TThe reactive oxygen species (ROS) inhibitory diagrams on the abilities of biosubstances to eliminate hydroxyl, superoxide and alkoxyl radicals were introduced and the role of biosubstances against the oxidative stress was discussed using these diagrams.
Hydroxyl radical causes the hydrogen abstraction with alkyl compounds and the one-electron oxidation reaction with phenol compounds, and reacts with substances encountered first after the radical is born in the system without any peculiarity. In superoxide radical elimination, the disproportionation reaction becomes important than ordinal radical reaction with stable molecules. The reaction characteristics of alkoxyl radical is slightly different from both hydroxyl and superoxide radicals, which indicates the reaction peculiarity caused by its bulky structure (RO•, R = C(CH3)2-C(+NH2Cl–)NH2).
The ROS inhibitory diagrams, especially the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC)-1/ids50 diagram, apparently indicate that each biosubstance has favorable free radical to eliminate. These excellent biosubstances in foods and beverages work as exogenous antioxidants in the biosystems for superoxide, hydroxyl and lipid peroxide radicals, and also supplement the role of endogenous antioxidants, L-ascorbic acid and reduced glutathione.
As the ROS inhibitory diagrams are based on the eliminating abilities of free radicals produced during oxygen stress, they should respond to the need to search excellent endogenous antioxidants, and be excellent presentations for healthy life.


Jeremy Hunt's imposition of a new junior doctors' contract in England, after negotiations failed over pay for Saturday working and a second strike took place,1 is unlikely to mark the beginning of the end of this dispute. If clinicians and politicians remain as polarised as they are now, this could be only the end of the beginning. Patients, the NHS, and its less politicised clinicians may get stuck in a place of strife.

Both sides leaked to the media throughout, deepening mutual mistrust. The failure of NHS Employers (the representative body tasked with negotiating new contracts on behalf of the government) to make meaningful progress in talks with junior doctors' leaders saw the senior NHS manager David Dalton take over negotiations, at Hunt's request.

Hunt's actions put him firmly in the frame of this dispute: intervening here (and elsewhere) contrary to the 2012 Health and Social Care Act's intended political devolution.

Dalton's public letter to Hunt,2 supporting his contract offer and apparently encouraging its imposition, unravelled with embarrassing haste, as 14 of its 20 NHS chief executive co-signatories publicly insisted that they did not support imposition of the deal.3

Successful negotiators avoid entrenching their positions, enabling give and take. Running commentary in the traditional and social media saw both sides contesting the moral high ground of patient safety. …


"ExcEPT ye utter by the tongue words easy to be understood,how shall it be known what is spoken?"(I Corinthians, XIV:9). The author follows the principle of this quotation in his preface for four of the five chaptersof this book. However, he departs from this principle in Chapter IV, although the five chaptersrepresentinformal talks rather than formal text-book descriptions. If Chapter IV is informal we must indeed ask to be saved from tormalttv. It is a pity that the authorslays so much stresson complex immunophysiologicalaspectsin a book devoted mainly to treatment. The pure atoptstswill agree with most of Dr. Hill's theorizing in ChapterIV, but the cynical non-atopists will feel justified in their cynicism after reading this chapter. The first three chaptersare really excellent, however, and show clearly the wide extent of the author's experienceas the former Director of the ·EczemaClinic and the Allergy Clinic at the Children's Medical Centre, Boston. His treatmentis sound and all would agree that admission of children to hospital with infantile eczemamayor may not be a wise procedure. Each, casemust be decidedon its merits. Local treatment combined with sedation and bandagingand with an understanding'of the child's supersensitivenaturewill give relief in most cases. This will help more thanall the skin testsin the world, and Dr. Hill realizes tbis, although he considersskin testing a guide to treatment in some instances. However, mostly It is not justifiable, and all physiciansknow those patientswith multiple sensitivities (as revealed by skin tests) who do not benefit by removal of the specified allergens. Infantile eczemadoes not seemto be a reaction to any specific allergen. The role of such substancesas Dr. Hill suggests appears to be aggravating,not causal.


Obesity is one of the most common clinical problems in cats presenting to veterinary practitioners. Because it is a risk factor for other conditions, such as diabetes mellitus and hepatic lipidosis, it not only increases the morbidity of affected cats but may also shorten their life span. In cats, a body weight of greater than 20% over the ideal weight of the animal is generally accepted as obese. The goal of this article is to help all members of the health care team understand how to prevent the development of obesity in young cats and, when confronted with an obese adult cat, how to develop a safe and effective weight-loss program.


The extended end-plate connections widely used in steel frames, at home and abroad,many countries have given varieties of different methods to determine end-plate thickness. This paper, uses the plastic theory to analyze the end-plate thickness of the figure 7.2.9a in CECS 102:2002 specification, adopts small deformations of geometric relations and the equal principle of work both inside and outside, the prying force issue is considered according to whether deformation bolts do work, and finally discuss the design process of the end-plate thickness. Contrasting present norms, this method can significantly reduce end-plate thickness.


: Under conditions prevailing in an experimental chlorocalcium arrhythmia in rats an anti-arrhythmic action of the sympatholytic-rausedyl, the gamma-adrenolytic-dihydroergo toxin, the beta-adrenolytic--obsidan, the M-cholinolytics--atropine and benactyzine was ascertained. The N-cholinolytics tropacin and hexamethonium had no effect on the parameters and the outcome of the chlorocalcium arrhythmia, whereas the M-cholinomimetic-- carbacholine potentiated the arrhythmogenic action of calcium chloride. The mechanism of the chlorocalcium arrhythmia development the authors attribute to an intensified discharge of epinephrine from the functional depot of the sympathetic nerve endings and to sensitization of the alpha- and beta-adrenoreceptors of the myocardium to the mediator. In the genesis of arrhythmia the participation of M-cholinoreceptors of the myocardium is presumed.


We model the availability of information about product attributes in Internet-based markets, focusing on a phenomenon that we term as information deficit (availability of less than perfect information about product attributes) and its impact on the equilibrium strategies of sellers and buyers in electronic markets. We create a model of a market for a differentiated product and investigate how buyer uncertainty regarding the attributes of the product drives market outcomes. We show that a market for product information can partly correct the inefficiencies that arise from imperfect information and predict that product information will begin to be traded once appropriate micro-transaction payment schemes become available. We formulate a mechanism by which sellers can charge an information rent for fine-grained information about product attributes which we term as a dual pricing mechanism wherein sellers extract an information rent in addition to the price of the product from buyers. We analyze the equilibrium that results and comment on the nature of welfare gains. A key finding of the paper is that allowing sellers to charge dual rents leads to more efficient markets.


A 9-year-old spayed female mixed Pit Bull Terrier of 33.2 kg was referred with a complaint of stranguria, pollakiuria, hematuria, and abdominal pain of 5 weeks duration, not responding to treatment. The results of physical examination were unremarkable. A abdominal ultrasound revealed a large mass on the wall of the urinary bladder. The regional lymph nodes and the other abdominal organs present normal sonographical features. Thoracic radiography showed no evidence of metastatic disease. Blood samples have been taken for biochemistry work, CBC and urine samples. The dog underwent a cystoscopy, histopathological examination of the retrieved specimen reveal T2N0M0 TCC (muscle-invasive transitional cell carcinoma). Due to the mass location on the wall of the bladder, surgery was not an option. Considering the result of the investigation, chemotherapy treatment has been applied: intravesical every 2-week cycle consisted of alternating epirubicin and 5-fluorouracil and intravenous holoxan. The treatment was well tolerated with no occurrence of any side effects. The abdominal ultrasound was repeated every 1 month and showed no progression of the disease.


In order to prevent salt damage because seaweed enzymes can only operate under hypohaline conditions (salinity ≈ 6‰ - 12‰) but also obtain for photosynthesis an in the aquatic environment—due to a 10,000 fold strongly limited carbon source—seaweeds developed several mechanisms to meet these vital demands for survival in the harsh euhaline oceanic environment (salinity range: 32‰ - 35‰), we tested this range of adaptation mechanisms in the euhaline oceanic collected water in combination with the seaweed moisture. We obtained under laboratory conditions at 10 bar mechanical pressure for four seaweed species: Ulva lactuca, Caulerpa sertularioides, Caulerpa cf. brachypus (all three green) and Undaria pinnatifidia (brown). Oceanic water and seaweed moisture were measured for salinity, pH and by Inductively Coupled Plasma Spectroscopy (ICP)-techniques concentrations for macro-elements: (Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, & S), micro-elements ≈ [HM]: (Al, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb & Zn) and nutrients (N-total & P-total). The [seawater compound X]/[oceanic compound X] ration is a reflection of an inward (uptake) or excretion mechanism over the seaweed cellular membrane which is operative. Our observations gave a clear dispersion to salinity stress with on one hand the green seaweed U. lactuca and on the other the brown seaweed U. pinnatifidia. Both Caulerpa spp. took in an intermediate position. Observed in compensatory responses to salinity stress was ranging Ulva sp. both Caulerpa spp.-Undaria sp.: 1) amount pressed seaweed moisture: [ml/g Fresh Weight]; 2) salinity: (in ‰); 3) Na+ storage vacuole volume; 4) Na+:K+ ratio (reflection of K+ as osmolyticum); 5) ∑[HM] (as osmolyticum); 6) pH (seaweed moisture); 7) Nutrients (N & P); 8) availability of essential metal elements for plants (Cu, Fe, Zn, Mn, Mo, Ni); 9) transport direction of micro- and macro-elements. Finally, the role of brown vs. green seaweeds in the evolutionary eukaryotic tree of life in relation to the ability of the brown seaweeds to produce their own osmolyticum will be discussed.


