HF radar backscatter which has been artificially-induced by a high power RF facility such as the EISCAT heater at Tromsø has been demonstrated to provide iono-spheric electric field data of unprecedented temporal resolution and accuracy. Here such data are used to investigate ULF wave processes observed by the CUTLASS HF radars. Within a short period of time during a single four hour experiment three distinct wave types are observed with differing periods, and latitudinal and longitudinal phase evolution. Combining information from the three waves allows them to be divided into those with a large-scale nature, driven externally to the magnetosphere, and those with small azimuthal scale lengths, driven by wave-particle interactions. Furthermore , the nature of the wave-particle interactions for two distinct small-scale waves is revealed, with one wave interpreted as being driven by a drift resonance process and the other by a drift-bounce resonance interaction. Both of these mechanisms with m ≈ −35 and proton energies of 35–45 keV appear to be viable wave energy sources in the postnoon sector. Key words. Ionosphere (active experiments; wave-particle interactions) – Magnetospheric physics (MHD waves and in-stabilities).


What happens when historical theories are used as evidence in a trial? Is it possible for historians to use their own scientific tools when acting as participants in a juridical process? And how do judges deal with historical evidence? The aim of this study is to answer these questions by analyzing a specific trial, known as "Harjedalsmalet". Harjedalsmalet was a court case about the Sami people's right to let their reindeer graze on private property grounds in Harjedalen during the winter season. Their claim to this right was based on prescription of time immemorial. In order to prove their long history in Harjedalen, the Sami people summoned the archaeologist Inger Zachrisson to testify.According to Zachrisson, the Sami people have a history in Harjedalen that stretches as far back as 98 AD. However, another archaeologist, Evert Baudou, claims that there is no evidence of a continuity of the Sami culture in Harjedalen during the early Middle Ages. In order to prove their respective theories, the archaeologists base their arguments on both archeological and historical (written) source material. The archeologists wrote a number of statements and articles which they sent to court. In this master's thesis, these statements and articles are analyzed using the scientific criteria that a study must meet to be considered scientific by the historian community.The analysis shows that the scientific criteria are not fully met in by the archeologists and that the used written source material from the Middle Ages doesn't meet the criteria for classic historical source criticism. The judges do not evaluate the historical evidence; they simple note that the archeologist have different opinions and that there is no certain evidence of a continuing Sami culture in Harjedalen during the early Middle Ages. The conclusion of this master's thesis raises new questions: can history, known to be an interpretive science, ever produce evidence that is "certain enough" in a court? And how can the Sami people, whose nomadic life left little archeological and historical source material behind, ever prove their existence in a certain area in historical times?


A theoretical model is outlined to illustrate how rents are generated from import quotas. The model is used to estimate rents from US cheese import quotas; rents are substantial. Relative rent capture by importers and exporters is explained by estimating an industrial organisation-type model. Unequal market power is important in explaining the distribution of rents between importers and exporters. Exporters tend to maintain price-cost margins and let importers capture a larger share as rent size increases.


A long-lived coherent state and nonlinear interaction have been experimentally demonstrated for the vibrational mode of a trapped ion. We propose an implementation of quantum computation using coherent states of the vibrational modes of trapped ions. Differently from earlier experiments, we consider a far-off resonance for the interaction between external fields and the ion in a bidimensional trap. By appropriate choices of the detunings between the external fields, the adiabatic elimination of the ionic excited level from the Hamiltonian of the system allows for beam splitting between orthogonal vibrational modes, production of coherent states, and nonlinear interactions of various kinds. In particular, this model enables the generation of the four coherent Bell states. Furthermore, all the necessary operations for quantum computation, such as preparation of qubits and one-qubit and controlled two-qubit operations, are possible. The detection of the state of a vibrational mode in a Bell state is made possible by the combination of resonant and off-resonant interactions between the ion and some external fields. We show that our read-out scheme provides highly efficient discrimination between all the four Bell states. We extend this to a quantum register composed of many individually trapped ions. In this case, operations on two remote qubits are possible through a cavity mode. We emphasize that our remote-qubit operation scheme does not require a high-quality factor resonator: the cavity field acts as a catalyst for the gate operation.


Cabrera-Vega, L.L., Cruz-Avero, N., Hernandez-Calvento, L., Hernandez-Cordero, A.I. and Fernandez-Cabrera, E., 2013. Morphological changes in dunes as an indicator of anthropogenic interferences in arid dune fields. In: Conley, D.C., Masselink, G., Russell, P.E. and O'Hare, T.J. (eds.), Proceedings 12 th International Coastal Symposium (Plymouth, England), Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 65, pp. 1271-1276, ISSN 0749-0208. Coastal dunes systems have been widely modified by human activities, especially in recent decades. Some of the changes have modified the aeolian landforms which characterize these environments. The dune systems of the Canary Islands can be considered as arid systems due to its temperature and rainfall levels. For this reason, the speed at which the geomorphologic process (natural or induced by human activities) occur are more significant than in dune systems located at either temperate or tropical regions. In this sense, the Canary Islands beach-dune systems are ideal for testing the effects of human activity on these environments. This work identifies major alterations, from the 60´s, on three dune systems where the tourism activity has developed to a considerable extent: Maspalomas (Gran Canaria), Corralejo (Fuerteventura) and Famara (Lanzarote). To analyse these changes, historical and current aerial photographs and orthophotographs were used, as well as field work. Changes have been classified by the causes that induced them: I) urban development; II) beach equipment; III) beach users; IV) maintenance activities; V) a combination of some of these former causes. Results indicate that urban development is the main cause of the alteration of these dune fields. In Maspalomas and Famara less than 35% of their surfaces are free of human actions capable of producing morphological changes, while in Corralejo this percentage reaches 63%. In the analyzed period, the surface of the dune fields have been reduced, some of the existing dunes have been modified, and new morphologies (natural and artificial) have appeared. The latter process is mostly associated with mismanagement in these areas.


The magnitude of anterior and dorsal constrictions for laterals in /(C)(C)VlC/ words produced by eight American English speakers was measured using ultrasound imaging. The results replicate previous findings that laterals have weaker anterior constrictions when followed by labial or velar consonants than when followed by alveolar consonants. The main novel finding is that, in words with /VlClabial/ or /VlC velar / sequences, this anterior constriction was weaker in high-frequency words (help, milk) than in low-frequency words (whelp, ilk). Although high-frequency words also showed slight reduction of the dorsal constriction, dorsal reduction was stable, small in magnitude, and not correlated with anterior reduction, consistent with alveolar reduction not being simply a consequence of overall weaker lingual constrictions in more frequent words. Acoustic measures for laterals showed that the degree of anterior constriction correlated with the frequency separation between F1 and F2: more reduced alveolar constrictions – especially likely in high-frequency words – were linked with greater formant proximity. These articulatory and acoustic patterns are interpreted as potentially contributing to the initiation and lexical diffusion of historical /l/ lenition. It is proposed that gestural reduction in high-frequency words in which the anterior gesture for laterals must be coordinated with another supralaryngeal constriction serves as a precipitating factor in /l/ vocalization and possibly (although to a lesser extent) /l/ loss. *Corresponding author: Susan Lin: Department of Linguistics, University of Michigan. Current affiliation: Department of Linguistics, University of California, Berkeley. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com Patrice Speeter Beddor: Department of Linguistics, University of Michigan. E-mail: email@example.com Andries W. Coetzee: Department of Linguistics, University of Michigan. E-mail: email@example.com


This paper presents an identification method for continuous nonlinear systems whose input-output functional is regular and homogeneous. The model is a Volterra series truncated in its first terms. The Volterra kernels are expanded on multidimensional generalized orthonormal bases. A subset model selection is applied on the estimated model to provide a more parsimonious model.


Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), including urinary incontinence, negatively affect women's quality of life. Employed women are particularly prone to experiencing the negative aspects of LUTS due to their irregular access to toilet facilities. In Taiwan, about 70% of women 25–44 years of age are employed, yet little research on LUTS in the workplace has been conducted. In this article, the development of a Chinese instrument for estimating prevalence of LUTS and identifying factors related to LUTS among employed women is discussed. After instrument-generation and translations, content validity of the instrument was assessed and found to be satisfactory. Following a pilot test, psychometric testing of the instrument (which included test-retest reliability and internal consistency) was conducted. Test-retest reliability for the majority of the items and internal consistency for the construct LUTS were adequate. Based on initial psychometric testing, the authors suggest the instrument is appropriate for use with women in Taiwan. Additional testing is recommended before being used with other populations.


Over the last 10 years there has been an explosion of information about the molecular biology of cancer. A challenge in oncology is to translate this information into advances in patient care. While there are well-formed routes for translating new molecular information into drug therapy, the routes for translating new information into sensitive and specific diagnostic, prognostic and predictive tests are still being developed. Similarly, the science of using tumor molecular profiles to select clinical trial participants or to optimize therapy for individual patients is still in its infancy. This review will summarize the current technologies for predicting treatment response and prognosis in cancer medicine, and outline what the future may hold. It will also highlight the potential importance of methods that can integrate molecular, histopathological and clinical information into a synergistic understanding of tumor progression. While these possibilities are without doubt exciting, significant challenges remain if we are to implement them with a strong evidence base in a widely available and cost-effective manner.


In this paper, we study the relation between income distribution and prices in economies in a self-replacing state, defined by Sraffa, when wages are paid entirey in value. As a result of our analysis, it is possible to build a model that combines some distinctive features of the different forms of payment considered by this author, facilitates the study of wages as an independent variable and offers an original formalization of the production of commodities by means of commodities. Moreover, the model helps to highlight and explain one particular effect on prices due to wages paid in value.


