To facilitate natural interactions between humans and embodied conversational agents (ECAs), we need to endow the latter with the same nonverbal cues that humans use to communicate. Gaze cues in particular are integral in mechanisms for communication and management of attention in social interactions, which can trigger important social and cognitive processes, such as establishment of affiliation between people or learning new information. The fundamental building blocks of gaze behaviors are gaze shifts: coordinated movements of the eyes, head, and body toward objects and information in the environment. In this article, we present a novel computational model for gaze shift synthesis for ECAs that supports parametric control over coordinated eye, head, and upper body movements. We employed the model in three studies with human participants. In the first study, we validated the model by showing that participants are able to interpret the agent's gaze direction accurately. In the second and third studies, we showed that by adjusting the participation of the head and upper body in gaze shifts, we can control the strength of the attention signals conveyed, thereby strengthening or weakening their social and cognitive effects. The second study shows that manipulation of eye--head coordination in gaze enables an agent to convey more information or establish stronger affiliation with participants in a teaching task, while the third study demonstrates how manipulation of upper body coordination enables the agent to communicate increased interest in objects in the environment.


Following an abrupt transition at birth from the sterile uterus to an environment with abundant commensal and pathogenic microbes, neonatal mammals are protected by maternal Abs at mucosal surfaces. We show in mice that different Ab isotypes work in distinct ways to protect the neonatal mucosal surface. Secretory IgA acts to limit penetration of commensal intestinal bacteria through the neonatal intestinal epithelium: an apparently primitive process that does not require diversification of the primary natural Ab repertoire. In contrast, neonatal protection against the exclusively luminal parasite Heligmosomoides polygyrus re-quired IgG from primed females. This immune IgG could either be delivered directly in milk or retrotransported via neonatal Fc receptor from the neonatal serum into the intestinal lumen to exert its protective effect. The Journal of Immunology, 2006, 177: 6256–6262.


Recently, ternary NiSnO3 was first reported as an anode for Li-ion batteries, presenting superior electrochemical performance to that of the NiO/SnO2 mixture. This was proposed to be due to the 'self-matrix' function of the discharge products that enables buffering the volume change and preventing the aggregation upon cycling. In this article, direct evidence of the 'self-matrix' mechanism of NiSnO3 has been observed via ex situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED).


Anxious students are often concerned about the impressions that others form of them. When such students are confronted in a classroom with a learning situation that makes them uncomfortable, they may choose to withdraw from the activity. Some learners believe they cannot perform in English and consequently form negative expectations, which in turn lead to decreased effort and the avoidance of opportunities to enhance their communication skills. The goal of this study was to identify those factors, as perceived by students, that may contribute to anxiety, and those factors that may reduce anxiety in an attempt to understand more fully the role that anxiety may play in learning a foreign language.


Background: Traumatic stroke usually occurs after dissection of large extracranial or intracranial vessels, leading to disseminated cerebral embolism. Stretching and distorting forces in cerebral intraparenchymal end arteries can cause intimal lesions followed by an occluding thrombus. Objective: To investigate the importance of traumatic endothelial lesions in intraparenchymal end arteries after minor head injuries. Methods: The cases of eight children are reported. They were aged between two and seven years (mean 6.2 years), and they developed significant neurological deficits at 15 minutes to 72 hours (mean 16.3 hours) after minor head injuries. Results: The the patients all had hemiparesis combined with other signs, including central facial paralysis, dysphasia, dysphagia, and extrapyramidal signs. Computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging showed cerebral infarctions affecting branches of the middle cerebral artery (n = 3), anterior cerebral artery (n = 1), posterior cerebral artery (n = 1), and basilar artery (n = 3). These lesions affected the basal ganglia, the internal capsule, and the brain stem. Neither heart disease nor dissections of large vessels were present. Two children had prothrombotic risk factors (an increase in lipoprotein (a) and a factor V Leiden mutation). The follow up period was between three months and 13 years (mean 3.9 years). Outcome was classified according to the Glasgow outcome scale as moderate disability (n = 4), severe disability (n = 2), non-disabling sequelae (n = 1), and total recovery (n = 1). Conclusions: Minor head injuries can be cause and co-factor in the aetiology of stroke. The frequency of this may be underestimated, and detailed medical history of the days before stroke manifestation may identify more traumatic events, especially in the group of so called "idiopathic" strokes.


Background Childhood overweight and obesity health concerns can affect a student's academic performance, so it is important to identify resources for school nurses that would help to improve self-efficacy, knowledge, and confidence when approaching parents with sensitive weight-related information and influence overall obesity prevention efforts in the school setting. Objective The purpose of this study was to conduct a Pennsylvania (PA) state-wide 29-item survey addressing school nursing barriers and practices, supplementing information already known in this area. Although the survey covered a range of topics, the focus was body mass index (BMI) screening and its related practice within the schools. Methods We conducted a state-wide Web-based survey of school nurses in PA to understand current areas of care, find ways to address child health through school BMI screenings and follow up, and identify current educational gaps to assist school nurses with providing whole child care within the realm of weight management. Chi-square test of independence was conducted to determine the relationship between BMI screening follow up and interest in a BMI toolkit. Results Nurse participants (N=210), with a 42% (210/500) response rate, represented 208 school districts across PA. Participants were asked about their current process for notifying parents of BMI screening results. The majority (116/210, 55.2%) send a letter home in the mail, while others (62/210, 29.5%) send a letter home with students. A small number (8/210, 3.8%) said they did not notify parents altogether, and some (39/210, 18.6%) notify parents electronically. More than one-third (75/210, 35.7%) of nurses reported receiving BMI screening inquiries from parents; however, under half (35/75, 46.7%) of those respondents indicated they follow up with parents whose child screens overweight or obese. Overall, the vast majority (182/210, 86.7%) do not follow up with parents whose child screens overweight or obese. The majority (150/210, 71.4%) of the nurses responded they would benefit from a toolkit with resources to assist with communication with parents and children about BMI screenings. A significant association between respondent follow up and interest in a BMI toolkit was observed (P=.01). Conclusions Schools must start recognizing the role school nurses play to monitor and promote children's health. This goal might include involving them in school-based preventive programs, empowering them to lead initiatives that support whole child health and ensuring opportunities for professional development of interest to them. Nonetheless, the first step in facilitating obesity prevention methods within schools is to provide school nurses with meaningful tools that help facilitate conversations with parents, guardians, and caregivers regarding their child's weight status and health through a BMI screening toolkit.


A computer network is said to provide hop integrity if the following three conditions hold for every pair of adjacent routers p and q in the network. First, p does not forward any message to q if q has not been up and reachable. Second, when q receives a message m supposedly from p, then q can check that m was not modified after it was sent. Third, when q receives a message m supposedly from p, then q can check that m was not a replay of an old message sent by p. In this dissertation, we propose three protocols that can be added to the routers in a computer network so that the network can provide hop integrity, and thus overcome most denial-of-service attacks. These three protocols are the secure address resolution protocol, the weak hop integrity protocol, and the strong hop integrity protocol. The secure address resolution protocol includes an invite-accept protocol and a request-reply protocol, and requires a secure server connected to the Ethernet. The weak hop integrity protocol includes a secret exchange protocol and an integrity check protocol. The strong hop integrity protocol combines a soft sequence number protocol with the weak hop integrity protocol. We also present an alternative way to achieve strong hop integrity with hard sequence numbers. All the protocols are stateless, require small overhead, and do not constrain the network protocol in the routers in any way.


Map showing the township of Oudtshoorn, cultivated lands, irrigable lands, the main canal and existing channels, service pipes, water mills, the telegraph, roads, rivers, bridges, boundaries, the Old Tree Drift Reservoir, the Kombuis Reservoir and the Le Roux River Reservoir. Relief shown with form lines, rock drawing and shading. Colour. Scale 1 inch to 1 mile.


Diabetes is a chronic illness that affects many people, and it's thought that environmental exposure to certain compounds may increase its proliferation. In this study, we examine the dietary effects of 2-aminoanthracene (2AA), a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), in rats, specifically as it relates to oxidative stress. Oxidative stress refers to the imbalance of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidants in living systems; it has been shown to contribute to type-1 diabetes. To accomplish the study objectives rats were divided into three dietary treatment groups, control (0 mg/kg-2AA), low dose (50 mg/kg-2AA) and high dose (100 mg/kg-2AA). Rats were fed 2AA for three months, and then euthanized using carbon dioxide. Various tissues including the liver and were flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen. To determine 2AA effects in the liver, a portion of the liver was homogenized in phosphate buffered saline solution. The supernatant was analyzed for serum albumin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), IgA protein, and antioxidants. Furthermore, genes such as Pdx1, Sod1, Gpx1, Prdx6, Ncf2, Duox1 and Ptgs2 typically used to measure cellular oxidative stress were quantified. The expressions of these genes in the liver show the upregulation of Sod1 and Prdx6, and downregulation of Ptgs2 in treated groups. AST activity was marginally increased in treated groups while the albumin concentration was elevated in the 50 mg/kg group and reduced in the 100 mg/kg-2AA animals. IgA levels were slightly elevated while antioxidant levels were reduced in treated groups. Taken together, these results show that ingestion of 2AA may produce hepatic oxidative stress.


