The interaction of an odorant with the chemosensitive membrane of olfactory receptor neurons initiates a sequence of molecular and membrane events leading to sensory transduction, impulse initiation, and the transmission of sensory information to the brain. The main steps in this sequence are summarized in Figure 6. Several lines of evidence support the hypothesis that the initial molecular events and subsequent stages of transduction are mediated by odorant receptor sites and associated ion channels located in the membrane of the cilia and apical dendritic knob of the olfactory receptor neuron. Similarly, the membrane events associated with impulse initiation and propagation are mediated by voltage-gated channels located in the initial axonal segment and the axolemma. The ionic and electrical events associated with the proposed sequence have been characterized in general using a variety of experimental techniques. The identification, localization, and sequence of membrane events are consistent with the neurophysiological properties observed in specific regions of the bipolar receptor neuron. The influence of other cells in the primary olfactory pathway such as the sustentacular cells in the olfactory epithelium, the Schwann cells in the olfactory nerve, and the astrocytes in the olfactory nerve layer in the olfactory bulb on the physiological activity of the olfactory receptor neuron is an emerging area of research interests. The general principles derived from the experimental results described in this review provide only a framework that is both incomplete and of necessity somewhat speculative. As noted in the Introduction, the multidisciplinary study of the primary olfactory pathway is undergoing a renaissance of research interest. The application of modern biophysical, cell, and molecular biological techniques to the basic issues of odorant recognition and membrane excitability will clarify the speculations and lead to the establishment of new hypotheses. Three broad areas of research will benefit from such studies. First, the application of biophysical techniques will lead to a detailed characterization of the membrane properties and associated ion conductance mechanisms. Second, the isolation and biochemical characterization of intrinsic membrane and cytosolic proteins associated with odorant recognition, sensory transduction, and the subsequent electrical events will result from the utilization of cell and molecular biological techniques.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


For a proper understanding of the contents of recreation in the everyday lives of people in general, as well as in certain social groups within which the certain recreational activities are carried out, it is necessary to consider the most important factors that influence and determine directly or indirectly man in relation to recreation. Since it is likely that a number of factors determines commitment of individual to engage in recreational activities, it is expected that the very evaluation recreation effects will be different, both in scope and intensity, because people differ in a number of social experiental and personal characteristics. Given that in our society tremendous changes occurred, it is very interesting to correlate psychological and sociological factors as drivers of certain recreational facilities and activities. Performing of these activities the specific needs of individuals are satisfied as well as society at all. This research was conducted with the aim to review the assessments of the effects of recreation in the interconnectedness of psychological and social factors. The research was conducted on a sample of 553 participants, residents of the western part of the Republic of Srpska, of which 132 participants did not engage in recreation, 169 of them are engaged in recreation occasionally, and 252 subjects engaged in recreational activities regularly. This study used questionnaire for assessing the effects of recreation and scale for testing the general attitude towards recreation. The survey showed that participants estimate that for them the greatest effect recreation "in health", and the smallest effect "in fashion and contemporary trends", that is half the participants significant source of differences in the assessment of the effects of recreation, and that, regardless of place of residence, is dominated by an assessment of the significance of recreation for health. Global overview of the results shows that among the participants prevailed moderately positive and vacillating attitude toward recreation.


We investigate the effect of hurricane strikes on housing prices in U.S. coastal cities. To this end, we construct a new index of hurricane destruction which varies over time and space. Using this index and an annual, two equation, dynamic equilibrium correction panel model with area and time fixed effects, we model the effects of hurricanes on real house process and real incomes. In our model hurricanes have a direct effect on house prices and an indirect effect via a fall in local incomes. Our results show that the typical hurricane strike raises real house prices for a number of years, with a maximum effect of between 3 % to 4 % three years after occurrence. There is also a small negative effect on real incomes. These results are stable across models and subsamples.


Regulatory T (T(R)) cells consist of phenotypically and functionally distinct CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell subsets engaged both in maintaining self-tolerance and in preventing anti-non-self effector responses (microbial, tumor, transplant, and so on) that may be harmful to the host. Here we propose that the proinflammatory function of virus-specific memory effector CCR7(-)CD8(+) T cells, which are massively recruited in the liver, are inefficient (in terms of IFN-gamma production) in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection because of the concomitant presence of virus-specific CCR7(-)CD8(+) T(R) cells producing considerable amounts of IL-10. These CD8(+) T(R) cells are antigen specific, as they can be stimulated by HCV epitopes and suppress T cell responses that are in turn restored by the addition of neutralizing anti-IL-10. This study provides for the first time to our knowledge direct evidence of the existence of virus-specific CD8(+) T(R) cells that infiltrate the livers of patients with chronic HCV infection, identifies IL-10 as a soluble inhibitory factor mediating suppression, and suggests that these cells play a pivotal role in controlling hepatic effector CD8(+) T cell responses.


AIMS
It has been reported that some patients with cancer present auto-immune phenomenon mediated by auto-antibodies, suggesting a relationship between auto-immunity and cancer. Our interest was to determine the frequency of association of rheumatoid factor and breast cancer.

MATERIAL AND METHOD
Fifty patients were studied, 3 on stage 111 and 19 on stage IV. Rheumatoid factor was measured in all of them. Auto-antibodies were measured by ELISA. The clinical files of all the patients were reviewed to determine the presence of metastases (osseous, pulmonary, CNS and hepatic) as well as the histological type of the cancer to correlate the expression of the rheumatoid factor with the patients' clinical status.

RESULTS
Four (12.9%) out of the 31 patients on stage 111 had positive rheumatoid factor, while 9 (47.3%) out of 19 patients on stage IV had positive rheumatoid factor. The mean age of the patients on stage 111 with positive rheumatoid factor was 48 years, while the mean age of the patients on stage IV with positive rheumatoid factor was 53 years. Patients on stage 111 with positive rheumatoid factor only had local-regional metastases while patients on stage IV with positive rheumatoid factor had distant metastases. The predominant histological type was adenocarcinoma.

CONCLUSION
In this study it is shown that breast cancer on the most advanced stages have higher expression of rheumatoid factor, and more clinical derangement with higher levels of rheumatoid factor expression. The proposal of auto-antibodies as predictors of the severity of the cancer requires further studies on several types of cancer.


Religion plays an important role in the lives of people with psychosis. Based on fieldwork with 21 families living in poor neighborhoods of São Paulo, Brazil, this article examines how youth suffering a first episode of psychosis resort to religion for help (including, Catholicism, Pentecostalism, Candomblé, and Umbanda) and how this frames their experience of psychosis and that of their family members. For young people, the personal articulation of religious idioms and signifiers served to communicate, elaborate and transform their experience of psychosis. Family members resorted to religion as a source of healing, complementary to psychiatric treatment, as well as for personal relief and comfort. For youth, involvement with religion worked in both 'progressive' and 'regressive' ways, to improve and, at times, to diminish functioning and well-being.


In this paper, we describe a post-processing technique having high extraction efficiency (ExE) for de-biasing and de-correlating a random bitstream generated by true random number generators (TRNGs). This research is based on the N-bit von Neumann (VN N) post-processing method. It improves the ExE of the original von Neumann method close to the Shannon entropy bound by a large N value. However, as the N value increases, the mapping table complexity increases exponentially (2N ), which makes VN N unsuitable for low-power TRNGs. To overcome this problem, at the algorithm level, we propose a waiting strategy to achieve high ExE with a small N value. At the architectural level, a Hamming weight mapping-based hierarchical structure is used to reconstruct the large mapping table using smaller tables. The hierarchical structure also decreases the correlation factor in the raw bitstream. To develop a technique with high ExE and low cost, we designed and fabricated an 8-bit von Neumann with waiting strategy (VN 8W) in a 130-nm CMOS. The maximum ExE of VN 8W is 62.21%, which is 2.49 times larger than the ExE of the original von Neumann. NIST SP 800-22 randomness test results proved the debiasing and de-correlation abilities of VN 8W. As compared with the stateof-the-art optimized 7-element iterated von Neumann, VN 8W achieved more than 20% energy reduction with higher ExE. At 0.45 V and 1 MHz, VN 8W achieved the minimum energy of 0.18 pJ/bit, which was suitable for sub-pJ low energy TRNGs. key words: post-processing techniques, von Neumann entropy extractor, true random number generator, low-power


We introduce the LO v -calculus, a graphical language for reasoning about linear optical quantum circuits with so-called vacuum state auxiliary inputs. We present the axiomatics of the language and prove its soundness and completeness: two LO v -circuits represent the same quantum process if and only if one can be transformed into the other with the rules of the LO v -calculus. We give a confluent and terminating rewrite system to rewrite any polarisation-preserving LO v -circuit into a unique triangular normal form, inspired by the universal decomposition of Reck et al. (1994) for linear optical quantum circuits. 2012


A fundamental problem in current cellular system is how to increase spectral efficiency of cellular system and handle blocking in the call between the subscribers. The present research offers solution to the above problem. In this work software simulator that can be used in the environment of cellular system is designed and implemented. This designed system shows how to increase spectral efficiency and enhancement blocking probability in cellular system by using Dynamic Frequency Hopping techniques. In this paper received power(Pr) threshold is proposed as one method of Dynamic Frequency Hopping technique. In each frame, received power is measured on the six used frequencies and the current hopping pattern is changed if the measured received power does not achieve the required threshold on at least one of them. The results indicate increasing the spectral efficiency by using Dynamic Frequency Hopping technique, the result of spectral efficiency versus traffic load with Dynamic Frequency Hopping is equal to (6.5 b/s/Hz), compared with Frequency Hopping (5.2 b/s/Hz) and GSM (3.5 b/s/Hz). This leads to an improvement in performance of system and reduce the interference allowing the users to achieve higher data rate.