Introduction: Absence epilepsy is associated with diffuse spike-and-wave discharges (SWD) on the electroencephalogram (EEG). Recent studies have demonstrated that the primary somatosensory cortex is also implicated in the generation of the SWDs. Objective: This study investigated the effects of systemic and local administrations of U-92032 into the brain of Genetic Absence Epilepsy Rats from Strasbourg (GAERS). Methods: GAERS animals underwent stereotaxic surgery for the placement of EEG recording electrodes and guide cannulas for U-92032 administration into the lateral ventricle (intracerebroventricular [i.c.v.]), upper lips area (S1Ulp) or barrel field area (S1B) of primary somatosensory cortex. Following 7 days of recovery, electrical activity was recorded continuously for 1 h before and 6 h after intraperitoneal (0.25; 1; 5 mg/kg i.p.) or local U-92032 or dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) injections. Results: No changes were detected in the cumulative duration, mean duration, and number of SWDs following i.p. U-92032 injections. Local i.c.v. injections of U-92032 caused a significant decrease in the cumulative duration (i.c.v., 50 and 100 nmol/L), mean duration (i.c.v., 50, 100, and 250 nmol/L), and the number (i.c.v., 250 nmol/L) of SWDs compared to DMSO groups. Intra-cortical (S1Ulp and S1B) U-92032 injections caused a significant decrease in all 3 parameters compared to DMSO groups, as well. Conclusion: Intra-cortical injection of U-92032 caused almost complete removal of SWDs in GAERS and i.c.v. administration resulted in a significant reduction. However, systemic i.p. administration did not cause a significant change with the applied doses.


Chronic neurobehavioral effects of acute sarin poisoning were evaluated in 9 male and 9 female patients who were exposed to sarin poisoning in the Tokyo subway incident in Japan. The investigators used nine neurobehavioral tests, as well as a posttraumatic stress disorder checklist, 6-8 mo after the poisoning occurred. Serum cholinesterase activity in patients on the day of poisoning (i.e., March 20, 1995) ranged from 13 to 131 IU/l (mean=72.1 IU/l). The results of analysis covariance, in which age, education level, alcohol consumption, and smoking status (covariates) were controlled in 18 sarin cases and in 18 controls, showed that the score on the digit symbol (psychomotor performance) test was significantly lower in the sarin cases than in controls. Nonetheless, the scores for the General Health Questionnaires, fatigue of Profile of Mood States, and posttraumatic stress disorder checklist were significantly higher in the sarin cases than controls. The investigators added posttraumatic stress disorder to the covariates, and only the score on the digit symbol test was significantly lower in sarin cases. In addition, the results of stepwise multiple regression analysis in 18 sarin cases revealed that scores for the General Health Questionnaires, fatigue of Profile of Mood States (i.e., fatigue, tension-anxiety, depression, and anger-hostility)-together with the paired-associate learning test-were associated significantly with posttraumatic stress disorder. The association did not remain significant for the digit symbol test score. Perhaps a chronic effect on psychomotor performance was caused directly by acute sarin poisoning; on the other hand, the effects on psychiatric symptoms (General Health Questionnaire) and fatigue (Profile of Mood States) appeared to result from posttraumatic stress disorder induced by exposure to sarin.


Background: Previous regional antimicrobial meetings identified duplication of antimicrobial stewardship work in Acute trusts. In 2018, collation of guidelines for hospital acquired pneumonia, community acquired pneumonia and urinary tract infections led to creation of exemplar guidelines. All documents were emailed, which was inefficient due to volume, with no central repository that could be accessed across sites. Given the regional shortage of microbiologists, easy access to job descriptions and business cases was considered essential to improvement of pharmacy staff resources regionally. Aim: To create an open access regional hub for antimicrobial resources within Yorkshire and the Humber using the Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS) website. Methods: The Yorkshire and Humber Antimicrobial Pharmacy Group's objective is to continuously improve antimicrobial stewardship and infection management through networking, sharing best practice, learning, peer support and joint working/initiatives. Starting in March 2019, resources were submitted to the SPS website. Results: A total of nine job descriptions were uploaded, along with members of the group, educational links such as the #todipornottodip campaign, terms of reference, annual workplan, meeting agendas and a brief summary of the group's objectives and regional geography. Conclusion: The SPS website has facilitated a more efficient sharing of regional antimicrobial stewardship resources. Further work is warranted for sharing education resources, and business cases that don't contain commercial information. As the site is open access, a decision was made to continue emailing meeting minutes.


A three-dimensional (3D) stackable memory device including scaled crossbar arrays is an ideal architecture for the realization of high-density information storage. However, a so-called sneak path (or crosstalk) issue affecting the read operation in crossbar arrays is still a major problem. Therefore, a suitable switch device is required to facilitate progress in the applications of crossbar arrays. Here, a device with a Pt/Cu2O/WOx/FTO staked structure is reported. The Cu2O/WOx p–n junction shows switchable characteristics for crossbar memory arrays. It is noteworthy that the different storage states can be distinguished in a particular way and the crosstalk effect is depressed. A soft-breakdown effect and conductive path model are also proposed to explain the resistive switching mechanism. The experimental results are further extended to prove the profound functionality of integrated oxide based resistive switching elements working as storage nodes.


Objectives: To assess measurement properties of the HIV Disability Questionnaire (HDQ) among adults with HIV in the United States. Methods: We administered the HDQ, World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule II (WHODAS 2.0), and a demographic questionnaire. For internal consistency reliability, we calculated Cronbach α and Kuder-Richardson-20 (KR-20) statistics for disability and episodic scores, respectively (≥0.80 acceptable). For test–retest reliability, we calculated intraclass correlation coefficients (>0.8 acceptable). For construct validity, we tested 15 a priori hypotheses assessing correlations between HDQ and WHODAS 2.0 scores. Results: Of the 128 participants, the majority were males (68%), median age 51 years, taking antiretroviral therapy (96%). Cronbach α ranged from 0.88 (social inclusion) to 0.93 (uncertainty). The KR-20 ranged from 0.86 (cognitive) to 0.96 (uncertainty). Intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.88 (physical, cognitive, social inclusion) to 0.92 (mental–emotional). Of the 15 hypotheses, 13 (87%) were confirmed. Conclusions: The HDQ demonstrates internal consistency reliability, test–retest reliability, and construct validity when administered to a sample of adults with HIV in the United States.


In this work, we propose a strategy for managing the charging of Plug-in Electric Vehicles (PEVs) that simultaneously avoids overloads and provides equal access to the charging resources. The random access approach leverages techniques developed for media access control (MAC) of shared wireless communication channels. The method has advantages over presently proposed PEV charge management schemes in that it (1) requires no specific knowledge of individual customers, (2) is inherently democratic, and (3) requires very little communications between the vehicle and the power distribution system. The technique could be readily implemented with a charge management device located at the distribution substation, or located along a distribution feeder.


Background: Even though sleep makes up nearly a third of a person's lifetime, we do not fully appreciate its significance. The partial or nearly complete loss of sleep from an organism that results in a number of detrimental health issues is known as sleep deprivation. Aim: To investigate how omega 3 fatty acids affect the size and weight of the prostate gland in sleep-deprived rats. Study design: Random control trial. Methodology: Thirty male Sprague Dawley rats (population) aged three to four months and weighing 200 to 300 grammes were utilised. They were kept in a controlled setting at the NIH's animal house in Islamabad. Rats were randomised into three groups by using lottery method, with n = 10 rats in each group. The control group was designated as group A. They experienced a regular cycle of sleep and wakefulness. Rats in group B, which experienced sleep deprivation for 16 hours followed by an 8-hour sleep window each day for 8 weeks, were placed in the sleep-deprived group. The standard lab diet was provided to Groups A and B. For eight weeks, Group C received a typical lab meal combined with omega 3 fatty acids while also being sleep deprived for 16 hours, followed by an 8-hour sleep window each day. Results: In comparison to groups A and C that received omega 3, the gland weight and volume in group B were significantly lower. Group A: Weight and volume of the prostate: Prostate weight ranged from 1.85 to 0.50 grammes on average. The computed RTBWI was 0.60 + 0.22. The prostate's mean SD volume was 166.81 45.67 mm3. GROUP B: Weight of the prostate: Prostate weight ranged from 1.30 to 0.22 grammes on average. In the sleep-deprived group B compared to the control group A, the weight of the prostate was considerably lower (p-value=0.008). The computed RTBWI was 0.37 + 0.22. The prostate's mean SD volume was 127.88 67.35 mm3. GROUP C: Weight of prostate gland: In experimental group C, the prostate's mean SD weight was 2.19 0.42gm. According to the RTBWI calculation, it was 0.64 0.07. The prostate's mean SD volume was 182.89 44.16 mm3. Practical Implication: Today, sleep deprivation is a big problem, and this study will assist researchers in examining how Omega 3 fatty acids can help prevent this problem and the harmful effects it has on the prostate glands. Conclusion: It was concluded that Omega 3 fatty acids played a protective role while sleep deprivation had a negative impact on the weight and volume of the prostate gland. Keywords: Sleep Deprivation, Omega 3 Fatty Acids, Prostate and Protective Effect.


Duplication of the distal part of 17q has been reported in 4 patients [1,2]. We are reporting clinical, autopsy, and cytogenetic data on an additional patient whose condition was due to a familial translocation in which the patient's chromosome constitution is 46,XX, der(4),t(4;17)(p16;q21) pat. The phenotype of the five known patients with this duplication is very similar, and their manifestations are distinct enough to be clinically recognizable. Abnormalities common to all five patients are severe growth impairment, craniofacial anomalies with severe hypertelorism, frontal bossing and temporal narrowness, a widow's peak, narrow palpebral fissures, a thin upper lip overlapping a thin lower lip with down-turned corners of the mouth, micrognathia, apparently low-set and deformed ears, short webbed neck, and hyperlaxity of the limbs.


