The Swedish National Road Administration's procurement for road building projects is shifting increasingly towards function-based contracts. This means that the requirements on the evenness of a road surface must reflect the capacity of the surface to serve the road user satisfactorily and with minimal impact on the local environment, while minimising costs for the road authority. In general, there are virtually no evenness indexes describing the serviceability of a road surface in these respects. It is probable that the connection between road evenness and such indexes is of varying strength, which means that the requirements on accuracy in road surface measurement are dependent on the purpose of the measurements. However, earlier research into road user, road authority and environmental effects of road surface characteristics has paid no attention to the issue of what accuracy is required in each case in order to study road surface characteristics and enable the prediction of such effects. Decisions regarding the accuracy required in measuring road profiles demand access to a relatively large sample of realistic road profiles with different evenness levels and spectral composition. Therefore, it was necessary to create a database within the project containing road profiles that had been measured with a known high level of accuracy. Established relations between road evenness and various related factors are largely based on measurements from existing road profilometers of the high-speed type. In order to estimate the value of these relations, it was therefore necessary to investigate whether existing profilometers offer the measuring accuracy required for these purposes. Data obtained from known road profiles with the aid of such equipment were thus collected. (A) This document is also available electronically via Internet at http://www.vti.se/pdf/reports/R475.pdf.


In this paper, we study attrition in a household panel survey, where in the first wave those with a matched landline number were surveyed by telephone, while those without received a face-to-face visit. In the second wave, the face-to-face mode was dropped. We find among the first wave face-to-face households a high likelihood to attrite due to "no contact" rather than due to "cannot be tracked" or "refusal". Socio-demographic characteristics have the expected effects. For example households with young children, with a short-term residence permit, or one-person households cannot be tracked, while those with a face-to-face visit in the first wave, or foreigners with a mother tongue that is not offered in the survey refuse more often. More first wave calls and contacts are associated with all reasons to attrite, in particular with refusal. Based on the findings, we give recommendations to tailor fieldwork to decrease attrition.


Due to the rapid increase in environmental degradation and depletion of natural resources, the focus of researchers is shifted from economic to socio-environmental problems. Blockchain is a disruptive technology that has the potential to restructure the entire supply chain for sustainable practices. Blockchain is a distributed ledger that provides a digital database for recording all the transactions of the supply chain. The main purpose of this research is to explore the literature relevant to blockchain for sustainable supply chain management. The focus of this review is on the sustainability of the blockchain-based supply chain concerning environmental conservation, social equality, and governance effectiveness. Using a systematic literature review, a total of 136 articles were evaluated and categorized according to the triple bottom-line aspects of sustainability. Challenges and barriers during blockchain adoption in different industrial sectors such as aviation, shipping, agriculture and food, manufacturing, automotive, pharmaceutical, and textile industries were critically examined. This study has not only explored the economic, environmental, and social impacts of blockchain but also highlighted the emerging trends in a circular supply chain with current developments of advanced technologies along with their critical success factors. Furthermore, research areas and gaps in the existing research are discussed, and future research directions are suggested. The findings of this study show that blockchain has the potential to revolutionize the entire supply chain from a sustainability perspective. Blockchain will not only improve the economic sustainability of the supply chain through effective traceability, enhanced visibility through information sharing, transparency in processes, and decentralization of the entire structure but also will help in achieving environmental and social sustainability through resource efficiency, accountability, smart contracts, trust development, and fraud prevention. The study will be helpful for managers and practitioners to understand the procedure of blockchain adoption and to increase the probability of its successful implementation to develop a sustainable supply chain network.


The objective of this study was to characterize patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, according to sociodemographic and clinical variables, and to analyze scores of knowledge and attitudes regarding the disease. Participants were 79 users who received care in a primary health care service, in 2008. The Diabetes Mellitus Knowledge (DKN-A) and Attitude (ATT-19) questionnaires were used for data collection. The population was formed by adults and elderly adults, who were between 30 and 80 years old. Most were literate (96.3%); married (63.3%); female (63.3%) and classified as class-2 obesity. As to the knowledge about the disease, subjects obtained scores lower than 8, indicating unsatisfactory results on self-care. Scores obtained regarding attitudes show difficulties to cope with the disease. Results evidence the need to adopt a Diabetes Education Program at the studied unit.


Context: Acquired brain injury (ABI) can have a profound impact on virtually any aspect of an individual's functioning and recent figures suggest ABI affects approximately 700,000 people in the UK each year. However, treatment and rehabilitation guidelines state there is currently insufficient evidence to recommend any specific form of therapy to support the process of emotional adjustment following ABI.
Aim: This research portfolio aimed to increase the understanding of the experience of well-being following ABI and the resources, which may contribute to this.

Design: The project is presented in a thesis portfolio format combing two main research papers: a systematic review and a qualitative, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), research study. The systematic review explored the existing evidence for the effectiveness of creative activity groups on psychological well-being including mood and quality of life. The IPA study examined eleven participant's accounts of their experience of well-being post-ABI and explored the resources that helped them to achieve this.

Results: The systematic review identified some tentative, preliminary evidence for the usefulness of creative activity groups as a potential resource towards improving psychological outcomes well-being post-stroke. The IPA research identified six main themes, which illuminated the experience of wellbeing in relation to internal and external resources. The resources identified broadly related to either; personality traits or states of mind, engaging in activities or support from others. Well-being tended to be described as feelings of "inner-peace", warmth or happiness.

Conclusion: Findings are presented tentatively, and further research is required. However, there is some evidence to suggest that supporting individuals to engage meaningfully in their environments may be beneficial to post-ABI adjustment and well-being.


A case of giant cutaneous angiomyxoma, an unusual cutaneous tumor, is reported. To the best of our knowledge, it is the largest of its kind that has been recorded. The purpose of this report is to acquaint the reader with this rare cutaneous neoplasm and its management.


The purpose of this article is to analyse the rules of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Directive on Data Protection in Criminal Matters on automated decision-making and to explore how to ensure transparency of such decisions, in particular those taken with the help of algorithms. Both legal acts impose limitations on automated individual decision-making, including profiling. While these limitations of automated decisions might come across as a forceful fortress strongly protecting individuals and potentially even hampering the future development of Artificial Intelligence in decision-making, the relevant provisions nevertheless contain numerous exceptions allowing for such decisions. While the Directive on Data Protection in Criminal Matters worryingly does not seem to give the data subject the possibility to familiarize herself with the reasons for such a decision, the GDPR obliges the controller to provide the data subject with 'meaningful information about the logic involved' (Articles 13(2)(f), 14(2)(g) and 15(1)(h)), thus raising the much-debated question whether the data subject should be granted a 'right to explanation' of the automated decision. This article seeks to go beyond the semantic question of whether this right should be designated as the 'right to explanation' and argues that the GDPR obliges the controller to inform the data subject of the reasons why an automated decision was taken. While such a right would in principle fit well within the broader framework of the GDPR's quest for a high level of transparency, it also raises several queries: What exactly needs to be revealed to the data subject? How can an algorithm-based decision be explained? The article aims to explore these questions and to identify challenges for further research regarding explainability of automated decisions.


