: Unit dose drug distribution systems have become the prominent drug delivery system in healthcare institutions. Much of the success of the unit-dose concept can be attributed to the increased accountability of medications dispensed and administered. However, as a direct result of this added accountability the problem of "missing doses" has become more evident than under non-unit dose systems. A quality assurance audit was conducted to identify the reasons for missing doses and identify the responsibility for them. A missing dose record was developed through a collaborative effort of the pharmacy and nursing departments. Both staff nurses and pharmacists were invited to review and suggest modifications prior to using the form. All potential reasons for missing dose occurrences were listed on the form. When a missing dose occurred the pharmacist and the nurse completed form jointly to ensure agreement as to the cause. During the 25 day study period the pharmacy dispensed 54,082 doses of medications to patients on the study floors. During that period 227 incidents of missing doses were documented. This resulted in an overall incidence of missing doses of 0.4%. Of the 227 missing doses, a reason for the occurrence was identified for 170 (75%). Nine classes of medications accounted for 62% of all reported missing doses. When responsibility for the missing doses was examined 13.3% were pharmacy generated and 45.8% were nursing generated. The results of the audit generated several suggestions which may decrease the number of missing doses and further improve our drug distribution service.


After the 1960 Great Chilean Tsunami, coastal dikes were remodeled and new ones constructed in Japan. In 1968, immediately after the completion of those construction and remodeling works, the Tokachi-Oki Earthquake struck, but fortunately the structures involved sustained very little damage. This led to a general feeling that it was possible to protect against the tsunamis completely by simply building coastal dikes and other defense structures. Japan did not see an increase in the number of tsunami researchers, but things were worse in the U.S. The National Science Foundation allocated its tsunami-related budget only to the NOAA, which issues tsunami forecasts, and allocated the rest of the budget entirely to ocean development. This situation continued until the 1983 Nihonkai-Chubu Earthquake Tsunami struck. In 1992, there was a tsunami earthquake off the coast of Nicaragua. Following that, research was conducted based on international cooperation through fax communications. Then cooperative international research continued to be done on tsunamis such as the 1992 Flores Tsunami, the 1993 Hokkaido Nansei-Oki Earthquake Tsunami, and the 1996 Irian Jaya Tsunami. However, their findings were provided only through Proceedings of the International Tsunami Symposium every two years, and most of the findings were limited to factual information about tsunamis.
 Requests for information on tsunamis rapidly increased after the 2004 Great Indian Ocean Tsunami, information not only on the tsunami itself but also on tsunami countermeasures. It was when JDR made its appearance. The JDR disseminated the latest information for practical use. It also benefitted those who were the sources of information, as they no longer had to deal with the frustration of having to wait for conferences held only every two years. In addition, the JDR reviews submissions much more quickly than do other journals. Tsunamis, such as the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake Tsunami and the 2018 Sulawesi Earthquake Tsunami, continue to strike. As a platform for sharing knowledge related to reconstruction and countermeasures, as well as to tsunamis themselves, the importance the JDR is growing.
 This is why you are encouraged to contribute to the JDR.


This paper explores the possibility of using statistical classification of physiological signals into emotion categories as a resource for open-ended human interpretation of emotion. Typically, design studies for affect assume either that it is possible for computers to objectively identify users' emotions, or that emotion is completely subjective and thus rely solely on human interpretation. By drawing on the feminist concept of performativity, we explain how to conceive of computational representations and human actors as co-constructing emotions. Through a case study of Freaky, a system that uses such models of emotion to sup-port human interpretation, we demonstrate how machine learning models of affect can be constructed and incorporated in systems designed for open-ended user interpretation of affect. Qualitative results from a user deployment show that a performative approach to modeling emotion is possible. We thus demonstrate the potential of performative theories to be generative of new computational and design practices that support hybrid human-machine enactments of emotion.


Increasing the protein content of yogurts would be a good strategy for enhancing their satiating ability. However, the addition of protein can affect product palatability, contributing astringency or an inhomogeneous texture. Increasingly, studies mimicking oral tribology and oral lubrication have been attracting interest among food researchers because of their link with oral texture sensations. In the present study, four double-protein stirred yogurts were prepared by adding extra skimmed milk powder (MP) or whey protein concentrate (WPC) and by adding a physically modified starch to each (samples MPS and WPCS, respectively) to increase the consistency of the yogurts. The lubricating properties of the four yogurts were examined by tribological methods with the aim of relating these properties to the sensory perception described by flash profiling. Samples were also analysed after mixing with saliva. The tribology results clearly showed that addition of starch reduced the friction coefficient values regardless of the type of protein. Saliva addition produced a further decrease in the friction coefficient values in all the samples. Consequently, adding saliva is recommended when performing tribology measurements of foods in order to give a more realistic picture. The sensory results confirmed that the addition of starch reduced the astringent sensation, especially in sample WPC, while the MP and MPS samples were creamier and smoother. On the other hand, the astringency of sample WPC was not explained by the tribology results. Since this sample was described as "grainy", "gritty", "rough", "acid" and "sour", further studies are necessary to investigate the role of the number, size, shape and distribution of particles in yogurt samples, their role in astringency perception and their interaction with the perception of the tastes mentioned. Oral tribology has shown itself to be an in vitro technique that may aid a better understanding of the dynamics of in-mouth lubrication and the physical mechanisms underlying texture and mouthfeel perception.


The scintillation response of Lu0.7Y0.3AP:Ce and Bi4Ge3O12 scintillation crystals have been compared using photomultiplier tube readout for photon energies ranging from 22.1 to 1274.5 keV. Lu0.7Y0.3AP:Ce showed a light yield non-proportionality of about 20% upon lowering energy from 1,274.5 to 22.1 keV, which is better than that of about 39% obtained for Bi4Ge3O12. Lu0.7Y0.3AP:Ce showed the light yield of 13,400 ph/MeV and energy resolution of about 8 % for 662 keV gamma rays from a 137Cs source. The photofraction of Bi4Ge3O12 is better than that of Lu0.7Y0.3AP:Ce. The intrinsic resolution of the crystals versus energy of gamma rays has been determined after correcting the measured energy resolution for photomultiplier tube statistics.


This thesis explores the influence of John Milton on the edges of Victorian culture, addressing temporal, geographical, bodily, and sexual thresholds in Victorian poetry, painting, and prose. Where previous studies of Milton's Victorian influence have focused on the poetic legacy of Paradise Lost, this project identifies traces of Miltonic concepts across aesthetic borders, analysing an interdisciplinary cultural sample in order to state anew Milton's significance in the period between British Romanticism and early twentieth-century critical debates about the value of Paradise Lost.

The project is divided into four chapters. The first explores apocalyptic images and texts from the 1820s—Mary Shelley's The Last Man (1826) and the paintings of John Martin—in relation to Miltonic aetiology and eschatology. These texts offer a complex re-thinking of the relation between personal loss and universal catastrophe, which draws on and positions itself against prophecy and apocalypse in Paradise Lost. In the second chapter I address conceptual connections that cross boundaries of medium and nationality, identifying the presence of a Miltonic notion of powerful passivity in the writing and marginalia of Herman Melville and the paintings and anecdotal appendages of J. M. W. Turner. In the third chapter I consider Milton's importance for A. C. Swinburne's poetic presentation of peripheral sexualities, identifying in Milton's poetry a pervasive metaphysics of bodily 'melting' or 'cleaving' which is essential to Swinburne's poetic project. The final chapter analyses the presence of the Miltonic in the fiction of Thomas Hardy, whose repeated readings of Milton contributed to both establishing his poetic vocabulary, and prompting a career-long engagement with Miltonic ideas. The thesis refocuses attention on peripheral elements of the work of these writers and artists to re-articulate Milton's importance for the Victorians, whilst bringing together models of influence which show the Victorian Milton to be at once liminal and galvanising.


Introduction. Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a group of hereditary diseases that manifests in weakness and flaccid paresis, marked mostly in lower limbs and proximal rather than distal muscle groups. Three clinical types may be distinguished depending on the level of muscle involvement. Spine deformity, present in all non-ambulatory patients poses the greatest orthopaedic challenge. Scoliosis often called "collapsing scoliosis" hampers or totally impairs independent sitting in this way decreasing patients function. Treatment of choice is surgical that leads to deformity correction, prevents further curve progression and facilitates independent sitting. Aim of paper. Aim of paper is radiological evaluation of results of surgical treatment of spine deformity in patients with SMA type 2 and SMA type 3a all treated with the same Galvsetone-Luque posterior fusion surgical technique. The study is to establish the optimal criteria for surgical treatment. Material and methods. Among 173 patients with SMA diagnosis 45 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The minimal follow-up period was 5 years, and mean follow-up was 6.9 years (5 – 15 years). Clinical data, preoperatively and perioperatively was evaluated: age of SMA diagnosis, age of scoliosis onset, perioperative complications. Moreover radiological data pre- and postoperatively was assessed. Results. Age at surgery in the study group was mean 11.4 years. Achieved correction after surgery was mean 49% and 41.9% in the final follow-up. Evaluation of radiological data revealed that better correction was achieved in younger patients with smaller initial curve. Above that loss of correction was significantly lower in the more mild form of SMA. Number of postoperative complications did not correlate with the preoperative pulmonary function. Conclusion. Treatment of spinal deformities in SMA patients is justified; achieved correction is approximately 40% with minimal loss during follow-up. Surgical treatment should be introduced early as possible, in patients with curves less than 80° and younger than 11 years. Those two factors significantly influence the final outcome.


