russia invites us to re-evaluate the history of Russian Formalism in toto. Yarkho, Tomashevsky, and their followers offered a plethora of ideas for quantifying literary evolution and individual literary works, defining specific aspects of literature that justify this approach, as well as meaningful conclusions which can be drawn from the resulting calculations. On the one hand, this re-evaluation is critical for understanding the historical development of Russian Formalism. On the other hand, a comparison of the historical and modern versions of quantitative formalism offers methodological insights that are relevant for researchers in contemporary digital humanities.


: Coronavirus is proved to be a severe epidemic diseasethroughout the world. Despite of endeavoring lot of medicalfacilities for mitigating with this pandemic, still the number ofinfected cases increased rapidly, which leads to lack of healthcareresources (i.e. hospitals, doctors and other healthcare amenities). Early stage risk prediction by analyzing several clinical andbehavioral risk factors is considered to be a promising solutionfor prescribing appropriate triage to patients and to reduce themortality rate due to this fetal disease. To cope up with thisproblem, in our study we have proposed a deep learning basedapproach for the early stage prediction of risk of infection andrisk of mortality in individuals possessing certain risk factors. Wehave utilized a publically available covid-19 dataset incorporatingseveral risk factors that may cause this infection. For the selectionof most significant risk factors i.e. with respect to their level ofimportance in risk prediction, we have employed three featuresselection techniques (i.e. f_classif, PCA and Tree). The set ofextracted features are the utilized for the training of proposedANN for the prediction of infection risk and mortality risk due tocovid-19. For the performance analysis of proposed method, fourdifferent evaluation metrics are being employed including: MSE,MAE, ME and EV. The proposed model has achieved a minimum loss (MSE) of 0.00137 for infection risk prediction and MSE of0.000012 for mortality risk prediction.


Our department recently received an application under the RTI Act seeking photocopies of computerized receipts for payments made as investigation fee for a patient. The argument of the applicant was that these computerized receipts have the time of issue mentioned on them and that this information would be useful in establishing negligence. As per the provisions of RTI Act, we are bound to supply such information to the applicant. This, however, raises an important issue. Hospitals, and most Indian government offices, rely greatly on computers for much of the work. In addition, most state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment, including CT scan, USG, and MRI machines, have inbuilt clocks. In our experience, it is not uncommon for these computer clocks to be out of synchronization with the actual date and time. The impact that this could have can be understood through a few hypothetical examples. Suppose, for instance, that the clock of a CT scan machine is a few hours behind the actual time when a scan is performed for a patient with head injury. The time printed on the scan film would suggest that the patient had the head injury even before the alleged accident that caused it had occurred. It could also suggest that the victim was not actually at the site of the accident when it occurred. Similarly, if the clock of the CT scan machine is a few hours ahead of the actual time, no proof would be available that the patient's injury had occurred before the surgery undertaken for its treatment! These hypothetical, yet not unreasonable, examples highlight some possible legal complications.


It is well-known that for sparse linear bandits, when ignoring the dependency on sparsity which is much smaller than the ambient dimension, the worst-case minimax regret is $\widetilde{\Theta}\left(\sqrt{dT}\right)$ where $d$ is the ambient dimension and $T$ is the number of rounds. On the other hand, in the benign setting where there is no noise and the action set is the unit sphere, one can use divide-and-conquer to achieve $\widetilde{\mathcal O}(1)$ regret, which is (nearly) independent of $d$ and $T$. In this paper, we present the first variance-aware regret guarantee for sparse linear bandits: $\widetilde{\mathcal O}\left(\sqrt{d\sum_{t=1}^T \sigma_t^2} + 1\right)$, where $\sigma_t^2$ is the variance of the noise at the $t$-th round. This bound naturally interpolates the regret bounds for the worst-case constant-variance regime (i.e., $\sigma_t \equiv \Omega(1)$) and the benign deterministic regimes (i.e., $\sigma_t \equiv 0$). To achieve this variance-aware regret guarantee, we develop a general framework that converts any variance-aware linear bandit algorithm to a variance-aware algorithm for sparse linear bandits in a"black-box"manner. Specifically, we take two recent algorithms as black boxes to illustrate that the claimed bounds indeed hold, where the first algorithm can handle unknown-variance cases and the second one is more efficient.


Cefpodoxime (CPDX-PR) was evaluated clinically in respiratory tract infections. The results obtained are summarized as follows; 1. The total number of the patients who were treated with CPDX-PR was 61, out of whom 53 cases were evaluated for clinical efficacy and 55 cases were investigated for the safety of the drug. CPDX-PR was given orally twice a day at 100-200 mg for 5-21 days. 2. Clinical efficacies were excellent in 9 patients, good in 36, fair in 4 and poor in 4. The overall clinical efficacy was 84.9%. In particular, CPDX-PR showed satisfactory efficacy for acute respiratory infections and mild chronic respiratory infections, with efficacy rates of 88.6% (31/35) and 100% (8/8), respectively. 3. No adverse reactions was observed, but slight and transient elevation of BUN was noted. In conclusion, it has been confirmed that CPDX-PR is an excellent and safe drug for the treatment of the respiratory tract infections.


