Objectives:  The name of the first author of R1940 was omitted from the CD version of the supplement. The correct text is given below.

R1940 Beta-lactam resistance in Haemophilus parasuis

Haemophilus parasuis is a commensal organism of the upper respiratory tract of conventional pigs that, under appropriate conditions, can cause the Glasser disease, characterized by severe systemic infection, fibrinous polyserositis, arthritis and meningitis. This is an emerging infection with increasing importance in swine production. In our laboratory, we are detecting an increase in the prevalence of resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics in H. parasuis, being this antimicrobial family the first clinical election against respiratory tract infections in swine. Resistance to beta-lactam antimicrobials has yet not been described nor characterized in H. parasuis.

Methods:  Antimicrobial susceptibility test and MICs were performed folowing NCCLS standard procedures. Identification by PCR was performed with modified procedure of Oliveira, S. et al, 2001. Nitrocefine test was done using OXOID beta-lactamase identification sticks. CAMP test was performed following standard procedures. DNA digestions and cloning manipulation were performed following standard procedures.

Results:  Phenotypic characteristics and specific tests were used for presumptive identification of H. parasuis. We have developed a PCR based on specific amplification of 821 pb from the coding gene of the 16S subunit rRNA. We confirmed 67 H. parasuis isolates and tested them for antimicrobial susceptibility, 10 were highly resistant to ampicillin (MIC ≥ 32 microg/ml). All resistant isolates showed positive reaction to the nitrocefine test, indicating that beta-lactamases enzymes are involved in this phenomenon. This kind of resistance mechanism is usually harboured in plasmid in other swine respiratory pathogens. The plasmid profile analysis of these strains in agarose gel electrophoresis, after digestion with PstI, was indifferenciable in 8 of the 10 strains. We attempted to transform plasmid DNA directly into E. coli altuogh results were negative, indicating that replication origin is specific to Haemophilus spp. Currently we are cloning the gene responsible for this phenotype in H. parasuis.

Conclusion:  We have identified beta-lactam resistance in H. parasuis. Resistance is due to beta-lactamases. We are characterizing the genetic determinants responsible for this emerging phenotype.


The combination of pulsed-mode excitation multifocal multiphoton microscopy with a high-repetition, time-gated intensified CCD camera enables efficient three-dimensional (3D) fluorescence lifetime imaging. With a 200-ps gate opening at 76 MHz repetition rate, fluorescence decay can be traced in a sequence of images with varying delays between pulse and gate. Fluorophore lifetimes are measured with a precision of a few picoseconds. As an application we show that, upon two-photon excitation at 800 nm, certain pollen samples feature a multiexponential fluorescence relaxation. Our results indicate that efficient four-dimensional microscopy with hundreds of nanometer spatial and tens of picoseconds temporal resolution is within reach.


The incorporation reaction of [3H-methyl]deoxyribothymidine triphosphate (3H-dTTP) into the TCA-insoluble fraction by isolated nuclei of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was characterized as follows: (i) addition of three deoxyribonucleotides (dATP, dGTP and dCTP) is required for maximal incorporation, (ii) the buoyant density of the incorporated products is approximately 1.70, (iii) the incorporation reaction is strongly inhibited by inhibitors of DNA synthesis, (iv) 98% of radio-activities in the products are recovered in the DNA fraction, (v) the products are DNase-sensitive and appear as long fibers at a high frequency, and (vi) the increase in accumulation of small-fragment DNA is time-dependent during the first 3-min incubation, followed by a rapid increase in large-fragment DNAs. Thus, it was concluded that the isolated yeast nuclei have an ability to synthesize or replicate nuclear DNA in vitro. The ability of isolated nuclei was strongly stimulated by cytoplasmic factor(s) in the cellular-soluble fractio...


Close acquaintance with a particular family characterized by extensive pulmonary tuberculosis has long impressed me with the significance of the hereditary aspect of this disease. The possible importance of a hereditary factor in its propagation, it would seem, should receive more earnest attention than has yet been accorded to it by antituberculosis workers in this country. In an attempt to approach the problem from the genetic point of view I have secured the cooperation of a former student, Dr. Lewis Booker of the North Carolina Tuberculosis Sanatorium at Montrose, who has kindly undertaken the collection of pedigrees in that institution. To date, twelve such histories have been secured as fully as was possible or seemed practicable, but only three of these [Charts 1, 2 and 3] are sufficiently complete to warrant tentative deductions. In the remainder, great difficulty and uncertainty were experienced in attempting to get grandparental and collateral histories;


Rechargeable alkali metal–air batteries have enormous potential in energy storage applications due to their high energy densities, low cost, and environmental friendliness. Membrane separators determine the performance and economic viability of these batteries. Usually, porous membrane separators taken from lithium-based batteries are used. Moreover, composite and cation-exchange membranes have been tested. However, crossover of unwanted species (such as zincate ions in zinc–air flow batteries) and/or low hydroxide ions conductivity are major issues to be overcome. On the other hand, state-of-art anion-exchange membranes (AEMs) have been applied to meet the current challenges with regard to rechargeable zinc–air batteries, which have received the most attention among alkali metal–air batteries. The recent advances and remaining challenges of AEMs for these batteries are critically discussed in this review. Correlation between the properties of the AEMs and performance and cyclability of the batteries is discussed. Finally, strategies for overcoming the remaining challenges and future outlooks on the topic are briefly provided. We believe this paper will play a significant role in promoting R&D on developing suitable AEMs with potential applications in alkali metal–air flow batteries.


This paper deals with lateral dynamic control of electric vehicles in a urban environment, motivated by individual public transportation issues, aimed to reduce metropolitan areas pollution. The framework in which the control strategy is developed is the so-called "look-down reference", where the lateral displacement is obtained from a on-board sensor, interacting with a road infrastructure. In this framework, the designed control algorithm is made up of three nested closed loops with cascade compensators, where the outer one is nonlinear. Results from experimental tests performed on an actual circuit show the effectiveness of the considered control strategy.


Alcohol is the most frequently used psycho-active substance during adolescence. Adolescents who misuse or overindulge in alcohol are at risk for serious social and psychological consequences. Several preventive approaches can help adolescents deal with peer pressure that contributes to alcohol use experimentation and escalation. One promising approach involves teaching adolescents skills to refuse offers of alcohol and other drugs. Few studies, however, have examined how this approach works; that is, the connection between the prevention effort, refusal skills, and drinking behavior. This paper investigates the relationships among the intervention, refusal skills, and alcohol misuse in the Alcohol Misuse Prevention Study, a randomized, pre/post experimental study. Based on data from sixth through tenth graders (average N per grade = approximately 400), regression analyses indicate that refusal skills are significant mediators of the effect of the intervention on alcohol misuse.


Travel time estimation from GPS trips is of great importance to order duration, ridesharing, taxi dispatching, etc. However, the dense trajectory is not always available due to the limitation of data privacy and acquisition, while the origin-destination (OD) type of data, such as NYC taxi data, NYC bike data, and Capital Bikeshare data, is more accessible. To address this issue, this paper starts to estimate the OD trips travel time combined with the road network. Subsequently, a Multi-task Weakly Supervised Learning Framework for Travel Time Estimation (MWSL-TTE) has been proposed to infer transition probability between roads segments, and the travel time on road segments and intersection simultaneously. Technically, given an OD pair, the transition probability intends to recover the most possible route. And then, the output of travel time is equal to the summation of all segments' and intersections' travel time in this route. A novel route recovery function has been proposed to iteratively maximize the current routes' co-occurrence probability, and minimize the discrepancy between routes' probability distribution and the inverse distribution of routes' estimation loss. Moreover, the expected log-likelihood function based on a weakly-supervised framework has been deployed in optimizing the travel time from road segments and intersections concurrently. We conduct experiments on a wide range of real-world taxi datasets in Xi'an and Chengdu and demonstrate our method's effectiveness on route recovery and travel time estimation.


With Internet traffic ever increasing, network congestion should occur more and more frequently. During congestion periods, some users contribute more than others to the congestion in the network. It might be interesting for a network operator to differentiate between users proportionally to the congestion they induce, but the necessary information for this purpose is not available at the network layer, and is exchanged at the transport layer (e.g., Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) acks). This led the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to design Congestion Exposure (ConEx), a new mechanism to expose to the network the amount of congestion a user is responsible for, allowing the network operator to improve the fairness between users. ConEx is designed to limit the added complexity, leveraging already existing mechanisms such as Random Early Detection (RED) and Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN), plus a number of modifications to the senders and receivers to be fully operational. Nonetheless, ConEx can also be deployed in a simplified mode of operation, relying only on loss information in DropTail queues to estimate congestion. The objective of this paper is to provide an in depth evaluation of ConEx mechanism. Firstly, we investigate how the setting of ConEx parameters (e.g., congestion policer) and the network configuration (e.g., router queuing, network delay, etc.,) impact the behavior of ConEx and influence its ability to improve fairness between users. Secondly, we compare the level of performance, in terms of fairness improvement, provided by different variants of ConEx of increasing complexity, i.e., from a simple implementation with modifications limited to the sender to a "full" ConEx approach implementing all proposed features. We show that, despite a reduced accuracy in congestion estimation, a simple variant of ConEx is already able to provide a good fairness improvement between users. This is particularly interesting in the context of an initial deployment scenario, allowing an incremental deployment of ConEx. Thirdly, we investigate and discuss the limitations and weaknesses presented by ConEx with regard to short-lived flows. Finally, based on a YouTube traffic model, we illustrate how ConEx can help to enhance the Quality of Experience (QoE) of video streaming users during congestion periods, significantly reducing the number and duration of stalling events. Keywords-ConEx; Performance; ECN; Congestion; Policing; YouTube; LEDBAT.