Introduction Green space in the built environment is an important topic on the health agenda today. Studies have shown that access to green spaces is associated with better mental and physical health, yet green spaces can also be detrimental to health if they are not managed appropriately. Despite the increasing interest in urban green spaces, little research has so far been conducted into the links between green spaces and cancer. Objective The purpose of this scoping review is therefore to map the literature available on the types of relationship between urban green spaces and cancer. Method and analysis We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols 2015 guideline to report the protocol. To conduct this scoping review, we will use a structured search strategy based on controlled vocabulary and relevant key terms related to green space, urban space and cancer. We will search MEDLINE (PubMed), GreenFILE (EBSCOhost), Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (EBSCOhost) and ScienceDirect as electronic database as well as hand-search publications for grey literature. This review will therefore provide evidence on this current topic, one which could have practical implications for policy-makers involved in choices which are more conducive to healthy living. Ethics and dissemination No primary data will be collected since all data that will be presented in this review are based on published articles and publicly available documents, and therefore ethics committee approval is not a requirement. The findings of this review will be presented at workshops and conferences, and will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.


This study evaluated the histology results of surgically created bone cavities in the calvaria of rabbits that were subsequently filled with a HA/ß-TCP composite powder developed in Korea (Dentium, Korea). Ten young adult rabbits were used. Four defects were surgically produced in the calvaria of each rabbit. These defects were classified into 4 groups: the control group, no graft materials; experimental group I, normal saline + graft materials; experimental group II, venous blood + graft materials; and experimental group III, graft materials only. The defects were randomly filled with the graft materials. The rabbits were sacrificed with at 1-, 2-, 4-, 6- and 8- weeks after surgery. The histology specimens were prepared using the general method with H & E staining at a 6 ㎛ thickness. Histologically, the degree of new bone formation was similar in all experimental groups. However, for experimental group II, many cells had gathered around the graft materials 1-week after surgery, and new bone formed slightly faster and than in the other groups. No bone formation was observed in the control group. Based on histology findings, the new HA/ß- TCP composite powders appeared to act as a scaffolding material for the regeneration of osseous defects.


Children are exposed to head injury throughout the year, specifically during the active summer months. Protocols for managing concussions at summer camps are varied, and the management of concussions in this setting has yet to be evaluated. Our objective was to characterize the patterns of concussion management among summer camp providers via a cross-sectional survey of clinicians. Of the 108 participants, 46% reported a protocol was used to treat concussion in their camp setting, 49% reported comfort in treating concussion at camp, 44% reported they would either send a child home or to a hospital immediately following the injury, and 85% reported they would be likely to use a standardized guideline. The strategies used by surveyed providers may be unnecessarily conservative in the management of concussions, and may also result in an over-utilization of health care services. These results provide a catalyst to create a standardized guideline. Subscribe to JPRA


Abstract Immunotherapy using mucin 1 (MUC1) linked to oxidised mannan (MFP) was investigated in an aggressive MUC1+ metastatic tumour, DA3-MUC1 because, unlike many MUC1+ tumour models, DA3-MUC1 is not spontaneously rejected in mice making it an alternative model for immunotherapy studies. Further, DA3-MUC1 cells are resistant to lysis by anti-MUC1 cytotoxic T cells (CTLs). The inability of DA3-MUC1 tumours to be rejected in naïve mice as well as vaccination to MUC1 was attributed to a deficiency of expression of MHC class I molecules on the tumour cell surface. In vitro and in vivo analysis of subcutaneous tumours and lung metastases demonstrated that DA3-MUC1 tumour cells have a low expression (< 6%) of MHC class I which can be upregulated (> 90%) following culturing with IFN-γ. Results from flow cytometry analysis and immunoperoxidase staining indicated that the in vitro up-regulation of MHC class I could be maintained for up to seven days in vivo, without affecting the expression levels of MUC1 antigen. Interestingly, MUC1-specific CTL that lyse DA3-MUC1 targets in vitro were induced in MFP immunised mice but failed to protect mice from a DA3-MUC1 tumour challenge. These results highlight the importance of MHC class I molecules in the induction of anti-tumour immunity and the MFP immune response.


We show that machine learning methods, in particular extreme trees and neural networks (NNs), provide strong statistical evidence in favor of bond return predictability. NN forecasts based on macroeconomic and yield information translate into economic gains that are larger than those obtained using yields alone. Interestingly, the nature of unspanned factors changes along the yield curve: stock and labor market related variables are more relevant for short-term maturities, whereas output and income variables matter more for longer maturities. Finally, NN forecasts correlate with proxies for time-varying risk aversion and uncertainty, lending support to models featuring both of these channels.


A novel approach for analyzing "classical" alternatives to quantum mechanics for explaining the statistical results of an EPRB-like experiment is proposed. This perspective is top-down instead of bottom-up. Rather than beginning with an inequality derivation, a hierarchy of model types is constructed, each distinguished by appropriately parameterized conditional probabilities. This hierarchy ranks the "classical" model types in terms of their ability to reproduce QM statistics or not. The analysis goes beyond the usual consideration of model types that "fall short" (i.e., satisfy all of the CHSH inequalities) to ones that are "excessive" (i.e., not only violate CHSH but even exceed a Tsirelson bound). This approach clearly shows that noncontextuality is the most general property of an operational model that blocks replication of at least some QM statistical predictions. Factorizability is naturally revealed to be a special case of noncontextuality. The same is true for the combination of remote context independence and outcome determinism (RCI+OD). It is noncontextuality that determines the dividing line between "classical" model instances that satisfy the CHSH inequalities and those that don't. Outcome deterministic operational models are revealed to be the "building blocks" of all the rest, including quantum mechanical, noncontextual, and contextual ones. The set of noncontextual model instances is exactly the convex hull of all 16 RCI+OD model instances, and furthermore, the set of all model instances, including all QM ones, is equal to the convex hull of the 256 OD model instances. It is shown that, under a mild assumption, the construction of convex hulls of finite ensembles of OD model instances is (mathematically) equivalent to the traditional hidden variables approach. Via the introduction of operational models that possess outcome and measurement "predictability", a new perspective is gained on the impossibility of faster-than-light transfer of information in an EPRB experiment. Finally, many plots and figures, some of which appear to be new, provide visual affirmation of many of the results.


The paper describes a general approach for processing data from a guided wave transducer array on a plate-like structure. The raw data set from such an array contains time-domain signals from each transmitter-receiver combination. The technique is based on linear superposition of signals in the frequency domain with some amplitude and phase factors and can be applied to any array geometry and any types of array elements. The problem of finding optimal coefficients, which allow the best resolution to be achieved with the minimum number of array elements, is investigated. It is shown that improvements in resolution are obtained at the expense of sensitivity to noise. A method of quantifying this sensitivity is presented. Results are shown that illustrate the application of the technique to a linear array and an array of circular geometry (containing a single ring of elements). Experimental data obtained from a guided wave array containing electromagnetic acoustic transducer elements for exciting and detecting the S0 Lamb wave mode in a 5-mm-thick aluminum plate are processed with different algorithms and the results are discussed. Generalization of the technique for the case of multimode media is suggested.


The deficiencies that epitomize the weakness of the Bangladesh agricultural research system are: (i) Organizational difficulties; (ii) Lack of physical facilities and inadequate funding ; (iii) Low level skill and ineffective training ; (iv) Insufficient linkage between research, extension and farmers. Agricultural research has experienced uneven and isolated advance and its limited achievements are confined to cereals. Research on jute and sugarcane remains neglected. Low research intensity and priority bear the mark of ill-conceived policy framework. " For sustained agricultural productivity growth, the study suggests that agricultural research be made broadbased by: {i) intensifying research on varietal improvement of jute, rice, wheat and sugarcane for wide scale adaptability. (ii) extending the sphere of research activity to undertake research on end-use of jute, adaptation and indigenous development of mechanical and chemical innovation for effective realization of potential of biological innovations. This would involve reorganization of the research system, well-defined priorities and substantial investment on research.


Audiences play a fundamental role in disseminating and evaluating news content, and one of the big questions facing news organizations is what elements make content viral in the digital environment. This comparative study of the United States, Brazil and Argentina explores what values and topics present in news shared online predict audience interaction on social media. Findings shed light on what news values and topics trigger more audience responses on Facebook and Twitter. At the same time, a comparison between popular content produced by traditional media versus online-native media reveals that the former lean more toward government-related news and conflict/controversy news values than online native media. Brazilian stories prompted more social media interactivity than content from the United States or Argentina. Through content analysis, this study contributes to improving our understanding of audiences' news values preferences on social networks. It also helps us to recognize the role of users' online activities (sharing, commenting and liking) in the social construction of news and meaning inside the networked sphere. Finally, it opens an old media debate about whether providing and sharing too much media content with conflict, controversy and oddity could potentially hinder understanding and agreement in society. Articles were collected via media tracking and the data collection company NewsWhip.