That some breeds of sheep and individuals within these breeds thrive better than others in parasite-infested localities has probably been recognised by stockmen for centuries, but it is only within the past 50 years, and largely as a result of field surveys that the existence of genetically-determined differences in host resistance to parasitic infections has become widely recognised. As yet remarkably little is known about the genotypes responsible for resistance or susceptibility and even less of the mechanisms involved. Within the past decade several reports have suggested that resistance to some parasites is associated with the animal's haemoglobin type, sheep with HbA being more resistant as judged by faecal egg counts and venous haematocrits than those with HbB. Since the frequency of these haemoglobin types varies in different breeds it has been tacitly assumed that inter-breed variations in resistance are related to differences in the relative haemoglobin type gene frequencies, but none of these studies has indicated whether such resistance is expressed primarily as a resistance to parasite establishment or resistance to the parasites' specific pathogenic effects. In view of its potential practical significance it was considered worthwhile to examine the concept of breed and haemoglobin type resistances to parasitic infections and their possible relationship to the immunological status of the host under carefully controlled experimental conditions. The work represented in this thesis is essentially a study of the role of genetic factors in resistance to two important gastrointestinal helminth parasites of sheep, i.e. Haemonchus contortus and Ostertagia circumcincta. The first section deals with the inter-relationship between haemoglobin type and breed and the response of sheep to primary infections with H. contortus. For this purpose worm-free Scottish Blackface and Finn Dorset sheep with different haemoglobin types were each infected with 350 H. contortus larvae/kg bodyweight and their responses monitored and compared by a combination of clinical, radioisotopic and parasitological techniques. The results obtained showed that sheep with HbA developed less severe clinical and pathophysiological disturbances, passed fewer eggs and harboured fewer worms at necropsy than animals with HbB and that Scottish Blackface sheep exhibited similar advantages over Finn Dorsets with the same haemoglobin type. Since variations in the severity of the disease as judged by pathophysiological effects correlated closely with worm numbers it was concluded (a) that genetic resistance operates at the level of parasite establishment which in turn is controlled by the immune response elicited, (b) that although HbA is a useful genetic marker for resistance, the degree of protection with which it is associated is very much influenced by other, and as yet undefined "breed" characteristics, and (c) on the basis of a second experiment demonstrating that sheep of each haemoglobin type were equally susceptible to the establishment and pathogenic effects of H. contortus when heavily infected (1400 larvae/kg) , it would appear that the magnitude of the larval intake is an additional factor involved. The second and third sections are devoted to an examination of the influence of breed and haemoglobin type on acquired resistance to H. contortus, the former dealing with the acquisition of resistance from primary infections terminated by anthelmintic treatment, the latter with the well-known "self-cure" phenomenon. The results of the third section demonstrated that individuals and breeds with high resistance to primary infections, i.e. animals with HbA and belonging to the Scottish Blackface breed are also more resistant to reinfection than for example HbB and Finn Dorset sheep. The final section examines the genetic control of antibody production to non-parasitic antigens. No difference was observed between HbA and HbB type sheep, or between Scottish Blackfaces and Finn Dorsets in respect of immune elimination of horse gamma globulin, but on tlie basis of a significantly better response to human serum albumin, and suggestive evidence of a better response to rabbit red cells in HbA than in HbB Scottish Blackface sheep, it seemed reasonable to conclude that the advantages exhibited by the former in relation to parasitic infections were associated with a superior immunological competence. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.).


The work shows the possibility of the cultivation of H. influenzae, serotype b, in semisynthetic nutrient medium with amino peptide as the only source of amino acids, glucose--as the main source of carbon and energy and containing, in addition, the necessary growth factors and vitamins.


The objective of this research is to investigate and compare the performances of different dynamic pricing strategies for managed lanes facilities. These pricing strategies include real-time traffic responsive methods, as well as refund options and tradable credit schemes. Analytical expressions for the assignment, revenue and total delay in each alternative are derived as a function of the pricing strategy. It is found that minimum total system delay can be achieved with many different pricing strategies. This gives flexibility to operators to allocate congestion to either alternative according to their specific objective while maintaining the same minimum total system delay. Given a specific objective, the optimal pricing strategy can be determined by finding a single parameter value in the case of HOT lanes. Performances of pricing strategies are compared by simulation experiments.


