The application of molecular biologic techniques over the past decade has seen a tremendous growth in our knowledge of the biology of Entamoeba histolytica, the causative agent of amebic dysentery and amebic liver abscess. This approach has also led to the identification and structural characterization of three amebic antigens, the serine-rich Entamoeba histolytica protein (SREHP), the 170-kDa subunit of the Gal/GalNAc binding lectin, and the 29-kDa cysteine-rich protein, which all show promise as recombinant antigen-based vaccines to prevent amebiasis. In recent studies, an immunogenic dodecapeptide derived from the SREHP molecule has been genetically fused to the B subunit of cholera toxin, to create a recombinant protein capable of inducing both antiamebic and anti-cholera toxin antibodies when administered by the oral route. Continued progress in this area will bring us closer to the goal of a cost-effective oral combination "enteric pathogen" vaccine, capable of inducing protective mucosal immune responses to several clinically important enteric diseases, including amebiasis.


Farmers organisations (FOs) need to be relatively sophisticated and well-funded to become involved in agricultural technology development and transfer. This is because of the complexity of understanding members technological needs and of building productive partnerships with other technology suppliers. Only small-scale initiatives are likely to be possible for organisations which have limited capacity. Such initiatives usually rely on leaders existing knowledge of or access to improved technologies. Organisations with relatively homogenous membership and with close links to the market (which helps both to set quality standards and to generate money for the organisation itself) are generally better able to get involved in technology than their larger, more political counterparts. The attitude of the public and private technology suppliers is also likely to be a critical factor in determining whether farmers organisations will be successful in their technology-related activities, as is the support of donors and/or NGOs on the capacity-building and financial sides.


Background and Objectives: Clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) may help clinicians prescribe opioids for chronic noncancer pain (CNCP) more appropriately. This scoping review determined the extent and range of the current evidence on CDSSs for opioid prescribing for CNCP in primary care, and whether investigators followed best evidence and current guidance in designing, implementing and evaluating these complex interventions. Methods: We searched 9 electronic databases and other data sources for studies from January 1, 2008 to October 11, 2019. Two reviewers independently screened the citations. One reviewer extracted data and a second verified for accuracy. Inclusion criteria: study of a CDSS for opioid prescribing for CNCP in a primary care clinical setting. We reported quantitative results in tables and qualitative results in narrative form. Results: Our search yielded 5068 records, of which 14 studies met our inclusion criteria. All studies were conducted in the United States. Six studies examined local (eg, health center) CDSSs and 8 examined prescription drug monitoring program CDSSs. Three CDSSs incorporated evidence-based components. Study aims were heterogeneous and study designs included both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. No studies assessed patient health outcomes. Few studies appeared to be following guidance for evaluating complex interventions. Conclusions: Few studies have rigorously assessed the use of CDSSs for opioid prescribing for CNCP in primary care settings. Going forward, investigators should include evidence-based components into the design of CDSSs and follow guidance for the development and evaluation of complex interventions.


Quantum electrodynamics presents intrinsic limitations in the description of physical processes that make it impossible to recover from it the type of description we have in classical electrodynamics. Hence one cannot consider classical electrodynamics as reducing to quantum electrodynamics and being recovered from it by some sort of limiting procedure. Quantum electrodynamics has to be seen not as an more fundamental theory, but as an upgrade of classical electrodynamics, which permits an extension of classical theory to the description of phenomena that, while being related to the conceptual framework of the classical theory, cannot be addressed from the classical theory.


There is an ever increasing demand for gamma-ray detectors which can achieve good energy resolution, high detection efficiency, and room-temperature operation. We are working to address each of these requirements through the development of large volume SrI2(Eu) scintillator detectors. In this work, we have evaluated a variety of SrI2 crystals with volumes >10 cm3. The goal of this research was to examine the causes of energy resolution degradation for larger detectors and to determine what can be done to mitigate these effects. Testing both packaged and unpackaged detectors, we have consistently achieved better resolution with the packaged detectors. Using a collimated gamma-ray source, it was determined that better energy resolution for the packaged detectors is correlated with better light collection uniformity. A number of packaged detectors were fabricated and tested and the best spectroscopic performance was achieved for a 3% Eu doped crystal with an energy resolution of 2.93% FWHM at 662keV. Simulations of SrI2(Eu) crystals were also performed to better understand the light transport physics in scintillators and are reported. This study has important implications for the development of SrI2(Eu) detectors for national security purposes.


INTRODUCTION: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is a very common disease that is being described principally in obese, diabetic and hiperlipidemic patients without significant alcohol consumption (less than 28 ethanol Units per week). Nowadays it is considered as the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome. The frequency of Non Alcoholic Sreatohepatic (NASH) is 30 to 35% in general population, but it reaches to 70% in patients whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is above 30 kg/m2 as it occurs with diabetic patients. In Mexico there are only isolated reports about it's frequency, nearly 7.1% in general population and 18.5% in diabetic patients. Objective: To know the frequency of the Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in patients who receive medical attention at the city of Veracruz. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We studied 337 patients, who were divided into 4 groups: Normal Weight, Overweight, Obese and Diabetes type 2 patients. The individuals who reported previous hepatitis and alcohol consumption were excluded. All patients made a test in order to determinate: age, gender, presence of hepatic stigmata and complaints. Laboratory tests were done to all patients including: Blood glucose, seric lipids, transaminases, proteins and alkaline phosphatase. In those cases with impairment in transaminases results, it was done upper abdominal ultrasound (USG) and hepatic biopsy, in patients who accepted. RESULTS: We identified 53 cases (15.72%) with characteristics of Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The frequency in patient with normal weight and overweight was 7.14% to 7.76%, while in obese subjects it was 14.15% and 28% in diabetic patients; 73.58% of all patients were female and the other 28.41% were males. The average age of the group was 48.11 years, it was similar the specific age of the normal weight and obese patients, in overweight patients was 61.5 years and the average age in diabetics was 56.42 years. There were significant differences in the results of blood glucose level, glycosilated hemoglobin, cholesterol, seric lipid values and aminotransferases in obese and diabetic patients compared with normal subjects and overweight patients in our study, the USG did not show sensibility and specificity to detect Non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). DISCUSSION: The results of this study show a lower frequency compared with the rest of the world, however it was higher in diabetic population than the frequency published by Bernal in Hidalgo, Mexico. The amino (AU)


Ten years ago Serbia started transition from centrally-planned to market economy. As a latecomer, Serbia faced many challenges in that process. One of those is current account deficit. Subject of this paper is one of balance-ofpayment's most important account – the current account and its deficit in CEFTA-member countries, with the special attention to Serbia. After the introduction, first we examine general issues of balance of payment theory and policy: whether conventional wisdom regarding its equilibrium, as one of finite macroeconomic goals, is valid in a modern international monetary system or not. Traditional balance-of-payment theory had been focused on current account. Modern globalized world economy pushed focus from balance-of-payment's theory and policy to capital account issues, as presently more important account, while current account is only result of capital one's misalignments, and something that compensate it and cover balance of payment discrepancy. That is the reason why traditional question "how to avoid high and rising current account deficit" turned into the question "how to manage high and increasing foreign capital inflow". These questions are even more important for small and open economies in transition, which is exactly the Serbian economy. Secondly, we analyze threats for economic policy decision makers in Serbia, with special regard on current account deficit, whose importance rise in time of world financial and economic crisis, which redirect funds that use to inflow from developed countries to the others. Finaly, we examine both current account deficit sustainability and its financing. Conclusion is reserved for research's results.


This study aims to understand vaccine skepticism among a population where it is remarkably prevalent—more-educated Dutch parents—through 31 in-depth interviews. Whereas all respondents ascribe a central role to the individual in obtaining knowledge (i.e., individualist epistemology), this is expressed in two repertoires. A neoromantic one focuses on deriving truth through intuition and following a "natural" path and informs a risk typology: embracing (refusing) "natural" ("unnatural") risks such as "childhood diseases" ("pharmaceutical substances"). A critical-reflexive repertoire centers on scientific methods but is skeptical about the scientific consensus and informs a risk calculation: opting for the choice perceived to bear the smallest risk. Thus, the same vaccine can be rejected because of its perceived harm to natural processes (neoromantic repertoire) or because its scientific basis is deemed insufficient (critical-reflexive repertoire). Moreover, these opposing repertoires are likely to inspire different responses to the same health-related information.


An endonuclease (AP-endonuclease II) that specifically attacks double stranded or single stranded depurinated DNA, resulting in single-strand nicks, has been purified 320-fold from Micrococcus luteus. The enzyme is not stimulated by 0.002 M MgCl2, it induces 3'OH-5'PO4 breaks on the 5' side of apurinic sites, it has no activity towards UV-irradiated DNA and has a molecular weight of about 30 000. In cooperation with DNA-polymerase from M. luteus and T4 DNA ligase, AP-endonuclease II has been shown capable of carrying out complete excision repair of depurinated DNA in vitro.


We present a method for constructing 3D feature flow from video and its application to video stylization. Our method extracts smoothly aligned 3D vectors that describe the smallest variation of colors within a spatiotemporal video cube, and thus effectively preserves both spatial and temporal coherence in a relatively inexpensive manner. As an application of this flow field we present a particle-based video stylization technique to rerender the video in a feature enhancing, painterly style. Our method consists of per-pixel operations and is suitable for GPU implementation, which enables real-time video stylization.


