The study aims to investigate the effect of aqueous fruit pulp of Dialium guineense on hemeoxygenase, and insulin release, inhibition of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) and possible hypoglycemia in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Twenty four male Wistar rats were grouped into control, diabetic (Dm), diabetic + 300 mg/kg body weight Dialium guineese (Dm+ DG) and diabetic + 100 mg/kg metformin (Dm +MET). Apart from the control, other rats were made diabetic by a single dose of 50 mg/kg streptozotocin injected intraperitoneally. Dialium and metformin were administered orally three days after induction of diabetes. Result showed significant (p<0.01) increase in serum ACE, blood glucose, and a decrease (p<0.01) in HO-1 and insulin in the Dm group. There was also an increase (p<0.01) in TC, TG and LDL-c. Tissue peroxidation (Heart and Kidney) was high in the diabetic untreated rats, superoxide dismutase and catalase activity was attenuated. Administration of aqueous fruit pulp and metformin significantly (p<0.001) increased HO-1 and insulin secretion, decreased ACE and blood sugar level (p<0.001) as well as the TC, TG and LDL-c. Antioxidant activities in the kidney and liver were potentiated. In conclusion, this study showed that Dialium guineese fruit pulp enhances HO-1 and insulin release and inhibits ACE activity. It is hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic and evokes antioxidant activity.

 Key words: Hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1), angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), insulin, diabetes, Dialium guineese, metformin.


Harlequin syndrome happens in only one side of the face. In the affected half, the face does not sweat or flush even with simulation. Arms and trunk could also be affected. This condition is induced by heat, exercise and emotional factors. The article reports a case of a nine-year-old female with a 3-year history of unilateral flushing and sweating after exercise; a brief literature review is included. Despite the rarity of this syndrome, dermatologists should recognize this condition and refer these patients to ophthalmological and neurological examination.


In this studio-based thesis, "How One Art Educator Combines the Strengths from Two Educational Systems, Chinese and Canadian, To Develop A Teaching Philosophy," combines several aspects of the author's studio practices and with her learning experiences as a Chinese student in Canadian fine arts program. This thesis shows the process of how the author improved her art-making abilities and how she developed her teaching philosophy and methods by using the education that she received from ceramics courses at a Canadian university as a link to her education in painting and drawing in China. At the same time, through qualitative research, the author uses her art-making, personal living and learning experiences as a research case in order to explore and gather truly first-hand data. The author shares her own experiences in art education and art-making in China and Canada to help the readers easily understand her theoretical rationale, an approach which is consistent with her belief that theory can result from actual practice.


Brownfield redevelopment is becoming a major planning issue with its environmen‐ tal, social, economic, and spatial dimensions all around the world. As the attempts to manage the risks and costs associated with brownfields improve and the perception and awareness through the society increases, more stakeholders are put effort to achieve a broader range of environmental, social, and economic objectives under the concept of sustainable development. Since the mid‐1980s, sustainable development has become widely discussed approach for integrating environmental needs with economic and social ones in human development. In this context, brownfields left over from industrialization provide an opportunity to address sustainable developments through urban planning approaches. As a result of the emergence of the sustainable development and brownfield regeneration agendas, there has been increased debate over the concept of "sustainable brownfield regeneration." Turkey has relatively a short history of industrialization; thus, brownfields are a new phenomenon which started to occur in the middle of 1980s. The brownfield policies in Turkey, generally discussed in context with urbanization and heritage preservation. However, their appearance and redevelopment have much related with the privatization and neoliberal policies which have had great effects in the country economic and social structure. Besides, EU candidacy have stimulated the compliance of Turkish legisla‐ tion to the European standards since the beginning of last decade. Environmental and historical preservation and administrative decentralization constitute the significant subjects related to brownfields redevelopment. Cities in Turkey struggle with many economic, social, environmental, and politic problems. At this point, brownfields represent opportunities in order to obtain sustainability and increase the living standards especially in urban areas. This work aims to put forward the brownfield related policies in Turkey and to determine the main obstacles in brownfields redevelopment, the essential policies and strategies which can be transferred from Western countries experience and the essential steps which must be taken at the early stages of deindustrialization and decentralization for Turkey in context with sustain‐ able urbanization.


Analysis of the mitochondrial DNA variation in populations is commonly carried out in many fields of biomedical research. We propose the analysis of mitochondrial DNA coding region SNP (mtSNP) variation to a high level of phylogenetic resolution based on MALDI‐TOF MS. The African phylogeny has been chosen to test the applicability of the technique but any other part of the worldwide phylogeny (or any other mtSNP panel) could be equally suitable for MALDI‐TOF MS genotyping. SNP selection thus aimed to fully cover all the mtSNPs defining major and minor branches of the known African tree, including, macro‐haplogroup L, and haplogroups M1, and U6. A total of 230 mtSNPs were finally selected. We used tests samples collected from two different African locations, namely, Mozambique and Chad Basin. Different internal genotyping controls and other indirect approaches (e.g. phylogenetic checking coupled with automatic sequencing) were used in order to evaluate the reproducibility of the technique, which resulted to be 100% using samples previously subjected to whole genome amplification. The advantages of the MALDI‐TOF MS are also discussed in comparison with other popular methods such as minisequencing, highlighting its high‐throughput nature, which is particularly suitable for case–control medical studies, forensic databasing or population and anthropological studies.


This book is for agriculturists, many of whom are either novices or non-computer programmers, about how they can build their mathematical models in Microsoft Excel. Of all modeling platforms, spreadsheets like Excel require the least proficiency in computer programming. This book introduces an Excel add-in called BuildIt (available for free as download) that shields users from having to use Excel's VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) programming language and yet allows agriculturists to build simple to large complex models without having to learn complicated computer programming techniques or to use sophisticated Excel techniques. This book first discusses how BuildIt works and how it is used to build models. Examples range from the simple to progressively more complex mathematical models. Ultimately, readers are taught how to build a generic crop growth model from its five core components: meteorology, canopy photosynthesis, energy balance, soil water, and crop growth development. Ultimately, agriculturists will be able to build their own mathematical models in Excel and concentrate more on the science and mathematics of their modeling work rather than being distracted by the intricacies of computer programming.


Renee Sarojini Saklikar's children of air india is a book which takes as its subtitle "un/authorized exhibits and interjections," well aware of its position as public dirge, un/official archive of voices and names, and interruptive document to the official story of Air India Flight 182. Official accounts foreground the facts: there were 331 people -- including 280 Canadian citizens of South Asian heritage, 82 of whom were children under the age thirteen -- who died when a bomb exploded on that plane off the south-west coast of Ireland on June 23, 1985. The "un/authorized exhibits and interjections" of the text and its embedded grief politics are championed by an oppositional figure of a female mourner in public space as a critic of postmodernist "despairing rationalism," much as philosopher Gillian Rose discusses in her elegantly-titled Mourning Becomes the Law (7). Rose asserts that the law, if it is still the law that serves the citizenry and not an ideology that serves itself, has no other ethical choice but to acknowledge this truth: female mourners, by insisting on mourning as an act of justice, "reinvent the political life of the community" (35). The literary and other artistic manifestations of such mourning duty, and the philosophical injunctions to challenge and trouble the law through persistent mourning, are central to the project that drives children of air india : to "write the names all the way through" (Saklikar 113).


The recent 10-15 years revealed such a disease in Russia as a false postinjection aneurism, complicated by the arrosive bleeding of the magistral arteries in drug abuse patients. It is a severe disease, by which the lethality and amputation rates are as high as 50%. The authors represent the experience of treatment of 30 patients. The goal of the study was to set the treatment algorythm of such patients. All the patients were operated on, the amputation was necessitated in 1 (3.3%) case.


Social influence is one of the oldest and most researched constructs in organizational behavior. Most research has examined the "what" and "who" of social influence behavior, but it was not until recently that scholars began examining the "how," or the operation, of social influence techniques and behaviors. Social effectiveness constructs, such as political skill, have been the primary focus of this research effort. However, despite these constructs illuminating social influence processes, little is known about the actual operation of the social effectiveness constructs themselves. Thus, to develop a more complete understanding of social influence effectiveness, this article develops a theoretical framework by synthesizing several literatures and explaining how the individual dimensions of political skill affect the social influence process. Specifically, the authors (a) review and integrate research and theory in social influence and political skill; (b) develop an opportunity recognition, evaluation, and capitalization model to provide a theoretical framework for the dimensional dynamics of political skill; and (c) provide suggestions for how this framework informs future political skill research.


One of the objectives of environmental planning is to present criteria for the conservation of biodiversity, the reduction of fragmentation of the vegetation, and the preservation of endangered communities. Correct planning requires knowledge of which are the most appropriate areas for each type of community or biotope, expressed cartographically by means of suitability models. These may be constructed by means of methods of spatial analysis which relate the current presence or absence of biological communities to a set of relevant environmental variables. Geographical information systems are an ideal tool for this task, since they integrate spatial database handling with the possibility of applying techniques of statistical analysis for model building. From a map of the environmental variables, we elaborated a suitability model for marine cliff vegetation present in the study area (a part of the Autonomous Community of Asturias, N Spain) using logistic regression techniques integrated into a geographic information system. The analysis of suitability models is useful in environmental management since it allows one to set up criteria for action in conservation and restoration by recommending priority zones and measures for the preservation of habitats declared of interest in the European Union. The present work describes in detail the methods used in constructing the models, and the results obtained. We discuss the models' capacity to serve as aids to decision making in environmental management, as well as the problems presented by the method that was used and the lines of future investigation aimed at reducing those problems.


