This thesis presents my investigation into in-band pumped erbium doped fibre amplifiers (EDFAs) and their performance under high power continuous wave (cw) operation and high energy low repetition rate pulsed operation. In addition, Q-switched erbium doped fibre lasers were investigated and used as the seed laser for a high energy low repetition rate EDFA system. Furthermore, the power scaling of all-fibre frequency doubled fibre lasers based on periodically poled silica fibre (PPSF) was also investigated. In Q-switched fibre lasers, the multiple-peak phenomenon (MPP) is an undesirable effect in which the Q-switched pulse develops sub-structure or even breaks into multiple sub pulses. I demonstrated that the MPP can be eliminated by increasing the acousto-optic modulator rise time. An experimentally validated numerical model was also used to explain the origin of MPP. Next, I showed that the interplay between MPP and modulation instability (MI) changes the detail of the spectral evolution of the Q-switched pulses. The in-band EDFAs were investigated using 1535 nm pump fibre lasers. For cw operation, a highly efficient (~ 80%), high power (18.45 W) in-band, core pumped erbium/ytterbium co-doped fibre laser was demonstrated. Using a fitted simulation model, I showed that the significantly sub-quantum limit conversion efficiency of in-band pumped EDFAs observed experimentally can be explained by concentration quenching. I then numerically studied and experimentally validated the optimum pumping configuration for power scaling of in-band, cladding pumped EDFAs. My simulation results indicate that a ~ 77% power conversion efficiency with high output power should be possible through cladding pumping of current commercially available pure erbium doped active fibres providing the loss experienced by the cladding guided 1535 nm pump due to the coating absorption can be reduced to an acceptable level by better coating material choice. The power conversion efficiency has the potential to exceed 90% if concentration quenching of erbium ions can be reduced via improvements in fibre design and fabrication. For low repetition rate pulsed operation, I demonstrated and compared high-energy, in-band pumped EDFAs operating at 1562.5 nm under both a core pumping scheme (CRS) and a cladding pumping scheme (CLS). The CRS/CLS sources generated smooth, single-peak pulses with maximum pulse energies of ~1.53/1.50 mJ, and corresponding pulse widths of ~176/182 ns respectively, with an M^2 of ~1.6 in both cases. However, the conversion efficiency for the CLS was >1.5 times higher than the equivalent CRS variant operating at the same pulse energy due to the lower pump intensity in the CLS that mitigates the detrimental effects of concentration quenching. With a longer fibre length in a CLS implementation a pulse energy of ~2.6 mJ was demonstrated with a corresponding M^2 of ~4.2. Using numerical simulations I explained that the saturation of pulse energy observed in my experiments was due to saturation of the pump absorption. For the frequency doubling work, the fundamental pump source of the PPSF was a master oscillator power amplifier seeded with a tuneable external cavity laser. During the high power operation, the heat deposition along the PPSF shifted the optimal quasi-phase matched wavelength to a longer wavelength. This shift must be compensated to achieve optimal performance of the PPSF under test and was achieved in my experiment by tuning the central wavelength of the pump source. At the end of the high power experiment, the PPSF samples degraded to ~40% of their pristine PPSF normalised efficiencies. The glass property of the PPSF had also been changed by the high power exposure. A high power all-fibre frequency doubled laser was demonstrated with 1.13 W of second harmonic average power with ~27% internal conversion efficiency.


Introduction Cardiogoniometry (CGM) is a novel method of 3-D electrocardiographic (ECG) assessment, which has previously been shown to have significant diagnostic accuracy at identifying patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) and acute coronary syndromes (ACS). However, there is considerable variation of reported diagnostic accuracy of CGM depending on the gold standard test used to compare it to. The aim of our review is to identify what is diagnostic accuracy of CGM at identifying stable CAD and ACS, and identify other novel clinical applications of the technology. Methods Using a pre-defined search strategy, electronic databases (MEDLINE and Embase) were searched for papers published between 1946–June 2015 and reference lists were pursued. For inclusion, papers had to be original research articles that investigated the clinical application of CGM. Sixteen publications were identified from our search; seven investigated the diagnostic accuracy of CGM to identify stable CAD; one investigated the diagnostic accuracy of CGM to identify ACS; one investigated CGM as a screening tool for cardiac allograft vasculopathy in heart transplant patients and seven investigated specific CGM parameters without commenting on diagnostic accuracy. If data was available and suitable for collation, it was pooled to calculate a comprehensive overview on markers of diagnostic accuracy, which included sensitivity and specificity. Results When looking at studies investigating the diagnostic accuracy of CGM to identify stable CAD the figures of diagnostic accuracy varied: Sensitivity (64–89%) and specificity (64%–82%), however CGM consistently outperformed 12-lead ECG in terms of sensitivity (29–76%) and was comparable in terms of specificity (18–95%). The collated data pooled for our analysis included 772 patients, of which 473 had stable CAD. Our analysis showed CGM has a sensitivity of 70% and specificity of 82% at identifying stable CAD, being significantly more accurate than 12-lead ECG. The one study identified investigating the diagnostic accuracy of CGM to identify ACS included patients with non-ST segment elevation ACS and used multiple comparators including 12-lead ECG. It showed that the sensitivity and specificity of CGM to identify non-ST segment elevation ACS was 69% and 54% respectively, having significantly higher sensitivity than 12-lead ECG. The diagnostic accuracy reported for CGM to detect cardiac allograft vasculopathy was 100% and 88% respectively for sensitivity and specificity. Conclusion CGM has superior diagnostic accuracy to 12-lead ECG at identifying patients with stable CAD and is significantly more sensitive than 12-lead ECG at identifying patients with non-ST segment elevation ACS. It may have an important role in screening patients with stable CAD and those with acute chest pain.


Improved formulas are developed for calculating the maximum canal or pump capacity needed for lowland rice rotational irrigation system design. The conventional and modified conventional formulas are derived from assumptions that cannot be satisfied during irrigation system operation. This induces water usage and management inefficiencies into the system. Analysis of the conventional and modified conventional formulas with the rotational irrigation system management practices isolates several criteria to be used in integrating design and operation. By this integration, irrigation system efficiency is increased. The maximum capacity given by the improved formulas is smaller than that required by the conventional and modified conventional formulas. This allows the use of smaller canals or an enlargement of the area, or both, serviced by a given water supply flow rate.


The Brazilian poultry industry generates large amounts of organic waste, such as chicken litter, which is often used in agriculture. Among the bacteria present in organic fertilizer are members of the Enterobacteriaceae family. The objective of this study was to detect the presence of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) strains in avian organic fertilizer, and assess the potential damage they can cause in humans due to antimicrobial resistance. The presence of DEC pathotypes and phylogenetic groups were detected by multiplex-PCR. Phenotypic assays, such as tests for adhesion, cytotoxicity activity, biofilm formation and especially antimicrobial susceptibility, were performed. Fifteen DEC strains from 64 E. coli were isolated. Among these, four strains were classified as enteropathogenic (EPEC; 6.2%), three strains as Shiga toxin-producing (STEC; 4.7%), 10 strains as enteroaggregative (EAEC; 12.5%), but two of these harbored the eaeA gene too. The low number of isolated strains was most likely due to the composting process, which reduces the number of microorganisms. These strains were able to adhere to HEp-2 and HeLa cells and produce Shiga-toxins and biofilms; in addition, some of the strains showed antimicrobial resistance, which indicates a risk of the transfer of resistance genes to human E. coli. These results showed that DEC strains isolated from avian organic fertilizers can cause human infections.


Abstract. Rapid advection of extremely warm and dry air is studied during two events in the Mediterranean Basin. On 27 August 2010 a rapid advection of extremely warm and dry air affected the northeast Iberian Peninsula during a few hours. At the Barcelona city center, the temperature reached 39.3 ° C, which is the maximum temperature value recorded during 230 yr of daily data series. On 23 March 2008 a rapid increase of temperature and drop of relative humidity were recorded for a few hours in Heraklion (Crete). During the morning on that day, the recorded temperature reached 34 °C for several hours on the northern coastline of this island. According to the World Meteorological Organization none of these events can be classified as a heat wave, which requires at least two days of abnormally high temperatures; neither are they a heat burst as defined by the American Meteorological Society, where abnormal temperatures take place during a few minutes. For this reason, we suggest naming this type of event flash heat. By using data from automatic weather stations in the Barcelona and Heraklion area and WRF mesoscale numerical simulations, these events are analyzed. Additionally, the primary risks and possible impacts on several fields are presented.


AIMS
The transcondylar approach is a new and used for detection of chronic cerebro-spinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI) and intracranial venous reflux in patients with multiple sclerosis. The aim of this study was to assess the ability of native and contrast enhanced (CE-) transcranial color-coded duplex sonography (TCCS) to detect flow and reflux in deep cerebral veins and intracranial venous sinuses from transcondylar and transtemporal approaches.

METHODS
Brain magnetic resonance imaging and TCCS from transtemporal and transcondylar approaches using the new technology - Fusion Imaging - in 8 volunteers and 5 patients with multiple sclerosis.

RESULTS
Using TCCS and CE-TCCS, the arteries of the circle of Willis could be detected from the transtemporal approach in 13/13 subjects in both examinations, while detection of the venous system was possible in 7/13 and 9/13 subjects, respectively. However, the arteries of the circle of Willis and venous system were detected through the transcondylar approach in only 5/13 (P=0.041) and 1/13 (P=0.031) subjects using TCCS, and in 12/13 (P=0.921) and 7/13 (P=0.687) subjects using CE-TCCS, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS
The results reveal that the TCCS transcondylar approach has serious limitations for the standard detection of intracranial venous reflux.