Abstract Helicobacter pylori is a micro-aerophilic, Gram-negative bacterium living in the human gastric mucosa that has a strong association with chronic active gastritis and duodenal ulcer (DU). The objective of this study was to test antimicrobial activity of mangosteen pericarp extract against H. pyroli and to develop mucoadhesive gel as a drug reservoir for a mangosteen crude extract. Broth microdilution method was used to determine antibacterial activity of ethyl acetate, methanol, hexane and aqueous extracts. Oral gels were combination between two polymers (sodium carboxymethylcellulose (SCMC), hydroxypropyl-methylcellulose (HPMC) or sodium alginate) at different ratio. All formulations were immersed in simulated gastric fluid, phosphate buffer pH 6.8 and deionized water in order to test their stability. Results from 96-well plate revealed that ethyl acetate, methanol and water extracts showed minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) at 0.3125 mg/ml whereas hexane extract has MIC higher than 10 mg/ml. MICs of metronidazole and ampicillin were 0.156 mg/ml and 31.25 mg/ml, respectively. In the gastric fluid, syneresis was observed in gel in formulations 1-8 whereas there were no changes in formulation 9-12. However, Formulation 9-12 had low viscosities. Therefore, formulation 8 was chosen because of its property and appropriate viscosity and clarity. Since aqueous extract was quite safe, it was selected for further development. In addition, its stability in aqueous medium would be considered. Keywords : mangosteen extract; Helicobacter pyroli ; gel


The rooting zone water storage capacity (S) defines the total amount of water available to plants for transpiration during rain-free periods. Thereby, S determines the sensitivity of carbon and water exchanges between the land surface and the atmosphere, controls the sensitivity of ecosystem functioning to progressive drought conditions, and mediates feedbacks between soil moisture and near-surface air temperatures. While being a central quantity for water-carbon-climate coupling, S is inherently difficult to observe. Notwithstanding scarcity of observations, terrestrial biosphere and Earth system models rely on the specification of S either directly or indirectly through assuming plant rooting depth.

Here, we model S based on the assumption that plants size their rooting depth to maintain function under the expected maximum cumulative water deficit (CWD), occurring with a return period of 40 years (CWDX40), following Gao et al. (2014). CWDX40 is “translated” into a rooting depth by accounting for the soil texture. CWD is defined as the cumulative evapotranspiration (ET) minus precipitation, where ET is estimated based on thermal infrared remote sensing (ALEXI-ET), and precipitation is from WATCH-WFDEI, modified by accounting for snow accumulation and melt. In contrast to other satellite remote sensing-based ET products, ALEXI-ET makes no a priori assumption about S and, as our evaluation shows, exhibits no systematic bias with increasing CWD. It thus provides a robust observation of surface water loss and enables estimation of S with global coverage at 0.05° (~5 km) resolution.

Modelled S and its variations across biomes is largely consistent with observed rooting depth, provided as ecosystem-level maximum estimates by Schenk et al. (2002), and a recently compiled comprehensive plant-level dataset. In spite of the general agreement of modelled and observed rooting depth across large climatic gradients, comparisons between local observations and global model predictions are mired by a scale mismatch that is particularly relevant for plant rooting depth, for which the small-scale topographical setting and hydrological conditions, in particular the water table depth, pose strong controls.

To resolve this limitation, we investigate the sensitivity of photosynthesis (estimated by sun-induced fluorescence, SIF), and of the evaporative fraction (EF, defined as ET over net radiation) to CWD. By employing first principles for the constraint of rooting zone water availability on ET and photosynthesis, it can be derived how their sensitivity to the increasing CWD relates to S. We make use of this relationship to provide an alternative and independent estimate of S (SdSIF and SdEF), informed by Earth observation data, to which S, modelled using CWDX40, can be compared. Our comparison reveals a strong correlation (R2=0.54) and tight consistency in magnitude between the two approaches for estimating S.

Our analysis suggests adaptation of plant structure to prevailing climatic conditions and drought regimes across the globe and at catchment scale and demonstrates its implications for land-atmosphere exchange. Our global high-resolution mapping of S reveals contrasts between plant growth forms (grasslands vs. forests) and a discrepant importance across the landscape of plants’ access to water stored at depth, and enables an observation-informed specification of S in global models.


This paper investigates the cyclic deformation behaviour of S355 G10+M steel which is predominantly used in offshore wind applications. The thick weldments were identified as regions prone to fatigue crack initiation due to stress concentration at weld toe as well as weld residual stress fields. The monopile structure was modelled using a global-local finite element (FE) method and the weld geometry was adopted from circumferential weld joints used in offshore wind turbine monopile foundations. Realistic service loads collected using SCADA and wave buoy techniques were used in the FE model. A non-linear isotropic-kinematic hardening model was calibrated using the strain controlled cyclic deformation results obtained from base metal as well as cross-weld specimen tests. The tests revealed that the S355 G10+M base metal and weld metal undergo continuous cyclic stress relaxation. Fatigue damage over a period of 20 years of operation was predicted using the total elastic-plastic strain energy accumulated at the root of the weldments as the life limiting criterion. This study helps in quantifying the level of conservatism in the current monopile design approaches and has implications towards making wind energy more economic.


We compare two algorithms of three-dimensional (3D) cone-beam tomography: a 3D backprojection algorithm and a Radon algorithm, with a circular source trajectory. We recall the principle of these algorithms and show that when the source trajectory is circular, an exact reconstruction cannot be performed. We evaluate structures that cannot be detected and show that, for each algorithm, assumptions must be made about the object to estimate the missing information. Using simulated data, we measured the modulation transfer function of the two algorithms, evaluated the density resolution, and measured the artifacts due to missing information. We show that the 3D backprojection algorithm has good geometrical resolution along the axis of rotation and that, from the standpoint of density resolution, its useful limit is ±3°. We also show that it is sensitive to the lack of information in the horizontal planes. The useful aperture of the Radon algorithm is ±12°; for apertures lower than this limit, the algorithm is much less sensitive to the lack of information in the horizontal planes than the 3D backprojection algorithm. We present two examples of reconstructions that illustrate the limitations of these algorithms when applied to realistic samples and discuss the limits of using each algorithm when the source trajectory is circular.


AIM
To explore the structure-activity relationship of lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) and lysolipid molecules from a marine sponge and ladybirds.

METHODS
We tested three synthetic LPCs and four natural lysolipids on Ca2+ mobilization in HL-60 human leukemia cells.

RESULTS
We observed lysolipid-mediated Ca2+ mobilization. The activity was the same in both ester- and ether-linked lysolipids, and introduction of a double bond or methoxy group on the alkyl chain did not significantly modulate the activity. However, replacement of trimethylammonium moiety in the choline structure with ammonium moiety reduced the activity. Furthermore, change of the alkyl chain length influenced the Ca2+ response.

CONCLUSION
LPC-induced Ca2+ mobilization might be dependent on the length of alkyl chain and the presence of choline moiety in HL-60 leukemia cells.


We report the charge transport mechanism, long-term stability and UV-visible-NIR photo-responsivity of single crystals of [60]PCBM (phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester) – a dominant acceptor material in organic photovoltaics. Despite [60]PCBM's paramount role in such devices, its intrinsic properties are largely unknown because it forms highly disordered solution-processed films, the electron transport mechanism remains ill-defined, and the long-term stability is poor – posing a major bottleneck for advancing cell efficiency and stability. We employed a liquid–liquid interfacial precipitation strategy to grow single crystals of [60]PCBM, which allowed us to experimentally elucidate its electron transport properties, long-term stability and photo-responsivity. Temperature-dependent mobility studies enabled us to reveal its charge transport mechanism. Promisingly, [60]PCBM single crystals were found to exhibit a more favorable band-like charge transport mechanism at room temperature and present electron mobility exceeding that of their thin-film counterparts by two orders of magnitude. Photodetectors based on single crystals show broadband photo-responsivity from the UV and visible to NIR regions. Long-term stability tests showed that the performance of devices based on single crystals remained 80% after 480-hour aging, whereas the performance of thin film devices dropped by over 80% under the same conditions. Our findings underscore single crystals as a key strategy to achieve breakthroughs in highly efficient and stable devices.


Rapamycin is known to extend lifespan. We conducted a randomized placebo-controlled study of enteric rapamycin-treatment to evaluate its effect on physical function in old low capacity runner (LCR) rats, a rat model selected from diverse genetic background for low intrinsic aerobic exercise capacity without genomic manipulation and characterized by increased complex disease risks and aging phenotypes. The study was performed in 12 male and 16 female LCR rats aged 16-22 months at baseline. The treatment group was fed with rapamycin-containing diet pellets at approximately 2.24mg/kg body weight per day and the placebo group with the same diet without rapamycin for six months. Observation was extended for additional 2 months. Physical function measurements include grip strength measured as maximum tensile force using a rat grip strength meter and maximum running distance (MRD) using rat physical treadmill test. The results showed that rapamycin improved grip strength by 13% (p=.036) and 60% (p<.001) from its baseline in female and male rats, respectively. Rapamycin attenuated MRD decline by 66% (p<.001) and 46% (p=.319) in females and males, respectively. These findings provide initial evidence for beneficial effect of rapamycin on physical functioning in an aging rat model of high disease risks with significant implication in humans.