In our century, the rapid development in technology as it seems in every area, serves important advantages in education to us. Social studies lessons, which aim to educate example citizens of community who are aware of their responsibilities and rights, benefit from these acquirements in technology as much as possible. Collaborative activities, data gathering activities and multimedia activities that integrates social studies and technology will be evaluated in this article.


BACKGROUND
evaluate the results of Pap smear in women attended at a gynecology preventive ambulatory (University of São Paulo Medical School Clinical Hospital).

METHODS
6821 women were submitted to a medical interview, clinical and gynecologic exam. Cervical and vaginal cytology (Pap smear) were analyzed according to the Papanicolaou method and classification. All women were grouped according to their age into three categories:under 40 years old, between 41 and 60 years and over 60 years.

RESULTS
most of them, and mainly the younger ones, had been submitted to a previous Pap smear in a period shorter than 1 year (44.2%). The majority of women recognized the usefulness of the exam and knew its interval; the group that best knew its importance and interval was the one with ages between 41 and 60 years, while most women over 60 years did not know both its importance and interval. Cytological material was considered insufficient for analysis in 15,1% and inadequate in 1.1%, and for those with adequate material results were classes I (21.7%), II (59.9%), III (2.0%), IV (0.1%) and V (0.1%). Distribution of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) were similar in the three groups. The main microbiologic findings was Gardnerella sp. (8,6%) and Human papillomavirus (HPV) incidence was significantly lower among women over 60 years.

CONCLUSION
Cytological diagnoses of neoplastic modifications were performed in 2,2% and Gardnerella sp. was the most prevalent microbiologic agent. Distribution of HPV showed a decrease with age. Older women had lower knowledge on the importance of regular Pap smear examination.


Abstract A few examples of scaffoldings designed, built and used in recent years in Poland have been presented here in this paper. There have been described facilities of various forms, which are surrounded by scaffoldings. This makes the design and assembly processes demand large labour input. The main focus has been set to the problems in the operation of scaffoldings used during the renovation of historic monuments. The scaffoldings used at such buildings are usually of complex and alternating geometry. In extreme cases, it is impossible to anchor the scaffolding due to the mechanical sensitivity of building facades. Other problem often affecting the operation of scaffoldings near such buildings is large inclination of roof surfaces, at which the scaffoldings are based on.


The zero truncated inverse Gaussian–Poisson model, obtained by first mixing the Poisson model assuming its expected value has an inverse Gaussian distribution and then truncating the model at zero, is very useful when modelling frequency count data. A Bayesian analysis based on this statistical model is implemented on the word frequency counts of various texts, and its validity is checked by exploring the posterior distribution of the Pearson errors and by implementing posterior predictive consistency checks. The analysis based on this model is useful because it allows one to use the posterior distribution of the model mixing density as an approximation of the posterior distribution of the density of the word frequencies of the vocabulary of the author, which is useful to characterize the style of that author. The posterior distribution of the expectation and of measures of the variability of that mixing distribution can be used to assess the size and diversity of his vocabulary. An alternative analysis is proposed based on the inverse Gaussian-zero truncated Poisson mixture model, which is obtained by switching the order of the mixing and the truncation stages. Even though this second model fits some of the word frequency data sets more accurately than the first model, in practice the analysis based on it is not as useful because it does not allow one to estimate the word frequency distribution of the vocabulary.


Background and Objectives: The changes that occur in platelets as they undergo storage have been documented by aggregometry as well as by flow cytometry. However, one of the most essential platelet functions, the induction of clot retraction, has not been quantitatively assessed in stored platelets. We describe two potentially useful methods, platelet‐induced clot retraction and clot strength, to assess effect of storage of platelets in blood banks or of platelet preparations subjected to freezing or freeze‐drying. These methods have previously been developed for bedside monitoring of patients receiving c7E3 (Reopro®). Materials and Methods: Platelet‐induced clot retraction (PICR) and clot strength were measured with the Hemodyne ™ and Thromboelastograph®, respectively. Paired Study: Fresh platelet concentrates (n = 3) were obtained from leukapheresis donors and divided into two equal units; one unit was tested within 4 h of collection and the other stored for 5 days at 22°C in a platelet incubator and tested. Unpaired Study: Fresh platelet concentrates (n = 15) were obtained from leukapheresis donors and tested within 4 h of collection and compared to outdated platelets (n = 30; random or single donor) that had been stored for 5 days at 22°C in a platelet incubator. Alternative Presevation Methods: Lyophilized platelets, platelets chilled to 4°C, platelets frozen at −70°C in 5% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) or in the absence of a cryoprotectant Results: Paired Study: Stored platelets demonstrated an increase in PICR; the difference was not significant (p = 0.55). There was no difference in clot strength between fresh and outdated platelets (p = 0.90). Unpaired Study: When compared to fresh platelets, stored platelets demonstrated a 2‐fold higher PICR (p = 0.0011). On the other hand, there was no difference in the time to onset of PICR (p = 0.08) and there was no difference in clot strength between fresh and outdated platelets (p = 0.14) Alternate Preservation Methods: In contrast, PICR and clot strength were reduced in platelets frozen at −70°C in 5% DMSO and absent in lyophilized platelets, in platelets frozen at −70°C in the absence of cryoprotectants or stored at 4°C. Conclusion: The data indicate that the ability of platelets to indcue clot retraction and to enhance clot strength is not altered by storage, despite functional abnormalities in aggregation and agglutination. These data suggest that quantitative measurements of PICR and clot strength may be simple, useful tools for assessing the function of stored platelet concentrates, platelets that have undergone freezing or exposure to alternative buffers and for evaluating platelet functions relevant to PICR.


Alterations in the DMD gene, which codes for the protein dystrophin, cause forms of dystrophinopathies such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy, an X-linked disease. Cardiomyopathy linked to DMD mutations is becoming the leading cause of death in patients with dystrophinopathy. Since phenotypic pathophysiological mechanisms are not fully understood, the improvement and development of new disease models, considering their relative advantages and disadvantages, is essential. The application of genetic engineering approaches on induced pluripotent stem cells, such as gene editing technology, enables the development of physiologically relevant human cell models for in vitro dystrophinopathy studies. The combination of induced pluripotent stem cells-derived cardiovascular cell types and 3 D bioprinting technologies hold great promise for the study of dystrophin-linked cardiomyopathy. This combined approach enables the assessment of responses to physical or chemical stimuli, and the influence of pharmaceutical approaches. The critical objective of in vitro microphysiological systems is to more accurately reproduce the microenvironment observed in vivo. Ground-breaking methodology involving the connection of multiple microphysiological systems comprised of different tissues would represent a move toward precision body-on-chip disease modelling could lead to a critical expansion in what is known about inter-organ responses to disease and novel therapies that have the potential to replace animal models. In this review, we will focus on the generation, development, and application of current cellular, animal and potential for bio-printed models, in the study of the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying dystrophin-linked cardiomyopathy in the direction of personalized medicine.


Neuropathic pain is nerve pain whose treatment still has side effects when used for the long term. Regulation and modulation of the immune system is needed to reduce the inflammatory reaction that triggers of the pain. Increasing neural tension may induced with nerve inflammation which producing compounds responsible for signalling pain, fever and heat. Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), cloves (Syzygium aromaticum L.) and nutmeg (Myristica fragrans Houtt) have been known to contain phenolic compounds that are efficacious as anti-inflammatory agents. This study aims to prove the anti-inflammatory activity of neuropathic pain reducing herbs consisting of a combination of the three ingredients. Result from herbs formulation and reflux extraction then analysed for anti-inflammatory activity using in vivo & Winter method with Sprague-Dawley white male rats (Rattus norvegicus) and quantitative phenol content. Anti-inflammatory analysis done by 6 groups of rats, which is normal control, negative control, positive control, dosage I (given herbal extract 1.125 mL/200 g BW), dosage II (given herbal extract 2.25 mL/200 g BW) and dosage III (given herbal extract 4,5 mL/200 g BW). Anti-inflammatory of 10 g herbs extract in 250 mL solvent then observed through the inhibition of oedema formation on rats' paw along the time. Dosage III group has the higher inhibition percentage as in 75.76%, which almost equivalent as normal control group (82.28%).


The main objective of the studies described in this thesis was to investigate the impact of combined exposure to allergens and non-allergenic agents on the development of respiratory allergy in occupational populations. The effect of early life exposure to the farming environment and endotoxin exposure on IgE mediated sensitization to common allergens (atopy) and respiratory symptoms was studied in farming students and adult pig farmers. Both a farm childhood and current exposure to the farming environment were associated with a much lower prevalence of atopy in farming students and non-farming controls. A low risk of sensitization to common allergens was also found in full time pig farmers, and was associated with chronic high dose exposure to endotoxin. Whether the reduced prevalence of atopy also affects risk of (allergic) respiratory disease is not clear from these studies. A farm childhood was associated with a lower prevalence of wheeze, doctor-diagnosed asthma, and bronchial hyper-reactivity (BHR), but current farming and high endotoxin exposure were associated with higher prevalences of respiratory symptoms and increased BHR in farming students and pig farmers.

The relation between disinfectant exposure and respiratory allergy was studied in pig farmers and in laboratory animal (LA) workers that had been working with LA's for more ('experienced') or less ('novice') than 4 years. Results from the study in pig farmers confirmed that disinfectant use might be a risk factor for allergic respiratory disease in this population. Prevalence of sensitization to common allergens was very low in farmers who did not use disinfectants, but strongly increased with increasing frequency of disinfectant use. Disinfectant use was also a risk factor for respiratory symptoms in atopic pig farmers, which concords with earlier findings, and was associated with signs of upper airways inflammation. Nevertheless, prevalences of sensitization to common and laboratory animal allergens were lower in 'novice' LA workers using disinfectants containing chloramine-T, and use of disinfectants other than alcohol was associated with lower prevalences of respiratory symptoms to common allergens and laboratory animals. However, no association was found between disinfectant use and sensitization or respiratory symptoms in 'experienced' workers, and there was some indication that the inverse association in 'novice' workers might be due to reversed causation.