Peatland carbon may enter long‐term storage in sedimentary basins preserved as either coal or lignite. The time required to account for the carbon in 1–10 m thick coal seams must represent 105–106 years, an order of magnitude more than previously assumed. To understand the process by which this happens requires extrapolation of our understanding of peatland carbon accumulation over timescales that greatly exceed those of Holocene peat. We analyze the consequences of extrapolating peat growth to periods of 106 years. We deduce that that key to sustained peat growth are hydrologic landscapes that can maintain a saturated peat body above the level of clastic deposition. Contrary to current stratigraphic frameworks, we conclude that the generation of accommodation space at low rates of 0.1–0.2 mm/yr can adequately accommodate thick peat accumulation over periods >105 years. However, generation of accommodation space at rates >0.5 mm/yr cannot. The low rates that permit accommodation of thick peat are typical of the rates of subsidence in specific tectonic settings, particularly foreland basins, and this has implications for our understanding of the links between terrestrial carbon burial, tectonics and the carbon cycle. The long‐term stability of extensive peatland required to form coal also requires sediment bypass, modifying basin wide sediment transport and deposition. Limits to peatland growth under very low accommodation rates must exist but the relative importance of the limiting process is not understood. Finally, we discuss the consequences of these factors for predicting the future of the peatland carbon reservoir.


This paper describes a new facility that has been introduced recently to provide high precision traceable scattering coefficient measurements of waveguide devices in the frequency range 110 GHz to 170 GHz (i.e. in waveguide size WR-06). The facility comprises measurement instrumentation situated at the University of Leeds and associated primary reference standards provided by the National Physical Laboratory. The instrumentation consists of a Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) and the standards are precision sections of waveguide that are used to calibrate the VNA. Traceability to national standards and the International System of units (SI) is achieved via precision dimensional measurements of the waveguide sections. Typical measurements, with uncertainties, are given to illustrate the current state-of-the-art for traceable measurements of this type.


The use of the cervicograph with the incorporated action and alert lines in labour management in developing country obstetrics is now well established and patients in labour in Port Moresby have been thus managed since 1973. In this study the cerviograph was introduced in hospitals and health centres in Enga Province and the results analysed. Despite intensive tuition in its use, a large number of cervicographs were incorrectly constructed, especially in health centres, and its introduction made little difference to operative delivery or perinatal mortality rates. The proportion of patients crossing the action line was much higher than in Post Moresby but this difference was probably also largely due to the inaccuracy of many cervicographs. It is likely that these difficulties will not be overcome until many more nurses with intensive training in the use of the cervicograph are available and until more deliveries take place in health institutions to maintain practice. In the interim a simpler rule of thumb for referral of labour patients may be helpful.


Plants are sources of natural antioxidants and some of their compounds have significant antioxidant properties and health benefits. Olaxsubscorpioidea and Distemonanthusbenthamianus are used in folk medicine for the treatment of many diseases. This study was undertaken to evaluate the in vitro antioxidant potential and the phenolic contents of the aqueous and 70% ethanolic extracts of the leaves of these plants. The antioxidant activity and phenolic contents of the aqueous and 70 %ethanolic extracts of the leaves of O.subscorpioidea and D.benthamianus were evaluated using Spectrophotometric methods for the determination of total phenols, total flavonoids, flavonols and proanthocyanidins. The antioxidant activity of the extracts was determined by the 1,1Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, anti-lipid peroxidation, reducing power and ferrous chelating ability methods. The ethanolicextracts had the highest antioxidant activitiesand phenolic compoundslevels.D.benthamianusexhibited strong DPPH scavenging activity (IC50=10.87 ± 0.18),lipid peroxidation inhibition assay (IC50 =0.97 ± 0.01 mg/mL),ferrous chelating assay (IC50 =0.94 ± 0.02 mg/mL) added to its higher reducing power andphenolic contents (102.8±0.57 mg/g extract). Theantioxidant propertiesof these plants may explain their therapeutic activities. Our following work will explore the pharmacological potential of D. benthamianusethanolic extract.


This paper deals with approximations in the impromptu speech of Congolese students of English. The paucity of vocabulary knowledge prompts foreign language learners to fall back on readily accessible resources in spontaneous speech, such as approximations. The latter are characteristic of an elementary stage in target language development, their frequency relatively decreasing with advanced students. Approximations can be accounted for in terms of communication strategies and in the light of semantic findings. In respect of semantics, three categories of approximations are distinguished : superordinate terms, hyponyms, and cohyponyms. Approximations in a foreign language setting may stem from teachers' negative attitude to vocabulary instruction and from learners' inadequate input. Another source is passive vocabulary, which causes retrieval problems. To minimize this situation, teachers must pay particular attention to vocabulary instruction by teaching vocabulary systematically, rather than leaving it to develop independently.


The present paper proposes a novel method for 3D-model watermarking for indexing. The proposed approach is based on the use of a generalized Radon transformation. More specifically, the cylindrical integration transform (CIT) is initially applied to the 3D models in order to produce descriptor vectors. At the same time a watermarking technique, based on CIT is used in order to embed a specific model identifier in the nodes of the 3D model. This identifier links the model to its descriptor vector, which is extracted only once and stored in a database. Every time this model is employed as a query model, watermark detection is used so as to retrieve the corresponding identifier and further the descriptor vector, which can be further used in a matching algorithm. The proposed techniques are evaluated experimentally in terms of both watermarking efficiency and content-based retrieval performance.


— The overriding goal of software engineering is to provide a high quality system, application or a product. To achieve this goal, software engineers must apply effective methods coupled with modern tools within the context of a mature software process [2]. In addition, it is also must to assure that high quality is realized. Although many quality measures can be collected at the project levels, the important measures are errors and defects. Deriving a quality measure for reusable components has proven to be challenging task now a days. The results obtained from the study are based on the empirical evidence of reuse practices, as emerged from the analysis of industrial projects. Both large and small companies, working in a variety of business domains, and using object-oriented and procedural development approaches contributed towards this study. This paper proposes a quality metric that provides benefit at both project and process level, namely defect removal efficiency (DRE).


A framework for soil conservation planning is proposed by combining land capability evaluation, geographic information systems (GIS), and indigenous conservation technologies for use in the northern Ethiopian highlands. The applicability of the framework was tested in a typical agricultural micro-watershed, i.e., the Gido watershed of South Welo. Land capability and land use status were established following the procedures of a modified treatment-oriented capability classification using GIS. The case study recommends contour-furrows and broadbased terraces on 40.67 per cent (capability unit C1), broad-to narrowbased terraces on 17.57 per cent (C2-C4), and intensive narrow-based to bench terraces on 31.95 per cent (C2/P & C3/P) of the cultivated land. The rest of the cropland is not at all suitable for annual cropping, and hence, should be put out of production. Where terraces are recommended, acceptance by farmers is ensured not only by developing the structures from indigenous technologies (i.e., 'Weber' and 'Kab' or 'Kirit'), but also by adopting various strategies to increase their economic advantages and profitability.


Abstract Objective: The main objective of this study is to evaluate the medico-legal aspects of fatal road traffic accidents. Methods: This is a retrospective study consisting of 80 forensic autopsies performed at the Institute of Legal Medicine – Tîrgu Mureș, Romania during a two years period, between January 1st, 2016 to December 31st, 2017. The information obtained was based on the medical records and the evaluation of autopsy reports. Results: Male victims involved in road traffic accidents were nearly three times more numerous than women (72.5% vs. 27.5%). Divided into 3 age groups (under 35 years old, 36-59 years old and over 60 years old) we noticed a relatively uniform distribution of the victims, with a slight dominance of the 36-59 age group and the over 60 years of age group. The highest number of victims was among the pedestrians (36.25%), followed in decreasing order by the drivers (33.75%), passengers (17.5%), cyclists (7.5%) and motorcyclists (5%). Positive alcohol testing was found in 14 of drivers (81 %). The analysis of lesions found during necropsies of the deceased at the scene of the accident highlights some particularly life-incompatible injuries that resemble any rescue effort on the part of the medical crew moved to the scene of the accident. Conclusion: Inappropriate road conditions and indiscipline in traffic of both drivers and pedestrians contribute to unacceptably high mortality.


In this communication, shadowing effects from rough surfaces are introduced in forward propagation computed by a parabolic wave equation (pwe) method. The discrete mixed Fourier transform is used, taking into account a surface impedance boundary condition. The surface impedance is computed from a rough surface reflection coefficient including shadowing effect at grazing angle. In the computation, shadowing is introduced through a shadowed distribution of the illuminated surface height.


Economic policy-making has long been more integrated than social policy-making in part because the statistics and much of the analysis that supports economic policy are based on a common conceptual framework – the system of national accounts. People interested in economic analysis and economic policy share a common language of communication, one that includes both concepts and numbers.This paper examines early attempts to develop a system of social statistics that would mirror the system of national accounts, particular the work on the development of social accounts that took place mainly in the 60s and 70s. It explores the reasons why these early initiatives failed but argues that the preconditions now exist to develop a new conceptual framework to support integrated social statistics – and hence a more coherent, effective social policy. Optimism is warranted for two reasons. First, we can make use of the radical transformation that has taken place in information technology both in processing data and in providing wide access to the knowledge that can flow from the data. Second, the conditions exist to begin to shift away from the straight jacket of government-centric social statistics, with its implicit assumption that governments must be the primary actors in finding solutions to social problems. By supporting the decision-making of all the players (particularly individual citizens) who affect social trends and outcomes, we can start to move beyond the sterile, ideological discussions that have dominated much social discourse in the past and begin to build social systems and structures that evolve, almost automatically, based on empirical evidence of 'what works best for whom.' The paper describes a Canadian approach to developing a framework, or common language, to support the evolution of an integrated, citizen-centric system of social statistics and social analysis. This language supports the traditional social policy that we have today; nothing is lost. However, it also supports a quite different social policy world, one where individual citizens and families (not governments) are seen as the central players – a more empirically-driven world that we have referred to as the 'enabling society.'


