This thesis studies the historical origins of ambulance services through their evolution to modern emergency medical services systems with an emphasis on the differentiation of urban and rural emergency services and eventually EMS systems in the United States. This study aims to provide a historical explanation behind many of the challenges faced by contemporary American EMS systems operated in rural environments by demonstrating a historical schism between rural and urban systems, and also advocates for increased federal support of EMS systems in order to ensure a uniform standard of emergency care in all parts of the country. This schism is found to be the root of many common challenges faced by rural EMS systems today. This is accomplished by the analysis of historical sources relevant to ambulance and EMS system operations in the United States as well as analyses of modern EMS system operations that examine the differences in operations of rural and urban systems.The challenges faced by rural ambulance services originate in the urban-centric origin of U.S. ambulance services and EMS legislation, despite the mainly rural, war-time origins of emergency services in general. This thesis concludes that the most promising method of establishing equal footing for both systems is stronger federal guidance and increased federal funding of rural EMS systems, so that a rural-centric model of EMS systems can be established.


In September 1972 the Louisiana Wild Life and Fisheries Commission established an experimental alligator harvest program. The primary objective of the open season was to evaluate a complex system of quotas, tags, licenses and report forms designed to rigidly control the harvest and shipment of alligator skins. Information was also obtained on the effects of the harvest on alligator populations, food habits, tag recovery rates, body condition factors, aging techniques, reproductive biology and pesticide..and parasite levels. A total of61 alligator hunters were issued 1,961 tags. One thousand three-hundred and fifty alligators averaging 6 feet II inches. were taken during the 13 day season. Skins were sold at public auction for $74,773, an average of $55.93 each for the 1,337 skins sold. Males comprised 80.29 percent of the kill. Shipments were followed through commerce with no evidence of illegal skins entering the legal traffic. Populations appeared unaffected by the experimental harvest program and there was no indication of an increase in poaching activity.


Recent investigation of sovereign debt negotiations finds that prompt, market-friendly "reprofiling" often fails to achieve sustainability; but serious debt restructuring typically involves delay. We develop an incomplete information bargaining model to account for this, highlighting economic recovery and sustainability considerations as complementary reasons for delay. Some recent settlements are discussed, along with some policy implications of excessive profiling.


The existing seismological network in the Kangra-Chamba sector has been upgraded with 12 three-component digital seismometers to obtain new insight on the nature and sources of continued clustered seismicity in this part of northwest Himalaya. A combination of travel-time-distance plots and travel-time inversion of P and S phases have been used to derive a 1D velocity model for the region. The mini- mum 1D velocity model divides the average 44 km thick crust into four layers. The top ∼10 km thick layer represents the metamorphosed sediments of the Chamba nappe that dominates the surface geology of the study area. Suggestion of a thin low-velocity layer at 15 km depth possibly marks the detachment zone separating the downgoing Indian plate from the overriding wedge. The improved locations of epicenters show close clustering of seismic events immediately northeast of the epicenter of the 1905 Kangra earthquake, while away from this zone the seismicity in the Chamba sector has more even distribution. In the later sector, space-depth distribution of hypocenters suggests that strain resulting from the ongoing collision of the Indian plate with Asia is being consumed by reverse-fault movement on the Chamba thrust. The clustered seismicity in the Kangra sector has three distinct source regions and mechanisms: (1) southward displacement of the thick Chamba nappe sheet over the Panjal imbricate zone along the Panjal thrust accounts for the seismicity at shallow depths of less than 7 km, (2) the nucleation of strains where the northeast dipping main boundary thrust (MBT) merges with the detachment plane produces focused seismicity near this junc- tion, and (3) the seismicity in a small pocket below the plane of detachment appears to be a consequence of stresses generated at the base of the northeast dipping detachment plane by the transverse structure.


CONTEXT
Whole-body vibration (WBV) is a type of weight-bearing exercise used in the field of sport and rehabilitation. There is no study on the effects of WBV on muscle recovery after a fatiguing activity.

OBJECTIVE
To determine the effects of a single WBV session on lower-extremity fatigue.

DESIGN
Randomized controlled pilot study.

SETTING
University Physiotherapy Clinic.

SUBJECTS
A total of 13 healthy young men volunteered to participate in this study. Subjects were randomly assigned into the WBV group (n = 7, mean age: 21 y) or control group (CG; n = 6, mean age: 20 y).

INTERVENTION
Subjects in the WBV group participated in a single-session WBV (30 Hz, amplitude 4 mm, 2 min) after lower-extremity fatigue.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Peak force of quadriceps muscle, single leg hop test, and Y-test were measured before inducing muscle fatigue (T0), immediately after completing the fatigue protocol (T1), after WBV (T2), and 15 min following the application of WBV (T3). The same method was applied in the CG while the WBV machine was turned off.

RESULTS
Repeated-measure ANOVA revealed no significant differences between groups in any of the outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS
The findings indicated that WBV was not effective in the recovery of lower-extremity fatigue in healthy young men.


The aim of the following paper is to show that it is not possible to penetrate into the depths of Nikolay Raynov's universe and to comprehend its wholeness, without posing and investigating the question about the origin or the foundation of his various creative occupations, i.e his novels, philosophic and theosophic writings, art history and critique, paintings, decorative design etc. This question is far too complex to be answered briefly without being simplified, and therefore two main directions will be articulated: the recption of Orphism developed in Plotinus' and Porphyry's Neoplatonism – which is the basis of modern Theosophy –, and the synthetic understanding of art, which puts Raynov's views in close proximity to Wassily Kandinsky and Nicholas Roerich.


If immunologically competent cells are injected into infant or adult animals under conditions that exempt the grafted cells from rejection and at the same time result in their being confronted by strong alien host transplantation isoantigens, graftversus-host reactions occur. These are responsible for the so-called homologous or transplantation diseases. An exfoliative dermatitis and other abnormalities of the skin are frequently the first overt symptoms of these diseases. Following the intracutaneous injection of adult (MHA X CB)F 1 hybrid hamsters with suspensions of parental strain lymphoid cells, local inflammatory reactions develop. About a week later there is generalized erythroderma and a positive Nikolsky sign involving the entire integument. Affected animals usually succumb to this acute homologous disease within two or three weeks of inoculation. An account is presented of these skin lesions, which closely resemble those of the clinical syndrome toxic epidermal necrolysis, and of an experimental analysis of their etiology.


Leionema praetermissum P.R.Alvarez & Duretto (Rutaceae), previously called L. sp. Colo River (P.H.Weston 2423), is here formally described. This rare species is found in Wollemi National Park in the Central Coast Region of New South Wales, Australia. We present information on its distribution, conservation status and an updated key to the genus Leionema for New South Wales and south-east Queensland.


John Flamsteed played a leading role in English astronomy for nearly half a century, from his appointment as `astronomical observator' to Charles II and first director of the new Royal Observatory at Greenwich, in 1675, through five successive reigns until his death on the last day of 1719. The Observatory's innovative instruments enabled him to plot the movements of the heavenly bodies with unprecedented accuracy, but he was also in correspondence with other astronomers, participating in the controversies of the day and caught up in a lengthy rivalry with Isaac Newton and Edmond Halley — reflected in the complex publishing history of the Historia Coelestis, detailed here. This book confirms Flamsteed's achievements as astronomer, mathematician, instrument maker and writer on optics, and also discusses more personal issues such as his relations with the Royal Society, his pursuit of professional recognition, and the friction between him and his eventual successor Halley.FRANCES WILLMOTH gained her Ph.D. for her biography of Flamsteed's patron, Sir Jonas Moore. Contributors: JIM BENNETT, FRANCES WILLMOTH, MORDECHAI FEINGOLD,ADRIAN JOHNS, HESTER HIGTON, ROB ILIFFE, IAN G. STEWART, OWEN GINGERICH, ALAN COOK, WILLIAM J. ASHWORTH, ADAM PERKINS


Intuitionistic fuzzy edge detection algorithm has been used for the signification or characterization of images. It has been designed by experts and the algorithm provides to aim to minimize errors. However, it has a fixed value for thresholding. In this paper, a hybrid algorithm has been developed using the Otsu method which is calculated a threshold value depending on the images. To be applicable in parallel of intuitionistic fuzzy edge algorithm is pave the way for accelerating of algorithm by performing in the graphics card. Intuitionistic fuzzy logic edge detection algorithm has been tested by transferring different size images to graphics cards which has different computing capacity via Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA) programming environment which is manufactured by NVIDIA. Parallel model of the algorithm adapted to CUDA platform, compared to serial application running on processor, and has seen that shortened runtime at least 67 times, most 639 times.


In this note we investigate the last passage percolation model in the presence of macroscopic inhomogeneity. We analyze how this affects the scaling limit of the passage time, leading to a variational problem that provides an ODE for the deterministic limiting shape of the maximal path. We obtain a sufficient analytical condition for uniquenes of the solution for the variational problem. Consequences for the totally asymmetric simple exclusion process are discussed.


Book synopsis: The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Child Development remains the most authoritative and accessible account of all aspects of child development. Written by an international team of experts, its comprehensive coverage includes everything from prenatal development to adolescence, pediatrics, theories and research methods, physical development, social and emotional development, perceptual and cognitive development, language development, psychopathology, and parenting. The second edition has also been thoroughly updated to reflect major developments over the last decade in areas such as neuroscientific methods, developmental cognitive and social neuroscience, the effects of environmental influences on gene expression, and the relationship between human development and evolution. Throughout 124 entries, the Encyclopedia advocates an integrated, interdisciplinary approach to the study of child development. With clear, jargon-free style and user-friendly format, this is the essential reference for researchers and students of child development, as well as healthcare professionals, social workers, educators, and anyone interested in the well-being of children.


