The frequency of HLA-DQ antigens in AIDS patients with toxoplasmic encephalitis (TE) were examined. HLA-DQ3 was significantly more frequent in white North American AIDS patients with TE (85.0%) than in the general white population (51.8%; P = .007, corrected P = .028) or randomly selected control AIDS patients who had not developed TE (40.0%; P = .016). In contrast, the frequency of HLA-DQ1 was lower in TE patients than in healthy controls (40.0% vs. 66.5%, P = .027), but this difference did not reach statistical significance when corrected for the number of variables tested (corrected P = .108 for the general white population). HLA-DQ3 thus appears to be a genetic marker of susceptibility to development of TE in AIDS patients, and DQ1 may be a resistance marker. These HLA associations with disease indicate that development of TE in AIDS patients is affected by a gene or genes in the HLA complex and that HLA-DQ typing may help in decisions regarding TE prophylaxis.


Introduction
Genome-wide association studies have identified rs1622579, a common variant located within an intronic region of MiR137, as a risk variant for schizophrenia. MiR137 has a hypothesized role in neural cell proliferation, migration and maturation. Cognitively, this variant is associated with deficits in verbal episodic memory, and altered fronto-amygdala connectivity. As MiR137 interacts with several other genome wide associated variants (e.g. ZNF804A, TCF4, CACNA1C, CSMD1 and WBP1L), we tested whether these cognitive effects were associated with polygenic risk in a set of identified downstream targets of MiR137.

Methodology
Polygene scores were calculated by (1) selecting all identified downstream genetic targets of MiR137 (Hill et al., 2014); (2) selecting risk SNPs within each of these genes based on risk estimates from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium (Ripke et al., 2011), and (3) ascribing a polygenic risk score to each participant based on the total number of risk alleles they carried. To define risk, we used 3 arbitrary p-value thresholds (p < 10-5, p < 0.05, and p < 0.5) from the PGC1 case-control analysis. To estimate these polygene effects on cognitive deficits associated with SZ (IQ, episodic and working memory, attention control, and theory of mind) linear regression analyses was performed, with age and gender entered as variables of no interest. We carried out three separate analyses: all cases and controls (n=586), patients with a broad diagnosis of psychosis including non-schizophrenia psychosis (n=489) and patients with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder (n=379).

Results
MiR137 polygenic risk scores were significantly higher in the broad and narrow diagnosis groups compared to the controls (F(2,1081) =5.52, p<0.01). Poorer performance on measures of IQ, memory, and attention were each found to be associated with higher MiR137 polygene scores thresholded at p=0.05, including paired associated learning (p<0.001); faces, letter-number sequencing (LNS) sustained attention to reaction time (SART) (p<0.01); full-scale IQ, logical memory (LM) and spatial working memory (SWM) (p<0.05). The amount of variance explained on the measures varied between 1% and 2.6%

Discussion
These data support a modest but significant influence of this MiR137 'pathway' on cognition, across multiple measures of cognition. These widespread cognitive effects are consistent with MiR137's previously described role in brain development. Greater variance was explained when all cases and controls were included, rather than considering narrow, broad, and controls separately. Extending on previous findings, MiR137's effects on cognition were significantly more apparent when considered in combination with the other risk variants with which it interacts rather than when the rs1622579 risk variant was considered in isolation.


The European fallow deer (Dama dama dama) is native to the eastern Mediterranean and whilst it is clear that its dispersion from this region was the result of human transportation, the timing and circumstances of its post-glacial diffusion are still uncertain. Archaeological fallow deer remains offer perhaps the best opportunity to understand the deep history of the species, with measurements of ancient bones providing important information about an individual's sex and size. Unfortunately, the fragmentary nature of archaeological remains means that metrical samples are usually too small to draw any meaningful conclusions. Biometrical scaling techniques can increase the size of the sample available for comparison and in this paper log ratios are used in combination with traditional metrical analysis to provide new information about archaeological fallow deer populations, in particular highlighting the size variations across time and space and shifts in hunting and management practices. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


It has been a goal for many decades to develop a detailed model of the aortic artery that includes a couple fluid/wall interaction that is time dependent and three-dimensional. Simple models of the large arteries have yielded valuable information, but the complications of coupled time dependencies, three dimensionality, and wall elasticity are needed to compare with actual diseased states. Our paper presents some of the first results for the full unsteady and three-dimensional Navier-Stokes numerical calculations which are coupled to an elastic model for the geometry of the thoracic aorta. The numerical models we have developed have the capability to include with increasing fidelity a detailed description of a large part of the aortic flow system.


The first phase of a collaborative project aims at testing the acceptance and performance of bone charbased
fluoride removal filters in Ethiopia. The filters were produced by the Catholic Diocese of Nakuru
(CDN), Kenya and supplied to 121 households in two project sites in the Great East African Rift Valley.
Each unit was regularly monitored, while providing technical support to all applicants. After a study
period of one year, more than 80% of the filters in Meki (Weyo Gabriel) and 100% of the filters in
Shashemene (Chalalaka) are in use. None of the users expressed any objections concerning the use of
charred animal bones, independent of religious or cultural background. Fluoride removal efficiency of
the filters was satisfactory, although lifespan is limited due to very high fluoride concentrations in some
of the groundwater sources (up to 23 mg/L). Filter design requires modification for improved
performance in Ethiopian communities.


Provides a guide for organizing a workshop on the recruiting, hiring, training and managing of older women workers. Aims to increase awareness of population ageing and the situation of older women workers and to increase motivation to address older women's employment. Includes a quiz on facts on ageing in Estonia and details of employment schemes which may be adapted for use in Estonia.


Today is a time of dynamic structural change in the agri-food system that brings new challenges to producers. This change is not unique to any particular production sector within the system, nor is it restricted to one level within the agri-food marketing chain. This testimony describes the current status of concentration and consolidation in agri-food markets. In addition, it presents discussion regarding the driving forces behind this structural change, as well a brief discussion of implications for the future.


The concept of quality gates has been successfully applied as a quality assurance mechanism in several industries. The quality gates approach combines aspects related to project management, decision modeling, and work flow management to increase measurability and promote quality. Software development and testing organizations are now investigating the use of this approach for the purposes of promoting software quality and improving software development processes. This paper summarizes prior literature on quality gates and applies the concept of quality gates to the software development context. It reports a case study of implementing quality gates in enterprise IT production process in the context of a large Fortune 500 company. A conceptual framework is also proposed to represent the various levels and disciplines where quality gates may be implemented. This framework suggests that 1) quality gates can be applied at many different levels throughout the organization such as system, project, and release, 2) the format of quality gates varies by level of implementation, 3) quality gates are useful both as part of an overarching software development methodology as well as for targeted IT projects where quality assurance standards have to be established for procedural success (e.g.,, transitioning enterprise data centers), and 4) more than the increased measurability promoted by quality gates, greater value may be yielded by a change in developers' and testers' mindset of building quality into the software product and development processes.


Going from low inflation to price stability involves a short term loss (associated with the" higher unemployment rate required to reduce the inflation) and results in a series of welfare gains" in all future years. The primary source of these gains is the reduction in the distortions that result" from the interaction of tax rules and inflation. The paper quantifies the gains associated with" reducing the distortion in favor of current consumption rather than future consumption and in" favor of the consumption of owner occupied housing. These tax effects are much larger than the" effect on the demand for money that is generally emphasized in studies of the distorting effect of" inflation. The seignorage gains are also small in comparison to other effects of the tax-inflation" interaction. The estimates imply that the annual value of the net benefits of going from two" percent inflation to price stability are about one percent of GDP. Discounting this growing" stream of benefits at a real discount rate of five percent implies a net present value of about more" than 30 percent of GDP. All estimates of the short-run cost of going from low inflation to price" stability are less than this.


Although Fallopian tubes are frequently involved in benign gynaecological conditions, primary malignant involvement is rare, and because of its rarity, lack of diagnostic accuracy, nonpresenting symptoms and physical findings, primary fallopian tube carcinoma is seldom diagnosed before laparotomy. We are reporting one such rare case.


Since its early years, graffiti has been documented with photographs and videos, showing legal and illegal activities in the streets. The most famous photographer of this time will always remain Martha Cooper, who still runs her photographer activities and is invited to the most important events of the graffiti culture in the world. In the mid-seventies, the first digital camera was coming out leading towards a real revolution in filming and photography. Technology has then developed extensively and cameras with higher resolution allowed graffiti writers and audio-visual artists to produce work of higher quality and with new visual perspectives. This progression in time has changed the way of documenting graffiti culture and has expanded its possibilities in terms of visual content, thanks to the democratization of technologies and its improvements. I have photographed and filmed a few groups of graffiti writers, which gave me insight into this culture. This essay wishes to introduce some thoughts on this subject and open a longer discussion concerning the importance of audio-visual material for graffiti as an ephemeral art form.


