AIMS
RheumaTool is a clinical decision support system designed to support the diagnostic process in rheumatology by presenting a differential diagnosis list after the input of clinical information. The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of RheumaTool in detecting the correct diagnosis in referrals to a rheumatology clinic.

METHODS
In this retrospective chart analysis, data were gathered from patients with musculoskeletal complaints and an uncertain diagnosis who were referred to a Swiss tertiary rheumatology outpatient clinic. Data were entered into RheumaTool in a standardised fashion, while the principal diagnoses in the medical reports were blinded. RheumaTool's output was compared to the correct diagnoses, established either by widely accepted diagnostic criteria or through the expert consensus of independent rheumatologists. Diagnostic precision, the primary endpoint, was defined as the proportion of correctly diagnosed cases among all cases.

RESULTS
One hundred and sixty cases with 46 different diseases were included in this analysis. RheumaTool correctly diagnosed 40% (95% confidence interval 32.4–48.1) of all cases. In 63.8% (95% confidence interval 55.7–71.1), the correct diagnosis was present in a differential diagnosis list consisting of a median of two diagnoses.

CONCLUSION
In this first validation, RheumaTool provides a useful list of differential diagnoses. However, there is not sufficient diagnostic reliability for unfiltered data entry, especially in patients with multiple concomitant musculoskeletal disorders. This must be taken into account when using RheumaTool.


Objectives Mutations involving the CDKL5 gene have been identified as a cause of severe epileptic encephalopathy, often later presenting with features similar to Rett syndrome.1 Cardinal features of epilepsy in the CDKL5 disorder include early onset at a median age of six weeks and poor response to anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs).2 The Ketogenic Diet (KD) was first introduced in the 1920s and is as a second- or third-line intervention for paediatric refractory epilepsy.3 This study investigated the use of KD in the CDKL5 disorder and its influences on seizures. Methods The International CDKL5 Disorder Database (ICDD), established in 2012, collects information from caregivers and clinicians of individuals with the CDKL5 disorder. Families provided information regarding seizure characteristics, use of and side effects of the KD treatment. Descriptive statistics and time to event analyses were performed. Results Data regarding KD use was available for 204 individuals with a pathogenic CDKL5 mutation. Median age of ascertainment to the database was 4.8 years (range 0.3–33.9 years) with median age of seizure onset of 6 weeks (range 1 day–65 weeks). History of KD use was reported for 51% (104/204) which was used for a median duration of 17 months (95% CI 9 to 24). Changes in seizure activity after commencing KD were reported for two-thirds of individuals (69/104), with positive effects reported for 88%. Nearly one-third (31.7%) experienced side effects during the diet. At ascertainment, only one-third (32%) remained on the diet with lack of long-term efficacy as the main reason for diet discontinuation (51%, 36/70). Conclusions Benefits of KD in the CDKL5 disorder coincide with findings of previous trials on refractory epilepsy. However, poor long-term efficacy remains as a significant barrier. In view of its side effects, KD should be commenced under the guidance of a paediatric neurologist and/or specialist dietitian.


In the present work, a generic ducted azimuth propulsor, which are frequently installed on a wide range of vessels, is subject to numerical investigation with the primary focus on performance deterioration and dynamic loads arising from the influence of oblique inflow and the presence of free surface. An unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) method with the interface Sliding Mesh technique is employed to resolve interaction between the propulsor components. The VOF formulation is used to resolve the presence of free surface. Numerical simulations are performed, separately, in single-phase fluid to address the influence of oblique inflow on the characteristics of a propulsor operating in free-sailing, trawling and bollard conditions, and in multi-phase flow to address the influence of propulsor submergence. Detailed comparisons with experimental data are presented for the case of a propulsor in oblique flow conditions, including integral propulsor characteristics, loads on propulsor components and single blade loads. The results of the study illustrate the differences in propulsor performance at positive and negative heading angles, reveal the frequencies of dynamic load peaks, and provide quantification of thrust losses due to the effect of a free surface without waves. The mechanisms of ventilation inception found at different propulsor loading conditions are discussed.


This paper proposes a new neural network based on SPD manifold learning for skeleton-based hand gesture recognition. Given the stream of hand's joint positions, our approach combines two aggregation processes on respectively spatial and temporal domains. The pipeline of our network architecture consists in three main stages. The first stage is based on a convolutional layer to increase the discriminative power of learned features. The second stage relies on different architectures for spatial and temporal Gaussian aggregation of joint features. The third stage learns a final SPD matrix from skeletal data. A new type of layer is proposed for the third stage, based on a variant of stochastic gradient descent on Stiefel manifolds. The proposed network is validated on two challenging datasets and shows state-of-the-art accuracies on both datasets.


This article proposes a space–time meshless approach based on the transient radial polynomial series function (TRPSF) for solving convection–diffusion equations. We adopted the TRPSF as the basis function for the spatial and temporal discretization of the convection–diffusion equation. The TRPSF is constructed in the space–time domain, which is a combination of n–dimensional Euclidean space and time into an n + 1–dimensional manifold. Because the initial and boundary conditions were applied on the space–time domain boundaries, we converted the transient problem into an inverse boundary value problem. Additionally, all partial derivatives of the proposed TRPSF are a series of continuous functions, which are nonsingular and smooth. Solutions were approximated by solving the system of simultaneous equations formulated from the boundary, source, and internal collocation points. Numerical examples including stationary and nonstationary convection–diffusion problems were employed. The numerical solutions revealed that the proposed space–time meshless approach may achieve more accurate numerical solutions than those obtained by using the conventional radial basis function (RBF) with the time-marching scheme. Furthermore, the numerical examples indicated that the TRPSF is more stable and accurate than other RBFs for solving the convection–diffusion equation.


Due to the potential enhancements in the execution of software based applications shown by Reconfigurable Instruction Set Processors (RISPs), reconfigurable computing has become a subject of great deal of research in the field of computer sciences. Its key feature is the ability to perform the computations in hardware to increase the performance on one hand while retaining much of the flexibility of the software on the other hand. The VLSI development is continuously improving and new ways must be obtained to become able to fully take the advantages of the emerging technology. Reconfigurable hardware might be the next step which will give computer performance a big leap forward. The idea is to use the now a daypsilas high performance FPGA technology to adapt the hardware to the problem. This research paper presents an alternative design of a RISP which supports multiple threads running concurrently, all with instant hardware support. Core of Xilinx FPGAs like Virtex series has been used to adapt the possibilities of loading partial hardware configurations while retaining the execution of the remaining active parts of the application.


Aims The 17 units in the East of England Perinatal Network, introduced a quality improvement intervention 'care bundle' aimed at increasing use of maternal breast milk (MBM) and reducing variation in enteral feeding practices. The bundle consisted of four elements: early promotion of expression and use of MBM, ongoing support to provide breast milk throughout the neonatal journey, a standardised enteral feeding guideline and an aseptic non-touch technique for milk preparation. Methods The care bundle was implemented in January 2011 following a training programme supported by learning tools, posters and audit materials. Champions disseminated and led the improvements in their own units which included midwives, neonatologists, surgeons and lactation specialists. Monthly audits of compliance were undertaken and Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles of change were used to improve and refine practice. Regular newsletters communicated progress with the changes. Results 90% compliance with all elements of the bundle was achieved across the network within the first eight months of implementation. Over the 4 year evaluation period, exclusive MBM at discharge in the EoE improved significantly faster than in the rest of the country. In the EoE the percentage of care days where babies received MBM was in decline prior to implementation of the bundle, however, there was a significant improvement in trend from pre to post introduction of the bundle. Conclusions Compliance audits demonstrated that it is possible to standardise feeding practices across a network. Quality improvement projects benefit from a structured model for improvement, transparent measurement and feedback and a collaborative multidisciplinary approach.


This study intends to develop a novel method to resolve the problem of extreme dose inhomogeneity in the photon-electron abutting fields in the 3DCRT (3-Dimensinal Conformal Radiation Therapy) for head-and-neck cancer. Firstly, the conventional method using bilateral irradiation of photon and electron beam is reviewed, concerning the inhomogeneity of dose distribution, i.e., the root cause of a hot and a cold spot. Second, based on the root causes in the conventional plan, an alternative method is developed using oblique irradiation of photon and electron beam. Finally, a comparative analysis between both plans is performed to assess feasibility of the new method. From the results of qualitative comparison, it is shown that that the new method can reduce dramatically the maximum dose inside the irradiation fields for all the target region. The volume fractions of hot regions receiving higher dose than the prescribed dose are also significantly decreased. It is also noted that the new method does not give rise to increase in dose to spinal cord. The obtained results suggest that the new method using oblique irradiation of both photon and electron beam can reduce significantly improve the dose inhomogeneity inside radiation field for treatment of head and neck cancer.


Due to the importance of idioms, many researchers and teachers have long sought to find ways of making idiom teaching and learning more effective. This study compared three visual mnemonic devices (pictures, mental imagery, and movie clips) in terms of their effect on EFL learners' recognition and recall of English idioms. Ninety intermediate level EFL learners who were preparing themselves for IELTS participated in this study. They were in three groups of thirty members each. Each group was taught idioms using one of the afore-mentioned visual mnemonic devices. Receptive and productive tests of idioms were administered to all groups after the treatment. The one-way ANOVA procedure was used to analyze the collected data. The results revealed statistically significant differences among these devices, with pictures method being the most effective on both recognition and recall of idioms. The findings of the study can have significant theoretical as well as pedagogical implications for language researchers, textbook designers, curriculum developers, teachers, and language learners.