The 8534 nucleotide sequence of the genome of the carlavirus, potato virus M (PVM), has been determined. The sequence contains six large open reading frames (ORFs) and non-coding regions consisting of 75 nucleotides at the 5' end, 70 nucleotides followed by a poly(A) tail at the 3' end and 38 and 21 nucleotides between three large blocks of coding sequences. The ORF beginning at the first initiation codon at nucleotide 76 encodes a polypeptide of 223K which, according to its primary sequence analysis, seems to be a virus RNA replicase. The next coding block consists of three ORFs encoding polypeptides of 25K, 12K and 7K. The third block consists of two ORFs encoding polypeptides of 34K (PVM coat protein) and 11K. The 11K polypeptide contains a pattern resembling the consensus for a metal-binding nucleic acid-binding 'finger'.


A 56-year-old man receiving treatment for hypertension experienced sudden-onset dizziness and was admitted to our hospital. Computed tomography of the brain revealed a small high-density lesion in the right rostral midbrain. Subsequent magnetic resonance imaging revealed a small hemorrhagic lesion in the same position. The patient complained of double vision affecting the right side when viewing a horizontal linear target. Vergence was intact, but vertical gaze was severely restricted downward and moderately restricted upward. Vestibulo-ocular reflex maneuvers did not alleviate the patient's vertical gaze palsy. By 40 days after the incident, his motility had recovered and he could begin to tilt his head to the left. Consecutive Hess tests demonstrated a skew deviation of right hypertropia, which continued for over two years. Funduscopic examination revealed left extorsion but no right intorsion. A diagnosis of posterior canal-type ocular tilt reaction (OTR) was made from these signs. The patient's course indicated that periaqueductal syndrome dominated in the acute stage whilst unilateral symptoms became more apparent in the chronic stage. The rostral interstitial nucleus of the medial longitudinal fasciculus and the posterior commissure were estimated to contain the main causative lesion for the acute symptoms, whereas the interstitial nucleus of Cajal (INC) was implicated in the chronic stage. Posterior canal-type OTR caused by unilateral INC lesion has been reported only rarely.


This paper introduces Linguistic Style Improvisation, a theory and algorithms for improvisation of spoken utterances by artificial agents, with applications to interactive story and dialogue systems. We argue that linguistic style is a key aspect of character, and show how speech act representations common in AI can provide abstract representations from which computer characters can improvise. We show that the mechanisms proposed introduce the possibility of socially oriented agents, meet the requirements that lifelike characters be believable, and satisfy particular criteria for improvisation proposed by Hayes-Roth.


In this paper we have developed a new service classification strategy in hybrid scheduling scheme to support differentiated quality of service (QoS) among the different set of clients. The scheme dynamically computes the data access probabilities and amalgamates the push and pull scheduling schemes to develop the hybrid scheduling framework. While a flat scheduling is used for push system, the major novelty of the work lies in differentiating the clients based on their priority-classes and incorporating the effect of priority in selecting an item from the pull-system. Modeling and analysis of the system is performed to get an average behavior of the QoS parameters like delay in our hybrid scheduling framework. Simulation results points out that the average waiting time for the highest priority clients can be kept very low, while simultaneously minimizing the number of requests dropped by assigning appropriate fraction of available bandwidth. It also demonstrates that by intelligent selection of the cut-off point, used to segregate push and pull systems, the overall cost associated with the system can be minimized.


Humans are not perfect and they make mistakes. For example, humans without computer aided tools would not be able to design VLSI chips larger than 100 transistors. Computers are assisting humans in many aspects of their life. For many years already computers were used for number crunching, office related jobs, etc. More recently computers are used for making intelligent decisions. The methods of computational intelligence are relatively successful, but these methods have to be used with great care. In this presentation advantages and disadvantages of fuzzy and neural networks are presented. It turns out that often popular training algorithms are not capable of tuning neural networks to proper accuracy without losing generalization abilities. Also, abilities of neural networks strongly depend on the used architecture, and surprisingly the most popular architectures usually are least powerful.


African Independent Churches are groups of churches emerging out of western mainline church experiences. They have increased into many small groups with variant names of their interest. The process of constant breakaways gave them the urge to multiply and gain autonomy. The mainline churches constantly criticise the disadvantaged of this uncontrollable proliferation for lack of theological focus. In South Africa, they are in both large and small faith groups. They are, however, growing irrespective of the theological concern of the mainline scholars and researchers. Since they have evolved over many years alongside the mainline churches, they are aware of such criticisms. As a result, they are compelled to work on a strategy to develop their theology to public spaces. The founding leaders and visions form the core of their theologies. Their biblical faith learned from their founders' leadership and visions. They are Africans who want to teach themselves the Christian ways anchored in their traditional heritages. Can African Independent Churches ever have their own unique theologies? This is the core-interest approach to this article.


We consider a matching pursuit approach for variable selection and estimation in logistic regression models. Specifically, we propose Logistic Group Orthogonal Matching Pursuit (LogitGOMP), which extends the Group-OMP procedure originally proposed for linear regression models, to select groups of variables in logistic regression models, given a predefined grouping structure within the explanatory variables. We theoretically characterize the performance of Logit-GOMP in terms of predictive accuracy, and also provide conditions under which LogitGOMP is able to identify the correct (groups of) variables. Our results are non-asymptotic in contrast to classical consistency results for logistic regression which only apply in the asymptotic limit where the dimensionality is fixed or is restricted to grow slowly with the sample size. We conduct empirical evaluation on simulated data sets and the real world problem of splice site detection in DNA sequences. The results indicate that Logit-GOMP compares favorably to Logistic Group Lasso both in terms of variable selection and prediction accuracy. We also provide a generic version of our algorithm that applies to the wider class of generalized linear models.


We previously demonstrated the generation of a CD4 T cell-specific long lasting anti-tumor immune response in the H-2d BALB/c mouse model by using tumor cells that have been genetically modified with CIITA to express MHC-II I-E and I-A molecules. We have now investigated the pertinence of this approach in the H-2b C57BL/6 mouse model despite the defect in their I-Eα gene and thus the lack of expression of I-E subset. To this purpose we injected in vivo the CIITA-driven I-A-only MHC-II-positive LLC (lewis Lung Carcinoma) and MC38 colon carcinoma in the C57BL/6 mice and their growth rate along with the recipient9s immune response were analyzed. The CIITA-transfected, MHC-II-positive tumor cells were either completely rejected or showed a significant growth retardation compared to the MHC-II-negative parental tumor. The protected mice were re-injected with the parental tumors and a complete rejection was obtained proving that a specific long lasting immune response was triggered by the CIITA-transfected tumors. Furthermore, total splenocytes or purified CD4+, CD8+ T cells and B cells were transferred from the vaccinated recipients to naive recipients that were co-injected with the parental tumor cells and the results showed that CD4+ TH cells were the main effectors of the immune response against the tumor cells. Interestingly, similar results were obtained in C57BL/6-DOG transgenic mice whose dendritic cells could be conditionally ablated after administration of Diphteria toxin. These results demonstrate the validity of triggering a specific, long-lasting anti-tumor immune response using CIITA-driven MHC class II positive tumor cells of different MHC haplotype as stimulators. Importantly, the results establish that expression of a single MHC-II restriction element, I-A, in tumor cells is sufficient to trigger CD4+ TH cell protective immune response, strongly suggesting that the relevant tumor-associated antigenic repertoire can be displayed without the need of the I-E restriction element. Finally, these results strongly suggest that CIITA-modified tumor cells can act as antigen presenting cells in vivo to prime naive CD4+ TH cells against tumor antigens. Citation Format: Farah Bou Nasser Eddine, Greta Forlani, Giovanna Tosi, Roberto S. Accolla. CIITA dependent MHC class II IA expression in tumor cells triggers CD4 T cell protective and long lasting antitumor immunity [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Second CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; 2016 Sept 25-28; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2016;4(11 Suppl):Abstract nr A014.


Ore reserve estimation, based on sparse drill hole data, was conducted for a placer gold property in Nome, Alaska. A problem with sparse data is that random subdivision of the data into modelling and evaluation subsets (as is commonly done) becomes a problem, as random selection may result in biased/skewed subsets. Therefore, a technique that combined data segmentation with genetic algorithms (GA) was applied to divide the samples into three equivalent subsets: training, validation and testing. Data segmentation was done on the basis of the distribution of gold values. Neural network and a variety of kriging techniques were used to estimate gold grades. A multi-layer feed forward neural network along with "early/quick stop" training was used for neural network modelling. A comparative evaluation of kriging and neural network methods was then performed. The results revealed that neural network was generally superior to the kriging techniques for gold grade estimation in the Nome deposit.


INTRODUCTION: Colonic duplication is an uncommon congenital anomaly. Bowel obstruction, presence of an abdominal mass, and sometimes bleeding and perforation may be the clinical manifestations. OBJECTIVE: To report a patient with colonic duplication who underwent to surgical treatment due to acute abdominal pain. REPORT OF THE CASE: 17 year-old, female patient admitted to the emergency room due to acute abdominal pain and signs of intestinal obstruction, at her initial evaluation she was tachycardic, hyperthermic with 38 degrees C, dehydration, abdominal distention, acute abdominal pain, absent peristalsis and peritoneal signs. Laboratories with Hb 14.2 g/dL, leucocytosis of 16,000 mm3, plain abdominal films showed dilation of intestinal loops and air-fluid levels. A laparotomy for intestinal obstruction was performed; operative findings were a tubular colonic duplication that demands a complete resection of the duplicated segment. CONCLUSION: Colonic duplication is a rare congenital anomaly, the onset of the symptoms can occur during infancy or early childhood. It must be consider as differential diagnoses in patients with intestinal obstruction and palpable abdominal mass in this rank of ages.