A high profile public debate is taking place over one of the oldest questions in corporate law, namely, "For whom is the corporation managed?" In addition to legal academics and lawyers, high profile business leaders and business school professors have entered the fray and politicians have offered legislative "fixes" for the "problem of shareholder primacy." In this article, I take this debate to be an interesting development in corporate governance and try to understand and explain what is going on. I argue that, analytically and conceptually, there are four separate questions being asked. First, what is the best theory of the legal form we call "the corporation"? Second, how should academic finance understand the properties of the legal form when building models or engaging in empirical research? Third, what are good management strategies for building valuable firms? And, finally, what are the social roles and obligations of large publicly traded firms? I argue that populist pressures that emerged from the financial crisis, combined with political dysfunction, have led to the confusion of these different questions, with regrettable results.


Since the introduction of reflective practice in education, it has been integrated as a core component in teacher education and training programmes, helping teachers gain a deeper understanding of their teaching practice and getting more control over the mechanisms of both the practicum and their teaching. Nevertheless, the literature underlying the concept shows some aspects of debate over its operationalisation in teacher education courses and the need for more evidence in relation to exploring the potential of reflection and what practitioners actually think of it. Based on such a need, this study investigates reflective practice in one of the preservice teacher training programmes, the CELTA course and explores teacher trainees' perceptions of the concept. In this sense, the study follows a qualitative research approach and uses insights from both ethnography and autoethnography. The ethnographic aspect manifests itself through the use of observations, interviews, and document analysis to better understand trainees' views of reflective practice and articulate a general grasp of the workings and nature of the concept in the CELTA course from a trainee perspective. The autoethnographic dimension, however, reveals itself through the importance of insider knowledge and its impact on understanding the setting and in getting to grips with trainees' understandings of reflective practice. The ethnographic aspect together with the autoethnography gives a detailed account of trainees' perspectives of reflection and their attitudes on its practice and implementation in the course. This paper thus gives an overview of the general findings related to trainees' understandings of reflection and outlines some methodological insights and considerations in relation to the research approach used in this study. Key terms: CELTA course (Certificate of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages); teacher trainees; qualitative research; ethnography; auto ethnography.


Background Research findings suggest that there may be some academic benefits for those children whose kindergarten enrollment is delayed, and the risk of underachievement seems to be greater for children who are younger when they first enter kindergarten. Although kindergarten enrollment occurs naturally, certain child, family, and childcare factors will likely influence parents' decisions concerning when to enroll their children in kindergarten. Age-of entry studies have often neglected assignment bias results from those preenrollment factors. In addition, prior research has defined children's relative age outside of the immediate environment, as opposed to conceptualizing relative age within the context where children actually learn. Purpose This study examined the relationship between early, on-time, or delayed kindergarten enrollment and children's mathematics and reading achievement from kindergarten through third grade. We predicted that the degree to which delayed, on-time, or early enrollment influences children's reading and mathematics achievement depends on those preenrollment factors that potentially create assignment biases and the relative age of each child to his or her classmates. Research Design The study used the Early Childhood Longtudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999 (ECLS:K). A propensity score stratification model was used to adjust for sample assignment bias resulting from the preenrollment factors. Then, a cross-classified random effects model was applied. Results Results showed that certain child and family characteristics and parents' perceptions about school readiness were related to when children first enter kindergarten. After controlling for demographic characteristics and propensity scores resulting from pre-enrollment factors, on average, at the beginning of kindergarten, children whose kindergarten enrollment was delayed had the highest scores in reading and mathematics, followed by children who entered kindergarten on time. Yet, in third grade, these differences were negligible. However, children in the delayed group who were also relatively older than their peers outperformed the other groups in third-grade mathematics. Conclusions The results suggest that the academic success or failure of children whose kindergarten enrollment is delayed, early, or on time depends on sociodemographic factors as well as the ages of the children in the same class (e.g., child's age relative to his or her classmates). Policy discussions about age of kindergarten entry or changing cutoff dates should include consideration of factors that influence parental decision making, as well as a child's age relative to his or her classmates.


Aims To determine the effectiveness of helmet therapy compared with the natural course in children aged five months with positional skull deformation, measured at 24 months. Methods Pragmatic randomised controlled trial in 84 healthy five-month old infants with moderate to severe skull deformation in The Netherlands. Infants were randomly assigned to six-month helmet therapy (Helmet Therapy, n = 42) or no helmet therapy (Natural Course, n = 42). Baseline measurements were performed at 5 months, follow-up measurements at 8, 12 and 24 months. Primary outcome was change in skull shape from 5 to 24 months assessed using plagiocephalometry (anthropometric measurement instrument). Furthermore, parental satisfaction (5-point Likert scale), side effects and motor development (BSID-III composite score) were assessed. Groups were compared using the independent t-test or chi square test. Change scores for plagiocephaly (Oblique Diameter Difference Index – ODDI) and brachycephaly (Cranio Proportional Index – CPI) were each included in an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) using baseline values as covariate. Results The adjusted mean change scores from 5 to 24 months, were equal in both groups for plagiocephaly (ODDI: Natural Course: 2.6 (1.8 to 3.4); Helmet Therapy: 3.4 (2.6 to 4.2); p = 0.13) as well as brachycephaly (CPI Natural Course: 7.4 (6.4 to 8.5); Helmet Therapy: 6.4 (5.3 to 7.5); p = 0.20). The numbers of children showing full recovery were comparable in both groups (Natural Course: 9/40 (23%); Helmet Therapy: 10/39 (26%); p = 0.74). Parental Satisfaction was higher for parents of infants in the Helmet Therapy group (5 (4–5) than the Natural Course group (4 (4–5); p = 0.09). Motor development showed comparable scores (Natural Course 99.0 (11.6); Helmet Therapy 97.2 (9.4); p = 0.18). Almost all parents reported side effect of helmet therapy: acceptation problems (24%), skin irritation (96%), augmented sweating (71%) unpleasant smell of the helmet (76%) pain due to the helmet (33%) and feeling hindered to cuddle their baby (77%). Conclusion Based on the equal effectiveness of helmet therapy and natural course, a high prevalence of side effects and high costs of treatment, we discourage the use of a helmet as a standard treatment for healthy infants with moderate to severe skull deformation.


The exchange-traded fund (ETF) market has dramatically increased in size and influence. With this growth, there has been an increase in the number of liquidations. We find that the decision to liquidate an ETF is primarily based on ETF characteristics; however, we observe additional considerations related to fund family and investment objective characteristics. Failures are more likely to occur when an ETF is small and when it is launched by a struggling family or into a struggling investment objective. We find fund, family, and market characteristics at the time of creation greatly impact an ETF's likelihood of survival. Furthermore, we observe few, but significant, differences between the decision to close an ETF and the decision to close an actively managed mutual fund. Whereas ETFs show relatively greater dependence on the well-being of their investment objective, mutual funds show a greater dependence on their fund specific performance.


Glucopyranosyl-1,4-dihydropyridine (Glc-DHP) was synthesized as a new fluorescent chemosensor via cyclotrimerization of the β-amino acrylate in the presence of TiCl4. This DHP derivative is soluble in aqueous medium and the solution gives a blue fluorescence signal with a quantum yield of 29%. The fluorescence signal of Glc-DHP was selectively quenched by 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP) with a quenching coefficient (Ksv) of 4.47 × 10(4) and at one of the best reported detection limits of 0.94 μM. The quenching mechanism was confirmed to be of the static type at the low concentration region (less than 50 μM) with the significant quenching effect of competitive absorption starting from the concentration of 50 μM. Even in the real sample (seawater and industrial water), the quenching efficiencies of TNP on the fluorescence emission of Glc-DHP were proven to be at the same level with that of the test in pure water, demonstrating the practicability of the detection. Furthermore, a fluorescent paper sensor could be prepared by immersing the paper into the Glc-DHP solution. The fluorescence of the paper sensor disappeared either by writing with TNP solution or by exposure to TNP vapor. This detection could be observed by the naked eye under black light. The pH effect was proven to be a substantial factor in the quenching mechanism, providing an accurate determination of TNP, 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) and 4-nitrophenol (4NP) in real mixed-samples.


Abstract The article systematizes the knowledge about the Valencian Autonomous Community and the activities of its authorities in the field of language policy. The author has reviewed the legal solutions strengthening the status of a regional language in public space and discussed the main laws that emphasize the importance of the language as a cultural heritage of Valencia. The article also presents statistical data on the situation and ways of using the language by the inhabitants of Valencia. The last part of the article discusses the Valencian-language media market. The regional government financially supports the presence of the language in public space. The position of the Valencian language remains constant, albeit low, both among the population and in the media, Therefore, the subsidies proposed by the government of the Valencian Community should change this situation and strengthen the presence of the Valencian language among the population of the region.


Weak localization in graphene is studied as a function of carrier density in the range from 1 x 10(11) cm(-2) to 1.43 x 10(13) cm(-2) using devices produced by epitaxial growth onto SiC and CVD growth on thin metal film. The magnetic field dependent weak localization is found to be well fitted by theory, which is then used to analyze the dependence of the scattering lengths L-phi, L-i, and L-* on carrier density. We find no significant carrier dependence for L-phi, a weak decrease for L-i with increasing carrier density just beyond a large standard error, and a n(-1/4) dependence for L-*. We demonstrate that currents as low as 0.01 nA are required in smaller devices to avoid hot-electron artifacts in measurements of the quantum corrections to conductivity.


This paper studies the optimal long-run public intervention in a two-period OLG model where the probability of surviving the first period and the length of the second period can be influenced by distinct policies. While the optimal size of public intervention depends on the extra-productivity of public spendings in longevity, its optimal structure is determined by (1) differences in the productivity of each policy; (2) how growth would influence each longevity aspect under laissez-faire; (3) the dependence of each longevity aspect on past achievements. Given competing effects, the optimal intervention can hardly, under additive expected lifetime utility, be strongly unbalanced.