The aim of this study was to determine the pregnancy outcomes in pregnant women with a history of previous gestational diabetes and its related recurrence risk factors. This study was conducted on 180 pregnant women with history of gestational diabetes in previous pregnancy that referred to Besat hospital, Sanandaj, Iran. They were divided into two groups (recurrence of gestational diabetes group and non-recurrence of gestational diabetes group) .The data were recorded in the check list and analyzed using SPSS software Ver.18. To analyze quantitative variables such as mother`s age, mother`s BMI, interval between pregnancies, Apgar score and neonatal hypoglycemia independent t-tests was used and to compare qualitative variables between the two groups chi square test was used. The results showed that there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of mother`s age (P = 0.22). In terms of mother's BMI and interval between pregnancies there was statistically significant difference between the two groups (p<0.05). In terms of mode of delivery, after excluding 61 mothers who were replicate Cesarean section the percentage of Caesarean section in recurrence of gestational diabetes group was 15.4%4 and in non- recurrence of gestational diabetes group it was2.4% which difference was statistically significant (P <0.05). In terms of incidence of macrosomia (P <0.001) and neonatal hypoglycemia (p <0.05) there were statistically significant differences between two groups. The recurrence rate of diabetes was 66.6%.Regarding the results of this study in order to prevent maternal and fetal complications, monitoring and giving extra care to mothers with diabetes is recommended.


Autoantibodies to histidyl–tRNA synthetase (HisRS) or to alanyl–, asparaginyl–, glycyl–, isoleucyl–, or threonyl–tRNA synthetase occur in ∼25% of patients with polymyositis or dermatomyositis. We tested the ability of several aminoacyl–tRNA synthetases to induce leukocyte migration. HisRS induced CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes, interleukin (IL)-2–activated monocytes, and immature dendritic cells (iDCs) to migrate, but not neutrophils, mature DCs, or unstimulated monocytes. An NH2-terminal domain, 1–48 HisRS, was chemotactic for lymphocytes and activated monocytes, whereas a deletion mutant, HisRS-M, was inactive. HisRS selectively activated CC chemokine receptor (CCR)5-transfected HEK-293 cells, inducing migration by interacting with extracellular domain three. Furthermore, monoclonal anti-CCR5 blocked HisRS-induced chemotaxis and conversely, HisRS blocked anti-CCR5 binding. Asparaginyl–tRNA synthetase induced migration of lymphocytes, activated monocytes, iDCs, and CCR3-transfected HEK-293 cells. Seryl–tRNA synthetase induced migration of CCR3-transfected cells but not iDCs. Nonautoantigenic aspartyl–tRNA and lysyl–tRNA synthetases were not chemotactic. Thus, autoantigenic aminoacyl–tRNA synthetases, perhaps liberated from damaged muscle cells, may perpetuate the development of myositis by recruiting mononuclear cells that induce innate and adaptive immune responses. Therefore, the selection of a self-molecule as a target for an autoantibody response may be a consequence of the proinflammatory properties of the molecule itself.


Risk considerations have become increasingly important in nowadays agriculture, due to a variety of reasons. Surprisingly, the practice of formalized risk management is not widespread despite the huge amount of scientific literature on this topic. This discrepancy between risk science and extension is described by many authors. This paper presents a communicative method, rooted in financial economics, to evaluate risk-return profiles in a way that is communicative for individual farmers. The method is derived from the modern portfolio theory, in which individual assets are implicitly compared to the risk-return trade-off of that asset with the highest Sharpe ratio. We use this idea to compare individual risk-return profiles to a particular benchmark. The method can be used for evaluating different risk-return profiles of different farms, different risk management instruments and different production systems. To illustrate the communicative nature of our method, it is applied to evaluate risk-return profiles of conventional versus organic cropping systems.


To determine the patterns of the prevalent glomerulonephritis (GN) in our region, we studied the results of 511 consecutive renal biopsies performed on patients with proteinuria, hematuria and mild to moderate renal impairment at the Aga Khan University Hospital during a period of 18 years from January 1990 to December 2008. Primary glomerular disease accounted for two-thirds of the glomerular diseases, which in turn constituted 49% of all renal biopsies. The most common histological lesion was membranoproliferative disease (28%). Membranous GN was the second most common lesion (19%), followed by minimal change disease (16%) and focal segmental GN (11%). Secondary glomerular disease comprised 30% of glomerular diseases (21% of all the renal biopsies), with lupus nephritis forming the most common lesion (34%) followed by amyloidosis (22%), diabetic nephropathy (10%), Wagener's granulomatosus and post-infectious GN (9% each). Tubulointerstitial diseases accounted for 16% of all the renal biopsies. We conclude that there exists a wide variability in the different categories of primary and secondary glomerular diseases in our region as compared with different parts of the world. Future studies should be directed to analyze the causes for these variations.


New media technologies and migration networks create a new situation for the Muslim population in Europe. During the past decade Muslims, usually descendants of migrants, have increasingly taken part in media debates in Danish national and interactive media. They blog on the Internet, write in newspapers and partake in televised panel debates. A significant share of these media activists are women and their reflections on clothing and appearance constitute the major part of my argument in this paper. I discuss the clothing style of eight women who identify as Muslim and who have attracted attention in different forms of media; written and visual mass media or individualised interactive media. Beginning with the concept of sartorial strategies, I argue that by entering the Danish media these women challenge what it means to be equal and available for social contact in a Danish public realm. Some do so by considering how to avoid being ascribed negative stereotypes in everyday interaction and by media audiences, and others by choosing a distinct Islamic style of clothing, consequently their visibility as Muslim women is contested. In other words for some, subtle ways of communicating the new presence of active Muslim women in the media is the response, whereas others communicate this presence more distinctly. These strategies constitute a form of conscious impression management, revealing that Muslim women enter the Danish media with caution. Thus, wearing Islamic fashion is a form of micro-politics, a level of politics usually ignored in discussions of Islam in Europe.


We present an empirical analysis of the fast affine projection (FAP) algorithm to be used in an acoustic echo cancellation application using a fixed-point DSP processor. We also introduce a modified FAP algorithm that was developed based on our FAP study. Out analysis study shows that the modified FAP algorithm is more robust and provides more consistent performance than the LMS algorithm. The new FAP algorithm is also numerically efficient and easy to implement with a fixed-point DSP processor.


This paper presents an effective full-wave procedure to optimize linearly polarized radial-line slot-array antennas. The procedure is based on a recursive method for solving large matrix equations known as the multiple sweep method of moments. As a result of this paper, new design suggestions have been introduced which greatly contribute to the performance improvement of this type of antennas. These elements are the arrangement of the slots in concentric ellipses instead of circles and a slight but crucial modification on the usual collocation of the reflection-canceling slots.


Modem advances in computing power have greatly widened scientists' scope in gathering and investigating information from many variables. We describe sliced inverse regression (SIR), for reducing the dimension of the input variable x without going through any parametric or nonparametric model-fitting process. This method explores the simplicity of the inverse view of regression. Instead of regressing the univariate output variable y against the multivariate x, we regress x against y. Forward regression and inverse regression are connected by a theorem that motivates this method. The theoretical properties of SIR are investigated under a model of the form, y = f (β ′x, e) where the $\beta$'s are unknown vectors. This model looks like a nonlinear regression, except for the crucial difference that the functional form off is completely unknown. For effectively reducing the dimension, one only needs to estimate the effective dimension reduction (e.d.r.) space generated by the $\beta$'s. If the distribution of $x$ has been standardized to have the zero mean and the identity covariance, the inverse regression curve falls into the e.d.r. space. Hence a principal component analysis on the covariance matrix for the estimated inverse regression curve can be conducted to locate its main orientation, yielding our estimates for e.d.r. directions. Furthermore, a simple step function can be used to estimate the inverse regression curve.


