BACKGROUND: Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome (RSTS) is a rare congenital neurodevelopmental disorder, characterized by postnatal growth deficiency, typical dysmorphic features, broad thumbs and toes, and mental retardation. Very few cases are reported in literature from developing countries. Diagnosis is often delayed due to non-familiarity with the characteristic features of this syndrome. AIMS: To report 11 cases of RSTS and to review the current literature. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Retrospective study conducted in genetic and metabolic unit of a tertiary care teaching hospital in north India over a period of 3½ years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 11 patients with diagnosis of RSTS were identified, and their case sheets were reviewed. RESULTS: Developmental delay was presenting complaint in 10 patients, and seizure in 1 case. 7 patients had microcephaly (head circumference below −3 SD), and a prominent beaked nose was seen in 9 patients. The intelligence quotient (IQ) varied from 22-62 in 7 patients who had mental retardation. The most notable features in hands were broadness, shortening, and flattening of the distal phalanx of thumbs or great toes. Additionally, we also noted webbing of neck, microphthalmia, and pachygyria (on MRI brain) in 1 patient each. CONCLUSIONS: The diagnosis of RSTS is primarily clinical and based on characteristic phenotype that is often combined with a variety of somatic anomalies. An early diagnosis facilitates appropriate genetic counseling and in planning the management.


Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of hybrid, maturity, mechanical processing, and inoculation of corn silage on fermentation characteristics. In experiment 1, Pioneer hybrid 3845 corn silage was harvested at three maturities (hard dough, one-third milkline, two-thirds milkline). In experiment 2, Pioneer hybrids 3845 and Quanta were harvested at three maturities (one-third milkline, two-thirds milkline, and blackline). In both experiments, corn silage was harvested at each maturity with and without mechanical processing and with and without inoculation. In experiments 1 and 2, corn silage was harvested at a theoretical length-of-cut of 6.4 and 12.7 mm, respectively. Maturity at harvest tended to have a greater impact on silage fermentation characteristics of corn silage than mechanical processing and inoculation. In experiments 1 and 2, corn silage harvested at the earliest maturity tended to have decreased dry matter content and increased water-soluble carbohydrate concentrations during the ensiling process than corn silage harvested at advanced maturities. In experiment 2, pH levels were lower for corn silage harvested at the early maturity (one-third milkline) compared with advanced maturities (two-thirds milkline and blackline) by 57 d after ensiling. The difference in pH can be explained by the greater concentration of water-soluble carbohydrates at the early maturity (one-third ML) soon after ensiling (2, 3, 6 and 10 d after ensiling) compared with advanced maturities (two-thirds ML and BL). The increased water-soluble carbohydrate concentrations in the less mature corn silage provided nutrients for bacteria to grow and produce primarily lactic acid (6, 10, and 57 d after ensiling) and some acetic acid (2, 3, 6, and 10 d after ensiling) which reduced the pH of corn silage more than at the advanced maturities. There was a slight change in silage fermentation characteristics when corn silage was inoculated with Pioneer 1132 inoculant in experiment 1. The inoculated corn silage had increased temperature, lactate and acetate concentrations, and lower water-soluble carbohydrate and pH levels compared with uninoculated corn silage. Dry matter recovery tended to be greater for processed corn silage in experiment 1, and greater for unprocessed corn silage in experiment 2. It appears that when fermentation was greater (increased temperature and lactate concentration 57 d after ensiling) the dry matter recovery was lower.


Managing tax risk is one of the greatest challenges for tax departments around the world (creating the opportunities to build relationships with revenue services), starting with the verification audit through to the resolution of tax controversies. A recent survey supports this contention. Key aspects that emerged can be summarized as follows:Tax risk is everywhere. Companies continue to face increased pressure on the tax function. As a result, tax functions are focused on addressing risks in every major area of the tax life-cycle: planning, provision, compliance, and controversy. Improving the tax function is clearly more important than ever, with more than 90% of companies indicating this will be an important area for them over the next two years.People are a tax risk: 87% of respondents identified people as an important challenge facing the tax department. Companies are struggling to get enough people to staff their tax department. They are also challenged to train the people they have, with 77% of companies indicating that the lack of skilled resources is a contributing factor to tax risk.The trend (proactive versus reactive): Today, companies report a significant increase in the time they spend identifying, managing, tracking, and responding on tax risk. The number of companies who spend at least 20% of their time on tax risk increased over the last two years from 16% to 25%. Leading tax functions are responding by becoming more efficient and broadening their response to risk. Building linkages to other parts of the organization is becoming increasingly important.Communication is key: Companies that have regular communications with their board about tax risk are also more likely to report having specific measures in place to address those risks. The difference seems to be that they take a broad approach to tax risk assessment and work to efficiently leverage their people, processes and technology.


Based on the theory of maximum likelihood estimation, a set of nonlinear equations is first derived for determination of parameters of Weibull distribution. To speed up convergence, an efficient algorithm is proposed for solving the parameters. Further, a large-span roof structure is taken to demonstrate the proposed method. It is proved that the responses of a nonlinear structure have non-Gaussian properties under the excitation of non-Gaussian stochastic wind pressure field. By Weibull distribution fitting, the maximum and minimum values of structural response with a certain assurance rate are computed, and the results are compared with those obtained from normal distribution.


In this article, we review an account of movement errors that is based on a model of serial order and an interactive spreading activation model of word production. This account makes two claims. First, anticipations and perseverations arise from malfunctions of a mechanism that maintains serial order in speech production and that has three components: (1) a means to turn off past utterances, (2) a means to activate the present utterance (3) a means to prime the future utterance. Second, the probabilities of such movement errors are further determined by the same variables that influence the production of ordinary word and sound substitutions, such a frequency and feature overlap. We review relevant studies of movement errors produced by aphasic and nonaphasic individuals and make suggestions for further investigation of these phenomena.


A method based on linear regularization is presented for the deduction of the effective collision frequency profile in the D-region using an incoherent scatter radar and a colocated riometer. The deduced collision frequency above EISCAT, Tromso, for the period 09 November 2004 to 13 November 2004 matches very well with that calculated using neutral densities and temperatures from the NRLMSISe-00 atmospheric model between 68 km and 95 km during active (ap > 50) and quiet (ap < 50) conditions. We also confirm the validity of using the Appleton-Hartree equation with effective collision frequencies when calculating the ionospheric absorption at high frequencies.


Abstract : This report describes the first year's work in a two year study of optimal structures for multimedia instruction. The project has two phases. The first phase elicits experienced instructors' explanations of a demonstration device, in order to obtain for analysis a significant range of the possible discourse structures that occur in instruction. The outcome of this phase is a set of variables, and a set of hypotheses about relationships among them that lead to effective instruction. The second phase will test these hypotheses on groups of students. The aim of this project is to provide experimentally validated guidelines both for the design of computer-based instruction generation systems, and for human instruction in a multimedia setting. Potential applications for this research include multimedia output capability (e.g., graphics output plus audio, using speech technology) for automatic instructional systems and for onboard fault diagnosis systems, as well as the improvement of traditional classroom instruction. Four major results have been achieved so far: a framework for discussing optimal discourse structures and/or visual presentations in multimedia instruction, based upon the notion of a mapping between semiotic systems; the discovery that the command and control speech act chain is used in 'hands-on' instruction (our structure theory of the discourse type is given; a rich set of experimental hypotheses; a demonstration of the viability of a methodology combining linguistic analysis with experimental research.


District Cooling Systems (DCS) have been widely applied in large institutions such as universities, government facilities, commercial districts, airports etc. The hydraulic system of a large DCS can be very complicated. They often stem from an original design that has had extensive additions and deletions over time. Expanding or retrofitting such a system involves large capital investment. Consideration of future expansion is often required. Therefore, a thorough study of the whole system at the planning phase is crucial. An effective hydraulic model for the existing DCS will become a powerful analysis tool for this purpose. Engineers can use the model to explore various alternatives of system configuration to find an optimal way of accommodating the DCS hydraulic system to the planned future. This paper presents the first complete procedure for the use of commercial simulation software to construct the hydraulic model for a large District Cooling System (DCS). A model for one of the largest DCS hydraulic systems in the United States has been developed based on this procedure and has been successfully utilized to assist the decision makings for its master planning purpose.


Factors predicting sensitivity to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) blockade are largely unknown and new strategies are being sought to individualize cancer therapy. This study evaluated the variation in the expression of the early response gene c-fos as a distal effect of EGFR inhibition and its relationship to antitumor effects. The growth-inhibitory and c-fos-modulating effects of gefitinib and erlotinib in human cancer cell lines (A431, CAL27, HN11, HuCCT1, and Hep2) were determined. Next, these cell lines were xenografted in mice and treated for 14 days with gefitinib (A431 and HuCCT1) or erlotinib (CAL27, HN11, and Hep2). Fine needle aspiration biopsy of tumors was done at baseline and after 14 days of therapy for c-fos assessment. In addition, we tested the feasibility of analyzing this marker in five paired tumor samples from a clinical trial of gefitinib in patients with solid tumors. In culture, gefitinib and erlotinib decreased c-fos mRNA levels in the susceptible cell lines A431, CAL27, and HN11; however, both drugs failed to achieve c-fos inhibition in resistant cells. Gefitinib or erlotinib abrogated the increase in c-fos expression in vivo in EGFR-sensitive A431, CAL27, and HN11 tumors but not in resistant strains. Ex vivo evaluation was feasible and predicted in vivo effects. The feasibility study in paired human tumor biopsies showed that this biomarker can be reliably measured in clinical materials. In summary, variations in c-fos expression reflect the pharmacologic actions of EGFR inhibitors in in vitro and in vivo models.