During the second millennium bc, several significant changes were happening in prehistoric societies across Eurasia. For instance, shifts in subsistence practice occurred in north-western China, including the western Loess Plateau. However, the magnitude and nature of this dietary change are unclear and more detailed information and regional studies are needed in order to fully understand the reasons behind this change. In this study, palaeodiet is investigated at three sites (Xiahaishi, Buziping and Buzishan) in the western Loess Plateau, all dating to c.2000 cal bc, through stable isotope analysis of human and faunal remains, in order to explore the socio-economic conditions prior to the subsistence shift. In general, humans and omnivores (Canis and Sus) had diets dominated by millet. Compared to other sites in Gansu Province, the humans and omnivores in this study were more reliant upon millet-based agriculture, and millet-based agriculture was more important and productive in the western Loess Plateau around 2000 cal bc.


OBJECT
Vertebrobasilar fusiform aneurysms (VFAs) are rare lesions characterized by abnormal dilation and tortuosity of the vertebral and/or basilar arteries. Untreated, these aneurysms have a tendency to progress, often resulting in neurological symptoms or rupture leading to subarachnoid hemorrhage. The microsurgical treatment of these lesions can be difficult due to their location and the circumferential involvement of the arteries. These features make microsurgical treatment prone to high morbidity. The Pipeline Embolization Device (PED) has gained popularity for the treatment of aneurysms of the internal carotid artery. Its use in the posterior circulation has been limited, likely due to a fear of perforating artery occlusion.

METHODS
The authors retrospectively reviewed their database of patients treated with the PED and identified 12 patients who had VFAs. The clinical features, complications, and outcomes of these patients were analyzed.

RESULTS
At an average follow-up of 11 months, the mean modified Rankin Scale score was 1.9. Complete aneurysm occlusion was seen in 90% of the patients with radiographic follow-up. Three patients suffered new neurological deficits postoperatively. One of these patients died, while the remaining 2 demonstrated significant clinical improvement at follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS
With attention to the anatomy of perforating arteries, staged contralateral vertebral artery sacrifice, and adequate platelet inhibition, PED may be an effective treatment option-alone or in a hybrid construct with stents of less coverage for VFAs-with an acceptable complication rate.


In this report we investigate the effects of vocational education and training (VET) on adult skills and labour market outcomes by using the PIAAC survey. Data comparability across countries, the breath of countries involved, and the almost unique presence of information on assessed skills, training, earnings and employment makes this survey especially valuable to study the different facets of VET as compared to more academic education.


The concept of the social investment welfare state has received a lot of attention and support both from academics and policymakers. It is therefore commonly assumed that policies such as investing in education or family services would also receive significant support from themass public. While there are some indications of this, existing comparative surveys of public opinion usually do not take into account how citizens perceive and react to policy trade-offs, i.e. how they respond when forced to prioritize between different types of social policies, which is more realistic given budget constraints. This article presents original data from a representative survey of public opinion in eight Western European countries, studying how support for social investment policies changes when additional spending on these policies would have to be financed with cutbacks in other parts of the welfare state. The central findings are that citizens generally dislike being forced to cut back one type of social spending to expand another, but there is a significant degree of variation across individuals and policy fields. Material self-interest and ideological predispositions as well as their interaction help understanding differences in the acceptance of these trade-offs. The findings have important implications for the political viability of social investment policies. Political parties aiming to expand social investment in a context of fiscal austerity are confronted with different and distinct electoral constraints and challenges given the respective preferences of their electorates.


A highly modular and stereoselective synthesis of tetrasubstituted helical alkenes is accomplished by a Pd-catalyzed norbornene-mediated domino reaction. This protocol features the rapid assembly of four C-C bonds via sequential C-H activations and carbopalladations along with efficient access to enantiopure bromoalkyl aryl alkyne precursors using homologative alkynylation as the key transformation. Three distinct elements of stereoselectivity were observed in the preparation of the chiral helical alkenes: retention of stereochemistry of the substrates, induced helical diastereoselectivity in the alkene formation, and the exclusive exo-facial selectivity of the norbornene incorporation.


Contract hog production has been a growing "portion of the" pork industry especially during the past decade. Production contracting involves an agreement between at least two-parties. " The agreement specifies the-division of resources which- will be used in hog production; They can vary by type of production, by type of contract, and responsibilities " of each contracting' party. Contractors, who are usually the owners of the hogs, generally provide the feeder pigs or breeding stock along with the feed necessary for production. Growers, those working in the production of animals, typically provide the facilities and- labor and are compensated for their time and resources involved. Expenses such as veterinary costs or utilities can be" paid by the grower, the owner, or shared"-*'as contracts vary. Growers are usually compensated on a per head or per'pound of gain basis, though other types of agreements, do- exist.


Wear resistance is an important factor which influences the working life of many rubber products such as seals and conveyor belts. Most rubber products operate in presence of corrosion, ozone, thermal cycling and heat during the service life. In this experimental study, the influences of environmental factors such as ozone, corrosion, thermal cycling and environmental stress on abrasive wear behaviors of FKM, NBR and CR rubbers were investigated. Abrasion tests were performed to determine tribological properties of samples. The roughness of wear surfaces and hardness of samples were measured. The surfaces of samples before and after exposing ozone were carried out with microscope. The all of the environmental factors caused to decrease of hardness of samples. The volume loss and wear rate values of all samples exposed to ozone increased. The all samples exposed to NaCl solution have highly wear resistance. After ozone tests, the cracks and ruptures from surfaces were occurred in some samples. FKM has the most stress-cracking resistance in the tested materials.


This article investigates how the activation of a specific exemplar influences the direction and the size of context effects on evaluative judgments about other specific exemplars or about a superordinate category. The activation of an untrustworthy politician decreased judgments of trustworthiness of politicians in general but increased judgments of the trustworthiness of specific exemplars. The assimilation as well as the contrast effect were attenuated when additional judgment-relevant exemplars were activated. The results suggest that the impact of a specific context information depends on the amount of other judgment-relevant information that can be used in constructing a mental representation of the judgmental target or of a comparison standard. Implications for scandal management are discussed.


Received: 2018-01-29 | Accepted: 2018-02-22 | Available online: 2018-03-31 https://doi.org/10.15414/afz.2018.21.01.06-10 The aim of this experiment was to compare find out of the changes of assimilation pigments content of turf Festuca spp. leaves after application of different nutrition forms under non–irrigated conditions. In period April 2012 – May 2015 (without June 2014 and February 2015) experiment was carried out in warm and dry conditions in area of Nitra (Slovak Republic). Concentration of assimilation pigments (chlorophyll a , chlorophyll b and total carotenoids) was determined spectrophotometrically. The experiment was included 10 treatments: 1. Without fertilization, 2. Saltpetre with dolomite, superphosphate, potassium salt, 3. Turf fertilizer NPK 15-3-8 (+ 3MgO + 0.8 Fe + 18S), 4. Slow release fertilizer NPK 14-5-14 (+ 4CaO + 4MgO + 7S), 5. Controlled release fertilizer NPK (S) 13-9-18 (+ 6S), 6. Organic fertilizer NPK 5-1-1, 7. Organic fertilizer NPK 3-2-1 and 3 mycorrhizal preparations. The use of inorganic and organic fertilizers resulted in an increase chlorophyll a , b content and total chlorophyll in leaves Festuca spp. More pronounced increase in chlorophyll content was found by the application of the Turf fertilizer. Application of this fertilizer has a statistically significant effect on content of chlorophyll a + b than in the other evaluated treatments without turfs fertilized by Controlled release fertilizer and Organic fertilizer NPK 5-1-1.  A statistically significant increase in the total carotenoids concentration was observed after the use of Saltpetre with dolomite, superphosphate, potassium salt and Turf fertilizer as compared to the non-fertilized control. Keywords: turf, Festuca spp., fertilizers application, chlorophyll, total carotenoids  References ALDOUS, D. E. (2011) International Turf Management. New York: REaPP. ALTISSIMO, A. and PESERICO, L. (2008) Effects of different n-sources on turf clippings fresh weight yield and turf quality. In 1st European turfgrass society conference. Pisa (Italy), 19th–20th May 2008, Italy: Uliva Foa, pp. 41–42. BELL, G. E. et al. (2004) Optical sensing of turfgrass chlorophyll content and tissue nitrogen. In HortScience [Online],vol. 39, no. 5, pp. 1130–1132. Retrieved 2018-01-21 from http://hortsci.ashspublications.org/content/39/5/1130.full.pdf+html BEARD, J. B. (1973) Turfgrass: Science and culture. PretinceHall: New Jersey. BILGILI, U. and ACIKGOZ, E. (2007) Effect of nitrogen fertilization on quality characteristics of four turf mixtures under different wear treatments. In Journal of Plant Nutrition, vol. 30, no. 7, pp. 1139–1152. Retrieved 2018-01-15 from http:// www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01904160701394600 CAGAS, B. et al. (2011) Establishing and careing landscape turfs and grasses areas: certified methodology. Brno: Association of Planting and Maintenance of Green. GREGOROVA, H. and KOVAR, P. (2010) Tall fescue – grass to dry conditions. In Proceedings of lectures VIII. Congress SPpPLPaVv by SAV Nitra 16. June 2010. Nitra: SPU, pp. 28–35 (in Slovak). HEJDUK, S. (2012) Module Plant nutrition (Education for better greenery around us – Script course modules) [Online]. Rožňov pod Radhostěm: SsZaP (in Czech) Retrieved 2018-01-10 from http://docplayer.cz/2333203-Vzdelavani-pro-lepsi-zelenkolem-nas.html HRABĚ, F. et al. (2009) Turfs for garden, landscape and sport. Olomouc: Vydavatelstvi Ing. Petr Basan (in Czech). HRIC, P. et al. (2016a) The dynamics of the assimilation pigments content of turf fertilized by various forms of fertilizers. In Agrochemistry [Online], vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 3–7 (in Slovak). Retrieved 2018-01-10 from http://agrochemia.uniag.sk/pdf/ agrochemia-2016-01.pdf HRIC, P. et al. (2016b). The comparison of organic and inorganic fertilizers influence on selected indicators of turf growth-production process. In Acta agriculturae Slovenica, vol. 107, no. 2, pp. 373–383. DOI: https://doi.org/10.14720/ aas.2016.107.2.10 KARCHER, E. and RICHARDSON, M. (2003) Quantifying turfgrass color using digital image analysis. In Crop Science Society of America, vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 943–951. DOI: https://doi. org/10.2135/cropsci2003.9430 KOVAR, P. and GREGOROVA, H. (2009) Impact of water stress on the assimilation pigment content of grass species grown under non-irrigated conditions. In Influence of abiotic and biotic stressors on plant properties 2009, Praha-Ruzyně: VURV, pp. 9. KUO, Y. J. (2015) Effects of fertilizer type on chlorophyll content and plant biomass in  common Bermunda grass. In African Journal of Agricultural Research, vol. 10, no. 42, pp. 3997– 4000. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5897/AJAR2015.10226 LARIMI, S. B. et al. (2014) Changes in nitrogen and chlorophyll density and leaf area of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) affected by biofertilizer and nitrogen application. In International Journal of Biosciences, vol. 5, no. 9, pp. 256–265. DOI: https://doi.org/10.12692/ijb/5.9.256-265 LICHTENTALER, H K. (1987). Chlorophylls and carotenoids: Pigments of photosynthetic biomembranes. In Method in Enzymology, vol. 148, pp. 350–382. MAHMOUD, A. W. M., EL-ATAR, A. B. and MAHMOUD, A. A. (2017) Economic evaluation of nano and organic fertilisers as an alternative source to chemical fertilisers on Carum carvi L. plant yield and components. In Agriculture, vol. 63, no. 1, pp. 33–49. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/agri-2017-0004 MASAROVICOVA, E. et al. (2000) Photosynthesis, biomass partioning and peroxisomicne A1 production of Karwinska species in response to nitrogen supply. In Physiology Plant, 108, pp. 300–306. DOI: https://doi. org/10.1034/j.1399-3054.2000.108003300.x MOORE, R. W., CHRISTIANS, N. E. and AGNEW, M. L. (1996) Response of three Kentucky bluegrass cultivars to sprayable nitrogen fertilizer programs. In Crop Science, vol. 36, pp. 1296–1301. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2135/ cropsci1996.0011183X003600050037x PESSARAKLI, M. (2007) Handbook of Turfgrass Management and Physiology. New York: CRC Press. VAFADAR, F., AMOOAGHAIE, R. and OTROSHY, M. (2013) Effects of plants-growth promoting rhizobacteria and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus on plant growth, stevioside, NPK, and chlorophyll content of Stevia rebaudiana. In Journal of Plant Interactions, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 128–136. DOI: https://doi.org/ 10.1080/17429145.2013.779035 WEHNER, D. J., HALEY. J. E. and MARTIN, D. L. (1988) Late fall fertilization of Kentucky bluegrass. In Agronomy Journal, vol. 80, no. 3, pp. 464–471. XU, Q. et al. (1995) Functional and  structural injury to photosynthesis in wheat by high temperature during maturation. In Enviromental and Experimental Botany, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 43–54. DOI: https://doi. org/10.1016/0098-8472(94)00030-9


