The birdwings butterfly Troides magellanus possesses interesting properties for light and thermal radiation management. The black wings of the male exhibit strong (98%) absorption of visible light as well as two strong absorption peaks in the infrared (3 μm and 6 μm) both due to chitin. These peaks are located in the spectral region where the black body emits at 313K. The study of absorption enhancement in this butterfly could be helpful to design highly absorbent biomimetic materials. Observations of the wings using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) reveal that the scales covering the wings are deeply nanostructured. A periodic three-dimensional (3D) model of the scale nanoarchitecture is elaborated and used for numerical transfer-matrix simulations of the absorption spectrum. The complex refractive index of the wing material is approximated by a multi-oscillator Lorentz model, leading to a broad absorption in the visible range as well as two peaks in the infrared. The absorption peak intensities turn out to be dependent on the complexity of the nanostructures. This result clearly demonstrates a structural effect on the absorption. Finally, a comparison with a planar layer of identical refractive index and material volume lead us to conclude that the absorption is enhanced by nanostructures.


The antioxidant properties of methanolic extracts from soybean obtained with germination, wounding, and application of biotic elicitors were evaluated. Also, the relationship between observed antioxidant properties and compositional changes in isoflavone content was determined. The 2 biotic elicitors used in this study were the food-grade fungus Aspergillus sojae and A. sojae cell wall extract. Isoflavone content was determined by C(18) reverse phase high-performance chromatography coupled with a photodiode array detector. Antioxidant activities of the extracts were measured using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging and beta-carotene cooxidation in a linoleate system. Higher antioxidant activities were observed in wounded and elicitor-treated extracts when compared with nonwounded control extracts. In addition, the phenolic content was higher in extracts from wounded and elicitor-treated soybean. Germination for 3 d slightly decreased total isoflavone content (-4.3%); however, wounding increased total isoflavone content (25.8%). The soybean extracts from seeds treated with A. sojae biotic elicitors had the highest total isoflavone contents (9.8 to 11.6 mg/g extract) and displayed the highest antioxidant activities in both the DPPH and beta-carotene assays. Also identified in the wounded and elicitor-treated extracts were the induced isoflavones glyceollins that contributed to the higher isoflavone contents observed.


The aim of this study was to examine the pregnancy outcomes in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and the effect of SLE flare and treatment on pregnancy outcomes. We performed a retrospective evaluation of all pregnancies occurring in patients with SLE during the 27-year period from 1980 to 2006. Of the 319 women with SLE planning pregnancy after SLE onset, 176 (55.2%) conceived resulting in 396 pregnancies. Live births were significantly lower in proportion (70.2% vs. 85.7%) and more likely to end in fetal deaths (29.7% vs. 14.2%) and preterm births (26.7% vs. 5.8 %) in pregnancies occurring after SLE onset than in pregnancies occurring before SLE onset (p < 0.0001). With respect to different disease manifestations, we found that fetal loss was significantly higher in patients with antiphospholipid (aPL) antibodies than without (p < 0.001). Preterm deliveries were significantly more frequent in patients with lupus nephritis, anti-Ro/SSA antibodies, hypertension, history of intravenous cyclophosphamide treatment and aPL than those without these features (p < 0.05). Neonates with intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) neonates were more common in hypertensive and Raynaud's-positive pregnancies (p < 0.05). SLE flares occurred in 30.8% pregnancies. There was increased risk of fetal loss, preterm births and IUGR in pregnancies with SLE exacerbations than without (p < 0.05). Prednisolone was found to improve the rate of live births, although it was also a predictor of prematurity. The predictors of pregnancy loss were lupus nephritis (odds ratio (OR) 7.3), aPL (OR 3.9), and SLE flares in pregnancy (OR 1.9). There was higher risk of preterm deliveries in patients with lupus nephritis (OR 18.9), anti-Ro antibodies (OR 13.9), hypertension (OR 15.7) and SLE flares (OR 2.5). IUGR was found to be associated with hypertension (OR 37.7), Raynaud's (OR 12.3), and SLE flares (OR 4.2). In conclusion, pregnancies in SLE patients with active lupus nephritis, anti-Ro/SSA antibodies, aPL, hypertension, Raynaud's phenomenon, active disease at conception and SLE exacerbations are at a higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. It is important to carefully plan pregnancy, and experienced rheumatologists and obstetricians should monitor SLE patients in pregnancy and postpartum.


Abstract Objective To determine the ability of a commercial cryotherapy system (Game Ready Equine) to cool the metacarpal subcutaneous tissue and the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) in horses. Study design Experimental study. Animals or sample population Six healthy adult horses. Methods Thermocouples were implanted into the metacarpal subcutaneous tissues and the SDFT of six horses. Two treatments (cryotherapy or cryotherapy with 5–50 mmHg intermittent compression) were randomly assigned to forelimbs and performed for 20 minutes. Temperatures were compared to the target range of 10–19°C and between groups. Results Only one limb in the cryotherapy/compression group reached the target range after cryotherapy. Temperatures did not differ between treatment groups at time 0. Lowest temperatures achieved in the subcutaneous tissue (p = .0043) and SDFT (p = .005) were 4.9 and 7.6°C lower when intermittent compression was applied. Similarly, applying compression induced a maximum change in temperature of approximately 7.0°C in the subcutaneous tissue (p = .014) and 10.2°C in the SDFT (p = .0001). Conclusion The cryotherapy system did not cool equine subcutaneous tissue or SDFT to the target temperature range, except in one limb. Combining cryotherapy with intermittent compression did result in lower temperatures and a greater change in temperature of the subcutaneous tissue and SDFT. Clinical significance When using this cryotherapy system, the addition of intermittent compression should be considered to achieve lower temperatures and potentially greater reduction in inflammation. Further studies are warranted to determine the effect of longer treatment times, higher compression settings, and the optimal temperature for benefits in normal and diseased equine tissues.


Current 2-D Super Resolution (SR) imaging is limited by the slice thickness determined by the elevation focus. The fixed, geometric elevation focus is often poor due to its high F-number. SR images are, thus, a summation of vessels across the elevation plane without the possibility to track scatterers in 3-D for full visualization. 3-D SR imaging has been obtained by translating the probe, but this does not remove the elevation summation. Full 3-D can be acquired using 2-D matrix probes, but the equipment is expensive, and the amount of data is excessive, when channel data are acquired over thousands of elements for minutes. This paper demonstrates that full volumetric SRI can be attained using a 62+62 channels Row-Column (RC) probe with a high frame rate and with µm precision. Data were acquired by a 3 MHz 62+62 PZT RC probe with λ/2 pitch connected to the SARUS scanner. A synthetic aperture scan sequence with 32 positive and 32 negative emissions was employed for pulse inversion (PI) imaging with an MI of 0.3. The pulse repetition frequency was 10 kHz for a 156 Hz volume rate. A PEGDA 700 g/mol based hydrogel flow-microphantom was 3-D printed by stereo-lithography. It contains a single cylindrical 200 µm diameter channel placed 3 mm from the top surface of the phantom. After a 5.8 mm long inlet, the channel bends 90◦ into a 7 mm long central region before bending 90◦ again into the 5.8 mm outlet. The flow channel was infused at 1.61 µL/s with Sonovue (Bracco) in a 1:10 dilution. The received RF signals from the 62 row elements were beamformed with PI to yield a full volume of 15 x 15 x 15 mm3. The interpolated 3-D positions of the bubbles were estimated after local maximum detection. The reconstructed 3-D SR volume clearly shows the 200 µm channel shape with a high resolution in all three dimensions. The center line for the channel was found by fitting a line to all bubble positions, and their radial position calculated. The observed fraction of bubbles falling outside the channel was used for estimating the location precision. The precision was 16.5 µm in the y − z plane and 23.0 µm in the x z plane. The point spread function had a size of 0.58 x 1.05−x 0.31 mm3, so the interrogated volume was 15,700 times smaller than for normal volumetric B-mode imaging. This demonstrates that full 3-D SRI can be attained with just 62 receive channels. The SA sequence has a low MI, but attains a large measured penetration depth of 14 cm in a tissue mimicking phantom, due to the large RC probe size. The 156 Hz volume rate also makes it possible to track high velocities in 3-D in the volume.


The current lack of consistency between business processes and their underlying business models lead to a lack of understanding about business process contribution to the value chain. In order to enhance understanding of business models and their impacts to business processes, consistency of value model representations is one important aspect. Examining representations i.e. e3value, Resource Event Agent model, and the Business Object Model -concerns both grammar and method. Therefore, the paper presents in a first step an ontologic grammar evaluation of value models, which bases on the Bunge Wand Weber Representation Model. By examining conceptual representations using e3value, UML class diagram and ER modelling in context of value models, their impact to business processes is analysed evaluating the expressiveness in terms of ontologic coverage and overlap. Impact refers to the ability to transform the concepts of value models to the process level. The paper's contribution is not the overall evaluation, but the proof of appropriateness of value modelling grammars to their potential of an enhanced user understanding.


http://jpst.ripi.ir Journal of Petroleum Science and Technology 2019, 9(1), 03-12 © 2019 Research Institute of Petroleum Industry (RIPI) ABSTRACT The routine measurement of direction-dependent reservoir rock properties like permeability often takes place along the axial direction of core samples. As permeability is a tensor property of porous materials, it should be fully described by a tensor matrix or by three main permeabilities in principal directions. Due to compaction, cementation, and other lithification processes, which take place after sedimentation, or later distortion and fractionation of the regional earth's crust, the axial direction of core samples, may not be always one of the main permeability directions. In this paper, a computational technique to find principal permeability directions from micro-CT images of core samples was developed by us. Moreover, an assumed cube inside the core sample data with dimensions small enough to be able to imaginarily rotate inside the core limits has been chosen by us. Also, connected pore network was extracted from micro-CT data, and permeability was calculated in all space directions. In addition, stepwise rotation process continued until all possible space directions were covered. Then calculated permeabilities from all directions have been compared with each other by us. Afterwards, maximum and minimum values have been found by us. In this paper, two micro-CT datasets, which were taken from the Imperial College website, are used. Finally, the obtained results showed that the direction of maximum permeability within the carbonate core sample is about 30° deviation from the axial core direction. In addition to the main direction, the proposed computational technique can be effectively used to describe the permeability tensor of the reservoir rocks.