Existentialism is one of the most important movements of thought in the twentieth century. Existentialist thought that centered on human imagery, is still maintained even today. This movement which influences many part of life, even in nowadays confronts us everywhere in life. Existentialist themes will be processed until human exist. While existentialism denies all history, it doesn't appoint its position in future. It goes between being and non-being under the pressure of the idea that human's position in space and time is a just coincidence. Spiritual possibilities which it have, open the door of depression instead of being guide to it. It has lost in the mist of despair, and notion of making a sense of life remains in suspense. While existentialism mentions a dumped to the world and despair of human, it doesn't put in order uncertain function and position of an entity. Individual who gets lonely, walks in dark cloisters where individual is weak, disconnected to history, desperate. Individual always tries to understand him/herself in nature and in the world. Whilst existentialism takes effect in literature and philosophy, is it also effective in sculpture art? These effects and their dimensions constitute the purpose of this study. To find these effects makes easier to trace, to understand, and to interrogate literary and philosophical reflections. As so in some movement thought, we labeled some artworks as ''Existentialism'' even if not directly effects. Although to a lesser extent, artists can be influenced by it in the view of life and theme which artists works on. Especially, there are two artists who produce their artworks proper to existentialism. As a result of the literature reviews Giocometti's artworks gives us the best samples of existentialist art. Besides that we can say Rodin's artwork is in the same division which is known as '' Le Penseur''. Thus, it is seen that Existentialism is also effective in the art of sculpture.


With the increasing use of the ultraviolet light as an important therapeutic measure for children, it is obviously necessary to ascertain the effect of this procedure on the young organism. In the first paper of this series, it was shown that the ultraviolet light was capable of increasing the blood platelets in the new-born infant.1The second paper dealt with the erythrocytes and hemoglobin.2 MATERIAL This study is based on the observations on a series of 120 new-born infants during a period of ten months. The total white cell count and the differential count were made within six hours after birth, and at twenty-four hour intervals thereafter. The determinations were made at the same time every day. Treatments with the ultraviolet rays were begun on alternate infants on the second day, and continued thereafter at the same time on each of the following four days. METHOD The total


Verticillium wilt is a severe plant disease that causes massive losses in multiple crops. Increasing the plant resistance to Verticillium wilt is a critical challenge worldwide. Here, we report that the hemibiotrophic Verticillium dahliae (V. dahliae)-secreted Asp f2-like protein VDAL causes leaf wilting when applied to cotton leaves in vitro, but enhances the resistance to V. dahliae when overexpressed in Arabidopsis or cotton without affecting the plant growth and development. VDAL protein interacts with Arabidopsis E3 ligases PUB25 and PUB26 (PUBs) and is ubiquitinated by PUBs in vitro. However, VDAL is not degraded by PUB25 or PUB26 in planta. Besides, the pub25 pub26 double mutant shows higher resistance to V. dahliae than the wild type. PUBs interact with the transcription factor MYB6 in a yeast two-hybrid screen. MYB6 promotes plant resistance to Verticillium wilt while PUBs ubiquitinate MYB6 and mediate its degradation. VDAL competes with MYB6 for binding to PUBs, and the role of VDAL in increasing Verticillium wilt resistance depends on MYB6. Taken together, these results suggest that plants evolute a strategy to utilize the invaded effector protein VDAL to resist the V. dahliae infection without causing a hypersensitive response (HR), Alternatively, in order to take nutrients from host cells, hemibiotrophic pathogens may use some effectors to keep plant cells alive during its infection in order to take nutrients from host cells. This study provides the molecular mechanism for plants increasing disease resistance when overexpressing some effector proteins without inducing HR, and may promote searching for more genes from pathogenic fungi or bacteria to engineer plant disease resistance. One-sentence summary Ectopically expressed VDAL in Arabidopsis alleviates the degradation of a positive disease response factor MYB6 through its interaction with PUB25/26 E3 ligases.


Polymer material science is a discipline full of vitality which has developed rapidly and improved people's lives greatly. As the basis of material research development, analysis is an important skill that students major in polymer material science must master. The academic development and progress in analytical techniques have put forward higher request to student's theory and practice ability, as well as brought in greater challenges to the course teaching of polymer material analysis. The original PPT courseware teaching demo has several shortcomings, such as ignorance about students' individual differences, imperfect network construction of students' knowledge, and insufficient attention on cultivating students' ability to solve practical problems. However, it will provide a new platform for the theory and practice teaching of this course by introducing the multimedia technology with intergrable ware notion into it. This paper has analyzed the feasibility of using multimedia technology with intergrable ware notion in course teaching and the critical points, technology and application in terms of the intergrable platform construction. In addition, this paper has also done the evaluation on effect of this teaching mode through the comparative experiments among different classes using different teaching methods.


Based on the experimental hyperfine structure data given in our previous study, the multi-configuration method has been used to calculate the fine structure of the odd parity configurations 3d4s4p, 4s2 4p and 3d2 4p of neutral Scandium taking into account configuration interaction effects. Magnetic dipole hyperfine structure constants are analysed in the effective-operator formalism for the isotope 45Sc. Relativistic one-electron parameters of the magnetic dipole hyperfine structure anlkskl(kskl= 01, 10, 12) were fitted to the experimental data by a least-squares fit procedure. Theoretical predictions for the magnetic dipole hyperfine structure constants A for all levels of the three configurations are given.


Realising new ways of value co-creation involves changes in the roles of actors in a service system. Role Theory and its concepts have been used in service research to articulate dynamics in service actor roles in existing value co-creation situations, but they are not applied to evaluate roles in future situations of service. Several methods exist in (service) design that can be used to describe existing roles in service systems and to suggest possible futures based on these descriptions, but describing roles in these futures in a structured way is not a part of these methods.Structured ways to describe service actor roles in envisioned services are thus lacking, which makes it difficult to assess the feasibility of the evolution from contemporary service actor roles towards realising services. In this paper, we suggest how Role Theory and theatre-inspired methods in design can complement one-another to fill this gap. We use interview data from the evaluation of an envisioned service scenario to show how Role Theory can be used as an analytical perspective to describe roles in this envisioned service. Finally, we suggest possible directions for future research.


OBJECTIVE Data regarding the effects of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors in the elderly (age ≥65 years) and very elderly (age ≥75 years) are limited. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The Dapagliflozin Effect on Cardiovascular Events (DECLARE)–TIMI 58 assessed cardiac and renal outcomes of dapagliflozin versus placebo in patients with type 2 diabetes. Efficacy and safety outcomes were studied within age subgroups for treatment effect and age-based treatment interaction. RESULTS Of the 17,160 patients, 9,253 were <65 years of age, 6,811 ≥65 to <75 years, and 1,096 ≥75 years. Dapagliflozin reduced the composite of cardiovascular death or hospitalization for heart failure consistently, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 0.88 (95% CI 0.72, 1.07), 0.77 (0.63, 0.94), and 0.94 (0.65, 1.36) in age-groups <65, ≥65 to <75, and ≥75 years, respectively (interaction P value 0.5277). Overall, dapagliflozin did not significantly decrease the rates of major adverse cardiovascular events, with HR 0.93 (95% CI 0.81, 1.08), 0.97 (0.83, 1.13), and 0.84 (0.61, 1.15) in age-groups <65, ≥65 to <75, and ≥75 years, respectively (interaction P value 0.7352). The relative risk reduction for the secondary prespecified cardiorenal composite outcome ranged from 18% to 28% in the different age-groups with no heterogeneity. Major hypoglycemia was less frequent with dapagliflozin versus placebo, with HR 0.97 (95% CI 0.58, 1.64), 0.50 (0.29, 0.84), and 0.68 (0.29, 1.57) in age-groups <65, ≥65 to <75, and ≥75 years, respectively (interaction P value 0.2107). Safety outcomes, including fractures, volume depletion, cancer, urinary tract infections, and amputations were balanced with dapagliflozin versus placebo, and acute kidney injury was reduced, all regardless of age. Genital infections that were serious or led to discontinuation of the study drug and diabetic ketoacidosis were uncommon, yet more frequent with dapagliflozin versus placebo, without heterogeneity (interaction P values 0.1058 and 0.8433, respectively). CONCLUSIONS The overall efficacy and safety of dapagliflozin are consistent regardless of age.


Leon Battista Alberti was one of the most important humanist scholars of the Italian Renaissance. Active in mid-fifteenth-century Florence, he was an architect, theorist, and author of texts on perspective and painting. Leon Battista Alberti: On Painting is a cardinal work that revolutionized Western art. In this volume Rocco Sinisgalli presents a new English translation and critical examination of Alberti's seminal text. Dr Sinisgalli reverses the received understanding of the relationship between the Italian and Latin versions of Alberti's treatise by demonstrating that Alberti wrote it first in Italian and then translated it into a polished Latin over the course of several decades. This volume is richly illustrated to help demonstrate how Alberti understood optics and art.


The current work is devoted to problems connected with application of CFD tools for safety analysis of large-scale industrial structures. With the aim to preserve conservatism of overall process of multistage procedure of such analysis special efforts are required. A strategy which has to lead to obtaining of reliable results in CFD analysis is discussed. Different aspects of proposed strategy, including: adequate choice of physical and numerical models, procedure of validation simulations, and problem of 'under-resolved' simulations are considered. For physical phenomena which could cause significant uncertainties in the course of scenario simulation, an approach, which complements CFD simulations by application of auxiliary criteria, is presented. Physical basis and applicability of strong flame acceleration and detonation-to-deflagration transition criteria are discussed. In concluding part two examples of application of presented approach for nuclear power plant and workshop cell for hydrogen driven vehicles are presented.