Designing implants for large and complex cranial defects is a challenging task, even for professional designers. Current efforts on automating the design process focused mainly on convolutional neural networks (CNN), which have produced state-of-the-art results on reconstructing synthetic defects. However, existing CNN-based methods have been difficult to translate to clinical practice in cranioplasty, as their performance on complex and irregular cranial defects remains unsatisfactory. In this paper, a statistical shape model (SSM) built directly on the segmentation masks of the skulls is presented. We evaluate the SSM on several cranial implant design tasks, and the results show that, while the SSM performs suboptimally on synthetic defects compared to CNN-based approaches, it is capable of reconstructing large and complex defects with only minor manual corrections. The quality of the resulting implants is examined and assured by experienced neurosurgeons. In contrast, CNN-based approaches, even with massive data augmentation, fail or produce less-than-satisfactory implants for these cases. Codes are publicly available at https://github.com/Jianningli/ssm


The pelvic sucker of Hawaiian waterfall climbing gobies allows these fishes to attach to substrates while climbing waterfalls 10s-100s of meters tall. Climbing ability varies by species and may be further modulated by the physical characteristics of the waterfall substrate. In this study, we investigated the influence of surface wettability (hydrophobic vs. hydrophilic surface charges) and substrate roughness on the passive adhesive system of four species of gobies with different climbing abilities. Overall, passive adhesive performance varied by species and substrate with the strongest climbers showing the highest shear pull-off forces, particularly on rough surfaces. Thus, differences in passive adhesive performance may help to explain the ability of some species to migrate further upstream than others and contribute to their ability to invade new habitats.


The headlines on any given day claim that the American "obesity epidemic" continues to worsen.' According to these headlines, Americans, both adults and children, are increasingly becoming more obese, are more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes, and will likely prematurely die due to this preventable disease. Numerous private industries, as well as the government, seek to rescue Americans from this crisis. As the obesity epidemic debate intensifies, the call for more government regulation correspondingly grows. There are critics, however, who question the legitimacy of this epidemic and the need for more regulation. For example, some well-known scholars opine that the obesity numbers are inflated based upon the inaccurate methodology used to categorize a person as obese. Instead, these critics argue that until an appropriate mechanism is developed to identify the obese population with consistent statistics proving there is an epidemic, the current rhetoric is merely an attempt to increase government involvement. In addition, recent studies also indicate that the obesity numbers are decreasing, thereby further questioning the need for more government regulation.
Assuming the "obesity epidemic" exists, the next issue involves identifying its cause. Unsurprisingly, this answer is not only controversial, but also complex with multifaceted reasons for why Americans are more obese than ever before in history. Health experts point to lifestyle choices as one reason for our population's obesity. For example, lifestyle choices such as poor nutrition habits or lack of physical activity both contribute to weight gain. Another reason for obesity may relate to an individual's genetic makeup, as evidenced by studies revealing that genes may affect how and where a person stores fat. Lastly, some experts point to the environment as contributing to a lifestyle that leads to obesity. Within this concept of environment, health experts point to food advertising, fast food restaurants, larger portion sizes, and hectic work schedules as potential causes of obesity.
Regarding food advertising, these experts claim that the food industry is directly responsible for creating advertising that encourages consumers to purchase unhealthy food products, thus furthering the obesity crisis. These food industry critics equate the conduct of the food industry to the tobacco industry, by comparing the marketing strategies, maximum profit interests, and strong lobbying efforts of each and finding parallel practices of both. Similar to cigarette companies, the critics argue that food companies - which are in business to make money - market and sell products based upon whether the public will purchase them, which may require adding or reducing sugar and fat. Acknowledging that the public is generally aware of the bad health effects of smoking, these critics desire the public to have the same level of awareness regarding poor diet choices and blame the food industry for not only creating foods with minimal nutritional value, but also for misleading the public about the actual nutritional value. Specifically within the realm of advertising, the critics claim the food industry misleads consumers through food labeling, including labeling that occurs on the front-of-the package ("FOP").
This article focuses on FOP food labeling and highlights food labeling regulations, with particular attention paid to the absence of FOP labeling laws. In this absence, the food industry has initiated its own set of regulations for FOP labeling, and the article analyzes whether the food industry should be trusted to self-regulate in this important area of food labeling. To be sure, critics argue that the food industry is not capable of such self-regulation - when its true motives are profits, not improving health - and that the government is better equipped to battle the "health crisis." But even without government oversight, the food industry retains a checks-and-balances system in place because consumers who are allegedly misled by FOP labeling may pursue a legal remedy by filing a claim against the food manufacturer. Thus, industry proponents point to self-regulation as an efficient mechanism to avoid the pitfalls of government bureaucracy and emphasize how effective self-regulation has been in numerous other industries.


Diabetes is an increasingly common chronic disease. Not only in the Western World but across the globe. Statistics show, that 10.3% of men and 9.6% of women in the European Union aged 25 or older are forced to live with this disease, and the numbers are rising [1]. It is a chronic disorder of the metabolism, and a number of dangerous complications can arise if the medical treatment is not supervised carefully. These complications can be lethal, and severely reduce the quality of life of every individual patient. Thoroughly following the medical advices requires considerable discipline of the patient. This project aims to help the patients suffering diabetes, by providing a healthcare application to support them in their daily self-care. The application is called Track your Diabetes, and is designed to be a daily companion for the patient. Moreover, it is a mobile crowdsensing application and the collected data can empower researchers to improve the knowledge about the disease. Patient education, empowerment, and practical self-management to help deal with symptoms, is achieved by tracking diabetes
related data such as the blood glucose level and weight. Depending on the data, the users can receive automated feedbacks, in order to improve their self-management. The application is questionnaire-based. This means, that the application only tracks data based on the questionnaires published. Patients can then share their data with their medical attendant who, in turn, can use it to improve their treatment methods. Designing this application, and providing prove for its feasibility by implementing it, is the central topic of this thesis. One major requirement was for the application to use the interface of a given RESTful API backend. This backend is planned to be a central database for the relevant data of all users. This work shows, how the application was designed and implemented for the operating system Android.


Purpose
From the 2000s onward, construction practices of urban residential buildings in China have shown a material transformation from clay brick to aerated concrete block. Moreover, the consumption of insulating materials for buildings has been increasing due to the new requirements in building energy-saving standards. This transformation and the increased consumption of insulating materials might have a vital impact on a building's thermal comfort and its associated energy flows. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the indoor thermal performance of urban residential buildings built with different materials and further discuss the correlations between indoor thermal comfort and the associated energy input.

Design/methodology/approach
This study investigated four residential buildings selected from four residential communities located in the cold climate zone of China. The Integrated Environment Solutions program was used to evaluate the thermal comfort levels and to quantify the operational energy consumption of the case study buildings. Additionally, the University of Bath's Inventory of Carbon and Energy database was used to estimate the embodied energy consumption and CO2 emissions.

Findings
The study found that materials transition and increasing consumption did not necessarily improve indoor thermal comfort. However, the materials transition has significantly decreased the embodied energy consumption of urban residential buildings. Furthermore, the increased utilization of insulating materials has also decreased the heating and cooling energy consumption. Therefore, overall, the environmental impacts of urban residential buildings have been reduced significantly.

Practical implications
In the future, residential buildings completed in the 1990s will need regular maintenance, such as adding insulation. Residential buildings completed based on the latest energy-saving requirements should optimize their ventilation design, for example, by increasing the ventilation rate and by reducing solar heat gains in the summer.

Originality/value
This paper investigates the effects of the materials change on thermal comfort levels and the environmental impacts of urban residential buildings in the cold climate zone of China, as these have not been the focus of many previous studies.


Background: Many patients in clinical practice of one of the authors had various symptoms after eating bamboo shoots e.g. headaches, back/waist/leg pains and/or dyspepsia. This study could establish a part of baseline data to solve the other related problems. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of bamboo shoot consumption and prevalence of various symptoms particularly those with a hereditary link. Method: A descriptive study.  Data were collected using a structured questionnaire completed through an in-depth interview. Setting: Bandong subdistrict, Ubonrat district, Khon Kaen province and Phosrisumran subdistrict, Nonesaard district, Udornthani province, Thailand. Population: married women, of at least 20 years of age. Results: Two hundred and five married women were interviewed. Most of them (77%) were 31 to 50 years of age.  The majority (75% of the 153 cases) ate bamboo shoots often.  Among those who urinated in a bowl at night, 61% observed a turbid white precipitate. Ninety cases (44%) had other  symptoms after eating bamboo shoots, such as, stomach pain and dyspepsia, leg/arm pains, back pain, joint pain, fatigue and headaches. Half (53%) of respondents remembered their predecessors  having similar symptoms after eating bamboo shoots, however, there was no statistically significant association of the symptoms between the respondents and their known forebears. Suggestions: Further research should be conducted into the dietary habits of rural Northeast Thais including cooking techniques for detoxifying bamboo shoots as techniques may help prevent the gall stones endemic among them. Key words: symptom prevalence, bamboo shoots, bamboo-meal syndrome.