We present the electronic structures and the basic properties of the first transition metal phthalocyanines (Pc) as well as their simulated STM images obtained by using the first-principles method. The simulated STM images show submolecular structures and reproduce the main features of the experimental images.The results show that the valence configuration of the metal ion has a strong influence on the STM images.At small tip bias voltage, unlike ScPc,NiPc and CuPc,wherein the central metal ions appear as a hole in the molecular images, the metal ion in other M Pcs STM images are the highlighted bumps. Moreover, we have studied the dependentce of the STM images of ScPc and NiPc molecules on the bias voltage, and predicted that the central metal ions in ScPc and NiPc images appear as bumps when the tip bias voltage is larger than -0.8V and 0.7V, respectively. The simulated STM images are interpreted as that the ScPc,NiPc and CuPc molecules have no significant dz2 character near the Fermi level, while the TiPc, VPc,CrPc,MnPc,FePc and CoPc systems have.


Summary

1. Although it is widely assumed that protected areas conserve species that would not survive elsewhere, this assumption is seldom tested. The aim of the study was to determine the respective roles of a nature reserve and commercial and subsistence rangeland in preserving terrestrial arthropods and reptiles in xeric succulent thicket in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.

2. Faunal diversity on a nature reserve (the Great Fish River Reserve Complex) was compared with a historically overgrazed commercial farm, an intensively managed, conservatively stocked commercial farm and a communal grazing area. Terrestrial arthropods and reptiles were caught in paired pitfall traps inside and outside the nature reserve, specimens being sorted into recognizable taxonomic units (RTU). The taxa occurring in each land management unit were compared using RTU diversity, a hierarchical richness index (HRI), community similarity and uniqueness.

3. The nature reserve contained more RTU and a greater HRI than adjacent land for most arthropod groups, and also supported more unique taxa than the other study localities.

4. Snakes and lizards, in contrast, were almost twice as abundant in the communal grazing area as elsewhere, although reptile species diversity was similar at all localities.

5. Each individual locality contained fewer than 62% of the total number of arthropod RTU and 55% of the total reptile RTU; the communal grazing area contained only 37% of the total number of arthropod RTU collected in the study area.

6. Nineteen (73%) of the ant, 18 (69%) of the weevil, 60 (70%) of the spider and 12 (60%) of the grasshopper RTU and 10 (66%) of the reptiles were shared by the three land uses. Six new weevil species and probably several new arachnid species were collected, but all the new weevils were confined to the nature reserve.

7. The communal grazing area differed most from the nature reserve in richness and community composition, followed by the conservatively stocked commercial farm. The historically overgrazed commercial farm was most similar to the nature reserve.

8. The communal grazing area was characterized by xeric-adapted reptiles and predatory arthropods whose ranges are centred in the semi-arid parts of South Africa. In contrast, the nature reserve and commercial farms supported more mesic-adapted reptiles and herbivorous arthropods.

9. Synthesis and applications. The data show how protected areas are key to conserving those species that decrease under heavily grazed and disturbed conditions. However, they also illustrate that diverse land-use mosaics promote gamma diversity in the xeric succulent thicket of South Africa. Conservation policies that include protected space in the wider environment and conserve habitat diversity are likely to both promote regional richness and support scarce species.


Introduction Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is largely refractory to cancer immunotherapy with PD-1 immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). Oncolytic virotherapy has been shown to synergize with ICB. In this work, we investigated the combination of anti-PD-1 and oncolytic measles vaccine in an immunocompetent transplantable PDAC mouse model. Methods We characterized tumor-infiltrating T cells by immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry and T cell receptor sequencing. Further, we performed gene expression profiling of tumor samples at baseline, after treatment, and when tumors progressed. Moreover, we analyzed systemic anti-tumor and anti-viral immunity. Results Combination treatment significantly prolonged survival compared to monotherapies. Tumor-infiltrating immune cells were increased after virotherapy. Gene expression profiling revealed a unique, but transient signature of immune activation after combination treatment. However, systemic anti-tumor immunity was induced by virotherapy and remained detectable even when tumors progressed. Anti-PD-1 treatment did not impact anti-viral immunity. Discussion Our results indicate that combined virotherapy and ICB induces anti-tumor immunity and reshapes the tumor immune environment. However, further refinement of this approach may be required to develop its full potential and achieve durable efficacy.


Web 2.0 services have enabled people to express their opinions, experience and feelings in the form of user-generated content. Sentiment analysis or opinion mining involves identifying, classifying and aggregating opinions as per their positive or negative polarity. This paper investigates the efficacy of different implementations of Self-Organizing Maps (SOM) for sentiment based visualization and classification of online reviews. Specifically, this paper implements the SOM algorithm for both supervised and unsupervised learning from text documents. The unsupervised SOM algorithm is implemented for sentiment based visualization and classification tasks. For supervised sentiment analysis, a competitive learning algorithm known as Learning Vector Quantization is used. Both algorithms are also compared with their respective multi-pass implementations where a quick rough ordering pass is followed by a fine tuning pass. The experimental results on the online movie review data set show that SOMs are well suited for sentiment based classification and sentiment polarity visualization.


Water splitting via an uninterrupted electrochemical process through hybrid energy storage devices generating continuous hydrogen is cost-effective and green approach to address the looming energy and environmental crisis toward constant supply of hydrogen fuel in fuel cell driven automobile sector. The high surface area metal-organic framework (MOF) driven bimetallic phosphides (ZnP2 @CoP) on top of CNT-carbon cloth matrix is utilized as positive and negative electrodes in energy storage devices and overall water splitting. The as-prepared positive electrode exhibits excellent specific capacitances/capacity of 1600 F g-1 /800 C g-1 @ 1A g-1 and the corresponding hybrid device reveals an energy density of 83.03 Wh kg-1 at power density of 749.9 W kg-1 . Simultaneously, the electrocatalytic performance of heterostructure shows overpotentials of 90 mV@HER and 204 mV@OER at current density of 10 and 20 mA cm-2 , respectively in alkaline electrocatalyzer. Undoubtedly, it shows overall water splitting with low cell voltage of 1.53 V@10 mA cm-2 having faradic and solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency of 98.81% and 9.94%, respectively. In addition, the real phase demonstration of the overall water-splitting is performed where the electrocatalyzer is connected with a series of hybrid supercapacitor devices powered up by the 6 V standard silicon solar panel to produce uninterrupted green H2 .