The California Society for Addiction Medicine (CSAM) State of the Art Addiction Medicine Conference will be held August 30 ‐ September 2 in San Diego, California. For more information, go to https://csam‐asam.org/


Whole cell patch and cell-attached recordings were obtained from neurons in intact ganglia of the myenteric plexus of the guinea pig duodenum. Two classes of neuron were identified electrophysiologically: phasically firing AH neurons that had a pronounced slow afterhyperpolarization (AHP) and tonically firing S neurons that lacked a slow AHP. We investigated the properties of the slow AHP and the underlying current (I(AHP)) to address the roles of Ca(2+) entry and Ca(2+) release in the AHP and the characteristics of the K(+) channels that are activated. AH neurons had a resting potential of -54 mV and the AHP, which followed a volley of three suprathreshold depolarizing current pulses delivered at 50 Hz through the pipette, averaged 11 mV at its peak, which occurred 0.5-1 s following the stimulus. The duration of these AHPs averaged 7 s. Under voltage-clamp conditions, I(AHP)'s were recorded at holding potentials of -50 to -65 mV, following brief depolarization of AH neurons (20-100 ms) to positive potentials (+35 to +50 mV). The null potential of the I(AHP) at its peak was -89 mV. The AHP and I(AHP) were largely blocked by omega-conotoxin GVIA (0.6-1 microM). Both events were markedly decreased by caffeine (2-5 mM) and by ryanodine (10-20 microM) added to the bathing solution. Pharmacological suppression of the I(AHP) with TEA (20 mM) or charybdotoxin (50-100 nM) unmasked an early transient inward current at -55 mV following step depolarization that reversed at -34 mV and was inhibited by niflumic acid (50-100 microM). Mean-variance analysis performed on the decay of the I(AHP) revealed that the AHP K(+) channels have a mean chord conductance of ~10 pS, and there are ~4,000 per AH neuron. Spectral analysis showed that the AHP channels have a mean open dwell time of 2.8 ms. Cell-attached patch recordings from AH neurons confirmed that the channels that open following action currents have a small unitary conductance (10-17 pS) and open with a high probability (</=0.5) within the first 2 s following an action potential. These results indicate that the AHP is largely a consequence of Ca(2+) entry through omega-conotoxin GVIA-sensitive Ca(2+) channels during the action potential, Ca(2+)-triggered Ca(2+) release from caffeine-sensitive stores and the opening of Ca(2+)-sensitive small-conductance K(+) channels.


The field of literary history has burgeoned in the last three decades, as historicism has become the predominant methodology in literary studies. In an academic form of sibling rivalry, relations between scholars who take literature as their object of inquiry and scholars who study "the past" (that is to say, historians) have grown somewhat strained, even as the two groups arguably share a larger number of assumptions and practices than at any moment in the life of the modern academy. This special issue of the Journal of the Early Republic developed out of an initiative by then-editor Roderick McDonald to bring scholars from the fields of literary studies and history into closer dialogue.1 Politics and literature have provided important points of convergence between the disciplines in the past, notably in the protracted debate about republican and liberal influences on the early American republic and in studies that build on the insights of Jurgen Habermas to track the emergence of a public sphere in the United States. The topic of this issue, "Political Writing and Literature 1800-1835," arose out of a sense that new developments in both history and literary studies made the topic ripe for reconsideration.2 An open call for papers netted a modest number of essays, a review process led to the selection of the four articles included here, and Roderick and I worked together to guide the authors toward a style and a method that could appeal to scholars in both disciplines. Three of the authors (White, Apap, and Miller) have their academic homes in literature departments, while Graham resides in a history department, as does Catherine O'Donnell, whose crossdisciplinary work makes her a helpful surveyor of recent scholarship in the field.The essays included here are notable for the suppleness with which they read their textual archives and relate them to concerns guiding recent scholarship. They revisit old debates and engage new ones by means of a close analysis of texts, which remains the trademark gesture of the literary scholar. Collectively they suggest how textured readings of specific works can open out into case studies that illuminate important general claims and engage theoretical concerns. The subjects addressed here include the robust persistence of republican ideology and its characteristic literary genre, the deliberative oration, after 1800; the importance of geographic thinking in the modern republic; the shifting dynamics of race, gender, class, and religion; and the rise of mass party politics that claimed to represent democracy while practicing many forms of exclusion.These essays extend several of the emphases in the re visionary historical scholarship included in the 2004 collection Beyond the Founders: New Approaches to the Political History of the Early American Republic.3 In a concluding comment to that volume, William G. Shade notes that it began as an initiative within SHEAR, which took shape on the HSHEAR listserv and led to a 1998 panel at the SHEAR conference before evolving into the essay collection. All of the contributors to the volume are historians, and they collectively aspire to create a "new cultural history of politics of the early republic" (388), drawing on the methodologies made current by the postmodern "linguistic turn" and neo-Marxist critical theory. The essays in the volume are divided into four parts whose titles share affinities with the concerns explored by the essays in this issue: "Democracy and Other Practices," "Gender, Race, and Other Identities," "Norms and Forms," and "Interests, Spaces, and Other Structures." By chance rather than plan, all of the essays included in this special issue fall into one or more of these rubrics. The coincidence suggests how certain motivating questions - such as the changing nature of power in the early republic and its institutional and normative embodiments - lead to similar explorations across disciplines.This issue extends the methodologies pursued in Beyond the Founders via a deeper engagement with specific texts and authors. …


Although the adverse effects of maternal aging on reproductive outcomes have been investigated widely, there is no consensus on the impact of paternal age. Therefore, we investigated the effect of paternal age on reproductive outcomes in a retrospective analysis of 9,991 in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles performed at the Reproductive Medicine Center of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University (China) between January 2007 and October 2013. Samples were grouped according to maternal age [<30 (3,327 cycles), 30–34 (4,587 cycles), and 35–38 (2,077 cycles)] and then subgrouped according to paternal age (<30, 30–32, 33–35, 36–38, 39–41, and ≥42). The groups did not differ in terms of fertilization rate, numbers of viable and high-quality embryos and miscarriage rate when controlling maternal age (P >0.05). Chi-squared analysis revealed that there were no differences in implantation and pregnancy rates among the different paternal age groups when maternal age was <30 and 35–38 years (P >0.05). However, implantation and pregnancy rates decreased with paternal age in the 31–34 y maternal age group (P <0.05). Our study indicates that paternal age has no impact on fertilization rate, embryo quality at the cleavage stage and miscarriage rate. For the 30–34 y maternal age group, the implantation rate decreased with increased paternal age, with the pregnancy rate in this group being significantly higher in the paternal <30 y and 30–32 y age groups, compared with those in the 36–38 y and 39–41 y groups.


The human‐specific pathogens Neisseria meningitidis, N. gonorrhoea, Haemophilus influenzae and Moraxella catarrhalis share the property of targeting the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA)‐related cell adhesion molecules (CEACAMs) expressed on human epithelia. CEACAMs are signalling receptors implicated in cell adhesion and regulation of several physiological functions. Their targeting by pathogens can lead to tissue invasion. Although the CEACAM‐binding ligands of the bacteria are structurally diverse, they target a common site on the receptor. We have generated a recombinant polypeptide that blocks the interactions of the mucosal pathogens with human epithelial cells and antibodies against it inhibit M. catarrhalis interactions with the receptor. As such, it is a potential antimicrobial agent to prevent infection via a strategy unlikely to promote bacterial resistance and a vaccine candidate against M. catarrhalis. In addition, it could serve more widely as a novel research tool and as a potential therapeutic agent in CEACAM‐based physiological disorders.


--The microstructures of high T, ramp type Josephson junctions were studied by using transmission electron microscopy. The work was emphasized at the interfacial defects and the influence of the ramp slope. The results show that for the ramp slope angles of 15"-40", the epitaxy was still remained through all layers at the ramp region without the formation of big grain boundaries. No amorphous layers and secondary phases were observed at the barrier interfaces. For a gentle ramp junction, small misoriented grains appeared in some portions of the barrier. The substrate ramp formed during the ion etching process had little influence on the growth of the upper layers. In junctions with a steep ramp, defects increased near the interface, although the epitaxy of the barrier was of good quality. The results demonstrate that the slope angle of the junction ramp is an important factor that influences the performance of the Josephson junctions.


Tumor immunology and immunotherapy attempt to use the exquisite specificity and lytic capability of the immune system to treat malignant disease with a minimum of damage to normal tissue. Increasing knowledge of the identity of tumor antigens should point the way to effective therapeutic vaccines or more specific immunotherapeutic strategies. Tumors, however, have evolved mechanisms to inactivate cytolytic T-cells and other immune responses targeting tumor antigens. The current goal of immunotherapy research is to use contemporary advances in cellular and molecular immunology to develop strategies to overcome the disabling effects of the tumor microenvironment on the immune system attack against tumor antigen targets. This review will summarize our current knowledge of the spectrum of tumor antigen targets available for immune recognition in cancer, the obstacles to tumor immunotherapy, the use of adoptive immunotherapy to overcome some of these obstacles, the use of monoclonal antibodies to target tumor antigens for immunotherapy, and finally the potential use of heat shock proteins as targets for cancer immunotherapy.