Background

The recent Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident was one of more than 200 serious nuclear/radiation incidents (accidents and disasters) that occurred worldwide since 1945. The current Fukushima disaster is in the recovery phase with the decreasing levels of radiation in the environment. However, fears and stigma related to the perceived risk of radiation exposure persist among the general population.

Introduction

To improve on students' preparedness for social and public health challenges after a radiation incidence, radiation education was provided for undergraduate public health nursing students.

Aim

This case study reports the development and implementation of the first class of radiation education in public health nursing, as well as students' reflections on their class experience.

Methods

We included a 90-min radiation class in an undergraduate public health nursing course in Tokyo, Japan. Lectures/discussion on technical and environmental aspects provided the minimally essential content for basic radiation knowledge. After class, all the 65 students were invited to freely write their reflections on the class. With their consent, 61 students' anonymous written accounts were qualitatively analysed.

Results

Five themes emerged: awareness of ignorance about radiation, problems produced by the mass media, becoming knowledgeable about radiation, public health nurses' role, and trustful and enjoyable lecture.

Discussion

The class inspired students to consider social, psychological and relational aspects of knowing and not knowing about radiation and their future professional role.

Conclusion and implications for nursing

Once radiation is taught at school, nursing students will emerge as professionals with the belief that radiation is within their professional purview. Education is key to disaster prevention, preparation, response and recovery. Given the ubiquitous nature of health challenges after a radiation incident, radiation education is indispensable for nursing students worldwide.


Abstract In the 1870s, Portugal transferred the public works program it was undertaking on the mainland – in which railways played a decisive role – to its African colonies of Angola and Mozambique. In this strategy, the United Kingdom was an obvious partner, given the historical connection between both nations and the geographical proximity between the colonies each country had in Africa. However, British and Portuguese imperial agendas could easily clash, as both London and Lisbon coveted the same areas of Africa. Hence, the initial and apparent cooperation rapidly evolved to a situation of conflict. In this paper, I aim to analyse three instances of dispute between Portugal and Britain about colonial railways in Angola and Mozambique. I will use the methodological tools of conflict resolution analysis in a historical perspective and the concept of track-two diplomacy within the framework of technodiplomacy.


Most computer scientistsand practitioners assume that we live in a world of possibilities and that inexorable forces of technological development will help bring us a future of increased wellbeing and of growing economic prosperity. An increasing number of scientists however point at the triple crisis(ecology, economy, energy) and imagine radically different futures based not on expansion and possibilities, but on limitations and/or decline. We propose that a broad program should be formulated that takes biophysical and economic limitations as its starting point and outline some areas that are paramount for HCI to come to grips with.


Various flower colors are in great part due to anthocyanins. Recently, we have elucidated two new mechan isms for blue flower color development on blue cornflower and blue morning glory. The composition of protocyanin, a blue pigment from cornflower, Centaurea cyanus, was determined to consist of six molecules of succinylcyanins (Sucy) , six molecules of malonylflavones (Mafl) , one ferric ion and one magnesium ion, [Sucy6Mafl6Fe3+Mg2+]. The blue color of protocyanin was due to the LMCT (Ligand to Metal Charge Transfer) interation between Sucy and Fe3+. The structure of protocyanin was examined by using Al, Mg-protocyanin. The gross structure is much similar to that of commelinin. The pigment of blue morning glory, Ipomoea tricolor, is an triacylated anthocyanin, HBA. We measured the vacuoler pH of the petal of morning glory by using a proton selective micro electrode. The pHv of the petal of purplish red bud was 6.6 and that of blue open fiower petal was 7.7. The anhydrobase anion of HBA must be stabilized by intramolecular stacking. We could solve 80 year's problems, one is about cornflower's pigment and the other is the evidence of the pH theory. In both cases hydrophobic interaction followed by formation of supra-molecule is the key of stabilization of anthocyanidin chromophore.


The concept of dynamical compensation has been recently introduced to describe the ability of a biological system to keep its output dynamics unchanged in the face of varying parameters. However, the original definition of dynamical compensation amounts to lack of structural identifiability. This is relevant if model parameters need to be estimated, as is often the case in biological modelling. Care should we taken when using an unidentifiable model to extract biological insight: the estimated values of structurally unidentifiable parameters are meaningless, and model predictions about unmeasured state variables can be wrong. Taking this into account, we explore alternative definitions of dynamical compensation that do not necessarily imply structural unidentifiability. Accordingly, we show different ways in which a model can be made identifiable while exhibiting dynamical compensation. Our analyses enable the use of the new concept of dynamical compensation in the context of parameter identification, and reconcile it with the desirable property of structural identifiability.


Three canal pools located along the Middle Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project were selected as study areas, and the variation characteristics of water depth, storage, and flow (wave) velocity of sluicecontrolled canals with flow rate in constant downstream depth operation were analyzed in this study. The HECRAS software platform was used to simulate the transport, diffusion, and dilution characteristics of pollutants when two emergency control schemes—drawing upstream water to dilute pollutants (DUWDP) and intercepting downstream flow to dilute pollutants (IDFDP)—were implemented after emergency water pollution incidents (conservative pollutants) occurred. According to the findings, the average water depth, storage, and dynamic wave velocity of the sluice-controlled canals remained stable at different flow rates. The dilution effect increased along the flow path for both emergency control schemes; the rate of increase was initially rapid and then relatively slow. In both schemes, the dilution effect was optimized at a low initial flow rate rather than at a high initial flow rate. When the initial flow rate remained fixed, the effect in the implementation mode of "high flow rate and short duration" appeared superior to that in the implementation mode of "low flow rate and long duration". In the same implementation mode, the effect of IDFDP was better than that of DUWDP. There was a point where the dilution became effective in IDFDP; the higher the flow rate, the farther away the effect-onset point. Under the DUWDP condition, the occurrence time of peak concentration was earlier than that with the conditions of natural transport and diffusion. Specifically, the difference between the two peak concentration occurrence times increased initially and then decreased along the flow path. By contrast, under the IDFDP condition, the occurrence time of peak concentration was later than that with natural transport and diffusion; the time difference between these conditions increased along the flow path.


A review of electronic transport in semiconductors in the near ballistic regime is presented. Recent experiments and theories are discussed in detail. It is shown that the basic physics of ballistic transport is qualitatively well understood. Quantitatively much work remains to be done, especially with respect to device applications. Some problems related to applications are discussed in context with hot-electron- and high-electron-mobility-transistors. >


ABSTRACT More than 500 large, well exposed, calcareous olistoliths of Paleocene to Eocene age are exposed in the Eocene deep-water Rio Ocoa Formation of southern Hispaniola. Due to the low degree of tectonic overprint, their sedimentary characteristics can be studied in detail. The olistoliths reach up to 6 km in length and are largely conformable with regional bedding. Slump folds formed within some semiconsolidated blocks during downslope transport. Olistolith age, geometry, lithology, facies, orientation of slump fold axes, and regional geology indicate provenance from a carbonate platform and slope environment that overlay the Cretaceous island-arc rocks of the Cordillera Central to the northeast. The blocks were transported as far as 15 km and a show a logarithmic size-distance relationsh p. Seismicity associated with the initiation of strike-slip faulting along the subsiding, inactive arc during the Middle Eocene is likely to have triggered the detachment and mobilization of the olistoliths.


Sugar palm fibre (SPF) has good tensile properties. It is suitable to be used as a reinforcing agent in composite materials. Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is a flexible and expensive polymer, which has a shorter processing time and is lower in energy, tougher, and recyclable. It has excellent abrasion resistance and has good mechanical properties. In contrast, the natural fibre is hydrophilic in nature, whereas most polymers are hydrophobic in nature. To date, very little study about the thermoplastic polyurethane reinforced natural fibre has been investigated. The objective of this study is to develop a new natural fibre (SPF) as a novel utilisation composite thermoplastic polyurethane structure. The synthesis of SPF fibre and TPU was carried out using an extruder and the resulting material was compressed in the mould using compression moulding at 190 °C. The experimental procedure was divided into three parts. First is the preparation of new TPU/SPF composite structures without any changes, then optimising the operation conditions (rotation velocity, the temperature of extrusion, fibre size, and fibre contents) on the final mechanical and the thermal properties. Next, the new assemblies were developed by applying three treatment methods on SPF: chemical NaOH, chemical KMnO4, and physical microwave. Finally, the effects of these methods were studied using tensile strength property and the effect of the treatment methods testing over the behaviour of the final assemblies using characterizations such as thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results indicated that optimum operating conditions obtained experimentally were at 40 rpm min rotation velocity, 190 °C temperature, 250 μm fibre size, and 10 wt. % fibre content. The values of tensile strength, modulus and strain at these conditions were 14.01 MPa, 23.34 MPa, and 253.186 % respectively. The flexural strength and modulus values were at 11.162 MPa and 145.252 MPa. In addition, the impact strength was at 100.2 kJ/m2. Higher tensile strength was obtained for NaOH treatment method with the effective concentration of 6 %, followed by higher impact strength and tensile strain values as 5.488 MPa, 103.4 kJ/m2, and 48.012 % respectively. Also, the flexural and tensile modulus and flexural strength for 6 % NaOH TPU/SPF values were 293.936 MPa, 30 MPa, and 11.1632 MPa respectively. However, the highest flexural strength was recorded at 2 % NaOH treated TPU/SPF composite value such as 12.606 MPa, while the biggest impact strength of this method was 103.4 kJ/m2 for 6 % NaOH TPU/SPF composites. Higher thermal stability of 17.56 % and decomposition temperature of 372 °C were achieved from 4 % NaOH TPU/SPF treated fibre composite. The activation was then improved by applying a potassium permanganate chemical solution, with enhanced tensile strength, modulus, and strain values at 8.986 MPa, 876.436 MPa, and 1.442 % respectively, for 0.125 KMnO4 and 6 % NaOH pre-treatment TPU/SPF. The same deteriorated effect was observed in the flexural strength, modulus and impact strength values at 4.988 MPa, 180.744 MPa and 53.9914 kJ/m2 respectively, for the KMnO4 treatment method on the TPU/SPF composites due to fibre degradation. TGA analysis SPF treated with 0.033 KMnO4 recorded better thermal stability of 15.23 % and decomposition temperature of 374 °C when compared with 6 % NaOH treated fibre TPU/SPF composites. On the other hand, the physical microwave treatment method vi enhanced further tensile, and flexural, strength and tensile modulus as 18.42 MPa, 13.66 MPa and 1307.562 MPa respectively. However, the impact strength for the microwave method at 70 °C deteriorated at 71.527 kJ/m2. Also, these composites recorded highest thermal stability at 13.47 % and decomposition temperature of 389 °C by TGA analysis when compared with other operating temperatures of microwave treatment. SEM analysis showed that there was a clear effect on the structure of TPU/SPF composites before and after the treatment methods on the fibre. At the same time, the EDX identified residual trace materials deposited on the surface of the composites after the treatment. Meanwhile, the DSC analysis was compatible with the mechanical properties. XRD and FTIR results showed a good agreement with the mechanical characterization of the samples respectively, where the XRD sample of the 70 °C microwave treated fibre gave better results in the tested samples. The TPU/SPF composite which has SPF treated at 70 °C microwave treatment can be considered as a suitable composite material because of it has good mechanical and thermal properties. This is expected for the use of the interior parts in the automotive.


