Radar high-resolution range profile (HRRP) is very sensitive to time-shift and target-aspect variation; therefore, HRRP-based radar automatic target recognition (RATR) requires efficient time-shift invariant features and robust feature templates. Although higher order spectra are a set of well-known time-shift invariant features, direct use of them (except for power spectrum) is impractical due to their complexity. A method for calculating the Euclidean distance in higher order spectra feature space is proposed in this paper, which avoids calculating the higher order spectra, effectively reducing the computation complexity and storage requirement. Moreover, according to the widely used scattering center model, theoretical analysis and experimental results in this paper show that the feature vector extracted from the average profile in a small target-aspect sector has better generalization performance than the average feature vector in the same sector when both of them are used as feature templates in HRRP-based RATR. The proposed Euclidean distance calculation method and average profile-based template database are applied to two classification algorithms [the template matching method (TMM) and the radial basis function network (RBFN)] to evaluate the recognition performances of higher order spectra features. Experimental results for measured data show that the power spectrum has the best recognition performance among higher order spectra.


Biological hydrogen production is considered one reasonable alternative for generating H2 as a fuel that can be linked to electricity production in standard fuel cells. However, the molar yields are currently too low to be economically feasible and the inefficient production rates lead to the oversizing of bioreactors for possible industrial application. Lignocellulosic materials, the most abundant biomaterial on the earth, have been considered promising renewable substrates for biofuel production; however, better strategies need to be developed to increase sugar utilization in the fermentation process. This study aims to bridge the gap between the current status of biological hydrogen production and future industrial applications by developing an innovative physiological strategy (adding reduced electron shuttles) to increase the hydrogen production yield, kinetics and substrate utilization in a model hydrogen producing microorganismClostridium beijerinckii fermentation system. Results show that adding extracellular hydroquinones (anthrahydroquinone disulfonate; AH2QDS) increased the hydrogen yield by 24-37% and the extent of xylose utilization by up to 56% when xylose was the sole substrate. Electron mass balance suggested that the increase of hydrogen yield was correlated to the pathway shift from butyrate production pathway to the acetate production pathway. Electron flows at the pathway level were examined to show that reduced electron shuttles increased the utilization of reduced ferredoxin to generate hydrogen, which contributed to increased hydrogen molar yield. Adding reduced electron shuttles also stimulated the kinetics of hydrogen production from different substrates including xylose, glucose and cellobiose. The increases of hydrogen production kinetics were consistent with the increases of substrate utilization rates and apparent growth rates. Further tests using mixed sugar at different glucose:xylose ratios demonstrated that adding reduced electron shuttles increased the total substrate utilization and hydrogen production by improving the xylose utilization, while concomitantly increasing the kinetics of hydrogen production and substrate utilization. Increasing concentrations of AH2QDS increased hydrogen production and xylose utilization at a fixed glucose:xylose ratio of 1:1. The results from this study show that adding reduced electron shuttles stimulated the hydrogen production rate at all tested sugar systems, increased hydrogen molar yield in xylose fermentation, and increased the xylose utilization in mixed sugar fermentation. Possible mechanisms have been proposed to address the influence of reduced electron shuttles on the fermentative physiology. Results suggest that it might be promising to use reduced electron shuttles to develop better strategies to extract biohydrogen from the lignocellulosic materials by allowing us to manipulate the fermentative metabolism at the physiological level. Friday, May 6, 2011, 329 Grainger Engineering Library Public welcome 9:00-10:00 A.M.


Surface roughness parameterization plays an important role in soil moisture retrieval from passive microwave observations. This letter investigates the parameterization of surface roughness in the retrieval algorithm adopted by the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity mission, making use of experimental airborne and ground data from the National Airborne Field Experiment held in Australia in 2005. The surface roughness parameter is retrieved from high-resolution (60 m) airborne data in different soil moisture conditions, using the ground soil moisture as input of the model. The effect of surface roughness on the emitted signal is found to change with the soil moisture conditions with a law different from that proposed in previous studies. The magnitude of this change is found to be related to soil textural properties: in clay soils, the effect of surface roughness is higher in intermediate wetness conditions (0.2-0.3 v/v) and decreases on both the dry and wet ends. Consequently, this letter calls for a rethink of surface roughness parameterization in microwave emission modeling.


Summary of the thesis "Harvesting the weak angular reflections from the fundus of the human eye" by Jan van de Kraats University Medical Centre Utrecht. Defended October 16, 2007. This thesis is on the modeling of the optical reflection of the human fovea, and on the three instruments build for retrieving the data. Instrument one, the densitometer, measured reflected light from a small spot on the retina at 14 wavelengths. Not only in a state with the visual pigments bleached, but even in the dark adapted state. An optical model was derived to explain the data in terms of absorbers (lens, macular pigment, blood and melanin) and reflectors in the eye (mainly cones and choroid). Important messages were that the origin of the directional reflection was at the cone discs, and that the layers posterior to the receptors show inherent non-directionality. A second instrument was developed, the Profile Spectrometer. This for speeding up the measurement time, important in working with patients. A spot of white light illuminated the retina. Reflected light fills the whole pupil of the eye, but only the light passing through a (virtual) slit from an imaging spectrometer was used. In one second a two dimensional image from a CCD detector could be gathered, incorporating both the detailed spectral and directional reflection information from the retina. A new model explaining simultaneously the directional and the non-directional part of the foveal reflection was developed. In this model the reflection from the cones shows a one over wavelength squared behavior. A new insight was that light losses by scattering were not lost for the reflection from the layers posterior to the receptors. Macular pigment is present in the central region of the retina. It benefits visual performance, and keeps the retina healthy by scavenging free radicals. To measure its optical density, a third instrument, the Macular Pigment Spectrometer was built. In order to keep it low cost, an external fiber optic spectrometer was applied. Thanks to the small illumination and detection pupil of the instrument, it made measurements in eyes with undilated pupil possible. In order to gain knowledge of the optical transmission spectra of the eye media as a function of age, an extensive literature investigation was performed. Five spectral templates were derived that proved sufficient and necessary to describe all literature data in great detail. One formula was derived to calculate the transmission of the mean human media for every wavelength, at any age. With these new data the optimal spectral shape of the filter in intraocular lenses (implanted after cataract surgery) was derived. Such spectral filtering prevents the harmful short wavelengths from reaching the retina. At the same time, the perception of this violet and blue light asks for minimal attenuation. We measured several types of existing intraocular lenses and calculated the protection and perception values. It appeared that most older types of lenses, and even one claimed as a modern type, transmitted more dangerous UV radiation than a young human lens. With the new concept of 'virtual age' for the filter characteristics, selection of lenses should become much easier.


Anonymity between living donors and recipients is a topic of discussion among transplant professionals. This longitudinal study explored living kidney donors' and patients' perspectives on anonymity. Prior to surgery (T0) and 3 months afterward (T1), participants in unspecified or specified indirect donation programs completed a questionnaire on their experiences with and attitudes toward anonymity as well as demographic and medical characteristics. Nonparametric tests were used to assess group differences and associations. Participants were content with anonymity at T0 and T1. Fourteen and 23% wanted to meet at T0 and T1, respectively. If the other party expressed the wish to meet, 50% (T0) and 55% (T1) would be willing to meet. Most participants agreed that meeting should be allowed if both parties agree. Attitude toward anonymity did not differ between donors/recipients, nor between T0/T1 and unspecified/specified indirect donation programs. This study showed that most donors and recipients who participated in anonymous donation schemes are in favor of a conditional approach to anonymity. Guidelines on how to revoke anonymity if both parties agree are needed and should include education about pros and cons of (non‐) anonymity and a logistical plan on how, when, where, and by whom anonymity should be revoked.


A new class of Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen (EBNA) was identified by the complement fixation assay. This new species of EBNA is more tightly bound to chromatin and was termed class II EBNA, as opposed to the more weakly associated species, class I EBNA. Preparations of this new antigen(s) specifically reduced absorption with the titer of anti-EBNA antibodies as determined by the anticomplement immunofluorescence assay. Therefore, the complement fixation antigens (class II EBNA) appear to be related to the classical EBNA (class I EBNA). The class I EBNA was found to focus at the same pH (4.6) as the soluble antigen found in the cytosol. The class II EBNA differed from the class I EBNA with regard to its overall charge, molecular size, antigenicity, and affinity for chromatin. The class II EBNA appeared to be a basic protein, based on its apparent pI of 9.2 and its binding to cation-exchange resins. It differed from histones with regard to its molecular size (molecular weight between 60,000 and 70,000) and its elution from hydroxylapatite chromatography. Steps were taken to prevent proteolysis and artifacts in the immunological assays and in the overall charge estimation of the new antigen by nonspecific basic histone protein-acidic protein interactions. Both class I and class II EBNA were identified by radioimmunoelectrophoresis on two-dimensional polyacrylamide gels with pI values of 5.0 and 8.5, respectively, and a molecular weight range of 60,000 to 70,000 for both. A lower-molecular-weight antigen identified by molecular sieve chromatography appeared to be due to interference by histones in the immunoassays since it was not observed by the two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Further characterization of this class II EBNA is in progress.


kept unequivocally biochemically euthyroid. It is possible (and I feel worthy of serious consideration) that the addition of a small maintenance dose of L-thyroxine might enable the required dose of steroids (which of course also have a valuable role to play) to be reduced to a lower level than 10 mg of prednisone a day with an accompanying lessening of the risk of long-term steroid-induced complications. J F FALCONER SMITH


It is clear from recent media reporting that serious issues have come to light regarding sexual misbehaviour matters within the Australian Defence Force. Subsequent reviews have indicated that these behaviours appear to have been more widespread than the initial media reports suggested and a number of reviews have been undertaken to better understand the problem and address the concerns of victims, Defence command, government and the community. If these problems are not addressed, there is a risk that recruitment to the Defence Forces may become problematic. The strong command structures within the Defence Forces can both exacerbate these misbehaviours through entrenching secrecy and at the same time have the capacity to provide a powerful leadership message that can change attitudes and reduce such misbehaviours.


