Objectives. Septo-optic dysplasia (SOD), also known as de Morsier syndrome is a rare congenital syndrome involving variable midline brain structures, characterized by visual impairment, pituitary deficiencies and specific brain abnormalities (especially midbrain malformations). The clinical phenotype is highly variable, from mild to extremely severe. The purpose of this paper is to present the electroencephalographic abnormalities in two clinical cases and correlate with the ones that have been described in the literature in order to find a specific trait of this syndrome. Methods and results. A 12-year-old girl was hospitalized in the pediatric neurology clinic for focal seizures, developmental delay and cerebral palsy. Clinical examination showed visual disturbances (nystagmus and oculomotor nerve palsy), unilateral pyramidal syndrome – left hemiparesis. Electroencephalography (EEG) revealed bilateral photosensitive epileptic form discharges, but asymmetrical, right more than left, with abnormal, slower background. MRI showed optic nerve hypoplasia and hypoplasia of the corpus callosum. The second case was also a girl, a 7-year-old who had only 2 focal right motor seizures with secondary generalization and developmental delay. Clinical examination showed visual impairment and bilateral nystagmus. The standard EEG evaluation didn't reveal any abnormalities, with normal background. Cerebral MRI showed midline brain defects – agenesis of the septum pellucidum, agenesis of corpus callosum and optic nerve hypoplasia. Endocrine evaluation for pituitary function showed in the first case – increased thyroid-stimulating hormone and in the second case – decreased IGF1. Antiepileptic treatment was started in both cases, but seizures were refractory to treatment and persistent EEG abnormalities still present in the first case, with good evolution of epilepsy in the second case. Conclusions. The epileptiform abnormalities associated to SOD are present only if there is an associated cortical malformation.


In 1978, a federally funded project was undertaken which involved remedial work on an existing rock cut located in Manchester, New Hampshire. The through cut consists of Northbound ON and OFF Ramps of Route I-93 at the Wellington Road Interchange. The work included construction of protective measures along both sides of the Northbound OFF Ramp, to restrain, channel and prevent rock-fall from reaching the roadway. These protective measures had to satisfy certain requirements and were subject to several restrictions: nearly maintenance free, minimum of interference to snow plowing operations, year-round protection, easily repairable if damaged, no significant change in the appearance of the existing slope and aesthetically pleasing. A wire mesh blanket, to act as a protective measure, was recommended and installed along the right side of the Northbound OFF Ramp. The mesh, covering the entire rock slope from crest to toe, was recommended for a distance of 925 plus or minus feet. In this section, the rock slope averages 55 plus or minus feet in height with a maximum cut face of 70 plus or minus feet. This portion of the cut has been the site of numerous rockfalls in which a significant number of rocks have reached the roadway. Although the wire mesh has not been in place at this location for a sufficient length of time to evaluate its performance, it has performed very well over extended periods of time, under severe conditions, in other parts of the country and Canada. The wire mesh is quite strong and amazingly flexible. It blends into the slope and has a minimal impact on the environment. The mesh can be used very effectively as a remedial rock fall measure where space is limited for flattening the slopes and other measures can not be used. None of the work performed required any special equipment or expertise by the contractor. All phases of the installation do require a great deal of hand labor. Wire mesh as a protective measure has its place in remedial rock-slope engineering. It is expected that in the future this type of installation may become more widely utilized in North America. (Author)


Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) comprises of several tiny devices, low-cost, low-power and sensor nodes. This node has distinctive nature unlike from other networks. It includes a huge amount of small sensing devices with some limitation in energy, computation, and communication capabilities. These sensing devices are designed for specific applications, and they interact directly with their physical environments. The applications of WSNs are abundant; many of them are even security critical such as military or security applications. However, strong security practice should be deployed to secure the network from various attacks. The prevention-based approach such as key cryptographic and authentication has been implemented to secure the network from malicious activities. Yet, these techniques will not secure the computer or network system from insider attacks which leads to extract some sensitive information. As the result, intrusion detection turns into a crucial second layer to protect and keep the network secure from any malicious attack. The aim of this paper to provide a detailed review about the characteristics and vulnerabilities of WSN. Alongside, we highlighted the use of IDS framework to protect the network security.


This article presents Conformity as a new method for text-independent speaker recognition. Its principle is to compare statistical distributions of samples. We estimate these distributions by vector quantization using a single, universal codebook. One computes the frequency of apparition of each codeword for test and reference speech, and the frequencies are compared. We perform several experiments with a database consisting of many speakers and a high number of tests, and conduct experiments in an opened test methodology. We compare the results to those obtained by other well-known methods. Our new method yields good results when used alone. It may also be combined advantageously with the classical vector quantization method to which it is complementary. The joint use of these two methods permits an enhanced recognition rate. Keywords— Speaker verification, text independence, vector quantization, opened test.


High salinity brines, although rare on Earth's surface, may have been important in the geologic history of Mars. Increasing evidence suggests the importance of liquid brines in multiple locations on Mars. In order to interpret the effect of high ionic strength brines on olivine dissolution, which is widely present on Mars, 47 new batch reactor experiments combined with 35 results from a previous study conducted at 25°C from 1 < pH < 4 in magnesium sulfate, sodium sulfate, magnesium nitrate, and potassium nitrate solutions with ionic strengths as high as 12 m show that very high ionic strength brines have an inhibitory effect of forsterite dissolution rates. Multiple linear regression analysis of the data suggests that the inhibition in dissolution rates is due to decreased water activity at high ionic strengths. Regression models also show that mMg up to 4 m and mSO4 up to 3 m have no effect on forsterite dissolution rates. The effect of decreasing dissolution rates with decreasing aH2O is consistent with the idea that water acts as a ligand that participates in the dissolution process. Less available water to participate in the dissolution reaction results in a slower dissolution rate. Multiple linear regression analysis of the data produces the rate equation logr=−6.81−0.52pH+3.26logaH2O. Forsterite in dilute solutions with a water activity of one dissolves twice as fast as those in brines with a water activity of 0.8.


Routing table storage demands pose a significant obstacle for large-scale network simulation. On-demand computation of routes can alleviate those problems for models that do not require representation of routing dynamics. However, policy based routes, as used at the interdomain level of the Internet through the BGP protocol, are significantly more difficult to compute on-demand than shortest path intradomain routes due to the semantics of policy based routing and the possibility of routing divergence. We exploit recent theoretical results on BGP routing convergence and measurement results on typical use of BGP routing policies to formulate a model of typical use and an algorithm for on-demand computation of routes that is guaranteed to terminate and produces the same routes as BGP. We show empirically that this scheme can reduce memory usage by orders of magnitude and simultaneously reduce the route computation time compared to a detailed model of the BGP protocol.


In order to improve the user search experience, Query Suggestion, a technique for generating alternative queries to Web users, has become an indispensable feature for commercial search engines. However, previous work mainly focuses on suggesting relevant queries to the original query while ignoring the diversity in the suggestions, which will potentially dissatisfy Web users' information needs. In this paper, we present a novel unified method to suggest both semantically relevant and diverse queries to Web users. The proposed approach is based on Markov random walk and hitting time analysis on the query-URL bipartite graph. It can effectively prevent semantically redundant queries from receiving a high rank, hence encouraging diversities in the results. We evaluate our method on a large commercial clickthrough dataset in terms of relevance measurement and diversity measurement. The experimental results show that our method is very effective in generating both relevant and diverse query suggestions.


During life-threatening danger, people may react in ways that decrease their chances of surviving or coping with the event. Several empirically demonstrated reactions have a potentially maladaptive effect on performance, due to limitations in our cognitive and emotional processing capacity or the activation of obsolete adaptation mechanisms. The possible psychological explanations for this are discussed in terms of assumptions derived from three major psychological paradigms: Darwinian, Freudian, and cognitive psychology. These theoretical models all illustrate useful concepts and assumptions, which do not logically exclude one another, necessary to understand more thoroughly how psychological adaptation occurs in danger situations. However, no theory alone explains the empirical findings, and the various theories should be integrated into a model that includes different levels of psychological function, from consciously controlled processes to emotional and automatic process.


We study possible algorithmic models for the picture verification task with double-quantified sentences of the form 'Some X are connected with every Y'. We show that the ordering of quantifiers, either Some ◦ Every or Every ◦ Some, influences the cognitive difficulty of the task. We discuss how computational modeling can account for the varying cognitive load in quantifier verification.


A novel pseudorandom binary sequence generator construction based on the shrinking generator topology is presented. The genesis of this new generator results from an irregular switching combination of two shrinking generators that produce a shrink-swell generator. It is shown theoretically that the period and empirically that the linear complexity of this generator grows exponentially with the switching register lengths, which are ultimately responsible for stochastic keystream throughput elasticity. Also successful statistical testing of the randomness attributes of the generator in accordance with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) test suite admits to a keystream source that is in conformance with the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) for data encipherment


In this study we tried to establish whether point-to-point aiming movements are planned in workspace, joint space, or both. Eight right-handed subjects performed horizontal, vertical, and diagonal aiming movements on a transversal plane. Movements were performed at several speeds. Curvature variations of the hand and corresponding joint-space paths were investigated as a function of position, direction, and speed. Straightness of hand paths predominated for vertical movements but was systematically violated for horizontal and top-right to bottom-left movements. Furthermore, the hand-path curvature of the latter movements increased with speed. Joint-space paths showed more deviation from a straight line than hand paths except for top-left to bottom-right movements in which the paths were equally curved. A comparison of normalized path curvatures at the hand and joint level indicated that in aiming, the coordinative rule of straight-line production seems to apply to both workspace and joint-space planning. The present findings confirm Kawato's (1996) views that optimization processes operate concurrently at the two control levels of arm-trajectory formation under study.


