Summary
The perennial soybeans (Glycine subgenus Glycine), are the sister group of the annual cultivated soybean (G. max). Among the approximately 20 species are diploids and polyploids, the former confined to Australia and neighboring islands and the latter more widespread. Although most subgenus Glycine species reproduce predominantly by selfing in cleistogamous flowers, phylogenetic evidence exists for reticulate evolution throughout the history of the subgenus. The entire genus is a paleopolyploid, and could possibly be allopolyploid, though there is as yet no evidence for a hybrid origin. Incongruence among the major nuclear genome groups in nuclear and chloroplast gene trees can be explained by several ancient introgressions. Within the B-genome group there is substantial incongruence between chloroplast and nuclear single copy gene trees that is explained better by introgressive hybridization than by stochastic sorting of ancestral lineages. Several allopolyploids originated by hybridization among a subset of genome groups to form a single large interconnected polyploid complex. A number of allopolyploid combinations have arisen recurrently, some bidirectionally. Some recurrent polyploids show evidence of lineage recombination, indicating that their populations comprise a single biological species. Neopolyploidy has involved hybridization among a subset of subgenus Glycine genome groups, and appears to have occurred recently, whereas hybridization at the diploid level has occurred throughout the history of the group.


* Media Ethics Goes to the Movies. Howard Good and Michael J. Dillon. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2002. 208 pp. $64.95 hbk. Films, TV shows, novels, and other popular culture artifacts can be powerful tools in helping students to think critically about the media. In this book, Howard Good and Michael J. Dillon use movies as case studies in media ethics. Good is coordinator of the journalism program at the State University of New York at New Paltz and the author of several other books about journalism movies; Dillon is professor of communications at Duquesne University. The book draws upon many of the usual suspects in the films it analyzes along with a few that on the surface have little to do with the media. The purpose is to illustrate primary approaches to doing ethics as well as central ethical dilemmas that media practitioners, especially journalists, face. Thus 1951's Ace in the Hole (a.k.a. The Big Carnival) is used at the start to introduce Aristotle's Golden Mean, Kant's Categorical Imperative, Mill's Utilitarianism, and Rawls's Veil of Ignorance. Deadline, USA (1952) becomes a study in social responsibility theory. The Paper (1994) employs the Potter Box while All the President's Men (1976) analyzes means versus ends (in this case, whether deception is justified in uncovering malfeasance at the highest levels of government). At the same time, 12 Angry Men (1957) uses a jury's deliberations to show how prejudice and misperception can confound Enlightenment ideals of rationality and truth: an important lesson for prospective journalists. Eight Men Out (1988) draws a parallel between baseball and journalism in considering competing loyalties to the "team" or organization, to owners, and to the public. The Rock (1996) is a case study in entertainment violence. Other movies covered in individual chapters include Under Fire (1983), True Crime (1999), and Network (1976). Each chapter concludes with a set of questions for students, and, especially for teaching purposes, those questions are the book's greatest strength. Ace in the Hole launches a discussion about reporters becoming part of the stories they cover, Deadline, USA raises concerns about the separation between the news and business sides of media organizations, and Under Fire considers how American journalists cover the rest of the world. Network poses particularly provocative questions: "Which do you feel poses a greater threat to freedom of expression in the United States, the government or the corporate media? …


This paper uses food as a prism to examine society and the impacts of social change at different scales, ranging from the scale of the region, through the scale of the local community, to the scale of the household. It applies an approach that combines materials gained from archival studies, a literature review, and empirical research conducted in the Western Pamirs of Tajikistan to reconstruct socio-historically and spatio-environmentally situated food-related arrangements (foodscapes) in the study region. The main characteristics addressed include rootedness, richness, scarcity, and remoteness. It makes visible both continuities and shifts that have occurred to these arrangements in the course of social transformations. The study joins the canon of ethnographic food studies, and, by presenting a regional focus on the Tajik Pamirs, complements the emerging body of food-related socio-scientific research in and on Central Asia.


The rhythms from seconds to days, as stated in the title- involve heartbeats and blood pressure waves, breathing, and hormonal and circadian (circa diem, i.e., around one day in period) oscillations of biological variables. The oscillators in the same organism are of different periods, are endowed with different phases, and naturally influence one another. But to ensure that such influences do not result in catastrophes incompatible with life, such as resonance or dampening phenomena, pump failing, or fouling, there must exist physiological regulating mechanisms to control them; the autonomic nervous system and the circadian system are natural candidates to the roles of such controllers.


Emerging advances in health disparities research include controlled trials and comparative effectiveness studies that are frequently conducted at multiple community and academic sites. Review by different institutional review boards (IRBs) presents a major impediment to the timely and effective conduct of such research. When research involves minority and underserved communities as well as multiple geographic regions, institutional requirements and interpretation of ethical standards may vary substantially. Such variations can complicate the informed consent process and research protocol, and may undermine participant respect and trial quality. In addition, multiple IRB review can lead to unnecessary delays, jeopardizing funding and capacity to perform collaborative projects. In response to these issues, the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) Translational Research Network (RTRN) is developing a community-partnered approach to streamlining IRB review across its consortium of 18 RCMI grantee institutions that will ensure compliance while enhancing the quality of health disparities research.


We designed and developed a home telemonitoring instrument, and related Web application for management of clinical data. The instrument directly measures important physiological parameters (blood oxygen saturation, pulse rate, and respiratory parameters related to the use of pulmonary ventilators). The instrument also connects to external instruments (spirometer, capnometer, noninvasive blood pressure measuring device), thus collecting the corresponding clinical parameters. The instrument has a flexible architecture, which allows insertion of the necessary boards only, depending on the parameters that need to be measured and the external instruments to be interfaced for each patient. The measured and collected data are transmitted to a Web server, through direct connection to a local Internet POP (thanks to the TCP/IP protocol implemented at the instrument firmware level), thus avoiding long distance calls possibly occurring in traditional modem-to-modem configurations. Transmitted data are made available for consultation through a Web application from the health professionals, wherever they are (if an Internet connection is available). The advantage of using a Web application instead of a traditional one is that all installation problems are avoided, and the latest application version is immediately available for all the users. Within the Web application, the clinical data can be displayed and analyzed both in numeric and graphic format. It is also possible to mark some portions of data with proper indicators: for instance, for saturation curves all the desaturation events can be marked manually or after identification through an automatic algorithm. Furthermore, the Web application allows possible definition of a new instrument setup, which can be transmitted to the instrument thanks to the bidirectional connection with the Web server. The system is under test on fifteen patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and respiratory problems. In future, the system could also be used for telemonitoring of different categories of patients with chronic pathologies.


A line-to-line beam contact formulation in the framework of the absolute nodal coordinate formulation (ANCF) is introduced in this paper. Higher- and lower-order ANCF beam elements employ the introduced beam contact formulation. The higher- and lower-order ANCF beam elements are compared in terms of their accuracy and performance in a large deformation contact problem. Efficiency of numerical integration of contact energy variation contribution to the system's equations of motion is studied. The contacting elements' surfaces of the ANCF beam elements are parameterized by segmentation of integration over the contact patch. Numerical results investigate the accuracy, robustness and efficiency of the developed line-to-line contact formulation by comparing against a solid element type using commercial finite element code. According to the numerical results, the higher-order ANCF beam element's solution is closer than the lower-order ANCF beam element's in accordance with the reference solution provided by a solid element type using commercial finite element code ABAQUS. Furthermore, the higher-order beam element is found to be more efficient than the lower-order beam with respect to the numerical integration of the contact energy variation. Expectedly, the higher-order ANCF beam element is able to capture the cross-section deformation in a large deformation contact problem, while the lower-order element fails to exhibit such cross-sectional deformation.


In this paper, comparative evaluation of the mechanical properties of resorbable and titanium miniplates, which are used for the fixation of the mandibular condyle fractures, was carried out using finite element analysis (FEA). To do so, first two-dimensional (2D) computed tomography (CT) images of mandibles recorded from 10 adult patients were converted into three-dimensional (3D) solid body models. Then these models were transferred to the finite element software. In the finite element stage of the study, a condyle fracture was created onto the mandible and double-titanium and double-resorbable miniplates were separately fixed to the mandible surface such that the fractured sites to be firmly attached. Stress distribution over the plates and interfragmentary displacements between adjacent surfaces, which stem from the clenching force applying to the mandible, were calculated using FEA. It was observed from the results that maximum tensile stresses occurred in the titanium miniplates were significantly higher than those obtained from resorbable miniplates (p < 0.01). Higher maximum displacements between fractured surfaces were observed in the case of resorbable plate systems (p < 0.01). Maximum stress and displacement values obtained from both titanium and resorbable plate systems were under clinically acceptable limits. According to results, resorbable plates showed a similar reliability with titanium miniplates in terms of withstanding various stress and strain deformations.


The term 'agroecology' is used more than ever today with varied meaning ranging from scientific discipline, agricultural practice, or social movement. The objective of this presentation will be thus to clarify these different meanings. Towards this aim, the historical development of agroecology was analysed, with selected examples from USA, Brazil, France and Germany, in an attempt to study and discuss the evolution of the different meanings from the four contrasted examples. The term agroecology can be traced back to the 1930s. The period up to the 1960s can be called the scientific 'old age' of agroecology. Scales and dimensions of scientific research in agroecology changed over the past 80 years from the plot or field scale to the farm or agroecosystem scale. Presently two main approaches persist: one maintaining the agroecosystems scale approach, the other leaving a concrete spatial scale around the farming system, and entering the dimensions of the food system. The latter approach tries to link natural and environmental sciences and agronomy with sociology and economy. Based on this highly interdisciplinary basis, agroecology might be able to significantly contribute to applied research topics, in particular in tropical and subtropical agroecosystems. Different environmental movements started in the 1960s, often developed in opposition to industrialisation processes of agriculture. Some of them evolved towards agroecological movements in the 1990s, often with the major objective of rural development. Agroecology as an agricultural practice emerged in the 1980s, and was thereafter often intertwined with agroecological movements. In general, various interpretations of agroecology exist with different weights and specifications throughout the world. In France, agroecology is better known as a practice, and to certain extent as a movement, whereas the scientific discipline is occupied by the discipline agronomy. In Germany, agroecology has a long tradition as a scientific discipline, but the agroecology in the sense of a movement or a practice is more or less inexistent. In the USA and in Brazil we find all three types of utilisation of agroecology with a certain predominance of agroecology as a science in the USA and a stronger movement and/or agricultural practice in Brazil.