From cod to rods, halibut to turbot, this fascinating and unique book takes a whole new angle on angling. Whether you're a stickleback-chaser or a marlin-hunter, you'll soon be hooked on this fascinating catch of fishy notes, quotes, facts and stats. Don't let this one get away. 'The Fishing Companion' doesn't just contain fascinating snippels of information on fish; it also offers extracts from some of the finest writing from the human world. Alan Sillitoe casts a line with Thoreau, while Hemingway wades in with Aristotle. And like all other books in the Companion series, there's a great piece of statistical trivia to match each page number.


Thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs) of natural rubber (NR) and polypropylene (PP) (60:40) containing various dosages (0.5-5.5phr) of peroxide were prepared using a Haake Rheocord. The effects of peroxide content on the crosslink density, thermal behaviors, morphology, mechanical and rheological properties of NR/PP TPVs were studied. The crosslink density of TPVs increased with increasing of peroxide content. However, the tensile strength, tear strength and elongation at break obtained the maximum values when 2.5phr peroxide was added, which was ascribed to the presence of smallest particle size of crosslinked rubber phase at this peroxide content. It was proposed that the effect of DCP, which not only initiated crosslink reaction in NR phase, but also degraded the polypropylene molecules, played an important role in determined the morphology and properties of TPVs. The viscosity of TPVs decreased with shear stress, indicating pseudoplastic nature of the TPV samples. The elastic modulus of the samples gradually increases with the increase in DCP content.


The synthesis of the title compounds and their precursor, ditetradecyl diselenide, R2Se2, in high yield and of high purity is described. A 600 MHz 1H NMR study at 298 K in CDCl3 and CCl4 has revealed that 4-selenaoctadecanoic acid displays a singlet for the 2- and 3-H2 protons integrating for four protons, while the corresponding sulfur compound shows the expected doublet of triplets. Only in C6D6, and partly in (CD3)2SO, are the signals due to these protons sufficiently separated to give two triplets. No obvious relationship between the form of the spectra and any of the usual solvent parameters could be found. The particular form of the 1H NMR spectrum in CDCl3 and CCl4 was found to be independent of the concentration, i.e. the monomer∶dimer ratio. A temperature study has revealed that while the signal due to the 3-H2 protons is essentially independent of the temperature, the 2-H2 proton signal is shifted downfield with decreasing temperature, causing the close-lying signals to be indistinguishable in the 290–310 K range. NMR spectra of the carboxylic OH group and IR spectra of the carbonyl group of dilute solutions of 3-selena- and 3-thiaheptadecanoic acids in CCl4 suggest that the monomers of these acids exist predominantly as 4-membered cyclic species with Se(S)⋯OC or Se(S)⋯O(H) intramolecular interactions.


The rapidly growing interest in seawater desalination has drawn a large pool of attention among the industry for proper management of its by-product; desalination concentrate. Among the various attempts to utilize desalination concentrate, the selective extraction of lithium has received considerable attention as the industrial demand for lithium becomes higher than ever. In this study, using lithium-ion battery electrode materials that enable highly selective electrochemical capture and release of lithium, we report a pilot-scale system designed for the treatment of actual desalination concentrate produced by a desalination plant. This system, equipped with λ-MnO2 and Ag electrodes, enabled lithium recovery from 6 tons of desalination concentrate per day (0.25 ton per hour), leading the production of a solution containing 62 mM of Li+ with purity and enrichment factor of 88% and 1800, respectively.


Invasive pneumococcal infection is a severe disease and its incidence may be increasing. Endocarditis due to Streptococcus pneumoniae is uncommon, particularly in children without risk factors. Etiologic diagnosis is difficult when cultures are negative. We report the case of a previously healthy, 17-month-old boy not vaccinated against pneumococcus who, during the course of pneumonia treated with beta-lactam antibiotics, developed cardiorespiratory deterioration and heart murmur. Mitral valve vegetation was identified by transthoracic echocardiography. Endocarditis was diagnosed and new antibiotics were given for 6 weeks (cefotaxime, gentamycin and vancomycin). Cultures were negative. Because of lack of improvement, prosthetic mitral replacement was indicated. S. pneumoniae was identified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the pathological specimen. Outcome was favorable, and the patient remained symptom-free after 6 months of follow-up. The possibility of endocarditis as an invasive pneumococcal infection should be considered in children without risk factors. PCR is a useful technique to establish the etiology when cultures are negative.


Tumor-infiltrating B cells exert antitumor effects by producing antibodies against tumor-associated antigens. Conversely, B cells may promote tumors through the production of factors that dampen antitumor immunity. In this issue of the JCI, Bing Yang, Zhen Zhang, et al. investigated the roles of B cell receptor (BCR) signaling in antitumor immunity, focusing on the role of an Asia-specific variant of human immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) containing a Gly396 to Arg396 substitution (hIgG1-G396R) in colorectal cancer (CRC). Epidemiological analysis revealed an association between hIgG1-G396R and progression-free survival in CRC. Human samples and mouse models of CRC showed plasma cells, as opposed to B cells, infiltrating the tumor microenvironment. Notably, patients with the hIgG1-G396R variant had increased CD8+ T cells, dendritic cells, and tertiary lymphoid structure density. These findings indicate that the hIgG1-G396R variant represses tumorigenesis by enhancing B cell responses, and suggest that modulating BCR signaling could improve the efficacy of immunotherapy in cancer.


This article proposes a simple and reliable damping strategy for wave powerfarm operation of small-scale point-absorber converters. The strategy is based on passiverectification onto a constant DC-link, making it very suitable for grid integration of the farm.A complete model of the system has been developed in Matlab Simulink, and uses real sitedata as input. The optimal constant DC-voltage is evaluated as a function of the significantwave height and energy period of the waves. The total energy output of the WEC is derivedfor one year of experimental site data. The energy output is compared for two cases, onewhere the optimal DC-voltage is determined and held constant at half-hour basis throughoutthe year, and one where a selected value of the DC-voltage is kept constant throughout theyear regardless of sea state.


Abstract Physico-chemical interactions between nanoparticles and cell membranes play a crucial role in determining the cytotoxicity of nanoparticles, which may thereby vary depending on the nature of the target microorganisms. We investigated the responses of two different models of unicellular bacteria to cerium oxide (CeO2) nanoparticles. These organisms are: Synechocystis PCC6803 a representative of environmentally important cyanobacterial organisms (producer of biomass for aquatic food chains), and Escherichia coli a representative of intestine-colonizing bacteria. Coupling physico-chemical (adsorption isotherms and electrophoretic mobility), biological (survival tests), microscopical (SEM, TEM and EDS) and spectroscopic (XANES) methods, we enlightened two distinct mechanisms for the CeO2 nanoparticles toxicological impact: A 'direct' mechanism that requires a close contact between nanoparticles and cell membranes, and an 'indirect' influence elicited by the acidity of nanoparticles stabilizing agents. We showed that E. coli is sensitive to the 'direct' effects of nanoparticles, whereas Synechocystis being protected by extracellular polymeric substances preventing direct cellular contacts is sensitive only to the 'indirect' mechanism. Consequently, our findings demonstrate the importance of the 'direct/indirect' effects of nanoparticles on cell fitness, a phenomenon that should be systematically investigated with appropriate techniques and dose metrics to make meaningful environmental and/or health recommendations.


The pharmaceutical business is a multinational enterprise of great significance to human health. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), once called the world standard in regulating new drug approvals, may still deserve that status. But, as was described earlier in this space, public confidence in the agency has been shaken. That9s why it9s important that we restore the FDA9s capacity to do the quality of work that all health care systems require.


Diffuse optical wireless (DOW) systems have the advantage that they do not require point-to-point siting so one transmitter can communicate with several receivers. In this paper, we investigate multiple access scheduling methods for downlink orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) in diffuse optical wire- less networks. Unlike the radio frequency (RF) channel, the DOW channel has low-pass filter characteristics and so requires different scheduling methods than those developed for the RF channel. Multi-user diversity orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems nominate a cluster of subcarriers with the largest signal-to-noise-ratio for transmission. However, in a DOW channel, most users would choose the lowest frequency clusters of subcarriers. To remedy this problem, we make two proposals. The first is to use a variable cluster size across the subcarriers; the lower frequency clusters will have fewer subcarriers while the higher frequency clusters will have more subcarriers. This will equalize the capacity of the clusters. The second proposal is to randomize a user's cluster selection from a group of clusters satisfying a minimum threshold. Through simulation it is shown that combining these strategies can increase the throughput while ensuring a fair distribution of the available spectrum.


The Kable doctrine is, and has always been, a difficult legal principle to define. For over a decade, and despite much academic attention, it had little consequence for state power. Until recently, the High Court deftly avoided its application by employing a number of techniques. As the politics of law and order in the states have increased, state Parliaments have felt emboldened by these cases to test the outer limits of their legislative power. In such an environment, federal anti-terrorism measures, introduced as extraordinary responses necessary for the exceptional nature of terrorism, have crept into general state policing and expanded. It is in this arena that the Kable doctrine has emerged once again. The principle is now vital to understanding the very real limits of state power, particularly in the law and order arena. This article traces the Court's approach to the principle in three recent cases involving the states' anti-organised crime measures (International Finance Trust Co v New South Wales Crime Commission, South Australia v Totani, and Wainohu v New South Wales) before offering some conclusions about where the current jurisprudence leaves the states and their perpetual campaign to achieve law and order.


