The study included 60 patients aged 18-65 years with anxious-phobic disorder (APD)--agoraphobia with and without panic disorders. Diagnosis of the disease was performed according to ICD-10. It was established that dynamics and outcome of APD with stable agoraphobia depend on some comorbid psychic disorders (neurotic, nonpsychotic affective, personality disorders, slow-progredient schizophrenia). Influence of such disorders on APD depends on level of realization of the comorbid correlations: symptomatic (nondelirious hypochondria) and intersyndromal ones (affective and personal disorders as well as slow-progredient schizophrenia). Typology of APD with stable agoraphobia is proposed, that is determined by comorbid correlations with the phenomena of nondelirious (overvaluable or neurotic) hypochondria. Agoraphobia, comorbid with the phenomena of overvaluable hypochondria, is characterized by isolated phobic avoidance (1-2 situations), lack of the signs of progredience of psychopathologic disorders and relatively favourable outcome (lack of the cases of invalidism, decrease of a professional status in 8% of the patients). Agoraphobia, comorbid with the phenomena of neurotic hypochondria, is characterized by total phobic avoidance, syndromal comorbidity with polymorphic and generalized somatophormic disorders, depressive disorders syndromally completed, slow-progredient schizophrenia and less favourable outcome (avoidance behaviour of severe degrees was found in 57% of the patients, including 18% of patients disabled due to mental disease).


Although
a great many qualitative descriptions of the experience of having breast cancer
exist, they overwhelmingly represent
experiences of women in Western cultures and are based on assumptions
that stem from Western individualism. This study explores and describes
cultural models shared by a group of non-Western women, South Koreans, in
reference to female breasts and breast cancer. The hermeneutic
phenomenology-grounded qualitative study was conducted with 40 Korean women, between
23 and 81 years of age, half of whom were breast cancer survivors. The
analysis elicited two cultural models, both characterized in terms of physical
relationships to others (as opposed to the woman's individual or independent view of her body): a breast-feeding
mother to a child and an attractive wife to a husband. Female breasts
are interpreted as a medium that connects women to roles as mothers and wives.
Breast cancer can lead women to detach from their previous relational and
role-oriented identities. Cultural traditions, cultural concepts, and culture-related
health beliefs in Korea are interwoven deeply in the women's stories about
breasts, as a gendered organ, and its disease. The findings suggest that
understanding indigenous cultural models should precede any supportive
breast cancer care for women from non-Western cultural backgrounds.


In classic pulse echo ultrasound imaging, the data acquisition rate is limited by the speed of sound. To overcome this limitation, parallel beamforming techniques in transmit (PBT) and in receive mode (PBR) have been developed. To perform harmonic imaging, PBT techniques are preferable being capable of generating stronger harmonics thanks to the possibility to use focused beams in transmission. Recently, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has been explored to perform PBT. To date, only numerical studies and in-vitro experiments in water have been performed, thus neglecting the effect of frequency dependent absorption. In this paper, PBT by means of OFDM tissue harmonic images are presented. A homemade agarose tissue mimicking phantom containing water filled cylindrical cavities was utilized as test object. The ULA-OP ultrasound open platform was used in combination with the linear array probe LA533 (Esaote Italy). Starting from the available transducer bandwidth, sub-bands were allocated to each beam transmitted in parallel. Three orthogonal sub-bands were used, improving the frame rate by a factor three. A classic B-mode tissue harmonic image was then obtained with the same setup for comparison. The contrast to noise ratio (CNR) and average background brightness inside the cavities were evaluated to provide an indirect measure of the influence of interbeam interference.


Recent research by the authors has resulted in the conception of several methods of accounting for direct electrical effects during an electrically assisted manufacturing process, where electricity is applied to a conductive workpiece to enhance its formability characteristics. This modeling and analysis strategy accounts for both mechanical effects and heat transfer effects due to the applied electrical power. This study presents a sensitivity analysis and explanation of several key material and process inputs during an electrically assisted forming test on Stainless Steel 304 and Titanium Grades 2 and 5 specimens. First, the effect that the specific heat (Cp) value has on the model will be discussed and compared with another lightweight material. Second, the significance of all three heat transfer modes (conduction, convection, and radiation) will be noted, and any possible simplifications to the existing heat transfer model will be highlighted. Third, the general electroplastic effect coefficient profile shape for the Stainless Steel 304 material will be compared to that of titanium alloys. Fourth, a frequency analysis will be done on the data taken during the experiments, by way of a Fast Fourier Transform, and the variation of frequency response with the electric input is studied. Overall, this study provides insight into several factors affecting a material's electroplastic effect coefficient profile and also compares resulting electroplastic effect coefficient profiles of various materials.


Emitter location can be found using three or more synchronized receivers. In order to determine the emitter location, different type of methods may be utilized such as received signal strength, direction/time of arrival, and time/frequency difference of arrival. In this study, the time differential of arrivals (TDOA) is selected as the basic method with particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm. In addition, the effect on positioning error of the various receiver distributions is examined.


The purpose of this article is to analyse the social uses of law by migrants living in a precarious situation, through the case of Chinese parents of sick children, applying for regularization for medical reasons. Based on an ethnographic survey conducted on the two sides of the "illness clause" in the management of applications for residence permits – doctors as well as applicant parents – the article first shows that what is considered as stigma can become a resource for irregular migrants to facilitate their access to legality. Because of the anticipation that these parents will make use of the law, they are sometimes considered as "strategists" in the eyes of child psychiatrists, who evaluate the situation medically, morally and politically over time. After following these migrants in their care itinerary and migration trajectory over a relative long period of time, the ethnographic work has enabled me to analyze the temporal evolution of the moral issues involved in regularization for medical reasons. Among the parents concerned, there is an appropriation process of using a child's medical monitoring as an administrative resource. At the intersection of medical and migration uncertainties, some parents are able to move from a regularization decision for medical reasons to a return to their home country, likewise for medical reasons. When those families are managed by "border guard" doctors, they are able to self-manage their relation to the borders between their countries of origin and their host countries.


The two main objectives of the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) water supply management program are to cope with a failure of the aqueducts in the Delta due to earthquake and flood damage and to mitigate periodic shortages. EBMUD emphasizes construction of additional terminal storage, specifically development of a reservoir in Buckhorn Canyon, to meet both objectives. Better alternatives--cheaper and less environmentally damaging--are (to cope with failure) use of existing terminal storage and interties, along with an eventual phased construction of secure aqueducts in the Delta, and (to mitigate shortages) purchase of high quality Mokelumne River water from the nearby Woodbridge Irrigation District, along with sharply rising block rates to induce conservation by EBMUD customers. Additional terminal storage, only as a last resort, would better come from some marginal addition to capacity at the planned Los Vaqueros Reservoir rather than construction of a new reservoir in Buckhorn Canyon. Under plausible assumptions, the cost of providing high quality water during a shortage is 10 times as high under the Buckhorn option as it would be with water purchases and conservation.


at some recent developments in approach to design and technology that have been developed at the Department of Design and Technology at Loughborough. These have centred about two factors in the conventional approach to design in schools, ie : a. CDT is usually limited to design and make. It does not look further, to the commercial application of design. CDT, and particularly technology is more often than not a 'problem solving circus' with little link with the real world . b. This situation has partly arisen due to the wayan expanding curriculum within a traditional timetable structure has become increasingly fractured. Effective liaison between departments and examples of cross curricula work, particularly in upper schools, is rare. We have built a curriculum of 'little boxes' which is increasingly failing our children in educating them for the real world. Recognising such factors and generating ideas on how to alleviate them is one thing, actually running an experimental programme to trial ideas is often very diffi c ult. At Loughborough, we have been fortunate to have hosted three, week long residential TVEI courses for students from Bedfordshire. These courses have been a very valuable opportunity, far removed from the normal school environment, to experiment with the points listed above. The most recent, for 56 sixth formers was also interesting in that we were able to trial a new computer simulation designed to be run over a period of time in conjunction with a design brie f. We can, therefore point to ideas that have been tried, albeit in an unusual environment, and found to be successful . It is hoped that teachers will find these points of value in developing their own approaches to design and technology.


The aim of this study was to investigate the risk of developing preeclampsia (PE) associated with gestational exposure to ambient air pollutants in southern Sweden, a low-exposure area. We used a cohort of 43,688 singleton pregnancies and monthly mean exposure levels of black carbon (BC), local and total particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), and NOX at the maternal residential address estimated by Gaussian dispersion modeling from 2000 to 2009. Analyses were conducted using binary logistic regression. A subtype analysis for small-for-gestational age (SGA) was performed. All analyses were adjusted for obstetrical risk factors and socioeconomic predictors. There were 1286 (2.9%) PE cases in the analysis. An adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of 1.35 with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.11–1.63 was found when comparing the lowest quartile of BC exposure to the highest quartile in the third trimester The AOR for PE associated with each 5 µg/m3 increase in locally emitted PM2.5 was 2.74 (95% CI: 1.68, 4.47) in the entire pregnancy. Similar patterns were observed for each 5 µg/m3 increment in locally emitted PM10. In pregnancies complicated by PE with SGA, the corresponding AOR for linear increases in BC was 3.48 (95% CI: 1.67, 7.27). In this low-level setting, maternal exposure to ambient air pollution during gestation was associated with the risk of developing PE. The associations seemed more pronounced in pregnancies with SGA complications, a finding that should be investigated further.


Literature on domestic violence in the South Asian community demonstrates that there is an over emphasis on dismissing violence as a 'cultural' phenomenon. Likewise, literature on media's portrayal of violence against women tends to reinforce patriarchal ideologies by blaming the victim, excusing the perpetrator, and reporting violence as a private, individual matter rather than a larger, social problem. Using discourse analysis, my findings illustrate that the portrayal of domestic violence in The Toronto Star reinforces racism and sexism when framing the problem. In doing so, responsibility is diffused and therefore the solution to violence against women becomes limited, if not non-existent.