The 2013-2014 Zambia Demographic and Health Survey (ZDHS) reported HIV prevalence rate among adults aged 15-49 at 13.3%, ranking Zambia 7th among countries experiencing devastating effects of a mature and generalised epidemic. This report is particularly noted as the first to measure HIV incidence1. Chanda Kapata2 et al. posting results from Zambia's largest population-based mobile testing survey (2013–2014) placed the HIV prevalence rate generally lower. In 2002, the National AIDS Council (NAC) was established to lead a multisectoral national response to stem the tide. Government Agencies and the United Nations led the responses. In 1992, The World Health Organisation (WHO) observed that abstinence and marital fidelity might constitute strategies capable of completely eliminating the risk of infection from HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Yet funding for applicable initiatives has seldom been prioritised in this respect. On one hand, from the onset of global interventions, condoms were seen primarily as most potent towards reducing the risk of infection. On the other hand, in due course, the implementation of Abstinence and Being Faithful (AB) initiatives by Churches among others, has since been seen as holding massive comparative advantage in facilitating sustainable interventions for prevention and mitigation of AIDS impact. However, church-congregation engagement in AIDS work, for a while, remained under-researched, and applicable interventions were often undocumented and unmeasured in relation to impact. This study investigated (1) how interventions affect impacts in congregation-based HIV/AIDS programmes, and (2) how abstinence and marital fidelity function within the larger picture of overall strategies to combat AIDS. It examined the community work of the Circle of Hope Family Care Centre, a congregation-based HIV/AIDS support group initiative undertaken by the Northmead Assembly of God Church in Lusaka, Zambia. The main research question was: 1) Is a person's sexual behaviour influenced by their attitude and behaviour towards God? Two subsidiary questions were: i) what are the factors that affect a person's sexual lifestyle? ii) Does attendance at the church's HIV/AIDS programmes cause a change of behaviour in a person's sexual relationships? A triangulated methodology required the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data. The experimental design included a purposively selected intervention group and a control group. Both groups were studied by employing baseline first, and follow-up measures after three months. Quantitative data analysis was carried out in two stages comprising first, cross tabulations to examine the relationship between safer sexual behaviour and socio-economic variables. For the statistical analysis, chi-square tests of independence were conducted at the bivariate level, and the differences were determined at P < 0.01 and P < 0.05 significant level. Next, major predictors were carried out with the help of logistic regression analysis. The results of the logistic regression models were converted into odds ratios, which represented the effect of a one-unit change in the explanatory variable on the indicator of experiencing safer sexual practices and abstaining from sex. Qualitative data were analysed using Atals.ti software to produce the attendant themes and sub-themes. The results of the logistic regression analysis show that those who participated in the interventions were 4.1 times more likely to report having adopted new behaviour or modified old behaviour, specifically to live positively, than those who did not attend the interventions. Similarly, participants in the faith-based interventions were 2.3 times more likely than those who did not take part to report having adopted safer sexual practices. Further analysis revealed that those participants were more likely to report abstinence from sex than those who did not attend. The conclusion is that church congregations have immense comparative advantage to influence sexual behaviour through increasing captive audiences constituting the churches' presence in the community. Additionally, their morally based interventions such as abstinence and marital fidelity show significant impact on sexual behaviour change and have potential to turn the tide of HIV/AIDS, as the tested models are replicable, scalable and sustainable.


One-summer-old virus-free carps produce both circulating interferon and neutralizing antibodies when stored at +20 degrees C and injected intraperitonealy with 10(5), 10(6), 10(7) p. f. u. of Spring Viremia of Carp virus per fish: Kinetics and intensity of interferon production are maximum for the highest virus imput (Fig.) and neutralizing antibodies are present in most of the fish 2 1/2 months post infection (Table).


Motivation Reprogramming somatic cells into neurons holds great promise to model neuronal development and disease. The efficiency and success rate of neuronal reprogramming, however, may vary between different conversion platforms and cell types, thereby necessitating an unbiased, systematic approach to estimate neuronal identity of converted cells. Recent studies have demonstrated that long genes (>100 kb from transcription start to end) are highly enriched in neurons, which provides an opportunity to identify neurons based on the expression of these long genes. Results We have developed a versatile R package, LONGO, to analyze gene expression based on gene length. We propose a systematic analysis of long gene expression (LGE) with a metric termed the long gene quotient (LQ) that quantifies LGE in RNA‐seq or microarray data to validate neuronal identity at the single‐cell and population levels. This unique feature of neurons provides an opportunity to utilize measurements of LGE in transcriptome data to quickly and easily distinguish neurons from non‐neuronal cells. By combining this conceptual advancement and statistical tool in a user‐friendly and interactive software package, we intend to encourage and simplify further investigation into LGE, particularly as it applies to validating and improving neuronal differentiation and reprogramming methodologies. Availability and implementation LONGO is freely available for download at https://github.com/biohpc/longo.


Since the 1988 Education Reform Act, the teacher's role in England has changed in many ways, a process which intensified under New Labour after 1997. Conceptions of teacher professionalism have become more structured and formalized, often heavily influenced by government policy objectives. Career paths have become more diverse and specialised. In this article, three post‐1997 professional roles are given consideration as examples of these new specialised career paths: Higher Level Teaching Assistants, Teach First trainees and Advanced Skills Teachers. The article goes on to examine such developments within teaching, using Bourdieu's concept of habitus to inform the analysis, as well as Bernstein's theories of knowledge and identity. The article concludes that there has been considerable specialization and subsequent fragmentation of roles within the teaching profession, as part of workforce remodelling initiatives. However, there is still further scope for developing a greater sense of professional cohesion through social activism initiatives, such as the children's agenda. This may produce more stable professional identities in the future as the role of teachers within the wider children's workforce is clarified.


Low back pain is a frequent symptom to consult the general practioner or the osteo-articular specialist. It is important to identify patients with inflammatory back pain (5 to 10 %) because the management and the treatment are different. Spondylarthropathies, especially ankylosing spondylitis (AS) are the most frequently encountered. The inflammatory characteristics of pain give clues for the diagnosis and allow to make appropriate management. Biological tests and imaging from X rays to MRI are used. As therapy is primarily based on NSAID use, in case of unsatifactory response in peripheral arthritis, disease modyfing drugs such as salazopyrine and methotexate (MTX) are used. Anti TNF are used in AS patients unresponsive to previous therapy (infliximab, etanercept, adalimumab) with a response in 50% of the patients. Etanercept is however not indicated in patients with uveitis.


Acoustic nuclear magnetic resonance (ANMR) has been shown to be an effective tool for characterizing the nuclear spin system in solids. In conventional NMR, the transitions between nuclear spin energy levels are induced by the interaction of an RF magnetic field with the nuclear magnetic dipole moment. In ANMR the energy exchange between the acoustic wave and the nuclear spin system can take place through the periodic perturbation of either the magnetic dipole-dipole interaction distance or the electric field gradient, the latter acting in turn upon the nuclear electric quadrupole moment. We should expect to gain different medical knowledge about a sample from these two NMR techniques as a result of their distinct interaction mechanisms. Little is known about the potential for using acoustic nuclear magnetic resonance in biological tissues. We are currently addressing many fundamental questions concerning the possible ANMR interaction mechanisms in tissues and their possible uses for medical diagnosis.


Legal federalism is a system in which a government's legal powers (judicial and legislative) are separated both vertically and horizontally with multiple levels of decentralized government. This type of system results in differences in legal rules and interpretations across sub-regions within the nation, in contrast to a more centralized legal system in which laws would be more uniform. In this chapter, we consider how the presence of horizontal legal variation across jurisdictions affects the level of innovation and entrepreneurship in an economy. In addition, we examine how the disruptive and unpredictable process of product innovation itself helps to push the evolution of law through time. Because entrepreneurs constantly create new products that require new interpretations of existing statutory law (or the creation of new statutory law), we argue that it is the predictability of the dynamic application of the law into new areas that matters most in attracting entrepreneurs to an area and supporting innovation within an economy.


The paper describes the origins and implications of the principle of culpability in Germany and Israel. The comparison shows that the principle of culpability is more closely related to human dignity in German law and that it carries more weight there than in Israeli law. However, the adoption of the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty and the new General Part of the Israeli Criminal Code in the 1990's have increased the role and impact of the principle of culpability in Israeli law.


ABSTRACT The emergence of resistance requires alternative methods to treat Candida albicans infections. We evaluated efficacy of the efflux pump inhibitor (EPI) verapamil (VER) with fluconazole (FLC) against FLC-resistant (CaR) and -susceptible C. albicans (CaS). The susceptibility of both strains to VER and FLC was determined, as well as the synergism of VER with FLC. Experiments were performed in vitro for planktonic cultures and biofilms and in vivo using Galleria mellonella. Larval survival and fungal recovery were evaluated after treatment with VER and FLC. Data were analyzed by analysis of variance and Kaplan-Meier tests. The combination of VER with FLC at sub-lethal concentrations reduced fungal growth. VER inhibited the efflux of rhodamine 123 and showed synergism with FLC against CaR. For biofilms, FLC and VER alone reduced fungal viability. The combination of VER with FLC at sub-lethal concentrations also reduced biofilm viability. In the in vivo assays, VER and FLC used alone or in combination increased the survival of larvae infected with CaR. Reduction of fungal recovery was observed only for larvae infected with CaR and treated with VER with FLC. VER reverted the FLC-resistance of C. albicans. Based on the results obtained, VER reverted the FLC-resistance of C. albicans and showed synergism with FLC against CaR. VER also increased the survival of G. mellonella infected with CaR and reduced the fungal recovery.


Background and Issues: Stroke is the fourth leading cause of death, and the leading cause of disability. Aside from physically disablement, stroke survivors often experience difficulty coping with life post-discharge. Knowledge of stroke symptoms is often low, even in patients who have suffered stroke. Programs designed to provide support and education to stroke survivors can be effective at promoting stroke knowledge and improving patient satisfaction.

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of a telephone support program at promoting stroke knowledge, coping and self-care in stroke survivors.

Methods: The Rush Stroke Buddy Program was developed in 2011 to provide support for patients with ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke after discharge from Rush University Medical Center. The telephone program consists of monthly calls to patients who voluntarily enlist in the program. Each phone call has two facilitators, a nursing student ("Buddy") and a stroke survivor ("Ambassador"), who are undergo intensive training including lectures given by a rehab physician, a behavioral psychologist, a spiritual care worker, a social worker, and a nurse educator. Each phone call follows protocol: the Buddy is responsible for discussing aspects of stroke symptom education, personal medical risk factor reduction, and reviewing medications; the Ambassador provides emotional support for the stroke survivor.

