Background and aim of the work: The spontaneous and simultaneous rupture of both quadriceps tendons is uncommon and has rarely been reported in medical literature. The current case involves a 62-years old man with bilateral atraumatic complete quadriceps tendon rupture. Aim of this study is to provide a systematic review of this case and a literature review of similar cases. Methods: We reviewed and analyzed this patient's records. Initial x rays of both knees showed a bilateral patellar spur. Real time ultrasonography scan of both knees showed a complete tear of quadriceps. The repair has consisted on end to end Krackow sutures associated with bone suture to the proximal pole of the patella using patellar drill holes. We also researched the literature for bilateral simultaneous rupture of the quadriceps tendon. Results: The patient suffered only from seasonal asthma (receiving only inhaled corticosteroids) and he was overweight (BMI: 33,5), he did not do any type of sport, he was a biker. The patient was able to walk after 3 weeks with both knee cast. The patients had a 120° pain free range of motion in both knees 4 months after surgery. Conclusion: Simultaneous bilateral quadriceps tendon rupture is really very rare and these are generally reported as case presentation in the literature. This injury usually presents in middle aged people with a history of chronic illness. The general recommendation is to perform surgical intervention within 48-72 hours after injury. (www.actabiomedica.it)


Under Canada's Employment Insurance (EI) system, parents are entitled to receive up to 50 weeks of parental leave at 55% of salary to a maximum of $413/week. In addition, many companies "top-up" these EI benefits so parents receive their full salary during parental leave. Despite this national policy, women with higher education are more likely to delay childbearing. Women who delay childbearing, particularly past age 35, are at increased risk of infertility, pregnancy and birth complications. This analysis aimed to assess whether workplace support impacted women's decisions regarding when to have their first baby and how educational attainment affected this relationship. Within 3 months of delivery, women who had given birth to their first live-born infant in 2002/2003 within two large urban regions in Alberta, Canada, were randomly selected to participate in a telephone survey. Logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between workplace support, educational attainment and timing of first pregnancy. Among 836 women with a planned pregnancy, 26% agreed that the support or lack of support for pregnant women at their workplace affected their decision about when to begin their family. After controlling for age and income, women who had completed a post-graduate degree were three times (OR=3.39, 95% CI 1.69 to 6.81) more likely to indicate that the support or lack of support for pregnant women in the workplace affected their childbearing decisions. In spite of national policies, and the potential risks associated with delayed childbearing, workplace support impacts timing of pregnancy, particularly for highly educated women.


The effects of heterogeneous preferences or uncertainty about item values on the variance of dependent variables (e.g., auction prices; retail price dispersion; or investment choices in stocks, R&D, or education) are usually relegated to the error term, which a) confounds these effects with other drivers of the error term and b) could lead to heteroskedasticity at best or omitted variable bias at worst. This paper shows how surveys can generate a measure of the amount of information or heterogeneity of preferences in a market by measuring the distribution of private information signals in eBay online auctions for computers. Regressions utlizing this measure produce significantly different results than those that rely on hedonic measures to control for heterogeneity alone. Furthermore, this measure provides a new way to test for the presence of a common values component in auctions.


In military and sports tasks, individuals are often required to perform in a complex and dynamic environment and obtain a tactical advantage over an opponent even when only partial or incomplete information is available. Successful performance in both domains is typically dependent upon the ability to work both independently and as a team in an effective manner by combining perceptual, cognitive, motor, and social skills, often under stressful circumstances. Despite these similarities, and the extensive literature bases amassed on training in each field, there has been little, if any, cross-fertilization or collaboration. We offer a synopsis of perceptual-cognitive and decision skills training research from the fields of sport psychology, expert performance, human factors, and Military Psychology with a view toward highlighting commonalities and differences in approach to training. Attention is drawn to the experimental designs and interventions employed, as well as methodological shortcomings and how these have been addressed. In addition, we highlight the differences in how training recommendations have been derived, discuss questions that have been raised in developing and validating training programs, and, in particular, emphasize the need for evidence-based practice. Our aim is to offer conclusions from the sport psychology literature that can inform the design, structure, content, and implementation of future military decision training.


There are few empirical tests that support the existence of information asymmetry. We add to this literature using bid-ask spread to capture differences in the level of information asymmetry just prior to the announcement of an open market acquisition of acreage or reserves by U.S. oil and gas firms over the period 1993 to 2011. Acreage is an area of land that is believed to contain reserves and so information asymmetry is expected to be greater around announcement of acreage than for reserve acquisition. We find that for an oil and gas producer, the bid-ask spread just prior to announcement of acquisition of acreage is greater than the bid-ask spread just prior to the announcement of an acquisition of reserves. We then split the sample into firms with share price less than $4.00 (small share price firms) and the remainder (high share price firms). We find that this effect is associated with small share price firms and not high share price firms. Thus, for the firms with share price less than $4.00, the level of information asymmetry associated with an oil and gas firm varies with the type of asset acquisition announcement though this is not so apparent for the firms having a share price of $4.00 or more.


S-Nitrosothiols have generated considerable interest due to their ability to act as nitric oxide (NO) donors and due to their possible involvement in bioregulatory systems—e.g., NO transfer reactions. Elucidation of the reaction pathways involved in the modification of the thiol group by S-nitrosothiols is important for understanding the role of S-nitroso compounds in vivo. The modification of glutathione (GSH) in the presence of S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) was examined as a model reaction. Incubation of GSNO (1 mM) with GSH at various concentrations (1–10 mM) in phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) yielded oxidized glutathione, nitrite, nitrous oxide, and ammonia as end products. The product yields were dependent on the concentrations of GSH and oxygen. Transient signals corresponding to GSH conjugates, which increased by one mass unit when the reaction was carried out with 15N-labeled GSNO, were identified by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. When morpholine was present in the reaction system, N-nitrosomorpholine was formed. Increasing concentrations of either phosphate or GSH led to lower yields of N-nitrosomorpholine. The inhibitory effect of phosphate may be due to reaction with the nitrosating agent, nitrous anhydride (N2O3), formed by oxidation of NO. This supports the release of NO during the reaction of GSNO with GSH. The products noted above account quantitatively for virtually all of the GSNO nitrogen consumed during the reaction, and it is now possible to construct a complete set of pathways for the complex transformations arising from


Mutations in human leucine-rich-repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) have been found to be the most frequent cause of late-onset Parkinson disease. Here we show that Dictyostelium discoideum Roco4 is a suitable model to study the structural and biochemical characteristics of the LRRK2 kinase and can be used for optimization of current and identification of new LRRK2 inhibitors. We have solved the structure of Roco4 kinase wild-type, Parkinson disease-related mutants G1179S and L1180T (G2019S and I2020T in LRRK2) and the structure of Roco4 kinase in complex with the LRRK2 inhibitor H1152. Taken together, our data give important insight in the LRRK2 activation mechanism and, most importantly, explain the G2019S-related increase in LRRK2 kinase activity.


Microchannel cooling is one the prospective microscale cooling methods that can meet future needs. Many theoretical and experimental studies have been reported in the past decade. This paper presents an experimental study on the laminar flow of liquid through microchannels with different cross-sections. The experimental results for circular micropipes agree well with theoretical predictions for conventional ducts. The values of fRe (Darcy friction factor-Reynolds number product) for laminar flow of liquid in the silicon microchannels with noncircular cross-sections are smaller than those of the conventional values. The surface roughness of the silicon microchannels fabricated by surface and bulk micromachining processes is also measured. The turbulent flow and heat transfer characteristics in microchannels are to be studied in the next phase of research.


Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) is a beneficial mechanism that diverts blood from hypoxic alveoli to better ventilated areas of the lung, but breathing hypoxic air causes the pulmonary circulation to become hypertensive. Responses to airway hypoxia are associated with depolarization of smooth muscle cells in the pulmonary arteries and reduced activity of K+ channels. As Kv7 channels have been proposed to play a key role in regulating the smooth muscle membrane potential, we investigated their involvement in the development of HPV and hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension. Vascular effects of the selective Kv7 blocker, linopirdine, and Kv7 activator, flupirtine, were investigated in isolated, saline-perfused lungs from rats maintained for 3–5 days in an isobaric hypoxic chamber (FiO2 = 0.1) or room air. Linopirdine increased vascular resistance in lungs from normoxic, but not hypoxic rats. This effect was associated with reduced mRNA expression of the Kv7.4 channel α-subunit in hypoxic arteries, whereas Kv7.1 and Kv7.5 were unaffected. Flupirtine had no effect in normoxic lungs but reduced vascular resistance in hypoxic lungs. Moreover, oral dosing with flupirtine (30 mg/kg/day) prevented short-term in vivo hypoxia from increasing pulmonary vascular resistance and sensitizing the arteries to acute hypoxia. These findings suggest a protective role for Kv7.4 channels in the pulmonary circulation, limiting its reactivity to pressor agents and preventing hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension. They also provide further support for the therapeutic potential of Kv7 activators in pulmonary vascular disease.