AMIC architecture has been introduced in previous works in order to provide a generic and expandable solution for implementing large number of outputs SiPM array/PMT detectors. The underlying idea in AMIC architecture is to calculate the moments of the detected light distribution in an analog fashion. These moments provide information about energy, x/y position, etc. of the light distribution of the detected event. Moreover this means that a small set of signals contains most of the information of the event, thus reducing the number of channels to be acquired.This paper introduces a new front-end device AMIC2GR which implements the AMIC architecture improving the features of the former integrated devices. Higher bandwidth and filtering coefficient precision along with a lower noise allow to apply some detector enhancements. Inhomogeneity among detector elements throughout the array can be reduced. Depth of interaction measurements can be obtained from the light distribution analysis. Also a common trigger signal can be obtained for the whole detector array. Finally AMIC2GR preamplifier stage close to SiPM output signals optimizes signal to noise ratio, which allows to reduce SiPM gain by using lower operating voltages thus reducing dark noise.


The paper reported using a mathematical model that simulated the wear volume in comparison to measurement by a ball-on-disc for deposited CrN films on tool steel (JIS SKD11). Three dimensional profile instruments were used to measure the wear scar trace for variations of numerical data of two dimensional profiles. By using numerical algorithms, the wear volume measurements of wear profiles are to save considerable time and economical. A new mathematical method is issued for determining wear volumes in this study. The estimated results were precisely fitted as compared with other calculations for three dimensional estimations of wear volumes.


This is the first complete commentary for ninety years on the surviving poems of Bacchylides. Part I, covering the Victory Odes, was published in 1982. Part II, with the Dithyrambs and the fragments of Bacchylides' other books, now completes the work. Like the first part, this volume contains an introduction, the Greek text with facing German prose translation, the commentary, and the indices to Parts I and II. Bacchylides, a contemporary of Pindar, was one of the nine "classical" lyric poets whose songs were collected, edited and studied by the scholars of Alexandria. The commentary, in addition to providing linguistic and factual information, aims to highlight the poet's qualities of style and composition which have so far been generally underrated.


SUMMARY
The results of a comparison of criteria used in characterization of the Actinomycetes under the auspices of the International Subcommittee are reported. Although this first co-operative work carried out on a large scale showed some deficiencies which were caused by the selection of the media and methods and by the type of description, some interesting evidence concerning the value of the used criteria for the classification of Streptomycetes were obtained.
The morphology of sporophores and the shape of spores are significant and constant characteristics so that they can be used as taxonomically useful criteria.
Likewise, the melanin reaction is an unequivocal characteristic and can be applied in a classification. The determination and description of the colours of the aerial as well as of the vegetative mycelium are much more complicated. In principle these results confirm those obtained from a co-operative experiment which was carried out in the USA a short time before (Gottlieb, 1951). In this study organized by the Subcommittee on Actinomycetes of the Committee on Taxonomy of the Society of American Bacteriologists workers ot 11 different laboratories examined 5 different strains by means of 12 morphological as well as physiological criteria
Further studies are necessary to find the most useful criteria and to improve the methods which are suitable for the classification of Streptomycetes. Further co-operative and comparative work could be the best way to solve these taxnomical problems.


Abstract Difficulties with feeding and eating are more common among pre-term infants compared with full-term infants. The primary objective of this study was to describe parents' perceptions of developmental eating patterns and occurrence of eating difficulties in a group of pre-term infants, compared with a control group. A parent questionnaire was administered for a study group (27 pre-term infants born between 28–33 weeks gestation) and a control group (29 full-term infants born between 38–41 weeks gestation). Parents of the pre-term children reported significantly more problems with early feeding, but only half of them reported that their infants received intervention to aid their feeding development during neonatal care. At 3 years of age the pre-term children weighed significantly less than the full-term children, but their parents were more satisfied with their eating habits and portion sizes than the control group parents. This finding may reflect differing parenting experiences between the two groups rather than an actual difference in eating skills. It suggests that parents of pre- term infants would benefit from practical guidance in supporting their premature infants in developing eating skills. Future studies using objective measures are recommended to verify the findings reported here.


This paper is based on my reflections on a deceptively simple tabular representation of a combined 12×12 multiplication table showing multiplier and multiplicand,starting at a time when I taught mathematics full time at a primary (elementary) school through to my presentteaching of mathematics education modules to prospective teachers. A historically–motivated framework on the importance of tables as expressions of complex information in two–dimensional form is used to gain insight into and understand multiplication tables. Through this framework it is shown that the modal practice of "knowing one's tables" in the primary grade levels is really about knowing sequenced and separated lists of whole number multiplications. In contrast, tabular multiplication sequences in a combined multiplication table can, through appropriate teaching practices, enable the discovery of multiple relationships beyond multiplication or arithmetic, resulting in significant mathematics that spans the grade levels. Implications for mathematics teacher education practice with its current focus mathematical knowledge for teaching, are considered.


Various anticancer medications have been discovered due to advances in the health care industry, but they have undesirable side effects. On the other hand, anticancer drugs derived from natural sources have low side effects, making them excellent for cancer therapy. This study aims to evaluate the effect of clove flower extract (Syzygium aromaticum) as a potential anticancer agent by determining grid-score values using molecular docking and LC50 values using the brine shrimp lethality test (BSLT) technique. As animal models, three hundred larvae of Artemia salina leach were divided into six groups. Each group has ten larvae that have undergone five replications. The clove flower extract concentration in the treatment media was 50 ppm (T1), 250 ppm (T2), 500 ppm (T3), 750 ppm (T4), 1000 ppm (T5), and 0 ppm (seawater) as the control. The probit analysis of Artemia Salina leach mortality percentage data. The results indicated that the clove flower extract (Syzygium aromaticum) is harmful to larvae with LC50 values of 227,1 g/ml or in the equation y = 2,8636 x – 1,7466 with an R2 value of 0.9062. According to molecular docking, eugenol acetate (grid-score −42.120834) has a close relationship with the cognate enzyme nitric oxide synthase (3E7G) based on its proximity to the grid score value (grid-score −61.271812). Therefore, clove flower extract has the potential to act as an anticancer medication. Based on the grid-score proximity, eugenol acetate is close to the homologous enzyme nitric oxide synthase (3E7G). Inhibition of nitric oxide synthase also shows a reduction in cancer cell proliferation.


Neutrophil cytoplasmic toxicity is manifested as an abnormality in cell size or the cytoplasmic content upon examination of Romanowsky-stained blood smears, and is traditionally associated with infection and inflammation. The purpose of this retrospective study was to investigate the association of such changes with clinical and clinicopathologic characteristics, diseases, and prognoses in dogs. Dogs with neutrophil toxicity (n = 248) were compared with negative controls (n = 248). Statistical analyses included chi-square tests, independent t-tests, nonparametric Mann-Whitney tests, the chi-square trend test, and survival analysis. Dogs with neutrophil toxicity had a significantly higher prevalence of pale mucous membranes, tachycardia, fever, abdominal organomegaly, icterus, melena, and hematuria. Most mean hematologic variables were significantly different between groups. Dogs with neutrophil toxicity had a significantly (P < .05) higher prevalence of leukocytosis, leukopenia, neutrophilia, neutropenia, anemia, hyponatremia, hypokalemia, hypoproteinemia, hypoalbuminemia, and hypocalcemia. The prevalence of pyometra, parvovirus infection, acute renal failure, peritonitis, immune-mediated hemolytic anemia, disseminated intravascular coagulation, pancreatitis, septicemia, and neoplastic disorders was significantly higher among these dogs. Case fatality, hospitalization length, and treatment cost were significantly (P < .001) higher in dogs with neutrophil toxicity. Neutrophil toxicity severity was significantly (P < .0035) and positively associated with neutropenia, and negatively associated with leukocytosis and neutrophilia. A significant trend (P = .05) toward increasing case fatality with an increase of neutrophil toxicity was observed. In the neutrophil toxicity group, dogs with leukopenia (<5.0 X 10(3)/mm3) had a significantly (P < .0001) higher case fatality compared to dogs with normal or high leukocyte counts. We conclude that evaluation of blood smears for neutrophil cytoplasmic toxicity provides useful clinical information and can serve as a good prognostic predictor.


This study aimed to search for validity and reliability evidences for 'A and B Forms' of the Inductive Reasoning Test for Children – IRTC. A total of 417 students, both sexes, from 1st to 5th grade, between 6 and 11 years old participated of the study. 'A Form' was administered to 219 children and 'B Form' to 198. The investigation of the internal structure of both forms indicated that the correlations between the items may be explained by a single factor which is understood as inductive reasoning. Appropriate reliability by internal consistency was found, except for the 1st and 2nd grades, and regarding the latter, only on 'B Form'. The results also revealed the sensitivity of IRTC in showing differences in the performance of students attending early versus late grade levels. Despite the favorable data, after the reformulation of some items more research is needed, so that 'A and B Forms' are able to discriminate the performance of children in a greater number of grades.