Wireless location refers to the geographic coordinates of a mobile subscriber in cellular or wireless local area network (WLAN) environments. Wireless location finding has emerged as an essential public safety feature of cellular systems in response to an order issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1996. The FCC mandate aims to solve a serious public safety problem caused by the fact that, at present, a large proportion of all 911 calls originate from mobile phones, the location of which cannot be determined with the existing technology. However, many difficulties intrinsic to the wireless environment make meeting the FCC objective challenging. These challenges include channel fading, low signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), multiuser interference, and multipath conditions. In addition to emergency services, there are many other applications for wireless location technology, including monitoring and tracking for security reasons, location sensitive billing, fraud protection, asset tracking, fleet management, intelligent transportation systems, mobile yellow pages, and even cellular system design and management. This article provides an overview of wireless location challenges and techniques with a special focus on network-based technologies and applications.


This study was focused on the preferences and habits of a non-traditional country for olive oil consumption, the Chilean market; a descriptive approach was used to meet two objectives: i) to determine the frequency of purchase, olive oil consumption habits and preferences of consumers in the Chilean market, and ii) to determine to what extent some socio-demographic variables explain the frequency of purchase of the product. Experimental data were used, which were obtained from a face-to-face survey applied to a representative sample of 300 subjects stratified by sex, age, and residential district in the city of Chillan (Province of Nuble). Results showed that this product is not fully incorporated in the eating habits of the population because it is used rather sporadically and for some specific preparations. As in other non-traditional markets, this product is associated with people from a medium to high socioeconomic status. It is necessary for companies to conduct consumer education campaigns as well as increased product promotion to boost the consumption of this product.


The findings of investigating the possibilities of managing the quality of health care delivery in an urban polyclinic are provided on the basis of studying the patient's satisfaction of the care delivered. The materials are addressed to physicians and senior staff of urban polyclinics.


In the absence of demonstrably effective and cost-efficient training methods, actual driving experience on the road network remains the most practical and available method of improving skills for the great majority of novice drivers. Of course, accumulating this experience on the roads entails exposure to the risk of accident. It is likely that the varying legislative and regulatory frameworks among Australian states and territories influence the level and variety of experience learner drivers acquire before graduating to solo driving. Licensing authorities currently have limited information about the amount and variety of experience acquired during the learner period under different licensing regimes. This report includes a survey of novice drivers who have qualified under the following licensing frameworks: South Australia's Competency Based Training and Assessment (cumulative multi-session assessment by commercial driving instructors); South Australia's Vehicle On Road Test (single session assessment by commercial driving instructors); and New South Wales' single session assessment administered by public servants.


Objective Deep brain stimulation (DBS) for treatment of advanced Parkinson's disease (PD) has two anatomical targets: the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and the globus pallidus internus (GPI). The clinical effectiveness of these two stimulation targets was compared in the present study. Methods A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to evaluated the postoperative changes in the United Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) on- and off-phase, on-stimulation motor scores; activities of daily living score (ADLS); and levodopa equivalent dose (LED) after STN and GPI stimulation. Randomized and nonrandomized controlled trials of PD treated by STN and GPI stimulation were considered for inclusion. Results Eight published reports of eligible studies involving 599 patients met the inclusion criteria. No significant differences were observed between the STN and GPI groups in the on-medication, on-stimulation UPDRS motor score [mean difference, 2.15; 95% confidence interval (CI), −0.96–5.27] or ADLS (mean difference, 3.40; 95% CI, 0.95–7.76). Significant differences in favor of STN stimulation were noted in the off-medication, on-stimulation UPDRS motor score (mean difference, 1.67; 95% CI, 0.98–2.37) and LED (mean difference, 130.24; 95% CI, 28.82–231.65). Conclusion The STN may be the preferred target for DBS in consideration of medication reduction, economic efficiency, and motor function improvement in the off phase. However, treatment decisions should be made according to the individual patient's symptoms and expectations.


An office test of labyrinthine function is not a quantitative test, but rather a qualitative one. The method to be described herein has several advantages, especially its simplicity and ease of operation. The technique to be described is not original, but has minor differences from other methods. The minimal caloric test has been reported upon by Veits (as quoted by Arslan 2 ), Torok, 9 and the University of Chicago Otolaryngology Department. The technique of the examination is as follows: First the Frenzel spectacles are applied over the patient's eyes. The spectacles have 20+ D. lenses, which magnify the eyes so that any movement can be easily seen. The patient is examined for spontaneous nystagmus. The patient is asked to look to the right and then to the left; this evokes less fixation nystagmus than when the patient is asked to look sideways at your finger. Then 5 cc. of tap


This paper presents the results of a questionnaire completed by 331 UK veterinary practitioners which focused on the quality assurance of extramural studies. The questionnaire considered the attributes of practitioners as extramural teachers and the suitability of host practices for extramural studies, the students' evaluation of their quality, and the role of the veterinary schools. The questionnaire identified two broad roles for the practitioner, first, as teacher and, secondly, as professional role model, and there was strong support for students being allowed to evaluate their role as teacher. The findings are discussed in relation to aspects of good practice associated with quality assurance, and in relation to the need to develop stronger links between the schools and the veterinary profession.


The old principles no longer work in the age of Globalization. Businesses have reached the old model's limits with respect to complexity and speed. The real problem is a ruinously dysfunctional mismatch between today's business environment and the classic business model. Namely, the wrong model may transform a company into the vehicle of its own death. Great shifts genuine and radical transformationhave been shaping the economy and business environment in recent decades. Technology, especially information and communication one, has radically altered the requirements for building and managing a successful business. In this new business climate, although the basic command-and-control business model has survived, it has lost its effectiveness significantly. The successful companies in the future will be ones wise enough to harness the full potential of the entire organization in the rapidly changing business environment. The world is going to be too tough and competitors too ingenious as companies are shaken loose from traditional ways of conducting business. The winners will be the unbridled firms that are responsive to challenges and adroit in both creating and capturing opportunities. To match a business environment that is more networked within and among companies, the ability to manufacture value will have to be distributed across the company to much a greater extent than in the past. Additionally, learning is the key competency required by any organization that wants to survive and thrive in the new knowledge economy. Market champions keep asking learning questions, keep learning how to do things better, and keep spreading that knowledge throughout their organization. Learning provides the catalyst and the intellectual resource to create a sustainable competitive advantage. Knowledge organizations obtain competitive advantage from continuous learning, both individual and collective. In organizations with a well established knowledge management system, learning by the people within an organization becomes learning by the organization itself. In other words,managers need to transform themselves. In order to get a complete picture how educational level of managers and entrepreneurs affect business success, author stresses that it is necessary to determine general personal knowledge and education, then expert knowledge or various specializations in certain areas and lastly to identify their skills. In total, all this is necessary in order, apart from other (provided financial means, location, equipment, partners and business associates, market and other), to make a final decision for starting a business and define how to manage it. Many scientists think that knowledge is the most important requirement for business success and therefore it is the factor to which the most attention is being paid to. Recent researches in the USA show that business owners who were not educated enough for the business in which they were engaged, were not successful (80% of their businesses failed during the first year of its existence). On the opposite, those entrepreneurs who were educated and who showed constant interest for improvement have increased their business success for 60% after the completion of the basic training programs for entrepreneurship and management.Therefore the author pinted out that the more highly skilled workforce should be beneficial to organisations. Additionally the human capital approach reflects the view that the market value of the firm increasingly depends on intangible rather than tangible resources. The three main components of human capital are described as a) early ability ,b) qualifications and knowledge acquired through education and c) skills competencies and expertise through on and off the job training. This would suggest that individual capability is enhanced by MONTENEGRIN JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS NO 6


ABSTRACT : A taxpayer with an existing business generally can establish return-signing positions to characterize the growth of its business as occurring either through an expansion of the existing business or the start of a new business. The selected character then determines the manner by which the taxpayer recovers costs associated with the growth. This article explores how the taxpayer's initial choice to characterize business growth as an expansion or start-up could become binding on the taxpayer and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under accounting method rules and/or the doctrine of election, which would permit a recharacterization only to avoid income distortion. The article concludes that those tax accounting concepts could unjustifiably make the initial characterization binding, irrespective of its accuracy, due to the difficulty of showing that a particular characterization causes income distortion.