Online pharmacies (OPs) are recognized as a potential threat to public health. The growth of an unregulated global drugs market risks increasing the spread of counterfeit medicines which are often delivered to consumers without a medical prescription. The aim of the study was to assess the strategies of argumentation that OPs adopt in their marketing.


Background . Leishmania infection is a cofactor in the heightened cellular activation observed in patients with American visceral leishmaniasis and human immunode fi ciency virus type 1 (HIV) infection, with or without progression to AIDS (AVL/HIV). Thus, the persistence of a high parasite load despite antileishmanial therapy could be responsible for the continued immune stimulation. Methods . CD8 + T cells expressing CD38, parasite load, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), soluble CD14, macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), intestinal fatty acid – binding protein (IFABP), and proin fl ammatory cytokines (interleukin 1 β , interleukin 6, interleukin 8, interleukin 17, interferon γ , and tumor necrosis factor) were measured in 17 patients with AVL/HIV, 16 with HIV, and 14 healthy subjects (HS). Results . Lower Leishmania parasitemia was observed after antileishmanial and antiretroviral therapies. However, higher levels of CD38 + on CD8 + T cells were observed in both clinical phases of leishmaniasis, compared with HIV cases. AVL/HIV and HIV patients showed higher levels of LPS and IFABP than HS. Proin fl ammatory cytokine levels were signi fi cantly augmented in patients with active coinfection, as well as those with remission of Leishmania infection. LPS levels and Leishmania infection were positively correlated with CD38 expression on CD8 + T cells and with IL-6 and IL-8 levels. Conclusions . LPS levels along with the immune consequences of Leishmania infection were associated with elevated cellular activation in coinfected patients. As a consequence, secondary chemoprophylaxis for leishmaniasis or even the use of antiin fl ammatory drugs or antibiotics may be considered for improving the prognosis of AVL/HIV.


OYM is and 18-month international exchange between two established groups of textile practitioners; from Ireland and Sweden. Connecting through their shared heritage, Print Block Dublin (Patricia Belford an honorary member) and Konstnarenas Kollektiv Verkstad, Textil, Malmo, embarked on a joint exploration of the techniques and values associated with the production, processing and uses of linen, a rich history common to both countries, but now almost extinct.Exchange through participated workshops at R Space Gallery and Ulster University provided the practical platform for dialogue and making.


Facile "writing" of DNA fragments that encode entire gene sequences potentially has widespread applications in biological analysis and engineering. Rapid writing of open reading frames (ORFs) for expressed proteins could transform protein engineering and production for protein design, synthetic biology, and structural analysis. Here we present a process, protein fabrication automation (PFA), which facilitates the rapid de novo construction of any desired ORF from oligonucleotides with low effort, high speed, and little human interaction. PFA comprises software for sequence design, data management, and the generation of instruction sets for liquid‐handling robotics, a liquid‐handling robot, a robust PCR scheme for gene assembly from synthetic oligonucleotides, and a genetic selection system to enrich correctly assembled full‐length synthetic ORFs. The process is robust and scalable.


Background Dementia is a highly disabling condition causing considerable economic and societal burden worldwide. Predictions of future dementia prevalence need to take into account that, on the one hand, cardiovascular disease risk reduction may result in reduced age-specific dementia incidence but, on the other hand, increased life expectancy may lead to a larger pool of individuals susceptible to dementia. To accurately forecast prevalence of dementia, we modelled simultaneously the two conditions. Methods We developed IMPACT-BAM to model transitions to 2030 in the England and Wales population, aged 35+, through health states of cardiovascular disease, cognitive and functional impairment, and dementia to cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular death. At each iteration of this probabilistic Markov model, age-, sex-, and calendar time-specific transition probabilities (derived from 2002–2012 data of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, ELSA) were used to predict prevalence of each health state at the next calendar year. As observed in ELSA, we assumed cardiovascular disease incidence will continue to decline in parallel to cardiovascular mortality. Based on the decline in prevalence of dementia observed in the Rotterdam and Cognitive Function and Ageing Study (CFAS), we inferred a relative reduction of 2% per annum in the incidence of dementia. Validity of the model was established by comparing model estimates for recent years with independent observations. Results Using ELSA 2006 data as input resulted in predicted age and sex-specific prevalence of dementia for 2011 that was consistent with observed prevalence in CFAS 2011, underpinning the validity of IMPACT-BAM model estimates. As of 2015, we estimated 842,000 people aged 65 or older live with dementia in England and Wales, representing a prevalence of 8.15% (95% CI 3.12–14.24) in this age-group. The number (prevalence) of people aged 65 or older living with dementia is expected to rise to 1,045,000 (9.3%)in 2020, 1,216,000 (9.8%) in 2015, and 1,358,000 (9.7%) in 2030. Prevalence of dementia is and will be higher in women than in men: 9.4% (95% CI 3.0–17.6) vs 6.7%, (95% CI 3.3–10.1), respectively in 2015 and 10.4% (95% CI 2.7–26.3) vs 8.9% (95% CI 4.8–16.5) in 2030. Conclusion Despite a projected decline in age-specific dementia incidence, the age-specific prevalence of dementia is likely to rise in the next 15 years, largely due to increasing longevity. We predict a substantial increase in the number of people living with dementia, resulting from rising dementia prevalence compounded by population ageing.


The article addresses the topic of higher education reform process in Central and Eastern Europe in general and in Romania in special and focuses on the challenges public administration schools in this geographical area are currently facing. The author groups these challenges into five categories including students, market, community, decision-makers and academic management. The author argues that in order to develop and implement a sound reform of public administration programs one needs to take into consideration both global challenges common to all counties/programs but also features embedded in the regional context from Central and Eastern Europe. In the conclusion section the author refers to the potential competitive advantage PA programs have and to possible solutions from increasing their chances for a sound development in the future independent from other fundamental fields such as law, economics, etc.


In this radiant memoir of her grandmother's life, Helie Lee probes a history and a culture that are both seductively exotic and strangely familiar. And with wit and verve she claims her own Korean identity, illuminating the intricate experiences of Asian-American women. Born in 1912 - "the year of the rat" - to aristocratic parents, Hongyong Baek came of age in a unified but socially repressive Korea, where she learned the roles that had been prescribed for her: obedient daughter, demure wife, efficient household manager. Ripped from her home first during the Japanese occupation and again during the bloody civil war that divided her country, Hongyong fought to save her family by drawing from her own talents and values. Over the years she provided for her husband and children by running a successful restaurant, building a profitable opium business, and eventually becoming adept at the healing art of Chiryo. When she was pressured to leave her country, she moved with her family to California, where she reestablished her Chiryo practice. Writing in her grandmother's voice, Helie Lee depicts the concerns and conflicts that shaped one family's search for home. Evocative and keenly felt, Still Life with Rice interprets issues that touch all of us: the complex nature of family relations, the impact of social upheaval on an individual, and the rapidly changing lives of women in this century.


Abstract Although no scoring system is as yet fully validated for predicting maternal outcomes in critically ill obstetric patients, prognostication may be done objectively using severity predicting models. General critical care scoring systems which have been studied in obstetric patients are outcome prediction models (Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation [APACHE] I-IV, Simplified Acute Physiology Score [SAPS] I-III, Mortality Probability Model [MPM] I-IV) and organ dysfunction scores (Multiple Organ Dysfunction Score [MODS], Logistic Organ Dysfunction Score [LODS], Sequential Organ Failure Assessment [SOFA]). General critical care scoring systems may overpredict mortality rates in obstetric patients secondary to an altered physiology of organ systems during pregnancy. Obstetric prediction models were developed keeping in mind the physiological characteristics of obstetric population. They are Modified Early Obstetric Warning System (MEOWS), Obstetric Early Warning Score (OEWS), Maternal Early Warning Trigger (MEWT), and disease-specific obstetric scoring systems. The APACHE II model and MPM II are most often used scoring systems for predicting maternal mortality. The SOFA model is the best predictive model for sepsis in obstetrics. APACHE II and SAPS are more useful for nonobstetric population. Recent studies have also underscored the applicability of the OEWS in intensive care unit (ICU) settings with results comparable to the more elaborate APACHE II and SOFA scores. The Early Warning System helps in identifying acutely deteriorating pregnant and postpartum women in non-ICU settings who may require critical care. Fetal outcomes are largely dependent upon maternal outcomes. Prognostic systems applied to mothers may help in estimation of perinatal mortality and morbidity. How to cite this article Suri J, Khanam Z. Prognosticating Fetomaternal ICU Outcomes. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(Suppl 3):S206–S222.


Among the psychiatric diseases, bipolar disorder (BD) is the sixth leading cause of disability with a prevalence up to 4 % worldwide. BD is a complex neuropsychiatric condition which alternates episodes of mania with symptoms of depression. Although the neurobiological pathways are not completely clarified, the dopamine (DA) hypothesis, recognized as the leading theory explaining the pathophysiology of the malady, states that the dramatically compromised homeostatic regulation of dopaminergic circuits leads to alternated changes in DA neurotransmission. Modulation of D2 and D3 receptors (D2/3R) through partial agonists represents the first-line therapeutic strategy for psychiatric diseases. Moreover, a deregulation of the enzyme glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) has been reported as peculiar feature of BD. In this scenario, the concomitant modulation of D3R and GSK-3β, by employing multitarget compounds, could offer promises to achieve an effective cure of this illness. In the light of these findings, we rationally envisaged the pharmacophoric model at the basis of the design of several D3R partial agonists, suitable to be exploited for the dual D3R/GSK-3β ligand design. Thus, synthetic efforts were addressed to develop a first set of hybrid molecules able to concurrently modulate the selected targets. For a chemical structure point of view, we employed different spacers to combine a substituted aryl-piperazine moiety, reported in previously discovered D3R modulators, with a pyrazole-based fragment, already identified in GSK-3β inhibitors. A fluorescent and a cellular functional assays were carried out to assess the activity of all synthetized compounds against GSK-3β and on D3R, respectively. Most of the derivatives proved to effectively modulate both GSK-3β and D3R with potencies in the low-µM and low-nM range, respectively. The consistent biological data allowed us to identify some lead candidates worth to be further modified with the aim to optimize their biological profile and to perform a structure-activity relationship (SAR) study.