Architecture can be conceived and designed as an active participant in enhancing awareness of the prevalence of seismic activity by illuminating the unremitting transformation of the landscape and providing places where interaction is focussed around seismic issues. The continued awareness of changes to our landscape, potential loss of life, property, and national cultural or historical artefacts is an important means by which future preparedness can be encouraged. This thesis argues that an awareness of the message to safeguard one's future and one's family's futures could be understood through a spatial experience. This thesis proposes an architectural approach for seismically active contexts using a specific site – a recreational reserve called Harcourt Park in Upper Hutt – as a design research case study. The site is of great geological significance to the Wellington region and New Zealand as its natural landmarks can be used to measure and publicly witness the direct effects of seismic movement along the Wellington Fault line which runs through the centre of the site. The thesis uses architecture to transform the site into a living memorial, which recognises the past devastating earthquakes in New Zealand and provides for the commemoration of losses from future damaging earthquakes should public preparedness not improve. The architecture also functions as an earthquake education facility and geologist research facility in order to enhance the educational experience of the site. The intention of the thesis is to use architecture as a means of actively enhancing public awareness of the need to understand and prepare for the effects of seismic activity.


We develop and study a dynamic stochastic model of the production, collection, disassembly and remanufacture of photocopiers produced and sold in Japan and Thailand. We consider the inventory requirements and costs of saleable products as well as capacity requirements and costs in production, collection, disassembly and remanufacture in both countries.


ABSTRACT This article reports on an investigation of a workshop approach to probe and deepen Irish preservice teachers' (PSTs') initial professional pedagogical vision of inquiry-based science education (IBSE). In an effort to understand the experiential and historical foundation of their vision, we report on the current culture of science teaching and assessment within the Irish school system and contrast it with the aims set out at a policy level as a way of contextualizing teacher candidates' ideas about IBSE. We describe a workshop approach designed to engage PSTs in IBSE activities and an analysis framework that allows us to elicit the PSTs' professional pedagogical vision, specifically the key practices of coding and highlighting, from critiques of inquiry activities they carried out in the workshop. We offer the workshop approach as a viable complement to video analysis of exemplary teaching episodes and demonstrate the analytical power of the approach by reporting what practices the PSTs highlighted as constituting IBSE and how they coded the purpose of the practices they highlighted. We use these highlighted practices and coded purposes as indicators of their professional pedagogical vision of IBSE, and reveal the extent to which PSTs adapt the tenets of IBSE to fit in with their desire for students to remember science facts.


This thesis describes the extension of the double electron electron resonance (DEER) technique to the case of Cu(II) and its application in biophysics. First, we demonstrate the possibility of Cu(II)-Cu(II) distance measurement using DEER on a proline-based peptide. The DEER spectra collected at four different magnetic fields do not change appreciably with magnetic field at X-band. Based on simulations, we show that the orientational effects are important in data analysis and that the proper Cu(II)-based DEER experimental procedure is to collect DEER data at many magnetic fields. Next, we examine the cause of the weak field-dependence of Cu(II) DEER data at X-band. We improve the simulation procedure by including a distribution in relative orientation of the g-tensors of the two spins. The new model is tested on two polypeptides. Subtle but detectable orientational effects are observed from DEER spectra of both peptides. Distances obained from DEER are consistent with structural models and with earlier measurements. Constraints on the relative orientation between paramagnetic centers in these two polypeptides are determined by examinations of orientational effects and simulations. We discover that the orientational selectivity is effectively reduced when the relative orientations of the two spin g-tensors display a flexibility of ~5-10°. We apply the methodology to the case of the EcoRI-DNA complex. Electron Spin Echo Envelope Modulation (ESEEM) experiments show that Cu(II) is coordinated to one of the five histidine residues in EcoRI. Cu(II)-based distance constraints are then measured using DEER to reveal this histidine. Using a triangulation procedure based on the measurement of distance constraints we show that Cu(II) binds to histidine 114 in EcoRI. The data is novel because it reveals a second metal ion binding site in EcoRI, which has traditionally been classified as a one-metal endonuclease.


Twelve milking cows, purebred and crossbred Holstein, with average weight of 550 kg, were allotted to three Latin Squares 4 x 4. The experimental period lasted 18 days, seven days for the adaptation to the diets and eleven days for data collection. Feeding was supplied to met the requirements of non pregnant cows, producing 20 kg of milk with 4.5% fat. The objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of replacement (0, 33, 67, 100%) of corn meal by pelleted citrus pulp in the concentrate in total mixed rations, observing the parameters digestibility of the nutrients, and ruminal pH and ammonia concentration during two periods of collection of sample of feces (2 and 5 days). The digestibility of the nutrients were not affected by the collection period, as well as there were not differences in the digestibility for the increasing levels of citrus pulp. No significant differences were observed for pH and ammonia concentration of the rumen for the different treatments. The citrus pulp can substitute up to 100% of the corn in complete diets for cows producing 20 kg of milk in average, without effect on the ruminal parameters (pH and ammonia concentration).


This thesis focuses on techniques to improve the performance of voice conversion. Voice conversion modifies the recorded speech of a source speaker towards a given target speaker. The resultant speech is to sound like the target speaker with the language content unchanged. This technology has been applied to create personalized voice in text-to-speech or virtual avatar, speech-to-singing synthesis or spoofing attacks in speaker verification systems. To perform voice conversion, the usual approach is to create a conversion functions which is applied on the source speaker's speech features such as timbre and prosodic features, to generate the corresponding target features. In this past decade, most of voice conversion researches had focused on spectral mapping, i.e. conversion of the features representing the timbre characteristics in a frame by frame manner. In chapter 3, we investigate a comprehensive approach to train the conversion function using DNN which considers both timbre and prosodic features simultaneously. For better modelling, we have used high-dimension spectral features. However, this further worsen the ability to robustly train a DNN which typically requires large amount of training data. To overcome the issue of limited training data, we propose a new pretraining process using autoencoder. The experimental results show the proposed comprehensive framework with pretraining performs better than conventional voice conversion systems including the state-of-the-art GMM-based system. The technique introduced in chapter 3 only learns a DNN system to convert between a pair of speaker. To reduce the need for parallel training data of new speaker pair, in chapter 4 we examine a novel DNN adaptation technology for voice conversion by including two bias vector representing both source and target speaker. By this configuration, new speaker pair conversion are archived. Our preliminary results show that conversion to new target speakers' voices could be achieved.


The short-channel effects (SCEs) of planar bulk and fully depleted finFET devices have been compared using the same junction overlap and lateral gradient, and it is shown that, for finFET devices, a significant component of electrostatic control arises from a naturally present shallow extension junction. When such shallow junctions are applied to a bulk device, we show that the SCE becomes comparable to that of a finFET. Furthermore, we show that, if an embedded source/drain stressor is incorporated in a bulk device, it will not degrade the short-channel benefit of the ultrashallow junctions. The ability to span a wide power/performance range by doping and the improvement in SCEs by the use of ultrashallow extension junctions can potentially extend the life of bulk-type technologies.


Deletions of the long arm of chromosome 6 are relatively uncommon and to date minimal genotype–phenotype correlations have been observed. We report on three unrelated patients with de novo paternal interstitial deletions of 6q24.3. FISH mapping was used to delineate the minimal region of overlap between these three patients. Although all three patients had different size deletions and different breakpoints, two of the patients shared a 2.5 Mb region of overlap and strikingly similar facial features including a triangular face, frontal bossing with metopic prominence, short and upward‐slanting palpebral fissures, asymmetry of upper eyelids, hooded eyelids, shallow orbits, prominent inferior orbital crease, wide mouth, and long and flat philtrum. They also had redundant skin, joint laxity, a small thorax, and early developmental delay. The smallest region of overlap between all three patients was a region of deletion less than 1 Mb; all had a history of IUGR and postnatal short stature without overt radiologic skeletal anomalies. The dysmorphic features, early developmental and growth delay may be due to the hemizygous state for one of the genes in the deleted region of two of the patients or to a long range effect of the deletion on expression of other genes. In addition, since imprinted genes have been reported in this region, paternal deletion of an imprinted gene in all three patients may contribute to the growth phenotype. We propose that this is a new congenital malformation syndrome associated with a paternal deletion of 6q24.3. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Implementation of off-site production on construction projects isoften hindered by a number of specific process and procurementconstraints. These constraints are largely influenced by decisionswithin the control of construction clients, suggesting that theyhave a significant influence over the adoption of off-site productioninto construction projects. However, an appreciation of the effectof these constraints has been lacking. Addressing this need, anoff-site production implementation assessment instrument thatresides within a larger toolkit (IMMPREST) was developed usingquestionnaire survey data and a series of industrial workshops.IMMPREST is an interactive electronic toolkit developed byLoughborough University (UK), in conjunction with eleven industrialpartners, which facilitates the evaluation of benefit arising fromuse of off-site production within construction. It identifies thefactors that need to be considered for an evaluation, the datarequired to assess the effect of these factors, and where therequired data resides within the supply chain. Development ofthe implementation assessment instrument is discussed, whilstalso making reference to the role that clients can play in creatingthe process and procurement conditions that promote rather thanconstrain the adoption of off-site production.


With increased awareness of humanity's profound impact on the climate, interest in the notion of sustainability has expanded across all disciplines. The inherent link between food and climate has specifically motivated consideration of sustainability within agricultural and food production sectors. The global wine industry has long acknowledged the social, environmental, and economic sustainability concerns (e.g. triple-bottom-line) of their industry. Beginning in 1992 with The Lodi Winegrape Commission in California, several wine regions including France, Australia and South Africa have developed workbooks and policies for sustainable wine production. The budding wine industry in the state of Maine has yet to explore the concept of sustainability as it relates to their operations. In this project, I worked with a community partner, the Maine Winery Guild1, to conduct 10 interviews of wineries across the state. I asked questions to understand how sustainability is being defined and enacted, and what obstacles pertaining to sustainability are being faced. This research can be used by the Guild and other relevant stakeholders to target industry development efforts in a manner that will help the Maine wine industry to overcome challenges in order to grow and compete with other sustainability-conscious wine regions. 1 http://www.mainewineryguild.com/


Hospitals with American Society of Hospital Pharmacists accredited residencies were surveyed to assess the state of the art for adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting. A majority of hospitals used a concurrent ADR reporting mechanism. Only one-fourth of hospitals assessed the causal relationship between the drug and the ADR, whereas the majority assessed the severity of the ADR. Fifty-eight per cent of hospitals received fewer than seven ADR reports in a 6-month period. Antiinfective agents and central nervous system drugs were most frequently cited as causing ADRs. Various corrective action has been taken to reduce ADRs, including changing drug administration procedures, promoting awareness of ADRs, patient teaching, and drug monitoring.