Aim: To compare the efficacy of Glycyrrhiza glabra and vitamin E in decreasing fibrosis score in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Method: This randomized controlled trial was carried out in the Medical Wards of Mayo Hospital/King Edward Medical University, Lahore. Two hundred and twelve patients with NAFLD were divided via random assignment into Group A that was given 800IU of vitamin E per day and Group B that received Glycyrrhiza Glabra in a dose of 10 mg per day. Both groups received treatment for 3 months and were re-evaluated monthly for improvement in fibrosis scores and liver transaminases. Data was analyzed using version 26.0 of SPSS. Results: Out of 212 patients, 53.4% were male and 46.6% were female. Mean age of patients in Group A was 35.8±14.26 and 41.93±14.2 in Group B. Fibrosis score in Group A decreased from 0.19± 1.02 to -0.14± 1.09 while reduction in Group B was from 0.29± 0.93 to -0.67± 0.97 (p-value <0.000). Only patients in Group B showed significant reduction in alanine transaminase (ALT 62.3± 15.3 to 57.2± 14.58, p-value <0.000). In lowering fibrosis score, vitamin E was effective in 11.3% of patients, whereas Glycyrrhiza glabra was effective in 34% patients (p-value 0.000). Practical Implication: With the global increase in the cases of NAFLD, it has become imperative to devise new treatment strategies to overcome this burden. No definitive treatment modality provides an ultimate cure for these patients. This study proves a superior role of Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice extract) in terms of lowering fibrosis score and reduction of ALT levels. Conclusion: Both Glycyrrhiza glabra and vitamin E were effective in lowering fibrosis scores in patients with NAFLD, however, Glycyrrhiza glabra was more superior in terms of efficacy than vitamin E and also caused a considerable decrease in ALT levels. Keywords: Glycyrrhiza glabra, Vitamin E, Fibrosis Score, Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease


Abstract Research on housing interventions for individuals experiencing chronic homelessness has largely focused on permanent supportive housing (PSH); however, an array of housing options to support the diverse needs and goals of chronically homeless people is necessary. A dearth of research exists on the non-subsidized private rental market as an option for people who are chronically homeless. The objective of this observational study was to identify sociodemographic and health predictors of attaining non-subsidized housing compared to other outcomes among a sample of 273 individuals who participated in Pathways to Independence (PTI). PTI was a homeless service program that connected chronically homeless participants with options beyond PSH, including private market housing. Results indicated that being younger, male, and employed were associated with greater odds of being housed without a subsidy compared to PSH. Having disability income and being in fair or poor health were associated with greater odds of attaining non-subsidized housing compared to remaining homeless. Findings suggest that private market housing may be an option for individuals who participate in services supporting income and employment attainment. While this study focused on immediate housing outcomes, future research is needed to examine long-term outcomes of formerly chronically homeless individuals residing in non-subsidized housing.


Translingualism is a term from Steven G. Kellman (2000) and David Schwarzer et al. (2006), who see teaching an L2 as bridge building between languages that allow one to retain a unified mind and not be cloven into two for the sake of being multilingual. Thus, in contrast to multilingualism, translingualism stresses the process and not the goal. Classrooms where students come from two or more different language communities are established feature of schools in many countries. When multilingual word processing enables ethnolinguistic communities and students to express the funds of knowledge they possess, the school is truly preparing students to thrive in a global community characterized by rapid cultural and technological change. If translingualism is the process, then Action research (AR) is its method. This study explores the sociolinguistics of translingual forces: (1) how classroom experience or actual personal contact with elders in villages causes students of different cultural backgrounds to value other languages, and (2) how students' phonetic knowledge, literacy, as well as content knowledge in English may transfer to acquiring ethnic languages in a collaborative classroom. It mostly examines how the students in a community of Taiwan hailing from different cultural backgrounds and attending multilingual classrooms that promoted bi/multilingualism can come to value all languages spoken in a community.


In this thesis we aim to show the existence of a stationary travelling wave of a generalised
stochastic KPP equation driven by a one dimensional Wiener process. Chapter 1
discusses the background of the deterministic KPP equation and some interesting properties
when consider Stratonovich noise and convert to the Itˆo noise. Chapter 2 covers
preliminaries and background information that will be required throughout the entire
thesis. Chapter 3 defines stretching, an important concept throughout this thesis. We
show that for any two initial conditions, one more stretched than the other, stretching
is preserved with time. We also show that stretching defines a pre-order on our solution
space and that the solution started from the Heaviside initial condition converges. In
Chapter 4 we show that the limiting law lives on a suitable measurable subset of our
solution space. We conclude Chapter 4 by proving that the limiting law is invariant for
the process viewed from the wavefront and hence a stationary travelling wave. Chapter
5 discusses domains of attraction and an implicit wave speed formula is shown. Using
this framework we extend our previous results, which have concentrated upon Heaviside
initial conditions, to that of initial conditions that can be trapped between two Heaviside
functions. We show that for these "trapped" initial conditions, the laws converge
(in a suitable sense) to the same law as that for the Heaviside initial condition (up to
translation). Chapter 6 discusses phase-plane analysis for our equation and we restate
the stretching concept within this framework.


Risk analysis of slope instability in earth dams is presented using LHS –MC method. Latin hypercube sampling (LHS) is suggested as a tool to improve the efficiency of MC random sampling method. One example of risk analysis for dam slope instability is presented to demonstrate the validity and capability of the proposed method. By means of numerical example, it is shown that about 25% of the calculations can be saved by using LHS –MC method instead of simple MC. The exact savings, however, are dependent on details in the use of LHS and on the shape of the failure surfaces of the problems.


Abstarct: Geospatial applications are becoming indispensible part of information systems, they provides detailed information's regarding the attribute data of spatial objects in real world. Due to the rapid technological developments in web based geographical information systems, the uses of web based geospatial application vary from Geotagging to Geolocation capabilities. Therefore, effective utilization of web based information system can only be realized by representing the world in its original view, where attributes data of spatial objects are integrated with spatial object and available for the user on the web, using integrated Google API and Google Earth API. In this study a city in the south-western part of Nigeria called EDE is examined and used as a case study. Using Google Map API and Google Earth API, the attribute data of the study area stored in XML databases will be integrated with the corresponding existing spatial data of the study area; to create a web based 3D geospatial application. We envisage that this system will enhance the effectiveness of web-based Geographical Information System (GIS) and the overall user experience.


This project investigates the development of mature student mothers' identities in the dual contexts of constructions of the women's at-home study practices and of their  'responsibilities' for their children's development. Interviews were conducted with 23 women – all 'new university' students – and with their schoolaged children. I used discourse analysis  focussing on language as performative and constitutive in order to understand positioning of, and by the women. I also drew upon critical developmental psychological theory and the concepts of discourse, intersubjectivity and dialogicality as epistemological resources in order to understand the women's and children's accounts.  The methodology yielded a diversity of constructions of the women, these drawing upon a variety of discourses. The first empirical chapter addresses constructions of mature student mothers, the second, constructions of child development and the third, constructions of 'influence'. The organisation of the empirical chapters reflects not only the importance I accorded to particular themes, but also the idea that separating mothers' concerns and those of their children can be less fruitful in examinations of identity construction than addressing these together.  The key issues that are a thread connecting the empirical chapters are time (requiring 'balancing' of social positions); change (in mothering practices and confidence); perceived 'influence' on children's development, and relationships (including the ways in which identities are constructed in the 'space in the middle'). Participants addressed these issues in different ways with some women positioning not spending 'quality' time with their children as meeting children's developmental needs (addressed in Chapter Seven). Other important  themes were mothering constructed as mundane and undervalued (in Chapter Five), children's constructions of 'roles' as helpers (in Chapter Six) and perceived intersubjectivity in mother/child interactions (examined in Chapter Seven).  In the concluding chapter I discuss the implications of the findings in terms of the contribution of the research to theoretical debates about motherhood, mothering and child development. I also reflect on my position as a mature student mother, examining my involvement in the research process and finally, suggest applications for the findings reported in the thesis. PUBLISHER: University of Bedfordshire ISSUE DATE: Oct-2009 URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10547/134972 TYPE: Thesis or dissertation LANGUAGE: en DESCRIPTION: A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Bedfordshire APPEARS IN COLLECTIONS: PhD e-theses Register Login University of Bedfordshire Repository


A postal survey was carried out on every 71st person aged between 18 and 80 in the population registers in County Regierungsbezirk Karlsruhe in the State of Baden-Würtemberg. It asked 2127 persons whether they had, in the previous 6 months, experienced any form of unduly prolonged pain (as distinct from brief intercurrent self-limiting episodes related to injury inflammation etc.) and, if so, to specify its location, duration, severity and persistence. It also sought information on the resulting calls on healthcare professionals and the degree of satisfaction with treatments received. The age and gender distributions of the sample selected for survey matched those in the population from which it was drawn. Of the 1420 respondents, only 1304 declared their age and gender--a condition for inclusion in the analysis. Of these, 610 reported some form of unduly prolonged pain, which had lasted more than a year in 530. For all pain lasting longer than a year, the estimated prevalence of mild pain was 11%, severe 25% and intolerable 3.5%: the corresponding estimates for persistent as opposed to episodic pain were 2% for mild, 10% for sever and 1% for intolerable. Pain was present in more than one anatomical location in most of those who reported it. Musculoskeletal pain was overwhelmingly the most common. Increasing age, obesity and being female pre-disposed to the reporting of pain, with women being more liable to report headache and pain in the neck and shoulder. One hundred and thirty-six pain reporters either gave no information on consultation or sought no help from healthcare professionals: a third of the remainder consulted more than one professional, with general practitioners and specialists in physical medicine (niedergelassener Orthopäde) being the most common. A wide variety of treatments were used, with oral medications, massage, exercises, mud pack and heat treatment being the most popular; two-thirds of sufferers used more than one type of treatment. The most popular types of treatment tended also to be the most successful, except for oral medication (which was also the most heterogeneous). Multiple logistic regression analyses identified consistent associations between duration and severity of pain, the number of sites where it was reported, the numbers of healthcare professionals consulted and the number of treatments tried, and the same groupings of features were associated with decreased likelihood of overall satisfaction with treatment received.