Results: Of 34 active participants since program inception, 17 (50%) agreed to be surveyed. 15 subjects (88%) felt the program empowered them to manage their health, addressed concerns, and helped them cope (94%). 13 subjects (76%) stated the program helped them overcome difficulties. All participants could name at least one stroke symptom; 14 subjects (82%) could name two or more. 13 subjects (76%) felt they better understood their medicines; 16 subjects (94%) felt they understood when to seek urgent medical attention. Sixteen subjects (94%) stated they would recommend the program to others.

Conclusions: The Rush Stroke Buddy Program provides stroke survivor satisfaction, reinforces stroke symptom knowledge, and provides emotional support. Although further research is needed on stroke support, this program overall improves patient coping, self-care and education.


A project group of the Medical Advisory Board of the German Federal Rehabilitation Council (BAR) developed fundamental joint principles on experts' opinions according to the social law code no. IX (SGB IX). The principles aim at medical experts working in different social organisations and statutory health care insurance. It was intended to create a "sociomedical language" which should be used as jointly as possible by experts in rehabilitation and social medicine and which is based on the ICF (International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, WHO 2001). Its stringent application will increase the utility of medical expertise across different institutions. The authors recommend to evaluate whether this model could provide a tool in the communication and cooperation between different sectors of the health system. Part I describes the theoretical model, Part II its application to a virtual individual case history.


We present a novel approach to motion planning for autonomous ground vehicles by formulating motion primitives as probabilistic distributions of trajectories (aka probabilistic motion primitives - ProMP) and performing stochastic optimisation on them for finding an optimal path. We show that compared to the traditional approach of using discrete motion primitives or direct stochastic optimisation of the whole path, incorporating ProMPs enables higher quality of paths by enabling constraint conditioning, combination and blending of probability distributions. We present two motion planners utilizing this approach: feasibility-based trajectory sampling (PROMPT-S) and stochastic gradient-based trajectory optimisation (PROMPT-O). We show simulation results of our approach outperforming state-of-the-art optimisation as well as discrete motion primitives-based planners. We additionally illustrate the versatility of our approach by showing PROMPT's ability to handle significantly skewed motion primitives, e.g, as induced by steering failure in AGVs as well as the composition of motion primitives to perform complex maneuvers. Finally, we demonstrate the practicality of these planners by implementing them on a real self-driving vehicle navigating on structured and unstructured off-road terrains.


This research uses the Vietnam War as a case study to elucidate and assess state obligations for post-war clean up and reparations for continuing harm against civilians. The cessation of hostilities fifty years ago marked the end of the Vietnam War for U.S. and Viet Cong troops, but to date the War has yet to end for Vietnamese civilians. Much of the ordnance employed by the U.S. military never detonated and remain, to present day, live and buried in and on the soil surface typically exploding upon human contact and injuring or killing unsuspecting children and adults. Since the U.S. troops departed Vietnam in 1973, at least 100,000 Vietnamese children and adults have been injured or killed by such explosions. In addition to ordnance, the contamination of Agent Orange and other herbicides sprayed during the War in concentrations greater than the standard international limit continues to pollute the environment and critically impairs human health. One focus within this research is the gender-based impacts of war. As the bearers of children and as traditional caregivers, particularly in rural villages where much of the War was fought, women are particularly affected by the continuing effects of war. This research explores how, in the example of Vietnam, women are often at elevated risk of ordnance explosions; why they typically experience social and economic isolation as a result of physical and reproductive health adversities from the abovementioned violence; and how they are at a particular disadvantage when it comes to accessing health and rehabilitation services related to war. This research documents in detail the extent as well as the psychosocial and economic impacts of the left-behind ordnance and herbicide contamination on civilian populations. It covers variables such as the quantities of ordnance and herbicides deployed by the U.S. during the War, the number of Vietnamese killed and injured by explosive ordnance since the end of the War, the demographics of such victims, the number of civilians exposed to Agent Orange and other toxic herbicides, and the inter-generational human health outcomes of exposure to the chemicals. This work also addresses obligations the U.S. may have under international law to clean up its weapons and chemical contamination, as well as to provide reparations for victims. To assess state responsibility, the paper presents, examines and analyzes the provisions of four relevant international conventions, considering their entry into force and U.S. ratification status, whether they cover the weapons used in Vietnam, what cleanup obligations they require of states after war, and what reparations obligations the U.S. may be responsible for offering Vietnamese civilians. The paper closes with conclusions about the United States' adherence to international law, and it provides recommendations to the United Nations and the international community regarding U.S. responsibilities under treaty and customary international law. Scofflaw: One who ignores or flouts the law, especially laws difficult to enforce. Oxford English Dictionary


This study aims to produce anxiety tests for children to identify anxiety in children with special needs. The approach used in this study is quantitative. The subjects of this study were 102 SLB students in Yogyakarta province. The sample technique used was purposive sampling. Data analysis is divided into 2, validity using EFA technique and reliability using alpha cronbach approach. Data analysis using SPSS 20.0 program. The results showed that there were 5 components forming an anxiety test for ABK children. The instrument used is sumative rating scale. The construct validity of the instrument with the EFA approach is obtained by 20 valid results by forming 5 factors (components) based on eigen value. The reliability value is 0.832 (> 0.70) which means a reliable instrument. These results show that anxiety tests which have 5 components and 20 items can be used to identify the anxiety of children with special needs.


Processes in the environment are often complex and the description and prediction of the behaviour of environmental pollutants requires sophisticated methodology including multidimensional technology. Multivariate statistical methods including principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares projection to latent structures (PLS) were used to characterise several nitroaromatic compounds according to a large number of chemical and physical properties. These descriptors were derived from databases and semi-empirical, empirical and quantum-chemical calculations. A model was calculated and used for prediction of experimentally determined relevant environmental parameters, including volatility through gas chromatographic retention times and the distribution between air and water phase using solid-phase microextraction measurements. Analytical microextraction techniques are very well suited for both monitoring and measuring relevant environmental properties. Two such methods, solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and microextraction by packed syringe (MEPS), which are both faster and less resource demanding than traditional methodology, were used to improve the analysis of nitroaromatic compound and haloanisoles. Both techniques showed few interfering compounds and good reproducibility in combination with GC-MS detection. The reproducibility for SPME and MEPS was further enhanced by the usage of isotopically labelled internal standards (nitroaromatic compounds) or internal standards with similar chemical properties as the analytes (haloanisoles). The SPME method for nitroaromatic compounds was tested using industrial wastewater from a wastewater treatment facility receiving input from several nitrogen based industries. Using gas chromatography-negative chemical ionisation-mass spectrometry(GC-NCI-MS) as the final detection, limits of detection (LODs) in the range 0.02–38 ng L−1 were achieved. Results for the 2,4,6-TCA (TCA) and 2,4,6-TBA (TBA) using high resolution GC-MS were even more impressive obtaining LODs in the range 0.02-0.03 ng L-1, which are currently the lowest reported in the international literature. Although the newly developed MEPS technology is generally faster than SPME, similar LODs as for SPME could not yet be achieved. Both methods were found to be so sensitive that TCA and TBA could be detected in wine before it could be sensorically noticed as cork tainted.


This study presents a mixed-integer second-order conic programming (MISOCP) model for the robust reconfiguration of electrical distribution systems, considering the minimisation of active power losses and reliability constraints. The uncertainty at the reliability data is considered by using a linear and adjustable robust approach. The indices used to evaluate the reliability of the system are the system average interruption frequency index (SAIFI) and the system average interruption duration index (SAIDI), both of which are calculated as functions of the switch status (open or closed). Under radiality constraints, the solution generated by the proposed model is robust in terms of the reliability, i.e. the SADI and SAIFI limits imposed by regulators are not violated even if the uncertain data changes stochastically. The use of an MISOCP model guarantees convergence to optimality by using existing convex optimisation solvers. To evaluate the robustness of each solution generated by the proposed model, a set of Monte Carlo simulations were deployed. Finally, all tests were executed in a 136-node real distribution system.


In ordinary life, there are many different interest rates—mortgage rates, rates on credit cards, and rates paid by savings accounts—which are mirrored in the commercial world by loans for short-term funding and longer term loans for business development and project finance. The reasons for so many different rates are market conditions and credit risk. 'Interest rates' discusses the trading of interest rates, focusing on the interbank market, which is the area where most trading takes place, most quant effort is deployed and in whose development mathematical finance has played a key role. The basic terminology—including zero coupon bonds, swap rate, yield curve generator, LIBOR rates, and whole yield models—are explained.


Foreign direct investment (FDI) in services has grown signi…cantly in recent years. Evidence of spatial relationships in FDI decisions have been provided for goods manufacturing by utilizing physical distance-based measures of trade costs. This paper investigates spatial interactions for services FDI using several distance measures, including physical distance, genetic distance, and transport time. Across di¤erent measures of distance, the traditional determinants of outbound FDI activity remain valid for services. We also …nd spatial interdependence for services FDI that is generally supportive of complex vertical motivations. JEL classi…cation: F21, F23.