The historical conception of glial cells as the 'glue' that holds the brain together has dramatically changed in the last years. The glia plays an active role in several mechanisms related to information processing in the brain and thus can change and shape circuits during development, adulthood and in an experience-dependent manner. Due to the recently described novel characteristics and roles that these cells have in brain function, we currently face ourselves with the necessity of widening the 'neuro' in neurosciences and give them the appropriate place they deserve.
Focusing on oligodendroglia, the better-known function of these cells is to wrap axons in the central nervous system to facilitate propagation of action potentials along axons. There is also evidence for a role in metabolic support of the axons they wrap that is partially independent of myelination per se. Furthermore, nowadays we know this wrapping process is extraordinarily complex and prone to plastic modifications for the adaptation of information transmission, and vulnerable to injury. The study of sensory and cognitive abnormalities in patients with myelin lesions has provided evidence to understand the function of myelin in information processing. Nevertheless, due to the substantial heterogeneity of these myelin lesions within the study populations, the correlation of specific dysfunctions with an observed phenotype results in a difficult task. Additionally, the complexity of the contact, communication, and maintenance between axons and oligodendrocytes makes it difficult to dissect the partially independent roles that these cells have in information processing.
Studies for the dynamic in vivo assessment of combined neuronal and oligodendrocyte functions are very scarce in the field and have only very recently begun to emerge. In this study, I assessed axonal auditory cortical function in mutant mice with either dysmyelination phenotypes or reduced metabolic axo-glial support to the axons. I found that dysmyelination generated deficits in temporal sound processing known to be essential for speech understanding. The perceptual deficits correlated with defects seen in the spiking activity of cortical cells. Together, they could not be explained by a loss in conduction velocity alone, suggesting that mechanisms that are secondary to the loss of myelin per se, are accounting for the diverse effects observed. Indeed, mice with oligodendrocyte-specific deficits in metabolic processes but relatively minor deficits in myelination showed similar impairments to those found with dysmyelination. A parallel study of the role of myelin in task-specific brain lateralization revealed that myelin helps the establishment, but not the maintenance of this circuit function.
Overall my study shows, for the first time, that oligodendrocytes play crucial roles in normal circuit function in high order processing and this role goes beyond to the regulation of conduction velocity. The observations made in this study highlight the importance of glial cells in normal brain function and disease, and emphasize in particular the importance of the cooperative research of neuro-glial interactions.


Background and Aims
Endoscopic and histological healing are associated with improved clinical outcomes in ulcerative colitis [UC]. We aimed to investigate the predictive value of faecal immunochemical test [FIT] for endoscopic and histological healing in UC.

Methods
We measured quantitative FIT and faecal calprotectin [FC] in 140 consecutive UC patients who underwent colonoscopy. We assessed the diagnostic accuracy of FIT for predicting endoscopic healing using the Mayo endoscopic subscore [MES 0/1] and for histological healing using the Geboes score [< 2.0] and Nancy index [grade ≤ 1]. The predictive abilities of FIT were compared with those of FC.

Results
FIT had an area under the curve [AUC] of 0.77 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.67-0.86, p < 0.001) for endoscopic healing, an AUC of 0.77 [95% CI 0.67-0.86, p < 0.001] using the Geboes score, and 0.77 [95% CI 0.66-0.85, p < 0.001] using the Nancy Index for histological healing. The AUC of FIT was comparable to that of FC for endoscopic healing [p = 0.773] and histological healing [p = 0.767-0.960], and was comparable to colonoscopy for histological healing [p = 0.384-0.673]. FIT < 50 ng/ml predicted endoscopic healing with a sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value [PPV] of 72%, 68%, and 82%, respectively, and for histological healing with a sensitivity, specificity, and PPV of 73-75%, 67%, and 78-80%, respectively. Combining FIT with FC led to a higher specificity [90%] for histological healing. Over 85% of patients with FIT < 50 ng/ml and FC < 50 μg/g achieved histological healing.

Conclusions
FIT is highly sensitive and accurate to predict endoscopic and histological healing in UC. It represents a promising non-invasive tool for monitoring mucosal healing in UC.


According to the characteristics of radial tire technological process, a new type of tire building drum was proposed. The kinematics analysis was carried out based on the systematical study on the structure and working principle of this mechanism. And on this basis, taking passenger car tire for example, the three-dimensional solid model of the tire building drum was established, and the kinetic simulation was performed by Solidworks software. The result of simulation shows that the tire building drum proposed, with inside-outside alternating supporting shells moving smoothly, is of simple construction and can realize a great radial expansion ratio, and improve the quality and efficiency of tire building and unloading. This study can also provide reference for the innovative design of new tire building drum.


The complaint of knee pain is frequent in children. The difficulty of obtaining an accurate history from the younger child adds to the already-difficult problem of establishing an accurate diagnosis from clinical examination and routine radiographs in this group. This report is a prospective study of 32 children less than 18 years of age who underwent arthroscopy either because their symptoms failed to resolve with conservative treatment or because knee surgery was planned. The findings suggested some important differences between these children over 13 years of age and those age 13 years or younger. In the preadolescent group, 36% gave a history of trauma, 27% were correctly diagnosed before arthroscopy, and the correct diagnosis was delayed for an average of 18 months, as compared to 20%, 61% and nine months, respectively, for the older group. Three major problem areas were identified in the preadolescent group that could be solved by arthroscopy: serious intraarticular damage from long-unrecognized internal derangements; the difficulty of diagnosing the cause of synovitis; and the syndrome of persistent pain with no demonstrable knee pathology. Arthroscopy in the preadolescent patient is a safe and useful tool in those unusual cases with persistent and undiagnosed knee symptoms.


Delivering training to volunteers is a huge challenge for non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Traditional classroom-based approaches that dominate training are problematic due to the limited participation they offer to trainees. Peer-led approaches however, have shown promise in helping NGOs utilise trainee experiences within training. Although technologies are playing an increasing role in training, their benefits are not well understood. We describe our experience of designing peer-led training for community volunteers in rural India. Working alongside an NGO involved in community regeneration and social action, we collaboratively delivered a ten-day training workshop, deploying audio technologies to engage the participants in sharing lived experiences. We draw on reflections from trainers and trainees on how utilising participant voice can enhance training. We highlight opportunities around the usage of audio technologies for engaging with participant voice, including the ability to reclaim trainee agency within training and to work within cultural barriers.


Background: Postpartum psychiatric disorders are a key concept in maternal-infant mental health, and determining the related factors is necessary. We aimed to determine the relationship between postpartum mental health and social-structural determinants of health in Iran. Materials and Methods: In this systematic review, all Persian and English observational studies in Iran carried out through advanced search in online databases such as Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE, SID and Magiran, as well as the Google Scholar between 2005 and 2020, using keywords of social determinants, structural factors, socio-economic status, risk factors, mental health, postpartum, Iran, and their English equivalents were obtained from MESH. Article quality was assessed using the standard Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). Results: Out of 56 eligible articles (sample size: 36,515), 49 articles reported the prevalence of postpartum depression and one article reported the prevalence of postpartum psychosis. The lowest and highest prevalence of postpartum depression was between 4.8-68.5% using the Edinburgh tool in 2014-2017 and using the Beck tool between 3-78.27% in 2013-2014. Structurally significant effective factors on postpartum depression were identified including mother's age, mother's education, father's education, mother's job, father's job, family economic status (income adequacy), ethnicity and race, social class, culture, and religion, and in the field of postpartum psychosis, age, level of education, and mother's job. The most common structural determinant related to postpartum mental health was education and the least factor was related to social class. Conclusion: Due to the effects of numerous related factors on common postpartum mental disorders, it is suggested that longitudinal studies be conducted to investigate the role of all the known factors, especially Intermediate factors, on postpartum mental health.


Cold agglutinins (CA) were evaluated prospectively in patients with various mononucleosis syndromes and in a large control group. Cold agglutinins with anti-i specificity were seen mainly in heterophil-positive or -negative Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-induced infectious mononucleosis (31.8% of cases). Unclassified CA with equal reactivity against cord and adult erythrocytes were seen in 56 of 150 (37.3%) cases of heterophil-antibody-positive infectious mononucleosis (IM), in 1 of 7 (14.3%) cases of heterophil-negative EBV-induced IM, and in 12 of 31 (38.7%) cases of the heterophil-negative mononucleosis-like syndrome due to cytomegalovirus or other unspecified agents. One patient with heterophil-positive IM had a persistent, partially papain sensitive CA with anti-Pr-like activity. Anti-i CA were seen in less than 1.0% of healthy young adults (500) or patients without mononucleosis (500) submitted for heterophil studies. Unclassified CA were noted in 3.2% of the latter 1000 samples.


The practice of teaching academic EFL writing with no formal training in TESOL or applied linguistics raises some important concerns regarding the impact on students' writing education. Such a practice occurs in higher education, particularly in expanding circle countries, where the TESOL profession may be unregulated and 'nativeness' may be viewed as a qualification to teach English language. While some programs provide non-TESOL-trained teachers with a prescribed curriculum and possibly all materials, others do not, which raises the question: What do teachers do when TESOL training is not required and no curriculum is prescribed? In this yearlong study at a Japanese university, four English writing teachers (two TESOL trained and two not) were observed monthly in their writing classrooms. The teachers and sixteen of their students were interviewed monthly to add further insight into the practices observed. Findings revealed that teachers took very different approaches to the teaching of writing due to the lack of a prescribed curriculum; teachers also expelled different philosophies about teaching English academic writing, with TESOL-trained teachers basing their approaches in theory, and the non-TESOL trained teachers drawing on their own experiences. Despite these differences, all of the classes focused on thesis-based argumentative writing and utilized a process approach. However, the two TESOL-trained teachers focused on structures and forms, while the non-TESOL-trained teachers focused on writing as a tool to facilitate communication and critical thinking practices. These varying approaches resulted in different written output and learner comprehension (or confusion) about English academic writing.