Three languages are widely used in schools in Kenya – English, Kiswahili and Kenya Sign Language. Many pupils with hearing impairments are taught separately from the mainstream, in specialist settings. The fact that most of the formal teaching, assessment and examination processes in Kenyan schools rely upon spoken and written English compounds the separation of these pupils from the mainstream of education and, potentially, from the mainstream of society. In this article, Gertrude Wamae, graduate assistant in the Department of English and Linguistics at Kenyatta University, and Rachael Kang'ethe-Kamau, lecturer in the Department of Special Education at Kenyatta University, discuss the relationships between language, hearing impairment and inclusion in the Kenyan context. The article suggests that the use of signed exact English would enhance opportunities for inclusion for those with hearing impairments and that programmes of teacher training need to take account of persuasive research in this area. The article closes with a plea for further research, carried out collaboratively by educationalists, linguists, teacher trainers and practitioners, to develop policies and practices suited to more inclusive futures. The article is based on a paper presented to the International Conference on Inclusive Education run by Maseno University in September 2002.


The force distribution problem in multilegged vehicle is a constrained, optimization problem. The solution to the problem is the setpoints of the leg contact forces for a particular system task. In this paper, the efficient Compact QP method which takes into account both the linear and quadratic objective functions is adopted to resolve this constrained, optimization problem. Various objective functions such as minimum force, load balance, safety margin on friction constraints can be considered by the Compact QP method. This method can also be applied to smooth discontinuities in commanded forces by manipulating the homogeneous solution and including smoothing periods when the leg phase alternates between support and transfer. This smoothing scheme does not require force sensors. Multiple goals which consider several alternative objective functions can also be achieved by the Compact QP method.


Since the 1970s, prolonged use of resources by the IMF has consistently expanded, among both low- and middle-income countries. Overall, this phenomenon suggests a lack of effectiveness of Fund supported programmes. In the literature conditional lending failure has been explained by looking both at the characteristics of the borrowing countries (demand-side factors) and at the possible influence of IMF specific interests (supply-side factors). Among the latter it has been suggested that noncompliance with conditionality might be attributed to the lack of credibility of the IMF threat of interrupting financial assistance in case of policy slippages. In this paper we critically review this literature and we propose a novel explanation, according to which it is the repeated nature of the IMF involvement, together with the fact that the Fund acts simultaneously as a lender and as a monitor (and as an advisor) of economic reforms, that weakens the credibility of the IMF threat. Specifically, we argue that …/


Bioelectrochemical systems rely on microorganisms to link complex oxidation/reduction reactions to electrodes. For example, in Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1, an electron transfer conduit consisting of cytochromes and structural proteins, known as the Mtr respiratory pathway, catalyzes electron flow from cytoplasmic oxidative reactions to electrodes. Reversing this electron flow to drive microbial reductive metabolism offers a possible route for electrosynthesis of high value fuels and chemicals. We examined electron flow from electrodes into Shewanella to determine the feasibility of this process, the molecular components of reductive electron flow, and what driving forces were required. Addition of fumarate to a film of S. oneidensis adhering to a graphite electrode poised at −0.36 V versus standard hydrogen electrode (SHE) immediately led to electron uptake, while a mutant lacking the periplasmic fumarate reductase FccA was unable to utilize electrodes for fumarate reduction. Deletion of the gene encoding the outer membrane cytochrome-anchoring protein MtrB eliminated 88% of fumarate reduction. A mutant lacking the periplasmic cytochrome MtrA demonstrated more severe defects. Surprisingly, disruption of menC, which prevents menaquinone biosynthesis, eliminated 85% of electron flux. Deletion of the gene encoding the quinone-linked cytochrome CymA had a similar negative effect, which showed that electrons primarily flowed from outer membrane cytochromes into the quinone pool, and back to periplasmic FccA. Soluble redox mediators only partially restored electron transfer in mutants, suggesting that soluble shuttles could not replace periplasmic protein-protein interactions. This work demonstrates that the Mtr pathway can power reductive reactions, shows this conduit is functionally reversible, and provides new evidence for distinct CymA:MtrA and CymA:FccA respiratory units.


The unfolded protein response (UPR) or endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response is a physiological process enabling cells to cope with altered protein synthesis demands. However, under conditions of obesity, prolonged activation of the UPR has been shown to have deteriorating effects on different metabolic pathways. Here we identify Bax inhibitor-1 (BI-1), an evolutionary conserved ER-membrane protein, as a novel modulator of the obesity-associated alteration of the UPR. BI-1 partially inhibits the UPR by interacting with IRE1α and inhibiting IRE1α endonuclease activity as seen on the splicing of the transcription factor Xbp-1. Because we observed a down-regulation of BI-1 expression in liver and muscle of genetically obese ob/ob and db/db mice as well as in mice with diet-induced obesity in vivo, we investigated the effect of restoring BI-1 expression on metabolic processes in these mice. Importantly, BI-1 overexpression by adenoviral gene transfer dramatically improved glucose metabolism in both standard diet-fed mice as well as in mice with diet-induced obesity and, critically, reversed hyperglycemia in db/db mice. This improvement in whole body glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity was due to dramatically reduced gluconeogenesis as shown by reduction of glucose-6-phosphatase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase expression. Taken together, these results identify BI-1 as a critical regulator of ER stress responses in the development of obesity-associated insulin resistance and provide proof of concept evidence that gene transfer-mediated elevations in hepatic BI-1 may represent a promising approach for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.


High Altitude Objects (HAO), typically sounding balloons, are mobile objects that gather information (e.g. weather data) during their trip and send it to base stations using wireless communication. Once launched, these objects need to be tracked and recovered, and ideally monitored to exploit data in real-time. This paper discusses about middleware and embedded system concerns when monitoring such objects. The architecture that is presented in the following relies on both a monitoring middleware based on a modified RFID suite (part of the OW2 Aspire project, primarily targeting the management of objects in an Internet of Things for RFID-based and sensor-based applications), and on an embedded system (part of the HAO) with multimodal communication capabilities. This approach has been validated by two experiments consisting in a real time monitoring of a sounding balloon. The whole application is generic enough to be used to track and monitor other kinds of mobile objects, including sounding rockets and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).


ABSTRACT Extant research on police use of force has established that force is not distributed evenly across communities, with minority threat, ecological contamination, and social disorganisation some of the most common theories used to understand the distribution of police use of force in the US. The current study aimed to test the relevance of these theories for explaining the distribution of serious police use of force events in Australia. We tested a use of force frequency model using negative binomial regression, and a use of force severity model using ordered logistic multilevel modelling. Results demonstrated support for ecological contamination theory, social disorganisation and partial support for socio-economic disadvantage in predicting the frequency of serious police use of force events across communities, while minority threat theory was not supported. In contrast, results suggested that individual and situational factors are more influential in predicting force severity than community characteristics.


Developing materials with self-adaptive water vapor permeability is fueled with industrial demands. Polymers have enabled such a behavior with thermal-responsive water vapor permeability reported in the literature, but little work is reported on the moisture-sensitive water vapor permeability which is even more important for many applications, such as clothing comfort, since sweating can be enormous when actively exercising in the cold. In this paper, a polymer inspired by a leaf guard-cell and designed by introducing supramolecular hydrogen-bonding switches and moisture-sensitive self-adaptive water vapor permeability has been achieved. It is suggested that hydrogen bonding can become a moisture-responsive switch when its bonding energy is smaller than the energy between the water molecule and the switch itself, but much bigger than that of water.


Historically, the U.S. has been the global leader in the development of nanotechnologies that are widely believed to be the foundation of the next industrial revolution. However, unless fundamental changes are made in the educational infrastructure in the U.S. to reverse the general erosion of science, technology, engineering, and math ("STEM") education, and to address the specific growing need for a robust nanotechnology workforce, current trends in the global demographic of the high-technology talent pool and R&D infrastructure will lead to a shift in the global dominance in science, technology, and engineering from the U.S. to Asia. For the U.S. to reverse these trends and thus maintain its technological and economic leadership, the infrastructure for nanotechnology education needs to be significantly enhanced. In particular, this infrastructure should include educational models and curricula that will institutionalize an interdisciplinary education, thus exposing students to the connections between disciplines and their relationship to nanotechnology at all levels. The future nanotechnology workforce will also require an increased role for demographic groups that have historically been underrepresented in STEM related fields. Nanotechnology research universities are positioned to play an important role in initiating this educational reform. While programs in nanotechnology are currently being developed for the K-16 level and the general public, significantly more effort is needed to develop effective and comprehensive nanotechnology education reform.