Intravesical instillations of ADM have local and systemic effects: Locally a chemocystitis can be seen with a frequency of 10 - 40%. It can usually be treated conservatively and only rarely the therapy has to be discontinued. Urothelial dysplasia, proliferation and - in rats - the development of epithelial bladder tumors following repeated instillation need further investigations. ADM is absorbed mainly by exophytic tumors with a large surface area and changes in membrane characteristics and - less - by the normal urothelium and solid tumors. Whether the local cellular uptake of ADM can be enhanced by the use of adjuvant substances such as surfactants, enzymes or detergents is presently subject of animal investigations (Engelmann 1984). Systemically neither in animal studies nor in investigations in humans relevant concentrations are detected so that untoward side effects like cardiotoxicity will not occur. The increase in absorption that has been documented due to TUR or cystitis does not lead to a clinically significant rise of serum concentrations.


Myanmar is a country in rapid economic and political transition, with opportunities emerging for its smallholders to benefit from current economic growth. However many smallholders are trapped in semi-subsistence agriculture, disconnected from markets. Commercialisation can increase farm incomes, and - through the multiplier effect - lead to wider pro-poor growth in the rural economy. However, there are many constraints to commercialisation that prevent this process from occurring. While literature on constraints confronting smallholders abounds internationally, there is a paucity of literature on the challenges confronting smallholders in Myanmar. This study investigates constraints to commercial farming in the townships (districts) of Myeik and Palaw in Myanmar's Tanintharyi Division. A representative two-stage sample of 259 rural households was drawn from these townships, and data relating to livelihoods and agricultural enterprises were gathered using a structured questionnaire. The most important determinants of commercialisation identified using Heckman regression were the household's land endowment, liquidity, land quality, and productive assets. Access to affordable financial services could boost household liquidity and investment in farm inputs, assets and improvements to land, so alleviating the most important constraints to commercial farming.


Overview: I present an approach for a proposed study using discourse analysis, with the aim of studying how pupils interact with childcare teachers during school-age childcare and during school hours.In Sweden almost 80 % of the child population between six and nine years old attends school-age child-care - mostly integrated in the school. In a Swedish thesis from 1999, Karlsudd, declares that school-age child-care can boast of being like a final integration sanctuary, while the school, unfortunately rarely succeed in their integration efforts (Karlsudd, 1999). Time has changed, in a conference paper 12 years later Karlsudd declares; the final integration sanctuary is probably soon lost (Karlsudd, 2011). In Sweden as in several other countries we can see that medical discourse has been given priority in the educational context (Ljusberg, 2009). Goals in both the Swedish school law and the curricula state that all pupils are to be regarded as equal, to have equal rights to education, and equal circumstances in school. In my thesis (Ljusberg, 2009) I am using different perspectives, a relational perspective and a compensatory perspective (also called the medical psychological perspective (Bailey, 1998), and the individual or categorical perspective (Emanuelsson, Persson & Rosenqvist, 2001). From a compensatory perspective the difficulties are attached to the pupil, from a relational perspective the difficulties are studied as situated social constructions (Hjorne, 2004; Mehan, 1993). In this paper I present my approach for a ethno-methodological study using discourse analysis with the aim to study how pupils interact/are talking with school-age child-care teachers in one hand during school-age child-care and on the other hand during school hours.


This poster paper presents concisely the research directions of our educational robotics research group at the Informatics Department of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh). This includes (a) a model proposed for organizing educational robotics activities, called "CPPC+" after Collaboration, Problem, Play, and Competition, while "+" stands for supplementary teachers' supportive interventions such as promoting students' metacognitive skills; (b) research on the impact of various collaboration scripts when applied to guide students group robotics-based learning activities; (c) research on the impact of educational robotics on students' metacognitive skills, and (d) research on the benefits from building tangible interfaces (connectable programming "blocks") to help younger children program the robots without necessarily having to use a typical graphical user interface (GUI). In our presentation we shortly comment on the research objectives, the studies conducted so far and our first conclusions.


Collaborative filtering is widely used in modern recommender systems. Recent research shows that variational autoencoders (VAEs) yield state-of-the-art performance by integrating flexible representations from deep neural networks into latent variable models, mitigating limitations of traditional linear factor models. VAEs are typically trained by maximizing the likelihood (MLE) of users interacting with ground-truth items. While simple and often effective, MLE-based training does not directly maximize the recommendation-quality metrics one typically cares about, such as top-N ranking. In this paper we investigate new methods for training collaborative filtering models based on actor-critic reinforcement learning, to directly optimize the non-differentiable quality metrics of interest. Specifically, we train a critic network to approximate ranking-based metrics, and then update the actor network (represented here by a VAE) to directly optimize against the learned metrics. In contrast to traditional learning-to-rank methods that require to re-run the optimization procedure for new lists, our critic-based method amortizes the scoring process with a neural network, and can directly provide the (approximate) ranking scores for new lists. Empirically, we show that the proposed methods outperform several state-of-the-art baselines, including recently-proposed deep learning approaches, on three large-scale real-world datasets. The code to reproduce the experimental results and figure plots is on Github: this https URL


A dilemma often faced by healthcare financial managers is whether to describe a potential investment project to organizational decision-makers in terms of the projects' internal rates of return (IRR) or to use the net present value (NPV) method. The IRR represents an intuitively appealing method of measuring investment value, but a number of conceptual and methodological problems associated with IRR measurement would seem to argue the use of the NPV method. Unfortunately, while the NPV measure is theoretically valid, it lacks the intuitive appeal of the IRR in communicating the value of investment alternatives. This article details an alternative method of measuring return that incorporates all the intuitive appeal of the conventional IRR, but few of the shortcoming associated with that measure.


Based on the functional dependence of entropy on energy, and on Wien's distribution for black-body radiation, Max Planck obtained a formula for this radiation by an interpolation relation that fitted the experimental measurements of thermal radiation at the Physikalisch Technishe Reichanstalt (PTR) in Berlin in the late 19th century. Surprisingly, his purely phenomenological result turned out to be not just an approximation, as would have been expected, but an exact relation. To obtain a physical interpretation for his formula, Planck then turned to Boltzmann's 1877 paper on the statistical interpretation of entropy, which led him to introduce the fundamental concept of energy discreteness into physics. A novel aspect of our account that has been missed in previous historical studies of Planck's discovery is to show that Planck could have found his phenomenological formula partially derived in Boltzmann's paper in terms of a variational parameter. But the dependence of this parameter on temperature is not contained in this paper, and it was first derived by Planck.


In humans, type 2 diabetes progresses when beta-cells fail to compensate peripheral insulin resistance. Insulin receptor substrate (IRS) proteins mediate a variety of the metabolic and growth-promoting actions of insulin and IGF-1, and are important integrators of heterologous regulation. Systemic ablation of the Irs2 gene in mice causes β-cell dysfunction that prevents compensatory insulin secretion while insulin resistance progresses to life threatening hyperglycemia. Upregulation of IRS2 in pancreatic β-cell using rat insulin-2 promoter (Irs2RIP) promotes sufficient hyperinsulinemia to prevent diabetes. Targeted Irs2 deletion using CreRIP also causes beta-cell failure and hyperglycemia, but the mechanism is unclear because CreRIP drives deletion in beta-cells and hypothalamus—especially in the arcuate nucleus (ARC). AGRP neurons in the ARC play an important role in regulating energy homeostasis, but it is unknown whether IRS2 in the AGRP neurons might also affect beta-cell function. Here we show that disruption of Irs2 (but not Irs1) in AGRP neurons (Irs2f/fCreAgrp-mice) reduced islet mass by 45%. To test insulin secretory function, we subjected mice to hyperglycemic clamps. The glucose infusion rate to maintain steady-state hyperglycemia decreased significantly. Moreover, insulin secretion failed to respond to L-arginine treatment in aged Irs2f/fCreAgrp-mice. Moreover, Irs2f/fCreAgrp-mice displayed progressive deterioration of glucose homeostasis and a lack of beta -cell compensation during high fat diet. Overall, our results indicate that dysfunction of Irs2 in AGRP neurons might contribute to the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes. Disclosure R. Tao: None. K.D. Copps: None. M.F. White: Advisory Panel; Self; Housey Pharmaceutical Research Laboratories. O. Stoehr: None. Funding National Institutes of Health (5R01DK098655-06)


This thesis is a descriptive analysis of, Photographic Views and Costumes of Japan, a souvenir album issued by F. Beato & Co., Yokohama, a photographic studio run from 1868 to 1877 by photographer, Felice Beato (Italian, 1832-1909). Held at George Eastman House, this disassembled album was likely purchased in 1876 or 1877 by F.E. Foster of the Pacific Mail and Steamship Company. It contains fifty-one albumen silver photographs, twenty-four letterpress album notes, and thirteen blank leaves. Twenty-eight of the album's photographs can be attributed to Beato. The remaining twenty-three are by unidentified photographers. The thesis provides an overview of Japanese photography and Beato's career; establishes the album's origins; and explores the extent of the album's modifications, as well as their significance within the historical context of the period. Appendices include descriptions of six additional albums from Beato's studio and a fully illustrated catalogue of the Eastman House album.


The methods used to obtain and depict sleep data shape our understanding of sleep as a phenomenon. The standard criteria for describing sleep were developed in the late 1960s. These criteria, which were established on the basis of the polysomnographic equipment available at that time, called for the division of sleep into stages according to depth; the visual depiction of these stages led to the now widely accepted concept of "sleep architecture." Although the sleep architecture model remains useful, the technology that provided the model's framework for understanding sleep has been superseded by computer-assisted systems for recording and analyzing sleep that may allow us to acquire data on sleep that were unobtainable with older equipment. Future gathering and depiction of sleep data, regardless of the recording and assessment methods used, should minimize disruption of sleep during study, allow for computerized analysis of sleep parameters, and describe the data from the perspective of the effect that sleep and the problems surrounding it have on daytime functioning.