We also investigated whether high titers of IgG4 antibody to rat urinary allergens (RUA) could be a marker for the induction of immunological tolerance in LA workers. Exposure to RUA was associated with high titers of allergen-specific IgG4 antibody. However, IgG4 was a strong risk factor for both prevalent and newly occurring sensitization and symptomatic allergy to rats in atopic and rat-sensitized workers respectively. High IgG4 to RUA is therefore not a marker for the induction of tolerance, but rather reflects aspects of exposure and susceptibility.
Long-term changes in lung function in workers exposed to high molecular weight sensitizers were assessed using follow-up data from the study in LA workers. Contact with laboratory animals was a significant risk factor for accelerated annual lung function decline, but this was most pronounced in sensitized workers who continued to be exposed to the animals they were sensitized to.

Results from these studies illustrate the impact of combined exposures and interaction effects on the development of occupational respiratory allergy. Although allergen exposure is probably the most important determinant of IgE sensitization or symptomatic allergy in susceptible workers, exposure to non-allergenic agents such as endotoxin or disinfectants may significantly affect susceptibility. As combined exposures are the rule rather than the exception in the working environment, these effects are relevant to risk assessment of both allergens and non-allergenic agents.


Factorial survey designs have gained increasing popularity within the social sciences. Compared to single-item questions, the method allows the researcher to model more realistic, multidimensional decision scenarios. Furthermore, it has been argued that assessing sensitive dimensions in factorial surveys can help to overcome social desirability bias.
One rarely used implementation mode is the between subject design, in which the sensitive dimension varies only between respondents. This method is assumed to attract less attention than a design based on the usual within subject implementation, where respondents see variations on the sensitive dimension among their vignettes. In order to empirically evaluate the between design and its potential to reduce social desirability bias, we conducted an experiment within a general population online survey. Using a split-half design, the sensitive dimension in the vignette texts was either varied within or between subjects. More precisely, the factorial survey module under study assessed respondents' judgements on just fees for early childcare. Among other dimensions, the vignette texts included the child's religious denomination (Christian, Muslim, none) as one possible attribute on which discrimination can be based. The split-half approach allows us to compare the widely used within subject design to the alternative between approach. Furthermore, data on respondent characteristics is used to obtain insights about differential design effects for different education groups (differential social desirability bias) and respondents from different religious backgrounds (ingroup favouritism). While results concerning a differential social desirability bias were inconclusive, we found evidence for ingroup favouritism from respondents without a religious denomination in the between condition. In general, our findings suggest that the between subject design is a suitable method for reducing social desirability bias in factorial surveys.


Meckel-Gruber Syndrome (MGS) is a rare, lethal, autosomal recessive condition characterised by renal-cystic dysplasia, an encephalocele and polydactyly. A 31 year old female, para 4, including one forceps delivery with cranial decompression of a baby with MGS, attended in her fifth pregnancy. Anomaly scan findings were classical of MGS; termination declined. A 32 week scan showed a large encephalocele with minimal brain tissue, a head circumference of 420mm, severe oligohydramnios and a breech presentation. The delivery options of pre-term induction of labour versus an inevitable caesarean section at term were discussed. The couple opted for induction of a vaginal breech delivery at 34 weeks. Whilst in the active second stage following delivery of the breech the encephalocele self-decompressed under the pressure of pushing and the head was born with no medical intervention. The presenting part in MGS is typically breech as the enlarged head circumference prevents head engagement. Concern regarding passage of the head through the pelvis means those who continue the pregnancy to term either receive a caesarean section - scarring the uterus for a baby that will not survive, or undergo a vaginal breech delivery with cranial decompression – a traumatic event. This case is unique because the encephalocele self-decompressed, reducing maternal distress and avoiding the morbidity associated with a caesarean section. It raises the question of appropriate timing and mode of delivery in these patients, as well as medical awareness that a normal delivery with minimal intervention is possible and could be considered as first line management.


This paper is concerned with the analysis of active and passive hybrid actions in structures with active constrained damping layers (ACL). A system model is derived via Hamilton's Principle, based on the constitutive equations of the elastic, viscoelastic, and piezoelectric materials. The model converges to a purely active piezotronic system as the thickness of the viscoelastic material (VEM) layer approaches zero. A mixed Galerkin-GHM (Golla-Hughes-McTavish) method is employed to discretize and analyze the model in time domain. With an LQR (linear quadratic regulator) optimal control, the effects of the active constrained layer configuration on the system vibration suppression performance and control effort requirements are investigated. Analysis illustrates that the active piezoelectric action with proper feedback control will always enhance the damping ability of the passive constrained layer. When compared to a purely active configuration, while the viscoelastic layer of the ACL treatment will enhance damping, it will also reduce the direct control authorities (active action transmissibility) from the active source to the host structure. Therefore, whether the ACL treatment is better than a purely active configuration depends on whether the effect of damping enhancement is greater than that of transmissibility reduction caused by the VEM layer. The significance of these effects depends very much on the viscoelastic layer thickness and material properties. With some parameter combinations, the ACL configuration could require more control effort while achieving less vibration reductions compared to a purely active system. Through analyzing the performance and control effort indices, the conditions where this active-passive hybrid approach can outperform both the passive and active configurations are quantified. Based on this study, design guidelines can be set up to effectively integrate the host structure with the piezoelectric and viscoelastic materials, such that a truly beneficial active-passive hybrid control system could be achieved.


The study aims to compare the efficacy of dexmedetomidine (DEX) vs. remifentanil (REM) to blunt the hemodynamic response to laryngoscopy and orotracheal intubation. Enrolled in a double-blind clinical trial, 124 patients undergoing elective surgery under general anesthesia at Amirkabir Hospital (Arak, Iran), were assigned into four groups equally (31 patients in each group), DEX, REM, DEX-REM, and normal saline (NS), who received intravenous DEX (1 µg/kg), REM (1 µg/kg), their equal mixture (each 0.5 µg/kg, 1 minute before tracheal intubation), and NS, respectively. Then, blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), and arterial oxygen saturation (SaO2) were measured on arrival to the operating room, 1 minute before laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation, immediately after intubation, and afterwards every 5 to 15 minutes, and finally the data were analyzed using SPSS 18.0. The groups were same regarding to age, sex and baseline hemodynamic variables including mean of BP (P = 0.157), HR (P = 0.105) and SaO2 (P = 0.366). Tukey post-hoc test showed that there DEX, REM, and a DEX + REM groups was same regarding to MBP and HR, but these hemodynamic responses were higher in NS group than other groups at all time after laryngoscopy and intubation (P < 0.05). Moreover, repeated measure test showed a decreasing trend in MBP and HR in three intervention groups at all time after intubation (P > 0.05). A DEX/REM mixture had the lowest BP and three intervention groups had lower HR than the NS group. A mixture of the drugs used seems to lead to not only a prevented increase in HR and BP during laryngoscopy but also a decreased BP and HR. This study was registered in Iranian Registry Clinical Center with the registration No. IRCT2016092722254N1.


As part of the events for the 210th anniversary of the foundation of the University of Palermo, on December 2, 2016, the exhibition Disegno, Memoria, Progetto was inaugurated, in which the graphic and multimedia elaborations of the courses and researches of the Drawing area of the Department of Architecture of Palermo were shown. The event, curated by Vincenza Garofalo and Francesco Maggio with the scientific responsibility of Nunzio Marsiglia, has been el- egantly set up at the exhibition hall of the former Faculty of Architecture in Viale delle Scienze. The inauguration of the exhibition was an occa- sion for a common reflection, which, after institutional greetings, provided for an introductory speech by Nunzio Marsiglia, followed by the views of the president of UID Vito Cardone, Francesca Fatta and me.


The purpose of this study was determine effects of ingestion carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage drink to improve exercise performance in the heat. Ten male subjects (age 18-30 years) were subjected to cycle ergometer at 63.5 ± 3.3% of maximal O2 consumption (VO2max) with a pedal speed of 60 rpm until they became fatigued. They were given a drink of carbohydrate-electrolyte at a concentration of 6%, 12% and a flavored water placebo (WP) to consume at a volume of 3 ml/kg/body weight every 20 minutes. Blood samples were taken at rest and during exercise at every 10 minutes for analyzing plasma glucose, insulin, free fatty acid and glycerol. Mean exercise time until the on set of fatigue in subjects was found to be significantly longer (P<0.001) following the ingestion of carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage (84.7 ± 6.9 min) compared with WP (66.2± 2.2 min). However, plasma glucose concentration was found to be significantly lower in the WP ingested subjects compared to carbohydrate electrolyte ingested ones (4.5 ± 0.2 m.mol/L vs 4.3 ± 0.2 m.mol/L, ANOVA, P<0.05). When carbohydrate electrolyte beverage maintained plasma glucose concentration at 4.5 – 5.5 m.mol/L, the subjects exercised for an additional hour before being fatigued. The levels of plasma insulin from 40 minute until the end of exercise were decreased in all beverage ingested subjects. Results indicate that carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage supplementation during prolonged cycling improves physical performance.