The aim of this study was to investigate a variety of cell cycle-related changes in FeLV-infected lymphoid cells. The cell cycle and the use of synchronised cells played a major role in most of the experiments carried out. The Introduction, therefore, contains an outline of the concept of the mammalian cell cycle and a discussion of some of its practical applications. In Chapter One, synchronising techniques and life cycle analysis methods are described in general, while the methods used during the course of this study are presented in more detail. The relationship between a distinct phase of the cell cycle and the release of FeLV is examined in Chapter Two. By using two assay systems and applying two different synchronising methods it was established that virus production is cell cycle-dependent. It occurs in the period in both homologous and heterlogous cell lines. Changes in morphology during synchronous growth were examined by transmission (TEM) and by scanning (SEM) electron microscopy (Chapter Three). An analysis of morphological data obtained by TEM and SEM revealed that synchronised cells of the cat lymphoblastoid line, FL74, exhibited distinct ultra structural variations which were closely related to the cell cycle. It was also established, for the first time, that the surface structure of lymphoid cells showed cell cycle-specific changes which were highly characteristic. When the number of budding C-type particles was counted on cells which were morphologically characterised in this way it was found that in both TEM and SEM preparations the early-G1-cells were releasing the highest number of virus particles. An investigation of the expression of viral antigens and FOCMA in synchronised cells was the subject of a further study described in Chapter Four. By using immunofluorescence techniques, evidence was obtained for the cell cycle-dependent expression of viral and FOCMA antigens. The viral structural antigens, pl5 and p30, and the major envelope glycoprotein gp70 reached a peak in the early-G1 phase, whereas, FOCMA was expressed 14 hours later in the late-G1 period, FOCMA peaks were detected on FeLV-infected feline but not on FeLV-infected canine cell lines. This suggested that FOCMA was distinct from the viral antigens. In order to investigate the kinetics of FeLV production and to explore some of the regulatory mechanisms responsible for the expression of antigens in FL74 cells, the effects of various metabolic inhibitors were examined (Chapter Five). It was found that virus production and antigen expression were regulated by a complex cell cycle-dependent synthesis of RNA, mRNA, viral and cellular proteins, which in turn were co-ordinated by mitosis. Finally, in Chapter Six, the occurrence and distribution of feline leukaemia virus-associated antigens were examined by immuno- electron microscopy. Ferritin labelling of cells prefixed in glutaraldehyde revealed that the cell surface antigens were randomly distributed. gp70 was found to be the most plentiful followed by FOCMA, p30 and pl5 in descending order. Antisera to pl5 and p30 did not stain intact viral particles, while the non-budding areas of the cell membrane were labelled. Both gp70 and FOCMA antisera stained viral particles as well as the non-budding areas of the cell membrane. In order to investigate the unexpected labelling of viral particles by FOGMA antisera, an immunofluorescence-immunoferritin study in capping conditions and competition experiments were performed. The results indicated that FOCMA was distinct from gp70 and that labelling of virions was possibly due to the undetected presence of neutralising antibodies in the FOCMA antisera used. Ferritin labelling of synchronised FL74 cells showed that in the early-G1 phase considerably more antigenic sites per unit length were expressed than in the S phase.


The purpose of this article is to describe the research mentoring process used with a small team of nurses by a PhD prepared nurse certified as a Nursing Professional Development Specialist and as a Critical Care Clinical Nurse Specialist. It will describe how bedside nurses were actively engaged in the research process by having them learn about research while operationalizing that knowledge as simultaneously were mentored in conducting a relevant research study. The process described and discussed in this article should be useful to nurse leaders to facilitate removing the traditional barriers to nursing research that still remain in healthcare organizations today. These include lack of time and knowledge, about the process, lack of institutional support, and lack of mentoring through the process. It should also be helpful to nurse educators in the clinical area to encourage more nurses to participate in nursing research.


Abstract. A regional-scale meteorology – chemistry model (NHM-Chem v1.0) has been developed. Three options for aerosol representations are currently available: the 5-category non-equilibrium (Aitken, soot-free accumulation, accumulation internally mixed with soot, dust, and sea-salt), 3-category non-equilibrium (Aitken, accumulation, and coarse), and bulk equilibrium (submicron, dust, and sea-salt) methods. These three methods are suitable for the predictions of regional climate, air quality, and operational forecasts, respectively. The total CPU times of the 5-category and 3-category methods were 91 % and 44 % greater than that of the bulk method, respectively. The bulk equilibrium method was shown to be eligible for operational forecast purposes, namely, the surface mass concentrations of air pollutants such as O3, mineral dust, and PM2.5. The 3-category method was shown to be eligible for air quality simulations, namely, mass concentrations and depositions. However, the internal mixture assumption of soot/soot-free and dust/sea-salt particles in the 3-category method resulted in significant differences in the size distribution and hygroscopicity of the particles. Even though the 3-category method was not designed to simulate aerosol-cloud-radiation interaction processes, its performance in terms of bulk properties, such as aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), was acceptable. However, some specific parameters exhibited significant differences or systematic errors. The unrealistic dust/sea-salt complete mixture of the 3-category method induced significant errors in the prediction of mineral dust containing CCN. The overestimation of soot hygroscopicity by the 3-category method induced errors in BC-containing CCN, BC deposition, and absorbing AOT (AAOT). The difference in AAOT was less pronounced because the overestimation of the absorption enhancement was compensated by the overestimation of hygroscopic growth and the consequent loss due to in-cloud scavenging.


Nowadays, many teenagers are faced with various challenges related to sexuality, such as the case of adolescent pregnancy enhancement, and high levels of sexually transmitted diseases (IMS) such as HIV/AIDS. This is hard for the teenagers to avoid because of several factors, such as the development of a child who is looking for a personal identity and always wants to try new things in their environment. The purpose of this research is to know the influence of adolescents ' health education through video media to change students ' knowledge of adolescent free sex impact in one of the high schools in Jogyakarta. This type of research is pre-experimented with a research plan of one group Pretests postest. The number of respondents was 97 students using total sampling technique. Bivariate analysis of the statistics of Wilcoxon, with an error rate of 5% (0.05). Most of the knowledge of respondents was pre Test 69 (71.1%), and post Test 61 (92.4%). The average level of knowledge of respondents pre test mean = 77.53 and the knowledge level respondent post test mean = 89.77 with the significance value of knowledge variable 0.000 (P value < 0.05) (α). There is a health education influence through video media to student knowledge about the impact of adolescent free sex age.


The goal for this study is to better understand the issue of inequality and to improve the likelihood of achieving gender justice in the future. The dissertation examines the primary role of legislation, which has an impact on the court process, as well as the primary role of the judicial system, which has an impact on the fight for gender equality. In looking at women and the law, the dissertation encompasses several chapters: Chapter 2 covers law and feminism; Chapter 3 looks at employment statistics affecting men and women in the United States, Canada and Europe; Chapter 4 investigates pay equity and access to employment, looking at inequality in the workplace; Chapter 5 looks at international and North American laws and court cases dealing with gender discrimination and especially the important issue of the burden of proof required in discrimination cases; Chapter 6 examines the development of the North American Free Trade Agreement; and Chapter 7 examines the implementation of the European Economic Community Treaty. The major part of the study examines equality in employment for men and women in terms of the law and the court, at both the national and international level. Since the American court system is the one most of ten compared with the European court system, the United States Supreme Court rulings on the crucial aspect of the burden of proof will be uniquely examined in depth, contrasting the racial standard with the gender standard in discrimination cases. The dissertation seeks to compare the two most important trade agreements of our day, namely the North American Free Trade Agreement and the European Economic Community Treaty, in a historical analysis. Although an important trade agreement with implications for labor, the North American Free Trade Agreement has a different system from the European system in that it has no overseeing court with jurisdiction over the respective countries. On the other hand, the European Economic Community treaty takes a different approach, in that it is made part of the domestic law of every member state, weakening past discriminatory laws and judgments, including sex discrimination in employment. The European process also goes further by actively implementing new laws such as equal pay and equal treatment in access to employment for men and women. The dissertation shows that in light of the evidence, the North American Free Trade Agreement should be amended to deal specifically with gender discrimination in employment, in dealing with the aspect of law. As well, an overseeing court encompassing several states, as does the European Court of Justice, should be implemented in the North American context, in dealing with the aspect of the courts. On the other hand, the burden of proof in the European system should be elevated to that used in the American system, to facilitate the legal process for the victims of discrimination


This interpretive grounded theory (GT) study describes and analyses the lived experiences of project members who worked in a three year long inter-organisational information system (IOIS) project. The Inter-Organisational Information Systems (IOIS) project was a Nordic project which spanned four user organisations, two suppliers, one national organisation, a research organization and a Ministry who funded the project. The data was elicited by means of narrative stories, observations of project meetings, diaries, project memoranda and emails sent by project members to each other during these years. This study shows how GT can be used to gain significant insights into a case study, and generate new concepts. We identified Certainty, Significance, Connection and Contribution as important selective codes that make up the emotions category. This study shows that emotions have a remarkable role during the process of an IOIS. The paper concludes by discussing how certainty, significance, connection and contribution issues could be attributed to emotions and considers some theoretical and practical implications.


The rare calc-silicate minerals cuspidine, foshagite and hillebrandite occur as late phases in calcsilicate xenoliths from the Rustenburg Layered Suite of the Bushveld Complex. These minerals occur in narrow veins or as replacements, particularly after melilite (cuspidine and hillebrandite) or vesuvianite (foshagite). Cuspidine formed early during cooling, possibly under low-XH 2 O conditions. In contrast, foshagite and hillebrandite formed late in the cooling history, after the infiltration of H 2 O-rich fluids that led to the development of locally pervasive vesuvianite.


After dmPGE2 treatment, both alone or together with streptozotocin, the lower, statistically significant total PL contents (in mumoles P per mg of protein) in rat liver Golgi-rich membrane fractions were found. In these groups of investigated rats, the percentage of PE+PA were statistically significantly lower than in control. For the present it is impossible to certify, if there is a causal-result dependence between these two facts. The administration of streptozotocin alone (both after 6 or 11 days) caused the increase of PE+PA percentage, however not statistically significant.