The main purpose of this article is to study the role of house banks in out-of-court reorganization. Banks are traditionally one of the most important financial resources for firms. Especially in financially difficult times like those we now face due to the coronavirus, it can make a difference whether a bank supports its clients and accompanies firms through a crisis or not. With the help of relationship lending theory, we review the existing literature on this topic. Next, based on empirical findings from Austrian banks, we derive implications for corporate practice. The empirical study covers a sample of 658 firm reorganizations in Austria. The data were collected anonymously by different banks processing the cases in their workout departments between January 2011 and December 2013. Correlation analysis and logistic regression were applied to analyze the data. The findings indicate that house banks, despite their relationship of trust, must be critical in their assessment of reorganization projects due to the danger of zombie lending. The four most important prerequisites for completing an out-of-court reorganization were a new loan, an open and proactive communication policy on the part of the distressed company, management changes, and a financial contribution from existing shareholders. The findings show that bank-supported out-of-court reorganization has a high probability of success. A recommendation to entrepreneurs is to respond rapidly to financial distress and maintain open communication with stakeholders, in particular banks. The findings indicate that the implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/1023 on preventive restructuring frameworks in the European Union is crucial to enable bank-led reorganizations.


Due to the wide use of nuclear energy, nuclear radiation threat is increasing day by day. However, methods for protection against nuclear radiation are limited and not effective. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an effective method for protection and therapy against injury caused by radiation. According to the law of biological evolution, one of the most primitive eukaryotes, Paramecium, could be tolerant to ionizing radiations, in a way similar to or better than Ramazzottius varieornatus and Bdelloids rotifer. Therefore, in the present study, the anti-radiation effects of Paramecium were explored, which could be applicable to human beings. Paramecium was found to be tolerant to 60Co γ rays, and its half lethal dose (LD50) was approximately 3000 Gy, which is 60 times more than that of human beings. The GSPATT00021409001 and GSPATT00016349001 genes were significantly up-regulated, which might play a role in DNA binding and nuclear transport, and thus, could function in DNA protection or repair. The biological function of the two genes and their effects in humans need to be explored in future studies.


The feature selection techniques are used to find the most important and relevant features in a dataset. Therefore, in this study feature selection technique was used to improve the performance of Anomaly Detection. Many feature selection techniques have been developed and implemented on the NSL-KDD dataset. However, with the rapid growth of traffic on a network where more applications, devices, and protocols participate, the traffic data is complex and heterogeneous contribute to security issues. This makes the NSL-KDD dataset no longer reliable for it. The detection model must also be able to recognize the type of novel attack on complex network datasets. So, a robust analysis technique for a more complex and larger dataset is required, to overcome the increase of security issues in a big data network. This study proposes particle swarm optimization (PSO) Search methods as a feature selection method. As contribute to feature analysis knowledge, In the experiment a combination of particle swarm optimization (PSO) Search methods with other search methods are examined. To overcome the limitation NSL-KDD dataset, in the experiments the CICIDS2017 dataset used. To validate the selected features from the proposed technique J48 classification algorithm used in this study. The detection performance of the combination PSO Search method with J48 examined and compare with other feature selection and previous study. The proposed technique successfully finds the important features of the dataset, which improve detection performance with 99.89% accuracy. Compared with the previous study the proposed technique has better accuracy, TPR, and FPR.


Among the spectrum of infectious keratites, acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) represents one of the most difficult entities to diagnose and to treat properly, thus threatening the visual function. It affects immunocompetent patients and the main risk factors for the development of AK are the use of contact lenses, the exposure to contaminated water or contact lens solution, and corneal trauma.1 Clinically, this infection may appear as corneal stromal infiltrates, recurrent epithelial erosions, disciform keratitis, and keratoneuritis. An anterior uveitis and/or a hypopyon may be present too. The diagnosis is usually made by scraping and culturing the corneal tissue and by performing a corneal biopsy if the epithelium is intact.

We report the case of a patient with an AK diagnosed by culturing the hypopyon. We would like to emphasise the value of this procedure in making the diagnosis in patient suffering from AK.

An 81 …


The paper considers the nature and extent of mental disorder, amongst those who have been justly convicted, within prisons in England and Wales. These levels of disorder, and of serious disorder, are broadly consistent with the international literature. The implications of the presence of so many mentally disordered offenders for the established purposes of imprisonment are explored. Issues of accessing appropriate treatment are reviewed. A number of remedies are discussed, including those of interventions which would significantly reduce the prison population per se. The paper concludes that whilst for many mentally disordered offenders imprisonment is the right and proper disposal, for others it is an injustice that they are detained in conditions that may exacerbate their disorders, and for some others their presence in the prison population is a manifest injustice. The paper calls for a fundamental review of the purposes of imprisonment for all offenders, in the light of these observations about mentally disordered offenders.


Produce related outbreaks have been traced back to the preharvest environment. A longitudinal study was conducted on five farms in New York State to characterize prevalence, persistence, and diversity of foodborne pathogens in fresh produce fields and to determine landscape and meteorological factors that predict their presence. Produce fields were sampled four times per year for two years. A total of 588 samples were analyzed for L. monocytogenes, Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). The prevalence measures of L. monocytogenes, Salmonella and STEC were 15.0, 4.6, and 2.7%, respectively. L. monocytogenes and Salmonella were detected more frequently in water samples, while STEC was detected with equal frequency across all sample types (soil, water, feces and drag swabs). L. monocytogenes sigB gene allelic types 57, 58 and 61, and Salmonella Cerro, were repeatedly isolated from water samples. Soil available water storage (AWS), temperature, and proximity to three land cover classes: water, roads and urban development, and pasture/hay grass, influenced the likelihood of detecting L. monocytogenes. Drainage class, AWS, and precipitation were identified as important factors in Salmonella detection. This information was used in a geographic information systems framework to hypothesize locations of environmental reservoirs where the prevalence of foodborne pathogens may be elevated. The map indicated that not all croplands are equally likely to contain environmental reservoirs of L. monocytogenes. These findings advance


Curative waters were regarded as containing radon only if the concentration was higher than 18 nanocuries. For inhalation, spa towns were still happy with an aerosol concentration of about 5 nanocuries/liter. Gas was released from natural spring water, and people taking spa cures were placed under perspex covers at their inhalation seats. The main indications were rheumatic disorders (1, 2).

The Erlangen-Nurnberg working group pointed out twice in their article (3) that emanations other than from uranium mines were not their subject. However, they none the less requested a rigorous risk-benefit analysis of such emanations. However, if they then categorize radon as "the second most important cause of lung cancer [after cigarette smoking] in the general population without occupational exposure," then readers of medical journals might expect to see a clear position on curative treatments using radon.

In my place of birth we often played in a radon cave, whose entrance had been destroyed in the second world war. We grew up in a wine growing area, and instead of torches we used candles in the long tunnel (where concentrations of carbon dioxide are high the flame will extinguish). Later at school we learnt that if spring water flows over radium containing rock (Ra 223/half life 1600 years), the first resulting breakdown product to become dissolved in the water is radon (Rn 222). The noble gas radon has a half life of 3.28 days and is said to be soluble not only in water and blood but also in fat. Depending on the breathing techniques of test volunteers and on environmental temperatures, concentrations of between 0.6 and 1.6 picocuries/ml blood have been measured in the Bockstein thermal healing cave at Bad Gastein.


Algae have become a popular focal point for researchers and companies searching for viable sources of biofuel production that are both agriculturally and economically efficient. High lipid production in algae result in their ability to produce biofuels. Ammonia, a fixed nitrate source, has been found in bodies of freshwater due to agricultural runoff. Our group set up an experiment to identify which ammonia concentration yields the highest amount of chlorophyll production in a mixture of Chlorella species algae. We hypothesized that ammonia concentrations higher than 2% will yield the lowest amount of chlorophyll production because extremely high concentrations of ammonia (2% and higher) will produce algal blooms that will slow the photosynthetic process, leading to lower amounts of chlorophyll. The results of our experiments concluded there is no relationship between ammonia levels and chlorophyll production.


Alternatives for management of products and materials at end-of-life include recovery of the product for re-use, recycling of the material content only, and responsible disposal. Choices are affected greatly by the mix of products, recovery technologies, and economics, and must be evaluated from the perspective of not only environmental impact but also sustainability. The Sustainability Target Method (STM) links the economic value of a product with its environmental impact to provide a practical business criterion for sustainability. Extension of the STM to the product end-of-life stage provides basic criteria for evaluating end-of-life options. The recovery effectiveness, /spl eta/ and improvement factor, F express the extent to which product recovery offsets total environmental impact and approaches sustainability. The method offers a solution to some practical LCA issues. Application is demonstrated for basic materials recovery.


A simple, accurate, precise, and, economical RP- HPLC method has been developed for the rapid estimation of Imatinib Mesylate. The separation was achieved on C18 column, X terr 18.5 μm, using Phosphate buffer (55%): Acetonitrile (45%) as mobile phase, with a injecting volume of 5 μl at a flow rate of 0.9 ml/min. Detection was carried out at 256 nm and drug eluted with a retention time of 3.648 min. The method had been validated according to ICH guide lines for accuracy, precision, linearity, robustness, ruggedness, LOD and LOQ. The method was found to be accurate, and precise, robust, rugged and sensitive. The proposed method was convenient for quantitative routine analysis and quality control of Imatinib Mesylate in tablets. The results of compound were good agreement with the label claims.


Parasites comprise a large proportion of the diversity of species in every ecosystem. Despite this, they are rarely included in analyses or models of food webs. If parasites play different roles from other predators and prey, however, their inclusion could fundamentally alter our understanding of how food webs are organized. In a paper published 11 June in the open access journal PLOS Biology, Santa Fe Institute Professor Jennifer Dunne and her team test this assertion and show that including parasites does alter the structure of food webs, but that most changes occur because of an increase in diversity and complexity, rather than from unique characteristics of parasites.