Future habitation of earth is an ever-increasing concern, with the proliferation of problems such as overpopulation, climate change, nonviable waste disposable methods and over-consumption of natural resources. These issues are influencing some contemporary entrepreneurs to consider ways of moving away from earth, to new habitations in space where we can survive if the earth becomes uninhabitable. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezo is currently engaging technicians and engineers to design plans for a city in space. But architectural design theory, in addition to engineering, must play a fundamental role in such a project, if it is to meet the social, cultural and political needs of its inhabitants.  People on earth benefit significantly from the ability to engage with the natural environment. But in outer space, this is not a condition that normally would be considered viable. In a space city, by default the traditional notion of an outside landscape setting needs to occur inside. This imperative becomes one of the principal reasons why this thesis looks at biophilia as a direction for the design research experiments, since biophilic systems at a large scale can provide a sense of an 'outside' landscape even 'within' the architecture of the design research. This thesis advances this concept further by proposing that the occupants can live within such a system, rather than peripheral to it, enabling the occupants to become a fundamental part of a working system.  With the intention of exploring design concepts for a city in space, the first aim of the thesis is to consider how to incorporate a 'natural environment' into people's lives, even within an 'architectural' context where no access to a traditional natural environment is available. The first thesis aim is to achieve this by integrating biophilic systems throughout the design, thereby providing an environmental landscape within which people can interact, within an internalised architectural construct. The second aim of the thesis is to consider how to apply sustainability to an entire city. By designing an entire city as an integrated set of biophilic 'systems', the thesis proposes that each component of the new urban environment becomes participatory – and they become fundamental parts of that system. The overall system can be conceived in relation to sub-systems, systems working on macro and micro levels, relating to the full range of urban to human scales. The third aim of the thesis is to consider how the architectural identity of a future city would be defined if the multicultural future city is not associated with any traditional site, culture, or architectural heritage. The thesis proposes that if the new city is designed as an overall set of biophilic systems, then the typological identity of the new architecture / new city could arise from the biophilic systems' environmental as well as mechanical components–integrated with the related habitational systems. In this way, the architectural identity of the 'new city' is conceived as systems-based, rather than arising from historical architectural precedents that are no longer applicable in a fully enclosed city in space.  This thesis asks the question: how can pressing issues such as global scarcity and severe environmental transformation be strategically represented to the public through politically motivated 'speculative' architecture? Using Factory Fifteen, a visual studio that works in architectural communication, combined with design work described in Chris Abbot's novel Xavier of the World as a provocative generator of a speculative design as well as a driver for the site and programme, the architecture of a city in space is used to illustrate a new interpretation of physical, social, economic, cultural and political parameters for 21st century architecture.


ABSTRACT Chang, T.S., Ha, H.J., and Hong, S.H., 2016. Mud deposition on a macrotidal beach: Dasari coastal dune, West Coast of Korea. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 1312 - 1316. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Along the macrotidal west coast of Korea, numerous pocket-type or embayed sand beaches are exposed to wave energy and strong tidal processes. They are generally characterized by almost 1 km wide intertidal zones and relatively steep beach gradients. Among these, peculiar muddy beaches occur along the Dasari macrotidal shoreline, midwest coast of Korea. The Dasari beach is generally composed of three sectors; a currently eroding inland coastal dune, a steep and narrow sand beach, and a wide, gently seaward sloping intertidal flat. Unlike other sand beaches on tide-dominated coasts, sediments in the intertidal zone show an unexpected shoreward decrease in mean grain size, fine sands on the lower flat getting finer and finally becoming muddy on the upper flat at the transition between the beach and the intertidal flat. Topographic surveys reveal that the intertidal zone is located below mean sea level without the occurrence of any shore-parallel bars, these features being characteristic of wide low-tide terraces. In particular, the mud flats have a smooth morphology, probably leading to extensive wave energy dissipation. The sand on the narrow beach may be associated with erosion of foredunes during storms coinciding with high tide, rather than the influence of onshore transport across the mud flat. The source of both the fine-grained sediments of the mud flat and the sand of the beach is currently still unclear.


People living with advanced disease face challenges to their being-in-the world; these are attributable to both the nature and progression of their illness and the level and variability of their care needs. Recent policy initiatives and
literature promote community care for patients with advanced disease, and there are a plethora of different health services that may be involved in care provision for people in the last year of their lives. The current research takes a phenomenological approach, informed primarily by the work of van Manen, to explore the lived experiences of patients and their spousal-carers in relation to the multiple services that are involved in their care.

In-depth, semi-structured interviews with twelve patients with advanced disease, and eight spousal-carers were conducted. These interviews employed the Pictor technique to support people in reflecting on, and communicating, their experiences of care situations. Pictor is an innovative technique that is used with lay-participants for the first time in this research. The technique encourages people to reflect on relationships and personal
experiences, and then to communicate these through the creation and discussion of a visual chart. The digitally recorded data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using interpretive phenomenological methods, supported by Template Analysis, which allowed the hierarchical coding of themes.

The research findings indicate that advanced disease affects people in many different ways; participants' perceived meaning of illness is instrumental in how they view and engage with health care services. The lived experience of
this phenomenon is discussed as an 'unhomelike-being-in-the-world', and 'striving for poise'. The varied experiences of participants are illuminated and further explored with a focus on key relationships with health care providers.
Here, it is argued that consideration of 'authentic relationships' is a valuable resource in supporting people affected by advanced disease.


Abstract Entacapone, a reversible catechol-o-methyl transferase inhibitor, is used to enhance the action of dopamine agonists by reducing their metabolism and the 'Wearing-off' effects associated with long-term use in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. It is used as an adjunct to levodopa/Carbidopa therapy. Due to limited dissolution and first-pass clearance, it suffers low and variable bioavailability issues. To overcome this problem, the present study aims to explore the potential of nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) for the delivery of Entacapone. The Quality by Design (QbD) approach was used for the systematic development of NLCs. The 23 full factorial designs were investigated using Design-Expert®11 software. The three independent variables namely content of total lipid (X1), surfactant (X2), and sonication time (X3) were optimized against two responses namely particle size and entrapment efficiency. The optimized NLCs were characterized for their size, surface morphology, entrapment efficiency, drug release, thermal and crystallographic studies. In-vivo pharmacokinetic studies in Entacapone-loaded NLCs showed an increase in t 1/2, AUC0–∞, MRT compared to free drug. The reduction in elimination (Kel) depicts the prolonged action of Entacapone by loading in NLCs. The results displayed Entacapone-loaded NLCs have promising potential for oral delivery and enhanced therapeutic effect which otherwise was a major issue.


Background and Aim: Acotiamide is a newly developed prokinetic drug that is clinically used to treat functional dyspepsia (FD). The objective of this study was to assess the therapeutic effects of acotiamide in patients with esophageal motility disorders (EMDs). Methods: Twenty-nine patients with both symptoms of FD and symptoms suspicious of EMDs were enrolled. Esophageal motility function was evaluated by high-resolution manometry before and after 2 weeks administration of acotiamide (100 mg) 3 times per day. Results: Twenty-nine patients were diagnosed with achalasia (n = 4), esophagogastric junction outflow obstruction (EGJOO) (n = 6), absent peristalsis (n = 2), distal esophageal spasm (n = 4), frequently failed peristalsis (n = 7), weak peristalsis (n = 2) and 4 of them were found to be normal. An analysis in all 29 patients showed that acotiamide had no effects on based on distal contractile integral (DCI), basal lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure, or integrated relaxation pressure (IRP). Subgroup analysis, however, showed that acotiamide dramatically reduced IRP, from 19.5 (15.1-30.8) to 12.1 (5.6-16.4) mm Hg, and DCI, from 2,517.9 (1,451.0-8,385.0) to 1,872.5 (812.3-5,225.3) mm Hg·cm·s, in the 6 patients with EGJOO. Conclusions: Acotiamide potentially normalized impaired LES relaxation in patients with EGJOO, while having no effects on normal esophageal motility patterns. Acotiamide may be a promising treatment for EGJOO.


The objective of this article is to promote global energy security by evaluating the existing patchwork of institutions and processes linked to the governance of the global energy economy. What we mean by 'global energy security' is the satisfaction of humankind's energy needs to maintain lifestyle levels in the developed world and to promote development and improve the quality of life across the world, including least-developed and developing countries.The article focuses on the global energy economy, its fragmented governance and its implications for global energy security. Inter-State governance over the global energy economy is neither global nor cohesive. Rather, the various aspects pertinent to it — among others, economic development, climate change, trade, investment protection, finance and human security — are managed in a disparate and disjointed manner. What is more, the absence of a global energy security regime to address 'global' — ie humankind's collective — energy needs justifies the need to investigate the implications of the current state of play for global energy security.To do so, the article will examine all relevant institutions and processes linked to the global energy economy in order to assess their individual and combined implications for global energy security. This article therefore aims to promote an understanding of, and an attitude towards, the global energy economy that acknowledges that it is a composite affair with a high degree of interplay between its constituent parts, and that there are systemic reasons why the current state of play fails to address global energy security needs.The aim of the article is to perform an extensive mapping-out and analysis of the institutions and processes linked to the governance of the global energy economy, and of those purportedly concerned with global energy security, in order to answer the following three questions:1. How does the current governance system of the global energy economy affect global energy security?2. What challenges does the current global energy governance system pose to global energy security?3. Which models of global energy governance should be applied to promote and improve global energy governance generally and global energy security in particular?


The area of surface reconstruction has seen substantial progress in the past two decades. The traditional problem addressed by surface reconstruction is to recover the digital representation of a physical shape that has been scanned, where the scanned data contains a wide variety of defects. While much of the earlier work has been focused on reconstructing a piece-wise smooth representation of the original shape, recent work has taken on more specialized priors to address significantly challenging data imperfections, where the reconstruction can take on different representations -- not necessarily the explicit geometry. This state-of-the-art report surveys the field of surface reconstruction, providing a categorization with respect to priors, data imperfections, and reconstruction output. By considering a holistic view of surface reconstruction, this report provides a detailed characterization of the field, highlights similarities between diverse reconstruction techniques, and provides directions for future work in surface reconstruction.