Nanotechnology has exerted a significant impact in the development of biosensors allowing more sensible analytical methods. In health applications, the main challenge of the immunoassay is to reach the suitable limit of detection, recognizing different analytes in complex samples like whole blood, serum, urine, and other biological fluids. Different nanomaterials, including metallic, silica and magnetic nanoparticles, quantum dots, carbon nanotubes, and graphene, have been applied, mainly to improve charge electron transfer, catalytic activity, amount of immobilized biomole‐ cules, low-background current, signal-to-noise ratio that consequently increase the sensitivity of immunosensors. Given the great impact of nanotechnology, this chapter intends to discuss new aspects of nanomaterials relating to immunosensor advance‐


Oxyropsis ephippia, a new species of loricariid catfish in the subfamily Hypoptopomatinae, is described from the Essequibo and Branco basins, Guyana. Based on the presence of a keel-like row of relatively enlarged odontodes on trunk median plates immediately above the lateral line canal, the new species is assigned to the genus Oxyropsis Eigenmann & Eigenmann 1889. It can be distinguished from its congeners by having the keel-like row on each median plate dominated by a single odontode (one closest to the posterior margin of the plate) conspicuously larger than preceding ones, and by having the sides of the trunk below the median series (approximately between median plates 7 to 12) shielded only by plates of the midventral series, with the exclusion of plates from the ventral series. The report of O. ephippia from the Essequibo is the first record of the genus in a river system that drains the north-central portion of the Guiana Shield into the Atlantic Ocean.


The concept of contact is applied into the machining of the complex surface. If the contact line is along the straight line of cutter, the contact line should be along the asymptotic direction of the surface being machined. For the undeveloped ruled surface, the directions of the normal vectors are different, while the directions of the normal vectors on the straight line of cylinder are the same, so that there may be some over cutting on the surface. With the theory of this paper, the best cutter postural can be determined when the contact line is not along the straight line of the cutter. And further more, with the concept of third order contact, both the best cutter postural and contact direction can be determined at same time. This paper showed how to use this method for the machining of impeller leaf.


Instead of selective emitter technology we investigate an alternative way to optimize contact formation and increased blue responsivity of highly resistive emitter solar cells using screen print technology for the deposition of the frontside metallization grid. We show with the aid of an inline doping/diffusion set-up at Blue Chip Energy that tuning the emitter doping profile is an alternative way to reduce the effect of Auger recombination in the spectral range from 300 nm to 600 nm. By properly choosing the process conditions we were able to minimize the detrimental effect of the low surface concentration of the dopant on the contact resistance. Due to improved blue light responsivity a significant gain in short circuit current Jsc was achieved. This and a reduced reverse saturation current I00E yielded a higher open circuit voltage VOC and an increase of cell efficiency from 17.6 %-avg to more than 17.9 %-avg.


Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the accuracy of the pathologic diagnosis of papillary breast lesions when evaluated by percutaneous biopsy. Materials and Methods: A total of 2307 consecutive breast lesions, diagnosed by percutaneous biopsy, were retrospectively reviewed. Of these, 45 lesions were papillary lesions; 15 of the 45 cases were lost to follow-up or had not had imaging follow-up and were excluded. The remaining 30 papillary lesions constituted the study population. Subsequent surgical excision or imaging follow-up (a minimum of 6 months) was performed and correlated with the initial diagnoses. Results: Of the 30 lesions, 11 intraductal papillomas were diagnosed with stereotactic vacuum assisted biopsy (SVAB). Surgical excision was performed on four lesions (36.4%). Pathologic findings in all four lesions (100%) were benign. Of the 13 papillary lesions diagnosed with ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy, three (23.1%) demonstrated papillomatosis. Subsequent surgical excision was performed on 11 (84.6%) of the 13 papillary lesions, including two of the three papillomatosis. Pathology was benign in all. The two (18.2%) other lesions, initially diagnosed as papillomatosis and benign papilloma, were a fibroadenoma and organizing papillomatosis, respectively, at surgery. The six lesions that were sampled with fine needle aspiration (FNA) demonstrated intraductal papillary lesions, two (33.3%) of which had cytologic atypia. Surgical excision was performed on all six (100%) with benign breast tissue in four (66.7%) including one of the lesions demonstrating atypia. The two (33.3%) other lesions demonstrated high-grade invasive papillary carcinoma with in-situ components. Conclusion: Surgical excision is warranted when a percutaneous breast biopsy demonstrates a papillary lesion with atypia or when there is radiologic-pathologic discordance. Otherwise, these lesions can be followed conservatively. Furthermore, for improved diagnostic accuracy, indeterminate intraductal lesions should undergo biopsy with CNB or stereotactic vacuum assisted biopsy and not fine needle aspiration. The cytologic diagnosis of papillary lesions is considered only preliminary by fine needle aspiration, and should await surgical resection and histologic examination to further classify these lesions.


A new CERN Linear Electron Accelerator for Research (named CLEAR) has been installed as a general-purpose user facility to study novel accelerating techniques, highgradient structures, instrumentation and irradiation experiments. CLEAR is a flexible accelerator that can provide high quality bunched electron beams with a wide range of beam parameters up to an energy of 220 MeV, offering several testing capabilities. Among all the potential applications, novel accelerating techniques, such as plasma acceleration and THz generation are considered. These applications require shorter bunches, down to the 100 fs level. This paper reports on beam dynamics studies and instrumentation tests to establish a bunch length of this order in CLEAR. The short bunches are generated using adiabatic bunching in the first accelerating structure. For bunch length diagnostic, CLEAR is equipped with a streak camera and a transverse deflecting cavity. Alternatively, a phase-scan of the last accelerating structure could be used as well to estimate the bunch length. The experimental results with respect to these different techniques are presented and compared with simulations.


Two Eurasian invasive annual brome grasses, cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and Japanese brome (Bromus japonicus), are well known for their impact in steppe ecosystems of the western United States where these grasses have altered fire regimes, reduced native plant diversity and abundance, and degraded wildlife habitat. Annual bromes are also abundant in the grasslands of the Northern Great Plains (NGP), but their impact and ecology are not as well studied. It is unclear whether the lessons learned from the steppe will translate to the mixed-grass prairie where native plant species are adapted to frequent fires and grazing. Developing a successful annual brome management strategy for National Park Service units and other NGP grasslands requires better understanding of (1) the impact of annual bromes on grassland condition; (2) the dynamics of these species through space and time; and (3) the relative importance of environmental factors within and outside managers' control for these spatiotemporal dynamics. Here, we use vegetation monitoring data collected from 1998 to 2015 in 295 sites to relate spatiotemporal variability of annual brome grasses to grassland composition, weather, physical environmental characteristics, and ecological processes (grazing and fire). Concern about the impact of these species in NGP grasslands is warranted, as we found a decline in native species richness with increasing annual brome cover. Annual brome cover generally increased over the time of monitoring but also displayed a 3- to 5-yr cycle of reduction and resurgence. Relative cover of annual bromes in the monitored areas was best predicted by park unit, weather, extant plant community, slope grade, soil composition, and fire history. We found no evidence that grazing reduced annual brome cover, but this may be due to the relatively low grazing pressure in our study. By understanding the consequences and patterns of annual brome invasion, we will be better able to preserve and restore these grassland landscapes for future generations.


A method based on ray optics is developed for calculating the scattering from dielectric bodies. The fields of geometrical optics are used except for two types of rays where the fields must be corrected from physical optics solutions. The customary advantages of ray techniques are realized, namely, a simplicity in the resulting formulas, a ready interpretation of the scattering mechanism and the possibility of extension to a wider class of problems through the inclusion of additional rays. The method has been applied to several lossless dielectric shapes: the circular cylinder, the sphere, the prolate spheroid and to a lossy dielectric shell. The relative dielectric constants considered range from 0.25 to 1.80, except in the case of the shell. The calculated results are compared with those obtained from boundary value solutions, with the exception of the spheroid where measured values are used. Good results are obtained for all sizes considered except those which are very small and behave as Rayleigh scatterers. The failure in the region of Rayleigh scattering is to be expected. Thus, for the class of dielectric scatterers treated here there is no region of scattering resonance corresponding to that of similar metallic shapes where the geometrical optics solution is no longer valid.


Currently, Montana does not have a state conservation fund (SCF), a funding mechanism designed to fund and strengthen collaborative conservation projects. Recent publications, including the State's Comprehensive Fish & Wildlife Strategy suggest that strengthening collaborative conservation on private lands is essential to the survival of many imperiled species and communities. Recently, Montana's Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks has shown greater interest in creating more voluntary, incentive-based programs to address non-game wildlife and habitat conservation on private lands. In this research, I use qualitative market research to evaluate the feasibility of a state conservation trust for Montana using state conservation funds (SCF) from three other states (Nebraska, North Carolina and Wyoming) as exemplars. I interviewed 18 individuals, many of whom were involved in collaborative conservation. Interviewees had professional backgrounds in ranching, game and land conservation, state natural resource agencies, industry/agricultural trade associations and watershed committees. From this work, I suggest specific techniques to conserve and provide sustainability for working agricultural lands, to address water efficiency and to use voluntary measures to protect prioritized species and habitats. I also conduct a comparative case study of the creation of North Carolina's Clean Water Management Trust Fund to consider whether the origins of this Fund have implications for the creation of an SCF in Montana. However, I found that current conditions in Montana are not analogous to those in North Carolina. Problems such as wildfire and drought are serious but most respondents didn't feel that these issues had reached a critical mass of statewide concern. Overall, there was a general consensus by interviewees on what needs a Montana SCF could address and how it should be governed and administered. However, these issues as well as identifying potential funding mechanisms will require more research and a strong coalition of interested parties.


In this paper, vibration control performance of piezostack active engine mount system for unmanned aero vehicle (UAV) is evaluated via computer simulation. As a first step, the dynamic model of engine mount system which is supported at three points is derived. In the configuration of engine mount system, the inertia type of piezostack based active mount is installed for active vibration control. Then, the vibration level of UAV engine is measured. To attenuate the vibration which is transmitted from engine, a sliding mode controller which is robust to uncertain parameters is designed. Vibration control performances of active engine mount system are evaluated at each mount and center of gravity. Effective Control results are presented in both time and frequency domains.


