Operons are a hallmark of bacterial genomes, where they allow concerted expression of multiple functionally related genes as single polycistronic transcripts. They are rare in eukaryotes, where each gene usually drives expression of its own independent messenger RNAs. Here we report the horizontal operon transfer of a catecholate-class siderophore biosynthesis pathway from Enterobacteriaceae into a group of closely related yeast taxa. We further show that the co-linearly arranged secondary metabolism genes are actively expressed, exhibit mainly eukaryotic transcriptional features, and enable the sequestration and uptake of iron. After transfer to the eukaryotic host, several genetic changes occurred, including the acquisition of polyadenylation sites, structural rearrangements, integration of eukaryotic genes, and secondary loss in some lineages. We conclude that the operon genes were likely captured in the shared insect gut habitat, modified for eukaryotic gene expression, and maintained by selection to adapt to the highly-competitive, iron-limited environment.


Background Physicians require extensive training to achieve proficiency in mechanical ventilator (MV) management of the critically ill patients. Guided self-directed learning (GSDL) is usually the method used to learn. However, it is unclear if this is the most proficient approach to teaching mechanical ventilation to critical care fellows. We, therefore, investigated whether critical care fellows achieve higher scores on standardized testing and report higher satisfaction after participating in a hands-on tutorial combined with GSDL compared to self-directed learning alone. Methods First-year Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine (PCCM) fellows (n=6) and Critical Care Internal Medicine (CCIM) (n=8) fellows participated. Satisfaction was assessed using the Likert scale. MV knowledge assessment was performed by administering a standardized 25-question multiple choice pre- and posttest. For 2 weeks the CCIM fellows were exposed to GSDL, while the PCCM fellows received hands-on tutoring combined with GSDL. Results Ninety-three percentage (6 PCCM and 7 CCIM fellows, total of 13 fellows) completed all evaluations and were included in the final analysis. CCIM and PCCM fellows scored similarly in the pretest (64% vs. 52%, p=0.13). Following interventions, the posttest scores increased in both groups. However, no significant difference was observed based on the interventions (74% vs. 77%, p=0.39). The absolute improvement with the hands-on-tutoring and GSDL group was higher than GSDL alone (25% vs. 10%, p=0.07). Improved satisfaction scores were noted with hands-on tutoring. Conclusions Hands-on tutoring combined with GSDL and GSDL alone were both associated with an improvement in posttest scores. Absolute improvement in test and satisfaction scores both trended higher in the hands-on tutorial group combined with GSDL group.


The EU seeks to affirm itself as a major actor within the realm of international relations, trying to
promote key democratic values throughout its network of diplomatic missions. Thus, EU's foreign and
internal policies are constructed as to commonly represent member states in global issues as a well-defined
political entity of its own. It is through these lenses that we can observe the ways in which EU's efforts, to
remain a major global actor, are diminished because the entity lacks the force (self-reliant army) through
which it could efficiently represent its military interests. The only military might, at EU's disposal, being
member state's own troops, which can be deployed in emergency-related situations through the common
security policy. As such, there are some foreign and defence ministers from the community block which are
demanding, after the Afghanistan chaotic developments, an increased military independence for both the
EU and its intervention forces. On a similar tone, Josep Borrell Fontelles, the High Representative of the
Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, believes that it is the right time for EU to form its own
military corps. Furthermore, overseeing the emerging security contexts, to which NATO responded by
engaging into an ample transformation and adaptation process, we can underline some key developments,
which showcase the need to revaluate EU's military efforts, especially in terms of using its capabilities and
capacities as a primordial source of credibility. As citizens' security remains one of Brussels' main
objectives, and one of the primordial European institutions' responsibilities, they have put forward and
accepted, almost two decades ago, the European Security Strategy, which has established, for the first time,
tangible goals, and objectives when it comes to protecting EU's interests in terms of security and defence. It
is this document which transforms the current approach across the continent, and its analysis can prove a
starting ground for punctual optimizations to take place, to gain resilience in the face of alternative or
emerging threats and risks.


The paper seeks to contribute to the long-standing debate surrounding the notion of text-types by supporting a case for the application of Prototype theory to academic conceptualizations of the term. In accordance with basic postulates of prototypology, the theoretical alternative presented here is supported by results from a perceptionbased study including 60 university students. The study focuses on the persuasive text-type; the procedures applied and the results reported associate with texts from the domain of political discourse. The method adopted is cognitive as it coheres fully with prototypology. The data reported support the premise of the key importance of prototypology in understanding text-types.


A Dynamic flame surface density (DFSD) model, developed recently from experimental images for transient turbulent premixed flames, is implemented and tested using the large eddy simulation (LES) modelling technique. Numerical predictions from DFSD model are compared with those predicted using the flame surface density (FSD) sub-grid scale (SGS) model for reaction rate. In the SGS-DFSD model, dynamic formulation of the reaction rate is coupled with the fractal analysis of the flame front structure. The fractal dimension is evaluated dynamically from an empirical formula based on the sub-grid velocity fluctuations. A laboratory scale combustion chamber with inbuilt solid obstacles is used for model validation and comparisons. The flame is initiated from igniting a stichiometric propane/air mixture from stagnation. The results obtained with the DFSD model are in good comparisons with experimental data and the essential features of turbulent premixed combustion are well captured. It has also been observed that the SGS-DFSD model for reaction rate found to capture the unresolved flame surface density contributions. Further investigations are planned to examine and validate of the SGS-DFSD for different flow geometries.


Abstract Objective: To determine the prevalence of severe psychological trauma—that is, post-traumatic stress disorder—in children involved in everyday road traffic accidents. Design: 12 month prospective study. Setting: Accident and emergency department, Royal United Hospital, Bath. Subjects: 119 children aged 5-18 years involved in road traffic accidents and 66 children who sustained sports injuries. Main outcome measure: Presence of appreciable psychological distress; fulfilment of diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder. Results: Post-traumatic stress disorder was found in 41 (34.5%) children involved in road traffic accidents but only two (3.0%) who sustained sports injuries. The presence of post-traumatic stress disorder was not related to the type of accident, age of the child, or the nature of injuries but was significantly associated with sex, previous experience of trauma, and subjective appraisal of threat to life. None of the children had received any psychological help at the time of assessment. Conclusions: One in three children involved in road traffic accidents was found to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder when they were assessed 6 weeks after their accident. The psychological needs of such children after such accidents remain largely unrecognised.


This paper describes a novel high-tone bulk acoustic resonator (HBAR) integrated with a surface micromachined FBAR (film bulk acoustic resonator) filter on sapphire substrate. The single-mode HBAR exhibited a quality factor (Q) of 3,580 at 2.5 GHz with total size (including the contact pads) of 0.8×0.4×0.4mm3. The integrated narrow band FBAR filter provides adequate suppression (>4dB) of the unwanted modes in the HBAR. This high Q and small size resonator is ideally suited for Pierce oscillator for voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) above 2 GHz.


The paper discusses applying computer networks to cooperative distance learning for technical communication education. It first outlines applications of communication technologies employed in distance learning, and describes the design strategies of the applications. The paper's main focus is on the CORAL (Cooperative Remotely Accessible Learning) system for promoting cooperative distance learning currently under development in Taiwan. The CORAL system is a collective and collaborative project intended to integrate four major components in concept and construction: an interactive learning environment, educational foundations and implications, domain knowledge; and research efforts. One of CORAL system's goals is to aid science and engineering students in learning communication technology courseware. The CORAL development process, including its design approach, structure, courseware, and evaluation, is reported. Research issues are also addressed.


Background Huntington disease (HD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disorder resulting from an expanded CAG-tract in the huntingtin (HTT) gene. Disease prevalence varies worldwide with the highest figures reported in populations of European ancestry. Average CAG-tract size in the general population and population-specific haplotypes have been previously associated with HD prevalence in different regions. HD in South Africa (SA) occurs in all three subpopulations; similar occurrence has been reported in the Caucasian and mixed ancestry groups, with a significantly lower estimate in the black subpopulation. Aims To assess the distribution of CAG-tract size in the South African general population and to determine what population-specific haplotypes are present in patient and control individuals. Methods Haplotypes were constructed based on the genotypes of 96 SNPs across the HTT gene, for 72 affected and 311 unaffected chromosomes. CAG-sizing was performed for over 1000 individuals taken from the general population and representative of the three subpopulations. The polymorphic CCG repeat adjacent to the CAG-tract was also investigated in the control cohort. Results Expanded alleles from Caucasian and mixed ancestry patients were predominantly associated with haplogroup A, signifying a similar European origin; while those from black patients were found on haplogroup B suggesting distinct origins of the mutation. In addition, average CAG-tract size in the general population could be associated with reported minimum prevalence estimates. Conclusion This data is crucial to the understanding of the genetic background of the HD gene in African populations and may contribute to the development of silencing therapeutics for HD patients.


We have been using the concept map of the domain, enhanced with pedagogical concepts called learning objectives, as the overlay student model in our intelligent tutors for programming. The resulting student model is finegrained, and has several advantages: (1) it facilitates better adaptation during problem generation; (2) it makes it possible for the tutor to automatically vary the level of locality during problem generation to meet the needs of the learner; (3) it clarifies to the learner the relationship among domain concepts when opened to scrutiny; (4) the tutor can estimate the level of understanding of a student in any higher-level concept, not just the concepts for which it presents problems; and (5) two tutors in a domain can affect each other's adaptation of problems. Prior evaluations have shown that tutors that use enhanced concept maps help improve learning.