To gain a profound understanding of what composes consumers thinking, denim jeans, therefore, were used as an investigation vehicle and an analytical research method was utilized to illuminate implicit consumer motives. Denim is always a fashionable representation and is forever in this direction in all seasons. The present research is an attempt to develop denim fabrics appropriate in the manufacture in all of the types of garment and even accessories. The current study is to redefine the role and meaning of Jeans as fashionable reshape style through an extravagant and stringent attitude towards fashion designs. The present research is a comparable approach as taken to describe the main phases of the redesign research process concerning contemporary Art and Environment Creative Style of jeans course to fashion design students especially, and fashion designer beginner's denim fabrics in general. This phenomenon through a shadow on the needs to study the redesigning and developing denim convenient for the customer as well as an educational part of the student of ready-made garment fashion design to emerge a curriculum to promote this education area. The present research, therefore, is to establish a new standard trend of infinite reuse by reducing excess denim fabric at both artwork and educational process levels


Lupus-prone (NZB x NZW)F(1) (BWF(1)) mice were made transgenic (Tg) for an anti-DNA Ab inherited either as a conventional V(H)3H9- micro H chain Tg (3H9- micro ) with or without a conventional V(kappa)8-kappa Tg, or a V(H)3H9 V(H) knock-in Tg allele (3H9R) with or without a V(kappa)4 V(kappa) knock-in Tg allele (V(kappa)4R). V(H)3H9 yields an anti-DNA Ab with most L chains including an anti-ssDNA with the V(kappa)8 Tg and an anti-dsDNA with the V(kappa)4 Tg. BWF(1) mice that inherited the conventional 3H9- micro had normal serum IgM, little to none of which was encoded by 3H9- micro, and only a small percentage of those mice had serum anti-DNA, none of which was transgene encoded. B cells expressing the conventional 3H9- micro Tg were anergic. BWF(1) mice that inherited the knock-in 3H9R Tg allele also had normal serum IgM, one-half of which was encoded by 3H9R, and produced anti-DNA encoded by the Tg allele. Most B cells expressing the knock-in 3H9R Tg also had an anergic phenotype. The results indicate that autoimmune-prone BWF(1) mice initially develop effective B cell tolerance to DNA through anergy, and anergy was sustained in 3H9- micro Tg peripheral B cells but not in 3H9R Tg B cells. B cells expressing the 3H9R knock-in Tg allele were able to achieve an activation threshold that B cells expressing the 3H9- micro conventional Tg could not. The maintenance of B cell tolerance to DNA in autoimmune-prone BWF(1) mice appears to differ from both normal mice and autoimmune-prone MRL(lpr/lpr) mice.


Copula-based approaches can be useful in multivariate modeling settings where multivariate dependency is of primary interest, such as estimating the reliability of selfreported sexual behavior assessed independently for male and female partners (dyad) in a couple-based HIV risk reduction study. Specifically, we investigate the reliability of couple reports using copulas, adjusting for key individual baseline covariates. We propose applying a copula modeling approach to measure the reliability of self-reported, shared sexual behaviors from couples where measures are assessed independently from male and female partners. In particular, we estimate measures of dependence, such as the odds ratios and binary correlations, using mixtures of max-infinitely divisible copulas with a bivariate logit model. This approach is flexible in measuring the effect of covariates on dependence parameters and for estimating marginal probabilities for multiple outcomes simultaneously. In this paper, we focus on estimating these two dependencies and explore the influences of additional covariate information on the copula parameter. We provide simulation results comparing copulabased estimates to moment estimates of the generalized estimating equation (GEE) for the correlation coefficients with respect to bias and 95% coverage probability. We illustrate that copulas have better performance in terms of bias, while their performance is similar with respect to efficiency. The estimator of the marginal probability using copula methods is robust to the choice of copula family. The choice of copula may affect the estimator of dependency when the dependency of the outcomes is very low. We apply these methods to data from the Multisite HIV/STD Prevention Trial for African American Couples (AAC) Study.


This paper focuses on the in-mold monitoring of temperature and cavity pressure. The melt contact temperature and the cavity pressure along the flow path were directly measured using two pressure sensors and two temperature sensors fitted into the cavity of a spiral mold. Three melt temperatures and dies of different heights (1.0, 1.5 and 2 mm) were used to achieve a wide range of practically relevant shear rates. In order to analyze the extent to which the numerical simulation can predict the behavior of the molten polymer during the injection molding process, molding experiments were simulated using the Moldflow software and the simulation results were compared with the experimental data under the same injection molding conditions.© 2014 ASME


Background: Gait retraining as part of a treatment programme for exercise-related leg pain (ERLP) was introduced in the sports medicine department of the Royal Netherlands Army in 2013.Objectives: To describe clinical experiences and retention of gait retraining in a military setting.Methods: Sixty-one cases from the year 2015 were available for analysis of gait and gait retraining. In 2016, 32 of these patients were available for a follow-up survey, 28 of them also for the follow-up measurement of running biomechanics in running shoes.Results: Soldiers received an outpatient treatment programme that lasted on average 129 days (SD 76). On average they received 2.4 gait retraining sessions, leading to significant and lasting changes in running biomechanics; in particular, reduction in maximal force (N) and maximal pressure (N/cm2) on the heels at 317 days follow-up (average, SD 108). Most soldiers were satisfied with gait retraining. At follow-up, 27 soldiers (84%) contributed some, the majority or all reduction of symptoms to it. Seventy percent reported that they had mastered the new running technique within two months. The Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation score increased from 55% to 78% for males and from 44% to 75% for females.Discussion: This is the first study to report on gait retraining for Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome. In future, prospective studies in the military running in shoes and running in boots respectively should be investigated.Conclusion: Soldiers with exercise-related leg pain (ERLP), among them patients with Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome, respond well to a treatment programme that included gait retraining. Ten months post-gait retraining, their running biomechanics still showed these positive changes from their time of intake.


Vertically aligned carbon nanofibers (VACNFs) were grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) using Ni nanoparticle (NP) catalysts that were deposited by airbrushing onto Si, Al, Cu, and Ti substrates. Airbrushing is a simple method for depositing catalyst NPs over large areas that is compatible with roll-to-roll processing. The distribution and morphology of VACNFs are affected by the airbrushing parameters and the composition of the metal foil. Highly concentrated Ni NPs in heptane give more uniform distributions than pentane and hexanes, resulting in more uniform coverage of VACNFs. For VACNF growth on metal foils, Si micropowder was added as a precursor for Si-enriched coatings formed in situ on the VACNFs that impart mechanical rigidity. Interactions between the catalyst NPs and the metal substrates impart control over the VACNF morphology. Growth of carbon nanostructures on Cu is particularly noteworthy because the miscibility of Ni with Cu poses challenges for VACNF growth, and carbon nanostructures anchored to Cu substrates are desired as anode materials for Li-ion batteries and for thermal interface materials.


One of the most powerful variables for English Learner success is the quality of their teachers. This policy brief published by Californians Together (1) provides a synthesis of effective practices for instructing ELs; (2) presents four research-based essential elements critical for EL program implementation, teacher reflection, and monitoring of teacher effectiveness; and (3) concludes with program and policy recommendations. Three key areas for policy action are prioritized: (1) District and state level policies must require that local and state leadership support the implementation of these essential elements; (2) Alignment of fiscal and human resources must be targeted to ensure that teachers are provided with professional development, materials and curricular program supports required to implement these key elements leading to English learner success; and (3) Teacher preparation and credential requirements need to incorporate the four critical elements of effective practice for success with English Learners.


Warranties for second-hand products are becoming more important as consumers have started demanding protection against poor quality second-hand products and the high cost of product failures occurring shortly after purchase. In response to this consumer demand for protection, public policy makers have begun enacting laws requiring dealers to offer warranties and effectively service warranty claims. This is now apparent throughout the market place for cars, consumer durables and electrical and electronic goods. As a result, dealers of second-hand products need to do a proper cost analysis of alternative warranty policies before deciding on a warranty policy to be offered with the sale of a particular item. This paper deals with three new cost sharing warranty policies for second-hand products. Stochastic models have been developed and analysed for the cost of these warranty policies when offered with the sale of second-hand products.


The interaction of proteins with lipids is an important aspect of research as it plays a main role in various biological responses such as metabolic pathways, signal transduction and in drug discovery. Proteins that take part in the treatment of different diseases act as drug targets and hence research is ongoing to find new series of ligands of medicinally significant proteins. Few such proteins, peroxisome proliferator activated receptors (PPARs), retinoid receptors, cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2), lipoxygenase (LOX), cyclooxygenases (COXs) were selected for the author's study due to their therapeutic role to act as pharmacological targets. The existing ligands for these protein targets are causing some side effects. For example, thiazolidinediones are the currently used ligands for PPARs. Thiazolidinediones bind to PPARs and used in the treatment of diabetes. However, this treatment results in obesity. Similarly, the use of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) like aspirin and ibuprofen lead to stomach or gastrointestinal ulcers, heartburn, headache and dizziness. Hence, a set of ligands which have a significant role in the treatment of diseases were selected and compared for their binding affinities towards the design of a new series of drugs.


To providing evidence about nitrogen adequate application of Platycodon grandiflorum, the pot culture experiment was conducted to study the effect of nitrogen on the growth, physiological metabolism and the quality of P. grandiflorum. The activity of NR, GS and SOD, POD and CAT were determined. And the nitrate and ammonium nitrogen content, photosynthetic characteristics, active components of P. grandiflorum were determined. The results showed that the nitrate nitrogen content and P. biomass reached its maximum value, when NH4(+)-N/NO3(-) -N was 0: 100, the activity of NR. The activity of GS was the highest at the NH4(+) -N/NO3(-) -N ratio of 25:75 and ammonium nitrogen content was the highest at 75:25. The activity of SOD decreased and then increased with the increasing of NO3(-) -N. At the NH4(+) -N/NO3(-) -N ratio of 25: 75, the activity of CAT had its maximum value and the content of MDA had the minimum value. At the same time, the content of platycodon D was the highest at this treatment. The studies had shown that different nitrogen forms and ratio had a significant effect on the characteristics of photosynthetic physiology, nitrogen metabolism and resistance adjustment, growth and the quality of P. grandiflorum. The NH4(+) -N/NO3(-) -N ratio of 25: 75 was a suitable ratio of nitrogen forms for the growth of P. Grandiflorum and accumulating the content of platycodon D.