The resources of the energy and chemical balance in the ocean sustain mankind in many ways. Therefore, ocean exploration is an essential task that is accomplished by deploying Underwater Vehicles. An Underwater Vehicle with autonomy feature for its navigation and control is called
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). Among the task handled by an AUV, accurately positioning itself at a desired position with respect to the reference objects is called set-point control. Similarly, tracking of the reference trajectory is also another important task. Battery recharging of AUV, positioning with respect to underwater structure, cable, seabed, tracking of reference trajectory with desired accuracy and speed to avoid collision with the guiding vehicle in the last phase of docking are some significant applications where an AUV needs to perform
the above tasks. Parametric uncertainties in AUV dynamics and actuator torque limitation necessitate to design robust control algorithms to achieve motion control objectives in the face of uncertainties. Sliding Mode Controller (SMC), H / μ  synthesis, model based PID group controllers are some of the robust controllers which have been applied to AUV. But SMC suffers from less efficient tuning of its switching gains due to model parameters and noisy estimated acceleration states appearing in its control law. In addition, demand of high control effort due to high frequency chattering is another drawback of SMC. Furthermore, real-time implementation of H / μ  synthesis controller based on its stability study is restricted due to use of linearly approximated dynamic model of an AUV, which hinders achieving robustness. Moreover, model based PID group controllers suffer from implementation complexities and exhibit poor transient and steady-state performances under parametric uncertainties. On the other hand model free
Linear PID (LPID) has inherent problem of narrow convergence region, i.e.it can not ensure convergence of large initial error to zero. Additionally, it suffers from integrator-wind-up and subsequent saturation of actuator during the occurrence of large initial error. But LPID controller
has inherent capability to cope up with the uncertainties. In view of addressing the above said problem, this work proposes wind-up free Nonlinear PID with Bounded Integral (BI) and Bounded Derivative (BD) for set-point control and combination of continuous SMC with Nonlinear PID with BI and BD namely SM-N-PID with BI and BD for trajectory tracking.
Nonlinear functions are used for all P,I and D controllers (for both of set-point and tracking control) in addition to use of nonlinear tan hyperbolic function in SMC(for tracking only) such that torque demand from the controller can be kept within a limit. A direct Lyapunov analysis is pursued to prove stable motion of AUV. The efficacies of the proposed controllers are compared with other two controllers namely PD and N-PID without BI and BD for set-point control and PD plus Feedforward Compensation (FC) and SM-NPID without BI and BD for tracking control.

Multiple AUVs cooperatively performing a mission offers several advantages over a single AUV in a non-cooperative manner; such as reliability and increased work efficiency, etc. Bandwidth limitation in acoustic medium possess challenges in designing cooperative motion control
algorithm for multiple AUVs owing to the necessity of communication of sensors and actuator signals among AUVs. In literature, undirected graph based approach is used for control design under communication constraints and thus it is not suitable for large number of AUVs participating in a cooperative motion plan. Formation control is a popular cooperative motion control paradigm. This thesis models the formation as a minimally persistent directed graph and
proposes control schemes for maintaining the distance constraints during the course of motion of entire formation. For formation control each AUV uses Sliding Mode Nonlinear PID controller with Bounded Integrator and Bounded Derivative. Direct Lyapunov stability analysis in the
framework of input-to-state stability ensures the stable motion of formation while maintaining the desired distance constraints among the AUVs.


European marriage rates have been steadily declining since the 1960's, a part of the second demographic transition largely attributed to the individualization of values. In 1998, Swedish marriage rates reversed into an incline, surpassing the European average in 2004. This reverse is particularly interesting as Sweden has been an international forerunner in the second demographic transition since the 1960's. As Sweden remain highly individualized, a theoretical gap in the relationship between marriage rates and individualization is exposed. This thesis argue that ideational individualization is insufficiently theorized if understood as a set of erosive values, and must instead be considered a mode of discursive organization to account for its complex consequences. To demonstrate this empirically, three focus groups of young Swedish adults were employed to produce normative discourse data. Analysis of this data shows how the contemporary Swedish marriage is discursively organized in such a way that it cannot be understood as endangering individualized values. Due to the individualization of the marriage institution, and social organization in general, it may no longer be a matter of about marrying in spite of individualization but because of individualization.