Requirements Engineering has suffered difficulties caused by communication failures between business and Information Technology teams (IT). The knowledge of the enterprise's business domain is very important for the systems analysts when developing software solutions to automate activities and processes. However, these analysts come across frequent changes in the system scope and requirements descriptions incomplete or erroneous. This work presents a systematic process that takes into account the business process models to automatically extract functional and non-functional requirements, which compose the Software Requirements Specification document. This automatic process uses requirements heuristics implemented by a freeware software system that generates software requirements documents with use cases and UML diagrams. The systematic process uses XML to facilitate systems integration, as well the re-use and visualization of the results. Additionally, this work presents business heuristics that enable significant improvements in the documentation of the business process models, bringing advantages for the business and IT. Assessment tools for the level of documentation level are proposed for both the business process models as for software requirements


: A classification of sport and recreation and an explanation of the term "severely" disabled are given, as well as the physical, psychological, social and work attributes of sport and the problems experienced by the disabled in these areas. The relevance and importance of occupational therapy in this field are briefly discussed and the article concludes with an introduction to the SA Sports Association for the physically disabled. A list of recognized competitive sports for the various groups and an address list for the use of medical practitioners and allied professions is given.


The main aim of this thesis is to establish a systematic framework for the soundscape
design considerations of urban public open spaces. With an aesthetic approach, the thesis
focuses on the essential characteristics of sound in the context of urban public open space,
as well as its interaction with people - users of public open space, and spaces - containers
of soundscape.
Through reviewing urban aesthetic theory, previous soundscape studies, relevant
environmental psychology theories, typological urban design, and computer simulation in
acoustics, a systematic methodology is set up for soundscape study in urban public open
spaces.
The core of this thesis is in two parts. Part I, `Soundscape by listening - field survey',
focuses on perception and evaluation of soundscape. Based on the field survey data, which
includes 9,200 questionnaire interviews, measurements, and observations of 14 case study
sites across Europe, it is proved that soundscape is an important aspect affecting people's
evaluation and behaviours in urban public open spaces. Acoustic comfort/pleasant
evaluation are more complicated than merely sound level evaluation. A lower background
sound level can lead to a systematic sound level evaluation improvement, whereas the
involvement of favourable sound elements and the feeling of dominance can dramatically
improve the acoustic comfort evaluation. Personal differences, especially in cultural
background and age, have significant influences in soundscape evaluation.
Part II of the thesis, 'Soundscape by design', focuses on the designable part of soundscape,
spatial forms and sound elements. Through the typological soundscape study, the
soundscape characteristics of different shaped, sized and opening conditioned urban
spaces are identified, from which many typologically classifiable forms can be created.
Analyses and suggestions are made for sound element design, including the creation of
active soundmarks and the design of passive soundmarks. The former relies upon on
suitable spatial forms and physical factors. The latter depends on specifically designed
landscape elements, such as fountains. As an example, fountains' spectrum and form are
described and analysed in depth.
It is expected that this thesis will be of practical value and will help to inform the design
process.


In this paper, we present an artificial muscle actuator based on a dielectric elastomer called the "multistacked actuator." The actuator is made from a new material, the synthetic elastomer, developed by the authors. The proposed actuator is configured with multiple stacked synthetic elastomer films coated with compliant electrodes on both sides. This design enables the actuator to generate rectilinear motion with high force density. In addition, the actuators can be fabricated in various geometries to meet the requirements of the applications. We develop a pulsewidth-modulated proportional-integral-derivative (PWM-PID) feedback controller based on the high-voltage switching circuit and implemented it to drive the proposed actuator. Finally, the performance of the actuator is evaluated via experiments.


This paper presents a new photovoltaic (PV) power systems laboratory module that was developed to experimentally reinforce students' understanding of design principles, operation, and control of photovoltaic power conversion systems. The laboratory module is project-based and is designed to support a renewable energy course. By using MATLAB real-time software tools in combination with digital signal processor (DSP) hardware tools, the module enables students to: 1) design and build dc-dc and dc-ac power converters; 2) design and implement control algorithms for maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and voltage and current regulation; and 3) design and fabricate a printed circuit board for voltage and current sensing, isolation, and gate driving. In these hands-on experiments, by designing and building their hardware and software integrated systems themselves, students learn by doing and experience the engineering transformative process of building a product out of an idea. This paper is motivated by the dearth of literature on the application of project-based learning methodology to PV systems. The module description, the pedagogical and evaluation methodologies adopted, and reflections on the implementations are discussed.


A method of measurement of the thermal performances of composite materials on the base of the porous aluminium oxide is described. The method takes into account the heat inhomogeneity, the material inhomogeneity and anisotropy as well as specimen's surface radiation. Investigations of the thermophysics properties of the porous substrate fabricated with using of the electrochemical aluminium oxide technology vs. temperature and long staying in a climate chamber were fulfilled. The tests demonstrated that the climatic impact does not influence on the high thermophysics properties of the aluminium oxide material that have extremely high thermal conductivity ≤ 120 W/(m·K).


The history of Vietnam is one of spectacular confrontations, both cultural and ideological between the world of the Chinese - a world adopted by the ethnic Viet living in the Red river basin - and the Indian world - facets of which are seen in the Cham, whose numerous small kingdoms were strung out all along the coast from north of Hue to south of Phan Rang. This book will firstly present the history of Vietnam from the 6th to 15th centuries, highlighting the clashes between the two major civilisations which are the foundation of modern Vietnam. The second part will deal with the archaeology of the sites which are a testament to this history. Maps, plans and numerous photographs will help us to experience the history of ancient Vietnam both in its early beginnings and its subsequent evolution.


The ubiquitous Na,K- and the gastric H,K-pumps are heterodimeric plasma membrane proteins composed of an alpha and a beta subunit. The H,K- ATPase beta subunit (beta HK) can partially act as a surrogate for the Na,K-ATPase beta subunit (beta NK) in the formation of functional Na,K- pumps (Horisberger et al., 1991. J. Biol. Chem. 257:10338-10343). We have examined the role of the transmembrane and/or the ectodomain of beta NK in (a) its ER retention in the absence of concomitant synthesis of Na,K-ATPase alpha subunits (alpha NK) and (b) the functional expression of Na,K-pumps at the cell surface and their activation by external K+. We have constructed chimeric proteins between Xenopus beta NK and rabbit beta HK by exchanging their NH2-terminal plus transmembrane domain with their COOH-terminal ectodomain (beta NK/HK, beta HK/NK). We have expressed these constructs with or without coexpression of alpha NK in the Xenopus oocyte. In the absence of alpha NK, Xenopus beta NK and all chimera that contained the ectodomain of beta NK were retained in the ER while beta HK and all chimera with the ectodomain of beta HK could leave the ER suggesting that ER retention of unassembled Xenopus beta NK is mediated by a retention signal in the ectodomain. When coexpressed with alpha NK, only beta NK and beta NK/HK chimera assembled efficiently with alpha NK leading to similar high expression of functional Na,K-pumps at the cell surface that exhibited, however, a different apparent K+ affinity. beta HK or chimera with the transmembrane domain of beta HK assembled less efficiently with alpha NK leading to lower expression of functional Na,K-pumps with a different apparent K+ affinity. The data indicate that the transmembrane domain of beta NK is important for efficient assembly with alpha NK and that both the transmembrane and the ectodomain of beta subunits play a role in modulating the transport activity of Na,K- pumps.


This article gives information about the situation of Open Access development in Lithuania during the last ten years. Different stakeholders expressed the interest and efforts in opening research publications and data to the global community. In 2013 the Research Council of Lithuania became a coordination body concerning OA issues. However Lithuanian authors still lack motivation to publish their research results – publications and data – in OA manner. A positive impact on the development of OA in Lithuania is expected next year with the start of an updated national repository of scientific publications eLABa and with the realisation of the MIDAS project dedicated to the storage of research data.


We present the results of an X-ray background emission study of the well-known Galactic supernova remnants (SNRs) Cas A, RCW 86, RX J1713.7-3946, and SN 1006 by using the archival Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray Observatories data. With the advent of detector technologies and increased capability of the spectral resolutions, accurate background modelling for the extended sources, such as SNRs, is getting crucial at the modelling step since it might be effective on estimating the physical parameters of the plasma. For this purpose, we concentrate on the background emission spectral modelling by investigating its spectral parameters and components. Hence, the results of the modelled background spectra of these four SNRs are presented by using the combination of thermal and nonthermal emission models properly to the background components.


This master thesis is intended as a contribution to the understanding of the influencestructural changes has on urban transformation in housing domain, by focusing onmechanisms behind the upgrading as accidental model for regeneration of the collectivehousing. In particular, the aim is to do so in relation to a comparison between differentoperational scales on which process is carried out. The process is investigated at the city,neighborhood and street/square scale. With the use of qualitative methods, such asinterviews, in depth analysis of policies and regulations and observations, differences inmanifestation of the regeneration on different scales are discovered. It is suggested thatundefined strategy, indifferent attitude of local authorities, inconsistent legislativeenvironment, disconnection between the operational scales and presence of the market asessential driving force of the process, results in asymmetric outcomes of upgrading, both inphysical and social terms. But on the other hand, in respect to wider political and economicalenvironment in which regeneration happened, it is acknowledged that considerable housingstock is renovated and living standards are improved. The most critical issue in the process isproved to be the uneven awareness of the importance of the regeneration among the actorsat different scales and consequently their performance in respect to it. Furthermore,influence of upgrading on the community life and social relation in the regeneratedneighborhoods are totally neglected, which has for its consequences decreased use ofcommon space between the buildings and erosion of existed communities. It is proved alsothat fully market driven regeneration has rather regressive consequences on urbantransformation in context of Nis but in same time gives valuable lessons for improvement ofthe future upgrading as regeneration model for collective housing. Based on these lessons,adaptive policy changes are suggested and platform for further studies in system or processoriented urban regeneration and design is established. Thesis is organized as follows: firstmethodological approach is explained, second it situate problem in wider regional and localcontext in respect to urban transformation and housing trends, third thesis discuss analysisof operational scales and conclude with final cross-scale discussion and potentials for furtherresearch.


