Taxation is only sustainable if the general public complies with it. This observation is uncontroversial with tax practitioners but has been ignored by the public finance tradition, which has interpreted tax constitutions as binding contracts by which the power to tax is irretrievably conferred by individuals to government, which can then levy any tax it chooses. However, in the absence of an outside party enforcing contracts between members of a group, no arrangement within groups can be considered to be a binding contract, and therefore the power to tax must be sanctioned by individuals on an ongoing basis. In this paper we offer, for the first time, a theoretical analysis of this fundamental compliance problem associated with taxation, obtaining predictions that in some cases point to a re-interpretation of the theoretical constructions of the public finance tradition while in others call them into question.


Current robotic systems in surgery are telemanipulators, but the future will likely be more automated. Past and current developments literally put the robotic system at the center of the action, and force the surgical team to adapt to it. In addition to important advantages of robotic surgery, empirical studies identify serious disadvantages in sensory perception and team communication, leading to decreased situational awareness among the surgeon and the team. We therefore raise two interrelated questions: Which actors of a surgical team should be part of a controlled, semi-automated robotic assistance and how should the collaborative interaction between the actors (including the robot) be designed. Previous research has examined the situation awareness in robotic-assisted surgeries with bedside assistant, being either residents or specifically trained registered nurse first assistants, with advantages of one over the other. We built on this work by observing for the first time robotic-assisted surgeries with highly experienced bedside assistants, senior surgeons. We found that a senior surgeon in this role excelled once again, for example, through lively medical discussions and independent problem solving, and was more likely to give us clues about a thoughtful development of semi-autonomous, collaborative surgical robots. These new insights will form the basis for subsequent interviews in which surgical teams will reflect on their expectations of the robotic agency. Our overarching goal is then to translate the results into new user interface designs for robotic surgery through repeated cycles of participatory design workshops and expert evaluations.


In recent years most Nordic nuclear power plants have implemented so called human performance programmes. The programmes typically apply predefined human performance tools (HU tools) to maximize failure free operations by preventing human errors. Despite the prominence of human performance programmes, there is little research on the basic premises behind them and the concrete beneficial effects from using HU tools remain elusive. This document describes the intermediate results of a Nordic research project HUMAX which aims at providing knowledge of the impacts of the human performance programmes and to support the designing and implementing effective HU tools. The focus is on maintenance activities. In 2013 HUMAX project carried out three case studies in Nordic NPP maintenance organisations and studied the expected and experienced benefits of HU tools. Furthermore HUMAX disseminated an international survey to human performance experts around the world to gain more insight into the motives, benefits and disadvantages of the programmes. The study is ongoing and the results presented in this report are preliminary. The results show that often the espoused goal of a human performance programme is to prevent events by reducing errors. However, the interviews indicate that maintenance personnel associate many other benefits to the HU tools than reduced number of events. Smooth execution of work tasks, less rework and smaller occupational injury risk were often mentioned as practical benefits. The benefits also included indirect safety improvements: more rigorous work practices and shared knowledge on work tasks and risks. Many of the practices have been used at the Nordic plants for a long time and there were questions why they are now labelled as HU tools and promoted with a programme. Despite of that, maintenance personnel held fairly positive view on the HU tools. However, a common opinion was that using the HU tools may require a lot of time. Further, strong focus on the tools may decrease the focus on tasks itself and impair the workers attention or judgement. In the Nordic plants HU tools were also sometimes perceived as awkward, and feelings of shame and blame may occur. Thus, the results highlight the importance of the implementation process, the way the HU tools are argued and promoted in the organisations.


It has been shown that transparent SrAl2O4–SrAl2Si2O8 ceramics can be synthesized from glasses by complete crystallization. This article features three tectosilicate (SrO/Al2O3 = 1) glasses in the system Sr1−x/2Al2−xSixO4 with decreasing amounts of SiO2 (x = 0.9, 0.7 and 0.5), i.e. with an increasing amount of SrO. The glasses are doped with Eu and produced via aerodynamic levitation coupled to laser-heating. Further application of the appropriate single-step heat treatment leads to the complete and congruent crystallization of these glasses via surface nucleation and subsequent crystal growth into the bulk. Bulk nucleation does not occur. Analysing the resulting transparent ceramics by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows that these visually very similar materials exhibit very different microstructures. All three materials show oriented nucleation but the orientations preferred during nucleation never prevail during growth into the bulk where these materials show strong crystallographic textures, i.e. they are highly oriented. A previously unknown monoclinic phase with the composition Sr0.55Al1.1Si0.9O4 is detected at the immediate surface of the corresponding glass after crystallization.


For over a century, Yellowstone National Park has been a monument to wildness in America. But long before flames swept through Yellowstone in 1988, that wildness had come under fire from encroachments that were making the park one of our nation's most commodified pieces of real estate. For as long as they've existed, parks like Yellowstone have been the scene of some of the most intensive commercial activity in the American West. Selling Yellowstone recounts the story of such activities in our oldest park from the 1870s through the 1960s. It is the first book to examine critically the place of business in the development of America's national parks, demonstrating the prominent role played by profit-driven entrepreneurs in shaping the physical landscape of what is generally perceived as unaltered wilderness. Challenging popular perceptions that our national parks are protected from commercialism, Mark Barringer reveals how businessmen, with the support of the National Park Service, marketed Yellowstone as a museum of mythology: a landscape created to look like what Americans wanted to believe the Old West once was. Together, the NPS and the concessionaires - particularly Harry W. Child's Yellowstone Park Company - altered the park repeatedly to fit a desired image and then creatively promoted it for mass consumption. As a result, the concessionaires virtually owned Yellowstone, selling it piecemeal to receptive customers as if it were an inexhaustible commodity. First marketed as a nature museum to be viewed from the comfort of stagecoach seats or hotel room windows, the park was transformed from a wilderness preserve to a series to roadside attractions. Roads were built to geysers and waterfalls; wolves were eliminated and bison were bred; visitors were given a choice between comfortable hotels and more rustic lodges and camps. The Yellowstone Park Company sought to meet all of the public's expectations, reaping the profits from satisfying American idealizations. Contemporary environmental attitudes eventually forced significant policy changes in the parks, but shifting political winds continue to determine such matters as snowmobile access to Yellowstone. Barringer's book contributes to the ongoing debate over the character and limits of the social construction of nature as it raises important questions about what our national parks represent, why so many people continue to feel so strongly about them, and what must be done to protect them.


This is the second article in a two-part series investigating solder connection failures associated with BGA packages. Part I, in the February 2017 issue of EDFA, examines various cases of open and short circuit failures, discusses the formation of voids, and explains how to reveal important clues by grinding away the BGA package. Part II continues the analysis of voids and focuses in on failures due to circuit board faults. In such cases, the board is ground away from the backside, stopping just short of the first inner copper layer. The alignment of the two uppermost copper layers, the integrity of microvias, and other potential problems are then examined using polarized light which readily passes through the remaining resin and fibers. As the examples in the article show, this approach can reveal a wide range of manufacturing defects in PCBs.


Nevus comedonicus is a rare developmental abnormality of the infundibulum of the hair follicle. It is usually unilateral and commonly presents at birth or during childhood. A rare case of late-onset, bilateral nevus comedonicus of the eyelids is reported. A 79-year-old man presented with asymptomatic but disfiguring eyelid lesions noted several months earlier. On physical examination, multiple papules resembling comedones were present bilaterally in the eyelids, canthi, temple regions, and bridge of the nose. Microscopically, there were deep invaginations of the follicular canals forming focal tunnels or pseudosinus tracts with poral openings to the surface. These variably cystic structures were lined by keratinizing and nonkeratinizing squamous epithelium, contained concentric lamellae of keratin in their lumens, and some were acutely or chronically inflamed. The diagnosis of a nevus comedonicus was made. The clinical and histopathologic characteristics, pathogenesis, differential diagnosis, and management of nevus comedonicus are briefly discussed.


Abstract: Confronted with the military advance of the Turkish Ottoman Empire against the Holy Roman Empire, including the siege of Vienna, Martin Luther wrote several treatises on the Turks. Luther rejected the idea of a war in the name of religion against the Ottoman onslaught, seeing instead the defense of the Holy Roman Empire as the duty of the Emperor. Luther understood the Turkish threat as God's punishment for the laxity of Christians and so called for repentance and a return to the gospel. Luther wanted the Christians to have firsthand information about Islam and promoted a translation of the Qur'an in German against many obstacles. The Protestant church in Germany is very cautious about defining a present-day application of Luther's approach.


Based on the working principle and working process of the tire building machine, the spindle model of the tire building machine was established by analyzing the load of the spindle. Utilizing COSMOS to do the FEM analysis, the structural optimization was carried out. The deflection of the spindle determining the precision of the tire should be minimized. Meanwhile, in order to reduce the cost of the spindle, the volume of the spindle should be minimized. In this paper, the weighted coefficient method was applied to solving this multi-objective optimization problem. As no ready-made formula was found for the deflection of the spindle, the following method was adopted. Firstly, the calculation in COSMOS with different values was conducted, and then the curve fitting was finished in MATLAB to get the formula between defection and diameter of bore, and finally the optimization of the volume and defection was achieved.