Nature-based tourism (NBT) is a growing industry within regions rich in natural amenities worldwide. An important feature of NBT business is the dependence on the quality of surrounding environment. This paper addresses the role of the management of commercial forests owned by the state in Finnish Lapland. The paper explores the NBT entrepreneurs' willingness to participate in a proposed new landscape and recreational value trading (LRVT) and elaborates the effect of entrepreneur and enterprise characteristics, such as entrepreneurial attitude, venture size, and a variety of services offered to customers, on the experienced and expected growth of NBT enterprise. The survey data on NBT enterprises were analyzed with ordered and binary logit models. The willingness of enterprises to participate in LRVT depended on the venture size, entrepreneurial attitude, and type of activities offered to customers. The results show that relatively young and small-sized enterprises have faced difficulties in developing their business. Entrepreneurial experience, risk-taking and intention to develop new business associate positively with expected increase in turnover.


The authors present a new and efficient precondition method (ILUV-CGS), which is an incomplete LU (ILU) factorization by value instead of a sparse nonzero pattern, in conjunction with CGS iteration for solving nonsymmetric linear equations in finite-element simulation of semiconductor devices. To demonstrate the efficiency of this method, the simulations of a group of representative devices with different numerical characteristics have been carried out using the ILUV-CGS algorithm, and these are compared with those of the existing ILU-CGS method. The comparison results are in favor of using the ILUV=CGS method. >


1. Understanding how variation in fitness relates to variation in group living remains critical to determine whether this major aspect of social behaviour is currently adaptive. 2. Available evidence in social mammals aimed to examine this issue remains controversial. Studies show positive (i.e. potentially adaptive), neutral or even negative fitness effects of group living. 3. Attempts to explain this variation rely on intrinsic and extrinsic factors to social groups. Thus, relatively more positive fitness effects are predicted in singularly breeding as opposed to plural breeding species. Fitness effects of sociality in turn may depend on ecological conditions (i.e. extrinsic factors) that influence associated benefits and costs. 4. We used meta-analytic tools to review how breeding strategy or ecological conditions influence the effect size associated with direct fitness-sociality relationships reported in the mammalian literature. Additionally, we determined how taxonomic affiliation of species studied, different fitness and sociality measures used, and major climatic conditions of study sites explained any variation in direct fitness effect size. 5. We found group living had modest, yet positive effects on direct fitness. This generally adaptive scenario was contingent not only upon breeding strategy and climate of study sites, but also on fitness measures examined. Thus, positive and significant effects characterized singular as opposed to plural breeding strategies. 6. We found more positive fitness effects on studies conducted in tropical as opposed to temperate or arid climates. More positive and significant effects were noted on studies that relied on group fecundity, male fecundity and offspring survival as measures of fitness. 7. To conclude, direct fitness consequences of mammalian group living are driven by interspecific differences in breeding strategy and climate conditions. Other factors not examined in this study, namely individual variation in direct and indirect fitness benefits and potential interactions between social and ecological conditions, may be important and require further studies.


A wave-propelled autonomous vehicle (Wave Glider) instrumented with a variety of oceanographic and meteorological sensors was launched from Gulf of Naples on the 12 th of September 2012 for a two-week mission in the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea. The main objective of the mission was a preliminary evaluation of the potential of commercial autonomous platforms to provide reliable measurements of sea surface parameters which can complement existing satellite based products moving from the local to the synoptic scale. To this aim Wave Glider measurements were compared to equivalent, or near-equivalent, satellite products achieved from MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) sensors onboard the EOS (Earth Observing System) satellite platforms and from AVISO (Archiving Validation and Interpretation of Satellite Oceanographic Data). Level-3 near real time and Level-4 reprocessed sea surface foundation temperature products provided by the CMEMS (Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service) were also included in this study as well as high resolution model output supplied by NEMO (Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean). The Wave Glider was equipped with sensors to measure temperature, salinity, currents, as well as Colored Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM), turbidity and refined fuels fluorescence. The achieved results confirmed the emerging value of Wave Gliders in the framework of multiplatform monitoring systems of the ocean surface parameters. In particular, they showed that Wave Glider measurements captured the southern Tyrrhenian Sea major surface oceanographic features, including the coast to open sea haline gradient and the presence of a cyclone-anticyclone system in the southeastern sub-region. The Wave Glider also had the capability to monitor upper ocean currents at finer spatial and temporal scales than satellite altimetric observations and model outputs. Nonetheless, results stressed the existence of several limits in the combined use of satellite and Wave Glider observations and the necessity of further analyses concerning the monitoring of the ocean optical properties. In fact, Wave Glider and satellite-based products agree in terms of sea surface temperature and currents patterns, while bio-optical properties turned out to be less well correlated. No significant traces of refined fuels have been detected along the WG track.


With a sustained drawdown of troops from Iraq Afghanistan has become the focus of the West's military engagements in the region. The initially well-supported response to the attacks of September 11th had lain neglected in the shadow of America's ideological adventurism in the Middle East; and in the vacuum of political, military and economic commitment the overthrown Taliban have been resuscitated. But is the West's renewed interest in Afghanistan too little, too late?

This Strategic Update assess the challenges that the Obama administration and its allies face in reconstituting the statebuilding mission in Afghanistan.


Back in December 2014 we posted an idea on the "Research Data Spring" (also named "Research at Risk"), a collaborative initiative for UK Research hosted by Jisc. This is an idea we are hoping to develop in conjunction with the Centre for Information Science at City University London (#citylis) and the researcher-led open access publisher Ubiquity Press. We have slightly edited our original text and added text from a blog post by Ernesto Priego as part of the documentation process of the #dataspring sandpit workshop in Birmingham, Thursday 26 and Friday 27 February 2015.


The membrane coupling plays an essential role in the transfer process of the wind wheel torque. In order to meet the design requirements and get more accurate stress analysis state of membrane, based on the finite element software HyperMesh, membrane and the surrounding model is regularly meshed into hexahedral element, and to MSC.patran analysis platform, to check the strength of the coupling. The result of analysis showed that, the maximum stress and deformation of coupling can be met to the design standards and reach the requirements also. Using of hexahedral element, analysis time of CPU can be reduced and smoother stress and strain contours cloud can be also obtained, so it provides a more scientific basis for the design and manufacture of membrane coupling.


A clear relationship between intrauterine development and later life predisposition to long-term disease is well established. Weight at birth provides a surrogate measure for fetal development and low birth weight predicts changes in most endocrine axes in adulthood. The exposure of the fetus to elevated levels of either endogenous or synthetic glucocorticoids, pre and periconceptional nutritional status and immediate postnatal development including catch-up growth all contribute substantially to the development of adult onset disease. Fetal exposure to high levels of glucocorticoids has direct clinical relevance. Synthetic glucocorticoids (betamethasone/ dexamethasone) are administered to women at risk of preterm delivery to advance fetal maturation and reduce neonatal morbidity and mortality. However, in human pregnancy, evidence suggests that fetal exposure to synthetic glucocorticoids has detrimental effects on birth outcome, childhood cognition and long-term behavior. Studies in animals have established a link between prenatal exposure to synthetic glucocorticoids and alterations in fetal development as well as changes in placental function. These developmental alterations appear to be permanent. Whether this is the case in humans awaits long-term follow-up of children enrolled in randomized controlled trials of prenatal glucocorticoid therapy. The research challenges in this field are now centered on uncovering the mechanisms by which glucocorticoids are involved in programming the fetus for its future life, and discovering ways in which the effectiveness and safety of antenatal glucocorticoids can be enhanced. The purpose of this mini-review is to provide a background into the use of antenatal synthetic corticosteroids and to highlight and summarize recently published clinical and animal-based studies.


An efficient interconnects modeling and optimization methodology is proposed for multi-GHz clock network design. High frequency effects, including inductance and proximity effects are captured. The results are validated through comparisons with electromagnetic simulations and measured data taken from a Cu/SiO 2 90nm process test chip.


Artocarpus hirsutus Lam. is a common plant with a variety of folk medicinal value. The present study was conducted to evaluate the phytochemical and pharmacological properties of the ethanolic extract of Artocarpus hirsutus. The screening for various phytochemicals was conducted by using various standard procedures. Acute toxicity of the extract was determined by using OECD guidelines 423. The antidiabetic activity of the plant was evaluated by using the streptozotocin-induced diabetic model in Wistar albino rats. The histopathology of the pancreatic tissue was also performed. The antioxidant activity of the extract was also performed by using the liver homogenate of the animal. Statistical analysis was performed by using one way ANOVA followed by Dunnet's test. The phytochemical screening of extract leads to the detection of various secondary metabolites like alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, terpenoids, etc. No mortality was observed during acute toxicity studies up to the dose of 2000 mg/kg. The effect of the extract on parameters like body weight, fasting blood glucose level, SGOT, SGPT, ALP, bilirubin, total protein, urea, creatinine shows a significant variation. The histopathological examination of the pancreatic tissue shows marked regeneration of tissue. The enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidant parameters were determined and compared. These findings indicate that the ethanolic extract of A. hirsutus leaves have various phytopharmacological activities needed for pharmacological activity and thus it would be useful to isolate and characterize the compounds responsible for these bioactivities in the future. INTRODUCTION: Diabetes is a common chronic noninfective metabolic disorder with micro and macrovascular complications 1 which results in significant morbidity and mortality. It is considered as one of the five leading causes of death in the world.


In this letter, we present cyclic-prefix (CP) based noise-variance and power-delay-profile estimators for Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) systems. Signal correlation due to the use of the CP is exploited without requiring additional pilot symbols. A heuristic estimator and a class of approximate maximum likelihood (ML) estimators are proposed. The proposed algorithms can be applied to both unitary and non-unitary constellations. These algorithms can be readily used for applications such as minimum mean-square error (MMSE) channel estimation.


The STochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence and Technology (STIRPAT) model has become a widely employed methodological approach within social science research, largely used to understand the complex relationships between human social systems and the non-human environment. The general assumption of the model is that anthropogenic environmental impacts are a multiplicative function of population, affluence, and technology. While previous STIRPAT research has examined the impact of technology in terms of urbanization, estimating the specific effect of urban population, we argue that this measure is better understood as a proxy for modernization. As an alternative, we frame urbanization as a multidimensional driver of environmental change, and we operationalize the technology dimension through cross-national data on impervious surface area, or what we call 'terrestrial technology'. To demonstrate the potential of this example for environmental sociology, we draw from political economy to show how operationalizing technology offers a stronger, more nuanced understanding of the socioeconomic drivers of environmental degradation. Analytically, we employ a spatial regression model that estimates the effect of terrestrial technology on total carbon emissions for 173 countries. Our results show that impervious surface area is positively related to total carbon output and thus should be considered an operational measure of technology in future STIRPAT analyses.


There are a growing number of mobile phones being used in developing contexts, such as Africa. A large percentage of these phones have the capability to take photographs and transmit them freely using Bluetooth. In order to provide people with media on their mobile phones public displays are becoming more common. Three problems with current public displays – cost, security and mobility – are discussed and system proposed that uses a mobile phone as a server. Media is displayed on specially designed paper posters, which users can photograph using their mobile phones. The resulting photographs are sent, via Bluetooth, to the server, which analyses them in order to locate a specially designed barcode, representing the media, which is then decoded and the requisite media returned to the user. Two barcoding systems are tested in laboratory conditions, and a binary system is found to perform best. The system is then deployed on a campus transportation system to test the effects of motion. The results show that the system is not yet ready for deployment on moving transport.


One could not have asked for better weather or for better participation at the July 29 to August 3, 2017, American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Chemical Engineering Faculty Summer School. The 16th Summer School was held at the sprawling and contemporary campus of North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC.  As in previous Summer Schools, there were a plethora of sessions conducted by leaders in chemical engineering education and research, posters presented by the newest generation of chemical engineering faculty to share their research and pedagogy, and a great deal of camaraderie as networking opportunities abounded.


Describes a concept of a distributively placed modular robot system and a methodology of parameter identification of the system. The robot system consists of modules which have monofunction (e.g. sensor or actuator) and radio communication. Depending on tasks, the system is constructed by attaching modules to an object or in a working area distributively. Then the modules achieve a task by their cooperation. In our algorithm, the parameters are identified by executing motions with actuators, and observing the changes of the state with sensors. The motion which we call testing motion influences accuracy of identification because of sensing errors. Accounting for this, especially for the case of a mobile robot and a ceiling camera module, the design of modules' testing motion is made by evaluating the influence of the camera's sensing error and dead-reckoning's locating error. The effectiveness of the algorithm is shown in the simulation and a basic experiment.


Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common amongst children and invariably result in imaging tests to look for correctable causes that may predispose the child to infection. The objective of imaging is to identify those children at risk of long-term renal damage. The ideal imaging algorithm is extensively debated in the literature owing to the lack of evidence-based data, evolving theories on the pathophysiology of UTI and vesicoureteric reflux (VUR). The present article provides a case-based approach to the imaging of UTIs and proposes guidelines relevant to the South African setting.


The machining performance of porous NiTi shape memory alloys prepared using powder metallurgical production technique has been investigated experimentally in the grinding operation. Grinding force ratio, specific grinding energy, surface characteristics were detected. The result reveals that, much difference of grinding characteristics exists among three kinds of NiTi alloy because of the pore rate and the mechanical performance induced by TiH2. Under the experimental conditions, the integrated effects of predominant plastic flow and slight brittle fracture were taken for porous NiTi alloy during grinding. Additionally, the grinding parameters should be chosen carefully, otherwise the surface quality deteriorates and even the microcrack perhaps appears.


Qualitative research was undertaken
(Creswell, J. W. 2013), content analysis was conducted on the video data and
newspaper data, the data were available in public domain and open for all. Phenomenological
research methodology (Moustakas, C. 1994) was adopted to understand the
commonality of lived experience of migrant workers regarding what they
experienced after lockdown, as the migrant workers shared the lived experiences
on video camera to the reporters of news channels. The goal of this phenomenological
approach was to arrive at the nature of the description of the phenomenon
(Morrow, R., Rodriguez, A., & King, N. 2015), that they were experiencing
on the ground (Creswell, 2013). Codes were identified and themes were found
from the data. Due to lockdown, author could not go out in the field to speak
to these migrant workers and collect primary data, hence the rich data
available in the field in the form of videos captured by different news
channels, and also some newspaper reports, which were available in public
domain open to all, were utilised. Migrant workers communicated in native Hindi
language; as reporters spoke to them and interviewed them (Bevan, M. T. (2014).
The author well conversant with native Hindi language could understand the
language well and could translate it in meaningful English language. To ensure
the accuracy, it was also got checked by one more expert.


With the increasing number of programs and services for gifted students in Hong Kong, it is recognized that gifted students do have unique social and emotional needs in addition to their specific learning needs. The critical need for counseling services as an integral component of gifted programs is examined by reviewing the recent greater emphasis of providing counseling services for gifted students in North America, and the problems and issues specific to counseling gifted students in Hong Kong. The relevant issues include selfconcept and self-definitional problems, heightened emotional sensitivity and overexcitability, perfectionism, underachievement, and multipotentiality. Implications of the development of counseling services for the gifted in the context of the whole school approach to guidance and counseling in Hong Kong are discussed.


Students transitioning from middle school to high school often experience academic difficulty in the ninth grade. The discontinuance between the two systems gives rise to the need for students to adapt to new academic environments. Academic failure or success is a predictor of high school graduation. Research reveals the personal characteristics of students influence successful adaptation to this transition and that the academic achievement of students depends upon the design of the learning environment. This goal of this study was to examine whether the student characteristic of cognitive autonomy showed correlation to academic achievement during the ninth grade. This study also examined the relationships of non-cognitive characteristics of students to academic achievement. A sample of 458 ninth-grade students in a suburban high school participated in this study. The student participants were representative of a diverse community, allowing for the personal non-cognitive measures of students to include ethnicity, language proficiency, and gender. Methodology included administration of a survey to the ninth-grade student population at the selected school. We entered the resulting survey data and demographic information into a statistical program, and academic information for each student was obtained from the school's student information database. Using a variety of statistical analyses, we disaggregated the data and examined for patterns giving indications of the relevance of student characteristics to their academic achievement. Specifically outlined in this study are the mean values of disaggregated data and correlations between cognitive characteristics, non-cognitive characteristics, the learning environment, and student academic achievement.The results of the study indicated the characteristic of cognitive autonomy to have minimal influence on student academic achievement while non-cognitive characteristics of students showed stronger correlation to academic performance. The resulting implications from this study centered on improving teacher understanding of student characteristics and the resulting need to alter instructional practices. Further implications arise for district and site leaders and center on school structure, staff development, and budget considerations. While centered on the ninth-grade transition point, the implications from this study can be scaled to include further aspects of the high school system.


Fragile X syndrome (FXS) causes intellectual disability and is the known leading cause of autism. Common problems in FXS include behavior and social problems. Along with syndromic characteristics and autism comorbidity, environmental factors might influence these difficulties. This systematic review focuses on the last 20 years of studies concerning behavior and social problems in FXS, considering environmental and personal variables that might influence both problems. Three databases were reviewed, leading to fifty-one studies meeting the inclusion criteria. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) problems remain the greatest behavior problems, with behavioral problems and social competence being stable during the 20 years. Some developmental trajectories might have changed due to higher methodological control, such as aggressive behavior and attention problems. The socialization trajectory from childhood to adolescence remains unclear. Comorbidity with autism in individuals with FXS increased behavior problems and worsened social competence profiles. At the same time, comparisons between individuals with comorbid FXS and autism and individuals with autism might help define the comorbid phenotype. Environmental factors and parental characteristics influenced behavior problems and social competence. Higher methodological control is needed in studies including autism symptomatology and parental characteristics. More studies comparing autism in FXS with idiopathic autism are needed to discern differences between conditions.


The scope of this study is to assess a solar driven combined power-refrigeration system working with carbon dioxide (CO2) through energy and exergy. The system consists of a supercritical Brayton cycle, a transcritical organic Rankine cycle, and a subcritical vapour compression refrigeration cycle. All three subsystems operate with carbon dioxide as the working fluid thanks to its zero-ozone depleting potential and negligible global warming potential. In addition, it is a sustainable working fluid. The combined system's heat energy demand is supplied by using parabolic trough solar collector system. Heat energy demand of organic Rankine cycle is supplied by the rejected heat of supercritical Brayton cycle; while the refrigeration cycle is driven by the power generated from the organic Rankine cycle. The results show that the energy efficiencies of the Brayton and organic Rankine cycles are found to be 12.9% and 4.47%, respectively, while the performance coefficient of the refrigeration cycle is determined to be 3.35. The energy efficiency of the overall system is determined to be 20.89%; while the exergy efficiency of the overall system is determined to be 12.95%. The exergy destruction rate of the whole system is calculated as 4,891 kW.


