Soil erosion rates are accelerating worldwide as climate change effects and human population pressures, including agricultural expansion, degrade the land surface. Fluvial systems transfer sediments from uplands to depositional landforms and basins downstream. However, only a fraction of eroded material will ultimately transfer to catchment outlets – a phenomenon termed, "the sediment delivery problem". Thus, sediment fluxes to the coast are declining in many river catchments, as a result of storage behind dams and within landforms such as floodplains and alluvial terraces. Storage time allows us to measure the timescale of storage and removal of sediments from floodplains, which, given their spatial extent (8 x 105 to 2 x 106 km2 of all land area), are significant in interrupting the transmission of soil erosion fluxes downstream. While sediment storage times in alluvial floodplains have been quantified before, this thesis presents the first attempts to model the impacts of various environmental and experimental conditions on sediment storage behaviour using the CAESAR-Lisflood landscape evolution model. The thesis tests the following hypotheses: i) Removal rates from storage decline with increasing floodplain age; ii) the distribution of sediment storage times is sensitive to reach-specific characteristics, vegetation cover types and changes, changing river flows, and measurement frequency; and iii) a non-linear function can be fitted to the distribution and parameterised using readily quantifiable variables. A detailed literature review synthesised our current understanding of sediment storage times, including variables that have been quantified or hypothesised as possible controls. This culminated in a conceptual model of major controls and their interactions which was used to support the development of experiments tested in this thesis. A review of quantification techniques, including "black-box", one-dimensional mass balance modelling approaches, and methods that calculate storage times directly from timings of geomorphic changes, justified adopting a landscape evolution modelling approach. CAESAR-Lisflood was applied to conduct this research, as it can simulate variable channel widths, divergent flow, and both braided and meandering planforms – capturing a wider range of channel-floodplain evolution processes than models previously used to simulate storage times. Ten 1 km-long reaches of river valleys from the north of England were used to calibrate the model, test the transferability of calibrated parameters, and verify the accuracy of simulated historical channel changes against mapped reconstructions. These simulations replicated mapped erosion, deposition and lateral migration rates reasonably well overall. Floodplain turnover times, estimated by extrapolating erosion rates, increased confidence that calibrated parameters were representative over longer timescales and revealed that all sediments stored in the floodplain would undergo exchange with the channel within 1000 years. Using CAESAR-Lisflood, an ensemble of 9 simulations, incorporating 3 of the 10 calibrated reaches and 3 vegetation cover scenarios (forest, grass and unvegetated) – each spanning 1000 years of river channel changes – was run. Together with measuring channel changes over four different frequencies (10, 20, 50 and 100 years), a total of 36 storage time distributions was modelled, with the age and storage times of floodplain sediments calculated from timings of deposition and erosion. This was done to test whether distributions were best fit by either an exponential or a heavy-tailed decay function, with the former indicating constant erosion rates over space and time, while the latter implies that removal rates from storage decay with increasing deposit age. As well as uniform vegetation conditions, a further 15 simulations, incorporating changes in vegetation cover or flow magnitudes over time, were run, to test how storage time dynamics respond to disturbance. This thesis demonstrates that sediment erosion rates decline with increasing floodplain age in most cases, with the strength of this relationship dependent on reach, floodplain erodibility and frequency of recorded measurements. A lognormal function can be fitted to distributions of sediment storage times in most cases, and it is possible to parameterise this function using the median storage time and measurement time-step. Coupling this storage time function with a model of stochastic sediment transport could generate predictions of decontamination times for a valley corridor enriched with polluted sediments (e.g. from mining). However, some environmental disturbances can be great enough to invalidate this storage time model – a challenge that merits further attention before application to practical environmental management contexts.


The role of free fatty acids (FFAs) as a source of energy and their functions in energy transport within the body are well established. Equally important is a role that FFAs play in oxidative stress following cell membrane depolarization. FFAs are physiologically active, not only as nutritional components, but also as molecules involved in cell signaling and stabilization of membranes via palmitoylation and myristoylation. Protein palmitoylation is involved in numerous cellular processes, including apoptosis, and neuronal transmission. Besides nuclear peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors that mediate the biological effects of FFAs, G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that are activated by FFA, have been recently identified. Those multiple FFA receptors (FFARs), which function on the cell surface as activated FFAs, play significant roles in the regulation of energy metabolism and mediate a wide range of important metabolic processes. FFARs have been targeted in drug development for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. FFAs upregulate transcription of uncoupling proteins, increasing their expression in brain, cardiac, and skeletal muscle that may be protective or cytotoxic, depending on the cellular energy state. Recently, FFA effects on the endothelial function and dysfunction are being recognized. FFAs play a key role in endothelium-dependent nitric oxide production. A disturbance of endothelial function, due to an imbalance in production and release of relaxing and constricting factors, has implications in the development of cardiovascular problems, such as hypertension, as well as neurotoxicity following loss of blood-brain barrier integrity. This review presents information on broad range of FFAs actions of prime importance for physiological processes. Understanding of FFA functions in the body is crucial for developing new therapeutic strategies against several metabolic disorders.


Process Safety Management; also referred to as PSM is the application of management systems to the identification, understanding and control of process hazards to prevent process-related injuries and incidents. The major objective of process safety management (PSM) of highly hazardous chemicals is to prevent unwanted releases of hazardous chemicals especially into locations that could expose employees and others to serious hazards.
Most of the company or plant only uses lagging indicators to measure their process safety performance and it has disadvantages since it indicates process safety performance after accidents occur. Thus, the effort to integrate both lagging and leading indicators had been discussed in this project. Based on the 14 elements of Process Safety Management (PSM), the most relevant Key Performance Indicators are selected and the metrics associated with them are identified.
The focus of this project will be on Process Safety Incident for lagging indicators and Process Hazard Analysis for leading indicators. The calculations for both indicators are based on the guidelines and literature reviews available from the expertise of the process safety field. The main calculations are based on the severity level and score. Thus, a modified severity level and score had been developed to measure the safety performance system of the company or plant by using both lagging and leading indicators.


Particular archaeologic sites containing distinct artifacts were considered by magnetic measurements. This paper deals with the main problems that generaIly arise during the application of magnetic intensity to archaeological investigations. Specific difficulties include lateral variations of magnetic susceptibilities of top soil and near surface rocks, shaIlow heterogeneities, or equipment and reduction errors. In addition, an example of a magnetic survey for archaeological exploration at a part of Tell Basta historical site, Zagazig, Egypt is presented. The observed data were distorted. However, reduction, filtering, correlation and modeIling of the field measurements help in improving the signal-to-noise ratio and better definition and resolution of composite anomalies. Within the surveyed area, the study indicates that 1) The significance of numerical processing techniques in improvement of the meaningful anomaly-to-noise ratio and 2) The presence of some shallow anomaIies (0.5-3m depth) of archaeological interest. The revealed depths to the different discontinuities agree fairly weIl with the archaeological evidences excavated later.


The Integrity Beacon Landing System (IBLS), developed
and tested at Stanford University, is a high integrity
solution to GPS-based Category III precision landing.
IBLS is a kinematic GPS system which incorporates
ground-based Integrity Beacon pseudolites placed under
the approach path. The large geometry change that
occurs during pseudolite overtlight ensures observability
for direct cycle ambiguity estimation. Once cycle
ambiguities have been initialized, position fixes accurate
to the centimeter level are possible. The real-time
accuracy performance of IBLS has already been
demonstrated through flight tests in a Piper Dakota.
The large number of redundant measurements resulting
from Integrity Beacon overtlight and the great precision
of carrier phase measurements provide the leverage for
receiver autonomous integrity monitoring @AIM).
Extremely tight detection thresholds may be set without
incurring high false alarm rates (preserving high
continuity). The measurement residual statistic can be
used to detect a wide specuum of fault scenarios,
including cycle slips, intentional tampering or spoofing,
and spacecraft ephemeris errors. The overall level of
IBLS system integrity as well as accuracy, continuity,
and availability is quantitatively assessed through
analysis, simulation, and flight test. Preliminary results
show that the Required Navigation Performance (RNP)
specification for Category III integrity of one undetected
failure in one billion approaches is achievable using
RAIM with Integrity Beacons. Flight tests were
performed in a Piper Dakota with purposely induced
navigation system failures to demonstrate the
effectiveness of real-time autonomous integrity
monitoring with Integrity Beacons. The results of these
experiments are discussed.


We studied 120 asbestos-exposed workers seeking compensation for asbestos-related ventilatory impairment who were referred to us for evaluation of their complaint of dyspnea. We reviewed history, chest radiographs, pulmonary function studies, and exercise tests. The workers were 59.9 +/- 9.5 (mean +/- SD) yr of age and their first asbestos exposure had been 34.4 +/- 10 yr prior to the study; 63% were smokers, 19% were ex-smokers, and 18% were nonsmokers. Chest radiographs were normal in 4%, showed only pleural disease in 35%, only parenchymal diseases in 5%, and pleuroparenchymal disease in 56%. Restrictive pulmonary function abnormalities were present in 25% of the workers, and obstructive abnormalities were present in 27%. Because the impairment of one of several organ systems (i.e., ventilatory, cardiac, pulmonary vascular, or peripheral circulatory) may limit exercise performance, we designed an exercise test score in an attempt to identify the system causing the limitation. No abnormal limitation was detectable in half (49.2%) of the subjects. Only 26% had a ventilatory limitation, which was much more frequent in smokers (32%) than in nonsmokers (9%) (p less than 0.05). Unexpectedly, rather more (37%) had a cardiac rather than a ventilatory limitation. We conclude that the complaint of dyspnea in these asbestos-exposed workers was usually not caused by a ventilatory dysfunction.


