Although not currently a routine cancer treatment therapy, hyperthermia is developing rather rapidly as an alternative way as part of conventional treatment for some cancers. This treatment takes advantage of the high sensitivity of tumor cell to heat. Up to now, a variety of heating methods have been established to induce temperature rises either locally in target tissue region, or over the whole body. Among them, magnetic nano-particles offer some attractive possibilities in tumor hyperthermia, which have controllable sizes ranging from a few nanometers up to tens of nanometers. The magnetic nano-particles can be made to resonantly respond to a time-varying electromagnetic (EM) field, with advantageous results related to the transfer of energy from the exciting field to the nano-particles. This heat then efficiently conducts into the surrounding diseased cells and tissues. A major concern involved in magnetic nano-hyperthermia is about the controversy that whether intracellular hyperthermia is superior to extracellular hyperthermia [1]. The potential of time-varying EM heating effects in a scale length smaller than the biological cell diameter was first addressed by Gordon et al. and termed as "intracellular hyperthermia" [2]. Since experimental validation of the thermal effects of intracellular hyperthermia is still not feasible with the current experimental technique, this problem has been studied theoretically. However, different researchers have suggested different results, and the controversy still goes on [1–3]. In order to understand the exact micro-mechanisms of EM heating involved in intracellular hyperthermia and extracellular hyperthermia, an energy analysis is presented in this study to simulate the corresponding heat transfer problems thus involved. Different from intracellular hyperthermia, the main characteristic of the extracellular hyperthermia is to heat up the target tissue by EM energy absorption only in the extracellular medium. A series of numerical calculations for both intracellular hyperthermia and extracellular hyperthermia are performed. The results will answer the question from the heat transfer mechanism whether intracellular hyperthermia is superior to extracellular hyperthermia in the thermal sense.© 2007 ASME


This study characterises high-fluoride groundwater in the aquifer system on the flanks of Mount Meru, focusing on parts of the flanks that were only partially or not at all covered by previous research. Additionally, we analyse the impact of rainwater recharge on groundwater chemistry by monitoring spring discharges during water sampling. The results show that the main groundwater type in the study area is NaHCO3 alkaline groundwater (average pH = 7.8). High F− values were recorded: in 175 groundwater samples, the concentrations range from 0.15 to 301 mg/L (mean: 21.89 mg/L, median: 9.67 mg/L), with 91% of the samples containing F− values above the WHO health-based guideline for drinking water (1.5 mg/L), whereas 39% of the samples have Na+ concentrations above the WHO taste-based guideline of 200 mg/L. The temporal variability in F− concentrations between different seasons is due to the impact of the local groundwater recharge. We recommend that a detailed ecohydrological study should be carried out for the low-fluoride springs from the high-altitude recharge areas on the eastern and northwestern flanks of Mount Meru inside Arusha National Park. These springs are extracted for drinking purposes. An ecohydrological study is required for the management of these springs and their potential enhanced exploitation to ensure the sustainability of this water extraction practice. Another strategy for obtaining safe drinking water could be to use a large-scale filtering system to remove F− from the groundwater.


Building product information is required during the architectural design and technical design. The common access to the technical information system is the multi-criteria search mode. This search mode is adapted to the situation where an architect has a precise demand of information. But most of the time, the architect looks for ideas and wants to obtain many illustrations of product uses. Therefore, the system has to propose another search mode adapted to the situation where the demand is still fuzzy. Considering that the architect has the capacity to think with image and that an image can generate easily ideas, then a search by images seems to be suitable to the situation where an architect looks for ideas. The web is an inexhaustible resource of images we can exploit to provision an image database on a specific area. The system we propose allows making building product information search with images extracted from the web. This article presents the method used to extract images from web sites of French building product companies and how these images are used in an interactive and progressive image retrieval process.


This contribution was developed from a research within the
doctoral thesis. Its object was to create multimedia materials
for sport gymnastics. Consequently we surveyed the influence of
its practical application on the efficiency of schooling at a
university. We verified the prescribed hypothesis of the
efficiency of the teaching process using the method of
single-factor experiment, where the entrance independent
variable was the change of system of tuition and the outgoing
dependent variable was the change of level of acquired motor
skills. The results confirmed the positive impact of using
multimedia materials on the efficiency of the teaching process.
Further, with the aid of questionnaires, we evaluated how the
tested subjects perceive the innovative methods in sport
gymnastics. The responses showed that the students rate the
application of multimedia materials very positively.


There are several reports about chronic intoxications, allergies or other pulmonary health problems of dwellers (especially babies) and workers from buildings contaminated with microfungi. Material from presented work was collected during the study of indoor fungal colonization of mouldy dwellings and public buildings in Slovakia. The isolated fungi were cultivated for 10 days in liquid media and their products - both endo- and exometabolites were isolated. The metabolites from four isolates of Stachybotrys chartarum, two of Aspergillus versicolor and one of Penicillium chrysogenum were used. Their effects were studied in vitro on rat alveolar epithelial type 2 cells, from the toxicological point of view one of the most important lung cells type. Type 2 cells were cultured for 20 hours in DMEM and then they were exposed for 24 hours to various concentrations of metabolites. The toxicity was evaluated by staining the cells for alkaline phosphatase which is a marker for this cell type. The toxic effect of metabolites from all isolates of Stachybofrys chartarum was dose dependent, there were differencies in the extent of cytotoxicity. From the tested microorganisms Stachabotrys chartarum and Aspergillus versicolor showed high toxic effects (Stachybotrys higher than Aspergillus), • while Penicillium chrysogenum only minor toxic effects in this test.


Background:The prevalence of fibromyalgia in the general population is reported in numbers that range between 0.5% and 10%, with considerable variability in the populations studied and criteria for diagnosis used. The prevalence in competitive young adult athletes is unknown, but we expect it to be less than the general population. Objectives:The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of fibromyalgia in college student athletes. Methods:We conducted a prospective, cross-section cohort evaluation of 641 athletes using the 1990 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria. Volunteer college student athletes were evaluated with a questionnaire and physical examination at preparticipation physical examinations from 1993 to 1999. Results:Of the 641 athletes examined, we found only one who met the ACR criteria for a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. Limitations:There were a limited number of athletes involved, there was no age- or activity-matched control group, and there were no other demographic information or associated symptoms collected. Conclusions:The prevalence for fibromyalgia in this population was found to be 0.16%, which is lower than the prevalence found in studies describing other populations. The protective effects of this population are unclear but could be related to age, fitness level, self-selection, and/or other factors.


Yukihiko Nose, M.D., Ph.D. The artificial organs program at the Cleveland Clinic was reorganized in 1967. Active circulatory support programs, metabolic and immunoassist programs, and biomaterials and biocompatibility programs have been established during the past 16 years. A skeletomuscular assist program is in the process of being integrated into the artificial organs program. The main emphasis in the circulatory assist program is on the development of a permanent totally implantable artificial heart. In addition, a clinical temporary ventricular assist device, a permanent implantable ventricular assist system (electrical and thermal), and a nonpulsatile circulatory support system are included in the circulatory assist program. The metabolic and immunoassist program is directed toward the development of a system to modulate the human immune system in an effort to treat and prevent metabolic and immunological diseases. The biomaterials and compatibility program is devoted to the study of the interaction between "human spare parts" and/ or artificial organs and human tissues and organs. Various types of innovative systems to replace or augment human organs are included in the scope of the artificial organs program, including the artificial heart, circulatory assist devices, artificial kidney, hepatic assist, pancreatic assist, immunoassist, oxygenator, and biomaterials.


Models used to study lake acidification generally divide a watershed into several zones or compartments (e.g., soil and groundwater zones) through which water and chemicals are routed. To date most emphasis has been placed on the buffering of acid inputs by chemical reactions in the soil zone. Although buffering in the soil zone undoubtedly is important, the focus of this paper is the role of the groundwater system in delaying lake acidification. In this study, a deterministic approach was selected over the standard parametric modeling used in watershed models. Specifically, an advection-dispersion model of the groundwater system was linked to a simple groundwater-rain-lake mixing model, which in turn was linked to a geochemical speciation and reaction path model. Simulations of hypothetical groundwater-lake systems utilized chemical data from small lake systems in northern Wisconsin, an area which is currently experiencing acid rain (pH = 4.6) and is potentially sensitive to acid rain impacts owing to the absence of carbonate minerals in the underlying glacial tills and bedrock. Results of the modeling studies demonstrated that even when the effects of chemical reactions are ignored, groundwater inflow can mitigate the effects of acid deposition on lakes. When chemical reactions in the groundwater system were included in the model using a retardation factor, the acidification rate of the lake was significantly decreased. When speciation reactions between lake water and net acid additions were simulated using the geochemical model PHREEQE (Parkhurst et al., 1980), the depression of lake water pH was markedly reduced, indicating that low alkalinity lakes, like the ones in northern Wisconsin, may have appreciable buffering capacity.


