Mobile devices became the main repository of personal data and source of user-generated contents as well as the principal controller of our social networked life. In this scenario, malicious applications try to take advantage of all the possibilities left open by users and operating systems. In this paper, we propose SecureDroid: an extension of the Android security framework able to enforce flexible and declarative security policies at run-time, providing a fine-grained access control system. In particular, we focus on context dependent policies that allow the user to specify the way in which applications work according to current context.


Abstract For the most part of the current decade academia and industry have been reporting decreasing numbers of Information Systems (IS) undergraduate students and IS graduate professionals respectively. Among the possible explanations offered, a number of researchers have argued that ageing IS undergraduate curricula are partly to blame for the demise of the discipline. As a first step, the authors of this work have set out to classify existing IS curricula offered by UK universities to enable further research around the areas of curriculum development, skills and pedagogy. The study uses the IS Body of Knowledge (BoK) descriptors which are part of the UK's Quality Assurance Agency 1 (QAA) Subject Benchmark Statement for Computing (SBSC). The results of the study are supplemented by data about course entry requirements, course naming conventions and course accreditation by the British Computer Society (BCS). It is hoped that IS academics, curriculum developers and IS practitioners will benefit from gaining a better understanding of what IS students are expected to know when they graduate.


Erland Nordenskiöld was a pioneering Swedish anthropologist who undertook explorations in eastern Bolivia between 1901 and 1914. This often-cited article was originally published in German in 1916. He describes the seasonal flooding of the Mojos savannas and how prehistoric Indians adapted to inundation by constructing canals, dams, causeways, mounds, and raised fields, the first academic to do so. Other prehistoric hydraulic works and earthworks in lowland South America are briefly reported. Included is a letter from the anthropologist Koch-Grünberg suggesting that the section of the Casiquiare Canal which connects the Río Orinoco with the Río Negro and the Amazon is not natural but rather was dug by Indians.


Maize production in Austria is at risk because few appropriate pest control measures are currently available. Production opportunities change if pests reach economically relevant levels. In the case of the Western Corn Rootworm (Dicabrotica virgifera virgifera), intensive maize production contributes to population establishment and vice versa leads to maize yield losses. We assess the opportunity costs of crop rotations at different levels of pest pressure. Additionally, maize is substituted by other crops in crop rotations due to policy regulations. Results show that the substitution of maize by other crops reduces gross margins of crop rotations, but vulnerability to pest pressure in terms of yield losses exceeds the impacts of alternative crops on gross margins. Monitoring results and analyses of crop production in Austria point out the close relationship between pest populations and maize cropping in the last decade. Thus, there is a demand for spatially explicit modeling of pest control measures. In the outlook of this paper, potential approaches for integrated and coordinated pest management implementation at the landscape scale are described.


The paper presents an elaborated and simplified version of the structural
result for branching bisimilarity on normed BPA (Basic Process Algebra)
processes that was the crux of a conference paper by Czerwinski and Jancar
(arxiv 7/2014 and LiCS 2015). That paper focused on the computational
complexity, and a NEXPTIME-upper bound has been derived; the authors built on
the ideas by Fu (ICALP 2013), and strengthened his decidability result. Later
He and Huang announced the EXPTIME-completeness of this problem (arxiv 1/2015,
and LiCS 2015), giving a technical proof for the EXPTIME membership. He and
Huang indirectly acknowledge the decomposition ideas by Czerwinski and Jancar
on which they also built, but it is difficult to separate their starting point
from their new ideas. One aim here is to present the previous decomposition
result of Czerwinski and Jancar in a technically new framework, noting that
branching bisimulation equivalence on normed BPA processes corresponds to a
rational monoid (in the sense of [Sakarovitch, 1987]); in particular it is
shown that the mentioned equivalence can be decided by normal-form computing
deterministic finite transducers. Another aim is to provide a complete
description, including an informal overview, that should also make clear how
Fu's ideas were used, and to give all proofs in a form that should be readable
and easily verifiable.


Background Derangement in fibrinolytic markers can result in thrombosis and cardiovascular problems. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been reported to affect the levels of these markers. It is unclear how long a patient can be exposed to ART before the effect of the drugs on the fibrinolytic markers becomes noticeable; this short-term antiretroviral therapy (START) study aimed to answer this question. Methods Twenty human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive subjects on ART and 20 controls (non-ART) were progressively monitored for three months. CD4 T-cell count was determined while D-dimer, t-PA, and PAI-1 parameters were determined. Results CD4 T-cell count increased from 192 μL/mL at baseline to 323 μL/mL at month 3 among patients on ART. D-dimer concentrations decreased from 301.0 μL/mL at baseline to 172.0 μL/mL at month 2, then increased to 226.0 μL/mL at the end of the third month. The median baseline concentration of PAI-1 at the beginning of therapy was 14.0 μg/mL, which increased progressively to 18.2 μg/mL at the end of the third month. The baseline concentration of t-PA at the beginning of therapy was 5.15 μg/mL. This progressively declined to 1.10 μg/mL at the end of the first month and reached 1.45 μg/mL and 1.5 μg/mL at the end of the second and third months, respectively. D-dimer was positively and significantly correlated with CD4 cell counts in both AIDs-associated retrovirus (ARV) and non-ARV patients (r = −0.304, P < 0.01 vs r = −0.477, P < 0.001). t-PA was negatively correlated with CD4 T-lymphocytes in those undergoing ART (r = −0.294, P < 0.01). Conclusion A progressive increase in PAI-1 and steady decline in t-PA concentrations within 3 months of commencement of ART could predispose patients to thrombotic disorders earlier than is expected. Pre-thrombotic assessment during therapy is therefore advocated.


In present work numerical two dimensions, steady, incompressible, turbulent flow past S809 wind turbine airfoil with microtab at 95% of chord length of leading edge in lower surface is analyzed by Fluent (6.2) program for model consists of S809 airfoil without and with microtab at 95% of chord line have height 1.1% and other 2% of chord length undergo to turbulent flow k-ɛ model, the flow has Reynolds number is 10 6 . The results are represented by velocity contour and vector. Aerodynamic coefficients are drawn in graph. The results are showed an increase lift and drag coefficient in existence microtab locate 95% of chord at it's height 1.1% and 2% of chord to range of attack angle (0, 5, 10, 15, 20) degrees. The results compare with experimental data of standard airfoil and existence 1.1% chord length microtab and it is approximately good. Values of lift & drag coefficient are increased for the existence of 1.1% chord length microtab while in case the existence of microtab 2% chord length lift coefficient increased which it's max. increment by 46% while, drag coefficient decreased it's min. increment to be 26% but not full range of attack angle.


Proceedings: AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011‐‐ Apr 2‐6, 2011; Orlando, FL

Semaphorin 4D (SEMA4D; CD100) has been implicated in several key mechanisms of tumor progression, including neovascularization, tumor invasion, and metastasis. SEMA4D binding to its receptor plexin-B1 (PLXNB1) on endothelial cells transactivates MET and promotes formation of new blood vessels and tumor growth in vivo. SEMA4D is over-expressed in a wide array of tumor types, and is also produced by recruited inflammatory cells present in the tumor microenvironment. Several recent papers have shown that in an environment lacking SEMA4D, the ability of mouse cancer cells to originate tumor masses and metastases is severely impaired. Furthermore, SEMA4D produced by tumor-associated macrophages has been shown to support tumor angiogenesis and growth.

In addition to its effects on endothelial cells, SEMA4D has a direct effect on tumor invasive growth and migration. A recent clinical study in soft tissue sarcomas correlates strong SEMA4D expression in tumors with a higher mitotic count and poor prognosis. SEMA4D binding to PLXNB1 on tumor cells results in MET transactivation and migration of tumor cells. It has been further reported that overexpression of PLXNB1 and MET in breast and ovarian cancers is a negative prognostic factor. Tumors co-expressing PLXNB1 and MET were characterized as having a higher grade and an increased frequency of metastases.

Collectively, these results suggest that expression of SEMA4D, either by tumor cells or by tumor associated inflammatory cells, functions as a crucial factor in tumor neovascularization, and that expression of the SEMA4D and/ or its high affinity receptor in tumors may further induce tumor growth rate and metastatic potential.

Antibody neutralization of SEMA4D thus may represent a new therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. We selected a humanized IgG4 antibody that binds with high affinity to rat, mouse, primate, and human SEMA4D, and utilized several in vitro functional assays to demonstrate that this antibody blocks SEMA4D – PLXNB1 interactions. Using syngeneic, xenograft and orthotopic tumor models we demonstrated that antibody mediated neutralization of SEMA4D in vivo inhibits tumor growth and tumor angiogenesis. This humanized antibody has successfully completed IND-enabling toxicology testing and we anticipate the initiation of human clinical trials in early 2011.

Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3667. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-3667


In recent years, resistance to commonly used herbicides has developed in several weed species in Saskatchewan. The first examples were weeds resistant to herbicides in the sulfonylurea family (e.g., Glean, Ally, Amber) and included kochia and Russian thistle. Next came green foxtail (wild millet) resistant to dinitroaniline herbicides (e.g., Treflan, Rival, Edge). In the past two years wild oat and green foxtail samples have been identified that are resistant to many of the newer postemergence herbicides, including Hoe-Grass, Triumph Plus, Laser, Poast and Achieve. In all cases resistance has developed in individual fields after repeated use of the same herbicide or herbicides with the same mode of action. For some growers, the development of resistant weed biotypes significantly restricts the choice of herbicide available for their weed control program. Growers need to become aware of the modes of action of the different herbicides that are available to them, and to ensure that they use an appropriate rotation of herbicides so that resistance does not increase in their fields. In addition, the use of non-chemical weed control methods should be encouraged, so that growers avoid the repeated use of herbicides.