Cloud Computing is the next generation Architecture of the most IT enterprise. It made possible, the application to run without the burden of local hardware and software. It moved the data and the application software of the various enterprises to the centralized large data centre, where the security issue arises. As one who saves important information to those data centers in digital form, so one should be aware of the security aspects of the cloud environment. This work studies the cloud computing, in which the most acute obstacles with outsourced service are security issues. This paper details about the security issues by observing and studying various prior works.


Cellular senescence is an intrinsic tumor suppression mechanism that protects cells from neoplastic transformation by activated oncogenes. As such, strategies to enhance senescence could be a promising avenue for cancer prevention. The transcription factor (TF) CCAAT/enhancer binding protein β (C/EBPβ) is induced and post-translationally activated by oncogenic Ras signaling in primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and cooperates with RB:E2F to implement RasV12-induced senescence. In contrast, immortalized cells lacking the tumor suppressor p19Arf, such as NIH 3T3 murine fibroblasts, bypass senescence and are transformed by RasV12. Our lab previously showed that C/EBPβ expression is down-regulated in association with RasV12 transformation of NIH 3T3 cells. Furthermore, p19Arf acts in a p53-independent manner to maintain C/EBPβ levels in RasV12-expressing fibroblasts. Thus, C/EBPβ functions as part of an Arf-dependent tumor suppressor network activated by oncogenic stress. The opposing effects of oncogenic Ras on Cebpb expression in primary MEFs and immortalized NIH 3T3 cells prompted us to investigate the mechanisms that regulate Cebpb gene transcription. The early growth response (Egr) family of zinc-finger TFs is composed of 4 members, Egr-1-4. Here we show that Egrs are also down-regulated in RasV12-transformed NIH 3T3 cells (3T3Ras) and their ectopic expression restores C/EBPβ levels. Over-expression of any of the Egr proteins causes growth arrest and senescence in 3T3Ras cells in a manner that is partially dependent on reactivation of C/EBPβ. Egr proteins stimulate transcription from a promoter-reporter construct containing ∼3 kb of the Cebpb 5' flanking region. The proximal Cebpb promoter contains several putative Egr binding motifs, and mutating three of these sites disrupts Egr-mediated transactivation of the Cebpb reporter. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays showed that ectopically expressed and endogenous Egrs bind to the Cebpb proximal promoter. In addition, serum stimulation of normal NIH 3T3 cells induces C/EBPβ mRNA and protein levels, which peak between 2-5 hours and coincide with transient induction of Egr proteins. Moreover, Egrs are only weakly induced by serum in 3T3Ras cells compared to their robust induction in the parental cells, with the exception of Egr-4 which was not detected in either cell line. Thus, decreased Egr levels can account for RasV12-induced down-regulation of C/EBPβ in transformed fibroblasts. Furthermore, microarray data from Oncomine show a strong correlation between CEBPB and EGR expression in human tumor samples. Collectively, our findings identify the Egr-C/EBPβ axis as a critical pathway in determining the cellular response (transformation or senescence) to oncogenic Ras-p19Arf signaling. Citation Format: Jacqueline Salotti, Krisada Sakchaisri, Peter Johnson. A p19Arf-Egr-C/EBPβ axis underlying oncogene-induced senescence and tumor suppression. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eleventh Annual AACR International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research; 2012 Oct 16-19; Anaheim, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Prev Res 2012;5(11 Suppl):Abstract nr B24.


Recirculation following 30 min of ischemia due to transient uterine artery occlusion in pregnant rats at 20 days gestation has previously been found to cause partial recovery and secondary deterioration of the cellular bioenergetic state in the fetal brain, the subsequent damage being ameliorated by a free radical spin trap agent, alpha-phenyl-N-TERT-butylnitrone (PBN). Our objective was to assess whether the secondary deterioration of the cellular bioenergetic state is due to mitochondrial dysfunction and to study whether PBN acts to prevent secondary damage to mitochondria in the fetal rat brain. Fetal neocortical tissues were sampled after 30 min of intrauterine ischemia and after 1, 2 or 4 h of recirculation. PBN or vehicle was given 1 h after recirculation. Homogenates were prepared, and ADP-stimulated, nonstimulated and uncoupled respiratory rates were measured polarographically. Ischemia was associated with a decrease in ADP-stimulated and uncoupled respiratory rates, with a marked fall in the respiratory control ratio, defined as ADP-stimulated divided by nonstimulated respiration (p < 0.01). Recirculation (1 h) brought about partial recovery, but continued reflow (2 and 4 h) was associated with a secondary deterioration of respiratory functions (p < 0.01). The secondary deterioration was prevented by PBN (p < 0.05). The results demonstrate that the secondary deterioration of the cellular bioenergetic state in ischemia-reperfusion is due to secondary mitochondrial dysfunction and that this deterioration may be induced by oxygen-derived free radicals in the immature fetal brain.


The precision with which users can maintain boresight alignment between visual targets at different depths is recorded for 24 subjects using two different boresight targets. Subjects' normal head stability is established using their Romberg coefficients. Weibull distributions are used to describe the probabilities of the magnitude of head positional errors and the three dimensional cloud of errors is displayed by orthogonal two dimensional density plots. These data will lead to an understanding of the limits of user introduced calibration error in augmented reality systems.


In search of markers of disease activity in patients with SLE we have investigated blood lymphocyte subsets from a large cohort of patient. Seventy-one patients were studied using a well-defined panel of fluorescent monoclonal antibodies which recognize the major T, B and NK lymphocyte subsets and activated cells. Flow cytometry was used with standard automated software. Overall, SLE patients were lymphopenic. The proportion of activated T cells was increased and NK cells were decreased in both proportion and absolute numbers (P < 0.001). This decrease was more pronounced in the more active patients. None of the T cell activation markers was shown to distinguish different degrees of disease activity. However, the percentage of NK cells was significantly reduced in active disease states (P< 0.01). Decreased numbers of NK cells could potentially reduce the resistance of SLE patients to infectious organisms.


The frame of assessment that this book sets for itself is strictly defined: to disentangle and follow the trends in mathematical education at the primary and middle school levels in China from 1860 to 1970, with particular emphasis on developments undertaken by the Communist government. The documentation that supports this effort is equally specific--it includes syllabi, textbook lists, subject scope descriptions and subject sequences, sample lesson plans, and examinations.But in addition to fulfilling this program, the book explicitly explores several implications of much wider import. For one, since modern technology is solidly based on mathematics, an index to the development of China's technical skills can be inferred from an examination of mathematical education over the last decades, and some insight into China's potential in the next generation can be gained by studying the way mathematics is being taught to the primary and middle school pupils of today.For another, the book examines the effects of Western mathematical concepts and teaching methods--imported mainly from America during the Republican and Kuomintang periods, and from Russia during the early Communist period--on the ancient mathematical tradition embedded in Chinese culture. The book also cites the lessons that the Chinese experience in this educational area may have for other developing countries.Among the other subjects examined are the present effects of the "Great Cultural Revolution" on mathematics instruction and the extent to which courses in "pure" mathematics may have been diluted or tinctured by the introduction of political indoctrination; the influence of Soviet models on the establishment of "Olympiad" competitions to seek out mathematical talent and of special schools for students with such talent; the ways in which "practical applications" are being introduced into mathematics teaaching; the efforts the Chinese have made to solve their teacher shortage; and the extent to which psychological processes of mathematics learning are being considered in developing programs of instruction.


The formation of graphene on the SiC(0001¯) surface (the C-face of the {0001} surfaces) has been studied, utilizing both disilane and neon environments. In both cases, the interface between the graphene and the SiC is found to be different than for graphene formation in vacuum. A complex low-energy electron diffraction pattern with √43 × √43-R ± 7.6° symmetry is found to form at the interface. An interface layer consisting essentially of graphene is observed, and it is argued that the manner in which this layer covalently bonds to the underlying SiC produces the √43 × √43-R ± 7.6° structure [i.e., analogous to the 6√3 × 6√3-R30° "buffer layer" that forms on the SiC(0001) surface (the Si-face)]. Oxidation of the surface is found to modify (eliminate) the √43 × √43-R ± 7.6° structure, which is interpreted in the same manner as the known "decoupling" that occurs for the Si-face buffer layer.The formation of graphene on the SiC(0001¯) surface (the C-face of the {0001} surfaces) has been studied, utilizing both disilane and neon environments. In both cases, the interface between the graphene and the SiC is found to be different than for graphene formation in vacuum. A complex low-energy electron diffraction pattern with √43 × √43-R ± 7.6° symmetry is found to form at the interface. An interface layer consisting essentially of graphene is observed, and it is argued that the manner in which this layer covalently bonds to the underlying SiC produces the √43 × √43-R ± 7.6° structure [i.e., analogous to the 6√3 × 6√3-R30° "buffer layer" that forms on the SiC(0001) surface (the Si-face)]. Oxidation of the surface is found to modify (eliminate) the √43 × √43-R ± 7.6° structure, which is interpreted in the same manner as the known "decoupling" that occurs for the Si-face buffer layer.