Demographic aging has placed on the agenda of all developed countries the question of adapting existing pension systems to a new age structure, in particular, to the growing proportion of older people in the population. The authors emphasize that changes in the age structure leading to demographic aging result not only in an increase in the old age dependency ratio due to a rise in the share of the elderly, but also in a reduction in the child dependency ratio as a result of a decline in the proportion of children; thus, from the point of view of society as a whole, what matters are the dynamics of the total dependency ratio, which may even decrease. One of the main ways of adapting to the growth in the number and proportion of the elderly now, on the heels of many other countries, being pursued also by Russia, has been to raise the official retirement age. The article analyzes the question of how prepared, from a demographic point of view, Russia is to follow this path at present. The authors conclude that due to the long lag behind most developed countries in reducing mortality, Russia is objectively not ready for raising the retirement age, especially for men. While in Western countries such an increase, as a rule, does not lead to a reduction in the number of years of life in retirement, for Russian men such a reduction is almost inevitable. For Russian women, who now have an almost uniquely low retirement age, its raising will be less painful.


In this work, we propose a novel and efficient minimum word error rate (MWER) training method for RNN-Transducer (RNN-T). Unlike previous work on this topic, which performs on-the-fly limited-size beam-search decoding and generates alignment scores for expected edit-distance computation, in our proposed method, we re-calculate and sum scores of all the possible alignments for each hypothesis in N-best lists. The hypothesis probability scores and back-propagated gradients are calculated efficiently using the forward-backward algorithm. Moreover, the proposed method allows us to decouple the decoding and training processes, and thus we can perform offline parallel-decoding and MWER training for each subset iteratively. Experimental results show that this proposed semi-on-the-fly method can speed up the on-the-fly method by 6 times and result in a similar WER improvement (3.6%) over a baseline RNN-T model. The proposed MWER training can also effectively reduce high-deletion errors (9.2% WER-reduction) introduced by RNN-T models when EOS is added for endpointer. Further improvement can be achieved if we use a proposed RNN-T rescoring method to re-rank hypotheses and use external RNN-LM to perform additional rescoring. The best system achieves a 5% relative improvement on an English test-set of real far-field recordings and a 11.6% WER reduction on music-domain utterances.


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Age-related white matter hyperintensities have prognostic implications, but no accepted clinical standard exists for their assessment. We propose a simple objective visual rating system by using 3T brain MR imaging. MATERIALS AND METHODS: MR imaging from 559 participants was processed by using an automated method to determine WMH volumes and evaluated with a new visual rating scale based on the single largest WMH lesion diameter regardless of location. The reproducibility of the visual system was assessed. The association of WMH visual scores and automated volumes was then compared with cognitive scores from the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, which was available for 510 participants. RESULTS: Inter-reader reproducibility was good for subsamples with both high (n = 52) and low (n = 40) prevalence of large automated WMH volumes (agreement of 67% and 87.5%, κ = 0.71 and 0.76, respectively). Correlation between increased WMH and cognitive deficit measurements was equal for our visual ratings and automated volumes (Spearman ρ = 0.118 and 0.109; P values = 0.008 and 0.014, respectively). The visual scale retained a significant association with MoCA score after adjusting for age, sex, and education (standardized β = −0.087, P = .042). CONCLUSIONS: We propose a simple visual WMH scoring system suitable for use as a baseline evaluation in clinical practice.


BACKGROUND
Aneurysms at the origin of the posterior communicating artery (PcommA) have been demonstrated to be effectively treated with the pipeline embolization device (PED). Much less is known about the efficacy of the PED for aneurysms associated with a fetal posterior cerebral artery (fPCA) variant.

OBJECTIVE
To study PED treatment efficacy of PcommA aneurysms, including fPCA aneurysms.

METHODS
A prospectively maintained university database of aneurysm patients treated with the PED was retrospectively reviewed. Demographics, treatment details, and imaging were reviewed for all PcommA and fPCA aneurysms.

RESULTS
Out of a total of 285 patients treated with PED, 50 patients (mean age 57.5 ± 12.2 yr, 42 females) with unruptured PcommA (9 fPCA) aneurysms were identified. Mean follow-up duration was 14.0 ± 11.6 mo (48 patients). Roy-Raymond class I occlusion on follow-up magnetic resonance or catheter angiography (mean time 11.7 ± 6.8 mo) was achieved in 30 patients (62.5%), class II occlusion in 11 patients (22.9%) and class III occlusion in 7 patients (14.5%). The PcommA was occluded in 56% of patients without any clinical symptoms. No deaths or permanent neurological complications occurred. In fPCA aneurysms, class I occlusion was seen in 1 patient, class 2 occlusion in 2 patients, and class III occlusion in 6 patients. Multivariate analysis revealed an independent association between incomplete occlusion and fPCA configuration (OR 73.65; 95% CI: 5.84-929.13; P = .001).

CONCLUSION
The PED is a safe and effective treatment for PcommA aneurysms, although fetal anatomy should increase consideration of traditional endovascular techniques or surgical clipping.


Since judgement of distance to a sound source is vague, whereas lateral localization is about 2°, stereo tests were conducted with a single row of sound sources. Live sounds were observed and recorded outdoors; reproduction indoors utilized speakers on a 25-foot array. To express the results a criterion of error was computed which ranged from 0.042 for live listening to 0.60 for 2-loudspeaker stereo without toe-in. Three-loudspeaker arrays with toe-in exhibited criterion-of-error values of 0.11 to 0.14 with no significant difference between 2 and 3 electrical channels.


War — Meaning of — Hostilities in Absence of Declaration of War — The Korean Conflict — The Term "War" in an Insurance Policy.


The recently discovered Cyclic MUSIC algorithm for narrowband signal-selective direction finding using antenna arrays circumvents many drawbacks of conventional techniques by exploiting known spectral correlation properties (namely known cycle frequencies such as the baud rate or carrier frequency) of the desired signals to reject undesired signals, interference, and noise. Two recent advances in the capabilities of Cyclic MUSIC are described. The first enables Cyclic MUSIC to simultaneously estimate the directions of arrival of signals having different cycle frequencies instead of having to sequentially process each separate frequency in a list of cycle frequencies (either known a priori or measured). The second advance reduces the sensitivity of Cyclic MUSIC to error in the knowledge of the cycle frequency of interest by estimating the frequency of a quadratically-regenerated sine wave and then using that estimate as the cycle frequency parameter in the computation of the cyclic autocorrelation matrix, which is then processed to estimate the directions of arrival.<<ETX>>


Purpose: Cxbladder (Cxb) tests combine genomic biomarkers in urine with phenotypic and clinical data to classify hematuria patients into those at low/high probability of urothelial carcinoma (UC). Cxbladder Resolve (CxbR) is designed for use after Cxb Triage (CxbT) and Detect (CxbD), where CxbT-positive tests reflex to CxbD and CxbD-positive to CxbR to identify patients at high probability of high-impact tumors (HIT; high grade Ta, Tis or T1–T3). This study validated the diagnostic performance of CxbR in identifying HIT, and validated the algorithm of Cxb tests to segregate high-impact from low-impact tumors. Materials and Methods: CxbR was developed in 863 hematuria patients in 3 studies in United States, Australia and New Zealand. CxbR, separately and combined with other Cxb tests, was validated in a prospective, observational U.S. study in 548 hematuria patients. All UC diagnoses were confirmed by histopathology. Results: In the development data set, CxbR sensitivity was 92.4% (95% CI 83.3–96.7) and specificity 93.8% (95% CI 86.8–97.2) for identifying HIT within the high priority category. During external validation, sequential Cxb tests correctly ruled out 87.6% of patients from further workup (negative predictive value 99.4%); 100% of HIT were correctly identified (specificity 96.3%), and 3 low-grade tumors were missed. In both studies, all patients with HIT were correctly assigned to prioritized evaluation. Conclusions: CxbR has high sensitivity and specificity, correctly identifying all HIT. Sequential Cxb tests accurately segregate patients with a low vs high probability of HIT, focusing resources on those patients, with a diagnostic yield 4.8-fold higher than American Urological Association guideline stratification.


Notwithstanding the importance of education in economic development and efforts made by the government to increase access to education, children aged 14-17 years in Kakamega North District had not taken advantage of this and many of them had been seen engaged in a number of petty economic activities instead of attending school. The purpose of the study was to analyze enrollment of students in the District between 2005 -2010, to identify the disparities in enrolment and find out factors affecting access and enrolment rate by gender between 2005-2010, investigate factors affecting enrolment and determine the level of participation by students from low income backgrounds. Descriptive surveys design was used in this study. Stratified sampling was used in areas under study for fair representation of the population of 7,532 students in 35 schools. The target population was 220 students from 11 schools representing 30% and 11 principals representing 11 sample schools. Purposive sampling on the other hand was done for education officers who were respondents in the areas of study. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected through questionnaires and interview schedules. Questionnaires were used to collect data from principals and students, while structured interview schedules were used to collect data from education officers. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics. Quantitative data was computed into enrolment rates, figures converted into percentages and frequency tables, line graphs and pie charts were used to determine access trends by gender. These methods of data presentation led to the analysis by narration. The data also yielded the factors that influence access in secondary schools in Kakamega North District. The qualitative was analyzed using content analysis. The research revealed a disparity in enrolment in favors of boys, a low enrolment rate at the district level compared to national enrolment rate and low participation rate by students from low income backgrounds. The research recommends increase in the subsidy to keep pace with rising cost of living and sensitization of the public on the purpose of the subsidy on education, provision of more female teachers to act as role models for the girls and establishment of more single sex secondary schools to curb the rampant pregnancies in schools in district.