Objective: Early detection and precise diagnosis of breast cancer (BC) plays an essential part in enhancing the diagnosis and improving the breast cancer survival rate of patients from 30 to 50%. Through the advances of technology in healthcare, deep learning takes a significant role in handling and inspecting a great number of X-ray, MRI, CTR images. The aim of this study is to propose a deep learning model (BCCNN) to detect and classify breast cancers into eight classes: benign adenosis (BA), benign fibroadenoma (BF), benign phyllodes tumor (BPT), benign tubular adenoma (BTA), malignant ductal carcinoma (MDC), malignant lobular carcinoma (MLC), malignant mucinous carcinoma (MMC), and malignant papillary carcinoma (MPC). Methods: Breast cancer MRI images were classified into BA, BF, BPT, BTA, MDC, MLC, MMC, and MPC using a proposed Deep Learning model with additional 5 fine-tuned Deep learning models consisting of Xception, InceptionV3, VGG16, MobileNet and ResNet50 trained on ImageNet database. The dataset was collected from Kaggle depository for breast cancer detection and classification. That Dataset was boosted using GAN technique. The images in the dataset have 4 magnifications (40X, 100X, 200X, 400X, and Complete Dataset). Thus we evaluated the proposed Deep Learning model and 5 pre-trained models using each dataset individually. That means we carried out a total of 30 experiments. The measurement that was used in the evaluation of all models includes: F1-score, recall, precision, accuracy. Results: The classification F1-score accuracies of Xception, InceptionV3, ResNet50, VGG16, MobileNet, and Proposed Model (BCCNN) were 97.54%, 95.33%, 98.14%, 97.67%, 93.98%, and 98.28%, respectively. Conclusion: Dataset Boosting, preprocessing and balancing played a good role in enhancing the detection and classification of breast cancer of the proposed model (BCCNN) and the fine-tuned pre-trained models' accuracies greatly. The best accuracies were attained when the 400X magnification of the MRI images due to their high images resolution.


In the law, emotion is often viewed as extraneous to jury decision-making—either as an unavoidable byproduct of certain types of evidence or an impediment to the decision-making process. Even when the legal system does acknowledge the impact of emotion, it tends to overgeneralize across different types of emotions and legal judgments. Growing consensus in psychological science, however, reveals a much more complicated story. Emotion is not extraneous but rather inextricably intertwined with cognitive decision-making processes and its impact can be very different depending on the type of emotion and the type of legal judgment. The notion that instructing jurors to ignore their feelings will purge emotion from the jury box reflects an oversimplification of human decision-making processes. We describe how experimental methodology within psychological science can shed light on how emotions can affect jurors' decision-making processes, with the goal of developing a more nuanced model of the role that juror emotions play in evidence evaluation and legal decision making.


Introduction Prison settings have been often identified as important but neglected reservoirs for TB. This study was designed to determine the prevalence of undiagnosed pulmonary TB and assess the potential risk factors for such TB cases in prisons of the Tigray region. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted between August 2013 and February 2014 in nine prisons. A standardized symptom-based questionnaire was initially used to identify presumptive TB cases. From each, three consecutive sputum samples were collected for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) microscopy and culture. Blood samples were collected from consented participants for HIV testing. Result Out of 809 presumptive TB cases with culture result, 4.0% (95% CI: 2.65–5.35) were confirmed to have undiagnosed TB. The overall estimated point prevalence of undiagnosed TB was found to be 505/100,000 prisoners (95% CI: 360–640). Together with the 27 patients who were already on treatment, the overall estimated point prevalence of TB would be 793/100,000 prisoners (95% CI: 610–970), about four times higher than in the general population. The ratio of active to passive case detection was 1.18:1. The prevalence of HIV was 4.4% (36/809) among presumptive TB cases and 6.3% (2/32) among undiagnosed TB cases. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, chewing Khat (adjusted OR = 2.81; 95% CI: 1.02–7.75) and having had a close contact with a TB patient (adjusted OR = 2.18; 95% CI: 1.05–4.51) were found to be predictors of undiagnosed TB among presumptive TB cases. Conclusions This study revealed that at least half of symptomatic pulmonary TB cases in Northern Ethiopian prisons remain undiagnosed and hence untreated. The prevalence of undiagnosed TB in the study prisons was more than two folds higher than in the general population of Tigray. This may indicate the need for more investment and commitment to improving TB case detection in the study prisons.


Gender quotas are frequently proposed to address persistent gender imbalances in managerial roles. However, it is unclear how quotas for female managers affect organizations and whether quotas improve or damage relationships between managers and their subordinates. We conduct a representative survey to study opinions on quotas for female managers and based upon design a novel set of experiments to investigate how quotas influence wage setting and effort provision. Our findings reveal that both opinions about gender quotas and workplace behavior crucially depend on the workplace environment. In our survey, we observe that approval for gender quotas is low if women are not disadvantaged in the manager selection process, regardless of whether there are gender differences in performance. Complementing this evidence, we observe in our experiments that quotas lead to lower effort levels and lower wages in such environments. By contrast, in environments in which women are disadvantaged in the selection process, we observe a higher approval of quotas as well as higher effort levels and higher wages. These findings are consistent with the concept of meritocracy and suggest that it is important to evaluate the existence of gender disadvantages in the workplace environment before implementing quotas.


New 238U/235U ratios for uranium-bearing minerals provide a better chronometer for dating geological processes. Uranium is the heaviest naturally occurring element on Earth. It has three natural isotopes (238U, 235U, and 234U), of which 238U and 235U are the parent nuclides of the 238U- and 235U-decay series chains, which ultimately decay to stable isotopes of lead (Pb), thereby forming the basis of the U-Pb chronometer. Conventional theories of stable isotope fractionation have dictated that uranium is too heavy to display resolvable mass-dependent isotope effects. The expectation was that Earth would display homogeneous 238U/235U isotopic compositions. The convention has been to adopt an invariant present-day 238U/235U ratio equal to 137.88 throughout the solar system, on the basis of early studies of uranium ore deposits. This critical assumption, which underpinned the veracity of the U-Pb chronometer for the past 30 years, was overturned by the discovery of surprisingly large 238U/235U variations in Earth's surface environments (1, 2). On page 1610 of this issue, Hiess et al. (3) report the 238U/235U composition of a large suite of U-bearing accessory minerals to facilitate a more accurate U-Pb geochronometer. These new results also provide fundamental but unexpected insights into the mechanisms controlling 238U/235U fractionation.


Normal metabolism is associated with unavoidable mild oxidative stress resulting in biomolecular damage that cannot be totally repaired or removed by cellular degradative systems, including lysosomes, proteasomes, and cytosolic and mitochondrial proteases. Consequently, irreversibly damaged and functionally defective structures (biological 'garbage') accumulate within long-lived postmitotic cells, such as cardiac myocytes and neurons, leading to progressive loss of adaptability and increased probability of death and characterizing a process called aging, or senescence. Intralysosomal 'garbage' is represented by lipofuscin (age pigment), an undegradable autophagocytosed material, while extralysosomal 'garbage' involves oxidatively modified cytosolic proteins, altered biomembranes, defective mitochondria and other organelles. In aged postmitotic cells, heavily lipofuscin-loaded lysosomes perform poorly, resulting in the enhanced accumulation of defective mitochondria, which in turn produce more reactive oxygen species causing additional damage (the mitochondrial-lysosomal axis theory). Potential anti-aging strategies may involve not only overall reduction of oxidative stress, but also the use of intralysosomal iron chelators hampering Fenton-type chemistry as well as the stimulation of cellular degradative systems.


Neuroblastoma (NB), derived from the neural crest (NC), is the most common pediatric extracranial solid tumor. Here we establish a platform that allows studying human NBs in mouse-human NC chimeras. Chimeric mice were produced by injecting human NC cells carrying NB relevant oncogenes in-utero into gastrulating mouse embryos. The mice developed tumors composed of a heterogenous cell population that closely resembled that seen in primary NBs of patients but were significantly different from homogenous tumors formed in xenotransplantation models. The human tumors emerged in immunocompetent hosts and were extensively infiltrated by mouse cytotoxic T cells reflecting a vigorous host anti-tumor immune response. However, the tumors blunted the immune response by inducing infiltration of regulatory T cells and expression of immune checkpoints similar to escape mechanisms seen in human cancer patients. Thus, this experimental platform allows studying human tumor initiation, progression, manifestation and tumor – immune-system interactions in an animal model system.


Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, health education programs and workplace health promotion (WHP) could only be offered under difficult conditions, if at all. In Germany for example, mandatory lockdowns, working from home, and physical distancing have led to a sharp decline in expenditure on prevention and health promotion from 2019 to 2020. At the same time, the pandemic has negatively affected many people's mental health. Therefore, our goal was to examine audiovisual stimulation as a possible measure in the context of WHP, because its usage is contact-free, time flexible, and offers, additionally, voice-guided health education programs. In an online survey following a cross-sectional single case study design with 393 study participants, we examined the associations between audiovisual stimulation and mental health, work engagement, and burnout. Using multiple regression analyses, we could identify positive associations between audiovisual stimulation and mental health, burnout, and work engagement. However, longitudinal data are needed to further investigate causal mechanisms between mental health and the use of audiovisual stimulation. Nevertheless, especially with regard to the pandemic, audiovisual stimulation may represent a promising measure for improving mental health at the workplace.


The Jeryl Lynn (JL) vaccine against mumps virus (MuV) contains two components, MuVJL5 and MuVJL2, which differ by over 400 nt. Due to the occurrence of bias in the direction of mutation, these differences and those found in nucleotide sequences of different isolates of the minor component in the vaccine (MuVJL2) might be due to the effect of ADAR-like deaminases on MuV grown in tissue-cultured cells. A molecular clone of MuVJL2 (pMuVJL2) and MuVJL2-specific helper plasmids were constructed in order to investigate molecular interactions between MuVJL5 and MuVJL2, to augment the existing molecular clone of MuVJL5 (pMuVJL5) and MuVJL5-specific helper plasmids. Genome and mRNA termini of MuVJL2 were characterized, and an unusual oligo-G insertion transcriptional editing event was detected near the F mRNA polyadenylation site of MuVJL2, but not of MuVJL5. Genes encoding glycoproteins of rMuVJL2 and rMuVJL5 have been exchanged to characterize the oligo-G insertion, which associated with the specific sequence of the F gene of MuVJL2 and not with any other genes or the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase of strain MuVJL2. The results indicate that a single G-to-A sequence change obliterates the co-transcriptional editing of the F mRNA and that this oligo-G insertion does not affect the growth of the virus.