CIMS has seen the growth of multi ple incompatible hardware architectures, each architecture supporting several incompatible operating systems, and each platform operating with various incompatible development tools (e. g., programming language compilers, DBMS, etc.) and one or more incompatible graphic user interfaces. Also, the growth of the Internet, the World Wide Web, has introduced new dimensi ons of complexity into the development process. All of these must be dealt with as the application is made workable in a distributed client server environment. This paper outlines the architecture of a communication system for the CIMS application integration platform. The communication system makes possible the request for service across heterogeneous platforms and networks, and provides some common solutions to issues common to CIMS applications.


In today's culture, the body appears to have become a main focus. Increased use of image based social media sites appear to reinforce a focus on body ideals and related body image concerns. Nonetheless, individuals appear to differ with regard to vulnerability to such influences. The purpose of the present study was to examine how perfectionism [self-oriented (SOP) or socially-prescribed (SPP)] and athletic status (athlete vs non-athlete) might interact to influence body satisfaction, appearance investment and social physique anxiety in individuals. Athletic status was assessed using both a perceived athlete and an objective athlete definition based on responses to related questions. Participants included a post-secondary sample of 208 men and women aged 17-24 years. They agreed to participate in an online study of how personality and athletic status influence feelings towards oneself and related behaviours. Findings revealed both significant interaction and main effects on the outcome variables of interest, with the pattern of results differing based on athletic status definition and the specific perfectionism facet. Implications of these findings are discussed. Additionally, these results provide evidence for more closely examining the role of one's perceived athletic status as a unique risk factor in appearance and body related concerns. The findings of this study may assist in better identifying individuals at risk for negative self-body perceptions and their related compensatory behaviours, such as the use of appearance and performance enhancing drugs.Acknowledgments: Chantal Arpin-Cribbie


Background and Purpose— Communication between hospitals and primary care physicians is essential for the continuity of care for patients being transferred from hospital to ambulatory care. Patients are often discharged from hospital on medication regimes different from those used before hospital admission. The aim of the study was to evaluate the adherence to hospital discharge medication in patients with ischemic stroke before and after implementing a systematic approach provided by a clinical pharmacist. Methods— Patients with transient ischemic attack/ischemic stroke taking ≥2 drugs during hospital stay and at discharge were prospectively recruited. In the control group, the neurologist included the medication list in the discharge letter as before. In the intervention group, the clinical pharmacist listed the medication on admission and at discharge next to each other and gave detailed information for all medication changes during hospital stay. Results— Overall, 312 patients were enrolled in the study with 156 patients in each group. Significant differences between the control group and intervention group were ascertained with regard to adherence to both antithrombotic drugs (83.8% control group versus 91.9% intervention group [P=0.033]) and to statin therapy (69.8% control group versus 87.7% intervention group [P<0.001]). Conclusions— Providing detailed information on medication changes can lead to substantially improved adherence to discharge medication, probably resulting in better secondary stroke prevention.


Problem. The purpose of this study was to ascertain if there is any relationship between religious beliefs, moral development, self-control, peer pressure, self-esteem, and premarital sex, providing for a comprehensive framework for understanding this phenomenon. Method. Subjects were 148 undergraduates attending three schools in different geographic regions within the United States. Subjects were primarily between 18 and 25 years old. A survey was completed by 148 students. Data-were analyzed using Analysis of Variance and Independent-Samples t test. Results. Of the 148 students who participated in the study, 38% were Black, Hispanic, 38% were White, non-Hispanic, 10% were Hispanic, and 4% were Biracial/Multiracial. Ninety-six percent of subjects stated that they belonged to a religious faith or church, and 4% stated that they did not. With regard to whether or not the subjects had premarital sexual intercourse, 33.8% had consensual sex, 55.4% did not have sex, 8.1% had sexand were forced, and 2.7% had sex but were unsure as to whether or not it was consensual. Of those subjects who did have premarital sex, 86% of those had sex with their boyfriend/girlfriend. With two exceptions, the 8.1% of subjects who were forced to have sex were female and forced or pressured by a boyfriend/girlfriend. Most of the subjects, 49.3%, had principled morality scores in the low range. In regard to self-esteem, most of the subjects, 56.8%, scored in the average range. Self-control scores of subjects revealed that 74.3% scored in the average range. In relation to peer influence, 79.1% of subjects were not influenced by their peers on the nine issues studied. The Analysis of Variance and the Multivariate Analysis of Variance that was used to test hypotheses found non-significant differences between those who had sex and consented, those who did not have sex, those who had sex and were unsure, and those who had sex but did not consent, on religious beliefs,moral development, self-control, peer pressure, and self-esteem scores. Conclusions. For the 148 subjects attending Seventh-day Adventist colleges, the non-significant results seemed to indicate that different factors may have been influencing this sample in their premarital sexual behavior.


This study reviewed 4,457 articles from 1998 to 2007 in American Counseling Association division-affiliated journals to identify research articles published in counseling; 1,139 articles (25.6%) were quantitatively research based. The authors provide details related to quantitative research publications, including individual journal contribution to the research base, focus areas for research, and independent and dependent variables highlighted by researchers. One summary finding was that only 6% of counseling research articles explored effectiveness of counseling interventions.


Recently, using a highly specific radioimmunoassay, we have demonstrated that the concentration of oxytocin in the corpus luteum of the human and cynomolgus monkey are several fold higher than in the peripheral circulation. In this study, we have examined the corpora lutea and ovarian stroma from the ovaries of normal adult cycling baboons (Papio anubis) for the presence of oxytocin through the use of immunocytochemical procedures. Tissues obtained at laparotomy were fixed in Bouin's solution and embedded in paraffin; immunoreactive oxytocin was localized with peroxidase-antiperoxidase and 3.3' diaminobenzidine. Six corpora lutea with stroma were obtained--two each from the early (Day 14-20), mid-(Day 21-24), and late (Day 25-30) stages of the luteal phase. Immunoreactive oxytocin was localized in all corpora lutea examined but was absent from all stroma samples. Larger areas of the corpus luteum from the mid-luteal phase showed staining for oxytocin, and the intensity of staining for this peptide was maximal in this phase of the cycle.


In this paper, the positioning of a piezo-driven xy table system via a fuzzy mixed H2/Hinfin optimization-based decentralized model reference control is developed. Each subsystem contained 6 linear pulse transfer function systems (LPTFSs). The reference model for every LPTFS was first designed to shape the response of the closed-loop of the ith subsystem. Then the H2 - norm of the output error and weighted control input of the jth LPTFS was minimized to obtain a control. The Hinfin - norm of weighted sensitivity between output disturbance and output error of the jth LPTFS was minimized to attenuate its effect. In addition, a nonlinear control based on output error for every LPTFS was also established to improve robust performance. The experiments of piezo-driven xy table system confirmed the usefulness of the proposed control.


Ectopic adrenal tissue is a relatively common finding, especially in children. The most common localization is the male genital system, especially the spermatic cord. Female genital tract is also a common site for ectopic adrenal tissue but, ovarian localization is very rare. A 21-year-old woman presented with complaints of abdominal swelling, pelvic pain and menstrual irregularity. Ultrasonographic examination revealed a 25 cm cystic mass in the left ovarian region. The cyst which was removed surgically, was filled with serous fluid and there was a 0.2 cm yellowish nodule within the wall. Serous cubic epithelium was lining the inner portion of the cyst. The nodule within the cyst wall was well defined and consisted of adrenal tissue.


Naringin is a citrus-flavonoid which has been shown to have positive metabolic and anti-inflammatory effects. For this reason, we believe it would be interesting to study the effects of Naringin administration on body weight, BMI, lipid profile and adiponectin levels in patients with dyslipidemia, especially considering that dyslipidemias along with obesity and subsequent cardiometabolic complications are some of the most important public health issues plaguing our society today. A double-blind, randomized clinical trial was conducted in a group of 28 adult patients previously diagnosed with dyslipidemia who attended the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Therapeutics. Patients were divided into two groups; the first group (n = 14) received 450 mg of naringin every 24 hours, in the mornings, while the second group (n = 14) was given a homologated placebo over the course of a 90-day period. Significant differences were observed in naringin group compared to the placebo group in terms of decreased BMI (30.6 ± 3.19 vs 33.3 ± 3.23 kg/m2; p = 0.03), total cholesterol (182 ± 20.2 vs 245 ± 24.1 mg/dl; p < 0.01), LDL cholesterol (100 ± 17.5 vs 125 ± 38.3 mg/dl; p = 0.03) and an increase in adiponectin levels (0.82 ± 0.25 vs 0.59 ± 0.19 μg/ml; p = 0.01). Our results support the use of Naringin as a potential therapeutic agent which could play an important role in the management of metabolic disorders.


I study product diversity in the presence of search costs and groups of consumers. Groups with heterogeneous tastes create a leverage effect on competition: a large majority of firms may end up offering a product that corresponds to the taste of the minority. I illustrate this idea with smoking bans in bars and restaurants. When the first nonsmoking restaurants opened, there were few of them with little competition and high market power on nonsmokers. By extracting a large surplus from nonsmokers, nonsmoking restaurants became unattractive to other groups, while smoking restaurants were plenty and competitive, attracting both smokers and mixed groups.


The skin commensal and opportunistic pathogen Staphylococcus epidermidis is an important cause of nosocomial infections. Virulence is attributable to formation of biofilm, which provides a microenvironment that protects the bacterium from attack by the host immune system and by chemotherapy. In this study we extended to S. epidermidis strategies previously aimed at treatment of S. aureus bio films using photodynamic treatment (PDT) combined with chemotherapy or phagocytosis. A significant reduction in bacterial survival was observed when structurally distinct biofilms were exposed to the cationic porphyrin, tetra-substituted N-methyl-pyridyl-porphine (TMP), and simultaneously to visible light. Of note, the extent of biofilm clearance depended on its maturation stage: developing, young biofilms, were more sensitive towards PDT than mature biofilms. Furthermore, PDT-treated biofilms exposed to vancomycin or subjected to phagocytic action of whole blood were almost completely eradicated. The data we obtained establish that PDT combined with antibiotics or host defenses may also be a useful approach for the inactivation of S. epidermidis biofilms.


