Application of nano-structures of titanium dioxide (TiO2) films on photocatalytic activities of organic dyes was investigated. Methylene blue (MB) and cation yellow X-Gl 200% were used as organic dyes to observe decolorization. The TiO2 films were prepared on glass substrate by reactive DC magnetron sputtering. The films had thickness, grain size and root mean square surface roughness of 300 nm,  40 nm and  4 nm, respectively. Coated-TiO2 on glass and uncoated TiO2 (glass) were immerged in MB and cation yellow dyes solution. A weak ultraviolet (UV) A at peak wavelength  365 nm and intensity of 0.19 mW/cm2 was irradiated. Absorbance spectra of dyes at different UV irradiation time were observed. The efficiency of decolorization increased as UV irradiation time increased. At UV irradiation time 120 hours, coated-TiO2 showed higher percentage decolorization of MB than uncoated-TiO2 about 64%. While, at UV irradiation time 48 hours, coated-TiO2 showed higher percentage decolorization of cation yellow than uncoated-TiO2 about 84%. Under photocatalysis process of TiO2 films, at the end, MB (about 120 hours) and cation yellow dyes (about 48 hours) change to be colorless.


The principal objective of this research is to demonstrate in the field that 3D seismic data can be used to aid in identifying porosity zones, permeability barriers and thief zones and thereby improve waterflood design. Geologic and engineering data will be integrated with the geophysical data to result in a detailed reservoir characterization. Reservoir simulation will then be used to determine infill drilling potential and the optimum waterflood design for the project area. This design will be implemented and the success of the waterflood evaluated.


Scattered, scarce occurrences of garnet- and quartz-rich metamorphic rock, probably derived from Mn- and Fe-rich chert, occur within metamorphosed greywacke sequences worldwide. The metamorphism of such garnetiferous metacherts has not previously been investigated using modern thermodynamic forward modelling techniques due to the lack of appropriate, internally-consistent activity-composition (a–x) models for Mn-bearing minerals. The present study applies thermodynamic forward modelling using the recently-proposed a–x models of White et al. (2014) to investigate the metamorphism of garnetiferous metachert samples from the Southern Alps, New Zealand.  Pressure-temperature (P–T) pseudosections are used in combination with results from petrography, element composition mapping using micro X-ray fluorescence (µXRF) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) methods, and garnet composition data from analytical transects by electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), to study metachert metamorphism. All the samples are compositionally layered, so the possibility exists that an input bulk rock composition might not match the effective bulk composition at the site of garnet growth. If a mineral assemblage stability field in a calculated P–T pseudosection matched the mineral assemblage in the rock, this was taken as an initial indication of a permissible input bulk rock composition. In that case, refined constraints on the P–T conditions were sought by comparing calculated and measured garnet compositions. The studied rocks include samples that are carbonate-bearing, which require consideration of the effects of fluid composition in mixed H₂O–CO₂ fluids, as well as a sample in which the garnet is strongly zoned, texturally-complex, and inferred to be of polymetamorphic origin. The effects of element fractionation by that garnet were investigated by recalculating the P–T pseudosection using a new bulk rock composition with the garnet core content removed. In none of the samples did the calculated and observed composition isopleths for the garnet cores match, suggesting that initial garnet nucleation in these Mn-rich rocks was locally controlled. For most samples in which the calculated and observed mineral assemblages matched, successful estimates of the peak metamorphic conditions were obtained. A garnet chert (A12E) from the mylonite zone of the Alpine Fault at Vine Creek, near Hokitika, gave a tight intersection of composition isopleths, indicating peak metamorphic conditions of 510 °C/5.5 kbar, after recalculation to correct for element fractionation by the strongly-zoned garnet. This tight, modern constraint is within error of previously-reported results from traditional geothermobarometry (420–600 °C/5.9–13 kbar) and Raman spectroscopy of carbonaceous material (RSCM T = 556 °C) from nearby sites. A peak metamorphic estimate of 520–550 °C/7–10 kbar was obtained from a dolomite-bearing sample from the garnet zone near Fox Glacier (J34), in good comparison with published temperatures from Raman spectroscopy of carbonaceous material in nearby metagreywacke samples (526–546 °C). The prograde metamorphic P–T path was probably steep, based on growth of the garnet core at ~475535 °C/5–9 kbar. The successful results for these garnet chert samples show that the new a-x models for Mn-bearing minerals extend the range of rock types that are amenable to pseudosection modelling.  Results obtained in this study also serve to highlight several possible concerns: a) garnet nucleation and initial growth in very Mn-rich rocks may be subject to local compositional or kinetic controls; b) bulk rock compositions may not always mimic the effective bulk composition; c) the existing a–x models for Mn-bearing minerals and white micas may need refining; and d) some rocks may simply be ill-suited to thermodynamic forward modelling. Items a) and b) may be indicated by the common observation of a mismatch between predicted and measured garnet composition isopleths for garnet cores, and by a mismatch between garnet composition isopleths and the appropriate mineral assemblage field for sample AMS01, from the mylonite zone, Hari Hari, Southern Alps. For item c) every P–T pseudosection calculated using the new a–x models for Mn-bearing minerals showed garnet stable to very low temperatures below 300 °C. In addition, the P–T pseudosection for an oligoclase-zone metachporphyroblasts of Fe-Ti oxides (magnetitert (Sample J36) from Hari Mare stream, Franz Josef - Fox Glacier, indicated that the white mica margarite should be present instead of plagioclase (oligoclase), for a rock in which oligoclase is present and margarite is absent, a problem previously noted elsewhere. Item d) is exemplified by a very garnet-rich ferruginous metachert sample (J35, garnet zone, headwater region, Moeraki River, South Westland) which proved impossible to model successfully due to its complex mineral growth and deformation history. This sample contained multiple generations of carbonate with differing compositions, amphibole (not incorporated for modelling with the new a–x models for Mn-bearing minerals), large e associated with smaller, possibly later-formed ilmenite), and the garnet bands were offset by late deformation.  The garnetiferous metachert samples studied here preserve in their textures and compositions clues to their growth mechanism and metamorphic history. The textures in at least two of the samples are consistent with the diffusion controlled nucleation and growth model for garnet. This research has successfully used state of the art thermodynamic modelling techniques in combination with the latest internally consistent a-x models on Mn-rich metachert, for the first time, extracting P–T conditions of the metamorphism of garnetiferous metachert from the Southern Alps.


This abstract has been withheld from publication due to its inclusion in the AACR-NCI-EORTC Molecular Targets Conference 2015 Official Press Program. It will be posted online at the time of its presentation in a press conference or in a session: 12:15 PM ET Friday, November 6. Citation Format: Xiaojuan Wu, Hui Xiao, Chenglong Li, Jiayuh Lin. Repositioning Bazedoxifene as a novel inhibitor of IL-6/GP130 signaling for pancreatic cancer therapy. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2015 Nov 5-9; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2015;14(12 Suppl 2):Abstract nr A177.


Reliability, lack of error, and security are important improvements to quality of service. Outlier detection is a process of detecting the erroneous parts or abnormal objects in defined populations, and can contribute to secured and error-free services. Outlier detection approaches can be categorized into four types: statistic-based, unsupervised, supervised, and semi-supervised. A model-based outlier detection system with statistical preprocessing is proposed, taking advantage of the statistical approach to preprocess training data and using unsupervised learning to construct the model. The robustness of the proposed system is evaluated using the performance evaluation metrics sum of squared error (SSE) and time to build model (TBM). The proposed system performs better for detecting outliers regardless of the application domain.


While there is an increasing need to share medical information for public health research, such data sharing must preserve patient privacy without disclosing any information that can be used to identify a patient. A considerable amount of research in data privacy community has been devoted to formalizing the notion of identifiability and developing techniques for anonymization but are focused exclusively on structured data. On the other hand, efforts on de-identifying medical text documents in medical informatics community rely on simple identifier removal or grouping techniques without taking advantage of the research developments in the data privacy community. This paper attempts to fill the above gaps and presents a framework and prototype system for de-identifying health information including both structured and unstructured data. We empirically study a simple Bayesian classifier, a Bayesian classifier with a sampling based technique, and a conditional random field based classifier for extracting identifying attributes from unstructured data. We deploy a k-anonymization based technique for de-identifying the extracted data to preserve maximum data utility. We present a set of preliminary evaluations showing the effectiveness of our approach.


Summary Eighteen cows were used in a study of the effect of thyroprotein on milk composition. They were fed 15 grams daily of the hormone for periods of six weeks. The milk was sampled at the start and twice during the feeding-period. Determinations made were: total solids, fat, ash, total protein, and casein. Lactalbumin and globulin, and lactose were determined by difference. Most important changes noted here were a considerable and rather consistent decrease in casein, and a roughly proportional increase in lactalbumin and globulin. Changes in fat content of the milk were not consistent, an increase being noted in only about half of the cases. Variations in milk composition between individuals within a breed in the great majority of cases were greater than variations between breeds. Wide variations in milk yield response to the hormone were also noted. These results should be considered as preliminary. It is planned to repeat the trials during the coming winter in a more intensive manner.


on the public health, and his reply was to blow up all the tobacco companies and their factories. Dr Mackay has used all legal means to campaign against the tobacco industry and what the authors describe as the 'epidemic' to which it gives rise. This is a compact compendium of everything globally one would wish to know. Of course, the industry supply chain is global and does not respect national or regional boundaries. Indeed if one door is closed, it will rapidly migrate through others. It is, nevertheless, a considerable undertaking to have set out such a comprehensive set of statistics on such a range of topics. If you imagine that these are dry as dust statistics, then you will be sorely disappointed. The full colour graphics are superb, and it is easy to read off the pertinent data. The text will serve a multitude of purposes and will interest those in health education, industry analysts, business students and practitioners and even those in the tobacco industry itself. Prefaced with a brief history of tobacco, the six parts cover: 1) Prevalence and Health type of tobacco use, male, female and youth use, passive smoking and deaths; 2) The Costs of Tobacco to the economy and the smoker; 3) The Tobacco Trade growing, manufacturing and smuggling; 4) Promotion brands, Internet sales, politics, pressure groups; 5) Taking Action research, legislation, health education, quitting, price policy, litigation and the future; and 6) World Tables demographics, individual and industry. We are lucky to have this attractively produced and illustrated atlas, a labour of love by the authors. Gerald Vinten European Business School, London