Background and aims Systemic Sclerosis (SSc) is a chronic progressive autoimmune disease. Assessment of skin fibrosis based on modified Rodnan's skin score (mRSS) are important to determining clinical response and prognosis. Several biomarkers may potential to check skin fibrosis in SSc patients, such as B-cell Activating Factor (BAFF), Pro-collagen Type-1 Terminal Pro-peptide (P1NP), and sCD40L which believed playing role in fibrosis cascade. The aim of study is to evaluate the correlation levels of BAFF, P1NP and sCD40L serum with mRSS in SSc. Methods This is a cross-sectional study enrolled SSc patients in Rheumatology clinic Hasan Sadikin Hospital Bandung-Indonesia, from Nov 2015 to July 2016. All subjects performed mRSS measurement and blood tests. Data analysed by Rank-Spearman correlation. Results There are 42 subjects, mean age 40+10 years old, 40 (95.2%) are female, 24 (57.1%) are limited type SSc and 18 (42.9%) are diffuse type SSc. Thirty-nine (92.9%) subjects treated with methotrexate, 29 (69%) subjects with corticosteroid, and 4 (9.5%) subjects with cyclophosphamide. The mean level of BAFF was 1090±386 pg/mL, the mean level of sCD40L was 6858±2665 pg/mL, and the mean level of P1NP was 51.5±25.7 ng/ml. The median of mRSS was 17 (5-36). There are a significant correlation between mRSS and BAFF serum (r=0.710; p=0.016), a significant correlation between mRSS and P1NP serum (r=0.862, p=0.001), There are no significant correlation between mRSS and sCD40L serum (r=0.184; p=0.318). Conclusions Our study found a significant correlation between BAFF and P1NP serum with mRSS, and no significant correlation between sCD40L serum with mRSS in SSc patients.


Background: Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a disease with a high global disease burden. There is an inadequate data on the epidemiology of allergic disorders in Saudi Arabia. Objective: The aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence of AR and identify risk factors among University of Hail students, Northern Saudi Arabia. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional survey conducted in Hail University, Northern Saudi Arabia, which included 1578 participants, to assess the epidemiology of AR, and its possible risk factors. Results: The overall prevalence of AR was 51% and the prevalence of AR for males was 55%, hence, the prevalence among females was 42%. Moreover, the prevalence of rhino conjunctivitis in this study was 21%. Conclusion: AR is prevalent among Hail University students with relatively higher risk in males. More research is required for identifying the most frequent environmental and occupation allergies for better future control.


Biologically inspired algorithms were used in this work to approach different components of pattern recognition applied to the control of robotic prosthetics. In order to contribute with a different training paradigm, Evolutionary (EA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithms were used to train an Artificial Neural Network (ANN). Since the optimal input set of signal features is yet unknown, a Genetic Algorithm (GA) was used to approach this problem. The training length and rate of convergence were considered in the search of an optimal set of signal features, as well as for the optimal time window length. The ANN proved to be an accurate pattern recognition algorithm predicting 10 movements with over 95% accuracy. Moreover, new combinations of signal features with higher convergence rates than the commonly found in the literature were discovered by the GA. It was also found that the PSO had better performance that the EA as a training algorithm but worse than the well established Back-propagation. The latter considered accuracy, training length and convergence. Finally, the common practice of using 200 ms time window was found to be sufficient for producing acceptable accuracies while remaining short enough for a real-time control.


I. INTRODUCTION The Internet offers the potential to revolutionize the manner in which people receive health information and treat their health conditions. More than 40.9 million Americans were expected to use the Internet in the year 2000 for health care.(1) "According to Investors Business Daily, 43 percent of [W]eb surfers access health care data online each year. Health concerns are the sixth most common reason that people use the Internet, and according to the market research firm, Cyber Dialogue Inc., this number is growing by 70 percent a year."(2) Even without the growth of the Internet, the twentieth century has seen an incredible proliferation of health care services. Rather than simply consulting a single family physician for all health-related matters, patients now seek counsel from many individuals about needed services. The Internet offers an easy, fast, and potentially more robust source of health care delivery. Nonetheless, this incredible new medium also has the potential to defraud consumers seeking health information and services in a manner that probably would not have occurred had they simply consulted their familiar--and trusted--licensed medical practitioners. Generally, the health care industry has lagged behind other sectors in the use of information technology services and solutions.(3) In the modern health care arena, however, sharing information is increasingly important to facilitate patient diagnosis and treatment, insurance and benefit claim evaluation and payment, public health monitoring, research, and health care education and training. To respond to widespread consumer use of the Internet for health-related reasons, health care organizations and services must migrate from their traditional "bricks-and-mortar"(4) establishments to the Internet.(5) Until two years ago, even Kaiser Permanente, the country's largest health-maintenance organization ("HMO"), kept paper files for its patients' and shipped records around the country by traditional truck delivery.(6) Today, Kaiser and many other HMOs and health care professionals use the Internet to facilitate anything from individual account access, communication between the patient and health care provider, storage and transmission of patient data, to advice and discussion among health professionals, drug and disease research, and product ordering.(7) Before Internet health services overtake their bricks-and-mortar counterparts, the law must ensure an adequate level of confidentiality and control over consumers' personal health information; reliability of online information; and direct redress for invasions of privacy and unfair, deceptive, and fraudulent trade practices. While online health care delivery raises many important issues, this Comment offers a comparison of the American and Canadian legal approaches to informational health privacy and Internet pharmacy sales. The United States and Canada have taken different approaches to the general protection of privacy, and this difference remains consistent between the two nations' treatment of Internet medical privacy. While the United States offers a patchwork of industry-specific privacy laws and encourages industry self-regulation, Canada has recently enacted a comprehensive privacy protection law that covers actions of both public and private actors and gives consumers a private right of action. Nonetheless, the United States has recently enacted a detailed medical privacy law. While this industry-specific law covers actions of both public and private actors, it does not give consumers a private right of action. This U.S. law is likely more comprehensive in terms of medical privacy protections because of its pinpoint focus, but it does not offer an industry-neutral, umbrella privacy protection and individual redress that the Canadian law promises. The advent of the Internet pharmacy, however, has caught both countries off guard; thus, there likely will be more consistency and cross-country cooperation in the future regulations of Internet pharmacy sales. …


An analytical model for the optimization of the consumption of materials and energents in a typical copper casting process based on a standard simulation procedure is presented. The proposed microeconomic analysis in correlation with the virtual manufacture of castings enabled a shortening of the time required to develop a product, as well as the fabrication of high quality castings, which could be a crucial contribution to the achievement of increased engineering adequacy and economic competitiveness. In this sense, the article demonstrates the beneficial employment of mathematical programming within a systematic economic analysis. The analyzed casting process is a part of the metallurgical manufacturing operations of the Copper Smelter and Refinery Bor, Serbia.


This book is for developers who want to develop .NET applications using Visual C++ 7.0 as the programming language. It covers the new features of Visual C++ which support .NET while lightly covering the new MFC and ATL enhancements as they relate to the .NET architecture, but focuses heavily on developing for the .NET framework. The book takes the reader through a simple .NET application, a more advanced application, and Internet development in .NET. The reader is also shown the differences between managed and unmanaged Visual C++ code and how to integrate them--critical information for migrating legacy C++ applications to the .NET architecture.


A novel actinomycete, designated strain EURKPP3H10T, was isolated from surface-sterilized roots of Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh., collected from Kamphaengphet Silvicultural Research Station, Kamphaengphet province, Thailand. The taxonomic position of strain EURKPP3H10T was studied using a polyphasic approach. Phylogenetic evaluation based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that strain EURKPP3H10T belongs to the genus Cryptosporangium, with the highest sequence similarity to Cryptosporangium cibodasense LIPI11-2-Ac046T (99.2 %). Colonies of strain EURKPP3H10T were orange yellow. Spherical sporangia with motile spores were observed. The strain contained meso-diaminopimelic acid and acofriose, arabinose, galactose, glucose, mannose, xylose and ribose in whole-cell hydrolysates. The predominant menaquinones were MK-9(H8) and MK-9(H6). The major fatty acids were iso-C16 : 0, C17 : 1ω8c, C18 : 1ω9c and C17 : 0. The polar lipids of the strain were phosphatidylethanolamine, diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylinositol and unknown lipids. The DNA G+C content of the genomic DNA was 71.5 mol%. Based on comparative analysis of physiological, biochemical and chemotaxonomic data, including DNA-DNA hybridization, strain EURKPP3H10T represents a novel species of the genus Cryptosporangium, for which the name Cryptosporangium eucalypti sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is EURKPP3H10T (=BCC 77605T=NBRC 111482T).


Brain lateralisation is the functional specialization of the brain, with some functions performed primarily by the left hemisphere, and others by the right hemisphere. Lateralisation differs in strength and direction between individuals, and among tasks within individuals, potentially affecting cognitive performance. Both the development of individual differences in brain lateralisation and the functional consequences of these are still elusive. There is long standing debate to what extent individual differences in lateralisation are due to variation in early exposure to sex hormones. We use a unique data set to test this: In the year 2000, prenatal sex hormone levels were measured in the amniotic fluid of pregnant women . In the year 2015, brain lateralisation and cognitive performance is assessed in the children born from these pregnancies (30 boys, 30 girls). Brain lateralisation of verbal fluency, mental rotation and facial emotion processing is measured with functional transcranial Doppler sonography (fTCD). In my presentation I will cover the following topics: 1) The relationship between prenatal exposure to sex hormones on brain lateralisation. 2) The relationship between brain lateralisation and cognitive performance. Results are being processed at this moment and will be presented at the conference.