Background Intravesical recurrence (IVR) after surgery for upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) is a clinical problem. We investigated if preoperative invasive diagnostic modalities (IDM) such as antegrade/retrograde uretero-pyelography and/or selective urine cytology/barbotage, and URS with or without concomitant biopsy are associated with IVR after radical surgery for UTUC. Risk of death from urothelial cancer and all causes was investigated as secondary outcomes. Methods We investigated a population-based cohort of 1038 consecutive patients subjected to radical surgery for UTUC 2015–2019 in Sweden, using the Bladder Cancer Data Base Sweden (BladderBaSe 2.0), comprising all patients in the Swedish National Registry of Urinary Bladder Cancer. Risk estimates of IVR, death from urothelial cancer, and all causes was assessed using multivariable Cox regression models. Results The study included 536 cases with and 502 without preoperative IDM. IDM was associated with increased risk of IVR (HR 1.24, 95% CI 1.03–1.52) and risk of urothelial cancer death (HR 1.56, CI 1.12–2.18), compared to no IDM after a median follow-up of 1.3 yrs. Stratified analysis for tumor location showed that IDM was associated with risk of IVR in ureteric cancer (HR 1.66, 95% CI 1.21–2.28) but not in renal pelvic cancer (HR 1.07, 95% CI 0.81–1.41). Limitations included the observational setting and the lack of variables such as tumour grade, multifocality and preoperative hydronephrosis. Conclusions Worse outcomes for patients subjected to preoperative IDM highlight the need for carefully considering diagnostic decisions for UTUC patients, specifically in tumours located in the ureter.


OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to determine whether or not developmental potential impacts clinical outcomes, when good grade blastocysts from Days 5 and 6 were transferred in frozen embryo transfer (FET) cycles.

METHODS
654 women, including 460 (70.33%) on Day 5 and 194 (29.66%) on Day 6 were analyzed, in which 905 Day-5 and 274 Day-6 blastocysts were transferred. Only grade AA, AB, BA, BB quality and expansion grade between 3-6 (Gardner grading system) blastocysts survived and were included.

RESULTS
The implantation rate was higher, 41.9% (379/905) in normal Day-5 compared to delayed Day-6 blastocyst transfers - 36.5% (100/274), but not significant (p=0.1). The clinical pregnancy rate was similar and not significant (p=0.4) in normal Day-5 (32.4%), compared to delayed Day-6 (35%). Miscarriage rates were higher in normal Day-5 (13.3%) compared to delayed Day-6 (6.3%) blastocyst transfers but were not significant (p=0.06). On the other hand, the biochemical pregnancy rate was significantly higher (p=0.001) in the delayed Day-6 blastocysts (16.7%) transfer group compared to patients with normal Day-5 (2.4%) blastocyst transfers. Two patients had ectopic pregnancies from the delayed Day-6 blastocyst transfer group. Live-Birth rates were significantly higher in Day-5 blastocysts compared to Day-6 (p=0.03).

CONCLUSIONS
The developmental potential of embryos should not be considered a negative influence on pregnancy outcomes, especially good grade blastocysts vitrified on Days 5 and 6. Fully expanded blastocysts on Day-5 are considered similar in terms of outcomes to delayed Day-6 blastocysts; however, live-birth rates are significantly higher in Day-5 blastocysts.


In this paper, a robust multi-objective model to optimally control the lead time of a complex assembly system is introduced. The system is modeled as an open queue network, whose service stations represent manufacturing or assembly operations. It is assumed that the products arrive independently according to a Poisson process. In each service station, there is either one or infinite number of servers with exponentially distributed processing time. Each service station produces uncertain but limited number of scraps which are independent from the other service stations. The transport times between the service stations are independent random variables with generalized Erlang distribution. Addressing the data uncertainty, the problem is formulated as a robust multi-objective optimal control problem that involves three types of conflicting objective functions. The types of objective functions are the total operating costs of the system per period, the average lead time and the variance of the lead time. Finally, we use the goal attainment method to solve a discretetime approximation of the original problem to obtain the optimal service rates of the problem.


Abstract. Quality meteorological data sources are critical to scientists, engineers, climate assessments and to make climate related decisions. Accurate quantification of reference evapotranspiration (ET0) in irrigated agriculture is crucial for optimizing crop production, planning and managing irrigation, and for using water resources efficiently. Validation of data insures that the information needed is been properly generated, identifies incorrect values and detects problems that require immediate maintenance attention. The Agroclimatic Information Network of Andalusia at present provides daily estimations of ET0 using meteorological information collected by nearly of one hundred automatic weather stations. It is currently used for technicians and farmers to generate irrigation schedules. Data validation is essential in this context and then, diverse quality control procedures have been applied for each station. Daily average of several meteorological variables were analysed (air temperature, relative humidity and rainfall). The main objective of this study was to develop a quality control system for daily meteorological data which could be applied on any platform and using open source code. Each procedure will either accept the datum as being true or reject the datum and label it as an outlier. The number of outliers for each variable is related to a dynamic range used on each test. Finally, geographical distribution of the outliers was analysed. The study underscores the fact that it is necessary to use different ranges for each station, variable and test to keep the rate of error uniform across the region.


In this article we want to depict aspects of mental health as integrating part of human and social health. We would also like to have an insight into the freshman students` knowledge so as to find out their level of knowledge, attitude and mentality towards mental disorders and people suffering from a mental condition. Stigmatization towards people with mental disorders is still common in the social mentality. These attitudes contradict social orientations towards human beings and their interests. Social distance brings about serious consequences upon the professional rehabilitation and reinsertion of this social category. They are regarded as a category facing serious restrictions in terms of human rights. In our study we are trying to identify the freshman students` opinion, attitude, mentality and orientation towards the understanding of such a complex issue like mental disorders. We wish that the future professionals in the field of psychology, psycho-pedagogy, social work and pedagogy became supporters of open and compassionate attitudes towards people with mental disorders. They should turn into advocates that would change the social perception and reduce stigmata.


Hydrodynamic interactions with confining boundaries often lead to drastic changes in the diffusive behaviour of microparticles in suspensions. For axially symmetric particles, earlier numerical studies have suggested a simple form of the near-wall diffusion matrix which depends on the distance and orientation of the particle with respect to the wall, which is usually calculated numerically. In this work, we derive explicit analytical formulae for the dominant correction to the bulk diffusion tensor of an axially symmetric colloidal particle due to the presence of a nearby no-slip wall. The relative correction scales as powers of inverse wall-particle distance and its angular structure is represented by simple functions in sines and cosines of the particle's inclination angle to the wall. We analyse the correction for translational and rotational motion, as well as the translation-rotation coupling. Our findings provide a simple approximation to the anisotropic diffusion tensor near a wall, which completes and corrects relations known from earlier numerical and theoretical findings.


In this paper we present a method for finding the main pathways represented in a set of genes (say obtained from a microarray experiment). The method is based on a fuzzy mapping between genes represented as sets of gene ontology terms and KEGG pathways using a new type of fuzzy rule system called ontological fuzzy rule system (OFRS). As opposed to a crisp mapping, the fuzzy mapping produces a nonzero value even if the gene name is not explicitly listed in a given KEGG pathway. An OFRS is a fuzzy rule system in which the rule memberships are obtained using similarity measures between objects computed based on the gene ontology (GO) annotations. To test our approach, we randomly selected without replacement 10 sets of Arabidopsis thaliana genes from KEGG (each set had 15 genes from 3 different pathways) and tried to predict the pathways they were selected from. Our method was able to find, 90% of the right pathways with a 65% false alarm rate at a p-value of 0.01. The high false alarm rate is due in part to the experimental setting. In a pilot dataset of 526 Arabidopsis thaliana genes we identified 8 clusters which proved to be linked to important pathways such as ATP synthesis and transcription factor


This article presents a new application of parallel robots as underwater vehicles. The article shows the methodology applied in the design process, its modeling and the building of a novel underwater parallel robot (UPR). The designed robot is based on the well-known Stewart-Gough (S-G) platform that leads us to a new concept of geometry-variable underwater robot. The main advantage of this study is that the S-G platform allows not only a relative orientation between the two rings, but also a relative displacement, which increases the navigation capabilities of other gimbaled thruster designs. Navigation and control of this new type of underwater robots lead to new challenges that still have to be solved.


Purpose To discover where patients with advance directives (ADs) obtain them and to learn what patients' understanding is of how ADs function. Methods Adult patients with ADs admitted to the four acute-care hospitals in Monterey County, California, were asked to participate in a survey during the study period 1 July to 8 September 2009. Results Of 5,811 total admissions, 455 patients (7 percent) had an AD. Of these 455 patients, 204 (45 percent) completed our survey. Participants included 146 patients with a power of attorney for healthcare (72 percent), and 21 patients who were unable to identify the type of AD they had (10 percent). Attorneys provided ADs to 99 participants (49 percent) and personal physicians provided ADs to 12 participants (6 percent). Most participants (181, or 89 percent) had spoken to their family about their AD; fewer (131, or 65 percent) to their physician. Of the 146 participants with a power of attorney, only 73 (50 percent) said they had spoken specifically to their agent. Family members (38 percent) and attorneys (35 percent) were seen as helpful in completing ADs; physicians (1 percent) were not. Conclusions Few study participants had advance directives, and attorneys provided and discussed ADs with study participants more than physicians did. Because many patients with ADs seem not to fully understand them, new approaches to advance planning education must be developed.