Abstract Background delirium is an event leading to negative health outcomes and increased mortality in patients. The aim of this study is to investigate the incidence, determinants and consequences of post-operative delirium (POD) in older patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Methods The TAVI Care and Cure program is a prospective, observational registry in patients referred for TAVI at Erasmus University Medical Centre. The presence of delirium was evaluated by daily clinical assessment by a geriatrician pre- and up to 3 days post-TAVI. Mortality data were obtained from the Dutch Civil Registry. Results A total of 543 patients underwent TAVI between January 2014 and December 2017. Overall, the incidence of POD was 14% (75/543 patients) but declined from 18% in 2014 to 7% in 2017 (P = 0.009). Patients who developed POD were older (81.9 ± 5.8 versus 78.6 ± 8.3 years, P < 0.001), had higher prevalence of renal dysfunction and prior stroke (54% versus 40%, P = 0.02; 31% versus 18%, P = 0.01) and were more often frail (32% versus 25%, P = 0.02). From a procedural perspective, general anesthesia (odds ratios (OR), 2.31; 95% CI, 1.40–3.83; P = 0.001), non-transfemoral access (OR, 2.37; 95% CI, 1.20–4.70; P = 0.01) and longer procedural time (OR, 1.01; 95% CI, 1.01–1.02; P < 0.001) were significantly associated with POD. One-year survival rate was 68% among patients who had suffered a POD and was 85% in patients without a POD (hazard ratio's 1.8 (95% CI 1.01–3.10), P = 0.045). Conclusion POD frequently occurs after TAVI and is associated with increased mortality. It might be speculated that patient selection and the minimalistic approach of TAVI may reduce the frequency of delirium.


High-speed precision hard cutting always causes vibratory motion, which has great influence on production efficiency, machining quality, machining environment, operating cost, machine tool life and cutting tool life. The dynamic model is established that is about flutter system of external circular finish turning recycled hardened steel; the limit of hard cutting system stability is analyzed, and the limit of hard cutting system stability can be predicted with numerical simulation in Matlab; with the larger corner radius change and the more the hardness of workpieces increases, the more the maximal stabile cutting width reduces. Hardened steel GCr15 is cut in different cutting condition with PCBN tools, the result obtained by the method coincides with the actual result. So, with selecting cutting parameters through the method, it is ensured that the cutting proceeds in the stable region throughout.


A quarter of patients with clinical N1 (cN1) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) based on positron emission tomography–computed tomography (PET-CT) imaging have occult mediastinal nodal involvement (N2 disease). In a prospective study, endosonography alone had an unsatisfactory sensitivity (38%) in detecting N2 disease. The current prospective multicentre trial investigated the sensitivity of preoperative mediastinal staging by video-assisted mediastinoscopy (VAM) or VAM-lymphadenectomy (VAMLA). Consecutive patients with operable and resectable (suspected) NSCLC and cN1 after PET-CT imaging underwent VAM(LA). The primary study outcome was sensitivity to detect N2 disease. Secondary endpoints were the prevalence of N2 disease, negative predictive value (NPV) and accuracy of VAM(LA). Out of 105 patients with cN1 on imaging, 26% eventually developed N2 disease. Invasive mediastinal staging with VAM(LA) had a sensitivity of 73% to detect N2 disease. The NPV was 92% and accuracy 93%. Median number of assessed lymph node stations during VAM(LA) was 4 (IQR 3–5), and in 96%, at least three stations were assessed. VAM(LA) has a satisfactory sensitivity of 73% to detect mediastinal nodal disease in cN1 lung cancer, and could be the technique of choice for pre-resection mediastinal lymph node assessment in this patient group with a one in four chance of occult-positive mediastinal nodes after negative PET-CT. Videomediastinoscopy reaches a sensitivity of 73% detecting N2 disease in cN1 NSCLC patients; N2 prevalence is 26% http://ow.ly/VrzL30gIOWm


In flat mobile ad-hoc MANETs, an extensive amount of information is produced that may saturate the network. Due to network scalability and node heterogeneity, it is highly desirable to organize the nodes into clusters and form a hierarchal structure. Cluster formation in ad-hoc wireless MANETs has been a problem from a long time. Recent work on clustering in MANETs focus on balance cluster formation, but there is always a tradeoff in network division quality and cluster formation time. Some nodes reveal false information during the clustering process that may result in unstable clustering structure. One method to form high-quality clusters is to consider the trust and reputation of mobile nodes during network operations. In this paper, a comprehensive survey of reliable, trust and reputation based clustering algorithms is presented. The clustering algorithms are classified objectives and some other metrics. The trust and reputation based clustering algorithms are summarized. The objectives and findings of all peppers under consideration are stated. The future challenges of these algorithms are also highlighted to help the young researchers in conducting their research on clustering. The research directions are highlighted in the field of clustering in MANETs.


Between April 1981 and December 1987, 148 patients with newly diagnosed small cell lung cancer (SCLC) were treated using combination chemotherapy with or without thoracic irradiation and prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) in a series of cooperative therapeutic trials. With a minimum follow-up of 4.7 years, 13 (9%) patients survived and were free of SCLC. These included 11 (15%) of 76 patients with limited disease and two (3%) of 72 patients with extensive disease. Three died without any evidence of SCLC (one each from second leukemia, non-small cell lung cancer, and unrelated disease). The remaining 10 (7%) patients are currently alive and free of SCLC beyond 4.7 years. Since late relapse beyond 5 years is a very rare event, these patients may have been cured. However, late toxicity of PCI must be kept in mind. Three among the 10 patients have suffered from neuropsychologic symptoms of varying degrees in severity. Although the long-term survival rate is a benchmark in the treatment of SCLC, modifications of therapy that may potentially avoid such toxicities should be considered hereafter.


In the United Kingdom, there is a system for the co-ordination of the emergency services in response to disasters - The Emergency Management Combined Response System (EMCRS). It is a complex three tier command
and control system. It was set up in response to a need for better coordination between agencies, when they respond to disasters.
This research has developed models of the EMCRS that support diagnosis of co-ordination problems between agencies. Data for the modelling was acquired by means of training exercises. The co-ordination pro blems were
identified through behaviour conflicts between the agencies. For example, the Fire Service behaviours of setting up a cordon around the disaster site
conflict with the Ambulance Service behaviours of accessing the site for treatment of casualties.
In the course of EMCRS model development, the scope of an existing framework was extended to accommodate EMCRS characteristics, which are general to: (i) systems with more than one level of operation and interactions between the levels; (ii) systems that do not have stable
membership; and (iii) systems where there are trade-offs between different parts of the system that affect performance. For example, the framework extension for (ii) is to include time lines and a symbol that denotes
additional structures.
The EMCRS models constitute substantive Human Computer Interaction design knowledge, that is, knowledge that is both explicit and supports design. Such knowledge supports design practice directly, as the diagnosis
of design problems, and indirectly, as the prescription of design solutions.
An initial method for coordination design problem diagnosis by means of EMCRS models is also proposed. The strengths and weaknesses of the research are identified and discussed. Future work would be to apply the extended framework to data from an actual disaster to valid ate the
EMCRS models.


Treating citizens like customers is a common prescription for public managers, but citizens differ from customers—citizens engage in equitable social exchange that balances individual preferences and assessments with willingness-to-pay for public amenities. This article examines whether citizen satisfaction with the quality and quantity of public amenities drives a citizen's willingness-to-pay for more public provision. Analysing data from a Texas municipality's satisfaction survey, the authors found that a decrease in satisfaction with the quantity of public amenities is associated with an increase in willingness-to-pay, but quality assessments show no relationship. Such behaviour highlights differences between customers and public sector consumers, but also suggests that a rational public is willing to contribute to the resolution of public supply problems.


Non-dominated sorting has been widely adopted in evolutionary multi-objective optimization. Many approaches to non-dominated sorting have been proposed to improve its computational efficiency, but unfortunately, most of them still suffer from high computational cost, especially when the number of objectives becomes large. A tree-based efficient non-dominated sorting approach, termed T-ENS, has been recently developed by us for many-objective optimization, where a tree structure is adopted to represent solutions, such that the non-dominance relationship between solutions can be easily inferred from the position of the solutions in the tree, thereby considerably reducing the number of comparisons between solutions belonging to the same non-dominated front. To validate the computational efficiency of T-ENS, this paper provides a detailed empirical analysis by comparing T-ENS with the state-of-the-art approaches, in particular when the number of objectives is larger than three and the population size becomes large. Empirical results indicate that the T-ENS is well suited for evolutionary many-objective optimization and large-scale multi-objective optimization, where either the number of objectives or the population size is large.


This PhD thesis deals with the performance of clusters. Even though cluster studies are numerous, a coherent framework to analyze cluster performance is lacking. In this thesis, such a framework is developed, drawing from different schools that deal with clusters. Central in the framework is a distinction to variables of cluster performance related to the structure of a cluster and variables related to the governance of a cluster. Four structure variables - agglomeration ands disagglomeration forces, internal competition, heterogeneity of the cluster and the level of entry and exit barriers - and four governance related variables - the presence of trust, the presence of intermediaries, the presence of leader firms and the quality of collective action regimes - are identified and discussed. The validity of these variables is confirmed in the three case studies, of the port clusters of Rotterdam, Durban, and the lower Mississippi. The strengths and weaknesses of the three port clusters, the importance of the variables discussed above and opportunities for policy and management to improve the performance of clusters are discussed.The results of this study are relevant for cluster scholars and for scholars specializing in port studies. The thesis is also relevant for (port) cluster managers and for managers of firms in (port) clusters, since implications of this study for policy and management in (port) clusters are discussed.