Various findings suggest auto-immune changes in schizophrenia. We have recently demonstrated that platelets from schizophrenic patients bear autoantibodies (PAA) which cross-react with brain antigens. Accordingly, treatment of schizophrenia with an immunosuppressant might be of potential benefit. In a recent case study, a chronic schizophrenic patient treated with azathioprine has demonstrated a clear psychiatric improvement preceded by a decrease in PAA level. A phase I study designed for assessing side-effects of short-term azathioprine treatment in a group of schizophrenic patients is described here. From a group of 40 chronic non-responsive patients, 14 patients demonstrating high PAA level have entered the study and 11 have complied all along. Two groups were tested in parallel. In the first (6 patients) 150 mg/day was given for 7 weeks while in the second (5 patients) the same regimen was given for two periods of 7 weeks with an interval of 6 weeks. Blood biochemistry and cell count, as well as determination of PAA were carried out weekly, starting 3 weeks before the trial and continuing up to 7 weeks after the treatment. Two out of 11 patients developed leucopenia in week 4. No other side-effects were recorded in any of the patients. A substantial reduction in PAA was observed in 3 out of 6 patients in group I and 4 out of 5 in group II. Two patients showed improvement of psychiatric symptomatology. Our results demonstrate that short-term azathioprine treatment induces transient leucopenia in 18% of the patients receiving the drug, much alike the percentage reported for other patient populations.


The deployment of low-carbon hydrogen in gas grids comes with strategic benefits in terms of energy system integration and decarbonization. However, hydrogen thermophysical properties substantially differ from natural gas and pose concerns of technical and regulatory nature. The present study investigates the blending of hydrogen into distribution gas networks, focusing on the steady-state fluid dynamic response of the grids and gas quality compliance issues at increasing hydrogen admixture levels. Two blending strategies are analyzed, the first of which involves the supply of NG–H2 blends at the city gate, while the latter addresses the injection of pure hydrogen in internal grid locations. In contrast with traditional case-specific analyses, results are derived from simulations executed over a large number (i.e., one thousand) of synthetic models of gas networks. The responses of the grids are therefore analyzed in a statistical fashion. The results highlight that lower probabilities of violating fluid dynamic and quality restrictions are obtained when hydrogen injection occurs close to or in correspondence with the system city gate. When pure hydrogen is injected in internal grid locations, even very low volumes (1% vol of the total) may determine gas quality violations, while fluid dynamic issues arise only in rare cases of significant hydrogen injection volumes (30% vol of the total).


A prerequisite of a fast increasing market of the electrical vehicles is the access to charging and reliability/accessibility of the charging systems. Wireless charging i.e. charging without a cord, is an interesting alternative that has been put forward during recent years.In this work a system study of topologies for inductively coupled power transfer over an air gap oftens of centimetres has been investigated. In order to obtain an effective power transfer compensation capacitors are used to achieve resonance circuits.In the thesis four different compensation topologies for inductively coupled power transfer are examined. Expressions for the compensation capacitances and the output voltage or current are derived.An example design for each of the four topologies capable of handling a transfer of 3 kW of power over an air gap of 20 cm with an efficiency of at least 96% is examined. These designs use an outer radius for both coils of 30 cm, and an operating frequency of 20 kHz. The efficiency only encompasses the windings, and does not take into account the efficiency of any power electronics before or after the coils.Prototype housing for the primary coil has been designed and built using basalt fibre reinforced high performance concrete, and magnetic measurements on the materials used are included in the report.


In isolated blood-perfused canine kidneys, progressive increases in renal blood flow and its fractional distribution to the inner cortex were correlated with increases in perfusate concentrations of a prostaglandin E-like (PGE-like) substance. The ratio of blood flow to the outer and inner halves of the renal cortex measured by the radioactive-microsphere method changed from 77:23 to 68:32 (P < 0.001) after 90 minutes of perfusion; simultaneously, the concentration of the PGE-like substance increased from 0.04 ng/ml to 0.59 ng/ml (P < 0.02). Thus, the greatest rate of increase in the concentration of the PGE-like substance occurred coincidently with the largest increase in inner cortical blood flow, i.e., from 30 ml/min to 69 ml/min (P < 0.001). During the two subsequent 90-minute perfusion periods, the ratio of outer cortical blood flow to inner cortical blood flow fell to 61:39, and the concentration of the PGE-like substance increased further. When indomethacin was added to the perfusate, the concentration of the PGE-like substance decreased from 1.00 ng/ml to 0.24 ng/ml (P < 0.05), and renal blood flow decreased, especially in the inner cortex where the decline was from 34% to 19% of total renal blood flow (P < 0.05). Thus, renal blood flow was redistributed after indomethacin was administered. PGE2 was infused to determine whether substitution for the loss of circulating PGE-like substance could prevent the effects of indomethacin on the distribution of renal blood flow. Despite administration of exogenous PGE2, renal blood flow redistributed after administration of indomethacin, and the ratio of outer cortical blood flow to inner cortical blood flow increased from 68:32 to 80:20 (P < 0.05). These results suggest that the intrarenal site of synthesis and release of PGE2 determines its action as a local hormone affecting deep cortical blood flow.


INTRODUCTION
There is little in literature regarding preoperative management of infants with gastroschisis. It is unclear if these infants develop metabolic acidosis as a consequence of prolonged intrauterine gut compromise or dehydration secondary to increased fluid loss.

AIM
To assess the frequency of preoperative metabolic acidosis in infants with gastroschisis and investigate whether this acidosis reflects degree of gut compromise.

METHODS
All infants with gastroschisis born between May 2005 and April 2013 in a single tertiary care center were reviewed. Metabolic acidosis was defined by the presence of pH <7.26 and serum bicarbonate <18.5 or base excess < -8.5 mmol/l. Infants with significant birth depression were excluded. Maternal and neonatal data were collected. Frequency of preoperative metabolic acidosis and its association with gastroschisis prognostic score (GPS), time to first and time to reach full feeds were investigated.

RESULTS
Sixty infants were identified, 11 were excluded (birth depression/lack of preoperative blood gases). Median preoperative total fluid intake was 130 ml/kg/d. Nine infants (18%) had metabolic acidosis at a median age of 1.2 hours. No association was found between metabolic acidosis or serum lactate and GPS, age at first feed or age at full feeds.

CONCLUSION
Preoperative metabolic acidosis was identified in a significant number of patients with gastroschisis despite high fluid intake. It does not appear to be associated with the degree of gut compromise. Using metabolic acidosis as an indication of dehydration in these patients needs more investigation.


Natural process-response changes in beach and dune configuration attendant with passage of Hurricane Eloise caused extensive structural damage to residential and commercial establishments in the vicinity of Panama City Beach, Florida. Damage was largely attributed to storm surge and wave set-up with subsequent beach scour; wind damage and flooding were minimal. Dune retreat and scour behind failed seawalls (from 12 to 18 m) resulted in many foundation failures and partial or complete collapse of the building superstructure. Because of the physiographic setting and storm characteristics, damage was primarily restricted to a narrow strip of shorefront property paralleling the Gulf of Mexico shoreline. Overwash was minimal owing to dune ridge and cliffed headland elevations. Sand removed from the beach was transported westward both alongshore and offshore. Much of the damage could have been prevented or minimized by proper location and design of buildings and an acute awareness of active coastal processes.


In this paper, how the statistical properties of the matching scores are affected by the carrier frequency, the aspect variation, the range resolution, and the target complexity are studied. The statistical parameters (mean and standard deviation) of the matching scores among range profiles of independent objects are derived, and their values are used as references to determine the threshold values for target identification. It is found that the range profile obtained at a certain carrier frequency can also be used as the feature vector for radars operated at shifted frequencies if the range resolution is fine enough or the target is simple. It is also found that a radar with higher range resolution can tolerate more aspect variation, yielding a significant advantage in saving memory space for establishing the data base. The results obtained can have several applications such as target identification, data association in multiple target tracking, and target direction determination when widely-spaced high-resolution radars are employed.


Purpose To fulfill a requirement of the clinical science (CLSC) course "Clinical Outcomes Assessment" at the University of Colorado, participating students in the program designed a survey to evaluate student perceptions related to the Clinical Research Training Program (CRTP) and to identify opportunities for improvement. Methods The students designed a 99-question series in an on-line Web-based survey using a 5-point Likert scale to evaluate the structures, processes, and outcomes that might be anticipated from any successful NIH K-30 funded program. The survey covered the following domains: (1) self- assessments related to accreditation for GME research-related competencies; (2) course scheduling; (3) support required for manuscript/grant writing; (4) faculty mentorship; and (5) career development goals and planning. Respondents were asked about both the courses taken and their manuscript/grant writing productivity. Summary of Results Sixty-five (56%) students responded. Results for the five domains included (1) statistically significant improvement in student perceptions related to their self-assessment for competencies from the start of the program to the time of survey; (2) student responses increased from "unsure"/"disagree" toward "agree" for the following constructs: (a) devise/rigorously test experimental hypotheses; (b) relate clinical research to the development of new modalities; (c) comply with ethical standards; (d) successfully conduct a clinical research project; and (e) select/apply the appropriate research method/statistical approach to a given research question. The most striking result, however, was that the CRTP was not successful in coordinating faculty mentor support for student research projects. When a mentorship was documented to exist outside of the program, almost all students were satisfied that their faculty mentoring relationship had successfully met their expectations. Approximately 78% of the student survey respondents noted a lack of satisfaction with the CLSC Program's support to find a primary faculty mentor who met their research project needs and long-term career goals. Conclusions Overall, the CRTP students indicated the curriculum was successfully meeting their needs. Given that the program currently has over 78 dedicated graduate school faculty, representing a wide diversity of clinical and analytical disciplines, the survey finding that many students were missing a faculty mentorship relationship was unanticipated. Although other NIH funding options for "Mentoring a Mentor" programs exist, the program students recommended that NIH support K-30 programs incorporating this type of mentoring outreach as well as providing fiscal incentives to mentors in the future.