SUMMARY: Seeds and samples of stems from the two medicinal plants, Lactuca scariola and Artemisia absinthium respectively were extracted in absolute methanol to determine their analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity. The analgesic activity was assessed on intact mice by tail flick latency in tail immersion method. The anti-inflammatory activity was estimated volumetrically by measuring the mean increase in hind paw volume of rat with the help of plethysmometer. Acetylsalicylic acid in the dose of 300 mg/kg is used as standard drug. Both plant extracts were given in the doses of 300, 500 and 1000 mg/kg. Control group received 0.9% NaCI (saline) solution. All the doses administered orally. Results showed that Lactuca had potent analgesic activity and Artemisia had significant analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity.


1 Studies on the various isolated tissues indicate that para‐dimethylaminobenzaldehyde (DMAB) is a β‐adrenoceptor stimulant. DMAB is antagonized by the β‐adrenoceptor blocking agent, MJ 1999, but not by the α‐adrenoceptor blocking agent, phentolamine. 2 A study of dose‐response relationships suggests a competitive interaction between MJ 1999 and DMAB. 3 DMAB was about 122 times less potent than isoprenaline on the isolated guinea‐pig tracheal preparation. The effects of DMAB on isolated rabbit atria were not only very weak, but were also very brief. On this tissue, DMAB was respectively 72,000 and 55,400 times less active than isoprenaline in producing positive chronotropic and inotropic effects. DMAB caused the relaxation of the guinea‐pig taenia coli and the rabbit ileum. These actions were very weak in comparison with those of isoprenaline. 4 These results suggest that a compound (DMAB) structurally different from isoprenaline may mimic isoprenaline responses by stimulating β‐adrenoceptors through different mechanisms.


In analytical and numerical models of river meandering, initiation of meandering typically occurs uniformly along the streamwise coordinate in the channel. Based on a historical analysis of the Nierskanaal, here we show how and under which circumstances meandering has initiated in isolated sections of a channel. The Nierskanaal was constructed by the end of the 18th century, as a straight channel between the river Niers and the river Meuse. The purpose of this measure was to reduce flood risk in the downstream reaches of the river Niers. The banks on the Dutch part of the channel were left unprotected and developed into a morphodynamically active channel, featuring a meandering planform and valley incision. The planform development and incision process is analysed using topographic maps and airborne LiDAR data. Meandering initiated in three sections of the channel, where the channel sinuosity developed asynchronously. Sedimentary successions in the study area show layers of iron oxide, indicating groundwater seepage from aeolian river dunes and river deposits located nearby. Only at the spots where meandering has initiated iron oxide is found close to the surface level. This provides a clue that seepage triggered bank erosion by increasing moisture content of the banks. The isolated meandering sections expanded in the longitudinal direction. Valley incision has developed in the first decades after the construction of the channel, and diminished after a gravel layer was reached. Gravel was deposited in the downstream half of the channel bed, acting as an armouring layer. The spatial variation in meandering behaviour, as observed in the Nierskanaal, justifies efforts to implement the influence of floodplain heterogeneity and the effect of seepage on bank erosion in meander models. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Calcinosis cutis is a rare complication of adult dermatomyositis. The authors report a case of dystrophic calcinosis cutis that ultimately led to the diagnosis of dermatomyositis and metastatic lung adenocarcinoma.


In this paper we propose a new grid based approach to model a dynamic environment. Each grid cell is assumed to be an independent Markov chain (iMac) with two states. The state transition parameters are learned online and modeled as two Poisson processes. As a result, our representation not only encodes the expected occupancy of the cell, but also models the expected dynamics within the cell. The paper also presents a strategy based on recency weighting to learn the model parameters from observations that is able to deal with non-stationary cell dynamics. Moreover, an interpretation of the model parameters with discussion about the convergence rates of the cells is presented. The proposed model is experimentally validated using offline data recorded with a Laser Guided Vehicle (LGV) system running in production use.


The miscibility behavior of the blends of a copolyester of bisphenol-A with terephthalic and isophthalic acids (PAr) and a bisphenol-A polycarbonate (PC) was studied in dilute chloroform solutions at 25°C. The intrinsic viscosity and Huggins' parameter of the binary mixtures were determined from the intercept and slope of the linear straight line between specific viscosity and the overall polymer concentration at the studied compositions. From experimental results of the intrinsic viscosities of the mixtures, some miscibility parameters Δb, Δb′, (Δb)G, Δ[η], α, and β were obtained by applying the criteria proposed by the research groups Krigbaum and Wall, Catsiff and Hewett, Garcia et al., Sun et al. and Jiang and Han, respectively. The miscibility of mixtures was also studied by using differential scanning calorimetry and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010


A disease with the characteristics of a leukemia has been found to be serially transmissible in adult Swiss mice by means of cell-free filtrates. Thus far, the disease has been transmitted through twenty-six serial passages with filtrates as well as cell suspensions. The agent readily passes through Selas 03, Berkefeld N, and gradocol membrane filters—these last having an average pore size of 220 mµ. Filtrates remain stable when stored for long periods at –70°C. or when lyophilized. Splenic tissue containing the agent, which was subjected to massive doses of x-ray (50,000 r),—far more than sufficient to kill the cells,—show undiminished infectivity. The agent is inactivated by heating to 56°C. for 30 minutes and by exposure to ether or formalin. The disease can be transmitted to adult Swiss mice or DBA/2 mice, but not to adult PRI, C3H, A, C57B1/6, or F1(C58 x BALB) mice. Intraperitoneal, subcutaneous, intracerebral, and intramuscular injections are all effective.


This study was designed to examine the perceived usage of Direct Behavior Rating (DBR) among school psychologists through acceptability feasibility understanding and system support. In addition specific preferences of DBR (e.g. types of behavior to rate length of observation and appropriate rater) were examined. DBR tools involve rating defined student behaviors following a specified observation period. One critical assumption of the DBR is that School Psychologist and teachers view it as acceptable and are oriented towards using it. A review of the literature suggested that acceptability feasibility understanding and support from the system should be considered when determining the perceived usage of an intervention. Participants included a sample of 82 members of the National Association of School Psychologists. The participants were mailed a survey packet that included (a) cover letter explaining the study and inviting them to participate in the study (b) demographic questionnaire (c) questionnaire about previous DBR experience (d) a brief description of DBR including a case study (e) a preference assessment and (f) the Usage Rating Profile for Assessments (URP-A). The preference assessment asked participants to select specific parts and procedures of the DBR that they preferred (e.g. type/severity of problem to rate). Results indicated that participants reported the DBR to be an acceptable and feasible assessment tool. In addition they reported that they understood the  procedures of DBR and that they would require the support of their system including co-workers. Overall scores indicated that the participants perceived DBR as a usable tool for conducting behavior assessments. Results of the preference assessment were analyzed and compared with the previous preference assessment studies. Overall results were consistent with the previous studies.


Penetrative strain constitutes the proportion of the total shortening across an orogen that is not accommodated by the development of macroscale structures such as folds and thrusts. The accommodation of shortening by penetrative strain is widely considered to be an important process during compression, but variation in the distribution of penetrative strain during a deformation sequence is not well understood. This study provides some first-order constraints on magnitude, timing, and distribution of penetrative strain during deformation. Eight simple models, each with a geometrically and mechanically similar starting configuration, within the limits of sandbox models, were shortened to different amounts. Model results indicate first that penetrative strain increases with depth in any given model, and second that the proportion of the total shortening accommodated by penetrative strain varies with time. As the deforming wedge approaches stability, penetrative strain is highest just before initiation of a new thrust fault, after which the penetrative strain component abruptly decreases. Each model also contains a foreland zone of penetrative strain, in which penetrative strain decreases exponentially away from the deformation front. These results are consistent with available field data. Restoration of a seismic-scale cross section indicates that model results can be used to predict the amount of penetrative strain and thus the true total shortening across a deformed region. Estimates of this type may be made for additional cross sections and may provide answers to the problem of "missing shortening" across orogens and the total amount of shortening experienced at collisional plate margins.