Recent loss-of-function studies in mice show that the transcription factor GATA6 is important for visceral endoderm differentiation. It is also expressed in early bronchial epithelium and the observation that this tissue does not receive any contribution from Gata6 double mutant embryonic stem (ES) cells in chimeric mice suggests that GATA6 may play a crucial role in lung development. The aim of this study was to determine the role of GATA6 in fetal pulmonary development. We show that Gata6 mRNA is expressed predominantly in the developing pulmonary endoderm and epithelium, but at E15.5 also in the pulmonary mesenchyme. Blocking or depleting GATA6 function results in diminished branching morphogenesis both in vitro and in vivo. TTF1 expression is unaltered in chimeric lungs whereas SPC and CC10 expression are attenuated in abnormally branched areas of chimeric lungs. Chimeras generated in a ROSA26 background show that endodermal cells in these abnormally branched areas are derived from Gata6 mutant ES cells, implicating that the defect is intrinsic to the endoderm. Taken together, these data demonstrate that GATA6 is not essential for endoderm specification, but is required for normal branching morphogenesis and late epithelial cell differentiation.


ILRI research shows that African countries' export trade in live and processed animals is mainly constrained by costs of production and (scale-dependent) transactions between producer and foreign consumer. The impact of animal disease is felt more in terms of low productivity and high mortality than through costs of SPS compliance. ILRI's in-depth whole-chain studies identified cost items and market actor behaviors that contribute to poor export performance. Costly and ineffective drug delivery systems in Somalia, high feed costs in Ethiopia, high transport costs in East Africa, and high marketing costs and lack of information in West Africa, were common culprits.


An excisional biopsy targeting a cervical lymph node was performed on a 49-year-old female patient with metastatic rectal cancer. The biopsy revealed rectal and papillary thyroid cancer metastasis in the same lymph node. A thin-needle thyroid aspiration biopsy was performed, and the result was papillary thyroid carcinoma. The patient, who received chemotherapy for the metastatic rectal cancer, died due to disease progression about 5 months after a secondary primary tumor was detected. Metastasis of multiple malignancies in the same lymph node is extremely rare. A metastases of rectal and thyroid cancers to the same lymph node has not been reported until now. Our patient is the first case in the literature.


The discovery that certain strains of high-risk human papillomavirus caused nearly 100% of invasive cancer of the uterine cervix launched a revolution in the investigation of preventative vaccines for the cancer. Infection by the human papillomavirus (HPV) causes genital and non-genital epithelial lesions as well as lesions of the mucous membrane. Although the majority of infections are benign and self-limiting, persistent infection can lead to a variety of malignancies. Gardasil® is quadrivalent; it is produced in Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast, and protects against HPV types 16 and 18, which are oncogenic, as well as types 6 and 11, which cause almost 90% of genital warts. Cervarix® is formulated with a proprietary adjuvant that induces an antibody response significantly greater and more persistent than the antigens of the virus itself formulated with aluminum hydroxide alone. Both vaccines induce a strong antibody response in young women, with almost 100% seroconversion. Neither of the vaccines have a therapeutic effect. The medical community of each country has an obligation to assess the efficacy of vaccination campaigns as well as the efficacy in the medium-term of the vaccine chosen by their governments, given the inherent differences in the duration of protection, especially against cancer of the uterine cervix.


Robust Video Object Tracking in Distributed Camera Networks Younggun Lee Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Professor Jenq-Neng Hwang Department of Electrical Engineering We propose a robust video object tracking system in distributed camera networks. The main problem associated with wide-area surveillance is people to be tracked may exhibit dramatic changes on account of varied illuminations, viewing angles, poses and camera responses, under different cameras. We intend to construct a robust human tracking system across multiple cameras based on fully unsupervised online learning so that the camera link models among them can be learned online, and the tracked targets in every single camera can be accurately re-identified with both appearance cue and context information. We present three main parts of our research: an ensemble of invariant appearance descriptors, inter-camera tracking based on fully unsupervised online learning, and multiple-camera human tracking across non-overlapping cameras. As for effective appearance descriptors, we present an appearance-based re-id framework, which uses an ensemble of invariant features to achieve robustness against partial occlusion, camera color response variation, and pose and viewpoint changes, etc. The proposed method not only solves the problems resulted from the changing human pose and viewpoint, with some tolerance of illumination changes but also can skip the laborious calibration effort and restriction. We take an advantage of effective invariant features proposed above in the tracking. We present an inter-camera tracking method based on online learning, which systematically builds camera link model without any human intervention. The aim of inter-camera tracking is to assign unique IDs when people move across different cameras. Facilitated by the proposed two-phase feature extractor, which consists of two way Gaussian mixture model fitting and couple features in phase I, followed by the holistic color, regional color/texture features in phase II, the proposed method can effectively and robustly identify the same person across cameras. To build the complete tracking system, we propose a robust multiple-camera tracking system based on a two-step framework, the single-camera tracking algorithm is firstly performed in each camera to create trajectories of multi-targets, and then the inter-camera tracking algorithm is carried out to associate the tracks belonging to the same identity. Since inter-camera tracking algorithms derive the appearance and motion features by using single-camera tracking results, i.e., detected/tracked object and segmentation mask, intercamera tracking performance highly depends on single-camera tracking performance. For single-camera tracking, we present multi-object tracking within a single camera that can adaptively refine the segmentation results based on multi-kernel feedback from preliminary tracking to handle the problems of object merging and shadowing. Besides, detection in local object region is incorporated to address initial occlusion when people appear in groups.


The inclusion complexes of selected sunscreen agents, namely, oxybenzone (Oxy), octocrylene (Oct), and ethylhexyl-methoxycinnamate (Cin) with β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) were studied by UV-Vis spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), 13C NMR techniques, and molecular mechanics (MM) calculations and modeling. Molecular modeling (MM) study of the entire process of the formation of 1 : 1 stoichiometry sunscreen agent/β-cyclodextrin structures has been used to contribute to the understanding and rationalization of the experimental results. Molecular mechanics calculations, together with 13C NMR measurements, for the complex with β-CD have been used to describe details of the structural, energetic, and dynamic features of host-guest complex. Accurate structures of CD inclusion complexes have been derived from molecular mechanics (MM) calculations and modeling. The photodegradation reaction of the sunscreen agents' molecules in lotion was explored using UV-Vis spectroscopy. It has been demonstrated that the photostability of these selected sunscreen agents has been enhanced upon forming inclusion complexes with β-CD in lotion. The results of this study demonstrate that β-CD can be utilized as photostabilizer additive for enhancing the photostability of the selected sunscreen agents' molecules.


The authors provide an analytical review of the past 115 years of scholarship on race, ethnicity, and religion. Too often work in the study of race and ethnicity has not taken the influence of religion seriously enough, with the consequence being an incomplete understanding of racialization, racial and ethnic identity, and racial inequality. The authors examine key works in the field; conduct an assessment of articles published on race, ethnicity, and religion in six journals over a five-year period; and outline where scholarship should head in future years. Most notably, until the mutual influences of race, ethnicity and religion are better understood, the power of each is underestimated.


Abstract Eruptions from partly ice-covered and ice-capped volcanic systems constitute nearly 60% of all known historical (i.e. in the past 11 centuries) eruptions in Iceland. Since the fourteenth century such eruptions have been reported in contemporary or near-contemporary documents. At least 120 historical eruptions have broken through the ice on the glaciated parts of five volcanic systems and have left tephra layers in ice and soil, or been recorded at the time. An unknown number of eruptions did not breach the overlying ice and left no record at all. Beginning as subglacial eruptions, most eruptions break through the ice in minutes, hours or days and can last from a few days to several months. A single vent or the whole length of a fissure may then emerge to emit highly-fragmented tephra in hydromagmatic explosions of varying strength. The volume of airborne tephra varies by at least four orders of magnitude with dispersal range varying from near-vent to transatlantic. In most of the eruptions the magma was of basaltic composition. Eruption frequency is highest within the Grímsvötn system where up to seven eruptions every 40 years have occurred during peaks of activity and at least 70 eruptions over historical time. The observed pattern of temporally and spatially close eruptions, separated by periods of low or no activity, leaves open the question whether pre-Holocene deposits of several closely spaced subglacial eruptions can be securely distinguished from those formed in a single subglacial eruption.


Climate change presents a global problem that requires collective action. Distributing obligations in relation to this has proven problematic, especially in light of the divide between wealthy and developed states compared to poor and developing states. The norm of sustainability requires states to continue to protect and promote sustainable actions. This comes into direct conflict with the right to develop when considering how to mitigate climate change. The right to develop requires the use of limited resources now, whereas the norm of sustainability argues that these resources must be protected for both environmental protection and intergenerational justice. Intragenerational justice requires us to consider whether actions that protect the future may be causing greater injustice within the present generation. In this thesis, I discuss the important potential distribution principles, with considerations of historic responsibility, uncertainty, and the ability to pay principles. I then use this foundation to explore how a right to develop can fit within the balance of intergenerational and intragenerational justice. I also include the context of non-ideal theory as a means of making the discussion more relevant to the real-world situation we find ourselves in, with the partial and non-compliance of many states. I conclude that, within the context of non-ideal theory, there is a right to develop but currently it ought to be limited to a basic needs threshold if we wish to justly distribute obligations between and across generations.