Cloud computing has recently emerged as a convergence of concepts such as cluster computing, grid computing, utility computing, and virtualization. In hybrid clouds, the user has its private cloud available for use, but she can also request new resources to public clouds in a pay-per-use basis when there is an increase in demand. In this scenario it is important to decide when and how to request these new resources to satisfy deadlines and/or to get a reasonable execution time, while minimizing the monetary costs involved. In this paper we propose a strategy to schedule service workflows in a hybrid cloud. The strategy aims at determining which services should use paid resources and what kind of resource should be requested to the cloud in order to minimize costs and meet deadlines. Experiments suggest that the strategy can decrease the execution costs while maintaining reasonable execution times.


OBJECTIVES
Air-polishing devices are used for the instrumentation of the root surface. Their potential of harm to the hard and/or soft tissues needs to be considered during periodontal treatment. The objective of this systematic review was to analyse the effects of air polishing devices on oral tissues.

METHODS
The electronic databases MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Library were screened for studies published through 18 November 2013. The surface modifications on human cementum, dentine or gingiva after the instrumentation were considered as outcomes.

RESULTS
Of the 1266 abstracts screened, 17 studies were included in the analysis. Different air polishing powders consisting of sodium bicarbonate, calcium carbonate, pumice or glycine were used in different ex vivo or in vitro settings. Thirteen publications reported data on the effects of air polishing devices on cementum and dentine. Hard tissue modifications, including defect depths and volume, caused by sodium bicarbonate or calcium carbonate powders were significantly greater compared to powders consisting of glycine. The soft tissue modifications using different modes of instrumentation were assessed in four publications. The data demonstrate less potential of harm to the gingiva after spraying with glycine powder compared to sodium bicarbonate powder or instrumentation with curettes.

CONCLUSION
Glycine powder air polishing may be safely applied to human root surfaces and gingivae.


The available fire alarm system in the market unable to inform occupant that their house is on fire. The occupant remains unknown especially when they are away from their house. Most of the time, the house or building almost destroyed by fire when firefighter comes to the scene due to late inform to Fire and Rescue Department. To this aim, automatic smoke detection system using Internet of Things (IoT) is proposed. The proposed system not only able to monitor the smoke condition of a room but also able to alert user and Fire and Rescue Department when certain level of smoke is detected by a gas sensor via Favoriot platform. Arduino Uno is used in this work to control all the devices and WiFi shield acts as a medium to interconnect devices with the network so that the data from the smoke sensor can be read in the Favoriot platform. In this experiment, the condition of room is tested under several burning materials and the smoke levels are recorded. It is found that when the smoke level more than 100 ppm, it may cause to sore eyes, cough and hard breathing that can bring to death. Therefore, the best threshold level of the automatic smoke detection system is at 80 ppm. By using this system, the user able to take preliminary rescue action to save people and prevent fire breaks out.


The present study focuses on evaluating the quality of groundwater in Green – Belt project in Al- Najaf Governorate area for human drinking and irrigation. The samples have been collected from five wells, which, have been used to irrigate the plants in the project. Thirteen parameters has been selected for assessment quality of ground water: temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, sulfate ion, turbidity, oil & grease, cadmium, lead, chromium, iron, copper, zinc. In addition, the values parameters have been submitted as spatial distribution on map by using GIS. In addition, water quality index for irrigation and human drinking were calculated. Almost all samples have high salinity, which represented as EC., TDS and SO 4-2 . In addition, the results exceed the standard limits for irrigation and human drinking. O&G was very high concentration in wells GWF4 and five due to upstream AL-Najaf refinery and they are no recommend for drinking or irrigation. Heavy metals in samples were exceeding the limit of human drinking for lead and iron but other metals were within limits except few samples. For irrigation, almost all samples were within limits, but not recommended for fruits. Calculation of IWQI showed that wells GWF1, two, and three located in fair category, which, regarded as moderate restriction and possibility using for irrigation in Green-Belt project and no side effect on human except palms and olive. The values of IWQI in wells GWF4 and 5 are poor and regards as severe restriction which, can not be used due to contain of O&G in water from AL-Najaf refinery. WQI calculation showed GWF1, two and three were categorized poor and may be used as human drinking water with treatment units. Nevertheless, GWF4 and five were unfit for human drinking.


Abstract: Respiratory diseases are frequent complications in HIV infection. High Resolution Computed To-mography (HRCT) has proven superior to conventional imaging techniques to establish a pulmonary disease diagnosis. A study was conducted in order to establish the association between tomographic pulmonary pat-terns and immune status of HIV-infected patients. We evaluated 35 patients with respiratory symptoms and / or abnormal chest radiograph. An association was observed between the presence of ground glass pattern and P jirovecii infection. Likewise, a correlation between pulmonary histoplasmosis diagnosis and honeycomb pattern, lung cysts and nodules was established. Few correlation between tomographic patterns and CD4 + T lymphocyte counts was observed. In summary, HRCT findings can predict certain types of infection; nevertheless, further studies are required to extrapolate this association to other noninfectious lung diseases in HIV-infected patients.Key words: CD4 + , HIV, HRCT, Respiratory diseases.


The goal of this paper is to describe the different steps of the decentralized control design applied on a turboprop engine. An important part of the present approach is the interaction analysis, which leads to the choice of a decentralized strategy with a full compensator. After designing the control laws, the structured singular value approach has allowed to validate the robustness of these. Control laws have finally been interpolated before implementation on the non-linear simulation model of turboprop engine.


Objective: To assess intratumoral vascularization in endometrial hyperplasia and carcinoma by transvaginal 3D PowerDoppler sonography. Patients and Methods: Twenty-eight women (mean Age: 58.1 years, range: 29 to 84 years) with histologic diagnosis of endometrial hyperplasia (n = 8) or carcinoma (n = 20) were prospectively evaluated by transvaginal 3D Power-Doppler sonography rpior to treatment. Endometrial volume, vascularity index (VI), flow index (FI) and vascularity-flow index (VFI) were calculated using the VOCAL method (Voluson 730, GE Systems, USA). All patients with endometrial cancer underwent surgical staging. Results: Median VI and VFI values in endometrial cancer were higher than in endometrial hyperplasia (VI: 12.6, IQR: 21.7 versus 0.6, IQR: 1.9; P = 0.018 and VFI: 2.3, IQR: 4.9 versus 0.25, IQR: 0.9; p = 0.038, respectively) Median VI, FI and VFI values in poorly-differentiated (G3) cancers were higher than in wellor moderately-differentiated tumors (VI: 28.4, IQR: 28.9 versus 9.2, IQR: 13.2; P = 0.002, FI: 30.6, IQR: 7.9 versus 21.3, IQR: 5.9; p = 0.016 and VFI: 5.32, IQR: 7.8 versus 0.25, IQR: 0.9; p = 0.003, respectively) Median VI, FI and VFI values in cancers which had >50% myometrial invasion were higher than in tumors with <50% invasion (VI: 34.8, IQR: 27.4 versus 12.0, IQR: 14.5; P = 0.005, FI: 31.3, IQR: 4.7 versus 22.0, IQR: 4.2; p = 0.005 and VFI: 5.3, IQR: 8.2 versus 2.3, IQR: 3.4; p = 0.009, respectively) Median VI, FI and VFI values in cancers stage Ic or higher were higher than Ia-Ib tumors (VI: 22.0, IQR: 30.1 versus 10.0, IQR: 14.8; P = 0.019, FI: 32.8, IQR: 6 versus 19.2, IQR: 4.2; p = 0.0001 and VFI: 5.3, IQR: 7.1 versus 1.3, IQR: 2.9; p = 0.02, respectively). Conclusion: Transvaginal 3D Power-Doppler is a feasible method to assess intratumoral vascularity in endometrial pathology. A progressive increased vascularity is observed from benign endometrial hyperplasia to G3, deeply-invasive and advanced stage cancers.


Much of the international commons literature reveals a decreased functioning of local traditional institutions that regulate natural resource harvesting. In South Africa, it is believed that the creation of new democratic structures at the end of Apartheid has contributed significantly to the deterioration in traditional resource regulation and this in turn has led to the extensive resource degradation seen in parts of the country. Many of these assertions, though, remain anecdotal in nature. Given the high reliance by rural households on natural resources, and the serious negative implications that over-use has on livelihood security, understanding how well or poorly such commons are regulated is key to ensuring the sustainability of such resource-dependent populations. The aim of this study was therefore to examine systems of resource governance, focusing specifically on firewood, and to determine the roles of traditional and democratically elected community leaders in six rural villages spanning two chieftaincies in Bushbuckridge, South Africa. In each study village, five local leaders were interviewed and five community focus groups were conducted. Results indicate that most parties still regard the Chief as the ultimate authority for regulating firewood harvesting. However, overall firewood management appears weak, at best, across the region. Although some authors attribute this to community confusion over the roles of local leaders in a new democracy, we provide evidence that other socio-political factors, including political expediency, may be driving the increasingly relaxed implementation of these firewood management systems. With resource dependence remaining a vital contributor to livelihood security across the developing world and with many rural communities facing increasing strain under local resource depletion, these findings shed new light on the complex social dynamics underlying the widely reported weakening of traditional institutions in South Africa. In so doing, it offers insights into local firewood governance that can be used to combat these challenges and thereby reduce regional social and ecological vulnerability being experienced in communal landscapes across the region.