The authors consider the problem of scheduling automated traffic in a city. Such automatic scheduling can improve efficiency of the system by decreasing delays, increasing capacity, and easing congestion. The algorithms described in this paper can be thought of as which belongs to a layer in the corresponding control-communication-computational system, which is responsible for generating timed trajectories for individual vehicles [S. Graham, G. Baliga, and P. Kumar, "Issues in the convergence of control with communication and computing: Proliferation, architecture, design, services, and middleware," in Proceedings of CDC '04, Nassau, Bahamas, December 2004]. Each vehicle has a specified route from its origin to its destination, and the task of the scheduler is to provide timed trajectories for all vehicles, which follow the respective vehicles' routes and further ensure that no collisions or deadlock will result. The authors' approach reduces the problem to a discrete-time graph-scheduling problem, by defining an appropriate graph to model the road network. Their main result is a sufficient condition on the graph of the road network and on the initial distribution of vehicles, under which there exists a scheduling algorithm that is guaranteed to clear the system in finite time. The nature of this result allows the design of provably correct scheduling algorithms that require only a small portion of future routes of all vehicles to be known, and are consequently able to work in real time. The authors also address the optimization of performance with respect to delay, by focusing on the "one-step move" problem. Finding an optimal solution for the one-step problem would provide a greedy solution of the original network-wide scheduling problem, but is itself NP-hard. They present a polynomial time heuristic algorithm and evaluate its performance through simulations


Exciton-polaritons, formed by the strong coupling between excitons and cavity-confined photons, are the building blocks of polaritonic devices. In this work, we report experimental realization of an all-optically controlled dynamic superlattice for polaritons working in the ultraviolet wavelength range at room temperature. The optical superlattice was realized on a one-dimensional (1D) ZnO microrod using an array of periodically arranged laser spots. Polaritonic mini-band features were clearly observed by both momentum- and real-space imaging spectroscopy. By controlling the periodicity of the laser spots, we demonstrated that the band structures of polaritons can be well controlled by external lasers. Theoretically, by extending the Kronig-Penney model to the polariton system, we calculated the polaritonic mini-bands and found it to be in good agreement with our experimental observations. By imaging the polariton flow in real space, the lifetime of polaritons and their relationship with their exitonic fractions were also extracted. The polaritonic superlattices demonstrated in this work are fully reconfigurable and optically controlled, and our results could thus stimulate the development of polaritonic all-optical devices.


In a multi-center study 523 strains of H. influenzae and H. parainfluenzae isolated from patients in eight towns of the Federal Republic of Germany were tested for their sensitivity to 15 different chemotherapeutic agents. 1.7% of the strains were resistant to ampicillin, 1,5% to chloramphenicol and 2.5% to tetracycline. All ampicillin-resistant strains produced beta-lactamase. For the first time, multiple resistant strains were isolated: two against ampicillin, chloramphenicol and tetracycline; one in addition also against co-trimoxazole. It is likely that there will be a spread of such resistant strains.


From a real Norwegian North Sea field case we show simulation results where 4D seismic data are incorporated in the history matching process of reservoir simulation models. It has been shown that the Ensemble Kalman Filter technique, a Monte Carlo type Bayesian sequential inversion method, is capable of performing this task. In addition to predicted model states, data uncertainties are provided. In fact, seismic data may not only relate to one (e.g. 3D), but to more instances in time (4D or time-lapse seismic data where their differences are of concern). Furthermore they may be investigated in different domains, depending on their sensitivity to production related changes in the reservoir. In the given case study we observe an emerging fluid contact due to gas injection and corresponding travel-time shifts of seismic events on the real data. We model these effects by generating synthetic seismic sections, but in an environment which allows to incorporate Eclipse simulated variables, namely fluid saturations, densities and pressures. The Compound model builder, an interface shared by geophysical and reservoir engineering data represents our environment for integrated seismic and geologic modeling. The basic reservoir variables to be updated in this study are the static variables porosity and permeability and the dynamic variables pressures and saturations. These variables are optimized by minimizing a joint misfit function consisting of production data, such as oil-production rate, water-cut and gas-oil ratio and seismic data, which is stacked amplitude data. The benefit of including seismic data lies in a better overall reservoir description especially in areas not sampled by observations of production data.


For some time now, structural macroeconomic models used at central banks have been predominantly New Keynesian DSGE models featuring nominal rigidities and forward-looking decision-making. While these features are widely deemed crucial for policy evaluation exercises, most central banks have added more detailed characterizations of the financial sector to these models following the Great Recession in order to improve their fit to the data and their forecasting performance. We employ a comparative approach to investigate the characteristics of this new generation of New Keynesian DSGE models and document an elevated degree of model uncertainty relative to earlier model generations. Policy transmission is highly heterogeneous across types of financial frictions and monetary policy causes larger effects, on average. The New Keynesian DSGE models we analyze suggest that a simple policy rule robust to model uncertainty involves a weaker response to inflation and the output gap in the presence of financial frictions as compared to earlier generations of such models. Leaning-against-the-wind policies in models of this class estimated for the Euro Area do not lead to substantial gains. With regard to forecasting performance, the inclusion of financial frictions can generate improvements, if conditioned on appropriate data. Looking forward, we argue that model-averaging and embracing alternative modelling paradigms is likely to yield a more robust framework for the conduct of monetary policy.


Poultry feed derived from grains has an anti-nutrient phytic acid. Naturally, phytate forms a complex bond with some minerals (P, Zn, Fe, Mg, and Ca), protein, and amino acids. The mineral-phytate complex cannot be absorbed by the small intestine of non-ruminant livestock and will adversely affect the availability of minerals in the ration. One way to improve the efficiency of mineral and protein utilization from phytate is using phytase. Sugarcane juice containing nutrients and phytase is very potential as liquid supplement for broiler chickens as it can hydrolyze phytic acid. The purpose of this study was to determine the retention of nitrogen, metabolism energy, and retention of minerals (P, Ca and Zn) of sugarcane juice in broilers. The study was conducted for 7 days using metabolism cages for 28 broilers of 5 weeks old with 6 treatments of 4 replications, 4 for endogenous. The results showed that the administration of 2.5%/kg sugarcane juice in the ration as well as in 2.5%/liter sugarcane juice in drinking water could provide the same result as giving commercial phytase 250-500 FTU/kg on the retention of nitrogen, metabolizeable energy, and retention of minerals P, Ca and Zn.


Recent studies of intervention in sedentary subjects, or those with neurological lesions, suggest that increased motor activity (exercise/physical activity), performed at moderate intensities and habitually, could have beneficial effects on the vascular function. However, the physiological effects of interventions conducted with facilitating techniques of the motor activity, such as Kabat's proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation techniques (PNF) on vascular function are unknown, even though such physiological effects are proposed in said postulates. This report presents the usefulness of  PNF on vascular function in three healthy volunteers. The patterns of Kabat's PNF increase, just like the models or contractile isotonic activity proposed in this test, the tension of vascular friction, which relates to better vascular function.


Final maturation of eukaryotic ribosomes occurs in the cytoplasm and requires the sequential removal of associated assembly factors and processing of the immature 20S pre-RNA. Using cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), we have determined the structure of a cytoplasmic pre-40S particle poised to initiate final maturation at a resolution of 3.4 Å. The structure reveals the extent of conformational rearrangements of the 3' major and 3' minor domains of the ribosomal RNA that take place during maturation, as well as the roles of the assembly factors Enp1, Ltv1, Rio2, Tsr1, and Pno1 in the process. Altogether, we provide a structural framework for the coordination of the final maturation events that drive a pre-40S particle towards the mature form capable of engaging in translation.


On occasion, the wall of the aneurysm base can be the rupture site of the lesion, which poses a unique challenge for treatment. Although there has already been a report of the angiographic depiction of a basal rupture of a saccular aneurysm by a small outpouching at the aneurysm neck, this is the first report of saccular aneurysms in which a basal rupture was angiographically depicted as a stalk-like narrow neck due to a thrombus sealing the rupture point and occupying the lumen of the aneurysm base. The author reports on 2 such cases: a 49-year-old woman who presented with a basal rupture of a saccular aneurysm arising at the middle cerebral artery bifurcation, and a 44-year-old man who presented with rupture of a saccular aneurysm arising at the junction of the A(2) segment and the anterior communicating artery. In both cases, a pterional craniotomy allowed the surgeon to determine that the base of the aneurysm was ruptured, and he surgically obliterated the aneurysm. Microsuture reconstruction and clipping of the aneurysm neck were successful in obliterating the ruptured aneurysm and avoiding any compromise of the parent artery.


Xylem vessels, which conduct water from roots to aboveground tissues in vascular plants, are stiffened by secondary cell walls (SCWs). Protoxylem vessel cells deposit cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin as SCW components in helical and/or annular patterns. The mechanisms underlying SCW patterning in the protoxylem vessel cells are not fully understood, although VASCULAR-RERATED NAC-DOMAIN 7 (VND7) has been identified as a master transcription factor in protoxylem vessel cell differentiation in Arabidopsis thaliana. Here, we investigated deposition patterns of SCWs throughout the tissues of Arabidopsis seedlings using an inducible transdifferentiation system that utilizes a chimeric protein in which VND7 is fused with the activation domain of VP16 and the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) (VND7-VP16-GR). In slender- and cylinder-shaped cells, such as petiole and hypocotyl cells, SCWs that were ectopically induced by the VND7-VP16-GR system were deposited linearly, resulting in helical and annular patterns similar to the endogenous patterns in protoxylem vessel cells. By contrast, concentrated linear SCW deposition was associated with unevenness on the surface of pavement cells in cotyledon leaf blades, suggesting the involvement of cell morphology in SCW patterning. When we exposed the seedlings to hypertonic conditions that induced plasmolysis, we observed aberrant deposition patterns in SCW formation. Because the turgor pressure becomes zero at the point when cells reach limiting plasmolysis, this result implies that proper turgor pressure is required for normal SCW patterning. Taken together, our results suggest that the deposition pattern of SCWs is affected by mechanical stimuli that are related to cell morphogenesis and turgor pressure.


