The present paper describes the use of sugar cane bagasse as solid phase extractor for cadmium determination after complexation of the analyte with ammonium diethyldithiophosphate (ADDP) and sorption of the Cd-DDP complexes on the solid support. The concomitants were separated using a flow injection analysis (FIA) system coupled to flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) for determination. The main parameters such as ADDP concentration, acid medium, flow rate, reaction coil length, and reaction time were investigated. The results obtained with HNO 3 showed good accuracy and precision. The enhancement factor was 20.5 times for a 120-second preconcentration time, and the analytical frequency was 25 determinations per hour. The calibration curve was linear over the concentration range of 1-40 μg L -1 Cd with a LOD of 0.697 μg L -1 Cd and a relative standard deviation of 0.96% after 12 sucessive measurements of 30 μg L -1 Cd. The proposed method was evaluated for the FIA-FAAS analysis of certified reference materials (tomato leaves, spinach leaves, and bovine liver) and Cd-spiked foods (shrimp, sardine, tuna, chicken liver and bovine liver). Good recoveries (80.0-97.1%) for the Cd-spiked samples and certified reference materials were obtained. The results of bagasse-packed minicolumns were compared with Si-C 18 packed minicolumns. The F-test was applied between Si-C 18 /Bagasse minicolumns, Si-C 18 /certifled values, and bagasse/certified values. It was found that the results were in agreement with the certified values at a 95% confidence level.


Abstract In this article, a 2–18-GHz double-ridged horn antenna is designed, and the effects of the E-plane sidewalls on antenna performance are examined. The modifications implemented in the shape of the ridges cause a better voltage standing wave ratio over the whole frequency band. The double-ridged horn antenna is designed to have fewer parts that reduce the possibility of performance reduction due to the production process. The antenna is modeled using commercial 3D electromagnetic simulation software, CST Microwave Studio (Computer Simulation Technology, Germany). After the simulations, a prototype of the designed model is manufactured and tested. The measurement results are in good agreement with the simulation results. The results show that the antenna has low side-lobe levels with a voltage standing wave ratio less than 1.85 (typically 1.5) over the entire frequency band. The method outlined in this article can be used to design a double-ridged horn antenna as a test antenna in electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) applications.


Background One of the most challenging conditions in Crohn's disease (CD) patients is the treatment of perianal fistulae. We have recently shown that epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays a crucial role during CD-fistulae development. Dickkopf-homolog 1 (DKK-1) is known to play a key role during EMT. Here, we investigated a role for DKK-1 in the pathogenesis of CD-associated fistulae. Methods Dkk-1 protein expression in CD-fistula specimens were investigated by immunohistochemistry. Colonic lamina propria fibroblasts (CLPF) were obtained from either non-IBD control patients or patients with fistulizing CD. HT-29 intestinal epithelial cells (IEC) were either grown as monolayers or spheroids. Cells were treated with either TNF-α, TGF-β or IL-13. Knock-down of DKK-1 or β-Catenin was induced in HT-29-IEC by siRNA technique. mRNA expression was determined by real-time-PCR. Results Dkk-1 protein was specifically expressed in transitional cells lining the fistula tracts. TGF-β induced DKK-1 mRNA expression in HT-29-IEC, but decreased it in fistula CLPF. On a functional level, DKK-1 knock-down prevented TGF-β-induced IL-13 mRNA expression in HT-29-IEC. Further, loss of β-Catenin was accompanied by reduced levels of DKK-1 and, again, IL-13 in IEC in response to TGF-β. In turn, treatment of HT-29-IEC as well as fistula CLPF with IL-13 resulted in decreased levels of DKK-1 mRNA. Treatment with TNF-α or the bacterial wall component, muramyl-dipeptide, decreased DKK-1 mRNA levels in HT-29-IEC, but enhanced it in fistula CLPF. Discussion We demonstrate that DKK-1 is strongly expressed in cells lining the CD-fistula tracts and regulates factors involved in EMT initiation. These data provide evidence for a role of DKK-1 in the pathogenesis of CD-associated perianal fistulae.


In this paper, a rapid and sensitive modified electrode for the determination of Epinephrine (EP) is proposed. In this study, active compound EP was determined from commercial drug form based on electrochemical oxidation properties at various electrodes by voltammetric methods. Electrodes
 modified by the electrodeposition of conducting organic polymers such as poly(3-methylthiophene, PMT), polypyrrole (PPY) and polyaniline (PAN) were used as chemical sensors for voltammetric analysis and flow injection detection of EP. The electrochemical behavior of EP at conducting polymer
 electrodes was compared and the effects on behavior of electrolyte type and its pH and the film thickness were systematically examined. The results showed that the proposed modified surface catalyzes the oxidation of EP. Electrocatalytic efficiency decreases in order of PMT > PPY > PAN.
 Voltammetric peak positions were affected by the nature of the electrolyte and its pH. Also, the effect of increasing film thickness was to observe increased peak heights for oxidation potential of EP. The best results for the determination of EP were obtained by DPV in Na2SO4
 (pH 2.0) and PMT electrodes. Polymer coated electrodes were also used in an amperometric detector for flow injection analysis of EP. The responses of the polymer electrode were 5–15 times larger as compared to those of bare platinum. PMT showed improved performance as an amperometric
 detector for flow injection analysis systems over other types of polymer electrodes. Detection limits as low as 1× 10–9 M were achieved using the PMT, compared to 1 × 10–6 M using platinum electrodes.


In-situ FT-IR technique is used to investigate the polymerization of propylene oxide with potassium t-butoxide as initiator. The epoxy absorbance at 828 cm-1 is the most useful peaks to monitor the reaction. The absorbance of C-O-C stretching vibration at 1107 cm-1 is very strong and also very useful. Yet, the absorbance of C-H stretching vibration in 3000~2800 cm-1 region is very weak and not reliable for In-situ FT-IR analysis. By monitoring the consumption of propylene oxide, the polymerization rate constant k at 33°C was calculated out and an interesting auto acceleration phenomenon was discovered. Moreover, the chain-transfer process was analyzed by measuring the formation of C=C double bonds, which clarified a former confusion about the course of propylene oxide rearrangement.


This 12-part series offers a month-by-month guide for practitioners working outdoors with young children, supporting them and helping you celebrate, whatever the weather – this month, October.


Abstract : Reverse proxy servers are valuable assets to defend outside hosts from seeing the internal network structure upon which the reverse proxy is serving. They are frequently used to protect valuable files, systems, and internal users from external users while still providing services to outside hosts. Another aspect of reverse proxies is that they can be installed remotely by malicious actors onto compromised machines in order to service malicious content while masking where the content is truly hosted. Reverse proxies interact over the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP), which is delivered via the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). TCP flows provide various details regarding connections between an end host and a server. One such detail is the timestamp of each packet delivery. Concurrent timestamps may be used to calculate round trip times with some scrutiny. Previous work in timing analysis suggests that active HTTP probes to servers can be analyzed at the originating host in order to classify servers as reverse proxies or otherwise. We collect TCP session data from a variety of global vantage points, actively probing a list of servers with a goal of developing an effective classifier to discern whether each server is a reverse proxy or not based on the timing of packet round trip times.


The widespread tendency to combine vernacular with modern architecture has led to the need for an in-depth understanding of the concepts that underlie the form of vernacular architecture. Unfortunately, there has been no systematic and rigorous research method aimed explicitly at reading the architecture of vernacular settlements that do not have written data on local traditions and culture. This study puts forward the theoretical-methodological steps to read the meaning of architectural patterns in the context of vernacular settlements by elaborating Levi-Strauss' structural analysis of myths with Salura and Alexander architectural theory. This study resulted in structuralist-inductivist steps to describe, analyse, and interpret vernacular architecture. The methodological framework consists as three significant parts: Firstly, to describe the activity and form of vernacular architecture in-depth based on the anatomical scope and architectural composition-properties. Secondly, to explore the surface structure of local myths, activities, and architectural form. Thirdly, to disclose the deep structure that underlies the relationship between local myths - activities - architectural form. These steps can be applied to read the meaning of vernacular settlements with no written sources on cultural traditions. Thus, this research contributes to the development of the theory and methodology of architectural scholarship. This research also acts as a source of knowledge for architectural practitioners and a significant input for the survival strategies of vernacular architecture.


The study goal was to investigate the stress among working and non-working mothers and the abuse of their kindergarten age children. Two instruments were developed to measure the stress with two versions for working and non-working mothers, and a child abuse tool. Face validity and retest reliability were conducted. The stress tool contained 25 Items. The tools were administered to a sample of 400, working (200) and nonworking (200) mothers in Amman. A t-test for independent samples was used to test the difference between means of stress and child abuse for working and non-working mothers. Also, two-way analysis of variance was conducted to find the mean differences of the three abuse dimensions: physical, psychological and neglects for working and non-working mothers. Results showed statistical difference (p < 0.05) between means of stress in favor of working mothers, but the difference between means of abuse was in favor of nonworking mothers. The results also showed statistical significant differences (p < 0.05) in the three domains of physical, psychological and neglect abuse, in favor of the non-working mothers. Implications and recommendations for future studies were suggested.


The main aim of the research was evaluation of corrosion resistance of SS 316L, NiTi alloy in artificial urine in presence of sodium chloride. Corrosion resistance of two metals namely SS 316L, Nickel Titanium super elastic alloy has been evaluated in artificial urine (AU) in the absence and presence of sodium chloride. Potentiodynamic polarization study and SEM have been used to investigate the corrosion behavior of these metals and nature of the protective film formed on the metal surface. The order of corrosion resistance of metals in artificial urine, in the absence and also in the presence of sodium chloride was discussed.