Problem. The task of educating youth for the employment needs of a developing country such as Jamaica is a challenging one. Career aspirations is an important part of this process. Efforts are being made on the part of the Jamaican government to meet this continuing challenge, particularly at the secondary level. Since no studies have previously been done to identify the career aspirations of Jamaican college students, it was the purpose of this study to identify those aspirations to determine is any significant difference exists between them and the manpower needs of the country. The problem of befitting youth for the world of work will be made easier if the educators and national planners are aware of the career aspirations of their youth, especially those at the college level. By this awareness program offerings can be studied for meeting the personal needs of students as well as guiding them into professions that are needed for the country. Method. Fifteen colleges were chosen by a stratified random sampling method from among all independent and government (tertiary) institutions in jamaica, to include rural and urban colleges as well as colleges by type (i.e., teacher training, business and commercial, community, etcetera). All available seniors were tested representing a total of 695 seniors from a population of 790 which provided a sample size of 88 percent. The Career Aspiration Form (CAF), which was an instrument particularly designed for the study, was used to collect the data. The CAF contained fifteen items. Analysis of the data was done using (1) Chi-square Goodness of Fit and chi-square Contingency computer programs to test for differences of significance among variables in hypotheses 1 and 2, (2) the statistical test for finding the Standard Error of a Proportion for sub-hypotheses dealing with differences in individual categories. Since the approach taken in the study was the "ex-post facto" causal-comparative method, data not receiving statistical analysis were reported descriptively. The Cramers Phi was used as a test for the strength of the differences for hypotheses 1 and 2. Results. The analysis of the data yielded a statistically significant difference between the career aspirations of jamaican college seniors and the manpower needs of the country. The data also depicted a statistically significant difference between the career aspirations of seniors attending independent institutions and those attending government institutions. The strength of the difference indicated by the Cramers Phi was .70 and .57 for hypotheses 1 and 2, respectively. With an effect size of .50, the data summary not only revealed statistical significance but also practical significance. Analysis of sub-hypotheses 1A-1F resulted in statistically significant differences existing between the proportion of career aspirations of Jamaican college seniors and the proportion of need for personnel in each occupational category in jamaica. Conclusions. The findings of this study suggest a disparate relationship between the career aspirations of Jamaican college students and the manpower needs of Jamaica. Students attending independent colleges have career aspirations that are significantly different to students attending private government institutions. Item responses to the CAF indicate that many students are not receiving professional help in career guidance, and so that educational program of the colleges do not adequately address itself either to the personal vocational development of the students or the manpower needs of jamaica. Both government and independent educational programs are in need of professional counselors and career education services to function in a manner that will narrow this existing existing gap between aspirations and manpower needs.


The behavior of spray impinging on the inclined constant temperature flat plate was experimentally investigated. To clarify the wall effect of a high pressure DISI injector, a relative angle of the inclined wall to a spray axis was varied. Spray penetration along the wall was observed optically and it was compared with that of a Fan spray type and Swirl type spray. To evaluate various spray motion quantitatively, a spray path penetration which describe the development of a spray tip along the wall was newly introduced. To observe the structure of an impinging spray, it was visualized by a controlled stroboscope light and its visualized image was captured on an CCD camera. Using the digital image of impinging spray H χ and R χ was extracted to clarify the structure of impinging spray. The main parameter of the relative position of the wall was the inclined angle which was defined as the angle was varied from 0˚(vertical impingement) to 60˚ at the same condition.


This paper considers the problem of designing stabilizing and Hinfin controllers for nonlinear singularly perturbed systems described by Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy models with the consideration of the bound of singular perturbation parameter e. For the synthesis problem of simultaneously designing the bound of e and stabilizing or Hinfin controllers, linear matrix inequalities (LMI)- based methods are presented. For evaluating the upper bound of e subject to stability or a prescribed Hinfin performance bound constraint for the resulting closed-loop system, sufficient conditions are developed, respectively. For the stabilizing and Hinfin control synthesis without the consideration of improving the bound of e, new design methods are also given in terms of solutions to a set of LMIs. Examples are given to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed methods.


Objective: The objective of this study was to verify whether semaphorin 3A (Sema3A) participate in the immunoregulation of T helper 17 cells related inflammatory process and to identify novel serum markers in the immunoregulation in ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods: A total of 59 untreated male AS patients and 61 age-matched male normal controls were recruited for the study. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board. The venous blood of all participants was drawn from just above the elbow with patients' consent. Serum Sema3A, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-21 (IL-21) levels were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay analysis in both AS patients and normal controls. The optical density was assessed at 450 nm using a microtiter plate reader. Then, the concentration of the target serum marker was measured on the constructed standard curve. Results: We found that serum levels of Sema3A, TNF-α, and IL-21 were all higher in AS patients than normal control (47.5 ± 5.3 vs. 40.2 ± 4.0, 182.6 ± 38.1 vs. 47.5 ± 7.7, 190.3 ± 29.8 vs. 93.3 ± 21.0, P < 0.01). Serum level Sema3A was demonstrated to be statistically significantly positive correlated with both TNF-α and IL-21. Serum levels of Sema3A, TNF-α, and IL-21 were all higher in AS patients than normal control. Conclusion: Sema3A was a potential novel putative factor in the immunoregulation of inflammatory response in AS.


Efforts to control medical care costs depend critically on how individuals respond to prices. I estimate the price elasticity of expenditure on medical care using a new censored quantile instrumental variable (CQIV) estimator. CQIV allows estimates to vary across the conditional expenditure distribution, relaxes traditional censored model assumptions, and addresses endogeneity with an instrumental variable. My instrumental variable strategy uses a family member's injury to induce variation in an individual's own price. Across the conditional deciles of the expenditure distribution, I find elasticities that vary from -1.26 to -1.50, which are an order of magnitude larger than previous estimates.


UNLABELLED
A high incidence of low turnover bone disease (LTBD) has been reported in predialysis and dialysis uremic patients, despite parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels two- to four-fold the upper normal limit. The aim of this study was to evaluate the trend of PTH in uremic patients after admission to continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) or hemodialysis (HD). Thus, we evaluated 53 patients (27 CAPD and 26 HD) of 73 consecutive uremic patients starting CAPD or HD from 1992, who had at least one year follow-up on dialysis. HD and CAPD patients were comparable for age, nephropathy, and duration of uremia. All the patients had been treated with calcium carbonate (CaCO3) as the sole phosphate binder during the predialysis period. At the time of admission to dialysis PTH was > 260 pg/mL (fourfold above the upper normal limit) in 12 CAPD and 9 HD patients, between 130 and 260 pg/mL in 6 CAPD and 5 HD patients, and < 130 pg/mL in 9 CAPD and 12 HD patients. Bone biopsy, performed in 22 patients, showed LTBD in 10 of 12 patients with PTH < 130 pg/mL and high bone turnover in 8 patients with PTH > 260 pg/mL. Patients were treated with a dialysate calcium (Ca) of 1.75 mmol/L and were given CaCO3 to maintain serum phosphate < 5 mg/dL. Oral calcitriol was given if they developed hypocalcemia (< 9 mg/dL). Hypercalcemia (> 10.5 mg/dL) occurred in 13 CAPD and 17 HD patients, and was managed by discontinuation of calcitriol and reduction of dialysate Ca to 1.25-1.5 mmol/L. A significant decrease in PTH and alkaline phosphatase was observed in both groups after six and 12 months of treatment. After one year of CAPD, PTH was > 260 pg/mL in 3 patients, between 130 and 260 pg/mL in 4 (all on calcitriol), and < 130 pg/mL in 20 patients (17 on calcitriol, but only 2 mild hypercalcemic). After one year of HD, PTH was > 260 pg/mL in 3 patients, 130-260 pg/mL in 5 (all on calcitriol), and < 130 pg/mL in 18 (11 on calcitriol, 1 mild hypercalcemic).

IN CONCLUSION
(1) about 40% of predialysis patients treated with CaCO3 showed PTH levels suggestive of LTBD; (2) the proportion of patients with low PTH increases after one year on CAPD or HD, even though calcemia was maintained within the normal range; (3) suppressed PTH levels are associated with calcitriol therapy rather than dialysis modality; and (4) secondary hyperparathyroidism improves in most patients after one year on CAPD or HD.


Objectives: The uptake of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) testing has resulted in a decrease in invasive prenatal diagnosis (IPD), but atypical chromosomal abnormalities may be missed. We analyzed the chromosomal abnormalities detected by cfDNA as a contingent approach in a single public centre with universal Down syndrome screening (DSS). Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we compared the types of chromosomal abnormalities detected by IPD using cytogenetic +/chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA) after a positive cfDNA testing as a contingent approach (group 1) versus a positive DSS (group 2) from August 2011 to July 2016 using descriptive analysis and Chi-square test. IPD was publicly funded while cfDNA was self-financed. Results: Of 2,132 women with a positive DSS, 721 chose cfDNA testing and 1,411 direct IPD. Of 721 cfDNA testing (group 1), two failed, one showed an inconclusive result and 29 (4.0%) abnormal results. Of the latter, 27 had known outcomes after IPD including 74.1% common Trisomies, 3.7% mosaicism, 14.8% sex chromosomal abnormalities (SCA), 3.7% atypical aneuploidy, and 3.7% confined placental mosacism. Of 1,411 direct IPD (group 2), 193 (13.7%) showed chromosomal abnormalities including 66.8% common Trisomies, 11.9% mosaicism, 7.8% SCA, 5.3% atypical aneuploidies including those by CMA and 8.3% balanced translocation. Compared to direct IPD (group 2), the proportion and types of chromosomal abnormalities detected by IPD after a positive cfDNA testing (group 1) was different (p < 0.001) with a low/no detection rate of mosacism, atypical aneuploidies and balanced translocations though comparable detection rate of common Trisomies and SCA. Conclusions: The detection rate of mosaicism, atypical aneuploidies, and balanced translocation after using cfDNA as contingent approach was low/no. This could be related to women' characteristics or limitation of cfDNA. Women should be carefully assessed and adequately counselled on cfDNA vs. IPD after a positive DSS.