It is the tendency to adopt novel soft magnetic materials in planar magnetic components to have much more attractive features. In this paper, the nanocrystal magnetic strip is used to consist of magnetic core of planar inductor. A novel network model for dynamic stray capacitances of planar inductor with matrix structure is presented. The magnetic core is taken into account to be one part of the equivalent circuit of planar inductor in high frequency, and its electric potential is considered to be suspended. To analyze the dynamic stray capacitance accurately, the 3D FEM model is adopted, and the parameters for dynamic stray capacitance of inductor windings are obtained. By equivalent circuit simulation of planar inductor, the impedance feature of planar inductor is obtained. The test results by impedance analyzer verify the dynamic capacitance network model.


The rates of incorporation of [C3H3]thymidine into the DNA of tissues of normal mice at various times after single doses of several drugs (adriamycin, vincristine, methotrexate, 5-fluorouracil [5-FU], melphalan, CCNU, and chlorozotocin) that have some clinical activity against cancer have been determined and are considered to be indicative of the "degree of normalcy" of the respective tissues at those times. These experiments show that there are some differences and some similarities in the effects of the agents upon the various tissues of the mouse. Each of the agents caused early inhibition of incorporation of [C3H3]thymidine followed by stimulation of such incorporation by intestinal mucosa and marrow, but the timing and the extents of inhibition and stimulation differed for the various agents. Except for CCNU, the preceding description would also apply to the effects upon liver and lungs, but the stimulation was delayed in comparison to that of intestinal mucosa and marrow. Early inhibition with little subsequent stimulation occurred in the spleen, kidneys, and heart. For all tissues, recovery was slower and less extensive after CCNU than after the other agents. The data obtained with the single agents were used for setting up experiments in which a single dose of one agent was followed after selected intervals of time with a single dose of a second agent. The combination of adriamycin plus 5-FU was less toxic when the two agents were given simultaneously than when the 5-FU was given 24-96 hours after the adriamycin, while for the combination of adriamycin plus CCNU there was less toxicity if the CCNU was administered 24 hours after the adriamycin rather than simultaneously with it. When a combination of a single dose of methotrexate and a single dose of 5-FU was administered to mice, the lethality was greater when the two agents were administered 120 hours apart than when the two agents were given simultaneously or were separated by 24 or 48 hours; this was true regardless of which agent was administered first. These results are consistent with what might be predicted upon the basis of the data obtained for the single agents in this study and of what is known about the mechanisms of action of these agents and of the effects of the agents in relation to cell and tissue kinetics. These results indicate that patterns of thymidine fixation by tissues following single doses of agents might be useful in scheduling multiple-drug therapy to minimize host toxicity.


The ankylosis of a tooth is one of the most difficult clinical problems that an orthodontist faces. In the literature, the treatment protocols for ankylosed teeth are still insufficient and questionable when considering gingival esthetics and conservation of bone health. The purpose of this report is to evaluate and discuss the effects of a newly designed miniature tooth distractor (MTD), which can be used with infrapositioned ankylosed teeth. Two cases with vertically malpositioned incisors were treated using the MTD, and this device was evaluated and compared with the distraction appliances used before in the literature. In conclusion, it was found to be efficient with its small dimensions, ease of application and removal, ease of activation, buccolingual control, and patient tolerance.


After the 2018 commissioning run, in which 0.5 fb$^{-1}$ of data were collected at a center of mass energy corresponding to the mass of the $\Upsilon(4S)$, the construction of the Belle II detector was completed with the installation of a silicon vertex detector that covers most of the solid angle around the interaction region. The first physics run started in the spring of 2019. We utilize this dataset to characterize the performance of the detector about tracking of charged particles, reconstruction of known resonances, and capability of identifying displaced decay vertices.
In order to assess the $B$ physics capabilities of the experiment, one of the first benchmarks to be reached consists in the measurement of the $B^0$-$\bar{B}^0$ mixing frequency. We present the first results, based on samples of $B$ mesons that decay to semileptonic final state. A discovery of the $B^0 \to J/\psi K^0_S$ decay which is one of the $CP$-eigenstates is also reported.


BACKGROUND
The aim of our article is to characterise and compare current standards of health care provision for asylum seekers in the 25 European Union (EU) countries in order to identify the needs and potential for improving access to health care for asylum seekers.

METHODS
The study is based on an e-mail survey performed between April and June 2004. The questionnaire was concerned with asylum seekers' access to medical screening upon arrival, and their general access to health care services on April 1, 2004. The questionnaire was sent to ministries and NGOs responsible for asylum seekers' health care in the 25 EU countries. A total of 60% of the ministries and 20% of the NGOs responded. We received answers from 24 out of the 25 countries.

RESULTS
Medical screening was provided to asylum seekers upon arrival in all EU countries but Greece. The content of screening programs, however, varied as well as whether they were voluntary or not. We found legal restrictions in access to health care in 10 countries. Asylum seekers were only entitled to emergency care in these countries. A number of practical barriers were also identified. Legal access to health care changed during the asylum procedure in some countries. Access to specialised treatment for traumatised asylum seekers existed in most countries.

CONCLUSION
Health policies towards asylum seekers differ significantly between the EU countries and may result in the fact that the health needs of asylum seekers are not always adequately met.


Euchromatic histone methyltransferases (EHMTs), members of the KMT1 family, methylate histone and non-histone proteins. Here we uncover a novel role for EHMTs in regulating heterochromatin anchorage to the nuclear periphery (NP) via non-histone (LaminB1) methylations. We show that EHMTs methylates and stabilizes LaminB1 (LMNB1), which associates with the H3K9me2-marked peripheral heterochromatin. Loss of LMNB1 methylation or EHMTs abrogates the heterochromatin anchorage from the NP. We further demonstrate that the loss of EHMTs induces many hallmarks of aging including global reduction of H3K27methyl marks along with altered nuclear-morphology. Consistent with this, we observed a gradual depletion of EHMTs, which correlates with loss of methylated LMNB1 and peripheral heterochromatin in aging human fibroblasts. Restoration of EHMT expression reverts peripheral heterochromatin defect in aged cells. Collectively our work elucidates a new mechanism by which EHMTs regulate heterochromatin domain organization and reveals their impact on fundamental changes associated with the intrinsic aging process.


Neurological diseases including stroke and neurodegenerative disorders cause a hefty burden on the healthcare system. Survivors experience significant impairment in mobility and daily activities, which requires extensive rehabilitative interventions to assist them to regain lost skills and restore independence. The advent of remote rehabilitation architecture and enabling technology mandates the elaboration of sensing mechanisms tailored to individual clinical needs. This study aims to review current trends in the application of sensing mechanisms in remote monitoring and rehabilitation in neurological diseases, and to provide clinical insights to develop bespoke sensing mechanisms. A systematic search was performed using the PubMED database to identify 16 papers published for the period between 2018 to 2022. Teleceptive sensors (56%) were utilized more often than wearable proximate sensors (50%). The most commonly used modality was infrared (38%) and acceleration force (38%), followed by RGB color, EMG, light and temperature, and radio signal. The strategy adopted to improve the sensing mechanism included a multimodal sensor, the application of multiple sensors, sensor fusion, and machine learning. Most of the stroke studies utilized biofeedback control systems (78%) while the majority of studies for neurodegenerative disorders used sensors for remote monitoring (57%). Functional assessment tools that the sensing mechanism may emulate to produce clinically valid information were proposed and factors affecting user adoption were described. Lastly, the limitations and directions for further development were discussed.


Although support services are considered cost-effective in the relief of care-giving family members of dementia patients, there has been little research to date on the predictors of use and quality expectations. These two questions are examined for the first time based on cross-sectional data of 404 care-giving family members, users and non-users of voluntary help services. Quantitative data are evaluated using binary logistical regression analysis, qualitative data using content analysis. The rating of how helpful the use of a voluntary help service is in the personal situation was found to be the only significant predictor of use. With respect to quality, it is most important that the persons giving support be punctual and well-trained. To increase the rate of use, care-giving family members must be convinced of the relevant benefits of using a voluntary help service. In addition, attention must be paid to the professional organization and training of voluntary helpers.


Acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) is an acute respiratory illness with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates and pulmonary eosinophilia. While the etiology of AEP remains unclear, a relationship between cigarette smoking and AEP onset has been suggested. The use of heated tobacco products (HTPs) has been growing, but the impact of these products on our health is not fully understood. We herein report a case of AEP that developed after switching from conventional cigarette to HTP smoking. The patient's condition improved after the cessation of HTP smoking and corticosteroid treatment initiation. In cases of AEP, physicians should consider HTPs use as a possible cause.


This paper gives out a design of system which can be used to design the pattern on textile fabrics. It goes without saying that innovation is playing a vital role in the design and more responsible for the popularity of products in the market, especially in the pattern CAD/CAM domain. So more and more researches have focused on how to design and manufacture patterns better. Intensifying the function of innovative pattern design has become the urgent requirement of the new generation of printing pattern CAD/CAM.This system applied advanced technology of image processing. At the same time, in order to meet the need of the fast design of the spinning industry, it took advantage of the simple menu that can realize the processing function of images and files. With a little manual operation, it can realize the design of spin and weave pattern easily. And the picture can be kept the file that spin and weave machine can identify. This paper primarily studied and introduced the BMP picture's load and read and the arithmetic of the meshing and the disposal of the picture. Finally this thesis introduced the theories of the frame of design and the fill of the picture and the realization of some assistant tools.