This report is a summary of the financial and production records kept by general crops farmers, who were enrolled in the Telfarm/MicroTel record program through Michigan State University Extension. Farm records were included if a Finan summary was completed on 1998 data including beginning and ending balance sheets, plus income and expenses. The summary was included if cash discrepancy was less than 10 % of gross cash inflow, and if the debt discrepancy was less than $1,000. Averages are reported in the tables below. Variability exists in the data. The unweighted mean of net farm income for the 16 farms was $(22,565); the standard deviation of the mean was $45,035 and the median was $(18,361). The unweighted mean of acres cropped, both owned plus rented, for the 15 farms that reported acreage was 860 acres; the standard deviation of the mean was 775 acres and the median was 589 acres. This report has three purposes: 1) to provide statistical information about the financial results on general crops farms during 1998; 2)to provide production costs for comparative analysis and forward planning; and 3) to provide information on the trends in resource use, income and costs during the last few years. For general crop farm averages for 1995, see Staff Paper No. 96-86, Michigan Farm Database, New Directions for 1995; it contains averages of 11 general crops farms calculated with Finansum. Staff Paper No. 97-32, Business Analysis Summary for General Crops Farms, contains averages of 7 general crops farms for 1996. Staff Paper No. 98-18, 1997 Business Analysis Summary for General Crop Farms contains averages for 14 farms. These staff papers are available from us. Finansum allows rapid analysis of group averages with some degree of choice over how the results are presented. We prefer to show the average of the high or low 25 percent by rate of return on farm assets, but only if the 25 percent means 6 or more farms. In order to get at least 6 farms, we increased the percentage to 38 for the general crops farms. A farm was accepted in the average regardless of whether the farm was a proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company, or corporation. Finansum will produce a variety of report options; a subset is included in this publication.


Introduction Pythium insidiosum causes pythiosis in humans and animals in tropical and subtropical climates. The clinical manifestations in humans are mostly systemic, vascular or ocular forms, in contrast to animals, which are cutaneous, subcutaneous and gastrointestinal forms. The highest incidence of human cases is reported in Thailand, however, no canine pythiosis has been documented yet. Case presentation A female, mixed-breed, stray dog showed severe extensive ulcerative haemorrhagic dermatitis at the perineum involving the anus and tail. On cytology, there were sparse branching septate fungal hyphae. The tissue samples were subjected to polymerase chain reaction and gene sequencing for fungal identification. Conclusion The results of the internal transcribed spacer 1 and 2 (ITS1 and ITS2) gene had 99 % homology to Pythium insidiosum (accession no. FJ17396) and the COX2 gene (accession no. GQ451572). The phylogenetic tree of both genes was classified in clade ATH. This is the first fully documented diagnosis of canine cutaneous pythiosis in Thailand.


Hereditary gingival fibromatosis (HGF) is characterized by an accumulation of extracellular matrix resulting in a fibrotic enlargement of keratinized gingiva. The goal of this article is to describe one kindred affected with HGF and discuss the diagnosis, treatment, recurrence risk and histopathology features of the proband with mixed dentition. An 8-year-old boy reported with a chief complaint of gingival enlargement. A series of examinations were performed to make a diagnosis and family histories of the patient were recorded. Surgical therapy included gingivectomy and gingivoplasty technique were performed for the proband to remove excess gingiva. Collagen bundles in the permanent incisors area were prevalently significantly bulkier than that of the deciduous teeth area and the arrangement was much more regular. Microscopic evaluation revealed that epithelial hyperplasia was severe in tissue with intense inflammation, whereas tissue with mild inflammation showed only long and deep epithelial papillae. The patient was placed on a 3-month recall schedule and didn't demonstrate any recurrence of gingival overgrowth over a 1-year follow-up period. The study revealed that the eruption of permanent teeth played an important role in accelerating gingival hyperplasia. For the first time, it was confirmed from histological perspective that inflammation in gingival tissue was crucial to the gingival overgrowth of HGF.


MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important players in the modulation of cellular functions and contribute substantially to epigenetic changes in the expression of genes. Moreover, the distribution of miRNAs via exosomes and ectosomes opens a vast field of intraorganismal communication, with the potential of spreading pathological deviations, but also curative effects induced by protective agents. Interactions between melatonin and microRNAs are of particular interest, as melatonin is highly pleiotropic regulator of numerous functions in every organ. The effects of melatonin in correcting pathological alterations in miRNA composition are reviewed, along with the corresponding reversal of cell biological or physiological functions to normal. Additionally, knowledge on the influence of miRNAs on melatonin formation and expression of a melatonin receptor has been considered. The fields in which melatonin has been shown to influence miRNAs are as diverse as metabolic syndrome, liver steatosis, immunology, amyloid toxicity, progenitor cells, and cancer. Readers are encouraged to contribute to systematic studies on melatonin effects on miRNAs using modern RNA sequencing techniques.


Objectives: This paper analyzes the techno management path assumed by Human Resource Information system in a leading car manufactures in Chennai. The study enclosed the objectives of minimizing transaction time, contribution towards decision making process, maximize the accuracy, reliability and validity of workforce records, usage of information on HRIS and facilitate faster processing of information and to make optimum use of the available human resources. Methods/Analysis: The present study is based on descriptive analysis. Primary data is used to study the objectives and for testing the hypotheses. Employees from the Human Resource department, general supporting, IT department, and Employee relations, Finance department at operational and middle level executives were used as the sample respondents. A well assessed questionnaire was used to collect the primary data.100 responses were collected using simple random sampling for a period of fifteen days in the month of December, 2015. Findings: The information contributed towards decision making for the top management is less due to much time taken for data retrieval. The HR information system should monitor the updating of information by the employees periodically and this process would be facilitated through data mining software and cloud computing sharing platforms. Initializing a portal especially for employees who contains all processes can be easily accessed by the employees. Applications/Improvement: The rationale behind using Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) prompted an opportunity to HR professionals to be a part of business and strategic associates with top executives. HRIS would allow the effective functioning of HR and to provide better information for decision-making.


A cathode-ray tube linked to a computer is used to synthesize holograms of spherical liquid droplets illuminated by plane waves of monochromatic linearly polarized light. The classical Mie solution is employed to determine the far-field radiation pattern of the light waves scattered by the droplets. The most distinctive maxima and minima in the radiation pattern of a droplet are found to occur in the side scattering adjacent to the forward lobe, when the droplet is viewed in a plane that is perpendicular to the direction of polarization of the incident waves. Typical examples of these maxima and minima were recorded on the computed holograms. The reference source was an electric dipole with its axis of polarization parallel to the direction of polarization of the light waves incident on the droplets. Reconstructed droplet images were obtained from the computed holograms using a low-power He–Ne laser source. The reconstructed images were found to show all of the appropriate maxima and minima in the radiation pattern. A holographic method is suggested in the paper for determining the size of spherical liquid droplets in the range of diameters from about 0.5 to 20 μ. This method is based on the techniques used in the construction of the computed holograms and depends on the relation between the angles of the maxima and minima and size parameter ka.


An Arctic Ocean with less sea ice and more open water in September has led to anomalous warming of the overlying atmosphere in autumn. Through influences on column water vapour and atmospheric circulation, it is reasonable to expect that this warming will have impacts on Arctic precipitation. Analysis of data from the JRA-25 atmospheric reanalysis reveals an autumn increase in cyclone-associated precipitation over the past decade. This is linked to a shift in atmospheric circulation towards more frequent and more intense cyclones in the Atlantic sector of the Arctic. Composites based on years with the five lowest and five highest September ice extents reveal more autumn cyclone associated precipitation and columnwater vapour during lowice years than during high ice years. However, difficulties in establishing cause and effect, including the absence of a clear association between spatial patterns of recent precipitation changes and ice extent anomalies, lead us to conclude that attribution of recent autumn precipitation increases to reduced ice cover is premature.


The synthesis of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) in a monolithic morphology is a promising way to achieve the transition of this class of materials from academia to industrial applications. The solgel process has been widely employed to produce MOF monoliths. It is relatively cheap and simple compared to other techniques (e.g., mechanical densification) and moreover it allows to produce "pure" monoliths, i.e., without the need of using binders or templates that could affect the functional properties of the MOF. Understanding the mechanical properties of these monoliths is crucial for their transit to practical applications. We studied the mechanical behavior of two zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIF-8 and ZIF-71) by means of instrumented nanoindentation and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Tip Force Microscopy (TFM), an extension of AFM, was used to reveal the surface nanostructure of the monoliths. We employed finite-element (FE) simulations alongside the experiments, to establish a suitable constitutive model and determine an improved estimate of the yield stress (σY) of ZIF monoliths. NanoFTIR was subsequently used to pinpoint local structural alteration of the framework in the contact area. The combination of TFM, FE simulations, and nanoFTIR enabled us to identify the mechanical deformation mechanisms in monolithic ZIF materials: grain boundaries sliding is dominating at low stresses, then breakage of chemical bonds and a partial failure of the framework occurs, eventually leading to a densification of porous framework at the contact zone. Finally, we measured the fracture toughness using a cube corner indenter to study the resistance of monoliths against cracking failure.


Opinion leaders are the influential people who are able to shape the minds and thoughts of other people in their society. Finding opinion leaders is an important task in various domains ranging from marketing to politics. In this paper, a new effective algorithm for finding opinion leaders in a given domain in online social networks is introduced. The proposed algorithm, named OLFinder, detects the main topics of discussion in a given domain, calculates a competency and a popularity score for each user in the given domain, then calculates a probability for being an opinion leader in that domain by using the competency and the popularity scores and finally ranks the users of the social network based on their probability of being an opinion leader. Our experimental results show that OLFinder outperforms other methods based on precision-recall, average precision and P@N measures.


Band shape analysis has been applied to the infrared spectra of adsorbed species on solid catalysts. It is found that a small computer system with a CRT graphic display is a powerful tool for data refinement. At first, peak parameters are estimated from the second-derivative curve, which has been smoothed; then follows the correction routine. The system can give quantitative information for a severely overlapped spectrum. It is found that the infrared bands of iron pentacarbonyl adsorbed on TiO2 consist of two groups such as hydride carbonyl and the carbonyl species bonded to the Lewis acidic sites on TiO2.