Aim : The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in newborn babies in our environment and hence the suitability of cord blood for stem cell transplantation. Methodology : Cord blood sera of 212 babies in the labour room of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) Benin City were screened for cytomegalovirus IgM between the period of June 2010 and January2011. An antibody titre greater than 1:20 was regarded as positive. Permission was obtained from the UBTH ethical committee before commencement of this study. Result : None of the 212 infants tested was seropositive for CMV IgM. Conclusion : Although the prevalence of cytomegalovirus infection may be high in the general population, it is very low in newborn babies in this community. Hence it is quite suitable for stem cell transplant as far as the possibility of transfer of CMV infection is concerned. Key words : Cytomegalovirus Infection, Newborn Babies


Abstract. The global navigation satellite system (GNSS) recently plays an extremely important role in positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) applications for the modernized automations and mechanizations, e.g., unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), military aircrafts, etc. Nevertheless, GNSS signals are very vulnerable to the influence of various interferences when they are received on Earth, and the reason why it happens is that the long line-of-sight (LOS) distance between the satellite and the receiver user dramatically reduces the power strength after the signal reaches at the ground. The weak GNSS signal is hard to be handled with traditional phase lock loop (PLL), especially in a dynamic environment. Again, the trade-off among the coherent integration time of tracking loop, received signal power strength, and signal or user receiver dynamics is still a tough and remained problem to be solved. The Kalman filter (KF) is always a promising tool to efficiently decrease the random noise for the tracking process. In our work, we evaluate the performances of the tracking loop modelled with both standard KF and extended Kalman filter (EKF). An adaptive algorithm for the covariance matrix of the process noise is contained in our system to increase the tracking ability in a weak and dynamic environment. Besides, a noise channel is also contained to automatically adjust the priori measurement covariance for the KF tracking loop model. Simulation results demonstrate the performance with the proposed technique.


My dissertation consists of two independent parts. Part one of my dissertation examines concepts of quantum information. I clarify three very different concepts of information and assess their implications for understanding quantum mechanics. First I clarify the concept of information due to Shannon, and its relation to physical theories. Using the Shannon concept, I examine two purportedly new concepts of quantum information. I argue that a fundamental philosophical mistake is made regarding these concepts. Advocates of these new concepts do not properly distinguish between the properties of information due to the physical medium it is stored in from the properties of information per se. This distinction is crucial for developing a new concept to help us understand quantum mechanics and evaluating its merits. Part two of my dissertation examines explanations of the efficiency that quantum computers enjoy over classical computers for some computational tasks, and the relationship between explanations of efficiency and interpretations of quantum mechanics. I examine the so-called quantum parallelism thesis, that quantum computers can perform many computations in a single step, a feat thought not to be possible on classical computers. The truth of this thesis is not obvious, and contested by some. I develop a set of general criteria for computation that any computing device must satisfy. I use these criteria to demonstrate that the quantum parallelism thesis is true. As an application of these general criteria for computation I articulate three distinct concepts of parallelism and demonstrate that classical computers can compute in parallel as well. This demonstrates that the truth of the quantum parallelism thesis alone does not provide a complete explanation of the efficiency of quantum computers. I supplement the quantum parallelism thesis to provide a complete explanation. Finally, I address the claim that only the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics can underwrite the truth of the quantum parallelism thesis. The general criteria for computation provide support for the quantum parallelism thesis independent of any interpretation of quantum mechanics.


Recent development in rice genomics has greatly facilitated new technologies to be used to decipher the complex resistance mechanisms to rice brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens (Stal). In this study, microarray analysis using a 44K Agilent chip was conducted on 12 rice varieties having different levels of BPH resistance. Results revealed the presence of differences in expressed genes between resistant and susceptible varieties which coincide very well with the previous physiological results obtained via Electrical Penetration Graph (EPG) and honeydew clock experiments. A total of 21,556 probes passed a statistical filter using the quantile method. A total of 239 probes were identified as being significantly different in expression between the resistant and susceptible varieties. The expression of 89 genes was up-regulated while 150 genes were down regulated. Some of the genes identified were highly correlated with the phenotypic data obtained in earlier studies. Among them are hexose transporter (stp1) (R = 0.71) and glutamate receptor protein GLR3.4b (GLR3.4) (R = – 0.69) genes which are highly correlated with the phloem ingestion EPG waveform type. The microarray analysis on the 12 rice varieties and the potential candidate genes that may play their roles in BPH resistance for future study were discussed.


The objectives of this research are to find out the consumption patterns of household consumers of "siger" rice, the attributes which become the considerations on consuming "siger" rice, and the preferred attribute combinations of "siger" rice. This research was conducted in Natar District, South Lampung Regency as the center of "siger" rice producers and consumers in Lampung Province.  The research was conducted by survey method, with the total samples of 52 "siger" rice consumers that were drawn randomly from the population.  A Quantitative (Conjoint) and qualitative descriptive analyses were employed toanswered the objectives.  The results showed that consumption patterns of "siger" rice could be explained as follows. The household of "siger" rice consumers consumed "siger" rice for 1-5 times/week.  They obtained the raw materials from their fields and processed it by themselves. However, they consumed it less than 1 kg/week by mixing it with regular rice, and consumed it because of their own habit. The attributes that became their considerations, from the most to the least important were color, texture, smell, price, and packaging. The preferred attribute combinations of "siger" rice was cheap price (less than or equal to Rp7,000/kg), dark brown color, chewy, not strong aroma, and unpacked. Keywords:  attributes, consumption patterns, consumers, "siger" rice


This PhD thesis describes set up of technological models for obtaining high health value
foods and ingredients that preserve the final product characteristics as well as enrich with
nutritional components.
In particular, the main object of my research has been Virgin Olive Oil (VOO) and its
important antioxidant compounds which differentiate it from all other vegetables oils.
It is well known how the qualitative and quantitative presence of phenolic molecules
extracted from olives during oil production is fundamental for its oxidative and nutritional
quality. For this purpose, agronomic and technological conditions of its production have
been investigated. It has also been examined how this fraction can be better preserved
during storage. Moreover, its relation with VOO sensorial characteristics and its interaction
with a protein in emulsion foods have also been studied.
Finally, an experimental work was carried out to determine the antioxidative and heat
resistance properties of a new antioxidant (EVS-OL) when used for high temperature frying
such as is typically employed for the preparation of french fries.
Results of the scientific research have been submitted for a publication and some data has
already been published in national and international scientific journals.


Seed dispersal benefits plants and frugivores, and potentially drives co-evolution, with consequences to diversification evidenced for, e.g., primates. Evidence for macro-coevolutionary patterns in multi-specific, plant-animal mutualisms is scarce, and the mechanisms driving them remain unexplored. We tested for phylogenetic congruences in primate-plant interactions and showed strong co-phylogenetic signals across Neotropical forests, suggesting that both primates and plants share evolutionary history. Phylogenetic congruence between Platyrrhini and Angiosperms was driven by the most generalist primates, modulated by their functional traits, interacting with a wide-range of Angiosperms. Consistently similar eco-evolutionary dynamics seem to be operating irrespective of local assemblages, since co-phylogenetic signal emerged independently across three Neotropical regions. Our analysis supports the idea that macroevolutionary, coevolved patterns among interacting mutualistic partners are driven by super-generalist taxa. Trait convergence among multiple partners within multi-specific assemblages appears as a mechanism favouring these likely coevolved outcomes.


For the publication of volume 35, issue 64, of Cuadernos de Administración by Universidad del Valle, we have taken several steps in strengthening the dissemination of the knowledge that is brought forward with each new issue, all to continue consolidating ourselves as one of the most relevant publications in the area in Colombia. As a result of the call for this issue, and after a rigorous process of blind evaluation based on the judgment of the selected peers, we have decided to publish 7 papers on this occasion, which we hope will contribute to the expansion of knowledge and serve as drivers for reflection by our readers and reference for authors who are delving into these topics. We extend our gratitude to the members of the Editorial Committee, to the authors and to each of the peer evaluators because, through their work, they contribute to the improvement of our publication and to the dissemination of knowledge above all.The first paper is entitled "Individual unlearning from the point of view of managers in mergers and acquisitions situations in Brazil", is the result of a research process based on the Brazilian companies managers study method, with mergers and acquisitions; among the results is that many of them have experienced some unlearning. This paper seeks to understand this phenomenon and to make possible its analysis in each context.
"Sustainability index, evaluated by University Sustainable Development Units: Colombian University case study", is the title of the second paper published in this issue. It corresponds to an index proposal constructed with a seven-step methodology. The index serves enterprise-wide decisions, where comparisons and best practices can be achieved.The third paper, "Perceptions of the Colombian business sector in relation to its role in post-conflict scenarios", is where its authors present a very relevant topic from the perception of entrepreneurs about the "role of the Colombian business sector in the post-conflict and peace-building scenario". Using quantitative methods, a survey was conducted on 200 companies located in the main cities of Colombia throughout different economic sectors. The results show that there is a willingness to participate in the post-conflict period, but there is a lack of awareness and some concerns about the extent of the participation. "Platforms for SMEs as business models: a user-centric activity system approach" is the fourth paper in this issue, where the authors reflect on the use of web 2.0 tools in SMEs and present their results on the acquisition and retention of users as a business strategy and their relationship with the value proposition and business model. In the fifth paper, "Limited financial rationality by owners or managers of Mexican micro-companies", the authors propose a hierarchical categorization of the behaviors of the people who make financial decisions, from the analysis of limited rationality and within learning processes within the companies."Simulation model for the management of internal container transport in a seaport" is the title of the sixth paper of this issue. The proposal seeks to make the containers internal transport process more efficient, incorporating other variables previously not considered directly. Applying the model can achieve increased operator productivity.Finally, the title of the last paper "MBAs and career development: a literature review from the perspective of human capital", the authors systematize the results of their research on the subject in relevant journals on the effect of pursuing an MBA on management. They analyze three dimensions of human capital and present as a discussion, some implications and the possibility of new research. The content of each of these seven papers is the sole responsibility of their authors. This issue becomes a new opportunity for the national and international scientific community to judge the outcome of each of these proposals.