ABSTRACT Background The COVID-19 lockdown has resulted in limited access to most of the conventional chronic pain management services. Subsequently, changes in opioids' utilization could be expected. This study assessed the impact of the first COVID-19 lockdown on opioid utilization using aggregated-level, community dispensing dataset covering the whole English population. Research design and methods A segmented-linear regression analysis was applied to monthly dispensed opioid prescriptions from March 2019 to March 2021. Opioid utilization was measured using the number of opioids' items dispensed/1000 inhabitants and Defined Daily Dose (DDD)/1000 inhabitants/day during 12-months pre/post the lockdown in March 2020 stratified by strong and weak opioids. Results For all opioids' classes, there were nonsignificant changes in the number of opioids' items dispensed/1000 inhabitants trend pre-lockdown, small increases in their level immediately post-lockdown, and a non-significant decline in the trend post-lockdown. Similarly, a non-significant reduction in the DDD/1000 inhabitant/day baseline trend pre-lockdown, nonsignificant immediate increases in the level post-lockdown, and declines in the trend post-lockdown for all opioids' classes were observed. Conclusion Unexpectedly, opioid utilization does not appear to have been significantly affected by the lockdown measures during the study period. However, patient-level data is needed to determine more accurate estimates of any changes in the opioid prescribing including incident prescribing/use.


A sub-immunizing dose of a synthetic peptide corresponding to the amino acids 141 to 160 region of protein VP1 from foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), serotype O1, coupled to keyhole limpet haemocyanin (141-160KLH) has been shown to prime the immune system of guinea-pigs for an FMDV serotype-specific neutralizing antibody response to a second sub-immunizing dose of the same peptide. Optimal priming required an interval of 42 days between the priming dose and the booster dose. No priming was observed in the absence of adjuvant. The secondary response was not restricted by the carrier since animals primed with 141-160KLH could be boosted with uncoupled 141-160 or 141-160 coupled to tetanus toxoid. It has also been shown that uncoupled peptide 141-160 will prime for a neutralizing antibody response when it is incorporated into a relatively non-immunogenic carrier such as small unilamellar liposomes. These results indicate that the 141-160 peptide of FMDV, as well as containing an important neutralizing antibody site, can initiate its own T-helper cell response.


We study coupled systems of nonlinear lowest Landau level equations, for which we prove global existence results with polynomial bounds on the possible growth of Sobolev norms of the solutions. We also exhibit explicit unbounded trajectories which show that these bounds are optimal.


The India Biodiversity Portal (IBP) was initiated a decade ago, aiming to aggregate data on all species within India. The portal has been running a citizen science module for the past 8 years, aggregating observation data from the general public. The portal runs many flagship citizen science campaigns, such as the Neighborhood Trees Campaign, National Moth Week, Spotting Alien Invasive species, Mapping Indian Snails and Slugs and Frogwatch. We have learnt valuable lessons in harnessing participation in citizen science, implementing functionality and in integrating technological advancements into the platform codebase. Following up on these, we are implementing new features that will streamline development, entice users and further spur participation. We discuss some of the proposed changes and our justification, including the impacts we expect in generating better citizen science data.
 A key lesson arising out of our campaigns in remote regions of India, where internet penetration is relatively new, is that most users are connected to the web exclusively through a mobile device. Most do not have access to a personal computer or an email account. Yet they are internet savvy and use mobile applications to accomplish complex tasks such as banking activities, often logging in and being authenticated exclusively through a mobile number. We are implementing short-messaging-service (SMS) or one-time password-based login mechanisms, for login even without an email account for authentication. Although many initiatives have been investing in platform-specific mobile apps to cater to a growing mobile user community, maintaining and updating multiple mobile apps alongside enhancements to the web version is a resource-intensive task that most platforms cannot afford. Inconsistency in functions and usability across different versions of the same platform may lead to gaps in data collection. To address this challenge and streamline development, we have begun updating the portal codebase to enable Progressive Web Apps, which will replace conventional mobile applications while also serving as Single Page Applications that provide a unified experience across device platforms and alleviating the need for updating mobile apps separately.
 For existing contributors on the portal, comparisons of their contributions against other users are a motivating factor to contribute further. Leaderboards and reputation systems are proven methods to promote activity and provide recognition to participants. Such leaderboards also incentivise newer participants to emulate leaders and climb the boards. We are building a reputation system that not only recognizes quantity but also the quality of the user's contribution. In addition, we are working on integrating intelligent push notification technology that will constantly engage users by keeping them abreast of activity related to content reflecting their interest on the portal. These features are expected to engage contributors and keep them motivated towards further data contributions.
 Finally, the most rewarding outcome from contributing citizen science data is in visualizing its impact. The most obvious are improvements in species distribution maps that are generated for each species page on the portal. Users are greatly motivated by contributing data that may enhance known distributions and may constitute range extensions for a species. Distribution maps on the portal are being revamped so that information is presented to the user in real-time through visualisations that are are both attractive and easy to interpret. These will provide users with gratification and help spur participation further.
 IBP is also instituting the ability to automate the classification of its data to identify publication-grade data. Through a combination of user's reputation and other data quality criteria, the data on IBP will be automatically graded, allowing such data to be pushed to Global Biodiversity Information Facility on a periodic basis as a Darwin Core Archive, contributing to global biodiversity data.


A method for precise wideband quadrature signal generation is presented. A divide-by-2 stage forms an adjustable phase quadrature signal generator. Its output phase error is converted to an error signal, which feeds back to the quadrature signal generator through an integrator, to correct the output phase difference. Using this method, a phase accuracy better than 0.5/spl deg/ is achieved over 40 MHz to 500 MHz of output frequency without any external tuning. The loop compensates for any circuit and layout mismatches, is not sensitive to distorted input LO signals, and has no inherent high frequency limitation.


We present infrared colours (in the 25-500 mu m spectral range) and UV to radio continuum spectral energy distributions of a sample of 51 nearby galaxies observed with SPIRE on Herschel. The observed sample includes all morphological classes, from quiescent ellipticals to active starbursts. Active galaxies have warmer colour temperatures than normal spirals. In ellipticals hosting a radio galaxy, the far-infrared (FIR) emission is dominated by the synchrotron nuclear emission. The colour temperature of the cold dust is higher in quiescent E-S0a than in star-forming systems probably because of the different nature of their dust heating sources (evolved stellar populations, X-ray, fast electrons) and dust grain properties. In contrast to the colour temperature of the warm dust, the f350/f500 index sensitive to the cold dust decreases with star formation and increases with metallicity, suggesting an overabundance of cold dust or an emissivity parameter beta <2 in low metallicity, active systems.


The genes that cause or increase susceptibility to essential hypertension (EH) and related animal models remain unknown. Their identification is unlikely to be realized with current genetic approaches, because of ambiguities in the genotype-phenotype relationships in these polygenic disorders. In turn, the phenotype is not just an aggregate of traits, but needs to be related to specific components of the circulatory control system at different stages of EH. Hence, clues about important genes must come through the phenotype, reversing the order of current approaches. A recent systems analysis has highlighted major differences in circulatory control in the two main syndromes of EH: (1) stress-and-salt-related EH (SSR-EH)--a constrictor hypertension with low blood volume; (2) hypertensive obesity--SSR-EH plus obesity. Each is initiated through sensitization of central synapses linking the cerebral cortex to the hypothalamic defense area. Several mechanisms are probably involved, including cerebellar effects on baroreflexes. The result is a sustained increase in sympathetic neural activity at stimulus levels that have no effect in normal subjects. Subsequent progression of EH is largely through interactions with non-neural mechanisms, including changes in concentration of vascular autacoids (e.g., nitric oxide) and the amplifying effect of structural changes in large resistance vessels. The rising vasoconstriction increases heterogeneity of blood flow, causing rarefaction (decreased microvascular density) and deterioration of vital organs. SSR-EH also increases food intake in response to stress, but only 40% of these individuals develop hypertensive obesity. Their brain ignores the adiposity signals that normally reduce eating. Hyperinsulinemia masks the sympathetic vasoconstriction through its dilator action, raises blood volume, whilst renal nephropathy and other diabetic complications are common. In each syndrome the neural and non-neural determinants of hypertension provide targets for identifying high BP genes. Reading the genome from the phenotype will require new approaches, such as those used in developmental genetics. In addition, transgenic technology may help verify hypotheses and examine whether an observed effect is through single or multiple mechanisms. To obtain answers will require substantial collaborative efforts between physiologists and geneticists.


Spectra and E2 transition rates for the 160-170Er isotopes are studied in the framework of the interaction boson model. A schematic Hamiltonian able to describe their spectra and B(E2) transition is used. It is found that the 160-170Er isotopes are in the transition from the vibrational limit to rotational limit.


Despite overall progress in COVID-19 vaccination rates in Cleveland, vaccine inequity persists as young people from minority communities are often less likely to be vaccinated. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is not just an issue of misinformation or lack of information. Vaccine hesitancy among young people is reflective of wider issues such as mistrust in the state or the medical establishment and negative experiences during the pandemic. This report is based on case study research conducted among minority youth (ages 12-18) in Cleveland, Ohio. While public discourse may label young people as "vaccine hesitant," we found that there were hesitation differences based on social location and place. We found the greatest vaccine hesitancy among older youth (15+ years old), particularly those from minoritized communities. Unvaccinated youth were also more likely to be from families and friend groups that were unvaccinated. While some expressed distrust of the vaccines, others reported that COVID-19 prevention was not a priority in their lives. Instead, concerns over food security, livelihood, and education take precedence. Minority youth were more likely to report negative experiences with authorities, including teachers at their schools and police in their communities. Our findings demonstrate that COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is embedded in a context that drives relationships of mistrust between minority communities and authorities, with implications for COVID-19 vaccine uptake. Young people's attitudes toward vaccines are further patterned by experiences within their community, school, family, and friend groups.