The modeling of wireless networks with stochastic geometry has become popular in the recent decades. By means of point processes, the positions of wireless infrastructure and users are represented with the aim of computing metrics of interest like capacity, routing delay, broadcast time, etc. This has been done successfully for technologies such as 3G/LTE/Wi-Fi yet, with the arrival of 5G NR, the necessity for rethinking the models for the communication scenario has become paramount. In this thesis we present a novel model for the locations of devices in urban communications networks. The model combines stochastic geometry with fractal geometry and it is called ``hyperfractal". The model exists in two options: the option for modeling the densities of cars on streets and the option for modeling the densities and repartition of auxiliary communication infrastructure. We present in detail the proposed model and its basic properties. In order to complete the description of the model and advocate for its ease of use, we provide a method for computing the fractal dimension of cities. The usefulness of the model is showcased throughout this thesis by several wireless networks applications. One application evaluates the achievable trade-offs between delay and energy consumption for a V2X network in urban environment modeled with hyperfractals. A second application consists into studying the broadcast in a V2V delay-tolerant network. Achievable limits are presented together with a phenomenon specific to hyperfractals: the teleportation phenomenon, which allows an acceleration of the broadcast.


In this work, the dark electrical resistivity, charge carrier density and Hall mobility of Tl2InGaSe4 single crystal have been recorded and analyzed to investigate the dominant scattering mechanism in the crystal. The data analyses have shown that this crystal exhibits an extrinsic n-type conduction. The temperature-dependent dark electrical resistivity analysis reflected the existence of two energy levels as 0.396 and 0.512 eV, being dominant above and below 260 K, respectively. The temperature dependence of the carrier density was analyzed by using the single-donor–single-acceptor model. The latter analysis has shown that the above maintained 0.512 eV energy level is a donor impurity level. The compensation ratio for this crystal is determined as 0.96. The Hall mobility of Tl2InGaSe4 is found to be limited by the scattering of electron–acoustic phonon interactions. The calculated theoretical acoustic phonon scattering mobility agrees with the experimental one under the condition that the acoustic deformation potential is 12.5 eV.


Beginning in the 1970s, the Supreme Court heard a series of challenges to family law statutes brought by unwed biological fathers, questioning the constitutionality of laws that treated unwed fathers differently than unwed mothers. The Court's opinions created a starkly different constitutional status for unwed fathers than for unwed mothers, demanding additional actions and relationships before an unwed father was considered a constitutional father. Although state parentage statutes have progressed beyond their 1970s incarnations, the doctrine created in those family law cases continues to have impact far beyond family law. Transmission of citizenship in the context of immigration law and the inheritance rights of children of unwed parents whose fathers died without a will echo the reasoning of the family law cases, including two unwed father principles giving legal imprimatur to stereotypes about fathers. Across multiple areas of law, therefore, unwed fathers are not constitutional fathers. It is not enough, however, to simply revive past challenges to such statutes: individual criticisms of each line of cases have not prompted reconsideration of the cases purely on their own terms. This paper identifies a new approach, however, using modern precedents to provide a clearer theory of constitutionalizing fathers: Obergefell v. Hodges illustrates a methodology of analyzing claims that involve the unequal application of a fundamental right, and Sessions v. Morales-Santana provides the substantive rejection of gendered parental stereotypes that fills out Obergefell's framework. The result is an unambiguous argument rooted in the Equal Protection Clause that will constitutionalize fathers across the law.


There are many controversies among ophthalmologists and obstetricians regarding indications for caesarean section due to preexisting eye diseases. Many ophthalmologists still believe myopia, retinal detachment, glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy to be indications for a caesarean section. There is a discrepancy between clinical practice and evidence-based medicine, as none of the published trials have reported any retinal changes after vaginal delivery This report provides information on the influence of physiological changes on eye diseases during the final stage of the delivery. We conclude that an eye disease is not an indication for a caesarean section.


Background: Brucellosis pericarditis is an extremely rare involvement of the cardiovascular system with Brucella species that has worldwide distribution and is endemic in many provinces of Iran. Case presentation: The present report describes an exceptional case of pericardial involvement by Brucella melitensis in a 50- year-old woman. The patient presented with night sweats, mild fever, weight loss, and chest pain. Conclusion: Pericarditis occurs during the course of brucellosis as an isolated cardiac symptom and may be asymptomatic or may be manifested with chest pain as ischemic heart disease.


Deep convolutional neural networks have quickly become the standard for medical image analysis. Although there are many frameworks focusing on training neural networks, there are few that focus on high performance inference and visualization of medical images. Neural network inference requires an inference engine (IE), and there are currently several IEs available including Intel's OpenVINO, NVIDIA's TensorRT, and Google's TensorFlow which supports multiple backends, including NVIDIA's cuDNN, AMD's ROCm and Intel's MKL-DNN. These IEs only work on specific processors and have completely different application programming interfaces (APIs). In this paper, we presents methods for extending FAST, an open-source high performance framework for medical imaging, to use any IE with a common programming interface. Thereby making it easier for users to deploy and test their neural networks on different processors. This article provides an overview of current IEs and how they can be combined with existing software such as FAST. The methods are demonstrated and evaluated on three performance demanding medical use cases: real-time ultrasound image segmentation, computed tomography (CT) volume segmentation, and patch-wise classification of whole slide microscopy images. Runtime performance was measured on the three use cases with several different IEs and processors. This revealed that the choice of IE and processor can affect performance of medical neural network image analysis considerably. In the most extreme case of processing 171 ultrasound frames, the difference between the fastest and slowest configuration were half a second vs. 24 seconds. For volume processing, using the CPU or the GPU, showed a difference of 2 vs. 53 seconds, and for processing an whole slide microscopy image, the difference was 81 seconds vs. almost 16 minutes. Source code, binary releases and test data can be found online on GitHub at https://github.com/smistad/FAST/.


This article studies the regional variation in earnings inequality in contemporary urban China, focusing on the relationship between the pace of economic reforms and earning determination. Through a multilevel analysis, it shows that economic growth depresses the retunrs to education and work experience and does not affect the net differences between party members and nonmembers and between men and women. Overall earning inequality remains low and only slightly correlated with economic growth because, in faster-growing cities, the tendency toward higher levels of inequality is somewhat offset by the lower returns to human capital. A plausible interpretation is that these results are largely due to the lack of a true labor market in urban China.


This thesis details research on the first phase of curriculum reform (1999-2004) in a government primary school in Western Australia. The purpose of the study was to examine what progress had been made with the implementation of the Curriculum Framework (1998). The research focussed on Music, Health and Physical Education, and Languages Other than English as specialist teachers working with the Curriculum Framework (1998). Teachers and school administrators, as frontline practitioners, considered their experiences and perceptions of daily practice and provided their perspectives on curriculum reform.

The hypothesis formulated for the study was that with the introduction of the Curriculum Framework (1998) the delivery of these three subjects could be further improved. This study argues that successful curriculum performance of these three subjects traditionally considered 'specialist programs' may be more fully supported by becoming aware of the forces influencing Australian curriculum discourse and delivery. Subject knowledge endorsement in this study refers to the transfer of valued knowledge in Western Australian educational systems. It is proposed that if teaching professionals articulated the substance of their educational beliefs and experiences with regard to subject knowledge meaning, place and value, curriculum delivery in primary schools may progress more effectively. Positive learning experiences for all students can be provided through the encouragement of communication and collegiality together with relevant and accessible professional development. These measures can also be supported by mounting whole-school primary programs that engage with beliefs about Music, Health and Physical Education, and Languages Other Than English through collaborative networks and learning communities. Accordingly, curriculum delivery can come within reach of the seamless curriculum anticipated by reform (Curriculum Framework, 1998:6-7).

In this qualitative interview study, the frontline participants included generalist teachers, specialist teachers and school administrators. These educational practitioners were asked to participate in an in-depth, semi-structured discussion that explored their perceptions of specialist teaching and knowledge while employed at Deep Sea Primary School in 2002. They teachers also commented on how these perceptions may be linked to their experiences of socially constructed and established notions of valued knowledge.

The findings of this study indicated that the progressive implementation of these three subjects or specialist's areas were characterised by subtle historical, economic, political and social forces. This thesis suggests that, these largely obscured external forces together with individual yet, taken for granted perceptions of what is perceived as valuable knowledge work together to position curriculum rhetoric and curriculum enactment that reflect established perceptions of the knowledge hierarchy. Teachers and administrators at the school often operated within the structures and meanings of conventional teaching practice of subject knowledge as determined by dominant culture in Australia. The findings indicated that school culture in a time of reform re-traditionalised hierarchical patterns of subject knowledge organisation and evaluation. Accordingly, current subject knowledge endorsement in terms of specialist teaching often worked to the benefit of established power relationships typical of post-industrial market economy in Australia.

The findings also indicated that issues pertaining to curriculum prioritisation were influenced by institutional, group and individual experiences of subject specialist knowledge. Poor perceptions of these three subjects could also be generated by experiencing inflexible and inadequate yet established funding and resource patterns in educational systems. Frontline teachers, their school-based roles and responsibilities attached to the teaching and learning of the three specialist areas were typified by rigid school organisation and job structures together with condensed teaching time and community backing.

This thesis argues that progressive, outcomes education requires an articulate and supportive school culture, more funding and the genuine maintenance of quality Music, Health and Physical Education and Language Other Than English teachers. In addition, curriculum implementation would benefit from the promotion of constructivist-orientated student activities within specialist programs.