A total of 189 children with bacterial complications of the acute respiratory viral infection (ARVI)--primarily with pneumonia and bronchitis--were dynamically examined for typical and atypical pneumotropic causative agents of the infection process (Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Chlamydia spp., Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Pneumocystis carini, and Citomegalovirus). A high frequency rate of the associative infection involving mycoplasmas and pneumocysts was registered (45-50%); it was lower in the cases involving Chlamydias, hemophilic bacteria, pneumococcus, and cytomegalovirus--up to 25-30%. No sharp difference was found between the indices of an infection degree and those of an active clinical infectious process involving the same pneumotropic agent: the biggest difference was observed in Chlamydia infections (9.4%) and the lowest one--in mycoplasma infections (3%). A dynamic comparison of different classes of immunoglobulins revealed that, in acute bronchitis and pneumonias, the Chlamydia and cytomegalovirus infections are, primarily, of the persistent nature; the hemophilic and pneumocystic infections are of a mixed nature; and the pneumococcus one is of the acute nature. The Mycoplasma infection, which is more often encountered in pre-school children, is of the primary type with a trend towards a prolonged clinical course. All pneumonias had a typical clinical course; the clinical picture was compared in 128 patients with the etiological factor (including a description of characteristic symptoms).


Histochemical localization of acid phosphatase was reported on the microfilariae isolated from the peripheral blood of the dog and their developing larvae in mosquitoes in comparison with the localization in those from the jird's peritoneal cavity and their larvae. Whole body of microfilariae stained red with dark red excretory vesicle and anal vesicle. The sheaths were negative in those from the dog, while positive in most microfilariae from the jird. During the first two days after the intake unstained larvae were frequently found in the mosquitoes fed jird microfilariae in contrast to those fed on the dog. From the third day on, positive developing intestine was observed. After the first molt the esophagus appeared as a red double line. On the 7th day strong activity was found at the esophagus, intestine, developing anus and amphids, while the nerve ring was negative. Positive reaction was detected at the hypodermis and anus of infective larvae.


Within the retail industry, companies often outsource their transport movements between
distribution centers and stores. Carriers (such as Peter Appel Transport; PAT) are hired
to execute those movements. However, retailers still want to control parts of the logistical
planning. Therefore, retailers often place orders for full truckloads that need to be
distributed throughout a predefined sequence of stops: a trip. The duration of trips is
not long enough to keep drivers and vehicles (resources) busy for an entire working day.
Therefore, carriers want their resources to execute several trips subsequently. Furthermore,
trips need to be executed by various combinations of resources: a driver and several
types of vehicles (e.g., a Truck and an Eurotrailer). The corresponding planning process is
executed by planners of the carrier.
At present, planners at PAT manually combine resources to form resource-groups and
then manually assign trips to those resource-groups. Planners take the required properties
of resources (e.g., vehicle-type, drivers-license, etc.) into account, based on the characteristics
of the trip (e.g., addresses, volume of the load, and cooling requirements). We call the
problem of combining resources, and scheduling, routing, and assignment of trips the tripassignment-
problem. Because the planning process is currently executed manually, both
RGB+ Automatisering and Peter Appel Transport have the desire to automatically solve the
trip-assignment-problem. Therefore, the goal of this research is the following:
Develop an algorithm for solving the trip-assignment-problem at PAT.


This paper presents a stability analysis of the extended finite-difference time-domain method including passive and active devices. An explicit, implicit, and semi-implicit incorporation of lumped elements is investigated and the eigenvalues of the resulting discrete system are discussed. With the underlying assumption that the domain is homogeneously loaded with lumped elements, stability criteria are derived on the basis of a resistance, a conductance, and an inductance. Applying a fully implicit method, a parasitic resistance can be observed when reactive devices are included. For an inductance, this numerical dissipation is characterized in detail and an equivalent circuit is given. As an example, the impact on the quality (Q) factor of a cavity loaded with an inductance is shown and compared to the theoretical derivation.


"Interactive spaces" are physical environments or rooms for collaborative work that are augmented with ubiquitous computing technology. Their purpose is to enable a computer-supported collaboration between multiple users that is based on a seamless use of different devices for natural "post-WIMP" interaction (e.g., multitouch walls, interactive tabletops, tablet PCs, or digital pen and paper). However, to this day, there are no well-established guidelines or toolkits for designing and implementing such distributed user interfaces (DUIs). Therefore, this article introduces the Zoomable Object-Oriented Information Landscape (ZOIL), a novel design approach and software framework for post-WIMP DUIs in interactive spaces. In the following, the ZOIL design principles are first introduced and illustrated. They provide recommendations and examples of DUI interaction design for interactive spaces. Then the different software patterns and architectures that have been employed for implementing the open-source ZOIL software framework are described. This framework facilitates the implementation of ZOIL's design principles in practice. Lessons learned from ZOIL's implementation are shared, and the implementation is discussed and compared with related work and approaches. The results of an evaluation of ZOIL with designers and developers conclude the article.


To limit the risk of high cycle fatigue, underplatform dampers (UDPs) are traditionally used in aircraft engines to control the level of vibration. Many studies demonstrate the impact of the geometry of the damper on its efficiency, thus the consideration of topological optimization (TO) to find the best layout of the damper seems natural. Because of the nonlinear behavior of the structure due to the friction contact interface, classical methods of TO are not usable. This study proposes to optimize the layout of an UDP to reduce the level of nonlinear vibrations computed with the multiharmonic balance method (MHBM). The approach of TO employed is based on the moving morphable components (MMC) framework together with the Kriging and the efficient global optimization algorithm to solve the optimization problem. The results show that the level of vibration of the structure can be reduced to 30% and allow for the identification of different efficient geometries.


Welcome to the Copyright and Intellectual Property LibGuide! This Guide is designed to share information on copyright and related topics. This Guide does not supply legal advice nor is it intended to replace the advice of legal counsel.


This paper aims at developing a 3-tier inter-universities data warehouse prototype for the Egyptian universities. The implementation scope is restricted to the student enrollment process. The bottom-up approach and the multi-tier (3-tier) client/server architecture were used to implement the proposed prototype. The implementation required a number of steps to be undertaken. First, a star schema data warehouse was built based on an operational database of a public university. Second, another star schema data warehouse was built based on an operational database of a private university. Third, data from the two warehouses were abstracted to formulate the inter-universities data warehouse (tier 3). Hence, a data cube based on the resulting interuniversities data warehouse was developed using an OLAP server (tier 2). The data cube is then accessed by a client tool (tier 1) for the purpose of query and analysis. Although two universities were used to implement the interuniversities data warehouse, this scenario could be applied with any number of universities in a quite similar way. This inter-universities prototype is scalable and flexible to retain more than two universities regardless of the size of the operational databases. The interuniversities prototype fosters the coordination between participating universities and supports the decision making process. The proposed system could be used to generate a variety of strategic reports.


This research contributes to the debate on economic growth and income inequalities in early modern Europe by estimating real wages expressed in subsistence-ratios in the rural and urban sectors of the Kingdom of Poland. Furthermore, a method of weighting the wages with data on the employment structure is outlined and implemented. A comparison of the Polish-weighted real wages with the English and Italian suggests two waves of supremacy of the North Sea Region. The first divergence occurred prior to the early modern period and the second resumed in the 17th century. The paper incorporates non-wage-earning farmers and agricultural workers paid partially in kind into the analytical framework.


BACKGROUND: Maternal knowledge is one of the indirect causes of maternal mortality in Indonesia. Maternal knowledge that mothers must possess includes knowledge about pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum. Maternal knowledge should be provided during pregnancy. The aim of this study is to identify maternal knowledge in postpartum women who have a history of the frequency of pregnancy visits according to the minimum standard. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive quantitative design was performed by assessing maternal knowledge to postpartum mothers using an online questionnaire which conducted in 2020 at two public health centers of Surabaya, Indonesia. A sample of this research involved postpartum mothers who completed inclusion criteria, namely physiological postpartum mothers and had regular pregnancy at least 6 antenatal care (ANC) visits. In contrast, the exclusion criteria were postpartum mothers who were not included in the target areas of research. It uses random sampling techniques and performs an analysis using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Three research questions showed a large percentage of wrong answers, namely preparation to face complications (64%), contraceptive methods in breastfeeding mothers (50%) and the first time using contraception during childbirth (42%). Meanwhile, all the correct results (100%) are exclusive breastfeeding and supplementary feeding for babies. CONCLUSION: Completing minimal standards of ANC visits cannot ensure adequate maternal knowledge, particularly crucial health information that influences maternal and neonatal health status.


Recent studies have showed that it is troublesome, in practice, to distinguish between long memory and nonlinear processes. Therefore, it is of obvious interest to try to capture both features of long memory and non-linearity into a single time series model to be able to assess their relative importance. In this paper we put forward such a model, where we combine the features of long memory and Markov nonlinearity. A Markov Chain Monte Carlo algorithm is proposed to estimate the model and evaluate its forecasting performance using Bayesian predictive densities. The resulting forecasts are a significant improvement over those obtained by the linear long memory and Markov switching models.


A stochastic version of a stationary linear iterative solver may be designed to converge in distribution to a probability distribution with a specified mean μ and covariance matrix A−1. A common example is Gibbs sampling applied to a multivariate Gaussian distribution which is a stochastic version of the Gauss-Seidel linear solver. The iteration operator that acts on the error in mean and covariance in the stochastic iteration is the same iteration operator that acts on the solution error in the linear solver, and thus both the stationary sampler and the stationary solver have the same error polynomial and geometric convergence rate. The polynomial acceleration techniques that are well-known in numerical analysis for accelerating the linear solver may also be used to accelerate the stochastic iteration. We derive first-order and second-order Chebyshev polynomial acceleration for the stochastic iteration to accelerate convergence in the mean and covariance, by mimicking the derivation for the linear solver. In particular, we show that the error polynomials are identical and hence so are the convergence rates. Thus, optimality of the Chebyshev accelerated solver implies optimality of the Chebyshev accelerated sampler. We give an algorithm for the stochastic version of the Chebyshev-accelerated SSOR (symmetric successive over-relaxation) iteration, and provide numerical examples of sampling from multivariate Gaussian distributions to confirm that the desired convergence properties are achieved in finite precision.