During the past few years, the number of wireless devices has been increasing rapidly. Wireless networks are serving and connecting billions of wireless devices where these devices are demanding higher data rate and lower latency to be able to support voice, video and gaming applications. Moreover, the consumed energy by the wireless systems will be increasing. Hence, the Fifth generation (5G) wireless networks needs to provide higher data rate, serve larger number of users simultaneously and be more energy efficient. One of the promising technologies that can meet the above requirements is Massive Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO). The main concept of this technology is to equip the base station with hundreds of antennas and serve tens of users simultaneously. The amount of research on massive MIMO increases rapidly, but there is little attention so far on the spatial correlation between the channels. Most of the published work are assuming that the antennas are uncorrelated which is not the case in real-world situations. In this dissertation, the effect of channel correlation model on the Massive MIMO performance is investigated. First, the exponential correlation model is applied to the Massive MIMO system model. We used a pilot based linear minimum mean square error (LMMSE) channel estimator for the uplink data transmission. The impact of the channel correlation on the channel estimation accuracy is investigated. Due to having channel reciprocity, the channel iii state information will be the same for uplink and downlink data transmission. It is assumed that there is block fading where there are static channels. It is shown that the channel estimation is more accurate with higher SNR values. Second, the uplink and downlink spectral efficiency of the LMMSE estimators are investigated where spatial correlation models are applied to the system to generate the channel covariance matrix. The lower capacity of the uplink and downlink data transmissions are derived to see the effect of applying exponential correlation model. We study the lower capacity bound based on imperfect knowledge of the channel. In the first part, we are considering a one cell system model with one base station that is equipped with N antennas and serving single antenna user. In the second part, a Massive MIMO system of a single cell is considered. The system model is having a base station with multiple antennas that is serving user terminals equipped with multiple antennas. It is proved that the spectral efficiency is improved by increasing the number of base station antennas which shows the scalability of Massive MIMO systems. Finally, the transmit power of Massive MIMO system is defined as the consumed energy by the amplifier divided by coherence time while energy efficiency of Massive MIMO system can be expressed as the ratio between the spectral efficiency and the emitted power. The influence of the channel spatial correlation on the energy efficiency is investigated where it is noticed that there is higher energy efficiency with higher number of base station antennas.


There are significant gaps in knowledge about the synergistic and disparate burden of health disparities associated with cardiovascular health issues, poorer mental health outcomes, and suboptimal HIV-care management on the health of older Latinos living with HIV (OLLWH). This pilot study sought to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of an innovative application of an already established health-promotion intervention—Happy Older Latinos are Active (HOLA)—among this marginalized population. Eighteen self-identified Latino men with an undetectable HIV viral load and documented risk of cardiometabolic disease participated in this study. Although the attrition rate of 22% was higher than expected, participants attended 77% of the sessions and almost 95% of the virtual walks. Participants reported high satisfaction with the intervention, as evident by self-report quantitative (CSQ-8; M = 31, SD = 1.5) and qualitative metrics. Participants appreciated bonding with the community health worker and their peers to reduce social isolation. Results indicate that the HOLA intervention is an innovative way of delivering a health promotion intervention adapted to meet the diverse needs and circumstances of OLLWH, is feasible and acceptable, and has the potential to have positive effects on the health of OLLWH.


This paper investigates decision making in the stage-gate process used by an aerospace manufacturer. More specifically, it focuses on the way decision makers deal with uncertainties and ambiguities when making decisions. The stage-gate model was found to be a discussion trigger — a boundary negotiating artefact — through which stakeholders bring issues to the table, reflect on uncertainties, and decide in what areas more knowledge is needed. Managers should be aware that the knowledge base might not always be perfect and should make use of the sensemaking capabilities of the stage-gate model and the gate meeting to mitigate and improve the knowledge base. This paper elaborates on formalized knowledge-based criteria so as to support this evaluation of the knowledge base.


My family has owned and operated Paradise Decking in Summerfield, N.C., for 20 years. At 3,700 square feet, this project was our biggest to date, taking three and a half months start to finish and costing close to $400,000 with paint and electric. Most of what you see here we built with pressuretreated pine, though the flooring and some of the trim is cellular PVC. The complex includes an outdoor kitchen; a hot tub with canti levered benches on three sides; a walkway, with an exposed-framed ceiling, connecting the portico with the adjoining house; and a sunroom addition off the back of the house that opens onto a country-style porch overlooking the kitchen area. In addition, down by the pool is a freestanding porch with a massive masonry fireplace. We subbed out the electric, travertine pavers, masonry, granite countertops, and painting; our company did all the excavation, drainage, and construction, custom-building everything from stock materials.


Article history: Received September 16, 2016 Received in revised format: October 22, 2016 Accepted May 1, 2017 Available online May 1, 2017 In an environment where markets go through a volatile process, and rapid fundamental changes occur due to technological advances, it is important to ensure and maintain a good performance measurement. Organizations, in their performance evaluation, should consider different types of financial and non-financial indicators. In systems like direct sales stores in which decision units have multiple inputs and outputs, all criteria influencing on performance must be combined and examined in a system, simultaneously. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of different products through direct sales of a firm named Shirin Asal with a combination of Balanced Scorecard, fuzzy AHP and TOPSIS so that the weaknesses of subjectivity and selective consideration of evaluators in evaluating the performance indicators are reduced and evaluation integration is provided by considering the contribution of each indicator and each indicator group of balanced scorecard. The research method of this case study is applied. The data collection method is a questionnaire from the previous studies, the use of experts' opinions and the study of documents in the organization. MATLAB and SPSS were used to analyze the data. During this study, the customer and financial perspectives are of the utmost importance to assess the company branches. Among the sub-criteria, the rate of new customer acquisition in the customer dimension and the net income to sales ratio in financial dimension are of the utmost importance. Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved. 8 © 201


During the past several years, we have developed dedicated digital algorithms for real time processing of X-ray transmission imaging data obtained from an image intensifier television fluoroscopy system. Three imaging modes called Mask Mode Fluoroscopy, Mask Mode Radiography, and Time Interval Difference (T. I. D.) Imaging have been tested in over 100 patients since installation of this. apparatus at the University of Wisconsin Clinical Science Center. Feasibility studies have been conducted to determine the capability of these techniques for imaging the entire cardiovascular system, including peripheral arteries, using intravenous injections of iodinated contrast material.


Offline safe RL is of great practical relevance for deploying agents in real-world applications. However, acquiring constraint-satisfying policies from the fixed dataset is non-trivial for conventional approaches. Even worse, the learned constraints are stationary and may become invalid when the online safety requirement changes. In this paper, we present a novel offline safe RL approach referred to as SaFormer, which tackles the above issues via conditional sequence modeling. In contrast to existing sequence models, we propose cost-related tokens to restrict the action space and a posterior safety verification to enforce the constraint explicitly. Specifically, SaFormer performs a two-stage auto-regression conditioned by the maximum remaining cost to generate feasible candidates. It then filters out unsafe attempts and executes the optimal action with the highest expected return. Extensive experiments demonstrate the efficacy of SaFormer featuring (1) competitive returns with tightened constraint satisfaction; (2) adaptability to the in-range cost values of the offline data without retraining; (3) generalizability for constraints beyond the current dataset.


Cardiovascular disease (CVD) accounts for 30% of all global deaths and is predicted to dominate in the coming years, despite vast improvements in medical technology. Current clinical methods of assessing an individual's cardiovascular health include blood tests to monitor relevant biomarker levels as well as varying imaging modalities such as electrocardiograms, computed tomography, and angiograms to assess vasculature. As informative as these tools are, they each require lengthy scheduling, preparation, and highly trained personnel to interpret the results before any information is accessible to patients, often leading to delayed treatment, which can be fatal. A point-of-care (POC) sensor platform is thus paramount in rapid and early diagnosis of CVD. Among the many POC detection platforms, including established optical and mechanical methods, electrochemical-based detection mechanisms have become increasingly desirable because of their superior sensitivity, low cost, and label-free detection. Specifically, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) has demonstrated remarkable abilities in low-level (femtomolar) detection of several clinically useful biomarkers and has been reported in CVD diagnostic applications. In this review, we provide an in-depth overview of prevalent CVD diseases and clinically relevant proteomic biomarkers for assessing them. Subsequently, we discuss the ongoing development of POC sensors for CVD, highlighting the current clinical gold standard, potential alternative modalities, and electrochemical methodologies previously successful in quantifying specific biomarkers approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). A discussion of EIS highlighting the attributes and capabilities of novel analysis algorithms is included to showcase the possibility of simultaneous dual-marker detection.


SIR,-Your leading article on pulmonary infarction (7 May, p. 1129) was a most comprehensive account of different aspects of this condition, and was read with much interest. You mention that there is no longer any doubt of the efficacy of anticoagulant therapy in pulmonary infarction. It may be so at the present moment, but apart from anticoagulant therapy and pulmonary embolectomy, fibrinolytic therapy may also have a place in the treatment of pulmonary embolism; though so far there has been no extensive clinical trials preliminary reports of this therapy have been encouraging,' Browse and Jones' found striking clinical improvement in four of their patients treated with streptokinase, previous anticoagulation having failed to improve two of them. They recommend streptokinase as the treatment of choice in all except the moribund, in whom heparin should be tried. McNicol and Douglas' also suggest that the main indication for streptokinase is probably recent arterial occlusion and pulmonary embolism. -I am, etc., I. S. MENON. Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne.