Sediment cores from 6 stations along a mangrove forest-seagrass bed transect in the Bangrong area, Thailand, were studied for sediment metabolism (TC02 production and O2 uptake) and sulfur cycling (sulfate reduction rates and inorganic sulfur pools) in wet and dry seasons over a 2 yr period. Total sediment metabolism, measured as TCOz production, was highest at the mangrove forest s ~ t e s and decreased along the transect. Sulfate reduction, however, increased along the transect and attained highest values in the seagrass sediments. Sulfate reduction was generally less important in terminal degradation of organic matter ( c 2 to 44 %) in mangrove forests compared to subtidal sediments in general, and redox potentials revealed a relatively high oxidation level of the sediments along the transect (>O mV), favoring mineralization processes that employed more oxidized electron acceptors than sulfate. The very low sulfate reduction rates at high and mid-intertidal stations in the mangrove forest were probably caused by oxidation of the sediments due to prolonged air exposure dunng low tide, an abundant crab population with deep burrows and release of oxygen from roots. There were no major differences among seasons in sediment metabolism, whereas the vegetated sites experienced sulfate reduction activity up to 4 times higher during the wet compared to dry season. Sulfur pools were low in the Bangrong mangrove forest compared to other mangrove sites; lowest pools were coincident with high tidal elevation and presence of rooted vegetation, suggesting that the oxidation processes controlled the pool sizes rather than the sulfate reduction rates. There were no major seasonal effects on the sulfur pools along the transect.


The need for a concise definition for life has been accentuated by recent interest in computer based Artificial Life (A-Life). We attempt to apply conventional approaches to defining life in the domain of computer programs. Chemical autopoiesis in the physical space is accepted as necessary and sufficient for life. This forces us to make a distinction between physical and virtual entities. From this, we re-formulate the goal of creating algorithmic life, making allowances for the limitations of non-physical, virtual environments. We examine a number of potential 'virtual organisms' for possession of the necessary characteristics to determine in what sense they are living things. We are lead to conclude that non-physical entities, hence computer programs, cannot be living things. Some computer programs do however share characteristics with real life.


Objectives This study was conducted to observe recent changes in adolescents' dietary behavior and indirectly evaluate the effects of the government's nutritional policies in Korea. Methods We analyzed the secular trends in seven dietary behaviors using the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey data from 2005 to 2009. Through literature review, we included the policies implemented for the improvement of adolescents'dietary behaviors during the same periods. Results The significant linear trends were observed in all dietary behaviors (p<0.05). Overall, all behaviors except the fruit intake rate were desirably changed during five years but undesirable changes were observed between 2008 and 2009 in all behaviors. Within those periods, several policies were implemented including 'Ban on carbonated-beverages in school', 'Green Food Zone', etc. Despite confirmed evidence of their effects, the policies on individual behavior such as nutrition education didn't influence the prevalence of dietary behaviors because they were conducted to too limited persons. Polices on the school environmental improvement, such as ban on carbonated beverage in school, were more effective because they decreased the exposure of undesirable food environment. However, for effect of Green Food Zone improving community environment we couldn't come to a conclusion because of too short period after full implementation. Conclusions Among government nutrition policies conducted from 2005 to 2009, those on environmental improvement, especially in school, were more effective than those on individual behavior. Therefore, the development and implement of policies on school environmental improvement are needed in Korea.


Background Although downregulation of caveolin-1 (Cav-1), which is a key constituent of membrane caveolae and a regulator of cellular processes, is associated with colorectal cancer (CRC), its involvement in the disease progression is largely unknown. This study aimed to explore the role of Cav-1 in CRC and the associated mechanisms. Material/Methods Fresh tissues from patients with CRC and human CRC SW480 cells were used to evaluate Cav-1 and Ki-67 expression using immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. The MTS and Transwell assays were performed to determine the effects of Cav-1 overexpression via pcDNA3.1/Cav-1 plasmid on cell proliferation and metastasis. The effect of Cav-1 on the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) activation was evaluated by Western blotting. The correlation of Cav-1 expression with clinicopathological factors was statistically analyzed. Results Overexpression of Cav-1 significantly reduced proliferation, migration, and invasion of SW480 cancer cells in vitro. The EGF-induced phosphorylation of EGFR and activations of the RAF-MEK-ERK and PI3K-AKT pathways were adversely regulated by Cav-1 overexpression in vitro. In 76 cases of CRC patients with EGFR expression, a negative correlation was observed between the level of Cav-1 and tumor-node-metastasis stage, lymph node metastasis, and distant metastasis (All p<0.05). Finally, the expression level of Cav-1 was negatively correlated with that of Ki-67. Conclusions This report is the first to show that overexpression of Cav-1significantly inhibits the proliferation, migration, and invasion potential of SW480 cells, possibly through reducing EGF-induced EGFR activation. High Cav-1 expression level may be a predictor of positive outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer.


Saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus) are potentially dangerous to humans, yet they have major cultural value to many people in Timor-Leste. Recent increases in attack risk are influencing traditional attitudes, threatening culls of remaining wild crocodile populations. To understand patterns that may assist mitigation, we compiled attack records for the period of April 2007 to April 2014, using the CrocBITE online database. Recorded attacks (n=45) showed a high fatality rate (82.2%), the majority (77.8%) being recorded since 2010. The highest proportion of attacks (46.7%) occurred in southern coastal wetlands suited to crocodiles, areas representing major sources of food, livelihoods and ecosystem services (i.e. fisheries, timber, coastal protection) for locals. Subsistence fishing posed the highest attack risk, particularly from September to February when food security is low. Attacks matched gender roles (most victims were males, the primary fishers) and demographic patterns (teenagers, the fastest growth group, comprised the highest proportion). Predicted increases in food insecurity, fishing activities, coastal impacts and rising human and crocodile populations pose worrying implications for human–crocodile conflict. We recommend essential baseline surveys enabling meaningful management decisions, and suggest that tailored management and educational awareness based on proven existing models could substantially mitigate attack risk while remaining compatible with traditional Timorese attitudes towards crocodiles.


Water is essential requirement of life and its accessibility is the basic right of all human beings. Safe drinking water is an essential component of primary health. It plays a vital role in livelihood, food security and sustainable development. Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting Technology (RRWH) is a best alternative approach to conserve and supply water. Especially, it is crucial in seismically sensitive, geographically uneven, and countryside areas. A large majority of population in Pakistan is living in areas, where access to safe drinking water is very serious issue. In these areas most vulnerable segment of population is women because they are the ones who have to fetch water from far flung areas for their daily consumption. In order to resolve the issue of water in Pakistan, a number of public and private agencies are working in this field. Different approaches, techniques, and practices are being adopted to address this issue. Present study evaluates the impact of RRWH technology with special reference to women time allocation in Bagh and Battagram districts of Pakistan. Analyses were carried out using Ordinary Least Square (OLS) technique to quantify the results. The results reveal that RRWH technology is viable, time saving, women friendly, and sustainable source of safe drinking water supply, especially in seismically sensitive, geographically uneven, and countryside areas of Pakistan.


BACKGROUND
Abrikossoff tumor is an uncommon neoplasia, benign in most of the cases, that affects soft tissues, skin, and oral mucosa. Between 1% and 2% of cases are malignant and, in these cases, outcome is usually fatal. Between 5% and 25% of patients have multiple lesions.

CASE REPORT
A 52-year old Caucasian male was referred to the Plastic Surgery Department with a lesion in the tongue. A wide surgical excision was subsequently performed and the final pathologic diagnosis was Abrikossoff's tumor.

DISCUSSION
The pathogenesis of this tumor has long been subject of research and debate, and its origin has still to be clearly established. At the time, Abrikossoff proposed a myogenic origin, later studies supported a neural differentiation. According to the data in the literature the expression of S-100, that we found in our case, sustains the hypothesis that Abrikossoff tumor has origin in the Schwann's cells.

CONCLUSIONS
In our opinion, Abrikossoff tumor has origin in the Schwann's cells. However familial cases, congenital cases, and multiple lesions are uncommon, and it is worth stressing that this tumor has a good prognosis but every patient with Abrikossoff tumor should undergo a complete physical examination to rule out the presence of multiple associated tumors and possible visceral involvement.


The purpose of this study was to compare the coadministration of the probiotic Bacillus coagulans GBI-30, 6086 (BC30) with β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB) calcium (CaHMB) to CaHMB alone on inflammatory response and muscle integrity during 40 days of intense military training. Soldiers were randomly assigned to one of two groups: CaHMB with BC30 (CaHMBBC30; n = 9) or CaHMB with placebo (CaHMBPL, n = 9). A third group of participants served as a control (CTL; n = 8). During the first 28 days soldiers were garrisoned on base and participated in the same training tasks. During the final 2 wk soldiers navigated 25-30 km per night in difficult terrain carrying ~35 kg of equipment. All assessments (blood draws and diffusion tensor imaging to assess muscle integrity) were conducted before and ~12 h after final supplement consumption. Analysis of covariance was used to analyze all blood and muscle measures. Significant attenuations were noted in IL-1β, IL-2, IL-6, CX3CL1, and TNF-α for both CaHMBBC30 and CaHMBPL compared with CTL. Plasma IL-10 concentrations were significantly attenuated for CaHMBBC30 compared with CTL only. A significant decrease in apparent diffusion coefficients was also observed for CaHMBBC30 compared with CaHMBPL. Results provide further evidence that HMB supplementation may attenuate the inflammatory response to intense training and that the combination of the probiotic BC30 with CaHMB may be more beneficial than CaHMB alone in maintaining muscle integrity during intense military training.NEW & NOTEWORTHY β-Hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB) in its free acid form was reported to attenuate inflammation and maintain muscle integrity during military training. However, this formulation was difficult to maintain in the field. In this investigation, soldiers ingested HMB calcium (CaHMB) with Bacillus coagulans (BC30) or CaHMB alone during 40 days of training. Results indicated that CaHMB attenuated the inflammatory response and that BC30 combined with CaHMB may be more beneficial than CaHMB alone in maintaining muscle integrity during intense military training.