OF THESIS EVALUATION OF 2-CELL RC BOX CULVERTS Reinforced Concrete Box Culverts (RCBCs) are an integral part of the national and international transportation infrastructure. The National Bridge Inventory Standards (NBIS) requires that all bridges, which include culverts with spans > 20 ft. (6.1 m), be load rated for safe load carrying capacity in accordance with the AASHTO Manual for Bridge Evaluation (MBE). In Kentucky, the Transportation Cabinet manages more than 15,500 bridges, of which almost 1,400 are bridge size culverts. Of the 1241 bridge size RCBCs that were being evaluated in Kentucky between 2015 and 2018, 846 were 2-cell culverts (or 68%). The objective in this study is to evaluate 2-cell RCBCs using the finite element (FE) method and to propose dead load and live load demand equations that can be used to determine the capacity demand ratio (C/D) and the load rating. The results indicate that the maximum dead load forces (positive and negative moments, and shear) vary linearly with respect to an increase in fill height, while the variation is bi-linear for the maximum live load forces. The proposed equations are derived in terms of the clear span and fill height. The results also indicated that, for fill heights greater than 10 ft (3 m), the maximum live load positive bending moments are less than 10% of their dead load counterparts. The primary advantage of the proposed equations lies in their simple formulation when analyzing and designing 2-cell culverts, which in turn alleviates the need to conduct a detailed finite element analysis to determine the maximum forces in 2-cell RCBCs.


Scenario planning is a commonly used method by companies to develop their long-term plans. Scenario planning for risk management puts an added emphasis on identifying and managing emerging risk. While a variety of methods have been proposed for this purpose, we show that applying AI planning techniques to devise possible scenarios provides a unique advantage for scenario planning. Our system, the Scenario Planning Advisor (SPA), takes as input the relevant information from news and social media, representing key risk drivers, as well as the domain knowledge and generates scenarios that explain the key risk drivers and describe the alternative futures. To this end, we provide a characterization of the problem, knowledge engineering methodology, and transformation to planning. Furthermore, we describe the computation of the scenarios, lessons learned, and the feedback received from the pilot deployment of the SPA system in IBM.


The Grojec region of Poland is an important region for apple production and accounts for 40 percent of domestic apple production. Apple growers from the region made an attempt to strengthen their competitive position through registering their apples as Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) products. The European Commission's PGI allows food producers to obtain market recognition and a premium price for their products. Although the Grojec Apple received PGI registration in 2011, little has been done to promote apples with the PGI label. Two important research questions are addressed: 1) Does the Polish market recognize Grojec Apple PGI, and 2) Does the market value Grojec Apple PGI? Logit and regression models are estimated using survey data collected during an International MBA in Agribusiness and Commerce study week in Warsaw. Only 22% of consumers recognize Grojec Apple PGI. Yet, 70% of consumers indicate they are willing to pay more for the product and their average willingness to pay (WTP) premium is 32%. Results indicate use of the PGI label may be effective in improving sales and profit margins for Grojec Apple producers and their affiliated cooperatives. Older consumers are more likely to indicate a WTP premium. Males, smaller households, and consumers less sensitive to apple price indicate a higher WTP premium. An advertising campaign promoting Grojec Apple PGI as a better product may be effective at increasing consumer likelihood to pay more and WTP premium. Although "Grojec" is already familiar to most consumers in central Poland as a region for apples, a Grojec Apple with PGI label would assure consumers they are purchasing apples from the Grojec region and the apples are high quality.


The bacteria isolated from the pomace dumping soil site (bacteria id A1C1) showed maximum growth (O.D600 = 1.97±0.4 X 109 cells/ml) within 48h in the minimal salt media supplemented with L-serine. The isolated strain was identified as 'Bacillus tequilensis' through 16sRNA sequencing. The strain was quantified for D-serine content by using RP-HPLC. The D-serine concentration was calculated as 0.919±0.02 nM in the bacterial cellular fraction by using a standard curve plot and linear curve equation. Further, recovery % was also calculated for the spiked samples which vary from 85-90%. The study's peculiarity reflects the fact that the isolated strain was explored for the first time to detect the presence of serine enantiomers. The biochemical features also showed 70% similarity to the standard strain Bacillus tequilensis 10bT. The optimum growth parameters were recorded as 37℃±0.5, 150±0.5 RPM, and 7±0.5pH. The strain was Gram-positive and synthesized endospores. Morphological results showed its rod shape, large, irregular, and off-white-coloured colonies. A1C1 was also tested for the production of secondary metabolites and enzymes. A1C1 showed positive results for indole production, lactose fermentation, protease, and gelatinase whereas, negative results for catalase, MR-VP, citrate utilization, cellulase, amylase, and pectinase. Further, the strain was assayed for PGPR attributes and showed a negative phosphate solubilization index and IAA production. The antibacterial assay showed 5% and 2% efficacy of the extracellular fraction against MTCC 40 and MTCC 11949 respectively. These results demonstrate that Bacillus tequilensis A1C1 has antibacterial activity, the potential to secrete extracellular enzymes, and D-serine content in the intracellular fraction of the cultivated cells.


As we wrestle with the future of our safety net and social insurance programs, it is important to understand not only the features and outcomes associated with individual programs but also the broader economic context. This reflection piece discusses several relevant aspects of the macroeconomy and of economic and financial conditions facing households: rising government debt, slower macroeconomic growth, limited tools to fight future recessions, greater income inequality, and the financial struggles of households. It goes on to draw lessons for how we should reform our system of entitlement programs.


A goal of speciation genetics is to understand how the genetic components underlying interspecific reproductive barriers originate within species. Unilateral incompatibility (UI) is a postmating prezygotic barrier in which pollen rejection in the female reproductive tract (style) occurs in only one direction of an interspecific cross. Natural variation in the strength of UI has been observed among populations within species in the wild tomato clade. In some cases, molecular loci underlying self-incompatibility (SI) are associated with this variation in UI, but the mechanistic connection between these intra- and inter-specific pollen rejection behaviors is poorly understood in most instances. We generated an F2 population between SI and SC genotypes of a single species, Solanum pennellii, to examine the genetic basis of intraspecific variation in the strength of UI against other species, and to determine whether loci underlying SI are genetically associated with this variation. We found that F2 individuals vary in the rate at which UI rejection occurs. One large effect QTL detected for this trait co-localized with the SI-determining S-locus. Moreover, individuals that expressed S-RNase—the S-locus protein involved in SI pollen rejection—in their styles had much more rapid UI responses compared to those without S-RNase protein. Our analysis shows that intraspecific variation at mate choice loci—in this case at loci that prevent self-fertilization—can contribute to variation in the strength of interspecific isolation, including postmating prezygotic barriers. Understanding the nature of such standing variation can provide insight into the accumulation of these barriers between diverging lineages.


Low levels of plasma viremia (below 50 copies/ml of HIV-1 RNA) can be detected in the majority of HIV+ subjects successfully treated with HAART. Aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of different antiretroviral regimens on this residual viremia and on proviral HIV-1 DNA in HAART-treated subjects with plasma HIV RNA <400 cp/ml and no history of virological failure. To this purpose, a cross-sectional analysis of 319 HIV-positive patients on HAART with plasma HIV RNA <400 cp/ml was performed. Subjects had been on HAART for a median of 3.6 years: the current regimen included two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) plus a protease inhibitor (PI) in 104 (32.6%) cases, of which 73 treated with a boosted PI; two NRTIs plus a non-NRTI (NNRTI) were prescribed in 166 (52.2%) cases, and NRTIs-only in 49 cases (15.4%). Patients treated with PI had the lowest nadir CD4 cell count (237+191 cells/microl) compared to patients treated with NNRTI (384+192 cells/microl) or NRTIs-only (387+222 cells/microl). Cell-associated HIV-1 DNA was measured in 231 subjects. Residual viremia was measured in 238 subjects with plasma HIV-1 RNA levels < 50 copies/ml. Multivariate analysis showed that the use of NNRTI was independently associated to low levels of residual viremia and high levels of HIV-1DNA, whereas the use of PI was independently associated to low levels of HIV-1 DNA. The better virological performance of NNRTI in terms of low residual viremia is consistent with specific literature data, whereas the greater impact of PI on the viral reservoirs is noteworthy and needs further investigations.


This paper examines how a cognitive boundary with no physical presence has affected life in the cities of Jaffa and Tel Aviv, not only during its time of existence (1921-1950) but many decades after it was erased from all official documents. In 1921, the national aspirations of Jews in Jaffa, embraced by the local British Mandate government, triggered a segregation process that resulted in an official administrative split of Jaffa's urban area and the creation of the "Hebrew" city of Tel Aviv on Jaffa's northern parts. This administrative division had a clear ethnic character, dividing the entire urban fabric into a clearly defined "Jewish" and "Arab" geographical entities and influencing the development of the two municipalities as well as the daily life of their populations. After the 1948 War in Palestine, which led to the flight of almost all of Jaffa's Arab population and the annexation its area to Tel Aviv, the united city continued to resemble a split city, with the former areas of Jaffa remaining relatively underdeveloped and neglected for decades. By combining spatial analysis and historical research, this study reveals how the "paper boundary" that was drawn between Jaffa and Tel Aviv in 1921 transformed the life of Arabs and Jews in the two cities in a way that undermined the physical unity of the urban fabric and the spatial potential of its street network. The creation of the municipal border led to the cognitive marginalization of the spatially central Manshiya neighbourhood, and later to its deterioration and eventual destruction. Ironically, the destruction of Manshiya gave a belated physical expression to the historic cognitive separation between the centres of Jaffa and Tel Aviv, working against the wish to unite the two cities into a single urban entity after 1948.