A variety of imperceptible watermarking schemes have been proposed over the last few years. In general, publications on the subject tend to focus on the technical details of the specific scheme (increase of robustness, improvement of imperceptibility, etc.), paying little attention on the application scenarios where the proposed method could fit in. Most of the methods are said to be suitable for either copyright protection or authentication, i.e. for a single specific application with no investigation is done on the possibility of applying the same scheme to other applications as well. The main reason for this is that no attempt for a detailed and systematic listing and categorization of the existing application scenarios took place so far. A hybrid algorithm for printed image watermarking with enhanced security employing cryptographic techniques & robust detection with graceful degradation is developed & investigated. Robust detection is achieved by graceful degradation of the recovered image. Various types of attacks on watermark method image have been simulated & their resultant has been observed. Experimental results prove the security & robustness of the proposed algorithm.


An important unresolved issue in student evaluation research is how different rating dimensions should be weighted for summative evaluation. This study demonstrated the use of hierarchical confirmatory factor analysis to determine the weights. A model for evaluating the teaching effectiveness of a B.Ed. programme delivered by distance education was hypothesized, which consisted of four first-order factors and one second-order factor. The four first-order factors represented four separate dimensions of the construct Teaching Effectiveness: Student Development; Assessment; Learning Materials; and Face-to-face Component. The second-order factor subsumed all the four dimensions and was treated as a general factor of effective teaching. End-of-semester student ratings were collected by a multifactor rating form. Hierarchical confirmatory factor analysis of the student ratings provided clear support for the a priori model. Ways to compute the weights for the four dimensions based on second-order factor loadings were demonstrated.


In this essay. I suggest that the crisis in our understanding of fertility transitions is more apparent than real. Although most existing theories of fertility transition have been partially or wholly discredited, this reflects a tendency to assume that all fertility transitions share one or two causes, to ignore mortality decline as a precondition for fertility decline, to assume that pretransitional fertility is wholly governed by social constraints rather than by individual decision-making. and to test ideas on a decadal time scale. I end the essay by suggesting a perceptual. interactive approach to explaining fertility transitions that is closely allied to existing theories but focuses on conditions that lead couples to switch from postnatal to prenatal controls on family size.


All drivers have habits behind the wheel. Different drivers vary in how they hit the gas and brake pedals, how they turn the steering wheel, and how much following distance they keep to follow a vehicle safely and comfortably. In this paper, we model such driving behaviors as car-following and pedal operation patterns. The relationship between following distance and velocity mapped into a two-dimensional space is modeled for each driver with an optimal velocity model approximated by a nonlinear function or with a statistical method of a Gaussian mixture model (GMM). Pedal operation patterns are also modeled with GMMs that represent the distributions of raw pedal operation signals or spectral features extracted through spectral analysis of the raw pedal operation signals. The driver models are evaluated in driver identification experiments using driving signals collected in a driving simulator and in a real vehicle. Experimental results show that the driver model based on the spectral features of pedal operation signals efficiently models driver individual differences and achieves an identification rate of 76.8% for a field test with 276 drivers, resulting in a relative error reduction of 55% over driver models that use raw pedal operation signals without spectral analysis


Partial Discharge (PD) monitoring is one of the main diagnostic instrument to evaluate the reliability of modern electrical transmission and distribution systems. The widespread use of High voltage dc (HVDC) connections increase the demand of voltage source converters (VSCs) which, as a consequence, has brought about new challenges in the field of partial discharge measurements. In fact, the output voltage waveforms generated by AC/DC modular multilevel converters (MMCs) are affected by a significant harmonic content which influences the Partial Discharges (PDs) activity. For this reason, previous research mainly investigated the PD phenomenon on the AC side of the converter. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the PDs behavior applying a voltage waveform containing ripple at the DC side of the converter. At first, a pure DC voltage has been used to stress the tested specimen and then harmonic content has been added by chancing the number of modules of the simulated AC/DC converter. For the different generated waveforms, measurements of PDs have been carried out and a comparison of the different PDs pattern have been made. The effect on the PDs behavior has been also evaluated for different switching frequencies.


A kind of optical fiber radiation pyrometer based on the theory of color comparison temperature measurement is designed in order to get the precise temperature on the appearance of work pieces during the process of plasma hot machining. In this article, the advantage of temperature measurement by optical fiber, the building of mathematic module for colorimetric temperature measurement, the application of key technology during the process of system building and the methods of reducing the interference is described in detail. The data calibrated and tested in blackbody furnace is given out. The results show that the precision of temperature measurement could reach to 0.5%. It is repetitiveness is well enough.


In this paper, we propose decentralized controllers for the design of the Automatic Generation Control (AGC) layer in power networks equipped with Flexible AC Transmission Systems (FACTS) devices. We focus on the capability, provided by FACTS, of redirecting power flows by controlling physical parameters of tie-lines. Control design is decentralized as the procedure for synthesizing a controller for a generation area uses information from neighboring areas only. Moreover, our method is termed plug-and-play because, if a generation area is plugged in or out, at most neighboring areas must update their controllers, leaving the rest of the network unaffected. Performance brought about by the proposed controllers is discussed on a benchmark example.


South Africa's post-apartheid foreign policy reveals that transformational global governance considerations have occupied a central place on the Republic's international radar screen. The Mandela, Mbeki, Motlanthe and Zuma governments have all ambitiously set out to help transform global order from its western-bias and to become more sensitive to the needs and interests of Africa and the global South, while simultaneously championing the idea of a "rules-based" international society. Unilateralist tendencies of major powers have been opposed while South Africa championed active participation in the multilateral domain. One goal was to transform structures and institutions of global governance while another aim was to place developmental goals on the global agenda. As South Africa targeted UN agencies, notably the Security Council, the IMF, World Bank, WTO and more recently the G20, the curious question begs: will South Africa muster the wherewithal to sustain such grand global roles in the years and decades to come?


Studies of steroid growth promoters from beef cattle feedyards have previously focused on effluent or surface runoff as the primary route of transport from animal feeding operations. There is potential for steroid transport via fugitive airborne particulate matter (PM) from cattle feedyards; therefore, the objective of this study was to characterize the occurrence and concentration of steroid growth promoters in PM from feedyards. Air sampling was conducted at commercial feedyards (n = 5) across the Southern Great Plains from 2010 to 2012. Total suspended particulates (TSP), PM10, and PM2.5 were collected for particle size analysis and steroid growth promoter analysis. Particle size distributions were generated from TSP samples only, while steroid analysis was conducted on extracts of PM samples using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. Of seven targeted steroids, 17α-estradiol and estrone were the most commonly detected, identified in over 94% of samples at median concentrations of 20.6 and 10.8 ng/g, respectively. Melengestrol acetate and 17α-trenbolone were detected in 31% and 39% of all PM samples at median concentrations of 1.3 and 1.9 ng/g, respectively. Results demonstrate PM is a viable route of steroid transportation and may be a significant contributor to environmental steroid hormone loading from cattle feedyards.


The results of treatment of 264 patients, suffering an acute and chronic pancreatitis, are analyzed. In 30% of observations the liquid peripancreatic accumulations observed have had regressed under the influence of complex conservative therapy and in other--there were performed transcutaneous punctures under ultrasonographic guidance, the cysts drainage, using laparoscopic method. The recurrence free postoperative period had lasted not less than 3 months.


. Human-Object Interaction (HOI) detection plays a crucial role in activity understanding. Though significant progress has been made, interactiveness learning remains a challenging problem in HOI detection: existing methods usually generate redundant negative H-O pair proposals and fail to effectively extract interactive pairs. Though interactiveness has been studied in both whole body- and part- level and facilitates the H-O pairing, previous works only focus on the target person once ( i.e. , in a local perspective) and overlook the information of the other persons. In this paper, we argue that comparing body-parts of multi-person simultaneously can afford us more useful and supplementary interactiveness cues. That said, to learn body-part interactiveness from a global perspective: when classifying a target person's body-part interactiveness, visual cues are explored not only from herself/himself but also from other persons in the image . We construct body-part saliency maps based on self-attention to mine cross-person informative cues and learn the holistic relationships between all the body-parts. We evaluate the proposed method on widely-used benchmarks HICO-DET and V-COCO. With our new perspective, the holistic global-local body-part interactiveness learning achieves significant improvements over state-of-the-art. Our code is available at https://github.com/enlighten0707/Body-Part-Map-for-Interactiveness.


Abstract Sensory attributes of six heat‐resistant chocolates were compared with the standard chocolate using a trained sensory panel who were trained using the Sensory Spectrum method. The panel evaluated the chocolates using three tactile and ten oral attributes at 24, 29, and 38°C. The panel demonstrated consistent rating of the various samples. ANOVA showed that all of the 13 sensory attributes (Firmness to touch, Stickiness to fingers, Snap, Abrasiveness, Hardness with incisors, Fracturability, Cohesiveness of mass, Time to melt, Firmness with tongue, Adhesiveness to teeth, Number of particles, Oily mouthcoating, and Chocolate messiness) were significantly different across the samples. A higher degree of heat resistance was identified by the panelists for the low‐fat gelatin and polyol samples at 38°C. Principal component analysis revealed two principal components; the first pricipal component described the variability due to temperature, and the second principal component described the variability brought about by the various technologies.