ABSTRACT:From Charles Babbage's Difference Engine (a product of an increasingly global British maritime empire) to Herman Hollerith's tabulating machine (designed to solve the problem of "seeing like a state" in the newly trans-continental American Republic) to the emergence of the modern petrochemical industry, information technologies have always been closely associated with the human desire to understand and manipulate their physical environment. More recently, humankind has started to realize the environmental impacts of information technology, including not only the toxic byproducts associated with their production, but also the polluting effects of the massive amounts of energy and water required by data centers at Google and Facebook (whose physicality is conveniently and deliberately camouflaged behind the disembodied, ethereal "cloud"). This paper grounds the history of information technology in the material world by focusing on the relationship between "computing power" and more traditional processes of resource extraction, exchange, management, and consumption.


Molecular components of the Brucella abortus cell envelope play a major role in its ability to infect, colonize and survive inside mammalian host cells. In this study, we have defined a role for a conserved gene of unknown function in B. abortus envelope stress resistance and infection. Expression of this gene, which we name eipA, is directly activated by the essential cell cycle regulator, CtrA. eipA encodes a soluble periplasmic protein that adopts an unusual eight-stranded β-barrel fold. Deletion of eipA attenuates replication and survival in macrophage and mouse infection models, and results in sensitivity to treatments that compromise the integrity of the cell envelope. Transposon disruption of genes required for LPS O-polysaccharide biosynthesis is synthetically lethal with eipA deletion. This genetic connection between O-polysaccharide and eipA is corroborated by our discovery that eipA is essential in Brucella ovis, a naturally rough species that harbors mutations in several genes required for O-polysaccharide production. Conditional depletion of eipA expression in B. ovis results in a cell chaining phenotype, providing evidence that eipA directly or indirectly influences cell division in Brucella. We conclude that EipA is a molecular determinant of Brucella virulence that functions to maintain cell envelope integrity and influences cell division.


The aim of the article is to present the individual and intense experience of sensing the world in religious categories, an account of which can be found in the novel The Salt of  the  Earth. The  term "religious experience" comes from William James.  The  author of the article first mentions the interpretative difficulties connected with structural irony, which calls into question some of the statements verbalized in the novel. Taking into account this complexity, he points out four elements that justify discussion of a religious experience in The Salt of the Earth. First, he points to the title, which evokes a religious perception of the world, and assumes a response to a calling that comes from God. Second, he refers to the Prologue (deprived of structural irony), which introduces the theme of war as blasphemy. Third, he analyses those passages in which the narrator shortens his distance from Piotr Niewiadomski's point of view and approvingly accepts the magical interpretation of natural phenomena. Lastly, he refers to the ChristianOrphicHutsul theme of the immortality of the soul and contact with the dead.


In 46 newborns, operated by the bowel obstruction, the leading symptom of determining the severity of the condition, was enteral insufficiency. The patients were divided into groups depending on the techniques of nutrition support. To determine the effectiveness of the conducted nutritive support carried out monitoring of anthropometric data, investigated leukocyte intoxication index level, determined free-radical peroxide lipid oxidation activity, evaluated autoimmunity. During the research it is established, that the technique of nutrition support, conducted in patients of the 2nd group, as well as the use of partially hydrolyzed mixtures are more effective and efficient, which is confirmed by the obtained dynamics of the above-mentioned data.


Background:
 Inflammation critically contributes to post-stroke brain damage and consequently there is much interest in factors that influence stroke-induced brain inflammation. Interleukin 6 (IL-6) has been heralded as an important predictor of stroke outcome, however there are conflicting reports describing detrimental, beneficial and even no effects of IL-6 on stroke pathology. This has led to the suggestion that the post-stroke effects of IL-6 may be dependent on its cellular location. We report that IL-6 produced by meningeal resident mast cells (pro-inflammatory effector cells) significantly exacerbates brain inflammation and pathology after stroke. These are the first data to identify the role in stroke pathology of IL-6 derived from a specific cell type in a particular anatomic location in vivo.

 Methods:
 A mast cell (MC) 'knock-in' mouse model was used where MC-deficient mice (KitW/W-v) were repaired of their MC deficiency by engraftment of in-vitro-derived MCs. MCs from wild-type (WT) or IL-6 knock-out mice were engrafted into the meninges. Mice were subjected to 30 min middle cerebral artery occlusion. Brain swelling and infarct size were assessed by T2-weighted MRI and histology. The immune response was quantified by flow cytometry.

 Results:
 CNS distribution analysis of MCs in wild-type and MC-engrafted mice revealed equivalent numbers of MCs in meninges in all groups but almost no MCs in brain parenchyma of the MC-engrafted groups. At 3d post-stroke, wild-type mice and MC-deficient mice engrafted with WT MCs exhibited significantly greater brain swelling, larger infarcts, and more brain granulocytes and activated macrophages than MC-deficient mice. These findings indicate that meningeal MCs exacerbate stroke outcome. In contrast, the pathology in IL6-KO MC-engrafted mice resembled that in MC-deficient mice, with significantly less brain swelling, smaller infarcts and fewer granulocytes and activated macrophages than in the WT MC-engrafted mice. This indicates that MC-secreted IL-6 contributes importantly to the detrimental effects of MCs.

 Conclusions:
 IL-6 produced by mast cells in the meninges is detrimental to stroke outcome. Thus, intrathecal targeting of meningeal inflammation may offer a novel therapeutic strategy for stroke.


The recent evolution of Pamir-Karakoram-Himalaya (PKH) glaciers, widely acknowledged as valuable high-altitude as well as mid-latitude climatic indicators, remains poorly known. To estimate the region-wide glacier mass balance for 9 study sites spread from the Pamir to the Hengduan Shan (eastern Himalaya), we compared the 2000 Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model (DEM) to recent (2008-2011) DEMs derived from SPOT5 stereo imagery. During the last decade, the region-wide glacier mass balances were contrasted with moderate mass losses in the eastern and central Himalaya (-0.22 ± 0.12 m w.e./yr to -0.33 ± 0.14 m w.e./yr) and larger losses in the western Himalaya (-0.45 ± 0.13 m w.e./yr). Recently reported slight mass gain or balanced mass budget of glaciers in the central Karakoram is confirmed for a larger area (+0.10 ± 0.16 m w.e./yr) and also observed for glaciers in the western Pamir (+0.14 ± 0.13 m w.e./yr). Thus, the "Karakoram anomaly" should be renamed the "Pamir-Karakoram anomaly", at least for the last decade. The overall mass balance of PKH glaciers, -0.14 ± 0.08 m w.e./yr, is two to three times less negative than the global average for glaciers distinct from the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Together with recent studies using ICESat and GRACE data, DEM differencing confirms a contrasted pattern of glacier mass change in the PKH during the first decade of the 21st century.


The pandemic hit the Colombian economy as hard as other countries. Using a novel Business Pulse Survey, this paper tests the effect of government support and COVID-19 cases on firms performance. A one-standard-deviation increase in government support (in periods in which the pandemics intensity was average) increased the percentage of firms reporting normal operations by 4.8 percent. Political demonstrations in spring 2021, however, reduced the percentage by 13 percent each month they lasted. Firms' financial distress also counters the impact of government support, suggesting the need to ease firms' access to financial markets. Last, we show that investing in digital solutions improved firms' performance but remote work degraded it.


Changes in total biomass and botanical composition in a native pasture of the Flooding Pampa in the Salado River Basin (Province of Buenos Aires), under 3 grazing systems: spring-summer rest (November, December, and January); fall rest April, May, and June), and continuous grazing were evaluated from October 1979 to August 1981. A variable stocking rate based on available forage was used. Total aboveground biomass was periodically sampled to ground level and separated into dead and green components. The green biomass was subdivided into individual species. Total aboveground biomass averaged 4,600 +/- 445 kg . ha-1 and 3,750 +/- 120 kg . ha-1 for the spring-summer rest treatment during the first and second years, respectively. In the same period, warm-season species increased, principally due to an increase in dallisgrass (Paspalum dilatatum Poir.) and bluestem (Bothriochloa laguroides Herter) biomass. Total aboveground biomass yield was 2,000 +/- 170 kg . ha-1 during the fall rest treatment, and cool-season species such as Poa spp. and Stipa spp. increased. In general, continuous grazing at a moderate intensity resulted in total aboveground biomass of about 2,000 kg DM . ha-1 throughout the experimental period. Contributions of warm-season and cool-season species did not change. Only West Indies smutgrass (Sporobolus indicus (L.) R. Br.) increased under continuous grazing.