Super-laminates have been attracting attention since co-authors Ueda et al. reported that Mg/Cu super-laminates showed reversible hydrogenation and dehydrogenation at 473K. The Mg/Cu super-laminates were prepared by a repetitive fold and roll method. Initial activation at 573 K led the super-laminates to absorb hydrogen at 473K. TEM observations of micro/nano-structures in the super-laminates and Mg2Cu powder were performed in order to clarify the process of hydrogenation and dehydrogenation at 473K. The as-rolled Mg/Cu super-laminates have laminated structures in size of sub-micrometer thickness composed of Mg and Cu layers with dense lattice defects. The super-laminates after initial activation keep laminated structure and have uniformly distributed pores with a sub-micrometer diameter. It is considered that these micro/nano-structures of Mg/Cu super-laminates lead to lower dehydrogenation temperature and better kinetics.


Data from the National Survey of Family Growth suggest that poor women and women of color are more likely than privileged women to use long-lasting contraception such as sterilization, intrauterine devices (IUD), and Depo Provera. This disparity is noteworthy because long-lasting methods can and have been used coercively. To analyze this disparity, I constructed multivariate binary logistic regression models for female sterilization, IUD, and Depo Provera using the most recent National Survey of Family Growth available (Cycle 6, conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) in 2002). I examined the effect of both personal factors, including age, parity, and number of marriages, and social factors, including education and health coverage. Personal factors were strong predictors but could not explain racial and economic disparities that exist among contraceptive users. This analysis found that education and health coverage were also important variables. Even controlling for personal factors, women with less education were more likely to be sterilized or use Depo Provera than women with a bachelor's degree or more. Women covered by Medicaid or public, government, or military coverage were more likely to use Depo Provera than women with private insurance. Women covered by Medicaid were also more likely to be sterilized since 2000. And uninsured women were more likely to use an IUD than women with private health insurance. However, none of the independent variables completely erased the effect of race and income, suggesting further research is necessary to understand the disparity in use of long-lasting contraceptives.


The Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Geneeskunde came into being first of all because of the need for a medium to help 'elevate' the medial profession. Since the scientific foundation of medicine constituted an important argument for the aspired raising of status, it is understandable that the editors particularly also wanted to make the journal a forum of medical science in the Netherlands. In this--much to their dissatisfaction--they failed to succeed in the first 40 years in spite of a number of reorganizations intended to get a better grip on the results of medical-scientific research in the country. Not until the turn of the century did a change set in: the medical faculties, where the practise of science came to achieve some significance and the Journal began to grow towards one another. At the same time it also began to be realized that research workers cannot be expected to publish their findings primarily in a journal in the Dutch language.


A novel production method for porous metal components has been developed by applying powder space holder (PSH) method to metal powder injection molding (MIM) process. The PSH-MIM method has an industrial competitive advantage that is capable of net-shape manufacturing the micro-sized porous metal products with complicated shapes and controlled porosity and pore size. In this study, the small impeller with homogeneous micro-porous structure was manufactured by the PSH-MIM method using porous compounds composed of fine stainless steel 316L powder and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) particle. The effects of combinations in size and fraction of PMMA particle on dimensional tolerance and variation of sintered porous specimens were investigated. It was concluded that the PSH-MIM method could manufacture commercially micro-porous metal components with high dimensional accuracy.


AIMS--To determine the best medium for the primary isolation of Helicobacter pylori. METHODS--Sixty six gastric mucosal biopsy specimens frozen in 1 ml Cysteine Albimi media with 20% glycerol from 22 histologically proven H pylori infected patients were cultured on brain heart infusion agar (BHIA) with 7% fresh whole defibrinated horse blood, egg yolk agar (EYA), Columbia blood agar-cyclodextrin agar (CBA-Cd), and commercial trypticase soy agar (TSA) supplemented with 5% sheep blood. RESULTS--Successful primary isolation of H pylori was 96% with BHIA, 78% with TSA, 64% for EYA, and 32% with CBA-Cd. Colonies appeared earlier on BHIA (4.7 +/- 0.1 days, 5.3 +/- 0.4 days, 5.3 +/- 0.4 days, and 7.1 +/- 0.9 days for BHIA, TSA, EYA, and CBA-Cd) and there were more colonies on BHIA than on CBA-Cd, EYA or TSA (599 +/- 88, 104 +/- 66, 260 +/- 107, and 358 +/- 89, respectively). CONCLUSIONS--Success of a medium for passage of isolates apparently does not reliably predict usefulness for primary isolation. Freshly made BHIA with 7% horse blood medium is recommended for primary isolation. However, the easily obtainable TSA media would be the best alternative for routine clinical laboratories with no access to BHIA.


This guide contains a short overview of HB 1079 resources available at WWU Libraries, on the campus, and within the region.


Why has the gross mortality of dialysis patients increased in Japan? Background The gross mortality of Japanese chronic dialysis patients gradually increased from 8.1% in 1983 to 9.4% in 1997. We describe the demographic changes in dialysis patients and clarify why the gross mortality has increased. Methods Data used in our analysis were taken from annual reports by the Patient Registration Committee of the Japanese Society for Dialysis Therapy. The relative risk of death was calculated by a logistic regression procedure and Cox proportional hazard model. Results The first-year survival starting from the initiation of dialysis therapy slowly improved from 0.836 in 1983 to 0.857 in 1996, but 5-year and 10-year survival consistently decreased in the same patient groups. The patients' mean age of beginning dialysis steadily increased from 51.9 in 1983 to 62.2 in 1997. The incidence of patients with diabetes as the original disease showed a tremendous increase from 15.6% in 1983 to 33.9% in 1997, and patients with nephrosclerosis also showed a twofold increase in our population. Heart failure accounted for 30–35% of mortality until 1991, but this started to decrease after 1992, when recombinant human erythropoietin became clinically available, and the level fell to 23.9% by 1997. The relative risk of death in the first year of initiating dialysis therapy decreased to almost half of the reference year 1983 ( P Conclusion The increase in the gross mortality of Japanese dialysis patients might not be due to a deteriorating quality of dialysis therapy, but rather is a reflection of accepting patients with older age and comorbid factors contributing to higher risks of mortality with dialysis therapy.


Introduction: Spinal Anaesthesia (SA) is a form of regional anaesthesia involving injection of a local anaesthetic into the subarachnoid space. SA is directly related to nervous system, so its mismanagement may cause various complications hence, prevention and management of complication is a vital and complex aspect of critical nursing care. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the nurse's knowledge on the management of patient receiving spinal anaesthesia.
Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among nurses of Koshi Zonal Hospital of Province no. 1, Biratnagar, Nepal from May to June 2017. Non-probability purposive sampling method was used where self-administered questionnaire was administered among 67 working nurses in the hospital.
Results: The majority of the respondents (77.6%) belonged to 20-30 years of age group, nearly half (44.8%) of the respondents had completed PCL nursing. Only 67.2% explained the meaning of anaesthesia, and 58.2% had knowledge on physiological changes after SA. Regarding ambulation and cause of backache, 29.9% had knowledge whereas only 20.9% had knowledge about management of post spinal backache. Respondents facing problem to manage the complication after SA was 13.4%. This study also found that the overall knowledge regarding SA was adequate among 80.6% respondents.
Conclusion: Nurses as the key personnel in management and prevention of complication, the obtained result was below the desired competence level among working nurses as it is the vital aspect of critical nursing care.