Background: It had been a general observation that the number of female patients undergoing SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) is lower per week.This study was done to find out their proportionand association among their symptoms, history of (h/o) acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and corresponding myocardial perfusion.
Patients and methods:This cross sectional retrospective study was conducted in 2017 on a group of patients who underwent gated SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging (GSMPI)from February 2005 to October 2016. Clinical record files and image files of all female patients were selected for analysis. The symptoms were retrospectively categorized according to New York Heart Association (NYHA) class while the patients were categorized according to their h/o ACS and myocardial perfusion in each patient was categorized as normal or perfusion defect. Data were analyzed using SPSS v.20.
Results:Among 1347 patients undergoing GSMPI 196 (14.6%) were female with a 4.4-fold increase in number over 12 years. Mean age was 51.8 ± 10.1 (27-80). Symptom categorization assigned 84 patients in NYHA class I and 112 in NYHA class II. There was no h/o ACS in 143 while 53 had a previous h/o hospitalization due to ACS. GSMPI revealed normal perfusion in 156 patients with mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of 66.6 ± 13.6. Perfusion defect was present in 40 patients with mean LVEF of 45.5 ± 15.8. NYHA class of symptoms was not associated with perfusion status (p > 0.05).H/o ACS was found to have association both with NYHA class of symptoms and with perfusions status (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: Proportion of female patients undergoing GSMPI is low. Presence of perfusion defect in female was not associated with NYHA class of symptom.
Bangladesh J. Nuclear Med. 22(2): 103-107, Jul 2019


Resolving ambiguity in the process of query translation is crucial to cross-language information retrieval when only a bilingual dictionary is available. In this paper we propose a novel approach for query translation disambiguation, named "spectral query translation model". The proposed approach views the problem of query translation disambiguation as a graph partitioning problem. For a given query, a weighted graph is first created for all possible translations of query words based on the co-occurrence statistics of the translation words. The best translation of the query is then determined by the most strongly connected component within the graph. The proposed approach distinguishes from previous approaches in that the translations of all query words are estimated simultaneously. Furthermore, translation probabilities are introduced in the proposed approach to capture the uncertainty in translating queries. Empirical studies with TREC datasets have shown that the spectral query translation model achieves a relative 20% -50% improvement in cross-language information retrieval, compared to other approaches that also exploit word co-occurrence statistics for query translation disambiguation.


Treating chronic wounds of the lower extremity with underlying osteomyelitis remains challenging. When standard local wound therapy modalities fail, and salvageable treatment options are exhausted, debridement of infected bone and soft tissue with flap coverage augmentation can be a consideration prior to amputation. We propose the first article in the literature on monitoring inflammation labs for resolution of osteomyelitis with reconstructive approach in limb salvage by harvesting muscle flap for coverage of soft tissue deficits overlying resected infected bone. The evaluation of successful outcome is determined by wound closure with resolution of elevated inflammatory labs in a case-control study. Three patients were retrospectively analyzed and successful outcome was achieved in all cases in a short-term follow-up of 16 months. Muscle transpositional flaps should be considered as an alternative salvage procedure prior to amputation.


Physics-based compact models for the unit cell of power planes with integrated high-impedance electromagnetic surfaces are developed and cascaded in a two-dimensional array to build full models for large and multi-layer power planes. The compact model offers a significant advantage to the FEM-based electromagnetic simulation as it reduces the analysis time of a typical 10 cm/spl times/10 cm power plane from 40 hours to less than 10 seconds. The proposed compact model is also used to explore the noise mitigation at different locations of the power plane and in combination with RC decoupling for broadband noise mitigation.


Objective We report the outcome of 158 patients with peripheral entrapment neuropathy treated surgically by multiple nerve decompressions of the peroneal and tibial system. This is a promising approach for the treatment of pain, numbness, and balance disturbance in diabetic and nondiabetic patients with peripheral nerve entrapment syndromes in the lower extremities. Methods Records of 158 consecutive patients with diabetic and nondiabetic neuropathy, treated surgically by multiple nerve decompression, were reviewed to document changes in the visual analogue scale, sensation improvement, reduction in pain medication requirement, and balance improvement. All patients underwent tarsal tunnel release and neurolysis of lower extremity nerves of the tibial and peroneal system as a concomitant part of the procedure. Patients offered surgical intervention met specific criteria including documented sensory abnormalities using neurosensory testing by the Pressure-Specified Sensory Device (PSSD) and a positive Tinel's sign on examination over the involved nerve. Results Eighty-eight percent of the patients with preoperative numbness reported sensation improvement. Eighty-one percent of patients with balance disturbance reported improved balance after the procedure. From those patients who underwent the procedure mainly for pain relief, 83% reported an improvement in the visual analogue scale of more than 50% and 77% improved in more than 5 points of the scale. After the procedure, patients reported a decrease in their pain medication requirement (p ≥ .001), sensation improvement (p ≥ .001), and pain relief (p ≥ .001). Conclusion Similar to experiences found in the upper extremity, nerve decompression in the lower extremity is a safe and effective procedure to improve the quality of life of patients with peripheral neuropathy secondary to nerve compression. Documentation and staging of the severity of neuropathy with neurosensory testing and the presence of Tinel's sign facilitate successful selection of surgical candidates. Decompression and neurolysis of compressed lower extremity nerves are associated with statistically significant improvement in the visual analogue scale and sensation. The great majority of patients are very satisfied with the results.


OBJECTIVE
This study explored the factors psychiatrists considered in deciding on hospitalization for a large sample of suicide attempters in the emergency department of a general hospital in Madrid, Spain, between 1996 and 1998.

METHODS
Psychiatrists assessed 509 patients who had attempted suicide; 196 of these (39 percent) were hospitalized in the psychiatric unit, and 313 (61 percent) were discharged from the emergency department. The assessment included Beck's Suicidal Intent Scale (SIS) and a checklist of 47 clinical variables.

RESULTS
Of the 32 clinical variables significantly associated with hospitalization that were introduced in a logistic regression model, 11 remained significant. Six variables were associated with an increased odds of hospitalization: intention to repeat the attempt, plan to use a lethal method, low psychosocial functioning before the suicide attempt, previous psychiatric hospitalization, a suicide attempt in the past year, and planning that nobody would try to save their life after they had attempted suicide. Five variables decreased the odds: a realistic perspective on the future after the attempt, relief that the attempt was not effective, availability of a method to kill oneself (that was not used), belief that the attempt would influence others, and family support. Models based on the SIS total score and individual SIS items had lower specificity and sensitivity.

CONCLUSIONS
Psychiatrists appear to rely on patients' self-report in deciding on hospitalization rather than focus on demographic, diagnostic, or psychosocial issues. If the findings of this study were replicated in other hospital settings, the implication would be that the guidelines for assessing suicide attempts need to encourage thorough and detailed assessment of the attempt and the future plans.


A new vertebrate locality from the Lower Permian (Cisuralian) of the Bourbon-l'Archambault basin (Massif Central, France) is reported and its associated flora and fauna preliminarily described. This locality corresponds to a mass mortality assemblage deposited in an aquatic environment. Interestingly, it has yielded hundreds of exceptionally well preserved seymouriamorph specimens, all referred to Discosauriscus austriacus. This exquisite assemblage corresponds to the first seymouriamorph Lagerstatte and the first record of D. austriacus outside the Boskovice basin in Czechia. It enlarges the geographical distribution of the species during the Early Permian, and has new palaeoenvironmental implications regarding the Palaeozoic Bourbon-l'Archambault basin.


Background Urinary tract infection (UTI) contributes significantly to healthcare burden, accounting for 23 % of hospital acquired infections and 2–3 % of general practice consultations. Unfortunately, difficulties exist in obtaining an accurate diagnosis, with studies showing misdiagnosis rates above 40 % in elderly populations. Furthermore, numerous hospitals across the UK still advocate the use of Trimethoprim for UTI, despite high rates of resistance. These factors combined leads to a sub-optimal experience for patients. Aim We aimed to identify the practices surrounding the diagnosis and treatment of UTIs in elderly patients within Royal Bolton Hospital, a large district general hospital in the North-West of England. We also aimed to identify unique patterns of presentation of UTIs in elderly patients which could lead to diagnostic difficulty. Finally, we assessed local antibiotic resistance rates. Methods A retrospective case-note analysis of 100 patients, over the age of 65 years, diagnosed with UTI was carried out in 3 cycles between 2016–2018. The final cycle was conducted following removal of Trimethoprim from antibiotic guidance. Results Of patients diagnosed with UTI and had MSU (mid-stream urine) sample analysed, only 28.8 % displayed microbial growth. 39.1 % of patients with confirmed UTI displayed neither signs nor symptoms of UTI. 20 % diagnosed with UTI did not have a MSU sample requested. Resistance rates of 39.1 % were reported to Trimethoprim, with E. coli accounting for 56.5 % of all UTIs. Conclusions Diverse presentation and incomplete diagnostics contributes to misdiagnosis of UTI. Trimethoprim is not an effective treatment option and guidelines should reflect this.