The bid to recognise Cante Alentejano as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity was approved unanimously on 27, November 2014, exactly three years after Fado became part of the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This candidacy was promoted by Tourism of Alentejo, E.R.T, in partnership with the municipality of Serpa and including the participation of the community, musical groups and local and regional public bodies. The purpose of the bid was the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage and it was built upon, among others, the collection and analysis of documents about the Cante Alentejano, the collection and analysis of its musicography, and the characterization of groups and singers of Cante. This recognition of Cante Alentejano as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity poses challenges to stakeholders directly or indirectly involved in the management process. In this context, and given the strategic importance of tourism for the development and competitiveness of Alentejo, it is important to promote the debate about the UNESCO recognition of Cante, in order to draw the most appropriate strategies for its preservation and appreciation, while enhancing the multiplier effects on the tourism development of the region Using a set of in-depth interviews conducted with key informants, we aim to analyse and discuss the potential of Cante Alentejano, recognised as Intangible Heritage of Humanity, for the experiential tourism development in the tourism destination Alentejo.


miR172b regulates the transcription of FLS2 through TARGET OF EAT1 (TOE1) and TOE2, which governs the ontogeny of plant innate immunity. Innate immunity plays a vital role in protecting plants and animals from pathogen infections. Immunity varies with age in both animals and plants. However, little is known about the ontogeny of plant innate immunity during seedling development. We report here that the Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) microRNA miR172b regulates the transcription of the immune receptor gene FLAGELLIN-SENSING2 (FLS2) through TARGET OF EAT1 (TOE1) and TOE2, which directly bind to the FLS2 promoter and inhibit its activity. The level of miR172b is very low in the early stage of seedling development but increases over time, which results in decreased TOE1/2 protein accumulation and, consequently, increased FLS2 transcription and the ontogeny of FLS2-mediated immunity during seedling development. Our study reveals a role for the miR172b-TOE1/2 module in regulating plant innate immunity and elucidates a regulatory mechanism underlying the ontogeny of plant innate immunity.


This paper, through the analysis of the limitation of the ultrasonic sensor in the underground drilling robot which obstacle avoidance, puts forward the solving scheme, emphasizes the compensation of temperature and humidity to ultrasonic sensor, attempts to use Elman feedback neural network approach function. Elman network hidden layer adopts Tan-sigmoid transfer function, and output layer transfer function adopts linear function, which guarantee that the network can approaches wanton function with wanton precision once it has enough layers. Proved by experiments that the measure precision of ultrasonic ranging raises two orders of grade after carrying on the temperature and humidity compensate, improves the working efficiency of obstacle avoidance in the system greatly and the ability of drilling robot's obstacle avoidance.


Proximity sensors have been developing through the last decades. Adopting a radiation source and analyzing the reflected signal, obstacles and surroundings can be sensed and detected from a distance without contact. The mm-wave radar systems provide considerable potential in vital sign detection compared to the other proximity sensing choices based on audio and ultrasonic waves or optical signaling. In this study, a 60 GHz radar system was employed for contactless vital sign detection, such as respiration and heartbeat rate. The potential of the system in measuring through the materials was studied in various transmission situations. Three different methods were examined for preparing the phase information, and a clinically certified heartbeat rate measurement tool analyzed the accuracy of the results. The suggested algorithm can scan the region in the radar field of view and capture exceptional features like the heartbeat rate with a median accuracy of 96.22%.


This paper reports the initial high-power operation of a frequency-doubling magnicon amplifier at 11.120 GHz. The deflection cavities operate at 5.560 GHz. The device is operating in a single-pulse mode at 650 kV and /spl sim/225 A, using a 5.5-mm diameter beam from a plasma cathode, at a magnetic field of 6.7-8.2 kG. In order to overcome a gain saturation problem in the deflection cavities caused by plasma loading, the penultimate deflection cavity is operated very close to self-oscillation. The typical output pulselength is 100 ns full width at half maximum (FWHM), and is limited by RF breakdown of the penultimate cavity. Based on the measured far-field antenna pattern and absolute calibration of all microwave components, the measured output power is 14 MW (/spl plusmn/3 dB), corresponding to an efficiency of /spl sim/10%.


During the commissioning (alternate unipolar and bipolar operation) of ±800KV DC transmission grounding electrode, the average grounding current is much greater than that of the steady bipolar operation, which might cause undesirable impacts on the edatope. In this study, the soil physicochemical property variations of the plant root zone (depth 0.5 m) and the soil temperature during the commissioning of the grounding electrode were monitored and analyzed. And the influence of the commissioning on plant growth was evaluated.


Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cervisiae) undergoes a form of metabolism by glycolysis and fermentation, meaning it does not need oxygen to go through metabolic processes. We are testing the hypothesis that if S. cervisiae is exposed to a higher concentration of rice sugar, then the ethanol production will be greater because the S. cervisiae has more glucose for energy. Therefore, we will see an increase in anaerobic respiration. To perform the experiment, we looked at 0.5%, 2%, and 4% rice sugar concentrations mixed with S. cervisiae and sodium phosphate in a respiration chamber, then measured the ethanol production. However, our hypothesis was not supported by our data, suggesting that the rate of ethanol production was not affected by different rice sugar concentrations. Previous studies have found contradicting results, thus, more trials and a larger gradient of sugar concentrations should be considered in future research.


The paper proposes the adoption of formal methods for modeling of analog functions. It explains how assertions can be overlaid onto the range of values of individual features in an analog function, and proceeds toward building a mathematical (hybrid automata) model to represent and analyze them. An LDO regulator and a battery charger are used as examples.


ABSTRACT Plant residue material produced compost is an organic fertilizer source and it is commonly used for soil amendments. Also in order to reduce the amount of chemical fertilizers need mycorrhizal inoculation can be used as an agricultural strategy. Thus, the aim of the research is to examine the effect of several residue materials produced compost and mycorrhizae fungi with two growth media on leek plant growth, nutrient uptake, and mycorrhizae spores' production. Eight different row organic materials and animal manures were used as compost production during 8 months. Leek (Allium porrum L.) plants were inoculated with Funneliformis mosseae and Claroideoglomus etunicatum with a level of 1000-spore per pot. The leek plant was analyzed for determination of nutrient concentration, root colonization, spore production, and shoot/root dry weight. The composts were made from domestic waste, animal manure (bovine animal), animal manure (ovine animal), and different plant materials were determined to be the most suitable compost material for plant growth and mycorrhizal spore production compared to the rest of compost material. Mycorrhizal inoculation significantly increased leek plant growth and nutrient uptake especially phosphorus (P), potassium (K), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn). Plants grown in 5:3:2 (volume/volume) growth media was responded better to the mycorrhizal inoculation than grown in 1:1:1 (v/v) growth media. Funneliformis mosseae inoculated plants have higher plant growth and nutrient uptake than that of Claroideoglomus etunicatum inoculation.


Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance in managing early-stage cervical cancer according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage or tumor size. Methods/Materials: We performed a retrospective review of patients with FIGO stages IB1 to IIA cervical carcinoma who underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before lymphadenectomy. Lymphadenectomy involved all visible lymph nodes in the surgical fields. We compared the accuracy of MRI for detecting metastatic lymph nodes in the FIGO IB and IIA groups and in the nonbulky (≤4 cm) and bulky (>4) tumor groups. χ2 analysis was used to compare the accuracy of MRI for detecting metastatic lymph nodes. P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Three hundred five patients were included. Lymph node metastases were present in 49 (16.1%) of these patients. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were 7%, 99.3%, 31.3%, and 95.8% in the nonbulky tumor group and 43.8%, 97.1%, 70%, and 91.8% in the bulky tumor group (P = 0.001, P = 0.0097, P = 0.0479, and P = 0.0142, respectively). Conclusions: For predicting lymph node metastasis with MRI in early-stage cervical cancer patients, MRI showed a higher diagnostic performance in the bulky tumor group compared with that in the nonbulky tumor group and had a low value in the nonbulky tumor group, even when accounting for FIGO stage.


To evaluate the sagittal alignment and range of motion (ROM) of the cervical spine during cervical flexion and extension ,using multi-detector-row-computed tomography (MDCT) in asymptomatic subjects.Understanding the normal alignment and range of motion of the cervical spine is very important while evaluating patients with cervical spine instability and abnormal alignment. Several reports using plain radiographic data have assessed the alignment and ROM of the cervical spine during flexion and extension. However, there has been no such report using MDCT. Ninety-eight subjects who did not have cervical spine-related symptoms were enrolled. After myelography, all subjects underwent cervical MDCT in cervical flexion and extension. Sagittal alignment and ROM between C2 and C7 were measured.The sagittal alignment between C2 and C7 was -11.7°±8.3° (mean ± standard deviation) in flexion and 26.5°± 12.9° in extension. The C5/6 level showed maximum kyphosis in flexion. The C6/C7 level demonstrated maximum lordosis in extension. ROM between C2 and C7 was 37.9°±11.2°. The C2/3 level showed the lowest ROM and the C5/C6 level showed the highest ROM among the intervertebral levels evaluated.The sagittal alignment and ROM of the cervical spine during flexion and extension in asymptomatic subjects were measured using MDCT. Each level between C2 and C7 could be evaluated in detail without any influence due to degenerative changes in the spine or soft tissues of the shoulder. MDCT generated a more precise understanding of the dynamic changes at each evaluated intervertebral level in the cervical spine. Level of Evidence : Level II.


Recently, the application of the magnetic field during the solidification process of alloys has become of great interest, owing to its ability to enhance microstructures. Hence, the present work aims to study the impact of a rotating magnetic field on the microstructure, thermal, and creep properties of the Sn–2.0Ag–0.5Cu (SAC205) alloy during solidification. Results demonstrated that applying a rotary magnetic field homogenized the distribution of intermetallic compounds and improved the microstructure. Additionally, the magnetic field diminished undercooling from 22.5 oC to 11.4 oC, indicating that the magnetic field is very useful in enhancing the microstructure and the alloy's reliability. The pasty range values for SAC205 and SAC205-B were 7.2 oC and 8.6 oC lower than 11.0 oC for lead-tin, leading to a reduction of the alloy porosity. The SAC205-B alloy exhibited the longest creep rupture time of 158.5% compared to the SAC205. The n values of SAC205-B were higher than those of SAC205. Consequently, the SAC205-B alloy displayed the highest creep resistance and lowest creep rate (28.53%) compared to the SAC205. The Q values were 51.2 and 67.5 kJ/mol for SAC205 and SAC205-B, respectively, controlled by pipe diffusion. This research will provide practical advice for the manufacture of the solder alloy.