Microtubers can be easily induced in vitro, however so far their small size and low yield have restricted their use as propagules. Temporary immersion systems were used to produce potato microtubers and the effect of culture parameters as inoculum density and time of immersion on microtuberization were studied. When the inoculum density was increased from 60 to 90 explants per TIS no differences were observed regarding the number of microtubers per plant. However, fresh weight of the microtubers was superior with 60 explants (164.70g) compared with 47g obtained with 90 explants per TIS and the diameter of microtubers was affected adversely too. Immersion times of 2 minutes increased the number of microtubers per plant, as well as their size and quality, compared to immersion times of 30 minutes. In field studies plants derived from microtubers produced minitubers with higher diameter and fresh weight than plantlets from in vitro culture, with minituber numbers per plant similar in both treatments. The feasibility of developing a protocol for microtuber production in TIS and their direct planting into open field for the commercial production of potato minituber seed was demonstrated.


The Saccharomyces cerevisiae C-type cyclin and its cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk8p) repress the transcription of several stress response genes. To relieve this repression, cyclin C is destroyed in cells exposed to reactive oxygen species (ROS). This report describes the requirement of cyclin C destruction for the cellular response to ROS. Compared to wild type, deleting cyclin C makes cells more resistant to ROS while its stabilization reduces viability. The Slt2p MAP kinase cascade mediates cyclin C destruction in response to ROS treatment but not heat shock. This destruction pathway is important as deleting cyclin C suppresses the hypersensitivity of slt2 mutants to oxidative damage. The ROS hypersensitivity of an slt2 mutant correlates with elevated programmed cell death as determined by TUNEL assays. Consistent with the viability studies, the elevated TUNEL signal is reversed in cyclin C mutants. Finally, two results suggest that cyclin C regulates programmed cell death independently of its function as a transcriptional repressor. First, deleting its corepressor CDK8 does not suppress the slt2 hypersensitivity phenotype. Second, the human cyclin C, which does not repress transcription in yeast, does regulate ROS sensitivity. These findings demonstrate a new role for the Slt2p MAP kinase cascade in protecting the cell from programmed cell death through cyclin C destruction.


The next generation of ultralight dark matter (DM) direct detection experiments, which could confirm sub-eV bosons as the dominant source of DM, will feature multiple detectors operating at various terrestrial locations. As a result of the wave-like nature of ultralight DM, spatially separated detectors will each measure a unique DM phase. When the separation between experiments is comparable to the DM coherence length, the spatially-varying phase contains information beyond that which is accessible at a single detector. We introduce a formalism to extract this information, which performs interferometry directly on the DM wave. In particular, we develop a likelihood-based framework that combines data from multiple experiments to constrain directional information about the DM phase space distribution. We show that the signal in multiple detectors is subject to a daily modulation effect unique to wave-like DM. Leveraging daily modulation, we illustrate that within days of an initial discovery multiple detectors acting in unison could localize directional parameters of the DM velocity distribution such as the direction of the solar velocity to sub-degree accuracy, or the direction of a putative cold DM stream to the sub-arcminute level. We outline how to optimize the locations of multiple detectors with either resonant cavity (such as ADMX or HAYSTAC) or quasistatic (such as ABRACADABRA or DM-Radio) readouts to have maximal sensitivity to the full 3-dimensional DM velocity distribution.


Very successful when first performed in London in 1908, Diana of Dobson's introduces its audience to the overworked and underpaid female assistants at Dobson's Drapery Emporium, whose only alternative to their dead-end jobs is the unlikely prospect of marriage. Although Cicely Hamilton calls the play "a romantic comedy," like George Bernard Shaw she also criticizes a social structure in which so-called self-made men profit from the cheap labour of others, and men with good educations, but insufficient inherited money, look for wealthy wives rather than for work.This Broadview edition also includes excerpts from Hamilton's autobiography Life Errant (1935) and Marriage as a Trade (1909), her witty polemic on "the woman question"; historical documents illustrating employment options for women and women's work in the theatre; and reviews of the original production of the play.


Src kinase mutations and/or overexpression have been implicated in the development of a number of human cancer including colon, breast, and lung cancers. Thus, designing potent and selective Src kinase inhibitors as anticancer agents is a subject of major interest. A series of 4-aryl substituted derivatives of 2-amino-7-dimethylamino-4H-chromene-3-carbonitrile were synthesized using one-pot reaction of appropriate substituted aromatic aldehydes, malononitrile, and 3-(dimethylamino)phenol in the presence of piperidine. All 23 compounds were evaluated for inhibition of Src kinase and cell proliferation in human colon adenocarcinoma (HT-29) and leukemia (CCRF-CEM) cell lines. Among the tested compounds, 2-chlorophenyl- (4c), 3-nitrophenyl- (4h), 4-trifluoromethyphenyl- (4i), and 2,3-dichlorophenyl- (4k) substituted chromenes showed Src kinase inhibitory effect with IC(50) values of 11.1-18.3 µM. Compound 4c was relatively selective against Src (IC(50) = 11.1 µM), when compared with selected kinases, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR, IC(50) > 300 µM), C-terminal Src kinase (Csk, IC(50) = 101.7 µM), and lymphocyte-specific protein tyrosine kinase (Lck, IC(50) = 46.8 µM). 3-Chlorophenyl substituted thiazole (4v) and 2-chlorophenylsubstituted thiazole (4u) chromene derivatives inhibited the cell proliferation of HT-29 and CCRF-CEM by 80% and 50% respectively, at a concentration of 50 µM. The data indicate that 4H-chromene-3-carbonitrile scaffold has the potential to be optimized further for designing more potent Src kinase inhibitors and/or anticancer lead compounds.


Correctness verification of query results is an important security concern in data outsourcing scenarios. In previous approaches, the correctness verification was impossible in real applications due to its high overhead. A trust-based approach is proposed here to reduce the correctness verification overhead which relies on the previous positive behavior of service provider. A client maintains a trust value for service provider showing the history of service provider comportment. Considering the trust value, the client selects a portion of query result randomly, and forwards it toward the data owner as a result-proof request. The data owner responses to the correctness of the result-proof request using a bloom filter structure. Based on the result-proof response and the trust in the service provider, the client decides whether to accept or reject its query result. In terms of performance, this approach outperforms previous approaches since it does not contain signature overhead in the verification process (which is presented by simulation results). In terms of correctness, this approach is modeled using a transition system and the correctness properties are verified through the Linear Temporal Logic.


This is a study of 1,404 patients with maxillo-facial injuries treated at the Dental Clinic, Singapore General Hospital during the period January 1977 to December 1979. The significant features in the pattern of injuries in this group of patients are: 1. the commonest causes of maxillo-facial injuries are falls from height and automobile accidents. 2. the age group most affected is 0 to 39 years. 3. a high incidence in males (72.2%). The various modalities of treatment are also reviewed. Recent trends in the management of complex maxillo-facial fractures have significantly reduced the period of hospitalisation.


High-frequency (HF) models of electrical motors and power converters are greatly important for electromagnetic compatibility characterization of electrical drives and for electromagnetic interference (EMI) filter design. In this paper, an accurate and effective method for the characterization and tuning of HF models (150 kHz-30 MHz) for induction motors has been proposed based on experimental measurements of the motor impedance. Impedance measurements have been taken in three different configurations: between all the six winding terminals which are shorted and grounded; between the three input terminals which are shorted and grounded (common mode); and between one input terminal and the other two which are shorted (differential mode). Once an HF motor model structure has been chosen and modeled using a state-space representation, its parameters have been tuned using genetic algorithm to match the real impedance in each corresponding configuration. Comparison between the experimental impedance measurements and the model impedance estimate are shown for all the tested configurations, in order to validate the model within the frequency range of interest for EMI.


Several MaxSAT algorithms based on iterative SAT solving have been proposed in recent years. These algorithms are in general the most efficient for real-world applications. Existing data indicates that, among MaxSAT algorithms based on iterative SAT solving, the most efficient ones are core-guided, i.e. algorithms which guide the search by iteratively computing unsatisfiable subformulas (or cores). For weighted MaxSAT, core-guided algorithms exhibit a number of important drawbacks, including a possibly exponential number of iterations and the use of a large number of auxiliary variables. This paper develops two new algorithms for (weighted) MaxSAT that address these two drawbacks. The first MaxSAT algorithm implements core-guided iterative SAT solving with binary search. The second algorithm extends the first one by exploiting disjoint cores. The empirical evaluation shows that core-guided binary search is competitive with current MaxSAT solvers.