This letter addresses the user assignment problem for multimedia streaming applications in heterogeneous multicast-enabled wireless networks using a network-centric strategy. The optimal problem is mathematically formulated and proven to be non-deterministic polynomial-time (NP)-hard. An efficient heuristic algorithm is then proposed to find sub-optimal solutions in practical systems. Simulation results demonstrate the improved performance of this heuristic in comparison to a conventional user-centric algorithm


Aim. To analyse genetic diversity in 10 new soybean lines created by using the chemical mutagens D-6, DMSSO-11, DMSSO-12, DMSNPIR-11, DUDMS12, D12DMC-11B obtained from four cultivars Femida, Oksana, Podils'ka 416, Zolotysta. The microsatellite (MS) markers Satt100, Satt229, Satt319, Satt354, Satt365, Sat_038 were used. These markers are linked with genes, which determine sensitivity of soybean plants to photoperiod and time to maturation. Methods of DNA extraction, PCR, MS-analysis, fi eld trial, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) have been applied. Results. Parental cultivars, mutant lines and control genotypes were characterized by alleles of microsatellite loci, 25 alleles of 6 microsatellite loci were detected. Signifi cant differences between investigated lines were detected in three year fi eld trials for traits − days to maturation (DTM) and length of the vegetative period (LV). We have revealed effects of the factor «Alleles of MS-locus», so alleles of Satt100 locus affected all traits except DTF
(days to fl owering); alleles of Satt319 and Satt354 affected DTM and LV; Sat_038 affected DTF and S-F (duration of the period shoots-fl owering). Lines with alleles 167 bp at Satt100 and 175 bp at Satt319 loci (that marks dominant E7) were shown to have a longer vegetation period and later maturity, than other. The lines with allele 247 bp at Sat_038 fl owered earlier, than lines with a 245 bp allele, and the lines with allele 232 bp at Satt354 reached maturity later, than lines with other alleles at this locus. Conclusions. We have found that applied mutagens induce changes in the soybean genome and by using these mutagens it is possible to effectively increase genetic diversity in loci associated with genes/loci that determine time of maturity and/or photoperiod sensitivity of soybean, enabling to obtain soybean cultivars with different terms of maturity and yield. The microsatellite markers, particularly Sat_038, Satt100, Satt319 and Satt354 that were applied in our study are considered to be useful
tools for marker assisted breeding of soybean cultivars with programmed time of development. We did not observe signifi cant effects of «Alleles of MS-locus Satt229» that is known to be linked with E3 on the investigated agronomical traits. For soybean genotypes with the E7 allele the DTF was longer for 3-9 days and LV for 10-11 days. In lines with an allele of 175 bp at locus Satt319 the S-F period was 6-9 days shorter


Background: Knowing vulnerable periods of growth for predicting type 2 diabetes (T2D) incidence may help focus interventions for prevention. Using life course data, we identified critical growth periods in childhood that predict T2D risk. Methods: This analysis of a longitudinal study of American Indians, aged ≥ 5 years, comprised subjects representing three growth periods (pre-, early, and late adolescence). Age-sex-height-adjusted mean attained weight and weight velocity (change/year) were computed in each growth period. Subjects were followed from the end of each growth period until T2D diagnosis or their last research examination. Poisson regression was used to model the effects of the mean attained weight or weight velocity in a growth period on T2D incidence. Results: There were 290 incident T2D cases among 2100 subjects representing the pre-adolescence growth period, 315 cases among 1558 in the early adolescence period, and 380 cases among 1418 in the late adolescence period. In each growth period, the mean attained weight significantly predicted T2D incidence, especially in the first 5 years of follow-up (Figure, A-C). There were significant effects of weight velocity in pre-adolescence and modest effects in late adolescence on T2D incidence (Figure, D-F). Attained weight pre-adolescence had the strongest effect on T2D incidence. Conclusions: Pre-adolescence is an especially vulnerable period for predicting later T2D. Disclosure M.T. Olaiya: None. W.C. Knowler: None. R.L. Hanson: None. S. Kobes: None. R. Nelson: None. M. Sinha: None. Funding National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases


This thesis studies numerical methods for integrating the master equations describing Markov chain models of cardiac ion channels. Such models describe the time evolution of the probability that ion channels are in a particular state. Numerical simulations of such models are often computationally demanding because many solvers require relatively small time steps to ensure numerical stability. The aim of this project is to analyse selected Markov chains and develop more efficient and accurate solvers. We separate a Markov chain model into fast and slow time-scales based on the speed of transitions between states. Eliminating the fast transitions, we find an asymptotic reduction of zeroth-order and first-order in a small parameter describing the time-scales separation. We apply the theory to a Markov chain model of the fast sodium channel INa. We consider several variants for classifying some transitions as fast in order to find reduced systems that yield a good accuracy. However, the time step size is still restricted by numerical instabilities. We adapt the Rush-Larsen technique originally developed for gate models. Assuming that a transition matrix can be considered constant during each time step, we solve the Markov chain model analytically. The solution provides a recipe for a stable exponential solver, which we call "Matrix Rush-Larsen" (MRL). Using operator splitting we design an even more flexible "hybrid" method that combines the MRL with other solvers. The resulting improvement in stability allows a large increase in the time step size. In some models, we obtain reasonably accurate results 27 times faster using a hybrid method than with the forward Euler method, even with the maximal time step allowed by the stability constraint. Finally, we extend the cardiac simulation package BeatBox by the developed exponential solvers. We upgrade a format of "ionic" modules which describe a cardiac cell, in order to allow for a specific definition of Markov chain models. We also modify a particular integrator for ionic modules to include the MRL and the hybrid method. To test the functionality of the code, we have converted a number of cellular models into the ionic format. The documented code is available in the official BeatBox package distribution.


Introduction: Fraxinus floribunda Wallich (Oleaceae) is an ethno-medicinal plant found in Sikkim, India. The leaves of the plant are traditionally used in fracture, dislocation and other inflammatory conditions. From our survey, it was found that the successive aqueous decoction of the bark of this plant is prescribed to diabetic patients by herbal practitioners. In the present study the bark of Fraxinus floribunda was extracted through various boiling procedures and cold percolation method to assess the effect of process variation on the antioxidant activity. Methods: The dried bark sample of Fraxinus floribunda was subjected to three hydrothermal procedures and cold percolation method. The obtained extracts were investigated spectrophotometrically against DPPH, ABTS + , nitric oxide, superoxide and ferric reducing power. Metal chelating activity and anti-lipid peroxidation assay were also performed along with quantitative estimation of total phenolics, flavonols and ortho-dihydric phenol content. Results: The lowest IC 50 values for DPPH (0.241 mg/ml), ABTS + (0.0284 mg/ml), nitric oxide (5.3151 mg/ml), anti-lipid peroxidation assay (2.29 mg/ml) were exhibited by the extract obtained through pressure boiling. The same sample also showed highest ferric reducing power and total phenol content. Maximum total flavonol and ortho-dihydric phenol content were exhibited by the extracts obtained through normal boiling and Soxhletion respectively. Conclusion: The bark of Fraxinus floribunda contains potentially active antioxidants. Extracts obtained through pressure boiling showed significant antioxidant activity therefore it seems to be the most effective method of extraction for acquiring antioxidants. The providing data can enrich the existing comprehensive data of antioxidant activity of plant materials.


Organisational behaviour (OB) is the study and application of knowledge about how
people, individuals, and groups act in organisations. A systematic approach is necessary
to undertake the study of organisational behaviour in Private Higher Educational
Institutions (PHEI) to achieve the status of Quality Higher Education Provider. That is it
interprets people-organisation relationships in terms of whole person, whole group,
whole organisation, and whole social system. Its purpose is to build better relationships
by achieving human objectives, organisational objectives, and social objectives.
Organisational behaviour encompasses a wide range of topics such as human
behaviour, management style, leadership style, teamwork etc. This project paper
focuses on attributes of Organisational Behaviour, Leadership and Total Quality
Management for PHEls to achieve the status of 'Quality Higher Education Provider'.
The attributes are:
1. Elements of organisational behaviour
2. Models
3. Social systems
4. Organisational development
5. Work life
' 6. Action learning
7. Change
8- Quality Management System
9. Quality Management Tools
Many Organisations not only in Malaysia but also in other parts of the world are currently
great difiiculty in controlling and managing individuals, groups and whole of
people behaviours. ln an organization, resources such as materials,
machines, money, management styles, and market are controlled and

managed by the so called superpower that is manpower. It the behavioural pattern of
manpower in an organisation is not in favour of organisation's vision, mission, objectives,
goals and values, the organisation may fail to achieve its aspirations as a quality
education provider and bound to lose its identity in this contemporary and competitive
world. Managers of organisations have to be competent in managing people by
understanding human behaviours to tap the valuable resources from employees.
Organisations usually operate with four management models. They are autocratic,
custodial, supportive and collegial. No organisation operates exclusively with one model.
There is usually a predominant one, with one or more areas over-lapping in the other
models. Managers are the drivers of 'Change' in organisations who act as a medium
between stakeholders and employees. When a 'Change' is introduced by managers in
organisations, resistance from employees is usually expected. Managers are the ones
who have to overcome the resistance by recognising and understanding the human
behaviours.
Managers have to be trained to be knowledgeable in 'Organisational Behaviour' and
'Leadership' attributes to ensure that they can get the most out of the employees
(subordinates) and keep them happy and active at the same time.
Issue: As at May 31st 2010, Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) had approved and
issued 518 licenses to Private Higher Education providers. They are active and
categorised as:
1. Universities — 20
2. University Colleges — 22
3. Foreign Universities' Branch Campuses — 6
4. Colleges - 468


AIMS: To develop techniques for the characterisation of toxins elaborated by a strain of Escherichia coli associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). METHODS: E coli SIDS 04, isolated from the nasopharynx of a case of SIDS, was studied. Cell-free toxin preparations were standardised, their protein measured, and analytical separation of proteins achieved using sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Acetone precipitation of proteins was required prior to Coomassie blue staining of bands. Preparative separation was achieved on an anion exchange column using a programmed concentration gradient of NaCl in TRIS buffer. Fractions were tested individually or pooled for presence of lethal toxin including endotoxin. Lethal toxin was detected with the chick embryo test system. Endotoxin was measured using a chromogenic modification of the Limulus amoebocyte assay. RESULTS: Twenty one peaks were detected by chromatography. Ten individual, or pooled, fractions were assayed for endotoxin which ranged from 27-33 pg/ml. Much greater variation was found when the same fractions were assayed in chick embryos. E coli fractions varied considerably in lethal toxicity, from 0/10 to 10/10 chick embryos killed/tested. Certain E coli fractions tested individually (lethality four out of 10 to eight out of 10) proved more lethal (10 out of 10) if pooled prior to testing. CONCLUSIONS: In E coli infection associated with SIDS relatively low concentrations of extracellular protein are lethally toxigenic for the chick embryo model of SIDS. These proteins can be separated analytically by SDS-PAGE and preparatively by anion exchange chromatography. Toxicity of individual fractions is not correlated with endotoxin concentrations in samples tested.