Abstract Background The epidemiology and treatment of pneumococcal meningitis has changed with the implementation of conjugate vaccines and the introduction of adjunctive dexamethasone therapy. Methods We analyzed episodes of community-acquired pneumococcal meningitis in adults (≥16 years) in the Netherlands, identified by the National Reference Laboratory for Bacterial Meningitis or treating physician between October 1, 1998, and April 1, 2002, and between January 1, 2006, and July 1, 2018. We studied incidence, pneumococcal serotypes, and clinical features. Predictors for unfavorable outcome (Glasgow Outcome Scale score 1–4) were identified in a multivariable logistic regression model. Two physicians independently categorized causes of death as neurological or systemic. Results There were 1816 episodes in 1783 patients. The incidence of 7- and 10−7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine serotypes decreased (from 0.42 to 0.06, P = .001; from 0.12 to 0.03 episodes per 100 000 population per year, P = .014). Incidence of nonvaccine serotypes increased (from 0.45 to 0.68, P = .005). The use of adjunctive treatment with dexamethasone increased and was administered in 85% of patients in 2018. In-hospital death occurred in 363 episodes (20%) and unfavorable outcome in 772 episodes (43%). Delayed cerebral thrombosis occurred in 29 patients (2%), of whom 15 patients (52%) died. Adjunctive dexamethasone therapy was associated with favorable outcome (adjusted odds ratio 2.27, P < .001), individual pneumococcal serotypes were not. Conclusion Implementation of conjugate vaccines and adjunctive dexamethasone therapy have changed the incidence and outcome of pneumococcal meningitis in adults over the last two decades. Despite recent advances pneumococcal meningitis remains associated with a residual high rate of mortality and morbidity.


The 21st century is referred to as the digital age, which places demands not only on the ability to work with information but also on being able to understand them as well as evaluate its relevance. The aim of this paper was to find out how ICT competences affect the individual domains of critical thinking in university students. The sample consisted of 624 university students. The data were collected using the Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CTDI) and the Information and Communication Technology Competence (ICTC). The results of the correlation analyses revealed weak to medium relationships among all of the observed domains. The subsequent linear regression models showed that all of the domains of critical thinking were affected by ICT competences. In this context, the most interesting was the effect of ICT competences on open mindedness while the effect on the remaining factors of critical thinking was weaker.

Keywords:  critical thinking; CTDI; ICTC; information and communication technology; university students


Pharmaceutical tablets represent the most popular drug delivery systems. Tablets are manufactured by compressing a powder formulation in a die. Following this process the tablets are subjected to a bulk handling and other operations during which the bioavailability (disintegration, dissolution) behaviour and mechanical integrity must be maintained. The final properties of the tablets depend on the choice of ingredients used in the powder formulation, the details of the mixing process and selection of process parameters applied by tabletting equipment. The application of three or higher-level experimental design using the response surface methodology does not appear to have been reported in development and optimization of drug release methods until now. The relationship between one or more response variables and set a quantitative parameters can be examined well by using response surface models , such as central composite design or Box-Behnken design. In this present work systemic analyses of the process parameters during compression process and explore their influence on the final properties of the tablets have been studied. Also illustrate how tablet properties are controlled by dependent variables of granulator and compression machine.


Cisplatin (DDP) is the first-line chemotherapeutic agent against lung cancer. However, the therapeutic effect of DDP loses over time due to the acquired drug resistance in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. In recent years, the role of the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) cordycepin (Cor) in cancer treatment has been attracting attention. However, the effects of Cor on DDP resistance in NSCLC are unclear. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the effects of Cor in combination with DDP on cell proliferation and apoptosis in NSCLC and explore possible underlying mechanisms. The cell proliferation and apoptosis were analyzed in NSCLC parental (A549) and DDP-resistant (A549DDP) cells treated with DDP alone or in combination with Cor both in vitro and in vivo. Different genes and signaling pathways were investigated between DDP-sensitive and DDP-resistant A549 cells by Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. The perturbations of the MAPK and PI3K-AKT signaling pathways were evaluated by Western blot analysis. Our data showed that Cor markedly enhanced DDP inhibition on cell proliferation and promotion of apoptosis compared to the DDP-alone group in both A549 and A549DDP cells. The synergic actions were associated with activation of AMPK; inhibition of AKT, mTOR, and downstream P709S6K; and S6 phosphorylation in the AKT pathway compared with DDP alone. Collectively, combination of Cor and DDP has a synergistic effect in inhibiting proliferation and promoting apoptosis of NSCLC cells in the presence or absence of DDP resistance. The antitumor activity is associated with activation of AMPK and inhibition of the AKT pathway to enhance DDP inhibition on NSCLC. Our results suggested that Cor in combination with DDP could be an additional therapeutic option for the treatment of DDP-resistant NSCLC.


Abstracts: Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research 2008

B127

The incidence of testicular germ cell carcinoma (TGCC), the most common malignancy among men aged 20-34, has increased several-fold during the past several decades. The etiology of TGCC is poorly understood and the cause of the increased incidence is unknown. Established risk factors include age, race, personal history of undescended testes, and family history of TGCC, none of which is modifiable.

Alcohol is an established testicular toxicant, causing testicular atrophy, gynecomastia, and disrupted sexual function in alcoholic men. In both alcoholics and non-alcoholic men with moderate intake, alcohol depresses levels of circulating testosterone and luteinizing hormone. We hypothesized that alcohol consumption, particularly during adolescence, increases the risk of TGCC. A single previous epidemiologic analysis of alcohol intake and TGCC found no association.

We conducted a population-based case-control study among 18-44 year-old male residents of three Washington State counties. Cases (n=400) were diagnosed during 1999-2006 with a first, primary TGCC. Controls (n=1,020) were men of similar age with no history of TGCC from the same population identified through random-digit telephone dialing. Questionnaires elicited information on demographic, medical, and lifestyle factors, including usual consumption of beer, wine, and liquor during the 5 years prior to reference date and during grades 7-12. We used logistic regression models to compute odds ratio (OR) estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for TGCC in men that consumed 1-6, 7-13, and 14+ alcoholic beverages per week compared to those that consumed none, adjusting for age, education, smoking, and current marijuana use.

A higher proportion of cases than controls (73% vs. 66%) reported drinking 1 or more alcoholic beverages per week during the five years prior to reference date, and during grades 9-12 (44% vs. 37%). Consumption of 14+ alcoholic drinks/week was associated with an approximately 60% increased risk of TGCC (OR=1.62; 95% CI: 1.02-2.58) for consumption during the 5 years prior to reference date, and for consumption during grades 9-12 (OR=1.56; 95% CI: 0.99-2.47). The risk of TGCC appeared to be similar for consumption of beer, wine, or liquor, and for consumption of alcoholic beverages during adolescence versus consumption during adulthood. The risk of TGCC associated with 14+ alcoholic drinks/week was higher among men diagnosed with nonseminomas (OR=2.28; 95% CI: 1.08-4.82) than among men diagnosed with seminomas (OR=1.40 95%CI: 0.80-2.42).

Our results indicate that consumption of 14 or more alcoholic beverages per week during adolescence or adulthood may be associated with a doubling of the risk of non-seminomatous TGCC. This is the first study to report an association between alcohol consumption and an increased risk of TGCC. Additional studies are needed to clarify the relationship between alcohol intake and TGCC.

Citation Information: Cancer Prev Res 2008;1(7 Suppl):B127.


Along the Laramide belt of northwestern Mexico, granitic rocks of similar bulk composition show isotopic and trace element signatures that help to delineate the position of the southern edge of the North American Precambrian basement. In the northern part, the Laramide plutons (the ''northern granites'') intruded Proterozoic crystalline rocks and a thick Late Proterozoic through Paleozoic miogeoclinal cover of North American affinity. In the central part, the granitic bodies (the ''central granites'') were emplaced into a sequence of Paleozoic eugeoclinal rocks overlain by Late Triassic clastic units. The southern part of the belt (the ''southern granites'') intruded a less-known crust characterized by middle to late Mesozoic island-arc‐related volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Guerrero terrane. Data from a suite of metaluminous to slightly peraluminous calc-alkalic granitic rocks along the belt display north-to-south geochemical and isotopic variations, which could correlate with the type of intruded basement. The northern and central granites are characterized by strongly fractionated, light rare earth element (REE)‐enriched patterns, which display generally pronounced negative europium anomalies, whereas the southern granites have lower total REE enrichments and much flatter chondrite-normalized slopes displaying almost no europium anomalies. Isotopic results also suggest regional variations, as shown by the following initial Sr and eNd ranges: 0.7070 to 0.7089 and24.2 to25.4, respectively, for the northern granites; 0.7060 to 0.7079 and23.4 to25.1 for the central granites; and 0.7026 to 0.7062 and20.9 to 14.2 for the southern granites. On the basis of their isotopic similarities, the Proterozoic mafic to intermediate lower crust revealed by xenoliths from young volcanic flows in southern Arizona and northern Mexico is interpreted as a reasonable parental source for the northern and central granites; however, mantle-derived melts are not excluded. The more primitive southern granites are interpreted to come from a source that lacked Proterozoic basement. Instead, they were probably derived by mixing of juvenile mantle melts with partial melts of the lower parts of the Guerrero terrane. In general, the north-to-south compositional variations of the Laramide granitic rocks of northwestern Mexico reflect the crustal structure underneath the batholiths. The Sr and Nd data indicate that the edge of the North American Precambrian basement extends approximately southeastward from the coastal batholith of central Sonora; then, about 200 km south of Hermosillo in southern Sonora, the edge bends eastward and continues to the east beneath the Sierra Madre Occidental volcanic province.