The COVID-19 pandemic hit countries' development agendas hard. The ensuing recession has pushed millions into extreme poverty and has shrunk government resources available for spending on achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This Staff Discussion Note assesses the current state of play on funding SDGs in five key development areas: education, health, roads, electricity, and water and sanitation, using a newly developed dynamic macroeconomic framework.


The stability and instabilities of stationary solutions to the nonlinear Schrödinger equation and the sine-Gordon equation Benjamin L. Segal Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Professor Bernard Deconinck Department of Applied Mathematics I present an analysis of the stability spectrum of all stationary elliptic-type solutions to the focusing Nonlinear Schrödinger equation and the sine-Gordon equation. An analytical expression for the spectrum is given. From this expression, various quantitative and qualitative results about the spectrum are derived. Specifically, the solution parameter space is shown to be split into regions of distinct qualitative behavior of the spectrum. Additional results on the stability of solutions with respect to perturbations of an integer multiple of the period are given, as well as a procedure for approximating the greatest real part of the spectrum.


In the present study, a novel schiff bases were synthesized by condensation of 5-subsituted imesatin with different substituted aromatic aldehydes. The chemical structures of the synthesized compounds were confirmed by means of IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, Mass spectral and Elemental analysis. These synthesized compounds were investigated for analgesic (Tailimmersion method), anti-inflammatory (carrageenan- induced paw oedema method) and antibacterial activities by paper disc diffusion technique. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of the compounds were also determined by Agar streak dilution method. Most of the synthesized compounds exhibited significant anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activities. Among the synthesized compounds 5c, 5h, 5i, and 5b exhibited remarkable analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities.


: Generation and reception mechanisms of electrostatic and alternating, currents by bees are studied. It is shown that generation of electric fields is concerned with the properties of body integuments to carry a comparative large electrostatic charge. Transport of charged bodies is percieted by bees with the help of antennae subjected to the action of coulon powers. Perception of a alternating artificially generated electric fields is mainly concerned with physiological influence of induced currents flowing in the site of contact of bees to one another or to current-conducting bodies. The studies performed did not show the existence of specialized organs for the generation and perception of electric fields.


The evolution of a steady, incompressible, non-isothermal submerged jet of a non-Newtonian yield/power-law fluid jet is studied using a numerical solution of the governing boundary layer equations. Emphasis is placed in studying the effects of the governing non-dimensional flow parameters i.e. the yield number, power-law index, and Prandtl number. Both yield-pseudoplastic and yield-dilatant fluids are studied for planar and axisymmetric geometries. Decay histories of the jet's center-line velocity and temperature as well as the spread of the half-width of the jets are obtained. These results show that the jet evolution, as described by the decay of the centerline velocity and evolution of the jet's half-width, becomes independent of the power-law index at higher yield numbers. The jet expansion boundary is concave to the jet-axis for all values of the power-law index for fluids that exhibit a yield stress. Moreover, the results depict the near independence of the decay of the centerline temperature from the power-law index. Also, it is established that for fluids exhibiting yield, mixing is much more rapid as compared to that of yield-stress free fluids.


Perennial snow patch is spreading in the straight valley extending northeast from the northern peak of Mt. Kashima-yarigatake, the northern Japanese Alps. This snow patch has been pointed out the possibility of glaciers. We installed an automatic weather station on the boulder at 1530 m altitude in the Kakunezato. Wind direction, wind speed, air temperature, humidity, solar radiation, and precipitation have been observed during from June 19, 2016 to October 20, 2016.


Wafer tool cleanliness specifications are generally accepted for various processes and technology nodes. However, the material and component cleanliness required to meet these wafer tool cleanliness is vague. One reason is the lack of uniformly accepted parts cleanliness tests. This paper reviews and recommends test methods for determining the cleanliness of coupons, first articles and production parts.


This paper attempts to unleash the structural components which differed in changing the frame of rule of the states that came into the map of the world on exactly the same day named India and Pakistan. Having shared values, culture, colonial experience, same structure India managed to procure a robust democracy while in Pakistan democracy is still perceived as a mean of conducting procedural balloting. India secured functional institutions while in Pakistan still the coordination of powers among the institutions is missing. The paper attempts to strategize the solutions of the predicaments which the state of Pakistan is facing in the light of India's experiences. It highlights the different loopholes of democratic rule in Pakistan that remained unsettled at its inception. The paper in detail examines the state and polity of both states in post –independence era and tries to trace out the factors that enable India in procuring a substantive frame of governance. The lessons and precedents that the state of Pakistan should follow from India's democratic development have also been elaborated exhaustively. Purpose: Purpose of the paper is to explore and identify the diverging structural patterns within the comparative politics. Methodology: Explanatory research methodology has been taken up along with qualitative data analysis. Terminology: India in its beginning succeeded in paving a way towards the institutionalization of the political processes that resulted in the consolidation of democratic norms in India whereas on other hand Pakistan can learn from India's experiences to make democratic rule more participative and functional. Significance: The study is extremely relevant as Pakistan apparently is a primary victim to the fragile political rule.


: Bachground: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder associated with deficits in synaptic plasticity. Long-term potentiation (LTP) is an experimental method for synaptic plasticity assessment. This study evaluated the effect of aqueous extract of lavender ( Lavandula angustifolia ) on induction of LTP in the CA1 region of hippocampus. Materials and Methods: The animals were divided in 3 groups: Control animals receiving distilled water (CO), Alzheimer group receiving distilled water (AD); Alzheimer group receiving lavender extract (A+EXT). The electrophysiological recordings were carried out in 3 groups of rats. The baseline or tetanized extracellular postsynaptic field potentials (fEPSPs) were recorded in response to the stimulation of Schaffer collaterals. Results: The data showed no effect of the extract on the baseline responses in all groups. While the recorded fEPSPs in the CO showed a substantial LTP, no potentiation was seen in the AD group. Administration of the aqueous extract of lavender effectively restored the LTP in A+EXT group. Conclusion: In line with our previous reports, this study showed the positive effect of lavender extract on the induction of LTP in a rat model of Alzheimer disease.


OBJECTIVE: Dinoprostone is a drug of choice in our daily practice for the induction of labor. The aim of our study; to compare the use of oxytocin with dinoprostone (PGE2- Propess©) used in term multiparous pregnant women to ripen the cervix.STUDY DESIGN: A total of 507 patients were included in the study. Group A, consisted of 262 women with term multiparous pregnancy Bishop score ≤6 underwent induction of labor with a vaginal insert containing 10-mg timed-release dinoprostone (Propess© -prostaglandin E2). Group B, consisted of 245 cases of pregnancy with Bishop score ≤6 underwent induction of labor with iv oxytocin and was matched for the patient's age and parity. The following data were recorded: age, gestational age, body mass index, the time from the drug administration to the vaginal labor, delivery mode, indications of induction, cesarean indication, birth weight, Apgar score, and need of neonatal intensive care unit. RESULTS: The primary outcome of the in group B interval from induction to vaginal delivery was similar between the two groups. In group A, 41 patients and in group B, 23 patients had a cesarean section. Cesarean section rate was lower in the oxytocin group (cesarean rate 15.6% versus 9.3%, p<0.05). CONCLUSION: It appears; Dinoprostone ovule increases the cesarean rate in terms, multiparous cases with inappropriate cervical score and does not shorten the duration of delivery. Therefore, the use of oxytocin for cervical ripening in multiparous women may be a more appropriate option.


At present, there is almost not a single country in the world is not influenced or penetrated by European Civilization. Europeans influence varies on one country to another. Some countries are influenced in a very deep sense, while others are just on the surfaces. This id one of the many reasons why students of the history departement are required to take courses on European History. One of the courses is known as Sejarah Eropa Abad Tengah, or History of Europe during the Middle Ages. The Middle Ages cover a period of almost ten centuries, approximately between 500 up to 1500 A.D. The Middle Ages are full of interesting things which are worth presenting. However, some of these are contradictory one to another. These may confuse any body who is unfamiliar with this topic. This period, i.e. the Middle Ages, is known also as the ages of belief. See for example Anne Fremantle, The Age of Belief. As a whole, ways of life of the European people were under the domination of the church. The Church decided every thing concernig humans every day life. It intervened not only the religious domains, but also the secular domains. Furthermore, the Church did not only choose its own religious officials, but also indirectly chose the goverments officials asa well. Even the king ruled his people under the name of the Church. In Short, the Church had become more concerned with maintaining papal grandeur of furthering spiritual religion. Moreover, this period was full of stagnation. As there was almost no development dealing with knowledges or sciences. The religious spheres which intervened any part of life did not not stimulate development in learning, except in the matter of religion. Inventions stopped, unless they were advantageous for the Church. Any invention, though it was right in relation to the sciences and even benefited human life, if it was considered against the Church was extremely dangerous. It had to be suppressed and the Church did its best to exterminate it at all. One who dared enough to present his invention which was not parallel to the belief of the Church, was going to risk his life, even his famiies as well. Thus, the Middle Ages are also known as the dark ages.b


Background Gaming is a billion-dollar industry that is expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 9% to 14.3%, with the biggest market in Southeast Asian countries. The availability of low-cost smartphones and the ease at which the internet can be accessed have made gaming popular among youth, who enjoy it as a leisure activity. According to the World Health Organization, excessive indulgence in gaming can lead to gaming disorder. Medical students indulging in excessive gaming can succumb to gaming disorder, which can affect their scholastic performance. Objective This study aimed to assess the association between gaming practices and scholastic performance among medical students. Methods This study used a case-control design, where 448 medical undergraduate students (first year to prefinal) were preliminarily surveyed using universal sampling on their gaming practices in the last 6 months. Out of this sample, the 91 participants who admitted to gaming in the past 6 months were recruited as cases, while participants who never engaged in gaming in the last 6 months were recruited as controls. Both the cases and controls were matched for age and gender in a 1:1 ratio. The internal assessment scores (based on 2 midterms completed in the last 6 months) of cases and controls were compared. The Snedecor F test was used to determine the association between the number of hours spent gaming and internal assessment scores (%), while the Student t test was used to determine significant differences between the internal assessment scores of cases and controls. Odds ratios were calculated to identify the risk of poor scholastic performance among cases compared to the controls. The prevalence of gaming disorder among cases was assessed using the Gaming Addiction Scale (GAS). Results The frequency of gaming (in hours) was not associated with mean internal assessment scores (P=.13). Male cases reported significantly lower internal assessment scores compared to male controls (P=.005 vs P=.01), whereas no significant differences were observed between the internal assessment scores of female cases and controls (P=.89 vs P=.59). A negative correlation was observed between GAS scores and internal assessment scores (r=–0.02). The prevalence of gaming disorder using the GAS was observed to be 6.3% (28/448) in the study population and 31% (28/91) among cases. The risk of low scores (<50%) among gamers was observed to be 1.9 (95% CI 1.04-3.44, P=.03) times higher in the first midterm and 1.80 (95% CI 0.97-3.36, P=.06) times higher in the second midterm compared to nongamers. Conclusions The findings suggest that excessive gaming adversely affects the scholastic performance of male participants more than female participants. Awareness about gaming disorder needs to be created among students, parents, and teachers. Treatment services should be made available to medical students with gaming disorders.


In patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), non-ST elevation–acute coronary syndrome (NSTE-ACS) occurs frequently secondary to non-obstructive coronary lesions than those without T2DM. Pathophysiological events leading to acute myocardial infarction in these individuals remain largely unknown, and subsequently demonstrate a poorer prognosis than those without T2DM. Methods We evaluated blood thrombogenicity (BT) in 80 patients with and without T2DM 7–10 days after troponin positive NSTE-ACS. In accordance to AHA/ESC recommendations all patients received secondary prevention therapy including aspirin and clopidogrel (300 mg loading and 75 mg maintenance doses respectively). Coronary artery disease (CAD) was quantified by coronary angiography through an independent investigator blinded to clinical and laboratory data. Lesions were classified as either obstructive (plaque >75% of the luminal diameter) or non-obstructive (plaque 25%–75% of luminal diameter). We excluded those with minor plaques (<25% of the luminal diameter) and systemic inflammation (eg, sepsis). The subjects were divided: (i) T2DM and obstructive CAD (n=26), (ii) T2DM and non-obstructive CAD (n=14), (iii) non-diabetic and obstructive CAD (n=30) and (iv) non-diabetic and non-obstructive CAD (n=10). BT was measured by the ex-vivo Badimon chamber as total thrombus area. Cytokines and platelet activation markers were measured. Results All baseline cardiovascular risk factors were similar between groups (p>0.05). BT was higher in T2DM than in those without (22 481±12 336 vs 14 650±8074, p=0.024). When stratified according to CAD status, BT was highest in those with T2DM and non-obstructive CAD (p=0.002, ANOVA F=5.26) (Abstract 113 figure 1). Inflammatory cytokines TNF α (p=0.018, ANOVA F=3.15) and interleukin 6 (p=0.031, ANOVA F=5.0) and platelet activation as measured by P selectin were highest in this group. (p=0.022, ANOVA F=3.422) (Abstract 113 figure 2). Interleukin 1, interferon γ and soluble CD40 ligand levels were similar between the groups.Abstract 113 Figure 1 Oneway ANOVA showed significant difference bettween the groups, F=5.26, p=0.002. df (3.76). Post hoc compansion with Bonferroni test showed that BT was significantly higher in T2DM with non-obstructive CAD compared to the other three groups p<0.05.Abstract 113 Figure 2 Patients are grouped according to their diabetic status and coronary lesion characteristics. One way ANOVA for IL-6 F=5.006,p=0.03, TNF α F=3.153, p=0.03, P-selectin F=3.44, p=0.02, post hoc tests including Bonferroni showed t p<0.05 for multiple comparisions between T2DM+Non obstructive CAD group and the rest. Conclusion Patients with T2DM and non-obstructive CAD had highest BT and markers of platelet activation and inflammation. These findings suggest biochemical changes also play a significant role in evolution of NSTE-ACS in T2DM. A causal link, if confirmed by large-scale studies may offer us an opportunity to identify therapeutic targets like individualised anti thrombotic therapy and anti inflammatory therapy in this high risk population.


Post-transcriptional regulation through the AU-rich element (ARE) by ARE binding proteins (ARBPs) has an important role in controlling the production of cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha. Therefore, expression of ARBPs may influence, or may be influenced, by the severity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We measured the gene expression of ARBPs, including tristetraprolin, T-cell intracellular antigen (TIA)-1 and Hu antigen R (HuR), in synovial tissues from RA and osteoarthritis patients. cDNA was constructed from synovial tissues obtained from 21 patients with RA, and those from 12 patients with osteoarthritis. Gene expression was measured using the TaqMan PCR real-time quantification method. No significant differences were observed in the expression of tristetraprolin, TIA-1 or HuR genes between RA and osteo-arthritis synovium samples. No significant relationships between expression of tristetraprolin, TIA-1 or HuR genes and TNF-alpha gene expression serum CRP levels in samples from RA patients were observed. A significant positive relationship was observed between gene expression levels of TIA-1 and HuR. While HuR stabilizes TNF-alpha mRNA and enhances TNF-alpha production, TIA-1 acts as a post-transcriptional silencer, and suppresses the production of the TNF-alpha protein. The clear positive relationship between the expression of these two ARBPs may imply that the expression of either gene affects the expression of the other, or the mechanisms that control the expression of these genes have some factors in common.


The volume is divided into several parts, describing solid mechanics applications, dynamics and vibrations, fluid flow, acoustics, thermal problems, electrostatics, electromagnetics and numerical aspects. The book presents the state of the art of boundary element research with special emphasis on new applications and original research. As such it helps to point out the way ahead for boundary elements and the type of problems that are currently being investigated.


Aim: To investigate the dietary preferences of sea cucumber Holothuria scabra fed with algal food sources like Sargassum, Fucus, Spirulina, Ulva in combination with marine pellet under laboratory condition. Carbon stable isotope technique (δ 13 C) was used to better understand the assimilation of different dietary food sources. Study Design: A microcosm approach was undertaken where 24 experimental aquaria were set up, each having juvenile H. scabra. These aquaria were segregated into four different dietary treatments with six replicates per treatment. (SGP treatment= Sargassum + marine pellet, FCP treatment= Fucus + marine pellet, SPP treatment= Spirulina + marine pellet, ULP treatment= Ulva + marine pellet). Original Research Article Mondal and Kunzmann; ARRB, 28(1): 1-8, 2018; Article no.ARRB.42672 2 Place and Duration of Study: Marine Experimental Ecology Unit (MAREE), Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research, Bremen, Germany, between January and October 2017. Methodology: We included 24 sea cucumber juveniles for conducting the feeding trial. CN contents, C/N ratio and carbon stable isotopes were measured in food sources as well as in H. scabra body wall. The growth of H. scabra was also monitored. Stable isotope mixing model was used to calculate the exact food preference under laboratory condition. Results: The results of carbon stable isotopes (δ 13 C) of sea cucumber body wall exhibited depleted values that are significantly different (ANOVA, P˂0.05) from all the dietary treatments (SGP, FCP, SPP, ULP) thereby suggesting inferior assimilation of food ingredients. The poor performance of selected food sources (algae and marine pellet) towards the growth of sea cucumber was clearly reflected in the data (ANOVA, P>0.05). Conclusion: Therefore, it is assumed that some additional food source co-existed within the microcosm and could have contributed to their food uptake, probably sediment microbes that require further clarification.


Author(s): Chen, Jiakai | Advisor(s): Wallace, Nancy E.; Parlour, Christine A. | Abstract: This dissertation consists of two chapters that concern financial intermediation. Many shadow banks rely heavily on bank-sponsored private credit and liquidity support instead of government guarantees. Bank capital regulation cannot be effective without explicitly considering these facilities. In the first chapter of the dissertation, I use a continuous time model with maturity mismatch and bank moral hazard to study the impact of credit and liquidity guarantees on bank capital structure. I focus on a particular type of shadow banking called asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP). When banks provide credit guarantees to ABCP conduits, assuming that the validity of the guarantees is ensured by rating agencies, the commercial paper becomes risk free and is always priced at par. Rolling over the commercial paper is thus costless, so that frequently rolling over the short term ABCP to fund long term assets---a maturity mismatch---has no impact on bank value. Regulators can eliminate a bank's moral hazard by imposing a simple capital ratio requirement. However, the capital ratio requirement is no longer valid if banks use liquidity guarantees in their ABCP conduit funding because the funding maturity becomes important. Moreover, a liquidity guarantee becomes as costly as a credit guarantee when the maturity shortens. Using Moody's ABCP conduit data, I confirm that shorter ABCP maturity causes the bank's return to be more sensitive to the conduit credit loss. Thus, when banks have significant exposure to a liquidity guarantee, the search for a single appropriate risk weight is futile. More sophisticated tests, such as model-based tests are not only necessary but also have to be carried out under stressed scenarios.The second chapter studies the current London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR). Recent investigation reveals banks might have manipulated the London Interbank Offer Rate (LIBOR). With banks concern about derivative position, net interest income and signaling effect, the equilibrium reporting strategy is a monotonic non-linear function of borrowing cost. Current trimming mechanism cannot block tacit collusion: when banks benefit from lower LIBOR, tacit collusion leads to downward biased LIBOR quotes. Signaling effect causes further depressed LIBOR. Equilibrium submissions do cluster together, as people have observed from the data. Comparative statics suggest LIBOR bias spikes during the crisis, due to more dispersed borrowing costs and consumers' less confidence in banks. I propose a direct and \emph{ex ante} budget balanced LIBOR fixing mechanism. Finally, by calibrating the model to the ratio of dispersion among banks' LIBOR submissions to their CDS spreads, I come up with an initial estimation, which matches practitioner's opinions back in 2008, about LIBOR bias during the recent crisis.