AI approaches include machine learning algorithms in which models are trained from existing data to predict the behavior of the system for previously unseen cases. Recent studies at the Erosion/Corrosion Research Center (E/CRC) have shown that these methods can be quite effective in predicting erosion. However, these methods are not widely used in the engineering industries due to the lack of work and information in this area. Moreover, in most of the available literature, the reported models and results have not been rigorously tested. This fact suggests that these models cannot be fully trusted for the applications for which they are trained. Therefore, in this study three machine learning models, including Elastic Net, Random Forest and Support Vector Machine (SVM), are utilized to increase the confidence in these tools. First, these models are trained with a training data set. Next, the model hyper-parameters are optimized by using nested cross validation. Finally, the results are verified with a test data set. This process is repeated several times to assure the accuracy of the results. In order to be able to predict the erosion under different conditions with these three models, six main variables are considered in the training data set. These variables include material hardness, pipe diameter, particle size, liquid viscosity, liquid superficial velocity, and gas superficial velocity. All three studied models show good prediction performances. The Random Forest and SVM approaches, however, show slightly better results compared to Elastic Net. The performance of these models is compared to both CFD erosion simulation results and also to Sand Production Pipe Saver (SPPS) results, a mechanistic erosion prediction software developed at the E/CRC. The comparison shows SVM prediction has a better match with both CFD and SPPS. The application of AI model to determine the uncertainty of calculated erosion is also discussed.


Discovery of the primary seed germination stimulant in smoke, 3-methyl-2H-furo[2,3-c]pyran-2-one (KAR1), has resulted in identification of a family of structurally related plant growth regulators, karrikins. KAR1 acts as a key germination trigger for many species from fire-prone, Mediterranean climates, but a molecular mechanism for this response remains unknown. We demonstrate that Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), an ephemeral of the temperate northern hemisphere that has never, to our knowledge, been reported to be responsive to fire or smoke, rapidly and sensitively perceives karrikins. Thus, these signaling molecules may have greater significance among angiosperms than previously realized. Karrikins can trigger germination of primary dormant Arabidopsis seeds far more effectively than known phytohormones or the structurally related strigolactone GR-24. Natural variation and depth of seed dormancy affect the degree of KAR1 stimulation. Analysis of phytohormone mutant germination reveals suppression of KAR1 responses by abscisic acid and a requirement for gibberellin (GA) synthesis. The reduced germination of sleepy1 mutants is partially recovered by KAR1, which suggests that germination enhancement by karrikin is only partly DELLA dependent. While KAR1 has little effect on sensitivity to exogenous GA, it enhances expression of the GA biosynthetic genes GA3ox1 and GA3ox2 during seed imbibition. Neither abscisic acid nor GA levels in seed are appreciably affected by KAR1 treatment prior to radicle emergence, despite marked differences in germination outcome. KAR1 stimulation of Arabidopsis germination is light-dependent and reversible by far-red exposure, although limited induction of GA3ox1 still occurs in the dark. The observed requirements for light and GA biosynthesis provide the first insights into the karrikin mode of action.


The MIT mobile robot project began in January of 1985 with the objective of building machines that could operate autonomously and robustly in dynamically changing environments. Five working robots, each progressively more intelligent and sophisticated, are now available. These robots are reviewed, focusing on their innovative aspects. These include novel ideas in the areas of control systems, sensors, actuators, power supplies, and power processing. Perspectives on mobile robotics are outlined, including objectives, experiences, mistakes, and future plans.<<ETX>>


The cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) isoenzyme is a key target for COX-2-selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). An important difference in binding of nimesulide compared with non-selective NSAIDs appears to involve the amino acid at position 523 of the enzyme. Replacement of valine with isoleucine at this position provides access to a binding site that is larger in COX-2 than in COX-1. Nimesulide appears to exploit this enlarged binding site for establishing a number of favourable contacts with the enzyme that lead to selective inhibition of COX-2. We made these conclusions from a three-dimensional molecular model of the active site of human COX-2, constructed using the X-ray coordinates of COX-1 from sheep seminal vesicles and COX-2 from mouse fibroblasts as templates, with the aid of sequence alignment methods and molecular modelling techniques. The resulting model was refined, and the active site was probed for regions of steric and electrostatic complementarity for ligand binding. Docking studies were then undertaken with many different nimesulide conformers, a family of which could establish very favourable interactions with the NSAID binding site of human COX-2 by exploiting the extra space made available by the isoleucine/valine replacement. The stability of the resulting complexes was studied by simulating molecular dynamics.


ABSTRACT The genes encoding the cellulases Cel5A, Cel8C, Cel9E, Cel48F, Cel9G, and Cel9M from Clostridium cellulolyticum were cloned in the C. acetobutylicum expression vector pSOS952 under the control of a Gram-positive constitutive promoter. The DNA encoding the native leader peptide of the heterologous cellulases was maintained. The transformation of the solventogenic bacterium with the corresponding vectors generated clones in the cases of Cel5A, Cel8C, and Cel9M. Analyses of the recombinant strains indicated that the three cellulases are secreted in an active form to the medium. A large fraction of the secreted cellulases, however, lost the C-terminal dockerin module. In contrast, with the plasmids pSOS952-cel9E, pSOS952-cel48F, and pSOS952-cel9G no colonies were obtained, suggesting that the expression of these genes has an inhibitory effect on growth. The deletion of the DNA encoding the leader peptide of Cel48F in pSOS952-cel48F, however, generated strains of C. acetobutylicum in which mature Cel48F accumulates in the cytoplasm. Thus, the growth inhibition observed when the wild-type cel48F gene is expressed seems related to the secretion of the cellulase. The weakening of the promoter, the coexpression of miniscaffoldin-encoding genes, or the replacement of the native signal sequence of Cel48F by that of secreted heterologous or endogenous proteins failed to generate strains secreting Cel48F. Taken together, our data suggest that a specific chaperone(s) involved in the secretion of the key family 48 cellulase, and probably Cel9G and Cel9E, is missing or insufficiently synthesized in C. acetobutylicum.


Graduate and professional students with disabilities have faced significantly more obstacles to graduation and more financial hardships during the COVID‐19 pandemic than their nondisabled peers, according to two research briefs prepared by the National Center for College Students with Disabilities.


The optical properties of a weak probe light by applying coupling fields in Landau-quantized graphene nanostructure is investigated. In this structure the electromagnetic field of terahertz-infrared radiations interfere with the electromagnetic field of the short-wavelength probe field and this effect changes the absorption and dispersion characteristics of the probe field. The linear steady state properties of the graphene by means of perturbation theory and density matrix method are discussed. We show that the absorption of a light pulse can be switched from large absorption to nearly transparent case or vice versa by controlling the coupling field's intensities and relative phase of the applied fields. Therefore, this model can be used as an all-optical switch which is suitable for next generation of future all optical quantum communicational system and networks.


Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to analyze the technical efficiency (TE) of the rainfed rice farming system in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach - Special attention is directed to the construction of confidence interval (CI) for individual efficiency estimates using stochastic frontier production model. Findings - The results show that the coefficient of the regression monotonically and significantly increased output level, while returns-to-scale (RTS) of 0.943 suggest decreasing RTS in the study. An average point estimate of TE of 0.669 is obtained from the analysis. CI show that the TE intervals are quite wide, as the assumption that farms originally identified to be on the frontier, or very close to the frontier, by the point estimate may be below the frontier. Age and years of schooling of the farmers are efficiency-increasing policy variables found in the study. Originality/value - Contrary to the previous efficiency studies, the present study demonstrates that economic inferences drawn on the basis of CI seem plausible to provide much more fruitful and insightful information about the TE of farms in the country, rather than the point estimation alone.


With the rapid development of in-depth learning, neural network and deep learning algorithms have been widely used in various fields, e.g., image, video and voice processing. However, the neural network model is getting larger and larger, which is expressed in the calculation of model parameters. Although a wealth of existing efforts on GPU platforms currently used by researchers for improving computing performance, dedicated hardware solutions are essential and emerging to provide advantages over pure software solutions. In this paper, we systematically investigate the neural network accelerator based on FPGA. Specifically, we respectively review the accelerators designed for specific problems, specific algorithms, algorithm features, and general templates. We also compared the design and implementation of the accelerator based on FPGA under different devices and network models and compared it with the versions of CPU and GPU. Finally, we present to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of accelerators on FPGA platforms and to further explore the opportunities for future research.