Polyphosphate (poly-P), polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), and glycogen are the key functionally relevant intracellular polymers involved in the enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) process. Further understanding of the mechanisms of EBPR has been hampered by the lack of cellular level quantification tools to accurately measure the dynamics of these polymers during the EBPR process. In this study, we developed a novel Raman microscopy method for simultaneous identification and quantification of poly-P, PHB, and glycogen abundance in each individual cell and their distribution among the populations in EBPR. Validation of the method was demonstrated via a batch phosphorus uptake and release test, in which the total intracellular polymers abundance determined via Raman approach correlated well with those measured via conventional bulk chemical analysis (correlation coefficient r = 0.8 for poly-P, r = 0.94 for PHB, and r = 0.7 for glycogen). Raman results, for the first time, clearly showed the distributions of microbial cells containing different abundance levels of the three intracellular polymers under the same environmental conditions (at a given time point), indicating population heterogeneity exists. The results revealed the intracellular distribution and dynamics of the functionally relevant polymers in different metabolic stages of the EBPR process and elucidated the association of cellular metabolic state with the fate of these polymers during various substrates availability conditions.


Exposure to particulate air pollution is a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. In developing countries, the combustion of solid fuels is widely used as a source of energy, and this process can produce exposure to harmful levels of particulate matter with diameters smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5). However, as countries develop, solid fuel may be replaced by centralized coal combustion, and vehicles burning diesel and gasoline may become common, changing the concentration and composition of PM2.5, which ultimately changes the population health effects. Therefore, there is a continuous need for in-situ monitoring of air pollution in developing nations, both to estimate human exposure and to monitor changes in air quality. In this study, we present measurements from a 5-week field experiment in Palapye, Botswana. We used a low-cost, highly portable instrument package to measure surface-based aerosol optical depth (AOD), real-time surface PM2.5 concentrations using a third-party optical sensor, and time-integrated PM2.5 concentration and composition by collecting PM2.5 onto Teflon filters. Furthermore, we employed other low-cost measurements of real-time black carbon and time-integrated ammonia to help interpret the observed PM2.5 composition and concentration information during the field experiment. We found that the average PM2.5 concentration (9.5 µg∙m−3) was below the World Health Organization (WHO) annual limit, and this concentration closely agrees with estimates from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) report estimates for this region. Sulfate aerosol and carbonaceous aerosol, likely from coal combustion and biomass burning, respectively, were the main contributors to PM2.5 by mass (33% and 27% of total PM2.5 mass, respectively). While these observed concentrations were on average below WHO guidelines, we found that the measurement site experienced higher concentrations of aerosol during first half our measurement period (14.5 µg∙m−3), which is classified as "moderately unhealthy" according to the WHO standard.


Across Europe, the 21st century has witnessed a rise in demands for political sovereignty from nationalist parties that had previously seemed reconciled to seeking greater devolution rather than full independence. Spain is a particularly interesting case where pro-sovereignty movements have gained traction in both the Basque and Catalan regions, yet with important differences in the objectives pursued. Both the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) and Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC), the traditional mainstream nationalist parties in each region, have sought a fundamental reconfiguration of their respective territories' relationship with Spain at different times since the late 1990s. What explains the differences in the nature and timing of their shifts away from accommodationist politics within Spain and towards pro-sovereignty agendas? This study investigates the different regional financing systems in Spain as a significant factor influencing the evolution of the nationalist parties' territorial strategies and behaviour. While Catalonia forms part of the common financing system (regimen comun de financiacion), which gives the regions relatively limited tax-raising competences and involves substantial revenue transfers from central government, the Basque region raises almost all of its own taxes under a separate system of extensive fiscal autonomy (the Concierto Economico or Economic Agreement). Spain thus offers the opportunity to compare two different models of fiscal decentralisation and their significance for the political evolution of two contrasting nationalist movements.


In an environment of rapid technological change, collection managers face the challenge of ensuring that valuable resources remain accessible when there are changes to the technological context in which those resources are embedded. In this context of requiring "accessibility over time", digital preservation initiatives also demand for interoperability, or as what Hedstrom calls temporal interoperability. But first, libraries, especially in the academic world, need some general guidelines to assist in selectively choosing digital resources which are of great need to collect and preserve. This paper attempts to provide some structure for the concepts and ideas on a general collection management decision guide in the form of a requirements analysis framework that may assist in determining the metadata granularity required for digital resource management within an archive. The objective is for metadata and mechanisms to be shared among digital archives, but policies can be tailored to the requirements of the organization.


Lisa Delpit uses the debate over process-oriented versus skills-oriented writing instruction as the starting-off point to examine the "culture of power" that exists in society in general and in the educational environment in particular. She analyzes five complex rules of power that explicitly and implicitly influence the debate over meeting the educational needs of Black and poor students on all levels. Delpit concludes that teachers must teach all students the explicit and implicit rules of power as a first step toward a more just society. This article is an edited version of a speech presented at the Ninth Annual Ethnography in Education Research Forum, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February 5-6, 1988.


In the U.S., many households are unable to meet their dietary needs for leading an active and healthy lifestyle. Research has focused on assessing community-level constraints and opportunities to access health and nutritious food for low-income and disadvantaged populations. Our aim is to investigate how community-level constraints relate to the perceived barriers to purchasing healthy foods. Probit regressions are performed where the probability of declaring a specific barrier to purchasing more healthy food (or no barrier) is regressed on the respondents' demographic characteristics and on the zip code level food store location variables. Understanding the barriers that exist to purchasing healthy foods for consumers living in underserved areas can have a considerable impact on current policy discussions.


This study reports the results of a pilot trial of Learning to BREATHE, a mindfulness curriculum for adolescents created for a classroom setting. The primary goal of the program is to support the development of emotion regulation skills through the practice of mindfulness, which has been described as intentional, non-judgmental awareness of present-moment experience. The total class of 120 seniors (average age 17.4 years) from a private girls' school participated as part of their health curriculum. Relative to controls, participants reported decreased negative affect and increased feelings of calmness, relaxation, and self-acceptance. Improvements in emotion regulation and decreases in tiredness and aches and pains were significant in the treatment group at the conclusion of the program. Qualitative feedback indicated a high degree of program satisfaction. The results suggest that mindfulness is a potentially promising method for enhancing adolescents' emotion regulation and well-being.


Malolactic fermentation (MLF) is an important step in winemaking to improve wine quality by deacidification, increased microbial stability, and modified wine flavor. The phenolic composition of the wine influences the growth and metabolism of the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) used for MLF. Due to increased cultivation of fungus-resistant grape cultivars, the present study aimed to analyze the influence of stilbenes on MLF because stilbenes play an important role as phytoalexins in plants to counteract fungal pathogens. The analysis showed that the grapevine-shoot extract Vineatrol and the stilbenes ε-viniferin, ampelopsin A, r2-viniferin, and r-viniferin, as well as mixtures of the five stilbenes, decelerated malic acid degradation. This can be partially attributed to a reduced number of viable cells. However, the direct impact of stilbenes on the malolactic enzyme must also play a role, as shown by the finding that the viability of LAB stabilized, while at the same time, malic acid degradation was reduced. These results show that wines made from stilbene-rich grapes, such as fungus-resistant cultivars, might have a higher risk for a sluggish or incomplete MLF.


The three day visit of the British royal family to Bloemfontein in March 1947, as part of their countrywide tour of South Africa, was apparently the greatest social occasion which the city had experienced in its history up to that point. Previously nobles, royalty and other high ranking people from Britain, other countries and South Africa had visited the city, but a reigning king who was supreme ruler of the British Commonwealth of Nations, of which South Africa as dominion was a member, and with his whole family at that, overshadowed them all. In spite of the political turmoil which prevailed in the country at the time and in a certain sense had a negative affect on the royal tour, Bloemfontein gave of its best for the visit. King George VI, his wife, Elizabeth, and their two daughters, princess Elizabeth (today Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain) and princess Margaret, were received and entertained with hospitality and contained dignity.


The length of 469 Borreliae burgdorferi s.I. from the Ixodes ricinus and I. persulcatus images collected in the Moscow Region, that of 5433 B. burgdorferi s.s from the I. persulcatus nymphs and images cultured at a laboratory, and B. burdorferi s.s. grown on the BSK-II (1 and 10 passages) were measured. There was a wide range of variations in the length of specimens (3-74 microns) and in those of this group average sizes (10.7-24.8 microns). The lengths of Borelliae from natural and laboratory ticks after their molt were 17-18 microns. When the ticks were kept in the refrigerator as long as 1-2 years, the length of Borreliae decreased to 10.7-10.9 microns, upon multiple (10) passages on the BSK-II medium, their lengths increased to 24.8 microns (the differences being significant). When the length of Borreliae reduced due to their keeping in the refrigerator, their pathogenicity for albino mice diminished. This disappeared after multiple BSK-II medium passages. It is suggested that the length of Borreliae may serve as a marker of their pathogenicity.


• Exploding glass bottles filled with carbonated beverages cause serious ocular injuries that have not received adequate attention in ophthalmic publications. All three patients described in this article had corneal lacerations and traumatic cataracts developed. One patient was left with an inoperable retinal detachment. Beverage bottles may explode with normal handling and without provocation. Manufacturing standards have just taken effect that may help to eliminate defective bottles. The addition of plastic sleeves to beverage bottles and the use of plastic shatterproof bottles also reduce the hazard of explosions and high velocity fragments. It is advisable to avoid subjecting beverage bottles to undue heat and agitation and to direct the cap away from the face when opening the bottle.