Background Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) has been used alone or in combination with three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3DCRT) for treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The overall survival rate of HCC patients undergoing both treatments, however, has not been systematically studied. The aim of this meta-analysis-based study was to evaluate the overall efficacy of the combined therapy or monotherapy, thereby providing information for clinical treatment. Material/Methods We searched Google Scholar, PubMed, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) for eligible studies, and a total of 17 case-control studies (including HCC patients treated by TACE plus 3DCRT or TACE alone) were included to perform the meta-analysis. Based on the available data, we assessed the improvements of 1-year, 2-year, and 3-year survival rate for the combination therapy of TACE and 3DCRT or TACE alone. Furthermore, the analysis was also stratified by the tumor response: complete response (CR), partial response (PR), no response (NR) and progressive disease (PD). Statistical analysis was performed using STATA 12 (Stata Statistical Software: Release 12). Results The results show that HCC patients receiving combination therapy have significantly increased overall survival rate when compared to those receiving TACE alone (1-year survival rate: OR=1.95, 95% CI 1.54–2.47, p=7.3×10−8; 2-year survival rate: OR=1.87, 95% CI 1.49–2.34, p=1.6×10−7; 3-year survival rate: OR=2.00, 95% CI 1.52–2.64, p=1.8×10−6). Conclusions Assessment of tumor response demonstrates that the combination therapy can efficiently increase the tumor response rate (CR+PR: OR=2.29, 95% CI 1.70–3.08, p=1.1×10−7), with a lower rate of subsequent tumor development (PD: OR=0.25, 95% CI 0.15–0.40, p=5.5×10−8).


The growing demand of location, navigation and positioning services is boosting the development of new signals and modulations that will be adopted by new global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), such as the European Galileo, the Chinese Compass and the modernized GPS. A common feature of these new modulations is the presence of two channels, the data and pilot components, that separately carry the navigation message and the ranging information. Three different techniques, noncoherent combining, coherent combining with sign recovery and differentially coherent combining, are analyzed for the joint acquisition of data and pilot signals. For each acquisition strategy the probabilities of detection and false alarm are provided. In particular closed-form expressions for the probabilities of coherent channel combining and of the differentially coherent integration strategy are derived. To the best of our knowledge these expressions are new. Monte Carlo simulations are used to support theoretical analysis demonstrating the accuracy of the proposed models.


Pioglitazone (PIO) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analogs limit infarct size (IS) in experimental models. The effects of the dipeptidyl-peptidase-IV inhibitors, which increase the endogenous levels of GLP-1, on myocardial protection, are unknown. We studied whether sitagliptin (SIT) and PIO have additive effects on IS limitation in the mouse. Mice received 3-day or 14-day oral SIT (300 mg.kg(-1).day(-1)), PIO (5 mg.kg(-1).day(-1)), SIT + PIO, or vehicle. In addition, mice received intravenous H-89 [20 mg/kg, a protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor] or vehicle 1 h before ischemia. Rats underwent 30 min myocardial ischemia and 4 h reperfusion. SIT, PIO, and SIT + PIO for 3 days significantly reduced IS (24.3 +/- 2.7, 23.0 +/- 0.8, and 14.7 +/- 0.9%) compared with controls (46.2 +/- 2.8%). H-89 completely blocked the effect of SIT and partially blocked the PIO effect. SIT, but not PIO, increased cAMP levels. PKA activity was increased by PIO and to a greater extent by SIT. PIO, but not SIT, increased cytosolic phospholipase A(2) and cyclooxygenase-2 activity. Accordingly, 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) and 15-deoxy-PGJ(2) increased by PIO but not SIT. In contrast, SIT, and to a lesser extent PIO, increased 15-epi-lipoxin A(4) levels. H-89 completely blocked the effect of SIT and PIO on 15-epi-lipoxin A(4) levels. PIO, and to a greater extent SIT, increased endothelial nitric oxide synthase and cAMP response element-binding protein phosphorylation, an effect that was blocked by H-89. With a 14-day pretreatment experiment, IS was 46.4 +/- 1.0% in the control group, 16.9 +/- 0.6% in SIT (P < 0.001), 19.1 +/- 1.1% in PIO (P = 0.014), and 12.9 +/- 0.7% in SIT + PIO (P < 0.001). We found that SIT and PIO limit IS using different pathways. The protective effect of SIT is via cAMP-dependent PKA activation, whereas PIO mediates its effects via both PKA-dependent and -independent pathways.


The paper examines whether financially constrained firms are able to use acquisitions to ease their constraints. The results show that acquisitions do ease financing constraints for constrained acquirers. Relative to unconstrained acquires, financially constrained firms are more likely to use undervalued equity to fund acquisitions and to target unconstrained and more liquid firms. Using a propensity score matched sample in a difference-in-difference framework, the results show that constrained acquirers become less constrained post-acquisition and relative to matched non-acquiring firms. This improvement is more pronounced for diversifying acquisitions and constrained firms that acquire rather than issue equity and retain the proceeds. Following acquisition, constrained acquirers raise more debt and increase investments, consistent with experiencing reductions in financing constraints relative to matched non-acquirers. These improvements are not seen for unconstrained acquirers. Finally, the familiar diversification discount is non- existent for financially constrained acquirers.


Persistence of fecal transplants Fecal microbiota transplantation is a successful way of treating the distressing symptoms of irritable bowel disease or Clostridium difficile infection. The procedure is done by administering a concentrate of colonic bacteria from a healthy donor. Li et al. used metagenomic data to look at single-nucleotide variants after transplants in humans. Donor and recipient strains coexisted for at least 3 months. Some donor strains replaced related strains of the same species, but totally novel species from a donor were unlikely to thrive in a recipient. Rational design of personalized fecal transplant "cocktails" will therefore rely on resolution beyond the species level. Science, this issue p. 586 The mystery of the success of clinical microbial transplant therapy is beginning to be decoded. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has shown efficacy in treating recurrent Clostridium difficile infection and is increasingly being applied to other gastrointestinal disorders, yet the fate of native and introduced microbial strains remains largely unknown. To quantify the extent of donor microbiota colonization, we monitored strain populations in fecal samples from a recent FMT study on metabolic syndrome patients using single-nucleotide variants in metagenomes. We found extensive coexistence of donor and recipient strains, persisting 3 months after treatment. Colonization success was greater for conspecific strains than for new species, the latter falling within fluctuation levels observed in healthy individuals over a similar time frame. Furthermore, same-donor recipients displayed varying degrees of microbiota transfer, indicating individual patterns of microbiome resistance and donor-recipient compatibilities.


Objective A number of previous studies addressed the effect of psychological interventions in patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI), but it is not known whether psychotherapy might be beneficial after medical and interventional therapy of AMI. We designed a randomized, controlled study to assess the effects of a short-term psychotherapy (STP) on the clinical outcomes of patients who underwent an emergency percutaneous coronary intervention after AMI. Methods One hundred consecutive patients undergoing an emergency percutaneous coronary intervention will be randomized 1 week after AMI to medical therapy (control group, C group) or to medical therapy and STP (STP group). Clinical follow-up visits are scheduled at 6 months, 1 and 5 years, whereas psychometric tests (Self-Evaluation test, Modified Maastricht Questionnaire, Social Support Questionnaire, Recent Life Change Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, the MacNew Heart Disease Health-Related Quality of Life Questionnaire, Type D Personality test) are scheduled 1 week after AMI and at 1 year. The primary outcome measures of the study are the cumulative incidence of new cardiological events (myocardial reinfarction, death, stroke, life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias, and recurrence of angina) and the occurrence of new medical disorders. Secondary outcome measures are the incidence of rehospitalizations due to cardiological problems, the prevalence of patients with New York Heart Association class ≥ II, left ventricular function, as assessed by echocardiography, and mean score of psychometric tests in the two groups at follow-up. Conclusion Our study has been planned to obtain an insight into how a STP influences clinical outcomes after interventional and medical treatment of AMI.


A key determinant of New Zealand's growth is its trade with the rest of the world. We have developed a world inputoutput table to investigate the way in which New Zealand and Australia depend on the rest of the world, and to look at the role of demand in China, Japan, the US, and the euro area. We show how higher demand in one economy affects production in another economy both directly, through its higher demand for final products, and indirectly, via its higher demand for intermediate products and its impact on production and demand in other economies. We highlight the impact of US demand on other economies and demonstrate the importance of Chinese and Australian demand on New Zealand.


Developing cost-effective and highly efficient oxygen reduction electrocatalysts, such as non-precious metal and metal-free catalysts, is undoubtedly crucial for the commercialization of low-temperature fuel cells. Here, edge-rich nitrogen doped porous carbon catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) with a high proportion of pyridinic and pyrrolic N (up to 94%) were synthesized by an in situ released CO2 activation method, using glucose and melamine as precursors and nano-CaCO3 as the template. The catalysts exhibit a three-dimensional structure, hierarchical pores and large pore volumes. Benefiting from the increased active site density and structural advantage, the optimized catalyst shows excellent ORR activity with a half-wave potential of 0.853 V and long-term stability in alkaline media, which is among the best for metal-free catalysts reported to date.