In 1994, six anti-microbial peptides, named Gaegurins (GGNs), were isolated from the skin of a Korean frog, Rana rugosa. GGN5, a 24-residue antimicrobial peptide, is the shortest of the six GGNs. We searched the shortest GGN5 analogue peptide with favorable bioactivity by systematic peptide modifications of both length and sequence. In the present study, we demonstrate the anticancer activity of MODEL26 peptide and investigate the combined effect of MODEL26 peptide when it is administered with doxorubicin. We also determined solution structures of MODEL26 peptide by NMR analysis. To analyzed the anticancer activity of MODEL26 peptide, we used in vitro cytotoxicity assay. Cytotoxicity was assessed using (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl-5]-[3-carboxymethoxyphenyl]-2- [4-sulfophenyl]-2H tetrazolium) (MTS) colorimetric assay. To analyze the combined effect of MODEL26 peptide when administered in combination with doxorubicin, we used combination index method. The results of cytotoxicity test of MODEL26 peptide showed that it is more effective than the native peptide, GGN5, in spite of the small size. The combined effect of MODEL26 peptide and doxorubicin was at least additive and even synergistic for some combinations. Our results suggest that the MODEL26 peptide is worthy of therapeutic development as a new anticancer agent and combination therapy with MODEL26 peptide may enhance the response rate and significantly reduce side effects by permitting a dose reduction. References: 1. Park, J. M. et al. (1994) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 205: 948–954


The article focuses on the aggressor-victim paradigms upon which Dickens builds three of his female characters in Great Expectations: Mrs. Joe Gargery, Miss Havisham, and Molly. Usually described as monstrous, the three characters are here discussed in terms of the hidden motives of their strange behavior, one of the sources of uneasy pleasures in the reading process. Viewed from the feminist standpoint, the representation of the three characters is associated with Victorian views concerning the treatment of women, sexuality, crime, and marriage; viewed in psychological terms, all the three display symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder, wit the roles of victim and aggressor shifting over time.


The Web Services Business Process Execution language (BPEL) is a standard for modeling and executing automated processes and is tailor-made for service orchestration. BPEL specifies a serialization format which every BPEL implementation has to understand, thus allowing for the portability of processes among runtime engines. Although the modeling and execution of BPEL processes is portable between engines to a large degree, the lifecycle management of BPEL processes is not standardized and varies a lot for different engines. This paper presents a first approach for a uniform and cloud-based lifecycle management of BPEL processes and engines. We infer a uniform interface for the lifecycle management from the capabilities of current engines and provide a prototypic implementation of a tool that manages processes and engines on a TOSCA-compliant infrastructure.


Proteoglycan (PG) coreceptors carry heparan sulfate (HS) chains that mediate interactions with growth factors, morphogens, and receptors. Thus, PGs modulate fundamental processes such as cell survival, division, adhesion, migration, and differentiation. This review summarizes recent biochemical and genetic information that sheds new light on the nature of HS–protein binding. Unexpectedly, many interactions appear to depend more on the overall organization of HS domains than on their fine structure.


Digital hydraulics is an ongoing trend that offers many interesting advantages and possibilities. Digital refers to that the system output is discrete, e.g. using an on/off valve with only discrete values or a finite amount of flow steps available. The advantages mentioned when compared to analogue systems are better performance, robust and fault tolerant, and amplitude independent bandwidth. On the other side noise and pressure pulsations must be handled, the physical size can be a problem, and the system requires complicated control. When considering control of linear motion, there are mainly two branches, controlling the flow with several parallel connected on/off valves, which generates discrete output flow values, or switching valves, which in theory can generate any mean output flow. The latter only requires one valve for each flow path but the demand for fast valves is very high, while the former requires many valves but avoids high frequent switching. With the introduction of a multi-chamber cylinder, secondary control is now also possible for linear motion. This paper is a first step in the investigation of the system applied to an excavator arm. The cylinder has four chambers, each with different area. Three pressure lines are used and a valve-pack of 27 on/off valves. The valve-pack connects the three pressure lines with each chamber generating 81 available force steps. The scope has been to start out with relative simple control of the velocity of the cylinder. To handle unnecessary switching of valves, different penalty strategies were tested. The results are promising where relatively smooth control could be achieved at the same time challenges with the system were identified. Next step is to investigate the force transients due to different capacitance in all four chambers as well as mode control for better accuracy. Energy potential compared to original system remains to investigate as well.


The effects of Bi-substitution on the complex impedance spectra of yttrium iron garnet (YIG) were studied in this paper. The polycrystalline yttrium iron garnet Y2BiFe5O12 (YIG: Bi) and Y3Fe5O12 (YIG) samples were prepared by solid-reaction method. The complex impedance spectra were measured in the frequency range from 1 KHz to 100MHz at several temperatures between 210oC and 500oC. The complex impedance sample shows that the YIG: Bi can be represented by double Cole-Cole semicircles, and the YIG can be represented by a single Cole semicircle. The physical structure of the specimen was visualized as comprising of small resistance grains separated by large resistance grain boundaries in accordance with the impedance spectra observations. The electrical processes in the sample were modeled in the form of an electrical equivalent circuit made up of a series combination of two parallel RC circuits attributed to grains and grain boundaries. The temperature dependence of bulk resistance indicated an evidence of Arrhenius-type thermally activated process, showing a close to linear variation up to a temperature of 740 K.


Background: The patient with 10 or more adenomas in the colon poses a diagnostic challenge. Beside germline mutations in the APC and MUTYH genes, only four cases of mosaic APC mutations have been reported. Aim: Given the relatively high frequency of de novo APC mutations in familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), an investigation was carried out into whether the proportion of somatic mosaic APC mutations is currently underestimated. Methods: Between 1 January 1994 and 31 December 2005 germline mutation analysis was performed in 599 consecutive index patients with polyposis coli referred for diagnostic APC scanning using a combination of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and protein truncation test (PTT). Variants were analysed by direct sequencing with primers flanking those used for DGGE and PTT, and quantified using pyrosequencing. Results: Scrutinising the molecular genetic results and family data of 242 index patients with pathogenic APC mutations led to the identification of 10 mosaic cases (4%). C>T transitions were observed in CGA sites in four of the 10 cases with somatic mosaicism, which is significantly more than 26 of the 232 non-mosaic cases (p = 0.02). Phenotypes of patients with somatic mosaicism ranged from an attenuated form of polyposis coli to florid polyposis with major extracolonic manifestations. Conclusions: Mosaicism occurs in a significant number of APC mutations and it is estimated that one-fifth of the de novo cases of FAP are mosaic. Clinically, the severity of manifestations in offspring and the recurrence risk for siblings of apparently sporadic polyposis patients may be underestimated due to parental APC mosaicism.


Machine ethics is concerned with how machines behave toward human users and other machines. It aims to create a machine that's guided by an acceptable ethical principle or set of principles in the decisions it makes about possible courses of action it could take. As ethics experts continue to progress toward consensus concerning the right way to behave in ethical dilemmas, the task for those working in machine ethics is to codify these insights. Eight articles in this special issue address the issues.This article is part of a special issue on Machine Ethics.


The term, Big Data' has been coined to refer to the gargantuan bulk of data that cannot be dealt with by traditional data-handling techniques. Big Data is still a novel concept, and in the following literature, we intend to elaborate it in a palpable fashion. It commences with the concept of the subject in itself along with its properties and the two general approaches to dealing with it. The comprehensive study further goes on to elucidate the applications of Big Data in all diverse aspects of the economy and being. The utilization of Big Data Analytics after integrating it with digital capabilities to secure business growth and its visualization to make it comprehensible to the technically apprenticed business analyzers has been discussed in depth. Aside from this, the incorporation of Big Data in order to improve population health, for the betterment of finance, telecom industry, food industry and for fraud detection and sentiment analysis have been delineated. The challenges that are hindering the growth of Big Data Analytics are accounted for in depth in the paper. This topic has been segregated into two arenas- one being the practical challenges faces whilst the other being the theoretical challenges. The hurdles of securing the data and democratizing it has been elaborated amongst several others such as inability in finding sound data professionals in required amounts and software that possess an ability to process data at a high velocity. Through the article, the authors intend to decipher the notions in an intelligible manner embodying in text several use-cases and illustrations.


The common experimental methods used in the laboratory for the study of corrosion-fatigue are based on the evolution of global mechanical and electrochemical variables in relation with environment, mechanical loading or microstructure. For a better understanding and modelling of the physical-
 chemical processes involved in crack initiation and propagation, it is necessary to make use of techniques giving access to quantitative informations at local scale. Recent results concerning the breakdown of passivity, the morphology and the growth kinetics of potential initiation sites, the corrosion processes at crack tip and quantitative fractography are briefly reviewed.


to Health Workers During Outbreaks Researchers in Australia have identified dozens of factors that can either increase or decrease clinicians' risk of psychological harm during emerging disease outbreaks. The researchers' meta-analysis included 59 studies from a dozen countries that assessed clinician well-being during outbreaks of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, influenzaA(H1N1), influenzaA(H7N9), Ebola virus, and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Their analysis showed that clinicians who had direct contact with infected patients had a 71% increased risk of developing acute or posttraumatic stress compared with clinicians who had lower-risk exposures. Clinicians in the studies reported distress during outbreaks and afterward for up to 3 years. Younger clinicians and those with dependent children or an infected family member were at increased risk of psychological harm. In addition, longer quarantines, lack of practical support, and stigma against hospital workers also posed harm. Protective factors included having more clinical experience, feeling adequately trained and supported, and having adequate breaks and time off. Being supplied with appropriate protective gear and having support from peers and family also decreased clinicians' psychological risks. According to the authors, health facilities can reduce risks by providing clear communications, infectious diseases training, and reduced patient density on the wards. Breaks with meals provided are helpful, too. Additional protective measures include providing alternative accommodations to reduce the risk of infecting family members, and access to video calls to keep in touch with family while living apart.