This essay considers the treatment of elements of oral literature in translations of two well-known Irish autobiographies, Tomas O Criomhthain's An t-Oileanach (The Islandman), first published in Irish in 1929, and Muiris O Suilleabhain's Fiche Blian ag Fas (Twenty Years a-Growing) first published in 1933. Both texts are heavily marked by the oral tradition of Irish narrative, as storytelling was the principal means of literary transmission on the Blasket Islands. The German translation of The Islandman by Heinrich and Annemarie Boll and the French translation of Twenty Years a-Growing by Raymond Queneau were both carried out from the Englsih translations. This essay considers how this double translation impacts on the oral features of the texts, concluding that there is a marked parallelism in the treatment of orality in the texts in that the English translations of the books, by Robin Flower (The Islandman) and George Thomson and Moya Llewellyn Davies (Twenty Years a-Growing) show a much greater sensitivity to the oral features of the texts, which manifests itself in a more radical deformation of the conventions of written English, than do either the French and German translators. The essay goes on to consider how the different stages of translation of these texts are coloured by notions of authenticity and how these perceptions of authenticity shape the visual presentation of the texts.


Aim/Purpose: The aim of this study is to propose and test a model in which perceived barriers to technology integration are handled within a broad framework. It can be argued that the proposed model will have the dynamics to examine the studies performed on technology integration in a generic way and to have an important place in explaining the technology barriers at individual and school level under internal and external barriers. This can then be used to minimize such barriers and facilitate technology integration.

Background: As seen in previous studies, barriers constitute a complex structure that is encountered in almost every environment for different reasons, affects the teaching-learning process, and contains several variables under primary and secondary barriers. It is thought that exploring this complex structure plays a key role in technology integration. In many studies, it is observed that the barriers are addressed as internal and external aspects but work on such aspects is quite limited.

Methodology: Based on the convenience sampling method, the research was planned and conducted in accordance with the relational survey model. A structural regression model was used to examine the barriers that teachers perceive in technology integration. The sample of the study involved 449 teachers working in different branches at nine public schools in the academic year of 2018-2019 at the city center of Kirsehir province, and they participated on a voluntary basis. The number of teachers in the research sample corresponds to 73% of the total number of teachers in Kirsehir.

Contribution: The contribution to the literature is proposing and testing a model which can be used to measure technological barriers in technology integration in education considering internal and external factors with a large perspective and holistically.

Findings: The findings of the structural regression model used in this study showed that beliefs towards learning-teaching activities (BLTA), beliefs towards the expert support (BES), technological self-efficacy beliefs (TSEB), family resistance (FR), assessment (ASSES), and pedagogical self-efficacy beliefs (PSEB) are located under internal barriers and that lack of vision (LV), lack of money (LM), lack of training (LT), infrastructure (INF), content (CONT), and time (TIME) are all part of external factors. Furthermore, the results showed that external barriers affect the internal barriers directly and positively. Finally, it was observed that beliefs towards change (BC) and lack of leadership (LL) had no effect on internal or external barriers.

Recommendations for Practitioners: As the findings of this study were discussed under internal and external barriers to technology integration, the results of the study could shed a light for managers, teachers or candidate teachers within the framework of "technology integration." The identification of barriers in different settings should be used as the first step in minimizing the impact of such barriers in technology integration in education.

Recommendation for Researchers: The work done can form the basis of investigating the impacts of latest technology on education, and necessary dimensions on the technology integration within the context of internal and external factors in the classroom or in a virtual learning environment for further research. Findings should then be used to aid technology integration in education.

Impact on Society: The effective and successful technology integration may be reached by minimizing the barriers identified.

Future Research: Future research can investigate technological barriers with reference to external variables (e.g., motivation, acceptance, satisfaction) using the developed scale. The findings can then be used to eliminate the barriers and facilitate technology integration.


This study aimed to verify the behavior of physiological, perceptual, and performance responses during a high-intensity exercise in judo athletes and to identify if this protocol is able to discriminate athletes from different levels (national vs. state). Forty-five male judo athletes participated and were divided into two groups: state (age 24.2 ± 3.7 years) and national (22.1 ± 3.3 years). Judo athletes performed a judo-specific protocol contained high-intensity intermittent exercise consisted of 12 sets of 20 s in all-out intensity. During the protocol, the repetitions and heart rate were assessed over the sets, and at the end of the protocol, the rate of perceived exertion was measured. The results showed that the national group presented higher repetitions (29 ± 4 repetitions) during the high-intensity intermittent exercise compared with state (22 ± 2 repetitions). However, the national group showed a progressive decrease of repetitions up to the middle of the protocol, which coincided with higher values of heart rate compared with state (first and second sets). There was a decrease of repetitions from the first set (p < .001) and similar values of heart rate from the third set in the state. In conclusion, the performance (in repetitions) during the high-intensity intermittent exercise was able to discriminate athletes from different competitive levels. National athletes presented better performance, but worse pacing strategy compared with state.


Purpose Although previous meta-analyses of randomized trials in the world literature have provided strong evidence that supports the efficacy and safety of memantine for the treatment of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), it is unclear whether the drug is beneficial in the treatment of Japanese patients with moderate to severe AD because of differences in the formulation and regimen of memantine and the cholinesterase inhibitor (ChEI) used in combination with memantine between the drugs made in Japan and those made in other countries. To address this issue, we conducted a meta-analysis on the efficacy and safety of memantine using data from only double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trials (DBRPCTs) in Japan on Japanese patients with moderate to severe AD. Patients and methods Our primary analysis was conducted using data from both memantine monotherapy (memantine vs placebo) and memantine combination therapy (memantine+ChEI vs ChEI+placebo) studies. The primary outcomes measured were cognitive function and behavioral disturbances. The secondary outcomes measured were the subscale scores of Behavioral Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease (Behave-AD), discontinuation rate, and individual adverse events. Results Four DBRPCTs (n=1,328) were detected. Memantine was superior to the control in cognitive functions (standardized mean difference [SMD]=−0.31, 95% CI=−0.53, −0.10) and behavioral disturbances (SMD=−0.16, 95% CI=−0.28, −0.05). Only memantine monotherapy was superior in both outcomes. It was also superior to the control in delusions, aggression, and diurnal rhythm disturbances based on the Behave-AD subscale scores. Although memantine was associated with a lower incidence of AD progression than that of the control, the incidence of somnolence was higher with memantine. There were no significant differences in other safety outcomes, including all-cause discontinuation, between the groups. Conclusion Our results suggest that memantine is useful for the treatment of patients in Japan with moderate to severe AD even though our meta-analysis comprised only four DBRPCTs.


The pulmonary circulation is responsible for directing venous (low-oxygen) blood to the gas exchange regions of the lung, where oxygen uptake takes place before arterial (oxygen-rich) blood leaves the heart via the systemic circulation. Compared to the systemic circulation, the pulmonary circulation is a low-pressure/low resistance system that maximizes the amount of venous blood entering the lungs through the pumping action of the right ventricle. However, disorders associated with abnormal increase in pressure and/or resistance can adversely affect the capacity of the right ventricle to pump blood into the lungs and reduce the oxygen content in arterial blood. This is the case with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a rare but life-threatening disorder associated with abnormally increased pulmonary pressures and right heart failure (1). Despite the availability of 14 FDA approved therapies, none are capable of curing PAH, likely due to their inability to prevent progression and/or reverse vascular pathology. Therefore, there is an unmet need to understand the pathological mechanism involved in pulmonary vascular remodeling and use this knowledge to test novel approaches to treat the disease.


Objectives Recent studies from several countries have shown that coeliac disease (CD) is increasingly being diagnosed in adults, as the availability of new, accurate serologic tests has made screening in the general population possible. No data exist regarding the prevalence of CD in Greece. The aim of this study was the implementation of a serologic screening procedure for CD in the adult general population of Thessaly, an area of central Greece, using a novel diagnostic algorithm. Methods The study included 2230 participants (1226 women, 1004 men, median age 46 years, range 18–80 years), selected by systematic random sampling, from the adult general population of Thessaly. All the serum samples were tested for total immunoglobulin A (IgA)-serum levels, to exclude IgA deficiency. Samples with total IgA within the normal range were tested for IgA antibodies against native human-tissue transglutaminase (anti-tTG); samples that were anti-tTG positive were tested for IgA antiendomysial antibodies (EmA). Samples from participants with selective IgA deficiency were examined for IgG antigliadin antibodies. Participants who were EmA-positive or antigliadin antibody-positive were referred for intestinal biopsy and human leucocyte antigen (HLA) typing. Results No participant with selective IgA deficiency was detected. Four individuals tested positive for EmA, all of whom were biopsy-proven coeliacs. Therefore, the CD prevalence in this general population sample is 1 : 558 or 1.8 per 1000 (SE 0.13). The four new patients with abnormal histology (two men, two women) were aged between 18 and 35 years. Two of them were considered to be asymptomatic and two presented with a subclinical course. All four had the heterodimer HLA-DQ2. Conclusions This first serological screening study for CD in Greece has demonstrated that CD prevalence in Thessaly is among the lowest reported in Europe.