We present a technique for motion and size estimation of non-line-of-sight (NLOS) moving objects in cluttered environments using a time of flight camera and multipath analysis. We exploit relative times of arrival after reflection from a grid of points on a diffuse surface and create a virtual phased-array. By subtracting space-time impulse responses for successive frames, we separate responses of NLOS moving objects from those resulting from the cluttered environment. After reconstructing the line-of-sight scene geometry, we analyze the space of wavefronts using the phased array and solve a constrained least squares problem to recover the NLOS target location. Importantly, we can recover target's motion vector even in presence of uncalibrated time and pose bias common in time of flight systems. In addition, we compute the upper bound on the size of the target by backprojecting the extremas of the time profiles. Ability to track targets inside rooms despite opaque occluders and multipath responses has numerous applications in search and rescue, medicine and defense. We show centimeter accurate results by making appropriate modifications to a time of flight system.


Conducting polymers poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) and poly(3,4-ethylenedithiathiophene) (PEDTT) have been synthesized by solid-state polymerization of 2,5-dibromo-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (DBEDOT) and 2,5-dibromo-3,4-ethylenedithiathiophene (DBEDTT) respectively in air and under vacuum. Both polymers were completely insoluble in common organic solvents and retained partial crystal structure of monomers as indicated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. Thermoelectric tests showed that PEDTT exhibited Seebeck coefficient about 120 µV K−1 at 170 K, which is higher than PEDOT, while the later exhibited higher electrical conductivity (0.1S cm-1 at 298 K) and better thermal stability indicated by the thermal analyses. These results showed that replacement of oxygen by sulfur in the monomer structure played an important role on the properties of polymers.


Background:Smokers who make a quit attempt during hospitalization have improved long-term abstinence if they receive follow-up support, including via a telephone quitline, a free resource in the United States. Smokers are referred infrequently to this resource by healthcare providers. Objective:The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of a Web-based educational program (Helping Smokers Quit) on translating the Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence Clinical Practice Guideline: 2008 Update into practice. Using a Web-based survey, frequency of nurses' self-reported referral of smokers to a quitline and performance of the components of a smoking cessation intervention (the 5As: Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, Arrange) was compared with self-reported performance among nurses who received printed educational materials (control group) at 6 months. Methods:Nurses from 30 (n = 15 control and n = 15 intervention) randomly selected and assigned hospitals from California, Indiana, and West Virginia participated. Both groups received a toolkit of materials including a state quitline card and access to the Tobacco Free Nurses Web site; the intervention group had additional access to a project-specific Web page and the opportunity to attend a webinar. Only nurses who completed baseline and 6-month surveys were included in the analysis. Mean improvement of the 5As and refer scores and logistic regressions of consistent (usually or always) referral to a quitline were used to examine differences over time by group. Results:Pre–post data were collected for 333 nurses (209 intervention, 124 control). Mean improvement was significantly higher in Advise, Assess, Assist, Arrange, and Referral to a Quitline for the Help Smokers Quit group. Nurses in the control group significantly improved in Advise and Referral to a Quitline. Consistent referral was most likely in the intervention group (OR = 1.74, 95% CI [1.11, 2.72]), especially among those who viewed the webinar (OR = 2.34, 95% CI [1.03, 4.23]). Discussion:After 6 months, nurses in the intervention group had significant improvement in the frequency of interventions and consistency of referral of smokers to the quitline. The improvement of nurses' referral to the quitline among the control group who only received printed materials demonstrates that both are effective strategies in increasing awareness of this resource.


The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the efficacy of coculture with Vero cells (monkey kidney cells) and in-vitro culture in B2 Menezo medium for the maturation of germinal vesicle (GV)-stage cumulus-free human oocytes to metaphase II. Cumulus-free human GV-stage oocytes obtained after ovulation induction and retrieval via vaginal ultrasound echo-guided puncture were put either in coculture with Vero cells or in 25 microliters droplets of B2 Menezo medium. In a controlled randomized study, 145 GV-stage oocytes were matured in vitro: 72 were placed in the coculture system with Vero cells and 73 were cultured in B2 alone. After 30 h of in-vitro culture, 82.4% had dissolved the nuclear membrane and extruded the first polar body in the coculture system compared with 37% in B2 medium (P < 0.001). A significant difference was also noticed in the number of GV-stage oocytes which underwent GV breakdown; the proportion of oocytes which did not extrude the first polar body (metaphase I) was 1.6% in the coculture system compared to 44.0% in the B2 medium. It can be concluded that coculture with Vero cells improves the in-vitro maturation of cumulus-free human GV-stage oocytes.


Research has shown elevated rates of diet-related health problems in Detroit, Michigan compared to state and national averages. Using 47 in-depth interviews of African American residents in two Detroit neighborhoods, I examine the interplay between agency and social structure in food acquisition. Participants discussed numerous difficulties obtaining food, including availability, cost, quality, and accessibility. Residents employed many strategies to address these issues, including carefully examining food before purchase, sharing transportation to leave the neighborhood, and using multiple sources. However, the potential to pursue food acquisition strategies varied, in part, according to community contextual factors, including resident concerns about safety, the availability of food banks, and resources in surrounding areas. Nutritional knowledge among participants was sophisticated, suggesting that health education efforts, as opposed to addressing lack of access to high-quality food, might be misguided. I found that accounting for both agency and structural context aids in understanding diet-related behaviors.


Introduction: Teneligliptin is used for the treatment of diabetes. It is generally used to reduce hyperglycemia. A new stability-indicating reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography method has been developed for the determination of teneligliptin in tablets and the method was validated. Materials and Methods: Teneligliptin was analyzed using formic acid:methanol:acetic acid mixture (25:75:0.1, v/v) as mobile phase with a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min (UV detection at 245 nm). Teneligliptin was exposed to different stress conditions and the chromatographic study was continued for its stability. Results and Discussion: Teneligliptin has shown linearity 1–100 μg/mL with regression equation, y = ×95722–6775.4 correlation coefficient 0.9999. The limit of detection and limit of quantification are found to be 0.2598 μg/mL and 0.8134 μg/mL, respectively. Conclusions: It is observed that this reverse-phase ultrafast liquid chromatographic method is accurate and precise and can be used for the estimation of teneligliptin tablets.


The concept that the civil engineering infrastructure may be streamlined through the use of Smart technology has been mooted for well over a decade. The thought is particularly appealing for large artifacts such as major buildings and bridges. The infrequent but extremely dramatic catastrophic failures particularly of major bridge structures inevitably reignite the debate. This paper endeavours to present a critique of the Smart Bridge both from a technical and socioeconomic perspective. Whilst the basic sensing technology is undoubtedly available there do remain significant areas for necessary improvement, notably in sensor location and damage identification. Additionally the link between the socioeconomic and political domains and the technologists has only recently attracted serious attention. The conclusion is that the tantalising prospect of the Smart Bridge whilst attractive, continues to need substantial technical development and a more effective interface into the economic and planning communities.


Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) and Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) are time-division multiplexing technologies widely used in transport networks to provide bandwidth services. Dynamic service provisioning requires the use of online algorithms that automatically compute the path to be taken to satisfy the given service request. SDH/SONET multiplexing structure imposes restrictions on the allocation of bandwidth. Bandwidth services mostly require protection so that they are resilient to failures in the network. Two types of protection techniques-namely, dedicated protection and shared protection-are commonly used to protect bandwidth. Also, SDH/SONET provides standard protection mechanisms like linear MSP/APS, MS-SPRing/BLSR and SNCP/UPSR. In shared protection, complete path information for all the existing connections has to be maintained to maximize sharing for future service requests. This information will be typically very large. To overcome this problem, a minimum information scenario is proposed as a tradeoff between maintaining less information and maximizing sharing. In this work, heuristic algorithms are proposed for dedicated and shared protection that take into account the above-mentioned factors. These algorithms use the path computation algorithms for SDH networks proposed in a previous work of the authors, which compute paths for service requests without considering protection. The performance is evaluated for different values for the relative weight of sharing for the complete and minimum information scenarios. An extension to these algorithms for satisfying bandwidth requests that use various inverse multiplexing techniques is also proposed.


Introduction: S-1 is an oral fluoropyrimidine anticancer drug that contains tegafur, gimeracil, and oteracil potassium. The target of S-1 is considered thymidylate synthase, which is known as that of pemetrexed (PEM). Recently, phIIIstudies have demonstrated that S-1 in combination with platinum agent has promising efficacy for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer as first-line treatment. However, clinical outcome of S-1 monotherapy after treatment of PEM has not been evaluated yet. Aims: To evaluate the efficacy of single agent S-1 in patients with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after PEM treatment. Methods: To assess the clinical outcome of S-1 monotherapy in patients with non-squamous NSCLC after PEM treatment, we reviewed the clinical records of patients treated with S-1 in Jikei University Hospital, from June 2009 to February 2013. Response rate (RR) and progression free survival (PFS) and toxity were evaluated. Results: The 14 patients with lung adenocarcinoma were reviewed in this retrospective study. There were 8 males and 6 females with the median age of 69 years (range, 54-82 years). The subjects included 2 patients with PS 0, 5 with PS 1, and 7 with PS 2, and 1 patients in the stage of IIIA and 13 in IV.S-1 was used as third -line treatment for 2 patient, fourth-line treatment for 6, fifth-line treatment for 3, and sixth-line treatment for 3. As the results, the RR were 0 %, but 8 patients had SD and 3 patients had non-PR / non-PD. The median PFS were 5.1 months (range, 0.4-14.8 months). Conclusions: Advanced non-squamous NSCLC patients receiving S-1 after treatment of PEM have not response but have better PFS.