What is privacy and how are our interpretations of it changing with advances in technology? This question, and concerns around potentially violating a person's right to privacy, have been emerging across industries around the world. Senior living providers have increased their exposure to privacy risks with the shift to implementing sensors throughout their communities. Typically located in digital health devices that can be worn on the body or placed in the environment, these sensors are capable of collecting and tracking data relevant to a person's health and well-being on a continuous monitoring basis.

There are privacy laws and a growing public awareness that this type of 24/7 surveillance—and the unprecedented detailed level of data it generates—should be accompanied by measures that support personal data protection. It is important to note that these privacy risks also apply outside the housing context. For example, seniors centers that use (or are planning to use) sensors to monitor participants and collect the generated data are similarly exposed.

Benefits of sensor surveillance and monitoring of personal data must be balanced with safeguarding protections, especially for cognitively impaired older adults.


A Nash equilibrium is an optimal strategy for each player under the assumption that others play according to their respective Nash strategies. In the presence of irrational
 players or coalitions of colluding players, however, it provides no guarantees. Some recent literature has focused on measuring the potential damage caused by the presence of faulty behavior, as well as designing mechanisms that are resilient against such faults. In this paper we show that large games are naturally fault tolerant. We first quantify the ways in which two subclasses of large games -- λ-continuous games and anonymous games -- are resilient against Byzantine faults (i.e. irrational behavior), coalitions, and asynchronous play. We then show that general large games also have some non-trivial resilience against faults.


The orthotopic murine osteosarcoma model is an excellent representation of the human condition as mice develop rapid growth of 'primary' tumor with subsequent lung metastasis. Currently, monitoring tumor growth relies on measuring pulmonary metastases occurring four weeks post injection. Studies show that amputation of the tumor‐bearing limb is required before pulmonary metastases are detectable due to rapid growth causing morbidity. Thus, a method measuring 'primary' tumor growth independent of metastasis is required. We hypothesized that serial radiography would allow for longitudinal quantification of 'primary' osteosarcoma growth and explored this idea by utilizing the tibial orthotopic model. Tumor growth was monitored weekly by radiography and calipers, and results were compared with µCT and histology. We found that radiographs demonstrate extra and intra‐osseous tumor growth by displaying lytic and blastic lesions and the surrounding radio‐opaque area enlarged significantly (p < 0.0001) allowing for quantification. Additionally, radiographs proved more precise than indirect caliper measurements (intra‐observer error ±6.64%: inter‐observer error ±15.84%). Therefore, we determined that radiography provides accurate, longitudinal quantification of 'primary' osteosarcoma tumor that can be performed serially in the same mouse, does not require introduction of bioluminescence to the host or cell, and is more precise than the current caliper method. © 2011 Orthopaedic Research Society Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 29:1957–1962, 2011


To lead the reinvention of government, many federal agencies are searching for understandable, practical, and effective models to frame strategic change. Executives hope to find strategic models that offer simple, direct solutions to their problems. However, existing models of strategy must be transformed to fit an organization just as the organization must be transformed in light of the model. The model and the organization co-evolve. This is illustrated through a longitudinal case study of the National Reconnaissance Office, which adopted the "Balanced Scorecard" as a strategic management and performance measurement system. This article develops and presents a framework of mutual adaptation to clarify the variety of inter-related changes required in the strategy formulation and implementation.


Scaling of interconnect design rules in advanced nodes has been accompanied by a reducing metrology budget for BEOL process control. Traditional inline optical metrology measurements of BEOL processes rely on 1-dimensional (1D) film pads to characterize film thickness. Such pads are designed on the assumption that solid copper blocks from previous metallization layers prevent any light from penetrating through the copper, thus simplifying the effective film stack for the 1D optical model. However, the reduction of the copper thickness in each metallization layer and CMP dishing effects within the pad, have introduced undesired noise in the measurement. To resolve this challenge and to measure structures that are more representative of product, scatterometry has been proposed as an alternative measurement. Scatterometry is a diffraction based optical measurement technique using Rigorous Coupled Wave Analysis (RCWA), where light diffracted from a periodic structure is used to characterize the profile. Scatterometry measurements on 3D structures have been shown to demonstrate strong correlation to electrical resistance parameters for BEOL Etch and CMP processes. However, there is significant modeling complexity in such 3D scatterometry models, in particlar due to complexity of front-end-of-line (FEOL) and middle-of-line (MOL) structures. The accompanying measurement noise associated with such structures can contribute significant measurement error. To address the measurement noise of the 3D structures and the impact of incoming process variation, a hybrid scatterometry technique is proposed that utilizes key information from the structure to significantly reduce the measurement uncertainty of the scatterometry measurement. Hybrid metrology combines measurements from two or more metrology techniques to enable or improve the measurement of a critical parameter. In this work, the hybrid scatterometry technique is evaluated for 7nm and 14nm node BEOL measurements of interlayer dielectric (ILD) thickness, hard mask thickness and dielectric trench etch in complex 3D structures. The data obtained from the hybrid scatterometry technique demonstrates stable measurement precision, improved within wafer and wafer to wafer range, robustness in cases where 3D scatterometry measurements incur undesired shifts in the measurements, accuracy as compared to TEM and correlation to process deposition time. Process capability indicator comparisons also demonstrate improvement as compared to conventional scatterometry measurements. The results validate the suitability of the method for monitoring of production BEOL processes.


This paper provides a simple and efficient method to detect human faces in videos and recognize persons within the video according to a preset database of known persons. The proposed system consists of three main steps. The first step is skin-like regions detection in CIE-Luv color space. The second step is face detection based on skin-like regions, contour detection and geometrical properties such as face shape. The third step is face verification, in which, each face is compared with a gallery of known faces and the location of the best matched one is returned. Face verification step uses variance formula and skin to non-skin percentage in each facial feature to compare the test face and the faces images in the known database. The proposed system was tested on many different videos with different number of persons in the video. The detected faces are compared with a preset database of known images. Experimental results show that the proposed system is efficient enough to detect faces in different lighting conditions, head pose and face expressions. The results of verification step show that the proposed system is able to retrieve faces from a database with good accuracy in a reasonable computational time compared with classical method, variance estimation method and facial extraction method.


After the 10 regional water authorities of England and Wales were privatized in November 1989, the successor WASCs (water and sewerage companies) faced a new regulatory regime that was designed to promote productivity growth while simultaneously improving drinking water and environmental quality. As legally mandated quality improvements necessitated a costly capital investment programme, the industry's economic regulator – the Office of Water Services – implemented a RPI + K pricing system, designed to compensate the WASCs for their capital investment programme while also encouraging faster rates of productivity growth. This paper considers the relative effects of privatization and regulation on productivity growth in the industry using both non-parametric and parametric methods to provide a crosscheck on the robustness of the results. While there is evidence that labour productivity improved after privatization, there is no evidence that privatization led to a growth in TFP (total factor productivity). However, there is some evidence of a small increase in the rate of TFP growth in the aftermath of a substantial tightening of the regulatory regime that took place in 1995. These results, therefore, are consistent with evidence from other research that privatization, in the absence of effective competition and/or regulation, is not necessarily associated with improved economic performance.


Background The MRC framework describing the development-evaluation-implementation process for phase III complex intervention trials has been extended to include implementation research. We present i) the effectiveness evaluation of the PACE-UP pedometer-based walking intervention and ii) an exploration of implementation planning in routine practice using this extended framework. Methods i) 1023 inactive 45–75 year old primary care patients were randomised to: usual care (338); postal pedometer intervention (339); nurse-supported pedometer intervention (346). Intervention groups received pedometers, 12-week walking programmes, and physical activity (PA) diaries. The nurse group were offered three PA consultations. The primary and main secondary outcomes were changes from baseline to 12-months in average daily step-counts and time in moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) in ≥10 minute bouts, measured over 7 days by accelerometry. ii) the extended MRC framework was used for implementation planning: long-term follow-up and dissemination; implementation development; feasibility and piloting of implementation; and phase IV controlled studies. Results i) 956 (93%) provided outcome data. Baseline average daily step-counts for the whole cohort were 7479 (s.d. 2671) steps/day and average time in MVPA ≥10 minute bouts was 94 (s.d. 102) minutes/week. Both intervention groups significantly increased step-counts and MVPA compared to controls at 12 months, with no significant differences between interventions. Additional steps/day: postal 641 (95% CI: 328, 954), nurse-support 682 (95% CI: 371, 994); additional MVPA in bouts (minutes/week) postal 33 (95% CI: 17, 49), nurse-support 35 (95% CI: 19, 51). ii) Long-term follow-up is funded and in progress; dissemination is underway, including adoption by the local CLAHRC and liaison with national bodies such as Public Health England; funding for intervention development including mobile apps and online resources has been applied for; feasibility testing and piloting of different patient recruitment methods from primary care is planned locally through the CLAHRC; a funding application for a phase IV controlled evaluation study is being developed. Conclusion A primary care pedometer-based walking intervention in inactive 45–75 year olds was effective at increasing step-counts by approximately a tenth and time in MVPA in bouts by approximately a third. Nurse delivery had no greater effect on 12-month PA outcomes than simpler, resource-efficient postal delivery. A primary care postal pedometer intervention could help address the public health physical inactivity challenge. The MRC extended framework for implementation is helpful for structuring the complex implementation process required to translate research findings into practice.