The aim of this work is to describe a possible approach for the detection of face of arbitrary pose in color images, based on wavelet invariant moments and self-organizing competitive neural network. The method is capable of locating human faces over a broad range of views in color images with complex scenes. First of all, it uses the presence of skin-tone pixels to locate candidate face regions. And then a new method based on wavelet invariant moment and self-organizing competitive neural network is used to verify the candidate face regions. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm has high speed and low error-detection rate, so it can be used in the real-time system. The main distinguishing contribution of this work is being able to detect faces at any degree of rotation in the image plane irrespective of their poses by using the wavelet invariant moments as input of the SCNN, whereas contemporary systems deal with upright, frontal faces. The other novel advantage of our method lies in its usage of self-organizing competitive neural network to detect face which greatly improve the efficiency of training procedure.


The paper I suggest is based on the preliminary results of the research project Deindustrialization and under-development in the Romanian Transition. Individual/Collective Strategies/ Reply Policies. Case study: Valea Jiului, that will be done within the project ID- 141086 "Pluri- si interdisciplinaritate in programe doctorale si postdoctoraleIe" This project is constructed from the perspective of the social development paradigm. The modernization theories suggest the paradigm of development as modernization from an evolutionist perspective. While the communist project of social development chose explicitly industrialization as a corollary of modernization, such process of (post) modernization initiated in the moment of the communism' collapse. On economic level the transition meant also a continue and emphasized process of de-industrialization illustrated by the constant decrease of the number of industrial employees from maximum 4 millions in 1990 to 1,2 millions of employees in 2011 (data sourse: Zamfir s.s., coord. 2011). In the same time a transfer of the agriculture employees to the subsistence agriculture was registered (now the employees represent only ,2% of the total persons working in agriculture – MADR, 2013). The high reduction of the percentage of employed population represents a factor generating under-development and has a negative impact on the balance of the social insurance systems (pensions, unemployment, health). This paper intends to describe and analyze a special case of the communist under-development from the perspective of causes, factors and mechanisms of this process located in the region Valea Jiului. The selection of the mining restructuring in Valea Jiului is based on the fact that this represents an example of failure of the social policies aiming to reduce the effects of the transition (effects increased in the respective case exactly by the manner of implementation of certain economic policy measures).


Summary

1. The Chilean National Forestry and Park Service is striving to implement a guanaco management programme of sustained-yield use. To achieve this, the rate, variation and causes of juvenile guanaco mortality must be understood thoroughly. Therefore, we monitored the survival of 409 radio-collared juvenile guanacos in Torres del Paine National Park, Chile, from 1991 to 1996.

2. The Kaplan–Meier product limit estimator of survival for staggered entry was calculated, and survival rates between juvenile males and females and among years were compared using the lifetest procedure in SAS. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to relate mortality rate to explanatory variables such as juvenile sex, birth weight, adult female aggression towards researchers during the capture and tagging of newborns, population density, and mean monthly winter snowfall.

3. Mean juvenile survival rate (Ŝ) was 0·38, but varied between 0·31 and 0·55. Survival rates between the sexes were not significantly different, although male survival was lower than that of females. Mortality rate was highest during the first 14 days after birth. Most deaths occurred between birth and 7 months of age.

4. The risk of mortality increased by almost 6% with every 1 cm increase in winter snowfall, whereas the risk of mortality decreased by almost 24% as adult female aggression increased towards researchers.

5. Current management objectives are aimed at the implementation of a rational harvest of guanacos on the Chilean side of the island of Tierra del Fuego. Our results provide improved and updated estimates of juvenile guanaco survival and will aid in the modelling of harvest rates of guanacos in southern Chile. Future proposed harvests from wild populations in southern Chile need to consider the rate and variation of this critical life-history parameter.


BACKGROUND
Although influenza virus resistance to the neuraminidase inhibitor zanamivir is reported less frequently than is resistance to the neuraminidase inhibitor oseltamivir in clinical settings, it is unknown whether this difference is due to the limited use of zanamivir or to an inherent property of the drug. We therefore compared the prevalence of drug-resistant viruses and virus shedding in seasonal influenza virus-infected children treated with either oseltamivir or zanamivir.

METHODS
Clinical specimens (throat or nasal swab) were collected from a total of 144 pediatric influenza patients during the 2005-2006, 2006-2007, 2007-2008, and 2008-2009 influenza seasons. Neuraminidase inhibitor-resistant mutants were detected among the isolated viruses by sequencing the viral hemagglutinin and neuraminidase genes. Sensitivity of the viruses to neuraminidase inhibitors was tested by neuraminidase inhibition assay.

RESULTS
In oseltamivir- or zanamivir-treated influenza patients who were statistically comparable in their age distribution, vaccination history, and type or subtype of virus isolates, the virus-shedding period in zanamivir-treated patients was significantly shorter than that in oseltamivir-treated patients. Furthermore, the frequency of zanamivir-resistant viruses was significantly lower than that of oseltamivir-resistant viruses.

CONCLUSION
In comparison with treatment with oseltamivir, treatment of pediatric patients with zanamivir resulted in the emergence of fewer drug-resistant influenza viruses and a shorter virus-shedding period. We conclude that zanamivir shows promise as a better therapy for pediatric influenza patients.


Purpose: The authors attempt to identify differences within adopted models for calculating how various maternity benefits influence changes in expenditures on maternity and paternity benefits and the level of births and total fertility in Bulgaria, Germany, Ireland, and Poland between 2009-2019. Design/Methodology/Approach: The paper was written based on the available literature, current legislation, reports of social security institutions. During undertaken research, comparative, descriptive, and interdependence analysis methods were used. First, an overview of family policy trends and instruments of the social protection of maternity in Europe were presented. Then, characteristics of the construction of maternity allowances in selected countries were performed. Finally, a comparative analysis of the influence of family policies on birth and total fertility was carried out. Findings: All the selected countries differ significantly in their approaches to maternity allowance, e.g., the duration of maternity/paternity leave, the amount, and construction of paid benefits. The research allows assessing the validity of governmental actions, the impact of benefit increases, and the changes being seen in the number of births. Practical Implications: Provides relevant information for Human Resources teams. It allows HR specialists to familiarize themselves with the diversity of regulations governing the matter of the maternity allowance for both parents, and correctly address the growing diversity and inclusion within the organization. Originality/Value: Both the public sector and the private sector may benefit from comparisons between countries in terms of parent support presented in this article. The paper can provide guidelines for government members and policy makers in other countries. The latter with an emphasis on the developing SSC / BPO area, employing employees from all over the world and creating new branches in various countries.


Objective: This study examined anxiety symptoms and disorders in college students with ADHD. Method: Forty-six college students with ADHD and a matched group of students without ADHD participated. Participants completed self-report measures of anxiety symptoms and associated features, including worry, maladaptive beliefs about worry, panic symptoms, social anxiety, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and self-efficacy. Participants also completed a diagnostic interview to assess lifetime and current anxiety disorders. Results: Participants with ADHD endorsed more maladaptive beliefs about worry, more obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and poorer self-efficacy compared with comparison participants. There were no group differences in rates of current anxiety disorders. Participants with ADHD were over 2 times more likely than comparison participants to endorse this lifetime history. Conclusion: College students with ADHD are more likely to have a lifetime history of an anxiety disorder and are at greater risk for some anxiety symptoms and associated features.


Glass fibre reinforced polyamides are composite materials exhibiting high levels of toughness, heat resistance and oil resistance in comparison with other reinforced thermoplastics. There has been a rapid increase in the number of moulded composites exposed to engine-related fluids (e.g. coolants and fuels) at high temperatures and/or pressure and this has led to a need for an improvement in our understanding of the performance of glass-reinforced polyamide under such conditions. The mechanical performance of these composites results from a combination of the fibre and matrix properties and the ability to transfer stresses across the fibre-matrix interface. In this work, we investigated glass fibre-polyamide adhesion during fuel conditioning with two engine fluids, ethanol-based fuel and biodiesel. Both single fibres and composite were conditioned respectively in a mini-autoclave filled with each type of fuel at elevated temperature and pressure. The fibre-matrix adhesion was then characterised by interfacial shear strength (IFSS) measured by using a self-built microbond technique. The results showed that both fuels induce significant reduction in the IFSS and the ethanol-based fuel at 130°C caused a much more detrimental effect compared to the conditioning in biodiesel at 180°C.


Density‐dependent expression of luminescence in Vibrio harveyi is regulated by the concentration of an extracellular signal molecule (autoinducer) in the culture medium. A recombinant clone that restored function to one class of spontaneous dim mutants was found to encode functions necessary for the synthesis of, and response to, a signal molecule. Sequence analysis of the region encoding these functions revealed three open reading frames, two (luxL and luxM) that are required for production of an autoinducer substance and a third (luxN) that is required for response to this signal substance. The LuxL and LuxM proteins are not similar in amino acid sequence to other proteins in the database, but the LuxN protein contains regions of sequence resembling both the histidine protein kinase and the response regulator domains of the family of two–component, signal transduction proteins. The phenotypes of mutants with luxL, luxM and luxN defects indicated that an additional signal–response system controlling density‐dependent expression of luminescence remains to be identified.