This paper presents the characterisation of critical infrastructures in Nigeria as an initial step towards development of a framework for the uniform designation of an infrastructure as a Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) in Nigeria. Notably, there is no globally acceptable criteria for the designation of an infrastructure as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) or CNII. However, there is a consensus that CNIs are vital for a modern society, and drives economic growths and national prosperity. Although there are similarities in such infrastructures worldwide, every nation determines the value to attach to each CNI depending on its developmental goal, priorities and the level of dependency on such infrastructure. In Nigeria, there is no publicly available information on the categorisation of infrastructures as CNI or CNII. The mythological approach adopted was document scan, analysis and synthesis of publicly available information on CNI and CNII of some selected countries, followed by a comparative analysis. Five countries were selected from each of the six continents based on population size and adoption of Information and Communications Technology (ICT). The findings revealed that about 90% of the countries studied categorised energy, transportation, water, communications and health as sectors of CNI. Conceptually, based on the outcome, CNIs in Nigeria were characterised into twelve critical sectors. This initial study forms the first step towards development of a framework for the correct designation of an infrastructure as a CNII in Nigeria as opposed to arbitrary designation.


As we are marching towards deeper sub-micron technology from process scaling, the transistor leakage itself had became more and more dominant to the total component power, which is unavoidable. Clever employment of power gating / sleep transistor / MTCMOS technology can help to shut off leakage power from un-use blocks. However over placement of power gate cells to reduce ON stage IR voltage drop can yield higher leakage power during OFF stage at high temperature and fast skew. This paper described the circuit analysis, optimization strategies and design methodology to tackle this issue head on. A proposal on power gate placement optimization using the concept of power windowing and Power Perimeter Scan (PPS) was introduced in this paper. Details break down of circuit modeling and design trade off on Power Gating FETs was described including simulation results and equations to aid the illustrations. The overall power saving using MTCMOS was re-evaluated for total leakage minimization.


The next-generation of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) sets a new horizon of inquiry into the obvious and hidden significances of the secular techno-society. By incorporating the perspectives of STS (Science, Technology and Society) into the sociology of religion, this article attempts to explore the social-religious significance found in the emerging relationships between the human and Robotics and AI. By referring to several cases of Robotics from Japan and the US, this article examines three versions of the relationship, namely, the physical, the social and the psychological. Several concrete cases are referred to for each aspect: the robot suit, the robotic arm, and BMI (Brain Machine Interface) for the physical relationship; PARO, a seal-like healing robot, OriHime, and Pepper for the social relationship; and a conversation with artificial 'personality' such as Bima48 for the psychological relationship. For each of this kind of relation, the involvement on Sociology of Religion is discussed.


Hirschsprung's associated enterocolitis (HAEC) is the most serious and potentially fatal complication of the disease, with a significant morbidity and mortality. The effect of HAEC varies remarkably among the publications since the lack of consensus and the absence of established diagnostic criteria. Patients diagnosed with Hirschsprung's disease (HD) were selected and treated between January 2009 and December 2012 in Fundacion HOMI, finding 41 cases of HD, 6 of them with total aganglionosis. 76% of the patients had HAEC, 18 of them during the neonatal period and 6 of them after the final pull-through; 23% presented recurrent enterocolitis episodes. HAEC was the first clinical manifestation in 25 (61%) of the patients with HD. From HD patients limited to the rectum and sigmoid 67% had enterocolitis unlike TCA (total colonic agangliniosis) cases in which all presented HAEC episodes. In our setting, HAEC remains to be an unknown complication; this revision demonstrates its high incidence and mortality.


Background: CALR mutations were recently identified in a substantial proportion of persons with essential thrombocythemia (ET) and with primary myelofibrosis (PMF) without JAK2V617F. Consequently rapid, sensitive and specific methods to detect and quantify these mutations are needed. Methods: We studied samples from 1088 persons with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) including 421 JAK2V617F negative subjects with ET, PMF, polycythemia vera (PV), chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and hyper-eosinophilic syndrome (HES). Detection of CALR exon 9 mutations was done by PCR amplification followed by fragment length analysis and direct sequencing. Dilution assays were used to determine CALR mutant allele burden. Results: We detected CALR mutations in blood and bone marrow samples from 152 subjects with ET and with PMF but not in samples from normal or persons with PV, CML or HES. CALR mutant peaks were distinct from wild-type peaks and dilution experiments indicated a sensitivity level of 0.5-5% for a CALR mutant allele in a wild-type background. Diverse types of mutations were detected including deletions, insertions and complex indels. All mutations were confirmed by direct sequencing. We also used dilution experiments to quantify mutant allele burden. We were able to reproducibly detect mutant allele levels as low 5% (0.5-5%) in a wild-type background. Conclusions: PCR amplification followed by fragment length analysis is a rapid, sensitive and specific method for screening persons with MPNs for CALR mutations, especially those with ET and PV with JAK2V617F and for estimating mutant allele burden. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


The exponential rise in cancer costs in South Africa (SA) was illustrated in a recent Sunday Times article entitled 'The cost of cancer can be a debt sentence'. Our Minister of Health talks of a 'war' against the high costs of cancer drugs, and epidemiologists project a sharply rising incidence. Eminent international medical journals, such as The Lancet, underline the fact that cancer cost is a growing international problem that confronts even the richest countries. If richer countries in the world are battling to cover the costs of cancer, what is the prognosis for SA?


Background Systemic sclerosis (scleroderma, SSc) is an autoimmune connective tissue disease characterized by skin and internal organ fibrosis, coupled with widespread vascular pathology. Skeletal muscle involvement in SSc has often been considered as a minor component of the disease associated with disuse. Objectives The goal of this study is to identify specific histopathological hallmarks of skeletal muscle involvement in SSc. Methods A total of 50 SSc patients presenting clinical, serological and electromyographic (EMG) features of muscle weakness, were enrolled. Patients underwent vastus lateralis biopsy, assessed for individual pathologic features including fibrosis [type I collagen (Coll-I), transforming growth factor β (TGF-β)], microangiopathy [cluster of differentiation 31 (CD31), pro-angiogenic vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), anti-angiogenic VEGF-A165b], immune/ inflammatory response [CD4, CD8, CD20, human leucocyte antigens ABC (HLA-ABC)], and membranolytic attack complex (MAC). SSc biopsies were compared to biopsies of (n =50) idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) and to (n =50) noninflammatory myopathies (NIMs). Ultrastructural abnormalities of SSc myopathy were also analyzed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Results Fibrosis in SSc myopathy (90%) is higher compared to IIM (30%, p <0.05) and to NIM (15%, p <0.05). Vascular involvement is dominant in SSc muscle (95%), and in IIM (75%) compared to NIM (20%, p <0.05). In particular, CD31 shows loss of endomysial vessels in SSc myopathy with respect to IIM (p <0.05) and to NIM (p <0.01). VEGF-A is downregulated in SSc myopathy compared to IIM (p <0.05) and to NIM (p <0.05), while VEGF-A165b is upregulated in SSc myopathy. The SSc immune/inflammatory response suggested humoral process with majority (80%) HLA-ABC fibral neoexpression and complement deposits on endomysial capillaries MAC, compared to IIM (p <0.05), characterized by CD4+/CD8+/B-cell infiltrate, and to NIM (p <0.05). TEM analysis showed SSc vascular alterations consisting of thickening and lamination of basement membrane and endothelial cell 'swelling' coupled to endomysial/perimysial fibrosis. Conclusions The predominat features of SSc-related myopathy are fibrosis, microangiopathy and humoral immunity. However, it is difficult to identify specific histopathological hallmarks of muscle involvement in SSc, since they could be present also in other (IIM/NIM) myopathies. Disclosure of Interest None declared


The traditional staged operation for acute sigmoid volvulus is giving way to onestage resection. Similarly, the conventional requirement for bowel cleansing is being increasingly questioned. In this report, we reviewed the outcome of our management over a ten-year period. There were 24 patients aged 23–100 years. Of these, 21 had one-stage primary resection with no clinical anastomotic leak and only one wound infection and fascial dehiscence. The two deaths from this group were due to respiratory failure in a patient aged 100 years and overwhelming sepsis in a younger patient with bowel gangrene from ileosigmoid knotting. We conclude that emergency one-stage resection for acute sigmoid volvulus without mechanical bowel preparation is safe. aDepartment of Surgery, College of Medical Sciences, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. Correspondence: Oludiran OO, Department of Surgery, College of Medical Sciences, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. E-mail: email@example.com


The formation of oxygen radicals by phagocytic cells occurs through the activation of a multiple-component NADPH oxidase system. An unidentified low molecular weight GTP-binding protein has been proposed to modulate the activity of the NADPH oxidase. The low molecular weight GTP-binding proteins undergo posttranslational processing, including an initial covalent incorporation of an isoprenyl group. To test whether such an isoprenylation reaction might be required for the activity of the oxidase, we utilized compactin and lovastatin as inhibitors of the isoprenylation pathway. Treatment of DMSO-differentiated HL-60 cells with compactin produced a concentration-dependent inhibition of O2- formation in response to FMLP or phorbol myristate acetate. Cell viability was not affected nor was normal differentiation of the HL-60 cells into a neutrophil-like cell. The inhibitory effect of compactin was specifically prevented by addition of exogenous mevalonic acid to the HL-60 cells, indicating that the inhibitory effects of the drug were due to blockade of the pathway leading to isoprenoid synthesis. Addition of cholesterol, ubiquinone, or dolichol, which are also downstream products of the isoprenoid pathway, did not override the inhibitory effects of the drug. Subcellular fractions were prepared from compactin-treated cells, and the location of the compactin-sensitive factor was determined by complementation analysis in a cell-free NADPH oxidase system. The inhibited factor was localized to the HL-60 cytosol. These data suggest that an isoprenoid pathway intermediate is necessary for activation of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase. This is likely to represent the requirement for an isoprenoid moiety in the posttranslational modification of a low molecular weight GTP-binding protein. Our studies provide support for the involvement of such a low molecular weight GTP-binding protein in NADPH oxidase activation.