Analysis for identifying and computing the velocity of multiple moving objects in sequences of images is presented. While previously published analyses addressed sequences with one or two moving objects, this analysis is extended to sequences with multiple moving objects. simulation is performed to demonstrate the applicability of this technique. Multiple moving objects appear in the spectral domain as groups of individual peaks which identify the objects and are used to compute their velocities. Algorithms which evaluate the spectral peaks and calculate their velocity are also presented. >


This thesis aims to understand the effects of "financialisation" on the strategy and governance of the contemporary UK professional services firm (PSF) and the lived experience of its partners. The study is placed in the context of change, externally in the regulation and competitive environment of PSFs, and internally in terms of the commercialisation of the PSF and the adoption of financial logics. In an ethnographic case study undertaken within a cultural economy perspective this thesis reveals firstly how PSF strategy has been financialised. Secondly, it identifies how an ecology of strategic and tactical measures are put to use in support of the firm's strategy, exemplifying the role of accounting as the agent of financialisation and as the enabler of financial governance. Thirdly, complementing accounting, HRM technologies are shown to be employed to make partners and potential partners known, calculable, comparable and governable. Working together, accounting and HRM technologies create an ecology of power which offers partners a subjectivity privileging and supporting the financialised strategy of the PSF, and rendering each partner a tool of strategy implementation and thereby financialisation. Fourthly, this thesis investigates the lived experience of partners in the financialised PSF revealing fears, anxieties, tensions and contradictions.


Background The Quantos powder dosing system (Mettler Toledo, Germany) offers the filling of small amounts of powders and liquids into different containers. Although it is already used for handling hazardous substances and/or preclinical drug development, very little information exists for the routine manufacturing of capsules in a hospital pharmacy. Purpose Evaluation of the accuracy and practicability of Quantos compared with the manual capsule filling (MAN) method in a hospital pharmacy. Material and methods Different batches of hydrochlorothiazide and spironolactone capsules, at three dosage levels each, were produced using standard triturations. Quantification of the active ingredients was done by UV/Vis-spectroscopy using a validated method, and evaluation according to the standard examinations for capsules of the European Pharmacopoeia (PhEur 2.9.5/6 and 40) was performed. The time required for each production step was measured. Results All batches passed the examinations for uniformity of mass and content (in relation to arithmetic mean) with a lower SD for Quantos versus MAN (1.91–3.35% vs 3.20–7.84%). Almost all batches contained about 90% of the declared dosage, although the content of the used triturations was almost 100%. As a consequence, PhEur 2.9.40, which additionally refers to the desired value, was passed more often by Quantos batches than MAN. In comparison with MAN, the Quantos system was slower. Conclusion With both methods, capsules that are in accordance with the requirements of the PhEur can be produced. Although the Quantos system can fill the capsules more precisely and allows GMP conform documentation, the handling process for day to day capsule manufacturing can be improved. The recovery rate of about 90% might be due to incomplete emptying of the capsules before quantification. This finding also has major implications for the common practice of emptying capsules on the wards and needs further investigation. References and/or Acknowledgements We thank Mettler Toledo for permitting the project by lending a Quantos powder dosing system. Conflict of interest.


Abstract Background: Globally, chronic low back pain (LBP) contributes significantly to the overall burden of disease, placing a heavy load on society through absenteeism and associated healthcare costs. Finding cost-effective measures to treat and prevent low back pain is therefore of utmost importance. Methods: A critical assessment of the study by Williams et al 2018 was performed by using a variation of the well-known Drummond's checklist for the critical appraisal of economic evaluations. Results: The authors performed appropriate statistical analyses using the available data. Means and proportions of baseline characteristics of the intervention group were compared to those of the control group to evaluate their comparability. Conclusion: Upon thorough assessment of the appropriateness of the economic evaluation methods used by Williams et al., it is conclusive that the validity of their results is valuable and trusted to a degree, soundly achieving many of the listed Drummond et al requirements, yet failing to take into account a few aspects that grant some weaknesses to the study.


The fallout from the global economic downturn of 2008-09 is a continuing source of stress on families and a constraint on government policies. How can social policies contribute to a quick and equitable recovery from the crisis and how can they best respond to the difficulties that households continue to face? What role can and should social policy budgets play in improving the budget outlook of countries facing unsustainable government debt? And how should governments prioritise different areas of social spending when faced with heightened demand for support but, often, much reduced fiscal space? This paper addresses these questions in light of countries' experiences during the most recent and earlier economic downturns.


The proto-oncogene c-myc is encoded by a transcript in which the 5' UTR contains a potent internal ribosome entry segment (IRES). The N-myc gene shows considerable homology to c-myc and also possesses a 5' UTR that is long and structured. Thus, the potential for internal ribosome entry within this UTR was examined. N-myc was found to contain an IRES that was of comparable activity to that of c-myc in non-neuronal cells, but was specifically activated relative to the c-myc IRES in neuronal cells in which the N-myc transcript is expressed. Furthermore, the activity of the N-myc IRES was specifically inhibited during neuronal differentiation, when N-myc expression is reduced. The trans-acting factor requirements for N-myc IRES function were examined and a candidate protein was found, although not characterised. An IRES was also identified in the 5' UTR of the third well-studied member of the myc gene family, L-myc. An alternative form of the UTR exists in which an intron is retained, but it was not possible to draw any definite conclusions on the IRES activity of this UTR. Translation of both cand N-myc mRNAs can occur by both cap-dependent and IRESdependent mechanisms, so the existence of IRESs within these transcripts was intriguing. c-Myc protein levels were analysed during apoptosis and were maintained, despite the apoptotic inhibition of protein synthesis and the short half-life of c-Myc. The activity of the c-myc IRES was maintained during apoptosis and was responsible for this effect. The c-myc IRES was also shown to lie downstream of the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling pathway. Finally, the activity of the c-myc IRES was examined during a number of other cell stresses, but no significant differences between IRESand cap-dependent translation were detected.


Women's engagement with economics, in its theory and its practice, takes several forms: to draw attention to problems not addressed before; to point out how the way problems have been addressed are unhelpful or fallacious and lead to wrong conclusions and wrong prescriptions; to critique theories and tools in order to expose their inadequacy or invalidity; to refine existing tools using available frameworks so as to 'let in' gender; and to seek new tools of analysis. The engagement can also be at a more philosophical level, namely, the foundational assumptions of the discipline. This paper seeks to explore these themes.