The New York Court of Appeals? 1983 case Weber v. Stony Brook set an important precedent upholding the right of parents to make medical decisions for newborns born with severe congenital defects. A pro-life New York attorney, Lawrence Washburn, attempted to legally intervene in the case of Baby Jane Doe, an infant born with disorders. When the infant?s parents chose palliative care over intensive corrective surgery, Washburn made repeated attempts to have the New York courts force through the surgery. The Court of Appeals ultimately ruled not only that Washburn had overstepped his authority, but also that the parents? decision was a medically and legally valid one. The Weber case set an important standard for protecting the rights of parents and limiting the rights of government to make medical decisions for infants with severe congenital defects.


A collection of 460 Eiders that had fallen victim to an oil-pollution incident in the Wadden Sea in January 1987 was studied. Three individuals, initially classified as 2nd-calendar-year males on the basis of plumage characteristics, had divergent patterns on head and wing. Autopsies revealed that all were adult females: they had no testis and no bursa Fabricus, but an ovarium with a convoluted oviduct and female bulla ossea. It was concluded that the birds had a disturbed hormone balance, and probably were senile. Following these observations, two such birds were found among 43 dead Eiders that had been washed ashore on Texel in the winter of 1987-88 and another was discovered alive among a group of adult, non-breeding Eiders in the Vlieland colony (The Netherlands) in May 1987. None of these c. 7500 breeding females handled for ringing during the past 25 years showed any sign of a male-like plumage. It may well be that such birds are more common in the non-breeding group, but that they have been misidentified as immature males during former field observations. The findings suggest that some females from the non-hunted Dutch Eider population may die of old age.


This article studies the effects of negative skewness of the surface roughness on the state of contact and lubrication between nominally flat metallic surfaces. An asperity-contact model with a Weibull distribution of asperity heights is used in the study. Analyses are carried out for both frictionless and frictional contacts of surfaces of a range of plasticity index and roughness skewness in light and heavy loading. The state of contact is examined in terms of the asperity pressure and the mode of asperity deformation. Analyses are also carried out for the contacts with fatty-acids boundary lubrication. The state of contact and lubrication is evaluated in terms of the system friction coefficient and the proportion of the real area of contact with deteriorated boundary film. The results obtained suggest that, for sufficiently smooth surfaces or surfaces with a sufficiently low plasticity index, the system can perform satisfactorily under various conditions of practical interest and the negative skewness of the surface roughness can greatly help to enhance the system performance. For problems where the performance is marginally satisfactory, the negative skewness can help to improve the contact and lubrication conditions to further run-in the surfaces toward a lower plasticity index. The results also suggest that, when the surfaces are significantly rough or with plasticity index significantly above unity, the system may operate in a severe state of contact and lubrication, particularly under heavy loading and with high friction. Under these conditions, the negative skewness of the surface roughness is no longer effective to sufficiently bring down the degree of severity.


Background: HTLV type I/II is a blood borne infection that can be transmitted via blood transfusion. Objective: To determine the seroprevalence of human T – lymphotropic virus among blood donors in Osogbo, Nigeria. Methods: Diagnosis of Human T. Lymphotropic virus antigen was carried out on 372 serum samples among blood donors who visited the blood bank/transfusion unit of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology  Teaching Hospital and Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Hospital, Osogbo between January and July 2008 using Enzyme linked immunosorbent  assay techniques (ELISA) as described by the manufacturer. Western  blotting was used to confirm the serum reactive samples from ELISA. Results: Out of 372 samples analyzed, 14 (3.6%) samples were found to be positive for HTLV-I/II (7 HTLV-I and 7 HTLV-II) while 358 (96.4%) samples were negative after confirmation with Western blotting. The seroprevalence of HTLV-I/II among the blood donors in Osogbo, Nigeria was found to be 3.6%. This has major implication for the blood transfusion service in Nigeria. Conclusion: The study concluded that there is need for screening of blood donor for HTLV-I/II in order to rule out this transfusion related infection. Keywords : human T-lymphotropic virus, T-cell leukaemia,  myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis.


Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a genetic condition characterised by the presence of otherwise unexplained left ventricular hypertrophy. The clinical spectrum of the disease is remarkably heterogeneous, ranging from individuals with normal life expectancy and minimal symptoms to those with lives severely restricted by breathlessness and chest pain and potentially lethal arrhythmias. Around 25% of patients with HCM have dynamic left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) obstruction caused by both protrusion of the hypertrophied interventricular septum into the outflow tract and systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve. The presence of outflow tract obstruction is a powerful predictor of adverse prognosis.1 While it is not yet clear whether therapeutic relief of obstruction improves prognosis (see below), there is good evidence that surgical procedures to reduce obstruction are effective in relieving symptoms in patients that have not responded to medical treatment (for example, β blockers, disopyramide). Traditionally, septal myectomy (resection of that portion of the septum responsible for obstruction) has been the surgical technique of choice.2 Over the last decade alcohol septal ablation (ASA) has been developed as an alternative to open heart surgery. This percutaneous technique produces a reduction in outflow tract obstruction localised infarction of the septal myocardium by alcohol injection into the appropriate septal artery.3 Correct localisation of the infarction is provided by myocardial contrast echocardiography.4

### Prognosis

There is no definitive randomised data to suggest that either ASA or septal myectomy have an effect on prognosis. Recently, a retrospective analysis of 1337 patients with HCM showed that those symptomatic patients with obstruction that underwent septal myectomy had a better long-term prognosis than those that were medically treated.5 While these findings are of interest they should not be extrapolated to a recommendation that septal myectomy should be recommended for asymptomatic patients with LVOT obstruction—firstly because such patients …


This review describes the structure and function of the interferon (IFN)-inducible, double-stranded RNA-activated protein kinase PKR. This protein kinase has been studied extensively in recent years, and a large body of evidence has accumulated concerning its expression, interaction with regulatory RNA and protein molecules, and modes of activation and inhibition. PKR has been shown to play a variety of important roles in the regulation of translation, transcription, and signal transduction pathways through its ability to phosphorylate protein synthesis initiation factor eIF2, I-kappaB (the inhibitor of NF-kappaB), and other substrates. Expression studies involving both the wild-type protein and dominant negative mutants of PKR have established roles for the enzyme in the antiviral effects of IFNs, in the responses of uninfected cells to physiologic stresses, and in cell growth regulation. The possibility that PKR may function as a tumor suppressor and inducer of apoptosis suggests that this IFN-regulated protein kinase may be of central importance to the control of cell proliferation and transformation.


Water is the main parameter to determine whether the yield potential of a plant is obtained or not. Water deficit on the tissue causes the disruption of all chemical process in the plant metabolism resulted in the plant growth impediment.In order to acquire the drought tolerance variety, various efforts have been conducted. Among others, in addition to the selection and characterization of the available germ plasma along with its cross-breeding, the development of the drought tolerance plant is conducted through somaclonal varitype induction. In the cultivation of the drought tolerance plant, beside physiological mechanism and biochemistry related to the plant tolerant to drought, the procedure of the selective and optimal selection should be managed.Hence,the mastery of the optimum selection techniques, in a relatively short time, the new drought tolerance lines could be obtained.


Extremist and terrorist groups are known to have used games and gaming successfully in their online recruitment and indoctrination campaigns. What are the possibilities for using online games to generate resilience against extremism? Current research on online counter and alternative narratives generally acknowledges effects in terms of awareness raising, yet is skeptical when it comes to impact, mostly owing to the limited evidence and empirical research in this area. A related problem with the early counter and alternative narrative campaigns, however, has been not only a lack of initial preparatory work on understanding the radicalization process itself — specifically, on how narratives are produced and disseminated — but also on aspects relating to the audience, the messenger, and the communications strategy more broadly. In designing DECOUNT, an online game that incorporates both counter and alternative narratives, we have taken these aspects into consideration and created an accessible, easy-to-use product by first researching the following: individual radicalization processes; extremist online propaganda narratives and imagery; and the preferences and issues of the target population. We then created and tested the game and placed it on particular social media platforms (Instagram, YouTube/Let's Play), with appropriate targeting. Finally, we carried out a number of evaluation procedures, including a qualitative assessment and two quasi-experiments. This paper outlines this preparatory, creative, and evaluative work, and contextualizes it within the literature on the role played by online platforms and content both in individual radicalization processes and in creating resilience.


A cognitive pragmatic approach is taken to some long-standing problem cases of negation, the so-called presupposition denial cases. It is argued that a full account of the processes and levels of representation involved in their interpretation typically requires the sequential pragmatic derivation of two different propositions expressed. The first is one in which the presupposition is preserved and, following the rejection of this, the second involves the echoic (metalinguistic) use of material falling in the scope of the negation. The semantic base for these processes is the standard anti-presuppositionalist wide-scope negation. A different view, developed by Burton-Roberts (1989a, b), takes presupposition to be a semantic relation encoded in natural language and so argues for a negation operator that does not cancel presuppositions. This view is shown to be flawed, in that it makes the false prediction that presupposition denial cases are semantic contradictions and it is based on too narrow a view of the role of pragmatic inferencing.