The status of the English language as the lingua franca of the global information society is beyond dispute, but what is not so clear is whether it is capable of fulfilling that role efficiently. In the following article Ross Smith responds to the supporters of Global English by examining the qualities that an ideal international auxiliary language would possess and then discussing the extent to which those qualities are to be found in modern English.


The purpose of this prospective, randomized, double-blind investigation was to compare two different parenteral antibiotics (ampicillin/sulbactam and cefoxitin) in conjunction with appropriate surgical procedures for treatment of patients with diabetic foot infec tions on a vascular surgery service. Thirty-six patients with diabetes mellitus who required hospitalization to treat foot infections were randomized into one of two treatment groups. There were 18 patients with similar baseline characteristics random ized to each treatment group. The Chi-square test was used for clinical and bacteriolog ical comparisons, the Wilcoxon rank sum test was used for comparing duration of hospi talization and clinical signs and symptoms, and Fisher's Exact Test (two-tailed) was used to compare treatment outcomes of the two groups. Based on intention-to-treat analysis, there was no significant difference in treatment outcome (cure + improved) between the ampicillin/sulbactam (15/17) and cefoxitin groups (16/17). Similarly, no significant differences in bacteriologic response were noted. Both ampicillin/sulbactam and cefoxitin, when combined with appropriate surgical interventions, are safe and effective therapies for treating foot infections in patients with diabetes mellitus.


Abstract Two experiments examined the realism in the confidence of 8–9-year-olds, 12–13-year-olds and adults in their free recall and answers to focused questions after viewing a short video clip. A different video clip was shown in each experiment and the focused questions differed in difficulty. In both experiments the youngest age group, in contrast to the two other age groups, showed no overconfidence in their confidence judgements for the free recall. The free recall results also showed that the youngest group had lower completeness but similar correctness as the adults. There was a tendency, over both experiments, for the participants to show poorer realism for the focused questions than for the free recall, especially when questions with content already mentioned in the free recall were excluded from the analyses of the focused questions in Experiment 1. The study shows the importance of question format when evaluating the credibility of the confidence shown by 8–9-year-old children in their own testimony.


The present work centers around a numerical three-dimensional transient investigation of the effects of axial convection on flow and temperature fields inside an open-ended annulus. The transient behavior of the flow field through the formation of a three-dimensional flow field and its subsequent effect on the temperature distribution at different axial locations within the annulus were analyzed by both finite difference and finite element methods. The results show that the axial convection has a distinctly different influence on the temperature and velocity fields. It is found that in the midportion of the annulus a two-dimensional assumption with respect to the temperature distribution can lead to satisfactory results for Ra < 10,000. However, such an assumption is improper with respect to the flow field. Furthermore, it is shown that generally the errors for a two-dimensional assumption in the midportion of the annulus are less at earlier times (t < 50 {delta}t) during the transient development of the flow and temperature fields.


A hybridization of a high order WENO-Z finite difference scheme and a high order central finite difference method for computation of the two-dimensional Euler equations first presented in [B. Costa and W. S. Don, J. Comput. Appl. Math., 204(2) (2007)] is extended to three-dimensions and for parallel computation. The Hybrid scheme switches dynamically from a WENO-Z scheme to a central scheme at any grid location and time instance if the flow is sufficiently smooth and vice versa if the flow is exhibiting sharp shock-type phenomena. The smoothness of the flow is determined by a high order multi-resolution analysis. The method is tested on a benchmark sonic flow injection in supersonic cross flow. Increase of the order of the method reduces the numerical dissipation of the underlying schemes, which is shown to improve the resolution of small dynamic vortical scales. Shocks are captured sharply in an essentially non-oscillatory manner via the high order shockcapturing WENO-Z scheme. Computations of the injector flow with a WENO-Z scheme only and with the Hybrid scheme are in very close agreement. Thirty percent of grid points require a computationally expensive WENO-Z scheme for highresolution capturing of shocks, whereas the remainder of grid points may be solved with the computationally more affordable central scheme. The computational cost of the Hybrid scheme can be up to a factor of one and a half lower as compared to computations with a WENO-Z scheme only for the sonic injector benchmark. AMS subject classifications: 65P30, 77Axx


A heparin derivative that had been O/N-desulphated and re-N-acetylated was investigated by 13C n.m.r. spectroscopy and potentiometric titration. Three forms of uronic acid were observed, tentatively identified as beta-D-glucuronate, and two different forms of alpha-L-iduronate. A comparison of the n.m.r. spectra of heparin, an oligosaccharide (beta-D-glucuronate-2-acetamido-2-deoxy-alpha-D-glucose)n, and heparin that had been subjected to selective oxidation of beta-D-glucuronate, enabled the position of the anomeric carbon of the latter residue to be assigned [delta 102.9 (p.p.m.)]. Periodate oxidation of O/N-desulphated heparin destroyed in addition, approx. 40% of the alpha-L-iduronate content. The remainder of the alpha-L-iduronate residues displayed only one anomeric resonance, at delta 99.7 (p.p.m.). In another preparation, after sequential desulphation of heparin (N-desulphation, re-N-acetylation and O-desulphation) the anomeric resonance of the alpha-L-iduronate residue shifted downfield [from delta99.7 (p.p.m.) to delta 102.3]indicating a change in ring conformation. These data support the interpretation that the unsulphated alpha-L-iduronate residues may adopt two conformations. It was shown that the proportions of alpha-L-iduronate conformers are determined by the sequence of desulphation operations. Also minor components of heparin were assigned.


This study evaluated the use of bottom ash as a root medium component when mixed with coir dust in different ratios. Each of two kinds of bottom ash (coarse bottom ash, CBA, with particle size ≥ 5 mm; and fine bottom ash, FBA, with particle size ≥ 5 mm) were mixed with coir dust in the ratios 10:0, 9:1, 8:2, 7:3, 6:4, 5:5, and 0:10 (coir dust:bottom ash, v/v). We investigated the physical properties of mixed substrates, i.e., particle size distribution, container capacity, air space, total porosity, bulk density, and the moisture retention curve; and chemical properties, i.e., pH, electrical conductivity, and nutrient content. Large particles (1.4-5.6 mm in diameter) increased as the ratio of CBA increased, while small particles (< 710 μm in diameter) increased as the ratio of coir dust increased. As the ratio of FBA increased, small particles (< 106 μm) increased. As CBA increased, the container capacity decreased but air spaces increased, while increasing FBA reduced the air spaces in the substrate mix. In 100% FBA medium, the maximum container capacity was low (32.5%), and had very low easily available water (below 2%); this suggests that, on its own, FBA has poor potential for use as a horticultural medium. In substrate mixes of acidic coir dust (pH 4.99) and CBA, increasing the proportion of bottom ash gradually increased the pH, which is similar to perlite. Electrical conductivity of the substrate increased as the ratio of FBA in the substrate mix increased, largely caused by the high Ca and Na content of FBA. When the proportion of FBA was increased in the substrate mix by more than 30%, Cd contents were higher than the acceptable level for use in horticulture. Other heavy metals (As, Pb, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn) were detected at low concentrations in all substrate mixes, but within the acceptable range for use in horticultural media. Based on these results, bottom ash may be used as a component of horticultural media, but to maintain physical and chemical properties within acceptable limits it is not recommended to exceed 20% of the mixture. Additional key words: coal ash, container capacity, horticultural substrate, moisture retention curve, plant growth media, porosity


This study aims to explore whether frontline employees' service recovery performance as well as customers' recovery satisfaction (RS) act as mediating mechanisms that simultaneously transmit the positive influence of an integrated service recovery system (SRS) on customers' service loyalty (SL).,A total of 134 useable retail banking branch cases (including responses from 134 branch heads, 439 frontline employees and 941 customers) were used to test our model using the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) approach.,Service recovery system, measured as a higher-order multidimensional construct, has a strong and positive influence on customers' SL. Besides, service recovery performance partially mediates, along with RS, the relationship between SRS and SL. Finally, customers' recovery satisfaction has the strongest influence on service loyalty.,This study strongly suggests that practitioners not only focus on implementing an effective SRS but also on leveraging service recovery performance and RS to build sustained customers' loyalty. Practitioners must provide more attention to training their frontline employees, reward and recognize employees and continually evaluate their employees' recovery efforts.,The role of frontline employees' service recovery performance and customers' RS as mediating mechanisms in transmitting the positive effect of SRS on customers' SL is investigated using the combined perspectives of social-technical system theory and interdependence theory.