This paper discusses recent developments in the market for agricultural land in Slovakia related to the new law on land acquisition. The stated objective of this law is to protect agricultural land from non-agricultural use. We analyze land-related data as reported by sellers in the newly established Registry of offers of agricultural land administered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Our results show that the regions with the most fertile soils are not the ones with the highest average land prices. Moreover, we show that the average regional prices are very sensitive to price outliers. For example, the average price for agricultural land in Slovakia is 27,200 EUR per hectare. However, this price falls down to 6,300 EUR per hectare if only observations with prices below 10,000 EUR per hectare are considered.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the efficacy of optic nerve sheath fenestration in eyes with the progressive form of common anterior ischemic optic neuropathy. This investigation complements a previously reported initial series of 26 similar patients.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Optic nerve sheath fenestrations were performed in 21 eyes for treatment of common (nonarteritic) ischemic optic neuropathy with documented progressive deterioration of visual function. All patients underwent thorough preoperative and postoperative ocular evaluations by the Neuro-Ophthalmology Service at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Miami, Fla.

RESULTS
During a mean follow-up of 22.5 weeks (range, 3 to 104 weeks), results were as follows: visual acuity increased by 2 or more lines on the Snellen chart in two eyes (9.5%; the combined improvement rate for the two series was 14.9%); visual acuity decreased by 2 more lines in two eyes (9.5%).

CONCLUSIONS
Data from this series of 21 surgical procedures indicate no beneficial effect on visual morbidity in cases of common ischemic optic neuropathy and confirm the generally poor visual outcome implied from the results of optic nerve sheath decompression in our initial series. Based on this experience with a total of 47 eyes, we have discontinued optic nerve sheath decompression as a form of therapy for ischemic optic neuropathy.


Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory and demyelinating disease associated with neurodegenerative processes that lead to brain structural changes. The disease affects mostly young adults, but 3–5% of cases has a pediatric onset (POMS). Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is generally used for diagnosis and follow-up in MS patients, however the most common MRI measures (e.g. new or enlarging T2-weighted lesions, T1-weighted gadolinium- enhancing lesions) have often failed as surrogate markers of MS disability and progression. MS is clinically heterogenous with symptoms that can include both physical changes (such as visual loss or walking difficulties) and cognitive impairment. 30–50% of POMS experience prominent cognitive dysfunction. In order to investigate the association between cognitive measures and brain morphometry, in this work we present a fully automated pipeline for processing and analyzing MRI brain scans. Relevant anatomical structures are segmented with FreeSurfer; besides, statistical features are computed. Thus, we describe the data referred to 12 patients with early POMS (mean age at MRI: 15.5 ± 2.7 years) with a set of 181 structural features. The major cognitive abilities measured are verbal and visuo-spatial learning, expressive language and complex attention. Data was collected at the Department of Basic Sciences, Neurosciences and Sense Organs, University of Bari, and exploring different abilities like the verbal and visuo-spatial learning, expressive language and complex attention. Different regression models and parameter configurations are explored to assess the robustness of the results, in particular Generalized Linear Models, Bayes Regression, Random Forests, Support Vector Regression and Artificial Neural Networks are discussed.


Advanced cloth simulation plug-in tools are increasingly being used by designers in movies, television, advertising and computer games, to take the strain out of creating and simulating realistic cloth effects for dressing virtual characters. This paper describes experiments into designing textiles and clothing using 3D graphics software and a digital cloth dynamics plug-in, which are an integral part of PhD research in progress. The methods used in testing the 3D software and the cloth dynamics plug-in illustrate the experiences of a designer/learner. The results identify designer/learner needs and expectations for the further educational development of the research and use of cloth simulation tools in textiles/fashion design in the near future.


Analyses and forecasts from a modern data assimilation and modeling system are used to evaluate the impact of a special rawinsonde dataset of 3-h soundings at seven sites interspersed with the seven regular sites along the West Coast (to form a so-called picket fence to intercept all transiting circulations) plus special 6-h rawinsondes over the National Weather Service Western Region. Whereas four intensive observing periods (IOPs) are available, only two representative IOPs (IOP-3 and IOP-4) are described here. The special observations collected during each 12-h cycle are analyzed with the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Eta Data Assimilation System in a cold start from the NCEP‐National Center for Atmospheric Research reanalyses as the initial condition. Forecasts up to 48 h with and without the special picket fence observations are generated by the 32-km horizontal resolution Eta Model with 45 vertical levels. The picket fence observations had little impact in some cases with smooth environmental flow. In other cases, relatively large initial increments were introduced offshore of the picket fence observations. However, these increments usually damped as they translated downstream. During IOP-3, the increments amplified east of the Rocky Mountains after only 24 h. Even though initially small, the increments in IOP-4 grew rapidly to 500-mb height increments ;20‐25 m with accompanying meridional wind increments of 5‐8 m s21 that contributed to maxima in shear vorticity. Many of the downstream amplifying circulations had associated precipitation increments ; 6m m (6 h) 21 between the control and experimental forecasts. The equitable threat scores against the cooperative station set for the first 24-h forecasts during IOP-3 had higher values at the 0.50- and 0.75-inthresholds for the picket fence dataset. However, the overall four-IOP equitable threat scores were similar. Although the classical synoptic case was not achieved during the picket fence, these model forecasts suggest that such observations around the coast of the United States would impact the downstream forecasts when added in dynamically unstable regions. An ultimate picket fence of continuous remotely observing systems should be studied further.


The authors discuss and propose a very-high-speed and high-capacity packet-switching (HPS) architecture for a future broadband ISDN (integrated-services digital network). The HPS network accommodates various communication services, such as voice, high-speed data, high-speed still picture, and video services. The proposed architecture has three significant principles: a high-speed oriented simple network protocol, separation of signaling and network control from data transfer, and hardware switching. These principles provide fast- and high-throughput transmission for data packets and reliable transmission and processing for call-control packets. The HPS protocol structure is addressed, which provides high flexibility for various communications services as well as high-speed capability. A 3-Gb/s capacity and building-block-structured packet-switching system architecture, using bus- and loop-type switch fabric, is also presented. >


The 32 research papers in this volume examine the mode and nature of igneous, metamorphic, tectonic, sedimentological and biological processes associated with the evolution of ophiolites in Earth's history. Divided into six sections, the book presents a wealth of new data and syntheses from ophiotites around the world. Introductory chapters review the distribution of ophiolites in space and time and present a synoptic discussion on their importance in Earth history. Papers in the second section present diverse data from Tethyan ophiolites and provide refined geodynamic models for their evolution. The following two sections present case studies documenting magmatic, metamorphic and tectonic processes in ophiolite genesis and hydrothermal and biogenic alteration of fossil oceanic crust. Mechanisms of ophiolite emplacement are explored in Section V with a focus on the Semail massif (Oman). The last section examines the regional occurrence and geodynamic significance of ophiolite belts on different continents. The book reflects the contemporary work of the international community in a most up-to-date treatment of process-oriented questions on the evolution of ophiolites.