The prevalence of common allergic disorders such as asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis has increased significantly in the past 30 years. The impact of these atopic diseases on the patient and the health care system is considerable: Allergic disorders are associated with a high degree of morbidity, which can profoundly impact patient quality of life and health care resource use. Existing strategies to treat allergic disorders beyond simple allergen avoidance focus on diminishing or eliminating the recurrent and/or persistent signs and symptoms that characterize the allergic response. A new strategy has been developed that uses antibodies directed against immunoglobulin E (IgE) to prevent it from binding to cells bearing its receptors and thus neutralizing the allergic response before it begins. These new agents reduce allergic responses in atopic individuals and improve their symptoms while reducing rescue medication and corticosteroid use in patients with allergic asthma or seasonal allergic rhinitis. Thus, anti-IgE antibodies represent proof that IgE plays a central role in allergic reactions and that anti-IgE therapy is a potentially effective treatment for allergic disease.


The pursuit of global food security and agricultural sustainability, both aims of the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG2), requires urgent and concerted action from developing and developed countries. This, in turn, depends on clear and universally applicable targets and indicators, as well as clear conceptual definitions. A growing number of initiatives related to the proposal of indicators for the SDGs have emerged over the past years. Although based on the same goals and often inclusive of the same SDG2-related topics (e.g. crop yields, health and nutrition), these proposals are quite discrepant concerning their length, level of detail, target region and priority actions. Concomitantly, the UN Inter-Agency and Expert Group on SDG Indicators conducted a public consultation process for developing an official indicator framework for the SDGs; however, inconsistencies remain, data to monitor the fulfillment of some indicators is unavailable and a uncertainty exists about how to operationalize them. We seek to contribute to the design of indicators and their operationalization by reviewing UN-proposed SDG2 indicators and suggesting improvements where needed. Three case studies (i.e. Netherlands, Brazil and Nigeria) support this exercise by illustrating the challenges faced across different development contexts and the need for relative, adaptable indicators. Particularly when it comes to the SDGs, case studies help us think practically about each country's demands and opportunities. Our study has two main parts. The first provides an overview of SDG2 and revises the list of indicators recommended by the UN. It answers whether the indicators are globally relevant, conceptually clear and quantifiable. The second is focused on the analysis of agriculture and food security in Nigeria, Brazil and the Netherlands and the application of the revised indicators in each of them. Synergies and tradeoffs involved in the accomplishment of SDG2 are discussed at the end, together with country-specific policy recommendations.


The Predictive Safety Testing Consortium (PSTC) is a public-private partnership that brings together pharmaceutical companies to share and validate each other's safety testing methods with input from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the Japanese Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA). PSTC is one of seven consortia of the Critical Path Institute (C-Path), a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to accelerating drug development by delivering on the mission outlined by FDA's critical path initiative. The current 19 corporate members of the consortium share internal experience with nonclinical and clinical safety biomarkers in six working groups: cardiac hypertrophy, nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, skeletal myopathy, testicular toxicity, and vascular injury.


This book, which is concerned with algorithms for solving large-scale non-linear optimization problems, is the only complete source of documentation for the software package Lancelot and will mainly be used as a manual in conjunction with the software package. However, it is not only a reference to the input format but also to the underlying algorithms. It is the first publication of this kind for large-scale general non-linear problems. Numerous figures and tables enhance its usefulness to both novices and experts. In addition, it also gives valuable guidance to future designers of related software.


This paper presents a framework that aims to support several steps of learning activities. It provides means for teachers to organize contents, to produce various tests, to adapt them and finally to transfer these to their students. A component created for students to use allows these to easily access the contents previously created by the tutor and to fulfill the assessment tasks. Working either on mobile and non-mobile devices, Test-IT, allow users learn ubiquitously and to proceed with their work at any time and place. We describe the main requirements for using such tool on mobile devices and comment some of the current approaches. The design process and the framework's various components, focusing particularly on the user interface and usability issues, are addressed. The paper also points its attention to the flexibility provided by Test-IT on allowing users to create their own specific applications, according to their field or subject of expertise.


The capability of dynamically adapting to distinct runtime conditions is an important issue when designing distributed systems where negotiated quality of service (QoS) cannot always be delivered between processes. Providing fault tolerance for such dynamic environments is a challenging task. Considering such a context, this paper proposes an adaptive programming model for fault-tolerant distributed computing, which provides upper-layer applications with process state information according to the current system synchrony (or QoS). The underlying system model is hybrid, composed by a synchronous part (where there are time bounds on processing speed and message delay) and an asynchronous part (where there is no time bound). However, such a composition can vary over time, and, in particular, the system may become totally asynchronous (e.g., when the underlying system QoS degrade) or totally synchronous. Moreover, processes are not required to share the same view of the system synchrony at a given time. To illustrate what can be done in this programming model and how to use it, the consensus problem is taken as a benchmark problem. This paper also presents an implementation of the model that relies on a negotiated quality of service (QoS) for communication channels