In order to tackle socio-economic inequality problems of Roma minority population in Serbia, Serbian Government has adopted in 2009 the Strategy on Improvement of the Status of Roma in the Republic of Serbia (Roma Strategy). During last 7 years, this Roma Strategy has been implemented by different entities and through various projects, dealing with some of the major identified issues of Roma community in Serbia, like: substandard living conditions; low or no income at all; legal and other discriminations; lack of rights on social care and/or health insurance; etc.
Within the programme "We are here together – European Assistance for Roma Inclusion", the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe Mission to Serbia (OSCE Mission to Serbia) provides technical assistance to the Serbian Government in implementation of the mentioned Roma Strategy. Since 2013, part of this assistance has aimed at creation of an information system, that is, centralized GIS application for the substandard Roma settlements (SRS) in Serbia. The main purpose of this GIS application is to support the Ministry of Construction, Transportation and Infrastructure (MCTI) together with local governments, to register, monitor and analyse quality of housing within SRS in Serbia, and make right decisions for improvement of Roma community living conditions in future.
Thus, in order for affordable housing solutions for SRS in Serbia to be identified and then proposed by MCTI for funding, the OSCE Mission to Serbia has implemented project "Mapping of substandard Roma settlements in GIS" for building GIS application for SRS. This project consisted of two main groups of activities: (1) spatial and alphanumeric data collection on SRS, and (2) GIS application building for SRS housing conditions monitoring and decision-making. As part of project methodology, the first conceptual data model for SRS was created using UML language. Based on this model, questionnaire for alphanumeric data collection on SRS housing conditions was developed, while spatial data for SRS boundaries were collected using CAD tool and orthophoto maps for each site where these settlements were located within Serbian municipalities. Also, in order for SRS data collection activity to be performed efficiently, network of 16 field co-workers throughout Serbia was established and appropriate training was provided. Finally, as second part of project methodology, collected SRS data were subject of quality verification before their conversion and integration within SQL database, which was basis for creation of appropriate GIS environment using QGIS open-source software advantages.
The aim of this article is to present project methodology and main results. First, recent activities on Roma community housing improvement in Serbia would be listed and the OSCE project "Mapping of substandard Roma settlements in GIS" would be presented. Then, selected methodology for the project aim and outputs achievement would be described. In following chapter, OSCE project main results would be presented together with their main characteristics and first data analysis results. Finally, project methodology and results would be discussed and conclusion would be made, including possible implications and future steps towards improvement of Roma community housing conditions in Serbia.


In this paper we present our view of proactive information retrieval as a complementary interface to an index-based search engine. Relying on its global view of the available contents, the system would identify semantic relations between disparate sources of information, and provide the user with improved awareness of the available opportunities and alternatives. We outline functional requirements for the system, and propose some initial steps towards implementing it in practice. We describe our testbed, which enables us to evaluate the performance of alternative implementations instantaneously. We also compare and contrast our approach to some previous work.


ABSTRACT. Background: It has been found that trigger points [TrPs] in the extensor carpi radialis brevis [ECRB] muscle reproduce pain in lateral epicondylalgia [LE]. Trigger point dry needling [TrP-DN] has not been previously investigated in LE. Findings: A female LE patient with duration of six years received eight treatments [TrP-DN in the ECRB muscle and a mobilization-with-movement technique] in a four-week period. The outcome measures of the patient-rated tennis elbow evaluation [PRTEE], pain-free grip force [PFG], visual analogue scale, and pressure-pain threshold [PPT] were taken pre- and post-intervention and at one-month and four-month follow-ups. The PPT increased from 248 to 609 kPa at the end of the treatment period. Elbow pain showed a substantial improvement from 7/10 at the pre-treatment to 0/10 after the four-week intervention period. PFG values increased from 12 to 28 kg after the treatment period. After the treatment, all values of the PRTEE questionnaire were 0, suggesting a rapid recuperation of elbow function following the intervention. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the TrP-DN and mobilization-with-movement combination may be suitable for the restoration of motor function and the induction of a hypoalgesic effect in LE.


The aliphatic (amino)- and (oxy)-derivatives of polyamines effect on the rate of polyamines (Putrescine, Spermidine and Spermine) synthesis in cell-free test-systems from rat's regenerating liver and Hepatoma tissues was examined. The common known inhibitors of polyamines synthesis were also used for the analysis. The research data confirm that cell-free model systems function adequately to applied tests. The effectiveness of anti-proliferate action of chemical compounds was valued by the inhibition degree of Putrescine and polyamines synthesis. In addition, the coefficient of ratio Spermidine (moles)/ Spermine (moles) and the value of total Polyamines pool after 1 h of test-systems incubation with chemical compound were calculated. From the tested compounds 1-aminooxy-3-aminopropan (I), S-(5'-desoxyadenosile)-S-methylβ-thioethyl-hydroxylamine (IV) and ethylenediamine (V) did satisfied the requirements to a considerable degree.


Based on micro structure of Ni-based single crystal superalloy, a γ/γ' two-phase unit cell finite element model was established, and its cyclic stress-strain was simulated under tension/torsion cyclic loading. A low cycle fatigue (LCF) life prediction model of single crystal superalloy was proposed by using cyclic plasticity strain energy as a parameter based on energy dissipation theory. Calculation results of macro finite element model and γ/γ' two-phase unit cell micro finite element model, and multiaxial LCF test data of CMSX-2 Ni-based single crystal superalloy along [001] orientation were applied to fit the LCF life model by multiple linear regression. The results show that the unit cell model not only reflects the microstructure characteristics of single crystal Ni-based superalloy, but also is better than the macro model in accuracy of analysis, and greatly improve the accuracy of fatigue life prediction. Almost test data fall into the factor of 2.0 scatter band.


The endocrine cells and nerves in the islet and the gut of the arctic lamprey Lampetra japonica were examined immunocytochemically by using antisera against brain-gut peptides and amine. The cellular composition of the islets as reported by previous researchers in European species of the lamprey was confirmed in the present study. The islet consisted exclusively of insulin immunoreactive cells in the larvae (ammocoetes), whereas in the adult somatostatin immunoreactive cells were added to the insulin immunoreactive cells; the gut epithelium in the adult was now devoid of somatostatin cells. In the gut of the lamprey, the endocrine cells-which were flask-shaped with a cytoplasmic process extended to the lumen-were classified into three types in the larvae, but were represented by a single type in the adult. In the larval lamprey, the first type was immunoreactive for somatostatin, the second one for gastrin/cholecystokinin (CCK) and the third cell type was immunoreactive for glucagon, pancreatic polypeptide and FMRFamide, simultaneously. In the gut of the adult lamprey, the single type of endocrine cell reacted simultaneously to Cterminal specific anti-glucagon serum, N-terminal specific anti-glucagon serum, anti-bovine PP serum, anti-neuropeptide Y serum and anti-FMRFamide serum. These cells occurred most frequently in the upper intestine, their distribution decreasing from the middle to the lower intestine. Two types of peptide containing nerves were identified in the islet and the gut of the larval and adult lamprey. The first type of neurons (perikarya and fibers) was immunoreactive for serotonin and calcitonin gene. related peptide (CGRP), and was located in the mucous and muscular layer of the intestine and in the islet.-The second type of neurons contained both serotoninand gastrin releasing peptide (GRP) -like immunoreactivities and was scattered exclusively in the muscular layer of the gut. In larval and adult lampreys, a few serotonin/ CGRP immunoreactive nerve cell bodies and beaded fibers were found in the connective tissue around the islet cell cords. These nerve fibers were sometimes closely apposed to the blood capillaries and to the islet cells. These findings indicate that a neuroendocrine correlation comparable with that in mammals may have been established in the islet of this most primitive vertebrate.


Maize (Zea mays L.) beta-glucosidase was extracted from shoots of a wild-type (K55) and a "null" (H95) maize genotype. Enzyme activity assays and electrophoretic data showed that extracts from the null genotype had about 10% of the activity present in the normal genotype. Zymograms of the null genotype were devoid of any activity bands in the resolving gel, but had a smeared zone of activity in the stacking gel after native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. When extracts were made with buffers containing 0.5% to 2% sodium dodecyl sulfate, the smeared activity zone entered the resolving gel as a distinct band. These data indicated that the null genotypes have beta-glucosidase activity, but the enzyme occurs as insoluble or poorly soluble large quaternary complexes mediated by a beta-glucosidase-aggregating factor (BGAF). BGAF is a 35-kD protein and binds specifically to beta-glucosidase and renders it insoluble during extraction. BGAF also precipitates beta-glucosidase that is added exogenously to supernatant fluids of the null tissue extracts. The specific beta-glucosidase-aggregating activity of BGAF is unequivocally demonstrated. These data clearly show that the monogenic inheritance reported for the null alleles at the beta-glucosidase gene is actually for the BGAF protein, and BGAF is solely responsible for beta-glucosidase aggregation and insolubility and, thus, the apparent null phenotype.


In the calibration process of the positioner, in order to obtain the accurate angular position information of each axis of the turntable, it is necessary to test the rotation accuracy of the turntable higher than the accuracy of the target gyroscope, in order to achieve the test and calibration of the positioner. Therefore, this paper uses the non-magnetic technology to carry out research on the pointing accuracy and motion control of the turntable. At the same time, the influence of grating installation error on precision detection is analysed. The influence of steady-state error of turntable on the motion accuracy of turntable is analysed. Finally, the influence of servo control parameters on the dynamic performance of turntable and the influence on steady-state error are analysed. The test of the corner positioning accuracy of the turntable is carried out. The positioning accuracy and motion control parameters of the two-axis precision non-magnetic turntable are obtained, and the PID adjustment is introduced to make the accuracy index of the non-magnetic turntable meet the requirements. The turntable can realize a non-magnetic working environment and can achieve the high precision required by the index under the driving of the ultrasonic motor.