A novel control technique, called bifrequency pulse-train (BF-PT) control technique, for switching dc-dc converters is proposed. In contrast to the conventional pulsewidth-modulation-based control technique of switching dc-dc converters, which realizes the output voltage regulation by adjusting the duty ratio of the control pulse cycle by cycle, the BF-PT control technique realizes the output voltage regulation of switching dc-dc converters based on the presence and absence of preset high- and low-frequency control pulses. In BF-PT control, the output voltage of switching dc-dc converter is sampled at the beginning of each switching cycle and compared with a reference voltage to determine whether a high- or low-frequency control pulse should be selected as the control pulse. The BF-PT control technique is simple and cost effective and enjoys fast transient response. In addition, two types of control pulses with different switching frequencies spread the emission spectrum over discrete frequencies, resulting in lower electromagnetic interference (EMI) noise and easier EMI filter design. Furthermore, more low-frequency control pulses at lighter load improve the light-load power conversion efficiency. A buck converter operating in discontinuous conduction mode is taken as an example to illustrate the application and benefits of BF-PT control technique. Simulation and experimental results are presented to verify the analytical results.


Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a frequent complication in patients under mechanical ventilation (MV). We aimed to assess the risk factors for AKI with particular emphasis on those potentially preventable. Study Design, Setting, and Participants: Retrospective analysis of a large, multinational database of MV patients with >24 h of MV and normal renal function at admission. AKI was defined according to creatinine-based KDIGO criteria. Risk factors were analyzed according to the time point at which AKI occurred: early (⩽48 h after ICU admission, AKIE) and late (day 3 to day 7 of ICU stay, AKIL). A conditional logistic regression model was used to identify variables independently associated with AKI. Results: Three thousand two hundred six patients were included. Seven hundred patients had AKI (22%), the majority of them AKIE (547/704). The risk factor profile was highly dependent upon the timing of AKI onset. In AKIE risk factors were older age; SAPS II score; postoperative and cardiac arrest as the reasons for MV; worse cardiovascular SOFA, pH, serum creatinine, and platelet count; higher level of peak pressure and Vt/kg; and fluid overload at admission. In contrast, AKIL was linked mostly to events that occurred after admission (lower platelet count and pH; ICU-acquired sepsis; and fluid overload). None ventilation-associated parameters were identify as risk factors for AKIL. Conclusions: In the first 48 h, risk factors are associated with the primary disease and the patient's condition at admission. Subsequently, emergent events like sepsis and organ dysfunction appear to be predictive factors making prevention a challenge.


It is difficult to measure the concentrated solar radiation flux (CSRF) inside a cavity receiver directly due to the complex geometry of cavity receivers. At present, most reports measure the CSRF at the aperture plane (generally coinciding with the focal plane of solar concentrators) of the cavity receiver instead of at the absorber wall, which would result in serious aberration because of the obvious difference in configuration between the aperture plane and the absorber wall. To obtain the CSRF at the absorber wall with complex geometry, the vector characteristics (consisting of both directional distributions and spatial distributions) of the CSRF at the focal plane were measured using developed double water-cooled Lambertian targets together with a CCD (charge-coupled device) camera. Then the CSRF images at the absorber wall of a hemisphere cavity receiver were carried out by applying MCRTM (Monte Carlo ray-tracing method) in combination with the measured vector results of the CSRF at the aperture plane. Results show that the directional distributions of the CSRF at the aperture plane are rather nonhomogeneous along the zenith angle and the circumferential angle. The directional distribution performance of the CSRF at the focal plane plays an equally important role in the CSRF images of the cavity receivers. In addition, the relative error of the peak CSRF value of the cavity receiver between the uniform and the measured directional distribution cases is up to 16%. The conclusions provide an important reference for the development of the CSRF measurement.


Objective. We here describe the development of a freely available online database resource, GeneSpeed Beta Cell, which has been created for the pancreatic islet and pancreatic developmental biology investigator community. Research Design and Methods. We have developed GeneSpeed Beta Cell as a separate component of the GeneSpeed database, providing a genomics-type data repository of pancreas and islet-relevant datasets interlinked with the domain-oriented GeneSpeed database. Results. GeneSpeed Beta Cell allows the query of multiple published and unpublished select genomics datasets in a simultaneous fashion (multiexperiment viewing) and is capable of defining intersection results from precomputed analysis of such datasets (multidimensional querying). Combined with the protein-domain categorization/assembly toolbox provided by the GeneSpeed database, the user is able to define spatial expression constraints of select gene lists in a relatively rigid fashion within the pancreatic expression space. We provide several demonstration case studies of relevance to islet cell biology and development of the pancreas that provide novel insight into islet biology. Conclusions. The combination of an exhaustive domain-based compilation of the transcriptome with gene array data of interest to the islet biologist affords novel methods for multidimensional querying between individual datasets in a rapid fashion, presently not available elsewhere.


The installed capacity of wind turbines has been growing rapidly in recent years, creating an increased need for accurate measurements and models of wind turbine performance to further their development. There is a need in the literature for experimental data to validate theoretical models and guide turbine blade design. Two related projects were completed to develop measurement techniques and provide such data: the use of a fivehole probe and in-blade data acquisition system to measure the wind turbine blade angle of attack, and the use of tuft flow visualization and a digital image processing algorithm to quantitatively assess the flow direction and behaviour of a wind turbine blade. Experiments were completed at the University of Waterloo Wind Generation Research Facility using a 3.3 m diameter test turbine. Wind speed, rotational speed, shaft torque and angular position were controlled or monitored throughout all experiments. A 3D printed test blade was equipped with a five-hole pressure probe and data acquisition system to measure the flow angles at various radial locations. For tuft flow visualization testing, a separate rotor consisting of three aerodynamic blades was installed, and tufts and a camera were mounted to the surface of one of the blades. Extensive software was developed for controlling instruments and collecting experimental data. The angle of attack and span-wise flow angles were successfully measured as a function of the tip speed ratio, yaw-offset position, radial location and azimuthal position. Variations in the angle of attack with these variables were consistent with wind turbine aerodynamics theory, and results were in close agreement with results calculated using two separate models from the literature. Angle of attack values typically ranged from 7◦ to 25◦ throughout the tests, with fluctuations as high as 7◦ when the wind turbine was yawed. Uncertainty values in the measurements were typically found to be within ±0.2◦, which shows great potential for the method. Tuft flow visualization measurements were processed by logging the orientation of each individual tuft, calculating their average orientations and interpolating to develop a contour map of flow direction over the wind turbine blade as a function of tip speed ratio, yawposition and azimuthal position. Throughout testing, the fraction of tufts indicating stall ranged from 25% to as high as 60% as the tip speed ratio was decreased. Contour maps showed that separation typically formed first on the trailing edge of the blade near the root, and expanded towards the leading edge and tip. This pattern is in agreement with trends found for similar blades in the literature.


This study examined the effect of dancing on the functional performance and physical activity levels of 45 retirement village residents participating in either a control (n = 13), Once a Week (n = 18) or Twice a Week (n = 14) dance group for 12 weeks. Changes in functional performance were assessed by three functional tests (30 s bicep curl, Timed Up and Go and the Four Square Step Test) as well as the Late Life Function Index. The CHAMPS questionnaire was used to estimate the weekly total as well as moderate and greater intensity energy expenditure and associated frequency counts. Once a Week dancing resulted in significantly greater improvements in Four Square Step Test and estimated total energy expenditure than the control group; whereas the Twice a Week group significantly improved their Late Life Function Index (Total and Basic Lower Extremity) scores significantly more than the control group (p 0.05). These results further support the belief that even once a week exercise (including dancing) can produce some significant benefits for older adults.