Nowadays, it seems that economics penetrated every single area of human life. In addition to the desire of individuals to possess material goods and an increas ing number of objects, which puts them at the appropriate level of the social ladder, more and more often we deal with the phenomenon of family treatment as a part of cultural exchange. This article highlights the problem of treating children as property, commodity, which you can offer to others, in relation to children born and unborn, in the area of trade in semen, commerce adoption, trafficking in children. This situation is present mainly in poor countries, where it is considered as a tool of economic rescue for the family: intended for work work, for sale, prostitution and sent to the street to beg. At the same time the child comes to the "specific" economic investment, the profits of which parents receive in the future. Therefore, it is important to highlight the problem of "child as a commodity" in the modern literature and scientific discussions.


This paper examines whether Nigeria witnessed considerable savings mobilization amidst financial sector reforms from 2007 to 2015 using the estimation method of Autoregressive Distributed Lag. Unlike previous papers in this area that mostly focused on interest rates liberalization thesis, this paper goes deeper by looking at financial reforms across money, capital and foreign exchange markets. The estimation results show that there are still structural rigidities in the money, foreign exchange and equity markets nexus. In that, the following variables that proxy financial sector reforms namely treasury bill yield, interest rate spread, market capitalization ratio and currency in circulation ratio (which proxy technological modernization of payment systems) all went against a priori expectation. However, financial reforms had one success story in credit/loans advances to private/public sectors (financial deepening) which posted its correct economic sign. In sum, except for the financial deepening variable it can be safely concluded that financial reforms in Nigeria is yet to positively impact savings mobilization. The regulatory and reform authorities must show effectiveness in reforms implementation.


The widespread shift of Australia's wood products industry away from native forests to an agricultural regime–wood plantations–has enhanced forestry industry competitiveness. Wood now competes against food for agricultural land, water and other resources (including government support). New plantings have increased substantially since the mid 1990s via plantation managed investment schemes (MIS), arousing protest in the traditional agricultural sector and claims of unfair government policy treatment. This claim is investigated in an analysis that integrates the taxation treatment of plantation MIS with economics and forestry industry knowledge. Three methods are developed, and applied, to estimate the plantation MIS tax-based subsidy. Preliminary estimates indicate a tax-based subsidy to forestry through plantation MIS of between $0.9-1.2 billion over the five years ending 2008. The estimated subsidy is then incorporated in the Productivity Commission's calculations of the effective rate of assistance (ERA) to industry groups from tariff, budget outlay and tax-based government policy. The ERA to Forestry & logging in 2008 was estimated to be 41.8 per cent: government assistance is equivalent to 42 per cent of Forestry & logging's unassisted value added. The estimated plantation MIS tax based subsidy accounted for 77 per cent of the assistance. Assistance to Forestry & logging exceeds substantially the assistance (including drought related payments) to food growers: 7.2 per cent to Grain, sheep & beef and 17.3 per cent to Dairy cattle farming (a significant proportion was assistance that ceased in April 2008). A detailed examination of Australia's proposed climate change policy concerning the land use sector indicates that agricultural resource use distortions created through plantation MIS arrangements are lightly to intensify.


The assessment of educational gains is a crucial issue in higher education throughout the United States. National interest in this topic is growing rapidly. The concept has been Andorsed by the Association of State Governors, and several accrediting agencies have already begun to require some sort of outcomes measurement as part of the accrediting process. Therre is a clear need to understand the ramifications of outcomes assessment as an educational policy issue. The chapters inthis volume f New Directions for Higher Education span a wide variety of issues and concerns about assessing student outcomes. This is the 59th issue of New Directions for Higher Education. For more information on the series, please see the Journals and Periodicals page.


This paper examines the publication of the game of Hockey at global level indexed in web of science. The relevant data for the study have been extracted from the web of science database. The search term "Hockey" has been used as keyword. A total of 3849 unique records over the year 1989 – 2016 have been downloaded and analyzed under various categories, out of 3849 records, only top 10 records alone have been considered for this study. More number of articles was published in the year 2016. The authorship trend shows that, out of total 3849 published publication, It is also investigated that "British Journal of Sports Medicine" has more number of published, 126 (3.3). Furthermore, this study also identified that document wise distribution, word frequency, institution wise, institution with subdivision wise, and geographical distribution of the literature and citation analysis is also distinguished.


Background and importance Current recommendations from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) require hospitals to ensure the safety of hospital workers when handling hazardous drugs (HD). Aim and objectives To design a circuit to prepare and condition oral HD in a pharmacy service (PS). Material and methods The HD included in the hospital documented by the NIOSH were selected, as well as those that due to their structure, mechanism of action and toxicity were similar to some HD or that some dangerous characteristic reflected in their data sheet. Using Farmatools (electronic PS prescription) and electronic medical record programmes, the HD were identified by adding HD or HD-RR (if reproductive risk) to their description, and recommendations for their preparation and administration were incorporated in the file for each HD (this information was integrated into the nursing pharmacological activity sheet where they register the medication administered to patients). Labels were designed to identify HD boxes in the PS. The following 'observations on the dispensation' were defined and included in Farmatools: Solid drugs: repackaged in blister, fractionated and repackaged in blister, dosed in capsule and repackaged in blister. Solid drugs administered by tube or for patients with swallowing problems: tablet packaged in syringe, crushed tablet and repackaged in syringe, powder repackaged in syringe, dosed and powder repackaged in syringe. Liquid drugs: solution/suspension repackaged in syringe. A guide was prepared for the administration by tube or for patients with swallowing problems (possibility of disintegrating or diluting in water, volume and time required, need to crush, etc). Results Identification and recommendations from the computer programmes have allowed the location of the HD treatments in the PS to dispense them prepared, and nurses can differentiate them when necessary. With the pharmaceutical validation of the prescription, the most appropriate pharmaceutical forms were adapted and the corresponding observation was selected for each prescribed HD. Generating a 'treatment location list according to observations', which facilitates Farmatools, has allowed PS personnel to determine the relationship, pharmaceutical form and conditioning of the prescribed HD that have to be prepared. Conclusion and relevance Changes in computer programmes have allowed the design of a circuit to prepare and condition oral HD and improve the safety of hospital workers. References and/or acknowledgements No conflict of interest.


We report on the stabilization of inherently unstable counterpropagating photorefractive spatial solitons by the use of one- and two-dimensional photonic lattices. We numerically investigate the dependence of the instability dynamics on period and amplitude of the lattice and present experimental verification for the dynamic stabilization of the bi-directional soliton state.


This work reports the effects of nanoclays and aluminium hydroxide (ATH) on the thermomechanical properties of an unsaturated polyester resin. Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis in the temperature range from 25 to 150 °C has indicated the formation of different structures for the different clay (1, 5 and 10 wt. %) and ATH loadings (50 and 100 wt. %) investigated. The rubbery modulus increases with nanoclay and ATH content which indicates that both nanoclays and ATH act positively on the final network density and consequently lead to systems showing higher stiffness at higher temperatures. The mechanical loss peak value decreases with either nanoclay or ATH content which seems to indicate that both nanoclays and ATH improve network density. The glass transition temperature and the mechanical loss peak value changes linearly with ATH content.


Objective: The purpose of this study was to study the association of breast self-examination knowledge and practice with socio-demographic characteristics and stage at presentation in newly diagnosed patients of carcinoma breast.
Methodology: This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out at Outpatient department of General surgery in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad from 01-01-16 to 31-12-16. One hundred ninety-one patients consenting to participate in the study were included. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data, along with socio-demographic characteristics which was analyzed using IBM SPSS 24. Descriptive statistics and Chi-square tests were performed to correlate demographic variables, knowledge and regular practice of BSE.
Results: Mean age of the study population was 50.46 (+ 11.74) with a range from 23 to 77 years. In our study, significant relationships (p<0.05) were found between knowledge and practice of BSE with age, marital status, education level, living area and socioeconomic status. A non-significant relation was found with knowledge and practice of BSE with family history and practice of BSE in housewives. We found that a patient who presented in stage I and II (n=96) had a good or fair knowledge of BSE whereas patients in stage III and IV (n=43) had poor or no knowledge about BSE. Although maximum no of patients occasionally practice BSE (n=103) but we found that patients (n=14) in Stage I and II regularly practice BSE as compared to patients (n=54) in stage III and IV who never practice BSE. Almost all the patients in stage I (n=43) had a concept about the usefulness of BSE in the early detection of breast cancer whereas all the patients presenting with stage IV (n=20) had no concept about BSE.
Conclusion: The results of our study has reinforced the role of knowledge and education in the practice of breast self-examination. There is a need for health education programs about breast cancer and its early detection to positively impact the disease burden in our population.


Check dams are transverse structures build across gullies and they are very important engineering measure in soil restoration hazard mitigation. After three successive earthquakes in China, a considerable number of solid material was deposited in gullies. With the extreme rainfall, a numerous of flood and debris flow events were trigged, some of them caused serious secondary disasters. In the past 12 years after the Wenchuan earthquake, based on the debris-flow prevention method by controlling debris-flow magnitude and avoiding blocking river, a series of check dams were constructed to regulate the water and soil erosion. The operation status of check dams needs to be investigated and summarize the engineering practice experience. Based on the results of field investigation, the shape and size characteristics of the dam opening were analyzed, and then established a classification system of the opening clogging types. Moreover, in August 20, 2019, Flash floods and mudslides occurred in Wenchuan County, causing more than 30 people dead, buried the G213 highway, and damaged a bridge. These disasters bring new thinking for future hazard mitigation. Geotechnical measures can quickly reduce the disaster risk of flash flood and debris flow, and now it has formed a set of perfect design standards. However, the disaster mitigation effect of the vegetation measures are not fully studied. Thus, the integrated disaster mitigation effect of the above two methods will be investigated in the future work.