The CEFLES2 campaign during the Carbo Europe Regional Experiment Strategy was designed to provide simultaneous airborne measurements of solar induced fluorescence and CO 2 fluxes. It was combined with extensive ground-based quantification of leafand canopy-level processes in support of ESA's Candidate Earth Explorer Mission of the "Fluorescence Explorer" (FLEX). The aim of this campaign was to test if fluorescence signal detected from an airborne platform can be used to improve estimates of plant mediated exchange on the mesoscale. Canopy fluorescence was quantified from four airborne platforms using a combination of novel sensors: (i) the prototype airborne sensor AirFLEX quantified fluorescence in the oxygen A and B bands, (ii) a hyperspectral spectrometer (ASD) measured reflectance along transects during 12 day courses, (iii) spatially high resolution georeferenced hyperspectral data cubes containing the whole optical spectrum and the thermal region were gathered with an AHS sensor, and (iv) the first employment of the high performance imaging spectrometer HYPER delivered spatially explicit and multi-temporal transects across the whole region. During three measurement periods in April, June and September 2007 structural, functional and radiometric characteristics of more than 20 different vegetation types in the Les Landes region, Southwest France, were extensively characterized on the ground. The campaign concept focussed especially on quantifying plant mediated exchange processes (photosynthetic electron transport, CO2 uptake, evapotranspiration) and fluorescence emission. The comparison between passive sun-induced fluorescence and active laser-induced fluorescence was performed on a corn canopy in the daily cycle and under desiccation stress. Both techniques show good agreement in detecting stress induced fluorescence change at the 760 nm band. On the large scale, airborne and ground-level measurements of fluorescence were compared on several vegetation types supporting the scaling of this novel remote sensing signal. The multi-scale design of the four airborne radiometric measurements along with extensive ground activities fosters a nested approach to quantify photosynthetic efficiency and gross primary productivity (GPP) from passive fluorescence.


When dealing with the quality of water resources for different uses, collecting samples from all parts of a study area is not economically possible. In this regard zoning methods are powerful tools in the providing the data based on spatial variation. This research aimed in groundwater quality zoning for agricultural uses in the Varamin plain, southern Tehran, using Interpolation methods with Geographic Information System (GIS) and the weightings in the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). Qualitative data from 74 tube wells in the plain of Varamin from 1388 to 1387 is used. Firstly, raster maps were prepared using Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) method for the study area. These maps prepared for the Sodium Absorption Ratio (SAR), Permeability Index (PI), the Kelley Ratio (KR), Magnesium Adsorption Ratio (MAR), Residual Sodium Carbonate (RSC), Dissolved Sodium Percentage (SSP), Electrical Conductivity (EC), and Total Hardness (TH) Then the final weights of parameters in water quality potential were determined using AHP and the pair wise matrix. Finally, with overlaying maps and applying final weights of the parameters in GIS, the map of qualitative potential of the groundwater resources in the area for agricultural purposes was prepared. The results showed that in the northwestern, southwestern, and western parts, the status of groundwater for agriculture are poor and in the central, northern, and northeastern parts there are the quality of water is suitable for agriculture purposes.


In this article some formal, content-related and procedural considerations towards the sense of humor are articulated and the analysis of both everyday humor behavior and of comic styles leads to the initial proposal of a four factormodel of humor (4FMH). This model is tested in a new dataset and it is also examined whether two forms of comic styles (benevolent humor and moral mockery) do fit in. The model seems to be robust but further studies on the structure of the sense of humor as a personality trait are required.


4-Hydroxyproline is found in collagens and collagen-like proteins in animals and in many glycoproteins in plants. Animal prolyl 4-hydroxylases (P4Hs) have been cloned and characterized from many sources, but no plant P4H has been cloned so far. We report here that the genome of Arabidopsis thaliana encodes six P4H-like polypeptides, one of which, a 283-residue soluble monomer, was cloned and characterized here as a recombinant protein. Catalytically critical residues identified in animal P4Hs are conserved in this P4H, and their mutagenesis led to complete or almost complete inactivation. The recombinant P4H effectively hydroxylated poly(l-proline) and many synthetic peptides corresponding to proline-rich repeats present in plant glycoproteins and other proteins. Surprisingly, collagen-like peptides were also good substrates, the V max with (Pro-Pro-Gly)10 being similar to that with poly(l-proline). The enzyme acted in this peptide preferentially on prolines in Y positions in theX-Y-Gly triplets. Correspondingly, (Gly-Pro-4Hyp)5 and (Pro-Ala-Gly)5 were poor substrates, with V max values less than 5 and 20% of that obtained with (Pro-Pro-Gly)10, respectively, the K m for the latter also being high. Peptides representing the N- and C-terminal hydroxylation sites present in hypoxia-inducible transcription factor α also served as substrates. As these peptides contain only one proline residue, a poly(l-proline) type II conformation was clearly not required for hydroxylation.


We consider a model of teaching in which the learners are consistent and have bounded state, but are otherwise arbitrary. The teacher is non-interactive and "massively open": the teacher broadcasts a sequence of examples of an arbitrary target concept, intended for every possible on-line learning algorithm to learn from. We focus on the problem of designing interesting teachers: efficient sequences of examples that lead all capable and consistent learners to learn concepts, regardless of the underlying algorithm used by the learner. We use two measures of teaching efficiency: the number of mistakes made by the worst-case learner, and the maximum length of the example sequence needed for the worst-case learner. Our results are summarized as follows: Given a uniform random sequence of examples of an n-bit concept function, learners (capable of consistently learning the concept) with s(n) bits of state are guaranteed to make only O(n ⋅ s(n)) mistakes and exactly learn the concept, with high probability. This theorem has interesting corollaries; for instance, every concept c has a sequence of examples can teach c to all capable consistent on-line learners implementable with s(n)-size circuits, such that every learner makes only ~O(s(n)^2) mistakes. That is, all resource-bounded algorithms capable of consistently learning a concept can be simultaneously taught that concept with few mistakes, on a single example sequence. We also show how to efficiently generate such a sequence of examples on-line: using Nisan's pseudorandom generator, each example in the sequence can be generated with polynomial-time overhead per example, with an O(n ⋅ s(n))-bit initial seed. To justify our use of randomness, we prove that any non-trivial derandomization of our sequences would imply new circuit lower bounds. For instance, if there is a deterministic 2n O(1) time algorithm that generates a sequence of examples, such that all consistent and capable polynomial-size circuit learners learn the all-zeroes concept with less than 2n mistakes, then EXP ⊄ P. We present examples illustrating that the key differences in our model -- our focus on mistakes rather than the total number of examples, and our use of a state bound -- must be considered together to obtain our results. We show that for every consistent s(n)-state bounded learner A, and every n-bit concept that A is capable of learning, there is a custom "tutoring" sequence of only O(n ⋅ s(n)) examples that teaches A the concept. That is, in principle, there are no slow learners, only bad teachers: if a state-bounded learner is capable of learning a concept at all, then it can always be taught that concept quickly via some short sequence of examples.


This paper describes the design and the performance of a new high-speed laser Doppler imaging system for monitoring blood flow over an area of tissue. The new imager delivers high-resolution flow images (256x256 pixels) every 2 to 10 seconds, depending on the number of points in the acquired time-domain signal (32-512 points). This new imaging modality utilizes a digital integrating CMOS image sensor to detect Doppler signals in a plurality of points over the area illuminated by a divergent laser beam of a uniform intensity profile. The integrating property of the detector improves the signal-to-noise ratio of the measurements, which results in high-quality flow images. We made a series of measurements in vitro to test the performance of the system in terms of bandwidth, SNR, etc. Subsequently we give some examples of flow-related images measured on human skin, thus demonstrating the performance of the imager in vivo. The perspectives for future implementations of the imager for clinical and physiological applications are discussed.


Joint Application Design (JAD) methods are used in information systems delivery for tasks such as gathering business requirements for systems development projects. Although these methods are popular and their use is widely advocated, there have been no systematic empirical evaluations of their use and potential organizational outcomes. This paper reports on an exploratory field study into the adoption and use of JAD methods at three research sites. Data collected at these sites suggest that JAD participants commonly modified espoused JAD methods in ways that reinforced the status-quo ISD process, thus limiting the potential for realizing substantial benefits typically ascribed to JAD methods. Two theoretical approaches to analysis of these data and to further study of JAD use are considered. These approaches, institutional theory and mutual adaptation theory, are discussed within the structuration framework outlined by Orlikowski and Robey (1991). Implications for management of ISD process changes such as adoption of JAD methods are considered.


Agents that can modulate colonic environment and control dysregulated signaling are being evaluated for their chemopreventive potential in colon cancer. Ursodeoxycholate (UDCA) has shown chemopreventive potential in preclinical and animal models of colon cancer, but the mechanism behind it remains unknown. Here biological effects of UDCA were examined to understand mechanism behind its chemoprevention in colon cancer. Our data suggests that UDCA can suppress growth in a wide variety of cancer cell lines and can induce low level of apoptosis in colon cancer cells. We also found that UDCA treatment induces alteration in morphology, increased cell size, upregulation of cytokeratin 8, 18 and 19 and E‐cadherin, cytokeratin remodeling and accumulation of lipid droplets, suggesting that UDCA induces differentiation in colon carcinoma cells. Our results also suggest significant differences in UDCA and sodium butyrate induced functional differentiation. We also report for the first time that UDCA can induce senescence in colon cancer cells as assessed by flattened, spread out and vacuolated morphology as well as by senescence marker β‐galactosidase staining. We also found that UDCA inhibits the telomerase activity. Surprisingly, we found that UDCA is not a histone deacytylase inhibitor but instead induces hypoacetylation of histones unlike hyperacetylation induced by sodium butyrate. Our results also suggest that, although UDCA induced senescence is p53, p21 and Rb independent, HDAC6 appears to be important in UDCA induced senescence. In summary, our data shows that UDCA modulates chromatin by inducing histone hypoacetylation and induces differentiation and senescence in colon cancer cells. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Standard neural networks struggle to generalize under distribution shifts in computer vision. Fortunately, combining multiple networks can consistently improve out-of-distribution generalization. In particular, weight averaging (WA) strategies were shown to perform best on the competitive DomainBed benchmark; they directly average the weights of multiple networks despite their nonlinearities. In this paper, we propose Diverse Weight Averaging (DiWA), a new WA strategy whose main motivation is to increase the functional diversity across averaged models. To this end, DiWA averages weights obtained from several independent training runs: indeed, models obtained from different runs are more diverse than those collected along a single run thanks to differences in hyperparameters and training procedures. We motivate the need for diversity by a new bias-variance-covariance-locality decomposition of the expected error, exploiting similarities between WA and standard functional ensembling. Moreover, this decomposition highlights that WA succeeds when the variance term dominates, which we show occurs when the marginal distribution changes at test time. Experimentally, DiWA consistently improves the state of the art on DomainBed without inference overhead.


beta-catenin-mediated Wnt signaling is critical in animal development and tumor progression. The single-span transmembrane Wnt receptor, low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 6 (LRP6), interacts with Axin to promote the Wnt-dependent accumulation of beta-catenin. However, the molecular mechanism of receptor internalization and its impact on signaling are unclear. Here, we present evidence that LRP6 is internalized with caveolin and that the components of this endocytic pathway are required not only for Wnt-3a-induced internalization of LRP6 but also for accumulation of beta-catenin. Overall, our data suggest that Wnt-3a triggers the interaction of LRP6 with caveolin and promotes recruitment of Axin to LRP6 phosphorylated by glycogen synthase kinase-3beta and that caveolin thereby inhibits the binding of beta-catenin to Axin. Thus, caveolin plays critical roles in inducing the internalization of LRP6 and activating the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway. We also discuss the idea that distinct endocytic pathways correlate with the specificity of Wnt signaling events.