V. D. URIN. UproSddnnyj mitod sintiza shim s Sagovymi pirikluiatildmi {Simplified method of synthesis of circuits with stepping switches). Avtomatika i tilimihanlka, vol. 23 (1962), pp. 52-56. The paper deals with the problem of synthesis of circuits with stepping switches. The general methods of the synthesis of circuits with stepping switches were formulated by Gr. C. Moisil (Teoria algebricd a mecanismelor automate, Bucharest 1959). The author suggests a simplification of the method of synthesis given by G. Ioanin (XXIV 257). The simplified method of synthesis of circuits is explained by two examples of the synthesis of circuits with stepping switches. The method given above has limited applications. ANDRZEJ ROWICKI


OBJECTIVE: TO review the pathogenesis and pharmacologic treatment of acute hypercalcemia associated with malignancy. DATA SOURCES: A MEDLINE search (1966 to 1995) of the English-language literature pertaining to acute hypercalcemia was performed. Additional literature was obtained from reference lists of articles identified through the search. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION: All articles discussing the etiology and medical management of cancer-related acute hypercalcemia were considered in the review. Clinical trials reporting efficacy and safety of antihypercalcemic agents were also included. Information selected in the review was based on the discretion of the authors. DATA SYNTHESIS: Hypercalcemia is a life-threatening disorder associated with malignancy. It occurs in approximately 10–20% of patients with cancer. A variety of medications have been used in the management of hypercalcemia including bisphosphonates, calcitonin, furosemide, gallium nitrate, glucocorticoids, NaCl 0.9%, and plicamycin. Each of these agents has been reviewed with consideration of pharmacologic mechanism of action, evaluation of clinical trials, recommended dosages, efficacy, safety, cost, and role in treating cancer-related acute hypercalcemia. CONCLUSIONS: Immediate management of cancer-related acute hypercalcemia to prevent death and provide symptomatic relief is warranted. Severity determined by symptoms, calcium concentrations, and the overall status of the patient are important considerations in selecting appropriate therapy. Although the specific role of individual agents may vary, hydration remains the cornerstone of therapy. NaCl 0.9%, calcitonin, and Pamidronate disodium have established roles as dominant first-line agents for the management of acute hypercalcemia associated with malignancy.


A stress-coping style describes a set of behavioral and physiological measures that characterize an individual's response to stressful stimuli. It would follow that different stress-coping styles are associated with differential sensitivity for taste stimuli. Animals with stress-coping characteristics better suited to an environment in which new foods are more frequently encountered may show enhanced orosensitivity to cues that signal toxins and/or nutritional value. Here, rats were categorized as "proactive" or "passive" based on results from a defensive burying test. Next, the brief-access taste procedure was used to compare unconditioned licking responses to a concentration array of compounds that humans describe as "sweet" (sucrose), "salty" (NaCl), "sour" (citric acid), and "bitter" (quinine) across the 2 groups. Both groups displayed concentration-dependent lick responses to sucrose, NaCl, citric acid, and quinine. The passive group initiated significantly fewer trials to sucrose than the proactive rats, but the groups did not significantly differ in trial initiation for the other 3 test compounds. Thus, differences in food intake, body weight, and glucose homeostasis between the stress-coping styles are not likely driven by alterations in orosensory responsivity. However, the current findings lend support to the hypothesis that the 2 groups differ in reward-related signaling mechanisms.


This paper presents a state space model for a multiperson ensemble and an estimation method of the onset timings, tempos, and leaders. In a multiperson ensemble, determining one explicit leader is difficult because (1) participants' rhythms are mutually influenced and (2) they compete with each other. Most ensemble studies however assumed that one leader exists at a time and the others just follow the leader. To deal with the multiple and time-varying leaders, we define leaderness indicating the power to influence the others as the product of the tempo stability and the distance from the ensemble tempo. This definition means that a leader should have a strong desire to change the current tempo. Using the leaderness, we present a state space model of a multiperson ensemble and an unscented Kalman filter based estimation method. The model consists of the leaderness update, the ensemble tempo update, the individual tempo update, and the onset timing adaptation, each of which has a relationship to psychological results of an ensemble. We evaluate our method using simulation and human behavior. The simulation results show that our model is stable for various initial tempos and the number of participants. For the human behavior, pairs and triads of participants are asked to tap keys in synchronization with the others. The results show that the leaderness successfully indicate the dynamics of the leaders, and the onset errors are 181msec and 241msec for pairs and triads on average, respectively, which are comparable to those of humans (153msec and 227msec for pairs and triads, respectively.)


794 working people aged around 30 years completed three intelligence
(Ravens Progressive matrices: GMA Numerical and GMA Verbal) and one personality
test (16PF) before entering jobs in public service. They were all graduates and
there were various sex differences on all measures. They were rated by
supervisors each year after they joined the organisation and data were kept on
their promotions. Correlations between individual difference factors and the rated criterion scores showed many
significant patterns. A series of multiple regressions entered demographic
factors (sex, age, social class), arts vs science background, impression
management, intelligence test scores, and the
personality variables. A mean rating score as well as three years
supervisor ratings and number of promotions acted as the criterion scale.
Whilst there were some differences between the different criteria, there were some
consistent findings. Gender was a consistent predictor whilst there were relatively few personality and ability
correlates. Limitations are acknowledged.


Over the past decade, social protection has emerged as a critical development instrument in Asia and the Pacific. Originally understood exclusively in terms of poverty reduction, today social protection is being integrated into broader national policies. Social protection is anchored in the universal rights of everyone to social security, and to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of themselves and their families. In addition to fulfilling basic rights, social protection also generates resilience, equity and opportunity, and acts as a strong redistributive mechanism. In doing so it establishes a solid foundation for both social and economic development. To develop an effective financing framework consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals' aspirations, efforts should be consistent with the principles of the Social Protection Floor. That is, it should include the following four components: • Meeting the nutritional, health and educational needs of children; • Ensuring income security for the working-age population; • Providing old-age pensions for all; and • Achieving universal health care coverage.


The fractional difference operator remains to be the most popular mechanism to generate long memory due to the existence of efficient algorithms for their simulation and forecasting. Nonetheless, there is no theoretical argument linking the fractional difference operator with the presence of long memory in real data. In this regard, one of the most predominant theoretical explanations for the presence of long memory is cross-sectional aggregation of persistent micro units. Yet, the type of processes obtained by cross-sectional aggregation differs from the one due to fractional differencing. Thus, this paper develops fast algorithms to generate and forecast long memory by cross-sectional aggregation. Moreover, it is shown that the antipersistent phenomenon that arises for negative degrees of memory in the fractional difference literature is not present for cross-sectionally aggregated processes. Pointedly, while the autocorrelations for the fractional difference operator are negative for negative degrees of memory by construction, this restriction does not apply to the cross-sectional aggregated scheme. We show that this has implications for long memory tests in the frequency domain, which will be misspecified for cross-sectionally aggregated processes with negative degrees of memory. Finally, we assess the forecast performance of high-order $AR$ and $ARFIMA$ models when the long memory series are generated by cross-sectional aggregation. Our results are of interest to practitioners developing forecasts of long memory variables like inflation, volatility, and climate data, where aggregation may be the source of long memory.


Pattern distortions caused by the charging effect should be reduced while using the electron beam lithography process on an insulating substrate. We have developed a novel process by using the SX AR-PC 5000/90.1solution as a spin-coated conductive layer, to help to fabricate nanoscale patterns of poly-methyl-methacrylate polymer resist on glass for phased array device application. This method can restrain the influence of the charging effect on the insulating substrate effectively. Experimental results show that the novel process can solve the problems of the distortion of resist patterns and electron beam main field stitching error, thus ensuring the accuracy of the stitching and overlay of the electron beam lithography system. The main characteristic of the novel process is that it is compatible to the multi-layer semiconductor process inside a clean room, and is a green process, quite simple, fast, and low cost. It can also provide a broad scope in the device development on insulating the substrate,such as high density biochips, flexible electronics and liquid crystal display screens.


Between february 1992 to January 1994, anatomic correction was performed on 15 patients with transposition of the great arteries and intact ventricular septum. The mean age was 8.3 +/- 2.9 days and the mean weight 3.39 +/- 0.39 Kg. Before the operation, 13 patients (86.6%) received prostaglandin El infusion and 13 patients (86.6%) underwent Rashkind septostomy. Mean aortic cross-clamps was 56 +/- 11 minutes and mean cardiopulmonary bypass was 108 +/- 91 minutes. Hospital mortality rate was 13%. Mean extubation period was mean discharge from ICU was 13.1 +/- 12.3 days and discharge of hospital was 17.8 +/- 7.5 days. The mean followup period was 11.4 months. All the patients remained asymptomatic with adequate psychomotor and ponderal development. All patients remained in sinus rhythm. Pulmonary suture gradient was over 60 mm Hg in five patients (33%). One patient needed reintervention and four pulmonary artery angioplasty (PAA) that was successful. In the midterm follow-up pulmonary stenosis suture was the most common complication. If the stenosis is severe and PAA should be the initial approach.