This study evaluated the individual and combined removal capacities of benzene, toluene, and xylene (B, T, and X) in the presence and absence of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) in a polyurethane biofilter inoculated with a BTX-degrading microbial consortium, and further examined their interactive effects in various mixtures. In addition, Polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences were used to compare the microbial community structures found in biofilters exposed to the various gases and gas mixtures. The maximum individual elimination capacities (MECs) of B, T, and X were 200, 238, and 400 g m(-3) h(-1), respectively. There was no significant elimination of MTBE alone. Addition of MTBE decreased the MECs of B,T, and X to 75, 100, and 300 g m(-3) h(-1), respectively, indicating that benzene was most strongly inhibited by MTBE. When the three gases were mixed (B + T + X), the removal capacities of individual B, T, and X were 50, 90, and 200 g m(-3) h(-1), respectively. These capacities decreased to 40, 50, and 100 g m(-3) h(-1) when MTBE was added to the mix. The MEC of the three-gas mixture (B + T + X) was 340 g m(-3) h(-1), and that of the four-gas mixture was 200 g m(-3) h(-1). Although MTBE alone was not degraded by the biofilter, it could be co-metabolically degraded in the presence of toluene, benzene, or xylene with the MECs of 34, 23, and 14 g m(-3) h(-1), respectively. The microbial community structure analysis revealed that two large groups could be distinguished based on the presence or absence of MTBE, and many of the dominant bacteria in the consortia were closely related to bacteria isolated from aromatic hydrocarbon-contaminated sites and/ or oil wastewaters. These findings provide important new insights into biofiltration and may be used to improve the rational design of biofilters for remediation of petroleum gas-contaminated airstreams according to composition types of mixed gases.


It has been shown that during Jurassic and Cretaceous kenoxic events, while other groups of benthonic Ostracoda severely decline and eventually disappear, the Platycopina tend to survive. The survival of the platycopids is attributed to their being filter feeders who, in dysaerobic conditions manage to obtain sufficient oxygen by virtue of the greater volume of water which they circulate across their respiratory surface in the course of their normal feeding behaviour. The podocopid ostracods, which are predators, scavengers and deposit feeders, are unable to survive the diminished oxygen concentrations which characterise these events. The platycopid genus Cytherella is shown to dominate the oxygen mininmum zone in two different parts of the Atlantic at the present day.


A multidisciplinary geophysical survey was carried out in Almargen (South Spain) in order to study a slow-creeping landslide affecting a major railway line. During the past fifty years several studies based on classical geotechnical methods have tried to understand and correct the creeping processes that pose an important hazard to the railway line. Part of these previous investigations included opening trenches, borehole drilling, installation of inclinometers and vibrating wire piezometers. As a result of these investigations a stabilization campaign based on the construction of a drainage system and cement injections was accomplished in 1999. The effects of the stabilization campaign were satisfactory until the spring of 2007 when several consecutive weeks of heavy rain occurred in the area. As a consequence, an increase in the rate of displacement was detected in several inclinometers located in the vicinity of the railway. The Spanish Railway Infrastructure Administration (ADIF) decided then to map in detail the subsurface of the affected areas with a detailed geophysical survey. The geophysical survey was concentrated along four lines (two above and below the railway) where P-wave seismic tomography, S-wave passive seismic (refraction microtremor) and electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) data were acquired.


The giant muscle protein titin is a central player in cardiovascular health and disease. Titin molecules spanning half of the sarcomere form a filament system in striated muscles. The titin filament is not only an essential structural component of sarcomere, but also plays a central role in myofibril signaling through its kinase domain (TK) and numerous protein ligands. Thus, not surprisingly, mutations in this molecule might have detrimental effects. In this work a structure-driven approach was taken to re-evaluate titin kinase catalytic activity and the pathogenicity of two cardiomyopathy-associated titin mutations. Comparison of recombinant preparations from
E.coli and insect cells revealed intrinsic inactivity of TK. It was demonstrated that previously reported phosphotransfer activity towards Tcap (a small Z-disc protein) is due to contaminant kinase activity from insect cells but not TK itself. Next, it was established that the
eukaryotic host produces structurally indistinguishable TK from that produced in insect cells, albeit inactive towards Tcap, classical kinase substrates or extracts from
mature or differentiating muscles. Structural analysis identified evolutionary conserved residue substitutions converting vertebrate TKs to pseudokinases.
The structural context of dilated cardiomyopathy associated mutation was revealed in the crystal structure of TK enclosing neighboring domains A170 and M1. The mutation site resides in a conserved helix located in the linker region between TK and the binding site of ubiquitin E3 ligase MuRF1. Aspartate to valine substitution
causes disruption of a conserved hydrogen bond and detachment of the affected helix from TK. In the context of the titin filament, this causes dissociation of the binding
site from TK and increases interdomain flexibility. Structural alterations translate into increased MuRF1-mediated degradation of mutant titin fragments through the
ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Speculatively, haploinsufficiency of mutant titin could
be a possible pathomechanism leading to dilated cardiomyopathy associated with the mutation under study. Comprehensive analysis of arrhythmogenic left ventricular cardiomyopathy associated titin mutation generated a novel model of pathogenesis. In contrast to previous reports, we demonstrate that mutation does not cause affected domain I10
unfolding, and is structurally compatible. Observed destabilization of the domain was attributed to a disrupted hydrogen bond, causing increased flexibility. A crystal
structure of the affected domain flanked by adjacent domains I9-I11 demonstrated that threonine to isoleucine substitution might have detrimental effects on interdomain
arrangement, resulting in exposure of a hydrophobic patch. Functionally, differential localization of mutant protein was observed in transgenic muscles. Speculatively,
mutation could result in impaired folding of mutant protein and lead to accumulation of degradation-resistant aggregates or cause an increased stickiness to thin filaments as a novel pathomechanism.
Results presented in this work demonstrate that TK is a catalytically inactive pseudokinase acting as a molecular scaffold. It was demonstrated that TK and MuRF1
signaling modules are structurally interconnected and genetic perturbation of this link might lead to dilated cardiomyopathy. In similar fashion, genetic alteration of
interaction between immunoglobulin domains might cause arrhythmogenic left ventricular cardiomyopathy.


Terminal cutting machine is an automatic device that can realize automatic feeding, bending, cutting the middle carry, shearing. It can be easily integrated with other automatic devices to form a whole production line. In this paper, the cam mechanism is used to realize bending and cutting the middle carry, hydraulic drive structure is used to realize terminal feeding and cutting. A reasonable working time sequence among various processes is necessary to ensure the right working order and avoid the interference. The point of the control is to know which processing step it is by using photoelectric sensors to detect several key positions of the cam. The detecting signal is received by the PLC and hence from there to control all processing steps executed in an ordered and cyclic matter. The timing sequence solution introduced in this paper has been successfully implemented in a terminal cutting machine.


It is always a good idea to improve communications, and the existence of a preoperative evaluation form for antibradycardia as well as antitachycardia devices in the Cuest Editorial by Goldschlager et al.' appears to be manditory in today's medical environment. However, the most essential information is lacking in the evaluation form: Is there any escape rhythm or not. This information is crucial, because it indicates whether the cessation of pacing may be life threatening. In addition, the preoperative evaluation form should be supplemented by a postoperative evaluation form that should at least include threshold measurements and reprogramming of parameters changed only for the operative procedure, e.g., sensor off/on, etc. However, the proposal of Goldscblager et al. hopefully represents the beginning of a discussion resulting in a more comprehensive understanding of how these "black intracorporeal boxes" are working in the non-pacemaker medical community.


We aim to realize a humanoid system which can do natural motions like human. Pedaling a cycle is a very essential motion including many problems for a humanoid system, such as mutual interaction with environments, optimization of load distribution and so on. We insist that a humanoid should have more redundancy, flexibility and complexity to solve these problems. But, the more redundant a humanoid's body becomes, the more important a software system of a humanoid control is. We present a system which can acquire its own body information by a self repeated training of the real humanoid and can be used for realization of pedaling of a human-like redundant and complicated musculo-skeletal humanoid. This paper discusses general problems of pedaling a cycle and the required specifications of the self-training system and describes the hardware setup required for pedaling. We also carried out some experiments to show the feasibility of this system


2 Abstract: Duty-cycle correctors are widely used in high-speed devices and system-on-a-chip applications. Because both the positive and negative edges of the clock are utilized for sampling the input data, these systems require an exact 50% duty cycle of the input clock. However, as the clock signal is distributed over the entire chip with clock buffers, the duty cycle of the clock is often far from 50%. Because of the unbalanced rise and fall times, as a result of variations in process, voltage, and temperature. To resolve this problem and to correct the duty-cycle error many approaches are presented. In this work, wide-range NAND gate based glitch-free all-digital duty-cycle corrector is presented. The proposed NAND gate based glitch-free ADDCC not only achieves the desired output/input phase alignment, but also maintains the output duty cycle at 50% with a short locking time. In addition, the proposed method can mitigate the delay mismatch problem and produce minimum delay without any glitch. The circuit complexity also is reduced in the proposed NAND gate based ADDCC. The simulation is carried out in 0.65 nanometer CMOS process. An experimental result shows that the power consumed, delay and area is reduced in the proposed architecture. Simulation results are obtained using MODELSIM 6.3f. The power, area and delay are obtained using the XILINX ISE 8.1 software.


We study the effect of a finite topology on the temperature correlations of the cosmic microwave background in a flat universe. Analytic expressions for the angular power spectrum are given for all possible finite flat models. We examine the angular correlation function itself, pointing out visible and discrete features that arise from topology. While observations of the power spectrum on large angular scales can be used to place bounds on the minimum topology length, cosmic variance generally restricts us from differentiating one flat topology from another. Schemes that acknowledge anisotropic structures, such as searches for ghosts, circles or geometric patterns, will be needed to probe topology further.