Doxorubicin is the most effective single agent in the treatment of non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Its use is limited because of the cardiac toxicity primarily in elderly patients (pts) and in pts with history of cardiac disease. Liposomal doxorubicin has been proven to reduce cardiotoxicity. The aim of this retrospective study was the use of nonpeghylated liposomal doxorubicin (NPLD) in term of efficacy, response rate and incidence of cardiac events. We retrospectively collected the experience of 33 Hematological Italian Centers in using NPLD. Nine hundred and forty‐six consecutive pts treated with R‐COMP (doxorubicin was substituted with NPLD, Myocet) were collected. Median age was 74 years, the reasons for use of NPLD were: age (466 pts), cardiac disease (298 pts), uncontrolled hypertension (126 pts), other reasons (56 pts). According to clinicians' evaluation, 49.9% of pts would not have used standard doxorubicin for different situations (age, cardiomyopathy, previous use of doxorubicin, and uncontrolled hypertension). Overall 687 pts (72.6%) obtained a complete remission (CR). About 5% (n = 51) of subjects developed major cardiotoxic events including heart failure (N = 31), ischemic heart disease (N = 16), acute heart attack (N = 3), and acute pulmonary oedema (N = 1). After a median follow‐up of 32 months, 651 pts were alive and the overall survival (OS) was 72%. After a median observation period of 23 months disease free survival (DFS) was 58%. Either in univariate or in multivariate analysis OS and DFS were not significantly affected by age or cardiac disease. Our findings strongly support that including R‐COMP is effective and safe when the population is at high risk of cardiac events and negatively selected. Moreover, the use of this NPLD permitted that about half of our population had the opportunity to receive the best available treatment.


Background: Although previous work that considered a variety of chronic conditions has shown that higher quality physician‐patient communication care is related to better health outcomes, the quality of physician‐patient communication itself for patients with HIV disease has not been well studied. Objective: To determine the relationship of patient, visit, physician, and physician practice characteristics to two measures of physician‐patient communication for patients with HIV disease. Design: Cross‐sectional survey of physicians and patients. Setting: Cohort study enrolling patients from throughout eastern Massachusetts. Study subjects: 264 patients with HIV disease and their their primary HIV physicians (n = 69). Measurements: Two measures of physician‐patient communication were used, a five‐item general communication measure (Cronbach's &agr; = 0.93), and a four‐item HIV‐specific communication measure that included items about alcohol, drug use, and sexual behaviors (Cronbach's &agr; = 0.92). Results: The mean age of patients was 39.5 years, 24% patients were women, 31.1% were nonwhite, and 52% indicated same‐sex contact as their principal HIV risk factor. The mean age of physicians was 39.1 years, 33.3% were female, 39.7% were specialists, and 25.0% self‐identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. In multivariable models relating patient and visit characteristics to general communication, longer reported visit length (p < .0001), longer duration of the physician‐patient relationship (p = .02), and female gender (p = .04) were significantly associated with better communication. The interaction of patient gender and visit length was also significant (p = .02); longer visit length was more strongly associated with better general communication for male than female patients. In similar models relating patient and visit characteristics to HIV‐specific communication, longer visit length (p < .0001) and less advanced disease stage (p = .009) were associated with better communication. In multivariable models relating physician and practice characteristics to general communication no variables were significant. However, both female physician gender (p = .002) and gay/lesbian/bisexual sexual preference (p = .003) were significantly associated with better HIV‐specific communication. Conclusions: In this study, female and homosexual physicians provided higher quality HIV‐specific communication than male and heterosexual physicians. Better understanding the processes by which female and homosexual physicians achieve higher quality communication may help other physicians communicate more effectively. Health care providers and third‐party payers should be aware that shorter visits may compromise physician‐patient communication, and that this effect may be more consequential for male patients.


The first data on marine fish parasites in Karadag nature reserve water area were published at the beginning of the 20th century. By the beginning of the 21st century, information on the fauna of cestodes in this area of the Black Sea included data on 19 species recorded in 24 fish species. However, taxonomy of this class of helminths has changed significantly over the last decade, and regional fauna needs to be revised. The aim of this work is to revise the species composition of fish cestodes in the water area of the Karadag nature reserve and adjacent areas on the basis of new data obtained and in accordance with current systematics of Cestoda. The material for this study was the collections of cestodes gathered by the staff of IBSS RAS Environmental Parasitology Department in the area of the Karadag nature reserve in different years, as well as our own collections of 1754 specimens of rays and teleosts of 53 species (2005–2018). The area studied is Black Sea coastal area from Meganom Cape to Ordzhonikidze village (southeastern part of Crimea), including various marine biotopes of the Karadag nature reserve. Voucher preparations of all types of cestodes used in this study were deposited in a subcollection of marine parasites of the World Ocean hydrobionts collection of IBSS RAS. Totally 20 cestode species were found in 17 fish species. Nine species, namely Progrillotia dasyatidis, Parachristianella trygonis, Dollfusiella aculeata,Rhinebothriumwalga,Caulobothrium sp.,Rhabdotobothrium sp.,Acanthobothrium sp. 5, 7, andAnthocephaliidae gen. sp. 2., were reported for the common stingray Dasyatis pastinaca in the area under study for the first time. Cestodes belonging to the new species Acanthobothrium sp. 1, 2, 4 were found in the thornback rayRaja clavata. Of 19 species previously known in Karadag area, only 8 adult mature cestodes were recorded: "Bothriocephalus scorpii", "B. gregarius", Echinobothrium typus, Grillotia erinaceus, Prochristianella papillifer, Echeneibothrium variabile, Cairaeanthus ruhnkei, and C. healyae. In addition, larvae of the complex species "Scolex pleuronectis" were found in teleost fish. Larvae of cestode Progrillotia dasyatidis were found for the first time in the water area studied in 8 teleost fish species; this data contribute to the information on the participants in the life cycle of this helminth. Four cestode species, namely Hepatoxylon trichiuri larvae, Nybelinia lingualis larvae, Tetrarhynchobothrium tenuicolle, and Anthobothrium cornucopia, which were previously reported from this area, were not found in the present survey. Moreover, recent analysis of the occurrence and synonymy of species of orders Trypanorhyncha and Onchoproteocephalidea revealed that the previous identification of the cestodes in elasmobranchs as Grillotia (Christianella) minuta and Acanthobothrium coronatum, as well as identification of the cestodes in teleosts as Tentacularia sp. larvae, is incorrect due to the absence of their specific definitive hosts in the Black Sea. On the other hand, among representatives of Acanthobothrium spp. registered in D. pastinaca and R. clavata in Karadag water area, we found 7 morphologically different new taxa identified to the species level. The cestodes found belong to 6 orders: Bothriocephalidea, Diphyllidea, Trypanorhyncha, "Tetraphyllidea" relics, Rhinebothriidea, and Onchoproteocephalidea. The most species diversity of cestodes in both species of rays is registered among representatives of the orders Trypanorhyncha and Onchoproteocephalidea (5 species each), the least – in the orders


Although current deep learning-based methods have gained promising performance in the blind single image super-resolution (SISR) task, most of them mainly focus on heuristically constructing diverse network architectures and put less emphasis on the explicit embedding of the physical generation mechanism between blur kernels and high-resolution (HR) images. To alleviate this issue, we propose a model-driven deep neural network, called KXNet, for blind SISR. Specifically, to solve the classical SISR model, we propose a simple-yet-effective iterative algorithm. Then by unfolding the involved iterative steps into the corresponding network module, we naturally construct the KXNet. The main specificity of the proposed KXNet is that the entire learning process is fully and explicitly integrated with the inherent physical mechanism underlying this SISR task. Thus, the learned blur kernel has clear physical patterns and the mutually iterative process between blur kernel and HR image can soundly guide the KXNet to be evolved in the right direction. Extensive experiments on synthetic and real data finely demonstrate the superior accuracy and generality of our method beyond the current representative state-of-the-art blind SISR methods. Code is available at: https://github.com/jiahong-fu/KXNet.


Plastic is a major composition in municipal waste. Depleting of fossil fuel leads to exploration of alternative fuel production including converting plastic waste to fuel. The objective of this of study is to investigate the effect of real plastic waste composition on a pyrolysis process to fuels. Plastic wastes that compose of shampoo bottle, plastic bag, plastic wrapper and polystyrene were used. Thermal decomposition study of the plastic wastes was done by using Thermogravimetric Analysis. The catalyst used in this research is oil palm biomass ash catalyst. It was cleansed and calcined at 750°C (15°C.min-1) for four hours. Then, the catalyst was then crushed and sieved to have homogenized size of < 125μm. The catalyst was characterized by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) with Energy Dispersive X-Ray (EDX) and Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET). Nitrogen gas was used to provide oxygen free condition during the investigation. The plastic waste and catalyst weight ratio was set at 10:1. The catalyst was tested in a batch one litre borosilicate reactor and heated up to 450 C for 30 minutes. The plastic wastes decomposed into liquid, solid residue and gas. The liquid product was collected in a condenser, while the uncondensed gas was collected in the gas bag. The composition of the liquid fuel was analyzed by using Mass spectrometry gas chromatography (GC-MS). The calorific value, moisture, density, turbidity, cetane and octane number of the liquid fuel were also determined. Gas composition of the gas product was determined via Thermal Conductivity Detector gas chromatography (GC-TCD). About 40% of liquid fuel was produced after the pyrolysis for shampoo bottle. The application of catalyst significantly improved the liquid production to 50% of liquid fuel. Liquid fuel quality with averagely high octane number for shampoo bottle and polystyrene are 100 and 98 respectively. Low moisture content (<3 %) was observed in all liquid fuels. The calorific value ranging from 2885.36 cal/g - 4209.31 cal/g was achieved for all plastics samples. A gas product that rich in methane (±3mol%) was obtained. In conclusion, the application of catalyst that derived from waste creates a low cost alternative fuel production via catalytic plastic waste pyrolysis.