Process of high-temperature (650°С) interaction of Cr(Si)-containing steel EP-823 with stagnant Pb melt containing oxygen (CО[Pb] » 10-5 - 10-6 mass.%) was theoretically and experimentally investigated. The structure and composition of oxide layer formed on the steel surface during exposure to Pb melt was examined. It is determined that thin (£ 1000 Å) Cr(Si) - rich oxide layer is formed on the steel surface in the early stages of oxidation. Oxide layer is being formed intensively over the grain boundaries followed by a lateral diffusion of Cr and spreading of Cr2O3 over alloy surface. Iron diffuses through the Cr(Si) - rich continuous oxide layer in the course of time. The formed oxide layer protects the steel against liquid metal penetration. Kinetics of iron diffusion dissolution in the liquid Pb is analytically described taking into account the chemical interaction between iron and oxygen. It is assumed that oxygen ions serves as a "traps" for iron ions and eliminates them from the diffusion flux. Fe−O complexes are considered as separate slowmoving components of the melt. In order to formulate the diffusion problem equations with additional parameter describing the volume reaction between Fe and O in melt and boundary conditions involved the time dependence of oxygen concentration at the interface of both melt and solid metal sides were used. Result is obtained in analytical form using the Laplace transformation. Analysis of obtained relations allow to assert that in the case of dissolution of iron in the lead melt containing "oxygen traps" the diffusion zone are less than that in the conditions of dissolution (without "traps"). However, the total concentration of iron both on surface of oxide layer and in the contact zone of melt is increased.


Venous air embolism can usually be detected by the use of a precordial Doppler ultrasound monitor at an air infusion rate as low as 0.015 ml/kg/min, and consistently at a rate of 0.021 ml/kg/min. This is in contrast to previously reported thresholds wherein the first physiological change, a gasp, occurs at 0.36 ml/kg/min, electrocardiographic changes first take place at 0.60 ml/kg/min, drop in blood pressure at 0.69 ml/kg/min, increased central venous pressure at 0.40 ml/kg/min, and end-tidal CO2 decreases at 0.42 ml/kg/min. The first change in heart sounds monitored through an esophageal stethoscope is not detectable until an air infusion rate of 1.70 ml/kg/min, and the classical mill-wheel murmur does not occur until 1.96 ml/kg/min. This demonstrates that Doppler ultrasound can detect venous air embolism before the earliest physiological changes, in contrast to most other methods which do not detect venous air embolism until after cardiopulmonary changes have become well established.


How might we balance assistance and penalties to intelligent tutors and educational games that increase learning and interest? We created two versions of an educational game for learning policy argumentation called Policy World. The game (only) version provided minimal feedback and penalized students for errors whereas the game+tutor version provided additional step-level teaching feedback and immediate error correction. A total of 105 university students played either the game or game+tutor version of Policy World in a randomized, controlled, two-group, between-subjects experiment, during which we measured students' problem-solving abilities, interest in the game, self-reported competence, and pre- and posttest performance. The game+tutor version increased learning of policy analysis skills and self-reported competence. A path analysis supported the claim that greater assistance helped students to learn analysis better, which increased their feelings of competence, which increased their interest in the game. Log data of student behavior showed that debate performance improved only for students who had sufficiently mastered analysis. This study shows that we can design interesting and effective games to teach policy argumentation and how increasing tutoring and reducing penalties in educational games can increase learning without sacrificing interest.


The study is a part of one deeper study on the Roman Law about the slaves and personae alieni iuris presented in its evolution. The accent is mainly on the emergence of the limited liability of the pater familias/ dominus in the case of contracts with pecuniary property. It is a study for the place of the actio de peculio among the other actiones adjectitiae qualitatis, the notion of the merx pexuliaris and the concessio particulii.


: Women have much to contribute to the worlds of science and technology, and the world is poorer for women's historical exclusion from such scientific endeavors. Although many industries exhibit gender discrepancies and continue to be shaped by sexism (e.g., banking, farming, mining, trucking, engineering, etc.), no other industry features so predominantly in our future-oriented visions for humanity as does science, and particularly space science. For women working in the male-dominated global space industry, space is a female frontier with a celestial ceiling. The United Nations (UN) reports that, in 2016, only 20% of workers in the space industry were women, and these figures had not improved in three decades. Women cannot defy the gravity of their situation without institutional change and a dramatic shift in cultural attitudes around gender. Science and human rights are linked; participation in science can improve a woman's education and independence, life opportunities, status in society, and basic human rights. On Earth, patriarchal ideologies punctuate daily life, but space presents a chance for humanity to start a new chapter.


Despite decades of research on strategies to address disparities in diabetes screening, prevention and treatment, disparities particularly by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status persist. An innovative approach to diabetes screening was therefore piloted in the Emergency Department (ED) at the University of Illinois Hospital in Chicago from February to April 2021. A best practices advisory (BPA) was built into the electronic medical records system that flagged ED patients at risk for diabetes for a provider to add a A1c test to an already planned blood specimen. The criteria were: all patients age >= 45 years, or patients age 18-44 years with a BMI >= 25; and, with no history of diabetes in the chart and no A1c performed in the last 3 years. Of the 8441 ED visits during the pilot timeframe, the BPA was triggered in 2691, and 2118 visits had a A1c resulted. Approximately half of the results (52%, n=1098) were abnormal. Of the abnormal results, 70% were in the prediabetes range (A1c 5.7-6.4%) and 30% in the diabetes range (A1c >= 6.5%; with 62 of the A1c results >=10%) . As A1c results were not immediately available in the ED, study staff successfully contacted 352 patients with an abnormal result by phone; the remaining were sent a letter informing them of their abnormal result. Of the 352, the average age was 52.2 years, 55% were female, 65% Non-Hispanic Black, 20% Hispanic, 15% Non-Hispanic White/Other. Half were on either Medicare or Medicaid, and 4% uninsured. The median income of the patients' zipcodes fell at the 44th percentile of the U.S. income. During this initial phase, our novel screening in the ED identified a significant number of patients with undiagnosed diabetes, particularly minority and poor patients, indicating this approach could be leveraged to further stymie health disparities. Future research will now test the linkage of these new patients to diabetes education and care within the health care system.

 K.K.Danielson: None. B.Rydzon: None. Y.Eisenberg: None. B.T.Layden: None. J.Lin: Research Support; Gilead Sciences, Inc., Novo Nordisk.

 Novo Nordisk (G2111)


Total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) has proved a cost-effective, reproducible procedure for multiple shoulder pathologies. As utilization of TSA continues to grow, it is important to investigate procedure diversity, training, and other characteristics of surgeons performing TSA. To identify surgeons performing TSA in the Medicare population, the Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Databases from 2012 through 2014 were used. This dataset includes any provider who bills Medicare >10 times with a single billing code. A web-based search was performed for each physician performing >10 TSA in all years of the study to identify their surgical training characteristics. Between 2012 and 2014, 1374 surgeons (39 females [2.8%]) performed >10 TSA in Medicare patients in at least 1 year (71,973 TSA). Only 44.3% (609/1374) of surgeons met this threshold for all 3 years (55,538 TSA). Of these 609 surgeons, 191 (31.3%) were shoulder and elbow fellowship trained (21,444 TSA). Shoulder and elbow fellowship-trained surgeons were at earlier points in their careers and practiced in large referral-based centers with other surgeons performing TSA. In addition to TSA, surgeons performed other non-arthroplasty shoulder procedures (80.2% of surgeons), total knee arthroplasty (46.3%), repairs of traumatic injuries (29.8%), total hip arthroplasty (27.8%), non-arthroplasty knee surgeries (27.2%), elbow procedures (19.6%), and hand surgery (15.4%) during the study period. With less than one-third of TSA performed by shoulder and elbow fellowship-trained surgeons with consistent moderate-volume practices, the impact of consistent high-volume practices and targeted fellowship training on quality must be determined.


Several archetypical metal organic frameworks (MOFs), namely, HKUST-1, ZIF-8, MIL-100(Al), MIL-53(Al), and NH2-MIL-53(Al), were synthesized via anodic dissolution in an electrochemical cell. The influence of different reaction parameters such as solvent, electrolyte, voltage–current density, and temperature on the synthesis yield and textural properties of the MOFs obtained was investigated. The characterization of the samples involved X-ray diffraction, gas adsorption, atomic force microscopy, diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. In the present article, we demonstrate that electrochemical synthesis is a robust method offering additional degrees of freedom in the synthesis of these porous materials. The main advantages are the shorter synthesis time, the milder conditions, the facile synthesis of MOF nanoparticles, the morphology tuning and the high Faraday efficiencies. The synthesized MIL-53 and NH2-MIL-53 samples exhibit suppressed framework fle...


In the spring of 1818, ice avalanches from the Giétro Glacier created an ice dam, which in turn formed a glacial lake in the Drance Valley (Canton of Valais, Switzerland). Today, its maximum volume is estimated to have been 25×106 m3. Cantonal authorities commissioned an engineer named Ignaz Venetz to mitigate the risk of the ice dam's failure. He supervised the construction of a tunnel through which a large volume of water was drained as the lake rose (9×106 m3 according to his estimates and 11×106 m3 according to our model). After 2.5 days of slow drainage, the ice dam failed on 16 June 1818 and caused major flooding in the Drance Valley up to 40 km downstream, resulting in about 40 deaths. Venetz's lake monitoring notes, numerous testimonies gathered in the disaster's aftermath, and our field survey have made it possible to collect a wealth of information on this event, which is one of the world's major documented glacial lake outburst floods. Reconstructing major outburst floods remains challenging because not only do they involve enormous volumes of water spreading over long distances but they are also associated with additional physical processes such as massive erosion; intense transport of ice, sediment, and debris; and damage to vegetation and buildings. This paper attempts to reconstruct the 1818 Giétro flood by focusing on its water component. We develop a simple model to estimate the initial hydrograph during the slow drainage and failure phases. The flood's features are deduced by solving the shallow‐water equations numerically. The computational framework involves six free parameters, of which five are constrained by physical considerations. Using iterative manual parameter adjustments, we matched the numerical simulations to the historical data. We found that the peak discharge was close to 14,500 m3/s, the flood's front velocity was about 6 m/s, and flow depth varied considerably along the River Drance's bed (from 30 m just downstream of the ice dam to 2 m on the alluvial fan, 24 km west of the dam). To achieve a good agreement between computations and historical data, we had to select a high value for the Manning friction coefficient n (with n as large as 0.08 s/m1/3). As the Drance Valley is narrow, high flow resistance caused the flood's leading edge to behave like a plug, moving at a fairly constant velocity, with little dependence on what happened behind it. This result may explain why a simple flood routing model is able to reproduce the flood's features, because in an Alpine valley, a lateral spreading of the water volume is limited.