Motivated by the current state-of-the-art in Robot Learning from Demonstration (LfD), in this paper, we tackle two central issues in the learning pipeline: namely, dealing with (1) heterogeneity and (2) unstructuredness in demonstrations of complex manipulation tasks. We build upon our previous work on transform-invariant segmentation and action discovery [1], to learn the underlying action sequence of tasks demonstrated in different reference frames or contexts. We then construct and parametrize a multi-phase task-space control architecture, bootstrapped by the segmented data and model parameters learned from the action discovery approach. Successful case studies of the proposed methodology are presented for uni/bi-manual cooking tasks demonstrated through kinesthetic teaching.


The European Green Deal (EGD) is the European Union's flagship strategy to tackle climate change. This policy paper compares the ambition and scale of the EGD with the current relevant scientific literature. The goal is to assess whether the current proposals are capable of fulfilling the EU's commitment to limit global warming to 1.5°C in line with the Paris Agreement. Before embarking on the details of that question it is crucial to emphasize three core messages which emerge from climate science:
1. Tackling climate change requires that greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) are cut to net zero. Importantly, this net zero goal allows for positive emissions as long as they are offset by negative emissions. However, the technological and ecological uncertainties involved in large scale deployment of negative emissions technologies, means the emissions goal should be thought of as being close to an absolute zero goal.
2. There is not much time left to take action globally and in Europe. The latest estimates of global, as well as European carbon budgets, suggest that at current emission rates global warming will increase by more than 1.5°C in less than ten years. In addition, self-reinforcing feedback loops which push earth onto an irreversible warming path (hothouse earth) might set in from global temperature increases as little as 2°C.
3. The price of inaction will be high and most likely underestimated by the general public. While Europe will not suffer the worst consequences of climate change, heat waves, floods and droughts will still cause severe human suffering and economic damage. In addition, by 2070 up to 3.5 billion people could live in regions unsuitable for human habitation. This has the potential to trigger an unprecedented global migration wave.

The question which emerges against this background is whether the EGD is ambitious enough to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. First, and most important, is the overall emissions reduction targets. While the EGD proposes to cut emissions by 50% to 55% percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, recent research suggests that in order to stay well below 2°C, a reduction of 65% by 2030 would be required, as would reaching net zero by 2040 rather than 2050.
The EGD currently assumes that reducing GHG emissions by 40% by 2030 requires additional annual investments of € 260 billion. This is likely an underestimation of the volume of required investments for several reasons. First, increasing the reduction target towards 55% or even 65% will require faster and broader action. Second, increasing energy efficiency renovation of buildings alone is likely to require annual investments of € 490 billion. Third, scaling up Research and Development (R&D) investment to 3% or 4% of GDP in the EU27 requires additional annual investments of between € 75 and € 200 billion. Many of the required carbon neutral processes, especially in manufacturing, do not exist yet, and will require an increased expenditure in R&D for a successful transition. Taken together, this suggests that annual investment requirements of up to € 855 billion in the EU27 would be required for a successful transition.
Setting and delivering on more ambitious GHG emission reduction targets requires the use of all possible policy tools. The EGD is a promising start in this context as it relies on a broad set of instruments from regulations, carbon markets, taxes and public investment. Given the limited time available the EGD should go a step further and upgrade the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan into a comprehensive climate master plan which determines clear targets and timelines for renewable energy capacity, building renovations, transport infrastructure, R&D targets etc. This would not only provide the private sector with clear long-term signals but also allow for timely monitoring of the EU's progress.


ABSTRACT Background: The objectives of this study were to examine the reliability and validity of a 26-point telephone version of the Cantonese Mini-mental State Examination (T-CMMSE) for a sample of 65 elderly patients, comprising 31 patients without dementia and 34 patients with dementia, in an acute regional hospital in Hong Kong, and to identify an optimal cut-off score to discriminate between those patients with dementia and those without. Methods: Participants were rated by using the face-to-face Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) before inpatient discharge and the T-CMMSE after inpatient discharge, and were rated separately by two raters in two telephone follow-up sessions using the T-CMMSE. Results: The results of the study indicated that the scale had excellent inter-and intra-rater reliabilities. There was substantial agreement between the two versions of the examination (κ > 0.6–0.8 ≤) for orientation, registration, and recall items. An optimal cut-off score of ≤ 16 was suggested for the T-CMMSE to discriminate between those with and without dementia. Conclusion: The T-CMMSE can be used in telephone follow-ups as an alternative to the conventional face-to-face version.


Objective: Published network meta-analyses of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) treatments are either out-of-date or excluded key treatments. Therefore, we aimed to comprehensively update the efficacy evidence for the following end points: Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) loss, hepatitis B early antigen (HBeAg) seroconversion and hepatitis B virus DNA (HBV DNA) suppression. Materials & methods: Approved treatments in CHB and their combinations were evaluated. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify all randomized controlled trials in treatment-naïve CHB patients. Included studies reported at least one of the end points of interest. A frequentist probability network meta-analysis was performed for each end point. The choice of fixed effect or random-effect model was based on the I-square statistic, a measure of variation in study outcomes between studies. The analyses were performed separately for HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative patients. For the primary analyses, end points measured 48 ± 4 weeks after treatment initiation were considered. Results: A total of 47 randomized controlled trials (13,826 patients), covering 23 unique treatment regimens, were included: a total of 29 reported HBsAg loss, 36 reported HBeAg seroconversion and 37 reported HBV DNA suppression. For both HBsAg loss and HBeAg seroconversion, pegylated interferon-based regimens were the most effective strategy in both HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative patients. On the other hand, for HBV DNA suppression, nucleosides-based regimens were the most effective strategy in both HBeAg-positive and HBeAg-negative patients. Conclusion: Our findings confirm available evidence around the comparative efficacy of available CHB treatments. Therefore, they can be used to update relevant cost-effectiveness analyses and clinical guidelines.


Median linear regression modeling is a natural approach for analyzing censored survival or failure time data. A median linear model lends itself to a simple interpretation that is particularly suitable for making direct predictions of survival or failure times. We propose a new, unique, and efficient algorithm for tree-structured median regression modeling that combines the merits of both a median regression model and a tree-structured model. We propose and discuss loss functions for constructing this tree-structured median model and investigate their effects on the determination of tree size. We also propose a split covariate selection algorithm by using residual analysis (RA) rather than loss function reduction. The RA approach allows for the selection of the correct split covariate fairly well, regardless of the distribution of covariates. The loss function with the transformed data performs well in comparison to that with raw or uncensored data in determining the right tree size. Unlike other survival trees, the proposed median regression tree is useful in directly predicting survival or failure times for partitioned homogeneous patient groups as well as in revealing and interpreting complex covariate structures. Furthermore, a median regression tree can be easily generalized to a quantile regression tree with a user-chosen quantile between 0 and 1. We have demonstrated the proposed method with two real data sets and have compared the results with existing regression trees.


1 O'Brien E, Fitzgerald D, O'Malley K. Blood pressure measurement: current practice and future trends. Br MedJ7 1985;290:729-34. 2 Prys-Roberts C, Meloche R, Foek P. Studies of anaesthesia in relation to hypertension I: cardiovascular responses in treated and untreated patients. Br 7 A naesth 1971 ;43:122-37. 3 Raftery EB. Preoperative assessment of the cardiovascular system. In: Cecil-Gray T, Nunn JF, Utting JE, eds. General anaesthesia. Vol 1. London: Butterworth, 1980:689. 4 Burn JMB. Pre-operative care. BrJ Hosp Med 1978; 19:425-32.


A fuzzy logic controller (FLC) was used for the automatic control of coagulation reactions. A laboratory-scale water treatment plant (rapid mixing, ̄occulation and sedimentation), operated under continuous̄ow mode, was used to simulate reaction conditions. Streaming current (SC) and pH were chosen as process outputs; while alum and base doses were chosen as control process inputs. They were monitored on-line, and transduced through an FLC. Using raw water with initial turbidity of 600 NTU, a residual turbidity of less than 2.5 NTU was obtained. Raw water with an ultra-high initial turbidity (a kaolinite concentration of 1000 mg/dm) was also tested. A residual turbidity of less than 6 NTU was obtained under these conditions. In addition, for the study of dynamic responses of the system to shock loadings, raw water with an initial turbidity of 798 NTU was spiked with 1 dm of 100 g/dm kaolinite suspension. The system was ®rst perturbed by the impulse input of solid loading, and its residual turbidity increased to 16 NTU. However, the system rapidly regained stability, and a residual turbidity of less than 8 NTU could be obtained. It was demonstrated that the fuzzy logic controller functions satisfactorily and is robust in the treatment of water of ultra-high turbidity.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to distinguish and compare the chest imaging features of non-tuberculous mycobacteria lung disease (NTM-LD) and pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) in patients with sputum acid fast bacillus (AFB)-smear positive since an earlier differential diagnosis between these two is very important in clinical practice.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
A total of 4167 previously untreated cases with AFB smear-positive sputum were collected from January 2011 to January 2014, in Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, Tongji University, China. Among them, 124 cases were identified with NTM-LD after specimen culture and strain identification. A cohort of 210 patients with PTB was randomly selected from the remaining 4043 cases with PTB as comparator. The clinical and chest computed tomography (CT) imaging data were compared.