Network models have been widely used in many subject areas to characterize the interactions between physical entities. A typical problem is to identify the network for multiple related tasks that share some similarities. In this case, a transfer learning approach that can leverage the knowledge gained during the modeling of one task to help better model another task is highly desirable. This article proposes a transfer learning approach that adopts a Bayesian hierarchical model framework to characterize the relatedness between tasks and additionally uses L 1-regularization to ensure robust learning of the networks with limited sample sizes. A method based on the Expectation–Maximization (EM) algorithm is further developed to learn the networks from data. Simulation studies are performed that demonstrate the superiority of the proposed transfer learning approach over single-task learning that learns the network of each task in isolation. The proposed approach is also applied to identify brain connectivity networks associated with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) from functional magnetic resonance image data. The findings are consistent with the AD literature.


We introduce new correlation consistent effective core potentials (ccECPs) for the elements I, Te, Bi, Ag, Au, Pd, Ir, Mo, and W with 4d, 5d, 6s, and 6p valence spaces. These ccECPs are given as a sum of spin-orbit averaged relativistic effective potential (AREP) and effective spin-orbit (SO) terms. The construction involves several steps with increasing refinements from more simple to fully correlated methods. The optimizations are carried out with objective functions that include weighted many-body atomic spectra, norm-conservation criteria, and SO splittings. Transferability tests involve molecular binding curves of corresponding hydride and oxide dimers. The constructed ccECPs are systematically better and in a few cases on par with previous effective core potential (ECP) tables on all tested criteria and provide a significant increase in accuracy for valence-only calculations with these elements. Our study confirms the importance of the AREP part in determining the overall quality of the ECP even in the presence of sizable spin-orbit effects. The subsequent quantum Monte Carlo calculations point out the importance of accurate trial wave functions that, in some cases (mid-series transition elements), require treatment well beyond a single-reference.


Digitally controlled switching converter suffers from bandwidth limitation because of the additional phase delay in the digital feedback control loop. To overcome the bandwidth limitation without using a high sampling rate, this study presents an adaptive third-order digital controller for regulating a voltage-mode buck converter with a modest 2× oversampling ratio. The phase lag because of the analogue-to-digital converter (ADC) conversion time delay is virtually compensated by providing an early estimation of the error voltage for the next sampling time instant, enabling a higher unity-gain bandwidth without compromising stability. An additional pair of low-frequency pole and zero in the third-order controller increases the low-frequency gain, resulting in faster settling time and smaller output voltage deviation during line transient. Both simulation and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed adaptive third-order controller reduces the settling time by 50% in response to a 1 V line transient and 30% in response to a 600 mA load transient, compared to the baseline static second-order controller. The fastest settling time is measured to be about 11.70 μs, surpassing the transient performance of conventional digital controllers and approaching that of the state-of-the-art analogue-based controllers.


Objectives: Burnout is a feasible phenomenon among healthcare professionals, including nurses. The consequence is reduction in their overall efficiency and therefore can affect the quality of care they render to patients. The study examined the influence of burnout experience on nurses – reported quality of nursing care in Tertiary hospitals in Osun state. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional design was used to study 230 randomly selected nurses working in admission facilities of tertiary hospitals in Osun state. Data was collected with semi structured questionnaire adapted from Maslach Burnout Inventory and Karen – personnel instrument for measuring quality. Kruskal – Wallis H tests of association were done at 0.05 significance level. Results: The study revealed a statistically significant association between Burnout experiences and nurse 2 – reported quality of nursing care in the hospitals studied (÷ = 14.46, p = 0.006). Conclusion: Burnout experience affected the Self – reported quality of nursing care in the facilities studied.


Reinforced concrete ribbed arch aqueduct's bent is arranged symmetrically on the main arch, load which is transferred from bent to main arch is more homogenous. It can improve force conditions of main arch, and aqueduct is arranged on the bent. That also has the function of longitudinal beam. This paper adopts finite element method to carry out force analysis for Guanping reinforced concrete ribbed arch aqueduct, considering aqueduct weight, water pressure and earthquake effect, etc. researching stress and deformation distribution law of reinforced concrete ribbed arch aqueduct.


Based on ships transaction in useful information personalization gain question, proposed that one kind the intelligent recommendation service model which unifies the ASP (Application Service Providers) pattern and the recommendation technology. In this model, the service uses five structures, the intelligence management transfer application service level and the resources component level, cooperates to realize the intelligence mutually. In view of the ships profession electronic commerce pattern's characteristic, the depth limited auto-adapted k close neighbor searching algorithm which uses transforms the user grading non-isotropic space as the isotropic space, obtains the isotropic grading matrix, thus searches the current user k recent neighbor, has current user's forecast grading, and has the recommendation. Has provided the simple direct-viewing practical commercial service for the ships manufacturing firm.


Homing ability and site-fidelity in the greasy grouper Epinephelus tauvina (Serranidae)
were studied at Malindi Marine Park (6.3 km2), coastal Kenya, from January to April 2002 using
acoustic telemetry. Displacement experiments involving 12 groupers (mean size 57.9 cm) from
multiple capture sites resulted in a 67% homing success. Upon release at displacement sites (0.5 to
2.6 km from the point of capture), most initial movements were small-scale and non-directional. Neither
the tidal range nor time of day influenced the magnitude of these daily movements. Returns to
the capture sites were sudden, occurring predominantly (88%) on spring tide dates. Fish displaced at
the spring tide returned to capture sites faster (8.6 d) than those displaced at the neap tide (14.3 d).
Time taken to return to capture sites ranged from 4 to 19 d (mean 9.6 d) and was not correlated with
distance of displacement. However, time taken for the fish to home was negatively correlated with
tidal range at displacement. Home ranges established after homing (0.07 to 0.73 km2) were stable and
negatively correlated with fish size, suggesting an ontogenetic shift in home range development.


This paper presents a new closed-form solution of the direct kinematic problem of nearly general parallel manipulators by using three linear extra sensors. The sensors are disposed at optimal location, connecting the planar base and the planar mobile platform at distinct points. The basic idea is to use the coordinates of the three distinct anchor points of the extra sensors on the mobile platform to represent the pose of the mobile platform. Thus, the extra sensory data enable one to reduce the problem to the solution of a system of six linear equations in six of the nine generalized coordinates. The other three coordinates are obtained directly from the extra sensory data. In addition, an optimal location of the extra sensors is sought by minimizing the condition number of the linear equations for the least sensitivity to sensor measurement errors. A numerical example is presented for optimal sensor location and the error behavior of the proposed solution scheme by computer simulation.


This article reports on the findings of a study of so-called `forward-looking statements' in a corpus of corporate press releases, focusing in particular on the mechanisms of hedging involved. Forward-looking statements are an important characteristic of corporate press releases in which companies make predictions about the future in an attempt to demonstrate to stakeholders that the company is making progress and that its prospects are good. Such statements are explicitly mentioned in a disclaimer which often accompanies corporate press releases and are noted to involve risks and uncertainties. This article aims to identify those lexicogrammatical forms which are typically used in forward-looking statements in press releases, including those used for the purpose of hedging, and also to try to identify the function(s) of hedging in the selected data. The data analysis points to a range of forms which function as hedges in the data. These are discussed and exemplified and, drawing on Hyland's (1998a) model in particular, an attempt is made to consider what function(s) the hedges serve.


In the wake of the investiture struggle and against the background of burgeoning humanist thought, Martin Luther's affirmation of the secular realm as a discrete area of divine activity may be lauded as a judicious recovery of the thought of Augustine and perhaps of Gelasius I. In light of subsequent developments in sociopolitical theory, however, this progressive aspect of the reformer's thought appears to be immediately undercut by its seemingly unbending social conservatism. Instituted by God (Rom 13; 1 Pet 2:13–14), the "law of [the] temporal sword has existed from the beginning of the world," Luther writes. And while he asserts that "God cannot and will not permit anyone but himself to rule over the soul," he does, nevertheless, forbid Christians to resort to violence to defend their cause: "For the governing authority must not be resisted by force, but only by confession of the truth. If it is influenced by this, well and good; if not, you are excused, you suffer wrong for God's sake."


This study uses five series of demographic and health surveys to answer the question: 'Is horizontal inequality in education and wealth increasing or decreasing in the 20-year interval between 1991 and 2010?'. Horizontal inequality in education attainment has been moving in waves; however, there was an invested U-shaped trend where inequality increased between 2004 and 2007 before a declining trend in recent years. Unlike the fluctuating trends of the overall horizontal inequality in education, gender inequality in educational attainment has consistently been declining over time. The same consistent decline in education inequality is observed between urban and rural areas, and between the business city of Dar es Salaam and other subnational regions. However, Tanzanian society is becoming more unequal in wealth with rising wealth inequality between geographical zones, gender, and also between rural and urban areas. This implies that, sub-national regions in Tanzania, men and women, and rural and urban areas are disproportionally benefiting from the impressive economic growth rates that Tanzania has experienced over the past decade.


When we cannot concentrate on reading a book, we have problems with voluntary attention. When we stand up and stumble on a chair leg, we have a problem with involuntary attention. A bimanual Stroop task (ST) and the Ericson's flanker task (EFT) were used for the analysis of voluntary and involuntary attention, respectively. Electrophysiological markers of attention were applied in adult ADHD patients and yoked control individuals. Behavioral incongruence effects were stronger in patients than in controls in the EFT. P3 latency in the incongruent condition was identical in patients and controls in ST but strongly delayed in patients compared with controls in EFT. A significant positive lateralized readiness potential indicating the activation of the false response channel was obtained in the incongruent condition of EFT, being significantly larger in patients than controls. The data indicate a disorder of automatic attentional control in ADHD adults despite nearly normal voluntary attention.


Our technological civilization has had to confront numerous technological challenges such as finding the optimal solution of various problems including control technologies, power sources construction, and energy distribution amongst others. Analysis and prediction of complex system behavior such as stock exchange or other complex engineering structures and devices. Technology development of those and related areas has had and continues to have a profound impact on our civilization and lifestyle.