This paper documents the development of visual or art approach of animated videos in Malaysia from the span of 1990s to 2000s. While Wayang Kulit arguably can be considered a pioneering Malaysian animation that has started at 1920s, this paper focuses specifically on the subject of cartoon animations that started around 1970s in Malaysia, where layers and frames of drawings and sketches were composited in an orderly manner, giving the illusion of movement. Animation in the Malaysian scene undoubtedly had a significant progress, where from a group of artists with little experience in animation working together in a studio set with cameras to a production team equipped with electronic devices. When the digital era (90s) arrived, computers came into hand and technologies and digital applications that are used for animation are becoming more and more user-friendly and powerful. Questions that came into mind are: "Have the subject matters become more eye-pleasing and intricate?", "Are the movements and emotions more vivid?", "Are there differences with the colour scheme?", "What are the principles involved in the creation of characters?". Therefore, analysing their method is important in understanding how technology, audience affects the quality of the animation. From the findings of this paper, the researcher will be able to utilize the accumulated data for the production of the final year project, whether to take inspiration from the predecessors or to revolutionise the way local society perceive the animation industry in Malaysia. In addition, one can learn to recognise the impact of the local animation industry in creating a formidable reputation as a creative hub in the Southeast Asia region.


Spatio-temporal video grounding aims to localize the aligned visual tube corresponding to a language query. Existing techniques achieve such alignment by exploiting dense boundary and bounding box annotations, which can be prohibitively expensive. To bridge the gap, we investigate the weakly-supervised setting, where models learn from easily accessible video-language data without annotations. We identify that intra-sample spurious correlations among video-language components can be alleviated if the model captures the decomposed structures of video and language data. In this light, we propose a novel framework, namely WINNER, for hierarchical video-text understanding. WINNER first builds the language decomposition tree in a bottom-up manner, upon which the structural attention mechanism and top-down feature backtracking jointly build a multi-modal decomposition tree, permitting a hierarchical understanding of unstructured videos. The multi-modal decomposition tree serves as the basis for multi-hierarchy language-tube matching. A hierarchical contrastive learning objective is proposed to learn the multi-hierarchy correspondence and distinguishment with intra-sample and inter-sample video-text decomposition structures, achieving video-language decomposition structure alignment. Extensive experiments demonstrate the rationality of our design and its effectiveness beyond state-of-the-art weakly supervised methods, even some supervised methods.


One of the most important aspects of denture treatment is to restore masticatory function to improve food intake. Masticatory ability assessments are done either objectively or subjectively. There are various factors that affect the masticatory ability of denture wearers. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between subjective and objective assessments of masticatory ability and the factors that can possibly affect this ability, including the residual ridge heights, age, gender, and denture type. A cross-sectional study of 34 denture wearers was carried out. All the dentures were fabricated in the Dental Teaching Hospital Faculty of Dentistry, Universitas Indonesia. The data collected were as follows: sociodemographic data, denture type, and masticatory ability, which was measured using two different methods. Masticatory ability was assessed subjectively using a validated questionnaire while the objective portions were carried out by asking the subjects to chew on Xylitol chewing gum (Evaluating Gum Xylitol®). Residual ridge heights were measured using modified mouth mirror number 3. There was no significant correlation between the results of the objective and subjective assessments of masticatory ability (p=0.136). Residual ridge height (p=0.003) had a significant relationship with masticatory ability; however, age (p=1.000), gender (p=0.711), and denture types (p=0.218) did not. In conclusion, residual ridge height was found to have a relationship with masticatory ability. Clinical article (J Int Dent Med Res 2018; 11(1): pp. 206-210)


A dinucleating macrocycle, H(2)PIM, containing phenoxylimine metal-binding units has been prepared. Reaction of H(2)PIM with [Fe(2)(Mes)(4)] (Mes = 2,4,6-trimethylphenyl) and sterically hindered carboxylic acids, Ph(3)CCO(2)H or Ar(Tol)CO(2)H (2,6-bis(p-tolyl)benzoic acid), afforded complexes [Fe(2)(PIM)(Ph(3)CCO(2))(2)] (1) and [Fe(2)(PIM)(Ar(Tol)CO(2))(2)] (2), respectively. X-ray diffraction studies revealed that these diiron(II) complexes closely mimic the active site structures of the hydroxylase components of bacterial multicomponent monooxygenases (BMMs), particularly the syn disposition of the nitrogen donor atoms and the bridging μ-η(1)η(2) and μ-η(1)η(1) modes of the carboxylate ligands at the diiron(II) centers. Cyclic voltammograms of 1 and 2 displayed quasi-reversible redox couples at +16 and +108 mV vs ferrocene/ferrocenium, respectively. Treatment of 2 with silver perchlorate afforded a silver(I)/iron(III) heterodimetallic complex, [Fe(2)(μ-OH)(2)(ClO(4))(2)(PIM)(Ar(Tol)CO(2))Ag] (3), which was structurally and spectroscopically characterized. Complexes 1 and 2 both react rapidly with dioxygen. Oxygenation of 1 afforded a (μ-hydroxo)diiron(III) complex [Fe(2)(μ-OH)(PIM)(Ph(3)CCO(2))(3)] (4), a hexa(μ-hydroxo)tetrairon(III) complex [Fe(4)(μ-OH)(6)(PIM)(2)(Ph(3)CCO(2))(2)] (5), and an unidentified iron(III) species. Oxygenation of 2 exclusively formed di(carboxylato)diiron(III) compounds, a testimony to the role of the macrocylic ligand in preserving the dinuclear iron center under oxidizing conditions. X-ray crystallographic and (57)Fe Mössbauer spectroscopic investigations indicated that 2 reacts with dioxygen to give a mixture of (μ-oxo)diiron(III) [Fe(2)(μ-O)(PIM)(Ar(Tol)CO(2))(2)] (6) and di(μ-hydroxo)diiron(III) [Fe(2)(μ-OH)(2)(PIM)(Ar(Tol)CO(2))(2)] (7) units in the same crystal lattice. Compounds 6 and 7 spontaneously convert to a tetrairon(III) complex, [Fe(4)(μ-OH)(6)(PIM)(2)(Ar(Tol)CO(2))(2)] (8), when treated with excess H(2)O.


Objective: Realistic tissue-mimicking phantoms are essential for the development, the investigation and the calibration of medical imaging techniques and protocols. Because it requires taking both mechanical and imaging properties into account, the development of robust, calibrated phantoms is a major challenge in elastography. Soft polyvinyl chloride gels in a liquid plasticizer (plastisol or PVCP) have been proposed as soft tissue-mimicking phantoms (TMP) for elasticity imaging. PVCP phantoms are relatively low-cost and can be easily stored over long time periods without any specific requirements. In this work, the preparation of a PVCP gel phantom for both MR and ultrasound-elastography is proposed and its acoustic, NMR and mechanical properties are studied. Materials and methods: The acoustic and magnetic resonance imaging properties of PVCP are measured for different mass ratios between ultrasound speckle particles and PVCP solution, and between resin and plasticizer. The linear mechanical properties of plastisol samples are then investigated over time using not only indentation tests, but also MR and ultrasound-elastography clinical protocols. These properties are compared to typical values reported for biological soft tissues and to the values found in the literature for PVCP gels. Results and conclusions: After a period of two weeks, the mechanical properties of the plastisol samples measured with indentation testing are stable for at least the following 4 weeks (end of follow-up period 43 days after gelation-fusion). Neither the mechanical nor the NMR properties of plastisol gels were found to be affected by the addition of cellulose as acoustic speckle. Mechanical properties of the proposed gels were successfully characterized by clinical, commercially-available MR Elastography and sonoelastography protocols. PVCP with a mass ratio of ultrasound speckle particles of 0.6%–0.8% and a mass ratio between resin and plasticizer between 50 and 70% appears as a good TMP candidate that can be used with both MR and ultrasound-based elastography methods.


and training as a strategic area able to contribute to economic development and a more inclusive society. Soft governance has contributed to progress in attempts to coordinate national policies and institutions. However, national performances and trends are still far from the targets set by the EU. To explain this contradiction between EU ambitions and its limited influence on national performance, we look at the policy content of EU economic and social governance. The inconsistency between short-term fiscal consolidation and longterm social investment seems to be one of the sources of the contradiction Moreover, this inconsistency has become more acute since the 'Great Recession'. If the EU wishes to make progress in this area, a more coherent set of incentives favouring long-term investments has to be implemented (through revision of the stability rules and/or using the EU structural funds to help Member States invest in this area). Policy recommendations


The theoretical analysis of tax evasion has typically concentrated on the role of Abstract penalties and on the probability of being investigated and penalized. This article introduces into the standard model of tax evasion the possibility of pecuniary rewards as an economic incentive for taxpaying. The analysis shows that introducing a reward for payment of taxes leads to a welfare improvement over non-prohibitive penalty regimes. An optimal penalty-reward mix is derived that guarantees a certain tax yield for the government and, at the same time, maximizes the taxpayer's utility.


The study was done to investigate the chemical constituents of a developed canned pineapple (Ananas comosus) product and to evaluate the microbiological quality of the product. A water bath canner and quart glass jars equipped with cap having top rubber were used for canning of pineapple (A. comosus). The thermal processing was done for the canning of pineapple. The raw fresh pineapple and canned pineapple were analyzed for their moisture content, ash, fat, crude fiber and protein contents. The moisture content, ash content, fat, crude fiber, protein content of fresh pineapple were 81.5%, 0.38%, 0.2%, 1.4% and 0.5%. The moisture content, ash content, fat, crude fiber and protein content of canned pineapple were 70%, 0.35%, 0.4%, 1.9% and 1.5% respectively. These Chemical constituents of the canned pineapple were almost similar with the raw fresh pineapple except the crude fiber and protein. The yeast and mould present in the product were also counted by using PDA (potato dextrose agar). The yeast and mould count for the product was within the consumer safety limit.J. Environ. Sci. & Natural Resources, 10(2): 183-187 2017


Advancing knowledge and understanding about performed music is hampered by a lack of annotation data for music expressivity. To enable large-scale collection of annotations and explorations of performed music, the authors have created a workflow that is enabled by CosmoNote, a Web-based citizen science tool for annotating musical structures created by the performer and experienced by the listener during expressive piano performances. To enable annotation tasks with CosmoNote, annotators can listen to the recorded performances and view synchronized music visualization layers including the audio waveform, recorded notes, extracted audio features such as loudness and tempo, and score features such as harmonic tension. Annotators have the ability to zoom into specific parts of a performance and see visuals and listen to the audio from just that part. The annotation of performed musical structures is done by using boundaries of varying strengths, regions, comments, and note groups. By analyzing the annotations collected with CosmoNote, performance decisions will be able to be modeled and analyzed in order to aid in the understanding of expressive choices in musical performances and discover the vocabulary of performed musical structures.