Background Mechanical knee symptoms are often considered important in the decision to perform knee arthroscopy on the suspicion of a meniscal tear. We investigated if presence of a meniscal tear at knee arthroscopy in adults is associated with presence of preoperative self-reported mechanical knee symptoms. Methods We used data from Knee Arthroscopy Cohort Southern Denmark (KACS). KACS consists of patients aged 18 years or older referred to knee arthroscopy on the suspicion of a meniscal tear at four recruiting hospitals between 1 February 2013 and 31 January 2015. Of 1259 invited patients, 908 (72%) replied to the baseline questionnaire. With 91 patients excluded, the study sample consisted of 641 and 176 patients with and without a meniscal tear confirmed at surgery, respectively. Exposure was meniscal tear as determined by the knee surgeon during arthroscopy. Main outcomes were preoperative mechanical knee symptoms defined as self-reported catching/locking or self-reported inability to straighten knee fully. Results 55% of all patients reported symptoms of catching/locking and 47% were unable to straighten their knee fully. Preoperative mechanical symptoms were equally prevalent in patients with and without a meniscal tear (prevalence ratio catching/locking 0.89, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.03, and inability to straighten knee fully, prevalence ratio 1.02, 95% CI 0.84 to 1.23). Interpretation Patient-reported mechanical symptoms were equally common irrespective of presence or absence of a meniscal tear in patients undergoing arthroscopy for suspicion of a meniscal tear. Our findings suggest that mechanical knee symptoms have a limited value when considering indication for meniscal surgery. Trial registration number NCT01871272; Results.


Individual-level variation arising from responses to environmental gradients influences population and community dynamics. How such responses empirically relate to the mechanisms that govern species coexistence is however not well understood. Previous results from lake phytoplankton communities suggested that the evenness of organisms in multidimensional trait space increases with resource limitation, possibly due to resource partitioning at the individual level. Here we experimentally tested the emergence of this pattern by growing two phytoplankton species (Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, Microcystis aeruginosa) under a gradient of light intensity, in monoculture and jointly. Under low light (resource) conditions, the populations diversified into a wide range of phenotypes, which were evenly distributed in multidimensional trait space (defined by four pigment-related trait dimensions), confirming the observed field pattern. Our results provide prime experimental evidence that resource limitation induces even spacing of conspecific and heterospecific microbial phenotypes along trait axes, and advances our understanding of trait-based coexistence.


In this article, I explore what a critical environmental perspective would look like in Melanesia, where the distinction between nature and culture, and the expectation that science interprets the former in terms of the latter, may not apply. I consider changes in scientific knowledge production and the shift from cultural ecology to political ecology in Melanesian anthropology, including the argument that Melanesians are neither conservationists nor environmentalists. In contrast, I show how people exposed to pollution from the Ok Tedi copper and gold mine in Papua New Guinea mobilize their understandings of difference in a green critique of capitalism. I examine a strategy session of local activists, a public meeting about their campaign against the mine, and a sorcery tribunal. Finally, I suggest that Melanesian ideas about social relations provide a useful ethnographic analogy for thinking about the mobility and short temporal horizons of contemporary capitalism. (Keywords: capitalism, Melanesia, mining, reverse anthropology, science)


Paper-based sensing technology has attracted much attention due to its light weight, low cost, ease of fabrication, and many other advantages. Here we combine paper-based sensing technology with a direct laser writing method to design and fabricate a simple and wearable healthcare sensor based on polyimide (PI)/paper bilayer structure. With assistance of infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and coupled electrical–mechanical testing, the effect of material processing temperature on the sensing characteristics of the PI/paper bilayer film was studied. The PI/paper bilayer film-based sensors have been successfully demonstrated for their use in monitoring pulsing and respiration activities, and in working as dual sensors for simultaneously detecting force and humidity stimuli. The differential response of PI and paper to different chemical and physical stimuli would make the PI/paper bilayer film a versatile platform for developing multi-functional and multi-modal sensors.


During the latest years, artificial intelligence, and especially machine learning (ML), have experienced a growth in popularity due to their versatility and potential in solving complex problems. In fact, ML allows the efficient handling of big volumes of data, allowing to tackle issues that were unfeasible before, especially with deep learning, which utilizes multilayered neural networks. Cardiac computed tomography (CT) is also experiencing a rise in examination numbers, and ML might help handle the increasing derived information. Moreover, cardiac CT presents some fields wherein ML may be pivotal, such as coronary calcium scoring, CT angiography, and perfusion. In particular, the main applications of ML involve image preprocessing and postprocessing, and the development of risk assessment models based on imaging findings. Concerning image preprocessing, ML can help improve image quality by optimizing acquisition protocols or removing artifacts that may hinder image analysis and interpretation. ML in image postprocessing might help perform automatic segmentations and shorten examination processing times, also providing tools for tissue characterization, especially concerning plaques. The development of risk assessment models fromML using data from cardiac CT could aid in the stratification of patients who undergo cardiac CT in different risk classes and better tailor their treatment to individual conditions. While ML is a powerful tool with great potential, applications in the field of cardiac CT are still expanding, and not yet routinely available in clinical practice due to the need for extensive validation. Nevertheless, ML is expected to have a big impact on cardiac CT in the near future.


KM is experiencing the steep downward slope of the "hype cycle" and some organizations are rushing to abandon KM as quickly as they rushed to adopt it. Unfortunately, much of our understanding of what KM can do for organizations is still limited to academic treatises and small pilot studies. Managers therefore realize they must market KM more effectively in order to communicate its potential and build a coalition of support while KM matures and evolves. To explore this issue, the authors convened a focus group of practicing knowledge managers. After examining how KM groups currently market themselves, this paper constructs a framework for marketing KM in an organization that integrates the experiences of KM managers with basic marketing principles. It concludes that KM faces many marketing challenges, including lack of understanding of the need, lack of brand awareness, and a negative brand attitude. It recommends that knowledge managers must see themselves as internal entrepreneurs, first building a market for their product and then developing an effective marketing strategy. It also suggests there is a hierarchy of knowledge needs in organizations that must be addressed sequentially in order to develop trust and credibility among general business managers.


textabstractInfluenza viruses continuously circulate in the human population and are
estimated to cause 3-5 million cases of severe respiratory illness annually
worldwide of which 250.000-500.000 have a fatal outcome. Vaccination is
the most efficient measure to control infectious diseases, however,
vaccination against influenza viruses is complicated by their antigenic
variability. Current seasonal influenza vaccines are comprised of
components from influenza A (H1N1 & H3N2) and B viruses that are
expected to circulate in the next influenza season. These seasonal
vaccines aim at the induction of virus neutralizing antibodies against the
surface glycoprotein hemagglutinin (HA) and are efficient in providing
protective immunity against antigenically similar influenza viruses.
However, they afford little or no protection from infection with antigenically
distinct seasonal or pandemic influenza viruses. In order to induce broadly
protective immunity against multiple and antigenically distinct influenza
viruses, novel vaccine targets and antigen delivery systems are
investigated. Furthermore, novel techniques are under development to
facilitate production of large quantities of vaccine doses in a short period of
time. The vaccine vector Modified Vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) expressing
one or multiple influenza virus antigens could potentially provide in these
needs. In this thesis, the development and use of rMVA-based influenza
vaccines was addressed. Even though MVA has been tested extensively in
various animal models and has been administered to >100.000 human
subjects, a few key questions regarding the MVA vaccine vector remained
to be answered. To that end, the studies described in this thesis elucidated
the in vivo cell tropism of MVA-based vaccines and assessed the potential
risk of interference with rMVA-based vaccination by orthopoxvirus-specific
pre-existing immunity. Furthermore, novel rMVA-based influenza vaccine
candidates were developed and evaluated by pre-clinical and clinical
testing. These studies contribute to the development of next-generation
influenza vaccines.


Measurements were made of the maximum push, pull, and tangential forces that could be applied to airplane wheel-type controls for a wide range of fore-and-aft positions of the wheel. The measurements were conducted with several sizes of wheels and several heights of the center of the wheel above the seat. Various one and two-hand grips with pilots both secure and free were studied for each of the two pilots used in the investigation.


The article presents concepts of programs for Classes I-III, paying particular attention to learning objectives in the education and upbringing of children. These set not only the direction to be taken at the level of method, but also the manners of their implementation in accordance with the proposal of the Ministry of National Education. The role and importance of constructivism in early childhood education is also worth noting. The various ways of interpreting constructivism can stimulate reflection and open up new possibilities with regard to what teachers themselves can do. Currently, the methods involved in working with children reflect teaching oriented towards constructivist ideas, which in turn, put great emphasis on the fact that learning conditions are greatly influenced by those people directly involved, namely: students, teachers and parents. Constructivists, perceiving learning as a process wherein the individual builds their own knowledge, stress the role of the individual learner. Critical analysis of the curriculum, the conditions relevant to its implementation, and the various ways in which the latter may be pursued, opens up the whole pedagogical discourse regarding working with children in Classes I-III as this pertains to the practical application of the statutory provisions regarding school practice. When it comes to the seeking the optimum solutions for didacticeducational work, and for effective upbringing, what is decisive is pedagogical competence, including awareness of the overall role played by the educating and teaching of children.


Graphical user interfaces (GUIs) are gradually becoming more powerful and more accepted. They are the standard way of interacting with the web and play an increasing role in many software applications. Nevertheless, they have not been generally adopted, and critics point to particular weaknesses and disadvantages. Many of these are due more to flaws in design and implementation than to the basic concepts of GUIs. More attention could be paid to what users want to do and how a GUI might be developed to support these goals. Using a dataset about Oscar nominees and winners, this paper considers what analyses statisticians might carry out and what kind of GUI would be appropriate for these tasks. (It also offers some insights into the Oscars dataset.)