The political concerns underlying Mo Yan's creative work come to the fore in his latest novel, Frogs (Wa), which gives the reader an unusual perspective on the complex relations between fiction and politics. This novel harshly criticises a state whose coercive population control policies are responsible for some murderous consequences. This denunciation is also aimed at the economic ultraliberalism that is complicit with the totalitarian inheritance in destruction of human dignity through the alienation and commercialisation of the body. The complex symbolic structure of this work brings out the need for life itself to be rehabilitated in accordance with basic human rights and membership in the human community, and to be strongly defended against political attack and moral decay. Far from being an essentialist communitarian ethics, however, the bioethics proposed by the author offers the possibility of social reconstruction of the bios.


This article presents the results of a heath risk assessment in Cidade dos Meninos, an area contaminated with organochlorine pesticide residues located in the county (municipality) of Duque de Caxias, Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) risk assessment methodology was applied. The following organochlorine compounds exceeded the established limits and were considered target pollutants: HCH and its isomers (in eggs, milk, and soil); DDT and its metabolites; trichlorobenzenes; trichlorophenols; dioxins and furans (eggs and soil). For all the substances studied (with the exception of trichlorophenols), the estimated doses exceeded the minimum risk levels for chronically exposed children and adults. According to the ATSDR classification, the area was considered an "urgent public health hazard" because of its high and serious exposure to substances that are dangerous to human health.


On-product labeling is a common method of providing information to the consumer. For some products labeling can also serve as an important means for imparting health-related messages. For example, packaged processed foods have been mandated to provide nutrition labels and cigarette warning labels have been required in the United States since 1965 (Engs, 1989). In the case of alcohol, warning labels have been mandated by authorities in many countries to inform consumers and deter alcohol abuse. Besides the warning label on alcohol products, information about alcohol content is also important as it can help users monitor their intake (International Center for Alcohol Policies [ICAP], 2008). In the United States, the wine label must include: brand identification or brand name, class or type of wine, name and address of the bottler or producer, appellation of origin, varietal labeling, vintage labeling, alcohol content, volume of contents, declaration of sulfites, and government health warning (WineSearcher.com, 2009). The government health warning label was implemented in United States in 1989 (Agnostinelli & Grube, 2002) and is usually as follows: (1) According to the Surgeon General women should not drink alcoholic beverages during pregnancy because of the risk of birth defects; (2) Consumption of alcoholic beverages impairs your ability to drive a car or operate machinery, and may cause health problems. In addition to on-product labeling several states in the United States also require the display of health warning posters at places where alcohol is sold. In the United States the labeling laws are enforced by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). However, many countries such as Australia and New Zealand do not have warning labels on alcohol as of 2009 (Stockley, 2001; Wilkinson & Room, 2009). The utility of health warnings has been challenged by researchers, policy makers and the public. Engs (1989) has raised several questions about the effectiveness of warning labels as educational tools. She questions whether people read them, whether warning labels can work either alone or if supported by existing school, media or other public health programs. She questions whether warning labels are sufficient to change behavior or whether they merely provide a false sense of security. On the other hand, Smart (1990) presents a case in favor of warning labels and notes that research on health warnings on cigarettes as well as on prescription and nonprescription drugs supports the use of labels as effective methods to prevent their abuse. Warning labels are a form of counter-advertising. In the literature, an Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) has been presented to understand counter-advertising (Agnostinelli & Grube, 2002; Petty & Cacioppo, 1986). This model delineates two ways in which counter advertising works. One is the central way and the second is the peripheral way. In the central way "issue relevant thinking," is where people receiving the message evaluate that message based on their knowledge, which may result in changing of their behavior. In the peripheral way there is no "issue relevant thinking" and things such as the credibility of the messenger may sway the recipient to change his or her stance. The change that takes place through the central way is longer lasting. This model is useful in understanding how warning labels might work. An issue with warning labels is whether or not these labels are actually read by consumers. Kaskutas and Greenfield (1992) telephonically interviewed people six months before and six months after the enactment of the warning label law in 1989 and found that only a little over one fifth of the respondents saw the labels. Laughery and colleagues (1993) also conducted a study to examine this issue. They found that most warning labels are not noticed by consumers. Some of the factors that make it difficult for warnings labels to be read include blending with the background, muddling with several items, a vertical placement on the bottle, and placement on the sides as opposed to front of the bottle. …


The incredibly short survival of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer underscores one of the greatest failures of the medical community: our inability to identify effective treatments for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Most new compounds in clinical trials fail because of highly toxic side effects in normal tissues and limited efficacy in tumor response. An ideal drug would kill only tumor cells and spare the normal cells. In this regard, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors have demonstrated a promising therapeutic potential, particularly in patients with BRCA-deficient tumors. BRCA-deficient cells have an impaired homology-directed repair (HDR) pathway, a mechanism critical for resolving DNA double strand breaks (DSBs). When PARP1 is inhibited, DNA single strand breaks are not repaired and they mature to double strand breaks, which are very toxic for the cell. Hence, inhibition of PARP1 is selectively toxic to cells with an impaired HDR pathway, such as BRCA-deficient tumor cells, but not to normal cells. Because up to 10% of pancreatic cancer patients carry mutations in either BRCA2 or other proteins involved in the HDR pathway, PARP inhibitors may also prove effective in this setting. However, a number of subtleties remain that call this conclusion into question, including poor drug delivery, loss of heterozygosity, and BRCA-independent alteration of the HDR pathway. We designed a preclinical study to evaluate the efficacy of niraparib, a potent PARP inhibitor currently in clinical trials, in three different genetically engineered mouse models representing different pancreatic cancer patient populations. The KPC mice carry mutations in genes that are frequently mutated in pancreatic cancer patients and develop tumors that fully recapitulate the biology of human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. These mice will represent the broad population of patients with spontaneous pancreatic tumors. A second model with heterozygous mutations in BRCA2 (KPCB2+/-) will represent patients with hereditary BRCA2 mutations. A third model with homozygous conditional deletion of BRCA2 (KPCB2f/f) will represent spontaneous tumors that have completely lost HDR functions. We show that BRCA2-deficient KPC tumor cells strongly respond to treatment with niraparib in vitro and in vivo. Niraparib efficiently inhibits PARP activity, increases double strand break formation and induces M-phase cell cycle arrest in tumors of KPCB2f/f mice. In the future, we will use pre- and post-treatment tumor biopsies to determine the molecular mechanisms of response to PARP inhibition. The ultimate goal of this study is to identify genetic determinants of PARP sensitivity and validate our results in a clinical setting. Identification of a biomarker would be an extremely valuable clinical tool to classify pancreatic cancer patients that could respond to the treatment with PARP inhibitors, a tool that is currently not available. Citation Format: Barbara Orelli, Stephen A. Sastra, Carmine F. Palermo, Thomas Ludwig, Kenneth P. Olive. Preclinical evaluation of a PARP inhibitor in mice representing genetically different subtypes of pancreatic cancers. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference: The Translational Impact of Model Organisms in Cancer; Nov 5-8, 2013; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Res 2014;12(11 Suppl):Abstract nr B23.


This study results from research on the tragic imaginary of the works of Machado de Assis and its relation with the dimensions of choice in education, considered from a philosophical perspective. The question asked relates to the educational deployment of Machado's thought, which presupposes unlearning in order to reach the choice of approval of existence - a route taken by his characters since the stage of his work consensually regarded as mature, inaugurated by the publication of Memorias postumas de Bras Cubas (Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas). My aim is to understand the tragic imaginary expressed by the notions of nothing, chance and convention, as well as by the conditions for choosing to approve. The methodological path appropriated phenomenology and hermeneutics in the analysis of Machado's work and, as a result, pointed to an education whose philosophical foundations are the possible choice between the unconditional approval of existence and conditioned approval. In the case of the Machadian option, approval is manifested by the relativization of the references of meaning, by the questioning of belief, by adhesion to circumstances, by recognition of the spectacle, the strength of opinions and social conventions, and by affirming the ephemeral character of life, of human contradictions and of the conjunction of adverse reality and will to live.


The field-emission properties of capped(5, 5) single-walled carbon nanotubes with hydrogen adsorbed on the tip with and without an applied electric field have been investigated using first-principles density-functional theory. It is found that the structure of carbon nanotubes with hydrogen molecules is stable under field-emission conditions. The local density of states at the Fermi level increases with the adsorption of hydrogen molecules. These results elucidate that the field-emission properties of carbon nanotubes can be enhanced by the adsorption of hydrogen molecules, and are consistent with the experimental results.