Background : The laboratory diagnosis of Cryptosporidium parum infection involves the demonstration of the infective oocysts in stool specimen. The conventional method of modified Ziehl-Neelsen (MZN) is very laborious, and stool debris can be mistaken for the parasite oocytes. Objective : This research was set to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of microscopic Modified Ziehl-Neelsen (MZN) stain, Florescence Auramine-O-phenol (AOP) stain and ELISA method. Methodology : This is a prospective descriptive cross – sectional study of182 consecutive adults and children of both genders, aged 1-65years, who were HIV-seropositive and receiving treatment at Prof Sadiq Wali Treatment Centre, Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano State, Nigeria. Result : The overall seropositivity of C. parvum among HIV-seropositive clients receiving treatment at the Sadiq Wali Centre, using all the three techniques, was 29.7% (range 26.9% - 31.9%). Furthermore, the sensitivity of the techniques ranged 57.1% - 93.1% (MZN to ELISA) with ELISA techniques showing the highest sensitivity at 93.1% and specificity of the three techniques ranged 51.6% - 96.1%. The highest specificity at 96.1% was recorded with the Auramine-O-phenol fluorescence stain while 93.2% and 51.6% specificity were recorded with the MZN and ELISA techniques, respectively. Conclusion : The ELISA technique proved more suitable for the determination of the presence of cryptosporidium oocysts in stool. All stool specimens should be examined for opportunistic parasites, especially in immunosuppressed patients. Keywords : ELISA, modified Ziehl-Neelsen stain, immunosuppressed, opportunistic infection


ABSTRACT Paleo-geologic (palinspastic) reconstructions of salt dome development are used to compare growth patterns and processes characteristic of different salt dome classes, to understand diapiric processes, and for salt structure evaluation prior to drilling. Coastal Salt Basin diapiric structures (salt domes and clay ["shale"] domes) can be classified by the diapir top/objective section relationship (continental shelf sands and shales and sandy upper slope strata comprise the objective section) as: Penetrant (or shallow piercement) salt domes where salt pierces the entire objective section and the overlying non-objective alluvium; semi-penetrant (or intermediate piercement) salt domes where salt pierces part of the objective section and arches the overlying beds; and non-penetrant (or deep-seated) diapiric structures where the diapir (salt or clay) is buried in upper slope shales beneath the arched objective section base. Cross-sections from 44 published salt dome field studies were palinspastically restored to illustrate developmental patterns. They represent 15 penetrants, 8 semi-penetrants and 21 non-penetrants. All fields are in the Eocene, Oligocene, Miocene or Pliocene producing trends of southeast Texas and south Louisiana. Penetrant salt diapirs maintain their crests close to the depositional surface. Internal convergence (thinning of flanking strata toward the diapir) is very common, as are major growth faults and deep flank unconformities. Traps form early and are preserved. Semi-penetrant diapirs include more diapiric clay than penetrants. All were buried before alluvial deposition commenced. Major, downthrown-away, diapir-peripheral faults and unconformities are characteristic, and internal convergence is common at depth. Traps form early, but some lose critical dips later. Non-penetrant diapiric structures develop much differently. The diapirs were already buried and inactive in slope facies shales when objective section deposition commenced. Differential flank subsidence, modest internal convergence and growth faulting characterize development. Effective traps sometimes form late and critical dips may be reduced or lost, reducing productivity. Salt dome development in the Mesozoic-filled interior salt basins is very different. Penetrant diapirs are common. Most are slim salt cylinders, some with circumdomal overhangs. Many exhibit internal divergence (thickening of strata toward the diapir) in part of the section, and productivity is limited or absent. Evidence of semi-penetrants and non-penetrants is limited. Most salt-associated production in the interior basins occurs on non-diapiric salt pillows or on salt-flow-related turtle structures. Differences in salt dome development patterns between the coastal and interior basins relate to basin type and depth, depositional rate, the presence or absence of thick marine shales, abnormal pressures, and large growth faults.


By Hannah R. Parrott Increasing the knowledge on the regulation of steroid synthesis in teleost fish is key to optimizing the production of competent follicles (fecundity), which will assist the aquaculture industry in meeting the ever-increasing demand for consumable fish. The objectives of this project are to compare the steroidogenic enzyme activity of steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR), 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD), and aromatase (cyp19a1) enzymes expressed by the somatic follicular layers of both immature and mature oocytes when treated with BMP4/7 and Activin A. We also investigated the role of a new receptor blocker, DMH-1, to see if it is an effective regulator in steroidogenesis and final oocyte maturation. The enzyme StAR and 3β-HSD are required for both estradiol (E2) and maturation inducing hormones (MIH) production, whereas cyp19a1 is only required for E2. As all steroids are synthesized from a common precursor, it is the alteration of these enzyme's expression profiles that dictates the steroid being synthesized. Quantitative Real-Time PCR (qPCR) was preformed to measure steroidogenic enzyme mRNA levels. Quantification of the gene expression were determined by the [delta][delta]-CT method normalized to the standard housekeeping gene EF1 alpha. A 2-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) demonstrated a significant difference in steroidogenic enzyme expression based on maturity level. In contrast, independent treatments with ActA, BMP4/7, and DMH-1 showed no significant effect in regulating steroidogenesis. ROLE OF TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR ΒETA SUPERFAMILY (TGFβ) ON STEROIDOGENIC ENZYME EXPRESSION IN RAINBOW TROUT (ONCORHYNCHUS MYKISS) OOCYTE SOMATIC LAYER ISOLATES


The study was undertaken in Sustainable Development Initiatives Centre greenhouse at United States international university -Africa. The greenhouse experiment was laid out in potted containers in a randomised complete Block design (RCBD), with 3 replications. A total of four treatments composed of decomposed leaves extracts of Plectranthus barbatus (PB) and Croton macrostachyus (CM), inorganic fertilizer (IF) and Untreated soils (US) as control were used. The level of mineral and nutritive elements in leaf extracts and kales were determined by ICPE, β-carotene was determined by HPLC while Phosphorus Nitrogen were determined by UV-VIS. Data was analyzed using (ANOVA) and significant treatment means separated using the Turkey's Honestly Significant Original Research Article Odhiambo et al.; AJAEES, 29(3): 1-10, 2019; Article no.AJAEES.46347 2 Difference Test. The highest mean levels macro nutrients in leaves (μg/g) K; 228.31±1.76; Mg, 188.35 ± 1.24; PO4 3, 16.21 ±3.36 and NO3 , 95.35 ± 2.36 for croton macrostachyus and K + : 412.71 ± 2.55. Mg 2+ : 369.72± 3.25, PO4 3: 29.59 ± 2.04 and NO3 , 63.24± 1.47 for Plectranthus barbatus. Application of croton macrostachyus, and Plectranthus barbatus leaf water extracts resulted in increased mean shoot length, leaf length, and number of leaves of kales as compared to the control. The mean growth rate for kales (shoot length 8.69 ± 3.68-12.64cm, Mean leaf length 8.34 ± 4.1712.82 ± 5.53, Mean number of leaves 8.38 ± 2.94-12.53± 4.73 and Yield (t/ha) ranged from 2.44 5.89. Kales grown using leaf extracts had higher nutritive values as compared to the control. The mean nutritive values in kales were Iron (Fe) 3.87 – 5.24 mg/100g; Magnesium (Mg) 250.96-323.67 mg/100g; Sodium (Na) 216.21-320.81mg/100g; Phosphorus (P) 261.82-294.31 mg/100g; zinc (Zn) 1.17 -1.36 mg/100g; and β-carotene 4.73±0.15 3.38± 0.09 mg/100g.There was significant difference in nutritive values between leaf extracts and control. The growth of kales using leaf extracts of Croton macrostachyus responded better and gave a yield that was comparably higher to those of inorganic fertilizer and control. This study suggests that Croton macrostachyus and Plectranthus barbatus leaves may be potential source of plant nutrients for crop production and higher nutritive values.


This paper illustrates how, among Chinese migrants in Japan, the notion of belonging is constructed and modified by their use of digital technology, by presenting digital technologies as a continuum of physical and digitized life experiences.
Drawing on interviews with 55 Chinese migrants in Japan, this paper argues that Chinese migrants are increasingly engaged in digital spaces that combine the online and offline and permit their presence at a transnational scale, through a collectively imagined 'Chinese' identity. However, because of the influence of physical spaces on Chinese migrants' transnational, diasporic experiences, this transnational engagement does not lead to the construction of a transnational or a relatively static nation-state sense of belonging. Instead, for Chinese migrants in Japan, the notion of belonging can be based on the situation and context, and it can switch between the home and host countries.


A glassy carbon electrode chemically modified with a carbon black coating is proposed here for the rapid and portable determination of cannabidiol (CBD) in a commercial Cannabis seed oil and in fibre-type Cannabis sativa L. leaves. The mechanism of CBD oxidation was studied in relation to simpler phenyl derivatives bearing the same electroactive group, namely resorcinol and 2-methylresorcinol. These molecules also allowed us to determine the best conditions for the electrochemical detection of CBD, as to the pH value and to the best solvent mixture to use. Carbon black was chosen among nanostructured carbon-based materials owing to its outstanding features as an electrode modifier for analyte detection. The performance of the modified electrode was determined by flow injection analyses of standard solutions of CBD, obtaining a linear correlation between the oxidation current and the analyte concentration; the sensor response is characterised by suitable repeatability and reproducibility. The analysis of commercial products by the standard addition method allowed us to ascertain the accuracy of the sensor for the detection of CBD in real samples.


This paper presents an automatic software generation method for energy distribution automation. The method uses the distribution network structure represented in SCL format of the IEC 61850 standard and generates complete executable applications compliant with the IEC 61499 standard. Each equipment element is based on the componentized MVC design pattern and can be executed on a distributed network of HMI and control devices. The challenges solved in this work include design and automatic generation of a library of substation equipment elements according to the MVC design pattern and secondly, automatic generation of SCADA HMI based on the IEC 61850 specification. The design process is demonstrated in a laboratory case study.