The IT community has a long history of developing theory to explain when people will change their behaviors to adopt new technology systems. Two current technology adoption theories, the Technology Adoption Model and the Value Frequency Model, draw from different groups of referent theory: Reasons Theories (RTs) and Expectancy Value Theories (EVTs). RTs and EVTs make different assumptions about how people form attitudes toward behavioral changes (i.e., to adopt or not). Having a better understanding of how people make judgments that affect their behavioral choices could help guide the choice of referent theory when developing new IT theory. This study examined how people responded to attitude-shaping scenarios as a way to gain insight into the assumptions that could be guiding their choices. Their responses indicated a tendency to assign values in ways consistent with the assumptions and processes articulated in EVTs.


The motivation for this research is based on how artists
mix and print colour by traditional means (painting and
printmaking) and how these differ from colour picker tools,
slider bars and methods developed for digital printing, and
whether it is possible to incorporate both? Artists have been expert at mixing colour for centuries, yet although the artist and designer has access to a wide range of digital imaging tools and technologies, that on first glance, are dedicated to the creation of colour mixtures, the resulting colours are often disappointing. It appears that hardware, software tools and methods for digital printing are not necessarily suited to the specific requirements of the artist. In fact, they are too
generalised to obtain a high degree of quality and too inflexible to allow artists to obtain precision and predictability. Based on existing hardware and software, the paper suggests alternative approaches to custom colour ink mixing and printing. Through the development of alternative ink colours specifically mixed for inkjet printing the paper demonstrates specially designed
charts for printing and double printing of custom mixed inks.


The most numerous and malicious types of pathogens fungal diseases of plants cultural cereals – Triticum аestivum  L . , Secale cereale L . та Triticum trispecies Shulind. in conditions of anthropical ecosystem Central Right-bank Forest-Steppe are Microdochium nivale (Fr.) , Blumeria graminis (DC.) f. sp. tritici Speer , Puccinia recondita Rob. ex. Desm f. sp. tritici та Tillitia caries (Tul.), Tillitia secalis (Korda, Kuhn) etc., manifestation of parasitism depends on genotypical, phenotypical, ontogenetical peculiarities plants, growing conditions. According to the results of years of research (2007–2016) highlighted group of plant formsthat are characterized by mono-, two- and polyfacet of resistance epiphytoparasites. That peculiarity owning heterogeneous or multilinearity plant forms (Аriivkа, Yuvivata 60, КС 1, Л 3-95, Л 4639/96), formed as a result of hybridization and repeated bekrossing and selected from hybrid populations by means individual and mass selections. The mechanism of plant genetic heterogeneity of the aforementioned forms due to the presence of multivariate phenetical markers – components of the spectra gliadin proteins (6А1, 6А4, 6В1, 6В3 etc.), as well as the phenotypical and ontogenetical their homogeneity, which increases the resistance of plant populations to adverse biotic stress environment. Among the studied assortment varietal plants tribe Triticeae , medium higher stability of some of them to the spectrum specified above epiphytoparasites caused by their variety individuals, which, mass and individual selection as a result of the reproduction, give rise to whole families – point populations (manifesting different firmness to one and the same species and races of pathogens, including with progressive race creative process), that is the basis of formed varieties – as megapopulation. Adaptive mechanisms of plant populations cultural crops to adverse biotic stress, particularly damaging pathogens are a number of biological peculiarities (molecular genetics, physiological, biochemical, morphological, ontogenetic, biocenotic), identification of plants which reflects the degree of their adaptive ability, ecological plasticity and sustainability. In general, the mechanisms resistance of plant tribe Triticeae to epiphytoparasites can distinguish by the following types: functional stability (sustainability, is caused by peculiarities of functional parameters of the plant), morphological tolerance (the ability of plants to resist damage without reducing productivity), ontogenetic evasion (sustainability, is caused by peculiarities ontogenetic of development of plants), photoperiodic sensitivity (retarded the development in autumn and late spring vegetation) and genetic heterogeneity (the presence of morphologically identical homozygous of lines differing by the spectrum of component proteins gliadin). Plant forms that possess mono- and polyfacet resistance to epiphytoparasites avoid parasite influence of fungi due to the mechanism ontogenetic evasion (Slavetne, Chaian, Vіvаtе Nоsіvskе, Pshenychne, Prydesnyanska n/k, Zoriana Nosivska etc.). The manifestations of mechanisms morphological tolerance of plant populations (Noshpа 100, Л 41/95, Bоrоtba, Slavetne) are medium- and high stem, woolly of eaves, stems, waxy coating, high index leaf, half procumbent and half vertical bush form, awned spike, glossy surface and gray color of leaves, stems.


Abstract Quartz (trigonal, low-temperature α-quartz) is the most important polymorph of the silica (SiO2) group and one of the purest minerals in the Earth crust. The mineralogy and mineral chemistry of quartz are determined mainly by its defect structure. Certain point defects, dislocations and micro-inclusions can be incorporated into quartz during crystallisation under various thermodynamic conditions and by secondary processes such as alteration, irradiation, diagenesis or metamorphism. The resulting real structure is a fingerprint of the specific physicochemical environment of quartz formation and also determines the quality and applications of SiO2 raw materials. Point defects in quartz can be related to imperfections associated with silicon or oxygen vacancies (intrinsic defects), to different types of displaced atoms, and/or to the incorporation of foreign ions in lattice sites and interstitial positions (extrinsic defects). Due to mismatch in charges and ionic radii only a limited number of ions can substitute for Si4+ in the crystal lattice or can be incorporated in interstitial positions. Therefore, most impurity elements in quartz are present at concentrations below 1 ppm. The structural incorporation in a regular Si4+ lattice site has been proven for Al3+, Ga3+, Fe3+, B3+, Ge4+, Ti4+, P5+ and H+, of which Al3+ is by far the most common and typically the most abundant. Unambiguous detection and characterisation of defect structures in quartz are a technical challenge and can only be successfully realised by a combination of advanced analytical methods such as electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, cathodoluminescence (CL) microscopy and spectroscopy as well as spatially resolved trace-element analysis such as laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and secondary-ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The present paper presents a review of the state-of-the-art knowledge concerning the mineralogy and mineral-chemistry of quartz and illustrates important geological implications of the properties of quartz.


Patient and public involvement (PPI) is now an expected component of UK publicly-funded health research. Compatibilities with PPI aims and values mean that qualitative research is often a vehicle for enacting PPI. This presentation focuses on the involvement of "peer researchers" (service users and carers) in qualitative data analysis, and offers critical reflections of the practicalities of this process in the context of mental health research and an academic-led project. "CORE" (Crisis resolution team Optimisation and RElapse prevention) is a large NIHR-funded research project that aims to optimise the functioning of crisis resolution teams (CRTs). CRTs provide intensive home-based treatment for people experiencing an acute mental health crisis, as an alternative to hospital admission. They exist in all NHS Mental Health Trusts in England, but their performance and effectiveness is variable. The CORE project adopts a collaborative model of service user and carer involvement within an academic-led project. A large service user and carer working group contributes to a range of project activities including a qualitative study of stakeholders' views on current and best CRT practice, in which peer researchers have conducted interviews and been involved in data analysis. Faced with a large data set of more than 100 pieces of data, and little existing guidance on peer researcher involvement in qualitative data analysis, we attempted to develop an approach that enabled genuine involvement and maximised the methodological benefits of collaboration. Additional aims were to build research skills and capacity, and to obtain feedback from participants about their experiences of this. Peer researcher involvement began in the early stages of thematic analysis, in order to maximise contributions to the development of thematic codes at the point when these were most fluid and open. This was part of a staged process that meshed the work and perspectives of peer researchers with those of the academic researcher team. The presentation will describe this process and the rationale behind it, and discuss critical issues such as whether academic-led collaborations perpetuate or have the capacity to challenge existing power inequalities that are greater in mental health than other healthcare contexts.


This thesis is a critical and post-structural exploration of the discourse of
managerialism in the NHS secondary care sector in Wales. Its central intent is to
destabilise the dominant thinking about NHS management practice and to evoke
intellectual debate about alternative discourses of management that
ontologically perceive the organisation as a complex adaptive human system.
The emergent theoretical framework conjoins the discipline of Complexity with
post-structural conjecture, posing a novel conceptualisation of a fractal self
where relations of power are seen as essential for harmonising diverse
influences and legitimising a local discourse that informs and regulates practice.
Using Foucault's insights on power and knowledge the thesis critiques the
strategic nature of NHS discourse, exposing the discursive dominance of
managerialism and its inherent relations of power and debates what this
predicates for a local negotiation and a flexible, safe and innovative
environment. The methodological approach employs a reflexive and micro-level
interpretative strategy to emphasise the singularity of agents and to explore the
way in which the discursive constitution of the self influences agent practice.
My profound experience of the secondary care system requires I situate my self
reflexively within the context where I explore and liberate my own voice in
conjunction with my participants. The research adopts a biographical narrative
method of data collection and uses Foucauldian discourse analysis as a
framework for exploring the underlying discourse in agent stories. The findings
demonstrate the polyphonic nature of the secondary care context and reveal the demonstrate the polyphonic nature of the secondary care context and reveal the
diverse ways in which agents legitimise, negotiate or resist the conflicting truth
claims of various discourse in order to strategically sustain an image of health
care historically constituted in their self. The results portray a web of discourses
that endorse conformity or complicity through oppressive mechanisms of
disciplinary control and surveillance, perpetuating authoritative and dualist
structures, dissipating relations of trust and removing intellectual thinking from
the front-line. The conclusion asserts that this significantly jeopardises the
ability of agents to legitimise local 'discourse', severely limiting their capacity for adaptive practice and the generation of new order.