The use of tubes and catheters in clinical therapeutics and diagnostics is growing rapidly. The distal ends of these devices are placed in a variety of tubelike body cavities, and in many cases reside there for extended periods to provide therapy or monitor physiologic function. Sonic techniques to guide the placement, monitor the position, and determine the patency of such tubes or catheters are under development. With a miniature microphone and speaker attached to the proximal end of the tube, a pulse–echo approach is used to gather patency and position information from reflections that arise from within the tube and body cavity, respectively. Design parameters such as the input pulse bandwidth can be optimized based upon the tube and body cavity geometry, including wall properties and branching. This approach has been used to monitor breathing tubes in neonates, and allows placement to within 4 mm of the desired location and quantification of decreased lumen area to within 10% of the actual obstruction...


Background: Pediatric use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is popular in Europe, and utilization may be even more prevalent in chronically ill children/adolescents. This study's aim is to assess CAM use among adolescents with chronic conditions. Methods: Data on drug utilization (past 4 weeks) and consultation with CAM providers (past year) were collected using a self-administered questionnaire from 4,677 adolescents from the German GINIplus/LISAplus birth cohorts. All reported drugs were classified into therapeutic categories (conventional drugs, homeopathy, herbal drugs, etc.). Additionally, participants were asked to list any chronic diseases (that were parent-reported, physician-verified diagnoses such as allergies, atopic dermatitis, asthma, or other chronic diseases) that they had had over the previous 5 years. Results: Compared with the total sample, drug utilization in general (60.1% vs. 41.1%), homeopathy use (11.1% vs. 8.1%), and consultation with CAM providers (16.9% vs. 10.9%) was significantly more prevalent among chronically ill adolescents. However, chronically ill adolescents used relatively (proportion of the defined therapeutic category among all drugs used) more conventional drugs than healthy adolescents. Conclusion: Compared with healthy adolescents, CAM use is more prevalent among adolescents with chronic conditions. Nevertheless, CAM may predominantly be used as a complementary treatment option rather than substituting conventional drugs.


In this thesis, I examine an ASO in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in order to explore how case managers interpret the complex needs that HIV-positive clients present while trying to encourage them to become responsible citizens. The data are drawn from participant observation, structured interviews with case managers, and a content analysis of case managers' notes in clients' files. I find that clients do not regularly ask for services related to health maintenance, case managers negotiate surveillance and empowerment strategies in four ways, and external factors complicate case managers' ability to carry out their jobs in a climate of surveillance and empowerment. I conclude that responsible citizenship, in the sense of describing how case managers encourage clients to become more self-sufficient, is present in the language that case managers use to depict their approach to case management with clients.


Relational health, a termed coined by Liang et al. (2001) to reflect Relational-Cultural Theory concepts, is the presence of growth-fostering characteristics in significant relationships. Although growth-fostering relationships have been conceptualized as relevant across the lifespan, existing research has mainly explored the experiences of college students and adults. In this study, the authors seek to create a developmentally appropriate instrument called the Relational Health Indices for Youth (RHI-Y) for studying growth-fostering relationships among early and mid-adolescents. This measure adapts the original adult RHI instrument for a younger population (i.e., utilizing a simpler vocabulary and containing fewer items). Measurement development resulted in six-item scales assessing relational health in three different relationship domains: friendships, relationships with an adult mentor, and relationships with members of a community group. Results indicate that the RHI-Y scales are valid, reliable measures of growth-fostering relationships. Preliminary findings about the correlates of relational health in youth are discussed.


CONTEXT
There are few data on long-term mortality following osteoporotic fracture and fewer following subsequent fracture.

OBJECTIVES
To examine long-term mortality risk in women and men following all osteoporotic fractures and to assess the association of subsequent fracture with that risk.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
Prospective cohort from the Dubbo Osteoporosis Epidemiology Study of community-dwelling women and men aged 60 years and older from Dubbo, Australia, who sustained a fracture between April 1989 and May 2007.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Age- and sex-specific standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) compared with the overall Dubbo population for hip, vertebral, major, and minor fractures.

RESULTS
In women, there were 952 low-trauma fractures followed by 461 deaths, and in men, 343 fractures were followed by 197 deaths. Age-adjusted SMRs were increased following hip fractures (SMRs, 2.43 [95% confidence interval [CI], 2.02-2.93] and 3.51 [95% CI, 2.65-4.66]), vertebral fractures (SMRs, 1.82 [95% CI, 1.52-2.17] and 2.12 [95% CI, 1.66-2.72]), major fractures (SMRs, 1.65 [95% CI, 1.31-2.08] and 1.70 [95% CI, 1.23-2.36]), and minor fractures (SMRs, 1.42 [95% CI, 1.19-1.70] and 1.33 [95% CI, 0.99-1.80]) for both women and men, respectively. Mortality was increased for all ages for all fractures except minor fractures for which increased mortality was only apparent for those older than 75 years. Increased mortality risk persisted for 5 years for all fractures and up to 10 years for hip fractures. Increases in absolute mortality that were above expected, for 5 years after fracture, ranged from 1.3 to 13.2 per 100 person-years in women and from 2.7 to 22.3 per 100 person-years in men, depending on fracture type. Subsequent fracture was associated with an increased mortality hazard ratio of 1.91 (95% CI, 1.54-2.37) in women and 2.99 (95% CI, 2.11-4.24) in men. Mortality risk following a subsequent fracture then declined but beyond 5 years still remained higher than in the general population (SMR, 1.41 [95% CI, 1.01-1.97] and SMR, 1.78 [95% CI, 0.96-3.31] for women and men, respectively). Predictors of mortality after any fragility fracture for both men and women included age, quadriceps weakness, and subsequent fracture but not comorbidities. Low bone mineral density, having smoked, and sway were also predictors for women and less physical activity for men.

CONCLUSIONS
In a sample of older women and men, all low-trauma fractures were associated with increased mortality risk for 5 to 10 years. Subsequent fracture was associated with increased mortality risk for an additional 5 years.


Microbial thermal inactivation survivor curves (log10 numbers plotted against time) have long been described as maintaining a strictly linear rate of decline. However, much evidence exists which suggests deviation from log-linear kinetics does occur, and that this is not purely the result of experimental procedure as contended by some authors. Here, the shape of inactivation kinetics in Salmonella enteritidis was investigated. A heat challenge method was developed which, as far as could be ascertained, was free from methodological artefacts influencing the shape of survivor curves. High initial cell densities allied to sensitive enumeration resulted in biphasic survivor curves at 60°C. Tailing survivors accounted for approximately 1 in 105 of the initial population and possessed roughly four times the heat resistance. At temperatures 50 to 65°C, the presence of tailing prevented the use of D-values to accurately describe death rates. However, describing survivor curves using a log-logistic model increased data-fit at all temperatures investigated. The biphasic nature of survivor curves was studied closely between 49 and 60°C. It was observed that the extent of tailing was temperature-dependent; as temperature decreased, linearity increased such that at 51°C, survivor curves had no tailing. Studies using S. typhimurium and S. senftenberg 775W revealed similar kinetics. In these salmonellas, survivor curves demonstrated linearity at 54 and 57°C, respectively. The influences of culture age and growth rate on the shape of 60°C-inactivation curves were also investigated. Batch-cultured S. enteritidis cells of various maturities gave rise to survivor curves of differing heat sensitivities. Exponentially growing cells were shown to be the most heat sensitive, while late-stationary phase cells were the only populations to result in non-tailed survivor curves. Carbon-limited continuously cultivated cells demonstrated similar biphasic inactivation kinetics. Predictably, the slowest dilution rate corresponded to the greatest heat resistance. Starved cells produced linear inactivation kinetics that were virtually identical to those of late-stationary phase batch-cultured cells. That tailing in batch cultures was similar to chemostat populations, indicated that possible differences in growth rates in batch-cultured cells could not account for tailing. Furthermore, growth was necessary for tailing to be observed. Investigations into the cause of tailing revealed that these cells were not genetically distinct from the majority population. Instead, it is believed that tailing cells arise following the expression of heat-shock proteins during heating. Partial inhibition of de novo protein synthesis during heating resulted in much reduced levels of tailing. It is proposed that the temperature of inactivation determines the proportion of cells capable of expressing a heat-shock response, such that the temperature at which linearity is achieved corresponds to the point at which all cells are fully heat-shock protected.


The Safavid period represents an immensely rich chapter in the history of Iranian architecture. In this discussion of Safavid architecture in the context of its political, social and religious milieu, Kishwar Rizvi gives special consideration to the shrine of Shaykh Safi, built in AD 1334, as an important template for an emergent Safavid taste. Of both regal and religious significance, the shrine's direct relationship to imperial power is unique in Islamic architecture and provides valuable information about the methods of architectural benefaction prevalent in early modern Iran. Rizvi examines the ways in which the transition from a devotional aesthetic to an imperial one represented the young dynasty's imperial aspirations, and affected a wide range of public buildings from mosques to palaces during the early Safavid period and beyond.


Management of anastomotic leak following colorectal reconstructive procedures is perhaps the most challenging issue facing both the patient and surgeon. These complications are frequently encountered in deconditioned and septic patients where clinical judgment and experience play a paramount role in the care of these patients. Several algorithms have been presented for evaluation and management of anastomotic leak based on location, chronicity, symptoms, locations, and diversion status. Timely management of anastomotic leak is paramount to minimizing short- and long-term morbidity and mortality in patients. With a varied armamentarium, and frequent need for multiple interventions, restoration of intestinal continuity and acceptable functional outcomes are achievable in a majority of instances.