A repeated DNA sequence in the genome of Bordetella pertussis has been demonstrated. At least 20 copies of this sequence could be observed in either BamHI or EcoRI restriction enzyme digests of chromosomal DNA; fragments carrying the repeated DNA sequence ranged in size from about 1.5 to 20 kbp. The repeated DNA sequence was cloned from two separate regions of the B. pertussis genome, as shown by restriction enzyme site maps of the two clones and by hybridization studies. A small number of differences in the pattern of hybridization of the repeated DNA sequence to chromosomal DNA from several strains of B. pertussis was observed. No repeated DNA sequences were observed in one strain each of B. parapertussis and B. bronchiseptica, and there was no hybridization of B. pertussis DNA to Escherichia coli chromosomal DNA. The repeated DNA sequence was subcloned on a 2.54 kbp BamHI fragment from one of the two original clones. Restriction enzyme digests and hybridization studies showed that the repeated DNA sequence was about 1 kbp in size and had a single, internal ClaI site.


The aim of the study was to assess the level of education as an important contributor to the quality of human capital in the rural areas of Mazovia region. The article analyzes secondary sources from the Central Statistical Office (GUS) and the National Census of Population and Housing, the own research conducted using the sample of 1,000 households in the selected rural and urban communes of the Mazovia Province and the literature. The level of education is varied, depending on the place of residence or sex. Attention was also drawn to the relationship between the source of income and education.


Abstract Grass, intercropped with nursery stock, is beneficial to the long-term productivity of a field due to decreased erosion of topsoil and increased soil organic material. The primary disadvantage of using grass as an intercrop is supposedly due to a reduction in nutrients and water available to nursery stock. In the spring of 1999, Fraxinus nigra 'Fallgold' trees were planted in herbicide strips with no intercrop (cultivated soil), an intercrop of untreated ryegrass, an intercrop of mowed ryegrass or an intercrop of ryegrass treated with a growth regulator. Half of the trees in each treatment were irrigated and half were not. Growth measurements were taken over two, growing seasons. There were no significant increases in growth with the addition of irrigation with the exception of trees grown with an intercrop of growth regulated ryegrass where the addition of irrigation resulted in greater tree height. Trees grown with no intercrop had the greatest increase in both caliper and height. Trees grown w...


The capacity to adapt to challenges such as climate change can be seen as largely determined by socioeconomic context or social vulnerability. This article examines the adaptive capacity of local actors in response to globalization and climate change, asking: how much of the desirable adaptation can be undertaken at a local level, and how much is determined by actors at other levels, for instance, when resource conflicts occur? Drawing on case studies of fishing in northern Norway and north-west Russia, the paper shows that adaptive capacity beyond the immediate economic adaptations available to local actors is, to a considerable extent, politically determined within larger governance networks.


: This study examines the quality of life in Crete, Nebraska, with the specific purpose of identifying the factors that play the largest role in determining residential satisfaction. The survey asks a number of questions pertaining to different aspects of living in Crete. The survey is adapted from a survey previously used for a similar study in Schuyler, Nebraska. Focus groups are used to identify key issues in Crete and make adjustments to the questionnaire. Cronbach's alpha is used to test the reliability of the topical variables, and index variables are created, which are used in the subsequent analysis. Using residential satisfaction as the dependent variable, stepwise multiple linear regressions are performed independently for the total population, the new arrivals, and the long-time resident groups. The findings of this study indicate that stressors and sociocultural issues are the significant contributors to the overall community's residential satisfaction.


In this paper, we investigate a state dependent mul-ticast routing algorithm called Least Load Multicast Routing (LLMR), for single rate loss networks. The algorithm is based on Least Load Routing (LLR) concept and the approach is to select the least load links for establishing connections. The networks considered are assumed fully connected. In addition , connection requests are Poisson arrival and the holding times of accepted calls are exponentially distributed. The analytical model that we developed for calculating blocking probabilities is based on the link independence assumption and the Reduced Load Approximation (RLA). Analytical results are compared with simulation results and the agreement is surprisingly good. We nd that the eeect of link independence assumption is insigniicant for the analytical model.


This study provides information on how the directors of the operations research/management science OR/MS function in industry view three major industrial-academic interfaces: the professional journal, the professional society, and the directors' hiring practices. Questionnaires were mailed to OR/MS managers of the 500 largest U.S. industrial corporations, with a response rate of approximately 40%. Initially, the characteristics of the OR/MS directors were examined. Next, the three interfaces were investigated with respect to the directors' backgrounds. Finally, implications based on the analysis for both academicians and practitioners were drawn.


The rapid development of World Wide Web and the dominance of networked computers for information transfer and communication have enabled the rise of online computer games. Gaming technology is getting matured with more user-friendly interfaces and various hardware platforms including handhelds devices that enabled the gaming applications to broaden its scope in various sectors including Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC). As a result, gaming technology offers significant benefits in the AEC disciplines from 3D walkthroughs, interactive visualisation, through virtual collaboration, design and planning to education, training and simulation. The special issue is aimed to provide insights into the use of gaming technology in AEC and includes nine papers with authors representing institutions in Australia, Canada, Korea, Taiwan, UK and the USA.


We present a laser amplitude modulation technique to actively stabilize the critical coupling of a microresonator by controlling the evanescent coupling gap from an optical fiber taper. It is a form of nulled lock-in detection, which decouples laser intensity fluctuations from the critical coupling measurement. We achieved a stabilization bandwidth of ∼ 20 Hz, with up to 5 orders of magnitude displacement noise suppression at 10 mHz, and an inferred gap stability of better than a picometer/√Hz.


Most academics assume that suburbanites are "exiters" who have abandoned central cities. The exit story is a foundational one in the fields of land-use and local-government law: exiters' historical, social, and economic connections with "their" center cities are frequently used to justify both growth controls and regional government. The exit story, however, no longer captures the American suburban experience. For a majority of Americans, suburbs have become points of entrance to, not exit from, urban life. Most suburbanites are "enterers"—people who were born in, or migrated directly to, suburbs and who have not spent time living in any central city. This Essay reexamines current debates about growth management and regional governance in light of the underappreciated suburbs-as-entrance story. The exit paradigm provides a powerful normative justification for policies constraining urban growth. When it is stripped away, proponents are left with utilitarian arguments. Economists challenge these arguments by showing that metropolitan fragmentation actually may be efficiency enhancing—and these arguments may ring hollow with suburban enterers themselves. This Essay sounds a cautionary note in the growth management and regional government debates. The exit story is an outdated rhetorical flourish that tends to oversimplify the case for—and camouflage the complexities of—policies restricting suburban growth, especially when it comes to distributional and transitional-fairness concerns.


Lighting has been used to enhance emotion and appeal of characters for centuries, from paintings in the Renaissance to the modern-day digital arts. In VFX and animation studios, lighting is considered as important as modelling, shading, or rigging. Most existing work focuses on either empirical best-practice created by artists of the centuries or on lighting perception with basic shapes. In contrast, our work focuses on the effect of lighting on emotional characters. Our study presents an extensive set of novel perceptual experiments designed to investigate the effects of brightness levels (key light brightness) and the proportion of light intensity illuminating the two sides of a character's face (key-to-fill ratio). We are particularly interested in the effect of lighting on the recognition of emotion, emotion intensity, and the overall appeal, as these are crucial factors for audience engagement. Our results have implications for artists and developers wishing to increase the appeal and emotional expression of their characters, ranging from cartoon to realistic styles. Our key finding is that lighting can be used to effectively alter the intensity of emotion of a character and that brighter conditions increased appeal across all of our experiments.


Abstract Microarray analysis was used to follow changes in gene expression coinciding with seasonal changes in the dormancy status of crown buds of field-grown leafy spurge. Known cold-regulated genes were induced, and numerous gibberellic acid–responsive genes were down-regulated during the transition from paradormancy to endodormancy. Genes involved in photomorphogenesis were induced during endodormancy. Also, ethylene signaling responses were observed during ecodormancy rather than endodormancy. These results provide additional insights into the signals regulating expression of several genes previously associated with transition from paradormancy to growth in root buds. Nomenclature: Leafy spurge, Euphorbia esula L. EPHES.


Abstract. Standard methods like in-situ measurements can hardly register NOx (= NO + NO2) emissions from aircrafts during take-off, when engines run at high load and thus an important amount of fuel is consumed and most of the harmful emissions are produced . The goal of this work is to show that it is possible to measure aircraft emissions generated during take-off (and initial part of the climb) by a remote spectroscopic method like automobile – based – Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (Mobile-DOAS), which uses scattered solar radiation in the blue spectral range (around 445 nm). In order to test its feasibility, total column measurements of NO2 encircling Frankfurt Airport were carried out on 23 February 2012 using Mobile-DOAS. Also, NOx fluxes were derived from the NO2 observations. Unlike standard mobile-DOAS measures using a spectrometer looking at zenith, the measurements were performed looking at 22° elevation angle leading to a roughly two to three times higher sensitivity compared to zenith observations. The origin of the observed NO2 is discussed and the total NOx fluxes are calculated. As result of three round-trips encircling the Frankfurt Airport, the mean NOx flux was found to correlate with the number of aircrafts taking-off. Our results demonstrate that mobile-DOAS method is suitable for quantifying emissions from airports and to study their impact in the planetary boundary layer, which is most relevant concerning the impact on the environment and the human health.


trans-3,4'-Dimethyl-3-hydroxyflavanone (t-flavanone) is a synthetic compound with hair growth enhancing activity that is effective against male pattern alopecia. t-Flavanone was designed as a derivative of astilbin, the active hair growth enhancing component of Hypericum perforatum extracts. This study was designed to elucidate the mechanism of hair growth enhancement by t-flavanone. We investigated the effects of t-flavanone on transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta), a known catagen-inducing factor induced in hair papilla cells by male hormone. When t-flavanone was added to cocultures of human hair papilla cells and human keratinocytes, there was no change in the total level of TGF-beta2. However, levels of active TGF-beta2 were reduced, suggesting the involvement of t-flavanone in the activation pathway of TGF-beta2. In order to investigate the effects of t-flavanone on TGF-beta2 activation by human keratinocytes, we evaluated the level of active TGF-beta2 converted from the inactive form in t-flavanone-treated human keratinocytes. The amount of active TGF-beta2 was reduced compared with controls suggesting that t-flavanone suppresses the TGF-beta2 activation cascade in human keratinocytes. We then examined the activity of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA), the rate-limiting enzyme in the TGF-beta2 activation cascade, in t-flavanone-treated human keratinocytes. We found that t-flavanone reduces uPA activity on the keratinocyte surface. t-Flavanone is a hair growth enhancing component that has a novel mechanism of action which suppresses TGF-beta2 activation, and thereby is expected to have therapeutic effects on other types of alopecia in addition to male pattern alopecia.