The topics discussed in this special issue belong to these mentioned areas and are mutually joined into a comprehensive text, which while discussing the specific selected topics gives a deeper insight to the interdisciplinary fusion of those modern and promising areas of emerging algorithms and technologies. This special issue discusses the mutual intersection of interesting fields of research, as artificial intelligence, unconventional algorithm, complex system behavior like chaos, soft computing, simulators, and software engineering amongst others. Novel techniques are also discussed in this special issue, which are able to handle tasks such as model and control of various systems, optimization by means standard and novel methods. Together with many interesting emerging technologies, a reader will also find in the special issue various mathematical and algorithmical methods used for proposed applications.

Therefore, this special issue is a timely volume to be welcome by the community focused on above mentioned techniques and beyond. This special issue is devoted to the studies of common and related subjects in intensive research fields of modern algorithms and their applications. For these reasons, we believe that this special issue will be interesting to scientists and engineers working in the above mentioned fields of research and applications.

Ivan  Zelinka

Ajith  Abraham

Otto  Rossler

Mohammed  Chadli

Rene  Lozi


The choice number of a graph G is the minimum integer k such that for every assignment of a set S(v) of k colors to every vertex v of G, there is a proper coloring of G that assigns to each vertex v a color from S(v). By applying probabilistic methods, it is shown that there are two positive constants c1 and c2 such that for all m ≥ 2 and r ≥ 2 the choice number of the complete r-partite graph with m vertices in each vertex class is between c1r log m and c2r log m. This supplies the solutions of two problems of Erdős, Rubin and Taylor, as it implies that the choice number of almost all the graphs on n vertices is o(n) and that there is an n vertex graph G such that the sum of the choice number of G with that of its complement is at most O(n1/2(log n)1/2).


Contract farming is a key element for the Brazilian Biodiesel Program, which aim to promote social inclusion of small scale farmers. The relationship between the industry and the farmers is regulated by a certification called Social Fuel Seal. The seal allows to the biodiesel producers favorable financing schemes, tax exemptions and, especially, the right to participate in specific auctions to sell the biodiesel. By the other side, the basic requirements are: i) acquisition of a minimum percentage of raw material from small scale farmers, ii) enter into contract with the farmers, iii) ensure technical assistance and training to the farmers. The Brazilian biodiesel program, in only five year, has obtained positive results. Although the inclusion of 109 thousand small scale farmers represents a small percentage, having in mind the total number of small scale farmers in Brazil (4,5 million), it is a very expressive figure comparing with 40 thousand sugar cane producers involved in the 40 years old ethanol program. The main challenge of the program is to increase the number of small scale farmers supplying the biodiesel industry with oilseed, especially in the Northeast and North regions of Brazil. The creation of a captive market for small scale oilseed farmers occurs under the regulatory framework of the Social Fuel Seal, which demands a mediated agreement between farmers and the industry. The formalization of a contract can be an important factor helping to organize the oilseed production chain, as the coordination of the production chain, including also the by-products, is a key factor.


Objectives: To investigate the incidence and outcome of antenatally diagnosed isolated transverse limb defects. Methods: This was a retrospective review of all cases diagnosed with an isolated transverse limb defect referred to a tertiary care Fetal Medicine unit. Isolated transverse limb defects were defined as partial or complete absence of part of one or more limbs in the absence of other abnormalities. During the study period of 10 years (2000–2009) 7 cases of isolated transverse limb defects were identified. Detailed skeletal survey was performed including measurements of all long bones, careful assessment of fetal anatomy and the presence of amniotic bands. Results: The gestational age at diagnosis ranged from 21 to 29 weeks. The left upper limb was affected more commonly (4/7). The severity of limb defects ranged from absence of digits to the absence of three limbs in one case. Four of the seven women in this series were Asian in origin. Majority of women (4/7) were young primigravida who were not at significant risk for chromosomal or genetic abnormalities. None of them smoked nor used alcohol or any vasospastic drugs. None of the pregnant women had any invasive procedure performed during the index pregnancy. Amniotic bands were not identified in any case. Two women had diabetes and rifampicin treatment which are known risk factors for transverse limb defects. Four of the seven women opted to have termination of pregnancy. Post natal and postmortem examination confirmed the ultrasound findings. Conclusions: No obvious risk factors could be identified in majority of cases. Frequent involvement of left upper limb and in women of Asian ethnicity was observed in our series. The reason for this is not clear. Most cases of limb defects are believed to be secondary to vascular insult occurring very early in embryonic life. The perinatal outcome in this series was poor with the majority of pregnancies terminated.


Sierra Leone is in transition to peace and development, from a previous decade long civil war. Educated Muslim women appear to have a great deal of expression, interest and passion to offer the process. The study investigates the new emerging social sub group of professional Muslim women in Sierra Leone society and explores their views and experiences of identifying and attempting to overcome the burdens of patriarchy, oppression and exploitation perpetrated by religious, social and cultural beliefs. The research and thesis consider in what ways these women and their views 'fit' in or challenge society and their perceptions of the potential they have as models to impact on the lives of Sierra Leonean Muslim women nationwide.
Using feminist influenced research practices in order to focus on the stories and voices of these women, the study contributes to the growth of knowledge related to the emergent changing roles and perceptions of Muslim women in present day Sierra Leone. This qualitative and interdisciplinary research develops a critical focus and deliberately combines literary sources in an informative context, with feminist research methods of interviews and focus groups on issues of gender equality and empowerment. Through the interviews and focus group discussions conducted, the research portrays the perceptions of the emerging social sub group of professional Muslim women, a cross section of grass-root Muslim women and a selection of male Muslims regarding empowerment, knowledge, culture, independence and oppression. These are also illustrated as the ways the participants embrace the concept of feminism and adapt it by drawing on their Sierra Leonean, Islamic, cultural and social traditions.
The research examines the various ideologies that stifle the growth of Sierra Leonean Muslim women from their perspective and it analyses the strategies used by the professional women to tackle the oppressive and repressive customs and stand up against patriarchy. It was discovered through the findings that the research gives an insight into the determination and the conviction of professional Muslim women in advocating for social change and in making their voices heard. As an outcome, it is evidenced that this emerging social sub group of Muslim women appear to be inspiring self-development moves and changes not only among the uneducated grass-root majority, but in the fold of their Muslim men-folk, resulting in a visible impact of self development and self empowerment among Sierra Leonean Muslim women.


This essay briefly reviews the essential historiography of the history of childhood, especially that in the English language, before turning to examples of schools and orphanages in Bergamo and Bologna. The Caspi Academy of Bergamo, founded 1547 as a private elementary boarding school, and a pedagogical treatise published by schoolmaster Giovita Ravizza in Venice in 1551, represent two brief case studies that show the surprising range of education in sixteenth-century northern Italy. For orphanages, the Orphanage of S. Martino in Bergamo, founded 1532 by the Venetian patrician Girolamo Miani, provided destitute children with housing, education, and career training. A second example is the Collegio Panolini of Bologna, endowed in 1585 by a wealthy silk merchant, named Francesco Panolini, and realized in 1632. This small residential college was created specifically for orphans, and offered sixteen years of training, culminating in a university degree and/or an ecclesiastical position with the Catholic Church. Children faced a multitude of dangers and obstacles in early modern Italy; while schools and orphanages were far from perfect, they did offer a safe haven to keep children off the streets and out of danger.


The charging of a quantum battery by a four-stroke quantum machine that works either as an engine or a refrigerator is investigated. The presented analysis provides the energetic behavior of the combined system in terms of the heat and workflows of the machine, the average, and variance of the battery's energy as well as the coherent and incoherent parts of its ergotropy. To monitor the battery state its energy is measured either after the completion of any cycle or after a prescribed number of cycles is carried out. The resulting battery performances greatly differ for those two cases. During the first charging epoch with an engine, the regular measurements speed up the charging, whereas the gain of ergotropy is more pronounced in the absence of measurements. In a later stage, the engine fails to work as such while it still continues charging the battery that eventually reaches the maximally charged state in the absence of intermediate measurements and a suboptimally charged state for a periodically measured battery. For a refrigerator, the charging of the measured battery also proceeds faster during the first epoch. Only during the second stage when the machine fails to extract heat from the cold bath the influence of the measurements become less pronounced leading to rather similar asymptotic states for the two measurement scenarios.


Kant's Doctrine of Religion as Political Philosophy Phillip Wodzinski Advisor: Susan Shell, Ph.D. Through a close reading of Immanuel Kant's late book, Religion within the Boundaries of Mere Reason, the dissertation clarifies the political element in Kant's doctrine of religion and so contributes to a wider conception of his political philosophy. Kant's political philosophy of religion, in addition to extending and further animating his moral doctrine, interprets religion in such a way as to give the Christian faith a moral grounding that will make possible, and even be an agent of, the improvement of social and political life. The dissertation emphasizes the wholeness and structure of Religion within the Boundaries of Mere Reason as a book, for the teaching of the book is not exhausted by the articulation of its doctrine but also includes both the fact and the manner of its expression: the reader learns most fully from Kant by giving attention to the structure and tone of the book as well as to its stated content and argumentation. The Religion provides the basis not only for a proposed reenvisioning of the basis of existing religious creeds and practices, but along with this a devastating critique of them in particularly moral terms. This, however, is only half of what constitutes Kant's political philosophy of religion; Kant goes beyond the philosophical analysis of the social-political context of religion and pursues, alongside this effort, a political presentation of philosophy which is intended to relieve the reader's anxieties concerning the tension between philosophy and political life that it is in the interest of the partisans of the church-faith to encourage.