This thesis is a detailed study of the influence of imperialism on the English working-class male during the period of 'high imperialism'. Recent debate on the impact of imperialism on the British working class has split academics between those who argue in favour of an imperial dominant ideology and those who question its impact. The thesis will address this disparity and make an original contribution to the historiography of British imperialism by examining discourses of 'top down' imperialism alongside working-class responses to evaluate their impact and highlight examples of cultural agency.

By using a detailed study of the Portsmouth Royal Dockyard worker the thesis highlights the importance of local experiences in mediating the imperial narrative. The impact of workplace relations in the community, the civic elites, the provincial press and commercial leisure are explored to provide a nuanced understanding of how these processes worked in practice. Portsmouth's Royal Dockyard worker provides an interesting case study as the town's economic prosperity rested with the presence of the Admiralty in the town. The Royal Dockyard workers were the largest industrial group in the town and possessed a unique perspective as employees of the state. They were instrumental in the building and maintenance of the British Fleet, which continued to gain increasing interest during the Edwardian period due to the escalation of the Naval Arms Race with Germany and the other world powers. Their lack of trade union activity in comparison to northern and midland industrialised towns and the reliance on the strength of the Royal Navy to provide them with employment has led to assumptions that Royal Dockyard workers were deferential and subservient to the Admiralty and economically pre-disposed to "naval imperialism."

This study will offer a unique perspective on the study of imperialism by illustrating, not just how the working classes were subjected to imperialism from 'above', but how they were able to use concepts of empire to their own advantage. Rather than being subservient, deferential and economically predisposed to being 'imperialists' the thesis will argue that the workforce of the Royal Dockyard were active in their approaches to British imperial thought.


Canonical Notch signaling is thought to control the endocrine/exocrine decision in early pancreatic progenitors. Later, RBP-Jkappa interacts with Ptf1a and E12 to promote acinar differentiation. To examine the involvement of Notch signaling in selecting specific endocrine lineages, we deregulated this pathway by targeted deletion of presenilin1 and presenilin2, the catalytic core of gamma-secretase, in Ngn3- or Pax6-expressing endocrine progenitors. Surprisingly, whereas Pax6(+) progenitors were irreversibly committed to the endocrine fate, we discovered that Ngn3(+) progenitors were bipotential in vivo and in vitro. When presenilin amounts are limiting, Ngn3(+) progenitors default to an acinar fate; subsequently, they expand rapidly to form the bulk of the exocrine pancreas. gamma-Secretase inhibitors confirmed that enzymatic activity was required to block acinar fate selection by Ngn3 progenitors. Genetic interactions identified Notch2 as the substrate, and suggest that gamma-secretase and Notch2 act in a noncanonical titration mechanism to sequester RBP-Jkappa away from Ptf1a, thus securing selection of the endocrine fate by Ngn3 progenitors. These results revise the current view of pancreatic cell fate hierarchy, establish that Ngn3 is not in itself sufficient to commit cells to the endocrine fate in the presence of Ptf1a, reveal a noncanonical action for Notch2 protein in endocrine cell fate selection, and demonstrate that acquisition of an endocrine fate by Ngn3(+) progenitors is gamma-secretase-dependent until Pax6 expression begins.


The new millennium is not just a new beginning; it is a continuation of trends in human behaviour that have been following the trends throughout our country's history. We have always been living in the world of brands and a brand is a set of perceptions and images that represent a company, product or service. A brand guarantees a quality, evokes an emotion and instils a belongingness. It is built on the elements of confidence, passion, action, security and culture. Company's ability to maintain its satisfying customer requires an understanding of the consumer buying behaviour, their satisfaction after purchasing the product and eventually the brand loyalty. In this paper a new term called corporate branding is been highlighted. Corporate branding represents an opportunity for organizations to enhance and sustain their distinctiveness through linking corporate characteristics to products and services, thereby, allowing unique synergies to be developed. Brand loyalty is the degree to which consumers are committed to particular brands of goods or services. Corporate branding enables the firms to use the vision and culture of the whole organization explicitly as part of its uniqueness and can increase the firm's visibility, recognition and reputation to a greater extent than a product brands can. Indian consumers were indifferent in choosing the brand since a lot of close substitutes were available in the market. However, they have changed ever since the India liberalized its economy. Choosing the right brand is difficult enough when there were half a dozen brands and all of these claimed to be the excellent in quality. Marketing managers are interested not only in the product but also the behaviour of the consumers because it gives them the right orientations for product development and positioning. The level of consumer's satisfaction provides the scope for repeated purchases and brand loyalty that lead to optimum profitability. The study has been carried out based on mobile phone markets. There have been a number of studies regarding corporate branding and brand loyalty in foreign context. Yet there are very limited studies on Indian consumers, hence this study aims to find out the various determinants of corporate branding and how those determinants have an impact on the brand loyalty.


In the radiometric sensing of soil moisture through a forest canopy, knowledge of canopy attenuation is required. Active sensors have the potential of providing this information since the backscatter signals are more sensitive to forest structure. In this paper, a new radar technique is presented for estimating canopy attenuation. The technique employs details found in a transient solution where the canopy (volume-scattering) and the tree-ground (double-interaction) effects appear at different times in the return signal. The influence that these effects have on the expected time-domain response of a forest stand is characterized through numerical simulations. A coherent forest scattering model, based on a Monte Carlo simulation, is developed to calculate the transient response from distributed scatterers over a rough surface. The forest transient-response model for linear copolarized cases is validated with the microwave deciduous tree data acquired by the Combined Radar/Radiometer (ComRAD) system. The attenuation algorithm is applicable when the forest height is sufficient to separate the components of the radar backscatter transient response. The frequency correlation functions of double-interaction and volume-scattering returns are normalized after being separated in the time domain. This ratio simply provides a physically based system of equations with reduced parameterizations for the forest canopy. Finally, the technique is used with ComRAD L-band stepped-frequency data to evaluate its performance under various physical conditions.


The main recruitment of Ophiothrixfragilis occurs in the northwestern Mediterranean in late spring-early summer. Recruits are whitish and aggregate visibly on the surfaces of some sponge species, where they can reach densities above 50 ind. cm -2 . In order to investigate this association, we monitored larval abundances in the plankton, and recruit distribution and dynamics on the benthos. Settlement took place in several batches, with peak abundance of recruits on sponges in June. The mean diameter of juveniles was 0.2 mm in June and grew to 0.4 mm in September. In July, after the settlement ceased, juveniles were more abundant on the surfaces of the sponges Crambe crambe, Scopalina lophyropoda and Dysidea avara (14 to 20 ind. cm -2 ) than on the adjacent algal turf (4 ind. cm -2 ). No preference could be substantiated for 6 other encrusting sponge species. In contrast, juveniles were not significantly more abundant on these 3 sponges in June while settlement was under way. Recruitment on experimental sponges covered with plastic lids was reduced by two-thirds, indicating an initial colonization directly from the water column. However, clearing experiments demonstrated the ability of the young brittle stars to recolonise sponges, and brittle stars were more abundant at the periphery than at the centre of the sponges. These results indicate that brittle star recruits can select their substrata, possibly as a result of post-settlement lateral migration, resulting in an uneven distribution among sponge species. We set forth the hypothesis that this association between brittle stars and sponges is based on a trophic relationship, small brittle stars taking advantage of the inhalant currents of the sponge. In sponges with well-defined inhalant fields, almost all recruits concentrate on them, with arms flat against the sponge. When the brittle stars grow to a size above 1 mm (disk diameter) they abandon sponge surfaces and hide in small crevices between algae and invertebrates.


The clinical report briefly highlights the significant issue of pain comorbid with dementia in older adults. Pain manifests in a variety of behaviours such as anxiety and agitation; and pharmaceuticals which are the principal treatment approach often do not fully eliminate or provide effective or complete pain management. Music based interventions (MBIs) and music therapy have been used with older adults as treatment options for pain and the behavioural and psychological symptoms (BPSD) of dementia for decades. Increasingly more researchers are writing about how caregivers can utilize MBIs including music therapy in a comprehensive treatment approach for those with dementia to manage BPSD symptoms including pain. This paper presents the case example of 'Suyen' to illuminate how MBIs and music therapy were included in a comprehensive music based approach for pain and overall wellness in an older adult with dementia and multiple health conditions.


Listing triangles is a fundamental graph problem with many applications, and large graphs require fast algorithms. Vertex ordering allows the orientation of edges from lower to higher vertex indices, and state-of-the-art triangle listing algorithms use this to accelerate their execution and to bound their time complexity. Yet, only basic orderings have been tested. In this paper, we show that studying the precise cost of algorithms instead of their bounded complexity leads to faster solutions. We introduce cost functions that link ordering properties with the running time of a given algorithm. We prove that their minimization is NP-hard and propose heuristics to obtain new orderings with different trade-offs between cost reduction and ordering time. Using datasets with up to two billion edges, we show that our heuristics accelerate the listing of triangles by an average of 38% when the ordering is already given as an input, and 16% when the ordering time is included.


Russia's disagreement with the West on the recent crisis in Kosovo and its opposition to NATO's decision to use military force against Serbia were particularly bitter. In trying to explain Russia's opposition to military strikes against Yugoslavia, Western observers have argued that Russia is trying to preserve its great-power status in international conflicts through "residual imperialism." Many also attribute Russia's policy to its obsession with a "mystic pan-Slavic mission" and longstanding historical commitments to stand by the Serbs. Russian policy in Kosovo (or Iraq) is also portrayed as an attempt to appease the domestic national-patriotic opposition. Finally, Moscow's position on the Kosovo crisis has been interpreted as arising from its concern with territorial integrity and its own bloody conflict in the breakaway region of Chechnya. Most of these motives are of an emotional, psychological and cultural nature. While they might make it easier to dismiss the factors driving Russia's foreign policy as largely irrational and explain away everything as Moscow's retrospective thinking, they do not shed light on the real nature of Russian foreign policy.