At a time of increasing public and government focus on the quality of teacher education, little is known about the professional development needs of those who teach teachers in further education (FE). Yet they are crucial players. Efforts are intensifying across a significant number of countries to promote the professional development of teacher educators, but there is little support for new or experienced practitioners and no substantive professional standards regarding this role in English FE. This has an impact on the professional practice and career trajectories of teacher educators themselves. Based on a series of semi-structured interviews, an online survey and focus groups, this mixed-methods study uses a sequential exploratory design. The study captures the voices of English FE teacher educators who identified mentoring, induction and a choice of continuous professional development sessions as important strategies to improve the effectiveness of their role over time. This article will propose flexible models of professional development, following an analysis of new and experienced teacher educators' needs in FE in England. The article recommends that new professional standards for teacher educators could be written collaboratively by practitioners, within a policy and institutional framework which supports the scholarship and research requirements of teacher educators.


ABSTRACT Background: The length of fertility after stopping the use of DMPA injection takes an average of 4 to 10 months, while the FP implant takes 1 to 3 months. This study aimed to analyze the difference in duration of fertility return at 3-month injection contraceptive post acceptors (DMPA) and implant contraception at Baumata Health Center. Subjects and Method: This was an analytic study with a cross sectional design. The study was conducted in Baumata Community Health Center, Kupang Regency from November to December 2019. A sample of 40 post-acceptors for injection and implant family planning was selected by sampling technique. The dependent variable was Length of return of fertility. The independent variables were post acceptors for injection and implant family planning. The data were collected by questionnaire and tested by Mann-Whitney test. Results: Length of return to fertility in post-acceptors of injection family planning mothers at Baumata Public Health Center (Mean= 7.65; SD= 2.23). The return of fertility to post-acceptor implant family planning mothers at Baumata Community Health Center, Kupang Regency (Mean= 3.05; SD= 0.99). It was statistically significant (p< 0.001). Conclusion: Based on the tests that have been carried out, it can be concluded that there is a difference in the duration of return of fertility in mothers of injection and implant family planning post acceptors at Baumata Community Health Center, Kupang Regency. Keywords: injection and implant family planning post acceptors, duration of return of fertility Correspondence: Siti Nur Asyah Jamillah Ahmad. Study Program in Diploma-III, Universitas Citra Bangsa, Kupang. Jl. Manafe No. 17 Kayu Putih, Oebobo district, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. E-mail: email@example.com. Mobile: 085338191820 DOI: https://doi.org/10.26911/the7thicph.03.36


This paper investigates how European countries have responded to the issue of irregular migrant labor in recent decades. The European Union has declared that jobs in shadow economies are a major pull for undocumented migrants, and since the 1990s, a number of individual states and the EU have ramped up efforts to combat irregular migrant work. This paper charts and characterizes trends in these policy initiatives over time, and across countries, in an effort to understand both how states concretely go about trying to control irregular migration, and to shed light on the political economy of labor migration. I argue that European integration and asylum crises help explain the common trend toward hardening labor market controls, as well as the growing EU emphasis on the issue. Cross-national differences remain, however, in the level of effort expended on rooting out and repressing irregular migrant work; these differences reflect varying political dynamics over shadow economies and the institutionalized power of economic interest groups.


The adsorption kinetics of a diblock copolymer poly(fer£-butyl methacrylate)-6-poly(glycidyl methacrylate sodium sulfonate) on hydrophobic substrate from aqueous solution under different added monovalent salt (NaCl) concentrations was investigated using an ellipsometric technique. The effect of monovalent counterion size on adsorption kinetics of the same copolymer on hydrophobic surfaces was also part of the investigation. The results, in general, indicate that the adsorption process on solid surfaces occurs through the anchoring of hydrophobic chains due to the short-ranged hydrophobic interactions. The kinetic data reveal three distinct stages in the adsorption process: an incubation period, a subsequent fast growth process of the polymer layer, and a plateau (equilibrium) region. These three stages are found to be influenced by salt concentration as well as counterion size. The equilibrium adsorption density increases as a function of salt concentration, . and the dependence is found to be different from the theoretical predictions. The incubation time increases with salt concentration according to a power law dependence, and a simple bound ionic layer formation on the substrate is proposed as a possible explanation for this observation. An attempt has been made to explain the growth process in terms of an Avrami type ordering process. The Avrami analysis indicates that the buildup of polyelectrolyte layer structure depends on added salt conditions. Our kinetic data suggest that the diffusion of the chains to the surface is not the rate-controlling process for adsorption. A slow birth (nucleation) and fast growth of the layer seem to be the determining adsorption process. © 2000 American Chemical Society.


The downtown business districts of San Francisco, Los Angeles and other cities in the western United States have significant inventories of older (pre-2000) tall steel buildings that have elevated risk, compared to new code-conforming buildings, of damage and collapse from strong earthquakes. Many of these buildings have welded connections of the type that experienced sudden brittle fractures during the 1994 Northridge earthquake, and they were designed under building codes with less stringent requirements on seismic drifts, minimum column strengths, and seismic base shears. Compounding these deficiencies are new seismic hazard models which indicate that long-period spectral accelerations and durations of earthquake ground motions are larger than considered in older design codes. This study applies newly developed models to assess the response of older steel buildings from the onset of damage up to collapse. The analysis results are used to examine issues associated with post-earthquake inspection and safety, which have implications on building reoccupancy and recovery. The study considers the implication of structural damage on recovery of both the tall building itself, as well as implications of safety cordons around the tall building on the re-occupancy and recovery of neighboring buildings. A method is proposed for quantifying the post-earthquake safety of damaged tall buildings to inform criteria for establishing safety cordons. The building-specific performance-based assessment method of FEMA P58 is extended and applied to quantify the post-earthquake recovery time for neighboring buildings. In addition to providing more comprehensive estimates of community downtime, this framework can include metrics for whether certain buildings are likely to induce inordinately long downtimes in surrounding buildings or how a cordoning strategy will affect a community. This type of downtime assessment can inform a range of policy and planning decisions, such as requiring seismic retrofit of vulnerable tall buildings, evaluating emergency response strategies, and developing postearthquake recovery plans.


The effect of cyclopentanol on the solubilization of six polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) and y-cyclodextrin (γ-CD) is reported in this paper. The addition of 0.1% v/v cyclopentanol significantly enhances the solubilization power of β-CD for pyrene, acenaphthene, phenanthrene, and fluoranthene, which form 1 :2 complexes with β-CD. However, the solubilization of acenaphthene and phenanthrene by β-CD in the presence of cyclopentanol decreases at higher β-CD concentrations following an initial increase. This phenomenon is attributed to the cyclopentanol-induced formation of insoluble β-CD aggregates. In contrast, cyclopentanol produces no pronounced effect and a marked decrease in the solubilization power of β-CD for naphthalene and anthracene, respectively. These two compounds form 1 :1 complexes with β-CD. The solubilization of all six PAHs by γ-CD is significantly enhanced by 1% v/v cyclopentanol. This result indicates that the addition of cyclopentanol increases the hydrophobicity of the γ-CD cavity and increases the solubilization power of γ-CD without inducing structure-dependent selectivity. On the basis of linearity and nonlinearity observed in the solubilization curves of the six PAHs in the presence of cyclopentanol, it is suggested that naphthalene, anthracene, acenaphthene, and phenanthrene form 1 :1 complexes with γ-CD while fluoranthene and pyrene form both 1 :1 and 2 :2 complexes.


This study of Plato's Protagoras seeks not only to advance the understanding of ancient sophistry, a task both important in its own right and essential to the study of the history of political thought, but also to lay a foundation for subsequent inquiries into the connection between ancient sophistry and the relativism characteristic of our age. According to the Protagoras, the chief difference between philosopher and sophist is that the latter wrongly believes himself to be beyond or above the concern for justice as a virtue; the examination of Protagoras' moral teaching, then, proves to be the key to understanding him and therewith the intellectual position he represents.


Abstract Quercus species are ecologically and economically important components of deciduous forests of the eastern United States. However, knowledge pertinent to a thorough understanding of acorn germination dynamics for these species is lacking. The objectives of this research were to determine dormancy break and germination requirements for acorns of two eastern United States bottomland species, Quercus nigra and Quercus phellos (Section Lobatae), and to present results within ecological and phylogenetic contexts. Three replicates of 50 acorns of each species received 0 (control), 6, 12 or 18 weeks of cold stratification, followed by incubation in alternating temperature regimes of 15/6, 20/10, 25/15 and 30/20°C. Eighteen weeks of cold stratification were not sufficient for dormancy break in Q. nigra acorns. Cumulative germination percentages at 4 weeks of incubation were ≥77%, but only in incubation temperatures of 25/15 and 30/20°C. Dormancy break in Q. phellos acorns was achieved with 18 weeks of cold stratification, and cumulative germination percentages were ≥87% at 4 weeks of incubation in all test temperature regimes. Gibberellic acid solutions were not an effective substitute for cold stratification in either species. Phylogenetically, Q. nigra and Q. phellos are closely related species and, ecologically, both grow in the same habitat. Acorns of both species possess deep physiological dormancy (PD), but dormancy break and germination requirements differ in acorns of these two Quercus species.


A pre-service teacher clashes with his mentor and the practicum ends badly. There is distress and a sense of failure all round. Questions get asked. Was the pre-service teacher simply unsuited to this demanding profession? Was the teacher education inadequate? Was the mentor a good fit? Were there the right kinds of support in place? Was the school culture intolerant of new ideas, new energies? Given concerns about an ageing workforce, beginning teacher attrition rates and healthy work environments, questions such as these require thoughtful investigation. But the issues are complex. Complexity is not an easy thing to research. The past hundred years has seen a number of significant attempts to understand personal and social complexity, from the grand structural narratives of the psychoanalytic movement through to post-structural accounts that pay increasing attention to the apparently chaotic interplay of intersecting life trajectories, shifting identities, and ordinary affects. What methodologies nudge us deeper into perceived and experienced complexities? What ways of communicating the insights afforded by such methodologies are likely to have impact, to create affects? In this paper, I suggest that a mythopoetic methodology (the writing of a story) plays a part in the scholarly attempt to see complexity more fully. I suggest, too, that a mythopoetic form (the telling of a story) has the potential to create useful affects. The paper is performative rather than exclusively analytical.