Large-scale data analytics frameworks are shifting towards shorter task durations and larger degrees of parallelism to provide low latency. However, scheduling highly parallel jobs that complete in hundreds of milliseconds poses a major challenge for cluster schedulers, which will need to place millions of tasks per second on appropriate nodes while offering millisecond-level latency and high availability. We demonstrate that a decentralized, randomized sampling approach provides nearoptimal performance while avoiding the throughput and availability limitations of a centralized design. We implement and deploy our scheduler, Sparrow, on a real cluster and demonstrate that Sparrow performs within 14% of an ideal scheduler.


It has been shown in experiments on 81 guinea-pigs that variation of the functional status of alpha- and beta-adrenoreceptors produces a substantial effect on marked serotonin bronchospasm. The blockade of beta-adrenoreceptors with obsidan (1--2 mg/kg) increases the spasm of bronchial smooth muscles in response to serotonin (10 micrograms/kg). The alpha-adrenolytic phentolamine (2 mg/kg) and the myotropic spasmolytic euphylline (8 mg/kg) remove the hypersensitivity of the bronchi to serotonin 20 min after adrenaline administration and potentiate its protective effect in serotonin bronchospasm after administering the beta-adrenoblocker obsidan.


Smart Metering Solutions have been developed and implemented on TOTAL assets by combining digital technology and in house metering expertise to improve quality of data needed for reservoir monitoring, installation operation and fiscal applications. Deployment within TOTAL upstream operations is presented with specific highlights both on the design of metering systems and network but also on the real operation of metering and allocation systems in the field. TOTAL Smart Metering Solutions used so far to improve field operation of systems are based on ● Optimized metering network design with selection of suitable metering and communication technology. ● Remote Metering Monitoring (RMM) which consists basically in the continuous monitoring of pertinent flow and sensor process data which are made available in real time historian data base. ● Use of customized software tools ranging from business routines for routine follow up of metering systems and sensors to advanced software for overall verification and validation of like data validation and reconciliation (DVR) ● Collaborative work in Smart Metering Room (SMR) putting together experts, site specialists, data users and suppliers to quickly trouble shoot systems Examples of Remote Metering Monitoring and Smart Metering Room applications used by TOTAL for surveillance of multiphase metering systems located in different units worldwide with limited access are presented. In addition to significant improvement on metering performance and data quality, implementation of Smart Metering is associated with cost reduction and more efficient way of working / solving problems.


An innovative high precision optical focus probe has been developed to measure the grating pitches. This probe uses characteristics of FES (focus error signal) of the modified DVD pickup head. Experimental tests showed the linear range of FES of this probe to the gratings was 5μm, the resolution was less than 1nm, the time stability was 5nm in 10 minutes, and positioning repeatability was better than 12nm. This system was applied to measure the grating pitch of 1200 lines per 1mm. The quality of the grating was assessed by the average of sampled pitches and its standard deviation. The inspected results can be an index to improve the process control of the grating fabrication.


In a continuously expanding wireless world, the number of radio systems increases every day and efficient spectrum usage becomes a more significant requirement. Ultra-wideband (UWB) and cognitive radio are two exciting technologies that offer new approaches to the spectrum usage. The main objective of this paper is to shed the first light on the marriage of these two important approaches. The strength of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) based UWB in co-existing with licensed systems is investigated. The opportunity concept is defined, and the requirements of the opportunistic spectrum usage are explained. It is proposed to take the UWB-OFDM from the current underlay implementation, and evolve it to a combined underlay and opportunistic spectrum usage technology, leading to cognitive UWB-OFDM. This way, we aim at making UWB more competitive in the wireless market with extended range, higher capacity, better performance, and a wide variety of applications.


Background Protease inhibitors for the treatment of HCV can cause mild and reversible elevations of unconjugated bilirubin. We sought to characterize genetic determinants of bilirubin elevations using a genome-wide approach among patients with genotype 1 HCV who received combination therapy that included GS-9256, a novel potent inhibitor of HCV NS3 serine protease, as part of a Phase IIb trial. Methods Of the 200 patients sampled, 176 had confirmed European ancestry and were included in the analysis. Infinium HumanOmni5BeadChip (Illumina, Inc., San Diego, CA, USA) was used for genotyping. A categorical analysis of low (grade 0–1) versus high (grade 2–4) bilirubin toxicity grade and a quantitative trait locus mapping of peak bilirubin concentrations was performed. Results A total of 4,466,809 genetic markers were analysed. No single variant showed a statistically significant association with observed bilirubin elevations in this patient population. In a targeted analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms in genes known to be involved in bilirubin transport, no significant differences in allele frequency between high and low bilirubin toxicity grade were observed. Conclusions These results indicate that risk for bilirubin elevation in patients receiving GS-9256 is unlikely to be strongly influenced by common genetic variants with large effects. The current study cannot rule out a role for common variants of weak effect, or a more complex model, including multiple contributing factors, such as rare variants and as yet unidentified environmental influences.


An efficient and green approach for the sp3 C–H bond functionalization of 2-methyl azaarenes to 3-methyl-4-nitro-5-styrylisoxazoles in water has been described. Nitrostyrylisoxazoles were proven to be good CC electrophilic acceptors for the construction of various azaarene-containing Michael addition products. This method provides an efficient and environmentally benign method for the one-pot synthesis of biologically important azaarene-substituted isoxazole derivatives in good yields. The important aspects of the present methodology are the use of non-toxic solvent, that it is catalyst free, the ease of purification and the large substrate scope.


Herpesviruses are large DNA viruses that are highly abundant within their host populations. Even in the presence of a healthy immune system, these viruses manage to cause lifelong infections. This persistence is partially mediated by the virus entering latency, a phase of infection characterized by limited viral protein expression. Moreover, herpesviruses have devoted a significant part of their coding capacity to immune evasion strategies. It is believed that the close coexistence of herpesviruses and their hosts has resulted in the evolution of viral proteins that specifically attack multiple arms of the host immune system. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) play an important role in antiviral immunity. CTLs recognize their target through viral peptides presented in the context of MHC molecules at the cell surface. Every herpesvirus studied to date encodes multiple immune evasion molecules that effectively interfere with specific steps of the MHC class I antigen presentation pathway. The transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) plays a key role in the loading of viral peptides onto MHC class I molecules. This is reflected by the numerous ways herpesviruses have developed to block TAP function. In this review, we describe the characteristics and mechanisms of action of all known virus-encoded TAP inhibitors. Orthologs of these proteins encoded by related viruses are identified, and the conservation of TAP inhibition is discussed. A phylogenetic analysis of members of the family Herpesviridae is included to study the origin of these molecules. In addition, we discuss the characteristics of the first TAP inhibitor identified outside the herpesvirus family, namely, in cowpox virus. The strategies of TAP inhibition employed by viruses are very distinct and are likely to have been acquired independently during evolution. These findings and the recent discovery of a non-herpesvirus TAP inhibitor represent a striking example of functional convergent evolution.


Knowledge of genetic diversity (GD) and relationships among maize inbred lines is indispensable in a breeding program. Our objectives were to (1) investigate the level of genetic diversity among maize inbred lines and (2) assess their genetic structures by applying simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Fifty-six highland and mid-altitude maize inbred lines obtained from CIMMYT programs in Ethiopia and Zimbabwe were genotyped using 27 SSR loci. All of the genotypes studied could unequivocally be distinguished with the combination of the SSRs used. In total, 104 SSR alleles were identified, with a mean of 3.85 alleles per locus. The average polymorphism information content (PIC) was 0.58. GD expressed as Euclidean distance, varied from 0.28 to 0.73 with an average of 0.59. Cluster analysis using unweighted pair group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA) suggested five groups among the inbred lines. Most of the inbred lines adapted to the highlands and the mid-altitudes were positioned in different clusters with a few discrepancies. The pattern of groupings of the inbred lines was mostly consistent with available pedigree information. The variability detected using SSR markers could potentially contribute towards effective utilization of the inbred lines for the exploitation of heterosis and formation of genetically diverse source populations in Ethiopian maize improvement programs.


Membrane fouling leads to increased expenses in the processes in which they are implemented, and this is especially problematic in wastewater treatments. Therefore, fouling minimization and control represents the key to make those processes feasible. In the present paper, a review on the results of fouling control by the critical and threshold flux theories, focusing on olive mill wastewater coming from Spain (OMW-S) and Italy (OMW-I), is briefly covered. In first place, adequate fouling inhibition methods should be designed upstream the membrane operation, in order to make the downstream membrane processes for wastewater treatment technically and economically feasible. The followed strategy allows the operation of the membranes system in a controlled framework that permits the stable operation of the plant. Moreover, the calculated membrane area upon the adoption of feed control (FC) resulted in a requirement for the OMW-S stream of 74.2 and 50.3 m2 for the UF and NF membranes, respectively, whilst 113.1 and 49.7 m2 would be required for the treatment of the OMW-I stream. This also minimizes the membrane plant design, avoiding the common over-dimension wrongly estimated by engineers in order to guarantee sufficient operating autonomy to conduct the process that makes it unfeasible.


This study assessed small-scale maize farmers' knowledge and perception on the use of improved postharvest storage technologies in Kilolo District, Tanzania. The participants of the study include 260 farmers who were randomly selected from four villages. Data were collected by using interview schedule, questionnaire, Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and personal observation. Descriptive statistics such as means, frequencies, and percentages were computed. The study found that majority of respondents had low knowledge on the use of improved postharvest storage technologies. However, majority of the respondents had positive attitudes towards the use of improved postharvest technologies. It is recommended that Kilolo District Council and other development partners should promote the use of improved post-harvest technologies to reduce maize post-harvest losses; develop training programs on capacity building of extension officers and farmers on postharvest handling of maize and ensure that maize postharvest storage technologies are made available to farmers at a subsidized price.