We collected ground-based and aircraft vertical profile measurements of meteorological parameters during a 2-week intensive campaign over the Valencia basin, in order to understand how mesoscale circulations develop over complex terrain and affect the atmospheric transport of tracers. A high-resolution version of the RAMS model was run to simulate the campaign and characterize the diurnal patterns of the flow regime: night-time katabatic drainage, morning sea-breeze development and its subsequent coupling with mountain up-slopes, and evening flow-veering under larger-scale interactions. An application of this mesoscale model to the transport of CO 2 is given in a companion paper. A careful evaluation of the model performances against diverse meteorological observations is carried out. Despite the complexity of the processes interacting with each other, and the uncertainties on modeled soil moisture boundary conditions and turbulence parameterizations, we show that it is possible to simulate faithfully the contrasted flow regimes during the course of one day, especially the inland progression and organization of the sea breeze. This gives confidence with respect to future applicability of mesoscale models to establish a reliable link between surface sources of tracers and their atmospheric concentration signals over complex terrain.


glucose and those containing over 2 per cent., giving no further information as to the latter. My modification greatly enhances the value of the test, since it enables a precise determination of a urine containing glucose up to 10 per cent. The simplicity of my modification (particularly Method 2) is such that there can be no reasonwhy an estimation of glucose should not invariably be carried out by the clinician whenever glucose is found to be present in the urine. The polarimeter may be more accurate than my modification: I have not compared them. It is hardly a suitable instrument for the ordinary clinician, who, with the aid of my procedure, can now readily determine the extent of glucose excretion in a case of glycosuria.-I am, etc.,


Cell expansion in many plant structures, including algal rhizoids, fungal hyphae, root hairs, and pollen tubes, is restricted to their apical tips. Endogenous electric fields are seen to accompany polarized growth in all tip-growing cells studied to date. The extensive studies on absorptive tip-growing structures have established that positive currents enter their elongating tips, with a portion of the entry current being carried by a localized calcium influx into the extreme tip. The resulting tip-to-base gradient in calcium concentration appears to be responsible for maintaining polarized growth in these systems, although it is uncertain whether this calcium effect is mediated via either electrophoretic or cytoskeletal mechanisms. In contrast, the few electrical measurements made on photosynthetic cells suggest that the orientation of their transcellular fields is transiently or permanently reversed relative to the fields in absorptive structures. In darkness, microelectrode measurements indicate that the apical tip of the fern filament is 5 mV electronegative relative to the base of the apical cell. This cellular dipole is perceived with the vibrating probe as a focused outward current that departs from the tip region and a more diffuse inward current that enters the lateral sides of the apical cell. The tip current is predominantly composed of protons, as can be identified with various cation-selective electrodes. This proton current is thought to help maintain localized wall expansion in the filament tip. Blue light mediates the major morphogenetic transition in fern gametophytes, i.e. the transition from the tip-growing filament to the planar prothallus. All the above electrical and ionic parameters change in the few minutes of irradiation before the filament tip starts lateral swelling. The plasma membrane at the extreme tip begins to hyperpolarize within 3 s, while the basal region shows a delayed, but greater response. The cellular dipole that had existed in darkness is thus abolished in 10 to 15 min after the start of irradiation. With the vibrating probe a more diffuse pattern of positive currents is observed to emerge from the tip as well as the subapical regions of the apical cell. Simultaneously, proton efflux increases in the subapical region; the resulting decrease in cell wall pH should help plasticize the lateral walls, which may, in turn, facilitate the process of lateral swelling over the next few hours.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


Extensive research has been conducted on the role of zinc and copper in the human health and diseases with more emphasis on reproductive health. Deficiency of zinc in men results in reduced libido, low testosterone and sperm count and Cu/Zn ratio in body fluids plays a significant role in this aspect Almost all endocrine glands plays a significant roles in reproductive health with more emphasis on the role of LH, FSH, Prolactin, Testosterone, GH and erythrocyte enzymes of Cu/ Zn. Both Cu/Zn deficiencies have been observed in a host of infectious diseases and these metals are low in diabetes mellitus. This review article is the outcome of extensive literature search and compiling of key findings during the last 15 years. The contents of this paper covers from a simple disease to the advanced cancer depicting the role Zn/Cu in human health and diseases. The content of this review article will serve as an eye opener to undertake more research in this field.


This thesis is an evaluative study of the political reform, Friskolereformen, which enabled independent schools to receive state funding. The study evaluates to what extent the incentives, which preceded the reform, have been fulfilled. The evaluation is defined to include upper secondary schools in the municipality of Halmstad during the years of 2005–2010. The reform was enacted on the basis that it would result in a higher standard of quality, efficiency and freedom of choice. The result of the study has shown that no significant improvements to the educational quality in the municipality have occurred. Regarding efficiency, the reform has proven to be extremely costly for the local government, since the average cost per pupil has practically doubled over the course of ten years. However, the study has found that the reform has contributed to slightly increase the available educational options in the municipality, and as a consequence of that, improved the freedom of choice. Before a new school can begin to operate, the local politicians have the right to express their opinions to Skolinspektionen (The Swedish School Inspectorate), even though their say is only advisory. The politicians comment on whether the new schools would have a positive or negative influence on the local educational system. The study has found these comments to be highly influenced by their political conviction and not by actual facts.


Objectives We examined the effect of changing treatment timing and the use of manual, electro acupuncture on the symptoms of primary dysmenorrhea. Methods A randomised controlled trial was performed with four arms, low frequency manual acupuncture (LF-MA), high frequency manual acupuncture (HF-MA), low frequency electro acupuncture (LF-EA) and high frequency electro acupuncture (HF-EA). A manualised trial protocol was used to allow differentiation and individualized treatment over three months. A total of 74 women were randomly assigned to one of the four groups (LF-MA n = 19, HF-MA n = 18, LF-EA n = 18, HF-EA n = 19). Twelve treatments were performed over three menstrual cycles, either once per week (LF groups) or three times in the week prior to menses (HF groups). All groups received a treatment in the first 48 hours of menses. The primary outcome was the reduction in peak menstrual pain at 12 months from trial entry. Results During the treatment period and nine month follow-up all groups showed statistically significant (p < .001) reductions in peak and average menstrual pain compared to baseline but there were no differences between groups (p > 0.05). Health related quality of life increased significantly in six domains in groups having high frequency of treatment compared to two domains in low frequency groups. Manual acupuncture groups required less analgesic medication than electro-acupuncture groups (p = 0.02). HF-MA was most effective in reducing secondary menstrual symptoms compared to both–EA groups (p<0.05). Conclusion Acupuncture treatment reduced menstrual pain intensity and duration after three months of treatment and this was sustained for up to one year after trial entry. The effect of changing mode of stimulation or frequency of treatment on menstrual pain was not significant. This may be due to a lack of power. The role of acupuncture stimulation on menstrual pain needs to be investigated in appropriately powered randomised controlled trials.


Abstract A novel membrane distillation - enzymatic membrane bioreactor (MD-EMBR) system was developed for efficient degradation of trace organic contaminants (TrOCs). Degradation of five TrOCs, namely carbamazepine, oxybenzone, diclofenac, atrazine and sulfamethoxazole was examined using two commercially available laccases (from Trametes versicolor and Aspergillus oryzae). The MD system ensured complete retention (>99%) of both enzyme and TrOCs. Of particular interest was that the complete retention of the TrOCs resulted in high TrOC degradation by both laccases. Oxybenzone and diclofenac degradation in the MD-EMBR ranged between 80 and 99%. Compared to previously developed EMBRs, as much as 40% improvement in the removal of resistant non-phenolic TrOCs (e.g., carbamazepine) was observed. Laccase from A. oryzae demonstrated better TrOC degradation and enzymatic stability. With the addition of redox mediators, namely 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (HBT) or violuric acid (VA), TrOC degradation was improved by 10-20%. This is the first demonstration of a laccase-based high retention membrane bioreactor for enhanced biodegradation of TrOCs. Details Abstract: A novel membrane distillation – enzymatic membrane bioreactor (MD-EMBR) system was developed for efficient degradation of trace organic contaminants (TrOCs). Degradation of five TrOCs, namely carbamazepine, oxybenzone, diclofenac, atrazine and sulfamethoxazole was examined using two commercially available laccases (from Trametes versicolor and Aspergillus oryzae ). The MD system ensured complete retention (>99%) of both enzyme and TrOCs. Of particular interest was that the complete retention of the TrOCs resulted in high TrOC degradation by both laccases. Oxybenzone and diclofenac degradation in the MD-EMBR ranged between 80 and 99%. Compared to previously developed EMBRs, as much as 40% improvement in the removal of resistant non-phenolic TrOCs ( e.g., carbamazepine) was observed. Laccase from A. oryzae demonstrated better TrOC degradation and enzymatic stability. With the addition of redox mediators, namely 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (HBT) or violuric acid (VA), TrOC degradation was improved by 10-20%. This is the first demonstration of a laccase-based high retention membrane bioreactor for enhanced biodegradation of TrOCs.