This paper presents a framework for developing part failure-rate models. It is a partial result of an effort sponsored by the US Air Force for the development of reliability prediction models for military avionics. Published data show that the existing reliability prediction methods fall far short of providing the required accuracy. One of the problems in the existing methods is the exclusion of critical factors. The new framework is based on the premise that essentially all failures are caused by the interactions of built-in flaws, failure mechanisms, and stresses. These three ingredients contribute to form the failure distribution which are functions of stress application duration (eg, aging time), number of thermal cycles, and vibration duration. The Weibull distribution has been selected as the general distribution. The distribution is then modified by the critical factors such as flaw quantities, effects of environmental stress screening, calendar-time reliability improvements, and vendor quality differences, to provide the part failure-rate functions. To provide credibility for the framework, only well published data and information have been used. >


When the Supreme Court in United States v. Booker rendered the United States Sentencing Guidelines advisory, most analysts initially predicted that federal sentencing would be invigorated by a "surge of judicial discretion." Many defense attorneys and members of the news media hailed the decision a victory for criminal defendants, while others celebrated Booker for its emancipation of district court judges from the tyranny of the Guidelines. Less explored in Booker's immediate aftermatch was how the decision would affect the courts of appeals' review of district court sentencing decisions. What has resulted is primarily confusion about the role of the appellate courts in reviewing sentences. Several often seemingly conflicting imperatives are at play after Booker: the district court's discretion to impose a sentence unconstrained by the Guidelines, the obligation of the court of appeals to show deference to the substantive judgment of the district court, and the simultaneous authority of the court of appeals to review (and thus to disagree with) the substantive reasonableness of the sentence the district court has imposed. The challenge after Booker is, in light of these imperatives, how to define the scope of the courts of appeals' authority with respect to sentencing, or what I call "appellate discretion" to review district court sentencing decisions. Although there is a logical way to balance appellate discretion with deference to the district court, too often after Booker the courts of appeals have tipped to one extreme or the other. In this article, I explore post-Booker sentencing cases in the courts of appeals. In Part II, I provide a brief history of sentencing law from before the adoption of the Sentencing Guidelines up through Booker, highlighting the changes in appellate discretion over this period coinciding with the shift from no Guidelines to mandatory Guidelines to the current advisory-Guidelines system. In Part III, I explore the confusion that has resulted since Booker, which has manifested in a series of circuit splits centering largely on the circuits' different understandings of their own discretion after Booker. I also explain how certain of these splits were resolved by the Supreme Court's decisions in Rita, Gall, and Kimbrough. In Part IV, I focus on the Eleventh Circuit's sentencing cases since Booker, Rita, Gall, and Kimbrough, exploring the underlying theme of the Circuit's struggle to define its own discretion. Finally, in Part V, I advance a modest proposal for what I view as the proper appellate role in sentencing decisions after Booker, proposing specific rules for appellate review based on the Supreme Court's guidance in Rita, Gall, and Kimbrough. By observing these rules, the Eleventh Circuit, and all of the courts of appeals, would more faithfully execute the type of limited abuse-of-discretion review that the Supreme Court has envisioned for the courts of appeals after Booker.


With the advent of the World Wide Web, many business applications that utilize data mining and text mining techniques to extract useful business information on the Web have evolved from Web searching to Web mining. It is important for students to acquire knowledge and hands-on experience in Web mining during their education in information systems curricula. This paper reports on an experience using open Web application programming interfaces (APIs) that have been made available by major Internet companies (e.g., Google, Amazon, and eBay) in a class project to teach Web mining applications. The instructor's observations of the students' performance and a survey of the students' opinions show that the class project achieved its objectives and students acquired valuable experience in leveraging the APIs to build interesting Web mining applications.


An optical fiber containing structured hydrogen sensing points, consisting of Palladium and/or Magnesium alloys is proposed and characterized. The sensitive layer is deposited on the outside of a multimode fiber, after removing the optical cladding. The sensor is based on a measurement technique which uses the Surface Plasmon Resonance effect. Compared to previous work which was performed at a single wavelength of 670nm, this study was done in the range of 450 to 900nm. A continuous change in intensity is observed as a function of the hydrogen concentration between 0.5% and 4% H2 in Ar. The response shows that the intensity transmitted can either decrease or increase, depending on the selected wavelength. The response time and the reproducibility of the detectors are also discussed. From our experiments and optical simulations we conclude that Pd covered indicator layers based on Mg alloys, such as Mg-Ti, would be even more advantageous compare to Pd layers thanks to their lower hydrogen equilibrium pressures. We will demonstrate an extended sensitivity range by juxtaposing different materials over a fiber section, having different hydrogen equilibrium pressures.


Context: Multiple trauma concomitant with idiopathic portal hypertension (IPH) encountered in orthopaedics department is very rare.

Methods and Material: A 23-year old male presented with right femoral subtrochanteric fracture and ipsilateral open tibial and fibular fracture. He had been suffered IPH from childhood and his laboratory test results was too poor to undergo invasive surgery. Minimally invasive treatment fashions were selected, including skeletal traction, external fixation and autograft skin coverage.

Results: At follow-up of 8 months, he regained full weight bearing function and was satisfied with the result.

Conclusions: Selection of minimally invasive treatment options in case of multiple trauma concomitant with severe systemic lesion like IPH is mandatory to avoid massive and critical invasion, and to recover limb's function properly.


This essay tells the story of the performer Josephine Baker and the architect Adolf Loos as a way to track an unexpectedly intimate dialogue between the making of the so-called "denuded modern surface" and the spectacle of black skin at the turn of the twentieth century. This connection in turn compels a reconsideration of the way we read (as) modern subjects.


Nitrogen (N) is a crop macronutrient of major importance, which affects both plant growth and yield. In this paper we discuss the humus content (%) and various soluble N forms (NO 3 -, total N, nitrate-N, ammonium-N, and organic nitrogen) available in humus sand soil samples originating from the Pallag Experimental Station of Horticulture at the University of Debrecen, Hungary. We found 45.4% nitrate-N and 13.8% nitrite-N of total N content present in the soil. Considering the percentage distribution of soluble N forms present at the Pallag Experimental Station, we recommend using this soil in further pot experiments, given that this has optimal nutrient supply capacity. In addition, we examined possible statistical correlations between humus% and N forms.


OBJECTIVE: Evaluate some of the key indicators that characterize the Mexican mental health system using the World Health Organization's Assessment Instrument for Mental Health Systems (WHO-AIMS). METHODS: The strategy for examining the WHO-AIMS indicators included: (i) a review of documentary sources; (ii) application of the questionnaire; and (iii) group work with a team of experts using the consensus technique. To facilitate collection of the data, a questionnaire was prepared in which the indicators were turned into simple questions. The people gathering the data were trained, and the activity was monitored. RESULTS: It was found that, of the total budget for health, only 2% is allocated for mental health, and, of that share, 80% is used in the operation of psychiatric hospitals. The pivotal point for mental health care is in the psychiatric hospital; there are very few psychiatric units in the general hospitals, few residential establishments, and few services targeted specifically to care for children and adolescents. Access is limited because of the centralized health care system, with the majority of establishments located in the large cities. Only 30% of primary care services have protocols for the evaluation and treatment of mental disorders. Finally, in the mental health facilities, the ratios of psychiatrists, other physicians, nurses, and psychologists per 100 000 population are 1.6, 1.3, 3.4, and 1.5, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: More funding will be needed in order to bridge the gap between the mental health burden and the budget allocated for its care, and resources will need to be used more rationally, with the first level of care becoming the pivot. In addition, it will be necessary to increase the number of specialists, offer periodic in-service training for personnel at the first level of care, and enlist greater participation by the rest of society.


For part I see ibid., p.1-10. Dataflow diagrams and entity life histories are widely-used tools in information systems methodologies. The tools are far more effective than natural language, though their meanings have not yet been clarified. This paper shows how the model developed in part I enables formal characterization of information systems methodologies. That is, it elaborates the meaning of DFDs and ELHs by providing a concrete example throughout. The characterization of DFDs establishes an explicit correspondence between the static structure of a business transaction system and a DFD. This correspondence illustrates the necessary components in designing the file structure of a business system. The ELH of a business system is described as the set of sequences of the system's transactions. Black hole and franchise business systems can be characterized by sequences, while the ELH of a general business system partially defines its dynamic structure.


The optimal nonlinear filtering of certain vector-valued diffusion processes embedded in white noise is considered. We derive upper and lower bounds on the minimal causal mean-square error. The derivation of the lower bound is based on information-theoretic considerations, namely the rate-distortion function ( \varepsilon -entropy). The upper bounds are based on linear-filtering arguments. It is demonstrated that for a wide class of high-precision systems, the upper and lower bounds are tight within a factor of 2 or better.