 Key words: Maize farmers, knowledge, perception, postharvest storage technologies, Kilolo.


This paper reports on a major project in applied digital image processing systems engineering. The project is referred to as the TreeScan project and is concerned with the on-site, precision, non-contact measurement of a range of features including the volume and form of growing pine trees. In New Zealand, a typical mature plantation forest pine tree is over 35 m tall and 0.5 m in diameter at the base, the terrain is also rough and rugged. In 1996 each mature tree was worth about NZ$300 which is equivalent to about 130 pounds sterling. Following a brief background to the commissioning of the project, the initial system specifications are reviewed. A description of the TreeScan system as finally engineered is followed by more detailed consideration of aspects of the system and its calibration and evaluation.


Based upon the 20-years experience of the clinic of field surgery of the Military Medical Academy with treatment of critical mechanical injuries the authors propose to differentiate concepts "injury" and "trauma" and hence the ideas of "severity of injury", "severity of the state" and "severity of trauma". It is expedient to use concepts of "isolated", "multiple", "associated" traumas instead of non concrete ideas of "polytrauma" which is correct but for determination of critical associated traumas. Definitions of such concepts as "consequences of trauma" and "complications of trauma", "trauma disease" and "trauma shock" are given.


An investor is estimating net present value of a firm project and performs risk analysis. Usually it is created portfolio hierarchies and make comparison of variants of project based on these hierarchies. Then one finds that portfolio which corresponds to the particular needs of individual groups within the firm. We have formulated a new type of NPV analysis based on the fact that normal distribution of NPV is observed for some projects in some industries. The expected risk of the project is given by variance, in which there is σ n the standard deviation of the year n cash flow, σ I the standard deviation of the investment I in the time zero, ρ I,n the correlation coefficient of the year n cash flow deviation from the average and of the investment I at time zero deviation from the mean investment at time zero, ρ n,n the correlation coefficient of the year n cash flow deviation from the average and of the year n cash flow deviation from the average. The aim function of the investor into the project was found. The investor is characterized by the constant A. The larger constant A the larger preference is given to the project NPV and the larger acceptable risk of the project, and vice versa. We have found that there are contributions in which we have the aim-function-like contribution to the aim function, which is discounted and in which the risk of the n-th year risk is discounted in the second order. Further there is aim-function-like contribution to the aim-function which comes from the initial investment I and its risk σ 2 I .


A negative correlation between die yield and cycle time is frequently hypothesized for semiconductor wafer fabrication. Methods that aggregate die yield and cycle time statistics over time are shown to exaggerate correlation coefficients. A lot-by-lot analysis of die yield and cycle time data from four volume manufacturing facilities is performed. The results indicate that the correlation coefficient is often statistically insignificant. Where the correlation coefficient is significant, outlying data points are checked for assignable causes and removed pending proper explanation. In addition, statistical models regressing die yield on cycle time are poor, and thus should not be used as the basis of decision-making in production control.


This is the first book to offer an overview of the ways in which the sweeping social and economic changes of the modern period have impacted on the education system. Roy Lowe draws on estensive research to paint a vivid picture of the ways in which schools and universities were moulded by external events and of the part they played in promoting modernisation of society. The book explores some key themes: * the nature of the economic transformations taking place; * the growing awareness of gender issues; * the changing ethnic composition of modern Britain; * the bureaucratisation of society and the rise of a new politics. Exploring the links between these issues and educational provision, Lowe argues that the growing political significance of educational issues is largely explained by the critical part played by the education system in providing social and economic stability during these years of swift social change. Roy Lowe is Professor of Education at the University of Wales, Swansea.


Abstract Context Osteopathic Principles and Practice (OPP), including osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is the core foundation of the education provided by osteopathic medical schools. Multiple studies performed over the past 25 years have demonstrated that a dwindling number of osteopathic physicians utilize OMT in their practice, despite 95% of osteopathic family physicians perceiving OMT as an effective treatment modality. Objectives The objective of this study is to quantify how often OMT is being performed by residents in an osteopathically recognized family medicine training clinic and to identify the perceived barriers to performing OMT. Methods Fifteen family medicine residents were given access to an anonymous written survey for three 2 week periods. The survey allowed them to input the total number of patient encounters for their half clinic day, the encounters in which OMT was perceived to be appropriate, the encounters in which OMT was performed, and the reasoning for encounters in which OMT was not performed. Surveys were collected anonymously, and data were input into a datasheet in which results were calculated. Results A total of 101 survey responses were collected for a total of 304 patient encounters. OMT was performed in 5/304 (1.6%) encounters, yet it was perceived to be appropriate in 60/304 (19.7%) encounters. The primary documented reason that OMT was deferred was due to time constraints (42/50 responses, or 70.0% of the encounters in which OMT was deemed appropriate). Conclusions This study highlights time as the main reason OMT is deferred by residents in a teaching clinic. This provides insight into potential interventions in a training clinic to increase the use of OMT by family medicine residents.


The solar flux incident on a volumetric receiver is inherently unsteady, resulting in high thermal stresses, fatigue failures and reduced component life. The knowledge of transient response characteristics of a porous volumetric receiver used in concentrating solar technologies is cardinal for its reliable and safe working. The dynamic controlling of the solar-to-thermal conversion process is also possible with the prior prediction of the output variations. The present study aims to investigate the transient behaviour of a porous volumetric receiver subjected to flux variations approximations occurring in real working scenarios with the help of a coupled transient model. The solid and fluid temperature fields, output fluid temperature and pressure drop variations are determined for transient flux conditions during start-up, shut-down, clear sky, and cloud passage. The results are used to analyze the thermal response of the receiver during various operating conditions. In addition, the effects of structural parameters of the porous absorber are also investigated. The results indicate that the receiver transient performance is comparatively more affected by the variation in porosity than in pore size for all conditions. Smaller porosities and pore sizes show slower thermal response to transient fluctuations and less temperature changes during cloud passage. Conversely, higher values help in the faster restoration of the steady-state output conditions without dynamic control.


Modem wireless sensor networks require specific and high degree of security due to their limitation and versatility tasks. The absence of permanent infrastructure makes these networks suitable for many civilian applications. But their limited computational ability and battery resources restrictions makes them vulnerable to many kinds of attacks. This paper presents reliability in Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) information transmition, which can be used to exactly estimate the system working quality. The WSN reliability mathematical calculation approach presented in this paper gives insight on how to secure WSN through reliable backbone connectivity, reliable sensor network and data aggregation. Solutions to meet WSN security interconnectivity reliability, network reliability and data aggregation scheme for robust security systems designing also have been introduced.


Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (AChR) are ligand-gated cation channels that are present throughout the nervous system. The muscle AChR mediates transmission at the neuromuscular junction; antibodies against the muscle AChR are the cause of myasthenia gravis. The ganglionic (α3-type) neuronal AChR mediates fast synaptic transmission in sympathetic, parasympathetic, and enteric autonomic ganglia. Impaired cholinergic ganglionic synaptic transmission is one important cause of autonomic failure. Pharmacological enhancement of ganglionic synaptic transmission may be a novel way to improve autonomic function. Ganglionic AChR antibodies are found in patients with autoimmune autonomic ganglionopathy (AAG). Patients with AAG typically present with rapid onset of severe autonomic failure. Major clinical features include orthostatic hypotension, gastrointestinal dysmotility, anhidrosis, bladder dysfunction, and sicca symptoms. Impaired pupillary light reflex is often seen. Like myasthenia, AAG is an antibody-mediated neurological disorder. The disease can be reproduced in experimental animals by active immunization or passive antibody transfer. Patient may improve with plasma exchange treatment or other immunomodulatory treatment. Antibodies from patients with AAG inhibit ganglionic AChR currents. Other phenotypes of AAG are now recognized based on the results of antibody testing. These other presentations are generally associated with lower levels of ganglionic AChR antibodies. A chronic progressive form of AAG may resemble pure autonomic failure. Milder forms of dysautonomia, such as postural tachycardia syndrome, are associated with ganglionic AChR in 10–15% of cases. Since ganglionic synaptic transmission is a common pathway for all autonomic traffic, enhancement of autonomic function through inhibition of acetylcholinesterase is a potential specific therapeutic strategy for autonomic disorders. Increasing the strength of ganglionic transmission can ameliorate neurogenic orthostatic hypotension without aggravating supine hypertension. Recent evidence also suggests a potential role for acetylcholinesterase inhibitors in the treatment of postural tachycardia syndrome.


One of the most important features which e-learning tools and environments must possess within the scope of lifelong learning is self-directed learning, which can be considered as a form of self-learning. The aim of this study was to determine, based on the views and recommendations of experts, interface design principles for the development of educational web interfaces that will support the self-directed learning of adults. This descriptive study was conducted with the contribution of 12 academicians specializing in interface design and self-directed learning. Within the scope of the study, new interfaces features were identified based on an evaluation of the literature on interface designs for self-directed learning, and the views of subject experts. Based on the study results, it was determined that interface designs supporting self-directed learning must possess five basic features, which include being user-directed, ensuring variety, being supported by learning analytics, being motivational, and being sharing-oriented.


OBJECTIVES
Behçet's disease (BD) is an autoimmune/inflammatory disease characterised by abnormal production of proinflammatory cytokines. Interleukin-33 (IL-33) is a novel cytokine of the IL-1 cytokine family that has been recently implicated in several inflammatory and autoimmune diseases and the association of IL-33 with BD has remained unknown. Here we document for the first time, IL-33 level and its association with BD.