Studies of in vitro and in vivo bactericidal interactions of vancomycin plus rifampin against Staphylococcus aureus have yielded conflicting results. In this study the efficacy of this drug combination in experimental endocarditis due to a methicillin-resistant strain of S. aureus was investigated. Left-sided endocarditis was induced in 84 rabbits by an infecting strain that had been found to be synergistically killed by vancomycin plus rifampin in vitro when tested by the timed-kill curve technique; in contrast, the checkerboard technique had indicated that the two drugs were antagonistic against this strain. Infected animals received no therapy, vancomycin alone (30 mg/kg per day), rifampin alone (20 mg/kg per day), or both drugs (in the same doses). The combination was significantly more effective than the single-drug regimens in terms of (1) reduction of mean methicillin-resistant S. aureus vegetation titers (P less than .05-.0005), (2) rate and incidence of sterilization of vegetations (P less than .0005), and (3) rate of "radical" cure of endocarditis (P less than .005). Vancomycin alone and vancomycin plus rifampin were equally effective in reducing mortality and sterilizing renal abscesses. The use of vancomycin prevented the in vivo development of resistance to rifampin. No evidence that rifampin exerted an antagonistic effect on the in vivo bactericidal activity of vancomycin was found.


A challenging goal in neuroscience is that of identifying specific brain patterns characterising autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). Genetic studies, together with investigations based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and functional MRI, support the idea that distinctive structural features could exist in the ASD brain. In the developing brains of babies and small children, structural differences could provide the basis for different brain connectivity, giving rise to macroscopic effects detectable by e.g. electroencephalography (EEG). A significant body of research has already been conducted in this direction, mainly computing spectral power and coherence. Perhaps due to methodological limitations, together with high variability within and between the cohorts investigated, results have not been in complete agreement, and it is therefore still the case that the diagnosis of ASD is based on behavioural tests and interviews. This thesis describes a step-by-step characterisation and comparison of brain dynamics from ASD and neurotypical subjects, based on the analysis of multi-probe EEG time-series from male children aged 3-5 years. The methods applied are all ones that take explicit account of the intrinsically non-linear, open, and time-variable nature of the system. Time-frequency representations were first computed from the time-series to evaluate the spectral power and to categorise the ranges encompassing different activities as low-frequency (LF, 0.8-3.5 Hz), mid-range-frequency (MF, 3.5-12 Hz) or high-frequency (HF, 12-48 Hz). The spatial pathways for the propagation of neuronal activity were then investigated by calculation of wavelet phase coherence. Finally, deeper insight into brain connectivity was achieved by computation of the dynamical cross-frequency coupling between triplets of spatially distributed phases. In doing so, dynamical Bayesian inference was used to find the coupling parameters between the oscillators in the spatially-distributed network. The sets of parameters extracted by this means allowed evaluation of the strength of particular coupling components of the triplet LF, MF→HF, and enabled reconstruction of the coupling functions. By investigation of the form of the coupling functions, the thesis goes beyond conventional measures like the directionality and strength of an interaction, and reveals subtler features of the underlying mechanism. The measured power distributions highlight differences between ASD and typically developing children in the preferential frequency range for local synchronisation of neuronal activity: the relative power is generally higher at LF and HF, and lower at MF, in the ASD case. The phase coherence maps from ASD subjects also exhibited differences, with lower connectivity at LF and MF in the frontal and fronto-occipital pairs, and higher coherence at high frequencies for central links. There was higher inter-subject variability in a comparison of the forms of coupling functions in the ASD group; and a weaker coupling in their theta-gamma range, which can be linked with the cognitive features of the disorder. In conclusion, the approach developed in this thesis gave promising preliminary results, suggesting that a biomarker for ASD could be defined in terms of the described patterns of functional and effective connectivity computed from EEG measurements.


In this book we discuss some topics about topology and superstring backgrounds with D-branes. We start with a mathematical review about generalized homology and cohomology theories and the Atiyah-Hirzebruch spectral sequence, in order to provide an explicit link between such a spectral sequence and the Gysin map. Then we review the basic facts about line bundles and gerbes with connection. In the second part of the book we apply the previous material to study the geometry of type II superstring backgrounds. We first present the cohomological discussion about D-brane charges in analogy with classical electromagnetism, then we use the geometry of gerbes to discuss the nature of the A-field and the B-field as follows from the Freed-Witten anomaly, finally we discuss the K-theoretical approaches to classify D-brane charges. In the last part we discuss some topics about spinors and pinors, with particular attention to non-orientable manifolds.


Historical radiosonde data are known to suffer from inhomogeneities. The first radiosonde intercomparison was made at Payerne, Switzerland, in 1954, and a major international effort to standardize the network, including launch times, was made for the International Geophysical Year (IGY) in 1957–58. Data from before this period, in some cases extending back as far as 1934, have been viewed with even more suspicion than recent data. These early data are scattered among numerous archives with a variety of station identifier schemes and quality-control procedures, and some of the data have only recently been digitized from paper records. Here, the first systematic compilation of pre-IGY data is made, and a novel quality-assessment technique is applied, which reveals that much of the early data have uncorrected radiation and lag errors, especially in the former Soviet Union. Incorrect geopotential height units and problematic time stamps were also found. The authors propose corrections and present corrected hemispheric fields that show large changes and improved internal consistency in height and temperature across Eurasia compared with uncorrected data. The corrections are important, especially as they have a clear spatial structure that interferes with the planetary wave structure. These corrected data are useful for climate studies and considerably enhance the length and quality of the upper-air record but may not be suitable for trend analysis. Assimilation of the uncorrected data has led to a widespread warm bias in NCEP–NCAR reanalysis in the 1950s.


Neuron-astrocyte interactions are vital for the brain's connectome. Understanding astrocyte activities is crucial for comprehending the complex neural network, particularly the population-level functions of neurons in different cortical states and associated behaviors in mammals. Studies on animal sleep and wakefulness have revealed distinct cortical synchrony patterns between neurons. Astrocytes, outnumbering neurons by nearly fivefold, support and regulate neuronal and synaptic function. Recent research on astrocyte activation during cortical state transitions has emphasized the influence of norepinephrine as a neurotransmitter and calcium waves as key components of ion channel signaling. This summary focuses on a few recent studies investigating astrocyte-neuron interactions in mouse models during sleep, wakefulness, and arousal levels, exploring the involvement of noradrenaline signaling, ion channels, and glutamatergic signaling in different cortical states. These findings highlight the significant impact of astrocytes on large-scale neuronal networks, influencing brain activity and responsiveness. Targeting astrocytic signaling pathways shows promise for treating sleep disorders and arousal dysregulation. More research is needed to understand astrocytic calcium signaling in different brain regions and its implications for dysregulated brain states, requiring future human studies to comprehensively investigate neuron-astrocyte interactions and pave the way for therapeutic interventions in sleep- and arousal-related disorders.


AIMS
The VALEO vascular stent is a stainless steel, pre-mounted, open-cell stent. Redilation to large diameters and low profile are advantages in growing children. Clinical experience is scarce. This study aimed to analyse our experience with the use of the VALEO vascular stent in children.

METHODS AND RESULTS
Between June 2010 and December 2012, 41 VALEO stents were inserted during 30 transcatheter (group 1) and three perioperative procedures (group 2). Data were retrospectively analysed. Median age at implantation was 3.8 years (four days - 23 years), and median weight was 13.3 kg (2.2-53 kg). Indications were: pulmonary artery (n=23), pulmonary vein (n=1) or subhepatic vein (n=1) stenosis, and ductus arteriosus stenting (n=8). Stent placement was achieved in all but one. Acute complications (n=11) included stent dislodgement in two patients and fracture in three patients, with vessel predilatation as a risk factor. Median "stent" follow-up reached 7.83 months (0.4-34.3 months) and included 26 recatheterisations (23 patients, median interval 6.2 months, range 0.2-33 months). Ten stents were redilated. Surgery in six patients (interval 1.9 to 10 months) showed patent endothelialised stents. No "late" type II or III stent fractures were seen.

CONCLUSIONS
The VALEO stent is useful in children. Low radial force is counterbalanced by high flexibility, allowing implantation in distal and tortuous lesions. Early fractures occur. Longer-term follow-up is needed.


For the effective operation of a dynamic voltage restorer (DVR), a control strategy plays a significant role. This paper presents an enhanced control strategy for DVR using dual role cascaded delay signal cancellation (CDSC)-based dual vector control (DVC) under unbalanced and distorted grid conditions. Based on the numerical analysis, it is found that the CDSC prefilter is a promising solution when grid voltage is distorted by symmetric, asymmetric harmonics, and unbalanced sag. Mainly, the CDSC prefilter extracts instantaneous symmetrical components of the grid voltage required for voltage sags detection and generation of fundamental component of reference voltage for the DVR. A CDSC-based DVC algorithm with inductor current and capacitor voltage feedback is implemented in a synchronous reference frame, which tracks the fundamental DVR reference voltages. An extractor based on the modified CDSC strategy is designed to extract harmonics from load voltage during distorted grid conditions. These extracted harmonic components (nonfundamental) are added in phase opposition with fundamental component and fed to pulse width modulation block to generate reference voltages. Experimental studies are conducted on scaled down (100 V, 0.5 kVA) laboratory prototype DVR to verify the effectiveness of the proposed control algorithm under unbalanced and distorted grid conditions.