Abstract:This paper discusses systems development in the context of problemsolving strategies. A theoretical basis for the two dominant problem-solving approaches (sdlc and prototyping) is presented along with the results of a field study of the effectiveness of the strategies in fourth-generation language environments.Results from the study indicate the appropriateness of a mixed development strategy contingent on system type. Implications for future research on systems development are also presented.


Global impact assessment of unilateral climate policies is commonly based on multi-sector, multi-region computable general equilibrium (CGE) models that are calibrated to consistent accounts of production, consumption, and bilateral trade flows. However, global economic databases such as GTAP treat energy-intensive and trade-exposed industries rather in aggregate, thereby missing potentially important details on the heterogeneity of these sectors. In this paper, we elaborate on the availability of data resources and methodological issues in disaggregating energy-intensive and trade-exposed sectors that receive larger attention in the public policy debate on unilateral emission regulation: non-ferrous metals, iron and steel and non-metallic minerals. Our sensitivity analysis revolves around three types of unobserved heterogeneity at the sub-sectoral level: trade elasticities, energy consumption and technology specifications. Drawing on the example of border tax adjustments, we find that for all given technology specifications and variation in energy shares, the biggest differences emerge from variations in Armington elasticities. Even moderate changes in Armington elasticities can alter the magnitude and the sign of the effects at the sectoral level. The implications of sub-sectoral disaggregation are not as pronounced for macroeconomic indicators and leakage as for sectoral indicators.


Knowledge of a material thermal conductivity is essential in several engineering applications. This material property serves also as a measure of the quality of manufactured materials. Nowadays, a lot of effort is directed into development of non-destructive, fast and reliable measurement techniques. In the works of Adamczyk et al. [1] and Kruczek et al. [10], a new in situ conductivity measurement technique for an anisotropic material was developed. This method, due to its rapidity and nondestructive character, can be embedded in a manufacturing process. However, despite many advantages, the developed measuring technique has some drawbacks corresponding to the applied mathematical model, which is used for determining the material thermal conductivities. It neglects the effect of heat losses due to radiation and convection phenomena on the calculated values of thermal conductivities. In this work, the computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modeling was applied to estimate heat losses due to radiation and convection. The influence of omitting the radiative and convective heat transfer on the predicted temperature field and calculated thermal conductivities was investigated. Evaluated numerical results were compared against experimental data by using the developed in situ measurement technique for the thermal conductivity of anisotropic materials.


The diversity and structure of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (EPT) assemblages in streams of Central Brazil (Serra dos Pireneus, Pirenopolis, State of Goias) was investigated. Abundance data of EPT were obtained in Central-West Brazilian streams in order to evaluate the effect of spatial variability, includ- ing the effect of size of the stream and anthropic action, and seasonality (dry and rainy seasons) on faunal diversity and structure. The immatures were collected with circular sieves (0.5 mm mesh) during one hour at five collection stations over 14 months. From a spatial point of view, the data showed that anthropic action determined the patterns of diversity whereas the size of streams (1st and 3 rd -4 th orders) determined the faunistic composition. In addition, environmental seasonality was an important factor for structuring the EPT fauna.


Heterosis, the superiority of hybrids over their parents for quantitative traits, represents a crucial issue in plant and animal breeding. Heterosis has given rise to countless genetic, genomic and molecular studies, but has rarely been investigated from the point of view of systems biology. We hypothesized that heterosis is an emergent property of living systems resulting from frequent concave relationships between genotypic variables and phenotypes, or between different phenotypic levels. We chose the enzyme-flux relationship as a model of the concave genotype-phenotype (GP) relationship, and showed that heterosis can be easily created in the laboratory. First, we reconstituted in vitro the upper part of glycolysis. We simulated genetic variability of enzyme activity by varying enzyme concentrations in test tubes. Mixing the content of "parental" tubes resulted in "hybrids", whose fluxes were compared to the parental fluxes. Frequent heterotic fluxes were observed, under conditions that were determined analytically and confirmed by computer simulation. Second, to test this model in a more realistic situation, we modeled the glycolysis/fermentation network in yeast by considering one input flux, glucose, and two output fluxes, glycerol and acetaldehyde. We simulated genetic variability by randomly drawing parental enzyme concentrations under various conditions, and computed the parental and hybrid fluxes using a system of differential equations. Again we found that a majority of hybrids exhibited positive heterosis for metabolic fluxes. Cases of negative heterosis were due to local convexity between certain enzyme concentrations and fluxes. In both approaches, heterosis was maximized when the parents were phenotypically close and when the distributions of parental enzyme concentrations were contrasted and constrained. These conclusions are not restricted to metabolic systems: they only depend on the concavity of the GP relationship, which is commonly observed at various levels of the phenotypic hierarchy, and could account for the pervasiveness of heterosis.


Human rights and ethical principles justify Indigenous control of health research conducted in Indigenous communities, but also emphasise the need for scientific rigour, knowledge and expertise, much of which currently resides with the non‐lndigenous community. In 1994, we began development of the Bibbulung Gnarneep* Project on Aboriginal maternal and child health in Perth, Western Australia. We describe the process of developing a protocol to ensure ethical conduct of this research through consultation and negotiation between Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal people involved in the project.


Fine-Granularity-Scalability (FGS) has recently been adopted by the MPEG-4 standard for the efficient and flexible distribution of multimedia over the Internet. The FGS framework is able to perform spatio-temporal-SNR tradeoffs in real-time at transmission or (post-) processing time, depending upon the available bit-rate, sequence characteristics, priority, user preferences or receiver resources, and not at encoding time. This paper investigates the usage of FGS for enabling the Universal Media Access (UMA) paradigm for wireless networks. To cope with the detrimental channel conditions, we introduce a novel joint source-channel coding scheme that combines FGS and adaptive modulation to improve the robustness of wireless video transmission. Two schemes are presented, one uses hierarchical modulation and FGS and the other uses time division multiplexing and FGS. Both schemes are shown by computer simulation to maintain a stable video quality over a variety of multipath dynamic Rayleigh fading channels. The adaptive modulated FGS algorithms provide a graceful degradation and improvement in picture quality as the channel conditions vary.


Terpene synthases (TS) are classified into two broad types, Class I and II, based on the chemical strategy for initial carbocation formation and motif sequences of the catalytic site. We have recently identified a new class of enzymes, Class IB, showing the acceptability of long (C20-C35) prenyl-diphosphates as substrates and no amino acid sequence homology with known TS. Conversion of long prenyl-diphosphates such as heptaprenyl diphosphate (C35) is unusual and has never been reported for Class I and II enzymes. Therefore, the characterization of Class IB enzymes is crucial to understand the reaction mechanism of the extensive terpene synthesis. Here, we report the crystal structure bound with a substrate surrogate and biochemical analysis of a Class IB TS, using the enzyme from Bacillus alcalophilus (BalTS). The structure analysis revealed that the diphosphate part of the substrate is located around the two characteristic Asp rich motifs, and the hydrophobic tail is accommodated in a unique hydrophobic long tunnel where the C35 prenyl diphosphate, the longest substrate of BalTS, can be accepted. Biochemical analyses of BalTS showed that the enzymatic property, such as Mg2+ dependency, is similar to those of Class I enzymes. In addition, a new cyclic terpene was identified from BalTS reaction products. Mutational analysis revealed that five of the six Asp residues in the Asp rich motifs and two His residues are essential for the formation of the cyclic skeleton. These results provided a clue to consider the application of the unusual large terpene synthesis by Class IB enzymes.


Digital microfluidic biochips (DMFBs) are an emerging technology that implements bioassays through manipulation of discrete fluid droplets. Recent results have shown that DMFBs are vulnerable to actuation tampering attacks, where a malicious adversary modifies control signals for the purposes of manipulating results or causing denial-of-service. Such attacks leverage the highly programmable nature of DMFBs. However, practical DMFBs often employ a technique called pin mapping to reduce control pin count while simultaneously reducing the degrees of freedom available for droplet manipulation. Attempts to control specific electrodes as part of an attack cannot be made without inadvertently actuating other electrodes on-chip, which makes the tampering evident. This paper explores this tamper resistance property of pin mapping in detail. We derive relevant security metrics, evaluate the tamper resistance of several existing pin mapping algorithms, and propose a new security-aware pin mapper. Further, we develop integer linear programming-based methodologies for inserting indicator droplets into a DMFB in order to boost tamper resistance. Experimental results show that the proposed techniques can significantly increase the difficulty for an attacker to make stealthy changes to the execution of a bioassay.


Grouped by publication type: Journal articles [3] Book chapters [4] Communications and presentations at conferences [5] Books [6] Patents [7] Ph.D. dissertations [8] Grouped by research group: ANA: Advanced Network Architectures [9] ARCO Microarchitecture and Compilers [10] CAP -High Performace Computing Group [11] CBA Broadband Communications Systems [12] CNDS Computer Networks and Distributed Systems [13] DAMA-UPC Data Management [14] DMAG Distributed Multimedia Applications Group [15] ICARUS Intelligent Communications and Avionics for Robust Unmanned (Aerial) Systems [16] Individual production is accessible through people [17]


BACKGROUND
Nurses play an integral part in providing evidence-based care to patients with stroke, yet some patients receive unnecessary or even harmful care. The literature supports the use of multifaceted strategies to promote implementation of evidence-based practice; however, there is a gap in knowing which combinations of strategies are most successful.

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to determine if a tailored, multifaceted Stroke Competency Program would improve nurses' knowledge of and adherence to evidence-based practices in the care of patients with stroke. This program bundled implementation strategies of local opinion leaders, printed educational materials, and educational outreach.