Several studies have presented experimental evidence that diversity reduces invasibility in grassland communities. The interpretation of these results has been disputed recently and it was proposed that sampling effects were responsible for the observed decrease of invasibility with diversity. The experiments performed to date were not designed to adequately separate sampling from diversity effects. Using the establishment of native plant species in experimental plant communities as a model of invasibility, we show that the number of invaders decreased with increasing diversity. When the presence of particular species is included, their effects are dominant. Centaurea jacea showed a strong effect at low diversity, whereas Leucanthemum vulgare showed a very strong negative impact at each diversity level. The negative effect of the latter might be related to root-feeding nematodes that showed far higher abundance in plots with Leucanthemum. However, diversity remained a significant factor in determining the number of invading species and the numbers of an abundant invader.


Consider a graph having quantum systems lying at each node. Suppose that the whole thing evolves in discrete time steps, according to a global, unitary causal operator. By causal we mean that information can only propagate at a bounded speed, with respect to the distance given by the graph. Suppose, moreover, that the graph itself is subject to the evolution, and may be driven to be in a quantum superposition of graphs—in accordance to the superposition principle. We show that these unitary causal operators must decompose as a finite-depth circuit of local unitary gates. This unifies a result on Quantum Cellular Automata with another on Reversible Causal Graph Dynamics. Along the way we formalize a notion of causality which is valid in the context of quantum superpositions of time-varying graphs, and has a number of good properties.


Basically, UUPA (Agrarian Law) No. 5/1960 about Regulation Of T he B asic P rinciples A grarian does not regulate arable land becausse it does not have any land rights status. The legal sources which regulate thetillers' rights are Law No. 2/1960 on Production Sharing Agreement between the Owner and Tillers. Law No. 51/1960 on P rohibition O f L and U se W ithout P ermission I s E ntitled or their proxies , Government Regulation No. 224/1961 on D ivision O f L and A nd G rant O f C ompensation and Keppres No. 34/2003  on N ational P olicy I n T he F ield O f L and. Since outlawed tillers and their arable are basically illegal, the problem of the tilling right can be settled according to the notification of the history of the land in the land in the village Office. Witnesses on the land boundaries are asked to trace the history of the land, along with any land certificates. In general, all types of transfer of the tilling right on arable land will be registered in the village land book so that it can be seen in it the valid SKT (Letter of Notification on Land) issued by the village Administration. The Land history of Pasar XII of Bandar Klippa , Percut Sei Tuan Subdistrict, is the area of the residential land of more than 176,252 (one hundred seventy six thousand two hundred and fifty two) hectares, adjacent to PTPN II plantation which has its HGU (Leasedhold). This residential land is given to the people at Pasar XII of Bandar Klippa Village by PTPN II, for they are ex-workers of PTPN II which use to be PTP IX. They hold the land rights according to the Letter of PTPN II is under Article 385 of the Penal Code. Besides that, BPN (National Land Board) can also play its role in handling and settling the dispute in the HGU arable land of PTPN II through mediation, based on the mechanism of the Regulation of the Head of BPN RI No. 3/2011 on Assessment and Case Management of Land Management.


Abstract: The present paper reports the contents of individual lipophilic antioxidants in fourteen species of edible common agricultural weeds, typical of agricultural areas such as fields and orchards. Young edible green aboveground parts of weeds were analyzed for their chlorophyll, carotenoid, and tocopherol qualitative profiles and contents. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the complete lipophilic antioxidant composition of the edible weeds examined in this study. The results revealed that all examined leafy plant species are good sources of lipophilic antioxidants, the richest source being Urtica dioica (255.64 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), followed by Cardamine hirsuta (159.85 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), Cichorium intybus (150.87 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), Aegopodium podagraria (146.07 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), Taraxacum officinale (123.35 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), and Capsella bursa-pastoris (117.59 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), all with higher or similar contents compared to spinach (138.72 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), proving the value of these weeds for nutrition. The shoot vegetable Humulus lupulus had the lowest lipophilic antioxidant content (22.98 mg 100 g − 1 " role="presentation"> g − 1 g − 1 g^{-1} fwt), but this was still 3.8-fold higher than that of cultivated lettuce. Although all weeds examined in our study are valuable sources of health-promoting lipophilic antioxidants, comparison with cultivated spinach revealed that the general belief that all wild edible greens are richer in lipophilic antioxidants than cultivated leafy vegetables is not valid.


Breast cancer (BC) is the most common diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer death in women worldwide. There is an obvious need for a better understanding of BC biology. Alterations in the serum metabolome of BC patients have been identified but their clinical significance remains elusive. We evaluated by 1H-Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H-NMR) spectroscopy, filtered plasma metabolome of 50 early (EBC) and 15 metastatic BC (MBC) patients. Using Principal Component Analysis, Partial Least-Squares Discriminant Analysis and Hierarchical Clustering we show that plasma levels of glucose, lactate, pyruvate, alanine, leucine, isoleucine, glutamate, glutamine, valine, lysine, glycine, threonine, tyrosine, phenylalanine, acetate, acetoacetate, β-hydroxy-butyrate, urea, creatine and creatinine are modulated across patients clusters. In particular lactate levels are inversely correlated with the tumor size in the EBC cohort (Pearson correlation r = −0.309; p = 0.044). We suggest that, in BC patients, tumor cells could induce modulation of the whole patient's metabolism even at early stages. If confirmed in a lager study these observations could be of clinical importance.


We perform a first-principles study of Mg adatom and adislands on the Mg(0001) surface, and Be adatom on Be(0001), to obtain further insights into the previously reported energetic preference of the fcc faulty stacking of Mg monomers on Mg(0001). We first provide a viewpoint on how Friedel oscillations influence ionic relaxation on these surfaces. Our three-dimensional charge-density analysis demonstrates that Friedel oscillations have maxima which are more spatially localized than what one-dimensional average density or two-dimensional cross sectional plots could possibly inform: The well-known charge-density enhancement around the topmost surface layer of Mg(0001) is strongly localized at its fcc hollow sites. The charge accumulation at this site explains the energetically preferred stacking fault of the Mg monomer, dimer and trimer. Yet, larger islands prefer the normal hcp stacking. Surprisingly, the mechanism by which the fcc site becomes energetically more favorable is not that of enhancing the surface-adatom bonds but rather those between surface atoms. To confirm our conclusions, we analyze the stacking of Be adatom on Be(0001) - a surface also largely influenced by Friedel oscillations. We find, in fact, a much stronger effect: The charge enhancement at the fcc site is even larger and, consequently, the stacking-fault energy favoring the fcc site is quite large, 44 meV.


This thesis investigates the cause and implications of the divergent inflation rates of the EMU-12 countries between the years 1998 and 2010. The EMU and the euro are put into a context with the classic theory of Optimum Currency Area, where the economic benefits and cost of joining a monetary union is reviewed. The inflation divergence in the euro area is then described and investigated. Empirically, a Phillips Curve model is constructed in order to determine if the EMU-12 nations' inflation rates are equally sensitive to changes in unemployment as the EMU average. This is done using a Panel Least Square estimation for the EMU-12. Each nation is then tested separately against the EMU average. The result provides evidence that the EMU-12 nations' inflation rates are not equally sensitive to changes in unemployment as the EMU average. The result is negative for the EMU-12 in an Optimum Currency Area context. Given the results, the EMU-12 cannot be considered to be an Optimum Currency Area, at least not yet.


Gladiolus is in demand worldwide as a cut-flower or landscaping plant, because of its superior commercial and ornamental value. Application of plant-based biostimulants has gained interest in the horticulture industry as an innovative and promising approach to ensure enhanced and sustainable yields along with better product quality. The influence of pre-plant corm soaks supplemented to 5% (v/v) with an aqueous extract from Moringa oleifera leaves (MLE) either alone or in combination with 50 mg/L salicylic acid (SA) or 50 mg/L gibberellic acid (GA) on the vegetative, physiological, and ornamental characteristics of potted gladiolus (Gladiolus grandiflorus) was investigated. In general, the treatment order for greatest horticultural value for all the parameters examined was: MLE + SA + GA > MLE + GA or SA individually > MLE alone > water-only control. Compared to other treatments, corms soaked in MLE + SA + GA had the earliest sprout time (3.7 days earlier than control), shortest production time (11 days earlier than control), tallest plant (159.5 cm), greatest number of leaves per plant (8.85 leaves), greatest maximum leaf area (66 cm2), highest SPAD reading (112) and photosynthetic activity (6.7 mmol m−2 s−1), longest spike length (91 cm), greatest number of florets per spike (20 florets), longest vase life (14.8 days), greatest N (1.53%), P (0.28%), and K (0.64%) concentrations, and largest corm diameter (4.68 cm) and mass (22.25 g). The highest total protein and proline concentrations were observed with the combined application of MLE + GA + SA. Our findings suggested that MLE either alone or in combination with other plant growth regulators not only increased the yield and quality of cut spikes, but also prolonged the vase life of cut gladiolus.


We investigate two questions relating to the use of electrostatic potentials in interpreting and predicting noncovalent interactions. First, is the molecular surface defined by the 0.001 au contour of the electronic density a reasonable one, in terms of its relationship to the van der Waals radii of the component atoms? Second, how does the electrostatic potential vary with distance in different directions from the nuclei of covalently-bonded atoms? We address these questions computationally, at the density functional B3PW91/6-31G(d,p) level.