Oil-bodies, from the immature cotyledons of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.), were difficult to purify to homogeneity using conventional techniques. The major protein contaminants were albumin and globulin storage proteins. A protocol has been developed, therefore, based upon the stringent washing of the oil-body fraction in 9 M urea, which effectively removed almost all the contaminating protein as judged by SDS/PAGE. The urea-washed oil-bodies were enriched in two major proteins of M(r) 19000 and 20000. These proteins were oleosins as demonstrated by their amino acid compositions and the sequence analysis of peptides produced by CNBr cleavage. Far-UV CD spectra of the oleosins in trifluoroethanol, trifluoroethanol/water mixtures and as mixed micelles in SDS, were typical of alpha-helical proteins with alpha-helical contents of some 55%. The phospholipid content of the urea-washed preparations was less than 0.1% of that required to form a half-unit membrane surrounding the oil-body. The oil-body surface therefore appears to be an unusual and novel structure, covered largely by an oleosin protein coat or pellicle rather than a conventional fluid membrane, half-unit or otherwise.


A study of the mineralogy, chemical composition and structure of poorly-crystalline saponite precipitated from a submarine hot spring in Eyjafjordur, northern Iceland is reported. Special emphasis was placed on the microstructures of the minerals and a possible connection with biological activity during their precipitation. The microstructures of the minerals were found to be very similar to specific clay minerals precipitated from geothermal vents in oceanic rift zones. The composition of the minerals was, however, found to be similar to magnesium silicate scales formed in geothermal installations in Iceland where geothermal waters were mixed with cold fresh waters. High contents of organic substances were found in the clay mineral samples as compared to geothermal precipitates from other localities. Microstructural features of the layer silicates in one of the samples suggest that a gelatinous substance was a precursor of the saponite clay. The organic matter content appears to be greater when the precipitates are more crystalline.


In this work, the simultaneous trade‐off relations among the noise figure F, gain GT, input Vin, and output Vout VSWRs of a microwave transistor operated at a certain (VDS, IDS, f) condition are obtained fast and as accurate as the corresponding analytical results using multiobjective optimization process without any need for expertise on the microwave device, circuit, and noise. Three powerful evolutionary algorithms, cuckoo search, firefly, and differential evolution, are implemented comparatively as a study case to obtain the trade‐off relations of a typical low‐noise amplifier transistor NE3511S02 for its operation between 9 and 17 GHz at VDS = 2 V and IDS = 10 mA. Finally, differential evolution is found as the most successful algorithm to demonstrate the typical trade‐off relations of NE3511S02. It can be concluded that these trade‐off relations being obtained by using a signal and noise model of the transistor enable performance database covering all the (F ≥ Fmin, GT, Vin ≥ 1, Vout ≥ 1) quadruples with their (ZS, ZL) termination pairs using solely an evolutionary optimization process. Thus, a small signal transistor can be identified by its performance database to be used in the design optimization of high‐performance low‐noise amplifiers with the full device capacity.


Evidence exists which demonstrates the relationship between a Natriuretic Factor or Na+,K+-ATPase inhibitor and volemic expansion, both in man and animal. Patients having extracellular volume expansion have been studied for the effect of their plasma on erythrocytes 3H-ouabain binding. High levels of ouabain-like activity was found in plasma from acromegalic patients and patients with chronic renal failure. High levels were also observed in some hypertensive patients. A partial purification of such a compound was performed from urine of hypertensives. The partially purified compound inhibited to a greater extent the Na+,K+-ATPase semi-purified from dog kidney than that from sheep brain. The present data are consistent with the possible regulation of the activity or the secretion of plasma ouabain-like activity by extracellular volume.


This article presents an architecture to support IPTV services in an IMS-based NGN. The architecture extends the current IMS specification with the required functionality to meet additional requirements of IPTV services. The proposed architecture can be deployed by an IPTV provider over heterogeneous access networks (mobile, wireless, and fixed) as a part of standardized NGN solutions. After presenting an overview of the IPTV standardization activities in DVB, ITU-T, ETSI, ATIS, 3GPP, and OMA, this article focuses on the ETSI TISPAN IPTV standardization. IMS-based IPTV architectural functions and possible IPTV evolutionary steps are discussed, and then the article presents an implementation example.


To the Editor.— In "Giant Cell Arteritis With Visceral Angiitis," which appeared in the October issue of theArchives(136:1157-1160, 1976), O'Neill et al reported a case of temporal arteritis associated with visceral angiitis. In my opinion, the diagnosis is probably idiopathic arteritis or panarteritis instead, although no mention was made of this syndrome in their discussion. The diagnosis in their case was made on the basis of biopsy findings and limited arteriograms. A biopsy specimen of one of the temporal arteries showed intimal fibrosis and chronic inflammatory changes in the media and adventitia. A hepatic angiogram showed segmental constriction and dilation of several internal vessels, and there were clinical signs of inflammation of the temporal artery. The renal biopsy specimen demonstrated changes that were consistent with polyarteritis. Because of the limited nature of the diagnostic studies, the full extent of their living patient's disease could not be determined. In


The relevance of this research is on the one hand caused by the need of ecological culture as integral part of the general culture of the personality, on the other, by the existence of the contradictions in the environmentally oriented education, which aren't allowing to form an ecological position of the personality. In this regard this research is directed to clarification of a role of a communicative event in a pedagogical dialogue and to the creation of the model allowing to develop ecological culture of the participants of educational process. The integrated pedagogical approach based on the communicative system of the personality and his or her manifestation in the communicative act became leading in research of the problem. The theoretical and logical analysis of the data obtained from the questionnaires drove us to the conclusion that for the development of an ecological culture there is a need to create a communicative event for value exchange in the teacher-student dialogue. The necessary conditions for the development of the ecological culture of the students and the teachers are revealed. The article suggests transcommunicative model of the development of a personal ecological culture. The basic components of a personal ecological culture have been outlined: ecological values, ecological credo, ecological position. The definition of the model as transcommunicative stresses the presence of the transpersonal level of communication and, therefore, the actualization of the meanings common to all mankind. Materials of the article are of practical value considering a possibility of developing the environmentally oriented education based upon the transcommunicative model.


The main purpose of this study was to assess the current practices of active learning in Amhara Region Police College in teaching police science. To congregate the objective of the study, mixed research design was employed. Simple random sampling for cadets and census method for instructors' was used to select cadets and instructors of Amhara Region Police College. Quantitative data were collected from cadets and instructors using structured and pretested questionnaire. The academic director and research department head were interviewed using interview guide. Data analysis was done in three phases. First, analysis of the quantitative data was done in SPSS Version 24 and percentages, means and a frequency, second, qualitative data was analyzed considering the research question, by using descriptive which is a deductive approach. Finally, quantitative and qualitative results were merged. The findings indicated that almost all instructors and cadets had awareness about active learning. Sometimes instructors are practicing active learning but the level of their practice was not satisfactory. Lecture was found to be the most commonly used teaching technique followed by individual assignments, group work/discussion and question and answer methods. Large class size, lack of administrative support, lack of materials or equipment needed to support active learning and cadets lack of interest on active learning methods were rated as the factors that have been negatively affecting the practice of active learning in Amhara Region Police College. Thus, it is critically important that instructors should be committed to discharge their roles to exercise active learning, the administration of the college and other stakeholders should design and implement a mechanism to monitor the practice of active learning, the concerned bodies of the college should design different mechanisms to avoid these problems by appropriately allocating the time, revising crowded materials and avoiding large and unnecessary contents to practice active learning in Amhara Region Police College.


TAQ stands for the Trade and Quote Database and the time stamps of either second (MTAQ) or millisecond (DTAQ). The research area by using TAQ is called Market Microstructure. Many related findings help us understand how financial markets function. However, almost no instructors have discussed TAQ in their classrooms due to three reasons. First, TAQ's huge size makes it difficult to process. Second, the price tag for the database is quite high. And finally, no good tool could be used to present the data to our students. In this paper, we discuss a simple way to show students both second-by-second and millisecond-by-millisecond high-frequency data. Students at various business schools, especially at teaching schools, can access sample high-frequency data and conduct some good term projects. For various Business Analytics/Data Analytics programs, the TAQ Database is an ideal database for them to practice dealing with big data.


Organizations today face great challenges from the unpredictable, globalized and competitive business environment. One of the ways that organizations achieve competitive advantage is by adopting various technologies including Electronic Supply Chain management (eSCM) to improve their supply chain relationships. However, despite the benefits that are promised by eSCM, some organizations find it difficult to realize its benefits and often fail in its adoption. In trying to explain this, researchers have suggested that the models used to understand the adoption of such systems are still incomplete. Drawing from the coordination theory and resource management model, this study proposes various hypotheses to explore the difference in the intention to adopt eSCM in centralized and decentralized organizations, and the impact of supply chain information visibility and top management strategic implementation. The data collection procedures and future data analysis plans are further discussed.