There is considerable interest in the role(s) of plant-derived compounds such as bioflavonoids in regulating steroid hormone action in mammals, and in par- ticular, the possible effects of the bioflavonoids on the growth of steroid-dependent breast and prostate tumors and on possible abnormal development of steroid- sensitive tissues. Studies of the hormone-like actions of bioflavonoids often use fetal or neonatal rats, which contain high levels of serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), a protein that binds estradiol with a Kd - 5 x 1 O-' M. Interaction of bioflavonoids with AFP could affect the availability of estrogens to estrogen-responsive cells, as well as the actions of bioflavonoids. These considerations motivated us to study the effect of several flavonoids (quercetin, rutin, naringenin, chrysin, apigenin, kaempferol, myricetin, morin, fisetin) and isoflavonoids (daidzein, genistein) on estrogen binding to rat AFP. We found that naringenin, a flavanone, and quercetin and kaempferol, flavonols, in- hibit estrogen binding to AFP with apparent &s of about 5 x lo-' M. To our surprise, the two isoflavonoids, daidzein and genistein, have KdS of about 5 x M for AFP. This 1Q-fold difference in affinity for AFP between flavonoids and isoflavonoids sug- gests that AFP has a specificity for the flavonoid structure. Moreover, the affinities of bioflavonoids for rat AFP are sufficiently high to suggest that flavonoids and isofla- vonoids could modulate estradiol and estrone binding to rat AFP in vivo, when pres- ent at dietary levels. Additionally, the potency of the plant estrogens may be altered by binding to AFP. The flavonoids that we tested have different hydroxyl and glucoside substituents on the A, B, and C rings, which allows us to define some of the spatial requirements for binding to AFP. We find that 5,7-hydroxyl groups in ring A and a 4'-hydroxyl group in ring B are important for binding to AFP. This information, com- bined with molecular modeling studies, may elucidate the molecular basis for recog- nition of flavonoids and estrogens by AFP. Also, these findings indicate that the flavonoid levels in the diet need to be considered in studies of the effects of various xenobiotics and endocrine manipulations on experimental animals, particularly dur- ing development when serum estrogen binding protein concentrations are often el- evated. Finally, bioflavonoids should be useful tools for understanding the variety of estrogen actions initiated by different structural classes of estrogens. (P.S.E.B.M. 1998, Vol 2171


In order to utilize parallel computers, four approaches, broadly speaking, to
the provision of parallel software have been followed:
(1) automatic production of parallel code by parallelizing—compilers which
act on sequential programs written in existing languages;
(2) "add on" features to existing languages that enable the programmer to
make use of the parallel computer—these are specific to each machine;
(3) full-blown parallel languages—these could be completely new languages,
but usually they are derived from existing languages;
(4) the provision of tools to aid the programmer in the detection of inherent
parallelism in a given algorithm and in the design and implementation
of parallel programs. [Continues.]


OBJECTIVE:To use a national endoscopy database (Clinical Outcomes Research Initiative, CORI) to determine 1) if fellow involvement increases procedure time; and 2) the financial impact of fellow participation for academic centers compared to private practice.METHODS:CORI database from 4/1/97 to 4/1/99 was used to compare endoscopists from private practices, academic medical centers, and Veterans Administration hospitals, with or without fellows-in-training. Data were captured in a computer-generated endoscopy report and transmitted to a central database for analysis. Duration of procedure (minutes) was recorded for diagnostic esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), EGD with biopsy, diagnostic colonoscopy, and colonoscopy with biopsy, in ASA 1 patients. Financial outcomes used 1999 Medicare reimbursement rates for respective procedures and were calculated as procedures per hour on a theoretical practice of 4000 procedures.RESULTS:Teaching fellows endoscopy added 2–5 min for EGD, with or without biopsy, and 3–16 min for colonoscopy, with or without biopsy. Calculating the number of procedures/h of endoscopy, the reimbursement loss resulting from using fellows-in-training in a university setting would be half a procedure/h. In Veterans Administration hospitals, training of fellows would lose a full procedure/h. In a model of 1000 procedures each of EGD, EGD with biopsy, colonoscopy, and colonoscopy with biopsy, the reimbursement difference between private practice physicians or academic attending physicians and procedures involving fellows-in-training would be $500,000 to $1,000,000/yr.CONCLUSIONS:Fellow involvement prolonged procedure time by 10–37%. Thus, per-hour reimbursement is reduced at teaching institutions, causing financial strain related to these time commitments.


• The frequency of instantaneous power is twice the frequency of the voltage and current. Note that instantaneous power may be negative for a portion of each cycle, even if the load is passive. In a passive network, negative power at a given instant implies that energy stored in inductors or capacitors is being given back to the supply at that instant. The fact that the instantaneous power varies with time explains why some single phase motor driven appliances such as refrigerators, which are fed from single phase supply experience vibration, and hence require resilient mountings to prevent excessive vibration of the equipment.


Late cardiac tamponade (LCT) is a poorly studied life threatening complication after operation on the heart. Two cases of LCT developing 18 and 47 days after an operation are described. With consideration for the literature, the authors discuss the causes of LCT, the peculiarities of its clinical course, the diagnosis and treatment. A poor prognosis in LCT is an indication for early active surgical tactics. Puncture of the pericardium with its drainage, as well as pericardiotomy performed through an epigastric approach or by thoracotomy or by means of median sternotomy are effective methods for the management of this menacing complication.


During disease outbreaks or pandemics, policy makers must convey information to the public for informative purposes (eg, morbidity or mortality rates). They must also motivate members of the public to cooperate with the guidelines, specifically by changing their usual behavior. Policy makers have traditionally adopted a didactic and formalistic stance by conveying dry, statistics-based health information to the public. They have not yet considered the alternative of providing health information in the form of narrative evidence, using stories that address both cognitive and emotional aspects. The aim of this viewpoint paper is to introduce policy makers to the advantages of using narrative evidence to provide health information during a disease outbreak or pandemic such as COVID-19. Throughout human history, authorities have tended to employ apocalyptic narratives during disease outbreaks or pandemics. This viewpoint paper proposes an alternative coping narrative that includes the following components: segmentation; barrier reduction; role models; empathy and support; strengthening self-efficacy, community efficacy, and coping tools; preventing stigmatization of at-risk populations; and communicating uncertainty. It also discusses five conditions for using narrative evidence to produce an effective communication campaign on social media: (1) identifying narratives that reveal the needs, personal experiences, and questions of different subgroups to tailor messaging to produce targeted behavioral change; (2) providing separate and distinct treatment of each information unit or theory that arises on social networks; (3) identifying positive deviants who found creative solutions for stress during the COVID-19 crisis not found by other members of the community; (4) creating different stories of coping; and (5) maintaining a dialogue with population subgroups (eg, skeptical and hesitant groups). The paper concludes by proposing criteria for evaluating the effectiveness of a narrative.


The exploitation of oil palm generates lignocellulosic wastes, also known as oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFB), which are difficult to biodegrade and are mainly composed of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. The presence of lignin impedes the use of the cellulose from this biomass in industrial processes. This study evaluated the effect of different chemical and biological treatments to remove the lignin present in the EFB from oil palm. The conventional kraft method, the soda-anthraquinone pulping process, microwaveassisted hydrogen peroxide degradation and the peroxy-monophosphoric acid method were the chemical treatments evaluated. Meanwhile, the four biological treatments were tested using different lignocellulolytic native fungi from the genera Xylaria, Psilocybe and Agrocybe. The results showed a greater reduction of the lignin content with an enrichment of cellulose using the kraft method and the soda-anthraquinone pulping process. For the biological treatments, the fungus Agrocybe sp. showed a selective delignification, exhibiting a remarkable potential for the utilisation of cellulose present in this type of waste. In contrast, the fungus Psilocybe sp. showed high non-selective fibre degradation, which could be used for bioremediation and composting systems.