The purpose of this study was to examine risk and protective factors of postwar adjustment among adolescents from Sarajevo who have been exposed to war traumas during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. More specifically, we wanted to examine differential linkages between Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms and depression (as outcomes) and (a) war traumas, (b) individual and socioenvironmental factors, and (c) cognitive appraisals and coping mechanisms. Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicate that dimensions of war traumas, individual characteristics, and cognitive appraisals and coping mechanisms play a significant role in determining who will have more serious PTSD symptoms. Although individual and socioenvironmental factors are the strongest predictors of depression, dimensions of war traumas also are significantly correlated with depressive symptoms. Common risk factors for more serious depression and PTSD symptoms in postwar adjustment were female gender and low optimism. While the strongest predictor of posttraumatic stress reactions (PTSR) was trauma experience in the category of loss, the strongest predictor of depressive symptoms was female gender.


Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the usefulness of prothrombin induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist-II (PIVKA-II) in monitoring of recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after curative resection. Methods: From April 2001 to March 2004, a total of 245 patients with histologically proven HCC and 267 non-HCC patients were recruited. Serial follow-up measurements of both alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and PIVKA-II were performed in 27 patients who had recurrent HCC after resection. Results: In the initial HCC diagnosis, the sensitivity of AFP and PIVKA-II was 48.6% (119/245) and 75.1% (184/245), respectively, at the cutoff of 20 ng/ml for AFP and 40 mAU/ml for PIVKA-II (p < 0.01). The specificity was 81.3% (217/267) and 94.8% (253/267), respectively. When AFP and PIVKA-II were combined, the sensitivity and specificity was 83.3% (204/245) and 77.2% (206/267), respectively. In 27 patients developing recurrent HCC after curative surgical resection, the sensitivity of AFP and PIVKA-II was 40.7% (11/27) and 74.1% (20/27), respectively. Several fluctuating patterns of AFP and PIVKA-II were observed from initial diagnosis to recurrence. Conclusion: Our data suggest that PIVKA-II is a useful tumor marker for HCC, complementary to AFP. Serial measurements of both markers after resection might be helpful for early diagnosis of tumor recurrence.


The transoral surgical approach allows access to structures from the sphenoid sinus rostrally to the fourth cervical vertebral body caudally. It is particularly useful for lesions at the anterior aspect of the craniocervical junction. Relief of the spinal cord compression in rheumatoid atlantoaxial subluxation can be achieved by this route. Removal of extradural and intradural tumours is possible using microsurgical techniques and watertight dural closure with the aid of fibrin glue.


HRB400 reinforcing steel due to high strength and high ductibility is as the main reinforcing steel in "Code for design of concrete structures (GB50010-2002)" in China. Cyclic potentiodynamic polarization technique was used to investigate the electrochemical corrosion bebavior of HRB400 reinforcing steel in Simulated Concrete Pore solutions (SCP solutions) differently contaminated by bicarbonate ions and/or chloride ions. The evolution feature of the corrosion parameters was analyzed and was compared with that of HPB235 reinforcing steel. The results show that the corrosion characteristics of HRB400 and HPB235 were exceedingly similar before the destruction of the passivation film. However, HRB400 is remarkedly more susceptible to chloride ions and carbonation than HPB235 during the failure of the passivation films. The pH threshold for HRB400 is larger than that for HPB235, and the chlorides threshold for the former is smaller than that of the latter. When HRB400 and HPB235 were connected and exposed to an aggressive environment, the galvanic corrosion will occur where HRB400 is anode and HPB235 is cathode. To ensure the durability of the reinforcing concrete structures, it is necessary to make the connection points insulate.


In reservoir simulation the pressure is the solution of an elliptic equation. It follows from the maximum principle that this equation satisfies a monotonicity property. This property should be preserved when discretising the pressure equation. If this is not the case, the pressure solution may have false internal oscillations and extrema on no-flow boundaries. Thus, there is a need for sufficient conditions for the discretization methods to be monotone. These conditions will depend on the permeability tensor and the grid. Previously monotonicity for control volume methods has been studied on quadrilateral grids and on hexagonal grids. The former was done for general methods which reproduces linear potential fields, while the latter was done in a Control Volume Finite Element setting. These analyses have given sharp sufficient conditions for the discretisation methods to be monotone. However, for methods whose cell stencils include cells which do not have any edges common with the central cell in the discretisation scheme, no work has been done on unstructured grids. In this work, we study monotonicity on triangular grids for control volume methods which are exact for linear potential fields. We derive sufficient conditions for monotonicity of the MPFA-O and -L methods. The found monotonicity regions for the MPFA methods are also tested numerically. The tests are done both on uniform grids in homogeneous media, and on perturbed grids, which corresponds to heterogeneous media. The investigations are done for single phase flow only. However, the results are relevant for multiphase simulations. The results obtained in this work may be utilised in grid generation. In this way we can construct grids where the discretisation of the pressure equation is guaranteed to be monotone.


This research is about parents in precarious employment, as the intersection of parental responsibilities and paid work represents a privileged site from which to explore the process of precarisation within a wider social context. Social reproduction is then interrogated in order to conceptually frame parents' everyday struggles for stability. The dyad use-value and exchange-value is mobilised to make sense of parents' activities in the domestic sphere as well as in paid work, so that the outcome of this research marks a conceptual shift from the metaphor work–family balance to the tension between useful activities and the monetary valorisations that these parents need to obtain. The research suggests then that these parents produce social wealth at a number of different levels, but their activities need to meet their exchange-value because monetary valorisation represents the way to get their livelihood. This research aims to conceptualise the antagonism of 'precarious parents' as their 'normal life' is distorted by daily struggles to achieve these means.


Abstract The low-charge dioctahedral 2:1 phyllosilicates are an important group of clay minerals that have a low degree of cation substitution and very weak interlayer interatomic interactions which are difficult to reproduce with quantum mechanical calculations. In order to study the crystallographic properties of these compounds with density functional theory (DFT) quantum mechanical methods, an optimization of norm-conserving pseudopotentials of Al, Si, O, H and Na atoms has been carried out, and an optimization of the cutoff radii of the basis sets has been accomplished. Crystallographic properties and vibrational stretching frequencies of the OH groups, ν(OH), have been calculated, being consistent with previous computational and experimental results. All frequencies can be related to the different molecular environment of the OH groups. The effect of octahedral Fe3+ substitution on the ν(OH) frequency is reproduced. Several configurations of cation substitutions and interlayer cation (IC) positions are studied in low-charge dioctahedral 2:1 phyllosilicates, such as Al4(Si7-xAlx)O20(OH)4Nax, with x = 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75, indicating that the IVAl3+ is highly dispersed and the IC tends to be in the substituted ditrigonal hole. For the Al4(Si7Al)O20(OH)4Na composition, the trans-vacant form is more stable than the cis-vacant one.


DESPITE a rapidly growing literature on cysts of the lung, there still exists a considerable disparity of opinion with reference to their genesis, diagnosis and mode of treatment. A recent monograph 1 stated: Congenital cystic disease: Anatomic studies indicate that this is an extremely rare condition. It has not been found at necropsy at The Babies Hospital during a period of fifty years. Schenck quotes Lederer as having failed to find a single instance of congenital cystic disease in five thousand necropsies. It is now evident that many cases which have suggested congenital cysts roentgenographically were probably examples of acquired emphysematous cavities caused by check-valvular bronchial obstruction. The present cases of cystic disease of the lung in infants and children exemplify most types of cystic disease of the lung seen and present a fair sample of the types of accompanying anatomic anomalies (fig. 1). Ten of the 12 patients have


The previous chapter's discussion on cultural equality has one critical weakness; that is, the issue of civilizational and cultural equality must be addressed through examining global political and economic inequality. Global justice must consider global economic equality and the reduction of political domination. Global justice is concerned with global social contracts, the key element of a transnational people-centric order in which peoples and civil societies can participate in and influence international agreements. This chapter will take the international non-governmental organizations' (INGOs) challenges at the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a case study to see whether and how INGOs play some role in constructing a people-centric order and in making global social contracts. A peculiar phenomenon afflicts global justice and people-centric order: while individuals make countless personal contracts with others and even with their states, a global level set of contracts between citizens and international organizations for the significant amount of international policymaking that impacts citizens on a daily basis does not exist. For example, international organizations have developed policies to address a wide range of global issues such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), terrorism, nuclear proliferation and trade liberalization, but ordinary citizens are largely excluded from participating in the global governance of these issues. There is effectively no global level social contract involving international agencies, nation-states, and citizens. This lack contributes to legitimacy problems in global level policy-making that decrease the effectiveness of both policy processes and outcomes. It highlights the international political context in which INGOs conduct protests against the economic policies of the WTO and advocate a global social contract, or more precisely, a series of global social contracts involving civil society, governments and business actors.


Time is central to our understanding of entrepreneurship. However, while prior research has shown a general link between decision speed and venture performance, little is known about what factors influence the speed of venture creation. Equally, little research has been conducted on how venture creation speed impacts on venture growth. This paper examines the determinants and growth implications of venture creation speed from a social constructionist perspective, which sees that time both shapes and is shaped by individuals, social contexts and spatial structures. We, therefore, investigate the influence of entrepreneurial characteristics, external support, institutional influences and the regional context in which venture creation speed occurs and subsequently impacts on growth in new ventures. Results from structured interviews with 381 active de novo entrepreneurs in Catalonia (Spain) show a positive relationship between prior entrepreneurial experience and speed. Interestingly, support from potential suppliers and customers is useful not only for speed but also for the subsequent growth of the venture. In contrast, business planning retards venture creation and fails to lead to an improvement in growth. Results also indicate a positive, but weak, relationship between speed and growth, once entrepreneurial, environmental and venture characteristics are held constant. The paper subsequently discusses these findings and suggests further research directions and practical implications.