The second annual NSF Software Infrastructure for Sustained Innovation (SI2) PI meeting took place in Arlington, VA February 24-25, 2014. It was hosted by Beth Plale, Indiana University; Douglas Thain, University of Notre Dame; and Matt Jones, National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis.

This report captures the challenges and outcomes emerging from the meeting over the four topic areas discussed i) Attribution and Citation, ii) Reproducibility, Reusability, and Preservation, iii) Project/Software Sustainability, and iv) Career Paths. The report is an academic synthesis with credit to all the participants and to the notetakers who took prodigious notes and synthesized the results upon which the conclusions of this report are derived.


We have extensively studied the behavior of pronounced subgap structures on the quasiparticle branches of the current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of intrinsic Josephson junctions (IJJs) in (Bi1-xPbx)2Sr2CaCu2Oy (x=0.15, 0.2) single crystals for their applications in THz range. Six subgap structures are successfully observed between 6.3 and 26.2 mV on the first quasiparticle branch at 4.2 K. The intensities of two typical subgap structures at 6.3 and 8.2 mV are found to be approximately proportional to Ic 2 (critica current)2 over a wide range of temperature between 4.2 and ~ 80 K. They are interpreted with regard to the interference of Raman-active optical phonons with ac Josephson currents in IJJs. Under magnetic field up to 2.5 T they have been affected somewhat in the respect to return current, though the vortex flow also has been induced in IJJs. By microwave application of 2-100 GHz they have been strongly affected so that their peak intensities decrease and then each peak splits into two, with increasing microwave power.


Abstract Context: Osteosarcoma is a rare malignant bone tumor, commonly occurring in the age group of 10 to 24 years. Recent reports have indicated that there is a link between fluoride exposure and osteosarcoma. Aims: The present study was planned to analyze serum levels of fluoride in patients of osteosarcoma and fluoride content of their drinking water. Settings and Design: The present study was carried out comparing 10 patients of osteosarcoma and 10 healthy volunteers (who served as controls). Materials and Methods: Serum and drinking water fluoride levels were estimated by ion selective electrode. Statistical analysis used: The data were computed as mean ± SD and Student's t test was applied. Results: Both, the serum and drinking water fluoride levels, were significant by higher in patients with osteosarcoma as compared to controls (P < 0.05, P < 0.001, respectively). Conclusions: These results suggest a link between fluoride exposure and osteosarcoma.


The shaping of geography as a discipline has been the result of a combination of productive and successful communication and missed opportunities, of presence and absence, of fluid travels of ideas and projects, but also of closures, impediments, good lessons that got lost. This paper suggests that using a counterfactual approach to draw attention to specific geographies that remained unfulfilled and poorly known helps to think beyond linear genealogies. By discussing a particular book called Le Metafore della Terra by Giuseppe Dematteis, published in Italian in 1985 but largely unknown in English-language geography, we reflect on what happened when it was published – and also specifically what did not happen and, cautiously, what might have happened. In his book, Dematteis took issue with geography and geographers' past and contemporary mistakes, suggesting that the depoliticization of geographical knowledge had served merely powerful interests, rendering the imagining of alternative worlds impossible. He picked apart sacred tenets of the geographical tradition: escapist fantasies of exploration and conquest, the poorly problematized use of scale, the faith in the power of cartographic reason, the metaphysics of organicism, and the magical belief in the power of the market. Here, by extending the idea of counterfactual histories to look inwards to the discipline of geography itself, we choose to engage with what might have happened if this particular critical approach to geography had become better known, exploring why this radical project for the discipline was cast aside, including by the author himself. In so doing, we consider how scholars are located in so-called 'peripheral' places of production of geographical knowledge, discussing how this helps to understand the circulation and non-circulation of certain ideas. We use these alternatively rewritten geographies to show how dominant linear narratives of the emerging of critical thinking in the 1980s tell us an incomplete story, suggesting instead a tangled, multiple history of the discipline. We are interested in how scientific knowledge is communicated and received, how this exposes both the multi-sited nature of knowledge production and circulation, and cultural and national differences in the reception of science, and what this says about the possibility of critical thinking and progressive ideas having real impact.


An abiding challenge to historians of the Supreme Court of the United States is fashioning a methodology that adequately captures the significant changes in the Court's decision making process over time without losing sight of the special role the Court and its justices play in American government and culture. Too often historical studies of the Court have suffered from anachronistic perspectives on the actions of justices or a failure to understand the Court's distinctive deliberative protocols. This essay proposes a methodological approach designed to deal with, if not to completely surmount, those challenges. The methodology is designed to simultaneously consider justices as historical actors, reflecting the distinctive attitudes and values of their times; as collegial decision makers, assuming roles and engaging in deliberations that flow from their being participants in an institution that makes its decisions collectively and requires a majority of its members to endorse its judgments; and as individual personalities, bringing with them to the bench their distinctive and idiosyncratic ways of conceptualizing and resolving legal and political controversies. By identifying these different ways of thinking about the performance of justices, and at the same emphasizing that judicial decision making, at any point in the Court's history, is a blend of different variables, the approach seeks to avoid anachronism, excessive reliance on the formal justifications for decisions, and uninformed speculation about how the Court's internal decision making process functions. The essay concludes that although the proposed methodology may avoid some of the obvious pitfalls in approaching the Court's decision making over time, the challenges of anachronism and bias remain endemic in any effort to recover accurate renditions of the Court and its justices.


Artificial neural networks are networks of very simple processing elements based on an approximate model of a biological neuron. It is widely believed that because biological neural networks are tolerant of the loss of individual neurons and because there is a strong analogy between biological neural networks and artificial neural networks, then artificial neural networks must also be inherently fault tolerant. This is, unfortunately, simply not true.
Results reported in this dissertation show that in the task of function approximation the multilayer perceptron is very intolerant of faults to the extent that the loss of a single network parameter can ruin the learned approximation. A method for quantitatively evaluating network fault tolerance is proposed in this dissertation. This method is applicable to a large number of artificial neural network architectures. Using this method, it can be shown that the generalized radial basis function network is much more fault tolerant than the multilayer perceptron. Additionally, the generalized radial basis function network learns more rapidly than the multilayer perceptron.
These findings can be explained by using spectral methods. When the spectral content of a network's activation function is not similar to the spectral content of the function to be learned, then learning is made very difficult and the learned solution is very sensitive to the loss or alteration of network parameters.
Numerous methods for improving the fault tolerance of artificial neural networks are presented and discussed. Interestingly, experimental results show that a well chosen set of initial conditions can measurably improve fault tolerance. Also, training with random intermittent faults can significantly improve the fault tolerance of neural networks. In fact, the improvement in fault tolerance in the generalized radial basis function network was such that the loss of any single weight actually caused improvement or no change from the fault-free performance. Finally, this dissertation presents guidelines for intelligently choosing network parameters for good learning as well as improved fault tolerance.


While the main purpose of Ontology Design Patterns (ODPs) is to support the process of ontology engineering, they can also be used to improve existing ontologies. This paper has a focus on ODP selection and integration for ontology improvement. Based on the case of the ExpertFinder ontology, which allows for competency description of researchers, selection and integration of ODP is investigated with an explorative view. The current state of ODP selection strategies is discussed and problems arising during integration of ODP are shown. On this base, suggestions for improvements are made. Although this study deals with the integration into an existing ontology, most of the assumptions and suggestions are also valid for the general case of ODP usage.


Global warming issue has forced the construction world including architecture to find the green material in order to minimize CO 2 which damages to the nature. In the beginning, wood was one of the green material but it has long growth cycle. Lately, bamboo has been chosen for its fast growing cycle and resuming some wood properties, also known as local material and eco-friendly –benign to the nature. Generally, wood and bamboo are composed by carbon-based compound. So, they are combustible and flammable when they are exposed to the fire. Up to now, there are not so many studies regarding the fire behavior of raw round bamboo which is used as the structure. To investigate the effectiveness of bamboo protection layer, the nine-trunk bamboos will be tied up to construct the column. A one bamboo will be placed in the middle and surrounded by the other eight-bamboos –as the protection layer of the center. All of them are with no-fire retardant. By doing this, it is possible to obtain knowledge upon bamboo on its natural properties. Specimen will be exposed to the fire inside the furnace up to 700° C. The temperature changing on the specimen will be measured by thermocouples which are installed inside and outside the wall of main bamboo in the center part. The main bamboo is expected to have lower temperature than its auto-ignition temperature, so that the structure will be able stand out during the fire until the occupants able to be evacuated safely.


Arborists and landscape managers are seeking ways to maintain tree plantings and landscaped areas more efficiently and more effectively. Hardly a day goes by that the news does not carry a story of some organization or agency that is having to cut back services, reduce the number of employees or consider raising taxes because of increased costs. New pressures are being placed on public and private arborists, particularly where the major cost is personnel and these costs are escalating rapidly. Not only are arborists being forced to be more efficient, but they are having to justify more convincingly the budgets with which to carry out their responsibilities. Arborists need information from which they can make management decisions as well as develop ways to be more efficient and effective. Depending on the organization, its personnel and its resources, a variety of approaches may be effective. However, whatever procedures are used, they all fit into a general pattern of an approach to management which have certain similarities.