[1] The Mars Exploration Rovers investigated numerous craters in Gusev crater and Meridiani Planum during the first ∼400 sols of their missions. Craters vary in size and preservation state but are mostly due to secondary impacts at Gusev and primary impacts at Meridiani. Craters at both locations are modified primarily by eolian erosion and infilling and lack evidence for modification by aqueous processes. Effects of gradation on crater form are dependent on size, local lithology, slopes, and availability of mobile sediments. At Gusev, impacts into basaltic rubble create shallow craters and ejecta composed of resistant rocks. Ejecta initially experience eolian stripping, which becomes weathering-limited as lags develop on ejecta surfaces and sediments are trapped within craters. Subsequent eolian gradation depends on the slow production of fines by weathering and impacts and is accompanied by minor mass wasting. At Meridiani the sulfate-rich bedrock is more susceptible to eolian erosion, and exposed crater rims, walls, and ejecta are eroded, while lower interiors and low-relief surfaces are increasingly infilled and buried by mostly basaltic sediments. Eolian processes outpace early mass wasting, often produce meters of erosion, and mantle some surfaces. Some small craters were likely completely eroded/buried. Craters >100 m in diameter on the Hesperian-aged floor of Gusev are generally more pristine than on the Amazonian-aged Meridiani plains. This conclusion contradicts interpretations from orbital views, which do not readily distinguish crater gradation state at Meridiani and reveal apparently subdued crater forms at Gusev that may suggest more gradation than has occurred.


The situation in general education in Latvia has changed since the spring semester of 2020. On the 13th of March 2020 Latvia temporarily introduced remote training at all stages of education. The government regularly monitored the spread of the COVID-19 virus and the number of infections, so restrictions in different areas have changed frequently. Educational institutions for students of 1st–12th grade (ages 6–17) in the 2020/2021 school year worked under fluctuating circumstances, and most of the learning process took place remotely. For most of the 2020/2021 school year, teaching and learning were thus largely based on technology and online teaching. The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on various aspects of life, such as the economy, education, and social life. This time has led to challenges as well as opportunities for students, teachers, and parents. It has also affected the learning process for students with learning disabilities. For grades 1–12, the Individualised Education Plan (IEP) was developed in Latvia for students with learning disabilities. The IEP had to be adapted to the broader situation, and to work towards its betterment special education teachers participated in the preparation and organisation of the IEP. The aim of this study is to explore the opinions of special education teachers and to examine what support measures are provided for students with learning disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. What are the challenges (barriers, obstacles) and what are the opportunities (benefits) of remote learning? Our research methods involved a literature analysis, a survey of special education teachers from Latvia, and a data collection effort and analysis. The study was conducted by distributing questionnaires via Google Forms. During this research, 70 special education teachers were surveyed.


To the Editor.— The recent article by Bone and Elpern 1 concerning the expense of intensive care treatment addresses a major problem with our nation's health care bill. Contemporary medicine has been moving toward more, rather than less, intensive care treatment. In recent years, most of the relevant medical and surgical subspecialties have developed board examinations and certification in critical care—at least in part to remain "competitive" with other specialties that were doing the same. In my field, pulmonary medicine, fellows now routinely take a third year of training to sit for the critical care board examination. My own hospital has 110 "monitored beds" out of a total complement of 517 adult medical and surgical beds. It is difficult to imagine a scenario where this growing body of board-certified critical care "specialists" and the manufacturers of their equipment will not be bringing pressure to maintain or increase utilization of costly


In the essay, the balance between being an educator and a mother of a child with autism is explored in respect to how the roles might influence the actions of a pre-school teacher. Writing is used as a method of reflection, it gives the teacher a chance to take a step back and view her practical experiences from a novel perspective; conclusions are recounted throughout the teachers narrative. The essay is based on the following questions; which problems might arise in the meeting with parents such as Adams where there is a suspicion of autism for the child? Which advantages/disadvantages might the teacher's personal experience of autism have for the role as educator? How would the dual roles as educator and mother of an autistic child best be balanced in the future?The essay highlights special educational and parent perspectives on the matter of autism. Professor of pedagogy Claes Nilholm, specializes in special needs education. Nilholm discusses the existence of compensatory and critical perspectives on autism in the classroom, which are presented in the essay as a problematic dichotomy which the teacher must navigate. Based on the work performed by psychologist Lennart Lindqvist the teacher presents her own experiences of being a mother of a child with autism and how it affects her role as educator. From the reflective process the teacher concluded that personal experience from children with autism might be of advantage in the educational environment but has distinct disadvantages when communicating with parents. Aristoteles three forms of knowledge episteme, techne and fronesis were used to further highlight the difficulties when dealing with parents of children with suspected autism. Especially the concept of fronesis was discussed in relation to the teacher's narrative as an influencing factor. Fronesis, the wisdom to act correctly in a given situation, was concluded be of advantage in the role as educator. When meeting parents of children with suspected autism the teachers unprocessed feeling on the matter may become a disadvantage. The aim of the essay was to deepen the knowledge of the teachers own experiences in order to better utilize them in the role as an educator.


Abstract In the non‐heart‐beating donor (NHBD) deterioration of microcirculation of the liver graft is strongly associated with secretion of cytokines and eicosanoids. In this study we investigated the excretion of cytokines, eicosanoids, and DNA binding activity of transcription factors in the grafts from NHBD and evaluated the effects of the elimination of Kupffer cells on them. The purpose of this study was to clarify the impact of Kupffer cells on transcription factor activity and the that of cytokine and eicosanoid production on reperfusion injury of liver grafts from NHBD. Wistar rats were allocated to four groups: (a) control group: livers were extracted under heart‐beating conditions and perfused without cold storage, (b) heart beating (HB) group: livers extracted under heart‐beating conditions were perfused after 6 h of cold storage, (c) non‐heart‐beating (NHB) group: livers extracted after cardiac arrest were perfused after cold storage, (d) Kupffer cell eliminated (KE) group: liposome‐encapsulated dichloromethylene diphosphonate was intravenously administered to eliminate Kupffer cells before extraction, and the liver was perfused after cold storage. Cytokines and eicosanoids in perfusate were measured. DNA binding activity of nuclear factor kB, activating protein 1, and nuclear factor‐interleukin 6 of tissue were investigated. Concentrations of interleukin 1β and thromboxane B2 in the perfusate were significantly higher in NHB group, but they were completely suppressed in the KE group. A rise in binding activity of nuclear factor kB and activating protein 1 was not observed during cold storage in any groups, but these activities did increase remarkably after reperfusion. Significant buildup of those activities were recognized in the NHB group, and this phenomenon was inhibited in the KE group. The histological structures of the sinusoid in the KE group were well maintained, as with those of the control group. These results indicate that cytokines, eicosanoids, and the DNA binding activity of the transcription factor are strongly associated with reperfusion injury, and Kupffer cells play an important role in this mechanism in grafts from NHBDs.


A B ST R ACT. Freezeout transactions, in which a controlling shareholder buys out the minority shareholders, have occurred more frequently since the stock market downturn of 2ooo and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. While freezeouts were historically executed as statutory mergers, recent Delaware case law facilitates a new mechanism -freezeout via tender offer-by eliminating entire fairness review for these transactions. This Article identifies two social welfare costs of the current doctrinal regime. First, the tender-offer-freezeout mechanism facilitates some inefficient (value-destroying) transactions by allowing the controller to exploit asymmetric information against the minority. Second, the merger-freezeout mechanism deters some efficient (value-increasing) transactions because of the special committee's veto power against the deal. These negative wealth effects are unlikely to be resolved through private contracting between the controller and the minority in the corporate charter. Rather than advocating patchwork reforms to correct these problems, this Article proposes a return to first principles of corporate law in the freezeout context. The result of this re-grounding would be a convergence in judicial standards of review for freezeouts and the elimination of the efficiency loss that is inherent in the existing doctrine.


Since the discovery of a two-dimensional (2D) electron gas at the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface, 2D carrier gases at such oxide interfaces and surfaces have attracted great attention because they can host many important phenomena and may produce novel functional devices. Here, we show through first-principles investigations that the surface 2D electron and hole gases in a KTaO3 (KTO) thin film can be tuned by applying biaxial stress. When increasing compressive in-plane strain, the 2D carrier concentrations decrease down to zero and then a new pair of surface 2D electron and hole gases appears in which the carrier types are switched to the opposite ones. Our analysis indicates that this carrier-type switching occurs because the increasing compressive strain reverses the slope of monolayer-resolved electrostatic potential along the [001] direction. We also present strain-dependent carrier concentrations and effective masses, and explore their thickness dependence. It is further shown that the 2D carrier gases and their strain-driven carrier-type switching across the KTO layer still remain true in the presence of overlayers and epitaxial substrates. These phenomena should be useful to design novel functional devices.


Abstract:  Fishers, scientists, and resource managers have made substantial progress in reducing bycatch of sea turtles, seabirds, and marine mammals through physical modifications to fishing gear. Many bycatch‐avoidance measures have been developed and tested successfully in controlled experiments, which have led to regulated implementation of modified or new fishing gear. Nevertheless, successful bycatch experiments may not translate to effective mitigation in commercial fisheries because experimental conditions are relaxed in commercial fishing operations. Such a difference between experimental results and real‐world results with fishing fleets may have serious consequences for management and conservation of protected species taken as bycatch. We evaluated preimplementation experimental measures and postimplementation efficacy from primary and gray literature for three case studies: acoustic pingers that warn marine mammals of the presence of gill nets, turtle excluder devices that reduce bycatch of turtles in trawls, and various measures to reduce seabird bycatch in longlines. Three common themes to successful implementation of bycatch reduction measures are long‐standing collaborations among the fishing industry, scientists, and resource managers; pre‐ and postimplementation monitoring; and compliance via enforcement and incentives.