Design by analogy is a powerful technique for new design solutions. In the literature, there are two possible approaches. The first is more user-friendly but is low structured. The other is more complex, which structures the problem better but is highly time-consuming. This article presents a simple system for structuring the design-by-analogy method, which is based on the abstraction of the problem. The application of these solutions resulted in an increase in design possibilities. Results were collected in a repository, whose order is based on functional logic. The proposed technique was tested on the conceptual phase in the design of novel grippers. The application resulted in the development of innovative grippers. The process can be extended to many different fields. The method can be used as a creativity support during the design phase, also creating repositories that can be enlarged and reused for different applications.


We investigated the role of group V phospholipase A2 (gVPLA2) in OVA-induced inflammatory cell migration and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) in C57BL/6 mice. Repeated allergen challenge induced biosynthesis of gVPLA2 in airways. By aerosol, gVPLA2 caused dose-related increase in airway resistance in saline-treated mice; in allergic mice, gVPLA2 caused persistent airway narrowing. Neither group IIa phospholipase A2, a close homolog of gVPLA2, nor W31A, an inactive gVPLA2 mutant with reduced activity, caused airway narrowing in immune-sensitized mice. Pretreatment with MCL-3G1, a blocking Ab against gVPLA2, before OVA challenge blocked fully gVPLA2-induced cell migration and airway narrowing as marked by reduction of migrating leukocytes in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and decreased airway resistance. We also assessed whether nonspecific AHR caused by methacholine challenge was elicited by gVPLA2 secreted from resident airway cells of immune-sensitized mice. MCL-3G1 also blocked methacholine-induced airway bronchoconstriction in allergic mice. Blockade of bronchoconstriction by MCL-3G1 was replicated in allergic pla2g5−/− mice, which lack the gene encoding gVPLA2. Bronchoconstriction caused by gVPLA2 in pla2g4−/− mice was comparable to that in pla2g4+/+ mice. Our data demonstrate that gVPLA2 is a critical messenger enzyme in the development of AHR and regulation of cell migration during immunosensitization by a pathway that is independent of group IVa phospholipase A2.


Talc deposits in Nangarhar Province, are hosted by Paleoproterozoic carbonate rocks, metamorphosed to amphibolite facies in the east–west (E–W) trending Spinghar Fault Block. Many deposits in this province have potential economic importance. However, detailed geologic and petrological studies on ore genesis are still lacking. In this study, eight talc deposits and two prospects of the Spinghar Fault Block were investigated. Talc is mainly formed by alteration of the host dolomite marble, magnesite rocks, and tremolitite. Talc ore bodies occur parallel to subparallel to the beddings of the host carbonate rocks. Dolerite occur as dikes and sills and are mostly metamorphosed to amphibolite. Although the amphibolite occurs mostly parallel to subparallel to the beddings of the host carbonate rocks, and talc orebodies, it partly crosscuts the host rocks. Massive layers of tremolitite were observed with most of the talc ore bodies. Quartz veins occur along the gneissosity of gneiss all over the study area. SiO2 and MgO content in talc rocks from all deposits ranged from 49.1 to 65.1 wt% and from 26.1 to 32.9 wt%, respectively. CaO content in talc rocks and magnesite rocks are less than 1 wt%. ƩREE content in talc rocks ranged from 0.1 to 8.9 ppm. Chemical compositions of host carbonate rocks are close to the ideal composition. Concentrations of Al, Ta, Hf, Zr, Th, Cr, Ni, Co, and ƩREE in talc ores and host carbonate rocks were very low and inconsistent with mafic and ultramafic rocks protolith. Therefore, the metamorphosed sedimentary carbonate rocks were likely to be the protolith of the talc ores. The occurrence of parallel to subparallel quartz veins to the gneissosity of gneiss, as well as the presence of hydrous minerals in host carbonate rocks, suggested that hydrothermal fluids were most probably supplied through the gneiss.


The progress of Artificial intelligence and Information technology has been driving research of intelligent diagnosing, and the efficiency of diagnosis is improved by disease diagnosing system .In this paper, we analyze the comparability and relativity between fuzzy similarity distance and disease diagnosis, and initiate the theoretical model of fuzzy-distance on the basis of fuzzy membership factors vectors, and some corresponding data structure. In addition, the inference algorithm and the hierarchy of system are brought forward. Experimentation statistics demonstrate that the novel diagnosis system could obtain a satisfying accuracy rate of diagnosis, and low a rate of misdiagnosis effectively.


PIASy is a small ubiquitin-related modifier (SUMO) ligase that modifies chromosomal proteins in mitotic Xenopus egg extracts and plays an essential role in mitotic chromosome segregation. We have isolated a novel SUMO-2/3-modified mitotic chromosomal protein and identified it as poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP1). PARP1 was robustly conjugated to SUMO-2/3 on mitotic chromosomes but not on interphase chromatin. PIASy promotes SUMOylation of PARP1 both in egg extracts and in vitro reconstituted SUMOylation assays. Through tandem mass spectrometry analysis of mitotically SUMOylated PARP1, we identified a residue within the BRCA1 C-terminal domain of PARP1 (lysine 482) as its primary SUMOylation site. Mutation of this residue significantly reduced PARP1 SUMOylation in egg extracts and enhanced the accumulation of species derived from modification of secondary lysine residues in assays using purified components. SUMOylation of PARP1 did not alter in vitro PARP1 enzyme activity, poly-ADP-ribosylation (PARylation), nor did inhibition of SUMOylation of PARP1 alter the accumulation of PARP1 on mitotic chromosomes, suggesting that SUMOylation regulates neither the intrinsic activity of PARP1 nor its localization. However, loss of SUMOylation increased PARP1-dependent PARylation on isolated chromosomes, indicating SUMOylation controls the capacity of PARP1 to modify other chromatin-associated proteins.


Purpose This study examined ten-week TKD-specific training effects on aerobic capacity, body composition, hormone responses and hematological parameters in elite TKD athletes with varied initial inflammatory states. Methods Twenty-two elite college TKD athletes were divided into two groups according to their initial neutrophils-to-lymphocytes ratio (NLR) values: Low NLR (N = 11, 9M/2F, age: 21.6 ± 1.0 yrs; NLR: 1.3 ± 0.2) and High NLR (N = 11, 8M/3F, age: 22.0 ± 0.7 yrs, NLR: 2.5 ± 1.3), and participated in a 10-week TKD-specific training program. Aerobic capacity, body composition, hormonal responses and hematological parameters were measured at baseline and 10-weeks after TKD training. Results VO2max and shuttle run distance were significantly increased in both groups after training. However, the degree of improvement was greater in the Low NLR group than in the High NLR group. After 10-weeks of exercise training, the High NLR group presented markedly higher fat mass percentage and visceral fat area and significantly lowers DHEA-S to cortisol ratio (D/C ratio) than the Low NRL group. The post-training NLR was negatively correlated with the D/C ratio. Neutrophil counts and NLR were still significantly higher in the High NLR group after training. Conclusions This study provides new evidence that young elite TKD athletes with slightly high baseline systemic inflammatory state appear to perturb adaptations to exercise training.


OBJECTIVE
To test the hypothesis that inflammatory responses to endotoxemia differ between healthy horses and horses with equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). Animals-6 healthy horses and 6 horses with EMS.

PROCEDURES
Each horse randomly received an IV infusion of lipopolysaccharide (20 ng/kg [in 60 mL of sterile saline {0.9% NaCl} solution]) or saline solution, followed by the other treatment after a 7-day washout period. Baseline data were obtained 30 minutes before each infusion. After infusion, a physical examination was performed hourly for 9 hours and at 15 and 21 hours; a whole blood sample was collected at 30, 60, 90, 120, 180, and 240 minutes for assessment of inflammatory cytokine gene expression. Liver biopsy was performed between 240 and 360 minutes after infusion. Results-Following lipopolysaccharide infusion in healthy horses and horses with EMS, mean rectal temperature, heart rate, and respiratory rate increased, compared with baseline findings, as did whole blood gene expression of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor-α. The magnitude of blood cytokine responses did not differ between groups, but increased expression of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor-α persisted for longer periods in EMS-affected horses. Lipopolysaccharide infusion increased liver tissue gene expressions of IL-6 in healthy horses and IL-8 in both healthy and EMS-affected horses, but these gene expressions did not differ between groups.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Results supported the hypothesis that EMS affects horses' inflammatory responses to endotoxin by prolonging cytokine expression in circulating leukocytes. These findings are relevant to the association between obesity and laminitis in horses with EMS.


abstract:Samuel Butler (1835–1902) stands out among his contemporaries for engaging into a famous controversy with Charles Darwin. He develops the unconscious memory analogy and the extra-corporaneous limb theory in his famous Dystopia fiction Erewhon and his works on evolution as a counter-argument against Darwin's version of evolutionary theory, which puts the emphasis on chance in natural selection. His treatment of machines, and particularly the relationship between man, machine, and environment in his works, attracts great critical attention in the current debate on posthuman pragmatism. The intention of this article is to show how Butler anticipates the posthumanist discourse that is characterized by the decline and deconstruction of the anthropocentric way of thinking.


Treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has improved the prognosis of patients with a number of types of cancer, but the frequent development of immune-related adverse effects (irAEs) can worsen the outcome. The most common irAEs involve the gastrointestinal, cutaneous, and endocrine systems, but nephrotoxicity, resulting from damage to the tubule-interstitial compartment, may occur in some patients. The early phases of acute interstitial nephritis (AIN) are characterized by systemic symptoms that indicate a poor clinical state as well as a mild deterioration of renal function. Tubular injury is due to a direct effect mediated by cytotoxic CD8+ T cells, which sustain the local production of pro-inflammatory cytokines that progressively impair renal function. The treatment of AIN is mainly based on high-dose steroids, which in most instances leads to the recovery of renal function. However, the premature discontinuation of ICI therapy may prevent the impact of treatment on the clinical progression of the malignancy. Adequately addressing irAEs requires a standardized therapy that is based on the results of large clinical trials.