Newport, Rhode Island, blessed with stunning ocean vistas and constant sea breezes, is home to some of the most exceptional private residences in America. Its deeply rooted history makes it a perennial destination, with more than 3.5 million visitors each year. Although it is one of the most high profile towns in the country, Newport is also one of the most cloistered. Private Newport: At Home and in the Garden offers an invitation to venture beyond the privet hedges and massive iron gates. It is the first book to step inside the privately owned mansions to reveal a diverse collection of architectural jewels complemented by spectacular gardens. These homes, created by distinguished architects and landscape designers, are stunning examples of Newport's 375-year "old-world" heritage. Eighteen exquisite and unique homes are prominently featured-from the resilient crescent curve of majestic Seafair, which withstood the Hurricane of '38, to the prizewinning Japanese garden at Wildacre, to the nostalgic working farm of heritage breeds at Swiss Village-each contributing its own part to the "Eden of America."


A new control strategy was proposed to restrain the torque ripples of brushless DC motor (BLDCM) when starting an electric vehicle. Based on the mathematical model of BLDCM, a double loop model of the BLDCM drive system was established using Matlab/Simulink. A PID controller was used in the speed loop, and a current controller based on hysteresis characteristic was implemented in the current loop. The simulation results were compared with the experimental results obtained in the drum test using an electric vehicle which was developed by the research institute. It was found that the control strategy and the motor controller exploited by the research institute met the technical requirements of starting process for the electric vehicle. The torque ripples of BLDCM were suppressed and the simulation model was validated.


Background As the decline in malaria cases becomes obvious in most sub-Saharan African countries, a new major concern is accurate diagnosis of low parasitaemia which can cause sub-patent infections and false-negative Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) results. We assessed the accuracy malaria diagnosis by RDT and microscopy are currently been conducted in Cameroon, by re-evaluating some samples from patients who sought medical care at three health centres in Yaounde. The study would provide information which can help the national malaria control program to reorient interventions strategies to enhance accurate diagnosis within the country. Methods We undertook a research project within a period of six months to re-evaluate malaria confirmed cases by microscopy and RDT test (HRP2: SD BIOLINE Malaria Ag P.f/Pan: Optimal screening test for P. falciparum and other Plasmodium species). We used molecular methods such as nested PCR, in-house tailored loop amplified isothermal amplification (LAMP) and GenoType MalariaDR molecular assay to revalidate these samples. DNA was directly extracted from the RDT cassettes using qiagen spin columns. Results Results showed discrepancies in malaria diagnosis by microscopy, RDT, PCR, LAMP and GenoType MalariaDR. Most false negatives results (RDT negative but positive by microscopy and molecular methods) are linked to low parasite density usually<150 asexual parasites/μl. However, there were some cases where higher parasite density >5,00/μl could lead to false negative results (linked to a deletion of about 870 bp in the HRP-2 gene). GenoType MalariaDR revealed the presence of mutations on Pfmdr1 and Pfcrt associated with resistance to ART. Conclusions The study provided factual information on the detected P. falciparum isolates, HRP-2 mutations and the performance of RDTs and Pfmdr1, Pfcrt and ART resistance markers present in the population. The first-line of ACT in Cameroon is artesunate+amodiaquine, yet possible resistance isolates of amodiaquine and artesunate could be circulating in the country.


The objective of this project is to formalize the experiences, outcomes and lessons learned from previous GEF projects, as well as major non-GEF initiatives involving marine protected areas (MPAs) in coral reefs and associated ecosystems. The project aims to comprehensively identify, analyze, and translate lessons into good practices and information resources, and then disseminate this information globally for use in future project design and development. Based on its history of supporting coral reef biodiversity, management and sustainable development, this project will help the GEF fulfill a major mandate to identify what has worked and what could be improved upon in supporting biodiversity conservation. In combination with other GEF projects, this effort will also help the GEF and other major non-GEF projects achieve a markedly improved return on investment for future projects involving coral reefs MPAs.


In Reply. —We appreciate the letter from the prosecuting attorney. It illustrates eloquently the difficulties we had with this case. If there were a law that states a mother is totally responsible for any adverse event in her child's life, then Ms Henderson would be guilty. But is not that the same type of reasoning that put many parents of infants who died of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in jail? Our point was and still is that it is improper to pretend to use science to adjudicate a predetermined end. Regarding the reimbursement received for testifying, we received a total of $11135. As itemized in the Editor's note, this sum barely covered out-of-pocket expenses and does not reflect the time and professional work we devoted to this case. Ms Green assumes that the methamphetamine came from breast milk, although the mother had not used the drug for 2 or


Vitamin A and its derivative retinoic acid (13-cis RA, 9-cis RA, all-trans RA) and recent tamibarotene have been shown a broad variety of biological actives in human, such as vision, embryonic development, cell growth and cellular differentiation and immune function. These precise functions of RA are mediated by their retinoic acid receptors (RARs). In the past five decades, retinoic acid (RA) proved therapeutic benefits in cancer prevention, in skin diseases and in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL).The elucidation of the molecular basis of vitamin A acid and its retinoid pharmacology in APL has been illustrated in several publications, the detail molecular model of gene regulation had also been proposed by Zhu in earlier 90s. A molecular model is further revised. As an approach to APL treatment, one possible the action of retinoic acid (RA), A consensus sequence (TCAGGTCA motif ) has been postulated for thyroid hormone (TRE) and retinoic acid responsive element (RARE)-containing in the promoter region of target genes. High dose of RA-RARE-PML/RARa complexes in intracellular localization appears to relieve repressors from DNA-bound receptor, including the dissociation of co-re pressor complexes N-CoR, SMRT and HDACs from PML-RARa or PML-RARa/RXR. Also release PML/RARa -mediated transcription repression. This transcriptional derepression occurs at RARa target gene promoter. Consequentially, PML-RARa chimera converted receptor from a repressor to a RA-dependent activator of transcription. The resulting pml-RARA oncoprotein proteolytic degradation occurs through the autophagy-lysosome pathway and the ubiquitin SUMO-proteasome system(UPS) as well as caspase 3, or lysosomal protease (cathepsin D) enzyme or/and EI-like ubiquitin-activating enzyme(UBEIL) induction. Accordingly the expression level of PML-RARa downregulated. PML protein relocalizes into the wild-type nuclear body (PML-NB) configuration or a truncated PML-RARa fusion fragment detected or/and the wild-type RAR upregulated. An effect is to relieve the blockade of pml/RARa-mediated RA dependent promyelocytic differentiation, and retinoic acid (9-cid RA,ATRA, Am80) in APL therapy. Here, oncogenic pml/RARa as constitutive transcriptional repressor that block myeloid differentiation at promyelocytic phenotype. RA can overcome the transcrptional repressor activity of pml/RARa. The oncogenic pml/RARa uncovers a pathogenic role in leukemogenesis of APL through blocking promyelocytic differentiation. This oncogenic receptor derivative pml/ RARa chimera is locked in their "off" regular mode thereby constitutively repressing transcription of target genes or key enzymes (such as AP-1, PTEN, DAPK2,UP.1, p21WAF/CCKN1A)that are critical for differentiation of hematopoietic cells. This is first described in eukaryotes.


Reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) is regarded as a key technology for the next generation of wireless communications. Recently, the combination of RIS and spatial modulation (SM) or space shift keying (SSK) has attracted a lot of interest in the wireless communication area by achieving a trade-off between spectral and energy efficiency. In this paper, by generalizing RIS-aided SM/SSK system to a special case of conventional SM system, we investigated deep learning based detection in RIS-aided SM/SSK systems. Based on the idea of deep unfolding, we studied the model-driven deep learning detection for RIS-aided SM systems and compare the performance against the data-driven deep learning detectors.


The atmosphere contains 3400 trillion gallons of water vapor, which would be enough to cover the entire Earth with a one-inch layer of water. As air humidity is available everywhere, it acts as an abundant renewable water reservoir, known as atmospheric water. The efficiency of an atmospheric water harvesting system depends on the sorption capacities of water-based absorption materials. Using anhydrous salts is an efficient process in capturing and delivering water from ambient air, especially under a condition of low relative humidity, as low as 15%. Many water-scarce countries, like Saudi Arabia, receive high annual solar radiation and have relatively high humidity levels. This study is focused on the simulation and modeling of the water absorption capacities of three anhydrous salts under different relative humidity environments: copper chloride (CuCl2), copper sulfate (CuSO4), and magnesium sulfate (MgSO4), to produce atmospheric drinking water in water-scarce regions. By using a mathematical model to simulate water absorption, this study attempts to compare and model the results of the current computed model with the laboratory experimental results under static and dynamic relative humidities. This paper also proposes a prototype of a system to produce atmospheric water using these anhydrous salts. A sensitivity analysis was also undertaken on these three selected salts to determine how the uniformity of their stratified structures, thicknesses, and porosities as applied in the mathematical model influence the results.