The "Material Architectures" PhD thesis is comprised of five parts: 1- An introduction to the formulation and the objective of the
PhD thesis . I.e. an interrogarion of the qualities of Matter in the configuration of Form . 2- Devoted to understanding Matter and
its involvement in the making of architecture. 3- An analysis . reflections and extraction of concepts from seven selected works
of Peter Zumthor. 4- The conclusions . 5- An epuilogue. The Ihesis is structured as follows : 1.- The first part expounds the
genesis of the interrogation. namely the interest in understanding the planning process with Matter in "oposition" to a
proliferation of "visual" architecture. The interest in Matter is focused through its participation in architectural Form . In the socalled "Material Architectures" the presence of Matter is embodied in the project's premise; a fact attributed to the momentum
of the "intellectual approach" to Matter. the main objective of the research. and which the conclusions must account for. 2.-The
second part is a preparation for the "momentum of the approach". To this end, the fields of understanding of the subject
are reviewed. This is addressed through some basic concepts. The core premises are based on acceptance of the structural
nature belween Matter and Form . On the basis of this consideration. the research explores two reference fields: Language
and Space. regarding Language. the equivalences between architectural form and linguistic propositive structures are
shown. The objective is to endorse the application of certain concepts from the field of poetic imagination and semiology.
Wlth regard to Space, some basics on the idea of "topoi". spatial patterns and systems of representation are expounded. The
aim is to introduce the terms applied in the analysis of lhe selected works . Following the exposition of the reference fields,
two blocks are devoted to Ihe Matter in question; the first one is devoted to knowledge of the matter as such, and the second
to its value throughout historical thinking. The first block is divided into four cognitive sections. Physics, Morphology,
Metaphysics and Phenomenology. The second block comprises a brief historical overview of how Matter has been
approached in the different periods of Architecture. 3.- Following the introductory chapters, the body of the research is
developed in the third parlt The seven works chosen are addressed in three blocks : The Shelters (Chur and Kolumba). The
Chapels (Saint Benedegt an Bruder Klaus) ant The Diaphragms (Luzi House. Vals an Bregenz). Strictly speaking, they have
not been grouped chronologically or thematically. but rather in such a way as to provide the possibility of extracting ideas and
concepts about the approaches . By way of a preview to illustrate these relationships, we might say that The Shelters explores
the contribution of Matter to the inauguration of a "place"; The Chapels explores the relationship between Phenomenology
and Matter. largely propitiated by the transcendence of the commision; and finally, The Diaphragms group deals with the
relations hip between Matter and its "topological potential" 4.- The fourth part contains the conclu sions of the thesis . This
phenomenon propitiates the identification of so-called "coordinates of approach to Matter" The thesis shows that, just like
when we approach a place we so so in the basis of spatio-temporal parameters, similarly, when we approach Matter
"intellectually". we do so using other calegories : Topology. Phenomenology and Physicality are revealed as the "coordinates
of approach to Matter". And consequently. as the final conclusion of the thesis and as the intended contribution to the Project
Theory.Thus, the "MATERIAL ARCHITECTURES" tille indicates architectural embodiments wich reveal the conclusions drawn
in the PhD thesis . 5.- The fifth part is an epilogue by the author of the research. Broadly speaking, this is the document's
roadmap.


Rubber/Ca-montmorillonite (Ca-MMT) nanocomposites with exfoliated Ca-MMT layers was prepared by a new preparation method named masterbatch method, in which the masterbatch was prepared by co-coagulating nature rubber latex and bis [3-triethoxysilylpropyl-] tetrasulfide (TESPT) modified Ca-MMT aqueous suspension and then the masterbatch accompanied with carbon black (N220) were used in the system of SBR and ENR. The properties of TESPT in-situ modified Ca-MMT were investigated by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. The results showed that the TESPT has reacted with the surface groups of Ca-MMT. The dispersion of the Ca-MMT in masterbatch and vulcanized sample was characterized by X-ray diffraction. The results showed that in the masterbatch an exfoliated structure was obtained and in the vulcanized sample a coexistence of intercalated-exfoliated structure was obtained. The influence of the Ca-MMT loading on the structure and properties of the nanocomposites were studied. It was found that the incorporation of Ca-MMT hindered the vulcanization, improved mechanical properties, thermal properties and aging resistance properties. The dynamic mechanical analysis results showed a decrease of tanδ max when the Ca-MMT is added.


The features of morphological picture facies oral fluid of pregnant women with intact periodontal inflammatory diseases periodontal tissues. Results of the study were compared with the clinical picture. The features of morphological picture of the oral liquid with a healthy non-pregnant and periodontal inflammatory periodontal diseases in pregnant women. Revealed signs of inflammation markers in oral fluid facies in inflammatory processes in periodontal tissues.