The modern ageing process implies an improved fit between the human being and architecture. It has to be harmonized with both qualitative and quantitative requirements in order to create a space that is accessible, inclusive and usable for everyone, regardless of cognitive or physical disabilities. This study focuses on a continuing education course at the Royal Institute of Technology, KTH, which aimed at expanding teaching on accessibility, inclusion and usability. The course attracted eight professionals, seven women and one man. Two were trained architects, while the others had clerical professions. During seven five sessions, including study visits, lectures, and literature seminars the concept of 'experienced space' was addressed in order to assess 'usefulness in architecture.' Four examples of built environment highlighted spatial elements that promoted accessibility, inclusiveness, sustainability and usability of the building. The literature included three works, on universal design, on wayfinding, and a fictional work, in which spatial thinking is part of the plot. Seven out of eight participants fulfilled an essay or an oral presentation on the mentioned aspects. This study suggests that accessibility, usability and inclusion are spatial constituents that need to be activated on a personal level by the individual designer.


In this paper, an automotive bumper system (a bumper connected to a frame through joints/connections) is set up for small impact tests (nondestructive tests). During the tests, a steel bar is raised to certain highs then released from there and hit onto the bumper system, the bumper system is fixed to the ground through fully constraining the end of two shocks, the reaction forces at the end of shocks during the whole impact process are measured and investigated in order to determine how they are transferred to the joints then to the rest part of the frame. Also, other important experimental data are collected and studied to reflect the actual impact process. A finite element model is created for the automotive bumper system and the impact test is also simulated on the computer using ANSYS. The results from the experimental tests are compared and correlated to the finite element simulation. From the comparison, it is found that the experiment results and FEA results matches very well and the validity of the computer model is then verified. Additionally, this paper also includes a hand calculation of the impact problem, where the bumper system is modeled as a simple spring-damping system and solved using classical dynamic theory; the hand solutions are also compared to the experimental results and the FEA results to verify the correctness and reliability of the impact tests and computer simulation.


One of the critical concerns of axial analysis, a space syntax approach to capturing vehicular travel behavior emulating configurational properties of roadway structures, is the absence of the time-cost consideration while dealing with route-choice problems encountered in grid-like urban textures. This study shows that the time-cost parameter of travel can also be introduced into the syntax approach to capturing the route-choice decisions for the purpose of modeling vehicular movement networks with greater accuracy. Assuming that roadway units are trip-origins and trip-destinations and that they also act as connecting route segments among each other, a theoretical foundation has been proposed showing how the mobility characteristics of these units, in terms of the time-cost of travel, influence their accessibility measures or syntax integrations. These new roadway units are the unit segments, and their integrations are found to be better indicators of vehicular trip-makers' route-choice decisions than axial integrations. Conclusions suggest that the unit-segment analysis of an urban grid captures the general behavior of vehicular flow by substantiating the fact that trip-makers tend to pick a specific set of roadway units that not only comprise the close connection between a triporigin and a trip-destination but also consume less time for travel.


To go further into integration and to understand parasitic coupling mechanisms in RF integrated circuits, this article describes an RF front-end direct conversion receiver co-integrated with a differential power amplifier (PA). It uses dedicated filtering functions based on bulk acoustic wave (BAW) technology. This circuit performs a prototype of complete transceiver which has been designed to address WCDMA FDD standard. It is realized in a 0.25 mum BiCMOS technology from STMicroelectronics using SiGe-C heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBT) and NLDEMOS transistors. BAW inter-stage filter and reject-cell are designed to improve isolation between transmission and reception bands by reducing coupling mechanisms between transmitter (TX) PA and receiver (RX) path. This circuit has been assembled and tested, RX chain gain is measured to be equal to 24 dB and it has more than 40 dB TX leakage attenuation at intermediate frequency (D7) mixer output under a 2.7 V voltage supply. Differential PA with BAW reject filter delivers up to 28 dBm linear output power.


Abstract This present article investigates conflicting community attitudes and formal survey results. The survey results suggest that patients viewed their physicians' and nurses' competency and care very highly, as well as receiving satisfactory care in specialized departments. The results further suggest that hospital meals were less satisfactory in terms of patient enjoyment of meals and with the services of the dietitian. However, one major area of concern was the low number of survey responses and the recommendations that are made for improving the response rate. Demographic inconsistencies in the survey results are reviewed as evidence of lack of validity lending support to the contrary community perception of low health care quality at the hospital. Suggestions are made for improvement of the survey instrument and procedures to insure greater validity and reliability.


In any system that uses structured knowledge graph (KG) data as its underlying knowledge representation, KG-to-text generation is a useful tool for turning parts of the graph data into text that can be understood by humans. Recent work has shown that models that make use of pretraining on large amounts of text data can perform well on the KG-to-text task, even with relatively little training data on the specific graph-to-text task. In this paper, we build on this concept by using large language models to perform zero-shot generation based on nothing but the model's understanding of the triple structure from what it can read. We show that ChatGPT achieves near state-of-the-art performance on some measures of the WebNLG 2020 challenge, but falls behind on others. Additionally, we compare factual, counter-factual and fictional statements, and show that there is a significant connection between what the LLM already knows about the data it is parsing and the quality of the output text.


NASA s Digital Learning Network (DLN) reaches out to thousands of students each year through video conferencing and webcasting. As part of NASA s Strategic Plan to reach the next generation of space explorers, the DLN develops and delivers educational programs that reinforce principles in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The DLN has created a series of live education videoconferences connecting the Desert Research and Technology Studies (RATS) field test to students across the United States. The programs are also extended to students around the world via live webcasting. The primary focus of the events is the Vision for Space Exploration. During the programs, Desert RATS engineers and scientists inform and inspire students about the importance of exploration and share the importance of the field test as it correlates with plans to return to the Moon and explore Mars. This paper describes the events that took place in September 2006.


Previous comparative electoral studies using aggregate data indicate the importance of party-system variables, such as polarization and the number of parties, with regard to the level of volatility between two elections. Research using individual level data has shown elements, such as political knowledge, political disaffection and party identification, that explain why voters remained faithful to their party or not. Until now, no study has investigated these variables simultaneously on individual level data using a large set of elections. This study fills that important gap in the literature using data from 29,591 voters in 33 elections. We find polarization influences party-switching at the individual level, rather than the sheer number of parties, as aggregate-level analyses suggest.


Abstract

The daily consumption pattern of residents has an important influence on energy conservation and emission reduction, and tackling climate change. It is an important task for theoretical researchers and policy makers to guide and encourage residents to transform low-carbon consumption pattern. Based on the questionnaire survey, the structural equation model was established to explore the individual psychological factors and external factors which affect residents' low-carbon consumption behavior. Bootstrap method was used to explore and test the mediating effect of pre-variables. The discrepancies of different characteristic groups were analyzed by independent sample T test. The results showed that behavioral intention and low-carbon knowledge directly promoted residents' low-carbon consumption behavior. Psychological variables such as values, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control advanced residents' low-carbon consumption behavior through behavioral intention. Policies and regulations affected residents' low-carbon consumption behavior by individual psychological variables. Publicity and education could directly facilitate residents' low-carbon consumption behavior, and had a significant effect on behavior by improving the knowledge of low-carbon. Groups with different gender, age, educational background, family structure and monthly household income had a prominent discrepancy in low-carbon performance. On this basis, it provided targeted policy ideas for the government to guide residents to convert low-carbon lifestyle and consumption pattern.

JEL classification numbers: Q54, Q56, D12.
Keywords: Low-carbon consumption behavior, Psychological consciousness, Policies and regulations, Structural equation model, Mediating effect analysis.


Innovations and Challenges in Renal Cancer, chaired by Michael B. Atkins, was held April 28 to 29, 2006 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The conference brought together leading experts in the fields of cancer research, medical oncology, urology, immunology, radiology, and immunotherapy, with the goal of advancing the field of renal cancer treatment by critiquing new data from ongoing clinical trials and stimulating communication among those involved in basic and clinical research. The conference proceedings published in this educational supplement to Clinical Cancer Research are intended to provide timely information and recommendations on important aspects of renal cancer genetics and biology and advances in prognostic classification and treatment.


In this paper we refer to a specific class of Dynamic Channel Allocation (DCA) strategies, namely the interferencefree, timid, not-conditioned class. The main concern of this work is to verify if and to what extent strategies belonging to this class can offer better performance than Fixed Channel Allocation (FCA). The interest in this kind of strategies is motivated by their feasibility with current TDM technologies, the limited amount of information required to carry out channel assignments and their intrinsic stability. In this framework we present a simple, but very attractive DCA strategy, the so-called Geometric DCA (GDCA). A performance evaluation is carried out to compare some representative DCA strategies of the considered class, by using a user mobility model that accounts for the large fluctuations of the number of users in a cell coverage area expected in a microcellular environment. The effect of the non-null propagation time required by the information exchange in the DCA strategies is also taken into account. It emerges that the proposed GDCA allows better performance than more sophisticated strategies already proposed, at the expense of a frequency planning carried out only at network configuration. This is due to the ability of GDCA to exploit the a priori information to maintain a tight geometric packing of used carriers. The reported results also show that DCA strategies in the considered class cope with large and sudden traffic fluctuations remarkably better than the FCA scheme does and that the advantage becomes more evident as the burstiness of the user mobility process (hence of the offered traffic) increases.