We present a novel self-powered chip to detect the direction of incident light. This chip directly provides digitized output without the need of any off-chip power supply or optical or mechanical components. The chip was implemented in a standard 0.5 μm CMOS process. A microscale metal baffle was created by stacking all metal layers, contacts, and vias available in the process to produce on-chip shadowing. N-well/p+ photodiode arrays are located on both sides of the baffle to sense light. The photocurrent generated by a photodiode depends on the size of the photodiode and the shadowing. The shadowed area depends on the incident angle of the light. A current mirror circuit is used to compare the currents generated by the photodiodes on the opposite sides of the baffle and, consequently, provide a digital signal to indicate the incident light angle. Compared with the ideal linear digital light-angle detector with the same resolution, the presented sensor achieved the maximum error of only 2 deg over 110 deg test range.


Objective: The objective was to estimate economic values for production traits in a full life cycle system using a bio-economic model with Angus purebred and a terminal crossbreeding system with Nelore sires mated to Angus dams. Study Description: Phenotypic performance data were collected from the Bifequali crossbreeding scheme at the Embrapa Pecuaria Sul Research Center of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation. The data consisted of performance and carcass traits measured on progeny of Angus purebred and Nelore sires mated to Angus dams raised in a pasture-based production system from birth to slaughter (full life cycle). The economic characterization of the system was based on fixed costs and variable costs. The bio-economic was developed in ?R? programming language using the phenotypic information and the production costs. To estimate economic values, the bio-economic model was first parameterized and a base profit was calculated. The Bottom Line: The use of crossbreed animals provides an effective tool to improve important traits and system level profitability in a full life cycle beef production system.


Today web applications have become a ubiquitous use of daily tasks such as banking, travel and social networking; etc. Web services provide communication and management of personal information from anywhere. With the increase in the use of these applications, there is an increase in the number and complexity of vulnerabilities and attacks. Due to their ubiquitous use for everyday tasks, web applications have always been the target of attacks. Intrusion Detection System (IDS) is proposed with lightweight virtualization that models the network behaviour for web applications. By monitoring the web and subsequent database requests, it can identify the attacks and provide early warning about suspicious activities. Casual mapping model is developed between web server requests and subsequent database queries which identifies various kinds of attacks. Each session is assigned with each container for single user. The container ID accurately associates the web request with the subsequent DB queries. Session control is used to control each session for each user request. Honey pot method is implemented to collect the intruder's behaviors and stores that details in session block list table. Whenever a new session is tracked for Intrusion Detection, it is first referred with the session block list. If the tracked session is matched with the session block list table then it is avoided to enter into the session. Hence, the Intrusion avoidance can be achieved in an efficient manner.


ABSTRACT We present the draft genome sequence of an atypical tetracycline-susceptible livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strain. It contains 2,817,340 bp and 2,858 coding sequences, including 6 rRNA operons, 56 tRNAs, and 4 noncoding RNA (ncRNA) genes. The strain harbors a tet(M) gene, but 15 point mutations in amino acids are present that likely impair the functionality of TetM.


Understanding planet formation requires one to discern how dust grows in protoplanetary disks. An important parameter to measure in disks is the maximum dust grain size present. This is usually estimated through measurements of the dust opacity at different millimeter wavelengths assuming optically thin emission and dust opacity dominated by absorption. However, Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations have shown that these assumptions might not be correct in the case of protoplanetary disks, leading to overestimation of particle sizes and to underestimation of the disk's mass. Here, we present an analysis of high-quality ALMA and Very Large Array images of the HL Tau protoplanetary disk, covering a wide range of wavelengths, from 0.8 mm to 1 cm, and with a physical resolution of ∼7.35 au. We describe a procedure to analyze a set of millimeter images without any assumption about the optical depth of the emission, and including the effects of absorption and scattering in the dust opacity. This procedure allows us to obtain the dust temperature, the dust surface density, and the maximum particle size at each radius. In the HL Tau disk, we found that particles have already grown to a few millimeters in size. We detect differences in the dust properties between dark and bright rings, with dark rings containing low dust density and small dust particles. Different features in the HL Tau disk seem to have different origins. Planet–disk interactions can explain substructure in the external half of the disk, but the internal rings seem to be associated with the presence of snow lines of several molecules.


The lessons of business history have taught us that there is no such thing as a static market. Global competition and the power of intelligent networking have engendered a new competitive spirit that cuts across countries and companies alike. This is particularly true in the field of media and telecommunications where once great companies fall victim to creative destruction;supplanted by the next communication start-up company with a good idea. From the original AT&T Bell Labs to the modern-day Googleplex, the history of innovative discovery is really the study of how organizations set out to problem solve. One of the goals of highly successful companies is to make innovation a sustainable, repeatable process. In order to accomplish this, innovative companies create the right kind of culture in which to do good work. This article will look at the challenges associated with new product development and how good companies go about creating a culture of innovation and discovery. The second part of this article looks at the qualities and characteristics that make innovation a sustainable, repeatable process. Special attention is given to such ideas as the importance of risk and experimentation, creating the proper workspace, mobility and virtual communication, serendipitous connections and the value of external partnerships and collaboration.


This paper presents and compares two classes of backward swimming control methods for a biomimetic carangiform robotic fish. One is based on the traditional fish body wave equation, in which the body wave equation is inverted to generate a forward propagated travelling wave. The other is based on the bio-inspired central pattern generator(CPG) controller outputting rhythmic joint signals. The latter can further be divided into two subclasses: 1) phase-inverted CPG control, in which the phase relationship of forward swimming is inverted; 2) phase-amplitude-inverted CPG control, in which both phase relationship and amplitude are reversed. Analysis, simulation, and experiments are carried out on these three backward swimming control methods. Testing results show that the phase-inverted CPG control can result in a maximum backward speed, accompanied with a largest disturbance; the body wave based backward swimming control and phase-amplitude-inverted CPG control may lead to a similar maximum backward speed and smaller disturbance. In addition, when switching the oscillatory frequency in the body wave based backward swimming control, dithering will occur, and a special transition function to eliminate this phenomenon; while the dithering disappears in the CPG-based backward swimming controls. The above results will shed light on the enhancement of the maneuverability of the swimming robots.


Electrostatic ion-cyclotron waves are investigated in multi-ion plasma (H+, He+ and O+) using particle aspect analysis. Variations with perpendicular wave number of wave frequency, resonant energy and growth rate with general loss-cone distribution function are studied. The whole plasma is considered to consist of resonant and non-resonant particles. The resonant particles participate in energy exchange while the non-resonant particles support the oscillatory motion of the wave. The wave is assumed to propagate obliquely to the static magnetic field. It is found that the frequency for the lighter ions increases then decreases by increasing the perpendicular wave number while the frequency for the heavier ions is constant. Perpendicular wave number decreases the growth rate of the wave and also decreases perpendicular resonant energy and increases parallel resonant energy. The effect of general loss-cone distribution is also discussed with multicomponent plasma which increases the wave frequency, growth rate and parallel resonant energy while decreases the perpendicular resonant energy. The study may explain the EIC waves observed in auroral acceleration region. The results are interpreted for the space plasma parameters appropriate to the auroral acceleration region around the earth's magnetosphere.


Bringing to a close his epic recounting of naval power in the twentieth century, Lisle Rose describes the virtual disappearance after 1945 of all but one great navy. In the first twenty years after World War II, the U.S. Navy continued the revolutionary transformation of sea power begun in the 1930s with the integration of sea, air, and amphibious capabilities. Between 1946 and 1961, the United States placed on, above, and beneath the world's oceans the mightiest concentration of military power in history. Super-carriers filled with aircraft capable of long-range nuclear strikes were joined by strategic ballistic missile submarines. Such a fleet was incredibly costly. No ally or adversary in a world recovering slowly from global war could afford to build and maintain such an awesome entity. But the U.S. Navy warships steamed where they wished throughout the globe in support of a policy to contain the influence and threat represented by the Soviet Union and China. The 1962 Cuban missile crisis, however, galvanized the Soviet leadership to construct a powerful blue-water fleet that within less than a decade began to challenge the United States for global maritime supremacy. Confronting evergrowing Soviet sea power stretched U.S. capabilities to the limit even as the fleet itself underwent revolutionary changes in its social composition. The abrupt decline and fall of the Soviet Union after 1989 led to another reappraisal of the importance, even necessity, of navies. But, the turbulent Middle East and the struggle against international terrorism after 2001 have demanded a projection of sea-air-amphibious power onto coasts and adjacent areas similar to that which America's fleets had already undertaken in Korea, Vietnam, and Lebanon. This third volume of Rose's majestic work offers readers an up-close look at the emergence of America's naval might and establishes Power at Sea as essential in tracing the emergence of U.S. dominance and understanding the continuing importance of ships and sailors in international power plays.