ABSTRACT Flow boiling heat transfer in microchannels is used today in many diverse applications. The previous studies addressing the effect of channel size, heat flux, vapor quality, and mass flux on heat transfer during flow boiling are reviewed in the present paper. The relationship between flow characteristics and flow boiling heat transfer was studied experimentally for refrigerant R-C318 at moderate reduced pressures where the contribution of nucleate boiling is decisive. Flow boiling mechanisms were identified using an annular microchannel with transparent outer wall for successive visualization of boiling. The considerable suppression of nucleate boiling heat transfer was observed at transition to annular flow and explained by formation of a liquid flow with thin film and dry spots. A general equation for prediction of two-phase flow boiling heat transfer inside the circular, annular, and rectangular microchannels is proposed and verified using the experimental data. This equation accounts for the nucleate boiling suppression, forced convection, and thin film evaporative heat transfer in the form that allows to distinguish more clearly the contribution of each mechanism of heat transfer under the conditions, when it is predominant. A new approach for prediction of transition to the annular flow is proposed and verified, using the experimental data.


Through the use of acetone and ether extraction of brain tissue from newborn mice infected with certain arthropod-borne viruses, it has been possible to demonstrate hemagglutinins for chick erythrocytes associated with the following viruses: dengue Type 1, dengue Type 2, Eastern equine encephalitis, Ilhéus, Japanese B, Ntaya, St. Louis, Sindbis, Uganda S, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, West Nile (Egypt 101 strain), Western equine encephalitis, and yellow fever (viscerotropic and neurotropic strains). On the basis of the temperature and pH required for reaction, the viruses can be assembled in two groups: A—those that require 37°C. and a pH of about 6.4, comprising Eastern, Venezuelan, and Western equine encephalitis and Sindbis viruses; and B—those that require either 4° or 22°C. and a pH of about 7.0, comprising dengue Types 1 and 2, Ilhéus, Japanese B, Ntaya, St. Louis, Uganda S, West Nile, and yellow fever viruses. A method of eliminating non-specific inhibitory substances present in sera was developed. The method consists essentially of filtration through Seitz pads. Extensive serological crossings were found among viruses of each group, while antisera of one group failed consistently to cross-react with antigens of the other. Antisera deriving from animals immunized with certain viruses for which no hemagglutinins could be developed by the present method, reacted with members of either one or the other group. Thus Semliki Forest virus would appear to belong to Group A, and Russian Far Eastern and louping ill viruses to Group B.


Agent-based simulation (ABS) is a paradigm which has received much attention within the last years. For enabling industrial use of ABS scalable solutions are required which can be executed on a distributed computing architecture. Such solutions must be capable of simulating complex models with hundreds or more complex deliberative agents with really autonomous behavior. In this article we argue that only optimistic synchronization protocols are potentially capable of providing the required performance. We suggest a synchronization protocol with constrained optimism which exploits specific characteristics of communication patterns within agent based simulations. Furthermore the presented protocol includes appropriate methods for GVT computation and fossil collection in distributed ABS as well as mechanisms to ensure repeatability.


The article examines the historical and cultural contexts of folk opera development in Ghana. It argues that Saka Acquaye created folk opera in response to Ghana's post-colonial policy initiatives to redress negative colonial mindsets among the citizenry, and also to foster national identity and unity through the arts. The paper analyzes Saka Acquaye's 'The Lost Fishermen,'—the most popular folk opera in Ghana, to illustrate the genre's form as well as the depth of appropriations from indigenous theatre resources for the above stated purposes. The paper establishes that despite the obvious Western influences in folk opera, it is essentially the unscripted indigenous theatre resources that served as its biggest thematic and performance resource base; and that it was such deliberate appropriations from diverse ethnic and regional settings of the country repackaged for a national audience that were intended to address the political and cultural challenges mentioned. The paper concludes by attributing the current low patronage of folk opera in Ghana to the near irrelevance of the cultural and political challenges that influenced its birth and popularity.


The Los Alamos sea ice model, CICE, is a sophisticated finite difference grid point model. It has been a part of the National Science Foundation and Department of Energy community climate models (Community Climate System Model (CCSM) and Community Earth System Model (CESM)) for over a decade. It includes various physical and dynamical processes and is parallelized to run on large-scale computer systems. The CICE model was assessed in the CESM at different resolutions and target processor counts to better understand and optimize the performance. Several new decompositions and a new feature to reduce the halo cost were added to the model. The new decompositions better leverage land block elimination and take advantage of scaling opportunities in different computational kernels. As a result of these new features, the CICE model performance has been improved by up to 45% and has more flexibility to be run efficiently at arbitrary Message Passing Interface (MPI) task counts.


We evaluate the performance of the most common estimators of latent Markov (LM) models with covariates in the presence of direct effects of the covariates on the indicators of the LM model. In LM modeling it is common practice not to model such direct effects, ignoring the consequences that might have on the overall model fit and the parameters of interest. However, in the general literature about latent variable modeling it is well known that unmodeled direct effects can severely bias the parameter estimates of the model at hand. We evaluate how the presence of direct effects influences the bias and efficiency of the 3 most common estimators of LM models, the 1-step, 2-step, and 3-step approaches. Furthermore, we propose amendments (that were thus far not used in the context of LM modeling) to the 2- and 3-step approaches that make it possible to account for direct effects and eliminate bias as a consequence. This is done by modeling the (possible) direct effects in the first step of the stepwise estimation procedures. We evaluate the proposed estimators through an extensive simulation study, and illustrate them via a real data application. Our results show, first, that the augmented 2-step and 3-step approaches are unbiased and efficient estimators of LM models with direct effects. Second, ignoring the direct effects leads to biased estimates with all existing estimators, the 1-step approach being the most sensitive.


We analyse the star formation rates (SFRs), colours and dust extinctions of galaxies in massive (10^(12.5) – 10^(13.5)M⊙) haloes at z ∼ 2 in high-resolution, cosmological zoom-in simulations as part of the Feedback In Realistic Environments (FIRE) project. The simulations do not model feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) but reproduce well the observed relations between stellar and halo mass and between stellar mass and SFR. About half (a third) of the simulated massive galaxies (massive central galaxies) at z ∼ 2 have broad-band colours classifying them as 'quiescent', and the fraction of quiescent centrals is steeply decreasing towards higher redshift, in agreement with observations. The progenitors of z ∼ 2 quiescent central galaxies are, on average, more massive, have lower specific SFRs and reside in more massive haloes than the progenitors of similarly massive star-forming centrals. The simulations further predict a morphological mix of galaxies that includes disc-dominated, irregular and early-type galaxies. However, our simulations do not reproduce the reddest of the quiescent galaxies observed at z ∼ 2. We also do not find evidence for a colour bimodality, but are limited by our modest sample size. In our simulations, the star formation activity of central galaxies of moderate mass (M_(star) ∼ 10^(10) – 10^(11)M⊙) is affected by a combination of two distinct physical processes. Outflows powered by stellar feedback result in a short-lived (<100 Myr), but almost complete, suppression of star formation activity after which many galaxies quickly recover and continue to form stars at normal rates. In addition, galaxies residing in slowly growing haloes tend to experience a moderate reduction of their SFRs ('cosmological starvation'). The relative importance of these processes and AGN feedback is uncertain and will be explored in future work.


Master-field simulations offer an approach to lattice QCD in which calculations are performed on a small number of large-volume gauge-field configurations. The latter is advantageous for simulations in which the global topological charge is frozen due to a very fine lattice spacing, as the effect of this on observables is suppressed by the spacetime volume. Here we make use of the recently developed Stabilised Wilson Fermions to investigate a variation of this approach in which only the temporal direction ($T$) is taken larger than in traditional calculations. As compared to a hyper-cubic lattice geometry, this has the advantage that finite-$L$ effects can be useful, e.g. for multi-hadron observables, while compared to open boundary conditions, time-translation invariance is not lost. In this proof-of-concept contribution, we study the idea of using very cold (i.e. long-$T$) lattices to topologically"defrost"observables at fine lattice spacing. We identify the scalar-scalar meson two-point correlation function as a useful probe and present first results from $N_f=3$ ensembles with time extents up to $T=2304$ and a lattice spacing of $a=0.055\,\rm{fm}$.


Sport concussions can be difficult to diagnose and if missed, they can expose athletes to greater injury risk and long-lasting neurological disabilities. Discovery of objective biomarkers to aid concussion diagnosis is critical to protecting athlete brain health. To this end, we performed targeted proteomics on plasma obtained from adolescent athletes suffering a sports concussion. A total of 11 concussed male athletes were enrolled at our academic Sport Medicine Concussion Clinic, as well as 24 sex-, age- and activity-matched healthy control subjects. Clinical evaluation was performed and blood was drawn within 72 h of injury. Proximity extension assays were performed for 1,472 plasma proteins; a total of six proteins were considered significantly different between cohorts (P < 0.01; five proteins decreased and one protein increased). Receiver operating characteristic curves on the six individual protein biomarkers identified had areas-under-the-curves (AUCs) for concussion diagnosis ≥0.78; antioxidant 1 copper chaperone (ATOX1; AUC 0.81, P = 0.003), secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC; AUC 0.81, P = 0.004), cluster of differentiation 34 (CD34; AUC 0.79, P = 0.006), polyglutamine binding protein 1 (PQBP1; AUC 0.78, P = 0.008), insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-like 1 (IGFBPL1; AUC 0.78, P = 0.008) and cytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 3A (NT5C3A; AUC 0.78, P = 0.009). Combining three of the protein biomarkers (ATOX1, SPARC and NT5C3A), produced an AUC of 0.98 for concussion diagnoses (P < 0.001; 95% CI: 0.95, 1.00). Despite a paucity of studies on these three identified proteins, the available evidence points to their roles in modulating tissue inflammation and regulating integrity of the cerebral microvasculature. Taken together, our exploratory data suggest that three or less novel proteins, which are amenable to a point-of-care immunoassay, may be future candidate biomarkers for screening adolescent sport concussion. Validation with protein assays is required in larger cohorts.