Achieving sustainable development requires determined actions to revamp production and consumption patterns, creating a resource-efficient and resilient post-pandemic recovery. The notion of the circular economy facilitates greater level of social and environmental sustainability, by emphasizing the vision of an economic system that designs out waste and pollution, keeps products and martials in use and recognizes the residual value in natural resources and post-consumption waste, to regenerate the natural system. Cooperatives and other enterprises of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) are recognized as taking a leading role in incorporating the circular economic model into their businesses and communities. More supportive measures from governments are needed to strength their contribution to accelerated progress towards the goals of the 2030 Agenda. Continued efforts to improve statistical information on the circular economy, cooperatives and the wider SSE will help inform policy-making and facilitate transition to sustainable production and consumption.


Mitochondrial DNA sequences are frequently transferred into the nuclear genome, giving rise to numts (nuclear DNA sequences of mitochondrial origin). So far, the evolutionary history of numts has largely been studied by using single genomes. Here, we present the first attempt to study numt evolution in a comparative manner by using a pairwise genomic alignment. The total number of numts was estimated to be 452 in human and 469 in chimpanzee. numts that were found in both genomes at identical loci were deemed to be orthologous; 391 numts (>80%) were classified as such. The preponderance of orthologous numts is due to the very short divergence time between the 2 hominoids. The rest of numts were deemed to be nonorthologous. Nonorthologous numts were subdivided into 1) ancestral numts that have lost an ortholog in one species through deletion (12 in human and 11 in chimpanzee), 2) new numts acquired by the insertion of a mitochondrial sequence after the divergence of the 2 species (34 in human and 46 in chimpanzee), and 3) paralogous numts created by the tandem duplication of a preexisting numt (2 in human). This approach also enabled us to reconstruct the numt repertoire in the common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees (409 numts). Our comparative approach is also useful in identifying the exact boundaries of numts.


This paper presents a novel formulation of the Distribution System State Estimation (DSSE) optimization model. For a given electric three-phase circuit feeder, network models are built using a quasi-symmetric impedance matrix TRX representing the entire structure and topology of the radial network. As a key contribution, the state variables of demands and generators connected to large-scale distribution grids are obtained by using a convenient matrix reduction technique. As a result, the size of the optimization problem is considerably reduced with respect to the jacobian formulation by considering radial and weakly meshed exploitation and elimination of interconnecting nodes. Results and comparative analysis are presented using the IEEE 4-, 13-, 37-, 123-, and 8500-node test systems.


Pain After Surgery offers an in-depth, comprehensive overview of basic and clinical research in the field. It presents the current knowledge and expertise of top global researchers on changes in central nervous system function accompanying and following surgery, as a model of chronic pain development. It also translates scientific understanding into effective clinical management of acute and persistent pain after surgery, including preoperative interventions to decrease the risk of chronification of postsurgical pain.


Ruthenium-catalyzed asymmetric [2 + 2] cycloadditions between chiral acyl camphorsultam-functionalized alkynes and bicyclic alkenes were examined, providing adducts with complete exo stereoselectivity in good overall yield and enantioselectivity (up to 99% and 166:1, respectively), as well as appreciable diastereoselectivity (up to 163:1). The diastereoselectivity showed dependence on the solvent and temperature, as well as on the substitution pattern of the reacting alkyne and bicyclic alkene components. In general, higher diastereoselectivities were observed for reactions conducted in ethereal solvents and at lower temperatures between N-propynoyl camphorsultams and bicyclic alkenes.


A pulse shape discrimination circuit for solid state particle detectors has been developed that will distinguish between ionizing particles stopping completely within the junction region and those passing beyond. It is based upon the fact that the first kind of particles produce a fast rising pulse in the order of nanoseconds whereas the second kind have an added diffusion component in the microsecond region. A circuit description and representative spectra are given.


The competitive business environment in the automotive industry has forced vehicle manufacturers (VMs) to improve their relationship strategies towards their suppliers. VMs have implemented supplier segmentation in order to optimise current business activities and existing resource allocations. Supplier selection criteria have also become crucial in order to achieve an appropriate evaluation of suppliers. Models of supplier segmentation and supplier selection criteria underpin theoretically this research. Empirical illustrations of supplier segmentation based on the perspectives of a VM and its suppliers are presented. The principal contributions of this study are the various models therein. One of the models consists of two dimensions: the supplier's commitment to a VM; and the commodity's importance to a VM. In extension, another model of dynamic relationship strategies is introduced. It consists of four relationship strategies towards suppliers in the automotive industry, such as family, business partner, friendly, and transactional. Furthermore, a four‐phase process for the analysis, selection, and managerial decision of a dynamic relationship strategy towards suppliers in the automotive industry is outlined.


OBJECTIVES
Tumour necrosis factor (TNF) alpha inhibitors (infliximab, etanercept, adalimumab) revolutionised the treatment of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis (AS), Crohn's disease (CD) and plaque psoriasis. During these treatments, cutaneous adverse effects may occur like eczema, lupus, alopecia areata or psoriasis, which represents a paradoxical adverse effect. The aim of this study was to collect and to analyse characteristics and outcomes of psoriasis induced by anti-TNF alpha treatments.

METHODS
A search in the French Pharmacovigilance Database was performed between January 2002 and September 2009 using the following terms 'infliximab', 'etanercept', 'adalimumab' combined with the term 'psoriasis'. A literature review was performed utilising PubMed Database and Google scholar using permutations of the following terms 'infliximab', 'etanercept', 'adalimumab', 'tumour necrosis factor-α inhibitor' combined with 'psoriasis', 'palmoplantar pustular psoriasis', palmoplantar pustulosis'. Certolizumab pegol and golimumab were approved only recently and so were not included in the search.

RESULTS
We found 57 cases in the French Pharmacovigilance Database and 184 cases in the literature. It appeared that the eruptions are most often pustular lesions and occur mainly on palms and/or soles (33.3% in the French Pharmacovigilance Database and 42.9% in the literature), while palmoplantar pustular psoriasis represents only 1.7% of the psoriatic patients. The three anti-TNF-alpha are involved in the psoriasis induction. Half the cases appeared with infliximab. The patients affected by this adverse effect are mostly women aged between 40-50 years old. The time of onset of psoriasis is highly variable. Those patients treated for their psoriasis with TNF-alpha inhibitor developed a psoriasis induced by the treatment with a different localisation and a different morphology from the initial psoriasis while other patients had a recurrence of this side effect with two different TNF-alpha antagonists, then the psoriasis developed with the 2nd anti-TNF alpha is of the same type as the psoriasis developed with the first molecule.

CONCLUSIONS
This suggests that psoriasis occurring during anti-TNF alpha therapy are de novo psoriasis and not an aggravation of a pre-existing psoriasis. To this day several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the mechanism of action. The occurrence of this adverse effect may call into question the continuation of the treatment which is nevertheless effective.


In this paper, the mobility and geometrical analysis of a novel mobile robot that utilizes two actuated spoke wheels is presented. Intelligent Mobility Platform with Active Spoke System (IMPASS) is a wheel-leg hybrid robot that can walk in unstructured environments by stretching in or out three independently actuated spokes of each wheel. First, the unique locomotion scheme of IMPASS is introduced and the definitions of the coordinate systems are developed to describe the kinematic configurations. Since this robot is capable of utilizing its metamorphic configurations to implement different types of motion, its topology structures are classified into different groups based on the cases of ground contact points. For each contact point case, the mobility analysis is performed using the conventional Grubler and Kutzbach criterion. However, as for the cases in which the structure is overconstrained, the Modified Grubler and Kutzbach criterion based on reciprocal screws are implemented to obtain the correct number of degrees of freedom. Line geometry is adopted to assist in the process. Additionally, the geometrical constraint equations of the robot are derived. The results in this work lay the foundation of the future research on inverse and forward kinematics, instantaneous kinematics, dynamics analysis and motion planning of this unique locomotion robot.Copyright © 2008 by ASME


Dochin, K., & Iliev, I. (2019). Functional classifi cation of phytoplankton in Kardzhali reservoir (Southeast Bulgaria). Bulgarian Journal of Agricultural Science, 25(2), 385–395 The study of phytoplankton diversity was carried out in the aquatory of Kardzhali reservoir between July 2015 and November 2016. The divisions Chlorophyta and Cyanoprokaryota, followed by Ochrophyta had the highest frequency of occurrence. We have applied a functional classifi cation of algae based on the Reynolds theory, according to which the plankton algae were classifi ed into nineteen functional groups. We have identifi ed forty-three dominant phytoplankton taxa in the reservoir. The comparison of dominant functional groups indicates that the most common are codon members F, P, K, H1 and J. At the time of the study Fragilaria crotonensis Kitton and Closterium aciculare T. West of the functional group P; Aphanizomenon fl osaquae Ralfs ex Bornet & Flahault (H1), Ankyra judayi (G.M. Smith) Fott (Х1), Coelastrum microporum Nägeli (J), Oocystis lacustris Chodat (F) and Aphanocapsa planctonica (G.M. Smith) Komárek & Anagnostidis (K) had the highest abundance. The results of the study confi rm the applicability of the functional group approach to better understanding the seasonal changes of phytoplankton communities in different water basin.


Summary
Radioactive choline was incorporated by HeLa cells into a characteristic distribution of choline-associated lipid macromolecules when cytoplasmic extracts are centrifuged in discontinuous sucrose gradients. The proportional distributions of radioactivity among three peaks in the gradients were altered by infecting the HeLa cells with rhinovirus type 2 and 14, or with poliovirus. Poliovirus infection induced similar distributions of radioactivity in both LLCMK2 and HeLa cells with the greatest radioactivity increase in peaks nearest the tops of the gradients. When the LLCMK2 cells were infected with echovirus 12, the major increase in choline-associated radioactivity was in a peak near the middle of the gradients, in a pattern of distribution that was more similar to that of rhinovirus-infected HeLa cells than to poliovirus-infected LLCMK2 cells. Radioactive glucosamine-labelled, cytoplasmic macromolecules were distributed differently from those labelled with choline in both infected and uninfected cultures, and infection by all four virus strains sharply decreased glucosamine-associated radioactivity in the gradients, suggesting that the synthesis of glucosamine- and choline-containing structures are under different cytoplasmic controls. When these results are taken together with the findings of clearly different patterns of distribution of choline-associated radioactivity in gradients prepared from uninfected HeLa and LLCMK2 cells labelled at 37 °C, and the closer similarity between them when labelled at 34 °C, it appears that choline-containing lipids can have specific temperature-regulated processes in different cell types, and that different viruses may have common and selectively specific modifying effects on the synthesis of cytoplasmic lipid macromolecules.