Product Design: Developing a System to Strengthen and Facilitate New Zealand Food Bank Relationships by Rachel Emma Grout This study aims to develop a product concept of a Donations Management System (DMS) which would enable supermarkets to donate surplus goods to food banks in an efficient manner. Wellbeing marketing has been employed as the underlying structure of development; ensuring that, while providing benefits to one stakeholder throughout the product lifecycle (acquisition, possession, consumption, maintenance and disposal), no harm is done to any other stakeholder. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven supermarkets and five food banks to explore their current practices. The results of these interviews informed the development of a focus group which was then conducted with four food banks to explore their needs. The study showed that the established practices of supermarkets are sufficient in waste management and donation management and as such a DMS is not appropriate for that sector. In the food bank sector however an opportunity to provide coordination services for inter-food bank supply and donation redistribution was identified. The key finding of this study is that food banks do not need 'new supply'; they need to better manage current supply through maximising what they do already. The most viable core form of a DMS is one which is able to transfer excess goods, thus decreasing food wastage and increasing the food supply to smaller food banks, allowing them to assist more citizens in need.


Parkour, or l'art du déplacement, has become widely practised in recent years, with most of its participants (or traceurs) conducting it in urban environments. Studying parkour and those who practise it provides urban geographers with a new and fascinating way in which movement is perceived in the city. Using the theoretical idioms of 'smooth and striated space' (Deleuze and Guattari, 1987, A Thousand Plateaus Continuum, London) and 'the event' (Badiou, 2005, Being and Event Continum, London), this paper will position parkour as an alternate way of theorising the city as an arena for capitalist versus subversive practices. Moving away from the idea of smooth space incorporating a 'war machine', the Badiouian event is a more appropriate lens through which to theorise parkour and its participants' relationship with the city, in that it embraces a serene ethos of urban rediscovery.


This large study investigated the impact of oral contraceptive OC use on the time to conception in fertile women. The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) aims to define environmental and genetic factors, which may influence pregnancy outcome and the development and health of children. Couples were eligible for recruitment of the study if they had an expected date of delivery between 1 April 1991 and 31 December 1992. Almost 85% of couples eligible to take part were recruited. This was a prospective study of fertile couples for birth outcome but was retrospective in the identification of the time taken to conceive the index pregnancy. The couples completed questionnaires at 18 weeks' gestation to try to avoid recall bias. Specific fertility factors were identified such as obstetric and gynaecological history; use of contraception; if the pregnancy was planned; and the length of time to conceive (less than 6 months up to over 3 years). Other information such as age, smoking, alcohol consumption and ethnic origin were also obtained. Logistic regression analyses identified factors associated with conception within 12 months and analyses were also performed separately for women who had never previously conceived. A total of 12 106 couples were eligible: 8497 had conceived intentionally, 3545 had conceived accidentally, and 64 did not answer the question. Most of those whose pregnancies were planned indicated the time it had taken to conceive. For these the proportions were as follows: 74.2% within the first 6 months; 13.9% within the second 6 months; 8.5% in Year 2 or 3; and 3.4% after Year 3. Interestingly, in women with planned pregnancies, an increasing duration of previous OC use was significantly associated with an increased proportion of conceptions in the first 6 months. Use of OC for over 5 years was used as the reference group [odds ratio (OR) 1.0] because of the small sample size of never or very shortterm users. Use of OC for less than 5 years was associated with an OR of conception in the first 12 months of 0.83 (95% CI 0.63–1.09); for never users OR 0.61 (95% CI 0.44–0.85). The type of OC used was not identified but is likely to be mainly the combined oral contraceptive (COC) (over 95% in 1991–1992). A number of suggestions have been proposed as to why this improvement in conception may be biologically plausible: improved iron stores due to reduction in the incidence of menorrhagia seen with the COC; perhaps a reduction in endometriosis; a lower rate of chromosomal abnormalities and age-related miscarriage associated with the COC. Findings from this large study of women in the South West of England may be reassuring for other British women using OC. It does not suggest a reduction in fertility with OC use regardless of duration of use. Among fertile women, prolonged use of OC is actually associated with a shorter time to conception. This association is strongest after 5 or more years' use, is also the case for women who have never been pregnant, and is independent of other factors.


Background: The timing of return-to-driving following total joint replacement has not been well-defined. The primary aim is to study the impact of joint replacement on driver safety. A secondary aim is to investigate the possible predictors for increased car accidents in patients undergoing total joint replacement surgery. This data will provide the background to support further prospective studies on the relationship of driver safety to joint replacement surgery. Methods: A retrospective analysis of driver safety in the postoperative period was performed by analyzing the self-reporting of 485 patients who had undergone a Total Hip Arthroplasty (n = 196), Total Knee Arthroplasty (n = 258) or Total Shoulder Arthroplasty (n = 31). The mean age was 70 (28 - 88) with 164 male (34%) and 319 female (66%). Patients were mailed a questionnaire and the responses were analyzed to determine what factors affect driving after joint replacement. Results: Overall, increased patient age and gender were associated with increased accidents following surgery. Our subgroup analysis demonstrated that in patients undergoing TSA, increased patient age was associated with increased accidents. TKA patients showed that older patient age predicted increased accidents following surgery. Conclusions: While age and gender are correlated with increased accidents after joint replacement in general, no factors specific to joint replacement surgery are related to increased incidence of accidents.


Background: In a changing health care market in the Netherlands, the wish for insight in costs of treatments rises. The orthopaedic department of the Gelre hospital has expressed the wish to increase their insight into costs of a total hip replacement (THR) by determining a baseline for costs, to improve their negotiating position with the hospital and indirectly the health care insurers.
Aim of this thesis was to increase insight into costs of a total hip prosthetic treatment and provide recommendations. The main research question was: How can insight into the costs of a total hip prosthetic treatment by the orthopaedic department of Gelre hospital Apeldoorn be increased? And what lessons can be learned from this increased insight about cost improvement?
Methodology: Based on the literature review, we chose to look at the following large cost components: The cost of the hip prosthetic chosen by the orthopaedic department, the costs of the operating room department, and the costs of the nursing department, including medication costs. To investigate these aspects, we performed a retrospective analysis of costs for total hip prosthetic patients in 2011, a time study of the nurses in the orthopaedic nursing department, and a study of material use in the operating room. More information was gathered from several information systems in the hospitals, as well as from expert interviews. A benchmark was performed to analyze differences in efficiency levels (medical, technical and input efficiency) when performing a total hip replacement in Maxima Medical Centre, Gelre hospitals Apeldoorn, and Gelre hospitals Zutphen, compared to general benchmark data.

Discussion: Limitations of this study were among others the time setting and the availability of data (information systems not or limited accessible). Different populations are researched for different aspects, which makes comparison more difficult.

Conclusion:
The orthopaedic department, the Operation Room department, and the nursing department were large cost components, due to the hip prosthetic, the direct care at the nursing department and the treatment at the OR department. The benchmark shows room for improvement, on all efficiency levels.


The C(2)-symmetric macrodiolide core 2 of an antiviral agent, macroviracin A (1), was constructed in a single step by the intermolecular macrodimerization of C(22)-hydroxy carboxylic acid 3 with 2-chloro-1,3-dimethylimidazolinium chloride and DMAP in the presence of sodium hydride (NaH). The use of potassium hydride instead of NaH caused the intramolecular cyclization, predominantly providing the corresponding monomer 26. The acid 3 was synthesized through a series of reactions such as the coupling reaction of acetylene 5 and oxirane 6, stereoselective glycosidation with the trichloroacetimidate method, and Jones oxidation.


Acetyl-coenzyme A (CoA) synthetase (Acs) is an enzyme central to metabolism in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Acs synthesizes acetyl CoA from acetate, adenosine triphosphate, and CoA through an acetyl–adenosine monophosphate (AMP) intermediate. Immunoblotting and mass spectrometry analysis showed thatSalmonella enterica Acs enzyme activity is posttranslationally regulated by acetylation of lysine-609. Acetylation blocks synthesis of the adenylate intermediate but does not affect the thioester-forming activity of the enzyme. Activation of the acetylated enzyme requires the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide–dependent protein deacetylase activity of the CobB Sir2 protein from S. enterica. We propose that acetylation modulates the activity of all the AMP-forming family of enzymes, including nonribosomal peptide synthetases, luciferase, and aryl- and acyl-CoA synthetases. These findings extend our knowledge of the roles of Sir2 proteins in gene silencing, chromosome stability, and cell aging and imply that lysine acetylation is a common regulatory mechanism in eukaryotes and prokaryotes.


The objective of the present study is to develop a pharmaceutically stable and robust formulation of Naproxen sodium tablets USP 220mg comparable with innovator. In the present study we are reducing the excipients there by we can reduce the cost of the dosage form. The tablets of Naproxen sodium USP 220mg were successfully prepared by using wet granulation technique. Several trial formulations i.e., from F1-F10 have been taken to optimize and develop a robust formulation. The prepared tablets were evaluated for weight variation, hardness, thickness, friability, % drug content, disintegration time and in vitro drug release. Formulation F10 showed a drug release of 103.5% in 60mins which is faster than the innovator product. The stability studies, shown that the formulation F10, F11 and F12 were stable enough at 40 0 C / 75% RH for a period of 3 months. Therefore it can be concluded that the formulation F10 (Naproxen sodium tablets USP 220mg) is robust and stable.