METHODS
This study used a pretest/posttest program design. Nursing adherence was measured via documentation audits with knowledge measured by an author-developed assessment.

FINDINGS
Most participating nurses had approximately 10 years of nursing experience and were baccalaureate prepared; participation ranged from 32% to 58% (n = 88). Overall, an improvement in nursing adherence was noted after the program as well as significant improvements in nursing knowledge.

CONCLUSION
Although the Stroke Competency Program improved nursing knowledge of and adherence to stroke guidelines, future research should seek to extend these findings to identify which bundle of strategies are most effective for implementing evidence into nursing practice using psychometrically sound outcome measures.


1. In order to determine the relation of pituitary weight to body weight in the female rabbit, data were collected from 48 female rabbits. These data appear to fall on a straight line when the logarithm of the pituitary weight is plotted against the logarithm of cleaned body weight, and a straight line was fitted using the formula y = ax k . The value of the constant k was found to be 0.61. 2. From the data from 31 male rabbits a straight line was obtained by the same formula. The value of the constant k was found to be 0.57 as compared with the value 0.55 obtained by Robb for male rabbits. 3. The growth rate of the pituitary does not show any marked difference after puberty in male and female rabbits as has been recorded for the rat (Hatai). 4. Ten female rabbits were killed at varying periods after copulation and the relation of pituitary weight to body weight examined. No change in the relative size of the pituitary was detectable by the methods used, and it is concluded that any change in weight of the pituitary following copulation, if it occurs, must be slight.


Also known as nervus incisivus, the nasopalatine nerve is a division of the maxillary branch of the trigeminal nerve. Its function is to provide sensation to the anterior palate. The sphenopalatine artery supplies the same area it innervates. The pathological development of a cyst in the incisive canal can cause impingement of the nasopalatine nerve and limit its function. Clinically, injecting local anesthesia or performing nasopalatine nerve block facilitates procedures of the palate/maxilla.


Abstract. Eastern Alpine glaciers have been receding since the LIA maximum, but the majority of glacier margins could be delineated unambiguously for the last Austrian glacier inventories. Even debris-covered termini, changes in slope, colour or the position of englacial streams enabled at least an in situ survey of glacier outlines. Today the outlines of totally debris-covered glacier ice are fuzzy and raise the theoretical discussion if these glaciogenic features are still glaciers and should be part of the respective inventory – or part of an inventory of transient cryogenic landforms. A new high-resolution glacier inventory (area and surface elevation) was compiled for the years 2017 and 2018 to quantify glacier changes for the Austrian Silvretta region in full. Glacier outlines were mapped manually, based on orthophotos and elevation models and patterns of volume change of 1 to 0.5 m spatial resolution. The vertical accuracy of the DEMs generated from 6 to 8 LiDAR points per m2 is in the order of centimetres. calculated in relation to the previous inventories dating from 2004/2006 (LiDAR), 2002, 1969 (photogrammetry) and to the Little Ice Age maximum extent (moraines). Between 2004/06 and 2017/2018, the 46 glaciers of the Austrian Silvretta lost −29 ± 4 % of their area and now cover 13.1 ± 0.4 km2. This is only 32 ± 2 % of their LIA extent of 40.9 ± 4.1 km2. The area change rate increased from −0.6 %/year (1969–2002) to −2.4 %/year (2004/06–2017/18). The annual geodetic mass balance showed a loss increasing from −0.2 ± 0.1 m w.e./year (1969–2002) to –0.8 m ±0.1 w.e./year (2004/06–2017/18) with an interim peak in 2002–2004/06 at −1.5 ± 0.7 m w.e./year. Identifying the glacier outlines offers a wide range of possible interpretations of former glaciers that have evolved into small and now totally debris-covered cryogenic geomorphological structures. Only the patterns and amounts of volume changes allow us to estimate the area of the buried glacier remnants. To keep track of the buried ice and its fate, and to distinguish increasing debris cover from ice loss, we recommend inventory repeat frequencies of three to five years and surface elevation data with a spatial resolution of one metre.


The performance characteristics of green light-emitting diodes (LEDs) grown by metal-organic chemical-vapor deposition were investigated to study the dependence of the device performance on the materials and the growth conditions of p-type layer grown after the InGaN multiple-quantum-well active region. The electrical and structural qualities of Mg-doped p-In0.04Ga0.96N and p-GaN layers grown under different growth conditions were studied to optimize the growth conditions of p-type hole injection layers of green LEDs. A free-hole concentration of p=1.6times1018 cm-3 of with a resistivity of 0.33Omegamiddotcm was achieved for p-GaN:Mg layers grown at 1040degC. Lower hole concentrations and mobilities and rough surfaces were obtained when the growth temperature was decreased to 930degC in H2 ambient. In the case of p-In0.04Ga0.96N grown at 840degC in N2, a significant improvement of the hole concentration was achieved due to the reduced ionization activation energy of Mg acceptors in InGaN. Also we observed that as-grown p-GaN layers grown in N2  ambient showed p-type properties without Mg dopant activation. The electrical and optical properties of In0.25Ga0.75 N/GaN multiple-quantum-well green LEDs with such different p-layers were investigated. The electroluminescence intensity was improved for the LEDs with p-In0.04Ga0.96N layers grown at 840degC as compared to the LEDs with p-GaN layers grown at higher temperatures due to the reduced thermal damage to the active region, high hole injection, and low piezoelectric field induced in the active region. p-InGaN layers are very attractive candidates for the p-layer in green LED structures. The low temperature and N2 ambient used during the growth of InGaN layers are beneficial to protect the InGaN active region containing high-indium composition quantum-well layers in addition to the advantage of providing a higher hole concentration. However, the LEDs with p-In0.04Ga0.96 N layer showed a slightly higher turn on voltage which could originate from the potential barrier for hole transport at the interface of the p-InGaN layer and the last GaN quantum-well barrier. to reduce this problem, we designed and characterized an LED structure having a graded indium composition in the p-In0.04Ga0.96N layer in order to improve hole transport into the active region. Optimized LEDs with p-InGaN layers grown in a N2 ambient showed much brighter electroluminescence due to low damage to the active region during p-InGaN layer growth


Background: Leishmaniasis is one of the zoonotic diseases caused by protozoa of trypanosomatidae family. The cutaneous type with various manifestations is endemic in Iran and affects people of many provinces. Outbreaks may occur in military personnel who deploy these endemic areas.

Objectives: The main objective of this study was to evaluate the most important epidemiologic features of leishmaniasis in Iranian military personnel from 2005-2010.

Patients and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. Data was gathered from the regional passive surveillance system of the Iranian army and double checked by the Deputy of Health of Aja University of Medical Sciences. Analysis was performed by the STATA Software using appropriate statistical functions.

Results: During the 6 years of study, 3767 cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis were reported, 15% of the total reported infectious diseases (excluding upper respiratory infections, which were not included in this study). Cutaneous leishmaniasis was the third most prevalent infectious disease. Sixty nine percent of cases were reported in autumn. Most were related to three provinces: Isfahan, Khuzestan and Bushehr. Two thirds of the reports were from the Air Force.

Conclusions: There has been a decline in the overall trend of cutaneous leishmaniasis in the recent years, but there are still peaks in some provinces particularly during autumn. Army health commanders must do their best to prevent the disease and control its cycle, especially in high endemic areas.

Keywords: Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous; Military Personnel; Epidemiology; Iran


Risk regulation is of crucial importance for the functioning of contemporary societies, where risk is ubiquitous. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), nanotechnologies, nuclear power and chemicals are examples of technologies and products that promise great benefits to society, and yet entail risks that need to be addressed by regulators. How should lawyers and policymakers decide what risks a society ought to bear? When is regulation needed to control such risks and when can the risks be left unregulated? What weight should be given to the view of scientists and what role should be left to politics? This chapter presents the most relevant law and economics theories for the field of risk regulation. It first introduces the economic theories that justify regulatory intervention. It discusses both traditional theories, such as market failures, and more recent theoretical developments drawing on behavioral economics. Next to these theories, the chapter focuses on the cost-benefit analysis (CBA) paradigm, which has been defended by most legal-economic scholars as the center paradigm for risk regulation. While among law and economics scholars and in regulatory circles, consensus coalesced around the desirability of cost-benefit analysis, skepticisms grew among academics and pro-regulatory interest groups. This chapter argues that we are in the midst of a debate where the desirability of cost-benefit analysis is questioned anew. Cost-benefit analysis has the virtue of allowing comparisons between different consequences of regulatory intervention. This same virtue is perceived by many as a vice. In fact, assigning a dollar value to various effects of risk regulation is a risky enterprise, most prominently because the numbers generated by the economic methodologies are allegedly inaccurate. The chapter presents the main CBA methodologies used and shows to what extent these methodologies are problematic for the decisionmaking process. The chapter concludes that it is time for law and economics scholars to re-think the cost-benefit paradigm by seriously reforming it or switching to a different mode of 'rationalizing' risk regulation.


As an alternative to the usual insulin injections, insulin pumps have been introduced as an advanced method of insulin delivery for managing type 1 diabetes mellitus patients. This review documents the history of insulin pump development and the production of 'smart pumps' that offer patients greater dosing accuracy, flexibility, and ease of use. This has resulted in an increase in the number of insulin pump users around the world. This paper also provides a comprehensive survey of the pumps currently available on the market and their specifications. Unique features of each product and the drawbacks are addressed in the review. The future direction of insulin pump development is targeted toward closing the loop, to allow feedback control between an insulin pump and a glucose sensor, and hence finer adjustment of insulin delivery rates as required.