Starting in 1984 Bali's village micro financial institutions, which are called Lembaga Perkreditan Desa(LPD), were set up at the level of the customary village. These villages own, finance and govern the LPDs asan integral part of Balinese culture. The final say in every matter lies with the assembly of indigenousresidents ("krama"), the ultimate authority in every village. This research is aimed to analyze the relationshipbetween LPD and contribution of LPD in order to reduce % percentace of population below the poverty line(%PBL). The independent variable Return on Asset (ROA) has contribution to reduce PBL. ROA is internalperformance of LPD. Additonal analysis is conducted by field experiment to explore improvement internalperformance of LPD with Balance Scorecard. Balance Scorecard is not only measurement tools but strategictools in order to reduce %PBL. Keywords:LPD, internal performance, balance scorecard and poverty


Geotectonically, the western Polish Coast covers the area of the Epicaledonian platform zone. The shores consist almost entirely of Quaternary deposits. Outcrops of older bedrock and glacial xenoliths occur only in some places. At present, the western Polish coast has a decisively transgressive character. The contemporary transgression of the Baltic Sea is recorded here. In this area the shoreline is steadily shifting southwards. The rate of the shoreline recession is slightly differentiated, the general trend having the value of 0.5-1.5 m/yr. The new classification of sea shores of the western Polish coast is presented. On the basis of the genesis of deposits which create the coastal zone, the following fundamental types of sea shores have been designated: glaciogenic, fluvioglacial, lacustrine, alluvial and spit ones. The contemporary evolution trends of this coast are presented as the value of the accumulation or erosion of sea shore in 20th century.


Aimed at few reflections on the scenario characteristics in the most methods of LCA, this paper presents a new approach taking specific information of scenario into account in the environmental impact of product. By analyzing the relation between scenario and environmental impact, the attributes of space, time and person are extracted as the most basic characteristics. In order to avoid the deficient of science modeling between the scenario attributes and the environmental impact processes and to use conveniently, the concept of scenario characteristic coefficient is proposed and the three types of coefficients are expressed in detail applying the existing data or statistic. The method of LCIA considering scenario characteristics is presented by integrating the characteristic coefficients into the LCI processes. And this method is applied to study the scenario characteristics of an LCA of electromotor.


Abstract William Hunter (1718–83) and James Parkinson (1755–1824) were both London-based surgeons with a passion for palaeontology, willing to advocate that the extinction of species had occurred when this viewpoint was seen as controversially arguing for a 'flawed Creator'. Although there is no evidence that they ever corresponded, let alone met, they had mutual connections, such as Jean André de Luc (1728–1817) and William's youngest brother, John Hunter (1728–93). More importantly, they are united by their shared interest in fossils, the expansion of both their collections through the great Leverian Auction, and the desire to write the first introductory explanatory text on fossils at a time when fossils were only beginning to be accepted as the remains of extinct organisms. This paper looks at the connections between these individuals during a period of great intellectual change, and how Parkinson's magnum opus 'Organic Remains' – very much the prototype for today's pan-collection popular books on fossils or dinosaurs – subsequently influenced Hunter's collections in the nineteenth century, part of their posthumous mutual impact on each other's palaeontological legacy.


The effect of prolonged administration of an antiulcer drug, sofalcone, on the physicochemical properties of gastric mucus was investigated. The experiments were conducted with two groups of rats in which one group received a dose of 100 mg/kg of sofalcone twice daily for three consecutive days, and the control group received daily doses of vehicle. The rats were killed 16 h after the last dose, their stomachs dissected, and the mucosa subjected to physicochemical measurements. The results revealed that sofalcone evoked a 23% increase in mucus gel thickness, and its content of sulfo- and sialomucins increased by 54 and 25%, respectively. These changes in mucus with sofalcone were accompanied by a 16% increase in H+ retardation capacity, twofold increase in viscosity, and a 39% increase in the gel hydrophobicity. The mucus elaborated in the presence of sofalcone exhibited a 10% lower content of protein, 30% higher content of carbohydrate, and 18% higher content of total lipids, which were particularly enriched (20%) in phospholipids and contained 67% more covalently bound fatty acids. Furthermore, the high molecular weight mucus glycoprotein form accounted for about 30% of gel mucin in the control group, whereas its content in mucus gel of animals receiving sofalcone reached 50%. The results indicate that sofalcone enhances the protective qualities of the mucus component of the gastric mucosal barrier and hence strengthens the gastric mucosal integrity.


In view of calls for sociology to engage more thoroughly with method and methodological innovation (Law, 2004; Savage and Burrows, 2007) this thesis presents an exploration of John Law's (2002) 'pinboard' method. Grounded in the ontological and epistemological premises of post-Actor-Network Theory (post-ANT), the pinboard is an analytical method which attempts to engage with the 'messiness' of reality by articulating its complexity, diversity and non-coherence which are all typically erased in traditional narrative accounts. Law's explication of the pinboard is imprecise, however, and even within the context of post-ANT literature it is a method which has seen very little use. Hence, in taking up the pinboard method this thesis works, firstly, to illustrate what the pinboard method might mean in practice and, secondly, to offer of it a critical discussion and evaluation.

In doing this, the thesis works through a series of empirical case studies related to the early practice of 'telemedicine' in the US between roughly 1950 and 1980. Based upon both contemporary and recent documentary resources as well as a small number of interviews with early telemedicine researchers, these pinboards are contrasted with existing histories of early US telemedicine to produce a comparative illustration and discussion. On the basis of these case studies, it is argued that the pinboard can be successfully used to produce decentred, 'messy' accounts of ontologically complex realities as is argued by Law. As a result of both practical and conceptual issues, however, the pinboard nevertheless performs reductions and erasures of its own thereby rendering it complementary to narrative accounts rather than antithetical.


This paper presents a novel time-variant ML channel estimator for mobile radio navigation receivers. Our novel ML channel estimator enables the coherent noise averaging over several hundred codewords for time-variant channel phasors. Compared to the conventional incoherent summation of log-likelihood functions or compared to the conventional time-invariant log-likelihood functions, we avoid the squaring loss (SL) completely. The novel time-variant log-likelihood function compared to the conventional time-invariant log-likelihood function yields an SNR gain of up to 15 dB for an observation interval of 200ms. Additionally, since the novel time-invariant log-likelihood functions only require a Slepian subspace of a small dimension, the computational complexity of our novel time-variant ML channel estimation does not exceed the computational complexity of the conventional time-invariant ML channel estimation.


The design of stochastic, linear, multivaribale feedback systems is considered where the plant is constant and the noise processes are stationary. The plant can be unstable and nonminimum-phase and feedback-system dynamics can be modelled. Approximate methods are described for limiting the effects of plant saturation and for modelling transport delays. The closed-loop system is assumed, to have a coloured process, disturbance and measurement noise inputs and a coloured reference input. The plant disturbance and the closed-loop-system reference inputs are also assumed to contain deterministic components, e.g. step or ramp signals. The design procedure is original and involves two stages. A performance criterion is defined first that is not sensitive to the deterministic signals, and this defines the closed-loop controller. The resulting closed-loop system acts as an optimum regulator to minimise the effects of stochastic disturbances. A second tracking-error performance criterion is then specified that determines the optimal reference input to the closed-loop system. This reference signal is generated by two optimal open-loop controllers. One controller ensures the plant output is following a desired trajectory, and the second acts as a feedforward controller to offset plant disturbances.


Background The cotton rat (genus Sigmodon ) is an essential small animal model for the study of human infectious disease and viral therapeutic development. However, the impact of the host microbiome on infection outcomes has not been explored in this model, partly due to the lack of a comprehensive characterization of microbial communities across different cotton rat species. Understanding the dynamics of their microbiome could significantly help to better understand its role when modeling viral infections in this animal model. Results We examined the bacterial communities of the gut and three external sites (skin, ear, and nose) of two inbred species of cotton rats commonly used in research ( S. hispidus and S. fulviventer ) by using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, constituting the first comprehensive characterization of the cotton rat microbiome. We showed that S. fulviventer maintained higher alpha diversity and richness than S. hispidus at external sites (skin, ear, nose), but there were no differentially abundant genera. However, S. fulviventer and S. hispidus had distinct fecal microbiomes composed of several significantly differentially abundant genera. Whole metagenomic shotgun sequencing of fecal samples identified species-level differences between S. hispidus and S. fulviventer , as well as different metabolic pathway functions as a result of differential host microbiome contributions. Furthermore, the microbiome composition of the external sites showed significant sex-based differences while fecal communities were not largely different. Conclusions Our study shows that host genetic background potentially exerts homeostatic pressures, resulting in distinct microbiomes for two different inbred cotton rat species. Because of the numerous studies that have uncovered strong relationships between host microbiome, viral infection outcomes, and immune responses, our findings represent a strong contribution for understanding the impact of different microbial communities on viral pathogenesis. Furthermore, we provide novel cotton rat microbiome data as a springboard to uncover the full therapeutic potential of the microbiome against viral infections.


This patent update relates to neurodegenerative diseases for both the peripheral and central nervous systems. Selected patent activities are described and summarised below for the period of July through December 1996. The newly disclosed agents are listed by their actual or proposed biological mechanism. While many patent applications include agents for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, this review cites only those patents which either disclose biological data to support potential activity, display novel structures or claim relatively unexplored mechanisms for neuroprotection.


Abstract One of the most remarkable developments in European cinema over the last 10 years has been the creation of not one but several vertically integrated studios that produce and actively distribute films across a number of national territories. The rise of these pan-European studios signals a sea change in an industrial landscape that has long been fragmented by nation and language and film historians must begin contemplating what this change means for European cinema and global cinema more broadly. This article seeks to forward such a project by critically examining the output of Studiocanal, the foremost company involved in this trend. In so doing, it focuses on two films in particular: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Tomas Alfredson, 2011) and Unknown (Jaume Collet-Serra, 2011). The article argues that these two films are emblematic of Studiocanal's two larger production strategies, one of which focuses on middlebrow production and marketing and the other which is concerned with mainstream popular genre cinema. Dividing these two tendencies, the article argues, are distinct treatments of genre, authorship and stardom, even while industrial factors relating to production and the employment of European artists unites them. Surveying these differences and similarities, the article illustrates the bigger impact that Studiocanal and by extension its fellow European studios are having on the continent's cinematic landscape while also comparing and contrasting these studios with those in Hollywood which have long dominated the global film industry.