Background: Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF) infection is the most important arboviral disease in humans based on the geographical distribution, morbidity and mortality. It is transmitted by person to person by Aedes sp . In Indonesia the trend of Incidence Rate (IR) What is IR?   Is it incidence rate? Please clarify. in DHF in 2015 to 2016 increased from 50.75 to 78.85 For the number, dot is usually used instead of comma sign (50.75 and 78.85). per 100.000 residents, and decreased in 2017 to 26.10 per 100.000 residents. One of the regencies with high IR of DHF in Central Java Province is Temanggung regency. In 2017, Temanggung regency was in the third position among the highest in Central Java. With the existence of cases each year, it revealed that there were endemic villages of DHF. Until June 2018, there were 56 endemic villages scattered in 19 endemic sub-districts in Temanggung Regency so that it was necessary to analyse the distribution patterns in order to predict and analyse DHF and be able to plan to prevent it. Materials and Methods: This research applied descriptive research with spatial analysis. It used secondary data taken from the Public Health Office in Temanggung regency. The data were processed spatially using the ArcGis application by overlaying an administrative map with a map of the highway and height of the region. Result: There were 35 endemic villages (62,5%) from 56 endemic villages were scattered along the main road and other roads. This could be related to population density and mobility. Based on height, WHO stated the ability of mosquitoes to survive and breed below 1000 meter above sea level (masl) What is masl? This should have been written as meter above sea level . As many as 54 (96.4%) endemic villages were at height below 1000 masl, while 2 (3.6%) villages were above 1000 masl. Conclusion: The distribution characteristics of the endemic villages in Temanggung regency follow the pattern of major highways and other roads and height below 1000 masl. Keywords: DHF, Endemic Villages, Highway Patterns, Height, Risk Factors


A variety of organic mulches and amendments have been observed to improve soil quality and productivity of apple orchards. Alfalfa hay and composted dairy manure solids (CDS) are readily available in the apple-growing region of the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia and could be used to improve orchard performance. The objective of this research was to determine the influences of CDS amendment and alfalfa hay mulch on populations of soil microfauna, soil chemical properties, and early growth; nutrient uptake; and yield of apple planted into a fumigated coarse-textured soil in central Washington State. Alfalfa mulch significantly improved tree vigor and fruit yield with minimal adverse effects on fruit quality, whereas the CDS amendment had minor effects on vigor and yield. Both alfalfa mulch and CDS amendment increased availability and uptake into leaves and fruit of most key nutrients but plant nutrient concentrations were not deficient in control plots, suggesting that increased nutrient availability was probably not the primary reason for the increased vigor attributed to alfalfa mulch at this site. The alfalfa mulch resulted in elevated populations of microbivorous nematodes and protozoa that persisted through later years of the experiment, indicating greater overall microbial activity, mineralization of nutrients, and possible direct stimulation of root growth under mulch; the CDS amendment did not consistently enhance populations of microbivorous nematodes. The alfalfa mulch, but not CDS amendment, suppressed the buildup of populations of root-lesion nematodes, which are important components of the replant disease complex that was suppressing tree growth at the site despite the preplant fumigation. Accordingly, we speculate that the reduced impacts of root-lesion nematodes contributed to the improved vigor and fruit yield of trees grown with alfalfa hay mulch.


Climate Change Impacts![Figure][1]

Shipping routes across the Arctic Ocean will multiply as climate warms.

PHOTO: MINT IMAGES LIMITED/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

Arctic sea ice is rapidly disappearing as climate warms, ushering in an entirely novel era in marine transportation with important economic implications, because more frequent open seas will allow increasing volumes of trans-Arctic shipping. Melia et al. used an ensemble of climate models from the Fifth Coupled Model Intercomparison Project to project how sea ice loss might increase opportunities for ocean-going vessels to cross the Arctic. They find that standard open-water vessels will have twice as many navigable periods by the middle of the 21st century as they do now, including some across the central Arctic. The shipping season length could reach 4 to 8 months by late century, when moderately ice-strengthened vessels could be able to complete Arctic transits during 10 to 12 months of the year.

Geophys. Res. Lett. 10.1002/2016GL069315 (2016).

 [1]: pending:yes


The consumption of garlic is inversely correlated with the progression of cardiovascular disease, although the responsible mechanisms remain unclear. Here we show that human RBCs convert garlic-derived organic polysulfides into hydrogen sulfide (H2S), an endogenous cardioprotective vascular cell signaling molecule. This H2S production, measured in real time by a novel polarographic H2S sensor, is supported by glucose-maintained cytosolic glutathione levels and is to a large extent reliant on reduced thiols in or on the RBC membrane. H2S production from organic polysulfides is facilitated by allyl substituents and by increasing numbers of tethering sulfur atoms. Allyl-substituted polysulfides undergo nucleophilic substitution at the α carbon of the allyl substituent, thereby forming a hydropolysulfide (RSnH), a key intermediate during the formation of H2S. Organic polysulfides (R-Sn-R′; n > 2) also undergo nucleophilic substitution at a sulfur atom, yielding RSnH and H2S. Intact aorta rings, under physiologically relevant oxygen levels, also metabolize garlic-derived organic polysulfides to liberate H2S. The vasoactivity of garlic compounds is synchronous with H2S production, and their potency to mediate relaxation increases with H2S yield, strongly supporting our hypothesis that H2S mediates the vasoactivity of garlic. Our results also suggest that the capacity to produce H2S can be used to standardize garlic dietary supplements.


We recently developed STO-609, a selective inhibitor of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase (CaM-KK), and we demonstrated that CaM-KKβ is more sensitive to STO-609 than the CaM-KKα isoform (Tokumitsu H., Inuzuka H., Ishikawa Y., Ikeda M., Saji I., and Kobayashi R. (2002) J. Biol. Chem. 277, 15813–15818). By using catalytic chimera and point mutants of both isoforms, we demonstrated that Val269 in CaM-KKβ/Leu233 in CaM-KKα confers a distinct sensitivity (∼10-fold) to STO-609 on CaM-KK isoforms. Various mutations of Val269 in CaM-KKβ indicate that substitution by hydrophobic residues with bulky side chains significantly decreases drug sensitivity and that the V269F mutant is the most effective drug-resistant enzyme (∼80-fold higher IC50 value). These findings are consistent with a result obtained with a full-length mutant expressed in COS-7 cells. Furthermore, suppression of CaM-KK-mediated CaM-KIV activation in transfected HeLa cells by STO-609 treatment was completely abolished by the co-expression of the CaM-KKβ V269F mutant. Based on the results that the distinct sensitivity of CaM-KK isoforms to STO-609 is because of a single amino acid substitution (Val/Leu) in the ATP-binding pocket, we have generated an STO-609-resistant CaM-KK mutant, which might be useful for validating the pharmacological effects and specificity of STO-609 in vivo.


In this paper, the concepts of set-valued homomorphism and strong setvalued homomorphism of a hyperlattice are introduced. The notions of generalized lower and upper approximation operators constructed by means of a set-valued mapping are provided. We also propose the notions of generalized lower and upper approximations with respect to a hyperideal of a hyperlattice which is an extended notion of rough hyperideal in a hyperlattice and discuss some significiant properties of them.


In the future, increasing pressure will inevitably be placed on the spatial planning system to improve its consideration of water management issues. Emerging challenges include designing for climatic extremes, reducing flood risk, managing increasingly scarce water resources and improving water quality. These issues need to be balanced with a range of other spatial planning priorities and objectives, including meeting new housing needs, facilitating economic growth, and creating and maintaining quality places. The sheer complexity of the issues surrounding water management and the impacts upon spatial planning mean that partnership working is essential to achieve an integrated approach. Planners need the expertise, and crucially the understanding, of engineers and hydrologists. However, there can be considerable misunderstanding and miscommunication between disciplines, often concerning the institutional context in which the various parties operate. A plethora of policies, tools and assessments exist, which can make integrated water management an overwhelming prospect for the planner. This paper attempts to identify and address some of the issues faced, as well as examining how planners embed hydrological issues in decision making and how engineers could better facilitate this.


Extracting entities and relations for types of interest from text is important for understanding massive text corpora. Traditionally, systems of entity relation extraction have relied on human-annotated corpora for training and adopted an incremental pipeline. Such systems require additional human expertise to be ported to a new domain, and are vulnerable to errors cascading down the pipeline. In this paper, we investigate joint extraction of typed entities and relations with labeled data heuristically obtained from knowledge bases (i.e., distant supervision). As our algorithm for type labeling via distant supervision is context-agnostic, noisy training data poses unique challenges for the task. We propose a novel domain-independent framework, called CoType, that runs a data-driven text segmentation algorithm to extract entity mentions, and jointly embeds entity mentions, relation mentions, text features and type labels into two low-dimensional spaces (for entity and relation mentions respectively), where, in each space, objects whose types are close will also have similar representations. CoType, then using these learned embeddings, estimates the types of test (unlinkable) mentions. We formulate a joint optimization problem to learn embeddings from text corpora and knowledge bases, adopting a novel partial-label loss function for noisy labeled data and introducing an object "translation" function to capture the cross-constraints of entities and relations on each other. Experiments on three public datasets demonstrate the effectiveness of CoType across different domains (e.g., news, biomedical), with an average of 25% improvement in F1 score compared to the next best method.


A layer-wise theory with the analysis of face ply independent of lamination is used in the bending of symmetric laminates with anisotropic plies. More realistic and practical edge conditions as in Kirchhoff's theory are considered. An iterative procedure based on point-wise equilibrium equations is adapted. The necessity of a solution of an auxiliary problem in the interior plies is explained and used in the generation of proper sequence of two dimensional problems. Displacements are expanded in terms of polynomials in thickness coordinate such that continuity of transverse stresses across interfaces is assured. Solution of a fourth order system of a supplementary problem in the face ply is necessary to ensure the continuity of in-plane displacements across interfaces and to rectify inadequacies of these polynomial expansions in the interior distribution of approximate solutions. Vertical deflection does not play any role in obtaining all six stress components and two in-plane displacements. In overcoming lacuna in Kirchhoff's theory, widely used first order shear deformation theory and other sixth and higher order theories based on energy principles at laminate level in smeared laminate theories and at ply level in layer-wise theories are not useful in the generation of a proper sequence of 2-D problems converging to 3-D problems. Relevance of present analysis is demonstrated through solutions in a simple text book problem of simply supported square plate under doubly sinusoidal load.


A multibeam echosounder (MBE) was deployed on an inflatable boat (length = 5.5 m) to observe swarms of Antarctic krill Euphausia superba in the nearshore environment off Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. Visual observations of air-breathing predators, including penguins and fur seals, were made from the boat at the same time. MBEs extend the 2-dimensional acoustic observations that can be made with conventional vertical echosounders to 3 dimensions, enabling direct observation of the surface areas and volumes of entire krill swarms. Krill swarms exhibited a wide range of various size metrics (e.g. height, length and width) but only a narrow range of surface-area-to-volume ratios or 'roughnesses', suggesting that krill adopt a consistent group behavior to maintain swarm shape. The variation in R was investigated using generalized additive models (GAMs). GAMs indicated that the presence of air-breathing predators influenced swarm shape (R decreased as the range to predators decreased, and the swarms became more spherical), as did swarm nearest-neighbor distance (R decreased with increasing distance) and swarm position in the water column (R decreased in the upper 70% of the water column). Therefore, swarm shape appears to be influenced by a combination of behavioral responses to predator presence and environ- mental variables. MBEs have the potential to contribute much to studies of krill, and can provide data to improve our understanding of the behavior of krill in situ.