We describe the pattern of cognitive profiles within a community‐based sample of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and dementia (PDD) using cluster analyses, and compare the results with data from patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Fifty patients with PDD and 39 with AD from Stavanger, Norway, and 62 patients with DLB from San Diego, CA, USA were diagnosed by either standardized clinical procedures or criteria (all PDD and all AD cases) or necropsy (all DLB cases). Four subgroups were identified: two subgroups with a subcortical cognitive profile (one with mild and one with moderate dementia severity), one subgroup with global impairment and severe dementia, and one subgroup with a cortical cognitive profile and moderate dementia. Of the patients with PDD and with DLB, 56% and 55%, respectively, had a subcortical cognitive profile, compared with only 33% of the AD patients. Conversely, 30% of the patients with PDD and 26% of those with DLB had a cortical cognitive profile, compared with 67% of the patients with AD. These findings suggest that in some patients with PDD, frontosubcortical changes are the main contributing factor to dementia, whereas in other patients, cortical and hippocampal changes are more important. © 2005 Movement Disorder Society


The following concerns the automated design of energy absorbing structures that are built using an additive manufacturing (AM) process. Additive manufacturing techniques allow for the automated manufacturing of components direct from a description of the design domain together with load and boundary conditions through to a final finished metal structural component with little or no human intervention in between. These processes allow for the production of designs that could not be produced using previously existing manufacturing methods. They allow design to be produced with less human input or for the creation of an assembly using fewer components. There is interest in using automated computational methods to design the structures that will be manufactured using these processes. This allows for tremendously more complexity and optimisation of a greater number of finer details to take full advantage of AM processes. This goes beyond simply transferring existing designs from other manufacturing processes to AM. This project implemented an existing topology optimisation process to optimise an energy absorbing structure. The design requirements were provided in a project description provided by an industry sponsor for the project. The first problem solved concerned the topology optimisation of a structure in which material damage was a constraint, a solution for which did not exist in the literature. The solution presented led to a second feature of the algorithm in which the behaviour of the optimisation method allowed for an automated method to select when the optimisation process should halt. The second problem solved related to the topology optimisation of a structure in which there was a symmetry relationship between some elements. There was no published method for optimising a structure without ensuring a symmetry relationship between elements in that structure was maintained. The axisymmetric solution provided here, which also works unchanged for symmetry in a prism structure, solved this problem. It could also be extended to a different type of symmetry beyond those examined here by providing a new algorithm that relates elements to that new symmetry. The other two solutions relate to the construction of voids caused by topology optimisation algorithms. In some cases their size and distribution should be controlled and it should be necessary that physical access exists between these voids and the outside of the structure. This was required for the case study in which Selective Laser Melting (SLM) was used as the AM process. These methods were used to optimise a structure for a case study that optimised an energy absorbing structure, but was general and could be used without change no matter the objective toward which the optimisation process is working. The areas covered included automated structural optimisation, including design issues for SLM; the finite element simulation of a high velocity mechanical interaction using finite element analysis; design of energy absorbing structures; implementing algorithms to modify and understand the discreet geometry of a finite element model; and, material testing.


Value addition is currently being advocated as an ingredient to food security. Meanwhile, value addition has its own opportunity cost, based on utility theory - the time spent by a farmer on value addition could be used by other farmers to engage in other income-generating activities. Thus, it is pertinent to know whether value adders are better than non-value adders. Therefore, this study compares the poverty status of value-adders and non-adders in Kwara State, Nigeria using cassava farmers as a case study. Specifically, the study described the socio-economic characteristics of the farmers, profiled the poverty status of the value adders and non-adders and identified the factors influencing the poverty status of the farmers. The data for the study were collected with a structured questionnaire involving 160 cassava farming households (60 value adders and 100 non-value adders) using a three-stage random sampling techniques. The data collected were analysed with descriptive statistics, FGT (Foster, Greer and Thorbecke) index and binary logistic regression model. The results revealed that the majority of the value adders were female while most of the non-value adders were male. About 38% of the value adders were poor while 51% of the non-value adders were poor. Also, the poverty depth and severity of the value-adders were 0.081 and 0.026 respectively whereas they were 0.144 and 0.0536 respectively for the non-value adders. These results indicate that value addition contributes to poverty reduction among the farmers. The logistic regression model revealed that non-farm income, cassava output and decision to add value contributed significantly to poverty reduction while the household size had a positive effect on poverty as it increased the farmers' poverty status. This study therefore recommends measures needed to encourage the practice of value addition and improve the welfare of farming households.


Capillary Leak Syndome (CLS) is characterized by plasma extravasation into the interstitium with resultant hypotension, anasarca, hemoconcentration,
and hypoalbuminemia in the absence of albuminuria. Initially reported in Clarkson's disease (systemic capillary leak syndrome, SCLS), CLS has
been observed in multiple disease settings, the most common being sepsis. In Oncology, CLS has been reported more often as a complication from
therapy, and less often from malignancy. In this case study, we documented clinical manifestation, laboratory features and radiological findings of
CLS from rituximab therapy when employed in combination with a multi-agent chemotherapy regimen (EPOCH-R). Differentiating drug-induced
CLS from sepsis, which presents with the same clinical features, is important in avoiding further exposure to rituximab, which could be fatal to the
patient.


A global fresh food tracking service is presented, in which a set of real-time primary environmental conditions for transport of fresh fruits and vegetables, including global position, temperature, relative humidity, concentrations of CO2, O2 and ethylene gases and 3-axis acceleration, is collected through mobile and remotely controllable wireless sensor nodes. Real time monitoring, tracking, alarming, close-loop controlling and information sharing could therefore be provided as WEB services with service oriental architecture. Fully functioned hardware modules, protocols and system software have been developed. A 50-day field test has been successfully carried out, proving the system concept and the robustness of hardware and software designed. Due to its worldwide deploy-ability and added-values to fresh food supply chain, it is now feasible to establish a practical fresh food tracking service business.


The federal government persistently fails to make service contracts a managed outcome. Consequently, the three objectives of public procurement (transparency, value for money, and meeting requirements) are jeopardized. This research identifies the culprits as methodologies that are incompatible with the characteristics of services. These methodologies involve best-value source selection and contractor performance-information collection and evaluation. A new method of best-value proposal evaluation is offered that enables the buying agency to validly measure service quality, then to trade off levels of service quality with price, resulting in a Quality-Infused Price (QIP)©. The concept is tested on a task order competition using a case study methodology. Findings suggest that service quality can be monetized and that the application of a QIP© methodology can result in a superior sourcing decision. Additionally, fewer and higher quality proposals will be received. Based on the findings, conclusions are drawn and suggestions for future research are offered.


Routing algorithm consumes the resources of the network nodes. Different routing algorithms require different amount of the resources. Nodes at different positions of the network topology require different amount of the resources. Routing algorithm must adapt to both available resources and required resources of the nodes. The IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks (RPL) considers memory and defines four modes of operation (MOPs). However, RPL allows only one MOP for all routers in a network. This paper presents a resource aware hierarchical RPL (H-RPL) to realize the mixed MOPs and the resource adaptation in heterogeneous wireless IoT networks. Taking routing preferences of the nodes into account, H-RPL also applies heterogeneous routing metrics and objective functions in hierarchical network topology construction. A new MOP is introduced to indicate the critical resource condition of the node. The required routing memory and the expected routing lifetime are proposed to determine the MOP of the node. The MOP downgrade and the MOP upgrade are introduced to address traffic congestion caused by the isolated higher resource node and to exploit the renewed resources and the resource requirement relaxation, respectively. The queue utilization based data transmission distributes data packets for load balance and network performance improvement. Simulation results show that H-RPL can improve upward data packet delivery rate by 7%, downward data packet delivery rate by 25% and extend network lifetime by 78%.


How do we know where we are, where we have been and where we are going? It's important to understand intricacy of managerial brain. Brain is main organ of nervous system. It has the same general structure as brains of other mammals, but with developed cerebral cortex. Size of brain comes from cerebral cortex, especially frontal lobes, which are associated with executive functions . The area of cerebral cortex devoted to vision, visual cortex, greatly enlarged as compared to other animals. Basic structural design of brain is constructed through a process that begins early in life and continues into adulthood. Simpler circuits come first and more obscure brain circuits endow with basic blueprint. Experiences influence how or whether genes are expressed. Imaging studies suggest that differences in cognition and behaviour (might) relate to differences in brain connectivity. Perceptive the coverage to which two brains can differ is crucial in basic neuroscience research.


The tracking-by-detection framework consists of two stages, i.e., drawing samples around the target object in the first stage and classifying each sample as the target object or as background in the second stage. The performance of existing trackers using deep classification networks is limited by two aspects. First, the positive samples in each frame are highly spatially overlapped, and they fail to capture rich appearance variations. Second, there exists extreme class imbalance between positive and negative samples. This paper presents the VITAL algorithm to address these two problems via adversarial learning. To augment positive samples, we use a generative network to randomly generate masks, which are applied to adaptively dropout input features to capture a variety of appearance changes. With the use of adversarial learning, our network identifies the mask that maintains the most robust features of the target objects over a long temporal span. In addition, to handle the issue of class imbalance, we propose a high-order cost sensitive loss to decrease the effect of easy negative samples to facilitate training the classification network. Extensive experiments on benchmark datasets demonstrate that the proposed tracker performs favorably against state-of-the-art approaches.