Background: Online patient and caregiver self-reporting for symptom and toxicity monitoring during chemotherapy can inform proactive clinical management and ameliorate serious adverse events. In adults, patient-reported symptom monitoring during chemotherapy improves quality of life, decreases hospitalizations, and lengthens survival. The feasibility of this approach in pediatrics has not been established. This study assesses the implementation of daily electronic patient-reported symptom monitoring for pediatric oncology patients hospitalized for chemotherapy.
 Methods: The Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) is used to grade adverse events in cancer trials. The Pediatric PRO-CTCAE is a questionnaire for children to self-report symptoms while undergoing cancer treatment. The study population was patients 7-18 years of age, English-literate, with a planned admission for chemotherapy expected to last 48 hours at a single tertiary care pediatric institution.
 Patients and caregivers were asked to respond daily, following text or email prompts, to Pediatric PRO-CTCAE questions addressing ten symptoms via REDCap (web-based data capture). Each morning, completed symptom reports were emailed to the frontline clinicians. No instructions were given regarding the use of patient-reported information. Utilization of symptom reports was determined by electronic survey administered to the same clinician several hours following receipt of the report. Provider acceptability was assessed monthly. Patient and caregiver satisfaction was evaluated after discharge.
 Results: Fifty-five patients and their caregivers were invited to participate and 45 patient/caregiver dyads enrolled (82%). Chemotherapy regimens included those for leukemia/lymphoma (40%), bone marrow transplant (BMT, 11%), solid tumor (36%) and neuro-oncology (13%). Mean patient age was 12.8 years (range 7-18). Mean length of hospitalization was 8.5 days (median 4, range 2-42). Approximately half the evaluable dyads (48.8%) generated at least one symptom report (patient or caregiver) daily; three-quarters (75.6%) submitted symptom reports at least half of all hospitalized days. When stratified to include only leukemia/lymphoma and BMT patients, mean length of stay was 13.8 days (median 6, range 2-42), and proportions of daily symptom report submissions were comparable to the overall cohort. However, all dyads with leukemia/lymphoma or BMT completed at least one symptom report following enrollment, compared to four dyads among the group with neuro-oncology or solid tumor diagnoses that submitted no symptom reports following enrollment.
 In response to the individual symptom reports (217 from 37 dyads) clinicians reported that clinical actions were taken 25% of the time, including counseling the use of medications already prescribed (43), prescribing a new medication or altering dosage of a currently prescribed medication (22), performing laboratory tests (1) or imaging (3), and obtaining a consult from another service or team (4).
 All participating healthcare providers (n=42) understood the symptom reports, and all, except one, found the reports useful and expressed interest in continuing to receive them. A quarter of providers reported that reviewing the symptom reports enhanced communication with the patient or family. Patients and caregivers found the questions easy to understand and the system easy to use. Half of the patients (51.7%) reported that submitting symptom reports helped them "a lot" or "completely" to have conversations with their doctors, and most (82.8%) expressed interest in continuing to provide symptom reports after study participation ended. Fewer caregivers (34.4%) endorsed that submitting symptom reports helped them to have conversations with the patient's doctor, but 50% noted that they helped "a lot" or "completely" to keep track of their child's health and to feel more connected to the healthcare team.
 Conclusion: Patient and caregiver symptom self-reporting is a feasible and acceptable strategy for symptom monitoring in pediatric patients hospitalized for chemotherapy. Patients and their caregivers find this method of symptom reporting beneficial. Further, healthcare providers find the information useful and influential in medical decision-making. Larger scale studies are needed to further assess implementation and impact of symptom monitoring.

 No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


The experience of the South African War sharpened the desire to commemorate for a number of reasons. An increasingly literate public, a burgeoning populist press, an army reinforced by waves of volunteers and, to contemporaries at least, a shockingly high death toll embedded the war firmly in the national consciousness. In addition, with the fallen buried far from home those left behind required other forms of commemoration. For these reasons, the South African War was an important moment of transition in commemorative practice and foreshadowed the rituals of remembrance that engulfed Britain in the aftermath of the Great War. This work provides the first comprehensive survey of the memorialisation process in Britain in the aftermath of the South African War. The approach goes beyond the simple deconstruction of memorial iconography and, instead, looks at the often tortuous and lengthy gestation of remembrance sites, from the formation of committees to the raising of finance and debates over form. In the process both Edwardian Britain's sense of self and the contested memory of the conflict in South Africa are thrown into relief. In the concluding sections of the book the focus falls on other forms of remembrance sites, namely the multi-volume histories produced by the War Office and The Times, and the seminal television documentaries of Kenneth Griffith. Once again the approach goes beyond simple textual deconstruction to place the sources firmly in their wider context by exploring both production and reception. By uncovering the themes and myths that underpinned these interpretations of the war, shifting patterns in how the war was represented and conceived are revealed.


Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the chondroprotective effect of chemically decellularized meniscal allografts transplanted into the knee joints of adult merino sheep. Methods Lateral sheep meniscal allografts were chemically processed by a multistep method to yield acellular, sterile grafts. The grafts were transplanted into the knee joints of sheep that were treated by lateral meniscectomy. Joints treated by meniscectomy only and untreated joints served as controls. The joints were analyzed morphologically 6 and 26 weeks after surgery by the macroscopical and histological OARSI (Osteoarthritis Research Society International) score. Additionally, the meniscal grafts were biomechanically tested by cyclic indentation. Results Lateral meniscectomy was associated with significant degenerative changes of the articular cartilage of the lateral joint compartment. Transplanted lateral meniscal allografts retained their integrity during the observation period without inducing significant synovitis or foreign body reactions. Cellular repopulation of the grafts was only present on the surface and the periphery of the lateral meniscus, but was still completely lacking in the center of the grafts at week 26. Transplantation of processed meniscal allografts could not prevent degenerative changes of the articular cartilage in the lateral joint compartment. Compared with healthy menisci, the processed grafts were characterized by a significantly reduced dynamic modulus, which did not improve during the observation period of 26 weeks in vivo. Conclusion Chemically decellularized meniscal allografts proved their biocompatibility and durability without inducing immunogenic reactions. However, insufficient recellularization and inferior stiffness of the grafts hampered chondroprotective effects on the articular cartilage.


A 38-year-old woman developed right upper quadrant pain due to a mass in the left lobe of the liver. The tumor was resected along with segment 3 of the left lobe. Histologic examination and immunochemistry supported a diagnosis of benign schwannoma. No metastatic disease was present, and the patient has been well for more than 18 months after surgery without recurrence. This is the first reported case of successful resection of a schwannoma of the liver in a patient without von Recklinghausen's disease.


Intervention in armed conflicts is full of riddles that await attention from scholars and policymakers. This book argues that rethinking intervention-redefining what it is and why foreign powers take an interest in others' conflicts-is of critical importance to understanding how conflicts evolve over time with the entry and exit of external actors. It does this by building a new model of intervention that crosses the traditional boundaries between economics, international relations theory, and security studies, and places the economic interests and domestic political institutions of external states at the center of intervention decisions. Combining quantitative and qualitative evidence from both historical and contemporary conflicts, including interventions in both interstate conflicts and civil wars, it presents an in-depth discussion of a range of interventions-diplomatic, economic, and military-in a variety of international contexts, creating a comprehensive model for future research on the topic.


This article considers whether the anti-commandeering principle of New York v. United States and Printz v. United States applies to exercises of the Treaty Power. It illustrates the problem with an analysis of the treaty provision involved in Breard v. Greene, 118 S. Ct. 1352 (1998), which requires state officials to notify certain aliens they arrest that they have a right to consult with their consul. Whether exercises of the treaty power are subject to the commandeering prohibition depends on the resolution of two ambiguities in the Supreme Court's anti-commandeering doctrine. The first concerns the distinction between commandeering and mere encouragement. Specifically, can a treaty such as the one involved in Breard be upheld as an exercise of conditional preemption, on the theory that it gives the state the choice between providing notification and refraining from arresting aliens? The answer to that question depends on whether a treaty barring states from arresting aliens would be valid, and the answer to that question turns on where the line falls between commandeering and valid preemption. If, as some lower courts have found, Printz and New York prohibit legislation that imposes obligations on states but not individuals, or regulates the states in their roles as governments, then a treaty barring the arrest of aliens would contravene the anti-commandeering principle. But, if so, the anti-commandeering principle could not be applicable to the treaty power, as it would call into question too much Supreme Court precedent. If the anti-commandeering principle is narrower, there would appear to be no reason to exempt the Treaty Power from its scope. Under the narrow interpretation of Printz and New York, the sorts of "obligations" to which the treaty-makers would legitimately want to subject the states would be valid "encouragement" under the conditional preemption doctrine. The anti-commandeering principle, narrowly construed, would thus not represent much of a burden on the Treaty Power. (Whether the anti-commandeering principle is broad or narrow is before the Supreme Court this Term in Condon v. Reno.)


With most of today's fast scientific software written in Fortran and C, Java has a lot of catching up to do. In this paper we discuss how new Java programs can capitalize on high-performance libraries for other languages. With the help of a tool we have automatically created Java bindings for several standard libraries: MPI, BLAS, BLACS, PBLAS and ScaLAPACK. The purpose of the additional software layer introduced by the bindings is to resolve the interface problems between different programming languages such as data type mapping, pointers, multidimensional arrays, etc. For evaluation, performance results are presented for Java versions of two benchmarks from the NPB and PARKBENCH suites on the IBM SP2 using JDK and IBM's high-performance Java compiler, and on the Fujitsu AP3000 using Toba - a Java-to-C translator. The results confirm that fast parallel computing in Java is indeed possible.