Background The concurrence of sleep and socio-emotional development in children is well accepted. However, the predictive role of sleep problems in infancy and the development of emotional and behavioural problems later in childhood remain still unclear. Therefore, in this study we examined the associations between sleep problems in early childhood and internalising, externalising and dysregulation symptoms in toddlers. Methods 1679 families entered the study during pregnancy and 936 children participated at 24 months. Parent-reported sleep duration, sleep-onset latency, night wakings, proportion of daytime sleep and bedtime at 3, 8, 18 and 24 months were assessed with two sleep questionnaires. Externalising, internalising and dysregulation problems at 24 months were examined with the Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment. Results Short sleep duration at 3 and 8 months, more night wakings at 3, 8, 18 and 24 months and greater proportion of daytime sleep at 24 months were associated with internalising symptoms. Shorter sleep duration at 8, 18 and 24 months and longer sleep-onset latency and more night wakings at all time points, in addition to earlier bedtime at 8 months and greater proportion of daytime sleep at 24 months, were related to dysregulation. Finally, more night wakings at 3 and 24 months, and longer sleep-onset latency at 24 months were associated with externalising problems. Conclusion Shorter sleep and poorer sleep quality in infancy were prospectively related to emotional and behavioural symptoms in toddlers, and these associations were strongest for internalising and dysregulation symptoms. This study contributes to the recent research on the role of early sleep problems in socio-emotional development, suggesting that shorter sleep duration, longer sleep-onset latency and higher waking frequency are related to internalising, externalising and dysregulation symptoms in toddlers, and thus it might be beneficial to provide early interventions for those infants reporting these sleep problems.


The past decade has seen tremendous research progress for the northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus). Research conducted during the 1990s advanced our understanding of bobwhite breeding biology, habitat relationships, long-term population trends, and genetics, among other things. Technological advances allowed improvements in censusing techniques, tracking broods, assessing population status in relation to broad scale land use changes, and identifying nest predators. The 1990s also saw the development of a National Strategic Plan for Quail Management and Research, the emergence of the Southeast Quail Study Group, and a renewed interest in National Quail Symposia. Despite this recent renaissance in research and related activities, bobwhite population declines continued throughout much of the southeastern United States and elsewhere. There is a palpable level of frustration among quail hunters, resource agency managers, and other quail enthusiasts who feel that: (1) seemingly nothing is being done to reverse the bobwhite population decline, and (2) that the scientific community has not developed a meaningful or realistic research agenda. It is an amazing paradox that we have made great bobwhite research progress during the past decade, but virtually none of the new insights gained from research have been successfully applied, on the ground, to improve bobwhite numbers. I hypothesize that the disconnect between recent scientific advances, and management applications to reverse the bobwhite decline, is a function of numerous cultural and economic factors that will be difficult to overcome. These factors include: (1) broad scale land use trends that are hostile to the production and maintenance of wild bobwhite populations, (2) habitat management and maintenance costs that are beyond the reach of most resource agencies and individuals, and (3) lack of incentives to motivate individuals and organizations to tackle bobwhite management on a meaningful scale. Whether land use planning, land management policy, and/or market incentives can conspire to provide useable habitat space through time for bobwhites (and other quails) on a scale that will be sufficient to reverse widespread population declines, is one of the most vexing wildlife management problems for the next century. Citation: Brennan, L. A. 2002. A decade of progress, a decade of frustration. Pages 230–232 in DeMaso, S. J., W. P. Kuvlesky, Jr., F. Hernandez, and M. E. Berger, eds. Quail V: Proceedings of the Fifth National Quail Symposium. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin, TX.


Silicon carbide (SiC) nano-powders are successfully synthesized by a reaction between carbon nano-powders (carbon black) and SiO gas at 1300°C for 9 hrs in dynamic argon atmosphere (flow rate; 400 cm3 min-1), using the solid-vapor reaction method. The particle size of synthesized SiC nano-powders is below 40 nm and the shape is uniform. Unexpectedly, SiC nano-fibers are also coexisted in the SiC nano-powders. The quantitative and qualitative properties of the SiC nanopowders and nano-fibers are analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Carbon residuals removed by heating over 700°C in air are estimated by thermogravimetry analysis (TGA). It is found that the SiC nanopowders are easily produced by direct synthesis via the solid-vapor reaction method. The morphological characteristics of the resulting SiC nano-powders are dependent upon the morphology of carbon black used as precursor.


Various tone reproduction operators have been proposed to display high dynamic range images on low dynamic range (LDR) devices. The gradient domain operator is a good candidate due to its capability of reducing the dynamic range and avoiding common artifacts including halos and loss of image details. However the gradient domain operator requires high computational complexity and often introduces low-frequency artifacts such as reversal of contrast between distant image patches. In order to solve these problems we present a new gradient domain tone reproduction method which adopts an energy functional with two terms one for preserving global contrast and the other for enhancing image details. In the proposed method the LDR image is obtained by minimizing the proposed energy functional through a numerical method. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed method can not only achieve the significantly reduced computational complexity but also exhibit better visual quality as compared with conventional algorithms.


Abstract Upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) is a common cause for emergency admission to hospital representing a significant clinical as well as economic burden. UGIB encompasses a wide range of severities from life-threatening exsanguination to minor bleeding that may not require hospital admission. Patients with UGIB are often initially assessed and managed by junior doctors and non-gastroenterologists. Several risk scores have been created for the assessment of these patients, some requiring endoscopic data for calculation and others that are calculable from clinical data alone. A key question in clinical practice is how to accurately identify patients with UGIB at high risk of adverse outcome. Patients considered high risk are more likely to experience adverse outcomes and will require urgent intervention. In contrast, those patients with UGIB who are considered to be low risk could potentially be managed on an outpatient basis. The Glasgow Blatchford Score (GBS) appears best at identifying patients at low risk of requiring intervention or death and therefore may be best for use in clinical practice, allowing outpatient management in low risk cases. There has been some debate as to the optimal GBS cut-off score for safely identifying this low-risk group. Many guidelines suggest that patients with a GBS of zero can be safely managed as outpatients, but more recent studies have suggested that this threshold could potentially be safely increased to ≤1. Most other patients require inpatient endoscopy within 24 h and the full Rockall score remains important for risk assessment following endoscopy, particularly as it includes the endoscopic diagnosis. A minority of patients will require emergency endoscopy following resuscitation, but at present there is no evidence that risk scores can accurately identify this very high-risk group. Studies have shown the latest risk assessment score, the AIMS65, looks promising in the prediction of mortality. However, to date there is no data on the use of the AIMS65 in identifying low risk patients for possible outpatient management.


© 2018 Indian Journal of Medical Research, published by Wolters Kluwer Medknow for Director-General, Indian Council of Medical Research In spite of dissimilitude in the aetiology of diabetes and cancer, there are several overlapping risk factors such as obesity, lack of physical activity and dietary routines which predispose diabetic patients to cancer. Furthermore, several molecular signalling cascades, especially the deregulated insulin/insulin-like growth factor (IGF) axis pathways, could be evidenced in both these disease conditions. Insulin and IGF can activate the insulin receptor (IR) and insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-R), which are expressed as homo/hetero-dimer receptor proteins on the cell membrane, leading to subsequent PI3K-AKT/MAPK signalling resulting in enhanced uptake of glucose into the cell through GLUT-4 for glycolysis1. Uncontrolled activation of this signalling cascade results in enhanced proliferation of the cells. When glucose is available to the cells, the glycolytic enzymes would be activated. The association of the phosphorylated forms of glucokinase and BAD (Bcl2 antagonist of cell death) proteins triggers the glycolytic pathway and results in subsequent enhanced cell proliferation. It has been reported that inhibition of insulin/IGF, their receptors or inhibitors of glucose metabolism intermediates such as phospho-BAD, blocks the glycolytic pathway and activates apoptotic signalling, thereby resulting in cell death2.


This paper examine the unconditional and conditional relationships between beta, size, B/M, E/P and returns in the CSE from 1995 to 2006 by using (FM) (1973) cross-sectional regression test. There is no evidence of a positive risk premium on beta when the unconditional relationship between beta and return is considered. However, when the market is split on the market excess returns, there is a significant positive (negative) relationship between beta and returns in up (down) markets for individual and portfolio of stocks. Further, there is a significant negative size-return and positive B/M-return relations, are unconditional and also insignificant E/P-return relation in the CSE. Thus, we cannot reject the usability of beta in explaining stock returns in the CSE. Beta has a significant relationship with stock returns subject to the condition of the market. Further, size and B/M are significant in explaining stock returns in the CSE and it doesn't seem that they are affected by the condition of the market. Since these findings are important, are could be useful for making investment decisions.