---------------------------------------------------------------ABSTRACT---------------------------------------------------------------The Internet of Things has a vision in which the internet extends into the real world, which incorporates everyday objects. The IoT allows objects to be sensed or controlled remotely over existing network infrastructure, creating opportunities for pure integration of the physical world into computer-based systems, and resulting in improved efficiency, accuracy and economic benefit in addition to reduced human intervention. This technology has many applications like Solar cities, Smart villages, Micro grids and Solar Street lights and so on. As Renewable energy grew at a rate faster than any other time in history during this period. The proposed system refers to the online display of the power usage of solar energy as a renewable energy. This monitoring is done through raspberry pi using flask framework. Smart Monitoring displays daily usage of renewable energy. This helps the user to analysis of energy usage. Analysis impacts on the renewable energy usage and electricity issues.


The legislative department is everywhere extending the sphere of its activities .... [I] t is against the enterprising ambition of this department that the people ought to indulge all their jealousy and exhaust all their precautions. The powers of the legislature are defined, and limited; and that those limits may not be mistaken, or forgotten, the constitution is written.2 It cannot be presumed that any clause in the constitution is intended to be without effect ....


We study an optomechanical cavity, in which a buckled suspended beam serves as a mirror. The mechanical resonance frequency of the beam obtains a minimum value near the buckling temperature. Contrary to the common case, in which self-excited oscillations of the suspended mirror are optically induced by injecting blue detuned laser light, in our case, self-excited oscillations are observed with red detuned light. These observations are attributed to a retarded thermal (i.e., bolometric) force acting on the buckled mirror in the inward direction (i.e., toward the other mirror). With relatively high laser power, other interesting effects are observed, including period doubling of self-excited oscillations and intermode coupling.


This paper presents limit loads for circumferential cracked pipe bends under in-plane bending, based on detailed three-dimensional finite element limit analyses. FE analyses are performed based on elastic-perfectly-plastic materials and the geometrically linear assumption. Both through-wall cracks and part-through surface cracks (having constant depths) are considered, together with different crack locations (extrados and intrados). Based on the FE results, closed-form approximations are proposed for plastic limit loads of pipe bends. It is found that limit loads of pipe bends are smaller than those of straight pipes, but are close for deep and long cracks.


A modified sector-integration method has been developed that predicts electron beam output factor at any point on the beam central axis, for a given source to surface distance (SSD), as a function of the geometry of the irradiated field. The main concept of this method is that with the arbitrary field shape divided into small sectors, the individual contributions from each sector can be calculated based on the sector radius, using a dataset consisting of circular inserts of standard radii. A computer program was developed based on this algorithm. The program interfaces to a digital camera that is used to capture the shape of the electron insert. We compared the calculated and the measured output factors and per cent depth doses (PDDs) at different SSDs for various rectangular inserts and a typical irregularly shaped insert used in our clinic. To determine the geometric limitations of this algorithm, a series of rectangular inserts were designed with the long-to-short axis ratio between 1:1 and 7:1. The agreement between calculation and measurement for the electron output and PDD was generally within 2% (or 2 mm) for energies from 6 to 20 MeV.


The effect of 0.1-1 mol%Ag doping on crystallite size, morphology, photocatalytic and fungal growth suppression activities of TiO2/SnO2/SiO2 nano-composite powders were investigated. The powder was synthesized by sol-gel method and studied for physicochemical properties by XRD, spectrometric techniques, FTIR, SEM, EDX and BET. The anatase structure was formed after calcination at 500oC. Photocatalytic activities towards Penicillium expansum growth suppression correlated to the amount of sliver doped in TiO2/SnO2/SiO2 nano-composite powder under ultraviolet radiation. Ag 1.0mol% doped in TiO2/SiO2/SnO2 composite has a significant effect on antifungal behaviour. It could completely kill Penicillium expansum within one day of photacatalytic treatment under UV irradiation.


works best. For example, trypsin and pepsin are both enzymes in the digestive system which break protein chains in the food into smaller bits either into smaller peptide chains or into individual amino acids. Pepsin works in the highly acidic conditions of the stomach. It has an optimum pH of about 1.5. On the other hand, trypsin works in the small intestine, parts of which have a pH of around 7.5. Trypsin's optimum pH is about 8. Table \(\PageIndex{1}\): pH for Optimum Activity Enzyme Optimal pH Enzyme Optimal pH


Sodium-dependent transport of taurine into rat brain synaptosomes was studied using [3H]taurine of high specific activity (2.8 Ci/mmole). At 2.8 µM [3H]taurine, 57% of the total radioactive accumulation was directly proportional to the sodium ion concentration. The sodium-dependent, high-affinity transport was a linear function of added protein and incubation length, and was maximal between pH 6.6 and 8.6. Kinetic analyses indicated a high-affinity apparent Km value of 4.76 µM and an apparent Vmax value of 5.35 nmoles/g of protein per minute. After correction of the high-affinity transport for that portion contributed by the low-affinity system, the true kinetic constants of the high-affinity system were calculated to be 3.20 µM and 2.96 nmoles/g of protein per minute. Similarly, the true kinetic constants of the low-affinity system were calculated to be 3340 µM and 699 nmoles/g of protein per minute. The Hill plot for both the high- and low-affinity transport systems had a slope of about 1, which suggested a 1:l interaction between taurine and its transport molecule. The sodium-dependent, high-affinity transport of [3H]taurine was decreased by the removal of potassium or chloride ions, and was absent from lysed synaptosomes or when the assay was performed at 2°. The omission of glucose or the addition of dinitrophenol slightly reduced transport. Ouabain inhibited transport in a time- and dose-dependent manner. The Arrhenius plot of [3H]taurine transport revealed an energy of activation (Ea) of 15.6 kcal/mole and an energy quotient (Q10) of 2.34, each of which indicated an active process. The regional distribution of uptake showed that the midbrain, thalamus, and olfactory bulbs had the highest velocity of transport, while the cerebral cortex, spinal cord, and cerebellum had the lowest velocity of transport. Several structural analogues were inhibitors of taurine transport, and analyses of structure-activity relationships revealed that the uptake site was very specific. Only molecules with free anionic and cationic groups were potent inhibitors. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that taurine is a neurotransmitter or neuromodulator in the brain, and we have investigated some of the molecular characteristics of this transport.


OF DISSERTATION CHARACTERIZATION OF SPONTANEOUS HYPERTENSION IN CHLOROCEBUS AETHIOPS SABAEUS, THE AFRICAN GREEN MONKEY Hypertension is a complex multifactorial pathology that is a major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and end stage renal disease. In the United States, hypertension affects over 1 in 3 adults and comprises an annual cost of over $58 billion in the healthcare industry. While remarkable strides in the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension have been made since the pathology was first treated in the 1960s, a remarkable 13% of patients with elevated blood pressures are classified as resistant hypertensive, where blood pressure remains uncontrolled while on three or more classes of anti-hypertensive drugs. This treatment gap suggests that researchers need to develop and utilize translational models that recapitulate the pathologies seen in patient populations. Non-human primates (NHP) are highly similar to humans in terms of physiology, circadian rhythmicity, behavior, and gene sequence and structure. Development of NHP models that spontaneously develop pathologies, like spontaneous hypertension, provide novel and vital tools to studying disease. Overall, this dissertation is a comparative analysis of the mechanisms that drive the development of spontaneous hypertension in Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus, an Old World non-human primate, and known mediators of essential hypertension in human populations. Chapter 2 presents how hypertensive (HT) African Green Monkeys (AGMs) are older, with elevated heart rates, increased renal vascular wall/lumen ratios, and altered glomerular morphologies compared to normotensive (NT) controls. Chapter 3 describes metabolic studies performed in a large cohort of animals that identified elevated proteinuria and ion excretion in HT AGMs compared to NT animals. Chapter 4 focuses on the contribution of sympathetic nervous system to the development of hypertension in this animal model and describes the significant left ventricular hypertrophy and elevation of adrenergic receptor mRNA in HT AGMs. Chapter 5 examines how age affects hypertension and renal function in the NT and HT AGMs. Together these data provide a foundational basis for the development of spontaneous hypertension in the AGM and provide a novel translational model for the study of cardiovascular disease.