A model of side pattern CAD/CAM on mould for auto lamp integrated with CATIA V5 is built. After analyzing the properties of design and the manufacture of side pattern on mould for auto lamp, key technology, such as grouping, sorting, determination of continuity, fairing and fitting of side pattern curves, generating of NC files and G codes, are presented. Using out-process redeveloping tools of CATIA V5, a CATIA V5 integrated side pattern CAD/CAM system for mould of auto lamp is developed. At last, a practical example shows that the technology and the software satisfy the design and manufacture of side pattern on mould for auto lamp. The technology and the software have been used in related enterprise successfully.


Methane fluxes (FCH4) from an Arctic wet sedge meadow at Daring Lake, NT, Canada were examined during the growing seasons of 2008-2017 over several temporal and spatial scales. The largest methane emissions (seasonal averages of of 118 - 277 mg CH4 m-2 d-1) were recorded at the plot scale mid-summer using manual chamber methods and were associated with wetter locations with more sedges. Plot-scale FCH4 were negligible where shrubby peat soils were raised above the water table. Ecosystem-scale FCH4 measured on a quasi-continuous basis employing an eddy covariance technique were roughly 50% of plot-scale FCH4. Moisture, temperature and vegetation-related variables explained up to 80% of temporal FCH4 variability (p<0.001). Both magnitudes of FCH4 and relationships with driving variables were not consistent between scales and measurement techniques, demonstrating both the importance of scale in deducing all processes influencing FCH4 variability and the difficulties in upscaling FCH4 at this heterogeneous wetland.


Surface acoustic wave devices have been fabricated on a GaAs 100 substrate to demonstrate the capability of 2D Raman microscopy as an imaging technique for acoustic waves on the surface of a piezoelectric substrate. Surface acoustic waves are generated using a two-port interdigitated transducer platform, which is modified to produce surface standing waves. We have derived an analytical model to relate Raman peak broadening to the near-surface strain field of the GaAs surface produced by the surface acoustic waves. Atomic force microscopy is used to confirm the presence of a standing acoustic wave, resolving a total vertical displacement of 3 nm at the antinode of the standing wave. Stress calculations are performed for both imaging techniques and are in good agreement, demonstrating the potential of this Raman analysis.


Metastases and tumor recurrence have a major prognostic impact in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC); however, cellular models that comprehensively characterize metastatic and recurrent HNSCC are lacking. To this end, we obtained genomic, transcriptomic, and copy number profiles of the UM-SCC cell line panel, encompassing patient-matched metastatic and recurrent cells. UM-SCC cells recapitulate the most prevalent genomic alterations described in HNSCC, featuring common TP53, PI3K, NOTCH, and Hippo pathway mutations. This analysis identified a novel F977Y kinase domain PIK3CA mutation exclusively present in a recurrent cell line (UM-SCC14B), potentially conferring resistance to PI3K inhibitors. Small proline-rich protein 2A (SPRR2A), a protein involved in epithelial homeostasis and invasion, was one of the most consistently downregulated transcripts in metastatic and recurrent UM-SCC cells. Assessment of SPRR2A protein expression in a clinical cohort of patients with HNSCC confirmed common SPRR2A downregulation in primary tumors (61.9% of cases) and lymph node metastases (31.3%), but not in normal tissue. High expression of SPRR2A in lymph node metastases was, along with nonoropharyngeal location of the primary tumor, an independent prognostic factor for regional disease recurrence after surgery and radiotherapy (HR 2.81; 95% CI, 1.16–6.79; P = 0.02). These results suggest that SPRR2A plays a dual role in invasion and therapeutic resistance in HNSCC, respectively through its downregulation and overexpression. Implications: The current study reveals translationally relevant mechanisms underlying metastasis and recurrence in HNSCC and represents an adjuvant tool for preclinical research in this disease setting. Underlining its discovery potential this approach identified a PIK3CA-resistant mutation as well as SPRR2A as possible theragnostic markers.


Although they are studied too rarely, returns to labor mobility transmit important forces that decisively shape outcomes in macro-labor models. By focusing on returns to labor mobility, this paper sheds new light on calibrations of influential macro-labor studies and resolves an issue about the turbulence-theoretic explanation of trans-Atlantic unemployment experiences. It does so by invoking a cross-phenomenon restriction – in our case, how returns to labor mobility determine effects on unemployment of changes in layoff costs, on the one hand, and changes in quit turbulence, on the other hand. We also spotlight two distinct perspectives and associated sources of data: one from labor economics and another from the economics of industrial organization. Ultimately, we are reminded of the rule that new theories "must not throw out all the successes of former theories. . . . to preserve the successes of the past is not only a constraint, but also a guide." JEL: E24, J63, J64


Existing commercial technologies do not adequately meet the requirements for tracking in fully-enclosed VR displays. We present the Hedgehog, which overcomes several limitations imposed by existing sensors and tracking technology. The tracking system robustly and reliably estimates the 6DOF pose of the device with high accuracy and a reasonable update rate. The system is composed of several cameras viewing the display walls and an arrangement of laser diodes secured to the user. The light emitted from the lasers projects onto the display walls and the 2D centroids of the projections are tracked to estimate the 6DOF pose of the device. The system is able to handle ambiguous laser projection configurations, static and dynamic occlusions of the lasers, and incorporates an intelligent laser activation control mechanism that determines which lasers are most likely to improve the pose estimate. The Hedgehog is also capable of performing auto-calibration of the necessary camera parameters through the use of the SCAAT algorithm. A preliminary evaluation reveals that the system has an angular resolution of 0.01 degrees RMS and a position resolution of 0.2 mm RMS.


Determination and quantification of nitrates are considered to be essential. Indeed, they are a well-known contaminant of ground and stream water. Nitrate is an important environmental and human health analyte (1,2). In the specific area of oceanography, there is a growing demand for the ocean observations and for a better understanding of biogeochemical cycles and mixing of water masses. So, the development of simple, low-power, sensitive, selective and stable analytical in-situ sensors appears as a necessity. The aim of this study is to develop an electrochemical sensor in order to measure nitrates at very low concentrations (nanomolar) in seawater (pH ca 6). We present here an original way for the functionalization of a gold electrode (EAu) using an organometallic silver precursor in order to obtain well dispersed silver nanoparticles (AgNP) with small sizes and narrow distribution. The advantage of this resulting nanostructured surface combines the electrochemical properties of the gold electrode and the presence of silver nanoparticles AgNPs (3) (Figure 1). This was shown in previous works dedicated to electrodeposited Ag nanoparticles (AgNPs) in aqueous medium using a silver salt (AgNO3). The results obtained for different synthetic NO3-solutions using the proposed AgNP-modified-gold electrode will be discussed. Fig.1. Mechanism of electroreduction of NO3-ions on a AgNP-modified gold electrode.


Utilizing technology and the Internet to keep up with the 21st century language teaching and learning has become trendy in this digital era, highlighting promising features that are expected to tackle one of the most demanding crucial skills in English as a foreign language (EFL) context; yet a difficult one to master; that is, speaking English accurately, confidently and fluently. This study aims at investigating teachers' perceptions and the current actual practices of utilizing a package of three categories of smartphone applications as a prescribed teaching technique with the purpose of fostering Saudi tertiary students' oral skills, correlating these perceptions with actual classroom practices. Adopting a mixed-mode approach, the data for this study were gleaned from two data collection instruments– an electronic questionnaire designed using SurveyMonkey as a platform, and encoded data from focus group discussion. On receiving 45 complete responses, the IBM SPSS (V24.0) was used to do the statistics, whereas the data from the discussion were thematically analysed. The findings revealed that the majority of participants have high, inspiring positive perceptions of using smartphone applications in teaching speaking. Based on the data obtained, it is concluded that despite EFL teachers' high positive perceptions of smartphone applications used for promoting adult learners' speaking skills, classroom practices reveal weaknesses and insufficient actual experiences. Pedagogically, the study recommends innovating, implementing, and integrating smartphone applications in teaching oral skills, along with drilling teachers and learners on how to effectively utilize them.


We examine effects of mutual dependence and power imbalance on embedded relations between organizations in an industrial district setting. Employing qualitative methodology, we conducted an exploratory research on manufacturer‐retailer relations in the Siteler Furniture District in Ankara. The findings indicated that manufacturer's size and retailer's competitive strategy shape their dependencies and embedded relations. Illustrating various patterns of relationships for different combinations of size and strategy in manufacturer‐retailer dyads, we found that mutual dependence enhances embedded relations. We also found that power imbalance does not necessarily hinder them, but generates one‐sided relations: the more dependent party tries to build them at the expense of being exploited by the less dependent one. Our study implies that embedded relations may entail exploitation particularly in governed networks where power inequalities are high.


National park regions are strongly influenced by heterogeneous patterns of human impact varying both in time as well as in space. Developing management issues to support regional planning has to focus on the specific National Park region itself. Integration of the municipalities of the region is a must. The collection and exchange of spatial informations of the region has to be provided by spatial information systems, which should then connect local authorities, district authorities and the National Park Administrations. The projects under investigation focus on the establishment and maintenance of spatial data bases in digital formats as a fundamental for monitoring and planning. A focus is laid on the collection and analysis of spatial data of the natural and cultural values of the regions to allow for land use and land cover change analysis as well as for the analysis of the socio-economic and socio-ecological dynamics in the regions. The implementation of effective data sets and tools for supporting regional planning at local and regional levels with special regard to the different zones of the National Parks is fostered by a close cooperation of university institutes, research institutions, governmental institutions at the state, the regional and the local level and national park administrations themselves. Due to different geographical and ecoclimatic as well as political conditions, different tasks and different strategies have been developed. Common interests are laid on building high-resolution digital terrain models of the regions by means of airborne laser scanning, on developing high-resolution mosaics of ortho-imagery of the regions by airborne and spaceborne CIR-imagery, on establishing a full coverage data layer of digital maps of types of landscape (biotope, ecotope), on providing tools for cross-border coordinate transformation and on establishing and/or extending GIS expertise at the national park administrations.