Method validation is one of the measures universally recognized as a necessary part of a comprehensive system of quality assurance in analytical chemistry. In the past, ISO, IUPAC, and AOAC International have cooperated to produce agreed protocols or guidelines on the "Design, conduct and interpretation of method performance studies" [1], on the "Proficiency testing of (chemical) analytical laboratories" [2], on "Internal quality control in analytical chemistry laboratories" [3], and on "The use of recovery information in analytical measurement" [4]. The Working Group that produced these protocols/guidelines has now been mandated by IUPAC to prepare guidelines on the single-laboratory validation of methods of analysis. These guidelines provide minimum recommendations on procedures that should be employed to ensure adequate validation of analytical methods. A draft of the guidelines has been discussed at an International Symposium on the Harmonization of Quality Assurance Systems in Chemical Laboratory, the proceedings from which have been published by the UK Royal Society of Chemistry.


This article is an essay on the question, whether contemporary state (at least contemporary state in Central and Eastern Europe) is not changing its own nature as a consequence of changing nature of its citizens – what happens with our state if its citizens start to behave like free riders? The first part presents the free rider ' s " moral " attitude (in contrast with liberal, libertarian, Kantian and utilitarian attitudes) and speculates on why this attitude could be dominant nowadays. The second part tries to describe implications of free rider ' s attitude for a state- a new metaphor of state as an authoritarian " insurance company " is offered – and for the behavior of politicians and bureaucrats. The third part offers a comparison of these implications with some ideas of public choice theory.The fourth part discusses the role of judges (as guardians of the rule of law and legal principles) in a state of free riders. The fifth part in a form of a conclusion speculates about broader philosophical implication of the presented thesis, especially for the field of communication and language.


DTU Orbit (01/01/2019)  Review of toxic episodes and management strategies in the Danish mussel production Denmark has in many years been one of the world's main producers of blue mussels caught from natural banks. The Danish mussel aquaculture sector is now growing. The Danish production areas have been regarded as "low risk" areas with respect to toxic algae and occurrence of marine biotoxins. The change to more production of cultured mussel results in higher risk for occurrence of marine biotoxins because of the closer interaction between toxic algae and mussels. Results showing the difference between content of marine biotoxins in bottom mussel and cultured mussel from the same production areas will be presented. The presentation will be based on results from toxic episodes in recent years and will cover different aspects and changes made in the Danish mussel monitoring system in the last years to improve both the food safety and the commercial conditions for the mussel producers. This includes use of heat treated mussels as matrix for marine biotoxin testing and consequently a reduction of the maximum limit for lipophilic toxins by a factor of approximately two, use of chemical methods for verification and extra precaution measurements during risk periods, and use of measurement of actual algae cell toxicity of potential toxic algae in combination with algae cell number and mussel toxicity for opening or closing of production areas.


A method of 3D visualisation of archaeological sites combining 3D spatial representation of particular excavation units with complex symbolic representation of the sites based on the Harris Matrix model is presented. The 3D representation provides information about geographic and geometric properties of the units, while the matrix representation reveals temporal relationships between the units and layers. Dynamic creation of the 3D models provides a high level of flexibility allowing users to freely select data and adjust the method of visualisation.


The anisotropic plastic behavior of metallic sheet has a significant influence on spring-back, and is usually modeled by anisotropic yield function in numerical simulation. Material parameters of anisotropic yield function are generally identified either by yield stresses or by r-values, or both of them. For Hill1948 and Yld89 anisotropic yield functions, r-values are still widely used to calibrate their material parameters in spring-back prediction. Here, yield stresses and r-values were respectively used to calibrate them, and the differences of the spring-back simulated by these two identification methods were discussed. To evaluate their accuracy, the simulation results were compared with the spring-back calculated by Yld2000-2d anisotropic yield function. The result shows that when yield stresses were used to identify the material parameters of Hill1948 and Yld89 yield functions, the simulated spring-back was closer to that of Yld2000-2d yield function.


Angina pectoris, a constricting pain resulting from inadequate oxygen supply to the heart, typically develops as a consequence of physical exertion or emotional stress in the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD). However, there is also evidence that physical activity is effective in the prevention of CAD and may also prevent angina in the long term. Guideline-based strategies for chronic stable angina aim to reduce symptoms and improve patient prognosis through lifestyle changes and appropriate medications and interventions. Physicians may have uncertainty and concerns around the safety of exercise regimens in patients with chronic angina, a factor complicated by the paucity of data related to this clinical condition. This narrative review discusses the importance of regular physical activity as a key component in the management of patients with stable angina, demonstrating cardioprotective effects in patients with CAD, as well as improving prognosis and physical fitness while maintaining an appropriate risk/benefit ratio. Given these benefits, current guidelines recommend 30–60 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity for at least 5 days/week in patients with chronic coronary syndromes, personalized based on the 'Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type' (FITT) principle to derive optimal efficacy with the lowest risk; addition of resistance training 2 days/week can provide further benefits. We also highlight the importance of complementing pharmacological options with regular physical exercise in patients with stable angina, and how web-based technologies can help to overcome some of the barriers to exercise training and challenges associated with implementing cardiac rehabilitation programmes during the COVID-19 pandemic.


We propose a sender-based rate-distortion optimized framework to stream scalable bitstreams of 3-D wavelet video stored at the sender to a remote receiver. Based on the requests and feedback from the receiver, the source rate-distortion profiles, the desired playout latency and transmission rate, and the network characteristics, the sender optimizes the responses sent to the receiver throughout the video playout session in order to minimize the distortion in the reconstructed frames. Rate-distortion optimized response is formulated as a convex optimization problem, and an offline-computation approach is proposed to further reduce the complexity at the sender. Experimental results show that the proposed sender-based approach outperform the receiver-based approach, and the offline-computation approach very closely approximates the fully-optimized approach.


The research presented in this thesis rests on the premise that the administrative and legal systems of France have a critical bearing on the way that decisions on applications for permissions to build are taken, and the nature of the
decisions themselves. In the knowledge that the French system of law offered a legalistic, regulatory franiework for planning policy and policy implementation, four
specific questions are posed: firstly about the relationship of plans to development control decisions; secondly about the effects of the system on applicants; thirdly about the possibilities for third parties to be involved in, and seek redress from, development control decisions and fourthly about the effects of the decentralisation of development control powers that has taken place since 1983. These questions are then located within a broader discussion of discretion, accountability and the management of uncertainty. The theoretical discussion of the first chapter paves the way for a more detailed presentation of the nature and origins of French local administration and French planning law and procedure which in turn lead to a case study of the 55 communes of the Urban Community of Lyon and eight studies of development control applications which are explored through an examination of the case file documents and interviews with participants. Two sets of conclusions are drawn from the study. The first set concerns the
effects of a legalised system on the making and implementation of planning policy. The first conclusion is that the legalistic approach of the French planning system
appears to create serious difficulties for finding an appropriate expression for policy. In part the problem is shown to be as much a question of ethos as of what is really
possible under the law, amid some examples of practice in Lyon show how flexibility is still possible even within a legalised system. The second conclusion is that once the
rules are departed from, the system offers no alternative means of testing policy in its specific application, although the use of non-statutory consultation meetings in Lyon has gone some way to meeting the problem. The third is that the pattern of zoning and regulations does not appear to help the maintenance of a planning strategy. The fourth is that a legalised system does not promote certainty for either administrators or applicants. The fifth is that a legalised system does not permit third parties to participate in the decision-making and ensures that objections are seen mainly as being about property values.
The second set of conclusions has to do with the question of the power to decide and the accountability of decision-makers. The first is that the legalised system, while offering potential for agency discretion, nevertheless appears to favour officer discretion which on the evidence of the case studies is rife. While offering mayors the possibility of tactical power, it appears to reduce the accountability for decisions taken. Moreover, the control of the legality of decisions is dependent equally upon the discretion of the prefect. The second is that the pattern of crossregulation within the French system of local government has ensured the continuity of dependencies between the principal actors in the planning system. The final
conclusion is that decentralisation has had relatively little effect on the balance of power. In the Lyon conurbation, COURLY would appear to be the principal
beneficiary of the new powers, which would suggest that more power will be concentrated in future at the local level, but that the power will not be any more susceptible to control by the electorate.


A collaborative distributed estimation problem over a communication constrained network is considered from an information theory perspective. A suitable architecture for the codes for this multiterminal information theory problem is determined under source-channel separation. In particular, distributed source codes in which each node multicasts a different message to each subset of other nodes are studied. This code construction hybridizes multiple description codes and codes for the CEO problem. The goal of this paper is to determine the fundamental relationship between the multicast communication rates and estimation performance obtainable. An achievable rate distortion region is proved to this problem and its structural properties are studied. Also, this achievable rate region is shown to simplify to the known bounds to some simpler problems.


drug. We consider that this leaves insufficient time for reliable identification ofthe offending drug or drugs. We agree that the drugs should probably be re-introduced in this order. A further difficult problem is the re-introduction of chemotherapy after an episode of acute liver failure. Certainly it is our policy, as discussed by Mitchell et al,' to change to drugs with no history of hepatotoxicity in patients fortunate enough to have survived this complication.


Tobacco dependence is a complex phenomenon that is not fully understood. Nicotine is the main alkaloid in tobacco and the addictive compound of tobacco. It can improve both mood and cognitive functioning; these positive effects are strong reinforcements for smokers and contribute to their addiction. Opposite results also have been reported, however, and the effects of nicotine remain controversial. Recent epidemiological and empirical studies have indicated that smoking or nicotine or both may have protective effects against certain diseases. These findings have suggested that nicotine may be used as a therapeutic agent. However, because a variety of nicotinic cholinergic receptors are present in the brain, new agonist compounds may prove to be more effective than nicotine for therapeutic purposes. Studies are reviewed and the suggestion made that nicotine may prove useful as a tool to help us understand normal and pathological brain functioning.