Hemolysis during type 1 diabetes mellitus treatment in patients with Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency has been reported, but the underlying pathogenesis is not fully clarified. In this report, we described a girl in whom hemolysis occurred after Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) treatment. Determination of G6PD activity and gene analysis confirmed the diagnosis of G6PD deficiency. We suppose that reducing of G6PD activity by hyperglycemia and decreased source of glucose in the pentose phosphate pathway because of decrease glucose levels may be the mechanism of hemolysis during DKA treatment.


Morphometry of the cervical spinal canal is of clinical importance in traumatic, degenerative and inflammatory conditions. A small canal diameter has been associated with an increase of injury mainly in athletes who participate in contact or collision sports. Before abnormal spinal morphometry can be determined, it is first necessary to establish normal values for the specific patient population being evaluated. The authors study of 105 anatomical specimen of the cervical spine (70 males, 35 females) was to determine the spectrum of the sagittal diameter of the cervical spinal canal in Nigerians. Normal spinal canal mean for C3 was 17.82mm, C4 17.14mm; C5 17.35mm; C6 17.35mm and 17.42mm in C7 for male specimen while for female specimen was C3 17.45mm, C4 16.40mm; C5 17.21mm, C6 17.13mm and C7 17.38mm. The mean canal-body ratio was 0.82 and 0.91 for males and females respectively. The findings offer valuable information for a symptomatic cervical spinal stenosis and also highlights the importance of normative data of the cervical spinal canal for the population under study. Key words : Morphometry, Cervical Spinal Canal, Nigerians.


This paper reports on an action research project which sought to evaluate and guide ongoing teaching and learning development in Principles of Corporations Law, a semester-long unit of study. Typically, enrolments in this subject area include students from a range of cultural contexts for whom the legislative and administrative concepts of the unit are unfamiliar and who also experience significant difficulties with cultural conventions of communication and business practice. At our university, unit enrolments include a high proportion of distance education as well as non-English speaking background (NESB) students, predominantly from China, who have not studied units formerly considered as prerequisite, and many of whom experience difficulties with basic academic skills. As the development team planned and created teaching features to ensure better learning outcomes for these students, it was clear that some truly contextual thinking as well as some practicable solutions would be required. While we had determined in the redesign planning that scenario- or problem-based learning (PBL) with its emphasis on finding, understanding and using information in context, was best suited to help students acquire the skills that underpin success in the unit, our experience in the project indicated students had a broader range of more basic needs. It emerged that students were struggling with fundamental issues that would need to be addressed before real change could occur.


Abstract Background: Safety behaviours are ubiquitous across anxiety disorders and are associated with the aetiology, maintenance and exacerbation of anxiety. Cognitive behavioural models posit that beliefs about safety behaviours directly influence their use. Therefore, beliefs about safety behaviours may be an important component in decreasing safety behaviour use. Unfortunately, little empirical research has evaluated this theorized relationship. Aims: The present study aimed to examine the predictive relationship between beliefs about safety behaviours and safety behaviour use while controlling for anxiety severity. Method: Adults with clinically elevated levels of social anxiety (n = 145) and anxiety sensitivity (n = 109) completed an online survey that included established measures of safety behaviour use, quality of life, and anxiety severity. Participants also completed the Safety Behaviour Scale (SBS), a measure created for the current study which includes a transdiagnostic checklist of safety behaviours, as well as questions related to safety behaviour use and beliefs about safety behaviours. Results: Within both the social anxiety and anxiety sensitivity groups, positive beliefs about safety behaviours predicted greater safety behaviour use, even when controlling for anxiety severity. Certain beliefs were particularly relevant in predicting safety behaviour use within each of the clinical analogue groups. Conclusions: Findings suggest that efforts to decrease safety behaviour use during anxiety treatment may benefit from identifying and modifying positive beliefs about safety behaviours.


Ni-Y2O3-ZrO2 nanocomposite coating was prepared by co-deposition of nickel, Yttrium oxide (Y2O3) and zirconium oxide (ZrO2) nanoparticles using ultrasonic electrodeopsition. The surface morphology and composition of coatings were ananlyzed by an environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) and energy dispersive spectrometer(EDS). The high temperature oxidation, microhardness and wear resistance of the coatings were investigated. It is found that both the incorporation of nanoparticles and the use of ultrasonic could refine Ni crystal grains and improve properties of the coatings. The Ni-Y2O3-ZrO2 nanocomposite coating prepared with ultrasonic exhibits finer grains, higher microhardness and better oxidation and wear resistance.


This paper introduces a mobility tracking mechanism that combines a movement-based location update policy with a selective paging scheme. Movement-based location update is selected for its simplicity. It does not require each mobile terminal to store information about the arrangement and the distance relationship of all cells. In fact, each mobile terminal only keeps a counter of the number of cells visited. A location update is performed when this counter exceeds a predeened threshold value. This scheme allows the dynamic selection of the movement threshold on a per-user basis. This is desirable as diierent users may have very diierent mobility patterns. Selective paging reduces the cost for locating a mobile terminal in the expense of an increase in the paging delay. In this paper, we propose a selective paging scheme which signiicantly decreases the location tracking cost under a small increase in the allowable paging delay. We will introduce an analytical model for the proposed location tracking mechanism which captures the mobility and the incoming call arrival patterns of each mobile terminal. Analytical results are provided to demonstrate the cost eeectiveness of the proposed scheme under various parameters.


Years of polish value testing at the Texas Department of Transportation have revealed that the test results are highly sensitive not only to aggregate textures, but also to other factors, resulting in large variabilities in test results. For the test results to be purely indicative of aggregate textures, other factors need to be tightly controlled. The primary objectives of the study were to address those factors and to improve the testing procedures to minimize variability. All possible factors were identified and pilot tests were conducted to eliminate factors with nonsignificant effects. Detailed tests were conducted to evaluate the effects of the remaining factors. Among the factors investigated that were found to be significant in this study were curvature of the coupons, the length of the slider contact path, slider rubber characteristics, aggregate particle arrangement, normal slider load, and aggregate selection technique. To minimize the variability, the following emphasis is recommended: (a) measure the coupon curvature before testing, (b) control the length of the slider contact path, (c) maintain the normal slider load between 2500 and 2600 g, and (d) select aggregate particles by splitting, rather than handpicking, for mineralogically heterogeneous aggregates.


In this paper, review to improve the channel estimation accuracy in OFDM system, channel state information is required for signal detection at receiver and its accuracy affects the overall performance of system and it is essential to improve the channel estimation for more reliable communications. A multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication system combined with the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) modulation technique can achieve reliable high data rate transmission over broadband wireless channels. The performance of MIMO-OFDM is evaluated on the basis of Bit Error Rate (BER). The paper is aimed at analyzing the BER performance of the MIMO-OFDM system for Pilot Based Channel along with a simulation channel. We show that in the MIMO-OFDM system for Pilot Based Channel Estimation BER decreases, as the signal to noise ration increases. S imulation results show that the proposed estimator is able to reduce the BER effectively at high SNR's and has a low computational complexity.


Water is substantial requirement for human being, well water management system is necessary to meet the requirement. Decision support system is needed for development of water management system. This research try to develop Decision Support System to provide sugestion for Hardness water management. Sugestion will be generated, based from sensors data which is installed in water management system. Timing data when chemical adjusment in processing system will give some impact for sugestion. We will use Naive Bayes method to generate the sugestion from collected data. However, this classification method work with categorial data, whereas output from water management system are numerical data. Therefore, Fuzzy set will be used to categorize those data. The experimental result shows Fuzzy Naive Bayes method can classify those numerical data and can be used to be decision support system for water hardness management.


Introduction: Carbon nanotubes (CNT) have recently been studied as novel and versatile drug and gene delivery vehicles. When CNT are suitably functionalized, they can interact with various cell types and are taken up by endocytosis. Areas covered: Anti-cancer drugs cisplatin and doxorubicin have been delivered by CNT, as well as methotrexate, taxol and gemcitabine. The delivery of the antifungal compound amphotericin B and the oral administration of erythropoietin have both been assisted using CNT. Frequently, targeting moieties such as folic acid, epidermal growth factor or various antibodies are attached to the CNT-drug nanovehicle. Different kinds of functionalization (e.g., polycations) have been used to allow CNT to act as gene delivery vectors. Plasmid DNA, small interfering RNA and micro-RNA have all been delivered by CNT vehicles. Significant concerns are raised about the nanotoxicology of the CNT and their potentially damaging effects on the environment. Expert opinion: CNT-mediated drug delivery has been studied for over a decade, and both in vitro and in vivo studies have been reported. The future success of CNTs as vectors in vivo and in clinical application will depend on achievement of efficacious therapy with minimal adverse effects and avoidance of possible toxic and environmentally damaging effects.


The problem of the limit equilibrium of a closed circular piecewisehomogeneouscylindrical shell with a longitudinal crack, which is located in one of theparts, ends at the interface or crosses it, is reduced to a system of singular integralequations. The numerical analysis of the problem, utilizing the method of mechanicalquadratures, is carried out for a shell welded from two different semi-infinite shells. Theeffect of mechanical characteristics of the shell parts, crack location and its length on thevalue and character of distribution of both the force-intensity and moment-intensityfactors is investigated for the normal forces of constant intensity which are applied at thecrack faces. The obtained results are compared with the known ones for a plate made ofthe same materials and weakened by the similar crack. The redistribution of residualstresses in such a shell caused by a crack is determined and analyzed too.