Abstract This paper summarizes the problems caused for wastewater systems by changing wastewater composition, especially the increasing use of nonwoven wet wipes and their disposal via the toilet. The nonwoven wet wipes do not disintegrate in the sewer system as paper-based toilet does, but accumulate to large agglomerations that can block the system and clog pumps. This not only reduces the operational safety and stability of the wastewater system, but also costs the operator a lot of money. The paper introduces an approach to estimate the composition of wastewater and presents first results for the city of Berlin.


In attempt to reduce the amount of toxic Co in cobalt oxides, NiCoMnO4 nanoparticles were synthesized via a facile hydrothermal route and their electrochemical properties have been investigated as a novel electrode material for supercapacitors. Samples have been characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). N2 adsorption/desorption measurements demonstrated a high specific surface area of 175 m2 g−1. The morphology of the samples has been probed with scanning (SEM) and transmission (TEM) electron microscopy. The electrochemical properties of the NiCoMnO4 nanoparticles have been evaluated as electrode materials for energy storage application by means of various electrochemical techniques including cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge–discharge measurements, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. According to the obtained results, the NiCoMnO4 electrodes showed significant improved capacitive performance in comparison with pure oxides (e.g. NiO, Co3O4, and Mn3O4). The NiCoMnO4 electrodes with a high mass loading of ∼10 mg cm−2 exhibited a high specific capacitance of 510 F g−1 at 1 A g−1, and a desirable rate capability (retaining 285 F g−1 at 10 A g−1). Finally, asymmetric devices based on NiCoMnO4 nanoparticles as positive electrodes and reduced graphene oxide nanosheets as negative electrodes were assembled, showing a remarkable performance including high energy (20 W h kg−1), and stunning power density (37.5 kW kg−1).


Based on the electro-optical Kerr effect, an attempt is made to develop a measurement technique for the two-dimensional distribution of the electrical field in dielectric liquids. For rapid, two-dimensional measurements, it is convenient to introduce a computer-controlled electronic camera for optical detection. However, because of the two-dimensional non-uniformity resulting from the system components, the measurement principle needs a two-dimensional analysis. To simplify the mathematical analysis, square pulsed modulations are employed. The influence of the system non-uniformity is eliminated by use of both optical and electrical modulations. To improve the system sensitivity, an optimum system setup is analyzed. To decrease the effect of the noise component resulting from the EHD (electrohydrodynamic) motion of the dielectric liquid, a diagnostic image lock-in technique is proposed. The validity of the two-dimensional measurement principle and the effectiveness of the diagnostic image lock-in processing are examined by the measurement of an electrical field distribution in a nitrobenzene specimen between two parallel plate electrodes.


The morality of transformational leadership has been sharply questioned, particularly by libertarians, "grass roots" theorists, and organizational development consultants. This paper argues that to be truly transformational leadership, it must be grounded in moral foundations. The four components of authentic transformational leadership (idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration) are constrasted with their counterfeits in the dissembling pseudotransformational leadership on the basis of 1) the moral character of the leaders and their concerns for self and others; 2) the ethical values embedded in the leaders' vision, articulation, and program, which followers can embrace or reject; and 3) the morality of the processes of social ethical choices and action in which the leaders and followers engage and collectively pursue. The literature on transformational leadership is linked to the long-standing literature on virtue and moral character, as exemplified by Socratic and Confucian typologies. It is linked, as well, to the major themes of the modern Western ethical agenda: liberty, utility and distributive justice Deception, sophistry, and pretense are examined alongside issues of transendence, agency, trust, striving for the congruence of the values, cooperative action, power, persuasion, and corporate governance to establish the strategic and moral foundations of authentic transformational leadership.


Abstract Three experiments were performed to determine the α-crystallin binding capacity of bovine lens lipid vesicles. In one experiment lipid was kept constant (2.5 mg ml -1 ) and the α-crystallin concentration was changed (0.5 to 3.0 mg ml -1 ). In another experiment, α-crystallin was kept constant (1 mg ml -1 ) and the concentration of lipid was varied (0.25 to 3 mg ml -1 ). We calculated the binding capacity of the lipid to be 0.33±0.05 ( s.d. ) mg α-crystallin (mg lens lipid) -1 . This was confirmed by changes in the anisotropy and fluorescent intensity of a probe that partitions at the headgroup region of the lipid bilayer. Near 0.33 mg α-crystallin (mg lens lipid) -1 the fluorescence intensity and anisotropy of the probe increases and plateaus which indicates that concomitant with α-crystallin binding, water is excluded from the head group region of the bilayer and the headgroup region becomes less mobile. It is possible that α-crystallin binding could protect and stabilize the lipid bilayer and decrease membrane permeability.


In the newly published edited volume Rebel Governance in Civil Wars (Cambridge University Press, 2015), JSRP researcher Kasper Hoffmann contributes a chapter about Mai Mai rebels' governance of civilians in eastern Congo. In the chapter, 'Myths Set in Motion: The Moral Economy of MaiMai Governance', he argues that neither greed nor ideology alone can explain why some rebel groups choose to govern civilians during civil wars. Rather, drawing on research among the Mai Mai of eastern Congo, he shows that both morality and material interests shape rebel governance of civilians. In particular he shows that rebel leaders adopted beliefs they shared with civilians to legitimize their claims to rule. Such beliefs emerged from incongruous sources. Principles rooted in an old cosmology combined with much newer ones derived from both Christianity and nationalism. This leads Hoffmann to the surprising conclusion that rebels who seek to overturn the existing political order actually often incorporate its values, beliefs, representations, and practices into their governance of civilians. This implies that they govern through some of the myths underpinning that order. Many of these operate on an unreflective level among both rebels and local residents. Deploying these enables rebels to cultivate legitimacy among civilians whose support they solicit. But the novelty of rule by rebels is that it recasts existing values and beliefs into new political narratives that shape rebel governance profoundly. General Padiri's Mai Mai militia group from South Kivu in eastern Congo produced a mythical narrative, forged around divine authority and the bipolar relation between autochthony and foreignness. This syncretic mythical narrative resonated deeply within the local society. It endowed Padiri with charismatic authority and enabled a highly centralized, authoritarian, and coercive form of rebel governance.


Increasing renewable-based district heating could contribute significantly to the renewable target achievements of Central and Eastern European Member States with significant shares of district heating in their heat markets. These countries face dual challenges: high competition with other heating sources (including individual heating) and decreasing heat consumption due to building-related energy efficiency improvements in the sector. Our paper is based on a Hungarian case study, attempting to contribute to identifying the most efficient options to achieve these targets in the district heating sector. We apply a district heating model covering all district heating systems in the country and assess the available policy instruments with the potential for increasing renewable energy sources deployment and competitiveness in the sector. The assessment shows that investment grants and operational support are efficient instruments to increase renewable energy sources shares and also improve efficiency in the sector, while end user price and renewable co-generation support in the electricity market lead to non-optimal outcomes.


Objectives Identification of rehospitalisations for heart failure and contributing factors flags health policy intervention opportunities designed to deliver care at a most effective and efficient level. Recognising that heart failure is a condition for which timely and appropriate outpatient care can potentially prevent the use of inpatient services, we aimed to determine to what extent comorbidities and material deprivation were predictive of 1 year heart failure specific rehospitalisation. Setting All Portuguese mainland National Health Service (NHS) hospitals. Participants A total of 68 565 hospitalisations for heart failure principal cause of admission, from 2011 to 2015, associated to 45 882 distinct patients aged 18 years old or over. Outcome measures We defined 1 year specific heart failure rehospitalisation and time to rehospitalisation as outcome measures. Results Heart failure principal diagnosis admissions accounted for 1.6% of total hospital NHS budget, and over 40% of this burden is associated to patients rehospitalised at least once in the 365-day follow-up period. 22.1% of the patients hospitalised for a principal diagnosis of heart failure were rehospitalised for the same cause at least once within 365 days after previous discharge. Nearly 55% of rehospitalised patients were readmitted within 3 months. Results suggest a mediation effect between material deprivation and the chance of 1 year rehospitalisation through the effect that material deprivation has on the prevalence of comorbidities. Heart failure combined with chronic kidney disease or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease increases by 2.8 and 2.2 times, respectively, the chance of the patient becoming a frequent user of inpatient services for heart failure principal cause of admission. Conclusions One-fifth of patients admitted for heart failure are rehospitalised due to heart failure exacerbation. While the role of material deprivation remained unclear, comorbidities considered increased the chance of 1 year heart failure specific rehospitalisation, in particular, chronic kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.


The splitting-operator method has been widely used in the numerical simulation of complex combustion system with its high computation efficiency. The main difficult encountered in the method is how to integrate the stiff chemical kinetics ordinary differential equation (ODE) efficiently and accurately in each grid node of flow field. Although several ODE software packages such as LSODE and VODE have very predominant performance in integrating stiff and non-stiff case, it couldn't ensure the positivity of mass fraction in integrating stiff chemical kinetic ODE. A detail liquid rocket hypergolic bipropellant combination of Monomethylhydrazine (MMH)/Red Fuming Nitric Acid (RFNA) chemical mechanism consisting of 550 elementary reactions among 83 species was constituted basing on several relevant literatures firstly. And then a modified implicit iterative difference algorithm with variable time steps was developed to tackle the problem of mass fraction non-positive. The results from the integration of MMH /nitrogen tetroxide (NTO) chemical kinetic ODE indicate that the algorithm is always retain stability and positive value of mass fraction. The time step length would also be automatically adjusted at different chemical reaction time in the algorithm to keep its computational efficiency.