The objective of this study is to simulate the performance of helical tube shell and tube heat exchanger with several optimization techniques using computational fluid dynamics CFD. To check the performance of a designed model of heat exchanger various techniques are available. In this study, the various possible model of the heat exchanger to enhance the performance of the device have been designed. Firstly, the straight tube is replaced by helical tube in the heat exchanger and used 10, 12, 14 number of helical baffles with 50% baffle cut. Total ten models have been developed. These models are model-I 4-turns without baffle, model-II 4-turns with 10 number baffles, model-III 5-turns without baffle, model-IV 5-turns with 12 number baffles, model-V 6-turns without baffle, model-VI 6-turns with 10 number baffles 0.083m baffle space, model-VII 6-turns with 12 number 0.083m baffle space, model-VIII 6-turns with 14 number baffles 0.064m baffle space, model-IX 7-turns without baffle, model-X 7-turns with 14 number baffles, different number of baffles and baffle space with 50% baffle cut and used CUO nanofluid model-XI 6-turns with 14 number baffle CUO fluid 0.083m baffle space CFD analysis simulation done on ANSYS FLUENT 18. The simulated result shows that the model XI is approximately 40% more optimized as compared to model-I and approximately 24% than model-VIII. It also found that the high heat transfer obtains with increased number of baffles.


Main objective of this study is to show that how military expansion in Sri Lanka contributed to achieve this macroeconomic goal, reduction of unemployment and poverty. Statistical evidences show that percentage of people, living under poverty level negatively correlated with size of military forces in time series data at 96 percent. Percentage of Singhalese majority people in districts population negatively correlated with percentage of poor in district population in cross sectional data at 59 percent.  Sri Lanka's military expansion creates employment and income to Singhalese who are employing around 97.1 percent of security forces. Sri Lanka's per capita military expenditure reached Rs 30.12 per day in 2012 even after ending of war. The earnings of Tamil refugees in developed countries and earnings of Sri Lankan workers in Middle East have considerable tickle down effects on poverty reduction in North and East of Sri Lanka. In this context, contribution of Samurdhi (prosperity of poor) programme in Sri Lanka is hesitant in poverty reduction. Key words : Sri Lanka, Military, Poverty, Pork barrel ethnic politics, and conflicts & war.


This article investigates the widespread conviction that during the period on which the study is based, 1980 to 2002, English spread faster and much more widely in Hunza than in Chilas, two political sub-districts of the Northern Area of Pakistan that have many similarities. In the absence of data, it was decided to study the expansion of formal education during the period 1980–2002, cross-referenced against the changing language content of curricula. Based on the data, a number of propositions were formulated for each area. Finally, the propositions were checked by means of a survey. The conclusion is that the proposition is correct. In Hunza there is convincing evidence of more widespread use of, and more favourable attitudes towards, English. The main reason for the differences between Chilas and Hunza seems to be the different expressions of Islam that pertain in each area.


IZA DP No. 15547 SEPTEMBER 2022 Child Care in the United States: Markets, Policy, and Evidence* Participation in non-parental child care arrangements is now the norm for preschool-age children in the U.S. However, child care services are becoming increasingly expensive for many families, and quality is highly uneven across providers and sectors, raising questions about the impact of child care costs and quality on parental employment and child development. The U.S. policy landscape is dominated by three policies that subsidize costs for low-income families or attempt to improve the safety and quality of providers: Child Care and Development Fund, regulations, and quality rating and improvement systems. In this paper, I provide a thorough review of the evidence on each policy, focusing on how they influence a wide range of family and provider outcomes. The paper begins with a detailed description of the structure and functioning of the child care market, using the most up-to-date data on families' utilization of care services and provider characteristics. I then draw on a diverse set of studies across multiple fields to summarize the evidence on the impact of child care policy. In the final section of the paper, I offer recommendations for future research in each policy area. JEL Classification: H75, I24, I38, J24


The interpretation of a percentage change often hinges on the base value to which it is attached. The authors identify a tendency among consumers to neglect base values when processing percentage change information and investigate the implications of such base value neglect for how consumers evaluate economically equivalent offers presented in percentage terms, such as bonus packs and price discounts. The authors first document a substantial advantage in sales volume for a bonus pack over an economically equivalent price discount in a field experiment conducted in a retail store. Furthermore, in a mall-intercept survey and multiple lab studies, the authors provide additional evidence in support of the effect and identify managerially useful boundary conditions for when the effect is likely to manifest. The article concludes with a discussion of the theoretical and managerial implications of the findings.


In the data mining field, association rules are discovered having domain knowledge specified as a minimum support threshold. The accuracy in setting up this threshold directly influences the number and the quality of association rules discovered. Often, the number of association rules, even though large in number, misses some interesting rules and the rules' quality necessitates further analysis. As a result, decision making using these rules could lead to risky actions. We propose a framework to discover domain knowledge report as coherent rules. Coherent rules are discovered based on the properties of propositional logic, and therefore, requires no background knowledge to generate them. From the coherent rules discovered, association rules can be derived objectively and directly without knowing the level of minimum support threshold required. We provide analysis of the rules compare to those discovered via the a priori.


How does one talk about moral thought and moral action as a religious naturalist? We explore this question by considering two human capacities: the capacity for mindfulness, and the capacity for virtue. We suggest that mindfulness is deeply enhanced by an understanding of the scientific worldview and that the four cardinal virtues-courage, fairmindedness, humaneness, and reverence-are rendered coherent by mindful reflection. We focus on the concept of mindful reverence and propose that the mindful reverence elicited by the evolutionary narrative is at the heart of religious naturalism. Religious education, we suggest, entails the cultivation of mindful virtue, in ourselves and in our children.


Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy (TIRFM) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) are both successfully applied in biophysics and biology. AFM provides the possibility to image and to mechanically manipulate the samples on a nanometer scale. TIRFM allows the observation of single fluorescent molecules close to the surface at a high signal-to-noise ratio and, consequently, improves
the temporal and spatial localization of events of interest. The ability to use both microscopy techniques simultaneously allows to study specific biochemical changes (by using fluorescence markers) that are induced by mechanical stimulation (AFM) and gives access to new methodical approaches.
This thesis describes the construction of a combined TIRFM-AFM instrument, its possibilities, and limitations, e.g. time correlated mechanical manipulation and fluorescence detection, effects of the tip inside the excitation and emission volume, as well as noise interactions of both systems. To investigate the tip effects, the fluorescence of single dye molecules linked to ribosomes was characterized. The background light from the AFM cantilevers during single molecule detection was determined as well as the quenching potential of the tip.
The TIRFM-AFM setup was applied to investigate biological samples from the micrometer length scale of living cells down to the nanometer length scale of viruses and actin protein filaments.
1) On the cell scale the TIRFM capabilities were used to identify three sub-types of a Parkinson-like cell line in a mixed population which could not be separated by cell-biological procedures. After identification, the AFM was applied to probe the mechanical properties of the individual sub-types. The results indicate a sub-type specific interaction between the fluorescently labeled Leucine-rich repeat kinase2 (LRRK2) and parts of the cytoskeleton which lead to a different mechanical response for each of the sub-types.
2) On the virus scale AFM-induced mechanical fatigue experiments were performed on the Adenovirus. The goal was to disassemble the virus capsid and to visualize the release of the genome in real time by specific fluorescence labeling of Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). We compared the genome release of the wild type mature adenovirus with that of a non-infectious immature-like mutant. The measurements show that the immature genome remains compact after the shell is opened up by AFM. This suggests that the maturation step is essential for rendering the virus to be infective.
3) On the protein level we studied a newly discovered protein that is involved in the organization of the actin-myosin fibers in muscle cells of C. elegans. In vitro, the protein called DreBriN-like family homolog 1 (DBN-1) induces bundling of actin filaments. These bundles tend to form loops. TIRFM allowed to target these bundles and loops by fluorescence labeling of actin. Subsequent high resolution AFM imaging revealed a decoration of the actin filaments with the 'cross-linking' DBN-1 proteins.
As an additional project an 'optical AFM' was developed. This instrument is based on optical tweezers and specifically designed to overcome the noise limitations of AFM at low forces. The trapped bead is moved in the direction perpendicular to the microscope cover slide so that cells can be indented in a similar fashion as with AFM. It was constructed to perform force spectroscopy experiments on cells at very low forces.