This study investigates the association between CEO severance agreements and corporate tax avoidance. Severance agreements, by providing executives with additional compensation when there is a change in employment status, should serve to encourage additional risk-taking, as reflected by increased tax avoidance activities. Using a large sample of aggregate compensation data, I find some evidence of a relation between the presence of a CEO severance agreement and tax avoidance. Using a smaller sample of hand-collected data, I find a significant negative relation between the magnitude of cash severance pay and tax avoidance and a significant positive relation between the magnitude of equity severance pay and tax avoidance. Overall, this study provides evidence that the structure and magnitude of severance agreements are related to tax avoidance.


This briefing reports a case study from Nepal that empirically tested the Tracking Adaptation and Measuring Development (TAMD) methodology for evaluating the effectiveness of approaches to climate adaptation. Nepal has many climate change projects, so this study used a quasi-experimental approach to bring together results across interventions, comparing and aggregating their contributions to building resilience. The briefing explains how the study tested using locally developed theories of change to look at how interventions made their contribution; scorecards to measure village and district level progress; and household surveys to identify which locally relevant indicators show changes over time. It draws out the policy implications for how to monitor and evaluate adaptation in Nepal and how to use the TAMD framework approach both for national government monitoring and in-depth evaluation within a district.


The orally available novel small molecules PF06463922 [(10R)-7-amino-12-fluoro-2,10,16-trimethyl-15-oxo-10,15,16,17-tetrahydro-2H-8,4-(metheno)pyrazolo[4,3-h][2,5,11]benzoxadiazacyclotetradecine-3-carbonitrile] and PF06471402 [(10R)-7-amino-12-fluoro-2,10,16-trimethyl-15-oxo-10,15,16,17-tetrahydro-2H-8,4-(azeno)pyrazolo[4,3-h][2,5,11]benzoxadiazacyclo-tetradecine-3-carbonitrile] are second-generation anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitors targeted to both naïve and resistant patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) to the first-generation ALK inhibitor, crizotinib. The objectives of the present study were to characterize and compare the pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PKPD) relationships of PF06463922 and PF06471402 for target modulation in tumor and antitumor efficacy in athymic mice implanted with H3122 NSCLC cells expressing a crizotinib-resistant echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4 (EML4)-ALK mutation, EML4-ALKL1196M. Furthermore, the PKPD relationships for these ALK inhibitors were evaluated and compared between oral administration and subcutaneous constant infusion (i.e., between different pharmacokinetic [PK] profiles). Oral and subcutaneous PK profiles of these ALK inhibitors were adequately described by a one-compartment PK model. An indirect response model extended with a modulator fit the time courses of PF06463922- and PF06471402-mediated target modulation (i.e., ALK phosphorylation) with an estimated unbound EC50,in vivo of 36 and 20 nM, respectively, for oral administration, and 100 and 69 nM, respectively, for subcutaneous infusion. A drug-disease model based on the turnover concept fit tumor growth curves inhibited by PF06463922 and PF06471402 with estimated unbound tumor stasis concentrations of 51 and 27 nM, respectively, for oral administration, and 116 and 70 nM, respectively, for subcutaneous infusion. Thus, the EC50,in vivo to EC60,in vivo estimates for ALK inhibition corresponded to the concentrations required tumor stasis in all cases, suggesting that the pharmacodynamic relationships of target modulation to antitumor efficacy were consistent among the ALK inhibitors, even when the PK profiles with different administration routes were considerably different.


ABSTRACT The removal of glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) with synthetic water was carried out on a lab-scale nanofiltration unit using two membranes, NFX and NFW. The presence of humic acid and some inorganic matters (CaCl2 and NaCl) was tested in the experiment. The results demonstrate that NFX exhibits better separation performance than NFW. The herbicide filtration is found to have little effect on the permeate flux as compared to transmembrane pressure. Intermediate concentrations of NaCl act positively on foulant separation, and an increment of 3.3–5.4 percentage points in foulant rejection is obtained with the addition of 100 mg/L of NaCl. In Contrast, CaCl2 has negative effect on foulant separation during nanofiltration. Humic acid alone shows little influence on the rejection performance, whereas it is slightly improved in the coexistence of humic acid and CaCl2. The nanofiltration technology proves to be a good approach to treat the problem of pesticide micropollution in a one-step process. This work clearly shows that the composition of the water matrices may influence the efficiency of the nanofiltration process in terms of the separation of the micropollutants.


The distribution behaviour of phenolic compounds between aqueous solution and the bulk organic solvents, n-octanol and cyclohexane, has been investigated over a range of temperature. The temperature dependence of partitioning of the phenolic compounds between aqueous solution and dimyristoyl phosphatidyl choline (DMPC) liposomes, below the phase transition temperature, has also been examined. From the experimental data, the thermodynamic parameters of free energy, enthalpy and entropy of transfer for the substituted phenols between aqueous solution and the three lipoidal environments have been derived. The non-covalent interactions and structural changes involved in the transfer of the phenolic solutes from aqueous solution to the various model membrane system could then be determined. Analysis of the thermodynamic data showed that the overall partitioning of phenolic solutes from aqueous solution to DMPC liposomes, below the phase transition temperature, was different than the transfer of the same solutes from aqueous solution to either n-octanol or cyclohexane. There were similarities between the three aqueous/model membrane systems however. The values of the partition coefficients in the aqueous/n-octanol system more closely resembled, in both absolute and relative terms, the values in the aqueous/ liposome system, than did the aqueous/cyclohexane partition coefficients. Solute-lipid, as well as solute-water interactions were found to be important for partitioning in both the aqueous/liposome and aqueous/n-octanol systems, whilst only solute-water interactions were significant for partitioningiin- the aqueous cyclohexane system. The transfer of phenols from aqueous solution to DMPC liposomes was entropy driven, whilst partitioning into n-octanol and cyclohexane was either enthalpy or entropy controlled depending on type of substituent on the molecule. Enthalpy-entropy compensation was found to be present for partitioning of phenols in the aqueous/liposome and aqueous/cyclohexane systems, but not in the aqueous/n-octanol system.


This thesis deals with the development of a contextual theology that explores the use
of prison as punishment and its consequences from the perspective of those who have
served a prison sentence.
My painful journey through imprisonment and the early years following my
release, are paralleled by my early struggles in the development of this thesis and my
theological reflection. The result is the development of a hermeneutical model that
begins with a critical reflection on the historical use of imprisonment as punishment.
The next chapter contains extracts from my diaries of my time in prison (1996-97)
and the years following my release up to 2001. Chapter Three contains an analysis of
my interviews with sixty-two former prisoners in order to record their 'dangerous
memories'.
The second half of my thesis begins with the exploration of consciousnessraising
in an attempt to understand control and surveillance techniques that continue
to exclude the incarcerated and are used to govern our lives. Chapter Four also
explores the concept of knowledge-power on the part of the Establishment, including
the Church. Yet I find the powerless and excluded also have a knowledge-power.
The fifth chapter is a biblical and theological reflection, based on the previous
chapters that draw on contextual and liberation theologies. Due to my experiences that
challenged my preconceived ideas of God, I produce a number of theological
perspectives in my postmodern understanding of God in Jesus: the non-violent God
who was incarcerated and executed, and in so doing, became our Liberator. The final
chapter deals with post-incarceration praxis that challenges the scapegoat mentality
that permeates our society, calling on the Church to recover its founding roots to
become the Community of the Reconciled and to embrace the excluded.


The purpose of this study was to determine how subordinates describe their immediate supervisor's leadership behaviours and to understand the employees' perceptions of their immediate supervisor's relations-oriented and task-oriented leadership behaviours in retail banking. The 100 item LBDQ XII instrument employed was focussed on describing relationsoriented and task-oriented leadership behaviours. This questionnaire has been used in several countries to study leadership behaviour as mentioned in Littrell (2002), and has also been used in South Africa by Littrell and Nkomo (2005). Research participants in the research included 288 employees in Retail Banking in Johannesburg. These employees were located at Head Office in Johannesburg. The research findings on how the subordinates describe their immediate supervisor's leadership behaviour in retail banking, suggest that retail banking leaders were perceived by their subordinates as exhibiting both relations-oriented and task-oriented leadership behaviour. This explains why there was very little difference in the mean scores of all twelve subscales of the LBDQ Questionnaire. According to Klimoski and Hayes (1980), a similar pattern of relations-oriented and task-oriented leadership behaviour was observed in a production department of a large-processing firm. The study concluded that performance and job satisfaction were enhanced if the supervisors demonstrated the behaviours that were both task centred and supportive. However, mean scores for other items of the subscales suggest some need for improvement.


Probable cooling of hands must be taken into account in setting up the prophylaxis of pathology due to the local vibration. Warm air pumped into the manual pneumatic devices can eliminate the cooling of operators' hands. The same effect is gained by the physiotherapeutic procedure--the warming and micromassage of hands by the dry air.


Sea-floor hydrothermal vent sites as modern equivalents of the earliest ecosystems on Earth is an intriguing hypothesis, but one that has no supporting evidence from the geologic record. We have therefore analyzed the organic content of samples representative of sea-floor hydrothermal activity from ∼ 3.2 Ga, as well as samples up to the present, including active sea-floor hydrothermal deposits. The mass spectroscopy results show that a great variety of organic compounds is present in all the samples. The data are essentially indistinguishable between the various samples, irrespective of their age. These findings imply, among other things, that organic productivity associated with sea-floor hydrothermal environments was already vigorous as early as the Middle Archean, supporting the premise that life may have started near vent sites. However, abundant organic material in concomitant pelagic sediment (shale), together with supporting carbon isotopic evidence, shows that a photosynthetic marine biota was probably also active at this time. Thus, ecosystems related to sea-floor hydrothermal activity and photosynthetic microorganisms in the ambient ocean coexisted at 3.2 Ga, indicating that these earliest ecosystems must have been in existence well before this time.