Objective. Breast cancer accounts for approximately one-third of all cancers in females. Approximately 8.5 % of all central nervous system metastases are located in the spinal cord. These patients have rapidly progressing neurological deficits and require immediate examination. The aim of surgery is decompression of neural tissue and histological evaluation of the tumor. In this paper, we present a case of breast cancer metastasis in thoracic spinal intramedullary area which had been partially excised and then given adjuvant radiotherapy. Case. A 43-year-old female patient with breast cancer for 8 years was admitted to our hospital with complaints of weakness in both legs. Eight years ago, she received chemotherapy and radiotherapy. On her neurological examination, she had paraparesis (left lower extremity: 2/5, right lower extremity: 3/5) and urinary incontinence. Spinal MRI revealed a gadolinium enhancing intramedullary lesion. Pathologic examination of the lesion was consistent with breast carcinoma metastasis. The patient has been taken into radiotherapy. Conclusion. Spinal intramedullary metastasis of breast cancer is an extremely rare situation, but it has a high morbidity and mortality rate. Microsurgical resection is necessary for preservation or amelioration of neurological state and also for increased life expectancy and quality.


: Indoor air pollution can induce adverse health effects on building occupants and pose a significant role in health worldwide. To avoid such effects, it is extremely important to monitor and control common indoor pollutants such as CO 2 , VOCs and relative humidity. Therefore, this work focuses on recent advances in the field of graphene-based gas sensors, emphasizing the use of modified graphene that broadly expands the range of nanomaterials sensors. Graphene films were grown on copper by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and transferred to arbitrary substrates. After synthesis, the samples were functionalized with Al 2 O 3 by ALD and characterized by a large set of experimental techniques such as XPS, Raman and SEM. The results demonstrated that graphene was successfully synthesized and transferred to SiO 2 , glass and polymer. As a proof-of-concept, ALD of Al 2 O 3 was performed on the graphene surface to produce a graphene/metal oxide nanostructure towards the development of nanocomposites for gas sensing. From this perspective, a laboratory prototype device based in measuring the electrical properties of the graphene sample as a function of the gas absorption is under development.


This study addresses critical questions regarding the extent of business-to-business electronic marketplace usage for purchasing, and the degree and impact of buyers' e-readiness on the range of electronic marketplace usage. The data from a Web-based survey of 359 purchasing professionals in the United States suggests that buyers with more experience in using information technology, the Internet to facilitate purchasing, and information systems for enhancing supply chain management would more likely use electronic marketplaces for purchasing. This study has significant theoretical implications because it confirms the important role of e-readiness in the electronic marketplace usage model. The practical implications of this study are also discussed.


Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) causes Johne's Disease (JD), a chronic enteritis, in cattle. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) has been applied to many pathogen systems, where its unprecedented resolution has greatly enhanced our understanding of the molecular epidemiology of pathogen transmission. However, WGS has seen limited application to MAP; understanding the transmission dynamics of MAP will inform control of JD. We report the first study into the application of WGS to MAP in Ireland. DNA was extracted from 167 MAP isolates sourced from cattle across Ireland. Libraries were prepared and sequenced on an Illumina-NextSeq500 platform. Sequencing data were processed using an in-house bioinformatic pipeline, which trimmed reads, aligned them to the reference genome MAP K10, followed by variant calling, quality filtering and construction of a maximum-likelihood phylogeny. DNA extracts were also used for MIRU-VNTR typing. The resulting phylogeny shows that the MAP population present in Irish cattle is genetically diverse, which may have resulted from importation of MAP strains from across Europe into Ireland. Similar diversity was observed in a WGS study that noted the impact of cattle imports on the Canadian MAP population. Some Irish isolates were genetically similar to European and Canadian isolates. Comparing our WGS data with MIRU-VNTR indicates that MIRU-VNTR has limited resolution for discriminating MAP strains, and often does not distinguish isolates to sufficient resolution. The genomic data presented here provide the first snapshot of genetic diversity of Irish MAP and a baseline for future studies into spread and persistence of MAP in Irish cattle.


This is the catalogue of atouring exhibition I have developed and curated. I have conducted, translated from German into English and edited. I worked with the Graphic Designer Donald Addison on the layout of the publication.

The exhibition and material considered the role of art in identity formation and 'Otherness' chosing three artists of different cultural and ethnic origins, who live and work in Berlin. It considered changes in their creative practices in the context of the German unification and the radical changes that took place in terms of the working conditions for artists and affected women artists in particular. The exhibition build on a sustained research interested that is manifest in contributions to conferences and publications.

The exhibition at Talbot Rice Gallery was accompanied by an international symposium.

The exhibition was subsequently shown in Galerie M, Berln, in 2003.


The 'openness' of farming systems that is the focus of this paper is 'open to information', in particular the way that new information from the farming systems research project, Dairy Directions, flows from research outputs to dairy farmers. Dairy Directions is a multidisciplinary research activity centred on a steering group of interested parties, mostly farmers, scientists and economists, but also drawing on extension agents, natural resource managers, water service providers, community service providers and public policy participants. The core general research question of Dairy Directions is 'What options do farmers running different dairy farming systems have to achieve their goals in an uncertain future?' The goals analysed by the project are predominantly economic and financial – maintaining or increasing profit and cash flow, growing wealth, managing risk, preparing for succession and balancing the dairy work-life balance. Their uncertain future encompasses variability in prices, as well as the natural environment and the policy setting.


Abstract : The effects of bilateral denervations of the lumbar sympathetic chain, vagus nerves, and sacral ventral roots on peripheral circulatory and thermal responses during local cold exposure of a cat hindlimb were determined. Cold exposure apparently produced a peripheral vasocinstriction mediated by a somatosympathetic reflex and local mechanisms. Interruption of the L(3) sympathetic hain ipsilateral as well as contralateral to the cold-exposed hindlimb produced a marked reduction in vascular resistance, a femoral arterial hyperemia, and a warming of the footpad and increased heat loss from the footpad. These responses were acute suggesting that local mechanisms can predominate in the absence of neurogenic mechanisms to restore peripheral vasoconstriction. Interruption of the vagus nerves and sacral ventral roots had little effect on the peripheral circulatory and thermal responses to cold. This study identified the primary autonomic pathway mediating peripheral vasoconstriction during cold exposure as the efferent sympathetic nerves.


Purpose: To establish the modifications in techniques for endocapsular ring insertion and its scleral fixation in subluxated cataract that causes minimal stress to capsulo-zonular complex. To assess the intraoperative performance and post-operative outcomes with our modified techniques. Design: Prospective, interventional, non-comparative case series. Methods: The study population consisted of 29 eyes with various degree of subluxated cataract that underwent endocapsular ring implantation with techniques modified by us followed by phacoemulsification and implantation of intraocular lens (IOL) in the capsular bag. Main outcome measures were success rate of endocapsular ring implantation, intraoperative performance, IOL centration and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at last visit. Secondary outcome measures included posterior capsular opacification (PCO) and other postoperative complications. Result: The mean age was 37.03 ± 12.37years. Mean degree of subluxation was 140 ± 66 degree. Preoperatively vitreous detected in anterior chamber of 6 eyes (20.69%). Two port anterior vitrectomy was performed in 6 eyes (20.69%). We could implant the intended endocapsular ring in 28 out of 29 eyes (96.55%). In one eye we could not implant the endocapsular ring because of extension of zonular dialysis due to weak zonules. Mean follow-up was 22.42 ± 2.31 months. Mean preoperative BCVA was + 0.68 ± 0.22 log MAR (24 eyes). Mean postoperative BCVA at final follow-up was +0.27 ± 0.16 log MAR (28 eyes).BCVA 20/40 or better was seen in 26 eyes (92.86%) at final followup. In 2 eyes (7.14%) mild IOL decentration was noted but none were symptomatic and required no intervention.PCO developed in 5 eyes (17.85%); 3 eyes (10.71%) required Nd:YAG capsulotomy. Other complications included cystoid macular edema in 1 eye (3.57%), and mild uveitis in 3 eyes (10.71%). Conclusion: With our modified techniques for endocapsular ring insertion and its scleral fixation, we could smoothy and safely implant the endocapsular rings in subluxated cataract with higher success rate, minimal intraoperative complications and good postoperative outcome.


The application of two representative laser surface treatments technologies which are laser shock processing technology and laser coating treatment technology are described. The application of laser shock processing in the fields of aero engine disc, wing panel formation, structural welding and strengthening, nuclear power station pressure container strengthening etc and also evaluates the effects are analyzed. The applications of laser coating treatment in the field of aeronautic manufacturing are analyzed in detail. The development direction of laser shock processing and laser coating treatment are indicated finally.