Anatomically preserved foliage of a dipteridaceous fern has been identified in both calcareous nodules and fine‐grained, carbonate‐cemented sandstone from the early Cretaceous (Hauterivian‐Barremian) Apple Bay locality from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Fronds with attached sporangia containing spores are preserved as both compression/impressions and as permineralizations. Fan‐shaped laminar segments display paired teeth along the margin. Major veins dichotomize to the lamina edge, and finer veins reticulate, forming square to polygonal areoles, with freely ending veinlets. Veins are enclosed by sclerenchymatous sheaths, and the abaxial epidermis is recessed, producing concave areas between veins. Adaxial cuticle is thick, and the epidermis contains rectangular cells with undulating walls. Anomocytic scattered stomata occur on the abaxial surface. Sporangia and trichomes are scattered across the abaxial epidermis in the areolar concavities. Sporangial stalks are short, two to three cells long and four to six cells wide throughout their length. Sporangia have a vertical annulus that is interrupted by the stalk, and they contain trilete spores that correspond to Cibotiumspora jurienensis. Leaf morphology is similar to that of extant Dipteris novoguineensis and fossil Hausmannia spp. A unique combination of characters demonstrates that Hausmannia is a distinct genus of fossil dipterids. An examination of leaves from extant Dipteris rhizomes of various ages suggests that the genus Protorhipis may represent juvenile Hausmannia at some localities. The association of Hausmannia with small pieces of delicate moss gametophytes, fern sporelings, and vegetative remains of Lycopodium and Selaginella at Apple Bay reinforces the interpretation that these fossil dipterids were deposited under storm conditions and that Hausmannia may have grown in disturbed habitats.


An iterative stochastic approach is developed to estimate transmissivity and head distributions in heterogeneous aquifers. This approach is similar to the classical cokriging technique; it uses a linear estimator that depends on the covariances of transmissivity and hydraulic head and their cross covariance. The linear estimator is, however, improved successively by solving the governing flow equation and by updating the covariances and cross-covariance function of transmissivity and hydraulic head fields in an iterative manner. As a result the nonlinear relationship between transmissivity and head is incorporated in the estimation, and the estimated fields are approximate conditional means. The ability of the iterative approach is tested with some deterministic and stochastic inverse problems. The results show that the estimated transmissivity and hydraulic head fields have smaller mean square errors than those obtained by classical cokriging even in the aquifer with variance of transmissivity up to 3.


In his famous thesis on the Indian nationalist division of the home versus the world, Partha Chatterjee rightly exposes the 'new patriarchy' generated by this dichotomy. However, mindful of the cultural specificity of this new patriarchal discourse, he observes that this has taken hold among India's rapidly emerging middle class, and is 'irrelevant to the large mass of subordinate class' (632). This article takes as its point of departure Chatterjee's analysis of the intersections of gendered and class oppression in order to explore Anita Desai's somewhat neglected 1975 novel Where Shall We Go This Summer? Desai's protagonist Sita, the supposed 'new woman' of postcolonial India, has to confront dominant attitudes towards motherhood that accrete to her as a member of the upper middle class. The novel builds up to a crisis that reveals the ambivalences surrounding motherhood – both small rebellions against, and acquiescence to, patriarchy – and shadows forth a maternal subjectivity formed out of resistance. We investigate how nationalist and religious discourses around motherhood and the Mother Goddess, as well as constructions of femininity pertaining to the middle class, together shape the maternal experiences of women like Desai's Sita. We conclude by considering how in a postcolonial context, the author's literary representation of motherhood responds or offers a counter-narrative to these constructions of motherhood through the depictions of potentially disruptive and contingent maternal subjectivity.


The smilodontine felid Megantereon hesperus is described from the latest Hemphillian (early Pliocene) Upper Bone Valley Formation of central Florida. The Florida record marks the earliest known occurrence of Megantereon and adds to our poorly known record of this genus in North America. Old World records suggest immigration of Megantereon to Eurasia and Africa in the early Villafranchian (middle Pliocene). The genus is not known in North America after the middle Blancan (middle Pliocene).--Modified journal abstract.


ABSTRACTWith increasing concern about cost reduction and environmental destruction, lightweight structural design is essential in the product design process. As a means of yielding products with more lightweight and efficient structures, in this paper a method of extracting useful features from a biological lightweight structure, that of the American lobster is proposed. Tensile tests were conducted on biological specimens using plastic clamps made by a 3D printer and clarified some rules for the design of lightweight and efficient structures. Using the rules of material design, a novel method for acquiring bio-inspired lightweight designs was proposed and its feasibility was shown by FEM simulation.


In the first issue of College English from 1939, the
editors reference a letter written by Davida McCaslin
to the President and Dean of Millikin University and
published earlier that same year in the Journal of Higher
Education. From her perspective as the Head of the
Department of English, McCaslin describes the "ideal
teacher of English"; her list covers even his romantic
life and leisurely pursuits. Eventually, she arrives at a
single trait symptomatic of the rest but significant
enough to name: "contagiousness." McCaslin's teacher
"will be able to project himself in all the richness and
variety of his interests and of his wisdom and of his
nature; and will at the same time be able to do
something more, something that does not produce
imitation but sets up many kinds of activities with
people around him" (319). I begin with McCaslin's
ideal not solely because of its charm, but also because
it speaks to the centrifugal potential of courseembedded
tutoring models for first-year writing
classes when these models are designed to work with
composition teacher training. Integral to the success of
such models is a force akin to McCaslin's
"contagiousness," a pedagogically resonant
transanimation born of the course-specific experiences
shared within and shaped by the student-tutorinstructor
nexus. Importantly, though, the infectious
character of these mutually informing points of
contact should not aspire to instructional homogeneity
or encourage a drag-and-drop approach to the
teaching of writing. Rather, this infectiousness must be
directed toward the cultivation of fluid and adaptive
pedagogies attentive to the individual needs of firstyear
writers. (Think "contagious" less in terms of a
zombie apocalypse and more in terms of the laughter
that spreads through a room on the heels of a kairotic
quip). When approached in this way, courseembedded
tutorials become rich sites capable of
productively informing the everyday practices of firstyear
writing programs from the center out.


The increase need for services to handle a plethora of business needs within the enterprise landscape has yielded to an increase in the development of heterogeneous services across the digital world. In today's digital economy, services are the key components for communication and collaboration amongst enterprises internally and externally. Since Internet has stimulated the use of services, different services have been developed for different purposes prompting those services to be heterogeneous due to incompatibles approaches relied upon at both conceptual and exploitation phases. The proliferation of developed heterogeneous services in the digital world therefore comes along with a range of challenges more precisely in the integration layer. Traditionally, integration is achieved by using gateways, which require considerable configuration effort. Many approaches and frameworks have been developed by different researchers to overcome these challenges, but up to date the challenges of integration heterogeneous services with minimal user-involvement still exist. In this paper, we are exploring the challenges of heterogeneous services and characteristics thereof with the aim of developing a seamless approach that will alleviate some of these challenges in near future. It is therefore of outmost importance to understand the challenges and characteristics of heterogeneous services before developing a mechanism that could eliminate these challenges.


Characterization of ovine monocytes in response to Haemonchus contortus larvae in vitro and a novel role of IL-13 inducing larval paralysis Elizabeth Anne Shepherd Haemonchus contortus is a hematophagous, gastrointestinal parasite affecting small ruminants. Parasitism by H. contortus is the greatest concern of sheep producers in the United States and accounts for billions of dollars in economic loss worldwide. However, different breeds of sheep display differences n natural resistance to H. contortus. St. Croix hair sheep have a remarkable ability to clear H. contortus without the aid of anthelmintics and develop a robust T helper type 2 (Th2) immune response, preventing establishment of infective stage 3 larvae (L3), when compared to susceptible Suffolk sheep. However, the mechanism of development of immune response and differences between resistant and susceptible breeds is not fully understood. In these studies, response of ovine monocytes, from resistant and susceptible breeds of sheep, to whole L3 were evaluated in vitro. Monocytes were isolated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells and cultured with L3 over 6 to 15 hours to measure gene expression and effector function, by measuring larval ATP and motility. Separation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) into monocytes and lymphocytes demonstrated a clear effector function of monocytes against L3. Monocyte and macrophage activation state have been associated with helminth infection and play an important role in induction of Th2 type responses for overall host protection. Inhibition of inducible nitric oxide synthase in Suffolk monocytes rescued susceptibility, whereas inhibition of alternative pathways reduced effector function in both breeds, and thus, monocytes required arginase-1 for full effector function. Though St. Croix derived monocytes up-regulated genes associated with classical (M1) activation, early activation of alternative markers (M2) were present compared to Suffolk derived monocytes. Interleukin-13 (IL-13) is a cytokine critical to Th2 type immune response and promoting alternative activation of monocytes in context of helminth infection. Inhibition of IL-13 in monocyte culture dampened effector function in St. Croix derived cells. However, larval morbidity was not IL-13 dependent. Independent of cellular mechanisms, IL-13 was observed to cause larval paralysis, reducing larval speed and distance, identifying a previously unknown role of IL-13. Overall, St. Croix displayed increased paralytic activity of from monocyte culture supernatant, in conjunction with heightened monocyte-mediate larval morbidity, and therefore may be reflective resistance to H. contortus infection and development of full host protective immunity.


This was the third research meeting focused on scapular function and dysfunction, following similar meetings in 2003 and 2006. The purpose of this meeting, hosted by the Shoulder Center of Kentucky, was to continue to examine the biomechanical and clinical factors thought to be associated with the role of the scapula in shoulder function and dysfunction. Since the last Summit, much more information has been created in this area, and it was thought that enough progress had been made that an organized overview of current knowledge could provide some consensus statements to guide further research and provide assessment and treatment guidelines. A call for abstracts was extended to researchers with proven interest and published research on the scapula. The meeting was organized around 3 primary categories of information: scapular kinematics and dysfunction, clinical evaluation of the scapula, and interventions. The last session of the meeting involved development of consensus statements for each category. This document represents the current state of knowledge concerning the aspects of scapular function and dysfunction discussed at the Summit. It is expected that, as more knowledge is developed, the gaps will be filled in and a clearer understanding of the roles of the scapula in shoulder function will emerge. This issue includes the consensus statements and abstracts from the Summit.