Summary: This study reports the diet of feral ferrets (Mustela furo) in a pastoral habitat, East Otago, South Island, New Zealand. Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) were the most common prey of ferrets, occurring in 86.7% of scats, but birds (12.4%) and invertebrates (11.3%) were also frequently eaten. Female ferrets ate more non-lagomorph prey items, especially invertebrates and birds than males. No significant dietary differences were found between juvenile and adult ferrets except in summer when juveniles ate more lagomorph prey. There were seasonal differences in the consumption of rabbits, invertebrates, skinks, possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) and small and large secondary prey items. Seasonal differences in ferret diet are likely to be related to the relative abundance of the various prey items. Lagomorph availability may also be a determinant of the frequency of occurrence of other prey items in the diet. Dietary differences may differentially influence the functional response of adults and juveniles and/or males and females to rabbit control or other manipulations of prey populations. Bovine tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) infections in ferret populations show intraspecific variation with more males than females and more adults than juveniles infected. Intraspecific dietary differences in diet were not observed in the species (possums and hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus)) considered to be the main sources of infection for ferrets.


Through exploring the material and nonmaterial cultural resources in leisure agriculture of Sani People in Shilin of Yunnan Province, this paper introduced festivals, marriage, traditional clothing, and food culture of Sani People, and present the long history and brilliant culture of Sani People. These culture resources could be used to expand the cultural aspects of leisure agriculture, to solve the problems of low participation and less distinct characteristics. This study can provide a reference for building the high-end leisure agriculture with distinct characteristics of Yunnan Province, to form a new growth point for regional growth.


Green infrastructure designed to address urban drainage and water quality issues is often deployed without full knowledge of potential unintended social, ecological, and human health consequences. Though understood in their respective fields of study, these diverse impacts are seldom discussed together in a format understood by a broader audience. This paper takes a first step in addressing that gap by exploring tradeoffs associated with green infrastructure practices that manage urban stormwater including urban trees, stormwater ponds, filtration, infiltration, rain gardens, and green roofs. Each green infrastructure practice type performs best under specific conditions and when targeting specific goals, but regular inspections, maintenance, and monitoring are necessary for any green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) practice to succeed. We review how each of the above practices is intended to function and how they could malfunction in order to improve how green stormwater infrastructure is designed, constructed, monitored, and maintained. Our proposed decision-making framework, using both biophysical (biological and physical) science and social science, could lead to GSI projects that are effective, cost efficient, and just.


The role of the specific physicochemical properties of ZrO2 phases on Ni/ZrO2 has been explored with respect to the reduction of stearic acid. Conversion on pure m-ZrO2 is 1.3 times more active than on t-ZrO2 , whereas Ni/m-ZrO2 is three times more active than Ni/t-ZrO2 . Although the hydrodeoxygenation of stearic acid can be catalyzed solely by Ni, the synergistic interaction between Ni and the ZrO2 support causes the variations in the reaction rates. Adsorption of the carboxylic acid group on an oxygen vacancy of ZrO2 and the abstraction of the α-hydrogen atom with the elimination of the oxygen atom to produce a ketene is the key to enhance the overall rate. The hydrogenated intermediate 1-octadecanol is in turn decarbonylated to heptadecane with identical rates on all catalysts. Decarbonylation of 1-octadecanol is concluded to be limited by the competitive adsorption of reactants and intermediate. The substantially higher adsorption of propionic acid demonstrated by IR spectroscopy and the higher reactivity to O2 exchange reactions with the more active catalyst indicate that the higher concentration of active oxygen defects on m-ZrO2 compared to t-ZrO2 causes the higher activity of Ni/m-ZrO2 .


Background: In Canada, septic shock accounts for approximately 30,000 hospitalizations annually and is associated with a mortality rate of 30%. Thrombocytopenia in septic shock is associated with a poor prognosis including increased length of stay, longer duration of organ support, increased major bleeding events and mortality. The trajectory of the platelet count over time in patients with septic shock has not been well-studied. We hypothesized that the platelet count trajectory in septic shock can identify distinct clinical groups and is an independent predictor of 30-day mortality. Objectives: 1) To identify groups of patients with distinct platelet count trajectories; 2) To evaluate patient and illness factors associated with platelet count trajectories; and 3) To estimate the association of platelet count trajectory with mortality patients with septic shock.
 Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study of adult patients admitted with septic shock to an intensive care unit (ICU) in Winnipeg, Canada between 2006-2014. We used group-based trajectory analysis to analyze the trend of platelet count over the first seven days of ICU admission to group patients with similar platelet trajectories. Group-based trajectory analysis is a statistical method that analyzes the pattern of a variable over time and allows distinct groups with similar trajectories to arise from the data. We utilized both the Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC) and clinical validity characteristics to choose the most suitable trajectory model. We developed a multinomial logistic regression model to associate patient characteristics with platelet count trajectories. We created a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model adjusted for age, sex, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II score, comorbidities, site or source of infection, and time to first appropriate antimicrobial to examine the association between platelet count trajectory and 30-day mortality.
 Results: Our study cohort included 913 patients with septic shock. The favoured trajectory model identified six distinct trajectories (Figure 1) using the platelet count over the first 7 days of ICU admission. We found that the number of organ failures on day 1was independently associated with platelet count trajectory, while other characteristics were not. The 30-day mortality of the entire cohort was 26.2% and ranged from 16.4% in group 1 (rising platelet count) to 44.4% in group 6 (high platelet count throughout). In the multivariable Cox proportional hazard model, compared with group 2 (thrombocytopenia), group 4 (high normal platelet count) was independently associated with a reduced risk of death at 30 days (Hazard Ratio (HR) 0.33, p = 0.002). The trajectory group with thrombocytosis (group 6) was associated with an increased risk of death at 30 days (HR 3.24, p=0.48) however the small number in this group limits the generalizability of this finding.
 Conclusion: We identified 6 distinct and clinically relevant platelet count trajectories in critically ill patients with septic shock. Platelet count trajectory was associated with the number of organ failures on day 1. Our study confirms that thrombocytopenia is associated with a worse prognosis as other trajectories with higher platelet count were associated with a lower risk of death. While it is well recognized that thrombocytopenia is associated with adverse outcomes in patients with septic shock, it is not known whether other patterns of the platelet trajectory such as thrombocytosis are similarly clinically important. Further studies are needed to fully characterize the impact platelet count trajectory on outcomes in patients with septic shock. The interplay between platelet count trajectory and other parameters (such as the white blood cell count trajectory, or INR trajectory) may have a more predictive role in evaluating prognosis in sepsis.

 No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Abstract The Fe3+ uptake from aqueous and methanol solutions of FeCl3·6H2O in two vermiculites from Santa Olalla and Ojén (Spain) and in a montmorillonite from Wyoming has been investigated by Mössbauer spectroscopy at room temperature and 4.2 K. The samples were further characterized by X-ray diffraction. The low temperature Mössbauer spectra reveal the deposition of akaganeite and perhaps some ferrihydrite on the external surface of the clay minerals. The room temperature spectra exhibit two Fe3+ quadrupole doublets in addition to the Fe2+ components of the structural iron in the sheet silicates. On treatment in ≥0.04 м Fe3+ solutions the Fe3+ quadrupole splittings of 0.90 mm/s and 0.55 mm/s can be assigned to the mineral akaganeite; at smaller Fe3+ concentrations one of these doublets has a quadrupole splitting similar to that of the Fe3+ in the original vermiculites, the other one a quadrupole splitting of 0.6-0.7 mm/s, which can be considered as a hint for an uptake of Fe dimers in the interlayer space irrespective of the solvent used for iron deposition. Preliminary results show that the adsorption of pyrrole in all of our Fe3+-containing samples, regardless of the preparation in aqueous or methanol solution, results in the formation of polypyrrole and a concomitant reduction of some of the Fe3+. An uptake of pyrrole into the interlayer space has been observed only in the Fe3+-containing Wyoming montmorillonite and in the Ojén vermiculite treated with the methanol solution of iron chloride.


A new non-steroid antiphlogistic medicine--tantum rosae--was tested in the course of treatment of 12 patients with gynecological malignancies. No postoperative complications in the area of the vaginal stump were reported. Good tolerance, primary adhesion of the stump and shorter admission period were recorded.


Aim: To determine if enteral tube feeding by the transpyloric versus the gastric route improves feeding tolerance, and growth and development, without increasing adverse events, in preterm infants. Methods: Systematic review of randomised controlled trials. A search was made of the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register (CCTR; 2003, issue 1), Medline (1966 to April 2003), and Embase (1980 to April 2003), and references in previous reviews. The data were extracted, analysed, and synthesised using the standard methods of the Cochrane Neonatal Collaborative Review Group. Results: Data were found from eight trials. No evidence of an effect on growth or development was found, but transpyloric feeding was associated with a greater incidence of gastrointestinal disturbance: relative risk (RR) 1.45, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05 to 2.09. Transpyloric feeding was also associated with increased mortality: RR 2.46, 95% CI 1.36 to 4.46. However, the trial that contributed most to this finding may have been affected by allocation bias. No significant differences were detected in the incidence of other adverse events, including necrotising enterocolitis, intestinal perforation, and aspiration pneumonia. Conclusions: No evidence of benefit was found, but evidence of harm was found. Feeding by the transpyloric route cannot be recommended for preterm infants.


At saturating concentrations of tryptophan, the activity of tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase was the same in isolated liver cells and in extracts with added haematin. Intraperitoneal injection of haematin did not increase tryptophan oxidation in livers subsequently perfused in situ. Preincubation of liver cells with physiological concentrations of tryptophan caused maximal saturation of tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase with haem in liver cells. In cell-free extracts tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase exhibited complex kinetics with haem. The results have important implications for the understanding of the role of haem in tryptophan metabolism.