The in vitro susceptibility of clinical Candida isolates towards fluconazole and voriconazole was determined using the E-test method. A total of 41 clinical isolates recovered from patients since 2004 until 2009 from two local hospitals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were used. These comprised Candida tropicalis, Candida albicans, Candida krusei, Candida parapsilosis, Candida rugosa, Candida dubliniensis and Candida glabrata. Strains from American Type Culture Collection were used as quality control. Lawn cultures of the isolates on RPMI-1640 agar medium supplemented with 2% glucose were incubated with the E-test strips at 35ºC for 48 h. Our results show that 71% were susceptible to fluconazole and 90% were susceptible to voriconazole. All strains of C. krusei were resistant to fluconazole and 50% were susceptible in a dose-dependent manner to voriconazole. There were 66% and 33% of C. glabrata that were resistant to fluconazole and voriconazole. Our study revealed that majority of the clinical Candida isolates was susceptible to fluconazole and voriconazole with a small percentage being resistant to both the drugs.


Background: Incorporation of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) sources to lipid-based nutrition supplement (LNS) formulations for undernourished populations presents a challenge due to reduced shelf life and poor consumer acceptability. Objective: To systematically develop an omega-3-fortified LNS formulation, using flaxseed oil (FO), by optimizing its processing stability and evaluating its sensory acceptance. Methods: LNS formulations were formulated to yield approximately 452 kcal, 13.2 g of protein, 30 g of fat, and 53 g of carbohydrates per 100 g. Response surface methodology (RSM) with 4-factor-3-level: omega-3 fatty acid source (FO; 0%-10%), antioxidant (ascorbyl palmitate: 0.0%-0.03%), emulsifier (soy lecithin: 0.5%-1.5%), and storage time (0-6 months at 40°C) was used to optimize LNS's functionality and storage stability. Factor effects were evaluated for peroxide value, oil separation, water activity, moisture content, hardness, and vitamin C content of the samples. Consumer acceptability was assessed using a 9-point hedonic scale. Results: After 6 months of accelerated storage, the addition of FO to LNS formula resulted in increased peroxide values (7.75 mEq/kg fat) and lipid separation and a reduction in vitamin C and water activity. Optimal levels to maximize storage time and FO and minimize oxidation were 0.02% antioxidant, 1.5% emulsifier, and 4.9% FO. Indian women and students accepted LNS formulations with or without FO similar to other commercial supplements. Conclusion: An LNS containing FO with improved omega-6/omega-3 PUFA ratio was successfully formulated with staple Indian ingredients and optimized for storage stability using RSM.


The measurement of the relatedness of word semantics based on complementary Wikipedia and WordNet-based methods takes two forms, combined and integrative, which are aimed at increasing the semantic space between related words. However, each form has its own set of issues regarding its components and the strategy that is used to combine and integrate corpus-based and knowledge-based methods. In the integrative strategy, a large corpus, such as Wikipedia, is used to extract a set of related words for a particular concept as a basis for searching the WordNet space. The drawback to this strategy is in its use of a fixed scaling parameter, which only fits an implemented dataset that is near to a human score. Other corpus-based methods use a cut-off threshold that is determined experimentally to reduce the semantic space and to increase the search for a more accurate semantic space. Such methods merely take into account the frequency of bigrams, while ignoring the frequency of individual terms. Knowledge-based methods using a gloss overlap have a similar limitation to the corpus-based methods, where they lead to the loss of many valuable relatedness features that determine a more accurate measurement. Thus, in this paper, a new Information Content Glossary Relatedness (ICGR) approach was proposed in two steps, namely, an Extended-PMI based on a cut-off density threshold was proposed to extract a Robust Relatedness Vector set (RVS) of a large Wikipedia dataset. Then, a Semantic Structural Information (SSI) method was presented to use the RVS as a fulcrum to define the most relatedness gloss in the WordNet of each gloss and to select the top 5 glosses related to each RVS. The results showed that the proposed approach outperformed the state-of-the-art set, where the Extended-PMI achieved a Spearman's correlation of 0.89 to the human score and the ICGR approach achieved a Spearman's correlation of 0.8 to the human score.


For well over three decades, the concepts of equity and efficiency have been used by policy analysts and elected officials to frame the debate about the formulation and evaluation of public policies and programs. In this paper we use these ideas to organize an historical analysis of policies and research strategies in K‐12 education finance from the 1960s through the 1990s. In each decade we stress the dominant themes, major events, and research strategies regarding equity and efficiency, knowing that themes and research strategies span many decades but are sometimes in the foreground and other times in the background. We conclude with an assessment of how these two concepts can be compatible and how current policies are increasingly "win‐win" ones that are proposed to make progress on both goals.


This study looked at two research questions: Are economically developing countries spending comparable percentage of their budget, compared to industrialized nations, on telecommunication investment? What telecommunication investment framework should economically developing countries use to spur economic activities? We used annual telecommunication investment as percent of Gross Domestic Product as a surrogate for investment budget allocation. Ten year data from the 2005 World Telecommunication Indicator Database by ITU were used for analysis. Our finding indicates that the percentage of GDP allocation by economically developing countries is comparable, in many cases higher, than industrialized nations. This paper argues that even after spending a higher proportion of their GDP economically developing countries are not investing enough money to realize economic benefits that derive from telecommunication investment. We propose a new framework, community focused network investment instead of individual focused network investment, to spur economic activities in economically developing countries.


The purpose of the Project System Improvement and Innovation Strategy is to ensure regular and frequent improvement and innovation of the design, leadership and performance of the project system and its component elements, and to manage the interaction between the project system and the broader meta-system. The importance of this strategy has become more apparent over the past year. Initially it was treated as a 'supporting' strategy, but with time, recognition of its importance is growing. This strategy will require greater ingenuity and attention over the next two years to ensure project success, efficiency and sustainability.


Prominent social worker, eminent social thinker, incomparable educationist, quaint economist, superb journalist, distinguished writer, mighty orator, great philosopher, stunning organizer and politician Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya was undoubtedly a gem among the Indian scholars. He was born to Sri Bhagawati Prasad and Srimati Rampyari,  in a village called Chandrabhan in Mathura district (Uttar Pradesh) on 25 September 1916 . His Parents name was. His father was a well known astrologer of his town and his mother was religious mind lady. He got selected for Provincial Civil Service Exam but he refused to join for the sake of his mission. He did his master's in English and got Gold Medal as well as in Education (M.Ed.) through which he entered public service.


In this study we have carried out the thermal residual stress analyses of adhesively bonded functionally graded clamped plates for different edge heat fluxes. The material properties of the functionally graded plates were assumed to vary with a power law along an in-plane direction not through the plate thickness direction. The transient heat conduction and Navier equations describing the two-dimensional thermo-elastic problem were discretized using the finite-difference method, and the set of linear equations was solved using the pseudo singular value method. The plate material properties near the interfaces played an important role in the interfacial adhesive stresses. The compositional gradient affected considerably both in-plane temperature distributions and heat transfer periods. The type of in-plane heat flux had only a minor effect on the temperature profiles but affected both the temperature levels and heat transfer period. Both plates undergo considerable compressive normal strains and stresses, but shear strains were more effective. Peak equivalent strains were observed for a constant heat flux and plates with a metal-rich composition. The compositional gradient and direction played important role in the profiles and levels of normal, shear and equivalent stresses as well as strains. The equivalent stress and strains concentrated along the free edges of the adhesive layer. The adhesive layer experienced a considerable distortional deformation rather than volumetric deformation. The equivalent stress exhibited small changes through the adhesive thickness and along the overlap length. The equivalent stress remained uniform in a large region of the overlap length and increased to a peak level around the free edges of the first plate–adhesive interface, whereas it increased to a peak level in a large region of the overlap length from a minimum level around the free edges of the second plate–adhesive interface. The strains and equivalent strains were higher for a metal-rich material composition. The direction of the material composition of the plates affected both stress and strain levels; thus, the CM–CM and CM–MC plates exhibited lower strain and stress levels than those in the MC–CM and MC–MC plates. However, only the adhesively bonded CM–MC plate configuration could achieve the lowest deformations and stresses in both plates and adhesive layer.


A glycogen-containing plastid has been found in the cells of M�llerian bodies on Cecropia peltata (Moraceae) trees. Plastids in cells of the leaf blade, petiole, and stem are of the usual chloroplast type and contain starch grains only. M�llerian bodies exist for the purpose of providing a food supply for a protective, mutualistically inhabiting ant population. A series of chemical tests and observations indicates that this glycogen is identical to animal glycogen.


Sensitized upconversion is explored in three metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) constructed from the anthracene dicarboxylate (ADC) derivatives and zirconium nodes, 9,10-ADC (9,10-MOF), 2,6-ADC (2,6-MOF) and 1,4-ADC (1,4-MOF). Selective excitation of surface-bound Pd(ii) mesoporphyrin IX (PdMP) gives rise to delayed fluorescence (τ = 370 ± 30 ns) from anthracene in the 9,10-MOF. The overall upconversion efficiency of the Pd@9,10-MOF is 0.46 ± 0.05% with a threshold intensity of 104 ± 26 mW cm-2.


Theoretical and experimental performance of a millimetre-wave radial line filter has been studied using air as dielectrics. The results are found to be in good agreement with an error of less than 1.3 %. The filter has also been tested in D-band InP Gunn oscillator and the 2nd harmonic power of more than 3 mW is achieved at 141 GHz.


Many scientific publications report on computational results based on code and data, but even when code and data are published, the main text is usually provided in a separate, traditional format such as PDF. Since code, data, and text are not linked on a deep level, it is difficult for readers and reviewers to understand and retrace how the authors achieved a specific result that is reported in the main text, e.g. a figure, table, or number. In addition, to make use of new the opportunities afforded by data and code availability, such as re-running analyses with changed parameters, considerable effort is required. In order to overcome this issue and to enable more interactive publications that support scientists in more deeply exploring the reported results, we present the concept, implementation, and initial evaluation of bindings. A binding describes which data subsets, code lines, and parameters produce a specific result that is reported in the main text (e.g. a figure or number). Based on a prototypical implementation of these bindings, we propose a toolkit for authors to easily create interactive figures by connecting specific UI widgets (e.g. a slider) to parameters. In addition to inspecting code and data, readers can then manipulate the parameter and see how the results change. We evaluated the approach by applying it to a set of existing articles. The results provide initial evidence that the concept is feasible and applicable to many papers with moderate effort.