The paramount ob-jective of power system emergency control is to maintain the integrity of the interconnected transmission grid. Current automatic measures for dealing with power system emergencies respond to the symptoms and not the causes and dismember the grid rather than keeping it whole. There are fundamental deficiencies in existing approaches. such as emergency control from the. apex of a hierarchy, the inability to provide for multiple contingencies and improper understanding of the process of breakdown. A direction for emergency control is charted by addressing these hidden issues.


OBJECTIVE
Although mental health literacy has increased in recent years, mental illness is often under-recognised. There has been little research conducted on mental illness in rural areas; however, this can be most prominent in rural areas due to factors such as greater stigma and stoicism. The aim of this study is to create a profile of those who are most and least likely to self-identify mental health problems among rural residents with moderate- to-high psychological distress.

DESIGN
Secondary analysis of a longitudinal postal survey.

SETTING
Rural and remote New South Wales, Australia.

PARTICIPANTS
Four-hundred-and-seventy-two community residents.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE
Participants completed the K10 Psychological Distress Scale, as well as the question 'In the past 12 months have you experienced any mental health problems?' The characteristics of those who reported moderate/high distress scores were explored by comparing those who did and did not experience mental health problems recently.

RESULTS
Of the 472 participants, 319 (68%) with moderate/high distress reported a mental health problem. Reporting a mental health problem was higher among those with recent adverse life events or who perceived more stress from life events while lower among those who attributed their symptoms to a physical cause.

CONCLUSIONS
Among a rural sample with moderate/high distress, one-third did not report a mental health problem. Results suggest a threshold effect, whereby mental health problems are more likely to be acknowledged in the context of additional life events. Ongoing public health campaigns are necessary to ensure that symptoms of mental illness are recognised in the multiple forms that they take.


This study was conducted to confirm the degree of self care and problems in patients with ostomy. The subjects were 80 patients with ostomy who were visiting to OPD in K University Medical Center and were members in the Ostomy Association of Korea. Data were collected from August, 2004 to September. The research tools were a self care measure for ostomy patient developed by Park (1996) and a problem measure for ostomy patient developed by Lee (1996). Data were analyzed by t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson's correlation. The results were as following: 1. Male (65.8%) and female (34.2%) had the ostomy in the most. Age was the most 61 years old and over. 68.5% of the subjects had managed the ostomy by themselves. 2. The mean score of self care in ostomy was 3.57 score. Hygiene of skin care around ostomy in the behavior of self care was the highest as mean 4.47 score. 3. The problems were as following: 1) expense 2) a decline on Activity of Daily Living 3) discomfort in travel 4) worry about ostomy 5) trouble of workplace 4. In the relationship between self care and religion there was significant difference in religion(t= 2.727, P=.008). 5. The relationship between self care and problem with ostomy was found to have statistically significant negative correlation(r= -.237, P=.041).


OBJECTIVE: To estimate the effect of using two methods of hormonal contraceptives (depot medroxyprogesterone acetate) or an oral contraceptive pill (OCP) containing 20 micrograms ethinyl estradiol and 0.15 mg desogestrel) on serum glucose and insulin levels, as well as predictors of any observed changes. METHODS: Fasting glucose and insulin levels were measured on 703 white, African-American, and Hispanic women using depot medroxyprogesterone acetate, OCPs, or nonhormonal birth control at baseline and every 6 months thereafter for 3 years. Participants also completed questionnaires containing demographic and behavioral measures every 6 months. Mixed-model regression analyses were used to estimate changes over time in glucose and insulin levels by method, along with their predictors. RESULTS: Depot medroxyprogesterone acetate, but not OCP, users experienced slightly greater increases in glucose and insulin as compared with nonhormonal users (P<.001). Among depot medroxyprogesterone acetate users, a small but steady increase in serum glucose levels (2 mg/dL at 6 months to 3 mg/dL at 30 months) was observed throughout the first 30 months, but it leveled off after that. In contrast, serum insulin levels showed an upward (3 units at 6 months to 4 units at 18 months) trend for the first 18 months of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate use and then remained almost flat thereafter. Elevation of insulin and glucose levels was slightly more pronounced in obese and overweight depot medroxyprogesterone acetate users than those who were normal weight. CONCLUSION: Use of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate, but not very-low-dose OCPs containing desogestrel, can lead to slightly higher fasting glucose and insulin levels. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II


Introduction: Hospital readmission is one of the important reasons for inadequacy of discharge plan, which not only imposes extensive costs to patients and families but also increases workload of personnel and hospital crowd and leads to many challenges to the healthcare systems. The discharge plan is a nursing intervention aiming to prevent post-discharge problems. The study aimed to explain the challenges to the heart failure patients discharge plan.
Methods: The qualitative research via conventional content analysis was used in this study. The study was conducted in the Rajaie Cardiovascular Medical and Research Center. The challenges to the heart failure patient discharge plan was explained based on the analysis of experiences of patients, family caregivers, physicians, and nurses through semi-structured interview. Targeted sampling was continued based on inclusion criteria until the data was saturated.
Results: The challenges of this study include non-compliance with the treatment, lack of patient health literacy, inadequate motivation to continue treatment, complicated nature of heart failure, poor family roles, inadequacy in patient training, lack of discharge follow up system and defect in patients' social security.
Conclusion: Considering the challenges obtained from this study, we can take steps in optimizing the heart failure patients' discharge plan according to the needs and culture of our patients.


Keratinases are proteolytic enzymes predominantly active when keratin substrates are available that attack disulfide bridges in the keratin to convert them from complex to simplified forms. Keratinases are essential in preparation of animal nutrients, protein supplements, leather manufacture, textile processing, detergent formulation, feather meal processing for feed and fertilizer, the pharmaceutical and biomedical industries, and waste management. Accordingly, it is necessary to develop a method for continuous production of keratinase from reliable sources that can be easily managed. Microbial keratinase is less expensive than conventionally produced keratinase and can be obtained from fungi, bacteria, and actinomycetes. In this overview, the expansion of information about microbial keratinases and important considerations in keratinase production are discussed.


The primary mechanism for navigating a website consists of pages with lists of links (or indexes). Such indexes are most effective when they convey the necessary hint (or scent) to anticipate the content they point to. When indexes fail to do so, users who are seeking specific information need to click on a link just to explore where it leads to, and then go back to the index to select another item. In a study with 150 participants, we explored whether guided tour navigation -- which enables users to linearly browse items without going back to the index -- could outperform scentless indexes in fact-finding tasks. Our results suggest that indexes remain a better solution than guided tours, even when lacking information scent. Guided tours, however, improve user's performance when the target content is found in the first half of collection with 20 items. Implications for designing effective navigation patterns are discussed.


Two closely watched indicators of economic performance are inflation and unemployment. This study empirically analyzes the causality between inflation and unemployment in Indonesia during 1984 to 2017. The data were gathered from the Indonesian Central Bureau of Statistics. Methodologically, this study employed the Granger Causality test and Vector Autoregression to determine the causality between inflation and unemployment. The results show that there is a one-way causality between inflation and unemployment. The findings imply that unemployment causes inflation, but not vice versa. Next inflation and unemployment are also closely related to other determining factors, such as season, household income, and the decisions to attend school or to perform the housekeeping.


Abstract Brine beneath Taylor Glacier has been proposed to enter the proglacial west lobe of Lake Bonney (WLB) as well as from Blood Falls, a surface discharge point at the Taylor Glacier terminus. The brine strongly influences the geochemistry of the water column of WLB. Year-round measurements from this study are the first to definitively identify brine intrusions from a subglacial entry point into WLB. Furthermore, we excluded input from Blood Falls by focusing on winter dynamics when the absence of an open water moat prevents surface brine entry. Due to the extremely high salinities below the chemocline in WLB, density stratification is dominated by salinity, and temperature can be used as a passive tracer. Cold brine intrusions enter WLB at the glacier face and intrude into the water column at the depth of neutral buoyancy, where they can be identified by anomalously cold temperatures at that depth. High-resolution measurements also reveal under-ice internal waves associated with katabatic wind events, a novel finding that challenges long-held assumptions about the stability of the WLB water column.


We present an information flow formulation that bridges network coding and tree packing (routing) and that is useful even if a suboptimal tree packing mechanism is used. We provide a system interpretation of our formulation from a network operators perspective. We study the trade-off between transmission cost and the cost of coding in a multicast session over coded packet networks. Our formulation is also useful to determine the maximal uncoded rate that can be delivered to terminals without incurring additional transmission costs with respect to the optimal network coding solution. We present numerical results illustrating the trade-off between transmission cost and the coding cost, using the fraction of rate delivered uncoded to the terminals as a proxy to the coding cost.


The growth rate of 4H-SiC epitaxial layer has been increased by a factor 19 (up to 112 μm/h) with respect to the standard process with the introduction of HCl in the deposition chamber. The epitaxial layers grown with the addition of HCl have been characterized by electrical, optical and structural characterization methods. The effects of different deposition parameters on the epitaxial growth process have been described in detail. This process can be very promising for high power devices with a breakdown voltage of 10 kV.