Dengue infection can have spectrum of manifestations, often with an unpredictable clinical progression and outcome. There have been increasing reports of atypical manifestations. Abdominal pain or tenderness and persistent vomiting (warning signs) are present in the majority of cases with severe dengue prior to clinical deterioration. We report a 10-year-old child who presented with fever, persistent vomiting, and abdominal pain. A diagnosis of acute pancreatitis was made. This is a very infrequently reported complication of dengue hemorrhagic fever.


Objective: Anti-angiogenesis and pro-apoptosis are the two processes which are strategically used to target tumors. The soluble form of VEGF receptor 1 (Flt-1) is a modulator of VEGF activity and could be useful as a trap to intrinsically sequester VEGF in tumor cells. In the present study, we have investigated the role of rTRAIL in inhibiting VEGF-mediated angiogenesis and its synergistic potentiation by sFlt-1.
Methods: We have expressed human recombinant TRAIL, to study its role in anti-angiogenesis and a 2-domain active variant of sFlt-1 by bacterial expression to be used as a trap for VEGF. 3[H] thymidine incorporation assay was used to confirm the inhibitory activity of sFlt-1 and/or rTRAIL on cell proliferation. The synergistic anti-migratory and anti-angiogenic activity of sFlt-1 and rTRAIL were assessed using endothelial cell wound healing and tube formation assay in-vitro and by rat corneal micropocket assay in-vivo.
Results: Inhibition of cell proliferation was evident in sFlt-1 and rTRAIL treated cells in a dose -dependent manner with more than 60% reduction in proliferation rate as compared to the tumor cells treated with sFlt-1 and rTRAIL alone. Furthermore, the anti-metastatic and anti-angiogenic activity of sFlt-1 and rTRAIL in combination was evident in endothelial wound healing and tube formation with a significant reduction in the number of cells migrated into the wounded area and the number of honey comb-like structures with the length of the tubes formed to mimic blood vessel formation in-vitro respectively. The in-vivo corneal micropocket assay confirmed the anti-angiogenic effect of sFlt-1 and rTRAIL in combination.
Conclusion: The synergistic role of sFlt-1 and rTRAIL as the potential inhibitors of VEGF- mediated angiogenesis could be therapeutically exploited.


The South-westem part of Sardinia is characterised by exposure of Palaeozoic sediments representing the oldest rocks in Italy. Approximately a quarter of this area, named Sulcis-Iglesiente, is occupied by Cambrian sequences, reaching a visible thickness of over 2000 metres. One third of the Cambrian rocks is constituted of limestones and dolomites, intensely mineralised and karstified, forming one of the most interesting karstic areas of Europe. In the present paper the authors have described 24 karstic geosites of particular interest, of which 16 in the Iglesiente area and the remaining 8 in Sulcis. These can be classified as caves (9), karst landscapes (7), karstic springs (4), paleokarst and mineralization phenomena (4).


In line with Jensen's predictions, private equity (PE) industry has grown remarkably and become a global phenomenon. More recently, academic literature examines a sharp drop in number of listed firms and the role of PE firms in the possible demise of public corporations. Rather controversially, some authors were also predicting the eclipse of PE. In this article we discuss recent developments and argue that rumors of the eclipse of PE are exaggerated. The PE model, and its accompanying governance role, is here to stay but it will need to adapt to changing dynamics between general and limited partners, and emergence of fintech.


The supply of outstanding U.S. Treasury debt is declining because of the recent federal budget surpluses. Should current expectations for future surpluses be met, in the future U.S. Treasuries will constitute a dramatically smaller portion of the overall U.S. fixed–income market. In this article, the author estimates the impact of the expected composition shift on the risk of the fixed–income market and its relationship with other broad asset classes. He concludes that fixed–income risk may actually fall slightly, but its correlation with other asset classes should rise, possibly leading to increased risk at the overall portfolio level.


Fungi produce a variety of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during their primary and secondary metabolism. In the beverage industry, these volatiles contribute to the the flavor and aroma profile of the final products. We evaluated the fermentation ability and aroma profiles of non-conventional yeasts that have been associated with various food sources. A total of 60 strains were analyzed with regard to their fermentation and flavor profile. Species belonging to the genera Candida, Pichia and Wickerhamomyces separated best from lager yeast strains according to a principal component analysis taking alcohol and ester production into account. The speed of fermentation and sugar utilization were analysed for these strains. Volatile aroma-compound formation was assayed via gas chromatography. Several strains produced substantially higher amounts of aroma alcohols and esters compared to the lager yeast strain Weihenstephan 34/70. Consequently, co-fermentation of this lager yeast strain with a Wickerhamomyces anomalus strain generated an increased fruity-flavour profile. This demonstrates that mixed fermentations utilizing non-Saccharomyces cerevisiae biodiversity can enhance the flavour profiles of fermented beverages.


T box sequences have
been identified upstream of a large number of uncharacterized genes such as
transporters in bacterial genomes. Expression of each T box family gene is
induced by limitation for a specific amino acid. T box family genes contain an
untranslated leader region containing a factor-independent transcriptional
terminator upstream of the structural genes. The anticodon of uncharged tRNA
base-pairs with the leader mRNA at a codon referred to as the specifier sequence,
inducing formation of an alternative antiterminator structure, allowing
expression of the structural genes. There
are several additional conserved primary sequence and secondary structural
elements. Analysis of these elements can be used to predict the identity of the
specifier codon and the amino acid signal. Bacillus subtilis hypothetical
amino acid permease, yvbW, was analyzed
as an example of this type of transcriptional regulatory prediction suggesting expression
in response to leucine limitation. Expression was induced up to 130-fold in
response to leucine limitation, utilizing a yvbW-lacZ transcriptional fusion. These data suggest that hypothetical amino acid
permease YvbW may participate in leucine metabolism. A yvbW knockout strain was generated, although the substrate
specificity for the putative amino acid permease was not identified.


Objectives Increasing life expectancy and decreasing birthrates have significantly contributed to an in creased aging population throughout the world. This sudden change is a global phenomenon often re sulting in biological changes that may have various consequences, such as reduced life power and coping skills in the elderly population. Cognitive deficits are one of the most severe impairments in the elderly people. Deficits in cognitive abilities, especially visual constructive skills, can have a considerable impact on the independency of the daily living skills of the elderly people. Self-care by individuals to maintain their life and wellbeing is a key element for their independency. The activity of daily living (ADL) can sup port personal life independency, and is considered as a morbidity index. In the present cross-sectional study, we assessed the visual abilities and ADL in older subjects to determine whether cognitive impair ment is associated with changes in self-care behavior. Methods & Materials This study employed random sampling technique to select and recruit forty seven individuals aged between 60 to 80 years from Jahandidegan club in Shiraz, Iran. They were evaluated through "visual constructive ability" sub-scale from Loewenstein Occupational Therapy Cognitive Assess ment (LOTCA) battery and "Katz Index", which were used to assess their associated skill and ADL, re spectively. Data was collected through observation and interviews. Data analysis was performed through Pearson's correlation test using SPSS. Results The mean age of the participants (9 women and 38 men) was 69.94±4.66 years. Lower scores in cognitive domains predicted functional decline in some scales. There was a significant correlation between visual constructive ability and eating; however, no significant correlation was found between this sub-scale with bathing, moving, toileting, and bowel control. Conclusion In summary, a significant correlation was noted between visual constructive abilities and dressing and eating activities. A weak correlation was observed between cognition and personal inde pendency that may result from the less demanding cognitive processing tasks. A B S T R A C T