The genotypic variability and correlation coefficients were studied in 27 indigenous multivoltine varieties of mulberry silkworm, B. mori L. for six egg characters. The genotype was highly significant for all the characters under studied. Least difference between genotypic and phenotypic coefficient of variation were observed. Majority of the characters showed high heritability comparing with dead egg percentage. Furthermore Unfertilized egg percentage showed high genetic advance together with high heritability but HP and EW showed high heritability and low genetic advance. These indicate the importance of additive and non-additive gene effect of these characters respectively. Total number of egg laid by female, hatching percentage, and blue egg percentage showed both positive and negative significant correlation to each other at both the phenotypic and genotypic levels. The results suggest that these characters specially total number of egg laid by female, blue egg percentage and unfertilized egg percentage appeared as importance in selection programme for genetic gain in B. mori. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/ujzru.v31i0.15375 Univ. j. zool. Rajshahi Univ. Vol. 31, 2012 pp. 19-22


Pakistan is an agricultural country and Pulses as being a part of its sub sectors, contributes a significant part in countries economy although its part is very little but their significance level is not limited because pulses are encountered as the most significant food item specially for poor's and it is inexpensive source of protein as compared to other protein substitutes but throughout the world pulses are encountered as inferior diet among all other nutritional items. This study focuses on exports of pulses to explore the pulses development within country. The study is based on secondary data collected through the official documents of Bureau of Statistics, TDAP, crop reporting and many others. The trend analysis covers the period of 1995-2013 includes the charts and pie diagrams and pulses exports were measured through OLS techniques. By the trend analysis it is come to know that pulses exports showed a decreasing pattern up to 2013, however 2005-2006 proved as a boosting period in pulses exports history. Additionally, it was found that Prices of pulses effects the pulses exports negatively, per capita also affects the exports adversely; however yield, FDI, ODA and Gross savings effects the pulses exports positively.


Professors Schwarcz and Benjamin classify the situations in which an intermediary holds securities for investors in their highly stimulating article entitled Intermediary Risk in the Indirect Holding System for Securities. The authors identify two situations in which an intermediary holds securities for investors: that in which the intermediary does, and does not, have beneficial rights. The authors seemingly assume that intermediary risk does not arise where the intermediary has no beneficial rights. This point is made explicitly in an article published previously by Professor Schwarcz. In Intermediary Risk in a Global Economy, Professor Schwarcz discusses two cases in which the intermediary has no beneficial rights: namely, trust and bail. In civil law countries, however, there is yet another example: the case of the so-called commission agent. A commission agent is a merchant who executes contracts for commission in its own name, on behalf of the customer's account. Securities brokers are the most common example. Securities brokers normally hold securities for their customers. Yet whose claim will prevail if a broker goes bankrupt, the broker's creditors or its customers? In the absence of special statutory provision, one cannot be sure that the latter has priority over the former. Thus, in theory, substantial intermediary risk may


Proposes a simple automatic chromatic dispersion compensation system that can detect the zero-dispersion point of an installed fiber span. This technique realizes high sensitivity without requiring the system to be extensively modified. The alternating chirp signal, which is used as the zero-dispersion-detection signal, has alternating optical frequency shift. It can be generated simply by changing the input signals of multiplexer circuits and shifting the bias voltage of the LiNbO/sub 3/ modulator. This technique is shown to detect the zero-dispersion point in the range of -600 to +600 ps/nm by using the signal modulated at 10 GHz; automatic dispersion compensation is successfully demonstrated in a 20-Gb/s, 400-km transmission experiment in our laboratory. Compensation is also demonstrated in 281-km-installed dispersion-shifted fiber using a 20-GHz alternating chirp signal.


As a department, we were tasked with completely revising a HF/E and safety curriculum that had not been thoroughly revised or updated for years. We were producing students that could recite the same information all HF/E professionals know by heart and is the basis for our profession, but were having trouble finding gainful employment upon graduation. Our task was to update the curriculum in such a way as to still impart the knowledge and skills needed by HF/E professionals, but in a way that tailors that skill set and knowledge to something they can apply in an industry setting based on first-hand experience. Results three years post review shows students graduating with multiple job offers and advancing in their career paths at rates faster than their peers.


Decentralization was one of several global phenomena that were experienced by societies and governments during the 1980s and 1990s. In Brazil, the creation of a Unified Health System (UHS) was part of such decentralization initiatives. However, implementing the UHS proved difficult because Brazil's central authorities encourage competition, rather than cooperation, between different levels of government. There were other challenges as well: the vastness of the country, the asymmetric distribution of human and financial resources, the uneven concentration of health services, and the fact that Brazilian municipalities vary greatly in size. However, several important things have already been accomplished as a result of decentralization. Basic health coverage has increased, as witnessed by the fact that during the 1990s there was an impressive rise in the number of municipalities with health clinics, in the availability of primary health care services per capita, and in the number of public hospitals. Still, several tasks lie ahead, and one of the most important is organizing and integrating regional networks to ensure universal, efficient, and cost-effective health care at all levels of health services provision in all Brazilian municipalities.


A lens-coupled electron multiplying charge-coupled device (EMCCD)-based gamma camera capable of performing photon counting for both 99mTc and 125I sources has been constructed. This system differs from previous EMCCD-based gamma cameras by using lens-coupling rather than fiber-optic coupling to transfer the light from the scintillating crystal to the EMCCD. The gamma camera described herein uses a micro-columnar CsI(Tl) crystal, two f/0.95 lenses, and a commercial camera containing the e2v CCD97 EMCCD that was cooled to -70°C. Acquisition of the video-rate frames from the CCD97 was performed using LabVIEW software. Real-time photon counting analysis of the individual scintillation flashes within the CCD97 frames was performed by using the LabVIEW IMAQ software module. An intrinsic resolution of 56 μm FWHM was measured by using a 25 μm slit collimator and 125I source. A single 0.5 mm diameter pinhole collimator was used for SPECT reconstruction of a mouse thyroid gland containing 100 μCi (3.7 MBq) of 125I uptake. We found that although the photopeak for 99mTc (140 keV) could be resolved, the photopeak for 125I (≈ 27 keV) could not be fully resolved due to the low optical transfer efficiency of dual lens coupling (<; 5%). Nonetheless, energy windowing for 125I sources was used to eliminate most of the background events, proving that high-resolution photon counting for low-energy sources can be achieved by using simple lens-coupling.


The present study tests whether an explicit treatment of worm burrows and tile drains as connected structures is feasible for simulating water flow, bromide and pesticide transport in structured heterogeneous soils at hillslope scale. The essence is to represent worm burrows as morphologically connected paths of low flow resistance in a hillslope model. A recent Monte Carlo study (Klaus and Zehe, 2010, Hydrological Processes, 24, p. 1595–1609) revealed that this approach allowed successful reproduction of tile drain event discharge recorded during an irrigation experiment at a tile drained field site. However, several "hillslope architectures" that were all consistent with the available extensive data base allowed a good reproduction of tile drain flow response. Our second objective was thus to find out whether this "equifinality" in spatial model setups may be reduced when including bromide tracer data in the model falsification process. We thus simulated transport of bromide for the 13 spatial model setups that performed best with respect to reproduce tile drain event discharge, without any further calibration. All model setups allowed a very good prediction of the temporal dynamics of cumulated bromide leaching into the tile drain, while only four of them matched the accumulated water balance and accumulated bromide loss into the tile drain. The number of behavioural model architectures could thus be reduced to four. One of those setups was used for simulating transport of Isoproturon, using different parameter combinations to characterise adsorption according to the Footprint data base. Simulations could, however, only reproduce the observed leaching behaviour, when we allowed for retardation coefficients that were very close to one. Correspondence to: J. Klaus (email@example.com)


The tectonic plates of primary care appear to be shifting. In April 2016, Scotland abandoned the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF). Then, in October 2016, NHS Chief Executive Simon Stevens gave more than a hint that a similar fate awaits QOF in England. Meanwhile, Wales and Northern Ireland continue with the scheme — for now.

Wider changes are afoot. The Five Year Forward View (5YFV) has trailed the formation of two radically changed models of primary care, termed Multi-Specialty Community Providers (MCPs) and Primary and Acute Care Systems (PACS).1 In the first, federations of GPs will form single community organisations, joining forces with mental health and social care, maximising the amount of out-of-hospital care. The alternative PACS model is a form of vertical integration with either primary or secondary care taking the lead in linking hospital services with community and mental health services. Both 'new care models' are likely to have substantial funding implications for GPs. Equally far reaching is the constraint provided by the 5YFV on the Department of Health, ensuring that in future only arrangements aligned to the delivery of 5YFV objectives will be supported.

In Manchester, 'Devo Manc' became the first national example of a local authority taking control of its health and social care budget. The vision was to achieve 'the greatest and fastest improvement to the health and wellbeing of the people of Manchester' .2 In April 2016, 12 clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and 15 foundation trusts or trusts joined together to provide health care. In practice, this model of devolution is likely to hand a greater say to local authorities in the commissioning of GP services. Again, the funding implications for GPs are unclear at this stage but are likely to be substantial.