RESULTS
The most prevalent pathogens in patients with NTM-LD were Mycobacterium abscessus (42%, 52/124) and Mycobacterium intracellulare (34%, 42/124). Univariate analysis showed patients with NTM-LD more frequently had bronchiectasis (85.5% vs. 45.7%, p < 0.001), thin-walled cavity (D ≥ 3 cm) (16.9% vs. 7.6%, p = 0.011) compared to PTB patients. Additionally, the location of lesion also differed and the right middle lobe (23.9% vs. 16.3%, p < 0.001) and left lingual segment bronchiectasis (19.9% vs. 8.2%, p < 0.001) were more prominent in NTM-LD. Multivariate analysis showed, bronchiectasis (OR = 8.521, 95% CI: 4.209-17.250, p < 0.001) and thin-walled cavity (D ≥ 3 cm) (OR = 3.561, 95% CI: 1.394-9.097, p = 0.008) were also the independent predictors for the diagnosis of NTM-LD.

CONCLUSIONS
Bronchiectasis in the right middle lobe or left lingual segment and thin-walled cavity with a diameter of more than 3 cm are the frequently the chest CT features in patients with NTM-LD, which might be helpful for an early diagnosis in patients with AFB-smear positive.


Nowadays, people tend to enjoy living more and more in their parallel lives within the digital environment. But this phenomenon comes with its own challenges and responsibilities. The main challenge, which is also a responsibility, is to ensure cybersecurity. Encryption represents one of the most commonly used information security measures, but, at the same time, a very debatable measure. Despite its vital role for ensuring cybersecurity, encryption also facilitates criminal activities in cyberspace and even cyberterrorism. Therefore, I am going to present the two antagonistic ways in which encryption can be used, namely, cybersecurity and cybercrime, and their impact on the life of every person and on society as a whole. When analyzing the dual nature of using encryption, it is equally important to discuss the topic of encryption vulnerabilities, which undoubtedly generate data vulnerability. In this context, a lot of controversy has risen around the issue of State intervention through backdoors.


The structural characterization of two new sodium phenolate complexes, containing ortho-amino substituents, enables the influence of intramolecular coordination on the aggregation of sodium phenolate complexes to be determined. Crystals of hexameric [NaOC6H4(CH2NMe2)-2]6 (1a) are monoclinic, space group P21/c, with a = 11.668(4) A, b = 18.146(4) A, c = 14.221(5) A, = 110.76(3) A, V = 2815.5(16) A3, and Z = 2; R = 0.0736 for 2051 reflections with I > 2.0(I). Complex 1a contains a unique Na6O6 core, consisting of two face-fused cubes, with the ortho-amino substituent of each phenolate coordinating to a sodium atom. In addition, two of the phenolate ligands have an 2-arene interaction with an additional sodium atom in the core. Crystals of dimeric [(NaOC6H2(CH2NMe2)2-2,6-Me-4)(HOC6H2(CH2NMe2)2-2,6-Me-4)]2 (2b) are triclinic, space group P, with a = 10.0670(8) A, b = 10.7121(7) A, c = 27.131(3) A, = 92.176(8), = 99.928(8), = 106.465(6), V = 2752.1(4) A3, and Z = 2; R = 0.0766 for 5329 reflections with I > 2.0(I). Dimeric complex 2b contains two phenolate ligands, which bridge the two sodium atoms, each coordinating with one ortho-amino substituent to a sodium atom, while the second available ortho-amino substituent remains pendant. The coordination sphere of each sodium atom is completed by a (neutral) bidentate O,N-coordinated parent phenol molecule. The second ortho-amino substituent of this neutral phenol is involved in a hydrogen bridge with its acidic hydrogen. On the basis of these two new crystal structures and previously reported solid state structures for sodium phenolate complexes, it is shown that the introduction of first one and then two ortho-amino substituents into the phenolate ligands successively lowers the degree of association of these complexes in the solid state. In this process, the basic Na2O2 building block of the molecular structures remains intact.


Summary A conventional conservation strategy is establishing protected areas to help combat anthropogenic and climate change impacts on tropical ecosystems, but the effectiveness of these measures is often hampered in upland areas by resource conflicts among armed groups, citizens and government institutions. Improved governance and community participation are key to effectively conserving these areas, yet little is known regarding citizen perceptions in such places. Here, a representative protected area in Colombia is used in order to analyse rural and urban citizen perceptions regarding conservation, conflicts with guerrilla groups and nature's contributions to people (NCPs) around Chingaza National Natural Park. We used on-site, semi-structured in-person surveys, geospatial data and statistics to understand these perceptions and the roles of armed conflict and deforestation. Perceptions on ecosystem degradation were correlated with deforestation and past guerrilla attacks. Age and place of residence were influential pro-conservation factors, while younger respondents were most willing to invest time in conservation activities. Air purification and water supply and quality were the most identified NCPs and citizens differentiated conservation-related recreation activities from natural resource extraction. We suggest that the legacy of past armed conflict still affects conservation strategies and communities living near tropical highland protected areas.


The paper presents the theory and application of a sequential test procedure for fault detection and isolation (FDI). The test procedure is suited for development of intelligent instrumentation in strategic processes like aircraft and nuclear plants where redundant measurements are usually available for individual critical variables. The test procedure consists of (1) a generic redundancy management procedure which is essentially independent of the fault detection strategy and measurement noise statistics, and (2) a modified version of sequential probability ratio test (SPRT) algorithm for fault detection and isolation, which functions within the framework of the aforesaid redundancy management procedure. The sequential test procedure is suitable for real-time applications using commercially available microcomputers and its efficacy has been verified by on-line fault detection in an operating nuclear reactor.


Abstract Lewis acid gases, PF5, BF3 and SiF4 are liberated from their ammonium, alkali metal and pyridinium fluorocomplexes, NH4PF6, NaPF6, KPF6, C5H5NHPF6, C5H5NHBF4 and (C5H5NH)2SiF6, when treated with sulphur trioxide at room temperature. The dissociated ammonium/alkali metal fluorides as well as the pyridinium fluoride react further with the excess sulphur trioxide to form the corresponding fluorosulphates. The products, Lewis acid gases and the fluorosulphates, have been 19 characterised by I. R., F NMR and wet chemical analysis. This is the first report of the synthesis of these gases from pyridinium fluorosulphate at room temperature in good yields.


It has recently been argued that apparent peace between democracies may be the result of political similarity rather than joint democracy, and that there may exist an "autocratic peace" which is similar to the democratic peace. If political similarity generally is the cause of peace rather than joint democracy specifically, then the democratic peace is merely a statistical artifact that follows from separating out a selected subset of data. In addition, we do not know whether the autocratic peace or democratic peace is stronger, if they both exist. Existing empirical specifications of the connection between joint regime type and international conflict have not been adequate to assess these arguments. I develop a specification of joint regime-type variables that uses continuous measures without arbitrary cutoffs and allows us to assess a larger set of hypothesized regime-type effects. I find that jointly democratic and jointly autocratic pairs of states are both less conflict prone than other pairings, but that political similarity apart from these extremes has a much smaller effect on the risk of conflict. The results suggest that political similarity between coherent regimes (those at extremes of the institutionalized democracy–autocracy scale) encourages dyadic peace. But although there is a lower risk of conflict in both jointly democratic and jointly autocratic dyads, I find that the democratic peace is clearly stronger than the autocratic peace.


In this work the covariability of sea surface and lower troposphere temperatures (SST-AT) is investigated for winter (DJFM) and summer (JJAS), over the whole northern hemisphere, by utilizing monthly anomalies in grid boxes for a 22-year period. Air temperature variations in the lower troposphere are examined in terms of 1000-500 hPa thickness. At first, factor analysis (FA) is applied on both sets of data in order to reduce their dimensionality and to group objectively grid points with a similar long term temperature variability. Also, FA revealed numerous teleconnections in both fields, most important being those governed by PNA in the Pacific Ocean and NAO in the Atlantic Ocean. Then, by using the FA results as a guide, correlation coefficients between the mean temperature time series of the subareas defined by FA in the two fields are estimated. The highest values, up to r=0.70, were found for subareas located one over/under the other. Finally, by introducing time lags, an attempt of forecasting either SST form AT or AT from SST is made. Although in some cases the coefficients appear increasing, test showed that the increase is not statistically significant. In any case, it appears that, on monthly time scale, it is the AT that controls SST and not the vice versa.


Recent experimental progress in the fields of cold quantum gases and ultrafast optical spectroscopy of quantum materials allows to controllably induce and probe non-adiabatic dynamics of superconductors and superfluids. The time-evolution of the gap function before relaxation with the lattice is determined by the superposition of coherently evolving individual Cooper pairs within the manifold of the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) wavefunction. While dynamics following an abrupt quench of the pairing interaction strength in the single-band BCS model has been exactly solved due to the integrability of the model, the dynamics of post-quench multi-band superconductors remain under scrutiny. Here, we develop a generalization of the Volkov-Kogan Laplace-space perturbative method that allows us to determine the non-adiabatic gap dynamics of two-band fully gapped superconductors for a wide range of quench amplitudes. Our approach expands the long-time dynamics around the steady-state asymptotic value of the gap, which is self-consistently determined, rather than around the equilibrium value of the gap. We explicitly demonstrate that this method recovers the exact solution of the long-time gap dynamics in the single-band case and perfectly agrees with a numerical solution of the two-band model. We discover that dephasing of Cooper pairs from different bands leads to faster collisionless relaxation of the gap oscillation with a power-law of $t^{-3/2}$ instead of the well-known $t^{-1/2}$ behavior found in the single-band case. Furthermore, the gap oscillations display beating patterns arising from the existence of two different asymptotic gap values. Our results have important implications to a variety of two-band superconductors driven out of equilibrium, such as iron-based superconductors, MgB$_{2}$, and SrTiO$_{3}$.