In this work, the nature of the bonding interaction between Au(III) ion and aromatic nitrogen-containing heterocycles (N-heterocycles) in a series of Au(III) complexes was studied by means of the natural bond orbital (NBO), atoms in molecule (AIM), charge decomposition analysis (CDA) and energy decomposition analysis (EDA) methods at the B3LYP/cc-pVTZ + LanL2TZ(f) level of theory. It was found that the Au–N coordinative bond has a higher electrostatic than covalent character. The studied N-heterocycles were found to be strong σ-electron donors, but rather weak π-electron acceptors. In addition, the local aromatic distribution in the studied N-heterocycles, and in their Au(III) complexes, was quantified through several different aromaticity indices: the six center delocalization index (SCI), the harmonic oscillator model of aromaticity (HOMA) index and the nucleus-independent chemical shifts (NICS). It was shown that the aromatic character of the nitrogen-containing ring in gold(III) complexes is decreased in comparison with the same ring of uncoordinated ligands.


Given an input stream of size N, a φ-heavy hitter is an item that occurs at least φ N times in S. The problem of finding heavy-hitters is extensively studied in the database literature. We study a real-time heavy-hitters variant in which an element must be reported shortly after we see its T = φ N-th occurrence (and hence becomes a heavy hitter). We call this the Timely Event Detection (TED) Problem. The TED problem models the needs of many real-world monitoring systems, which demand accurate (i.e., no false negatives) and timely reporting of all events from large, high-speed streams, and with a low reporting threshold (high sensitivity). Like the classic heavy-hitters problem, solving the TED problem without false-positives requires large space (Ω(N) words). Thus in-RAM heavy-hitters algorithms typically sacrifice accuracy (i.e., allow false positives), sensitivity, or timeliness (i.e., use multiple passes). We show how to adapt heavy-hitters algorithms to external memory to solve the TED problem on large high-speed streams while guaranteeing accuracy, sensitivity, and timeliness. Our data structures are limited only by I/O-bandwidth (not latency) and support a tunable trade-off between reporting delay and I/O overhead. With a small bounded reporting delay, our algorithms incur only a logarithmic I/O overhead. We implement and validate our data structures empirically using the Firehose streaming benchmark. Multi-threaded versions of our structures can scale to process 11M observations per second before becoming CPU bound. In comparison, a naive adaptation of the standard heavy-hitters algorithm to external memory would be limited by the storage device's random I/O throughput, i.e., ~100K observations per second.


This study aimed to investigate the influence of religious attitudes, namely Inclusion of Trancendence and Symbolic Interpretation on life goals and different aspects of mental health.Participants (N = 604) filled in an online questionnaire including the Post-Critical Belief Scale (Martos et al., 2009), the short version of Aspiration Index (Martos et al., 2006), and the Mental Health Test (MHT; see Olah et al., 2018).We investigated the relationship between religious attitudes, life goals, and the subscales of mental health using path analyses. The Symbolic Interpretation of religious content predicts support for intrinsically motivated life goals, while the Inclusion of Transcendence predicts the refusal of extrinsic aspirations. Positive effects were revealed between the Inclusion of Transcendence and global well-being, strategies aim at creating and enchancing happiness, and resilience. Symbolic Interpretation was positively related to creative, executing individual and social efficiency, while negatively influenced resilience.The Inclusion of Transcendence and Symbolic Interpretation separately predict different aspects of life goals and mental health, and jointly support a higher quality of life.


This study investigated the influences of gender, school year, and socioeconomic status on assertiveness for black students attending four predominantly white, southeastern universities. The study employed a combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques. Quantitative data on assertiveness were collected from 560 black freshmen and juniors with the "College Self Expression Scale." The qualitative aspect of the study employed semi-structured personal telephone survey interviews with 21 key black student informants and attempted to identify unique beliefs, attitudes, and campus experiences associated with assertiveness. Analysis found that traditional gender related assertiveness differences tended to be associated with on-campus social behaviors whereas non-traditional gender differences tended to be associated with on-campus academic behaviors. This may help explain why respondents who rated themselves as assertive in quantitative surveys, later claimed to be passive or even submissive in the qualitative research. In addition, passive freshmen appeared to be intimidated by the unfamiliarity of their new campus environment, and believed that they would become more assertive in the future. Passive juniors appeared to fear the possibility of not graduating and expressed no belief in their future assertiveness. The socioeconomic backgrounds of the students did not influence their academic assertive behaviors but did influence their campus social assertiveness with high SES students more likely to express anger or aggression. (Contains 23 references.) (JB) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** 1


Transgenic Bt maize plants are genetically modified to contain genes of Bacillus thuringiensis that encode for δ-endotoxins (Cry1Ab protein) that have insecticidal properties. These endotoxins target certain lepidopteran pests of maize. There are several entry routes by which Cry proteins enter the aquatic ecosystem in which aquatic organisms are exposed to these proteins. The main route is through plant debris such as leaves, stalks and postharvest detritus that are transported by means of run-off, rain and wind. While several studies have been conducted on the fate of Cry1Ab protein in terrestrial ecosystems, little is known of the release rates of Cry1Ab proteins from maize plant tissues that end up in aquatic ecosystems. In this study, leaves of Bt-maize and its isoline were submerged in containers filled with deionised or borehole water for a period of 16 days, and kept at 3 different temperatures (10±1, 21±1 and 30±1°C). Samples were collected at 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 48, 96, 192 and 384 h post submersion and analysed for Cry protein content using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The release of Cry protein from submerged maize leaves was influenced by temperature, and duration of immersion. An increase in Cry protein levels in the water was observed from the first hour onwards in both water types until the end of the experiment. The highest concentration of Cry protein was found at 30°C. This study showed that temperature and time period influence the release rate of Cry proteins from dried leaf matter into the aquatic environment.


In this paper we show the feature of the microwave heated oxygen plasma torch which we designed and apply it to the conversion method of metal chloride wastes in a pyrochemical reprocessing into oxides. For this purpose oxygenation experiments of several typical metal chlorides were carried out by using this plasma device and thermodynamic equilibrium diagrams of each metal chloride and oxygen system were calculated. Consequently, it was found that our oxygen plasma has a possibility to realize such a oxygenation reaction, the equilibrium diagrams can predict the oxygenation characteristics of metal chlorides by oxygen plasma and the chlorides have conversion characteristics according to their oxygenation difficulties. Finally, we classified chlorides into three categories by predictions from the calculated thermodynamic equilibrium diagrams.


ABSTRACT The capacities of regions to form networks are an important feature of regional cooperation. This article assesses why Nordic regions engage in network activities and what new organizational patterns of collaboration emerge. It draws on historical data from a 2006–2008 survey of elected regional politicians from the Nordic countries. The article argues that through this process, participation in cross-border networks matters for regional learning as measured by the policy-choices of regions.


Author(s): Riordan, Erin C.; Rundel, Philip W. | Abstract: Protected areas are critical for conserving California's many sensitive plant species but their future role is uncertain under climate change. Climate-driven species losses and redistributions could dramatically affect the relevance of protected areas for biodiversity conservation this century. Focusing on the University of California Natural Reserve System (NRS), we predicted the future impact of climate change on reserve effectiveness with respect to sensitive plant protection. First, we evaluated the historical representation of sensitive plant species in the NRS reserve network by compiling species accounts from checklists, floras, and spatial queries of occurrence databases. Next, we calculated projected climate change exposure across the NRS reserve network for the end of the 21st century (2070–2099) relative to baseline (1971–2000) conditions under five future climate scenarios. We then predicted statewide changes in suitable habitat for 180 sensitive plant taxa using the same future climate scenarios in a species distribution modeling approach. Finally, from these predictions we evaluated suitable habitat retention at three spatial scales: individual NRS reserves (focal reserves), the NRS reserve network, and the surrounding mosaic of protected open space. Six reserves—Sagehen Creek Field Station, McLaughlin Natural Reserve, Jepson Prairie Reserve, Landels-Hill Big Creek Reserve, Sedgwick Reserve, and Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center—were selected as focal reserves for analyses.


Sperlich, B, De Marées, M, Koehler, K, Linville, J, Holmberg, H-C, and Mester, J. Effects of 5 weeks' high-intensity interval training vs. volume training in 14-year-old soccer players. J Strength Cond Res 25(5): 1271-1278, 2011-High-intensity interval training (HIIT) in junior and adult soccer has been shown to improve oxygen uptake (&OV0312;o2) and enhance soccer performance. The main purpose of this study was to examine the short term effects of a 5-week HIIT vs. high-volume training (HVT) program in 14-year-old soccer players regarding the effects on &OV0312;o2max and 1,000-m time (T1000) and on sprinting and jumping performance. In a 5-week period, 19 male soccer players with a mean (SD) age of 13.5 ± 0.4 years performed HIIT at close to ∼90% of maximal heart rate. The HVT intensity was set at 60-75% of maximal heart rate. &OV0312;o2max increased significantly (7.0%) from pre to post in HIIT but not after HVT. T1000 decreased significantly after HIIT (∼−10 vs. ∼−5 seconds in HVT). Sprint performance increased significantly in both groups from pre to posttesting without any changes in jumping performance.


Autophagy, which was originally identified in yeast, is a fundamental catabolic pathway that facilitates the isolation and transport of cytoplasmic material to the vacuole for degradation. Products of this degradation can then be returned to the cytosol for subsequent biosynthesis. Although autophagy is highly conserved throughout virtually all eukaryotes and the core mechanism of this pathway is well characterised, the physiological significance of autophagy remains poorly understood. As yeast often face conditions of nutrient limitation, it is generally assumed that autophagy acts as a recycling mechanism, supplying anabolic pathways during unfavourable environmental conditions, but limited evidence supports this notion. In this thesis, the physiological role of autophagy in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is discussed with a particular focus on the growth phenotypes of strains defective for autophagy. It is demonstrated that autophagy mutant strains on media supplemented with respiratory carbon sources experience a prolonged lag phase of growth. This phenotype is limited to strains lacking core components of the autophagy machinery and not selective forms of autophagy, such as mitophagy. Further interrogation of this phenotype revealed that autophagy most likely plays a role in the provision of one-carbon metabolites to the mitochondrion, supporting mitochondrial protein translation. These results suggest that rather than a role in bulk synthetic processes, such as general protein synthesis, autophagy may be important in the provision of essential precursor metabolites to selected metabolic pathways under specific conditions. Such intricacy is likely a reflection of the deep integra-tion of this fundamental eukaryotic phenomenon into the core metabolism of the cell.