Meanwhile, in Scotland, the changes involve the complete dismantlement …


Agile Business Suite (ABSuite) is an application development and deployment product that can define, generate and manage complete, highly scalable, real world, platform independent applications. The product was developed by Unisys Corporation with the intention to allow developers to rapidly develop their complete applications without having to think about low level platform dependent implementation details thus saving them from having to write thousands of lines of code. Many enterprises like Banks, Healthcare Facilities, Traffic Management, Financial Institutions and etc. use ABSuite to develop their applications and automate their business logic. Once deployed on the application servers, the generated applications are managed by the ABSuite Runtime framework. One important function of the ABSuite Runtime is to maintain a set of log files that contain immense information on system behavior, communication between the system and the runtime framework and user interaction with the system. There are various kinds of log files that are generated by the ABSuite Runtime, each having its own format and vast amounts of hidden knowledge stored in them. These log files contain important information regarding usage patterns, system failure patterns and other performance bottlenecks. Thus proper analysis of these log files is necessary to obtain vital information which will help in optimizing system performance, easing maintenance tasks, identifying hidden bugs and abnormal behavior and adopting better design strategies. Log files are produced by almost all devices, systems and protocols. In general, the analysis of any kind of log file is not an easy task. There are several challenges that need to be addressed first in order to obtain proper and accurate results. The first issue is directly related to the fact that ABSuite log files are often huge and heterogeneous in nature. Standard Algorithms fail in such conditions and thus the task of log analysis requires a different approach. Secondly, identification of required information and the log files storing such information requires domain specific knowledge and expertise regarding the generated log files. Without prior information on what to look for and where to look for, the analysis process will become impossible. Last but not least is the issue of unstandardized format of each of the ABSuite log files which makes processing a difficult task. Keeping the above things in mind, this thesis presents some of the ideas behind developing a tool that automatically analyzes the generated ABSuite log files and extracts information that will help the developers to optimize the application's performance and reduce the system's downtime and maintenance cost. vii In this thesis we discuss three stages of analysis. The first stage (Ispec Analysis) finds basic statistical parameters like trigger count, frequency and probability distribution of each transaction occurring in the system. This information is used in subsequent stages to obtain more accurate results and hypothesis. In addition, We also present a way to use the results of this stage to estimate usage and traffic patterns, peak loading conditions and heavily used modules of the system. The second stage (Response Time Analysis) obtains mean time to response for each transaction. This information is used to identify transactions with high latencies and find the most likely cause of those latencies. The third stage (Exception Analysis) finds which transactions frequently generate exceptions and how many types of exceptions are generated by each transaction. The results of this stage help in identifying the number, type, severity and cause of exceptions generated by the system. The results of this stage can also help in taking high level decisions like whether system resources need to be increased to avoid deadlocks, whether there is any need to increase bandwidth allocation, whether there is any need to change the current design of the system and etc. Finally, we present and compare the analysis results of all the three stages for two sample applications (developed using ABSuite) with known usage characteristics. We also explain how the developers can use the results of each stage of analysis to better optimize their systems using the two sample applications as case study.


Accurate costing information is required to support decision making in modern manufacturing enterprises in order to compete in a global market. It is widely
accepted that costing information may be supplied by using distributed costing
systems based on a number of emerging cost accounting philosophies. However, the
full benefits of incorporating these costing systems have yet to be realised because of
difficulties in accessing distributed information and limitations in current practices in the design and building of costing systems. These limitations include difficulty in
integrat ing costing with manufacturing systems, a lack of flexibility and an inability to
adapt to change.
The thesis focuses on the derivation of a methodology to enable the realisation
of a new generation of integrated and distributed costing systems which overcomes the
above limitations. (A schematic representation outlining the issues around which the
research work is structured is shown overleaf). The research examines two broad
fields; cost accounting (indicated by part [a]) and advanced manUffiCtUring technology
(shown by part [b]). Examination of current practice in the design and operation of
costing systems in manufacturing industry (shown by part [c]) led to the identification
of life-cycle requirements (embracing the design, build, operation and change phases)
of a new generation of distributed costing systems.
Structured design and analysis methodologies, computer communication,
information management mechanisms and integration methods (including the use of
an integrating infrastructure) were incorporated to assist the design, build and operate
phases of the life-cycle (shown by part [d]). A novel feature of the work involves
designing mechanisms which enable cost models created at the design phase to be
formally associated with the operation phase. The life-cycle methodology was
demonstrated by designing and building a proof-of-concept prototype activity-based
costing software system (shown by part [e]) which was implemented in a case-study
(shown by part [f]). The case-study demonstrates the benefits of the methodology by
showing how results of cost analysis may be utilised by other distributed applications
on a run-time basis (shown by part [g]). The thesis Concludes that distributed costing
systems of the future, based on appropriate costing philosophy, must be designed and
built as integrated components of manufacturing systems.


Youth homelessness is marred by problems around family breakdowns, mental health concerns, substance use and abuse, and the lack of stable accommodation (Homelessness Taskforce 2008). With noted decreases over the last decade, youth homelessness still remains a contested policy topic, with need to develop a streamlined approach in understanding solutions. An emphasis on early intervention is an increasing part of a commitment to decreasing the idea of young people becoming homeless in the first place. National and State Governments are working hard on developing policy positions that promote a shared responsibility to the problem. Renewed financial commitments are being profiled, and funding reforms, including the new branding associated with services, is being rolled out and implemented. This paper will review strategies and specific responses to youth homelessness through a strength based and holistic short term youth accommodation service model, recently implemented in south west Sydney. Furthermore, attention will also be focussed on how community collaborations are led by innovation within practice itself, and commitment to work strategically with community stakeholders, including the young people themselves.


Japheth Omojuwa is the Editor of AfricanLiberty.org for Atlas Economic Research Institute United States and also founder and curator of www.omojuwa.com, one of the most popular web pages in Nigeria. As a crucial part of the Occupy Nigeria movement, Japheth consults for local and international organisations and, with well over 42,000 followers on Twitter, has a significant influence on young people. Japheth is a member of the World Economic Forum's Global Shapers and well published in local and international media. Currently, he is working on the Green Deal Nigeria project: this is how I got to know him on a panel discussion at the Heinricht-Boll-Stiftung in Berlin, and Japheth immediately agreed to answer some questions for our Blog.


Recent research has demonstrated that there is considerable inter-individual variation in the response to aerobic training, and that this variation is partially mediated by genetic factors. As such, we aimed to investigate if a genetic based algorithm successfully predicted the magnitude of improvements following eight-weeks of aerobic training in youth soccer players. A genetic test was utilised to examine five single nucleotide polymorphisms (VEGF rs2010963, ADRB2 rs1042713 and rs1042714, CRP rs1205 & PPARGC1A rs8192678), whose occurrence is believed to impact aerobic training adaptations. 42 male soccer players (17.0 ± 1y, 176 ± 6 cm, 69 ± 9 kg) were tested and stratified into three different Total Genotype Score groups; "low", "medium"and "high", based on the possession of favourable polymorphisms. Subjects underwent two Yo-Yo tests separated by eight-weeks of sports-specific aerobic training. Overall, there were no significant differences between the genotype groups in pre-training Yo-Yo performance, but evident between-group response differentials emerged in post-training Yo-Yo test performance. Subjects in the "high" group saw much larger improvements (58%) than those in the 'medium" (35%) and "low" (7%) groups. There were significant (p<0.05) differences between the groups in the magnitude of improvement, with athletes in the "high" and medium group having larger improvements than the "low" group (d = 2.59 "high" vs "low"; d = 1.32 "medium" vs "low"). In conclusion, the magnitude of improvements in aerobic fitness following a training intervention were associated with a genetic algorithm comprised of five single nucleotide polymorphisms. This information could lead to the development of more individualised aerobic training designs, targeting optimal fitness adaptations.


Background: Sickness absence with cash benefits from the sickness insurance gives an opportunity to be relieved from work without losing financial security. There are, however, downsides to taking sickness absence. Periods of sickness absence, even short ones, can increase the risk for future spells of sickness absence and unemployment. The sickness period may in itself have a detrimental effect on health. The aim of the study was to investigate if there is an association between exposure to sickness absence at a young age and later sickness absence, disability pension, death, unemployment and income from work. Methods: Our cohort consisted of all immigrants aged 21–25 years in Sweden in 1993 (N = 38 207) and a control group of native Swedes in the same age group (N = 225 977). We measured exposure to sickness absence in 1993 with a follow-up period of 15 years. We conducted separate analyses for men and women, and for immigrants and native Swedes. Results: Exposure to ≥60 days of sickness absence in 1993 increased the risk of sickness absence [hazard ratio (HR) 1.6–11.4], unemployment (HR 1.1–1.2), disability pension (HR 1.2–5.3) and death (HR 1.2–3.5). The income from work, during the follow-up period, among individuals with spells of sick leave for ≥60 days in 1993 was around two-thirds of that of the working population who did not take sick leave. Conclusions: Individuals on sickness absence had an increased risk for work absence, death and lower future income.


This paper investigates the effect of cold drawing operations on the evolution of microstructure and texture in Cu-Ag composites. We use a crystal plasticity model to capture the flow behavior and texture of two different cold drawn composites. The three-dimension finite element simulations are able to capture the formation of Cu/Ag lamellar and grain structure inside the representative volume element (RVE). Stress-strain curves from compression tests and the measured texture after compression are presented. The numerical model is validated by experimental compression tests for a constant strain rate 10−2 s−1 at room temperature. The numerical simulations show the good capabilities of the model in reproducing the measurements.


Comparative public health research makes wide use of self-report instruments. For example, research identifying and explaining health disparities across demographic strata may seek to understand the health effects of patient attitudes or private behaviors. Such personal attributes are difficult or impossible to observe directly and are often best measured by self-reports. Defensible use of self-reports in quantitative comparative research requires not only that the measured constructs have the same meaning across groups, but also that group comparisons of sample estimates (eg, means and variances) reflect true group differences and are not contaminated by group-specific attributes that are unrelated to the construct of interest. Evidence for these desirable properties of measurement instruments can be established within the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) framework; a nested hierarchy of hypotheses is tested that addresses the cross-group invariance of the instrument's psychometric properties. By name, these hypotheses include configural, metric (or pattern), strong (or scalar), and strict factorial invariance. The CFA model and each of these hypotheses are described in nontechnical language. A worked example and technical appendices are included.