The combination of in-office procedures such as chemical peels with topical maintenance therapies has been shown to provide greater efficacy than either treatment by itself in the management of melasma. A series of 3 case studies were conducted to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of one superficial chemical peel (containing a proprietary blend of resorcinol, lactic acid, salicylic acid, and retinol) combined with a topical multimodal, hydroquinone-free skin brightener as postpeel maintenance therapy. Patients presented with moderate to severe facial hyperpigmentation. At baseline, subjects received the superficial chemical peel treatment followed by a standard postpeel skin care regimen (cleanser, moisturizer, and SPF 30+ sunscreen). Approximately 1 week after the peel procedure, subjects initiated twice-daily application of the skin brightener. Subjects were then evaluated for Global Improvement in Hyperpigmentation by the investigator for up to 7 weeks postpeel. Standardized digital photographs of the subjects facial skin and in vivo reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) images were taken of a target hyperpigmented lesion at baseline and at follow-up. Standardized photography and in vivo RCM images at baseline and at postpeel show the improvements observed by the investigator. Results from these case studies suggest that the combination of a superficial chemical peel with topical maintenance and the multimodal skin brightener may provide an effective treatment approach for subjects with moderate to severe facial hyperpigmentation.


This paper presents a comparative study for the weakly compressible (WCSPH) and incompressible (ISPH) smoothed particle hydrodynamics methods by providing numerical solutions for fluid flows over an airfoil and a square obstacle. Improved WCSPH and ISPH techniques are used to solve these two bluff body flow problems. It is shown that both approaches can handle complex geometries using the multiple boundary tangents (MBT) method, and eliminate particle clustering‐induced instabilities with the implementation of a particle fracture repair procedure as well as the corrected SPH discretization scheme. WCSPH and ISPH simulation results are compared and validated with those of a finite element method (FEM). The quantitative comparisons of WCSPH, ISPH and FEM results in terms of Strouhal number for the square obstacle test case, and the pressure envelope, surface traction forces, and velocity gradients on the airfoil boundaries as well as the lift and drag values for the airfoil geometry indicate that the WCSPH method with the suggested implementation produces numerical results as accurate and reliable as those of the ISPH and FEM methods. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This paper studies how governance drives entrepreneurial orientation (EO) in small firms. We argue that founder status and ownership create powerful personal incentives for small firm CEOs to engage in behaviors that influence EO. Integrating stewardship theory and the principal‐principal branch of agency theory, we test our hypotheses on a sample of 339 Swedish firms, and find that CEO founder status is significantly and positively associated with EO, while CEO stock ownership significantly but negatively predicts EO. We additionally test two boundary conditions that show that the founder‐CEO's prior managerial experience in start‐up firms positively moderates the founder‐EO relationship, while contrary to expectations, CEO ownership diversification has no effect on the negative association between ownership and EO. Thus, our study adopts a corporate governance perspective to explain how variations in EO across small firms are driven by the goals and motivations of its leader. Our research also shows that in small, private firms the balance of power is tipped in favor of the CEO rather than the board of directors. Finally, we underline the importance of adopting alternative theoretical lens like stewardship and principal‐principal agency, given that traditional principal‐agent problems are largely mitigated in the small firm context.


Non-Pt noble metal clusters like Au clusters are believed to be promising high performance catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) at the cathode of fuel cells, but they still suffer big problems during the catalysis reactions, such as a large amount of the capping agents being on the surface and easy occurrence of dissolution and aggregation. To overcome these obstacles, here, we present a novel and general strategy to grow ultrafine Au clusters and other metal (Pt, Pd) clusters on the reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets without any additional protecting molecule or reductant. Compared with the currently generally adopted nanocatalysts, including commercial Pt/C, rGO sheets, Au nanoparticle/rGO hybrids, and thiol-capped Au clusters of the same sizes, the as-synthesized Au cluster/rGO hybrids display an impressive eletrocatalytic performance toward ORR, for instance, high onset potential, superior methanol tolerance, and excellent stability.


: The effectiveness of external ankle support in influencing the role of a primary ankle everter during the application of an ankle inverting torque was examined by monitoring the electromyographic (EMG) output of the peroneous longus. Six male intercollegiate athletes were randomly placed in a balanced latin squares design, and were tested under three treatment conditions: (a) wrapped, (b) taped, (c) no external support. The subjects performed a backward stepdown movement. During the experimental step, a trapdoor in the lower platform collapsed so as to form a potential ankle inverting angle of 30 degrees. Sixteen millimeter film was used to record each subject's stepping sequence. The film was in turn synchronized to the subject's recordings of EMG activity. Statistical analysis of the integrated EMG pulse counts showed a significant difference (P less than .05) between the normal (control) and ankle inverting (experimental) steps. No significant differences (P less than .05) were detected between treatments. It was concluded that the apparatus placed a measurable stress on the ankle and that preventive ankle strapping has no statistically significant (P less than .05) effect on the tension developed in the peroneous longus during a quick inversion (less than or equal to 30 degrees) of the ankle joint.


A no-till (NT) production system has potential to reduce soil erosion, fossil fuel consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions compared with a conventional till (CT) system. Nitrogen fertilization (four to six N rates) and tillage system (CT and NT) effects on irrigated, continuous corn (Zea mays L.) yields were evaluated for 5 yr on a clay loam soil to determine the viability of the NT system and N needs for optimum yield. Corn in both NT and CT systems responded similarly to available N supply. Grain yields were significantly increased by N fertilization in both tillage systems, with a 16% higher average maximum yield in the CT than in the NT system. Grain yields were near maximum with an available N (soil 1 fertilizer N) level of 276 and 268 kg N ha 21 in the CT and NT systems, respectively. Nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency (NFUE) averaged 43% over N rates and years for both systems. Total N required to produce 1 Mg of grain at maximum yield averaged 19 and 20 kg N Mg 21 grain for the CT and NT systems, respectively. Corn residue increased with increasing N rate with no difference in residue production between tillage systems. The lower grain yield with NT probably resulted from the slow early spring development and delayed tasseling compared with the CT system as a result of cooler spring soil temperatures in the NT system. No-till, irrigated, continuous corn production has potential for replacing CT systems in the central Great Plains area, but with reduced yield potential. Current N fertilizer recommendations for CT corn based on yield goal may need to be modified for NT to account for the lower yield potential and slightly higher N requirement.


The results of the survey 16 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, in which the resulting protocol chemotherapy using doxorubicin developed toxic anthracycline-induced cardiomyopathy. The control group was 20 healthy children of similar age studied. Distribution of research groups included age status and cumulative dose of doxorubicin. Studies of the cardiovascular system in children with acute leukemia was conducted before and at the end of each protocol chemotherapy. It is noted that the complaints of the cardiovascular system as palpitations and disruptions in the heart, cardialgia, autonomic crises occurred at the end of the first phase I protocol chemotherapy. Severity of complaints prevalent in patients with higher cumulative dose of doxorubicin. Noted a decrease in left ventricular contractile capacity and the development of myocardial ischemia in patients with acute leukemia at the end of the first phase II protocol. The increase pro-brain natriuretic peptide in all patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia at the end of the first phase I protocols that can be considered as an early diagnostic marker of myocardial injury in these patients.


An argon-fluoride excimer laser operating at 193 nm was used to perform tangential, wide-area surface photoablation of the corneas of bovine eyes. Comparisons were made with similar tangential ablations performed with the use of 308-nm xenon chloride excimer laser and qi/gl 2936-nm erbium-YAG laser irradiation to evaluate potential photochemical and thermal effects. Light and transmission electron microscopy of the corneal tissue revealed minimal tissue architectural changes for ablation at 193 nm. The zone of ultrastructural change at the corneal surface with the 193-nm excimer laser was 120 nm thick. The clinical appearance of the corneal surfaces produced by the tangential ablation at 193 nm was the most satisfactory of those with the three wavelengths tested, being macroscopically smooth and glossy.


Abstract. The purpose of this study is to present our experience of the removal of esophageal foreign bodies in children and adults using rigid esophagoscope under general anesthesia. A total of 26 patients with a history of ingested foreign body in the esophagus were admitted and treated in our hospital between July 2005 and August 2007, of whom 20 children and 6 adults. There were 14 male and 12 female patients between 6 months and 70 years of age. All patients except one had a clear history and symptoms of foreign body ingestion. The main symptoms were difficulty in swallowing, acute onset of pain, dysphagia, choking and excessive salivation. A lateral neck plain radiograph and a posteroanterior view that included the oropharynx, neck, chest, and abdomen were made routinely before esophagoscopic examination. Foreign bodies were most commonly identified in the cervical esophagus, usually immediately below the cricopharyngeus (16 children). Remaining foreign bodies were as follows: 6 (4 children, 2 adults) foreign bodies were lodged in the midesophagus and 4 (all adults) in the distal esophagus. All foreign bodies were removed under general anesthesia. A rigid esophagoscope was used to remove them. Coins were the most common foreign body removed from the esophagus, occurring in 14 patients, all children. Other foreign bodies were bones mixed with pieces of meat, button battery, staples, safety pins, chicken bones, and fish bone. There were no deaths, no perforations, no cases of mediastinitis, and actually no complications secondary to insertion of the esophagoscope and removal of the foreign body. Rigid esophagoscopy remains as safe method of esophageal foreign body removal. The timely diagnosis and endoscopic removal should be performed to prevent serious life-threatening complications. Key words: Esophagoscopy, foreign body, impaction


OBJECTIVES
To estimate the proportion of dental visits and to explore determinants of oral health care service (OHCS) utilisation among US civilian non-institutionalised adults.

METHODS
Cross-sectional data from the 2006 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) were used to analyse adults' self-reported dental visits across potential risk factors (n = 22,721). MEPS uses a complex sample design including stratification, clustering, multiple stages of selection, and disproportionate sampling. These survey design complexities were taken into account for analysis in this study. The analysis was performed in SAS 9.2 and used chi-square tests and binary logistic regression.

RESULTS
MEPS (2006) represented approximately 222 million non-institutionalised US adults. 42% (weighted) of this population reported a dental visit in the past 12 months. Dental visit numbers were observed to increase with age, with the 55-64-year-olds approximately 44% more likely than the 18-24-year olds to have visited the dentist in the past year. Hispanics were 48% less likely to report a dental visit compared to Non-Hispanic Whites. Respondents with public- or no- dental insurance were less likely to report a dental visit than persons with private dental coverage.