Soldering flux chemistry and its interaction with the printed wiring board have been important reliability concerns for a number of years. Post Vietnam investigation of military hardware revealed corrosion in some areas. The test method most frequently used to assess the corrosion potential of flux residues is surface insulation resistance (SIR) testing. This paper gives some background on surface insulation resistance testing and reports on its application to three different water soluble fluxes. The appearance of surface dendrites is linked to test procedures that allowed water condensation on the board surface. Subsurface conductive anodic filament formation is associated with the use of fluxes which contained polyglycols. The use of contact angle measurements to assess the effect of the soldering flux residues on the board is demonstrated.


Autonomous vehicles no longer belong to the realm of science fiction. They have become a prominent area of research in the last two decades because of the integration of Artificial Intelligence in the automobile industry. Apart from the development of various complex learning algorithms, the advancement of cameras, sensors, and geolocation technology as well as the escalation in the capacity of machines have played a crucial role in bringing this technology into reality. We have had significant breakthroughs in the development of autonomous cars within the last ten years. However, despite the success of multiple prototypes in navigating within the borders of a delimited area, researchers are yet to overcome several drawbacks before embodying them in the transport system; and one of those hurdles lies in the lane detection system of the cars. Therefore, in this article, we present an intelligent lane detection algorithm incorporating fully-connected Neural Networks with a secondary layer protection scheme to detect the borders of a lane. We achieved over 98% classification accuracy using the proposed lane detection model. We also implemented the model in a small prototype to take a look at its performance. Experimental results infer that the algorithm is capable of lane detection and ready for practical use.


A fault-tolerant VLSI architecture implementing a bi-directional bit-serial A/D/A (analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog) converter is presented. Both functions of algorithmic D/A conversion and successive approximation A/D conversion are combined into a single device, converting bits in the order from most to least significant. The MSB-first order allows for robust implementation, relatively insensitive to component mismatches, offsets and nonlinearities. Also, since the A/D conversion makes use of the intermediate D/A conversion results, matched monotonic characteristics are obtained in both directions of conversion. The final D/A result is available at the end of A/D conversion, and can be used directly in applications calling for analog quantization. More general use of the A/D/A converter allows for bi-directional read/write digital access to local analog information in VLSI. The cell supports dense integration of low-power data conversion units along with digital processors or sensory circuitry in a standard CMOS process. Experimental results from a prototype VLSI implementation are included. Including control logic, the A/D/A cell measures 216 /spl mu/m/spl times/315 /spl mu/m in a 2 /spl mu/m CMOS process, and achieves 8-bit untrimmed monotonicity at 200 /spl mu/W power consumption for a 20 /spl mu/sec conversion cycle.


ABSTRACT The objective of this paper is to specify the relationships between age and gender differentials in health among older people in China. The data were drawn from the 2002 Chinese Longitudinal Health Longevity Study (CLHLS), which included 15,789 respondents aged 65 or more years. The health indicators included the Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and Instrumental ADL scores, cognitive ability (using the Mini Mental State Examination), visual function, hearing or auditory function, number of natural teeth, self-reported health, and self-reported quality of life. The statistical significance of the age relationships was examined using Mann-Whitney U tests and Spearman's rank correlation coefficients. The principal results were that above 65 years of age, gender differentials were observed in most of the health indicators at most ages, although self-rated quality of life was an exception. For most of the objective (observer-rated) health indicators, the gender differentials increased with greater age, but that for the number of natural teeth decreased with age. Gender differentials in the two subjective health measures had no significant relationship with age. It is concluded that older Chinese women have poorer health than men and are in many ways disadvantaged, and that the relative disadvantage increases with age. Chinese women tend to live longer and suffer ill-health more than men.


In obesity, increased mitochondrial metabolism with the accumulation of oxidative stress leads to mitochondrial damage and beta cell dysfunction. In particular, beta cells express anti-oxidant enzymes at relatively low levels and are highly vulnerable to oxidative stress. Early in the development of obesity, beta cells exhibit increased GSIS, in order to compensate for insulin resistance. This increase in beta cell function under the condition of enhanced metabolic stress suggests that beta cells possess a defense mechanism(s) against increased oxidative damage, which may become insufficient or decline at the onset of type 2 diabetes. Here, we show that metabolic stress induces beta cell HIF-2α which stimulates anti-oxidant gene expression (e.g. Sod2 and Cat) and protects against mitochondrial ROS and subsequent mitochondrial damage. Knockdown of HIF-2α in Min6 cells exaggerated chronic high glucose-induced mitochondrial damage and beta cell dysfunction by increasing mitochondrial ROS levels. Moreover, inducible beta cell HIF-2α KO mice developed more severe beta cell dysfunction and glucose intolerance on high fat diet, along with increased ROS levels and decreased islet mitochondrial mass. Our results provide a previously unknown mechanism for how beta cell defends against increased metabolic stress to promote beta cell compensation in obesity.


In tumor localization at the level of 7--12 cm aside from the anus the authors performed 168 abdominoanal resections of the rectum with descending of different portions of the left colon. Among these patients in 126 subjects descending of the sigmoid in the anal canal was performed, in 30 of the splenic angle of the transverse colon, and in 12 of a proximal portion of the descending left colon. Some characteristic features of surgery for descending of different portions of the left colon are described.


The most frequently used measures of personality consist of a large number of items. However, it is their short versions that have enjoyed popularity in recent years. This article is a presentation of the short form of Goldberg's questionnaire for measuring the Big Five personality traits. The questionnaire measures five traits (Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability, Intellect), and consists of 20 items. It is a shortened version of the 50-item Big Five Markers questionnaire from the resources of the International Personality Item Pool, whose Polish version was prepared by Strus, Cieciuch, and Rowinski (2014b). In constructing the short version, we followed the procedure developed by Donnellan and colleagues (2006), aimed at maximizing the internal consistency and independence of scales. The research was carried out on a group of N = 903 people aged between 16 and 83 years. The validity (verified in confirmatory factor analysis and in the analysis of correlations between the questionnaire's scales and other measures of the five personality traits) and reliability (measured by Cronbach's alpha coefficient) are satisfactory and make the questionnaire fit for use in scientific research.


Background Steroid refractory (SR) asthma, a distinct disease phenotype, has a high morbidity and mortality and takes up a disproportional burden of healthcare cost. IL-17A is a pro-inflammatory cytokine that is essential for host defence against pathogens but can also lead to damage of the surrounding tissues associated with immune diseases and is linked with severe asthma. IL-10 has crucial immunregulatory properties, and we have previously shown in vitro, that T cells from steroid refractory asthma patients fail to respond to glucocorticosteroids for the induction of IL-10 synthesis. Methods We assessed IL-17A and IL-10 synthesis in steroid sensitive, SS, (mean% change in FEV1 following 2 weeks of oral prednisolone 16%) versus SR (mean% change FEV1 0%) asthma patients and investigated their response to dexamethasone. Results PBMC from SR individuals synthesised 7-fold higher levels of IL-17A than disease-severity matched SS patients (by flow cytometry and CBA). Interestingly IL-17A levels inversely correlated with changes in lung function following oral steroids whereas higher IL-10 levels were associated with an increase in lung function. Dexamethasone failed to inhibit IL-17A, but, surprisingly, increased protein synthesis, an effect that was also seen in vivo: inhaled glucocorticosteroid dosages correlated with IL-17A protein levels. This suggests the potentially detrimental effects corticosteroids might have in certain asthma phenotypes. The production of IL-10 by T cells was impaired in cultures from SR asthmatics, but not in healthy controls or SS asthma patients implying an associated impaired IL-10 response with poor asthma control. 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)D) not only restored the capacity of T cells to produce IL-10 upon stimulation with dexamethasone in SR asthma patients, but also inhibited IL-17A synthesis in culture independently of steroid. Conclusion High IL-17A levels are associated with poor response to steroids and more severe asthma. Our data supports a steroid-enhancing property of 1,25(OH)D in severe asthma through inhibition of IL-17A and via enhancement of IL-10 synthesis.


Abstract Knowledge of the effects of burial depth and burial duration on seed viability and, consequently, seedbank persistence of Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Watson) and waterhemp [Amaranthus tuberculatus (Moq.) J. D. Sauer] ecotypes can be used for the development of efficient weed management programs. This is of particular interest, given the great fecundity of both species and, consequently, their high seedbank replenishment potential. Seeds of both species collected from five different locations across the United States were investigated in seven states (sites) with different soil and climatic conditions. Seeds were placed at two depths (0 and 15cm) for 3 yr. Each year, seeds were retrieved, and seed damage (shrunken, malformed, or broken) plus losses (deteriorated and futile germination) and viability were evaluated. Greater seed damage plus loss averaged across seed origin, burial depth, and year was recorded for lots tested at Illinois (51.3% and 51.8%) followed by Tennessee (40.5% and 45.1%) and Missouri (39.2% and 42%) for A. palmeri and A. tuberculatus, respectively. The site differences for seed persistence were probably due to higher volumetric water content at these sites. Rates of seed demise were directly proportional to burial depth (α=0.001), whereas the percentage of viable seeds recovered after 36 mo on the soil surface ranged from 4.1% to 4.3% compared with 5% to 5.3% at the 15-cm depth for A. palmeri and A. tuberculatus, respectively. Seed viability loss was greater in the seeds placed on the soil surface compared with the buried seeds. The greatest influences on seed viability were burial conditions and time and site-specific soil conditions, more so than geographical location. Thus, management of these weed species should focus on reducing seed shattering, enhancing seed removal from the soil surface, or adjusting tillage systems.