In this thesis, the industrial application of control a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor in a sensorless configuration has been faced, and in particular the task of estimating the unknown "parameters" necessary for the application of standard motor control algorithms. In literature several techniques have been proposed to cope with this task, among them the technique based on model-based nonlinear observer has been followed.
The hypothesis of neglecting the mechanical dynamics from the motor model
has been applied due to practical and physical considerations, therefore only the electromagnetic dynamics has been used for the observers design.
First observer proposed is based on stator currents and Stator Flux dynamics described in a generic rotating reference frame. Stator flux dynamics are known apart their initial conditions which are estimated, with speed that is also unknown, through the use of the Adaptive Theory.
The second observer proposed is based on stator currents and Rotor Flux dynamics described in a self-aligning reference frame.
Rotor flux dynamics are described in the stationary reference frame exploiting polar coordinates instead of classical Cartesian coordinates, by means the estimation of amplitude and speed of the rotor flux. The stability proof is derived in a Singular Perturbation Framework, which allows
for the use the current estimation errors as a measure of rotor flux estimation errors. The stability properties has been derived using a specific theory for systems with time scale separation, which guarantees a semi-global practical stability.
For the two observer ideal simulations and real simulations have been performed to prove the effectiveness of the observers proposed, real simulations on which the effects of the Inverter nonlinearities have been introduced, showing the already known problems of the model-based observers for low speed applications.


This paper examines the development of palm kernel marketing initiatives in Igala land, 1920-1956. It notes that the British trade policies in Igala land were quite rapacious, exploitative and suffocating to the native producers of palm kernels. Although the native producers who were mostly women, produced palm kernels in large quantities, they were unfortunately hapless, and unable to determine the prices or even bargain properly with the buyers of their produce. This was because; palm kernel prices were fixated by British trading firms. The prices of palm kernel were skewed in favor of the trading firms and usually fluctuated. Reasons for fluctuations in prices were hardly explained to the native palm kernel producers and even when they are being poorly informed by buying agents, they had no powers or choices to influence or determine favorable prices for the produce. The trading firms had buying stations strategically located in different parts of Igala land. The trading companies in turn employed licensed buying agents who penetrated remote areas to buy palm kernels from the natives. the licensed buying agents were given money by their European employers and in some cases bicycles to ease their movement and transportation of palm kernels from interior hinter land of Igala land., in fact, this study discovers that the activities of the indigenous licensed buying agents further exploited the women and emasculated them by reducing the economic powers of the producers as they further paid lesser prices for palm kernels to natives in rural Igala land.  The introduction of taxes by the colonial authority meant that the natives must continually produce cash crops in order to pay. Thus, this paper argues that the British Palm kernel marketing initiatives provided the opacity and conduit pipes for the smooth economic exploitations of Igala land of Nigeria in the 20 th century. The research adopted the multidisciplinary approach while primary sources of data (archival and oral interviews) synthesized with extant literature were utilized.


The paper reflects on the need for another approach to the concept of habitability that would allow the application of collective solutions and proposals simultaneously and transversally at all scales, from the room to the city, reclaiming the values of the collective as an alternative to the reigning individualism and atomization.In front of those practices that either linger in the unstoppable race to produce the new and its new shapes and forms or align with neoliberal currents in the production and absorption of surplus values at the cost of the creative destruction of urban spaces and territories, one must claim the urgent need of other ways of doing and making that engage decisively and uncompromisingly in the task of designing coexistence.It is paramount and indispensable to advance beyond the formal and typological, incorporating not only the already known discourses of adaptability, dissociation and other contemporary private rituals but also the critical design of common, collective, public and intermediate spaces that foster sociability and conviviality making the sharing of spaces, resources and experiences possible.


Upper Miocene (lower Tortonian) foraminifers are a little-known group of organisms in the Pannonian Basin System of the Central Paratethyan realm. The scarcity of the mostly endemic species in the sedimentary record is caused by changes in ecological conditions at the end of the Miocene epoch when the paleogeographical evolution of the area resulted in the striking changes in seawater chemistry. Nevertheless, they may exceptionally form a significant component of microfossil assemblages. The most abundant species within all studied samples (Trochammina kibleri Venglinsky 1961, Miliammina velatina Venglinsky 1961 and Miliammina subvelatina Venglinsky 1975) are here investigated in detail and compared with previously published data from localities across the entire Central Paratethys area. The co-occurrence of other taxa, as well as sedimentological and isotopic data allow us to better constrain their environmental requirements and the sedimentary environment in marginal facies of the Late Miocene Pannonian Basin System. These results confirm the ecologically constrained conditions during the deposition of the upper Sarmatian to lower Pannonian sediments.


Technology evolution prediction is critical for designers, business managers, and entrepreneurs to make important decisions during product development planning such as R&D investment and outsourcing. In practice, designers want to supplement point forecasts with prediction intervals to assess future uncertainty and make contingency plans accordingly. However, prediction intervals generation for technology evolution has received scant attention in the literature. In this paper, we develop a generic method that uses bootstrapping to generate prediction intervals for technology evolution. The method we develop can be applied to any model that describes technology performance incremental change. We consider parameter uncertainty and data uncertainty and establish their empirical probability distributions. We determine an appropriate confidence level to generate prediction intervals through a holdout sample analysis rather than specify that the confidence level equals 0.05 as is typically done in the literature. In addition, our method provides the probability distribution of each parameter in a prediction model. The probability distribution is valuable when parameter values are associated with the impact factors of technology evolution. We validate our method to generate prediction intervals through two case studies of central processing units (CPU) and passenger airplanes. These case studies show that the prediction intervals generated by our method cover every actual data point in the holdout sample tests. We outline four steps to generate prediction intervals for technology evolution prediction in practice.


It is shown that, contrary to classical theory, the circular halos need not be caused by randomly oriented crystals. Furthermore, if Brownian motion is the disorienting mechanism then the circular halos cannot be caused by the randomly oriented crystals, which are too small to produce a reasonably sharp diffraction pattern. However, the circular halos can be caused by crystals that are in the region where there is a transition between randomness and high orientation. These crystals have diameters between about 12 and 40 μm. Larger crystals produce the parhelia and tangent arcs. It is shown that the 46° halo is rare because it can be produced only by solid columns, and then for only a restricted range of sun heights.


Alcohol consumption among university student athletes is a global health issue attracting attention from different stakeholders. The purpose of this study was to establish the determinants of alcohol consumption among university-student-athletes in Kenya. It was hypothesized that the reasons and consequences of alcohol consumption are sport-related and mediated by selected demographic factors and Parental Social Economic Status (PSES). Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires from 146 subjects made up of 102 (69.9%) males and 44 (30.1%) females. The data were analyzed using chi-square and independent t-test. Findings indicated that student athletes consume alcohol mainly for relaxation (120; 82.2%), to overcome shyness (106; 72.6%), and overcome boredom (97; 66.4%). The consequences of alcohol consumption reported were mainly behaviour offensive to others (42; 32.6%), damaged friendships (40; 29.6%), and poor academic performance (34; 26%). However both reasons and consequences of alcohol consumption could not be determined by the selected demographic factors and PSES with the exception of the place of residence (neighbourhood). It is recommended that trainers/coaches need to sensitize the student-athletes to their vulnerability to risks associated with alcohol consumption. Intervention measures and procedures to address alcohol consumption should be multi-faceted and involve sport psychologists and counselors. Future studies should be conducted with high school and elite athletes.


This study presents a conceptual model to investigate technology management competency required by healthcare IS professionals and its impacts on IT-healthcare partnerships. Technology management competency, at the broad level, comprises the business strategic thinking, external knowledge resources linkage, healthcare technology integration capability as well as management and interpersonal skill/knowledge possessed by IS professionals. Such competency is hypothesized to be instrumental in increasing the intentions of IS professionals to develop and reinforce the partnerships with healthcare people. The empirical results support the proposed conceptual framework for technology management related skills/knowledge of IS professionals and indicate that the competency would significantly influences the intentions of IS professionals to develop collaborative relationships with their healthcare partners. The findings of this study not only can provide useful suggestions to help IS professionals review their technology management competency, but also serve as instrumental guidelines for the technology management competency training to strength the IT-healthcare partnership.


Chance per se plays a key role in ecology and evolution, e.g., genetic mutation, resource spatiotemporal unpredictability. In community ecology, chance is recognized as a key factor in community assemblage, but less is known about its role in intraguild processes leading to species coexistence. Here we study the relevance of resource unpredictability per se as a promoter of intraguild positive interspecific interactions and as a biodiversity enhancer in an Old World avian scavenger guild, which has evolved to feed upon spatially and temporally unpredictable resources, i.e., carcasses. We performed a large-scale field experiment in which 58 carcasses were disposed of and observed until complete consumption, either in continuously active supplementary feeding stations (predictable carcasses) or disposed of at random in the field (unpredictable carcasses). Richness of scavenger species was similar at unpredictable and predictable carcasses, but their relative abundances were highly uneven at predictable carcasses leading to higher scavenger diversity (Shannon index) at unpredictable carcasses. Facilitatory interspecific processes only occurred at unpredictable resources but were disrupted in predictable conditions because the dominant specialist species (in our case, the Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus) arrived earlier and in larger numbers, monopolizing the resource. Small, endangered scavengers congregated at supplementary feeding stations but profited less compared to unpredictable carcasses, suggesting that they could constitute an ecological trap. Our findings offer new insights into the relevance of unpredictability of trophic resources in promoting both positive facilitatory interspecific interactions and species diversity and thus maintaining the function of guilds. Finally, the preservation of randomness in resource availability and the processes associated with its exploitation should be a major goal of conservation strategies aimed to preserve scavenger guilds evolved under naturally unpredictable trophic resources.