OECD's comprehensive review of migrant education in Austria. It finds that compared to their native Austrian peers, immigrant students, on average, have weaker education outcomes at all levels of education. Austria has introduced measures to promote equity and support the language development of immigrant students in German and their mother tongues. There is scope to improve the quality of the educational and language support offered in early childhood education and care; strengthen and structure the language support offered in compulsory education; provide diversity training to teachers and school leaders; and reinforce co-operation between schools and immigrant parents and communities. For migrant education policies to be effective and sustainable, it is essential to clarify responsibilities for implementation of national strategies and ensure that the different levels of education co-operate; increase the inclusiveness of the education system by overcoming the early sorting of students; and further develop the culture of evaluation in the education system to monitor student progress.


In this paper a novel L-shape microcantilever that is more sensitive in compare of traditional rectangular microcantilever is proposed. In traditional microcantilever surface stress sensor a slight momentum is induced by distributed area stress lead to a slight deformation. In contrast, the proposed sensor substitution the slight momentum with concentrated point force in lateral direction on the tip of the microcantilever. This lead to, mechanically amplifies of the influence of area stress and more displacement. In addition, it has been theoretically proved that proposed microcantilever sensor with same lateral area in compare with traditional microcantilever surface stress sensor can be 2 to 100 orders more sensitive. The proposed L-shape microcantilever configuration of sensor could be incorporated in most of the microfabrication processes. However in this paper we use a low cost fabrication method based on polymeric microcantilever with metal piezoresistive detection.


Two new species of the genus Colomastix (Amphipoda: Colomastigidae) associated with sponges from the Veracruz Coral Reef System, Mexico, SW Gulf of Mexico, are described. The specimens were collected from the sponges Amphimedon compressa and Desmapsamma anchorata at depths between 3 and 12 m. Colomastix sarae n. sp. and Colomastix escobarae n. sp. are compared to other, very similar species of the genus Colomastix . In addition, we provide ecological and distribution information of sponge-inhabiting Colomastix halichondriae, C. irciniae , and C. tridentata collected from this coral reef system.


Abstract The expectation that consumers and carers are active participants in all aspects of mental health service delivery has been a feature of Australian national mental health policy for more than a decade. More recently consumer and carer involvement has tended to broaden to incorporate education and research roles. While advancements in consumer and carer participation have been made, barriers to maximising the potential of these initiatives have been identified. The negative attitudes of mental health professionals have consistently been recognised as a major impediment to effective consumer and carer participation. Mental health professionals have been described as discriminatory and stigmatising towards consumers of mental health services. The aim of this paper is to consider the potential impact of attitudes that are less obviously negative and therefore arguably all the more powerful. The polarisation of consumers into opposites on the basis of their level of activity, and political correctness carried to the extreme, can render consumer advocacy as inappropriate or ineffective and therefore present major obstacles to consumer activity. Examples of polarisation and political correctness are presented and discussed in terms of their possible undermining of consumer led initiatives.


The health care of 600 million people, belonging to various religions and speaking different languages, is a challenging proposition. Manufacture of X-ray and electromedical equipment is going up. When a comparison is made with 1951 figures, a lot of improvement is noticeable. Rural masses (80% of the population) are yet to receive benefits of modern advancements. A planned and realistic approach fully realizing the momentary limitations can lead to better patient care. Some recent techniques which are safe and clinically useful are economically feasible even in rural hospitals. Instruments have to be classified as essential, useful and optional, to enable progressive precurements in a phased manner. Maintenance of instruments is an important aspect which is receiving due attention. Instruments are bound to play a vital role in health care in the years ahead.


We present a structural health monitoring (SHM) system based on the passive method of acoustic emission (AE) and the active methods of electromechanical impedance (EMI) and guided ultrasonic wave (GUW) methods. As all these methods can be deployed with the use of wafer-type piezoelectric transducers bonded or embedded to the structure of interest, this paper describes a unified SHM system where AE, EMI, and GUW are integrated in the same hardware/software unit. We assess the feasibility of this multi-modal monitoring in a large flat aluminum plate with six transducers. AE events are simulated by exciting a tone burst or using the conventional pencil-lead break test and the detected signals are processed with a source localization algorithm to identify the position of the source. For the active sensing, damage is simulated by adding a small mass to the plate: the raw waveforms are processed with a delay-and-sum algorithm to create an image of the plate whereas the electrical admittance of each transducer is analyzed using the statistical index of the root mean square deviation. The results presented in this paper show that the proposed system is robust, mitigates the weaknesses of each technique considered individually, and can be developed further to address the challenges associated with the SHM of complex structure


The Behavioral Determinants (BD) of Perceived Investment Performance (PIP) are considered to be one of the most sizzling research concerns in the world of investment behavioral finance. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to investigate the Heuristic and Biases Related to Financial Investment and the Role of Behavioral Finance in Investment Decisions in case of Pakistan stock exchange (PSX). Specifically, this study amid at to identify which biases impact more on PIP and to identify useful insights from the results of the study that may benefit in this discipline. Five likert scale questionnaire adapted from prior studies as it is satisfying the current scenario for industry settings of PSX. A quantitative cross sectional research design has been used in this study. The regression results found that the herding effects, over confidence, availability bias and representativeness have positive and significant impact on perceived investment performance. This study has significance for the individual investors, financial advisors, companies listed in PSX and Government. For the investors, the factors that influence their investment performance are crucial as these will influence their financial plans of future. Practical implications includes investors who desires to invest should incorporate the said BD for the accurate valuation of the assets and in taking future investment decisions. In PSX, it is first endeavor to uncover the HE, OC, AB and R as BD of PIP. This paper contribute to the existing body of literature since main stream of the previous studies concentrate more on the developed countries markets of the world. Moreover, this study put forth a well-integrated model to probe the effect of variables under consideration on PSX. Reflection of the said effect of behavioral impact in the decision making process of individuals will make the decisions more optimal and rational as well.


This paper explores situations where tenants in public houses, in a specific neighborhood, are given the legislated right to buy the houses they live in or can choose to remain in their houses and pay the regulated rent. This type of legislation has been passed in many European countries in the last 30-35 years (the U.K. Housing Act 1980 is a leading example). The main objective with this type of legislation is to transfer the ownership of the houses from the public authority to the tenants. To achieve this goal, selling prices of the public houses are typically heavily subsidized. The legislating body then faces a trade-off between achieving the goals of the legislation and allocating the houses efficiently. This paper investigates this specific trade-off and identifies an allocation rule that is individually rational, equilibrium selecting, and group non-manipulable in a restricted preference domain that contains "almost all" preference profiles. In this restricted domain, the identified rule is the equilibrium selecting rule that transfers the maximum number of ownerships from the public authority to the tenants. This rule is preferred to the current U.K. system by both the existing tenants and the public authority. Finally, a dynamic process for finding the outcome of the identified rule, in a finite number of steps, is provided.


In this paper the author takes up the debate over the roots of gentrification. It is argued that gentrification is rooted in employment restructuring. The impacts of two important aspects of restructuring in London are explored, casualisation and feminisation of employment, and it is concluded that feminisation of professional employment has as yet had only a marginal impact on gentrification, whereas casualisation of professional employment has been an important influence. Survey data from two London boroughs are presented in support of the argument.


The UK experienced record average rainfall in winter 2013–14, leading to widespread and prolonged flooding. The immediate cause of this exceptional rainfall was a very strong and persistent cyclonic atmospheric circulation over the North East Atlantic Ocean. This was related to a very strong North Atlantic jet stream which resulted in numerous damaging wind storms. These exceptional meteorological conditions have led to renewed questions about whether anthropogenic climate change is noticeably influencing extreme weather. The regional weather pattern responsible for the extreme UK winter coincided with highly anomalous conditions across the globe. We assess the contributions from various possible remote forcing regions using sets of ocean–atmosphere model relaxation experiments, where winds and temperatures are constrained to be similar to those observed in winter 2013–14 within specified atmospheric domains. We find that influences from the tropics were likely to have played a significant role in the development of the unusual extra-tropical circulation, including a role for the tropical Atlantic sector. Additionally, a stronger and more stable stratospheric polar vortex, likely associated with a strong westerly phase of the stratospheric Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO), appears to have contributed to the extreme conditions. While intrinsic climatic variability clearly has the largest effect on the generation of extremes, results from an analysis which segregates circulation-related and residual rainfall variability suggest that emerging climate change signals made a secondary contribution to extreme rainfall in winter 2013–14.


All stated in lecture grows out of long-term personal experience of the author based on a considerable quantity of clinical supervision for patients with chronic pancreatitis. Supervision confirms an important role of radiodiagnosis in basic disease recognition, the arisen complications and accompanying diseases. We would like to underline necessity of preservation classical (base) roentgenology among other methods of roentgen diagnostics, especially for applied medicine.


This study examined parental perceptions of marketing to young children using a feminist post-structural theoretical framework to specifically examine the following questions, 1) To what extent are parents aware of the marketing tactics being directed toward young children? 2) How do power/knowledge relations and practices produce parent's multiple subjectivities as they parent their children in regards to commercial culture? 3) How can early childhood educators adapt pedagogy and practice in order to meet the needs of children growing up within the context of a commercialized childhood? In-depth unstructured interviews revealed that parents within this study tend to view themselves as solely responsible for their children and do not support governmental regulation of the advertising industry. In most cases, the parents in the study empathized with marketers trying to sell their products to children. Furthermore, while participants in this study were concerned about how consumer culture influences children's subjectivities, they were more concerned about "adult content" than corporate access to children. Many of the parental perceptions uncovered mirror neoliberal discourses including an emphasis on individual responsibility, the belief that government regulation is censorship and the privileging of economic rationale by systematically representing children as sources of profit. This study utilized Deleuzean and Foucauldian concepts in order to make visible the practices and discourses that discipline children and parents as consumers within the United States neoliberal assemblage(s). This analysis also revealed the very contradictions and complexities that are dramatically shaping parents and young children within the United States' consumer cultural landscape(s).