Increased atherosclerotic plaque formation can lead to lumen reduction and finally to lumen obstruction. Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) or balloon angioplasty (dilation) are approaches generally used to treat coronary, but also peripheral atherosclerotic disease. Their goal is to restore the blood supply. The repair process or restructuring of the artery after balloon angioplasty comprises two major features, neointimal formation and geometrical remodeling, and results in a decreased lumen. In the process of atherosclerosis, and during neointimal formation and arterial remodeling, the structure of the arterial wall is changed dramatically. Collagen is one of the major components of the arterial wall, essential for arterial integrity, and therefore increased collagen synthesis and degradation are important processes.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are key-enzymes responsible for collagen degradation, but also for cellular migration which is a well described feature in arterial remodeling. Broad spectrum inhibition of these MMPs revealed beneficial effects in the repair process after balloon dilation, but more specific inhibitors are needed due the side effects of these inhibitors. Next to their role in arterial remodeling, MMPs are also involved in atherosclerotic plaque progression. We need to understand arterial remodeling more in detail to be able to find new targets for intervention.

The first aim of our study was to explore the changes in collagen synthesis and degradation and the collagen content after balloon injury. We observed that collagen synthesis and degradation was increased and was associated with cell migration. We found that Hsp47, a protein essential for collagen synthesis, could be a potential new target for intervention.

In the second part of our study we focussed on the production and activation of the MMPs. We observed that the level of several MMPs were increased after balloon dilation, probably via a protein called extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN). Moreover, we observed that EMMPRIN forms were different between more unstable and stable atherosclerotic plaques. Therefore EMMPRIN might be a more specific target to intervene in arterial remodeling, but also for stabilization of the atherosclerotic plaque. Because EMMPRIN is an extracellular protein it is an attractive protein for intervention.

Finally, we studied the role of furin after dilation. Furin is a proprotein convertase and involved in the activation of several proteins, including some MMPs. Blocking furin activity prevents the activation of these MMPs, but also of TGF- β. We inhibited the activity of furin after balloon dilation which resulted in an inhibition of neointima formation.

Interventions on these different proteins could have beneficial effects for patients with cardiovascular problems by reducing restenosis rates and promoting plaque stability.


COVID-19, a global pandemic, has threatened the whole world with its devastating nature. Though, initially it has affected the developed countries, the countries in lowand middle-income category also are not spared. Yemen is a country with low-income economy and has been in an ongoing civil war. The first case of COVID-19 was reported on 10th April 2020 and there have been a total of 1619 cases along with 447 total deaths as of 21st July 2020. The preventive measures such as lockdown, social distancing, and personal hygiene are practiced, however there is still lack of adequate resources for efficient healthcare facilities. No drugs and vaccines are approved to fully rely on for the treatment of COVID-19, therefore the concept of "do not take the virus and do not give the virus" with different approaches of preventive aspects through hand-washing, social distancing, wearing masks and gloves, and making people aware in mass utilizing audio-visual media are helpful. Aids from different agencies and collaborative efforts of all the stakeholders are in need for the containment of COVID-19 cases in Yemen. By strengthening and increasing healthcare set-ups and resources, preparation of management guidelines by the government and mobilizing such resources to different parts for awareness, adequate reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests, contact tracing, and safe quarantine and isolation services are essential.


Breath sensors can revolutionize medical diagnostics by on-demand detection and monitoring of health parameters in a noninvasive and personalized fashion. Despite extensive research for more than two decades, however, only a few breath sensors have been translated into clinical practice. Actually, most never even left the scientific laboratories. Here, we describe key challenges that currently impede realization of breath sensors and highlight strategies to overcome them. Specifically, we start with breath marker selection (with emphasis on metabolic and inflammatory markers) and breath sampling. Next, the sensitivity, stability, and selectivity requirements for breath sensors are described. Concepts are elaborated to systematically address these requirements by material design (focusing on chemoresistive metal oxides), orthogonal arrays, and filters. Finally, aspects of portable device integration, user communication, and clinical applicability are discussed.


The Uzbek and Uighur refugees that fled the communist regimes around the 1930s and 1950s in Central Asia formed cohesive communities in Saudi Arabia while their original identities suffered a downward slide throughout the XXth century. To appeal to Saudi sympathy on arrival in Saudi Arabia, these refugees claimed either their regional identity as Turkistani or their ethnic identity as Kashgari, Bukhari or Kokandi, as the Saudis were better acquainted with religious thinkers and eminent personalities from Central Asia than the region or its peoples. It was after the collapse of the USSR, when these refugees were able to revisit their countries of origin, that they gradually started to reclaim their national identities as Uzbeks and Uighurs. For purposes of social integration, a large majority amongst these refugees had given up typically Central Asian mystical Islamic traditions and converted to Saudi official wahhabism or salafism. Since Uzbek independence in 1991 and China's opening in the 1980s, these recently converted returning Central Asian refugees and their descendants contributed to the reislamization of their countrymen. Some initiatives were personal while others were through more organized channels. Saudi religious authorities recruited and mobilized Uzbek and Uighur community members as missionaries sent to the field to proselytize in Central Asia and to encourage increasing numbers of pilgrims to Mecca.


Poly(vinylferrocenium) perchlorate-poly(3,3'-diaminobenzidine) (PVF+ClO4–-PDAB) composite film was synthesized electrochemically for the first time on Pt disc electrode in a dichloromethane solution containing poly(vinylferrocene) (PVF) polymer, 3,3'-diaminobenzidine (DAB) monomer and tetrabutylammonium perchlorate as supporting electrolyte. This modified electrode was characterized using cyclic voltammetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV-Vis spectrophotometry, atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) methods and it was used for amperometric determination of hydroquinone (HQ) at potential ranges of 0.40 and 0.60 V. The best analytical results for HQ was obtained at 0.45 V in NaHSO4/Na2SO4 solution (pH 2.0) and limit of detection, limit of quantification and linear response range were found as 7.469 × 10-5, 2.489 × 10-4 and 2.489 × 10-4-65.0 mmol L-1 (R2 = 0.996), respectively. These results were compared to poly(3,3'-diaminobenzidine) (PDAB) coated and uncoated Pt electrodes. The best analytical results were obtained with composite film because of behavior as electron transfer mediator of PVF.


Rapid expansion of the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry is quickly causing solar to play a growing importance in the energy mix of the world. Over the full life cycle, although to a smaller degree than traditional energy sources, PV also creates solid waste. This paper examines the potential need for PV recycling policies by analyzing existing recycling protocols for the five major types of commercialized PV materials. The amount of recoverable semiconductor material and glass in a 1Â m2 area solar module for the five types of cells is quantified both physically and the profit potential of recycling is determined. The cost of landfill disposal of the whole solar module, including the glass and semiconductor was also determined for each type of solar module. It was found that the economic motivation to recycle most PV modules is unfavorable without appropriate policies. Results are discussed on the need to regulate for appropriate energy and environmental policy in the PV manufacturing industry particularly for PV containing hazardous materials. The results demonstrate the need to encourage producer responsibility not only in the PV manufacturing sector but also in the entire energy industry.


Incompleteness results for behavioral logics are investigated. We show that there is a basic nite behavioral speciication for which the behavioral satisfaction problem is not recursively enumerable, which means that there are no automatic methods for proving all true statements; in particular, behavioral logics do not admit complete deduction systems. This holds for all of the behavioral logics of which we are aware. We also prove that the behavioral satisfaction problem is not co-recursively enumerable, which means that there is no automatic way to refute false statements in behavioral logics. In fact we show stronger results, that all behavioral logics are 0 2-hard, and that, for some data algebras, the complexity of behavioral satisfaction is not even arithmetic; matching upper bounds are established for some behavioral logics. In addition, we show for the xed-data case that if operations may have more than one hidden argument, then nal models need not exist, so that the coalgebraic avor of behavioral logic is lost.


In this paper, we present lower bounds on the rank of the split closure, the multi-branch closure and the lattice-free closure for packing sets as a function of the integrality gap. We also provide a similar lower bound on the split rank of covering polyhedra. These results indicate that whenever the integrality gap is high, these classes of cutting planes must necessarily be applied for many rounds in order to obtain the integer hull.


The Apocalypse of St. John and the Sefer Zerubbabel [a.k.a Apocalypse of Zerubbabel] are among the most popular apocalypses of the Common Era. While the Johannine Apocalypse was written by a first-century Jewish-Christian author and would later be refracted through a decidedly Christian lens, and the Sefer Zerubbabel was probably composed by a seventh-century Jewish author for a predominantly Jewish audience, the two share much in the way of plot, narrative motifs, and archetypal characters. An examination of these commonalities and, in particular, how they intersect with gender and sexuality, suggests that these texts also may have functioned similarly as a call to reform within the generations that originally received them and, perhaps, among later medieval generations in which the texts remained important.