CONCLUSIONS
Under half the US adult civilian non-institutionalised population reported a dental visit during 2006. To help address utilisation disparities, creative initiatives and systemic approaches aimed at groups currently utilising OHCS less often could be an important step towards oral health equity.


Color is one of the main indicators of aesthetics issues. Due to importance of colors quality among the industrial products, colors selection for products is a key point for production. Furthermore understanding and conceptions of the mentioned visual factors is complicated. Also, colors as a very important aesthetic factor is a challengeable and effective subject for design's team work and their innovations, thus the main manufacturing companies around the world have R&D departments which studies about color in products, specifically. Color selection and make an effective harmony among the different colors is one of the most important activities in industrial design discipline, besides industrial designers are facing with the mentioned area. They also pay attention to colors functions and effective in everyday products, more than other experts. Taking and choosing of colors will be based on two approaches: "technical field" and "interface scope". In the first one some subjects are studied such as chemistry of colors, kind of colors and surface absorbance, and so on. In the second scope, relationship and connection between human and environments will be discussed. However, the second area is more important because it is related to human needs. In this study importance of colors and colors' roles in surface features among the products were studied. Also colors were introduced as a key element for users and their behaviors for purchases. All in all the findings of this study emphasize on this fact that choosing of colors for products design is a wide scope which covers a multidisciplinary function.


Al-12.5 wt% Si alloy powder with 15 wt% SiCp was mechanically alloyed (MA) using attrition mill in purified nitrogen atmosphere. The MA processed powder was found to have nano grain size and uniform distribution of SiCp in the AlSi matrix. This MA processed powder was used for atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) for varying distances and currents densities. The coatings obtained were studied by image analyzer, SEM and XRD. Microhardness and wear rate of the coatings were evaluated using Vickers indenter and pin on disk type tribometer, respectively. Adhesion strength of the coatings was measured by interfacial indentation test. The results showed that these coatings have uniform distribution of reinforced SiC particles in the nano crystalline matrix, low porosity (1% - 2%), low wear rates and improved adhe-sion strength. It was also observed that by increasing current density of APS, the adhesive strength increased.


We present first-principles calculations of carbon and silicon chiral framework structures (CFSs). In this system, proposed recently by Pickard and Needs [Phys. Rev. B 81, 014106 (2010)], atoms form only pentagonal cycles. This configuration enables unambiguous analysis of the effects of pentagons on electronic, vibrational, and thermodynamic properties. The local density approximation electronic band gaps in CFSs were found to be equal to or greater than those of clathrates using the same formalism, as confirmed by GW calculations: 1.8 and 5.5 eV for Si and C-CFS, respectively. We show that, as in clathrates, an increasing electronic band gap is correlated with the contraction of the valence bands, resulting from the frustration of the p shells. The electron localized function and Wannier analysis confirm the sp3 nature of the bonds. Finally, we discuss vibrational and related properties. We show that CFSs present singularities, in particular, that the higher frequencies are not located at the Γ point.


Colombian legal institutions, both public and private, have played a big role on land concentration and dispossession during relatively peaceful times and also in contexts of armed conflict (Gutierrez, 2014a, 2014b, 2015; LeGrand, 1984, 2016). Assignment rules of property rights in Colombia are highly exclusive (Gutierrez y Vargas, 2016; Pena et al., 2017), some of their constituents stimulate dispossessions and block access to rural property. These traits or characteristics have never been studied; the present article is moving towards the direction of reviewing some traits of the legal rules, which create legal barriers. The emphasis is on institutional designs of procedural laws, meaning the costs and requirements a person have to fulfill in order to become the owner of a wasteland, emphasizing on legal institutional design will help to understand the logics of land dispossession. Our final goal is to identify legal arriers only manageable for citizens capable of doing lobby and to assuming the costs and time necessary to became the owner of a piece of land. The hypothesis will be confronted with the analysis of the legal rules for adjudication of wastelands and a specific case.


We present a model where divorcing spouses can choose to hire lawyers in their divorce process. Spouses encounter incentives as in the classical prisoners' dilemma: Despite the zero sum nature of the game and the lawyers' fees, each spouse has an incentive to hire a lawyer. We propose a simple institutional setting allowing for joint lawyers in order to overcome this socially inefficient situation. This model is estimated and tested with rich micro-data from court records. Employing a multiple treatment matching procedure we estimate the causal effect of lawyers on the division of matrimonial property, on the length of the divorce process and on the quality of the divorce settlement. JEL Classification: K41, J12, J52, K36, C72.


By using an electronic computer, rays were traced through six optical systems used in infrared spectrometers to determine what broadening of the image takes place as a result of geometrical-optical aberrations. The data obtained indicate that Littrow instruments, using either a prism or a grating, form sharp images in a plane behind that of the entrance slit. Czerny-Turner optical arrangements form images in front of the entrance slit plane which are not so sharp as those formed by the Littrow instrument. Comparison of broadening due to geometrical-optical aberrations with that due to diffraction shows that in most cases the former is considerably less. The data presented show graphically the curvature of the image formed.


The formulation of an integrated sequence-stratigraphic and biostratigraphic framework is fundamental in the design of an effective strategy for petroleum exploration in a sedimentary basin. For the interior salt basins of the Gulf coastal plain of the United States that are filled primarily with Mesozoic postrift nonmarine to marine siliciclastic and carbonate deposits, a sequence-stratigraphic approach using transgressive-regressive (T-R) sequences and integrated with biostratigraphic information has utility as a method for establishing such a framework. The sequence stratigraphy established for Upper Jurassic and Cretaceous strata is used to categorize petroleum reservoirs in the central and eastern Gulf coastal plain. Transgressive aggrading eolian, fluvial, and coastal sandstone facies of the T-R sequences include highly productive hydrocarbon reservoirs in the eastern Gulf coastal plain. Productive reservoirs in the central and eastern Gulf coastal plain include regressive infilling fluvial to nearshore marine sandstone facies, and nearshore marine, shelf, ramp, and reef carbonate facies. Transgressive backstepping nearshore marine facies include highly productive reservoirs in the central Gulf coastal plain. These transgressive and regressive facies are recognized by their wireline log patterns and seismic reflection configurations. Knowledge of the diagnostic wireline log signatures and seismic reflection characteristics assists in the detection of exploration targets.


Purpose of Study: Vaccination is a remarkable medical achievement, but many vaccines elicit poor responses, which limits efficacy. Exercise has been identified as a possible behavioural adjuvant; brief muscle damaging exercise immediately prior to vaccination enhances antibody responses with effects mostly confined to strains showing weaker control responses. Here, we tested the effect of exercise on the response to either a full or half dose of Pneumococcal (Pn) vaccine. The exercise task was developed for clinical applicability, minimizing equipment, and inducing less muscle damage. Subjects & Methods: Subjects were 132 young healthy adults (75 women; age: 22 ± 2.7years; BMI: 23 ± 3.8Kg/m2), who were randomized to one of four groups: Exercise or control task, receiving a full or half dose Pn vaccination. Prior to vaccination, exercise groups completed a 15 min task using resistance bands involving 30s of arm and shoulder exercise and 30s rest alternations. Control subjects rested quietly during this time. Antibody levels to 11 Pn strains were evaluated at baseline and 1 month. Summary of results: To assess overall effect of exercise, a multivariate ANOVA was performed with change scores (1 month-baseline) for all 11 Pn strains. A significant effect of group showed an overall greater change in antibody levels among all strains in the exercise groups. Subsequent analyses used averaged antibody values, with a repeated measures ANOVA with four groups and gender. A significant group by dose by sex interaction (p > .05) was detected, driven by women, with the exercise half dose group showing an enhanced response over the control half dose group. Discussion: The current data showed an overall effect of enhanced response among the exercise vs control groups. Specifically, this effect was found in the half dose group, with women, showing exercise-enhanced responses. The current study adds to data indicating the effectiveness of exercise as a vaccine adjuvant, particularly in weaker responses, modeled by a half dose given in young healthy adults. This evidence is important in future application of this effect in at risk groups, who are in greatest need of improvement of immune responses to vaccination.


This PhD thesis aims at improving our understanding of the structural and functional role of reefs constructed by the ecosystem engineer Lanice conchilega in natural soft substrate coastal ecosystems. This was achieved by keeping in mind a holistic approach regarding the formulation of the ecological hypotheses throughout the thesis. At first, the community and ecosystem ecology of L. conchilega was studied, followed by characterising trophic interactions taking place within the reef habitats and comprehensively combining ecosystem engineering and food webs. The general discussion combines the results of this thesis and discusses the role of L. conchilega reefs regarding the community composition, feedback effects, food web structure and carbon cycling in intertidal areas.


Objectives: To evaluate the feasibility of imaging the entire esophageal length during the early anomaly scan and present a case with disrupted esophageal continuity that later (at the 2nd trimester) proved to have esophageal atresia (EA). Methods: This was a prospective observational study of 125 patients. Patients carrying a singleton pregnancy were recruited during the routine early anomaly scan at 13-16 weeks of gestation. The entire length of the esophagus was captured in a single sonographic frame at the mid sagittal plane. The esophagus was imaged as a bundle of numerous echogenic lines running posterior to the trachea and right main bronchus (in the neck and upper thorax) and running posterior and adjacent to the heart (at the lower thorax). Medical records of the antenatal follow-up were reviewed. Results: Complete visualisation of the esophagus (neck to diaphragm) was possible in 124 patients, using a one-shot technique. Passage of fluid through the thoracic esophagus was identified in 23 cases. The mean time required for detection of the esophagus was on average 12.95 +/-7 (SD) sec. In one case, the cervical segment of the esophagus was demonstrated clearly while the lower thoracic segment was not demonstrated despite robust efforts. At the mid trimester anomaly scan the stomach could not be visualised and EA was evident by repeated demonstration of a cervical esophageal pouch. The couple opted for pregnancy termination. Conclusions: It is feasible to demonstrate esophageal continuity during the early stages of pregnancy. The early scan is a window of opportunity for clear and undisturbed visualisation of the entire esophagus. This may serve as a new efficient tool to screen for EA in early pregnancy.