Purpose: To validate the use of 4D‐Computed Tomography (4D‐CT) for pre‐treatment evaluation of fractional regional ventilation in patients with lungcancer by benchmarking its performance against scintigraphy V/Q imaging, the current gold‐standard. The second aim is to further corroborate the results of 4D‐CT estimation of lung aeration against the results of Pulmonary Function Testing. Methods: Scintigraphy V/Q and 4D‐CT studies were acquired in four lungcancer patients prior to treatment with radiation therapy. PFTs were acquired in 3 out of the 4 patients. 4D‐CT images were used to create 3D fractional regional ventilation maps by applying a 'mass correction' and subtracting the spatially matched end‐exhale and end‐inhale images. Ventilation maps were then collapsed in the anterior‐posterior dimension to create a coronal 2D projection image consistent with the scintigraphy V/Q images. The left and right lung fields were isolated on the projection image and divided into 3 sections of equal height. Summation of the signal intensity in each of the sections was carried out on the maps analogous to the analysis performed on V/Q scans and statistically compared using the Kendall's tau rank correlation. Results: The non‐parametric Kendall's tau estimate ranged between 0.87–0.95 for N=4, with corresponding p‐values ranging between 0.005–0.0002. Mean functional residual capacities (FRC) from the PFTs (N=3) versus calculated FRCs was 2.7 +/− 0.6 L and 2.4 +/− 0.7 L, and the null hypothesis could not be rejected (p = 0.61). The mean fractional regional ventilation versus the ratio of tidal‐volume/FRC was 0.24 +/– 0.11 and 0.22 +/– 0.08, and the null hypothesis could not be rejected (p=0.73). Conclusions: There was a strong correlation between 4D‐CT and scintigraphy V/Q. The similarity between the calculated and measured FRCs further validates the utility of 4D‐CT and supports its use in evaluating lung ventilation in patients with pulmonary neoplasms.


The dramatic shift from traditional pension plans to participantdirected 401(k) plans has increased the decision-making responsibility of individual investors for their own retirement planning. With this shift comes increasing evidence that investors are making poor decisions in choosing how much to save for retirement and in selecting among their investment options. Studies question the value of efforts to improve these decisions through regulatory reforms or investor education. This article posits that deficiencies in workplace retirement savings cannot be adequately addressed until the reasons for poor investment decisions are better understood. We report the results of an exploratory study that asked subjects to complete a simulated retirement investment task and collected information about their financial knowledge and preferences. The study enabled us to measure financial literacy and evaluate its relationship to retirement investment decision-making. In line with existing research, we found a strong relationship between financial literacy and successful retirement investing. Our results suggest, however, that the relevant understanding in this context is not about math so much as it is a basic knowledge of the relative costs and benefits of the major investment categories. Finally, we present results suggesting that financial literacy is separate from investment preferences - specifically, that tolerance for risk is a separate and highly predictive variable in estimating retirement planning success. Our research suggests that individual employees are likely to lack the skills necessary to support the current regulatory model of participant-directed retirement investing. The structure and regulation of retirement plans ought to take this fact seriously. We explore the potential for investor education and professional advice, respectively, to overcome the limitations of individualized choice.


Synthetic compounds mimicking cannabis-like effects are a recent trend. Currently, these so-called synthetic cannabinoids are the largest and fastest growing class of newly appearing designer drugs. Many national authorities are continuously adapting their regulations to keep pace with the permanently changing variety of compounds. We have analyzed eight herbal smoking blends containing synthetic cannabinoids. Altogether, nine compounds could be identified, namely AM-2201, AM-2201-pMe (MAM-2201), AM-1220, AM-1220-azepane, UR-144, XLR-11, JWH-122-pentenyl, AM-2232, and STS-135. Newly appearing compounds were isolated by column chromatography and their structures elucidated by 1D- and 2D-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments. In addition, the compounds were investigated by electron ionization-mass spectrometry (EI-MS) and electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) to complete the physicochemical dataset. Based on the purified compounds a universal gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method was developed for the identification and quantification of these compounds in commercial smoking blends. By applying this method, up to five different compounds could be found in such products showing total concentrations from 72 to 303 mg/g smoking blend while individual compounds ranged from 0.4 to 303 mg/g. (1)H NMR spectra of the chiral compounds AM-1220 and its azepane-isomer recorded in the presence of 1 equivalent of (R)-(+)-α-methoxy-α-trifluoromethylphenylacetic acid (MTPA, Mosher's acid) showed them to be racemic mixtures.


The system uses MSP430 micropower single chip microcomputer as controller and data processing chip in order to improve power generation efficiency of solar panel. Sunlight analog quantity measured by sensor is sampled by AD with skillful using of circular array light sensor to determine sunlight position on basis of obtained coding. Therefore, 2 steering engines can seek sunlight in 2 free degrees and make solar cell panel to generate the maximum output generation by pointing at direct sunshine position. Meanwhile, application of adaptive algorithm helps to improve detection accuracy of sunlight position. This essay focuses on discussing hardware realization method and software algorithm for accurate positioning of sun chasing system.


Automated polyp detection in colonoscopy videos has been demonstrated to be a promising way for colorectal cancer prevention and diagnosis. Traditional manual screening is time consuming, operator dependent, and error prone; hence, automated detection approach is highly demanded in clinical practice. However, automated polyp detection is very challenging due to high intraclass variations in polyp size, color, shape, and texture, and low interclass variations between polyps and hard mimics. In this paper, we propose a novel offline and online three-dimensional (3-D) deep learning integration framework by leveraging the 3-D fully convolutional network (3D-FCN) to tackle this challenging problem. Compared with the previous methods employing hand-crafted features or 2-D convolutional neural network, the 3D-FCN is capable of learning more representative spatio-temporal features from colonoscopy videos, and hence has more powerful discrimination capability. More importantly, we propose a novel online learning scheme to deal with the problem of limited training data by harnessing the specific information of an input video in the learning process. We integrate offline and online learning to effectively reduce the number of false positives generated by the offline network and further improve the detection performance. Extensive experiments on the dataset of MICCAI 2015 Challenge on Polyp Detection demonstrated the better performance of our method when compared with other competitors.


A Digital Fabrication Production System (DFPS) is a concept describing a set of processes, tools, and resources that will be able to produce an artifact according to a design, fast, cheap, and easy, independently of location. A DFPS project is a complex assembly of custom parts that is delivered by a network of fabrication and assembly processes. This network is called the value chain. The workflow concept of a DFPS is the following: begin design process with a custom geometric form; decompose it into constructible parts; send the part files for fabrication to various locations; transport all parts at the construction site at the right time; finally, assemble the final artifact. Conceptually it means that based on a well structured value chain we could build anything we want, at anyplace, at controllable cost and quality. The goals of a DFPS are the following: custom shapes, controllable lead time, controllable quality, controllable cost, easiness of fabrication, and easiness of assembly. Simply stated this means to build any form, anywhere, accurately, cheap, fast, and easy. Unfortunately, the reality with current Digital Fabrication (DF) projects is rather disappointing: They take more time than what was planned, they get more expensive than what was expected, they involve great risk and uncertainty, and finally they are too complex to plan, understand, and manage. Moreover, most of these problems are discovered during production when it is already late for correction. However, there is currently no systematic approach to evaluate difficulty of production of DF projects in Architecture. Most of current risk assessment methods are based on experience gathered from previous similar cases. But it is the premise of mass customization that projects can be radically different. Assembly incompatibilities are currently addressed by building physical mockups. But physical mockups cause a significant loss in both time and cost. All these problems suggest that an introduction of a DFPS for mass customization in architecture needs first an integrated theory of assembly and management control. Evaluating feasibility of a DF project has two main problems: first, how to evaluate assemblability of the design; second, how to evaluate performance of the value chain. Assemblability is a system's structure problem, while performance is a system's dynamics problem. Structure of systems has been studied in the field of Systems Engineering by Network Analysis methods such as the Design Structure Matrix (DSM) (Steward 1981), and the liaison graph (Whitney 2004), while dynamics of systems have been studied by System Dynamics (Forrester 1961). Can we define a formal method to evaluate the difficulty of production of an artifact if we know the artifact's design and the production system's structure? This paper formulates Attribute Process Methodology (APM); a method for assessing feasibility of a DFPS project that combines Network Analysis to evaluate assemblability of the design with System Dynamics to evaluate performance of the value chain.


Vitamin D is one of the steroid hormones. The precursor of vitamin D, 7-dehydrocholesterol, which is an intermediary for cholesterol pathway, is available in the skin. Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation makes the transformation of 7-dehydrocholesterol to provitamin D3, which automatically isomerizes to cholecalciferol (vitamin D3). Vitamin D3 is secreted into blood circulation and carried by the vitamin D–binding protein (VDBP). Around 80–90% of vitamin D is from sunlight-derived production in the skin. A little amount of vitamin D is also extracted from foods and/or additional supplementation. Vitamin D has been well known for its function in maintaining calcium and phosphorus homeostasis and promoting bone mineralization. Accumulating evidence from animal and human studies suggests that vitamin D also modulates reproductive processes in women and men and is involved in many functions of the reproductive system. Vitamin D receptor (VDR) and vitamin D–metabolizing enzymes are found in reproductive tissues of women and men. This chapter presents an up-to-date review for describing the function of vitamin D in female reproduction throughout reproductive ages from menarche to menopause, during pregnancy and lactation, and some disorders affecting women and also the role of vitamin D applied to male fertility.