BACKGROUND:  The association between elevated triglycerides and cardiovascular risk has been extensively studied. The elevated level of triglycerides occurs through abnormalities in hepatic very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) production and intestinal chylomicron synthesis, dysfunctional lipoprotein lipase (LPL)-mediated lipolysis or impaired remnant clearance. CONTENT:  Hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) commonly leads to a reduction in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and increase in atherogenic small dense low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, called the atherogenic dyslipidemia (AD). Triglycerides may also stimulate atherogenesis by mechanisms, such excessive release of free fatty acids, and production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, fibrinogen, coagulation factors and impairment of fibrinolysis. Genetic studies strongly support hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) and high concentration of triglyceride-rich lipoprotein (TRL) as causal risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Therefore, lipid management is crucial in reducing cardiovascular risk. Combination of lipid lowering drug therapy may be needed to achieve both LDL and non-HDL cholesterols treatment goal for cardiovascular disease prevention in patients with elevated triglyceride levels, particularly those with triglyceride ≥500 mg/dL. SUMMARY:  LDL and non-HDL cholesterol can be a promising target therapy in HTG. Additional clinical outcomes data are needed to provide a more evidence-based rationale for clinical lipid management of hypertriglyceridemic patients. KEYWORDS:  hypertriglyceridemia, non-HDL cholesterol, dyslipidemia, CV risk


There is a quantum spin Hall state in the inverted HgTe quantum well, characterized by the topologically protected gapless helical edge states lying within the bulk gap. It has been found that for a strip of finite width, the edge states on the two sides can couple together to produce a gap in the spectrum. The phenomenon is called the finite size effect in quantum spin Hall systems. In this paper, we investigate the effects of the spin?orbit coupling due to bulk- and structure-inversion asymmetries on the finite size effect in the HgTe quantum well by means of the numerical diagonalization method. When the bulk-inversion asymmetry is taken into account, it is shown that the energy gap Eg of the edge states due to the finite size effect features an oscillating exponential decay as a function of the strip width of the HgTe quantum well. The origin of this oscillatory pattern on the exponential decay is explained. Furthermore, if the bulk- and structure-inversion asymmetries are considered simultaneously, the structure-inversion asymmetry will induce a shift of the energy gap Eg closing point. Finally, based on the roles of the bulk- and structure-inversion asymmetries on the finite size effects, a way to realize the quantum spin Hall field effect transistor is proposed.


Evolution has allowed bacteria to develop sophisticated methods of survival. One of these methods is biofilm production. Biofilms can be best described as complex bacterial communities embedded in a self-producing slime. Once bacteria form these biofilm communities, they become very difficult to treat with antibiotics. Along with biofilm production, another rising concern is antibiotic resistance. Bacterial resistance to many of our current antibiotics is sharply increasing, thereby creating a critical need to develop novel antimicrobial drugs. The most successful strategy for the discovery of new antibacterial agents has been the study of molecules from nature. Most of our current clinical antibiotics derive from metabolites produced by bacteria. Antimicrobial compounds of plant origin also have enormous therapeutic potential. Previous studies have demonstrated that certain plant metabolites have potent inhibitory effects on the growth of pathogenic bacteria. Not only might metabolites from plants help mitigate infectious diseases, but they may also lack adverse side effects often associated with existing antimicrobial agents, including hypersensitivity, allergic reaction, and immunosuppression. Therefore, future efforts to discover new antimicrobial drugs should also include the evaluation of new natural products from both microbes and plants. In this thesis, Chapter 1 describes an investigation to classify and quantify biofilm production in unique clinical strains of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Staphylococcus aureus bacteria are responsible for causing a wide range of diseases and many are capable of biofilm production. To date, the largest focus of biofilm research has been on S. epidermidis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Few investigators have addressed the basic and central question: "What percentage of our clinical S. aureus bacteria produce biofilms and from what patient source are they most likely identified?" Two hundred and nineteen (n = 219) clinical methicillinresistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates obtained from patients at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in Providence, Rhode Island were evaluated. I evaluated biofilm formation using a modified microtiter-plate assay, and used a statistical approach to quantifying biofilm production. The results indicate that biofilm production is most frequently encountered in clinical MRSA from catheter sources. The surface area of these catheters may provide the ideal conditions for biofilm growth, especially in urine. Interestingly, a lesser incidence of biofilm production was observed by MRSA isolates obtained in the nares. Chapter 2 describes a phytochemical investigation of plant metabolites from Hypericum species that inhibit bacterial growth as well as biofilm production in Grampositive bacteria. For this study, seven acylphloroglucinol metabolites were obtained from Dr. Geneive Henry at Susquehanna University. I tested each compound in assays that measure both bacterial growth and biofilm production. The results showed that not only do some of these metabolites inhibit bacterial growth, but they also inhibit biofilm growth at sub-MIC concentrations. Important findings from this investigation included new structure-activity relationships demonstrating the importance of certain functional groups to the antibacterial nature of these metabolites. These results suggest that Hypericum spp. deserve further attention as a source of new antimicrobial agents.


This thesis principally concerns the illegal immigration campaign launched by a secret organisation, the Mossad FAliyah Bet (The Mossad), to breach the British naval blockade of Palestine and thereby enable the entry of Jewish survivors of the Holocaust. My primary objective is to prove that from late 1945 to April 1948 this campaign was largely facilitated by the covert help of elements within the French coalition Governments, without which it would not have succeeded. Crucially, France takes centre stage because this was the location, par excellence, chosen by the Mossad from which to carry out its operational activities. Whilst the overall historiography of illegal immigration to Palestine is vast and has included many archival references to French involvement, this has not been clearly substantiated. On the basis of archive sources, some only recently made available, and despite the paucity of direct evidence of French complicity, I will illustrate that there is a wealth of documentation which, taken as a whole, provides compelling circumstantial evidence that mis involvement was extensive. Furthermore, I will argue that French cooperation with Zionist leaders extended to political issues and military aid as well. Amongst other issues, I will focus on the rather free environment in France, in the post-war era, which proved to be so conducive to the operations of the Mossad. This includes considerations such as the political make-up of the French Government, the partisan approach of some of its ministers and civil servants, the Jewish community's attitude towards Zionism and the work of intermediaries between certain Government ministers and the Mossad. I will also examine the effects of British diplomatic pressure on the French Ministries involved and the attempts of its Secret Service to prevent illegal ships leaving France.


Babesiosis is an intraerythrocytic parasitic infection caused by protozoa of the genus Babesia and transmitted by the Ixodes dammini tick, which also transmits Lyme disease. Babesiosis is emerging as an illness of public health significance in the United States. Occurrences of Babesiosis infections have been reported during spring, summer, and fall in coastal areas in the northeastern United States. Asymptomatic patients may need only supportive care, whereas asplenic, elderly, and immunocompromised patients are at greatest risk for severe disease. However, overall mortality rates for symptomatic cases are less than 10%. This article presents a case report on a white male in his 70s diagnosed with human Babesiosis and emphasizes the need for early detection and prompt interventions to minimize the sequelae related to this tick-borne disease.


Positron emission tomography (PET) of local cerebral glucose metabolism in 13 children with infantile spasms of undetermined cause (cryptogenic spasms) revealed unilateral hypometabolism involving the parieto‐occipito‐temporal region in 5 female infants. Cranial computed tomography showed normal findings in all infants. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated a normal appearance in 4 of the 5 infants; in 1 infant, MRI revealed a subtle abnormality consisting of poor demarcation between occipital gray and white matter. Surface electroencephalography (EEG) in 4 showed hypsarrythmia at some time in the patients' courses, but at other times showed localized or lateralized abnormalities corresponding to areas of PET‐detected hypometabolism. Because of poor seizure control, 4 infants underwent surgical removal of the cortical focus guided by intraoperative electrocorticography and were seizure free postoperatively. Neuropathological examination of resected tissue in each showed microscopic cortical dysplasia. Our findings indicate that in infants with cryptogenic spasms, PET can effectively identify those due to unsuspected focal cortical dysplasia, for which resective surgery offers improved prognosis.


A new design of a spherically molded liquid crystal cell intended for embedding in a contact lens is proposed. Wrinkle formation in these cells was investigated and a correlation was found between the total thickness of the cell and its smoothness. Smooth cells with minimal thickness were obtained by using an asymmetric configuration with a thin layer at the convex side and a thicker but threshold dependent layer at the concave side. Active liquid crystal cells filled with a guest-host liquid crystal mixture exhibited uniform light modulation along their surface, paving the way towards a modulation-based contact lens display.


Mercury (Hg) and reproduction and status of Western and Clark's Grebes (Aechmophorus sp.) and Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) were studied from 1992 through 2001 and then less intensely through 2006 at Clear Lake, California, USA. Remediation to reduce Hg loading from the Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine was initiated in 1992. Mercury in grebe feathers declined monotonically from approximately 23 mg/kg dry mass (DM) in 1967-1969 to 1 mg/kg in 2003, but then increased to 7 mg/kg in 2004-2006. Mercury in Osprey feathers varied similarly, with mean values of 20 mg/kg DM in 1992, declining to a low of 2 mg/kg in 1998, but increasing to 23 mg/kg in 2003, and 12 mg/kg in 2006. Mercury in Osprey feathers at our reference site (Eagle Lake, California) remained low (1-8 ppm) throughout the entire period, 1992-2003. Grebe productivity at Clear Lake improved from approximately 0.1 to 0.5 fledged young per adult during the latter part of the study when human disturbance was prevented. At that period in time, improved productivity did not differ from our reference site at Eagle Lake. Human disturbance, however, as a co-factor made it impossible to evaluate statistically subtle Hg effects on grebe productivity at Clear Lake. Osprey reproduced sufficiently to maintain increasing breeding numbers from 1992 to 2006. Mercury in Clear Lake water, sediments, invertebrates, and fish did not decline from 1992 to 2003, but a shift in trophic structure induced by an introduced planktivorous fish species may have caused significant alterations in Hg concentrations in several species of prey fishes that may have produced concomitant changes in Osprey and grebe Hg exposure. The temporary declines observed in grebe and Osprey feather residues in the late 1990s, with coincidental improvements in reproductive performance, however, could not be attributed to remediation at the mine site.