Explaining the excellent practical performance of the simplex method for linear programming has been a major topic of research for over 50 years. One of the most successful frameworks for understanding the simplex method was given by Spielman and Teng (JACM '04), who the developed the notion of smoothed analysis. Starting from an arbitrary linear program with d variables and n constraints, Spielman and Teng analyzed the expected runtime over random perturbations of the LP (smoothed LP), where variance σ Gaussian noise is added to the LP data. In particular, they gave a two-stage shadow vertex simplex algorithm which uses an expected O(n86 d55 σ−30) number of simplex pivots to solve the smoothed LP. Their analysis and runtime was substantially improved by SpielmanDeshpande (FOCS '05) and later Vershynin (SICOMP '09). The fastest current algorithm, due to Vershynin, solves the smoothed LP using an expected O(d3 log3 n σ−4 + d9log7 n) number of pivots, improving the dependence on n from polynomial to logarithmic. While the original proof of SpielmanTeng has now been substantially simplified, the resulting analyses are still quite long and complex and the parameter dependencies far from optimal. In this work, we make substantial progress on this front, providing an improved and simpler analysis of shadow simplex methods, where our main algorithm requires an expected O(d2 √logn σ−2 + d5 log3/2 n) number of simplex pivots. We obtain our results via an improved shadow bound, key to earlier analyses as well, combined with algorithmic techniques of Borgwardt (ZOR '82) and Vershynin. As an added bonus, our analysis is completely modular, allowing us to obtain non-trivial bounds for perturbations beyond Gaussians, such as Laplace perturbations.


With a multitude of data sources available online, data consumers might find it hard to select the best combination of sources for their needs. Aspects such as price, licensing, service and data quality play a major role in selecting data sources. We therefore advocate qualityaware data services as a natural data source model for complex data integration tasks and mash-ups. This paper focuses on requirements, state of the art, and the main research challenges on the way to the realization of such services.


The effect of temperature (1°C to 50°C) on the onset and maximal development of rigor mortis in dog hearts was studied systematically under static conditions. Excised hearts were submerged in Ringer's solution so that the ventricle could assume an elastic equilibrium state. This was characterized by zero transmural pressure and the presence of a certain volume in the ventricle. Pressure-volume curves were obtained in 29 experiments by removal as well as by addition of fluid. The pressure-volume relations were the same at all temperatures prior to the onset of rigor mortis. The criterion for the beginning of rigor mortis was the first change in pressure-volume relations and for maximum rigor the constancy of the attained relations. The shortest interval between cessation of the circulation and the beginning of rigor mortis was 25 minutes at 37°C, and three hours at 10°C. These measurements provide data defining the minimal period during which pressure-volume determinations can be made without post mortem alterations. The phenomenon of "primary dilatation" was observed irrespective of a withdrawal or an addition of fluid to the ventricle. The weight gain of the quiescent ventricle in Ringer's solution was determined until autolysis began and was found to be 5% during the first five hours at all temperatures ranging from 5°C to 45°C.


Shore erosion landforms in bedrock were observed along the estuary of George River in a macrotidal periglacial environment. Quarrying of cavities in gneissic bedrock is largely dependent on geological structure, principally on joints and foliations. Frost-riving operating in the jointed rock loosens preconfigured blocks that are thereafter mobilized by waves and sea ice. Gelifraction and frost shattering along the shore are more effective at places where streamlets flow to the shore and where fresh water seeps throughout the structure. Measurements of erosion profiles were made relative to initially glacial-sculptured intertidal outcrops. Erosional landforms were observed along the whole shoreline length of the study area which was also classified into segments according to slope angle, geographic orientation and fetch. Observations indicate that erosion is more intensive in sectors having low and medium slope angles that allow shore ice to override and where the large fetches favour wave pounding and sea-ice thrusting. The erosion takes place preferentially around the mean high tide level. The knowledge of the acting erosional processes and the resulting landforms allow the recognition of raised bedrock shoreline features associated with post-glacial, uplifted shorelines. These raised bedrock shoreline landforms correspond very well in elevation with the more conspicuous raised shorelines in Quaternary sediments in the region. Some age correlations with major dated Holocene shorelines in the eastern Canadian Arctic are suggested.


The use of multiteam systems is increasing rapidly, as the diversity in skills and knowledge they supply assists organizations in responding more effectively to volatile environments. Multiteam systems consist of teams that depend on each other to achieve a common overarching goal, while simultaneously pursuing different proximal goals. However, multiteam systems often struggle to achieve the expected level of synergy. Multiteam system scholars have speculated that this may be owing to the presence of multiple teams within multiteam systems. Negative effects of salient group identities are well-documented, and yet there is no published empirical evidence of these same effects in multiteam systems yet. In this article, we examine the extent to which salient component team identities lead to multiteam system intergroup behavior. Given the nascent state of multiteam system research, we used Eisenhardt's method to generate theory from case studies. Three military multiteam systems were studied, with data collected before and during a deployment to Afghanistan. The study's findings contribute to our understanding of multiteam systems in several ways. First, the study provides empirical evidence that multiteam systems are vulnerable to intergroup behavior. Second, it shows how boundary spoilers, a well-designed team-building period and effective multiteam system leadership influence if and how multiteam system intergroup behavior develops. Finally, the results underscore the importance of existing knowledge of teams and groups in furthering our understanding of multiteam system processes.


This article attends to the relationship between our ethnic, social and cultural identities, and the creation of the new communal identity embodied in the Christian community. Drawing upon six New Testament texts – Ephesians 2:11–22; Galatians 3:27–28, 1 Corinthians 7:17–24 and 10:17, 1 Peter 2:9–11 and Revelation 21:24–26 – it is argued that the creation of a new and prime identity in Christ does not abrogate other creaturely identities, even as it calls for the removal of such as boundary markers. Catholicity, in other words, is intrinsically related to the most radical particularity, and demands an ongoing work of discernment and of judgement vis-a-vis the gospel itself. Those baptised into Christ are now to live in the reality of Christ who is both the boundary and centre of their existence, a boundary which includes all humanity in its cultural, ethnic, gendered, social and historical particularities. * This article has been retracted at the request of the Editor-in-Chief. Reason: It has come to light that sections of text in this article were inadvertently copied verbatim from an unpublished source without permission. This article has been removed for legal reasons. Apologies are offered to the readers of the journal. Copies for archival purposes can be obtained from email@example.com


Recent work has shown that Binarized Neural Networks (BNNs) are able to greatly reduce computational costs and memory footprints, facilitating model deployment on resource-constrained devices. However, in comparison to their full-precision counterparts, BNNs suffer from severe accuracy degradation. Research aiming to reduce this accuracy gap has thus far largely focused on specific network architectures with few or no 1 × 1 convolutional layers, for which standard binarization methods do not work well. Because 1 × 1 convolutions are common in the design of modern architectures (e.g. GoogleNet, ResNet, DenseNet), it is crucial to develop a method to binarize them effectively for BNNs to be more widely adopted. In this work, we propose an "Elastic-Link" (EL) module to enrich information flow within a BNN by adaptively adding real-valued input features to the subsequent convolutional output features. The proposed EL module is easily implemented and can be used in conjunction with other methods for BNNs. We demonstrate that adding EL to BNNs produces a significant improvement on the challenging large-scale ImageNet dataset. For example, we raise the top-1 accuracy of binarized ResNet26 from 57.9% to 64.0%. EL also aids con-vergence in the training of binarized MobileNet, for which a top-1 accuracy of 56.4% is achieved. Finally, with the integration of ReActNet, it yields a new state-of-the-art result of 71.9% top-1 accuracy.


A new materials characterization system developed at the XMaS beamline, located at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in France, is presented. We show that this new capability allows to measure the atomic structural evolution (crystallography) of piezoelectric materials whilst simultaneously measuring the overall strain characteristics and electrical response to dynamically (ac) applied external stimuli. C 2015 AIP Publishing LLC. [http: // dx.doi.org / 10.1063 / 1.4931992]


The Declaration on Patent Protection is a welcome addition to the Max Planck Institute's work on the flexibilities available under the TRIPS Agreement. Like the previously published Copyright Declaration, it improves on the WTO's interpretations of the three-part open-ended exceptions provisions of the TRIPS Agreement. Furthermore, it attempts to clarify the other regulatory options that are retained under TRIPS. Here, we contend, the Declaration makes three mistakes. First, its aggressive interpretations of certain provisions undermine its credibility, making it a less useful resource than a document prepared by such notable scholars might be. Second, the options, if adopted in toto, would significantly undermine incentives to invent. Yet the Declaration does not provide guidance on which options a state that is intent on encouraging innovation should adopt. Third, the Declaration's focus on the provisions in TRIPS that maintain sovereign regulatory authority misses the Agreement's failure to coordinate the global innovation enterprise. We argue that two dramatic revisions to TRIPS — a change in the term of patent protection and a rule on international exhaustion — would provide countries with more freedom to experiment with the flexibilities correctly identified by the Declaration. These changes would also ensure that each country contributes a proportionate share to the costs of global innovation. And they might also lead nations to entertain the idea of abandoning some of the flexibilities in order to provide better incentives to their domestic technology sector.


A Built-In Self-Test (BIST) approach has been proposed for functionality measurements of analog circuitry in mixed-signal systems. The BIST circuitry consists of a direct digital synthesizer (DDS) based test pattern generator (TPG) and multiplier/accumulator (MAC) based output response analyzer (ORA). In this paper we investigate and discuss the test time required by the ORA for analog measurements such as frequency response and 3rd order intercept point (IP3). We show that the test time can be greatly shortened if the ORA accumulation can be stopped at the right point. Three simple digital circuits are also proposed for such a purpose and their performance is simulated to show how the efficiency of the test time is improved.