Most extradural haematomas after head injury but cases of' EDH have been reported.' 2 result of either local sepsis, iorvenous malformation or an clotting.2We report the case of EDH resulting in posterior is neuropathy as a consequenc hermiation. A 15 year old boy develop( which built up over a period of the evening he was seen b practitioner who diagnosed a as the headache was associat fever. On the second day he N morning. By the morning of ti had fever and was unable to get headache and giddiness. His m at approximately 1.00 am on of his illness when he seemed normally. By 7.00 am the san was found unconscious and w the District General Hospital 1988. There was no other predi or head injury. In the accident and emer, ment, he was noted to be c vomit in his nose and throat. H with a Glasgow Coma Score of did not respond to light and 6 mm, the left 3 mm. His perature was 40°C, a regular blood pressure 120/55 mmHj heart sounds. Auscultation revealed added sounds in the gesting an aspiration pneumoi confirmed on chest x ray. His were as follows: Hb 1-58 g/l, w 11*7 x 109A/, platelet count sodium 140 mmol/l, potassiu and urea 4-1 mmol/l. Clottir normal limits with an INR 1' (control 48). Before being transferred, ti intubated, ventilated, paralyse4 given 100 ml mannitol 20%. O neurosurgical unit on 17 Marc


This study developed a nutritionally valuable product with bioactive activity that improves the quality of bread. Djulis (Chenopodium formosanum), a native plant of Taiwan, was fermented using 23 different lactic acid bacteria strains. Lactobacillus casei BCRC10697 was identified as the ideal strain for fermentation, as it lowered the pH value of samples to 4.6 and demonstrated proteolysis ability 1.88 times higher than controls after 24 h of fermentation. Response surface methodology was adopted to optimize the djulis fermentation conditions for trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC). The optimal conditions were a temperature of 33.5 °C, fructose content of 7.7%, and dough yield of 332.8, which yielded a TEAC at 6.82 mmol/kg. A 63% increase in TEAC and 20% increase in DPPH were observed when compared with unfermented djulis. Subsequently, the fermented djulis was used in different proportions as a substitute for wheat flour to make bread. The total phenolic and flavonoid compounds were 4.23 mg GAE/g and 3.46 mg QE/g, marking respective increases of 18% and 40% when the djulis was added. Texture analysis revealed that adding djulis increased the hardness and chewiness of sourdough breads. It also extended their shelf life by approximately 2 days. Thus, adding djulis to sourdough can enhance the functionality of breads and may provide a potential basis for developing djulis-based functional food.


During the Global Financial Crisis, banks suffered losses on a scale not witnessed since the Great Depression, partly due to two major structural developments in the banking industry; deregulation combined with financial innovation. In the aftermath of the financial crisis, the regulatory response concentrated on the Basel III recommendations, raising core capital requirements for banking institutions, which affected their business models and funding patterns. Consequently, these changes have had significant implications for how banks grant loans, how they react to monetary policy shocks, and how they respond to external shocks. We find evidence of significant interactions between the bank lending channel and both monetary and global shocks in Chile. These links have changed significantly after the Global Financial Crisis. In particular, they have been shaped by the counter-cyclical behavior of a state-owned bank.


Colistin and polymyxin B remain part of the last line of antibiotics for multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, such as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae. Current joint EUCAST-CLSI recommendations are for broth microdilution (BMD) to be performed for MIC testing of colistin. Commercial susceptibility testing methods were evaluated and compared against the reference BMD, using a susceptibility breakpoint of 2 mg/liter for both colistin and polymyxin B. Seventy-six Enterobacteriaceae were included, of which 21 were mcr-1 positive (18 Escherichia coli isolates, 2 Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates, and 1 Enterobacter aerogenes isolate). Rates of essential agreement (EA) of colistin test results between BMD and Vitek 2, Sensititre, and Etest were 93.4%, 89.5%, and 75.0%, respectively. Rates of EA of polymyxin B test results between BMD and Vitek 2, Sensititre, and Etest were 96.1%, 96.1%, and 48.7%, respectively. A positive MIC correlation with a categorical agreement of 90% was achieved for Sensititre (colistin Spearman's 0.863, and polymyxin B Spearman's 0.877) and Vitek 2 (polymyxin B [only] Spearman's 0.8917). Although a positive MIC correlation (Spearman's 0.873) with the reference method was achieved for colistin testing with Vitek 2, categorical agreement was 90%, with very major error rates of 36%. Correlation with the Etest MIC was lower, with very major error rates of 12% (colistin) and 26.1% (polymyxin B). MicroScan (colistin) categorical agreement was 88.2%, with a very major error rate of 4%. Colistin MICs for 15 of the 21 mcr-1-positive isolates were 2 mg/liter, and polymyxin MICs for 17 of them were 2 mg/liter by broth microdilution. The use of a lower breakpoint of 1 mg/liter further improves detection of mcr-1 for all testing methods. However, further data on the correlation between MICs and clinical outcome are required to determine the most suitable breakpoint to guide clinical management.


AIM
The aim of the present study was to analyse reactions to ineffective leader participation in an intensive care unit (ICU).

BACKGROUND
Critical examination of leadership failures helps identify nurse manager behaviours to avoid.

METHOD
An online survey collected data from 51 interacting healthcare providers who work in an intensive care unit.

RESULTS
Participants reported dissatisfaction with nurse leaders who were perceived as absent or ill prepared. Participants categorized intensive care unit productivity and morale as moderate to low. Multiple regression suggested the best predictor of perceived unit productivity was supervisor communication; the best predictor of employee morale was perceived leader mentoring.

CONCLUSIONS
Intensive care unit nurses reported wanting active participation from their leaders and expressed dissatisfaction when supervisors were perceived as absent or incompetent. Ineffective leader participation significantly correlated with lower employee perceptions of productivity and morale.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT
Senior managers should recruit and develop supervisors with effective participation skills. Organizations primarily concerned about productivity should focus on developing the communication skills of nurse leaders. Units mainly concerned with employee morale should emphasize mentorship and role modelling. Formal assessment of nurse leaders by all intensive care unit team members should also be used to proactively identify opportunities for improvement.


This baseline study aims to explore Hospice at Home nurse's experiences and well-being while caring for palliative and dying patients. The study will utilise a qualitative method to collect data with the purpose of understanding the Hospice at Home nurse's experience of work and the stressors encountered. The nurses will be interviewed using semistructured interviews, and the data will be analysed and categorised into themes using a grounded theory methodology. The participants will be a purposive sample of trained Hospice at Home nurses who spend the majority of the day providing direct hands on care to patients and their families in the community. Studies suggest that factors to promote resilience and well-being, in hospice nurses can be developed through staff training packages to help prevent burnout. The literature evaluates studies of hospice nurses and stress levels when working in a hospice but very few studies focus on community hospice nurses who are often working alone without the support of a collegiate team in close proximity. This study aims to provide valuable additional data to this little-researched area. The study will report early in 2012 and will inform Hospice At Home nursing teams as to whether coping strategy training would be beneficial for the well-being of the staff, which in turn could result in preventing absence due to sickness, promote staff retention and contribute towards team building.


Coaxial powder feeding with carrier gas is the key part of laser direct metal deposition (DMD) rapid prototyping system. The convergence of powder flow would greatly affect forming efficiency, precision and performance. Numerical calculation model of flow field was built and simulated in this paper. The results of simulation and analysis had shown that powder flow field was very complex. The flow process could be divided into two parts, converging process and dispersing process. The main influencing factors of convergence included powder feeding rate, carrier gas flow rate, and the distance from nozzle to molten pool. There was a convergent focus where utilization ratio of powder was maximum. So the distance from nozzle to molten pool must be adjusted to equal to convergent focus (1.5cm) during DMD.


This study utilizes a panel data set from 14 European countries over the period 1990-2004 to estimate a dynamic model specification for gasoline and diesel demand. Previous studies estimating gasoline consumption per total passenger cars ignore the recent increase in the number of diesel cars in most European countries leading to biased elasticity estimates. We apply several common dynamic panel estimators to our small sample. Results show that specifications neglecting the share of diesel cars overestimate short-run income, price and car ownership elasticities. It appears that the results of standard pooled estimators are more reliable than common IV/GMM estimators applied to our small data set.


Two forms of killer whale (Orcinus orca), resident and transient, occur sympatrically in coastal waters of British Columbia, Washington State, and southeastern Alaska. The two forms do not mix, and differ in seasonal distribution, social structure, and behaviour. These distinctions have been attributed to apparent differences in diet, although no comprehensive comparative analysis of the diets of the two forms had been undertaken. Here we present such an analysis, based on field observations of predation and on the stomach contents of stranded killer whales collected over a 20-year period. In total, 22 species of fish and 1 species of squid were documented in the diet of resident-type killer whales; 12 of these are previously unrecorded as prey of O. orca. Despite the diversity of fish species taken, resident whales have a clear preference for salmon prey. In field observations of feeding, 96% of fish taken were salmonids. Six species of salmonids were identified from prey fragments, with chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha ) being the most common. The stomach contents of stranded residents also indicated a preference for chinook salmon. On rare occasions, resident whales were seen to harass marine mammals, but no kills were confirmed and no mammalian remains were found in the stomachs of stranded residents. Transient killer whales were observed to prey only on pinnipeds, cetaceans, and seabirds. Six mammal species were taken, with over half of observed attacks involving harbour seals (Phoca vitulina). Seabirds do not appear to represent a significant prey resource. This study thus reveals the existence of strikingly divergent prey preferences of resident and transient killer whales, which are reflected in distinctive foraging strategies and related sociobiological traits of these sympatric populations. 1471


The granting process of all credit institutions is based on the probability that the applicant will refund his/her loan given his/her characteristics. This probability also called score is learnt based on a dataset in which rejected applicants are de facto excluded. This implies that the population on which the score is used will be different from the learning population. Thus, this biased learning can have consequences on the scorecard's relevance. Many methods dubbed "reject inference" have been developed in order to try to exploit the data available from the rejected applicants to build the score. However most of these methods are considered from an empirical point of view, and there is some lack of formalization of the assumptions that are really made, and of the theoretical properties that can be expected. In order to propose a formalization of such usually hidden assumptions for some of the most common reject inference methods, we rely on the general missing data modelling paradigm. It reveals that hidden modelling is mostly incomplete, thus prohibiting to compare existing methods within the general model selection mechanism (except by financing "non-fundable" applicants, which is rarely performed in practice). So, we are reduced to empirically assess performance of the methods in some controlled situations involving both some simulated data and some real data (from Cr´edit Agricole Consumer Finance (CACF), a major European loan issuer). Unsurprisingly, no method seems uniformly dominant. Both these theoretical and empirical results not only reinforce the idea to carefully use the classical reject inference methods but also to invest in future research works for designing model-based reject inference methods, which allow rigorous selection methods (without financing "non-fundable" applicants).