Background Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most frequent nosocomial infection in intensive care units (ICUs). Most published studies have analysed nurses' theoretical knowledge about a specific procedure; however, the transfer of this knowledge to the practice has received little attention. Aim To assess the impact of training session on nurses' knowledge regarding VAP, compliance with VAP preventive measures, VAP incidence and determining whether nursing workload affects compliance. Method A prospective, quasiexperimental, pre- and post-study of the nursing team in a 16-bed medical/surgical ICU. Pre-intervention phase: a questionnaire to assess nurses' knowledge of VAP prevention measures, direct observation and review of clinical records to assess compliance. Intervention phase: eight training sessions for nurses. The post-intervention phase mirrored the pre-intervention phase. Findings Nurses answered more questions correctly on the post-intervention questionnaire than on the pre-intervention (17·87 ± 2·69 versus 15·91 ± 2·68, p = 0·002). Compliance with the following measures was better during the post-intervention period (p = 0·001): use of the smallest possible nasogastric tube, controlled aspiration of subglottic secretions and endotracheal tube cuff pressure, use of oral chlorhexidine and recording the endotracheal tube fixation number. VAP incidence remained unchanged throughout the study. However, a trend towards lower incidence of late (>4 days after intubation) VAP was observed (4·6 versus 3·1 episodes/1000 ventilation days, p = 0·37). Conclusion The programme improved both knowledge of and compliance with VAP preventive measures, although improved knowledge did not always result in improved compliance.


A guide for MCE Library patrons aimed at providing them with easy access to information by and about the government on a federal, state, and local level.


Normal tissue physiology and repair depends on communication with the immune system. Understanding this communication at the molecular level in intact tissue requires new methods. The consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection, which can result in acute respiratory distress, thrombosis and death, has been studied primarily in accessible liquid specimens such as blood, sputum and bronchoalveolar lavage, all of which are peripheral to the primary site of infection in the lung. Here, we describe the combined use of multiplexed deep proteomics with multiplexed imaging to profile infection and its sequelae directly in fixed lung tissue specimens obtained from necropsy of infected animals and autopsy of human decedents. We characterize multiple steps in disease response from cytokine accumulation and protein phosphorylation to activation of receptors, changes in signaling pathways, and crosslinking of fibrin to form clots. Our data reveal significant differences between naturally resolving SARS-CoV-2 infection in rhesus macaques and lethal COVID-19 in humans. The approach we describe is broadly applicable to other tissues and diseases. Summary Proteomics of infected tissue reveals differences in inflammatory and thrombotic responses between resolving and lethal COVID-19.


Books, articles, videos, and much more about the 2014-15 community book : The Laramie Project, a play by Moises Kaufman and the members of Tectonic Theater Project.


Most scenarios that achieve present climate targets of limiting global heating to 1.5°–2.0°C rely on large-scale carbon dioxide removal (CDR) to drive net emissions negative after mid-century. Scenarios that overshoot and return to a future temperature target, or that aim to restore some prior climate, require CDR to be rapidly deployed, operated for a century or so, then greatly reduced or phased out. This need for future phasedown presents challenges to near-term policies that have been underexamined. A CDR enterprise of climate-relevant scale will require financial flows of billions to trillions of dollars per year. The enterprise and supporting policies will create risks of lock-in via mobilized actors whose interests favor continuance as well as other mechanisms. The future phasedown need implies suggestive guidance for near-term decisions about removal methods and design of associated policy and business environments. First, variation among methods' scale constraints and cost structures suggests a rough ordering of methods by severity of future phasedown challenges. Second, of the three potential means to motivate removals—profitable products incorporating removed carbon, extended emissions-pricing policies, or public procurement contracts—public procurement appears to present the fewest roadblocks to future phasedown.


Abstract. This study was conducted with the aim to establish the bioagents of the Chrysopidae (Neuroptera) family feeding on green peach aphid Myzus persicae Sulzer (Hemiptera; Aphididae) in an oriental tobacco crop. The results showed low multiplication density of the aphidophagous species throughout the two-year course of the study. Four representatives of the Chrysopidae were established and the species with the highest densities were seven-spotted lacewing Chrysopa septempunctata Wesmael and beautiful lacewing Chrysopa formosa Brauer – 55.6% and 27.8%, respectively. Оrdinary lacewing Chrysopa carnea Stephens and green lacewing Chrysopa prasina Burmeister related to the control of the green peach aphid represented correspondingly 11.1% and 5.5% of the total number of lacewings, but single representatives were found and hence it could be assumed that they did not play a significant role in the limitation of M. persicae. Later emergence of the lacewings in the tobacco crop was observed, in the period 20th – 30th June of 2021 and 2022, which is a period of relatively high multiplication rate of the green peach aphid.


The present work is a further investigation into the effects of the carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and niobium (Nb) contents on then fracture properties of the Type 347 stainless steels at 316oC. 9 heats of systematically designed alloys were examined. Through SEM-EDS, TEM and XRD analyses, two kinds of precipitates, Nb(C,N), CrNbN were identified in the Type 347 steels with a high ratio of wt% N to wt% C, on the other hand only Nb(C,N)s were found in the Type 347 steels with a low ratio of wt% N to wt% C. The tearing moduli were decreased in the range of 52~60% as the carbon content increased from 0.03wt% to 0.05wt%. The tearing moduli were lowered by 52~59% in the alloys with a high nitrogen. It was deduced from the microstructure analysis results that the coarse Nb-rich precipitates control the fracture resistance of the Type 347 as they act as the potential sites for the nucleation of micro-voids.


Forest Management during the 50 years ofIndependence has made a full circle: from Conversion to Uniform Crops and back to Conversion to Irregular Crops. The early years of Independence were characterized by production (for industry) euphoria. Von Mon Roy's Report on the status of raw material supply in the country and the National Commission on Agriculture's Report reinforced this industry oriented productiono The objective of Sustained Yield of Timber which guided and governed Forest Management during the early 30 years of Independence, could not be achieved. The concept ofaNormal Forest in which each age-class occupies an equal area came under attack for environmental reasons. 1980 was watershed year. The World Conservation Strategy altered the way we look at Forests and Forest Management. During the subsequent years, environmental awareness and consciousness swept the world. The Earth Summit, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the recent Climate Change Convention have all focused on the need to maintain forest cover, conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainability. This led to the stoppage of Clear Cutting System, and the need for increasing production of non-wood products for sustaining forest dependent communities. All this is possible only by making forest sustainable in all its dimensions. The forests of the country are sick and unstable and have suffered heavily in productivity. A little over 30 million ha have been degraded. The restoration of these forests requires a different approach; a different technology and a different administrative structure. This is one of the biggest challenges facing the foresters to-day.


Recent research in corporate governance has focused primarily upon minimization of agency costs in the shareholder-management relationship. Particularly, a number of studies in developed countries have carried out to investigate the effect of corporate governance on firm performance. Board characteristics play an important role in organizations to improve their corporate governance and firm performance. This paper will investigate a complimentary perspective, which is a diversity dimension at top-level management based upon upper echelon theory. Diversity comprises on demographic and cognitive dimensions. The objective of this paper is to theoretically examine and explain the effect of diversity on board of directors with regard to firm financial performance. The upper echelon theory contended that demographic and cognitive diversity dimensions at Top Level Management may impact on firm financial performance. This study contributes to potential investors, shareholders, top managements and stakeholders. It provides clear information about how to measure a firm performance. In fact, it also contributes to top managements and helps in reducing the principal-agent problem by considerate the effect of diversity in terms of BODs on firm performance. Based on this study, shareholders, stakeholders, managements and potential investors will know more how the significant roles of diversity are playing in the measurement of firm value.


A 61-yr-old man with chronic myelocytic leukemia treated continuously for 8 yr with busulfan presented with fever, abdominal pain, and elevated liver enzymes in a cholestatic pattern. Evaluation of his liver and biliary tract with ultrasound and computerized tomography disclosed no structural abnormality. A percutaneous needle liver biopsy revealed cellular cholestasis with focal liver cell necrosis accompanied by a mild inflammatory infiltrate. Busulfan was discontinued, with subsequent normalization of liver enzymes and resolution of fever. These findings are interpreted as being compatible with busulfan-induced hepatitis.


Purpose To identify the specific needs, preferences and expectations of the stakeholders impacted by returning neuroimaging incidental findings to research participants. Methods Six key stakeholder groups were identified to participate in focus group discussions at our active neuroimaging research facility: Participants, Parents of child participants, Investigators, Institutional Review Board (IRB) Members, Physicians and Community Members. A total of 151 subjects attended these discussions. Transcripts were analysed using principles of Grounded Theory and group consensus coding. Results A series of similar and divergent themes were identified across our subject groups. Similarities included beliefs that it is ethical for researchers to disclose incidental findings as it grants certain health and emotional benefits to participants. All stakeholders also recognised the potential psychological and financial risks to disclosure. Divergent perspectives elucidated consistent differences between our 'Participant' subjects (Participants, Parents, Community Members) and our 'Professional' subjects (IRB Members, Investigators and Physicians). Key differences included (1) what results should be reported, (2) participants' autonomous right to research information and (3) the perception of the risk–benefit ratio in managing results. Conclusions Understanding the perceived impact on all stakeholders involved in the process of disclosing incidental findings is necessary to determine appropriate research management policy. Our data further demonstrate the challenge of this task as different stakeholders evaluate the balance between risk and benefit related to their unique positions in this process. These findings offer some of the first qualitative insight into the expectations of the diverse stakeholders affected by incidental finding disclosure.