One of the reasons why Jung might have chosen a god-less ground of existence for his credence, so it seems, is because he was the son of a minister of religion who had eight brothers of the same calling. Perhaps there was a bit of Oedipus drama in his rejection of his father's conviction, together with an exaggerated protestant inclination towards iconoclast that even needed to abolish the concept of God itself. But there is also another factor that seems to play a part in this negation of a Divinity. This seems to go back to a previous life in Ceylon or Sri Lanka as it is called now, where he might well have been a priest in the Order of Hinayana. If his 1944 OBE is anything to go by, this suggestion is not as far fetched, as it might seem. It is the NDE flight over Ceylon, over the Temple of the Holy Tooth that leads me to surmise that Jung was inclined towards Buddhism, a faith that has done away with notions of a god. There is, of course, no immediate reason to think that he may have been a Buddhist priest in a past life like the one sitting at the entrance of the temple while flying over it, because that sort of connection could have arisen in his present life. But there is a further link with the East, one that has not come from a visit to the Orient in this life, but rather in a life before. This wonderful piece of evidence of a deep connection with India at least, if not also with Ceylon, comes from Jung's earliest dream he could remember, when he was between three and four years old. It was a dream, as he put it, that "was to preoccupy me all my life". In this crucial dream he stepped down a shaft, which turned out to be an underground temple with a ritual phallus on a golden throne. Jung wondered where this image might have come from. It could not have originated in his young life since his home was steeped in icon free Christianity. One likelihood was India's Siva Lingam, the Hindu deity's penis. This would point to an encounter with it in a past life. But since dreams are also capable of looking well into the future it could have been a case of anticipation of later encounters in this life. This suggests that dreams are open-ended. They can see in either direction. Not only that; contrary to the objectivists' view, they are the blueprint of our life experiences. Thus, Jung's predilection for darkness is prefigured in his childhood dream and not determined by the blackness of his father's frock and that of the Jesuits and funerary garbs. As we look to the Greek counterpart of the ritual phallus of his dream, we begin to understand Jung's predilection for the darkness of the Unconscious. We recognise in him "Hades, the ubiquitous Hidden God in his intra-uterine, sleeping, or dead Black Sun phase ; Lord of the Underworld or Lord of Death. If it is argued that it could not have been his dream that determined his outlook and life-long preoccupation with it but the environment instead, we need to remember that dreaming and waking are inextricably entwined processes in which the initiator always is the dream, no matter how much residue may be included in it. As well as that we need to reflect on the fact that the environment, the waking phase, is not an objective reality, but a subjective projection of what has been passed on to the brain from the Pre-existent Reality that can be experienced, as Jung did himself, in the mystical ecstasy of the mysterium coniunctionis.


Legal domains concerned with deception often recognize and regulate cases of negligent deception. The philosophical discussion of deception should follow suit, shifting from an exclusive focus on deception-as-wrongful-manipulation to a broader panorama that includes negligent deception and contemplates cases in which negligent deception may be wrong even when intentional deception about the same information may be permissible. Interesting philosophical questions then arise about what distinguishes negligent deception from mere misunderstandings and mistakes. Those questions require further thought about how relationships involve epistemic cooperation and interdependence, and when such relationships generate responsibility for others' mental contents.


Abstract This article explores the process and impact of liberalisation on the legal profession in England and Wales. Liberalisation brings a tendency to consider the profession in market-focused terms, with the professional–client relationship reconfigured in overtly economic fashion as constituting the interaction of supply and demand. The article examines the past and present structure of the profession, arguments for liberalisation and manifestations of liberalisation efforts. Having identified the distinctive dynamics of supply and demand within legal services markets, the article considers the potential implications, both immediate and in broader societal terms, of reconceptualising the legal profession in this manner.


SODDI is a familiar acronym among those working in cybercrime: it stands for Some Other Dude Did It. There's nothing novel about criminals claiming that some offence with which they are charged was someone else's responsibility, of course, whether it's the victim or some third party. In the specific area of child abuse, it can be difficult to untangle layers of denial [1, 2] but in recent years frequent use has been made of the Trojan Defence, [3] which might be tersely if loosely summarized as "it must have been a virus" (leaving aside for now the technical differences in malware classification). This attempt at a "Get Out of Jail Free" card is not confined to one type of crime (indeed, it's as likely to be heard in workplace disciplinary contexts as in courtrooms), but it is currently particularly associated with child-related offences, at least in popular perception. As always where child abuse is concerned, attempts to negotiate these murky legal waters have been hampered by a strong emotional undercurrent: debate has been polarized between those who believe that the SODDI defence is about as convincing as "the Internet ate my homework" [4], and those who fear that natural revulsion at paedophile activity and eagerness to prosecute those who practice it may lead to the conviction of innocent parties. In fact, as a general rule, the assertion that "malware installed itself, performed some illegal act, then removed itself leaving evidence of the activity behind but no trace of itself", while not technically impossible, is not particularly likely. But most modern malware is primarily a constantly changing delivery mechanism for attacks that themselves change ownership, target, and context according to market forces and the need to evade tracking by law-enforcement and other interested parties. [5] Much has been made of the way in which the Julie Amero case was compromised not only by forensic flaws and inadequate preservation of the chain of evidence, but by the presence ineffective, obsolete security software. [6] Malware and anti-malware have evolved since then, but has forensic understanding of those evolutions increased correspondingly? This paper will review the 2010 threatscape, considering some cases and scenarios that highlight some of the ways in which malicious software has impacted (or could impact in the future) on investigation, whether by law enforcement agencies or in the workplace. But it will also look at some of the psychosocial issues that may distort our ability to apply our understanding of those technologies appropriately in emotionally charged contexts.


Obesity is a major risk factor for chronic disease and can decrease longevity, quality of life, and economic productivity. Compelling ethical, human rights, and practical reasons exist for addressing social disparities in obesity, which requires systematically applying a disparities perspective to obesity research and relevant policy. A disparities perspective guides us to consider multiple dimensions and levels of social advantage and disadvantage and how those advantages and disadvantages produce disparities in obesity and its consequences.


Abstract This study concerns an experimental and theoretical investigation of the deNO x mechanism caused by thermal cracking hydrocarbons during diesel combustion. A total gas sampling experiment using a rapid compression machine showed that NO x can be reduced under fuel-rich and high-swirl conditions. It was found that under these conditions, a large amount of thermal cracking hydrocarbons, including unsaturated hydrocarbons such as C2H4, are produced during the ignition delay period, and that stratified fuel-rich combustion regions that contain these thermal cracking hydrocarbons are distributed widely throughout the combustion chamber. During the diffusion combustion phase, the CH4 concentration surpasses that of C2H4 and becomes the dominant hydrocarbon species. These thermal cracking hydrocarbons are supposed to be active in NO x reduction chemistry. To confirm the assumption, a flow reactor experiment was conducted focusing on the thermal cracking process of diesel fuel and the NO x reduction process. The experiment showed that when a solvent was used as fuel, light hydrocarbons similar to those observed in the rapid compression experiment are formed, and that about 60 per cent of NO x was reduced at equivalence ratios over 2.5 and a temperature of 1500 K. In addition to the above experiments, a chemical kinetic calculation using CHEMKIN III was carried out. The calculation revealed that C2H4 is easily decomposed during its oxidation process, forming HCCO or CHC2, which reacts promptly with NO and that in this reaction path, C2H22 formed through the thermal cracking process of C2H4 is an essential species to the formation of HCCO and CH2.


Objectives It has been known for centuries that crystalline silica induces silicosis. However, there are different entities of crystalline silica. Siliceous earth is a worldwide unique blend of amorphous and cryptocrystalline silica and lamellar kaolinite. This retrospective cohort study is the first that investigated the silicosis risk of siliceous earth. Methods The cohort consists of employees exposed to siliceous earth in one company in Bavaria, Germany. Their job activities were collected from personnel files. Workers were included, if they had worked at least one year from the date of recruitment to the end of the study in 2008. The disease data were collected from occupational disease records of the Raw Materials and Chemical Industry Employers' Liability Insurance Association (BG RCI). Two pneumologists reviewed the radiographic findings independently on the basis of reports of radiological findings according to ILO 2000. Workers with an ILO profusion ≥ 1/1 (p, q, r) were considered to have silicosis. Using the existing 709 measurement records of the years 1961–2008 exposure to silica was assessed for each subject with a job-exposure matrix. To determine the risk of silicosis Poisson regression was performed and to determine the dose-response relationship cubic splines were applied. Results In total 675 persons were enumerated, including 84 women. Among women, there were no silicosis but 55 among men. The evaluation of the exposed men showed a silicosis risk at a cumulative exposure of more than 6 mg/m3xyears (RR = 25; 95% CI 5.3–111.5) and especially in underground mining (RR = 12; 95% CI 4.9–28.6). In addition, a dose-response relationship with increasing cumulative exposure was found. Conclusions We found a dose-response relationship between silicosis and cumulative exposure to siliceous earth. The silicosis risk of siliceous earth is according to these results not higher than that described in the literature for crystalline or cryptocrystalline silica.