The microstructural dynamics of Bi-2223 tapes are investigated in situ during annealing in 8% O2 by means of 100 keV x-ray diffraction. A green mono- and a green multi-filamentary tape are annealed at 829.5 °C. During ramp-up (Ca,Sr)2PbO4 decomposes above 750 °C, resulting in an incorporation of Pb in Bi-2212. The associated grain growth of Bi-2212 is the main cause of the strain relief and the c-axis grain alignment of the Bi containing phases. Above 825 °C the Bi-2212 partly dissociates into (Ca,Sr)14Cu24Ox and a liquid phase. The linewidth of Bi-2212 is constant during the transformation to Bi-2223, indicating no strain or finite-size broadening. The most probable transformation mechanism is found to be nucleation and growth with a fast decomposition of the individual Bi-2212 grain, followed by a growth of Bi-2223 from the Bi-2212 melt reacting with (Ca,Sr)14Cu24Ox. The multi-filamentary tape transforms faster and exhibits a much better degree of c-axis alignment. Results are compared to similar studies in air. During a final annealing of a fully converted tape no change is found in the average concentration, stoichiometry and grain misalignment. A post-annealing experiment at 650 °C on quenched tapes shows a reaction over 3 weeks, whereby randomly oriented 3222 grains are formed and Bi-2223 is depleted of Pb. Simultaneously, the critical current decreases by a factor of 2.


Diarrhoea may develop after any surgery of the digestive tract, but its frequency and characteristics vary according to the type of operation. After gastrectomy diarrhoea is rare, moderate and often cryptic. After all but hyperselective vagotomies it is more frequent and may even be disabling and difficult to control. Diarrhoea is observed and may even be disabling and difficult to control. Diarrhoea is observed mostly after intestinal surgery, but it may have nutritional repercussion only after small bowel resections, while its functional repercussions are observed after colonic resections. Diarrhoea depends on the length rather than on the location of the intestinal segment resected, hence the importance of a reserve intestinal tissue below the resection. Thus, jejunal resections are well tolerated, even they are extensive, whereas ileal resections, even short, often result in a diarrhoea which is particularly pronounced when the ilio-coecal region and adjacent colon have been removed. Finally, the presence of an artificial anus increases the intestinal loss and creates its own specific problems.


Abstract The purpose of this research is to look at construction projects in the Iraqi petroleum industry, which have suffered significant problems in the last decade. This research initially uses secondary data to examine the previous work to identify project problems in Iraq and worldwide. Furthermore, this research is performed by collecting primary data from the employees of Basra Oil Company using a survey. The finding of the research has identified that the contractor is the main reason of project problems, and that these problems mostly appeared during the execution phase in construction projects. The respondents of the questionnaire have assessed that project execution in the Iraqi petroleum industry is as a good or better. However, there are problems in Iraqi petroleum industry particular due to project schedule slippages. The most frequent cause of a project being behind schedule is due to using the lowest bidding prices from contractors.


A reading list is a list of reading items recommended by an academic to assist students' acquisition of knowledge for a specific subject. Subsequently, the libraries of higher education institutions collect and assemble reading lists according to specific courses and offer the students the reading list service. However, the reading list is created based on localised intelligence, restricted to the academic's knowledge of their field, semantics, experience and awareness of developments. This investigation aims to present the views and comments of academics, and library staff, on an envisaged aggregated reading list service, which aggregates recommended reading items from various higher education institutions. This being the aim, we build a prototype, which aggregates reading lists from different universities and showcase it to 19 academics and library staff in various higher education institutions to capture their views, comments and any recommendations. In the process, we also showcase the feasibility of collecting and aggregating reading lists, in addition to understanding the process of reading lists creation at their respective higher education institutions. The prototype successfully showcases the creation of ranked lists of reading items, authors, topics, modules and courses. Academics and library staff indicated that aggregated lists would collectively benefit the academic community. Consequently, recommendations in the form of process implementations and technological applications are made to overcome and successfully implement the proposed aggregated reading list service. This proof-of-concept demonstrates potential benefits for the academic community and identifies further challenges to overcome in order to scale it up to the implementation stage.


Arkansas populations of Ozark Hellbenders, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis bishopi have declined precipitously over the past few decades and are now limited to a single river. Biologists have also observed an increase of distal limb lesions with unidentified etiology and unknown role in morbidity and mortality of the species in this location. We documented lesions and collected associated individual size class data and pathogen samples in Ozark Hellbenders of Arkansas (n = 73) from 2011 to 2014 with the following two objectives: (1) document spatiotemporal patterns and severity of lesions present in this last remaining Arkansas Ozark Hellbender population, and (2) determine if host factors and infection status are associated with lesion severity. A scoring system was created from 0 to 7 based on lesion observations. Linear mixed model regressions followed by AICc model evaluation were used to determine associations among infection status for amphibian pathogens Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and Ranavirus as well as individual biometrics on lesion score. We discovered 93.2% of Hellbenders had lesions characterized by digit swelling that often progressed toward toe-tip ulceration. In severe cases we observed digital necrosis progressing to digit loss. Any recaptured individuals had the same or worse lesion score from previous captures. The top predictive model for lesion severity included individual mass and Bd infection status with a significant, positive association of Bd with increased lesion severity (β = 0.87 ± 0.39 S.E., C.I.: 0.11, 1.63). Our findings highlight a widespread and progressive disease that is an important factor to consider for the future of Ozark Hellbenders. This syndrome is presumptively multifactorial, and future studies will benefit from investigating several factors of host, infectious agents, and environment and their roles in disease manifestation for the purpose of developing effective, multi-faceted conservation strategies. A summary of potential etiologies and mechanisms is provided that may explain observed lesion distribution and that will be applicable to future disease and epidemiological investigations.


Computable general equilibrium models have been widely applied in analysing the effects of removing tariffs. However, not nearly as much effort has been devoted to their application on investment liberalisation that is increasingly an integral part of trade liberalisation agreements. The Monash-Multi-Country (MMC) model is developed to meet such policy needs. The MMC model is an advanced dynamic CGE model with bilateral investment flows between countries/regions modelled explicitly at an industry level. This paper describes the model structure and data of the MMC model. Its application is illustrated by a simulation of a potential investment liberalisation in China's oil industry.


Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is an infrequent disorder characterized by high blood pressure in the pulmonary arteries. It may lead to premature death or the requirement for lung and/or heart transplantation. Genetics plays an important and increasing role in the diagnosis of PAH. Here, we report seven additional patients with variants in SOX17 and a review of sixty previously described patients in the literature. Patients described in this study suffered with additional conditions including large septal defects, as described by other groups. Collectively, sixty-seven PAH patients have been reported so far with variants in SOX17, including missense and loss-of-function (LoF) variants. The majority of the loss-of-function variants found in SOX17 were detected in the last exon of the gene. Meanwhile, most missense variants were located within exon one, suggesting a probable tolerated change at the amino terminal part of the protein. In addition, we reported two idiopathic PAH patients presenting with the same variant previously detected in five patients by other studies, suggesting a possible hot spot. Research conducted on PAH associated with congenital heart disease (CHD) indicated that variants in SOX17 might be particularly prevalent in this subgroup, as two out of our seven additional patients presented with CHD. Further research is still necessary to clarify the precise association between the biological pathway of SOX17 and the development of PAH.


Event detection from a video stream is becoming an important and challenging task in surveillance and sentient systems. While computer vision has been extensively studied to solve different kinds of detection problems over time, it is still a hard problem and even in a controlled environment only simple events can be detected with a high degree of accuracy. Instead of struggling to improve event detection using image processing only, we bring in semantics to direct traditional image processing. Semantics are the underlying facts that hide beneath video frames, which can not be "seen" directly by image processing. In this work we demonstrate that time sequence semantics can be exploited to guide unsupervised re-calibration of the event detection system. We present an instantiation of our ideas by using an appliance as an example Coffee Pot level detection based on video data to show that semantics can guide the re-calibration of the detection model. This work exploits time sequence semantics to detect when re-calibration is required to automatically relearn a new detection model for the newly-evolved system state and to resume monitoring with a higher rate of accuracy.


US has an established role in the prenatal detection of congenital and developmental disorders. Many pregnant women undergo US at 18-20 weeks of gestation for assessment of fetal anatomy and detection of structural anomalies. With advances in fetoscopy and minimally invasive procedures, in utero fetal interventions can be offered to address some of the detected structural and physiologic fetal abnormalities. Most interventions are reserved for conditions that, if left untreated, often cause in utero death or a substantially compromised neonatal outcome. US is crucial for preprocedural evaluation and planning, real-time procedural guidance, and monitoring and assessment of postprocedural complications. Percutaneous needle-based interventions include in utero transfusion, thoracentesis and placement of a thoracoamniotic shunt, vesicocentesis and placement of a vesicoamniotic shunt, and aortic valvuloplasty. Fetoscopic interventions include myelomeningocele repair and tracheal balloon occlusion for congenital diaphragmatic hernia. In rare cases, open hysterotomy may be required for repair of a myelomeningocele or resection of a sacrococcygeal teratoma. Monochorionic twin pregnancies involve specific complications such as twin-twin transfusion syndrome, which is treated with fetoscopic laser ablation of vascular connections, and twin reversed arterial perfusion sequence, which is treated with radiofrequency ablation. Finally, when extended placental support is necessary at delivery for repair of congenital high airway obstruction or resection of lung masses, ex utero intrapartum treatment can be planned. Radiologists should be aware of the congenital anomalies that are amenable to in utero interventions and, when necessary, consider referral to centers where such treatments are offered. Online supplemental material and the slide presentation from the RSNA Annual Meeting are available for this article. ©RSNA, 2021.