Purpose: Fecal incontinence, the recurrent involuntary excretion of feces, is reported to affect from 2 to 24% of the general population with prevalence increasing in both men and women with age, and 47% of institutionalized elderly. The actual prevalence is estimated to be higher due to underreporting, possibly due to embarrassment or unawareness of treatment options (Bols, Berghmans, Hendriks, Bie, Melenhorst, Gemert and Baeten, 2007). Another problem, constipation, may affect a similar percentage of persons in the Western population, with reports as high as 24% in elderly subjects, and more common among women (Chan, Cheng, Hui, Hu, Wong N., Lam K., Wong W., Lai, Lam S., and Wong B., 2005). These health conditions significantly impact the quality of life of individuals affected by increasing levels of emotional distress, anxiety, and depression compared to normal controls (Chan et al. 2005). To treat these conditions, rectal balloon training is used to retrain the external anal sphincter. At the University of Michigan Health System we have implemented the use of balloon catheters as a tool in the treatment of fecal incontinence and constipation. The technique of balloon sensory training is outlined by Dr G. Valancogne in his book, "Reeducation en Colo-Proctologie" (1993). This technique has been used in Europe as one of the rehabilitation techniques for defecation disorders. Balloon therapy provides biofeedback and exercise to enhance sensory perception of the anal reservoir and mechanical duplication of the stool retention and expulsion effort for functional retraining. Description: Description: The device includes a latex anorectal balloon secured to a urinary catheter and syringe. The balloon is inserted into the rectal canal and filled with air or water. Balloon volumes are closely monitored during patient treatment and adjusted to facilitate the desired outcomes. Protocols are implemented based on the etiology of the bowel dysfunction. Summary of Use: Summary of Use: When treating fecal incontinence with an external sphincter muscle deficiency, the balloon sensory training is applied as a strengthening approach. When treating fecal incontinence caused by an abnormal anorectal reflex, the balloon is used for sensory retraining for the purpose of stimulating a response of the external sphincter. When treating fecal incontinence due to hypersensitivity or microrectum the balloon is used to increase rectal compliance. In the rehabilitation of megacolon and megarectum dysfunctions from chronic constipation and straining, the balloon is used for sensory training to regain urge sensation. Balloon sensory training utilizes mechanical practice of defecation in terminal constipation caused by anorectal dyssynergia. Importance to Members: Importance to Members: As physical therapists expand pelvic floor practice to include complex bowel dysfunctions, comprehensive techniques are necessary to maximize optimal outcomes. Balloon biofeedback offers mechanical simulation of pressure sensation that naturally occurs with defecation or maintaining continence in the anal reservoir.


Recent developments in energy harvesting and autonomous sensing mean that it is now possible to power sensors solely from energy harvested from the environment. Clearly this is dependent on sufficient environmental energy being present. The range of feasible environments for operation can be extended by combining multiple energy sources on a sensor node. The effective monitoring of their energy resources is also important to deliver sustained and effective operation. This paper outlines the issues concerned with combining and managing multiple energy sources on sensor nodes. This problem is approached from both a hardware and embedded software viewpoint. A complete system is described in which energy is harvested from both light and vibration, stored in a common energy store, and interrogated and managed by the node.


The purpose of this study was to describe the epidemiology of injuries in children of adolescent mothers (<18 years old at delivery) in Baltimore, MD, and to explore the relationship between maternal receipt of home safety information and child injury. A random sample of 363 adolescent mothers and their children were followed longitudinally by home interview at 3 and 15 months postpartum. Receipt of home safety information and information source were assessed at the 3-month interview. Injuries requiring medical attention were assessed at the 15-month interview. Sixty-eight children sustained injuries during follow-up and 14% required hospitalization. Falls and burns predominated as the cause of injury, with burns much more common in girls. The children of mothers who received home safety information from family and community-based sources by 3 months postpartum had significantly lower risk of injury during follow-up than children of mothers who had not received home safety information. As the number of information sources increased, the injury rate decreased. Further work is needed to examine the most appropriate timing, repetition, format, and content of injury prevention education.


In the face of huge challenges, despite crushing social conditions, Indian people have survived. Racism in Indian Country exposes, for the first time, the degrading and inhuman treatment Indian people have had - and continue - to endure. This book provides numerous examples including the sterilization of thousands of Indian women without their consent, and the poor treatment Indians receive in our schools, resulting in the worst academic records - and the highest dropout rate, 50 percent - of any ethnic group. Subjected to constant harassment by anti-Indian groups, and banks and other lending institutions that either raise interest rates on loans to Indians or redline their reservations, Indians receive some of the most racist treatment in the United States. This book's thorough documentation and explication of the challenges faced by Indians historically and today will be useful in courses in modern history, ethnic studies, sociology, and anthropology.


Multi–sector models typically rely on a numeraire to aggregate quantities whereas NIPA uses the chain index. For three popular versions of the multi–sector growth model, we provide analytical expressions for the growth of aggregate quantities under both measurement methods and establish that the compound differences are sizeable over long horizons. We show that using the chain index captures more accurately the aggregate effects of secular changes in relative prices. For example, in a standard model of structural transformation, measuring GDP growth with the chain index captures that Baumol's disease reduces welfare growth, which using a numeraire misses.


The objective of this study was to compare the patterns of T‐cell differentiation from CD34+ human stem cells selected with different classes of antibody targeting the CD34 molecule. We compared signal‐joint T‐cell receptor excision circle (sjTREC) production in thymocytes selected with different classes of anti‐CD34 antibody. Based on these results, we studied immune reconstitution in nonobese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient (NOD/SCID) mice using human stem cells selected with the same antibodies that yielded variation in the thymocytes. Human CD34+ stem cells were immunomagnetically selected using the class II QBEnd antibody (prevalent in clinical graft engineering) and the class III 8G12 antibody (common in diagnostic tests). Engraftment and T‐cell reconstitution were examined after transplantation. Thymocytes selected with the 8G12 class III antibody have a higher TREC production than those selected with the QBEnd class II antibody. Of mice transplanted with cells selected using the 8G12 antibody, 50% had sjTREC production, compared with 14% of mice transplanted with cells selected using the clinically common antibody QBEnd. 8G12 thymic progenitors are characterized by higher quality in thymic distribution and higher activity in T‐cell differentiation. Using class III antibody targeting the CD34 molecule resulted in increased T‐cell reconstitution in the NOD/SCID mouse. Use of a single antibody epitope targeting the CD34 molecule may lead to loss of cells that might provide richer T‐cell reconstitution. Use of different or multiple epitopes, targeting of alternate stem cell markers, or use of cell‐depletion strategies might prevent this loss.


In Euchaeta rimana the cephalic appendages become profoundly sexually dimorphic at the final molt. The enlarged maxillipeds and robust maxillae, which are related to the predatory nature ofthis pelagic marine copepod are fully functional on the fifth copepodid (CV) males and adult females. The presumed prey detection sensory apparatus, a paired 4-point setal array on the antennules, is located within the capture volume of the feeding current of the CVs and adult females. SEMs reveal specialized basal articulations of the straight and curved setae of this array, that allow setal rotations that streamline the antennule during escape movements. In the final molt of the CV male to the adult stage, the maxillae are reduced to vestiges and the maxillipeds to half the size of the female's. The loss of functional prey capture appendages is accompanied by the loss of the prominent antennulary setal array, giving support for their postulated function as prey sensors. Instead, the male gains 19 more aesthetascs primarily in the proximal region of the antennules, where fluid velocities of the scanning current are greatest. Detection of pheromones transported within the feeding/scanning current is the hypothesized function of the chemosensory system of the adult male copepod. The parallel changes in the structure of the antennule as well as of the adjacent cephalic appendages suggest that a homeobox-like gene control system could be coordinating these morphological changes.


In The Exegetical Terminology of Akkadian Commentaries Uri Gabbay offers a detailed study of the well-developed set of technical terms found in ancient Mesopotamian commentaries from the first millennium BCE, essential for reconstructing ancient scholarly discourse and hermeneutics.


Forces acting at the hip joint during a given activity often vary much between trials and subjects. Large variations are also encountered in many other biomechanical signals. Arithmetic mean curves then lead to falsified results, especially if extreme values occur at very different times. A method was developed for calculating a typical curve from such varying, time dependent signals. All cycle times are first averaged and the signals are then more and more smoothed using Fourier series with decreasing numbers of harmonics. The remaining extrema are analysed to decide whether they are typical for all curves or not. This is done by systematically cutting off a varying number of extrema at the beginning or end of all curves. After this an equal number of extrema remains in all curves. These extrema are then shifted to average positions in time, i.e. the times between consecutive extrema are compressed or expanded, and the standard deviation of all curves is calculated. The combination of cut off extrema which results in the smallest standard deviation is then used further on. The same time distortions are applied to the original curves and their arithmetic mean finally results in the typical signal. This procedure is well suited for averaging hip contact forces and other varying signals as long as their complexity and variation is not extremely large.


A new recurrent neural model for crack growth process of aluminium alloy is developed in this work. It is shown that a recurrent neural network with the feedback loops at the output layer is constructed to model the dynamic relationship between the crack growth and cyclic stress excitations of aluminium alloy. The output feedback loops in the neural model play the role of capturing the fine changes of crack growth dynamics. The Extreme Learning Machine is then used to uniformly randomly assign the input weights in a proper range and globally optimize both the output weights and feedback parameters, to ensure that the dynamics of crack growth under variable-amplitude loading can be accurately modeled. The simulation results with the averaged experimental data of the 2024-T351 aluminium alloy show that the excellent modeling and prediction performance of the recurrent neural model can be achieved for fatigue crack growth of aluminium alloys.