Interaction between the chemokine CXCL12 (SDF1) and the G‐protein coupled receptor CXCR4 is responsible for the maintenance of adult stem cell niches and is known to play an important role in utero in the migration of primordial germ cells. We demonstrate expression of CXCL12 by Sertoli cells and confirm CXCR4 expression by the germ cell population of the adult human testes. CXCR4 is also known to mediate organ‐specific patterns of metastases in a range of common cancers. We identify consistent expression of CXCR4 mRNA and protein in testicular germ cell tumours (TGCT) that accounts for their patterns of relapse in sites of known CXCL12 expression. Extragonadal primary germ cell tumours express CXCR4 and their sites of occurrence are coincident with areas of known CXCL12 expression in utero. We show that CXCL12 stimulates the invasive migration of a TGCT cell line in vitro in a CXCR4‐dependent fashion and activates ERK. Furthermore, we demonstrate that expression of CXCL12 in stage I non‐seminomas is significantly associated with organ‐confined disease post‐orchidectomy and reduced risk of relapse (p = 0.003). This may be through the loss of CXCL12 gradients that might otherwise attract cells away from the primary tumour. We propose CXCL12 expression as a potential predictor of subsequent relapse that could lead to avoiding unnecessary treatment and associated late toxicities. Our observations support a role for CXCL12/CXCR4 in the adult germ cell population and demonstrate pathological function in germ cell tumour development and metastasis that may have clinical utility. Copyright © 2008 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


While the global demand for energy continues to grow, the world's depots of fossil fuels
decrease. Logically, scientists have researched in different ways of creating sustainable
energy. Dams, solar power and wind energy are all different ways of extracting power from
nature. Having neither mountains nor many hours of annual sunshine, Denmark is, however,
a flat country with many kilometers of coast line and calm weather, and therefore is perfectly
suited for wind energy. Because of these facts, Denmark has always been a pioneer within
the wind industry, building the world's first off-shore wind energy park in 1991. In recent
years, wind turbines have grown dramatically in size and capacity. Scientists predict that in
order to make wind energy a more suitable alternative to fossil fuels, the wind turbines have
to become even larger. The major problem with these super wind turbines, however, is the
weight of the nacelle, of which a heavy part is the gear box.
In order to avoid having a gear box in the wind turbine, a direct driven generator
has been proposed, where superconductors play an important role. Energy losses due to
Joule heating will be eliminated and high temperature superconductors are capable of
working in high magnetic fields (several Teslas). The alternative to superconductors are
permanent magnets, but the required amount would become expensive and inaccessible,
while superconductors can be made from easily accessible elements. However, using
superconductors also pose considerable challenges; low temperature cooling systems are
required and the superconductors need to be of high quality.
High temperature superconductors is a relatively new field of study, with the first
discoveries made in the 1980s. Having found materials with superconducting
properties at relatively high temperatures, the issue of optimizing other properties arose. A
pinning center is an irregularity in the crystal, which destroys the superconducting
properties. Here the magnetic field lines can penetrate without causing further damage to
the superconductor. In 2005 Misko et al. found that a gradient in density of pinning centers
could increase the critical current density (Jc) in a magnetic field. Pinning centers had
been known to optimize superconductors, but with this new information, scientists have
been equipped with a new tool to make superconductors more suitable for wind turbines.
Since Misko et al. first predicted that different pinning densities throughout the
superconductor could improve superconductors; many attempts have been made in order to
show this property experimentally. Different methods to create the desired pinning patterns
experimentally include Molecular Beam Epitaxy and E-beam Lithography. These methods
are, however, both very expensive, making them less attractive for industrial production.
This project investigates different options of creating simple gradients in the pinning center
density.


OBJECT
Athletes present with back pain as a common symptom. Various sports involve repetitive hyperextension of the spine along with axial loading and appear to predispose athletes to the spinal pathology spondylolysis. Many athletes with acute back pain require nonsurgical treatment methods; however, persistent recurrent back pain may indicate degenerative disc disease or spondylolysis. Young athletes have a greater incidence of spondylolysis. Surgical solutions are many, and yet there are relatively few data in the literature on both the techniques and outcomes of spondylolytic repair in athletes. In this study, the authors undertook a review of the surgical techniques and outcomes in the treatment of symptomatic spondylolysis in athletes.

METHODS
A systematic review of the MEDLINE and PubMed databases was performed using the following key words to identify articles published between 1950 and 2011: "spondylolysis," "pars fracture," "repair," "athlete," and/or "sport." Papers on both athletes and nonathletes were included in the review. Articles were read for data on methodology (retrospective vs prospective), type of treatment, number of patients, mean patient age, and mean follow-up.

RESULTS
Eighteen articles were included in the review. Eighty-four athletes and 279 nonathletes with a mean age of 20 and 21 years, respectively, composed the population under review. Most of the fractures occurred at L-5 in both patient groups, specifically 96% and 92%, respectively. The average follow-up period was 26 months for athletes and 86 months for nonathletes. According to the modified Henderson criteria, 84% (71 of 84) of the athletes returned to their sports activities. The time intervals until their return ranged from 5 to 12 months.

CONCLUSIONS
For a young athlete with a symptomatic pars defect, any of the described techniques of repair would probably produce acceptable results. An appropriate preoperative workup is important. The ideal candidate is younger than 20 years with minimal or no listhesis and no degenerative changes of the disc. Limited participation in sports can be expected from 5 to 12 months postoperatively.


The Silver-Russell syndrome (SRS) is characterized by severe intrauterine growth restriction, with a preserved head circumference, leading to a lean body habitus and short stature. Facial dysmorphism and asymmetry are considered typical features of the syndrome, although the range of phenotypic variance is unknown. A woman was transferred to our hospital due to decreased maternal serum α-fetoprotein (0.185 MoM), human chorionic gonadotrophin (0.128 MoM) and unconjugated estriol (0.775 MoM) at 16 weeks of gestation. Initial ultrasonographic findings showed oligohydramnios. But serial antenatal sonographic findings showed severe asymmetric intrauterine growth restriction (preserved head circumference, small abdominal circumference, and short femur) and both hydronephrosis with progressive oligohydramnios. Cytogenetic studies with GTG-banding by amniocentesis showed 46 XX, inv (9) (p11q13) and fetal karyotype was in paternal origin. On past history, the previous sibling of the fetus also showed severe asymmetric intrauterine growth restriction (31 weeks sized biparietal diameter, 25 weeks sized abdominal circumference, and 28 weeks sized femur length) with oligohydramnios at prenatal ultrasonography. After birth, she was diagnosed as SRS due to large cranium, broad forehead, microretrognathia, clinodactyly, and short philtrum with low birth weight and postnatal growth below to 2 SD from the mean. She died at 10 months of her age. At 26 weeks of gestation, fetal death in uterus was diagnosed and the fetus was delivered by labor induction. Autopsy findings showed asymmetric low birth weight (less than 5th percentile) with characteristic small triangular face, low set ears, clinodactyly and downward slanting corners of mouth. On the basis of these evidences, we diagnosed that this case was also SRS. We report a case of familial Silver-Russell syndrome with literatures.


Human explanatory dialogue is an activity in which participants interactively construct explanatory models of the topic phenomenon. However, current explanation planning technology does not support such dialogue. In this paper we describe contributions in the areas of discourse planning architectures, heuristics for knowledge communication, and user interface design that take steps towards addressing this problem. First, our explanation planning architecture independently applies various constraints on the content and organization of explanation, avoiding the inflexibility and contextual assumptions of schematic discourse plans. Second, certain planning operators simulate a human explainer's efforts to choose and incrementally develop models of the topic phenomenon. Third, dialogue occurs in the medium of a "live information" interface designed to serve as the representational medium through which the activities of the machine and human are coupled. Collectively these contributions facilitate interactive model construction in human-machine dialogue.


Oral literature is a vital tool that is sometimes deployed by African writers for criticizing the social and political situations in their countries with the aim of challenging and proffering solutions to unpleasant and oppressive practices by its leaders. Femi Osofisan's Many Colours Make the Thunder-King exemplifies this situation. It is observed that oral literature is not usually considered as a possible means of solving the social and economic challenges encountered in African countries. This study examines Nigeria's situation by focusing on the identifiable traditional aesthetics deployed in Many Colours Make the Thunder-King as a means of satirizing Nigerian leaders and also for possible re-construction of their characters towards enhancement of a better society. It is imperative for Nigerian leaders to learn and apply other strategies that would be useful in eradicating the hydra-headed challenges confronting the nation. This paper considers the application of oral literature, a possible means of solving the social-political and economic problems ravaging the country. The research methodology used for this study is qualitative. A sociological approach is adapted to evaluate the African oral aesthetics deployed in the literary text. This study concludes and recommends that Nigerian leaders should go back to their traditional roots to seek the basis for economic, political and social innovation and progress if they are to succeed in developing the country.

 Key words: African oral literature, challenges, possible means, relevance, satire, socio-political.


For mechanism of
decarboxylation reaction, all textbooks show that the electron moves from the piC=O bond. However, the most donating bond orbital
in the carbonyl group should be the lone pair(s) on the oxygen. Thus, a picture of orbital theory with delocalization from a lone pair should be
more appropriate than that from the piC=O orbital. We confirmed our idea by theoretical
calculation. In the TS, if we use 2-substituted b-ketoacids,
the boat-form conformation should result in exclusively preferred generation of
E-enolates. Normally, decarboxylation
reaction performs in polar solvent, so that the resulting enols should be
transformed to the corresponding ketones by tautomerization. Suppose we use the
heteroatoms to obtain the enolate or enol ethers without tautomerization, it
would offer a diastereoselective enol(ate) synthesis with regioselectivity, since the C=C
double bond should always be introduced between two carbonyl groups. After
screening the heteroatoms by the theoretical
calculations, we found that boron is suitable for this purpose. We confirmed
our idea by theoretical calculations, offering a new boradecarboxylation
reaction to produce enolates diastereoselecitively and regioselectively.


This paper addresses the Special Issue call for Australian examples of innovative management systems that enable the production of successful products by drawing on a single case study: medical device manufacturer Cochlear. Through qualitative case study methodology, we examine the human resource management practices that complemented the implementation of lean manufacturing principles. We argue that in their implementation, Cochlear's management team enriched the traditional understanding of lean and its focus on waste reduction, low cost and quality assurance by adopting people management practices as an integrated component of the overall management capability which allowed their people to grow and develop. The combination of lean and HR practices transformed Cochlear to a high-performance work system and positively impacted production processes and output. By examining a medical device manufacturer, an under-researched sector, our paper expands existing literature on lean manufacturing and provides implications for practitioners.