Dendritic filopodia are thin, long, and highly mobile protrusions functioning as spine precursors. By contrast with a wealth of knowledge on molecular profiles in spines, little is known about structural and functional proteins present in dendritic filopodia. To reveal the molecular constituents of dendritic filopodia, we developed a new method for biochemical preparation of proteins enriched in dendritic filopodia, by taking advantage of specific and strong binding between a dendritic filopodial membrane protein, telencephalin, and its extracellular matrix ligand, vitronectin. When vitronectin-coated magnetic microbeads were added onto cultured hippocampal neurons, phagocytic cup-like membrane protrusions were formed on dendrites through the binding to telencephalin. Magnetically purified membrane protrusion fraction was subjected to comprehensive mass spectrometric analysis and 319 proteins were identified, many of which were confirmed to be localized to dendritic filopodia. Thus, this study provides a useful resource for studying molecular mechanisms underlying dendritic development, synapse formation, and plasticity.


The possible role of cows milk intolerance in the aetiology of infant colic was evaluated in 19 babies presenting to their health visitor or general practitioner in one town. Over a three week period a standard modified cows milk formula was compared with a soya milk formula on a double blind basis. The duration of colic symptoms was significantly reduced during the week on soya milk (P less than 0.01), with 11 out of 19 babies fulfilling the diagnostic criteria for cows milk intolerance. Four babies whose symptoms failed to improve either spontaneously or with soya milk were given a hydrolysed protein milk with a positive response in two, confirmed by challenge testing. Thus in 13 out of 19 babies (68%) the symptoms of infant colic resolved almost completely with dietary change.


A material capsule system including a main capsule, a fixing, a control, a cutting, and a transport system was developed for an irradiation test of non-fissile materials in HANARO. This capsule system has been actively utilized for the various material irradiation tests requested by users from research institutes, universities, and the industries. Based on the accumulated irradiation experience and the user's sophisticated requirements, the instrumented capsule technologies for a more precise control of the irradiation temperature and fluence of a specimen were developed in HANARO. 6,000 specimens from domestic research institutes, nuclear industry companies and universities, were irradiated in HANARO for 54,000 hours by using the developed capsule irradiation system. Recently, development of new instrumented capsule technologies for an IP/OR irradiation test and a high temperature irradiation test has been performed in HANARO for relevant ongoing R&D for the international Gen IV Program. New irradiation technologies are also under development for the production of new functional materials including superconductor and optical/electrical materials.


This paper deals with adaptive estimation of unknown disturbances in a class of nonminimum phase nonlinear systems, and the stabilization and disturbance rejection based on the estimated disturbances. The unknown disturbances are combination of sinusoidal disturbances with unknown frequencies, unknown phases and amplitudes. The only information of the unknown disturbances is the number of distinctive frequencies inside. The class of nonlinear systems considered in this paper consists of nonlinear systems in the output feedback form and the systems may be nonminimum phase, ie, with unstable zero dynamics. An adaptive estimation algorithm is developed to give exponentially convergent estimates of the unknown disturbance and the system states. The asymptotic convergent estimates of unknown frequencies are also obtained. The proposed estimation algorithm works for both minimum phase and nonminimum phase nonlinear systems in output feedback form. Disturbance rejection with stabilisation is achieved by combining the control designed for the stabilisation of the disturbance-free system and the exponentially convergent estimate of the disturbance. Under the conditions specified for the control design of the system with no disturbance, the overall stability and complete rejection of the unknown disturbance are guaranteed by the proposed control algorithm.


Eccentric distribution of stiffness, damping, and mass of a structure, and spatially non-uniform ground motion input to a long or large base mat of a structure are well-known causes of torsional response. We have discovered that the torque generated by horizontal displacement and perpendicular inertial force, which we call the Q- effect, can be a cause of torsional response. We formulated the equation of motion of a single finite-size mass-linear elastic shear and torsion spring model and clarified the resonance condition of the torsional response to sinusoidal ground acceleration. Time-history response analysis verified that the torsional response forms beat and the maximum torsional response of the simulation result agrees with that theoretically predicted. Further time-history response analysis conducted of white noise ground acceleration showed that even one-directional white noise ground acceleration can induce torsional response in a linear elastic system without any structural eccentricity.


Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is strongly associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, a common cancer in Southeast Asia and certain regions of Africa. However, the dynamics of EBV episome maintenance in infected nasopharyngeal epithelial (NPE) cells remain largely undefined. Here, we report the establishment of a highly efficient cell-free EBV infection method for NPE cells. By using this method, we have defined some of the dynamic events involved in the early stage of EBV infection in NPE cells. We report, for the first time, a rapid loss of EBV copies from infected NPE cells during the first 12-72 h post-infection. The rate of EBV loss slowed at later stages of infection. Live cell imaging revealed that the freshly infected NPE cells were delayed in entry into mitosis compared with uninfected cells. Freshly infected NPE cells transcribed significantly higher levels of lytic EBV genes BZLF1 and BMRF1 yet significantly lower levels of EBER1/2 than stably infected NPE cells. Notably, there were very low or undetectable levels of protein expressions of EBNA1, LMP1, Zta and Rta in freshly infected NPE cells, whereas EBNA1 and LMP1 proteins were readily detected in stable EBV-infected NPE cells. The kinetics of EBV loss and the differential EBV gene expression profiles between freshly and stably infected NPE cells are in line with the suggestion of epigenetic changes in the EBV genome that affect viral gene expression and the adaptation of host cells to EBV infection to maintain persistent EBV infection in NPE cells.


There are few experiences as ubiquitous to patients as the experience of waiting. It is an occurrence that transcends diagnosis, is common to all demographics, and is shared across the continuum of care. The experience can be frustrating and full of ambiguity for patients and their families. Wait time and delays can lead to patients sensing a loss of control and magnify the feelings of anxiety they may already be suffering. In an effort to improve patient experience, a framework was developed to examine patient satisfaction as a function of expectations, perceptions, and reality. The process domain focused on the objective reality of the pre-surgical lead times; while the expectation and perception domains focused on the family understanding of the timeliness of the pre-surgical process prior to, and directly following the experience. Guided by this framework, data was collected and analyzed at surgical units throughout the Texas Children's Hospital system. Insights gained from this analysis identified distinct needs where focused improvement approaches could be implemented. Throughout this paper, we will provide insight into the framework developed, case studies illustrating its effectiveness and insights as to how it can be applied at any healthcare organization to improve patient satisfaction.


Perhaps the single most important use case for differential privacy is to privately answer numerical queries, which is usually achieved by adding noise to the answer vector. The central question, therefore, is to understand which noise distribution optimizes the privacy-accuracy trade-off, especially when the dimension of the answer vector is high. Accordingly, extensive literature has been dedicated to the question and the upper and lower bounds have been matched up to constant factors [BUV18, SU17]. In this paper, we take a novel approach to address this important optimality question. We first demonstrate an intriguing central limit theorem phenomenon in the high-dimensional regime. More precisely, we prove that a mechanism is approximately Gaussian Differentially Private [DRS21] if the added noise satisfies certain conditions. In particular, densities proportional to $\mathrm{e}^{-\|x\|_p^\alpha}$, where $\|x\|_p$ is the standard $\ell_p$-norm, satisfies the conditions. Taking this perspective, we make use of the Cramer--Rao inequality and show an"uncertainty principle"-style result: the product of the privacy parameter and the $\ell_2$-loss of the mechanism is lower bounded by the dimension. Furthermore, the Gaussian mechanism achieves the constant-sharp optimal privacy-accuracy trade-off among all such noises. Our findings are corroborated by numerical experiments.


This dissertation examines heritage assessment at the New Zealand Department of Conservation. It explores the heritage assessment process through two central research questions: 'What is the state of current heritage assessment at the Department of Conservation?' and 'What place and form could heritage assessments have and take in future practice at the Department of Conservation?' Responding to a gap in the literature and lack of critical analysis of the heritage assessment procedure in the New Zealand context, the research considers the ways in which heritage assessment is carried out and examines heritage assessment as a tool through which heritage is understood and assigned value and significance. The timeliness of this work is highlighted by the currently few existing evaluations providing a critical analysis of the heritage assessment procedure in New Zealand.  This research employs an interdisciplinary theoretical framework developed from the literature of heritage studies and its related fields, in particular history and archaeology. This study is framed with reference to the postmodern theoretical paradigm of 'authorised heritage discourse' and critical realism, and employs a mixed method approach to the research, and employs documentary analysis and interviews with current staff working with historic heritage at the Department of Conservation.  The main finding emerging from this research is that heritage assessment is an essential, if not pivotal, but under-utilised element of heritage management, and that appropriate outcomes for heritage can only be reached through a more effective heritage assessment framework. The dissertation concludes that currently the Department of Conservation heritage assessment framework fails to achieve this to a suitable standard, makes several recommendations for change, and argues that it is only by addressing the situation DOC will be able to deliver maximum outcomes for heritage in an increasingly resource-constrained environment – and continue to accomplish sustainable heritage management, what one respondent called 'the art of the achievable'.


In this manuscript we report high-level ab initio (RI-MP2(full)/6-31++G**) and DFT (B3LYP/ 6-31++G** and MPWB1K/6-31++G**) calculations on complexes between the bis(arene)chromium complex (eta6-C6H6)(eta6C6F6)Cr(0) (1) and cations/anions. This interesting molecule 1, which is synthetically available, exhibits a dual binding mode to anions and cations, with interaction energies similar to those previously reported for benzene with cations and hexafluorobenzene with anions. In addition, the simultaneous interaction with cations and anions is also studied.