Information systems are today an important contributing part of a company's competitiveness.
It is what links IT with the business, and aims to support business processes and needs, in
order to create overall efficiency. Today there are various information systems at the market
and companies can acquire information systems almost tailored to their business. However,
this has not always been the case. During the 1990's there only existed a limited amount of
standardized systems and many companies therefore developed their own information
systems. These in-house developed systems, often called legacy systems, have been further
developed over the years, as the companies and their businesses have advanced. Thus many
companies are now locked-in with large, complex and tightly integrated legacy systems,
which are hard to replace and to move away from.
The purpose of this report is twofold. Firstly to investigate the processes of making an
upgrading strategy selection, that is, to give guidelines on how a company shall move away
from a complex legacy system. This is based on an extensive theoretical study on the subject
as well as seven semi-structured interviews with people with experience or knowledge on the
subject. The second purpose of this report is to analyze what implications different upgrading
strategies would have if they were implemented at Scania. Therefore a case study of the
company, where 15 semi-structured interviews were held constitutes the ground for a situation
analysis, which is compared to the result of the theoretical study.
The process of upgrading an information system can roughly be divided into four steps:
Situation Analysis, Investigations on upgrading strategies, Evaluation and Analysis, and
Selection. The first two steps are in focus in this report in order to give guidance on how to
initiate an upgrading project.
Main findings are that the choice of upgrading strategy is mainly dependent on the company's
characteristics and standpoint on the factors; organizational structure, future strategy, the
processes that needs support and stakeholders. These factors in turn take different shapes
depending on the upgrading strategy; Migration to another platform, developing a new
system, Modular solution and Single Vendor system. An evaluation and analysis on the
implications of the different upgrading strategies for Scania is also presented.


Inter-observer variability and cancer over-diagnosis are emerging clinical problems, and there is a strong necessity to support the standards histological and cytological evaluations by biochemical composition information. Over the past decades, there has been a very active research in the development of Raman spectroscopy techniques for oncological applications and large scale clinical diagnosis. A major issue that has received a lot of attention in the Raman literature is the fact that variations in instrumental responses and intrinsic spectral backgrounds over different days of measurements or devices creates strong inconsistency of Raman intensity spectra over the various experimental condition, thus making the use of Raman spectroscopy on a large scale and reproductive basis difficult. We explore different methods to tackle this inconsistency and show that regular preprocessing methods such as baseline correction, normalization or wavelet transformation are inefficient on our datasets. We find that subtracting the mean background spectrum estimated by identifying non-cell regions in Raman images makes the data more consistent. As a proof of concept, we employ our single-cell Raman Imaging protocol to diagnosis challenging follicular lesions, that is known to be particularly difficult due to the lack of obvious morphological and cytological criteria for malignancy. We explore dimensionality reduction with both PCA and feature selection methods, and classification is then performed at the single cell level with standard classifiers such as k Nearest Neighbors or Random Forest. We investigate Raman hyperspectral images from FTC133, RO82W-1 and NthyOri 3-1 cell lines and show that the chemical information for the diagnosis is mostly contained in the cytoplasm. We also reveal some important wavenumber for malignancy, that can be associated mainly to lipids, cytochrome and phenylalanine.


Evidence is presented that suggests a role for transmembrane domain interactions in the assembly of class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules. Mutations in the transmembrane domains of the class II MHC alpha or beta chains resulted in proteins that did not generate complexes recognized by conformation-dependent antibodies and that were largely retained in the endoplasmic reticulum. Insertion of the alpha and beta transmembrane domains into other proteins allowed the chimeric proteins to assemble, suggesting a direct interaction of the alpha and beta transmembrane domains. The interactions were mediated by a structural motif involving several glycine residues on the same face of a putative alpha helix.


This study produces a nearly comprehensive phylogeny for the marine gastropod group Cypraeidae (cowries) and uses this topology to examine diversification patterns in the tropics. The dataset is based on molecular sequence data from two mitochondrial genes and includes 210 evolutionary significant units (ESUs) from 170 recognized species (>80%). Systematics for the group is revised based on well-supported clades, and tree topology is generally consistent with previously proposed classification schemes. Three new genera are introduced (Cryptocypraea gen. nov, Palmulacypraea gen. nov, and Contradusta gen. nov) and two previous genera are resurrected (Perisserosa and Eclogavena). One new tribe is proposed (Bistolidini). Topologies produced by a range of transition:transversion (Ti:Tv) weighting schemes in parsimony are pooled and evaluated using maximum likelihood criteria. Extensive geographical coverage shows persistent, large-scale geographical structure in sister-groups. Genetic divergence between subspecies is often equivalent or even greater than that between recognized species. Using ESUs as a metric, diversity throughout the Indo-West Pacific (IWP) increases by 38%. Intra- and inter-regional diversification patterns show that the IWP is the centre for speciation in cowries. The other major tropical regions of the world are inhabited by a predominantly relictual fauna; from a cowrie's eye-view. Good dispersal ability begets larger ranges, increased extinction resistance and morphological stasis; whereas shorter larval duration results in smaller ranges, higher speciation rates, but also higher turnover. Larval duration and dispersal ability appear correlated with ocean productivity as taxa with longer-lived larvae are associated with oligotrophic conditions; whereas taxa with shorter larval durations are associated with eutrophic, continental conditions. This tendency is carried to the extreme in temperate or upwelling regions where a planktonic phase is completely lost and crawl-away larvae evolve multiple times. A strong phylogenetic trend supports these observations as lineages leading up to and including the derived Indo-West Pacific Erroneinae clade contain taxa predominantly restricted to continental habitats and have undergone the greatest evolutionary radiations in their respective regions.


Five subjects related to monolithic integration of electronic and optical devices in the (AlGa)As material system are treated in this thesis. They are: 1. The Integrated Optoelectronic Repeater: The design, fabrication, and testing of the first monolithic integrated optical repeater is described. This device consists of an optical detector, electronic gain stage, and current modulated semiconductor laser transmitter integrated in a single crystal chip to perform the function of regenerating an optical signal as might be found in an optical communication system. The device has a measured optical gain (light out to light in) of 10 dB. 2. Ion Implanted Lasers and Schottky Gate Field Effect Transistors: The use of ion implantation as a technique to fabricate both lasers and field effect transistors is described. Devices fabricated include a beryllium implanted laser diode on N type GaAs substrate, a beryllium implanted laser diode on semi-insulating Cr doped GaAs substrate integrated with a field effect transistor driver, and sulfur implanted GaAs field effect transistors. 3. A Steady State Lateral Model of the Double Heterostructure Laser: A theoretical model of the double heterostructure laser is described which treats the p-n junction in the device correctly by using fundamental semiconductor relationships and reasonable assumptions about the device heterointerfaces. The model treats both the electronic and optical properties self consistently, making the model valid above lasing threshold. Finite element formalism is adopted as a solution technique to enable the treatment of complicated diode geometries. An example is treated and theoretical and experimental results are compared. 4. The Effect of Lateral Carrier Diffusion on the Modulation Response of a Semiconductor Laser: The effect of lateral carrier diffusion upon the modulation characteristics of the semiconductor laser is investigated. A self consistent analysis of the spatially dependent rate equations is performed using a finite element model. The transverse junction stripe laser is treated as an example and a comparison is made between lateral carrier diffusion and spontaneous emission as damping mechanisms for the resonance peak. Experimental results bear out the conclusion that the relaxation resonance in this device is damped mainly by lateral carrier diffusion. In addition, a simple analytic result is presented which illustrates qualitatively the effect of lateral carrier diffusion upon such devices. The conclusion from this result is that lateral carrier diffusion serves to damp the relaxation resonance in the semiconductor laser quite well, but probably will not serve to improve the upper limit on modulation frequency as might have been suspected. 5. Effective Permittivity Formalism and the Design of Buried Heterostructure Lasers: An approach to effective permittivity formalism is presented which clarifies and extends the use of this technique particularly in the treatment of waveguiding in the semiconductor laser. The scalar wave equation is posed in a variational form, and the effective permittivity formalism is treated as a variational approximation technique. This approach shows clearly the nature and limits of the approximation involved. The formalism is applied to the case of the buried heterostructure laser and the results differ considerably from the conventional application of effective permittivity formalism to this device when a reasonable form is assumed for the variational modal profile.


The Positron Emission Mammography imaging system (PEMi) provides a novel nuclear diagnosis method dedicated for breast imaging. With a better resolution than whole body PET, PEMi can detect millimeter-sized breast tumors. To address the requirement of semi-quantitative analysis with a radiotracer concentration map of the breast, a new attenuation correction method based on a three-dimensional seeded region growing image segmentation (3DSRG-AC) method has been developed. The method gives a 3D connected region as the segmentation result instead of image slices. The continuity property of the segmentation result makes this new method free of activity variation of breast tissues. The threshold value chosen is the key process for the segmentation method. The first valley in the grey level histogram of the reconstruction image is set as the lower threshold, which works well in clinical application. Results show that attenuation correction for PEMi improves the image quality and the quantitative accuracy of radioactivity distribution determination. Attenuation correction also improves the probability of detecting small and early breast tumors.


Rapid removal of the organic methylene blue (MB) dye was achieved by simple stirring of highly porous Ni–Fe–Cr–Al metal foam coated with bismuth vanadate (BiVO4). The metal foam was dip-coated with the BiVO4 solution precursor and annealed for an hour, through which the foam surface was decorated with the highly porous nanostructure, yielding high adsorptivity. This bismuth-decorated metal foam was characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron, and scanning electron microscopy to elucidate its physical, chemical, and morphological properties. The modeled pollutant, MB, was stirred with the metal foam both in darkness and in light. Complete decolorization was observed for both of these conditions, which indicates that adsorption dominates over photocatalysis; we found that photocatalysis contributed to less than 10% of the purification process. We also demonstrated that it would be possible to recycle the metal foam as many as 20 times, beyond which its purification capability degrades. However, the MB residues on the foam can be removed by simple annealing; thus, in theory the foam can be recycled indefinitely.


This paper describes a new blind channel estimation algorithm for Space-Time Block Coded (STBC) systems. The proposed method exploits the statistical independence of sources before space-time encoding. The channel matrix is estimated by minimizing a kurtosis-based cost function after Zero-Forcing equalization. In contrast to subspace or Second-Order Statistics (SOS) approaches, the proposed method is more general since it can be employed for the general class of linear STBCs including Spatial Multiplexing, Orthogonal, quasi-Orthogonal and Non-Orthogonal STBCs. Furthermore, unlike other approaches, the method does not require any modification of the transmitter and, consequently, is well-suited for non-cooperative context. Numerical examples corroborate the performance of the proposed algorithm.