This part of DS 781 presents data for the faults for the geologic and geomorphic map of the Offshore Santa Cruz map area, California. The vector data file is included in "Faults_OffshoreSantaCruz.zip," which is accessible from http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7TM785G. The offshore Santa Cruz map area lies about 15 to 25 km southwest of the San Andreas Fault, the dominant structure in the distributed transform boundary between the North American and Pacific plates. The map area straddles the right-lateral Santa Cruz Fault zone, a prominent structure west of the San Andreas Fault in the broader San Andreas Fault system. The Santa Cruz Fault zone occurs predominantly in the offshore and extends 400 km from Point Conception on the south to Bolinas and Point Reyes on the north (Dickinson and others, 2005), coming onland at coastal promontories such as Pescadero Point in the map area and Pillar Point, a few km north of Half Moon Bay. In the offshore, the Santa Cruz Fault system forms a distributed shear zone about 2 to 4 km wide that includes two main diverging fault strands. The western strand (also known as the Frijoles Fault) extends offshore from Pescadero Point. The eastern strand (also known as the Coastways Fault or Seal Cove Fault), is mostly onshore in this map area. Cumulative lateral slip on the Santa Cruz Fault zone is thought to range from 4 to 10 mm/yr in this region (U.S. Geological Survey, 2010). The western strand of the Santa Cruz Fault zone (i.e., Frijoles Fault) forms the eastern boundary of the Santa Cruz high. Faults were primarily mapped by interpretation of seismic reflection profile data (see OFR 2013-1071). The seismic reflection profiles were collected between 2007 and 2010. References Cited Dickinson, W.R., Ducea, M., Rosenberg, L.I., Greene, H.G., Graham, S.A., Clark, J.C., Weber, G.E., Kidder, S., Ernst, W.G., and Brabb, E.E., 2005, Net dextral slip, Neogene Santa Cruz-Hosgri fault zone, coastal California: Geologic evidence and tectonic implications: Geological Society of America Special Paper 391, 43 p.


The early 9th century Carolingian manuscript of the Epistola Anne ad Senecam was discovered by B. Bischoff in the Archiepiscopal library of Cologne and published by him 1984. It is a short, incomplete Latin text of some ninety lines that Bischoff identified as a late antique Jewish missionsschrift addressed to certain unidentified fratres. There is little agreement in the current literature on the identity of the author or the addressee(s), nor on the date of its composition, and it has been proposed that the text is in fact Christian. The titulus has been taken as a later interpolation with no relation to the work. There have been two subsequent editions (Jacobi and Hilhorst) and a German translation (Wischmeyer) all dependent on Bischoff?s editio princeps. No extended study of the text has been published. The present study reexamines the text and presents a corrected edition of the Latin from the original manuscript together with an English translation. An analysis of the latinity and rhetoric of the text shows it to be have been written by a highly literate author aimed at a pagan, aristocratic audience similar to the group seen in the works of Macrobius. The fratres are not the prime addressee of the text but represent a Iamblichan neoplatonic group addressed in an apostrophe within the text. The use of a mixed cursus in the clausulae indicates a late 4th-5th century date. The work is shown to allude to Genesis and sapiential texts, particularly Wisdom but does not quote directly from them. There are indications that the author is using Biblical texts that are substantially different from the Vulgate Latin and possibly dependent on the Hebrew. The Epistola also appears to show a familiarity with a number of works of Seneca; Naturales Quaestiones, De Beneficiis and De Supersitione. An intertextual link between the text and Augustine?s De Civitate Dei and the De Reditu Suo of Rutilius Namatianus suggest a composition of the text in the second decade of the fifth century, c. 415. This would allow the author to be identified with the Annas didascalus Iudaeorum mentioned in the Theodosian code as active on behalf of the Jewish community at the imperial court in Ravenna, and a plausible context is reconstructed for such a scenario.Placed in the historical context of late paganism, the text is interpreted as constituting a protreptic exhorting its audience to avoid the obscurities of neoplatonism and the inanities of the cult of Liber Pater and to follow a philosophical faith consonant with that of the author. It can thus be seen as an attempt to establish a Jewish-Pagan dialogue in the face of the continuing Christianisation of the empire at a time when this process was still not seen as irreversible.


Although early detection of toxicant induced kidney injury during drug development and chemical safety testing is still limited by the lack of sensitive and reliable biomarkers of nephrotoxicity, omics technologies have brought enormous opportunities for improved detection of toxicity and biomarker discovery. Thus, transcription profiling has led to the identification of several candidate kidney biomarkers such as kidney injury molecule (Kim-1), clusterin, lipocalin-2, and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 1 (Timp-1), and metabonomic analysis of urine is increasingly used to indicate biochemical perturbations due to renal toxicity. This study was designed to assess the value of a combined (1)H-NMR and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) metabonomics approach and a set of novel urinary protein markers for early detection of nephrotoxicity following treatment of male Wistar rats with gentamicin (60 and 120 mg/kg bw, s.c.) for 7 days. Time- and dose-dependent separation of gentamicin-treated animals from controls was observed by principal component analysis of (1)H-NMR and GC-MS data. The major metabolic alterations responsible for group separation were linked to the gut microflora, thus related to the pharmacology of the drug, and increased glucose in urine of gentamicin-treated animals, consistent with damage to the S(1) and S(2) proximal tubules, the primary sites for glucose reabsorption. Altered excretion of urinary protein biomarkers Kim-1 and lipocalin-2, but not Timp-1 and clusterin, was detected before marked changes in clinical chemistry parameters were evident. The early increase in urine, which correlated with enhanced gene and protein expression at the site of injury, provides further support for lipocalin-2 and Kim-1 as sensitive, noninvasive biomarkers of nephrotoxicity.


Sewers must be regularly inspected to prioritise effective maintenance, which can be an expensive and time-consuming process. This paper presents a methodology to automatically identify the type of a detected fault using raw closed circuit television (CCTV) footage. The procedure calculates the GIST descriptor of a video frame containing a fault before applying a collection of random forest classifiers to identify the fault's type. Order oblivious filtering is used to further improve the methodology's performance on continuous footage. The technology, including various classifier architectures, has been validated and demonstrated on CCTV footage collected by Wessex Water. The methodology achieved a peak accuracy of 73% when applied to well-represented fault types, showing promise for future application in the water industry.


This paper is an extension of Ayache et al. (2016) which intend to simulate epsilon Nd and its concentration in the Mediterranean Sea, using a regional dynamical-biogeochemical coupled model. In this paper, authors have considered Nd sources from benthic sediments, river discharge and atmospheric input to assess their relative contribution in the Nd Cycle for the Mediterranean Sea. Based on the modelling exercise, they have concluded that Sediments are dominant (almost 90 %) contributor of Nd to its oceanic cycle, with minor contribution from dust deposition and river input. While Nd contribution from atmospheric dust is low (~ 5%), it is very sensitive to Nd cycle and potentially important parameter to investigate in other regions which are strongly impacted by dust deposition.


It is said that copyright law's primary purpose is to encourage creativity by providing economic incentives to create. Accepting this premise, the primary disagreement among copyright stakeholders today concerns to what extent strong copyrights in fact provide efficient economic incentives. This focus on economic incentives obscures what is perhaps copyright doctrine's greatest weakness — although the primary purpose of copyright law is to encourage creativity, copyright doctrine lacks even a rudimentary understanding of how creativity functions on a neurobiological level. The absence of a cohesive understanding of the science of creativity means that much of copyright theory is premised on antiquated assumptions regarding the creative process that have no basis in cognitive neuroscience or psychology and therefore do not in fact encourage creativity effectively from a scientific perspective. This Article fills that void by developing a coherent narrative of how creativity functions on a neurobiological level and demonstrating how copyright law specifically and information policy generally play a largely unexplored role in determining how effectively the brain's creative process — what I term the cognitive architecture of creativity—functions both internally and when interacting with the Internet and other informational environments. Relying on this narrative, the Article argues that creativity is not an isolated singular moment of genius as theorized by contemporary copyright doctrine but rather the product of complex interactions between individuals within a larger cultural environment that, in turn, can trigger the brain's creative process in the right circumstances. Copyright's goal of encouraging creativity should therefore be understood as an environmental design question, with the brain's creative process as that environment's hub, and copyright law and information policy as design levers in engineering that environment. Relying on this framework, the Article concludes by suggesting modifications to copyright law and policy that foster a system where the brain's cognitive architecture interfaces effectively with the Internet to achieve copyright's core goal of encouraging creativity.


The load carrying capacity of piles resulting from base resistance and shaft resistance, the load transfer mechanism of piles is complicated since the mode of failure of these components is different in addition to the effect of pile installation on the soil surrounding of piles .The intended task of this paper is studying the behavior of pile group model driven in clayey soil subjected to vertical axial loading, and the assessment of the development of resistance of each of the two components, tip resistance and skin friction of the piles of during loading. Twelve piles group tests are conducted at three grades of undrained shear strength (cu) of clayey soil which are (20 or 40 or 60 kPa) where the configuration of the pile groups used in all tests is (2 x 2). Two different pile lengths (L) are selected (300 and 450 mm), these lengths represent the slenderness ratio (L/D) of (10) and (15) respectively, so that the center to center spacing between the piles (Sp) used are (3D) and (5D). It was observed that the most of the load capacity of piles is mobilized at settlement of around (1 – 2 mm), corresponding to (5 %) of pile diameter (D) , however, the development of full shaft resistance of piles appears at a low displacement range and is only of about (1 to 2 %) of the pile diameter while the pile end bearing will mobilize at a higher displacement range in the range of (5 to 10%).The changing of undrained shear strength of clay from (20 to 60 kPa) has no significant effect on the load transfer mechanism and the mobilization of shaft resistance and end bearing with increasing the settlement. It was concluded that a low ratio load sharing of piles tip, especially with increasing slenderness ratio (L/D) , which supports the fact that the piles in the weak clayey soils behave as a floating pile which leads to neglecting end bearing capacity in calculating the total pile load capacity as indicated by some references.