It is challenging to deal with censored data, where we only have access to the incomplete information of survival time instead of its exact value. Fortunately, under linear predictor assumption, people can obtain guaranteed coverage for the confidence band of survival time using methods like Cox Regression. However, when relaxing the linear assumption with neural networks (e.g., Cox-MLP \citep{katzman2018deepsurv,kvamme2019time}), we lose the guaranteed coverage. To recover the guaranteed coverage without linear assumption, we propose two algorithms based on conformal inference. In the first algorithm \emph{WCCI}, we revisit weighted conformal inference and introduce a new non-conformity score based on partial likelihood. We then propose a two-stage algorithm \emph{T-SCI}, where we run WCCI in the first stage and apply quantile conformal inference to calibrate the results in the second stage. Theoretical analysis shows that T-SCI returns guaranteed coverage under milder assumptions than WCCI. We conduct extensive experiments on synthetic data and real data using different methods, which validate our analysis.


Synopsis: Market manipulation is a contentious topic in all commodity markets, but especially in energy markets. Especially during the period of rapidly rising energy prices in 2006-2008, accusations that manipulation contributed to these increases were widespread. Despite the salience of the subject, it is little understood. Indeed, there is substantial confusion about what constitutes manipulation. A good deal of this confusion is attributable to the fact that although there are in fact at least two very distinct categories of manipulative acts, these different categories are too often blurred. Specifically, some manipulations (like "corners") exploit market power, while others employ fraud and deceit. It is possible to execute a market power manipulation without engaging in deceit, and those without market power can engage in fraud-based manipulations. Three federal statutes, the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA), the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005), and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) all prohibit manipulation of various energy commodities and empower federal agencies to impose penalties on manipulators. Unlike the EPAct 2005 or the EISA, the CEA does distinguish between market power manipulations and fraud-based manipulations. However, a series of poorly-reasoned legal decisions have undermined the efficacy of the CEA as a tool for combating market power manipulation. The EPAct 2005 and EISA are both based on section 10b(5) of the Securities and Exchange Act, and focus on fraud-based manipulations. As a result, they are ill-suited to address market power manipulation, and attempts to use them to do so will inevitably lead to further legal confusions. Market power manipulation is important, but it is necessary to revise existing laws to (a) distinguish market power manipulation from fraud-based manipulation, and (b) provide more specific guidance on what constitutes market power manipulation, and what types of evidence is sufficient to prove market power manipulation. In this article, I set out an economically-based approach to these issues. I. INTRODUCTION Manipulation in financial and commodity markets is a hot button issue. Recent months have seen widespread assertions that derivatives markets have been rife with manipulation. Nowhere have these accusations been more numerous or heated than in the energy markets. As oil and natural gas prices skyrocketed in mid-2008, allegations of manipulation rose with them. Although prices have declined, the pace of allegations has not. Moreover, concerns about manipulation have led to calls in the United States and world-wide for a far more intrusive regulatory system to reduce its prevalence. Sadly, seldom in the course of human events, have so many been so confused about so much for so long as is the case with commodity market manipulation. What's more, U.S. legislators and regulators have definitely been a part of that "so many." The current statutes that address manipulation in energy markets - the Commodity Exchange Act, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 - and the regulations issued thereunder by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - are often imprecise, and where they are precise, fundamentally wrongheaded. As interpreted by the courts and the CFTC, the CEA's anti-manipulation provisions provide large loopholes that permit those who engage in conduct an economist would consider clearly manipulative to escape unpunished. Moreover, a recent court decision challenges the very Constitutionality of these provisions in criminal manipulation prosecutions, and also raises serious questions about the efficacy of the CEA as an antimanipulation tool. The FERC and FTC anti-manipulation rules are newer, and have not been extensively tested in litigation, but from an economist's perspective, these rules (and the statutes that authorize them) are completely misguided and hopelessly ill-suited to reach the kinds of manipulative conduct most likely to occur in energy markets. …


abstract The study of pre-suicidal behaviors is important not only because of their association with suicide but also because of their impact on quality of life (QOL). Given the scarcity of information regarding this relationship in adolescence, the objective of this study was to analyze the association between suicidal-related behavior and QOL according to gender in adolescent Mexican high school students. This cross-sectional study was conducted with participants between 14 and 18 years of age. A translated version of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey and the Spanish version of the Youth Quality of Life Research-Instrument version were used. Non-parametric tests were applied. Informed consent was obtained from parents and students, and ethical committee approval was sought. The developmental-transactional model of suicidal behavior in adolescents by Bridge et al. was used. Separate analyses were conducted for males and females to show the suicidal related behaviors associated with QOL. The behavior of having felt sad or hopeless generally presented the greatest effect sizes. The regression models showed that some suicidal-related behaviors increase the probability of a lower QOL even after adjusting for covariates.


Wind energy is the most promising renewable among all other renewable and hence successful integration of wind to the grid will certainly a better option. Double fed induction generator (DFIG) technology allows extracting maximum energy from the wind, while operating in narrow speed ranges. It has the ability for power electronic converters to generate and absorb reactive power. A three-level back-to-back AC-DC-AC converter used in the system. This analysis is based on reduction of the maximum common mode voltage levels of the rotor side converter which plays the key role in shaft voltage generation of the DFIG. The advantages of proposed method are: voltage balancing of DC link capacitors and controlling of the active and reactive power delivered by the wind generator. The proposed DFIG with multilevel inverter aims at integrating winds farms even in weaker grid with improved Maximum power injection, Minimum harmonic issues with reduced impact on WTG. The proposed method, will improve the power quality which is delivered to the grid in terms of harmonic, inject the maximum power to the grid and improve the voltage profile.


We demonstrate the feasibility of the development of a gradient-index elliptical microlens with a size of 75×125  μm using nanostructured glass technology. The gradient index is obtained by means of a discrete internal structure composed of two glasses with feature sizes much smaller than the wavelength of the incident light. A modified photonic crystal fiber-drawing technique is used for the lens fabrication. The elliptical shape of the lens is obtained by a novel final drawing stage where the spherically symmetric lens preform is drawn into an elliptical form by collapsing two large air holes placed in the preform during assembly. The effective focal lengths of 160 and 260 μm for the orthogonal axes are obtained experimentally for the fabricated lens, and show good agreement with those predicted by the effective medium theory and the full-wave beam propagation simulations.


A presentation of 89 texts that have played a role in shaping modern judgements and values about art. Emphasizing the debates and ideological assumptions around the Western canon of art, it ranges through art history from Pliny the Elder to current issues of gender.


Image based plant phenotyping plays a vital role in productive and sustainable agriculture. It is used to record plant growth, chlorophyll fluorescence, yield, width and tallness of plants and leaf area, frequently and accurately. Among these characteristics, plant growth is an important characteristic to be analyzed, which directly depends on leaf count. Taking benign conditions of quick advancement in computer vision and image processing algorithms, a new method is proposed to extract the leaves from complex background and to count the number of leaves. The proposed method has two stages. In the first stage, leaf region is separated from the background, using graph based method. In the second stage, leaves are counted by using Circular Hough Transform (CHT). The proposed method is experimented with Leaf Segmentation Challenge (LSC) benchmark datasets. The proposed method achieves the Dice score of 93.2% and FBD of 94.3%, which are higher when compared with the existing recent relevant methods.


Here, we performed a case-control study to investigate the role of miR-146a, miR-149, and miR-196a2 polymorphisms in the development of gastric cancer using a hospital-based case-control design. A total of 186 gastric cancer patients and 186 control subjects were enrolled from Ren Ji Hospital between January 2012 and October 2014. MicroRNAs miR-146a, miR-149, and miR-196a2 were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction coupled with restriction fragment length polymorphism. Univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that patients with gastric cancer were more likely to be infected with Helicobacter pylori [odds ratio (OR) = 1.68, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.07-1.96]. Conditional multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the TT genotype of miR-196a2 was associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer compared to the CC genotype (OR = 2.40; 95%CI = 1.26-4.61). Moreover, patients carrying both the TC and TT genotypes of miR-196a2 were correlated with an elevated risk of gastric cancer compared to those expressing the CC genotype alone (OR = 1.67, 95%CI = 1.01-2.75; P = 0.03). In conclusion, the results of


Phenothiazine derivatives are biologically active and pa vital role in medicinal chemistry. The present report explains a simple and efficient synthesis of title compounds. The compounds are also screened for their biological activity and shown good results. Potassium 1-amino-10,10a-dihydro-4aH-phenothiazine- 3-sulfonate (1) reacts with Benzaldehyde to form Potassium-1-(benzylideneamino)-10,10a-dihydro-4aHphenothiazine- 3-sulfonate (2), which undergoes N-alkylation to give potassium-1-(benzylideneamino)- 10,10a-dihydro-10-((oxiran-2-yl)methyl)-4aH-phenothiazine-3-sulfonate (3). Compound 3 reacts with different amines to give Potassium-1-(benzylideneamino)-10, 10a-dihydro-10-(2-hydroxy-2-(pyrrolidin-1- yl)ethyl)-4aH-phenothiazine-3-sulfonate (4a-e). All the newly synthesized quinoxaline-benzohydrazide derivatives have been characterized by 1H NMR, IR and mass spectroscopic analysis. The synthesized compounds have been screened for antibacterial activity. Most of the compounds show significant antibacterial activity.