The aim of this study was to investigate the effect on the growth of salivary and selected oral microorganisms of areca nut, aqueous extracts of the nut, its major alkaloid arecoline and the components tannic acid and catechin of its tannin fraction. The antibacterial properties of the above were tested on Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus salivarius, Candida albicans and Fusobacterium nucleatum and, as a control, Staphylococcus aureus. This was followed by investigating its effect on salivary organisms cultured from the saliva after chewing boiled areca nut. Extracts inhibited the growth of the selected organisms in a concentration dependent manner, baked and boiled nuts being significantly more potent than raw nut. Growth of C. albicans was the least affected by the nut extracts. Tannic acid was strongly antibacterial but not catechin or arecoline. No antibacterial effect could be demonstrated on salivary organisms after chewing the nut for 5 minutes but exposure of saliva to the cud for 1 hour caused a significant depression of bacterial growth. It is concluded that the hydrolysable tannins in the tannin fraction, which include tannic acid, are responsible for the antibacterial properties of the nut and that prolonged intraoral exposure to the nut can suppress bacteria in the mouth.


We consider a mission in which m UAVs with a capacity limit q each visit n(les mq) targets in a hostile environment in a cooperative manner (and return to where they departed from) such that the cost reflecting operating time and risk exposed is minimized. We first propose a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) formulation which exactly solves the problem and then propose four alternative MILP formulations which are computationally less intensive and, therefore, suited for real-time purposes, but yield a theoretically guaranteed suboptimal solution. The main contributions of this note are an exact but compact MILP formulation, using a room concept, and four nonexact formulations, each one of which ensures a certain level of solution quality and relatively fast computational time for the considered real-time mission scheduling problem.


Is there a new material for use in jewelry, matching gold and precious stones, capable of maintaining the same perception of "preciousness" but that is also more sustainable, ethical, and inexpensive? This article deals with a case study within the European EcoDesign Network research project, aimed at investigating how sustainable design can help prestigious companies pinpoint new materials for the creation of jewelry, focusing on new and environmentally friendly opportunities while preserving their market position and target audience. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were performed. Adopting the exploring design path, a jewelry background analysis pointed out both stereotypes and possible innovations in the jewelry field: an analysis was carried out on the perception of jewels by a panel guided by a cognitive ergonomics specialist, also using the eye-tracking machine to examine participants' reactions to the jewelry involved in the study, and to establish paradigms of sustainability, preciousness, and innovation. Several meta-project proposals regarding innovations in materials and finishing were hypothesized and tested, following the main guidelines and principles of ecodesign. Lastly, a prototyping phase and some mechanical tests were implemented to verify the hypotheses of innovation. The results allowed the creation of a first set of sustainable jewelry, currently on the market.


Abstract. Hatching asynchrony results in age and size hierarchies within broods, and the subsequent asymmetric competition among siblings has important consequences for nestlings' fitness. In this study, we compare the growth of Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) nestlings in relation to their order of hatching. The aim was to test the prediction that early-hatched nestlings develop differently from late-hatched nestlings, which should be under greater pressure to trade investment in growth in favor of traits important to simultaneous fledging. Early-hatched nestlings were always larger than late-hatched nestlings, but when the age difference was taken into account, the two classes of nestling gained mass and head-bill length in similar ways, including having similar asymptotes, as predicted by nonlinear curve models. For wing length, however, late-hatched nestlings reached the inflection point of growth sooner than early-hatched nestlings, and although scaled rates of wing growth were similar, early-hatched nestlings had significantly longer wings, both before fledging, when the oldest nestling was 14 days old, and as suggested by the asymptotic, age-independent values derived from the nonlinear curve models. This finding suggests that nestlings hatched later preferentially develop body mass and the skeleton at the expense of wing feathers. As swallows rely on their wings for foraging and avoiding predators, this pattern of resource allocation is likely to have negative consequences for the late-hatched nestlings.


Background To establish a SUG giving patients, carers, staff and members of the public opportunity to engage in improving hospice services. Involvement covers a range of activities, from consulting service users about their views in partnership, to aid the development of projects or services. Ensures the views of patients, carers and the public are listened to, ensuring that we continue to maintain excellence within our service now and into the future. Aims and objectives SUG established to enable the hospice to provide evidence of consultation on matters directly related to patient care. SUG involved in consultation on available information for service users. Review and approve production of literature to ensure service users receive relevant information. SUG involved in fund raising and promotion of hospice services. SUG ensures service users input into service provision, promoting standards of excellence in patient care Approach used IPU Sister identified as project lead. Advertised to promote development of Service User Group. Invited participants to join via appropriate communication channels. Guest speaker utilised to drive engagement. Outcomes The SUG is involved in decision making on hospice improvements and have participated in workshops with a local Cancer Network Group. A service user and the Network group leader were key speakers at the group conference. The SUG have worked on patient feedback and audit tools and information leaflets for patients and families. The SUG were runners-up in the Patient Experience Network (P. E. N.) awards 2012. SUG has forged links with the local Hospital patient partnership forum. Representatives attend the meetings of both groups. With a diverse, growing local population the SUG helps to reflect our local community needs. Their unique input helps the organisation see new perspectives on service development.


The compressed shell integrity of imploded spherical targets has been studied using the 60-beam, 30-kJ UV OMEGA laser system. The shell integrity is measured by imaging the core emission at different x-ray energies. Time-integrated images of the titanium-doped targets have been obtained using a pinhole array with filters below and above the K-edge energy of titanium and recorded on DEF film. The optical depth ratio between such images reflects the nonuniformity of the cold or absorbing part of the shell. The nonuniformity in emission of pure-CH targets reflects integrity of the hot or emitting part of the shell. Using Fourier transforms of the images, signal modulations have been distinguished from noise. The modulations in shell areal density have been measured to be about 20% to 50% for 20- and 24-μm shell thicknesses and for square and shaped pulses, with nonuniformities peaked at l∼5 of the compressed shell.


Outline of the Geology of the Area discussed The area of crystalline rocks which stretches along the north shore of Long Island sound from Narragansett bay to the New Haven Triassic embayment has received almost no geological study since the state survey of C. T. Jackson,* in 1840, in Rhode Island, and that of J. G. Percival,† in 1842, in Connecticut. To the eastward, the region of Carboniferous and Cambrian strata around Narragansett bay has been quite fully described; to the northward, the central portion of Massachusetts has been shown to consist largely of altered Cambrian sediments, now in the form of gneisses, and to the northwest and west, the Triassic and metamorphosed Cambro-Silurian strata have received detailed attention, but the triangular area forming central Connecticut, with its base on Long Island sound, remains almost entirely for the future. The rocks are prevailingly granitoid gneisses, presumably of Archean age. They . . .


Electron-microprobe analyses of hornblendes from five calc-alkalic plutonic complexes representing lowand high-pressure regimes define a tightly clustered linear trend in terms of total Al (Alr) and tetrahedral Al (Alto) contents per 23 oxygens: Ali" :0.15 + 0.6941r, 12 : 0.97. Hornblendes from shallow-level intrusions predominate for Alr < 2.0; hornblendes from epidote-bearing intrusions within the accreted terranes of the western Cordillera all have Al' > 1.8. Rocks from both pressure regimes span similar ranges in bulkrock SiO, content, have a common magmatic mineral assemblage (plagioclase, hornblende, biotite, K-feldspar, q\artz, sphene, magnetite or ilmenite, + epidote), and probably crystallized at similar temperatures. Data collated from the literature on calcic amphiboles from other plutonic complexes and from phase equilibrium experiments using natural rocks or synthetic analogue compositions show a similar Alr-Alto trend and systematic pressure effects. High-pressure calcic amphiboles have high Alr, independent of composition. Although Ali" is temperature dependent, temperature alone cannot account for the observed diferences in Alr between lowand high-pressure compositions. The relation between Alr in hornblende and pressure (in kilobars), for data from calcalkalic plutons with the common mineral assemblage, is P : -3.92 + 5.03A1r, r'z : 0.80. The Alr content of hornblende is suggested as an indicator of presswe to within + 3 kbar for crystallization of plutonic rocks of appropriate bulk composition and mineral assemblage.


The system of Directly Regional Head Election (Pilkada) will be held in Indonesia constitute the expected process to enhance the quality of democratization in this country. Nevertheless there is still a hesitation related to opinion about unreadiness of public to be involved in pilkada. This paper put the public Indonesian factual practices forward to neutralize the hesitation. There are some theoritical approach explained as tool of analysis to predict the active actualization of voters behavior in Indonesia. Kata kunci : pilkada, demokratisasi, partisipasi politik, kesiapan pemilih dan prilaku pemilih.


Dependency parsing is a core task in NLP, and it is widely used by many applications such as information extraction, question answering, and machine translation. In the era of social media, a big challenge is that parsers trained on traditional newswire corpora typically suffer from the domain mismatch issue, and thus perform poorly on social media data. We present a new GFL/FUDG-annotated Chinese treebank with more than 18K tokens from Sina Weibo (the Chinese equivalent of Twitter). We formulate the dependency parsing problem as many small and parallelizable arc prediction tasks: for each task, we use a programmable probabilistic firstorder logic to infer the dependency arc of a token in the sentence. In experiments, we show that the proposed model outperforms an off-the-shelf Stanford Chinese parser, as well as a strong MaltParser baseline that is trained on the same in-domain data.