Because the network security management system has the disadvantages of data incompleteness, data recovery difficulty and poor privacy. So, this paper applies the cloud computing method to the network security management system and puts forward a network security management system based on cloud computing. This system can integrate information resources effectively and improve the utilization rate of network resource drastically. It realizes the network security management system based on cloud computing through analyzing and researching the cloud computing and network management features. Practice has proved that the system has made great progress in the aspects of network security management, resource sharing, reducing management costs and flexibility compared with traditional management methods. We can say that the efficient computing power and great storage capacity of cloud computing has been fully reflected by the network security management system, which makes the level of our network security management to get a whole improvement.


The leaves of M denticula and M tanarius were extracted via reflux and the respective crude extracts were then fractionated using solvent-solvent extraction with 4 solvent with different polarity which yielded hexane (HEX), dichloromethane (DCM), n-butanol (BUT), and methanol aqueous (AQ) extracts. Total phenolic content, antioxidative and
antimicrobial activities of the extracts were evaluated. The total phenolic content, determined according to the Folin-Ciocalteu method was varied between 115.58 mg
GAE/g and 204.94 mg GAE/g. Antioxidative activities of the extracts were measured using the DPPH method. The antioxidative activities were then compared with that of
butylated hydroxytouJene (BHT). The results showed that BUT extract of M tanarius had the highest antioxidative activities among the fractions tested with the 64.23 % inhibition at the highest concentration (0.04 mg ml�¹) tested. These results showed strong association with the total phenolic content (r² = 0.9684), suggested that phenolic compounds are probably responsible for the antioxidative activity of the Macaranga sp. The antimicrobial activity of the extracts, which evaluated by the disc diffusion assays showed weak inhibition against the bacteria (8 aureus, B. cereus, P. aeruginosa, S.
typhimurium and E. coli). Conclusively, M denticula and M tanarius extracts tested possesses antioxidative activities which rendered them suitable as potential therapeutics,
thus made them excellent candidates for more detailed investigation.


Elizabeth Warren has presented a view of bankruptcy that, while rarely as well articulated, is widely shared. The virtues of Warren's paper, like those of the rest of her work, are easy to identify. Her style is sharp and penetrating. She writes with insight and wit, and she demands that all analysis be held against the light of empirical data-the brighter the better. Warren has put forward a critique of the work I have done with Thomas Jackson that merits a response both because of its own strengths and because it captures misgivings other traditional bankruptcy scholars have shared about our work. There is much in Warren's view of bankruptcy policy that I admire and agree with. Indeed, to understand our disagreement, it is necessary first to recognize the extent of our common ground. Warren and I agree that, in the main, existing bankruptcy law is consistent with sound bankruptcy policy. The trustee should have the powers of a hypothetical lien creditor; the trustee should be able to set aside voidable preferences and reject executory contracts; creditors (including secured creditors) should be stayed from asserting their substantive claims after the filing of a bankruptcy petition. Warren and I also agree that victims of nonmanifested torts should have their rights against the firm recognized in bankruptcy. On what in my view is a different front, Warren and I also think existing laws do not adequately protect many, such as workers, who are affected when a firm fails. Warren and I both have doubts about whether secured credit brings benefits that outweigh its rather obvious costs. I am more inclined than Warren to think that the institution is one worth having, but we agree that the issue is not clear. Warren's attack on the theory of bankruptcy that I have developed with Thomas Jackson goes to methodology. Jackson and I claim that we can isolate bankruptcy issues (such as whether the


Acid phosphatase (EC 18.104.22.168) was extracted with 0.1 M sodium acetate buffer pH 5.1 from Poa pratensis seeds, and separated into three fractions by chromatography on DEAE cellulose. The highest activity was found in fraction Il-b (acid phosphatase II). The activity of the enzyme was optimal at pH 4.9. It hydrolyzed p-nitrophenyl phosphate most readily among the various phosphomonoesters examined. Acid phosphatase II showed also a high activity toward β-naphtyl phosphate and phenyl phosphate, very low activity towards β-glycero phosphate, 5'-GMP and no activity with glucose-1 phosphate. The enzyme was inhibited by Ca 2+ and fluoride, but activated by Mg 2+ . EDTA had no influence on the activity of the enzyme.


Abstract National parks play a key role in conserving species by providing landscapes where threats from anthropogenic disturbance are reduced. In a recent study of 3 large wilderness parks in the Pacific Northwest, nearly all landbird species were found to be stable or increasing. Nonetheless, contemporary results from the Breeding Bird Survey and mark-recapture studies fuel concerns that some landbirds in the Pacific Northwest are trending in sync with many North America species in widespread decline. Although landbird populations might be thriving in large parks with extensive old-growth forest, those in smaller parks with less intact wilderness and higher ratios of edge-to-interior habitat might reflect the stressors inherent in more human-dominated landscapes. We conducted landbird point-count surveys from 2005 to 2016 in 2 national historical parks situated in the more human-dominated landscapes of this region, San Juan Island National Historical Park and Lewis and Clark National Historical Park. Established primarily to protect cultural resources, these parks lack old-growth forest and consist of relatively small parcels embedded in fragmented, multi-use landscapes. Here, we apply recent developments in point-count analysis to estimate trends in population density for 50 landbird species commonly detected in these small parks, including lagged effects of precipitation and temperature on the annual density of each species, and effects of survey conditions on species detection. All but 3 species exhibited stable densities in both parks, and more than half of the populations analyzed clearly increased in density over the study period. Notable exceptions were single-park declines in Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi), Northern Flicker (Colaptes anratus), and Hutton's Vireo (Vireo huttoni). Annual variation in population density was often related to climate, with generally positive responses to a recent deficit in annual precipitation-as-snow, and more variable responses to higher mean spring temperature. These results reinforce trends estimated for 3 large national parks in the Pacific Northwest, suggesting recent stability of landbird populations in parks of this region, independent of park size or setting.


Cytomegalovirus retinitis is the most common opportunistic ocular infection in patients with AIDS affecting 30 to 40% of the patients. It usually occurs in patients in the terminal stage of the disease presenting with low CD4+ count (<50/mm(3)). Retinal detachment (RD) is a frequent complication of this disease, with an incidence varying from 18% to 29%. Risk factors for development of rhegmatogenous RD in patients with CMV retinitis were peripheral involvement greater than 25%, the presence of active retinitis, greater patient age and lower CD4+ cell counts. Multiple or single holes, as well as micro holes, were observed in areas of retinal necrosis leading to complex retinal detachments. Strong vitreoretinal adherences in these young patients, associated with chronic inflammation, were important elements in the pathophysiology of retinal detachment in AIDS patients. For localized RD, demarcating laser photocoagulation may delayed or avoided vitreoretinal surgery. For RD with macula off, good anatomical results have been obtained by repairing CMV retinitis-related retinal detachments using primary vitrectomy and instillation of silicone oil. Despite good anatomical results, poor long term functional results are related to optic atrophy. Since the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), retinal detachment incidence has nevertheless dramatically decreased. Under HAART, CMV retinitis remains quiescent for long periods of time with a reduction of retinal detachment incidence of approximately 77%. For some patients on HAART, retinal reattachment can be obtained using vitrectomy, posterior hyaloid removal, and intraocular tamponade with SF-6 gas.


OBJECTIVE
To describe the origin and development of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Queen's University School of Medicine (Kingston, Ontario).

METHODS
Resarch ethics board approval and privacy agreements from the Kingston General Hospital (KGH, Kingston, Ontario) medical archives were obtained. Primary and secondary data sources were identified. A systematic examination of newspaper archives, research literature, KGH medical advisory committee meeting minutes, and testimonies from Dr Kenneth Wyllie and Dr John Davidson were obtained.

RESULTS
In 1949, Dr Albert Ross Tilley arrived at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. There, Tilley initiated the Burn Unit at the KGH and began monthly teaching during the academic semester. Ken Wyllie (Meds '55), Lloyd Carlson (Meds '57) and John Emery (Meds '57) were the notable progeny of his early initiatives. In 1963, Kenneth Wyllie founded the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in Kingston, Ontario, having completed plastic surgery training in Toronto and Edinburgh with experiences in Stockholm (Sweden), Paris (France) and Baltimore (Maryland, USA). He was shortly joined by Pat Shoemaker (Meds '66). John Davidson (Meds '82) arrived in 1989, bringing an interest in microsurgery and critical inquiry to the division. Five notable surgeons, Cartotto (Meds '88), Watkins, Watters, Meathrel (Meds '03) and McKay, further enhanced the Division's clinical and academic mission.

CONCLUSIONS
The collective activity of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Queen's School of Medicine in its 66-year history has encouraged more than 40 others to pursue distinguished careers in the specialty throughout North America, including three past presidents of the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons.