This study examines the efficiency of Malaysian stock market based on the effectiveness of unconventional technical trading strategies which combine buy recommendation of securities experts with sell signals from 10 different technical strategies (SMA, MAE, Bollinger bands, momentum, commodity channel index, relative strength index, stochastic, Williams percentage range, MACD oscillator and shooting star). We collect 1,665 buy recommendations involving 173 shares over a 3-year period starting January 1, 2013 until December 31, 2015. To ensure each buy recommendation is matched with the technical strategy's sell signals, the period is extended until March 31, 2016. Results of Jensen's alpha show that 6 out of 10 technical trading rules are significant in generating risk-adjusted net abnormal returns, suggesting Malaysian stock market is still inefficient in the weak form. This conclusion is supported with results of unit root tests on daily returns of the 173 shares over the same study period.


Title Lipopolysaccharide-bound structure of the antimicrobial peptide cecropin P1 determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy [an abstract of dissertation and a summary of dissertation review] Author(s) 白, 美花 Citation 北海道大学. 博士(生命科学) 甲第12371号 Issue Date 2016-06-30 Doc URL http://hdl.handle.net/2115/62465 Rights(URL) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.1/jp/ Type theses (doctoral abstract and summary of review) Additional Information There are other files related to this item in HUSCAP. Check the above URL. File Information BAEK_Mihwa_abstract.pdf (論文内容の要旨)


Since the global financial crisis of 2007–8, new laws and regulations have been introduced with the aim of improving the transparency in financial reporting. Despite the dramatically increased flow of information to shareholders and the public, this information flow has not always been meaningful or useful. Often it seems that it is not possible to see the wood for the trees. Financial scalds continue, as Wirecard, NMC Health, Patisserie Valerie, going back to Carillion (and many more) demonstrate. Financial and corporate reporting have never been so fraught with difficulties as companies fail to give guidance about the future in an increasingly uncertain world aided and abetted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This concise book argues that the changes have simply masked an increase in the use of corporate PR, impression management, bullet points, glossy images, and other simulacra which allow poor performance to be masked by misleading information presented in glib boilerplate texts, images, and tables. The tone of the narrative sections in annual reports is often misleading. Drawing on extensive research and interviews with insiders and experts, this book charts what has gone wrong with financial reporting and offers a range of solutions to improve information to both investors and the public. This provides a framework for a new era of forward-looking corporate reporting and guidance based on often conflicting multiple corporate goals. The book also examines and contrasts the latest thinking by the regularity authorities. Providing a compelling exploration of the industry's failings and present difficulties, and the impact of future disruption, this timely, thought-provoking book will be of great interest to students, researchers, and professionals as well as policy makers in accounting, financial reporting, corporate reporting, financial statement analysis, and governance. © 2021 Krish Bhaskar and John Flower.


A stability analysis is made for a non-singular pre-big-bang like cosmological model based on 1-loop corrected string effective action. Its homogeneous and isotropic solution realizes non-singular transition from de Sitter universe to Friedmann-like universe, via super inflation phase. We are interested in whether the non-singular nature of the solution would be stable or not in more general inhomogeneous case. Perturbative analysis is made for scalar, vector, and tensor linear perturbations, and instability is found for tensor-type perturbation.


Theoretical rock physics modelling and synthetic time lapse seismic data are used to explore the use of attenuation to indicate saturation in hydrocarbon reservoirs. Given the time variant changes in saturation and the properties of the reservoir rock, the patchy saturation mechanism and the theory of modulus-frequency-dispersion are applied to formulate a theoretical curve that describes the dynamic effect of saturation on seismic attenuation. Attenuation is measured in time lapse synthetic seismic records and the theoretical curve is used to estimate the approximate saturation that gave rise to the Seismogram-derived Attenuation (SdA). Results show that SdA can be used to indicate the changes in reservoir saturation if a relationship between SdA and saturation is known. The saturation values predicted by the theoretical model are consistent with the saturation values inverted from SdA. This study also shows that seismic attenuation depends on porosity, mineral content of the rock, and the property of the saturating fluid(s). For the case study, at a saturation of 0.7, a 10% reduction in porosity caused a 5.9% rise in attenuation; and a 10% reduction in the bulk modulus of the saturating fluids caused an 11% reduction in attenuation


This study focuses on the importance of Lake Victoria fisheries activities to the national economy in terms of employment generation, income generation, and government revenue. The economic linkage effect analytical framework has been used to trace and determine the interdependence among sectors as markets for inputs and outputs. Results from primary data collected indicate that Lake Victoria Nile Perch (NP) fisheries activities are an important economic activity at three levels namely; household level, private sector level and government level. The importance ranges from providing nutritious food to subsistence fishermen and population in general, income generation to small retail fish businesses, capture of considerable resource rents by fish traders and big fish processors and exporters of NP, also employment to a significant number of people both directly and indirectly. However, much needs to be done before small-scale fishers and the nation as a whole derives the optimal benefit from this industry.


Objective Proficiency testing for salt iodine within the participant laboratories.Methods To evaluate the testing results with reference value±uncertainty.Results All 31 provincial laboratories were qualified in the proficiency testing.Feedback rate was 98.9% and qualified rate was 97.7% at prefecture level.At the county level,the feedback rate and qualified rate were 100% and 98.8% respectively.Conclusions The testing ability at different level laboratories has been significantly improved through national laboratory network operation and sustained technical training.


In the working and outside environment a single factor is never found by itself, rather there are always a number of factors the effects of which can be combined, multiplied and thus adversely affect the human body. Evaluating and assessing health risks at work due to exposure to harmful work factors and the working environment is a challenging and long-term process. Limit values are defined for the categorization of types of work in such a way that it is not foreseeable that, according to current scientific knowledge, they will be detrimental to the health of employees. However, these limit values are set for each factor alone and do not take into account the effect of the combined action of individual factors on the human body. The research aimed at assessing the combined effects of risk factors on human health. The experimental proposal of the assessment focuses on the workplace featuring metalworking machinery and technological equipment. The author paid a significant attention to the risk assessment process and synergistic effects of factors.


Risk-taking is a critical health factor as it plays a key role in several diseases and is related to a number of health risk factors. The aim of the present study is to investigate the role of alexithymia in predicting risk preferences across decision domains. One hundred and thirteen participants filled out an alexithymia scale (Toronto Alexithymia Scale-TAS-20), impulsivity and venturesomeness measures (I7 scale), and-1 month later-the Cognitive Appraisal of Risky Events (CARE questionnaire). The hierarchical regression analyses showed that alexithymia positively predicted risk preferences in two domains: aggressive/illegal behaviour and irresponsible academic/work behaviour. The results also highlighted a significant association of the alexithymia facet, externally oriented thinking (EOT), with risky sexual activities. EOT also significantly predicted aggressive/illegal behaviour and irresponsible academic/work behaviour. The alexithymia facet, Difficulty Identifying Feelings, significantly predicted irresponsible academic/work behaviour. The results of the present study provide interesting insights into the connection between alexithymia and risk preferences across different decision domains. Implications for future studies and applied interventions are discussed.


ABSTRACT In any country, financial development has a huge influence on country's economic developments. Financial development strengthens financial stability of countries and enhances deep and broad access to capital and financial services by improving efficiency of financial markets and effectiveness of financial intermediation. The purpose of this study is to identify the relationships between various aspects (pillars) of financial development and dimensions of governance for countries listed in the Financial Development Index of the World Economic Forum. The Index provides a score for the breadth, depth and efficiency of 62 of the world's leading financial markets. The study utilized the data from the World Economic Forum presented in the financial development report (2012) and attempted to model the relationships between various pillars of financial development and dimensions of governance by structural equation modelling (SEM) methodology. The study used the Worldwide Governance Indicators for year 2012 of the World Bank as the measure of governance. According to the SEM results, there seems to be a significant positive relationship between governance and financial development. Thus, as governance is enhanced, we may expect financial development to strengthen as well.


Surmmary
Isolated hyphal walls from Phytophthora heveae, Pythium butleri and Saprolegnia ferax were hydrolysed and compared in quantitative composition. A high carbohydrate content was found in all these walls (80–90%); also a small amount of glucosamine (1–2%), lipids (1–2.5%) and protein. Quantitatively the cell walls differed appreciably in protein (1–11%). Five neutral sugars (glucose, galactose, mannose, rhamnose, ribose) were detected by chromatography; glucose was always the main monosaccharide. From the results of acid-extraction of walls and enzymic hydrolysis it was concluded that a portion of cell-wall polysaccharide was cellulose (30–45%). The amino acids found were those typical of normal protein hydrolysates and containing also hydroxyproline.


This is the first full-length study of the Symposium to be published in English, and one of the first English works on Plato to take its bearings by the dramatic form of the Platonic dialogue, a thesis that was regarded as heterodox at the time but which today is widely accepted by scholars of the most diverse standpoint. Rosen was also one of the first to study in detail the philosophical significance of the phenomenon of concrete human sexuality, as it is presented by Plato in the diverse characters of the main speakers in the dialogue. His analysis of the theoretical significance of pederasty in the dialogue was highly controversial at the time, but is today accepted as central to Plato's dramatic phenomenology of human existence.Rosen discusses a variety of topics that had previously been neglected in the secondary literature, including the problem of the hybristic nature of the philosopher, the poetical dimension of Plato's conception of philosophy, and the theoretical implication of the difference between Platonic writing and Socratic conversation.