On the requirement of the obstacle negotiating robot in unstructured environment, a new type attitude-adjusting track mobile robot adapting to unstructured environment has been presented. This paper introduced the structure of the autonomous obstacle negotiating robot, the robot motion characteristics under typical terrain, and the side tumbling attitude-adjusting and automatic reset. This kind of mobile robot has the characteristics of simple structure and practical operation and has strong ability of environment adaption and obstacle negotiating walking.


This thesis includes two main projects. In the first part, we assess the feasibility of a recently suggested strong-field general relativity test, in which future observations of a hypothetical class of stars orbiting very close to the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy, known as Sgr A*, could provide tests of the so-called no-hair theorem of general relativity through the measurement of precessions of their orbital planes. By considering how a distribution of stars and stellar mass black holes in the central cluster would perturb the orbits of those hypothetical stars, we show that for stars within about 0.2 milliparsecs (about 6 light-hours) of the black hole, the relativistic precessions dominate, leaving a potential window for tests of no-hair theorems. Our results are in agreement with N-body simulation results.
In the second part, we develop a fully general relativistic phase-space formulation to consider the effects of the Galactic center supermassive black hole Sgr A* on the dark-matter density profile and its applications in the indirect detection of dark matter. We find significant differences from the non-relativistic result of Gondolo and Silk (1999), including a higher density for the spike and a larger degree of central concentration. Having the dark matter profile density in the presence of the massive black hole, we calculate its perturbing effect on the orbital motions of stars in the Galactic center, and find that for the stars of interest, relativistic effects related to the hair on the black hole will dominate the effects of dark matter.


Guided super-resolution is a unifying framework for several computer vision tasks where the inputs are a low-resolution source image of some target quantity (e.g., perspective depth acquired with a time-of-flight camera) and a high-resolution guide image from a different domain (e.g., a grey-scale image from a conventional camera); and the target output is a high-resolution version of the source (in our example, a high-res depth map). The standard way of looking at this problem is to formulate it as a super-resolution task, i.e., the source image is upsampled to the target resolution, while transferring the missing high-frequency details from the guide. Here, we propose to turn that interpretation on its head and instead see it as a pixel-to-pixel mapping of the guide image to the domain of the source image. The pixel-wise mapping is parametrised as a multi-layer perceptron, whose weights are learned by minimising the discrepancies between the source image and the downsampled target image. Importantly, our formulation makes it possible to regularise only the mapping function, while avoiding regularisation of the outputs; thus producing crisp, natural-looking images. The proposed method is unsupervised, using only the specific source and guide images to fit the mapping. We evaluate our method on two different tasks, super-resolution of depth maps and of tree height maps. In both cases, we clearly outperform recent baselines in quantitative comparisons, while delivering visually much sharper outputs.


High entropy (HE) traffic may result from encrypted traffic such as C&C botnet communication. Such traffic also tends to be opaque to an IDS. However, line speed entropy calculation is expensive, especially for long flows. In this paper we introduce methodology to classify flows as HE or low entropy (LE) by considering only the first M packets of the flow. We use our HE classifiers in two ways: (a) to improve the effectiveness of BotHunter, a bot detection tool when presented with encrypted bot traffic, and (b) as a filter to reduce the load on an IDS. We implement our filter as a Snort preprocessor. Our results show that integration with BotHunter improves detection drastically. When used as a filter, our classifiers reduce the amount of traffic delivered to IDS by more than 50%, while maintaining more than 99.9% of the original alerts. Other work needs to inspect at least 13 times more packets or it misses about 70 times of the alerts.


In Myanmar, rice is an invaluable commodity both as a staple food and a source of high foreign exchange earnings through export. The country's agricultural economy has been transitioning from a planned economy to a market system since the late 1980s; however, the government has yet to engage in full-scale rice export deregulation. Therefore, Myanmar's rice marketing system works within the boundaries and limitations of a halfway-liberalized economy, inevitably eliciting questions about its performance. Using the Engle and Granger two-step co-integration method and the restructured Ravallion model of unrestricted vector auto-regression (VAR) error correction form, three surplus markets, three deficit markets, and Thai rice price series were tested to determine market integration and price causality. All price series were monthly data in both nominal and real values from 2001 to 2004. Results revealed that in the domestic market, integration was weak in real value of rice price, and the supply side eventually depended on the demand side. Price co-integration did not exist between Myanmar and Thai rice prices in real value, reflecting market segmentation. Consequently, accurate price information from international rice market price over time was unavailable for Myanmar rice price movement. Looking at the direction of rice price causality, deficit market prices were driving the consumer price index (CPI), and the CPI was forcing the surplus rice market price. Hence, deficit markets are the prime movers in rice price changes in Myanmar. Market integration suggests that the government should focus on managing inflationary pressure instead of being directly involved in the rice marketing sector in order to control the domestic rice price stability in the long run. Government monopoly in rice export has caused segmentation between domestic and international markets. If private rice export was permitted via trade policies, the marketing system would be able to transfer correct price signals from the world market to the producers, consumers, market participants, and finally, the government. Only then will Myanmar's rice market not be isolated from the international market and get the right price co-integration that may push the efficient market-oriented economy to move faster.


Micrometeorites originate from small pieces of rock from space colliding with the Earth's atmosphere at high velocity, such as the Perseid meteors which hit the atmosphere at 60 km/s. When they do so, they burn up, causing a flash of light that we see as a meteor.  Many groups have been successful collecting these particles using various devices.  Such activities make great science projects for middle and high school students, and we plan to start a program to train students in the collecting methods and get them interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers.  Various methods are used to collect micrometeorites from rainwater, but little work has been done to assess the most efficient method of collecting these particles from space and then analyzing them.  Before we began our citizen science project, we determined that it was necessary to conduct a pilot project to determine the most effective method of collecting micrometeorites from rainwater.  Four collecting methods were tried and the method that collected the most micrometeorites was also the simplest, that being a simple bucket under the downspout of the gutter system of a house and a magnet which is then run through the bucket to gather the meteorites.


How do we know that we can trust our viewpoints, our dogmatic principles and our religious convictions to constitute veracity, if not truth? Where can an arbiter be found for our deliberations to establish the trustworthiness of our viewpoints or belief systems, when we differ one from the other on religious matters, and in the context of religious conviction also differ in political and social endeavours? Van Huyssteen deserves commendation for his contribution to this discourse in developing the concept of a postfoundationalist epistemology in an attempt to justify theology's integrity, and endorse theology's public voice within our highly complex and challenging world. He suggests that the concept of human uniqueness might be the common denominator in the contributions of theology (in its specific understanding of the unique status of humans in God's creation) and science (in its understanding of the unique stature of Homo sapiens in terms of biological evolution). However, the author, in this article, argues that given the radically diverse disciplines of science in our highly developed technological – and indeed within our current Covid-dominated context (on the one hand) and the pre-scientific context of religion (on the other hand), it becomes increasingly difficult to imagine how it can remain possible to find something like a common issue, a shared problem, a kind of mutual concern or even a shared overlapping research trajectory that might benefit precisely from this envisaged interdisciplinary dialogue. Is it possible that 'alone in this world' could mean something different than what Van Huyssteen suggests?Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: How do we know that we can trust our viewpoints, and our religious convictions to constitute truth? Van Huyssteen develops the concept of a postfoundationalist epistemology in an attempt to justify theology's integrity within the discourse with science. However, the author in this article argues that it has become increasingly difficult for systematic theology to find a shared overlapping research trajectory that might benefit this interdisciplinary dialogue.


The aim of this research was to evaluate the variability of ripening characteristics of the Tempranillo variety within the Ribera del Duero Designation of Origin (Spain) and it relationships with soil characteristics. This area covers approximately 115 km along the Duero River with elevations from about 700 m to more than 1300 m a.s.l. The climate is temperate with dry or temperate summers in the western portion of the DO area and temperate with a dry summer season in the eastern portion of the DO area. The mean annual temperature ranges between 10.2 and 12.0°C, with mean maximum temperatures around 18.4°C and mean minimum temperatures ranging between 4.5 and 5.0°C. The mean annual precipitation ranges between 413 and 519 mm with the main rainfall periods in April-May and October-November-December. The main soil types in the Ribera del Duero area are Calcaric Cambisol, Calcic Luvisol, Calcaric Fluvisol, Lithic Leptosol and Calcaric Regosol. The analysis includes the information recorded during the period 2003-2013 in 26 plots throughout the Ribera del Duero DO for parameters such as berry weight (g), sugar content (°Baumé), titratable acidity (AcT) and malic (AcM) acid (gL), total (AntT) and extractable (AntE) anthocyanins (mgL) and the color index (CI) (in absorbance units). Despite the high variability driven by year to year in climate characteristics, it was possible to indentify the soil and plot characteristics that affect ripening characteristics within the Ribera del Duero. The highest acidity values in grapes were recorded in soils with slightly higher clay and organic matter contents. These plots were located above the river terraces. Additionally, the highest anthocyanins concentrations were also found in plots with the highest organic matter content and with slightly lower soil pH. The effect was greater in the wet years and in those with intermediate characteristics. The highest anthocyanins and color index values were found in the plots located at lower elevations on the river terraces, while the lower values were recorded in vineyards located on the hillslopes at higher elevation. The results were highly dependent on wet or dry conditions. In dry years high clay and organic matter content gave rise to greater anthocyanin concentrations while in wet years the relationships were the opposite.