Empirical finance is in crisis. The profession's most important discovery tool is historical simulation, and yet most backtests and time series analyses published in journals are flawed. The problem is well known to professional organizations of statisticians and mathematicians, who have publicly criticized the misuse of mathematical tools among finance researchers. In this article, the author points to three problems and proposes four practical solutions. In an attempt to overcome the challenges posed by multiple testing and selection biaes, the author emphasizes the need to move from an individual-centric to a community-driven research paradigm. Low retraction rates can be corrected through technologies that derive "peer p-values." Stronger theoretical foundations and closer ties with financial firms would help prevent false discoveries.


Jonathan Andrew Kissock. The Origins of the Village in South Wales: A Study in Landscape AfEhaeology. The debate on the origins of nucleated settlement and their associated open-field agricultural systems is now one of the most frequently encountered in landscape studies. This thesis has explored this debate in a processual framework. A hypothetico-deductive methodology has been employed and the evidence is presented in a retrogressive manner. The study is spatially limited to the four "old" counties of Monmouthshire, Glamorgan, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire; there are no fixed chronological limits. The first chapter set out the background to this thesis and defined the overall aim. This was then expanded into a number of overall objectives. Each objective was presented in the form of a model from which hypotheses were deduced and then, in subsequent chapters, tested. Underlying each model was the premise that the village is the physical and therefore usually the archaeologically recoverable manifestation of a particular form of social organisation. It was argued that three processes led to village origins. A number of them were deliberately planted in order to stabilise the Norman-Celtic boundary in mid-Pembrokeshire. These were probably founded c. 1110 by locatores. These villages had the inflated status of "rural boroughs" in order to attract settlers. Two processes contributed to village origins in the pre-Conquest period: the need to increase agricultural production (to support both aristocratic and ecclesiastical elites) and the requirement to re-organise agriculture following the fragmentation of the earlier multiple estates. This thesis also examined other related topics. The evidence for the stability of village plans was also explored. A wide range of material maps, the degree of concentration of landownership, population figures and the shape and size of deserted villages was discussed as part of this area of study. It was argued that village shape had not usually changed and hence the deductions made from morphological studies for example deliberate plantation (for which there is ample ethnographic evidence) were valid. Another study examined the landscape of Gower in some detail. This chapter demonstrated the difference between the Anglo-Norman and the Celtic landscapes of nucleation, the vibrancy of the upland economy in the later medieval period and developed the concept of village dating beyond the "one species per century" formula. This thesis has contributed to the wider debate in two ways: it has gathered new information and offered new interpretations of the village in south Wales. It has also developed and refined some of the approaches and assumptions made by landscape archaeologists.


The continuous failure of construction projects notwithstanding appreciable increase in project management knowledge has necessitated a proactive approach of assessing early warning signs (EWS) of building projects failure. Building projects are expected to show warning signs before experiencing crises, comparable to a patient displaying symptoms of a disease. Thus, this study aims to examine the EWS that predisposed building projects to failure in Nigeria to provide empirical data for enhancing projects delivery.,Primary data were used for the study. Structured questionnaire was administered to consultants and contractors' personnel within Lagos State, Nigeria. A total of 180 copies of questionnaire were administered and 134 copies (combined response rate of 74.44 per cent) were retrieved. Frequency distribution, percentages, mean item score and Mann–Whitney test were used to analyse the data.,Most construction professionals applied the EWS approach from project planning and early construction phase. The most significant EWS predisposing building projects to failure were "Management inability and incompetence to proactively detect and manage problems at early project stages", "Actual expenditure is constantly shooting beyond cost estimates" and "Incurred costs already getting higher than the anticipated benefits". Project/construction management-related symptoms are most significant to predisposing building projects to failure.,The study provided implications for effective project management of building projects through proactive approach which is very paramount to improving the delivery of building projects in Nigeria.,The study provides implications for proactive management of building projects, thereby enhancing the delivery of building projects.


In order to study the transverse reflection crack of concrete composite lay in old bridge reinforcement, aiming at the forming process of the reflection crack, the theoretical model of its peak tensile stress and its separation distance is presented, and its forming mechanism is analysed. Based on the theoretical model, the influence of the thickness overlay, and constraint under the concrete composite lay are studied to the transverse reflection crack. Based on these researched results, the peak tensile stress and its separation distances is calculated by given theoretical model , and the results reveal shrinkage cracks rely on the restraint condition , elastic modulus, shrinkage ratio and the thickness of the composite-slab.


Background and Objectives: Thyroid gland because of its superficial location is amenable to direct physical examination. Clinical assessment of thyroid lesions by means of physical examination, thyroid scans and ultrasonography is not completely reliable. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is the most cost-effective, safe and an initial diagnostic test in the pre-operative evaluation of thyroid lesions. Many surgeons use intraoperative frozen section biopsies to confirm the diagnosis of FNAC and guide the extent of thyroidectomy. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to assess the diagnostic accuracy of frozen section in comparison with fine needle aspiration cytology and histopathology in thyroid lesions.
Materials & Methods: Fine needle aspiration cytology and frozen section (FS) were evaluated in 59 patients. FNAC was classified as benign, malignant and suspicious, and FS was classified as benign, deferred and malignant. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy were calculated for both FS and FNAC.
Results: Out of 59 patients, 3 were positive for malignancy, 51 were benign, and five were suspicious on FNAC. Over all accuracy of fine needle aspiration cytology was 93%. Five were positive for malignancy, 50 were benign and 4 were "deferred" in frozen section. Over all accuracy of frozen section was 96%.
Discussion: Fine needle aspiration cytology can be used primarily to select patient for surgery and frozen section can be employed to plan the extent of surgery. Frozen section had a good accuracy, sensitivity and negative predictive value compared to fine needle aspiration cytology.


Chromosome identification depends on the morphological features of the chromosome and therefore karyotype and its banding pattern analyses are the most suitable technique to identify each and every chromosome of a chromosome complement. Moreover, aberrations caused by breaks play an important role in the evolution of a chromosome set and chromosome complement by decreasing or increasing the chromosome number. Therefore, both the aspects are discussed in detail in the present chapter. At present, the chapter will highlight the karyotype and its components, karyotype trends, evolution and its role in speciation, banding pattern and techniques, chromosome differentiation and linearization, banding applications and their uses, detection and analysis of chromosomal aberrations, chromosome and chromatid types of aberrations and mechanism of the formation of chromosome aberrations and breaks for karyotype evolutionary trends.


Three-dimensional vortical flow structures and velocity fluctuation near the rotor tip in an axial flow fan having two different tip clearances have been investigated by experimental analysis using a rotating hot wire probe and a numerical simulation. It is found that a tip leakage vortex is observed in the blade passage, which has a major role near the rotor tip. The tip leakage vortex formed close to the leading edge of the blade tip on suction side grows in the streamwise direction, and forms a local recirculation region resulting from a vortex breakdown inside the blade passage. The recirculation region is enlarged by increasing the tip clearance. The larger recirculation region induces the acceleration of the through flow, thus resulting in the increase of the broadband noise. High velocity fluctuation is observed at the interference region between the tip leakage vortex and the through flow in the flow field where the tip leakage vortex is tightly rolled up without its breakdown. Near the casing wall, a discrete frequency is formed between tip leakage vortex core and rotor trailing edge.


The paper deals with the short pronominal forms that have status of so called "stala enklitika" ('permanent enclitics') or enclitica tantum in Modern Czech: mi 'me', ti 'to you', si 'to myself / to yourself etc.', sě (> se) 'myself / yourself etc.', tě 'you', ho 'him', mu 'to him'. The analysis is based on the material gained from the selected books of the oldest complete Czech Bible translation of the half from the 14th century. The talk is focused on the word order properties of the analyzed pronominal forms that are dependent on a finite verb. The paper interprets them in the light of the main competing positions of Czech enclitics during the development of the language: 1. the postinitial position, i.e. when an enclitic is located after first word / phrase; 2. the contact (verb-adjacent) position, i.e. when an enclitic is located immediately before (preverbal position) or after (postverbal position) its syntactically or morphologically superordinate item. The lecture discusses this developmental competition in the light of following factors: • influence of style, • influence of rhythmic rules, • influence of the complexity of the clause, • influence od Latine pretext Vulgata.


Process-based, distributed-area snowmelt runoff models operating at small scales are essential to understand subtle effects of climate change, but require data not commonly available. Temperature index models operating over large areas provide realistic simulations of basin runoff with operationally available data, but lack rigorous physically based algorithms. A compromise between the two types of models is required to provide realistic evaluations of basin response to environmental changes in cold regions. One adaptation that is uniformly required for snowmelt models is the use of remotely sensed data, either as input or in model validation. At a minimum, snowmelt forecasting models need to incorporate snowcover extent information, which is currently obtained operationally. As more remote sensing capabilities come on line, models should accept upgraded information on snow water equivalent; additional remotely sensed information on landcover, frozen soil, soil moisture, cloudiness and albedo would also be useful. Adaptations to the semi-distributed snowmelt runoff model (SRM) are underway to make it more physically based for use in large area studies. A net radiation index has been added to the model, which formerly used only a temperature (degree-day) index to melt snow from a basin's elevation zones. The addition of radiation to the SRM allows the basin to be subdivided into hydrological response units by general aspect (orientation) as well as elevation. Testing of the new radiation-based SRM with measured radiation from a small research basin is the first step towards large scale simulations. Results from the W-3 research basin in Vermont, USA are promising. In the radiation version, the factor that multiplies the degree-day index is estimated independently of model output and is held constant throughout the season, in contrast with the degree-day version, where the corresponding factor is allowed to increase throughout the season. Without calibrating or optimizing on this important parameter, the goodness-of-fit measure R 2 is improved in two out of six test years when the radiation version of the SRM is used in place of the degree-day version in melt season simulations. When the accumulation of error is eliminated with periodic updating of streamflow, more significant improvement is noted with radiation included.