This paper investigates the influence of three federal policies often conjectured to have some of the most pronounced effects on food markets: subsidized crop insurance; the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); and ethanol promotion. Results indicate that removing subsidized crop insurance would yield economic benefits of $932 million per year. Removing crop insurance would reduce producer and consumer surplus, with taxpayers being the only aggregate beneficiaries, suggesting that the costs are "hidden" in the form of a higher tax burden. Agricultural producers in several western states would benefit from the removal of crop insurance subsidies, whereas producers in the Great Plains states would be the biggest losers. Depending on how SNAP recipients spend their disbursements, the projected benefits of dismantling SNAP range from $12.7 billion to $42.8 billion per year. Reducing ethanol demand is projected to benefit livestock producers and food consumers while harming corn producers.


Abstract We have injected dish-cultured oncogenic RasV12 cells into adult male flies and analyzed by single cell transcriptomics their destiny within the host after 11 days. We identified in the preinjection samples and in the 11-day postinjection samples in all 16 clusters of cells, of which 5 disappeared during the experiment in the host. The other cell clusters expanded and expressed genes involved in the regulation of cell cycle, metabolism, and development. In addition, three clusters expressed genes related to inflammation and defense. Predominant among these were genes coding for phagocytosis and/or characteristic for plasmatocytes (the fly equivalent of macrophages). A pilot experiment indicated that the injection into flies of oncogenic cells, in which two of most strongly expressed genes had been previously silenced by RNA interference, into flies resulted in a dramatic reduction of their proliferation in the host flies as compared to controls. As we have shown earlier, the proliferation of the injected oncogenic cells in the adult flies is a hallmark of the disease and induces a wave of transcriptions in the experimental flies. We hypothesize that this results from a bitter dialogue between the injected cells and the host, while the experiments presented here should contribute to deciphering this dialogue.


Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is a potentially serious complication of heparin therapy. Antibodies to platelet factor 4 (PF4)/heparin complexes have been implicated in the pathogenesis of this disorder, but the antigenic epitope(s) on the protein have not been defined. To address this issue, we studied the binding of HIT antibodies to a series of recombinant proteins containing either point mutations in PF4 or chimeras containing various domains of PF4 and the related protein, neutrophil activating peptide-2 (NAP-2). Serum samples from 50 patients with a positive 14C-serotonin release assay (14C-SRA) and a clinical diagnosis of HIT and 20 normal controls were studied. HIT antibodies reacted strongly with wild-type (WT) PF4/heparin complexes, but reacted little, if at all, with NAP-2/heparin complexes (optical density [OD]405 = 2.5 and 0.2, respectively). Alanine substitutions at three of the four lysine residues implicated in heparin binding, K62, K65, and K66, had little effect on recognition by HIT antibodies (OD405 = 2.2, 2.8, and 2.0, respectively), whereas an alanine substitution at position K61 led to reduced, but still significant binding (OD405 = 1.0). Similar studies involving chimeras between PF4 and NAP-2 localized a major antigenic site to the region between the third and fourth cysteine residues for more than half of the sera tested. This site appears to involve a series of amino acids immediately after the third cysteine residue beginning with P37. Thus our studies suggest that whereas the C-terminal lysine residues of PF4 are important for heparin binding, they do not comprise a critical antigenic site for most HIT antibodies. Rather, we propose that maintaining a region near the third cysteine residue of PF4, distal from the proposed heparin-binding domain, is required to form the epitope recognized by many HIT antibodies.


The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of some disinfectants, including ethanol extract of propolis (EEP), on the adhesion of Candida albicans to denture base resins. Seventy-two acrylic resin samples were prepared, half of which was polished and the other half was roughened. C. albicans strain ATCC 10231 was incubated on Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) at 37°C for 48 h. The adhesion period was completed by keeping the cells in this suspension for 90 min at 37°C. Specimens were then immersed in the following solutions: 1%, 2%, and 5% sodium hypochlorite; 4% chlorhexidine gluconate; and 10% EEP. Quantification of the antifungal activity of the chemical solutions was performed using the colorimetric MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay test. One-way ANOVA and post-hoc Tukey tests were performed to evaluate the effectiveness of chemical agents. Polished and roughened surfaces were compared using independent sample t-test. The mean surface roughness value was 0.35 (±0.04) µm for the polished group and 1.2 (±0.2) µm for the roughened group. The contact angles of both surfaces showed statistically significant difference, and 10% EEP solution exhibited significantly less removal of adherent viable C. albicans cells in both groups. All forms of sodium hypochlorite solutions yielded higher efficiency than 4% chlorhexidine gluconate and EEP solutions (P < 0.05). (J Oral Sci 58, 431-437, 2016).


Purpose: Immunohistochemical 4 (IHC4) score plus Clinical Treatment Score (CTS) is an inexpensive tool predicting risk of distant recurrence in women with early breast cancer (EBC). IHC4 score is based on ER, PR, HER2 and Ki67 index. This study explores the role of the combined score (IHC4 þ CTS) in predicting risk of locoregional recurrence (LRR) in women with EBC who had breast conservation surgery (BCS) without adjuvant radiotherapy (study group). The secondary objective was to evaluate the clinicopathological differences between our study group and women who had adjuvant radiation following BCS (control group). Methods and materials: Patients were selected from the local database over a 13-year period. IHC testing was done where results were missing. Combined scores were calculated using the appropriate formulae. Results: Patients in the study group (81 patients) had favorable clinicopathological features compared to the control group (1406 patients). The Cox regression indicated a statistically significant association between the combined score and the risk of LRR (p 1⁄4 0.03). The incidence of LRR was zero, 20% and 33.3% in the low, intermediate and high risk groups respectively (p 1⁄4 0.007). Margin status was the only variable not included in the combined score. The Cox regression analysis demonstrated that the combined score (p 1⁄4 0.02) and the ordinal measure of margins (p 1⁄4 0.03) were significant independent predictors of LRR. Conclusion: This is the first study of its kind. The IHC4 score þ CTS can be used to identify low risk women who can potentially avoid adjuvant radiotherapy. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.


Coaching is a profession that is still in the process of forming in South Africa and it needs to be shaped to suit local requirements. The development, growth and effective use of coaching will be achieved in a partnership between clients and coaches, who create the market together. In the construction industry, executive and performance coaching appears to have been used more widely, and to greater effect, in the US and Europe. The author feels it is time for the industry to engage in an inquiry into the role, problems and possibilities of coaching in the construction industry in South Africa.


Many real world applications in medicine, biology, communication networks, web mining, and economics, among others, involve modeling and learning structured stochastic processes that evolve over continuous time. Existing approaches, however, have focused on propositional domains only. Without extensive feature engineering, it is difficult-if not impossible-to apply them within relational domains where we may have varying number of objects and relations among them. We therefore develop the first relational representation called Relational Continuous-Time Bayesian Networks (RCTBNs) that can address this challenge. It features a nonparametric learning method that allows for efficiently learning the complex dependencies and their strengths simultaneously from sequence data. Our experimental results demonstrate that RCTBNs can learn as effectively as state-of-the-art approaches for propositional tasks while modeling relational tasks faithfully.


Background: Studies show that unsolved contact tracing of chlamydia increase in Uppsala County. Research shows that the meeting between patient and caregiver, when performing a contact tracing, may be crucial to the outcome of contact tracing. Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate how midwives describe the encounter with the patient during contact tracing in youth clinics in Uppsala County Council. Methods: A qualitative approach with semi- structured interviews was used to collect data. Nine midwives of varying age and work experience from seven different youth clinics in Uppsala County Council were interviewed. Results: The study shows that a mentally prepared patient who gets the chance to process the situation before the first meeting on the youth clinic provides conditions for a good encounter to take place, which in turn facilitates the contact tracing. The informants felt that creating trust was important in the initial contact with the patient. Informants described that using motivational interviewing in the encounter made the patient more motivated to participate in contact tracing. The informants described listening to the patient without making them feel guilty or that they were to blame. Informants described factors leading to time constraints in the meeting. These factors included the patient's drinking habits, culture, and attitudes etc. The informants experienced their work as fun, interesting and important. Conclusion: The midwife experienced a good meeting with the patient at a contact tracing and describes the meeting as important to performing a successful contact tracing. The midwives at the youth clinics in Uppsala describe how they work from a patient-centered approach, building trust with the patient. The midwifes are able to, with the help of knowledge, their work and using motivational interviewing, create change in the patient that provides for a secure and safe sexuality.


Objectives: Palm olein, which is the fractionated form of palm oil, is commonly used as cooking oil in Sri Lanka. Processing of crude oil degrades α-tocopherol as does exposure to high heat during cooking. This study was aimed to determine the content and heat degradation of α-tocopherol in Sri Lankan commercially available palm olein. Method: Four different brands of Sri Lankan commercially available palm olein (100 mL) were heated to 180°C for 10 minutes. The oil was subsequently cooled and re-heated five times and assayed in duplicate. Between each cycle of re-heating oil was left in room temperature to cool for 5 hours. Fresh palm olein and the heated samples were analyzed for α-tocopherol content using reversed-phase High-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) (Shimadzu, Japan). Results: The mean α-tocopherol content in unheated palm olein was 3.02 ± 0.35 ppm, with no significant differences between brands. Heating Palm olein for 10 minutes resulted in 56.6% reduction in α-tocopherol compared to unheated oil. Re-heating resulted in further reduction with a 100% loss by the fourth time. Conclusion: The Sri Lankan commercially available palm olein did not provide expected α-tocopherol content, and is not a good source of dietary α-tocopherol. Further analysis is required to quantify α-tocopherol content. Since re-heating further reduced α-tocopherol levels, repeated frying during cooking is likely to result in a minimal level of α-tocopherol being provided through palm olein to the diet.