The multinomial logit model is perhaps the most commonly used regression model for nominal outcomes in the social sciences. A concern raised by many researchers, however, is the assumption of the independence of irrelevant alternatives (IIA) that is implicit in the model. In this article, the authors undertake a series of Monte Carlo simulations to evaluate the three most commonly discussed tests of IIA. Results suggest that the size properties of the most common IIA tests depend on the data structure for the independent variables. These findings are consistent with an earlier impression that, even in well-specified models, IIA tests often reject the assumption when the alternatives seem distinct and often fail to reject IIA when the alternatives can reasonably be viewed as close substitutes. The authors conclude that tests of the IIA assumption that are based on the estimation of a restricted choice set are unsatisfactory for applied work.


Hearing is an essential sense of the individual, which is crucial for verbal communication and social living. With increasing noise pollution, mobile phones, ototoxic drugs, ototoxic chemicals the incidence of old age deafness is on increase. WHO estimates 360 million individuals in the world have disabling hearing loss, of which 91% adults. With the increasing life span we expect the prevalence of deafness as high as 48% above the age of 75 years. By neck muscles (cervical) exercises and deep breathing exercises Kumbhak we can increase the blood and oxygen supply to the inner ear. Hyper note (Ultrasound) sound can stimulate the inner ear. Yoga is a known modality in life style management and de-stressing along with restriction of mobile phone, modification of diet, eliminating Vit D deficiency, we can provide some improvement in sensorineural deafness if not at least we can improve the quality of life by yoga exercises.


The biogeography of wrasses within the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) is poorly understood, with regard to origins and genetic differentiation or connectivity among the regions of the WIO. This region is a good model for studying the influence of physical complexities and biogeographic breaks in shaping patterns of differentiation in wrasses. Three reef-associated fish species, Cheilio inermis, Thalassoma hebraicum and T. lunare, were selected to examine the factors that have influenced patterns of differentiation across the WIO. Each species was sampled from various localities of the WIO, the Red Sea and Indo-West Pacific Islands. Sequence data were generated from two mitochondrial gene fragments (cytochrome b and ATPase 6) and one nuclear locus (the first intron of the ribosomal protein S7 gene). Genetic analyses were used to calculate genetic diversity indices within species, which were then compared among species. The relationships among haplotypes and alleles were constructed using median-joining networks. Where necessary, neighbour-joining trees (NJ) were constructed to examine relationships among haplotypes and alleles for the Thalassoma species. Population structure was analysed using AMOVA and pairwise ФST to compare and calculate differentiation between the WIO localities. Mismatch distributions were used to examine population growth and decline or stability, and demographic parameters were used to calculate time of population expansion. There was high haplotype (h = 0.88 to 0.98) and low nucleotide diversities (π = 0.003 to 0.008) among all species for mitochondrial markers. For S7 intron I, high allelic (A = 0.95 to 0.98) and low nucleotide diversities (π = 0.002 to 0.014) were observed for all species. The pairwise ФST values revealed little to great (ФST = -0.02 to 0.67) genetic differentiation between localities, across all species for the three gene regions. The pairwise comparisons indicated the differentiation in C. inermis of Tanzania and Kenya from Mozambique and Nosy Be (Madagascar). The widespread C. inermis also revealed the differentiation of Kenya and Tanzania. For C. inermis, the AMOVAs of ATPase 6 and cytochrome b data indicated high differentiation among defined locality groups. The groups were defined according to geographic proximity. However, the AMOVA of the nuclear gene (S7 intron I) did not find variation among defined locality groups. Cheilio inermis revealed a sequence divergence of 0.4%. The divergence that was found in C. inermis was not enough to suggest a cryptic species within the WIO. Overall, the widespread and monotypic C. inermis revealed genetic differentiation within the WIO. Thalassoma hebraicum generally revealed little genetic iii differentiation across the WIO. The AMOVAs of the three gene regions showed no variation among specimens of the defined locality groups. However, some differentiation was found between localities. The pairwise comparisons of T. hebraicum revealed the differentiation of Seychelles from the African mainland and Madagascar. Southern Africa was observed to be differentiated from Nosy Be and Zanzibar. The observed differentiation could be caused by oceanic barriers such as the South Equatorial Current (SEQC), East African Coastal Current (EACC), and the Comoros Gyres and eddies in the Mozambique Channel, and Agulhas Current. Thalassoma lunare revealed genetic isolation between the WIO and the Red Sea as well as within the WIO. The genetic isolation between the WIO and the Red Sea is probably due to the historical isolation by the Bab al Mandab and contemporary barriers such as the cold upwelling cells in Somalia. The differentiation of Maldives from the African mainland and Seychelles could be due to distance and the upwelling cells created by monsoon winds. Mismatch distributions suggested that C. inermis and T. hebraicum had undergone demographic expansion during the Pleistocene (92 678 to 40 219 years ago). The results of the current study are similar to those from previous studies of WIO reef fish species, and the results of the present study could have potential implications for conservation and fisheries management. Single genetic markers and single species studies do not detect all barriers to dispersal in the WIO, thus they are insufficient to inform conservation management. Thus, the use of multispecies and genetic markers in the current study can be adopted by other studies of the marine taxa of the WIO.


Recently there has been a lot of interest in density modeling with Deep Generative Models. So far, these models have arguably been relatively successful on tasks such as modeling handwritten digits (MNIST), small image patches (e.g., 8 by 8 pixels) and other low-dimensional datasets.
However, convincingly modeling higher dimensional data such as small images (e.g., 32 by 32 pixels and higher) is still a big unsolved problem.
In this work we will extend and apply Deep Gaussian Mixture Models (DGMMs) to this task, by introducing locally connected transformations. Similarly to convolutions in deep neural networks, local connectivity in DGMMs allow us to train faster and with less overfitting than fully connected networks when applied to images. Our experiments show the benefits of using
locally-connected Deep GMMs and give new insights on modeling higher dimensional images.


Abstract — Abu Dhabi is one of the fastest developed cities in the region. On top of all the current and future environmental challenges, Abu Dhabi aims to be among the top governments in the world in sustainable development. Abu Dhabi plans to create an attractive, livable and sustainable managed urban environment in which all necessary services and infrastructure are provided in a sustainable and timely manner. Abu Dhabi is engaged in a difficult challenge to develop credible environmental indicators that would assess the ambitious environmental targets. The aim of those indicators is to provide reliable guidance to decision makers and the public concerning key factors that determine the state of urban environment and identify major areas for policy intervention. In order to ensure sustainable development in UAE in general, and of Abu Dhabi City in particular, relevant and contextual environmental indicators need to be carefully considered. These indicators provide a gauge at a national government scale of how close countries are to establish environmental policy goals. The environment indicators assist city decision-making in such areas as identification of significant environmental aspects and observation of environmental performance trends. Those can help to find ways of reducing environmental pollution and in improving eco-efficiency. This paper outlines recent strategies implemented in Abu Dhabi that aims to improve the sustainable performance of the city's built environment. The paper explores the variety of current and possible indicators at different levels and their roles in the development of the city.


BackgroundThe Nigerian 4.1% HIV-1 prevalence rate masks concentrated epidemics in most-at-risk populations (MARPs). Many MARPs are unable to access HIV services due to stigma and discrimination encountered in facilities. We report HIV and STI characteristics of Men who have Sex with Men (MSM) enrolled in a community-based HIV/AIDS clinic in Abuja, Nigeria. MethodThe Institute of Human Virology-Nigeria, a PEPFAR implementing partner, in partnership with ICARH, provides comprehensive HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment in a safe community-based environment for MSM. HIV counseling and testing (HCT), prevention and support services are provided by the community-based organization staff and peer volunteers supplemented by a mobile physician-led multidisciplinary team from a linked tertiary center and mobile laboratory services. All MSM clients are enrolled in the clinic irrespective of HIV status. ResultsIn 4 months, 122 MSM (13 reporting being married or divorced), with a mean age of 26.5 years received HCT. Sixty six (55%) tested HIV-positive (15 of whom reported previously testing HIV-negative). Thirty three (26%) reported never having used a condom. In the 3 months preceding HCT, 57 (46%) had more than 1 sexual partner; 58 (47%) had unprotected sex with a casual partner; and 55 (45%) had unprotected sex with a regular partner. Twenty seven (22%) reported a history of STIs; and 20% had current STI symptoms. HIVnegative clients were more likely to report greater than 1 partner (61% vs 52%, P = 0.4); unprotected sex with a casual partner (57% vs 49%, P = 0.5); and unprotected sex with a regular partner (67% vs 43%, P = 0.03). For the 42 HIV-positive enrolled, baseline median CD4 count was 336 cells/&mgr;L (range 86–916) and HIV-1 viral load 74,256 c/mL (IQR 5,966–284,122). ConclusionHigh rates of unrecognized and untreated HIV-1 seen are likely a significant driver of new infections due to increased transmission risk from high viral load, multiple sexual partners and STIs. Although HIV-positive MSM exhibited lower rates of risk behaviors, 49% were still having unprotected sex. For HIV-negative clients, engagement in a community-based clinic provides opportunities to achieve improved behavioral risk profiles before becoming HIV-infected through ongoing prevention education and interventions, and reduces lost-to-follow up in the link between testing, care and treatment. More efforts are needed to explore targeted combination prevention strategies, including test and treat for MARPs.