We have simultaneously measured the friction and triboelectrification between two adhering SAM-coated molecularly smooth dissimilar metal surfaces using a modified surface forces apparatus. As the pressure is increased, triboelectrification increases drastically with large fluctuations about the mean. When the surfaces are in static contact, none of these effects is observed. Triboelectrification strongly depends on the friction type and force, sliding distance, contact area and sliding history. We also show that both SAMs and metal substrates contribute to the charge transfer mechanism.Copyright © 2005 by ASME


SUMMARY There is increasing concern about balancing agronomic and environmental gains from nitrogen (N) usage on dairy farms. Data from a 3-year (2009–2011) survey were used to assess farm-gate N balances and N use efficiency (NUE) on 21 intensive grass-based dairy farms operating under the good agricultural practice (GAP) regulations in Ireland. Mean stocking rate (SR) was 2·06 livestock units (LU)/ha, mean N surplus was 175 kg/ha, or 0·28 kg N/kg milk solids (MS), and mean NUE was 0·23. Nitrogen inputs were dominated by inorganic fertilizer (186 kg N/ha) and concentrates (26·6 kg N/ha), whereas outputs were dominated by milk (40·2 kg N/ha) and livestock (12·8 kg N/ha). Comparison with similar studies carried out before the introduction of the GAP regulations in 2006 would suggest that N surplus, both per ha and per kg MS, have significantly decreased (by 40 and 32%, respectively) and NUE increased (by 27%), mostly due to decreased inorganic fertilizer N input and improvements in N management, with a notable shift towards spring application of organic manures, indicating improved awareness of the fertilizer value of organic manures and good compliance with the GAP regulations regarding fertilizer application timing. These results would suggest a positive impact of the GAP regulations on dairy farm N surplus and NUE, indicating an improvement in both environmental and economic sustainability of dairy production through improved resource-use efficiencies. Such improvements will be necessary to achieve national targets of improved water quality and increased efficiency/sustainability of the dairy industry. The weak impact of SR on N surplus found in the present study would suggest that, with good management, increased SR and milk output per ha may be achievable, while decreasing N surplus per ha. Mean N surplus was lower than the overall mean surplus (224 kg N/ha) from six studies of northern and continental European dairy farms, while mean NUE was similar, largely due to the low input/output system that is more typical in Ireland, with seasonal milk production (compact spring calving), low use of concentrates, imported feed and forages, high use of grazed grass and lower milk yields per ha.


Knowledge plays a key role in the process of Open Innovation (OI). Nevertheless, by following the Knowledge Management (KM) lens OI has been barely examined. Therefore the aim of this paper is to provide a systematic review of the knowledge activities examined by previous literature to support OI results. The measures were taken to revise previous studies systematically in order to carry out a valuable literature review. After a collective analysis, we were able to garner a final review on 24articles. We subsequently identified and analyzed them by three major processes of OI. The findings enhanced the understanding of the various sources of knowledge practices and was able identify the best practices based on inbound, outbound and coupled processes to support OI activities. The empirical evidence found in the literature, highlights the shortcomings of the state-of-the-art and proposes possible avenues for studies. Despite knowledge being the most relevant resource integrated in OI activities, this is the first attempt to highlight how knowledge should be managed in an OI context by adopting knowledge lens. In addition to our research, we also recognize relevant topics that have been understudied so far which we are proposing as potential avenues for study.


Deep neural networks (DNNs)-powered Electrocardiogram (ECG) diagnosis systems recently achieve promising progress to take over tedious examinations by cardiologists. However, their vulnerability to adversarial attacks still lack comprehensive investigation. The existing attacks in image domain could not be directly applicable due to the distinct properties of ECGs in visualization and dynamic properties. Thus, this paper takes a step to thoroughly explore adversarial attacks on the DNN-powered ECG diagnosis system. We analyze the properties of ECGs to design effective attacks schemes under two attacks models respectively. Our results demonstrate the blind spots of DNN-powered diagnosis systems under adversarial attacks, which calls attention to adequate countermeasures.


Objective: To report the long-term (30-month) effect of the switch from insulin to sulfonylurea in a patient carrying the p.G53D (c.158G>A) mutation in KCNJ11 gene. Subject and method: A 29-year-old male patient was diagnosed with diabetes in the third month of life and after identification of a heterozygous p.G53D mutation in the KCNJ11 gene, the therapy was switched from insulin to sulfonylurea. Results: Long-term follow-up (30 months) showed that good metabolic control was maintained (HbA1c: 6.6%) and the glibenclamide dose could be reduced. Conclusion: Long-term therapy with sulfonylureas in patients with neonatal diabetes due to mutation in the KCNJ11 gene is safe and promotes sustained improvement of glycemic control. Arq Bras Endocrinol Metab. 2010;54(8):682-4


THE article "Forty Years of Lithium Treatment" 1 represents a remarkable journey of 40 years by Schou, one of the pioneers in the treatment of manic-depressive illness and one of the most fervent advocates for lithium prophylaxis. Schou's article is based on a lecture given at the introductory plenary session of the First International Conference on Bipolar Disorder held in Pittsburgh, Pa, June 23-24, 1994. The major purpose of this conference was to identify both current advances in the treatment of bipolar disorder and unresolved problems in both the short- and long-term treatment of this severe psychiatric disorder. Many of the speakers demonstrated their concern that as many as 40% of patients with bipolar disorder are not effectively treated with lithium. Since the development of alternative forms of therapy has become of increasing importance, it seems appropriate to review the current assets and liabilities of lithium treatment. In this


Clinicians and policymakers are recognizing the importance of measuring health related quality of life (HRQL) to inform patient management and policy decisions. Self or interviewer administered questionnaires can be used to measure cross sectional differences in quality of life between patients at a point in time (discriminative instruments) or longitudinal changes in HRQL within patients over time (evaluative instruments). Both discriminative and evaluative instruments must be valid (really measuring what they are supposed to measure) and have a high ratio of signal to noise (reliability and responsiveness, respectively). Reliable discriminative instruments are able to reproducibly differentiate between persons. Responsive evaluative measures are able to detect important changes in HRQL over time, even if those changes are small. HRQL should be interpretable--that is, clinicians and policymakers must be able to identify differences in scores that correspond to trivial, small, moderate, and large differences. Two basic approaches to quality of life measurement are available: generic instruments that attempt to provide a summary of health related quality of life; and specific instruments that focus on problems associated with individual disease states, patient groups, or areas of function. Generic instruments include health profiles and instruments that generate health utilities. The approaches are not mutually exclusive. Each approach has its strengths and weaknesses and may be suitable under different circumstances. Investigations in HRQL have led to instruments suitable for detecting minimally important effects in clinical trials, measuring the health of populations, and for providing information for policy decisions.


Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a ubiquitous B-cell trophic herpesvirus associated with a variety of histologically diverse B-cell lymphomas, each associated with specific viral-latency gene expression programs. Initial infection drives resting B-cells to differentiate via an atypical germinal centre reaction into memory B-cells, where the virus resides in a latent state. The mechanisms that underpin this process have yet to be fully elucidated. EBV expresses more than 40 microRNAs (miRNAs). The alternatively spliced BamHI A rightward transcripts (BARTs) are the template for two large miRNA clusters (BARTs A and B), that comprise the majority of all known EBV-miRNAs. Although BART-miRNAs are abundantly expressed in all latency programs, few BART-miRNA targets have been identified and their function is poorly understood. The early B-cell factor 1 (EBF1) was identified using bioinformaticss analysis as a novel target of EBV-miRNA BART11-5p, encoded by BART cluster B. EBF1 is an important B-cell transcription factor that regulates many B-cell specific genes including Pax5, BCR and CD40 and is critical for germinal centre formation. Using luciferase reporter assays and a series of BART-constructs, we confirmed silencing via the EBF1 3' untranslated region (UTR) and identified the target site as 2137-2159 bp after the stop codon. Results were confirmed following transfection of a BART11-5p mimic, which was able to silence via the predicted target site. Our findings highlight a potential role of BART-miRNAs in the regulation of B-cell differentiation.


The diagnosis of Meniere's disease (MD) and vestibular migraine (VM) is primarily based on clinical criteria and their differentiation is often difficult. Currently, there are no known definitive diagnostic tests that can reliably distinguish the two conditions. Patients with MD and patients with VM are treated differently, therefore improving the diagnosis of these two pathologies should avoid errors in management. A systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. Medline-Ovid and Embase databases were used to conduct a thorough search of English-language publications dating from 1948 to March 2016. The primary search objective was to identify all papers explicitly comparing MD and VM in order to clarify and validate the diagnosis of these two diseases. A total of 13 articles out of 831 were reviewed. Among other differences, MD showed later age of onset, more hearing loss, tinnitus, aural fullness, abnormal nystagmus, abnormal caloric testing results, abnormal vestibular evoked myogenic potential and endolymphatic hydrops. VM showed more headaches, photophobia, vomiting and aura. Even though differences were noted between the two diseases, only one study focused on assessing the differences between VM, MD and patients fulfilling both diagnostic criteria (MDVM). This study showed no difference between the three groups. Since the introduction of the new International Headache Society and Barany Society criteria for VM, no studies have focused on comparing these three groups. We strongly encourage authors to focus on comparing MD and VM from MDVM in future studies to help adequately distinguish the diagnosis of both diseases.