EFL learners' low motivation and lack of sufficient prior knowledge can be regarded as the barriers that impede their success in presentation of high quality writing pieces. To solve the mentioned problems, some researchers suggest the application of inventive technology-enhanced instructions in teaching the writing skill. In this regard, WebQuest as a computer-based instructional model providing the already-selected website links can be proposed as an appropriate candidate. Hence, the very aim of the present experimental pre-test/post-test study was to address the effect of WebQuest-based instruction on Iranian undergraduate EFL learners' achievements in their overall essay writing ability as well as their writing ability concerning the elaboration, focus, conventions, vocabulary, and organization sub-skills. To do so, 50 participants in the experimental group and 49 participants in the control group performed the WebQuest-based and the alternative tasks without access to the web links, respectively. To analyze the obtained data, six ANCOVAs were run. The results revealed a significant improvement in EFL learners' overall writing performance as well as their outperformance in the organization, focus, elaboration, and vocabulary subskills, but not the conventions sub-skill. The findings of this study indicated optimistic implications about the potential applicability of novel educational technologies in Iranian higher education context. EFL learners' improved writing performance and vocabulary acquisition as well as their increased motivation and collaboration in WebQuest-based writing classes can be regarded as a valuable clue for teachers, administrators, and designers to pave the way for further integration of innovative technologies in EFL settings.


[1] Crustal seismic velocity structure in northwest Canada is imaged using group velocity measurements derived from ambient noise cross correlations. The focus area surrounds the Canadian Northwest Experiment (CANOE) array, a 16 month deployment of 59 broadband seismic stations. The CANOE array extended from the Northern Cordillera on the west into the Archean Slave province to the east, crossing crustal terranes that span ∼4 Gyr of Earth history. Forty broadband stations from the Canadian National Seismograph Network and the POLARIS network are also included. The Green's function for each pair of stations is estimated by cross-correlating 24 h long time series of ambient noise for each day in the time period July 2004 to June 2005. Fundamental mode Rayleigh waves are observed on cross-correlated vertical component records and Love waves on the transverse components. The group velocity measurements are inverted for 3-D shear wave velocity within the crust. Local sensitivity kernels are used to account for the effects of a laterally variable sedimentary layer at shallow depths, and receiver function P-s differential times at the CANOE stations constrain total crustal thickness. Known sedimentary basins dominate lateral variations in wave speed in the shallow crust. In the middle crust, the model contains a strong low-velocity region that correlates spatially with the location of Proterozoic metasedimentary rocks that have been inferred from active source reflection profiles to occupy much of the crust beneath the Cordilleran terranes. Velocity variations in the lower crust, which are weakly resolved due to the limited period range of our data set (5–20 s), suggest a west-to-east transition from lower to higher wave speeds that aligns with the Cordilleran deformation front in parts of the study area. The results presented here are consistent with but do not confirm the notion of Proterozoic strata throughout much of the Cordilleran crust. These metasedimentary rocks, if present, must have experienced some deformation and metamorphism in order to also be consistent with upper mantle seismic models that contain a sharp transition from low to high velocity across the deformation front.


Optimal execution is a term that is widely used, and even though the concept is intuitively clear, in practice it is not uniformly achieved. In fact, the gap between this intuition and the perceived reality of algorithm behavior probably accounts for much of the remaining skepticism regarding algorithmic trading. This article examines why the gap exists and how it can be reduced. The typical approach is based upon a formulation that abstracts away from critical elements of the problem facing a trader who is executing in actual markets. It is not surprising that this approach fails to address a number of material risks facing the trader and portfolio manager. One particular risk is known as signaling risk, the risk of conveying information about trading intentions to market participants. It is demonstrated that when signaling risk is ignored, the typical solution is not the strategy that an intelligent, risk-averse rational trader would employ in real-time. By examining how information is utilized by the market, it is possible to derive practical conclusions that can help manage signaling risk from within a trading algorithm. Building on this, it is shown how the execution optimization problem should be revised to provide a better representation of actual trading environments. Solutions to the revised problem correspond to optimal trading strategies that can be employed in practice with greater confidence that signaling risk is being managed.


An elastomeric vitrimer material was synthesized via the crosslinking of a polydimethylsiloxane bearing pendant amino functions with a bis-vinylogous urethane crosslinker. The elastic properties of this material could be tuned across a wide range of moduli by varying crosslink density. Reshaping and recyclability were observed at 100 °C. Further investigation of the dynamic character revealed double relaxations, which could be supressed by masking free amino groups. Finally, these studies led to the development of a single-pot, solution-castable formulation of a non-dynamic permanent elastomer. These results open a way for the design of quenchable vitrimers, that is to say crosslinked materials which after shaping or recycling exhibit conventional elastomer properties.


The general public dissimilarly interprets the same phenomena in diverse cultures, and leaders' standpoints also differ about these phenomena. Because of unequal advancement and cultural diversity, a specific welfare level or geography perceives digital transformation radically disparate from others. In advanced economies, leaders typically tend to begin to understand the vitality of digital assets. But the understanding may show differences in an emerging economy. Naturally, the factors such as the type of industry and globalization level of the companies can cause these differences. But a survey in a widespread sector can still help to project business leaders' and managers' perceptions of digital transformation in emerging economies, thus pinpointing some of their differences with advanced economies. Two questions come fore at this point: Do business leaders focus on or are aware of the products and ideas of current technologies, and do they appropriately construe these ideas and products? Interviewing leaders in an emerging economy like Turkey has revealed that they predominantly tend to identify digital transformation with social media. Although digital transformation is related to social media, it is not limited to it. There are state-of-theart technologies. But in such geographies, leaders require time to possess digital and technological consciousness. On the other hand, in this new world order, leadership has reached a point that there is a need for ultimate leaders. The ones that originate from the very elements of this disruptive environment and the ones that rise with distinguishing skills and epoch-making perspectives. Furthermore, learning and performance are indispensable parameters for leaders in times of digital transformation. This article underlines the significant factors that impact


Background: Diabetes care quality has changed little over the past 12 years. To learn what strategies and factors seem most important for improvement, we conducted a mixed method analysis of clinic interviews and characteristics of clinics that are in the high, middle, and low quartiles on a composite measure for diabetes. Method: We interviewed 31 leaders from 17 primary care clinics selected from the 416 that agreed to participate in a larger observational study of diabetes performance improvement. Semi-structured interviews on barriers and facilitators of diabetes care were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for both comparison among clinics at different levels of performance on the outcome measure. We combined interview data with quantitative data about clinic performance on a standardized composite measure of diabetes outcomes and a survey of the presence of care management processes. Results: Interview analysis identified 10 themes that provided unique insights into the factors and strategies that were associated with differences in performance level. The main difference among them was the degree to which top performing clinics used patient data to guide proactive and outreach methods to intensify treatment and monitor impact. Top clinics also reported fewer barriers and more facilitators than lower ranked ones, while all recognized key help from the larger organizations of which most were a part. Conclusions: Top performing clinics' approach to diabetes care differs from lower performing clinics focusing on proactive care occurring outside of the traditional practice setting. Although confirmatory studies are needed for these preliminary findings, clinical leaders might benefit by considering the value of replicating these differences. Disclosure L. Solberg: None. K.A. Peterson: None. H.N. Fu: None. M. Eder: None. R. Jacobsen: None. Funding National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (R18DK110732)


The Justice Thread Matt Robbins Doctor of Ministry School of Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary 2019 The goal of this project is to support the work of International Justice Mission in Ghana to end child trafficking by developing a compelling curriculum on biblical justice. The Justice Thread is an eight-week Bible study tracing the theme of biblical justice as it unfolds throughout the Bible. The curriculum aims to be a practical and contextually appropriate tool for churches in Ghana, which currently lack resources, training, and emphasis on justice-related ministry. The Justice Thread seeks to introduce participants to the God of justice while also educating them about the injustice of child trafficking in their midst. Ultimately, participants are urged toward action on behalf of the oppressed in their community. This study demonstrates the prominence and prevalence of the theme of justice throughout the various sections of the Bible. It is argued that justice in human affairs is of utmost importance to God and therefore to the Christian mission of the church. The exegetical study introduces concepts related to justice such as shalom, holistic ministry, the purpose of authority, the role of a prophet, and God's particular concern for the vulnerable. The study seeks to inspire greater familiarity with God's heart for justice, increased commitment to the oppressed, and growing courage to stand up to oppressors. Recognizing the importance of contextualization, the study includes cultural exegesis and ministry context analysis drawn from the author's two years of experience in the field and input from Ghanaian scholars and International Justice Mission national staff. The curriculum was field tested with approximately two hundred pastors and church leaders from fishing villages along the shores of Lake Volta, an area with a high prevalence of child trafficking. The curriculum has been well received by churches from many different denominations making plans for implementation. Content Reader: Mark Labberton, PhD Words: 288 To my beloved bride Joy Robbins and my children Hannah, Peter, and Abigail: You left behind everything and everyone you knew and moved with me to Ghana so that children you would never know might be set free! To my parents Ken and Jean Robbins for your abundant generosity and support throughout my studies. I stand on your shoulders.


Free abrasive particle plays a crucial role in material removal and quality improvement of curved surface mould. In order to observe and investigate the general distribution state, fractal dimension and movement characteristic of abrasive particle in gasbag polishing process better, an abrasive particle stroboscopic photography system is established and polishing experiment is carried out. The abrasive particle contacts with not only the rubber gasbag enwrapped by polishing cloth full of mesh-like structures, but also the mould surface. Contact analysis of abrasive particle including the discussions of contact state, material removal mechanism and advantage of precession polishing is helpful to hold the optimal polishing process parameters combination and establish ideal abrasive particle field for higher polishing efficiency and more well-proportioned surface quality.