Augmented naive Bayesian classifiers relax the original independence assumption by allowing additional dependencies in the model. This strategy leads to parametrized learners that can produce a wide spectrum of models of increasing complexity. Expressiveness and efficiency can be controlled to adjust a trade-off specific to the problem at hand. Recent studies have transposed this finding to the domain of bias and variance, demonstrating that inducing complex multivariate probability distributions produces low-bias/high-variance classifiers that are especially suitable for large data domains. Frameworks like AkDE avoid structural learning and reduce variance by averaging a full family of constrained models, at the expense of increasing its spatial and computational complexity. Model selection is then required and performed using Information Theory techniques. We present a new approach to reduce model space from the point of view of ensemble classifiers, where we study the individual contribution to error for each model and how model selection affects this via the aggregation process. We perform a thorough experimentation to analyse bias stability and variance reduction and compare the results within the context of other popular ensemble models such as Random Forest, leading to a discussion on the effectiveness of the previous approaches. The conclusions support new strategies to design more consistent ensemble Bayesian network classifiers which we explore at the end of the paper.


The dc theory of p-n junctions has been extended, taking into account the mobile carriers or electrons and holes in the transition region. The linearized Poisson-Boltzmann equation is solved by using a linearization parameter α, which is a measure of the relative importance of the fixed, ionized impurity space charge compared with the mobile carrier or electron and hole charges in the transition region of the p-n junction. It is found that both the transition layer width and the transition carrier capacitance associated with the electrons and holes in the transition region increase exponentially with applied voltage under forward bias condition. A calculation of the recombination-generation current at a forward bias beyond the built-in or diffusion voltage is now possible with the present theory. The dc theory of junction capacitance compares favorably with experimental measurements of a wide variety of nearly linear-graded diffused silicon junctions.


Background Sailuotong (SLT) is a standardized three-herb formulation consisting of extracts of Panax ginseng, Ginkgo biloba, and Crocus sativus for the treatment of vascular dementia (VaD). Although SLT has been shown to increase cerebral blood flow, the direct effects of SLT on vascular reactivity have not been explored. This study aims to examine the vasodilatory effects of SLT and the underlying mechanisms in rat isolated tail artery. Methods Male (250–300 g) Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rat tail artery was isolated for isometric tension measurement. The effects of SLT on the influx of calcium through the cell membrane calcium channels were determined in Ca2+-free solution experiments. Results SLT (0.1–5,000 μg/ml) caused a concentration-dependent relaxation in rat isolated tail artery precontracted by phenylephrine. In the contraction experiments, SLT (500, 1,000, and 5,000 μg/mL) significantly inhibited phenylephrine (0.001 to 10 μM)- and KCl (10–80 mM)-induced contraction, in a concentration-dependent manner. In Ca2+-free solution, SLT (500, 1,000, and 5,000 μg/mL) markedly suppressed Ca2+-induced (0.001–3 mM) vasoconstriction in a concentration-dependent manner in both phenylephrine (10 μM) or KCl (80 mM) stimulated tail arteries. L-type calcium channel blocker nifedipine (10 μM) inhibited PE-induced contraction. Furthermore, SLT significantly reduced phenylephrine-induced transient vasoconstriction in the rat isolated tail artery. Conclusion SLT induces relaxation of rat isolated tail artery through endothelium-independent mechanisms. The SLT-induced vasodilatation appeared to be jointly meditated by blockages of extracellular Ca2+ influx via receptor-gated and voltage-gated Ca2+ channels and inhibition of the release of Ca2+ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum.


The welding process, a conventional production method of gate valves, has advantages such as light weight, but it also has disadvantages such high production price. However, the forging process, has economic merits and mass production capability. The main focus of this paper is the optimization of the preform in the forging process. This paper proposes an optimal design of the preform to improve the mechanical efficiency of the gate valve made by the forging method. The design of the preform is optimized by the use of the real response model to the Kriging model by computer simulation. Also, the optimized results were used to verify the response model. The verified response model confirmed the usefulness and reliability of the Kriging method in optimum structural design of preform achieved by finite element analysis and Kriging equations.


This letter proposes a circuit model capable of predicting the bandwidth and resonance frequency of a well-known artificial magnetic conductor (AMC). The AMC is composed of an array of Jerusalem cross-shaped frequency selective surfaces (FSSs) (JC-FSS) deployed on a thin PEC-backed dielectric slab. The model benefits from the static (Quasi-TEM) closed-form equations, available in literature for the characteristic impedance of microstrip transmission lines. These equations enable the model to incorporate the influences of the slab thickness on the FSS impedance, a feature that the available models have not been able to offer exactly. In order to check the competence of the model, some sample AMCs are designed by the model, and their properties are verified by numerical analysis.


DepoVax™ is an innovative and strongly immunogenic vaccine platform. Survivin is highly expressed in many tumor types and has reported prognostic value. To generate tumor-specific immune response, a novel cancer vaccine was formulated in DepoVax platform (DPX-Survivac) using survivin HLA class I peptides. Safety and immune potency of DPX-Survivac was tested in combination with immune-modulator metronomic cyclophosphamide in ovarian cancer patients. All the patients receiving the therapy produced antigen-specific immune responses; higher dose vaccine and cyclophosphamide treatment generating significantly higher magnitude responses. Strong T cell responses were associated with differentiation of naïve T cells into central/effector memory (CM/EM) and late differentiated (LD) polyfunctional antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. This approach enabled rapid de novo activation/expansion of vaccine antigen-specific CD8+ T cells and provided a strong rationale for further testing to determine clinical benefits associated with this immune activation. These data represent vaccine-induced T cell activation in a clinical setting to a self-tumor antigen previously described only in animal models.


We retrospectively analyzed our latest 564 defecographies to evaluate: the frequency of each single defecographic finding on the total number of patients and in the two sexes; the frequency of the finding as single disorder and in association with other anorectal disorders; the correlation between findings and symptoms. The most common disorders were anterior rectocele (54%), mucosal prolapse (53%), puborectalis muscle syndrome (15%), and intussusception (15%); this order is respected in women (70, 57, 17 and 16% of the study population) but differs in men (mucosal prolapse 42%, puborectalis muscle syndrome 18%, posterior rectocele 14%, and intussusception 14%). Intussusception and puborectalis muscle syndrome were identified as an isolated finding in many cases (55% and 43%, respectively). The most common associations are: posterior rectocele with anterior rectocele (58% of cases), anterior rectocele with mucosal prolapse and vice versa (63% and 64%), intussusception with anterior rectocele (52%), puborectalis muscle syndrome with mucosal prolapse (36%) and with anterior rectocele (49%) and descending perineum syndrome with anterior rectocele (81%) and with mucosal prolapse (70%). The low rate of association among some disorders should be mentioned too for example, mucosal prolapse is associated, with intussusception only in 10% of cases. Clinical-defecographic correlations are less apparent: if some symptoms are found to be more typical of some disorders, this correlation is not pathognomonic and the clinical picture is quite aspecific. We stress the value of a careful correlation between clinical-anamnestic and defecographic findings for the correct evaluation of these disorders.


Postoperative nausea and vomiting are common and distressing postsurgical complications. Prevention or early treatment of this complication should be a goal of all anesthesia providers. This article addresses the pathophysiology of nausea and vomiting and identifies patients at risk for this complication. Pharmacological actions and side effects of commonly used antiemetics are addressed. The new serotonin antagonists and combined antiemetic therapy are highlighted.


We examine the growth, survival, and context of 256 novel hashtags during the 2012 U.S. presidential debates. Our analysis reveals the trajectories of hashtag use fall into two distinct classes: "winners" that emerge more quickly and are sustained for longer periods of time than other "also-rans" hashtags. We propose a "conversational vibrancy" framework to capture dynamics of hashtags based on their topicality, interactivity, diversity, and prominence. Statistical analyses of the growth and persistence of hashtags reveal novel relationships between features of this framework and the relative success of hashtags. Specifically, retweets always contribute to faster hashtag adoption, replies extend the life of "winners" while having no effect on "also-rans." This is the first study on the lifecycle of hashtag adoption and use in response to purely exogenous shocks. We draw on theories of uses and gratification, organizational ecology, and language evolution to discuss these findings and their implications for understanding social influence and collective action in social media more generally.


Patterns of the 16S rRNA gene obtained in 8 and 12% acrylamide gels by the SSCP (Single Strand Conformation Polymorphism) method were different for various marine fish species (Macrorhamphosus scolopax, Scomber scombrus, Lepidorhombus boscii, L. whiffiagonis, Trachurus trachurus, T. mediterraneus, Molva molva, Merluccius merluccius). SSCP patterns of this gene were employed to successfully identify formaldehyde-fixed eggs of different species (Merluccius merluccius, Scomber scombrus, Macrorhamphosus scolopax and L. whiffiagonis) in plankton samples. The advantages of SSCPs in comparison with current genetic methods of egg identification are based on their technical simplicity and low price. The application of the PCR-SSCP methodology is proposed for routine genetic analyses in plankton surveys.