METHODS
Serum IL-33 levels were measured in 46 BD patients (20 patients in active stage) and compared to multiple sclerosis (MS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and to healthy controls. In parallel, the transcription factor NF-κB that mediates IL-33 transcription was also measured. IL-33 mRNA was also quantified in freshly isolated PBMCs and in skin biopsies by real-time RT-PCR analysis. IL-6 and IL-17 were measured by ELISA.

RESULTS
Serum IL-33 level was significantly higher in active BD patients [159.65 ± 61.7 pg/mL] compared to inactive BD patients [85.57 ± 21.07 pg/mL] (p<0.0001) and healthy controls [70.03±25.95 pg/mL] (p<0.0001). Active BD patients expressed lower IL-33 levels than the control disease group, RA and MS patients [p=0.00021]. The serum IL-33 level in active BD patients was corroborated by IL-33 mRNA expression in fresh PBMC. Patients with active BD with retinal vasculitis showed the highest serum IL-33 level. We further stimulated cultured PBMCs with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) and ionomycin and macrophages with LPS for 24 h. Following stimulation the levels of IL-33 were increased similarly in PBMC [92.35±24.81 pg/ml] and macrophages [93.10±21.58 pg/ml] in active BD patients compared to healthy controls. NF-κB DNA binding activity was significantly increased in PBMCs of active BD patients particularly in LPS-stimulated macrophages compared to healthy controls. IL-33 mRNA expression in the skin lesions of patients with active BD was significantly increased compared to that in healthy skin biopsies [p=0.00016]. A significant relationship was found between the levels of IL-33 and IL-17 [r=0.533; p=0.0024] and IL-33 and IL-6 [r=0.661, p=0.0015] in 20 active BD patients.

CONCLUSIONS
Elevated IL-33 level in active BD patients was found to correlate with disease activity. Targeting IL-33 should be approached with caution.


Abstract A liquid crystal (LC) cell with alternate self-assembled films containing azobenzene dye as aligning layers was fabricated and photo-induced inplane alignments of nematic LC molecules, 5CB, have been investigated in the cell using the attenuated total reflection (ATR) method. The ATR properties due to excitations of surface plasmon polaritons (SPP) were observed in the LC cell and sensitively changed with irradiation of linearly polarized visible light to the LC cell. The experimental results corresponded well with the calculated shifts at different alignment states. It was evaluated that the LC molecules within the penetration length of the SPP (about 130 nm) were aligned perpendicular to the polarized direction of the irradiation light, and that the tilt angle was almost 0 degree.


Touchscreen technology is on the rise as the new standard in smartphone design. But, the usability of touchscreen is hindered for consumers that lack the physical ability to navigate such devices. Two focus groups were conducted in order to identify specific uses and gratifications that people with visual impairments had when using mobile phones. Additional questions were presented to the participants to determine if touchscreen technology limited access to communication and entertainment. The responses revealed an upward trend in touchscreen smartphone adoption among the participants. These users chose to adopt touchscreen smartphones that had built-in and downloadable assistive features which contributed to user-friendly designs.


Pancreatic cancer (PaC) is immune-quiescent and resistant to single-agent checkpoint inhibitor (CPI). NT-I7 (efineptakin alfa) is the first-in-class long-acting IL-7 that can increase T-cell infiltration in the tumor microenvironment (TME) and may enhance tumor responsiveness to CPI therapy. We hypothesize that the combination of NT-I7 and pembrolizumab may result in enhanced efficacy in CPI-naïve advanced PaC.This is an open-label, phase 2a, study in subjects with relapsed/refractory (R/R) tumors, including CPI-naïve R/R PaC. Subjects received NT-I7 intramuscularly at 1200 µg/kg every 6 weeks (Q6W) plus pembro 200 mg intravenously Q3W. Antitumor activity based on Overall Response Rate (ORR) was assessed by Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) v1.1. Biomarker analyses of peripheral blood and tumor biopsies were performed.As of 15-July-2021, 26 subjects were enrolled in the CPI naïve R/R PaC cohort. Median age 69 years [31–81], ECOG PS 0 (35%), 1 (65%). Twenty-one (81%) subjects had ≥ 2 prior therapies All subjects had metastatic or locally advanced disease at enrollment. The median duration of follow-up was 3.3 months. Among 10 subjects with at least 1 post-treatment tumor assessment, the RECIST1.1-based ORR and disease-control rate (DCR) were 10% and 50%, respectively. One subject with MSS and TMB of 1, achieved a confirmed partial response (cPR) with 65% tumor reduction and drastically improving CA19-9. Treatment-related adverse events (AEs) occurred in 14 (53.8%) subjects, 9 (34.6%) G1–2, 3 (11.5%) G3; 2 (7.7%) G4; no G5 AEs were reported. No subjects discontinued from treatment due to AE. NT-I7 + pembro elicited a significant increase in the peripheral absolute lymphocyte count that peaked at week 3 (>3X from baseline, p<0.0001) and was sustained at least until week 18. CD4+/CD8+ T-cells subsets followed the same response pattern. Importantly, Stem-Cell Memory CD8+ T-cells (TSCM), the potential target for CPI, were markedly increased (>15X, p<0.05) post-study treatment. The CD8+ Effector-to-Treg ratio and plasmatic chemokines (CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL11 and CCL9) were also significantly increased. The cPR subject had enhanced T-cell infiltration in the TME at week 5. Subject's follow-up continues and updated data will be presented.The chemo-free combination of NT-I7 + pembro was well tolerated and showed promising anti-tumor activity in subjects with CPI-naïve R/R PaC. Increased TSCM and CD8+ T-cell infiltration within TME may be the underlying mechanisms of action for the observed efficacy. These results support continued evaluation of NT-I7 + pembro in subjects with CPI-naïve R/R PaC.The authors thank ICON for their partnership in conducting this trial.NCT04332653The trial was approved by MD Anderson IRB (#2020–0008_MOD001), Mary Crowley IRB (#20–13) and Advarra IRB (#Pro00042639)All participant gave informed consent prior to study enrollment.


Land degradation is one of the most serious problems facing resource-poor tropical hillside farmers. Studies examining determinants of farmers' decisions to invest in land improvement technologies have focused on economic and financial factors, neglecting individuals' perceptions and awareness of the problems and how they affect land use and behavioral change that enhance environmental sustainability. This study examines Haitian peasants' environmental behavior structure using a structural equation modeling approach. Specifically, the study examines the effects of perceived susceptibility, seriousness, benefits, and barriers to change on attitude, and the causal effect of attitude on behavior. The influence of the level of resources extracted from the land per capita on perceptions, attitude, and behavior is examined. Results show that Haitian peasants' attitudes toward the environment are significantly affected by their perceived susceptibility and severity of land degradation. The path coefficients linking perceived susceptibility, severity, and benefits to attitude are 0.49 (t=5.43) and 0.21 (t=3.78), respectively. A positive attitude toward the environment seems to cause a greater inclination to behavioral change. The coefficient from attitude to behavior is 0.21 (t=3.81). The results indicate that agricultural productivity significantly shapes hillside farmers' perceptions of susceptibility to and severity of land degradation. Per capita resource extraction significantly affects people's perceptions of the benefits of good environmental quality and the barriers to behavioral change.


type="main"> This paper examines whether the audit committee members of a board improve financial reporting quality if they are also on their organisation's compensation committee. Audit committees are responsible for overseeing the financial reporting process of organisations and have been urged to broaden their understanding of business risk and of the incentives provided by their firms' executive compensation structures. Acknowledging the interrelationships among executive compensation, risk-taking and financial reporting quality, members of audit and compensation committees have been advocating more information sharing between the two committees. Using archival data from a sample of Australian Stock Exchange listed companies, and discretionary accruals as a proxy for financial reporting quality, this study finds that firms with overlapping committees have better quality financial reporting than those without such an overlap. Our evidence for this is stronger in cases where managers tend to manage earnings upwards in order to meet or beat earnings benchmarks. We also find that the beneficial effect of the existence of overlapping committees is adversely affected by the equity holdings of directors with overlapping memberships.


The primary subject of this dissertation is practically solving instances of the Boolean satisfiability problem (SAT) that arise from industrial applications. The invention of the conflict-driven clause-learning (CDCL) algorithm led to enormous progress in this field. CDCL has been augmented with effective pre- and inprocessing techniques that boost its effectiveness. While a considerable amount of work has been done on applying shared-memory parallelism to enhance the performance of CDCL, solving SAT on distributed architectures is studied less thoroughly.

In this work, we develop a distributed, CDCL-based framework for SAT solving. This framework consists of three main components: 1. An implementation of the CDCL algorithm that we have written from scratch, 2. a
novel, parallel SAT algorithm that builds upon this CDCL implementation and 3. a collection of parallel simplification techniques for SAT instances. We call our resulting framework satUZK; our parallel solving algorithm is called the distributed divide-and-conquer (DDC) algorithm.

The DDC algorithm employs a parallel lookahead procedure to dynamically partition the search space. Load balancing is used to ensure that all computational resources are utilized during lookahead. This procedure results in a divide-and-conquer tree that is distributed over all processors. Individual threads are routed through this tree until they arrive at unsolved leaf vertices. Upon arrival, the lookahead procedure is invoked again or the leaf vertex is solved via CDCL. Several extensions to the DDC algorithm are proposed. These include clause sharing and a scheme to locally adjust the LBD score relative to the current search tree vertex. LBD is a measure for the usefulness of clauses that participate in a CDCL search. We evaluate our DDC algorithm empirically and benchmark it against the best distributed SAT algorithms. In this experiment, our DDC algorithm is faster than other distributed, state-of-the-art solvers and solves at least as many instances.