Citrus leafminer (CLM) was monitored in a five year old block of lemons on the Yuma Mesa for one year. Unlike 2001, no CLM were found in the spring or early fall. From mid-November through mid-December CLM populations were very light ranging from 1 to 4% infested flush. In early January 2003, the CLM population began to increase peaking on 23 January at 68% infested flush. Although 68% appears to be a large infestation, the CLM population was not numerically high since there was not a great deal of fresh flush growth in the grove at that time. Thus, the CLM were concentrated on what little flush was present. Additionally, CLM larvae were tagged and monitored in January and February 2003. Of the 25 CLM larvae tagged, within five weeks only 9 had survived. Most of those killed appeared to have been killed by predators; most likely Yuma spider mite, Eotetranychus yumensis, and to a lesser extent Tydeus spp. Six of the larvae were killed by parasitoids, comprising two species; Cirrophilus coachellae and an unknown species that was damaged and could not be identified.


Aims: Targeting tumor metabolism may improve the outcomes for patients with glioblastoma (GBM). To further preclinical efforts targeting metabolism in GBM, we tested the hypothesis that brain tumors can be stratified into distinct metabolic groups with different patient outcomes. Therefore, to determine if tumor metabolites relate to patient survival, we profiled the metabolomes of human gliomas and correlated metabolic information with clinical data. Results: We found that isocitrate dehydrogenase-wildtype (IDHwt) GBMs are metabolically distinguishable from IDH mutated (IDHmut) astrocytomas and oligodendrogliomas. Survival of patients with IDHmut gliomas was expectedly more favorable than those with IDHwt GBM, and metabolic signatures can stratify IDHwt GBMs subtypes with varying prognoses. Patients whose GBMs were enriched in amino acids had improved survival while those whose tumors were enriched for nucleobases and carbohydrates fared more poorly. These findings were recapitulated in validation cohorts using both metabolomic and transcriptomic data. Innovation: Our results suggest the existence of metabolic subtypes of GBM with differing prognoses and further support the concept that metabolism may drive the aggressiveness of human gliomas. Conclusions: Our data show that metabolic signatures of human gliomas can inform patient survival. These findings may be used clinically to tailor novel metabolically targeted agents for GBM patients with different metabolic phenotypes.


Antigens play a critical role in the development of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) by binding to and stimulating leukemic precursor cells at some point during CLL ontogeny. Nevertheless, much remains unknown and further studies are necessary before an accurate model of antigen-drive can be ascertained. In this context, intraclonal diversification (ID) analysis of immunoglobulin (IG) genes could shed light on whether antigen involvement is restricted to the malignant transformation phase or if the triggering antigen(s) continuously stimulates the CLL clone. Hence, in Paper I we conducted a large-scale analysis of 71 CLL cases and revealed that 28/71 cases carried intraclonally diversified IGHV-IGHD-IGHJ genes. Although most cases showed no or low levels of ID, intense ID was evident within all subset #4 (IGHV4-34/IGKV2-30) cases. Subsequent analysis, in Paper II, of the clonotypic light chains revealed that the outstanding exception again related to subset #4. In such cases, the expressed IGKV2-30 gene was affected by targeted ID, analogous to their partner IGHV4-34 gene. Whilst these results convincingly argued for the role of antigen(s) in the development and evolution of CLL subset #4, this analysis was limited to depicting what was occurring at a single time-point and could not provide insight into the temporal dynamics of the CLL clones. Thus, in Paper III we conducted a longitudinal study of 8 subset #4 cases which enabled us to establish a hierarchical pattern of subclonal evolution. The observed 'stepwise' accumulation of mutations strongly supports a role for antigen selection in the pathogenesis of CLL subset #4. In Paper IV we reported a subset of IgG-switched CLL patients with coexisting trisomies of 12 and 19, and propose that the emergence of trisomy 18 in such cases represents a clonal evolution event suggestive of selection due to a clonal advantage. Paper V focused on the IGHV3-21 gene, an adverse prognostic factor in CLL. Since ~60% of IGHV3-21-expressing cases carry stereotyped B cell receptors, recognition of a common antigenic epitope, perhaps of pathogenic significance, is envisaged. Therefore, we investigated IGHV3-21 gene frequency within a Swedish population-based cohort and assessed the impact of stereotypy on clinical outcome. Taken collectively, this thesis provides molecular and genetic evidence for the role of antigen in CLL pathogenesis by convincingly demonstrating that clonal evolution, at least for certain subsets of CLL, is functionally driven rather than a consequence of clonal expansion promoted by nonspecific stimuli.


The aim of this article is to identify Norwegian and Russian official foreign policy discourses on the European Arctic, and how perceived challenges are understood, framed and presented by the governments in their respective countries. The article makes use of discourse analysis to grasp how the Norwegian "High North" strategy is framed by the Norwegian government and, likewise, how the Russian approach to the European Arctic is framed by the Russian government. The empirical foundation is a study of primary texts such as white papers, official reports, speeches and strategies. We find that the Norwegian approach to the High North features in a powerful official discourse resulting from a robust and broad domestic discursive mobilization. The Russian approach is that of an increasingly assertive nation for which the zero-sum game and relative gains seem to be the main rationale, judging by the official discourse. The Russian approach is not as coherent or based on a broad discursive mobilization as in Norway's case.We identify energy, security, the economy and the environment as key discursive nodal points that the foreign policy discourses of the two countries evolve around: we find that both countries regard the European Arctic's potential as a future energy province to be the region's most prominent aspect. The discourses show that energy is regarded to be of vital national interest, but the countries have differing perceptions on international cooperation. However, as the countries have some important common frames of references, a favourable climate for extended future cooperation could be further developed.


The overall aim of this thesis is to investigate the environments of AGN, in particular, the density of galaxies in the environments of radio-loud and radio-quiet AGN. This determines whether AGN trace dense environments at high redshifts and whether the environments are important in addressing the problem of radio-loud dichotomy. I extend my research by investigating whether star-formation evolves differently in high-redshift AGN environments compared to the field. I begin by investigating the environments of 169 AGN using Spitzer data at z ∼ 1. I investigate the source density of star-forming galaxies in the environments of radio galaxies, radio-loud quasars and radioquiet quasars. I do not find any significant overdensity of star-forming galaxies in these environments, although I find tentative evidence for a difference in the colours of galaxies in the radio galaxy environments compared to the quasar and field environments. I next use VIDEO data to investigate the environments of the quasars out to z ∼ 3. Firstly, I use a training sample of QSOs and galaxies, which trains a neural network to detect QSOs in the VIDEO data. I detect 274 possible QSOs in the VIDEO data using this method. I am able to determine that the efficiency of the neural network classification is 95 per cent using the training sample. I compare these results to a colour selection method, which detects 88 QSOs in the VIDEO data, and find that the neural network is able to detect ∼ 80 per cent of the colour selected QSOs at Ks = 21. I then investigate the source overdensity using a radial analysis on the environments of the VIDEO QSOs. I find a significant overdensity of galaxies in the environments of the whole QSO sample and in the environments of the radio-loud quasars compared to the radio-quiet quasars. I extend the density analysis by using a second density measure, called the spatial clustering amplitude technique, to compare the environments of the quasars with their radio luminosities, absolute magnitudes and redshifts. I do not find any significant correlations between environmental density and radio luminosity, absolute magnitude or redshift for the QSOs. I extend this research to investigate the type of galaxies found in the AGN environments. However, I do not find any significant differences between the type of galaxies found in the QSO environments and the background field.


We report results from a randomized field experiment conducted at two food festivals. Our primary aim is to assess the impact of two types of recommendations commonly observed in food settings: most popular and chef's choice . Subjects select a cupcake from a binary menu. The two options, offered by the same bakery, are the best seller in the bakery and the baker's recommended cupcake. Our treatments manipulate whether the recommendation is disclosed in tandem with the cupcakes in the menu. We find that the most popular is the only recommendation that statistically significantly increased consumers' demand relative to a baseline without recommendations. Furthermore, we find that this effect only holds for subjects from outside the local region. Our results are consistent with laboratory studies indicating information on peers' choices is a powerful influence on consumers' decisions, especially in the absence of prior knowledge.


PURPOSE: The internal thoracic artery was studied because of its recent use in the revascularization of the myocardium of patients having coronary artery disease. METHOD: The artery of 50 cadavers of adult individuals, 22 (44%) females and 28 (56%) males, whose age ranged from 20 to 84 years, was studied after neoprene latex injection. The specimens were fixed in 10% formaldehyde solution and dissected macroscopically and mesoscopically, seeking the origin of the artery, its relation to the phrenic nerve and the origin of the pericardiophrenic artery. RESULTS: The origin of the internal thoracic artery is much more frequent isolate (80%) than in a common trunk with other arteries (20%) from the subclavian artery. The left and right phrenic nerves cross anteriorly the artery in 54% of the cases; posteriorly in 14%; the right nerve crosses it anteriorly and the left posteriorly in 22%; and the reverse occurs in 10%. The pericardiophrenic artery is a branch of the internal thoracic artery in 99% of the cases and the average distance between the origins of these two arteries is 3.9 +/- 1.3 cm. CONCLUSION: The internal thoracic artery originates isolatedly from the subclavian artery in 80%, and the left and right phrenic nerves cross it anteriorly in 54% of the cases. The pericardiophrenic artery is a branch of the internal thoracic artery in 99% of the cases.


Abstract —Network lifetime is a critical issue in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). In which, a large number of sensor nodes communicate together to perform a predetermined sensing task. In such networks, the network life time depends mainly on the lifetime of the sensor nodes constituting the network. Therefore, it is essential to balance the energy consumption among all sensor nodes to ensure the network connectivity. In this paper, we propose an energy-efficient data routing protocol for wireless sensor networks. Contrary to the protocol proposed in [6], that always selects the path with minimum hop count to the base station, our proposed routing protocol may choose a longer path that will provide better distribution of the energy consumption among the sensor nodes. Simulation results indicate clearly that compared to the routing protocol proposed in [6], our proposed protocol evenly distributes the energy consumption among the network nodes thus maximizing the network life time. Keywords