Abstract: An important brazing application is the production of cutting and machining tools. This chapter provides an overview of brazing alloys for the joining of cutting materials. Process-related problems and solutions are presented and discussed. High strength values can be achieved with the right filler alloy and joint design. Most cemented carbides consist of a hard material such as tungsten carbide and a metallic binder. Due to the high carbide content, wetting and bonding reactions have to be monitored. Addition of active elements can help to induce a wetting reaction. Brazing ceramic cutting materials requires the use of active filler alloys to achieve a wetting reaction. The chapter reviews the alloys required. A joint can be weakened by interfacial effects or mismatches in physical properties. Employing the right filler metal with an adapted brazing process can significantly improve joint quality. Stress calculations based on the finite element method contribute to better joint design with reduced stress levels.


The PI3K/AKT pathway governs a plethora of cellular processes, including cell growth, proliferation, and metabolism, in response to growth factors and cytokines. By acting as a unique lipid phosphatase converting phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5,-trisphosphate (PIP3) to phosphatidylinositol-4,5,-bisphosphate (PIP2), phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) acts as the major cellular suppressor of PI3K signaling and AKT activation. Recently, PI3K mutations and loss/mutation of PTEN have been characterized in human gallbladder tumors; whether aberrant PTEN/PI3K pathway plays a causal role in gallbladder carcinogenesis, however, remains unknown. Herein we show that in mice, deregulation of PI3K/AKT signaling is sufficient to transform gallbladder epithelial cells and trigger fully penetrant, highly proliferative gallbladder tumors characterized by high levels of phospho-AKT. Histopathologically, these mouse tumors faithfully resemble human adenomatous gallbladder lesions. The identification of PI3K pathway deregulation as both an early event in the neoplastic transformation of the gallbladder epithelium and a main mechanism of tumor growth in Pten heterozygous and Pten mutant mouse models provides a new framework for studying in vivo the efficacy of target therapies directed against the PI3K pathway, as advanced metastatic tumors are often addicted to "trunkular" mutations.


This study aims to determine the legal aspects of the Supreme Court's consideration to grant the request of the Public Prosecutor in the narcotics case. The research method used is normative legal research. The approach used is the approach of law and case approach. Sources of legal materials used are primary and secondary legal materials. It is known that the Supreme Court's consideration to grant the request of the Cassation of the Public Prosecutor stated that the Defendant commits a narcotic crime in accordance with the provisions of Article 256 jo of Article 193 paragraph (1) of the Indonesian Criminal Procedure Code where the Supreme Court declares that Judex Factie of the High Court of Surabaya has been wrong Applying the law therefore the Supreme Court adjudicates the case and declares that the Defendants are legally and convincingly proven guilty of committing a narcotic crime and sentence of imprisonment to Defendant I and Defendant II with imprisonment respectively for 4 (four) years And a fne of Rp.800.000.000,00 (eight hundred million rupiahs), respectively, provided that such fne is not paid, it shall be replaced by imprisonment for 1 (one) month. Keywords: Cassation, Legal Considerations, Narcotics Crime


The propagation of brittle fracture in steel was studied with the aid of ultra high-speed photography using an AVCO streak camera and a Barr and Stroud rotating mirror-framing camera. Also, the dynamic stress pattern caused by the running crack was investigated with the aid of a photostress sheet glued onto the surface of the steel plate, using the framing camera. From the experiments it was found that brittle fracture in steel propagates in an intermittent way. The apparatus and the optical methods are described and the striking results are given.


Multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-AB) is emerging as a major nosocomial pathogen worldwide. In recent years, the inadequacy of antimicrobial agents available to treat infections particularly in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) due to MDR-AB, has constrained clinicians and forced them to use combination therapies. In this study, in vitro synergistic activities of imipenem and meropenem in combination with cefoperazone-sulbactam, ampicillin-sulbactam, polymyxin B and rifampin were tested against 34 clinical isolates of (MDR-AB), all collected from the Intensive Care Units of Süleyman Demirel University Hospital. Minimum inhibitory concentration values of all antibiotics were determined by the broth microdilution method and antibiotic interactions were analyzed by checkerboard assay. The combination of meropenem with ampicillin-sulbactam showed synergy against 94.1% of MDR-AB while the synergy rates for combinations of imipenem and ampicillin-sulbactam, imipenem and rifampin, imipenem and cefoperazone-sulbactam, imipenem and polymyxin B, meropenem and rifampin, meropenem and cefoperazone-sulbactam and meropenem and polymyxin B were 88.2, 73.5, 70.6, 38.2, 17.6, 8.8 and 2.9%, respectively. Antagonism was not observed in any of the combinations. We must emphasize the fact that evaluating the efficacy of combinations against MDR-AB by synergy tests is essential to guide the treatment.


: Circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) released by tumor cells, termed ctDNA, closely reflects the heterogeneity of primary cancers and their metastases. As a noninvasive, real-time monitoring biomarker, ctDNA is a promising tool for detecting driver gene mutations, assessing tumor burden and acquired resistance, and early diagnosis. However, isolation and enrichment of cfDNA is a big challenge due to the high degree of DNA fragmentation and its relatively low abundance in the bloodstream. This review aims to provide insights into the recent technological advances in acquisition of optimal quality cfDNA, the use of preservatives, isolation methods, processing timelines, and detection techniques. It also describes clinical applications of ctDNA in cancer patient management.


Conventional methods to estimate variable-amplitude fatigue life revolve either around cumulative damage analysis using the local stress-strain approach, or, around one of the crack growth load interaction models. Despite advances in modeling the mechanics of fatigue, none of these methods can faithfully reproduce the near-threshold variable amplitude fatigue response that determines the durability of machines and structures primarily because they fail to model the science behind the residual stress effect. Residual stress effects have a strong bearing on metal fatigue and owe their influence to the moderation of crack-tip surface chemistry and surface physics. This demands the treatment of threshold stress intensity as a variable, sensitive to load history. The correct estimation of crack closure is also crucial to determining the variable amplitude fatigue response and demands assessment of the cyclic plastic zone stress-strain response.


ABSTRACT Post-modern approaches to language policy have emphasised the role of agency in implementing and appropriating language policies. While agency is often perceived in positive terms, Liddicoat [(2019). Constraints on agency in micro-language policy and planning in schools. In J. Bouchard & G. P. Glasgow (Eds.), Agency in language policy and planning: Critical inquiries (pp. 149–170). New York: Routledge.] calls on language policy researchers to investigate its problems and constraints. This article discusses the interplay of structure and agency in educational language policies in Tunisian higher education, a sector characterised by a 'benign neglect' approach to language policy. While doing so, it responds to Fenton-Smith and Gurney's [(2016). Actors and agency in academic language policy and planning. Current Issues in Language Planning, 17(1), 72–87] observation that higher education contexts remain largely underexplored in the language policy scholarship. The article uses data from 12 semi-structured interviews from local higher education stakeholders in order to explore how their agency is exercised, rejected and contested. The study demonstrates that while agency creates room for flexibility and the ability to respond to changing local demands and aspirations, it can also cause problems such as inconsistency, uncertainty, and the reproduction of social inequalities.


This thesis discusses particle resuspension from surfaces caused by particle impaction. The thesis also focuses on particle transport and different transport mechanisms regarding different particle sizes. The transport mechanisms are important both for deposition and impaction, and thereby resuspension. An introductory to turbulent flows, which is important for particle transportation, is included. A comprehensive talk about particle-surface interface such as adhesion forces and elastic deformation is also given in the thesis. Regarding collisions theories, both qualitative and quantitative experiments and models will be presented, discussed and retested through a parameter study. Three models are selected among those presented, recommended for programming, and further implemented as MATLAB-scripts. These models cover a broad range of possible collisions; vertical, oblique and horizontal. A parameter study reviled the relative importance of different model parameters. The turbulent intensity was among the parameter studied. Parallel to the literature survey and model programming, a test rig was build. The candidate participated in the startup period and did calibration experiments regarding the flow speed and flow rates at different fan speeds. In future studies a comprehensive particle fouling experiment will be carried out on this test rig. Suggestions to future studies are given at the end of the thesis.


Abstract In the present study, a high-quality voxel model of a Korean adult male was converted to a surface model based on polygon and nonuniform rational B-spline surfaces. The polygon model of the body surface was then modified in the back and buttock regions for some correction and finally converted back to a voxel model for Monte Carlo dose calculations. The dose calculation results showed that the modification of the back and buttock significantly changed the calculated dose values of the lungs and breasts for the postero-anterior irradiation geometry; the maximum difference, found for the lungs, was as large as 40% for the photon energy of 30 keV, even though the difference decreases with the photon energy.


Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) is a common neurosurgical disease with incidence 3 in 100,000 in general population. Recorded or trivial head injury is the most common cause of CSDH with several predisposing factors like alcoholism, coagulopathy, seizure disorder, cerebrospinal fluid shunts, metastases and vascular malformations. Bilateral CSDH are common in infants and interhemispheric subdural hematomas are often associated with child abuse. Coagulopathy and intracranial tumors have been associated with spontaneous CSDH. 86 % were males with 47% of CSDH on left followed by 35% in right and 61 cases (18%) were bilateral. The most common age group was 61 to 80 years (45%) followed by the 41 to 60 year group. During admission headache was the most common symptom followed by neurological deficits that include, loss of speech (65%), mono or hemiparesis (20%), quadreparesis (5%), bowel and bladder dysfunction and loss of memory or altered sensorium. Statistical analysis did not show any significant p value between the Age group, Sex, Side of CSDH or chronic alcoholism as independent variables affecting outcome. GCS at admission was the only factor that had significant p value in terms of outcome prediction. Although there are multiple comorbidities associated with CSDH this study found that except GCS there was no relation to age, side, sex, alcoholism, hypertension or diabetes in the outcome after surgery. Meticulous care to remove all the CSDH followed by use of drain is the most efficient way to manage CSDH. Nepal Journal of Neuroscience 13:35-42, 2016