Changes in nutrients elements uptake, physiological characteristics, as well as, correlations analysis for these traits to each other are good factors to study the effects of drought on sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L. cv., commercial hybrid) and disclose physiological reaction to several specific levels of stress from water deficit. Water scarcity processing was carried out by irrigating the sweet pepper plants with 20, 40 and 60% of water deficit to reach soil pot capacity, plus to 100% of water capacity (control). The results showed that the concentrations of nutrients of the studied sweet pepper grown in pots under different water treatments varied greatly depending on the levels of water stress except C. Resulting data of the growing season's experiments revealed that, the four water stress levels had a highly significant effect on all the four traits under this study. The content of proline in plant had risen significantly by drought stress treatments (80, 60 and 40% of pot capacity). All water stress treatments led to high significant changes in the accumulation of vitamins and enzymes, that is, peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase, catalase and superoxide dismutase. Also, the associations of correlation between all physiological traits had been reported in results.

 Key words: Capsicum annuum, water deficit,  pigments, proline, antioxidant enzymes pigments


/Резюме: A non-equilibrium thermodynamic model of the austenite non-diffusion transformation in iron and alloys based on it is developed, taking into account internal stresses in the system. Onsager motion equations are found for a model thermodynamic system describing a non-diffusion transformation and kinetic equations for changing deformations and growth rates of the α-phase. A scheme of austenitic non-diffusion transformations is constructed, including normal and martensitic transformations, as limiting cases.


In the abstract of the paper, "The Direct Observation of Hapten-Antibody Equilibria" presented before the National Academy of Sciences, which was published in the Nov. 13th issue of SCIENCE, p. 570, there isan error due to a miscalculation. A value of 5.5 kcal isgiven for the free energy of formation (per mole) of ahapten-antibody bond. This value should be 7.6 kcal.


One of the instruments onboard the China Seismic Electromagnetic Satellite (CSES) is the Low Energy Particle Detector (LEPD). The primary objective of LEPD is to provide measurements of the fluxes, energy spectra and pitch angles of 100 keV to 10 MeV electrons and protons from 2 to 50 MeV in the Earth's magnetosphere. The geometric factor is one of the principle parameters of a detector, which converts the physical quantity—count rate to the particle quantity-flux. In this paper, we calculated the geometric factor of LEPD via computer modeling of an isotropic radiation environment. It was first demonstrated that the radiation intensity related should obey a cosine-law, then a general sampling method of generating this distribution via GPS of GEANT4 was explained. Furthermore, combined with flux normalization, a comparison of the geometric factor calculation of a set of 2-layer detectors with different shapes (cylinder, truncated cone and rectangle) was performed. Results show a generally good agreement between simulation and analytical calculations for the cylinder and truncated cone detectors, and the result of the rectangular one, for which there is no accurate analytical formula, is consistent with the previous simulated results by others. As a practical instance of the 2-layer rectangle detector, the geometric factor of LEPD is 10.336±0.036 cm2·sr for 10 MeV proton and 8.211±0.032 cm2·sr for 8 MeV electron.


Partially Premixed Combustion has shown the potential of low emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and soot with a simultaneous improvement in fuel efficiency. Several research groups have shown that a load range from idle to full load is possible, when using low-octane-number refinery streams, in the gasoline boiling range. As such refinery streams are not expected to be commercially available on the short term, the use of naphtha blends that are commercially available could provide a practical solution. The three blends used in this investigation have been tested in a single-cylinder engine for their emission and efficiency performance. Besides a presentation of the sensitivity to injection strategies, dilution levels and fuel pressure, emission performance is compared to legislated emission levels. Conventional diesel combustion benchmarks are used for reference to show possible improvements in indicated efficiency. Analysis of the heat release patterns revealed an interesting and strong correlation between the premixed fraction and the amount of soot produced. To be specific, each of the fuels showed a decrease in this fraction as either fuel pressure was lowered or load was increased, showing a transition from more premixed to mainly mixing-controlled combustion, with the corresponding soot emissions. For one blend, over the whole load range EURO VI PM levels were approached or achieved, combined with a peak gross indicated efficiency of 50% clearly indicating the potential of this concept.


Human population increase in urban areas leads to loss of urban wildlife habitats. Habitat loss not only affects wildlife populations but causes conflicts with resilient urban wildlife species like the mona monkey (Cercopithecus mona). This study was carried out between March and July 2018 and aimed at assessing the population of mona monkeys, occurrence, and causes of Human-Wildlife Conflict (HWC) involving this species in four urban communities, Soluyi, Magodo, Agiliti, and University of Lagos. Data collection was through total count of monkeys encountered and administration of 200 structured questionnaires. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analyses. University of Lagos had the highest troop size of 19, Magodo and Agiliti had 6 individuals each and Soluyi had 2 individuals. All the 175 respondents indicated the occurrence of HWC in their communities. Presence of fruit trees in peoples' compounds and lack of food in monkeys' habitats were the main causes of HWC as indicated by 99.7 % and 90.8 % of respondents respectively. Only age of respondents had significant difference on their opinions and HWC. Age of respondents had significant effect (F = 3.00, P < 0.05) on their opinion on causes of monkey raids. The presence of monkeys in these locations implied that the area was their natural habitats. The highest number of monkeys in University of Lagos is attributed to vegetation cover. The depleting habitat and low population of mona monkeys in urban areas requires the designation of protected urban forests for the species' population recovery and conservation


We study a sequential algorithm for finding the projection of a given point onto the common fixed points set of a semigroup of nonexpansive operators in Hilbert space. The convergence of such an algorithm was previously established only for finitely many nonexpansive operators. Algorithms of this kind have been applied to the best approximation and convex feasibility problems in various fields of applications.


A procedure for the design of path-tracking controllers for car-like robots is proposed which is based on a formalization of the notion of path-tracking that is traditional in automotive applications. The advantage of this procedure over current methods is that it is applicable to a larger class of vehicles (car-like robots with single or double steering), to more general paths (in particular, circular paths), and to a tracking velocity that is not necessarily constant. When the path is a straight line or a circular arc, the tracking offsets are small and the assigned velocity is constant, then the proposed procedure leads to a controller with a linear, time-invariant, and decoupled PID (proportional, integral, and derivative) structure. >


Credit risk is treated as a major risk in banks and has become more important with the 2008 financial crisis and the subsequent regulatory controls, mainly in the form of new changes in Basel II and the proposed Basel III requirements. The use of credit risk models grew in the 2000s due to both the use of internal models in Basel II as well as bank use for economic capital calculations. These models have a large and growing influence on how credit risks are managed, yet there is a gap in the current literature on how these models are used in practice. This research explores their use in banks to help provide academic and management insight into the actual use of credit risk models.
An interpretative approach using qualitative case study was undertaken in three banks using face-to-face interviews with the key credit risk managers that worked in the methodology, decision making, monitoring, control and reporting areas. While interviews were the main source of data for the research, it was supported by observation and a review of documentation that related to the use of credit risk models in the bank. The research findings show the merits in examining the social, organisational and cultural constructions as well as the role of individuals in this process. This evidences the usefulness of interpretive research, which thrives on diversity of meanings as opposed to comparing just the technical aspects of the models as found in more traditional studies.
This research provides a contribution to the academic understanding of the use of credit risk models not found in any of the studies to date. This includes new insights into the use of qualitative information, the use of expert judgement (including an element of gut feel), how model complexity can detract from model use and the importance of aligning models to the risk appetite of the bank. These findings are significant both from an academic and practitioner aspect as they open up commonly-hidden processes on how these models are used in practice.


This article discusses the lack of inclusive language in the Liedboek van die kerk, which still remains the official hymnal of the Afrikaans Reformed churches in South Africa. Because there seems to be a general misconception about inclusive language, especially in this particular religious context, I will argue that the use of inclusive language will not only help to counteract the current identity crisis the church is experiencing (referring to matters such as the role of the woman, Belhar and sexuality), but will also reflect Christ's theology of inclusivity during his time on earth. A broader understanding of the God image, rooted in biblical hermeneutics, is imperative and should be incorporated in the text of the Afrikaans hymn. I will argue that this inclusive spirituality may also lead to greater spiritual well-being of all Christians in the Afrikaans Reformed churches. This paper is critical qualitative research and arguments from the feminist theology will be interpreted and applied to the Afrikaans context. Keywords: Inclusive language; Afrikaans church; hymn; marginalised;


It has been previously shown that Cr-coatings, even with a thickness limited to 10-15μm, can have a positive impact on the high temperature isothermal creep and burst behavior of the cladding under internal pressure, typical of hypothetical LOss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA) situations. Then, in view of being more representative of LOCA conditions, thermal ramp tests were recently performed at CEA thanks to the "EDGAR" facilities on 50 cm long M5 clad segments with 12-15 μm thick Cr-coating. Heating rates ranging from 0.1 up to 25°C/s and internal pressures from 10 to 100 bars have been applied up to the rupture temperature. It was observed that, compared to the uncoated reference material, failure of the Cr-coated cladding segments occurred at comparable or higher temperatures with significantly smaller balloon and/or rupture opening. Very limited oxidation and excellent adhesion of the Cr-coating were also confirmed, even at the balloon location where the cladding was highly deformed. M5 is a trademark or a registered trademark of Framatome or its affiliates in the USA or other countries.