The ocean provides food, economic activity, and cultural value for a large proportion of humanity. Our knowledge of marine ecosystems lags behind that of terrestrial ecosystems, limiting effective protection of marine resources. We describe the outcome of 2 workshops in 2011 and 2012 to establish a list of important questions, which, if answered, would substantially improve our ability to conserve and manage the world's marine resources. Participants included individuals from academia, government, and nongovernment organizations with broad experience across disciplines, marine ecosystems, and countries that vary in levels of development. Contributors from the fields of science, conservation, industry, and government submitted questions to our workshops, which we distilled into a list of priority research questions. Through this process, we identified 71 key questions. We grouped these into 8 subject categories, each pertaining to a broad component of marine conservation: fisheries, climate change, other anthropogenic threats, ecosystems, marine citizenship, policy, societal and cultural considerations, and scientific enterprise. Our questions address many issues that are specific to marine conservation, and will serve as a road map to funders and researchers to develop programs that can greatly benefit marine conservation.


To determine the frequency of hepatitis B, hepatitis C, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and syphilis infections in Iranian blood donors. The prevalence of serological markers of hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV and syphilis infections were evaluated in 318029 consecutive volunteer blood donors attending to Tehran blood transfusion service from March 2005 to March 2006. Those positive for hepatitis B surface antigen, anti-HCV, anti-HIV1/2 and VDRL (venereal disease research laboratory) reactivity were analyzed with a second independent HBsAg enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and neutralization assay; an additional independent anti-HCV EIA and HCV-RIBA assay; second independent anti-HIV1/2 test, HIV western blot and fluorescent Treponemal Antibody Absorbed (FTA-ABS), respectively. In 318029 participants, prevalence of positive HBsAg, HCV RNA, HIV western blot and FTA-ABS was 1684 (0.487%), 323 (0.093%), 11 (0.003%) and 19 (0.005%), respectively. In 1014 subjects randomly selected from these 318029 participants, besides standard interview, physical exam and routine serologic tests; anthropometric and biochemical were studies. In this selected group frequency of HBsAg was 3 (0.29, 95% CI: 0-0.64%); frequency of anti-HCV was 21 (2.07%), but it was (0.09%, 95% CI: 0-0.30%) by confirmatory HCV RNA test; frequency of HIV-Abl, 2 was 8 (0.78%), but it was 2 (0.19%, 95% CI: 0-0.48%) by confirmatory test; frequency of RPR was 0 (0%, 95% CI: 0-0.30%). Despite excluding subjects with high-risk behaviors by standard interview and physical examination, still a few asymptomatic hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV-infected subjects existed among volunteer blood donors with demographic and biochemical findings similar to non-infected ones.


When performing hygrothermal analysis for building envelopes, climate data is required as boundary conditions. This study investigates the effect of the microclimatic conditions using Toronto Pearson Airport and downtown hourly data. The results showed that the average water content of the wood frame building façade were similar throughout the study period. The high moisture content peaks reduced to average within days. The arithmetic averaged hourly weather data may also affect the analysis' results. 5-minute weather data is collected from the Ryerson weather network. The hourly data is constructed from the 5-minute data by arithmetic averaging. The simulation results from both dataset followed closely to each other throughout the study period. The averaging of hourly data removed some details form the raw meteorological data. However, it does not affect the overall trend of the climate condition and the impact to the hygrothermal analysis of building components is very limited.


&NA; Two studies were performed to assess the efficacy of Lactobacillus plantarum B1 in prevention of pathogenic Escherichia coli K88 gastrointestinal infection in broilers. In an in vitro study, L. plantarum B1 showed resistance to acid and bile and inhibited the growth of E. coli K88. Additionally, L. plantarum B1 exhibited high ability to adhere to broiler embryo ileal epithelium. In an animal trial, 240 broilers at 1 d of age were randomly assigned to one of 4 treatment arms: negative control (NC) broilers fed a basal diet and not challenged; positive control (PC) broilers fed a basal diet and challenged with E. coli K88; L. plantarum (LP) treatment broilers fed a basal diet containing 2 × 109 cfu/kg L. plantarum B1 and challenged with E. coli K88; and antibiotic treatment (Anti) broilers fed a basal diet supplemented with colistin sulfate (20 mg/kg) and challenged with E. coli K88. Broilers fed L. plantarum B1 had greater (P ≤ 0.05) BW than those in the PC treatment on d 14 and 28. Dietary L. plantarum B1 decreased (P < 0.05) E. coli counts in the cecal contents on d 10 and 14, and increased (P < 0.05) cecal lactic acid bacteria (LAB) on d 8, 10, 14, and 28 compared with the PC treatment. Dietary supplementation of L. plantarum B1 increased (P < 0.05) the ileal mucosal secretory IgA concentration and reduced (P < 0.05) IL‐2, IL‐4, IFN‐&ggr;, and tumor necrosis factor‐&agr; levels in the ileum. Overall, these results suggest dietary supplementation of L. plantarum B1 promotes growth performance, lowers cecal E. coli counts, and increases the population of cecal LAB, as well as improves intestinal mucosal immunity in E. coli K88‐challenged broilers.


Methods: Retrospective review of patients undergoing at least one ultrasound at less than 24 weeks during 2008. Patients diagnosed with major anomalies (life threatening, requiring major surgery, or leading to significant disability) were identified and followed regarding their decision to continue or terminate pregnancy. Patients diagnosed with a chromosomal anomaly not through ultrasound excluded. Abortion rates in patients diagnosed prior to 14 weeks were compared to those diagnosed between 14 and 24 weeks. Results: Of 5116 patients scanned, 77 (1.5%) major anomalies were ascertained and 72 (94%) were diagnosed prior to 24 weeks. 23/72 (32%) were diagnosed at less than 14 weeks, mostly as incidental findings at FTS, while the remaining 49 (68%) were diagnosed at > 14 but < 24 weeks, mostly through second trimester anatomy scans. The overall abortion rate was 54% (39/72). 19/23 (83%) patients diagnosed at less than 14 weeks compared to 20/49 (41%) diagnosed at > 14 but less than 24 weeks opted for termination (P < 0.01, Table). Conclusions: Early prenatal diagnosis of major anomalies is associated with a higher abortion rate. This implies that inclusion of a targeted anatomical survey during FTS, with attention to severe anomalies, may decrease infant mortality associated with congenital anomalies.


The solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer is a key element of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) enabling stable operation and significantly affecting the cycling performance including life-length. Here we present the concept of chemically soft SEI-forming additives, created by introducing aromatic ring based derivatives of already well-known SEI-formers to render them chemically soft, resulting in 1,3,2-benzodioxathiole 2,2-dioxide (DTDPh), 3H-1,2-benzoxathiole 2,2-dioxide (PSPh), and 1,4,2-benzodioxathiine 2,2-dioxide (PSOPh). A computational DFT based comparison predicts promise with respect to both early and controlled reduction processes. These predictions are verified by basic electrochemical studies targeting appropriate additive reduction potentials i.e. prior to any electrolyte solvent or salt decomposition. In addition, the decomposition paths of the SEI-formers are projected and the end products compared with spectroscopic data for the SEI-layers formed in LIB cells. The SEI-layers formed finally show very good properties in terms of improved capacity retention, improved coulombic efficiency, and reduced resistance for the graphite/electrolyte/LFP full cells made, especially observed for PSOPh. That is due to the preferred C–O bond breaking mechanism, observed also for DTDPh, and supported by the S–C bond breaking mechanism, together resulting in well conductive and good adhesion properties of the SEI-layers. This is expedited by higher softness, eventuating in a formation process stabilizing some of the radicals and/or lowering the kinetic barriers. These positive effects are confirmed both when applying a commercial style electrolyte and for a new generation electrolyte based on the LiTDI salt, where suppression of the TDI anion reduction is truly crucial.


Ever wonder what happens when your insurance company becomes insolvent, and the risks you paid to insure are suddenly thrust back upon you? The topic of insurance insolvency suffers from a lack of attention. This article reviews the history of insurance insolvency laws and recommendations for improvements. The work of the National Association of Insurance Commissions is discussed, as well as a look to what lies ahead in the future for this vital group.


Similar to a design process for designing graphical user interfaces, conversation designers often apply an iterative design process by defining a conversation flow, testing with users, reviewing user data, and improving the design. While it is possible to iterate on conversation design with existing chatbot prototyping tools, there still remain challenges in recruiting participants on-demand and collecting structured feedback on specific conversational components. These limitations hinder designers from running rapid iterations and making informed design decisions. We posit that involving a crowd in the conversation design process can address these challenges, and introduce ProtoChat, a crowd-powered chatbot design tool built to support the iterative process of conversation design. ProtoChat makes it easy to recruit crowd workers to test the current conversation within the design tool. ProtoChat's crowd-testing tool allows crowd workers to provide concrete and practical feedback and suggest improvements on specific parts of the conversation. With the data collected from crowd-testing, ProtoChat provides multiple types of visualizations to help designers analyze and revise their design. Through a three-day study with eight designers, we found that ProtoChat enabled an iterative design process for designing a chatbot. Designers improved their design by not only modifying the conversation design itself, but also adjusting the persona and getting UI design implications beyond the conversation design itself. The crowd responses were helpful for designers to explore user needs, contexts, and diverse response formats. With ProtoChat, designers can successfully collect concrete evidence from the crowd and make decisions to iteratively improve their conversation design.