Relationship marketing in agricultural products market alleged marred by the behavior of people who engage in such activity. Interactions between actors are not only based on the principle of trading alone but also social and cultural aspects have a crucial role in the color pattern of relationships that occur. To reveal how much social and cultural influences play in the relationship marketing of agricultural products including vegetables and fruits and poultry pieces. The main purpose of this study is to examine the pattern of relationship marketing as well as identifying key factors that influence the occurrence of relationship marketing of agricultural products in West Java. The study was conducted with a quantitative approach, involving 256 respondents and a qualitative approach through indepth interviews. Structural modeling is used to parse the linkages between factors in relationship marketing.


Narrow linewidth optical injection into a semiconductor laser can induce periodic oscillations in the injected laser's output power with a frequency that is widely tunable by simply varying the steady-state bias current and operating temperature. Recently, it has been demonstrated that this oscillation frequency can be made nearly insensitive to small-signal fluctuations of these two parameters at certain operating points [1]. Here, we demonstrate that this insensitivity arises from multiwave mixing and interference that minimizes the response of both the gain medium and the circulating optical power at the oscillation frequency. Both experimental measurements and model calculations of optical spectra show that at the operating points of reduced oscillation frequency sensitivity, all strong components of the optical spectrum still exhibit a response to the perturbations. However, in the power spectra and the (calculated) carrier-density spectra, the response is strongly attenuated. Novel operating points that limit the sensitivity of the laser power oscillation frequency to perturbations offer the promise for improved operation of tunable photonic oscillators for radio- and microwave-frequency applications.


BACKGROUND Diabetes is a prevalent chronic condition that poses a major burden for patients and the health care system. Evidence suggests that patient engagement in self-care improves diabetes control and reduces the risk of complications. To provide effective interventions that aim to improve empowerment processes relating to diabetes, a comprehensive and valid measure of empowerment is needed. This article details the development and validation of the McGill Empowerment Assessment–Diabetes (MEA-D). METHODS The development and validation of the MEA-D questionnaire comprised three steps: item generation, qualitative face validation, and factorial content validation. An initial version was created by combining existing items and inductively generated items. Items were mapped to an empowerment framework with four domains: attitude, knowledge, behavior, and relatedness. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 adults living with diabetes to assess face validity. The questionnaire was revised by a team of clinicians, researchers, and patient-partners. Factorial content validation was then performed using responses from 300 adult Canadians living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. RESULTS The final version of the MEA-D contained 28 items. A moderately good item-domain correlation was found between the individual items within the four domains. Cronbach's α was 0.81 (95% CI 0.78–0.85) for attitude, 0.73 (95% CI 0.67–0.79) for knowledge, 0.84 (95% CI 0.81–0.87) for behavior, and 0.81 (95% CI 0.77–0.84) for relatedness. CONCLUSION The evaluation of diabetes programs demands a validated measure of empowerment. We developed the MEA-D to address this need. The MEA-D may be adapted to measure patients' empowerment regarding other chronic health conditions.


The nests used in this study were obtained from trap-nests (tubes of cardboard and cut bamboo stems) placed on Santa Carlota Farm (Itaoca Section-IS, Santana Section-SS and Cerrado-Ce), Cajuru, SP, Brazil. The number of nests and corresponding species obtained were as follows: 516 nests of T. curvitarsis, 104 of T. rugulosa, 399 of T. diversipes and 98 of T. gamfaloi. The most abundant species from SS and Ce was T. curvitarsis, and from IS it was T. diversipes. In general, most nests were collected during the hot and wet season (September to April). The nests were constructed with sand and an oily substance, and a single female established them. The cells were constructed in a linear series, sometimes followed by a vestibular cell. The number of brood cells ranged from 1 to 10 in T. curvitarsis (n=200), and in T. garofaloi (n-51), from 1 to 8 (n-30) in T. rugulosa, and from 1 to 6 (n=37) in T. diversipes. The pollen mass (pollen + oily substance) contained a hollow, sometimes divided by a transverse ridge, on the exposed face of the pollen mass. The egg was vertically positioned in the lower part of the hollow. At times, the closing of a cell was initiated before provisioning was completed, with a construction of a collar at the cell limit. In some nests the final cellular partition also acted as a closure plug. Females began activities at 6:18 a.m. and ended between 3:31 and 6:26 p.m. Some females (T. curvitarsis, T. rugiulosa and T. ganrfaloi) did not spend the nights at their nests, returning to them only the following morning with additional material. In general, the development period (for males and females) was greater in nests collected near the end of the hot and wet season than it was for nests collected in other months. Sex ratios for each species were as follows: T. curvitarsis. 1:1: T. rugulosa, 1.6:1 female; T. diversipes, 1.9:1: T. garofaloi, 2.8:1. Males and females of T. diversipes exhibited statistically similar sizes and in the other three species the females were larger than the males. The mortality rates were statistically similar: 33.2% for T. curvitarsis, 25.8% for T. rugulosa, 26.8% for T. diversipes and 38.2% for T. garnfaloi. The parasitoids were: Coelioxoides exulans, Leucospis cayenensis, Anthrax sp., Coelioxys sp., Coelioxoides sp. and individuals of the family Meloidae.