Object recognition memory requires the perirhinal cortex (PRC) and this cognitive function declines during normal aging. Recent electrophysiological recordings from young rats have shown that neurons in Layer V of the PRC are activated by three‐dimensional objects. Thus, it is possible that age‐related object recognition deficits result from alterations in PRC neuron activity in older animals. To examine this, the present study used cellular compartment analysis of temporal activity by fluorescence in situ hybridization (catFISH) with confocal microscopy to monitor cellular distributions of activity‐induced Arc RNA in layer V of the PRC. Activity was monitored during two distinct epochs of object exploration. In one group of rats (6 young/6 aged) animals were placed in a familiar testing arena and allowed to explore five different three‐dimensional objects for two 5‐min sessions separated by a 20‐min rest (AA). The second group of animals (6 young/6 aged) also explored the same objects for two 5‐min sessions, but the environment was changed between the first and the second epoch (AB). Behavioral data showed that both age groups spent less time exploring objects during the second epoch, even when the environment changed, indicating successful recognition. Although the proportion of active neurons between epochs did not change in the AA group, in the AB group more neurons were active during epoch 2 of object exploration. This recruitment of neurons into the active neural ensemble could serve to signal that familiar stimuli are being encountered in a new context. When numbers of Arc positive neurons were compared between age groups, the old rats had significantly lower proportions of Arc‐positive PRC neurons in both the AA and AB behavioral conditions. These data support the hypothesis that age‐associated functional alterations in the PRC contribute to declines in stimulus recognition over the lifespan. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


This paper examines the expansion of compulsory schooling in fifteen Western European countries over 1950–2000. We show that a convergence process has occurred across these countries since 1950. We argue that the major driver of this phenomenon is the existence of decreasing aggregate returns to education that have limited the extension of compulsory schooling. Then we test whether convergence holds when confronted with other explanations described in the literature. Conditional convergence does hold and we find that openness has been another significant determinant of compulsory years of schooling, reflecting the need of a skilled labour force in an increasingly globalized world.


Tumors can undergo long periods of dormancy, with cancer cells entering a largely quiescent, non-proliferative state before reactivation and outgrowth. For a patient, these post-remission tumors are often drug resistant and highly aggressive, resulting in poor prognosis. To understand the role of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in regulating tumor dormancy, we created an in vitro cell culture system that combines carefully controlled ECM substrates with nutrient deprivation to observe entrance into and exit from dormancy with live imaging. We saw that cell populations capable of surviving entrance into long-term dormancy were heterogeneous, containing quiescent, cell cycle arrested, and actively proliferating cells. Cell populations that endured extended periods of serum-deprivation-induced dormancy formed an organized, fibrillar fibronectin matrix via αvβ3 and α5β1 integrin adhesion, ROCK-generated tension, and TGFβ2 stimulation. We surmised that the fibronectin matrix was primarily a mediator of cell survival, not proliferation, during the serum-deprivation stress, bacause cancer cell outgrowth after dormancy required MMP-2-mediated fibronectin degradation. Given the difficulty of animal models in observing entrance and exit from dormancy in real-time, we propose this approach as a new, in vitro method to study factors important in regulating dormancy, and we used it here to elucidate a role for fibronectin deposition and MMP activation.


The implementation of flue gas recirculation strategies for the reduction of NO x emissions in practical liquid fuelled burners is investigated. A laboratory furnace is used and the analysis is based on detailed spatial-resolved measurements of temperature and gaseous species concentrations. It is observed that, while air staging provides major reductions in NO x emissions, with reductions up to about 30%, the effect of adding hot combustion products to the air flow is mainly due to the increase in temperature which facilitates fuel vaporization, rather than to the expected effect of oxygen dilution. However, the aerodynamics of the near burner, which is determined by the operating conditions of the burner, has a greater effect on the NO x emissions than the vitiation of the combustion air.


The unique self-renewal and pluripotency features of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) offer the potential for unlimited development of novel cell therapies. Currently, hESCs are cultured and differentiated using methods, such as monolayer culture and embryoid body (EB) formation. As such, achieving efficient differentiation into higher order structures remains a challenge, as well as maintaining cell viability during differentiation into homogeneous cell populations. Here, we describe the application of highly porous polymer scaffolds as synthetic stem cell niches. Bypassing the EB formation step, these scaffolds are capable of three-dimensional culture of undifferentiated hESCs and subsequent directed differentiation into three primary germ layers. H9 hESCs were successfully maintained and proliferated in biodegradable polymer scaffolds based on poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA). The results showed that cells within PLGA scaffolds retained characteristics of undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells. Moreover, the scaffolds allowed differentiation towards the lineage of interest by the addition of growth factors to the culture system. The in vivo transplantation study revealed that the scaffolds could provide a microenvironment that enabled hESCs to interact with their surroundings, thereby promoting cell differentiation. Therefore, this approach, which provides a unique culture/differentiation system for hESCs, will find its utility in various stem cell-based tissue-engineering applications.


The essays in this volume, which range across Europe, America and Africa, and from the 18th to the 20th centuries, argue that the experience of travel, and the business of representing that experience, involved an obligatory engagement with the disturbing perception that travel's pleasures were inseparable from its dangers and ennuis. Despite the confidence of some medical authorities in their recommendations of the therapeutic benefits to be derived from 'change of air' as a way of restoring a state of health, such opinions failed to establish a consensus, either amongst those who followed such peripatetic prescriptions, or amongst the medical professions in general. Mad doctors and climatologists alike were forced to adopt an essentially partisan stance in arguing their case for such recommendations, and were confronted by rival practitioners who could marshal counter-case histories which demonstrated diametrically opposed conclusions concerning the advisability of travel. To this extent, the history of travel and its pathologies is a particularly revealing instance of the way medical thinking was dependent on localised studies which might do more to challenge the universal applicability of generally accepted theories than they did to confirm their diagnostic reliability. The essays collected here not only contribute to our understanding of the conception and application of a variety of medical ideas, showing how they depended on beliefs about climate and corporeal constitution as well as often inconsistent data or recits culled from travellers and geographically dispersed case histories, but also open up illuminatingly complex perspectives on the uncertainties and dangers of the phenomenon of modern travel.


The paper presents modifi cation of four nonprobabilistic procedures of fair division of a set of indivisible goods with money: Original Knaster, Adjusted Knaster, Equal Shares and Second Prices. The purpose of modification is to adjust the aforementioned methods to the problem of division of a set of goods in a situation of unequal entitlements. Extended versions of six formal properties, namely: strong Pareto optimality, proportionality, envyfreeness, equitability, strategy-proofness and anonymity are also presented. Moreover, proofs of procedures having the same formal properties in a situation of unequal entitlements as in a situation of equal entitlements are shown.


This paper is based on a small scale research project carried out by the National Association of Teachers of Home Economics and Technology (NATHE) in the Spring of 1998 into a perceived national shortage of textiles technology teachers and the even greater shortage of food technology teachers.

A number of factors appeared to be relevant including changes in the traditional routes into secondary teaching, a change of focus in some degree courses and the introduction of National Curriculum Design and Technology in 1990. NATHE decided to research into the problem of recruitment of food technology and textile technology teachers to try to identify ways of improving the situation. A range of higher education institutions was asked to complete a questionnaire to elicit information on relevant courses together with examples of posts gained by their graduates.

The paper presents the finding of the research and makes recommendations for the future. The aim of the research was to strengthen the position of food and textiles technology in our schools within the context of design and technology.


INTRODUCTION
Liver resection in cirrhotic patients is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The objective of this study was to compare short-term results of laparoscopic resection (LR) and open surgery (OS) for minor liver resection in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) hepatocellularcarcinoma on nontumor cirrhotic liver (HCC/F4) and patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRLMs) colorectal liver metastases on healthy liver (CRLM/F0).

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Between January 2005 and December 2014, all patients undergoing liver resection (n = 754) were included in this study. Liver resections for cholangiocarcinoma or benign tumor, major liver resection (≥3 segments), HCC on healthy liver, CRLM on cirrhotic liver, and liver resection with technically difficult accessibility (segments I, VII, and VIII) were excluded. The primary endpoint of the study was a validated composite endpoint (CEP), which included specific liver surgery complications (Clavien ≥III), allowing comparison of the postoperative course after LR versus OR for HCC/F4 patients and CRLM/F0 patients using propensity score (PS) analysis. Secondary endpoints were major postoperative morbidity according to the Clavien-Dindo classification (≥III) and intensive care unit (ICU) length of hospital stay (LOS) and overall LOS. The test group was defined as HCC/F4 patients operated by LR, and the control group was defined as HCC/F4 patients and CRLM/F0 patients operated by OS and CRLM/F0 patient operated by LR.

RESULTS
Sixty patients (38.7%) underwent LR and 95 patients (61.3%) underwent OS. Surgery was performed for CRLM in 93 patients (60%) and for HCC in 62 patients (40%). No difference was demonstrated between HCC/F4 patients and CRLM/F0 patients in the LR group in terms of the CEP (7% versus 18.1%; P = .23), while a significant difference for the CEP was observed between HCC/F4 patients and CRLM/F0 patients after OS (50% versus 21%; P = .021). A higher rate of CEP was observed for HCC/F4 patients operated by OS compared to HCC/F4 patients operated by LR (50% versus 7.8%; P = .009). No significant difference in Clavien-Dindo score ≥III was observed between HCC/F4 patients and CRLM/F0 patients operated by LR (10% versus 4.5%; P = .98). A higher postoperative ascites rate was observed for HCC/F4 patients operated by OS compared to CRLM/F0 patients operated by OS (25% versus 2.8%; P = .006). This difference was no longer observed when HCC/F4 patients were compared to CRLM/F0 operated by LR (7.8% versus 2.8%; P = .09). The postoperative mortality rate was 1.8% and was not correlated with nontumor liver or surgical approach. A shorter LOS was observed for HCC/F4 patients operated by LR compared to HCC/F4 patients operated by OS (7.53 versus 17.13; P = .011).

CONCLUSION
The laparoscopic approach for malignant liver tumor is associated with a lower specific complication rate. LR for HCC/F4 could eliminate excess morbidity and decrease LOS in patients with cirrhotic liver.