In addition to running a parallel algorithm for SAT solving we also consider parallel simplifcation. Here, we first develop a theoretical foundation that allows us to prove the correctness of parallel simplification techniques. Using this as a basis, we examine established simplification algorithms for their parallelizability. It turns out that several well-known simplification techniques can be parallelized efficiently. We provide parallel implementation of the techniques and test their effectiveness in empirical experiments. This evaluation finds several combinations of simplification techniques that can solve instances which could not be solved by the DDC algorithm alone.


Novel technologies for creating three-dimensional constructs with complex shapes would be highly useful in tissue engineering. In the present study, tubular structures were constructed using magnetic force. Magnetite nanoparticles in cationic liposomes were taken up by target cells. The magnetically labeled cells were seeded onto ultralow-attachment plates, and a magnet was placed under the wells. After 24 h of culture, the magnetically labeled cells formed a cell sheet. Subsequently, when a cylindrical magnet was rolled onto the cell sheet, the cell sheet was attracted to the magnet and formed a tube around it. The magnet was then removed, leaving behind a tubular structure. Two types of tissue were used to create tubular structures: urinary tissue, consisting of a monotypic urothelial cell layer; and vascular tissue, consisting of heterotypic layers of endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, and fibroblasts. The present results suggest that this novel methodology using magnetite nanoparticles and magnetic force, which we have termed "magnetic force-based tissue engineering" (Mag-TE), is a promising approach to constructing tissue-engineered tubular structures.


Disproportionately high rates of mortality and severe disease experienced by African Americans during this COVID-19 pandemic have been reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Initial characteristic data from 14 states identified 18 percent of overall COVID-19 patients and 33 percent of all those hospitalized from March 1 to March 28 as black.[i] However, this report is missing data from the majority of states. Policymakers and medical experts have called for states and cities to provide greater transparency and more demographic data on patients' racial and ethnic profiles.[ii] The COVID-19 racial disparity highlights a growing problem: Artificial intelligence (AI) may play a role in deepening racial health disparities in this country. AI is increasingly being utilized in healthcare settings to improve patient outcomes by using big data to inform clinical decision making. Like in many industries outside of healthcare, AI has the potential to revolutionize the current healthcare delivery system. The technological paradigm shift creates concerns with the gender and racial inequalities that these advancements may perpetuate. Specifically, I am troubled by the lack of oversight in formulating the algorithms used in AI and the sources and quality of the data sets. This essay focuses on the potential of AI to further entrench racial disparities in healthcare delivery and patient outcomes throughout healthcare institutions in this country.
Racial biases have historically pervaded medical education and research institutions and are perpetuated by systemic racism. However, there is a shift toward improving "structural competency" to include social and economic influences on healthcare decision making in an effort to broaden our approach to race and culture; this should be extended to the development of AI applications in healthcare. Racial biases have impacted medical treatment and research as well as the code formulation for predictor algorithms already being used in health systems. Understanding the biases that would skew AI, like narrow, unrepresentative data with a lack of female and minority research participants, should be important to all stakeholders.
The significant consequences and risks of systemic racism in medicine are often overlooked. For example, most commercial spirometers, the tool used to assess lung capacity and diagnose respiratory diseases, have "race correction" built into their software. This demonstrates the fraught history of racism in healthcare and unconscious bias in modern healthcare delivery. Thomas Jefferson, in the slavery-based republic, was the first to speculate about racial differences in lung capacity. Samuel Cartwright, who in addition to being a physician, was a plantation owner and slaveholder, built his own spirometer with the support of Thomas Jefferson. Benjamin Gould, also supported by Thomas Jefferson, performed a large anthropometric survey during the Civil War and dedicated an entire chapter to lung capacity of soldiers in the Civil War based on their race. Gould's analysis took no other factors into consideration, but like Cartwright found that "Whites" had higher lung capacities than "Full Blacks."[iii] Fast forward to the late 20th century, to an asbestos lawsuit in Baltimore in 1999. The attorney for the defendant, an asbestos manufacturer, requested that "race correction" be applied before compensation be sought for a Black plaintiff. Medical textbooks perpetuated this falsehood, citing an innate difference in lung capacity and function based on race.
Considering these examples of institutionalized racism in the history of healthcare it becomes clear that AI systems, i.e., algorithms are built on large quantities of data which inherently may contain less overt institutionalized racism and could therefore perpetuate racial bias. "Objective" computational methods can easily provide a false sense of partiality for practice standards.[iv]
An article by Obermeyer et al. in Science titled "Dissecting racial bias in an algorithm used to manage the health of populations," found that the algorithm for a widely used risk assessment tool was significantly racially biased. This commercial algorithm, though unnamed in the study, is used by many health systems throughout the United States. It identifies patients who have complex medical needs for "high-risk care management" programs. The ultimate goal is to allocate resources in a cost-effective manner. This algorithm is often deemed by health systems as "the cornerstone of population health management efforts…improving outcomes and satisfaction while reducing costs." Many health systems rely on it to identify individuals who will benefit most from additional medical resources.[v] The researchers found that at a certain risk score, Black patients are considerably sicker than White patients, and when correcting for this disparity, the number of Black patients identified as needing extra care would increase from 17.7 percent to 46.5 percent. Obermeyer and colleagues examined the inputs and outputs of the algorithm as well as the outcome data. They investigated how the algorithm was formed to ultimately reveal the mechanism that caused the racial disparity embedded in this risk assessment tool.
The central flaw perpetuating racial disparities in this algorithm was found to be what is known in data science as the "problem formulation" (which in this case, equates healthcare costs to health care needs).  Black patients spend less on healthcare due to structural barriers, discrimination, and distrust, all of which are well-documented issues. Therefore, the use of healthcare cost to predict healthcare needs in the algorithm perpetuates racial disparity. Relying on the algorithm to determine necessary care leads to Black patients receiving fewer services. The algorithm has a circular component: Black people forgoing necessary care in the past is used to predict they need less care in the present or future. Obermeyer et al. used different predictor variables which diminished the disparity. The unnamed manufacturer said it would consider this finding in future rounds of algorithm development. This research shows that the use of AI presents serious ethical breaches. The research was made possible because researchers had access to how the algorithm was formed. The algorithm "black box" relies on quality representative data and accurate predictor variables.[vi]
It is imperative that the quality of data is representative of the actual population and takes into account the multitude of factors that contribute to, and significantly impact, health outcomes. While we will need counter-bias algorithm tests to correct for subtle systemic discrimination, we also need greater emphasis and training on institutionalized racism in medicine. AI as a tool could deepen and perpetuate racial bias if racial historical contexts are not considered in the construction and testing of the algorithms.[vii] Data sets must include minority and marginalized populations with attention to historical biases as well. Lastly, a concerted effort must be made to increase the diversity of AI engineers so the tools being developed do not merely represent the backgrounds and needs of select groups. This new frontier of AI in health care demands even greater regulatory oversight and concerted efforts to address the issues of implicit biases.
[i] Garg, Shikha, Lindsay Kim, Michael Whitaker, Alissa O'Halloran, Charisse Cummings, Rachel Holstein, Mila Prill, et al. Hospitalization Rates and Characteristics of Patients Hospitalized with Laboratory-Confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 — Covid-Net, 14 States, March 1–30, 2020. Center For Disease Control and Prevention (ePublished: April 8 2020).
[ii] Eligon, John, Audra  Burch, Dionne  Searcey, and Richard Oppel. "Black Americans Face Alarming Rates of
Coronavirus Infections in Some States." New York Times, April 7 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/07/us/coronavirus-race.html
[iii] Lujan, Heidi L., and Stephen E. DiCarlo. "Science Reflects History as Society Influences Science: Brief History of "Race," "Race Correction," and the Spirometer." Advances in Physiology Education 42, no. 2 (2018): 163-65. https://doi.org/10.1152/advan.00196.2017
https://journals.physiology.org/doi/abs/10.1152/advan.00196.2017
[iv] Yu, Kun-Hsing, and Isaac Kohane. "Framing the Challenges of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine." [In eng]. BMJ Qual Saf 28, no. 3 (Mar 2019): 238-41. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjqs-2018-008551
[v] Obermeyer, Ziad, Brian Powers, Christine Vogeli, and Sendhil Mullainathan. "Dissecting Racial Bias in an Algorithm Used to Manage the Health of Populations." Science 366, no. 6464 (2019): 447-53. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aax2342. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/366/6464/447.full.pdf
[vi] Obermeyer, Ziad, Brian Powers, Christine Vogeli, and Sendhil Mullainathan. "Dissecting Racial Bias in an Algorithm Used to Manage the Health of Populations." Science 366, no. 6464 (2019): 447-53. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aax2342. https://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/366/6464/447.full.pdf
[vii] Khullar, Dhruv. "A.I. Could Worsen Health Disparities." New York Times, Jauary 3 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/31/opinion/ai-bias-healthcare.html


Electronics developed for a whole body counting system analyze the pulse heights of signals from both the sodium iodide (NaI(Tl)) and cesium iodide (CsI(Na)) crystals of a phoswich scintillation detector. Pulse shape discrimination is used to determine the origin of the scintillation, NaI or CsI, while rejecting coincident Compton-scattered events and photomultiplier tube noise. Both energy spectra are accumulated simultaneously in separate memory quadrants of a multichannel analyzer. The system allows for low-energy (5 keV - 125 keV) x-ray analysis from the NaI(Tl) crystal and high-energy (100 keV - 2.5 MeV) x-ray or ?-ray analysis from the CsI(Na) crystal. The discrimination system is better than 95% efficient over both energy ranges, with a low-energy (12-24keV) shielded background count of less than 2 cpm for a single 5-in.-diam phoswich detector. This system thus extends the detector's normal energy range by more than an order of magnitude.