Chlorine (Cl₂) is a highly irritating and reactive gas with potential occupational and environmental hazards. Acute exposure to Cl₂ induces severe epithelial damage, airway hyperreactivity, impaired alveolar fluid clearance, and pulmonary edema in the presence of heightened inflammation and significant neutrophil accumulation in the lungs. Herein, we investigated whether Cl₂ exposure affected the lung antimicrobial immune response leading to increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections. Mice exposed to Cl₂ and challenged intratracheally 24 h thereafter with the opportunistic mold Aspergillus fumigatus demonstrated an >500-fold increase in A. fumigatus lung burden 72 h postchallenge compared with A. fumigatus mice exposed to room air. Cl₂-exposed A. fumigatus challenged mice also demonstrated significantly higher lung resistance following methacholine challenge and increased levels of plasma proteins (albumin and IgG) in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Despite enhanced recruitment of inflammatory cells to the lungs of Cl₂-exposed A. fumigatus challenged mice, these cells (>60% of which were neutrophils) demonstrated a profound impairment in generating superoxide. Significantly higher A. fumigatus burden in the lungs of Cl₂ exposed mice correlated with enhanced production of IL-6, TNF-α, CXCL1, CCL2, and CCL3. Surprisingly, however, Cl₂-exposed A. fumigatus challenged mice had a specific impairment in the production of IL-17A and IL-22 in the lungs compared with mice exposed to room air and challenged with A. fumigatus. In summary, our results indicate that Cl₂ exposure markedly impairs the antimicrobial activity and inflammatory reactivity of myeloid cells in the lung leading to increased susceptibility to opportunistic pathogens.


Abstract Background: Over the last 2 decades, Burkholderia cepacia complex has emerged as a serious human pathogen, especially in critically ill patients. B. cepacia complex has been associated with increased morbidity and mortality in intensive care unit patients. However, in our literature search, we could not find studies on risk factors for mortality in patients with B. cepacia complex bacteraemia. Therefore, we investigated risk factors for mortality in B. cepacia complex bacteraemia. Methods: Clinical characteristics and laboratory parameters of 27 patients with 1 or more blood cultures positive for B. cepacia complex from January 2006 to October 2010 in Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Korea were retrospectively analyzed. The main outcome measure was overall 28-day mortality. Appropriate initial empirical antimicrobial use was defined as administration of agent(s) to which the organism was susceptible within 24 h of obtaining blood for culture. Results: The overall 28-day mortality rate was 41% (11/27). In univariate analysis, underlying diabetes mellitus (p = 0.033), inappropriate initial empirical antimicrobial therapy (p = 0.033), and an elevated Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score (p = 0.002) were significantly associated with mortality. In multivariate analysis, inappropriate initial empirical antimicrobial therapy and an elevated SOFA score were independent risk factors for increased mortality (p = 0.032 and p = 0.028, respectively). Conclusions: An elevated SOFA score and inappropriate initial empirical antimicrobial therapy were significantly associated with adverse outcome in patients with B. cepacia complex bacteraemia.


We introduce the reuse-oriented camouflaging trojan — a new threat to legitimate software binaries. To perform a malicious action, such a trojan identifies and reuses an existing function in a legal binary program instead of implementing the function itself. Furthermore, this trojan is stealthy in that the malicious invocation of a targeted function usually takes place in a location where it is legal to do so, closely mimicking a legal invocation. At the network level, the victim binary can still follow its communication protocol without exhibiting any anomalous behavior. Meanwhile, many close-source shareware binaries are rich in functions that can be maliciously "reused", making them attractive targets of this type of attack. In this paper, we present a framework to determine if a given binary program is vulnerable to this attack and to construct a concrete trojan if so. Our experiments with a number of real-world software binaries demonstrate that the reuse-oriented camouflaging trojans are a real threat and vulnerabilities of this type in legal binaries can be effectively revealed and confirmed.


Abstract:Representations of early Greek migrants in Western Australia constituted a process of Greek migrant-cum-settler colonialization. This process was informed by the exclusionary operations of Australian race-making and the transnational dynamics of Greek labor migration. By claiming an exemplary attachment to whiteness and alerting immigration authorities to the fact that Greek proprietors were breaching labor laws, Greek migrants who wrote to Australian local presses and government agencies articulated a settler sense of belonging that aligned with the cultural and legal contours of the Australian settler state. Inspired by the Australian example of the self-sufficient and law-abiding settler, Greek migrant-cum-settler colonialism took shape in the context of Greek migrants' lived experience as a racialized minority in White Australia.


The rise of opinion programs has transformed television news. Because they present anchors' subjective commentary and analysis, opinion programs often convey conflicting narratives about reality. We experimentally document that people across the ideological spectrum turn to opinion programs over "straight news", even when provided large incentives to learn objective facts. We then examine the consequences of diverging narratives between opinion programs in a high-stakes setting: the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US. We find stark differences in the adoption of preventative behaviours among viewers of the two most popular opinion programs, both on the same network, which adopted opposing narratives about the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. We then show that areas with greater relative viewership of the program downplaying the threat experienced a greater number of COVID-19 cases and deaths. Our evidence suggests that opinion programs may distort important beliefs and behaviours.


Abstract : This research arose from an effort to bridge the research of solid state chemists and material scientists. For several years, researchers at Ames Laboratory have been investigating an interesting class of binary intermetallic materials that have a demonstrated ability to incorporate substantial quantities of ternary additions while maintaining the structure of the host material. This ability arises from the presence of interstices within the Mn5Si3-type structure of the host binary intermetallic which can accommodate a wide variety and amount of ternary elements. This research demonstrated marked effects on the structure of the host material, namely, changes in lattice constants and bond lengths as determined by careful structural studies. With the realization that these additions may also significantly affect material properties, a window of opportunity was presented to utilize this "doping" effect and determine the potential engineering usefulness of these materials. Approximately 175 binary intermetallic compounds are known to exist in the Mn5Si3 structure, and considering the substantial number of possible ternary alloying elements which could be added, one is presented with an overwhelming number of material systems for investigation. Fortunately from an engineering point of view, this field can be significantly narrowed by considering some of the critical material properties required for a particular type of application.


There has been an increased interest in combining fuzzy systems with neural networks because fuzzy neural systems merge the advantages of both paradigms. On the one hand, parameters in fuzzy systems have clear physical meanings and rule-based and linguistic information can be incorporated into adaptive fuzzy systems in a systematic way. On the other hand, there exist powerful algorithms for training various neural network models. However, most of the proposed combined architectures are only able to process static input-output relationships; they are not able to process temporal input sequences of arbitrary length. Fuzzy finite-state automats (FFAs) can model dynamical processes whose current state depends on the current input and previous states. Unlike in the case of deterministic finite-state automats (DFAs), FFAs are not in one particular state, rather each state is occupied to some degree defined by a membership function. Based on previous work on encoding DFAs in discrete-time second-order recurrent neural networks, we propose an algorithm that constructs an augmented recurrent neural network that encodes a FFA and recognizes a given fuzzy regular language with arbitrary accuracy. We then empirically verify the encoding methodology by correct string recognition of randomly generated FFAs. In particular, we examine how the networks' performance varies as a function of synaptic weight strengths.


PURPOSE
This work investigates the dosimetric impact of 4D-CT treatment planning for lung SBRT. We compare treatment planning and dosimetric characteristic between plans optimized on free-breathing (FB) scans then, computed on maximum and average intensity projections (MIP and AIP). Which data set is more favorable for planning and dose calculations between fully-optimized plans on MIP or AIP versus FB?

METHODS
A small number of patients with peripheral lung lesions treated with SBRT in our center with an Oncor-160MLC system, were selected for this study. All patients received a FB helical scan to the entire chest and a 4D-CT scan to a smaller volume that includes the lesion. Internal target volume (ITV) was first delineated on the MIP and a 5mm margin to it, defined the PTV. Multi-field (7-11) inversely optimized planning was done first on the FB set, and then it was transferred to registered MIP and AIP for re-calculation (with heterogeneities), after having propagated and segmented onto MIP and AIP sets all organs-at-risk (OARs), respectively. Additonal plans were created with re-optimization of the beam fluences on AIP and MIP sets. All plans were compared based on dosimetric parameters, distributions and dose-volume histograms (DVHs).

RESULTS
Dosimetric characteristics of FB with re-calculated AIP and MIP plans were similar overall with those of MIP being slightly higher of the three. Interestingly, the re-optimized plans give lower target and involved lung doses most likely due to different average lung CT-numbers between FB, MIP and AIP sets.

CONCLUSION
For peripheral lung lesions, planning for SBRT with intensity modulation is challenges as different imaging data sets have similar dosimetric characteristics. Re-optimization of the plans on MIP and AIP give a better indication as to which data set is appropriate to be utilized. A more robust protocol is needed for lung 4D-CT treatment planning.


The chemical composition of barley spent grains generated in a microbrewery and their fractionation by acid hydrolysis and delignification were investigated. The material contained high amount of carbohydrates (60%), while its lignin content was lower than that reported for other sorts of barley spent grains. Different dilute-acid hydrolysis methods were evaluated for separating the main components of the spent grains, without affecting the sugars generated by starch hydrolysis. The utilization of a two-step dilute-acid hydrolysis approach allowed to hydrolyse starch in a first step, at 100 oC, and hemicelluloses in a second step, at 121 oC. Acetosolv and alkaline delignification were used for solubilising the lignin fraction. A higher lignin solubilisation (95% of the lignin contained in the raw material) was achieved after alkaline delignification, whereas only 34% of the initial lignin was removed by direct acetosolv. When the acetosolv treatment was combined with acid hydrolysis, lignin solubilisation increased to 74%. Lignin was precipitated from the liquors at recovery rates from 40 to 93%, as depending on the hydrolysis/delignification method used.