This article reports on the implementation, evaluation, and policy implications of MISSION-Criminal Justice (CJ), an innovative intervention used to treat justice-involved veterans with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders (CODs). In this pilot feasibility study, MISSION-CJ was embedded into four Massachusetts courts and their probation services as an alternative to incarceration. Seventy-six veterans were diverted from jail to MISSION-CJ and completed intake and six-month follow-up assessments. The MISSION-CJ participants were primarily white, had at least two prior arrests, served in a war combat zone, had a trauma before age 18, and had previously received mental health and substance use treatments. Preliminary six-month follow-up data suggested that the MISSION-CJ participants showed improvements in COD problems, trauma symptoms, and a nonsignificant reduction in hospitalization/ER visits. MISSION-CJ was feasible to implement and seemed to show some preliminary program success. A randomized controlled trial of MISSION-CJ is a necessary next step in determining program efficacy. Policy implications for tailoring interventions for justice-involved veterans such as MISSION-CJ and their delivery alongside the court and probation are discussed.


Background: Tumor cells are able to reprogram their metabolism in order to sustain continuous growth and proliferation. Although, this has led to the development of metabolism-based therapies, until now there are no systematic ways to identify key metabolic targets for therapy. This area of research deserves more attention considering that targeting tumor metabolism has been shown to increase the efficacy of standard chemotherapy in pre-clinical studies. For tumors with poor prognosis, like late-stage metastatic melanoma, this untapped area for therapeutic discovery could lead to the development of novel metabolism-based therapies.
 Method: To address this challenge we designed a systems medicine-based technique to understand tumor metabolism in individual patients at a level of detail not previously achievable. In concrete, we statistically integrated metabolic network modeling with RNA-sequencing data (RNA-seq). This allows us to integrate molecular data about individual tumors (from RNA-seq) with a curated knowledge base of how these molecules interact within a patient's tumor (using metabolic network models). This results in a mathematical description, or model, of a specific tumor's metabolism that is able to be interrogated (i.e., it is high-dimensional like RNA-seq data) and able to be simulated (i.e., we can "drug" the model and investigate downstream effects). We applied this technique to 325 metastatic melanoma tumor RNA-seq profiles downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas to characterize metabolic differences across patients.
 Results: We found considerable differences in metabolic function across metastatic melanoma patient tumors. One of the main drivers of patient-to-patient metabolic variability appeared to be BRAF mutations, with BRAF mutated tumors showing higher levels of glutathione metabolism, lower levels of glutamate metabolism, and lower levels of oxidative phosphorylation. In addition to these differences, we found that several metabolic pathways were associated with poor overall survival prognosis regardless of BRAF mutations status including high specific growth rate, high cholesterol metabolism, and high serotonin and melatonin biosynthesis. Furthermore, simulating knockouts of enzymes involved in these pathways resulted in a set of actionable targets that could enhance chemotherapy for metastatic melanoma patients.
 Conclusion: Using systems medicine, we have characterized metabolism in metastatic melanoma at high resolution in 325 patient tumors. This characterization revealed the variability in metastatic melanoma across patients and how this variability is associated with clinical outcome. Furthermore, our approach suggests additional therapeutic targets to enhance patient care.
 Citation Format: Daniel Cook, Dorys A. Lopez-Ramos, Patricia Carrigan, Joseph R. Peterson, The SimBioSys Team. Systems medicine based metabolic profiling of metastatic melanoma reveals insights into tumor biology, prognosis, and new therapeutic strategies [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 2714.


ABSTRACT Background: Successful use of prostheses after lower-limb amputation (LLA) depends on undergoing physiotherapy and rehabilitation both physically and psychologically. The aim of this systematic literature review is to systematically review the scientific evidence regarding prosthetic rehabilitation and physiotherapy after LLA. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted using PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, CINAHL, EMBASE, SCOPUS, and EMB Reviews databases on December 31, 2015. Studies with the search keywords were identified and independently assessed by reviewers. The search yielded 403 potentially relevant articles after the removal of duplicates. Of these, only nine articles met the inclusion criteria. All studies were original articles, one of which was a randomized controlled study. Different measurement methods were used and positive results in terms of functional status, weight-lifting capacity with prosthesis, walking and balance ability, and acute care process were gained with a physiotherapy program. Conventional methods still possess high importance; however, it is safe to say that virtual reality and software-based programs for rehabilitation are increasingly being developed and getting more and more support. Discussion: LLA rehabilitation is a topic that requires the focus of current and future studies; evidence-based studies are required on the approaches to rehabilitation for specific LLA groups.


In this paper, the disadvantages of the current CBN (Cubic Boron Nitride) grinding wheels were firstly introduced briefly, for indicating that it was very urgent and important to develop new kinds of grinding wheels with excellent performance to replace the conventional wheels. Then high temperature brazing experiments of monolayer CBN wheels with Ag-Cu-Ti filler alloy were carried out. The result shows that the filler alloy has good wetting capability towards CBN grits. The results of scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersion spectrometer (EDS), as well X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis show that, just because during brazing titanium atoms in filler alloys segregated preferentially to the surface of the CBN to form Ti-nitride or Ti-boride layer by reaction between titanium atoms and nitride and boron atoms at elevated temperature, strong chemical joining was formed in the interface between CBN grits and filler alloys. Finally, the contrastive grinding experiments were performed between the monolayer brazed CBN grinding wheels and the electroplated ones. The results show that the brazed wheels have more excellent performance than the latter.


Recently, an agile software development technique called extreme programming has caught the attention of practitioners and researchers in the software industry. A core practice of extreme programming is pair programming, where two developers work on the same piece of code. We introduce the problem of assigning pairs of developers to modules so as to maximize the commonality---a measure of the extent to which common developers work on related modules---subject to a load-balancing constraint that is motivated by the need to control the completion time of the project. We consider two variants of this problem. In MCAPn, a developer is teamed up with exactly one other developer to form a pair that works together for the entire duration of the project. In MCAPs, we allow a developer to pair with more than one other developer during the project. This "pair-splitting" version of the problem facilitates knowledge dissemination among developers, but can increase the effort needed for a developer to adjust to the work habits of several partners.

The difference between the commonality achieved with and without pair splitting crucially depends on the underlying structure of the problem. For trees, we show that the value of the maximum commonality is the same for both MCAPn and MCAPs. Additionally, we obtain polynomial-time algorithms for both of these variants. For general graphs, both problems MCAPn and MCAPs are shown to be strongly NP-complete. We prove that the maximum commonality for MCAPs is at most 3/2 times the maximum commonality of MCAPn. We also provide polynomial-time algorithms and approximation results for a number of special cases of these problems.


This article aims to stress the importance of services negotiations for the conclusion of the Doha Round. It is argued in the article that trade in services is of high importance for the economies of both developed and developing countries, and that there remains substantial scope for many World Trade Organization (WTO) countries to make further commitments towards greater liberalization within the services sectors and within all modes of supply provided in the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). After an explanation of the notion of trade in services, the article analyzes the GATS, the progressive liberalization of trade in services in the framework of the Doha Round, the request/offer method of negotiations in services trade viewed from the perspective of the European Communities, and the July 2008 WTO Mini-Ministerial Conference in relation to services.


We analyze how internal labor migration facilitates shock coping in rural economies. Employing high-precision satellite data, we identify objective variations in the inundations generated by a catastrophic typhoon in Vietnam and match them with household panel data before and after the shock. We find that, following a massive drop in income, households cope mainly through labor migration to urban areas. Households with settled migrants ex ante receive more remittances. Nonmigrant households react by sending new members away who then remit similar amounts than established migrants. This mechanism is most effective with long-distance migration, while local networks fail to provide insurance. (JEL J61, O15, P25, P36, Q54, R23)


As much as has been written about allopathic hegemony silencing and replacing others' viewpoints and voices in daily clinical encounters, one is impressed by the resistance with which individual patients counter the truth claims of allopathic medicine. The cognitive frames or schemas with which patients think about their illness and choose modes of redress are the basis of their engagement with medicine, and determine to what extent they will allow allopathic hegemonization of their bodies. If the tropes, metaphors, or messages implicit in medicine's expectations for how a patient is supposed to behave are not consonant with those that give meaning and identity to the patient himself or herself, allopathic therapy is bound to fail. It will either be avoided by the patient, or, as David Perusek shows in this issue, it will be a source of frustration as it challenges patients' own ideas of what and how to be in the world. The concept of "medical pluralism" should be expanded to include the cognitive schemas or "key concepts" that patients use to construct meaning and chart a course of behavior through an illness that is consonant with how they think about themselves and relate socially, politically, and economically with others.


Chronic illness may be a risk factor for low self-esteem; however, previous meta-analyses are inconclusive whether children with a chronic illness have lower self-esteem than their healthy peers. The goal of the present study was to summarize available research in order to compare the self-esteem of children and adolescents with a chronic illness with that of healthy children. Random-effects meta-analysis was used to integrate the results of 621 empirical studies that compare levels of self-esteem of children with a chronic physical illness with healthy peers or general test norms. Studies were identified via the electronic databases Adolesc, Embase, Google Scholar, MEDLINE, PSNYDEX, PSYCINFO, and cross-referencing. Children with chronic illnesses have lower self-esteem than healthy peers or test norms (g = -0.18 standard deviation units). The lowest levels of self-esteem were observed in children with chronic fatigue syndrome and chronic headaches. Lower levels of self-esteem in children with a chronic illness were found in girls than in boys, in adolescents than in children, in children from developing or threshold countries, when results were collected from observer ratings rather than child reports, in studies published in the 1990s, and when children with chronic illnesses were directly compared with healthy children instead of test norms. Paediatricians, parents, and teachers should promote experiences of success and positive peer-relations, which are important sources of self-esteem. In addition, psychosocial interventions for children with chronic illnesses should be offered for children with reduced self-esteem.