Reading is a process which contributes to success in learning a foreign language and good language learners are considered to be good readers (Bialystok, 1983). According to Paribakht and Wesche (1999), a good reader can guess the meanings of some unfamiliar words in a text, and there is a strong relationship between vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension. Reading ability of second/foreign language learners has been widely investigated and it has been found that they understand more and make more guesses if they participate actively in the reading process by applying strategies. Hosenfeld (1981) proposed the term "reading strategies" that students must utilize in order to comprehend reading passages, and she noted 20 effective reading strategies "an efficient reader reads to identify meaning rather than words, takes chances in order to identify meaning, considers illustrations, evaluates guesses, uses a variety of types of context clues, and follows through with proposed solutions" (cited in Barnett, 1988:110).


We investigate the quasiparticle (QP) relaxation and low-energy electronic structure in undoped SmFeAsO and near-optimally doped SmFeAsO0.8F0.2 single crystals–exhibiting spin-density wave (SDW) ordering and superconductivity, respectively–using pump-probe femtosecond spectroscopy. In the undoped single crystals a single relaxation process is observed, showing a remarkable critical slowing down of the QP relaxation dynamics at the SDW transition temperature TSDW≃125 K. In the superconducting (SC) crystals multiple relaxation processes are present with distinct SC-state quasiparticle recombination dynamics exhibiting a BCS-like T-dependent superconducting gap, and a pseudogap (PG)-like feature with an onset above 180 K indicating the existence of a pseudogap of magnitude 2ΔPG≃120 meV above Tc. From the pump-photon energy dependence we conclude that the SC state and PG relaxation channels are independent, implying the presence of two separate electronic subsystems. We discuss the data in terms of spatial inhomogeneity and multiband scenarios, finding that the latter is more consistent with the present data.

© 2010 The American Physical Society


Thermodynamics of the interaction of the chemotherapeutic and chemopreventive dietary pigment, curcumin, with hemoglobin was studied by isothermal titration calorimetry. The binding was characterized to be exothermic. At 293.15 K, the equilibrium constant for curcumin-Hb complexation was found to be (4.88 ± 0.06) × 10(5) M(-1). The binding stoichiometry was calculated to be 1.08 ± 0.05, confirming a 1:1 complexation. The binding was driven by a large negative standard molar enthalpy change (ΔH(0) = -118.45 ± 0.05 kJ mol(-1)) and an unfavorable standard molar entropy change (TΔS(0) = -86.53 ± 0.01 kJ mol(-1)) at 293.15 K. Increasing the temperature favoured the binding, and the magnitude of the negative standard molar heat capacity change suggested the involvement of significant hydrophobic forces in the binding process. With increasing salt concentration, the magnitude of the equilibrium constant decreased slightly; and the complexation mostly involved non-polyelectrolytic forces contributing about 92-94% of the standard molar Gibbs energy change. DSC studies revealed that curcumin binding caused a partial unfolding of the protein.


BACKGROUND
 Recent studies have suggested better outcomes from cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in women. Gender differences in coronary sinus (CS) anatomy and left ventricular (LV) lead parameters in patients undergoing CRT, however, have not been well studied.

METHODS AND RESULTS
 Two hundred and twenty-three consecutive patients, undergoing CRT at the University of California in San Diego Medical Center from 2003 to 2011 were included in this study. The location of the LV lead was assessed on coronary venography and chest X-ray recorded at the time of device implantation. Optimal LV lead position was defined as either mid-lateral or posterolateral LV wall. The relationship between LV lead position (optimal or non-optimal position) and LV lead parameters at completion of implant were compared between genders. No statistically significant gender differences were noted in baseline characteristics. LV lead implantation was successful in 217 patients (97.3%). Lateral or posterolateral CS branches were unavailable in more women than men (26.3% vs. 10.8%, P=0.011). Women had a higher LV lead pacing threshold than men (P=0.003) and gender was an independent risk factor of high LV lead pacing threshold (P=0.008).

CONCLUSIONS
 Women had an anatomical disadvantage for LV lead placement and had higher LV lead pacing threshold compared to men. Implanting physicians should be aware of gender differences during LV lead placement in order to maximize CRT benefits.