Raising a cutting speed to above speed of a plastic wave of a workpiece material induces the high levels of the hydrostatic stresses in the shear zone, because a plastic wave traveling there becomes a shock wave. In order to ascertain the cutting phenomena occurring under the ultra high-speed cutting condition, the cutting experiments of a pure lead with cutting speeds of up to 140 m/s are performed with a high-speed impact cutting tester developed. The experimental result reveals that the cutting mechanism, especially chip formation, changes remarkably and the friction angle at the tool-chip interface rises in the ultra high-speed cutting. It can be explained that these phenomena arise from the plastic shock wave in the shear zone.


The peculiarity of the series of essays published by the magazine is that with the maximum compactness of the presentation, it provides a summary of the main phenomena of world artistic culture, covered in General both from the point of view of the General historical process, and in relation to various types of creativity (literature, fne art, architecture, music, theater and cinema). At the same time, the usual categorization of national schools and the division into separate types of art with the genre specifcation inherent in each of them is overcome, which meets the positive trends of globalization and provides a holistic view of artistic phenomena. The following artistic and historical periods are considered in stages: the Ancient world, Antiquity, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Baroque, the Enlightenment, Romanticism, Postromanticism, Modern I, Modern II, Modern III, Postmodern, and as an afterword — «The Golden age of Russian artistic culture».


An efficient method utilizing the concept of inverse heat conduction is presented for the thermal analysis of pistons based on application to the piston head of a marine diesel engine. An inverse heat conduction problem is established in the form of an optimization problem. In the optimization problem, the convection heat transfer coefficient(HTC)on the top side of the piston is defined as the design variable, while the error between the measured and analysed temperatures is defined as objective function. For the optimization, an axi-symmetrical finite element conduction model is presented. The optimum distribution of the HTC at the top side of piston is successfully determined through a numerical implementation. The temperature obtained via an analysis using the optimum HTC is compared with the measured temperature, and reasonable agreement is obtained. The present method can be effectively utilized to analyze the temperature distribution of engine pistons.


Outdoor air pollution is the most hazard challenge of many governments. Strictly policies followed by continue alert thresholds are being followed. Environmental issue canalized in air quality in the capital of Albania is the prior thematic analyzed in this paper. We figured to create a filter which gradually puzzles out the leading cause to exceed the limits settled by the WHO guidelines and the EU's AAQ directives. The paper tries to create potential scenario from the replacement of the passenger's vehicle fleet from the current Euro 3 to Euro 4 and over. The opportunity to structure evaluation maps for air assessment based on the outcome creates a clear overview of the current situation. Digital maps are a potential source of solution for many environmental issues. Spatial technology is fast and reliable to estimate population exposure to outdoor pollution. Geostatistical data offer reliable solution to perceive dispersion model issues. In this paper we concentrate on air pollution data (PM10). Key-words: geostatistic, dispersion model, spatial technology, digital map, PM10, air quality index.


We present a new lower bound on the spectral gap of the Glauber dynamics for the Gibbs distribution of a spectrally independent $q$-spin system on a graph $G = (V,E)$ with maximum degree $\Delta$. Notably, for several interesting examples, our bound covers the entire regime of $\Delta$ excluded by arguments based on coupling with the stationary distribution. As concrete applications, by combining our new lower bound with known spectral independence computations and known coupling arguments: (1) We show that for a triangle-free graph $G = (V,E)$ with maximum degree $\Delta \geq 3$, the Glauber dynamics for the uniform distribution on proper $k$-colorings with $k \geq (1.763\dots + \delta)\Delta$ colors has spectral gap $\tilde{\Omega}_{\delta}(|V|^{-1})$. Previously, such a result was known either if the girth of $G$ is at least $5$ [Dyer et.~al, FOCS 2004], or under restrictions on $\Delta$ [Chen et.~al, STOC 2021; Hayes-Vigoda, FOCS 2003]. (2) We show that for a regular graph $G = (V,E)$ with degree $\Delta \geq 3$ and girth at least $6$, and for any $\varepsilon, \delta>0$, the partition function of the hardcore model with fugacity $\lambda \leq (1-\delta)\lambda_{c}(\Delta)$ may be approximated within a $(1+\varepsilon)$-multiplicative factor in time $\tilde{O}_{\delta}(n^{2}\varepsilon^{-2})$. Previously, such a result was known if the girth is at least $7$ [Efthymiou et.~al, SICOMP 2019]. (3) We show for the binomial random graph $G(n,d/n)$ with $d = O(1)$, with high probability, an approximately uniformly random matching may be sampled in time $O_{d}(n^{2+o(1)})$. This improves the corresponding running time of $\tilde{O}_{d}(n^{3})$ due to [Jerrum-Sinclair, SICOMP 1989; Jerrum, 2003].


Scalable High Efficiency Video Coding (SHVC), a new ISO/ITU video compression Standard is an ideal candidate for delivering Ultra High Definition (UHD) or 4k resolution content to the rapidly growing high resolution clients, especially when there is a mix of clients of SD, HD and UHD resolutions. This is especially true for video streaming in overlay or over-the-top (OTT) networks using HTTP or adaptive bitrate streaming technologies. SHVC adds scalability layers on top of the ultra-efficient HEVC widely considered to be twice as good as the currently widely deployed Advanced Video Coding (AVC or H.264) Standard. In addition, SHVC promises scalability through lightweight (mostly syntactical) additions to HEVC. This paper investigates both the savings and the overhead of encoding UHD content as an SHVC enhancement layer with AVC or HEVC HD base layer, primarily focusing on the spatial scalability aspect of SHVC. Also, we briefly investigate adopting existing rate allocation technique for picking optimal bitrates for base and enhancement layers for a given distribution of HD and UHD clients.


Abstract The analysis of Australian local government reform almost invariably focuses on systemic changes that can be wrought by the application of various policy instruments, like the structural reform of the scale of local councils or changes to the enabling legislation governing local government. Scholars typically use this approach and differentiate the efficacy of reform measures according to classifications of council by generic type. While this approach has been exceedingly fruitful in the past, this paper argues that small, remote and isolated Australian local authorities are sui generis in the sense that they are not amenable to standard reform policies because their unique circumstances and special characteristics. The paper considers the case of local shires in the Central West outback region of Queensland that comprise the Remote Areas Planning and Development Board (RAPAD) group of councils and attempts to draw some general lessons for local government policymakers. Despite the recent limited forced consolidation experienced by some RAPAD councils, we find that the 'tyranny of distance' afflicting RAPAD members means that it is not amenable to 'top-down' reform measures, like council amalgamation, and policy makers should instead focus on 'local solutions to local problems' and encourage feasible forms of resource sharing.


We consider the problem of scheduling multiple users sharing a time-varying wireless channel. (As an example, this is a model of scheduling in 3G wireless technologies, such as CDMA2000 3G1xEV-DO downlink scheduling.) We introduce an algorithm which seeks to optimize a concave utility function /spl Sigma//sub i/H/sub i/(R/sub i/) of the user throughputs R/sub i/, subject to certain lower and upper throughput bounds: R/sub i//sup min//spl les/R/sub i//spl les/R/sub i//sup max/. The algorithm, which we call the gradient algorithm with minimum/maximum rate constraints (GMR) uses a token counter mechanism, which modifies an algorithm solving the corresponding unconstrained problem, to produce the algorithm solving the problem with throughput constraints. Two important special cases of the utility functions are /spl Sigma//sub i/log R/sub i/ and /spl Sigma//sub i/R/sub i/, corresponding to the common proportional fairness and throughput maximization objectives. We study the dynamics of user throughputs under GMR algorithm, and show that GMR is asymptotically optimal in the following sense. If, under an appropriate scaling, the throughput vector R(t) converges to a fixed vector R/sup +/ as time t/spl rarr//spl infin/ then R/sup +/ is an optimal solution to the optimization problem described above. We also present simulation results showing the algorithm performance.


Inference for partially observed Markov process models has been a longstanding methodological challenge with many scientific and engineering applications. Iterated filtering algorithms maximize the likelihood function for partially observed Markov process models by solving a recursive sequence of filtering problems. We present new theoretical results pertaining to the convergence of iterated filtering algorithms implemented via sequential Monte Carlo filters. This theory complements the growing body of empirical evidence that iterated filtering algorithms provide an effective inference strategy for scientific models of nonlinear dynamic systems. The first step in our theory involves studying a new recursive approach for maximizing the likelihood function of a latent variable model, when this likelihood is evaluated via importance sampling. This leads to the consideration of an iterated importance sampling algorithm which serves as a simple special case of iterated filtering, and may have applicability in its own right.


We propose a scheme of a radio-over-fiber (RoF) network supporting the simultaneous transmission of radio frequency identification (RFID), Wi-Fi, and ZigBee services. All services share the same optical transmitter and receiver to reduce the network complexity. Error vector magnitude (EVM) values of 0.36%, 1.23%, and 0.25% can be achieved in the downlink for RFID, WiFi, and ZigBee signals, respectively. The corresponding EVM values in the uplink are 0.37%, 1.78%, and 0.29%, respectively. The scheme is verified over a 2 km RoF link where RFID, WiFi, and ZigBee master nodes can communicate normally with their slave nodes.


The authors review several hundred pertinent papers and books which are categorized in 14 different areas of active research in network sensitivity theory. The papers prior to 1978 are collected from a number of journals and conference proceedings around the world and those which appeared in 1978-88 are collected mainly from the IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems. The topics discussed include general network sensitivity, tolerances or sensitivity in the large of a network, the sensitivity model of a circuit, Vratsano's theorem, network synthesis with minimum or prescribed sensitivity measure, and sensitivity analysis and synthesis in active networks. >


Water use and landholding factors are widely acknowledged as major determinants of agricultural development in agrarian regions of the Indo-Gangetic basin (IGB). High attention is mainly given to irrigation policy while land is often apprehended through soil productivity aspects. However, the nexus between land scale and water consumption in respect to the economic implications of agricultural development is poorly elaborated. To this aim, this paper examines the economic effects of water use and landholding scale to farming in agricultural communities of IGB area. The research is based on an extensive survey conducted in representative areas of Pakistan, India and Nepal situated along the IGB basin. The results signify that the economic viability of marginal and small landholders and water users is threatened when the study focuses on the land scaling effects to farming. Practical recommendations towards the rescheduling of irrigation and land use policies are introduced.