A new solar hay dryer was designed and developed at the University of Saskatchewan for the commercial production of high-quality hay and processed forage products. The solar hay dryer, consisting of a solar collector with aluminium absorber plate and spaced fins, a drying shed with perforated metal grate floor above the ground level, swing-away plywood frames and polyethylene curtains for effective sealing of the sides and end of the hay stack during drying, an insulated duct and a crawl space below the floor where a 3-hp In-line centrifugal fan is situated for negative pressure air circulation, was evaluated for its functional performance. The solar collector performed satisfactorily with high average daily collector efficiency of 76% under bright sunshine conditions. Sealing the hay stack with polyethylene curtains coupled with the suction pressure produced uniform air distribution and uniform drying of the hay. The overall system drying efficiency of 79% was obtained for the drying system. The fan supplied about 70 m3/min of air, and the air temperature rise above ambient was 13-l 5 "C during peak bright sunshine hours in August and 1013 "C in September. In late August and early September, 1996, the solar hay dryer was used to dry hay from an average initial moisture content of 33% w.b. to 13% w.b. and from 25% w.b. to 11% w.b. in 4 and 3 days, respectively


It would be very useful to find a way of reducing excited-state effects in lattice QCD calculations of nucleon structure that has a low computational cost. We explore the use of hybrid interpolators, which contain a nontrivial gluonic excitation, in a variational basis together with the standard interpolator with tuned smearing width. Using the clover discretization of the field strength tensor, a calculation using a fixed linear combination of standard and hybrid interpolators can be done using the same number of quark propagators as a standard calculation, making this a cost-effective option. We find that such an interpolator, optimized by solving a generalized eigenvalue problem, reduces excited-state contributions in two-point correlators. However, the effect in three-point correlators, which are needed for computing nucleon matrix elements, is mixed: for some matrix elements such as the tensor charge, excited-state effects are suppressed, whereas for others such as the axial charge, they are enhanced. The results illustrate that the variational method is not guaranteed to reduce the net contribution from excited states except in its asymptotic regime, and suggest that it may be important to use a large basis of interpolators capable of isolating all of the relevant low-lying states.


A very compact, rail-to-rail, low-power, high-speed buffer amplifier for LCD driver applications is proposed. A slew-rate enhancement technique based on a dynamic current bias scheme is adopted, and a high slew-rate is obtained without increasing the quiescent current. The buffer amplifier uses a small number of transistors and enables very small active layout area. The proposed buffer amplifier is suitable for both lowand high-voltage LCD driver applications.


A novel reliability-based approach has been developed for multi-state engine systems. Firstly, the output power of the engine is discretized and modeled as a discrete-state continuous-time Markov random process. Secondly, the multi-state Markov model is established. According to the observed data, the transition intensity is determined. Thirdly, the proposed method is extended to compute the forced outage rate and the expected engine capacity deficiency based on time response. The proposed method can therefore be used for forecasting and monitoring the reliability of the multi-state engine utilizing time-domain response data. It is illustrated that the proposed method is practicable, feasible and gives reasonable prediction which conforms to the engineering practice.


The astaxanthin dideoxyglycoside biosynthesis pathway in Sphingomonas sp. PB304 Abstract A major carotenoid in Sphingomonas sp. PB304, originally isolated from a river in Daejon City, South Korea, was identified as astaxanthin dideoxyglycoside. Gene clusters encoding the astaxanthin dideoxyglycoside biosynthetic enzymes were identified by screening Sphingomonas sp. PB304 fosmid libraries using degenerate probes that harbor highly conserved sequences from the Sphigomonas elodea-derived crtI and Nostoc sp. PCC 7120-dervied crtW genes. Selected positive gene clusters were fully sequenced and annotated, revealing genes encoding six putative carotenogenic enzymes: phytoene synthase (CrtB), phytoene desaturase (CrtI), lyco-pene cyclase (CrtY), carotene hydroxylase (CrtZ), carotene ketolase (CrtW), and glycosyltransferase (CrtX). All of the carotenogenic enzymes, except for CrtX, were functional in the recombinant host Escherichia coli expressing synthetic carotenogenic modules from Pantoea agglomerans. CrtX did not take up UDP-glucose or GDP-fucose as sugar sub-strates during the in vitro reaction. Although no direct experimental evidence was obtained for the function of Sphingomonas sp. PB304 CrtX, it can be categorized as a putative deoxyglycosyltransferase based on the presence of astaxanthin dideoxyglycoside in Sphingomonas sp. PB304, a putative corresponding gene in the carotenoid biosynthetic gene cluster, and high amino acid sequence homology to the existing glycosyltransferases. Therefore, we propose that astaxanthin dideoxyglycoside can be synthesized in Sphingomonas sp. PB304 via sequential reactions of six pathway enzymes, including CrtX on the phytoene intermediate.


Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) allows private computation over encrypted data, disclosing neither the inputs, intermediate values nor results. Thanks to recent advances, FHE has become feasible for a wide range of applications, resulting in an explosion of interest in the topic and ground-breaking real-world deployments. Given the increasing presence of FHE beyond the core academic community, there is increasing demand for easier access to FHE for wider audiences. Efficient implementations of FHE schemes are mostly written in high-performance languages like C++, posing a high entry barrier to novice users. We need to bring FHE to the (higher-level) languages and ecosystems non-experts are already familiar with, such as Python, the de-facto standard language of data science and machine learning. We achieve this through wrapping existing FHE implementations in Python, providing one-click installation and convenience in addition to a significantly higher-level API. In contrast to other similar works, Pyfhel goes beyond merely exposing the underlying API, adding a carefully designed abstraction layer that feels at home in Python. In this paper, we present Pyfhel, introduce its design and usage, and highlight how its unique support for accessing low-level features through a high-level API makes it an ideal teaching tool for lectures on FHE.


The successful use of monoclonal antibodies and antibody derivatives for therapeutic and in vivo diagnostic applications has resulted in a rapid progression in the fields surrounding biopharmaceutical drug discovery and combinatorial protein engineering. Consequently, investigations on new and improved technologies for both generation and characterisation of specific antibodies and alternative protein scaffolds are continuously being reported in the literature. This review summarises the recent efforts in development and application of bacterial display platforms for such purposes.


ABSTRACT During development, proneural transcription factors of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) family are required to commit cells to a neural fate. In Drosophila neurogenesis, a key mechanism promoting sense organ precursor (SOP) fate is the synergy between proneural factors and their coactivator Senseless in transcriptional activation of target genes. Here we present evidence that posttranslational modification by SUMO enhances this synergy via an effect on Senseless protein. We show that Senseless is a direct target for SUMO modification and that mutagenesis of a predicted SUMOylation motif in Senseless reduces Senseless/proneural synergy both in vivo and in cell culture. We propose that SUMOylation of Senseless via lysine 509 promotes its synergy with proneural proteins during transcriptional activation and hence regulates an important step in neurogenesis leading to the formation and maturation of the SOPs.


In this study was verified accuracy and porosity of denture bases submitted to double cycles of polymerization. Thirty-Six master casts were made in dental stone from the impression of the metal die. They were divided in three groups. Denture bases of conventional acrylic resin were made on the casts of the groups I (GI-control) and II (GII), polymerized in water bath during 9 hours at 73 degrees C, and specific resin for microwave polymerization were made on the casts of the group III (GIII) and cured at 500 W during 3 minutes. Accuracy was verified by the weight of a impression material put between the denture base and cast die under load of 2 Kg. Afterwards, all the denture bases were relined by addition method and those of the group I and II were relined with the same material and polymerization technic. The denture bases of the group II were filled with the same resin, however cured in microwave oven with 500 W during 3 minutes. Accuracy was reevaluated. The porosity was verified by the immersion of the specimens in a solution of permanent black ink and the pores were counted through a stereo light microscope under magnification of 6.3 x. The average and standard deviation obtained for accuracy before and after the relining were respectively: GI: 0.63 +/- 0.02 - 0.66 +/- 0.03; GII: 0.63 +/- 0.03 - 0.68 +/- 0.03: GIII: 0.58 +/- 0.02 - 0.80 +/- 0.05. There was a significant difference (p < 0.05 as tested by Tukey) only for the group III. The average and standard deviation for porosity before and after the relining were respectively: GI: 8.33 +/- 0.63 - 9.25 +/- 0.85; GII: 8.17 +/- 0.98 - 10.08 +/- 1.63: GIII: 5.41 +/- 0.78 - 6.58 +/- 1.02. There was a significant difference (p < 0.05) for the group III before relining. The conclusion is that after relining, the conventional resin cured by water bath or microwaves energy showed a better adaptation, and the highest number of pores.


We present our efforts towards building an observational system for measuring classroom activity. The goal is to explore visual cues which can be acquired with a system of video-cameras and automatically processed to enrich the teachers' perception of their audience. The paper will give a brief overview of our methodology, explored features and current findings.


Xenia is the effect of pollen on the development and characteristics of the fruits. To reexplore its importance and consequences for grain production in maize (Zea mays L.), the effect of pollen genotype on kernel weight was studied with five white kernel lines as females and several
yellow kernel lines as males in a factorial (5 × 20) and in a diallel (5 × 5) mating design. White single-cross hybrids were also used as females. Cross-fertilization advantage was studied in 1993, 1994, and 1995 by mixing pollen from a male and pollen from a female (i.e., autopollen). When inbred lines were used as females the average increase in kernel weight at maturity, because of cross fertilization, was 13% in 1993, 11% in 1994, and 11.5% in 1995. Female effects were the strongest; however, male and female × male interaction effects were also significant although at the limit of significance because of large environmental variation. These effects were also significant for white kernels, showing that there was a stimulation effect on the filling of kernels from self fertilization by the more active filling of kernels from cross fertilization. With
single-cross females, crossfertilization advantage was about halved. Despite genotype × year interaction, the phenomenon seems sufficiently repeatable with significant correlation among years. Results are interpreted as an early manifestation of heterosis which increases sink strength of kernels from cross fertilization.