Time-frequency analysis is an important technology in seismic data processing and interpretation. To localize frequency content in time, we have developed a novel method for computing a time-frequency map for nonstationary signals using an iterative inversion framework. We calculated time-varying Fourier coefficients by solving a least-squares problem that uses regularized nonstationary regression. We defined the time-frequency map as the norm of time-varying coefficients. Time-varying average frequency of the seismic data can also be estimated from the time-frequency map calculated by our method. We tested the method on benchmark synthetic signals and compared it with the well-known S-transform. Two field data examples showed applications of the proposed method for delineation of sand channels and for detection of low-frequency anomalies.


Concurrent schedules of punishment and fixed-ratio reinforcement were studied in six white Carneaux pigeons. Two stimuli were alternated on the translucent key which served as the response mechanism. The pigeons were exposed to continuous punishment in one stimulus and first response punishment in the other. It was found that continuous punishment suppressed the fixed-ratio performance more than did punishment of the first response. Typically, a ratio run of responses was completed in spite of the onset of continuous punishment. Responding was then reduced for the remainder of the continuous punishment stimulus, except for those times when responding was initiated near the end of the stimulus. The results indicate that a multiple schedule can be used to compare different schedules of punishment in the same organism.


Abstract Diel partitioning of singing, which has been observed from the tropics to the temperate regions, is among the various mechanisms of sound partitioning found in multispecies cicada assemblages and is regarded as an important mechanism of coexistence. Using playback experiments, we studied interspecific interference between two Japanese cicadas, Cryptotympana facialis and Graptopsaltria nigrofuscata, which exhibit similar peak frequencies in their calling songs and different diel patterns of song activity. We found that the males of the two species had different song response patterns: C. facialis responded significantly more to conspecific calling songs than G. nigrofuscata. These results suggest that male C. facialis have evolved more intense conspecific song recognition than G. nigrofuscata. This may cause male G. nigrofuscata to avoid destructive acoustic interference during their active singing time.


This thesis explores the impact of mentor and mentee personality type in formal mentoring relationships. The research sought to identify whether there were individual personality characteristics which impact on relationship dynamics and the learning derived from these relationships. The Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) was used to identify personality type thus ensuring that the research had practical utility in organisations. Twelve mentoring dyads from public, private and third sector mentoring initiatives participated in the study which adopted an exploratory and qualitative methodology. Multiple methods were used to collect data and an analysis framework was developed, using Activity Theory tenets, to synthesise the different data sets and create narratives of each mentoring relationship. The thesis argues that by enhancing understanding of Type Theory in mentoring relationships, informal learning can be enhanced for mentors and mentees. The research shows how informal learning within mentoring dyads often stems from social comparison and thus differences between mentor and mentee can provide a medium for learning in the workplace. The findings suggest that this will be particularly pertinent for mentors. In addition, the study conclusions highlight the value of using the MBTI to support mentoring relationship development thus enhancing the potential for further learning. The research finds that individual differences will determine the extent to which relationships operate on a traditional, peer or reverse level and not demographic differences as suggested in the extant literature. Furthermore, common personality preferences were identified in individuals who are drawn to the role of mentor and an initial framework for a typology of mentoring relationships was developed. There were two main limitations of the research. First, the study employed a cross-sectional design which resulted in data being collected from participants at different stages of the mentoring relationship. The second limitation concerned the small sample size. Whilst sample size is less relevant in qualitative research, the study sample cannot be considered representative of all formal mentoring programmes or even the programmes studied. The intention was to identify informative cases which would address the research objectives and this was subsequently achieved. The research has contributed to the body of mentoring knowledge by drawing theory from one academic field into another. The findings provide new insights into individual differences and mentoring relationship dynamics thus adding to a sparse area of knowledge in mentoring research. Further, the findings challenge some of the assumptions implicit in the extant literature and highlight the need to examine the construct of mentoring from a broader social science perspective.


Objective The exposure conditions with regard to 10-year ischemic cardiovascular disease (ICVD) risk among residents aged 45–59 years treated in Hudong Community Health Service Center were surveyed to provide an objective basis for further studies on the relation between risk factors and ICVD events. Methods The survey was conducted from October 2013 to March 2014 with use of the principle of cluster sampling. Our investigation involved questionnaire and laboratory tests. All residents were evaluated according to the table of National 10-Year Risk Assessment for ICVD to forecast the 10-year risk. The community intervention methods were medication and lifestyle intervention based on the relevant guidelines. Results The body mass index and smoking rate were significantly higher in men than in women. The 10-year ICVD risk was 6.1% for moderate risk or above. We performed intervention in such residents for 1 year, with the result that the blood pressure and total cholesterol levels were significantly decreased (P<0.05). Conclusion It is imperative that early prediction and intervention be conducted for the residents with risk factors. After the intervention, we found that the risk declined in 79.41% of the residents with moderate risk and or above and that the 10-year ICVD risk score decreased.