There is a widespread belief that spathidiids have few morphological features. In contrast, we show a rich morphological diversity in five new species discovered in tank bromeliads from the Caribbean, using live observation; protargol impregnation; morphometry; scanning electron microscopy; and resting cyst morphology, demonstrating lepidosomes (organic scales) for the first time in spathidiid haptoria. Arcuospathidium bromelicola nov. spec. is very similar to the previously described A. muscorum but its resting cyst has conspicuous, pillar-shaped lepidosomes on the surface. Protospathidium lepidosomatum nov. spec. is very similar to the previously described P. muscicola but has outstanding, nipple-shaped (vs. conical) lepidosomes on the cyst surface. Spathidium bromeliophilum nov. spec., whose ontogenesis is highly similar to that of S. turgitorum, differs from similar species by the body length: width ratio, the number of ciliary rows, the shape of the oral bulge, and details of the ciliary pattern. Spathidium bromelicola nov. spec. is similar to S. muscicola (extrusomes bluntly fusiform and 4 mu m long vs. rod-shaped and > 15 mu m long) and S. stammeri (resting cyst wall smooth vs. spinous). Spathidium wolfi nov. spec. has an anterior and a posterior contractile vacuole. It differs from the supposed nearest relative, S. faurefremieti, by body size (on average 135 x 25 mu m vs. 240 x 17 mu m), the shape of the macronucleus (moniliform vs. a long, tortuous strand), and the total number of dorsal brush bristles (on average 47 vs. 72). The bent oral bulge of Arcuospathidium bromelicola and Spathidium bromeliophilum as well as the occurrence of lepidosomes on the cyst surface of Arcuospathidium bromelicola and Protospathidium lepidosomatum are discussed.


Two longitudinal studies examined associations between relational aggression and friendship quality during adolescence. In Study 1, 62 adolescents in Grades 6 (25.8%), 7 (32.3%), and 8 (41.9%) completed assessments of friendship affiliations, relational and overt aggression, and friendship quality at 2 time points, 1 year apart. Results using actor partner interdependence modeling indicated that high levels of relational aggression predicted increases in self-reported positive friendship quality 1 year later. In Study 2, 56 adolescents in Grades 9 (66.7%) and 10 (33.3%) attended a laboratory session with a friend in which their conversations were videotaped and coded for relationally aggressive talk. Target adolescents completed measures of positive and negative friendship quality during the laboratory session and during a follow-up phone call 6 months later. Analyses revealed that high levels of relationally aggressive talk at Time 1 predicted increases in negative friendship quality 6 months later. In addition, among adolescents involved in a reciprocal best friendship, high levels of observed relationally aggressive talk predicted increases in positive friendship quality over time. Taken together, these studies provide support for the idea that relational aggression may be associated with adaptive as well as maladaptive outcomes within the dyadic context of adolescent friendship.


The circulating levels of sialic acid (N-acetylneuraminic acid) and glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) were measured in 69 patients with spinal disorders of orthopaedic interest (ankylosing spondylitis 17, osteofluorosis 6, idiopathic backache 10, osteoarthrosis 16, osteoporosis 20). The serum GAG levels showed no statistically significant change from control values in the five disorders investigated in the present study. Although osteoporosis and osteoarthrosis showed a decrease in serum sialic acid (SA) levels, the mean ratio (SA/GAG) demonstrated no change from control values. Idiopathic backache showed no difference in any of the parameters studied when compared with control values. Ankylosing spondylitis and osteofluorosis had a remarkable similarity in their clinical and radiological features, but a divergent mean value of ratio was noted. The mean ratio of both the conditions also showed a statistically significant difference from the control value. This suggests that the SA/GAG ratio can be used as a diagnostic test in ankylosing spondylitis.


The use of spaceborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) is fundamental for forest mapping and monitoring for the northern hemisphere because of non-adequate solar illumination for most of the year around and the sensitivity of the radar observables to forest structure. Past and current spaceborne SAR missions have not been designed specifically for forest monitoring. Nonetheless, in recent years a number of investigations based on the extensive datasets of archived radar images have shown that large-scale applications ranging from forest cover mapping to retrieval of forest growing stock volume / stem volume are feasible. In this paper we present an overview of results on forest mapping in Eurasia and Northern America using SAR backscatter and interferometric SAR coherence images acquired by the ERS, Envisat ASAR, JERS-1 and ALOS PALSAR sensors.


Through the use of a high-pressure modification of the spark plasma sintering method, it was possible to consolidate functional oxides (yttria- stabilized zirconia and doped ceria) to high densities and retain a grain size of < 20 nm. The role of the pressure on densification and on the grain size of the sintered samples was demonstrated. The pressure had a marked effect on density at relatively low temperature but an insignificant effect at relatively high temperature. It was found that when prepared with such small grain sizes, these oxides conduct protonically even at temperatures as low as room temperature. The dependence of the protonic conductivity is stronger dependence on grain size than what can be anticipated from a geometric consideration based on an increase in grain boundary area. This observation strongly suggests that factors other than an increase in grain boundary area play a role, a consideration that is being further investigated.


We review our understanding of the prototype " Propeller " system AE Aqr and we examine its flaring behaviour in detail. The flares are thought to arise from collisions between high density regions in the material expelled from the system after interaction with the rapidly rotating magnetosphere of the white dwarf. We show calculations of the time-dependent emergent optical spectra from the resulting hot, expanding ball of gas and derive values for the mass, lengthscale and temperature of the material involved. We see that the fits suggest that the secondary star in this system has reduced metal abundances and that, counter-intuitively, the evolution of the fireballs is best modelled as isothermal.


Abstract Objective To describe the experiences of patients with type 2 diabetes in a web based disease management programme based on an interactive electronic medical record. Design Qualitative analysis of semistructured interviews with patients enrolled in a diabetes care module that included access to their electronic medical record, secure email, ability to upload blood glucose readings, an education site with endorsed content, and an interactive online diary for entering exercise, diet, and medication. Setting Patients' homes in Washington state, United States. Participants Nine participants aged 45-65 completed interviews before and after they used the programme. Results Six themes emerged: feeling that non-acute concerns are uniquely valued; enhanced sense of security about health and health care; frustration with unmet expectations; feeling more able to manage; valuing feedback; and difficulty fitting the programme into activities of daily life. Three themes—valuing non-acute concerns, feeling secure, and unmet expectations—have particular relevance to the design and use of web based tools for care of patients with diabetes and chronic medical conditions. Conclusion Participants' experiences support further study of open access to the electronic medical record and online communication between patients and their care providers. The development of web based disease management programmes should take into account the specific needs and expectations of patients, and patients and providers should have candid discussions about what web based care can and cannot provide.


The ventromedial temporal area has a complicated topography and neuroanatomy that has yielded secrets only grudgingly. The major features of surface topography are reviewed here as well as recent neuroanatomical findings that establish the ventromedial temporal area as both a recipient of cortical input and the origin for widespread output back to the cortex. The devastating involvement of all ventromedial temporal areas in Alzheimer's disease is highlighted, and comments are offered on the tentorium cerebelli and on mechanical injury to the area.


Abstract This study addresses the stratigraphic architecture and connectivity of fluvial sandstones of the Williams Fork Formation through outcrop analysis, and static and dynamic modelling of equivalent reservoirs in the Piceance Basin, Colorado. The Williams Fork Formation is a succession of fluvial channel sandstones, crevasse splays, floodplain mudstones and paludal coals that were deposited by meandering- and braided-river systems within coastal- and alluvial-plain settings. Three-dimensional (3D) static and dynamic reservoir models that are constrained to both outcrop-derived and subsurface data show how static connectivity is sensitive to sandstone-body type and width, and varies with net to gross ratio. Connectivity analyses of 3D outcrop-based architectural-element models show how relatively wide sandstone bodies enhance connectivity. At Mamm Creek Field, connectivity of sandstones that are pay within the middle Williams Fork Formation is 12–18% higher than for the lower Williams Fork Formation. For highly constrained 3D object-based models of architectural elements, connectivity is only 4% higher when crevasse splays are included as reservoir-quality sandstones. Dynamic simulation results also suggest that the best history match is possible by considering only point bars and channel bars (reservoir-quality sandstones) as pay. Additional research is necessary to determine the impact of crevasse splays on reservoir connectivity.


Nutritional supplements containing soybean phytoestrogens, the isoflavones genistein (G) and daidzein (D), are increasingly used as alternative therapy for osteoporosis, cancer, and cardiovascular and other diseases with a frequency that increases with advancing age. In this study we examined the effects of subcutaneous administration of either G or D on serum lipid levels in orchidectomized (Orx) and intact (IA) middle-aged male rats, which are experimental models of andropause. Sixteen-month-old Wistar rats were treated with 10 mg/kg and 30 mg/kg of either G or D. The control groups received testosterone, estradiol, or vehicle for 3 weeks, after which the total serum cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C), and total triglycerides (TT) were measured. Compared with the matching vehicle-treated controls, the higher doses of G and D and testosterone treatment significantly (P < 0.05) lowered the TC and lipoprotein cholesterol levels. The greatest effect was observed regarding LDL-C in both Orx and IA males after G and D treatments, in which LDL-C decreased by more than 30%. The lower isoflavone doses induced a significant cholesterol-lowering effect (P < 0.05) only in the Orx group. Like the estradiol treatment, the higher doses of G and D increased the TT levels in both rat models by more than 50% (P < 0.05). The lower doses of isoflavones increased TT only in the Orx group. In male middle-aged rats, injections of higher doses of G and D decreased the serum cholesterol levels, as did testosterone injection, and brought about an increase in serum triglycerides similar to that observed after estradiol treatment.