The recent paper by Gill et al.' studies a question which is of practical value to those involved in the care of people with diabetes. In the Caribbean countries, glycated haemoglobin estimations are available scarcely or not at all, because of the high cost of this assay, few patients have the resources for home blood glucose monitoring, and occasional clinic blood glucose estimations are the main method used to evaluate glycaemic control. The situation i s no doubt similar in other middleand low-income countries. Advice on the interpretation of random blood glucose estimations would therefore be worthwhile. Unfortunately, this paper illustrates some of the pitfalls of method comparison studies2 and the analysis presented confuses the terms sensitivity, specificity, and predictive value with potentially misleading conclusions. In this study the glycated haemoglobin (HbA,) estimation was being used as a reference method or 'gold standard' with values less than 10% being taken to indicate acceptable control. The random blood glucose (RBG) estimation was being used as a screening test to try to identify patients with acceptable glycaemic control as truly assessed by HbA,. In group 1, 76 patients had HbA, < 10% and of these 46 were correctly identified as such by RBG. The sensitivity of RGB is therefore 61% (46/76). Of the 28 patients with HbA, greater than 1 O%, 26 were correctly identified by RBG. The specificity of RBG was 93% (26/28). Among 48 patients with RBG < 10 mmol I ' , 46 truly had HbA, < 10%. The positive predictive value was 96% (46/48). Among 56 patients with RBG > 10 mmol I-', 26 had HbA, > 10%. The negative predictive value was 46%. The values of the same statistics for group 2 are: sensitivity 41 YO, specificity 95%, positive predictive value 92%, and negative predictive value 56%. Figures 3 and 4 in this paper in fact show the relation between positive and negative predictive values. The relationship between sensitivity and specificity i s conventionally shown by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.3 It is important to identify the positive predictive value as such because it is well known that the predictive value varies according to the prevalence of the condition under s t ~ d y . ~ In the sample studied by Gill et al., 132/204 (65%) of subjects had acceptable glycated haemoglobin values (HbA, < 10%). If a population with


The design and implementation of multidisciplinary capstone courses are treated as knowledge engineering activities, where IEEE STD 1471 and ISO/IEC 42010 help to address all stakeholders' concerns on different subject domains, varying viewpoints, and robust architecture. Storyboarding and metrics capture are utilized to integrate different stakeholders and their interest. As a consequence, outcome assessment becomes an integral part of knowledge engineering activities in a capstone course design.


The production of biomass and antibacterial extracellular products by Lactobacillus casei subsp. casei CECT 4043 was followed in both batch and in realkalized fed-batch cultures. Enhanced concentrations of biomass and antibacterial extracellular products were obtained with the use of the latter fermentation technique in comparison with the batch mode. The culture obtained by fed-batch fermentation was mixed with skim milk and used to prepare a probiotic feed for weaned piglets. To test the effect of the potentially probiotic culture of L. casei on body weight gain, feed intake, feed conversion efficiency, and on fecal coliform counts of piglets, two groups of animals received either feed supplemented with the probiotic preparation or avilamycin for 28 days. The control group was fed nonsupplemented feed. At the end of the administration period (day 28), the groups receiving probiotic and avilamycin exhibited the highest average body weight gain values, although the mean feed intake and feed conversion efficiency values were not different among the groups (P > 0.05). For the entire experimental period (42 days), the control group exhibited the lowest feed intake value, the probiotic group exhibited the highest feed conversion efficiency value, and the antibiotic group exhibited the highest body weight gain (P 0.05). Fecal coliform values decreased (although not significantly) by day 28 in the three groups. However, the mean counts returned to pretreatment levels by day 42 in all groups.


IMPORTANCE
Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) has been the only treatment option clinically available during the last 20 years for juvenile metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD), reported with variable outcome and without comparison with the natural course of the disease.

OBJECTIVE
To compare the long-term outcome of patients who underwent allogeneic HSCT with control patients who did not among a cohort with juvenile MLD.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
Patients with juvenile MLD born between 1975 and 2009 and who received HSCT at a median age of 7 years (age range, 1.5-18.2 years) and nontransplanted patients with juvenile MLD born between 1967 and 2007 were included in this case-control study. The median follow-up after HSCT was 7.5 years (range, 3.0-19.7 years). Patients underwent HSCT at 3 German centers between 1991 and 2012. The analysis was done between July 2014 and August 2015.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Survival and transplantation-related mortality, loss of gross motor function (Gross Motor Function Classification in MLD), loss of any language function, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) severity score for cerebral changes. To explore prognostic factors at baseline, patients who underwent HSCT (hereafter, transplanted patients) were a priori divided into stable vs progressive disease, according to gross motor and cognitive function.

RESULTS
Participants were 24 transplanted patients (11 boys, 13 girls) and 41 control patients (22 boys, 19 girls) who did not receive transplantation (hereafter, nontransplanted patients) with juvenile MLD. Among the transplanted patients, 4 children died of transplantation-related mortality, and 2 additional children died of rapid MLD progression 1.5 and 8.6 years after HSCT, resulting in a 5-year survival of 79% (19 of 24). Among the nontransplanted patients, 5-year survival after disease onset was 100% (41 of 41). However, 11 died of MLD progression, resulting in similar overall survival within the observation period. Nine of the long-term survivors after HSCT had disease progression, while 11 showed stable disease. Compared with the nontransplanted patients, the transplanted patients were less likely to lose their gross motor or language function and demonstrated significantly lower MRI severity scores at the latest examination. Patients after HSCT were more likely to have a stable disease course when undergoing HSCT at an early stage with no or only mild gross motor deficits (Gross Motor Function Classification in MLD level 0 or 1) and an IQ of at least 85, when age at disease onset was older than 4 years, or when MRI severity scores were low (preferably ≤17).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
Among patients with juvenile MLD, patients who underwent HSCT had a better gross motor and language outcome and lower MRI severity scores compared with nontransplanted patients. Transplantation at a presymptomatic or early symptomatic stage of juvenile MLD is associated with a reasonable chance for disease stabilization.


In this paper, we present a novel depth sensation enhancement algorithm considering the behavior of human visual system toward stereoscopic image displays. On the basis of the recent studies on the just noticeable depth difference (JNDD), which represents a threshold at which a human can perceive the depth difference between objects, we modify the depth image such that neighboring objects in the depth image can have a depth value difference of at least the JNDD. This modification is modeled via an energy minimization framework using three energy terms defined as depth data preservation, depth order preservation, and depth difference expansion. The depth data term enforces minimal changes in the depth image with an additional weighting function that controls the direction of depth changes. The depth order term restricts the inversion of the local and global depth orders among objects, and the JNDD term leads to an increase in the depth differences between segments. Throughout subjective quality evaluation on a stereoscopic image display, it is demonstrated that the human depth sensation is effectively improved by the proposed algorithm.


Lignin can be used as a cheap natural raw material to prepare organic aerogels based upon gelation and supercritical drying in ethanol. The aerogels were prepared from a mixture of the raw materials with lignin (L), resorcinol (R), and formaldehyde (F), followed by a reaction catalyzed by NaOH(C). The effect of the preparation conditions, such as the LRF concentration, the mass ratio of LR to NaOH (LR/C), the mole ratio of LR to F (LR/F), and the gelation temperature, on the gelation ability and the bulk density were studied. The results showed that the density of LRF aerogels increased with increasing reactant concentration and catalyst content. The microstructure of the porous carbon aerogels was investigated by SEM and TEM. The specific surface area and pore size distribution of LRF and RF aerogels were studied by nitrogen adsorption-desorption analysis. The pore width of LRF aerogels ranged from 1 nm to 100 nm. Most of the pores were about 50 nm wide, as is typical for mesoporous materials.


We routinely encounter speakers with different accents and speaking styles. The speech perception literature offers examples of disruption of comprehension for unfamiliar speech and also of listeners' rapid accommodation to unfamiliar accents. Much of this research uses a single measure and/or focuses on isolated word perception. We investigated listeners' abilities to comprehend and shadow connected speech spoken in a familiar or unfamiliar accent. We found increases in shadowing latencies and comprehension errors in the Dissimilar Speech relative to Similar Speech conditions—especially for relatively informal rather than more academic style speech. Additionally, there was less accommodation over time to Dissimilar than Similar Speech. These results suggest that there are costs both in the immediate timescale of processing speech (necessary for shadowing) and in the longer time scale of listening comprehension when accent and other speech quality is very different from one's own speech.


The global migration trend has brought attention to the mental health of immigrant populations, especially postpartum women. The prevalence of postpartum anxiety and depression among these populations remains a growing concern. This study aimed to explore the factors associated with postpartum anxiety and depression among immigrant women, with a special emphasis on Syrian migrants in Turkey. A cross-sectional design was employed, enrolling postpartum women who visited the Strengthened Migrant Health Center in Istanbul between July and December 2022. Data were collected using a three-part questionnaire comprising sociodemographic details and scores from the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS) and Beck Anxiety Scale (BAI). The average age of participants was 25.73 years. The mean EPDS and BAI scores were low at 1.27 and 3.85, respectively. Notably, 97.1% of women scored below the EPDS cut-off point of 13. EPDS scores showed a significant relationship between income levels and COVID-19 vaccination status, while BAI scores were significantly associated with educational levels. There was an inverse correlation between EPDS scores and the number of cohabitants in a household. The observed low rates of postpartum depression and anxiety could be attributed to the accessible health services and psychosocial support for immigrants in Turkey. It would be useful to conduct multicenter and comprehensive epidemiological studies on migrant puerperas.


Within the emergent eigenstate solution to quantum dynamics [Phys. Rev. X 7, 021012 (2017)], one can construct a local operator (an emergent Hamiltonian) of which the time-evolving state is an eigenstate. Here we show that such a solution exists for the expansion dynamics of Tonks-Girardeau gases in optical lattices after turning off power-law (e.g., harmonic or quartic) confining potentials, which are geometric quenches that do not involve the boost operator. For systems that are initially in the ground state and undergo dynamical fermionization during the expansion, we show that they remain in the ground state of the emergent local Hamiltonian at all times. On the other hand, for systems at nonzero initial temperatures, the expansion dynamics can be described constructing a Gibbs ensemble for the emergent local Hamiltonian (an emergent Gibbs ensemble).