This paper analyzes opportunities for growth in Nepal by applying the policy tool of New Structural Economics – Growth Identification and Facilitation Framework (GIFF). Drawing on firm level surveys, stakeholder interviews, and existing datasets it aims to contribute to policy discussions in Nepal and to demonstrate the use of the GIFF for other least developed countries. The report argues that Nepal should seek to capture industrial transfer from China to establish a foothold in global value chains, create employment and catalyze structural transformation. The report identifies product-level advantages arising from preferential market access and sector-specific binding constraints, and proposes how to use Special Economic Zones to mitigate identified constraints to set Nepal on a path of structural transformation.


The purpose of this preexperimental study was to determine the effects of a blended learning environment on school-based agricultural education students' ability to identify 30 species of trees by leaves. Louisiana agriculture teachers were recruited based on district policy regarding whether students could use smartphones for learning in the classroom. The treatment group utilized smartphone technology to aid in the identification of tree species, while the comparison group utilized traditional, printed materials. All students were taught via guided inquiry and engaged in multiple formative assessments during the course of the research study. No statistically significant differences were found between the groups on the posttest tree leaf identification. It is recommended that future research be conducted over a longer duration of time to better measure long-term performance and learning gains. Further, more research should be conducted to determine if motivational differences exist based on utilizing smartphones for learning. Teachers who desire to incorporate the smartphone into blended learning environments can do so without diminishing student achievement.


BACKGROUND
The clinical benefits of using icodextrin during acute peritonitis in peritoneal dialysis are uncertain. On the premise that high glucose concentration might jeopardize the peritoneal defense during peritonitis, icodextrin administration during acute peritonitis could have the potential to improve the peritonitis outcome whilst improving ultrafiltration.

METHODS
We conducted a single-center, open-label, randomized controlled trial in which 53 adult continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patients underwent randomization to receive either icodextrin or original glucose-based dialysis solution. The primary outcome measure was the peritoneal dialyzate white cell count on Day 3. Secondary outcome measures comprised the need of additional hypertonic exchanges, fluid control as denoted by changes in body weight, and the clinical outcome of peritonitis including 30-day and 120-day all-cause mortality.

RESULTS
Between icodextrin and control treatment groups, there were no statistically significant differences in the peritoneal dialyzate white cell count on day (1829 versus 987/mm(3), P = 0.13). There was neither improvement in primary cure rate (31.8 versus 32.3%, P = 1.00), nor was there any change in 120-day mortality after icodextrin use (13.6 versus 12.9%, P = 1.00). However, requirement of hypertonic dialysis exchange was much more frequent in the control group than in those randomized to icodextrin (35.5 versus 0%, P = 0.001). Body weight did not change significantly in the icodextrin group, but body weight in the control group increased from 63.3 ± 14.5 kg at baseline to 64.2 ± 14.2 kg at Day 5 (P = 0.0002) and 65.2 ± 14.1 kg at Day 10 (P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS
As compared with glucose-based peritoneal dialysis solution, use of icodextrin achieved better ultrafiltration and fluid control during acute peritonitis complicating continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis, although we found no evidence of a worthwhile clinical benefit on peritonitis resolution. (ClinicalTrial.gov number, NCT0104446 [ClinicalTrial.gov].).


Improving embedded systems lifetime and reliability become a major concern for the semiconductor industry. Imbalanced mapping of applications may considerably impact on system lifetime since processors and NoC links located in hotspot zones may age faster than others, compromising the overall system performance. This work proposes a dynamic mapping heuristic that makes a trade-off between processors' load and NoC communication volume, aiming to increase system reliability. Results show the proposed heuristic provides a well-balanced workload distribution while reducing communication volume. Results showed that proposed mapping reduces application execution time (average 10%) and hotspots zones when compared to conventional mapping approaches.


In setting threshold to determine the arrival time in mechanical vibration signals which are collected by sensors and contain noise, five methods based on MATLAB have been proposed. Direct observation of the figure, powering operation to data, variance theory, reverse search and MATLAB programming has been used. Each method's merits and demerits will be discussed so that it can be varied according to different situations. Consistent results have been achieved by those methods. MATLAB code has also been presented for better understanding of the algorithm and reproduction. After this analysis, a systematic way of setting threshold (determining the arrival time) has been formed and these methods could actually be used in all similar data separation.


Gang Wang Kristin Hui Xian Tan Hongye Ren Lene Hammer-Helmich 3 1Psychiatry Department, Beijing an Ding Hospital, Capital Medical University, China National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing, People's Republic of China; 2Health Economics & Epidemiology Statistics, Lundbeck Singapore Pte Ltd, Singapore; 3Medical Affairs Value Evidence, H. Lundbeck A/S, Valby, Denmark Purpose: This post hoc analysis was undertaken to further explore the association of cognitive symptoms with health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and work productivity at the time of treatment initiation in Chinese patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) in the Prospective Research Observation to Assess Cognition in Treated patients with MDD (PROACT) study. Patients and Methods: This was an epidemiological, non-interventional, prospective cohort study in adult outpatients with moderate-to-severe MDD initiating antidepressant monotherapy (first or second line). Crude and adjusted analyses of covariance were performed to assess the association of perceived cognitive symptoms (20-item Perceived Deficits QuestionnaireDepression [PDQ-D] total score) or observed cognitive performance (Digit Symbol Substitution Test [DSST] score) with HRQoL (EuroQoL 5-Dimensions Questionnaire index) and work productivity (Work Productivity and Activity Impairment [WPAI] or Sheehan Disability Scale [SDS] absenteeism and presenteeism scores). Adjusted analyses included depression severity, age, sex, residential area (urban/rural), and educational level. Results: Of 1008 patients enrolled in the PROACT study, 986 were included in this analysis. Severity of perceived cognitive symptoms (ie, higher PDQ-D total score) was significantly associated with worse HRQoL (P<0.001) and higher levels of absenteeism (P=0.020 for the WPAI and P=0.002 for the SDS) and presenteeism (P<0.001 for both scales). The association of perceived cognitive symptoms with HRQoL and presenteeism was independent of depression severity. The association between observed cognitive performance (DSST score) and HRQoL was less robust. No association was seen between observed cognitive performance and levels of absenteeism or presenteeism assessed by either scale. Conclusion: Results of this real-world study illustrate the impact of cognitive symptoms on HRQoL and work productivity in Chinese patients with MDD, and highlight the importance of assessing and targeting cognitive symptoms in order to improve functional outcomes when treating patients with MDD.


Four patients with deep neck or retropharyngeal abscesses underwent CT-guided aspiration and drainage from either of two percutaneous approaches. Percutaneous drainage contributed to prompt and/or dramatic clinical responses in all four patients by effecting decompression of the abscess cavities and by improving the ability to assess infectious organisms. There were no complications in this small group. Precutaneous drainage obviated more traditional invasive surgery.


ABSTRACT Uganda is one of the leading host countries for refugees in the East and Horn of Africa. Uganda's location among instable neighbouring countries and its open door policy to refugees has seen a big number of refugees flowing into the country from Southern Sudan, Rwanda, Somalia, Burundi, Eritrea, Kenya, Ethiopia and Democratic Republic of Congo. Some of the refugees are hosted in Nakivale one of the biggest refugee camps in the country located in South Western Uganda. This paper documents the economic and environmental impacts of refugees in Nakivale refugee camp. Data were generated through Focus Group Discussion and interviewing camp leaders, government officials, local leaders, the refugees and community members. This paper contends that the establishment and dense occupancy of Nakivale refugee camp have exerted pressure on the environment as the refugees' endeavor to revitalize their livelihoods. The increasing numbers of refugees and their active involvement in the production systems has had an impact on the economy. The government should harmonize the interpretation of the 2006 Refugee Act on the right of refugees to employment so that they can increasingly be engaged in production systems, sizes of land allocations should be increased to facilitate expansion in economic activities; and scale up the environment management aspects that has been rolled out in new Uganda Development Response to Displacement Project.


Household contact studies, a mainstay of tuberculosis transmission research, often assume that tuberculosis‐infected household contacts of an index case were infected within the household. However, strain genotyping has provided evidence against this assumption. Understanding the household versus community infection dynamic is essential for designing interventions. The misattribution of infection sources can also bias household transmission predictor estimates. We present a household‐community transmission model that estimates the probability of community infection, that is, the probability that a household contact of an index case was actually infected from a source outside the home and simultaneously estimates transmission predictors. We show through simulation that our method accurately predicts the probability of community infection in several scenarios and that not accounting for community‐acquired infection in household contact studies can bias risk factor estimates. Applying the model to data from Vitória, Brazil, produced household risk factor estimates similar to two other standard methods for age and sex. However, our model gave different estimates for sleeping proximity to index case and disease severity score. These results show that estimating both the probability of community infection and household transmission predictors is feasible and that standard tuberculosis transmission models likely underestimate the risk for two important transmission predictors. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.