ABSTRACT Epoxy-based systems serve as excellent adhesives to join a wide range of substrates such as metal, ceramics, plastics, etc. The mechanical properties of such systems can be improved considerably by the addition of filler to the epoxy matrix. Herein, polymethylsilsesquioxane (PMS) and poly(methyl/vinyl)silsesquioxane (PMVS) nanosphere were synthesised by hydrolytic condensation of oraganosilane as a precursor in aqueous phase. The epoxy nanocomposite adhesives were prepared by adding different weight percentages (1–4 wt%) of the PS nanospheres. Tensile and compressive strength of the adhesive formulations were studied using the universal testing machine (UTM) and it was observed that the mechanical properties of the composites showed an increasing trend on increasing the filler loading. Adhesive strength of the epoxy composites on mild steel substrate was studied by conducting the lap shear test and EPV-4 exhibited a 31% increase in adhesive strength on the mild steel compared to the neat epoxy. Surface morphology of the epoxy composites were visualised from the SEM images and the composites also showed enhanced thermal conductivity. Higher mechanical and adhesive strength indicates the potential of the prepared nanocomposites to be used as an effective formulation in adhesive-based systems.


KAP1 is a universal corepressor for the large family of KRAB-ZFP proteins that coordinates epigenetic silencing of endogenous retroelements (EREs) during early embryonic development. This process is essential not just to prevent replication of EREs, but also to control their regulatory influence on host genes. Although in differentiated cells the control of EREs is believed to be mainly DNA methylation-dependent, emerging evidence suggests that KAP1-dependent, histone-based repression might remain a key regulator of ERE expression and its influence on cellular gene networks. Using a combination of transcriptional and histone modification profiling, we have investigated the impact of KAP1 epigenetic regulation on the transcriptional dynamics of human CD4+ T cells. We found that KAP1 binding on subsets of EREs is maintained in differentiated CD4+ T cells, where its locus-specific recruitment is dynamically modulated along with the T cell activation status. KAP1 depletion by RNA interference leads to a global decrease in repressive histone modifications that is accompanied by broad transcriptional alterations. Indeed, not only a large fraction of EREs become derepressed, but their deregulation correlates with illegittimate activation of nearby genes. Correspondingly, loss of KAP1 unleashes the intrinsic regulatory activities that some EREs are endowed with, suggesting a functional link between control of mobile genetic elements and protection of lineage-specific transcriptional networks. These findings establish the KRAB/KAP1 system as an important safeguard of CD4+ T cells transcriptional identity and suggest a critical role in maintaining epigenetic silencing of ERE-based regulatory sequences in adult tissues. Furthermore, our study shed light onto a previously unappreciated contribution of retrotransposon-derived sequences to the complexity of the human T cell transcriptome. A better knowledge of the physiological transcriptional activity of these mobile genetic elements, as well as their control mechanisms throughout development, would greatly help the debate on their pathologic implications.


Objective: To calculate stone nephrolithometry score in patients undergoing percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) and its correlation with stone clearance.Study Design: Descriptive cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Armed Forces Institute of Urology (AFIU) Rawalpindi, from Jan 2015 till Jul 2015Material and Methods: A total of 90 patients were included in the study after calculating the sample size using WHO sample calculator. After ethical review committee approval, all patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were included in the study by non-probability purposive sampling technique. Five variables available from preoperative non-contrast computed tomography (CT) were measured by a single radiologist then each variable was scored according to predefined score proposed by Okhunov Z and finally stone Nephrolithometry score was calculated by the sum of individual variable scores. Post-operatively stone clearance was assessed by plain x-ray kidney ureter and bladder, done within 1 week after the procedure. The frequency of stone clearance after PCNL at different stone Nephrolithometry scores was determined.Results: The patient's mean age was 52.11 ± 16.33 years among which 74.44% patients were males and 25.56% patients were females. The stone nephrolithometry mean score of the patients was 9.36 ± 1.86 and stone clearance was seen in 90% patients. Statistically significant difference was found between the score and stone clearance.Conclusion: Stone nephrolithometry score is associated with post-PCNL stone clearance rates.


The effects of thermal fatigue conditions on the mechanical and contact damage behavior in thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are investigated as functions of the bond coat thickness and the preparation method. Three kinds of TBCs with different thickness in the bond coat are prepared by two different methods of APS and HVOF. The static and cyclic thermal fatigues for the TBCs are conducted at temperatures of 950 and 1100 with different dwell times of 10 and 100 hr and 10 cycles at each temperature. Mechanical properties, hardness H and modulus E, in each condition and component are measured by nano-indentation. The contact damage behaviors are investigated by Hertzian indentation, including the cyclic fatigue behavior on the surface of the TBCs. The TGO formation is dependent on both temperature tested and time exposed, showing a similar effect with the cyclic thermal fatigues. The mechanical properties of the TBCs are increased due to the re-sintering of the top coating and the composition change of the bond coat during the thermal fatigues. The contact damage behaviors are affected by the thermal fatigue conditions and the fabrication method, independent of the bond coat thickness.


A novel gene was recently discovered using microarray gene profiling of shear stress–induced genes in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs), which is located within the intron of the transcription factor Laf4 and therefore designated as Laf4 intron resident gene (Laf4ir). Laf4 and Laf4ir genes use different strands for transcription. Two transcript variants have been identified for Laf4ir with three potential opening reading frames (ORFs). In this study, we intend to characterise the transcriptional/translational expression, regulation, and functions of this novel gene. The experiments with qRT-PCR analysis revealed that Laf4ir mRNA was unregulated transiently by shear stress compared to static conditions in mouse differentiated ESCs. Laf4ir was expressed in late stage of mouse embryos but not in the early stages and Laf4ir was differentially expressed in adult mice organs/tissues. Specific antibodies against peptides from the ORFs confirmed the translation of these ORFs in mouse differentiated ESCs in response to shear stress. Immunofluorescence staining with antibody against ORF2 revealed that the ORF2 was exclusively expressed in the intima of aorta in wild type mice. Over-expression of ORF2 significantly increased CD31 expression in mouse ESC-derived Sca1+ cells, indicating the potential role of Laf4ir in endothelial cell differentiation. Interestingly, high level of ORF2 was detected from intima to the adventitia of aorta in ApoE-/- mice and in the adventitia of femoral artery from platinum wire injured mice. Further detailed and concrete investigation is required to characterise the potential functions of Laf4ir gene products, which may provide some new insights into vascular biology.


Data from the first two waves of the National Survey of Families and Households are used to examine how individual sibling relationships change in response to life events in a gendered context. We find union formation is associated with a decline in sibling visits, as is transitioning from part- to full-time work. Becoming a parent increases support from a sibling and remaining childless over time is associated with more exchanges of support. Parental death decreases support to a sibling. Moving farther away lowers the number of visits, exchanges of support, and frequency of phoning or writing. However, for most of the life events examined, we find no significant effects on sibling relationships and little evidence that gender of siblings influences the effects of life events on sibling relationships. We conclude that the nature of individual sibling relationships remains relatively stable in the face of life events.


Abstract The activity of a radioactive waste package is usually evaluated from gamma measurements associated with transfer functions. These functions are calculated assuming that both activity and mass distributions are homogeneous. But, generally, activity and mass distributions are not homogeneous. This paper evaluates the effect of heterogeneities on the activity measurements on families of similar waste packages. An error arises, with a systematic part, leading to an overestimation or underestimation of the overall activity in a family of similar waste packages, and a stochastic part, whose mean effect on the overall activity of the family is null. In order to evaluate the effect of heterogeneities, numerical simulation of the filling of each package has been performed. Some filling parameters are randomly varied, according to the known characteristics of the real packages, so that the mass and activity distributions are different from one package to another but are always coherent with the characteristics of the real packages. These numerical simulations produce virtual families of packages. A way to fit and demonstrate the representativeness of the virtual family is described, so that the general results computed on this virtual family are applicable for the real family.


The Australian lucanid genus Ryssonotus MacLeay, 1819 is redefined and reduced to one species: R. nebulosus (Kirby, 1819). The supposed senior synonym of this species, Lucanus foveolatus Thunberg, 1806 is a junior synonym of the North American species Lucanus capreolus (Linnaeus, 1763) (new synonym). Safrina new genus, is described for the remaining species formerly in Ryssonotus and three new species: S. dekeyzeri new species, S. grandis (Lea, 1915) new combination, S. jaedoni new species, S. jugularis (Westwood, 1863) new combination, S. laticeps (Macleay, 1885) new combination, S. moorei new species, S. parallela (Deyrolle, 1881) new combination, and S. polita (Carter, 1921) new combination. Safrina grandis is a senior synonym of S. costata (Carter, 1929) new synonym. The type species of Safrina is Rhyssonotus laticeps Macleay, 1885. All species of Safrina are described and a key is provided to the adults of Ryssonotus and Safrina. The species are confined to the ranges of eastern mainland Australia. Diagnostic descriptions of the larvae of Ryssonotus and Safrina are provided. Safrina and Ryssonotus are placed in the tribe Chiasognathini and their systematic position is discussed.


A fully-coupled 3-D model of FSW was developed for 4 mm plates of AA6061-T6 aluminum alloy based on the Finite Volume Method (FVM) in ANSYS Fluent 14.5 software. Two types of the model; one with the tool and another without the tool was developed for different tool geometry and analysis was done for temperature distribution in the workpiece as well as in tool using system coupling for the first model and workpiece only in later one. A parametric study was performed at different tool rotational speed regarding temperature distribution, and material flow analysis was carried out for all tool geometries at a single rotational speed. The material behaves differently when passes through the different tools and it was affected by thermal history, viscosity, and strain rate for particular tool geometry. Temperature-dependent material properties and a user-defined function (UDF) code of viscosity have been incorporated in the model considering the workpiece as a non-Newtonian viscous fluid. A better material mixing was observed in the case of threaded pin geometry by using a steady-state laminar flow model. All tapered tool geometries were unable to mix material properly just below and around the pin tip due to very low-velocity magnitude in this region, which may lead to a kind of defect. An asymmetric temperature distribution observed in the workpiece and at higher rotational speed peak temperature observed higher in the workpiece, and the flow of heat was more in tool. Validation of the model was done by performing experiments.