Bacteria adapt to adverse environmental conditions by altering gene expression patterns. Recently, a novel stress adaptation mechanism has been described that allows Escherichia coli to alter gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. The key player in this regulatory pathway is the endoribonuclease MazF, the toxin component of the toxin-antitoxin module mazEF that is triggered by various stressful conditions. In general, MazF degrades the majority of transcripts by cleaving at ACA sites, which results in the retardation of bacterial growth. Furthermore, MazF can process a small subset of mRNAs and render them leaderless by removing their ribosome binding site. MazF concomitantly modifies ribosomes, making them selective for the translation of leaderless mRNAs. In this study, we employed fluorescent reporter-systems to investigate mazEF expression during stressful conditions, and to infer consequences of the mRNA processing mediated by MazF on gene expression at the single-cell level. Our results suggest that mazEF transcription is maintained at low levels in single cells encountering adverse conditions, such as antibiotic stress or amino acid starvation. Moreover, using the grcA mRNA as a model for MazF-mediated mRNA processing, we found that MazF activation promotes heterogeneity in the grcA reporter expression, resulting in a subpopulation of cells with increased levels of GrcA reporter protein.


The increase in obesity prevalence is problematic as this condition is associated with health complications such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, more particularly when the excess body fat is stored in the deep abdominal region. On the other hand, obesity facilitates the maintenance of body homeostasis probably because of an increased hormonal gradient which favours the regulation of energy balance, to give but one example. The regulation potential of excess body fat is particularly apparent in the reduced‐obese state where a reduction of energy expenditure, fat oxidation and some immune system markers, as well as an increase in appetite, stress vulnerability and circulating and adipose tissue organochlorines have been observed. These constitute another category of risk factors which can certainly favour the accumulation of body fat to reestablish body homeostasis on other fronts. Under such conditions, obesity is perceived by the physiologist as a necessary biological adaptation rather than a disease. For health professionals, this emphasizes the importance to seek a reasonable compromise between the favourable reduction of risk to develop metabolic complications by body weight loss and the physiological vulnerability which is also generated by such an intervention.


This article explores how sustainable international partnerships in higher education might be constructed by linking the strategic and contingent through interpersonal relationships. It aims to foreground the role of individuals in developing and sustaining international partnerships amid an increasingly strategic landscape of higher education internationalization. To present how individuals themselves make sense of their efforts in building sustainable international partnerships in higher education across different contexts, 31 semi-structured interviews were conducted with different administrative and disciplinary staff in two universities in the United Kingdom and China. Findings suggest that interpersonal relationships provide a strong basis for sustainable partnerships and it is through contingent networking between individual academics that interpersonal relationships are developed. However, it is through strategic planning by senior academics that interpersonal relationships are embedded in the institution. Hence, an approach to linking the strategic and contingent through interpersonal relationships is thus proposed to build sustainable international partnerships.


The speech will be about what hindrances and facilitating factors can be observed in the process of developing integrated services for persons with severe mental illnesses. The limits of governmental authorities' abilities to make services providers to co-operate and practice evidence based methods are highlighted. Evidence exists that point to that an integrated approach is more efficient compared to separate service options. The examples are drawn from Sweden, a nation where services mainly are parts of the public sector. The presentation is based on several years of experiences from health systems research and a couple of assignments as an expert in governmental committees to develop services within the psychiatric field. The mission to implement 'new methods' and new organisational structures in the practice of social and psychiatric services is difficult, in fact much more cumbersome as it may seem at first glance, given the fact that the services are publicly funded and run. The local authorities have a high degree of autonomy; the professionals are in many cases unwilling to accept changes in their practices. The governmental policy is imprecise in itself, and the strategies to implement the policy are weak in the sense of legislation and directives. Strategies actually utilised during the last decades are the production of series of governmental commissions' reports, short-sighted funding for projects, and the production of 'general advice for good practice'. However, there are reasons for good hope as well. A couple of examples of co-operation and integration of services will be mentioned and analysed.


New automated measurement systems and test procedures are presented that enable the evaluation of long-term stability of SiC PiN diodes. Long-term stability results are presented for 10 kV SiC PiN diodes that are made using a new fabrication technology developed to eliminate the source of the degradation. The major objectives of the long-term stability test procedures are to monitor the forward on-state voltage degradation and current area reduction for different forward bias stress levels. Three experimental systems have been used to perform the long-term stability study. Results show that it is possible for SiC diodes to perform acceptably after over 2000 hours of forward bias stress time.


On-board and in situ experiments with 13 C-labelled diatoms were carried out to investigate the processing of algal carbon by the macrofauna community of a fine sandy-shelf site in the southern German Bight (North Sea). The time series (12, 30, 32 and 132 h incubations) was supplemented by additional laboratory experiments on the role of the dominant macrofauna organism, the bivalve Fabulina fabula (Bivalvia: Tellinidae), for particulate organic matter subduction to deeper sediment layers. The specific uptake of algal 13 C by macrofauna organisms was visible after 12 h and constantly increased during the incubation periods. F. fabula, a facultative (surface) deposit- and suspension-feeder, Lanice conchilega (Polychaeta: Terebellidae), a suspension-feeder and the (surface) deposit-feeder Echinocardium cordatum (Echinodermata: Spatangidae) were responsible for the majority of macrofaunal carbon processing. Predatory macrofauna organisms like Nephtys spp. (Polychaeta: Nephtyidae) also quickly became labelled. The rapid subduction of fresh organic matter by F. fabula down to ca. 4 to 7 cm sediment depth could be demonstrated, and it is suggested that entrainment by macrofauna in this fine-grained sand is much more efficient than advective transport.


Purpose of reviewCyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) plays a critical role in modulating deleterious actions of angiotensin II (Ang II) where there is an inappropriate activation of the renin–angiotensin system (RAS). This review discusses the recent developments regarding the complex interactions by which COX-2 modulates the impact of an activated RAS on kidney function and blood pressure. Recent findingsNormal rats with increased COX-2 activity but with different intrarenal Ang II activity because of sodium restriction or chronic treatment with angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors showed similar renal hemodynamic responses to COX-2-selective inhibition (nimesulide) indicating independence from the intrarenal Ang II activity. COX-2-dependent maintenance of medullary blood flow was consistent and not dependent on dietary salt or ACE inhibition. In contrast, COX-2 influences on sodium excretion were contingent on the prevailing RAS activity. In chronic hypertensive models, COX-2 inhibition elicited similar reductions in kidney function, but COX-2 metabolites contribute to rather than ameliorate the hypertension. SummaryThe maintenance of renal hemodynamics reflects direct and opposing effects of Ang II and COX-2 metabolites. The antagonism in water and electrolyte reabsorption is dependent on the prevailing intrarenal Ang II activity. The recent functional experiments demonstrate a beneficial modulation of Ang II by COX-2 except in the presence of inflammation promoted by hypertension, hyperglycemia, and oxidative stress.


Abstract. In the recent years attention has been paid to the beach protection by means of soft and hard defenses. Along the Italian coasts of the Adriatic Sea, sandy beaches are the most common landscapes and around 70 % of the Marche-Region coasts (central Adriatic), is protected by defense structures. The longest free-from-obstacle nearshore area in the Region includes the beach of Senigallia, characterized by a multiple barred beach, frequently monitored during the last decades. The bathymetries surveyed in 2006, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 show a good adaptation of the beach to the Dean-type equilibrium profile, though a strong short-/medium-term variability of the wave climate has been observed during the monitored periods. This suggests a slight influence of wave forcing on the long-term profiles, which seems to only depend on the sediment size. Further, the medium-term dynamics of the submerged bars and their geometric features have been related to the wave climate collected by a wave buoy located 40 km off Senigallia during the analyzed temporal windows. An overall interpretation of the complete dynamics, i.e. hydrodynamics (buoy data), sediment characteristics (equilibrium-profile A parameter) and morphodynamics (bathymetric surveys), suggests that the wave climate is fundamental for the morphodynamic changes of the beach in the medium term: waves coming from NNE/ESE are characterized by a larger/smaller steepness and induce seaward/shoreward bar migration, as well as bar smoothing/steepening. Moving southward, the bar dimension increases, while the equilibrium profile suggests a decrease of the sediment size in the submerged beach, this probably due to the presence of both harbor jetty and river mouth North of the investigated area.


There is a risk that we slowly are adapting to environments that are injurious for us, both in the short- and the long-term. A central dimension emerging in this research programme is anxiety and fear related to children's upbringing which arise from ever growing traffic. This anxiety and fear is summarised in the concept of traffic environmental stress, i.e. stress triggered by factors in the local traffic environment. The programme is conducted in the framework of a theoretical model on environmental stress and people's ways of coping with stress. The objective of the programme is to describe if and how parents and children experience and manage traffic environmental stress in various traffic environments in their neighbourhood. This paper describes some results that have emerged from a questionnaire study of around a thousand parents in different residential areas. The presentation is based on parents of children in the first form at primary school, i.e. children aged seven years. The conclusion drawn from the results is that the design of the future built environment should not be determined exclusively by the desire to minimise accident risks. This is self-evident, but certainly not a sufficient motivation. Outdoor environments must also add to the quality of life in the broad sense of the word, by being safe, wholesome and stimulating for children's development.


The two-point Green function of a local operator in CFT corresponding to a massive symmetric tensor field on the AdS background is computed in the framework of the AdS/CFT correspondence. The obtained two-point function is shown to coincide with the two-point function of the graviton in the limit when the mass vanishes.