The present study focused on adult primary brain tumor (PBT) survivors' caregivers. The main objective was to study associations between PBT survivors' health-related quality of life (HRQOL), their behavioral executive functions (EF) and their caregivers' HRQOL. Forty PBT survivors of PBT and 37 caregivers (mostly patient's spouses 81.08%; n = 30) participated in the study. PBT survivors completed a cancer related Quality of Life (QOL) questionnaire. Caregivers completed informant rated HRQOL and behavioral EF reports relating to PBT survivors and a self-rated HRQOL questionnaire relating to themselves. Correlational and multiple regression analyses were conducted. No associations were found between caregivers' physical HRQOL and PBT survivors' HRQOL nor behavioral EF. Analyses yielded several significant correlations between caregivers' mental HRQOL and variables pertaining to PBT survivors' HRQOL and behavioral EF. Multiple regression analyses showed that caregivers' mental HRQOL is predicted by PBT survivors' mental HRQOL, global cancer-related QOL scores and global behavioral EF scores. This study provides evidence suggesting that during the survivorship phase, at an average of 3.67 (SD = 2.31) years following treatment for a PBT, caregivers mental HRQOL is linked to PBT survivors' long-term effects. These findings shed some light regarding post-cancer care for both PBT survivors and their caregivers.


The definition of appropriate use of drugs is questioned in oncology. Daily therapeutic practices were compared to official labelling and to published scientific data in this retrospective study. It was carried out in two respective specialised centers, from January to September 2004. All chemotherapies administered for adult solid tumours and including one of the eleven studied drugs were evaluated. The analysis of use was performed by drug : conformity to the validated labelling and level of scientific evidence (at the period study). The study included 1,561 drug uses in 1,211 patients. The overall rate of conformity to official labelling was 81.7 % (67.1 % of strict conformity). In 73.8 % of cases, the indications were supported by at least one randomized phase III trial. The results appeared to be significantly different in rare tumours. The potential economic stake of the "contrat de bon usage" was estimated as less than 5 % in our study. This analysis showed an appropriate and controlled use of onerous drugs in solid tumours. The official labelling of drugs are unable to answer to all clinical situations. The definition of a sufficient level of evidence is mandatory for the use of scientific data in clinical practice. This process has to be adapted for rare tumours.


This study attempted to delineate differences between men who do and do-not self-identify as victims of intimate partner violence (IPV). Although the prevalence of male victims of IPV is relatively high (Bates, 2020) and these individuals experience negative otucomes from this abuse (Hines & Douglas, 2010;2016), men are often reluctant to identify as victims of IPV (Machadeo et al., 2016). As a result of this, any study sampling male victims of IPV is lacking the data of males who have experienced IPV but do not self-identify as such. This study attempted to address the limitations in previous research by sampling men who do not identify as victims of IPV, this was done by measuring the paricipant's experiences of abuse within the study itself and leaving the inclusionary criteria broad. We hypothesized that our predictors (gender role beliefs, precarious manhood beliefs, attitudes toward dating violence), when controlling for the variety of abusive behaviours experienced, would accurately predict male self-identification with abuse. We found that our model was significantly predictive of self-identification with abuse. However, only attitudes toward dating violence was significantly, uniquely predictive, with more positive attitudes towards dating violence being related to a reduced likelihood of abuse self-identification.


In the present work, glass fibre polypropylene (GF/PP) woven fabrics were manufactured from cost-effective flexible thermoplastic towpregs produced by a developed dry coating process. The paper describes the modifications made on the developed coating line to allow producing thermoplastic towpregs able to be woven in textile equipments. The produced fabrics were observed under optical microscopy and submitted to tests in order to evaluate their textile-like properties, glass fibre content and flexibility. Composites processed from those fabrics by compression moulding were also submitted to mechanical testing in order to assess their performance. The obtained experimental results have shown that the woven fabrics produced are cost-effective and present properties good enough to be applied in large-scale commercial markets (e.g. automotive). Future research efforts will be carried to try decreasing the towpreg frictional properties and the amount of polymer lost during the textile processing and improving the feeding technology to warp yarns directly from a creel.


Much literature exists regarding the diagnostic yield and accuracy of core needle biopsy (CNB) and fine needle aspiration (FNA) but none compares both in the same tumour. Ninety-four patients were prospectively studied using a FNA and CNB. With FNA 70 diagnoses were possible (74,5%). Accurate diagnosis rate was 97,1%. In 92 patients (97,9%) a diagnosis was obtained with CNB and 91 (98,9%) were accurate.. The diagnostic yield was 74,5% for FNA and 97,9% for CNB (p < 0.0001). The diagnostic accuracy was 97,1% for FNA and 98,9% for CNB (p = 0.5787). Regarding determining malignancy FNA and CNB had 98,3% and 98,5% sensibility, 100% and 100% specificity, 100% and 100% positive predictive value and 95,2% and 96,2% negative predictive value, respectively. In conclusion FNA is as accurate as CNB on all accounts. Despite the reliability of FNA, the number of inconclusive cases makes it an inferior technique when compared with CNB.


People often require a unified view of multiple disparate information sources. This role is played by information mediators such as Web search engines and database integration systems. Internally, information mediators perform three basic tasks: acquisition, analysis, and presentation of content. For example, Web search engines acquire Web pages via crawling, analyze the text and link structure of the crawled pages, and present lists of pages in response to user search queries.
In environments such as the Web that have very large amounts of content, the content acquisition and presentation tasks can be viewed as constrained optimization problems. On the acquisition side, the resources required to discover, and maintain synchronization with, all available online content vastly exceed the capacity of even the most well-provisioned information mediators. On the presentation side, the constraint is on user attention: users cannot be expected to sift through large amounts of content. Rather than being exhaustive, an information mediator must be selective in acquiring and presenting content, with selections driven by some meaningful objective function. This dissertation studies formulations of, and solutions to, these optimization problems.
A complication that arises in this setting is that some parameters needed to solve the optimization problem are unknown. For example, in the Web search context, due to autonomy of sources a search engine may not know the update rate of pages, making it difficult to conduct an optimal synchronization strategy. Similarly, due to sparsity of user feedback, the search engine may not have accurate page quality measurements, making it difficult to present search results in the optimal order. This dissertation studies means of simultaneously estimating unknown parameters and exploiting current estimates. We focus specifically on the Web search context, although many of our ideas apply to other contexts as well.


The paper analyzes the prerequisites for the determination of most efficient combinations of error detection mechanisms based on the results of fault injection experiments. Two crucial requirements are identified: (1) for the classification of the experiment outcome it is essential to observe whether a system failure actually occurs. Error detections should be recorded, but their interference with the flow of the experiment must be avoided. (2) New measures are introduced that allow formation and performance prediction of arbitrary subsets of mechanisms a posteriori, based on raw experimental data. To demonstrate the applicability of the approach, results of selected experiments are presented for a computer-board that features a variety of error detection mechanisms not common to off-the-shelf computers.


Abstract The induced deflection of a probe beam, only partially overlapping with a pumping beam, is analysed theoretically. The physical mechanism of this phenomenon is induced phase modulation. It is shown that the conditions under which induced deflection can occur depend on the magnitude and the sign of the nonlinear susceptibility, as well as on the beam radii and their initial physical separation.


Low voltage devices connected to public electricity supply networks can be subjected to a wide range of voltage quality, including sustained overvoltage. Assessing the impact of sustained overvoltage on devices connected to the distribution network is important in determining the appropriate variance of standard voltage levels without unduly impacting the utility and customers from a technical and economic perspective. Therefore, a clear understanding of the impact that sustained overvoltage has on the lifetime of the connected equipment is a necessary task. This paper investigates the impact of sustained overvoltage through a series of accelerated-life testing experiments on a custom designed test device representative of a common interface between the power supply and distribution network, a switch mode power supply. The switch mode power supply with combined rectifier and filtering capacitor represents one of the most common front ends of LV equipment in modern appliances, and the work here concentrates on the impact of overvoltage on capacitor ageing. The results of the testing indicate that there is an accelerated ageing impact correlated with the applied voltage magnitude. Furthermore, analysis shows that mismatches between appliance voltage rating and sustained network voltage, leading to accelerated ageing, may result in premature device failure without the consumer being aware of the root cause.


This study addresses the question "What is the appropriate design solution for the developed streets of a Javanese coastal city" The presentation focuses on three major streets in the northern part of the city of Surabaya, which have spread outwards from the historic core. GIS-GRASS, a Geographical Information System, can be used to map areal objects such as land-use, the role and function of streets in the city, traffic, movement and static activities, and linear objects such as rivers and the boundaries of areal planning units. The spatial database recorded here includes the configurational mapping of space syntax. For the local government, whose concern is to prepare design solutions which take account, inter alia, of the role of the street within the configuration of the city as a whole, this is a valuable tool.


The article explores the creation of certain 'fictions' within the cult of Mithras during its formative years in the late first century CE. These fictions include both mythic narratives about the god and their replication in ritual performance. The article argues that, in part, these fictions were generated out of historical (or pseudo-historical) stories and fantasies of the Neronian age, in particular (1) stories of events in both Italy and the orient culminating in the coronation of Tiridates of Armenia by Nero in Rome, and (2) the heliomania of the times, focused on, and in some measure orchestrated by, the emperor himself.