Author(s): Satish, Shruthi | Advisor(s): Maduro, Morris | Abstract: C. elegans, a free-living nematode, forms an excellent model system to study severalaspects of biology including host-pathogen interactions. In this study, we looked atfactors involved in anti-viral immunity mechanisms in C. elegans with a prospect of being able to extrapolate into other systems. A reporter worm strain was used(MS1395), in which GFP expression directly indicates the extent of viral replication in the system. A feeding RNAi screen was performed to identify genes in anti-viral immunity and a total of 11,700 C. elegans genes were knocked down and screened for the presence/ absence of GFP. Of these genes, 2180 genes were screened by me. A total of 691 genes (6% of total number of genes) were found to be positive. The screen was repeated to eliminate false positives and 260 genes (2.2% of the total number of genes) were found to be positive. Meanwhile, discovery of a naturally infecting C. elegans virus, Orsay, by Felix et al., helped us further our research. A subset of genes positive from the secondary screen was tested for susceptibility to Orsay infection. Chromosomal mutations for two of the genes identified by RNAi, him-14(it44) and nhr-68(gk708) showed increased susceptibility to Orsay infection. qRT-PCR, in situ hybridization and Northern blots showed higher levels of Orsay RNA1 molecules in these two mutants compared to the wild-type strain. We are currently in the process of understanding the roles played by these two genes in anti-viral immunity. him-14 gene encodes a protein that is required for promoting crossing over between homologous chromosomes and therefore is expressed in the germ-line. Evidence suggests that the increased susceptibility to Orsay infection in him-14(it44) mutants is germ-line dependent. Prior reports have linked the germline to longevity, suggesting that him-14 indirectly affects virus susceptibility by modifying some aspect of body physiology. nhr-68 belongs to nuclear hormone receptor family and are transcription factors typically regulated by lipophilic molecules like steroids, retinoids, bile and fatty acids. nhr-68 mutants also have increased fat content compared to wild-type animals. We hypothesize that the increase to Orsay susceptibility in these worms is due to increased lipid molecules in the body. Currently, the lab is trying to understand the mechanism of action of these two genes in anti-viral immunity. We believe this study will provide a better understanding of the nature of host- pathogen interaction and will open a wide area of interesting biology for further investigation.


Objective. High-density electroencephelography (EEG) can provide an insight into human brain function during real-world activities with walking. Some recent studies have used EEG to characterize brain activity during walking, but the relative contributions of movement artifact and electrocortical activity have been difficult to quantify. We aimed to characterize movement artifact recorded by EEG electrodes at a range of walking speeds and to test the efficacy of artifact removal methods. We also quantified the similarity between movement artifact recorded by EEG electrodes and a head-mounted accelerometer. Approach. We used a novel experimental method to isolate and record movement artifact with EEG electrodes during walking. We blocked electrophysiological signals using a nonconductive layer (silicone swim cap) and simulated an electrically conductive scalp on top of the swim cap using a wig coated with conductive gel. We recorded motion artifact EEG data from nine young human subjects walking on a treadmill at speeds from 0.4 to 1.6 m s−1. We then tested artifact removal methods including moving average and wavelet-based techniques. Main results. Movement artifact recorded with EEG electrodes varied considerably, across speed, subject, and electrode location. The movement artifact measured with EEG electrodes did not correlate well with head acceleration. All of the tested artifact removal methods attenuated low-frequency noise but did not completely remove movement artifact. The spectral power fluctuations in the movement artifact data resembled data from some previously published studies of EEG during walking. Significance. Our results suggest that EEG data recorded during walking likely contains substantial movement artifact that: cannot be explained by head accelerations; varies across speed, subject, and channel; and cannot be removed using traditional signal processing methods. Future studies should focus on more sophisticated methods for removal of EEG movement artifact to advance the field.


The preferred mode of audiovisual translation for foreign language programmes on state television and cinemas in Iran is dubbing. Dubbing is done by professionals who are supervised by the authorities, and a considerable part of foreign programmes is being censored. On the other hand, subtitling is not supervised by any formal institutions and is practiced by 'unofficial' subtitlers. Although their work does not necessarily follow subtitling norms, some of these subtitlers produce work of high-quality standards and their products are popular among the target audience. In order to shed light on the reason behind this popularity and address this under-researched phenomenon in the Iranian context, the current study focuses on the work of three informally recognised experienced subtitlers, whose works are popular among the audience, by taking animation as a case in point as a genre that has attracted dual audiences of (young) adults/children.
The thesis contains a comparative analysis of the subtitles produced by the abovementioned unofficial subtitlers for five popular animated feature films to gauge the most frequently applied strategies by these subtitlers. As cultural elements have widely been recognised by scholars as one of the most challenging aspects of translation, Pedersen's (2011) taxonomy of transfer strategies for Extralinguistic Cultural References (ECRs) in subtitling has been employed as a tool for analysing the subtitles. Pedersen's model was adapted through partial redefinitions and extension of the categories to suit the purpose of the present study. The comparison focused on commonalities and differences in the subtitlers' translation choices regarding the identified ECR instances in the selected animated feature films. The study reveals that unofficial subtitlers have a strong tendency to opt for target-oriented strategies when dealing with the translation of ECRs. Paraphrase was found to be the most frequently used strategy, followed by using a superordinate term and cultural substitution.


Abstract Upper-air observations with kites, aircraft, and radiosondes were performed in the United States operationally since the 1890s. In this paper, the authors present a reevaluation of newly digitized monthly mean values from the Monthly Weather Review back to 1922. Data from 46 U.S. weather stations are presented with a focus on early kite and aircraft observations during the 1922–38 period. A quality assessment of the data, based on reconstructed reference series, is carried out and the quality of the monthly mean data is found to be sufficient for analysis of variability in upper-level circulation. Anomalies of upper-level temperatures from the reevaluated station data, together with surface fields, are shown for selected periods.


Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has infected over 603 million confirmed cases as of September 2022, and its rapid spread has raised concerns worldwide. More than 6.4 million fatalities in confirmed patients have been reported. According to reports, the COVID-19 virus causes lung damage and rapidly mutates before the patient receives any diagnosis-specific medicine. Daily increasing COVID-19 cases and the limited number of diagnosis tool kits encourage the use of deep learning (DL) models to assist health care practitioners using chest X-ray (CXR) images. The CXR is a low radiation radiography tool available in hospitals to diagnose COVID-19 and combat this spread. We propose a Multi-Textural Multi-Class (MTMC) UNet-based Recurrent Residual Convolutional Neural Network (MTMC-UR2CNet) and MTMC-UR2CNet with attention mechanism (MTMC-AUR2CNet) for multi-class lung lobe segmentation of CXR images. The lung lobe segmentation output of MTMC-UR2CNet and MTMC-AUR2CNet are mapped individually with their input CXRs to generate the region of interest (ROI). The multi-textural features are extracted from the ROI of each proposed MTMC network. The extracted multi-textural features from ROI are fused and are trained to the Whale optimization algorithm (WOA) based DeepCNN classifier on classifying the CXR images into normal (healthy), COVID-19, viral pneumonia, and lung opacity. The experimental result shows that the MTMC-AUR2CNet has superior performance in multi-class lung lobe segmentation of CXR images with an accuracy of 99.47%, followed by MTMC-UR2CNet with an accuracy of 98.39%. Also, MTMC-AUR2CNet improves the multi-textural multi-class classification accuracy of the WOA-based DeepCNN classifier to 97.60% compared to MTMC-UR2CNet.


Background and objectives Burns are one of the most severe traumas, which traumatism has been changing over the past decades, globally and nationally. In LUHS hospital Kaunas Clinics, a study which analyses latest tendencies in burn epidemiology has not been conducted. Since 1972 LUHS Hospital Burns Center has been a national severe burns treatment center, thus our study data well represents national burns statistics. Our study aim was to analyze and compare data about burned patients who were admitted to Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Burns Department in LUHS Hospital Kaunas Clinics during two periods: 2003–2005 and 2013–2015. Methods This was a retrospective study. Patients from two comparison groups: treated in 2003–2005 and during 2013–2015 were divided according to age, gender, burn etiology, depth, degree, localization, hospitalization stay, surgery time (early surgery 7 days post-burn). Overall data from 757 burn patients admitted during both periods were collected and analyzed. Results Statistically significantly more men suffered from burn injuries during the both periods (66.3% men, 33,7 % women). A statistically significant correlation between burn mechanism and gender was found: men are more likely to be burned by flame, women by scald. The most common burn localizations were arm, legs and head/neck/face regions. During the second period statistically significantly less arm, stomach/waist and leg region burns occurred. Flame was the most common burn cause in both periods. Hospital stay during the second period was statistically significantly shorter (26 days vs. 24 days). Deep burn number statistically significantly decreased from 79.5% to 49.3%. When comparing burn surgery tactics more early burn necrectomies (135 vs. 165) were performed sooner after the trauma (10 vs. 8 days) in 2013–2015. Conclusions Our study results match worldwide burns epidemiologic and treatment tendencies: less deep burns occur (79.5% during first period, 49.3% during the second period, p<0.05), hospital stay is getting shorter (26 days during first period and 24 days during the second, p<0.05). During 2013–2015, more early burn surgeries were performed (135 surgeries during first period vs. 165 during the second, p<0.05), which matches the worldwide burns treatment guideline. Epidemiological data from our study could help understand changes in burn injuries and to improve burn prevention strategies.


The U.S. faces a healthcare crisis of monumental proportions with myriad facets including issues of access, quality, and affordability. Medical malpractice liability in this crisis is often alleged to play a role in this crisis through its impact on physician compensation and shortages. This study goes beyond the rhetorical arguments in exposing the root causes of the crisis to be the structure of healthcare delivery and physician compensation systems, in part using pooled data we develop. These systems greatly increase the cost of healthcare, lead to far too many medical errors, and skew the distribution of physicians across specialties, in part because the current compensation structure provides inappropriate treatment incentives. Rather than simplistic tort reform solutions such as direct caps on damages, we argue that the real answer to the healthcare crisis resides in new and evolving models of healthcare delivery and reimbursement that hold promise of improving the quality of care and decreasing the number of medical malpractice cases. At the same time, these new systems present new challenges for an already deficient regime for resolving malpractice claims which needs to be reformed to complement the new delivery and reimbursement systems. We propose pragmatic changes to the current malpractice regime predicated on five pillars: (1) mandated price and quality disclosure of healthcare services, (2) a focus on enterprise liability in which the medical entity responsible for care is the defendant as opposed to individual physicians, (3) mandated disclosure of medical errors to patients, (4) mandated, non-binding mediation the function of which is to avoid costly, protracted trials and long delays in patient compensation whenever possible, and (5) mandated disclosure of medical errors in settled cases. We argue that this approach will provide appropriate incentives to allow for needed systemic change that discourages discourage under treatment and better serve the needs of tort victims.


Perceived attractiveness at territorial level by businesses - that is, their image of Italy's territories as regards potential localizations of productive investments - represents a substantially «unexplored» field in Italy, particularly in the South. This paper shows and discusses the most significant results, related to southern Italy's regions and provinces, obtained from recent research on localization preferences of Italy's businesses, linked to a wider international research programme studying this topic in some European countries for some decades. The theoretical and empirical background of the international research pro- gramme, as well as the methodological approach to research and to surveys carried out in Italy, is explained; the results of the research are shown and discussed, in particular the overall results on southern regions and provinces' perceived attractiveness are explained; how homogeneous and geographically indifferent is South perception by businesspeople, that is, how they consider equally important regions and provinces, although these differ from a socio-economic point of view; the results disaggregated by type of business are examined; the gap in terms of perception is considered and then it is compared with the gap in real terms; finally, explanatory evidence, drawing from qualitative surveys, is investigated.


Abstract The objective of this retrospective, multicenter study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of micafungin as empirical antifungal therapy during febrile neutropenia (FN) in 73 hematological patients from six centers in two countries. All patients received 100 mg of micafungin/day. The overall favorable response rate (RR) was 64.8% when the resolution of fever during neutropenia was included in the response criteria and 84.5% when excluded. A significantly lower favorable RR in patients with persistent fever and non-specific pulmonary infiltrates compared to patients with persistent fever only (82.8 vs. 52.4%, respectively; p = 0.011) was not found when resolution of fever was not included in the composite endpoint criteria (93.1 vs. 78.6%, respectively; p = 0.180). Breakthrough fungal disease developed in 2.7% of patients. Treatment was discontinued in 16.4% of cases. Only one patient (1.4%) discontinued therapy due to an adverse event. Posaconazole prophylaxis improved favorable RR when defervescence was included as composite endpoint criterion (p = 0.047), but not when it was excluded (p = 0.485). However, neutrophil recovery did not influence favorable RR (p = 0.803 and p = 0.112, respectively). These data suggest that micafungin is safe and effective as an empirical therapy in patients with FN.


We study a two-dimensional quaternary inhibitory system. This free energy functional combines an interface energy favoring micro-domain growth with a Coulomb-type long range interaction energy which prevents micro-domains from unlimited spreading. Here we consider a limit in which three species are vanishingly small, but interactions are correspondingly large to maintain a nontrivial limit. In this limit two energy levels are distinguished: the highest order limit encodes information on the geometry of local structures as a three-component isoperimetric problem, while the second level describes the spatial distribution of components in global minimizers. Geometrical descriptions of limit configurations are derived.


We present simultaneous THEMIS-ground observations of longitudinal (eastward) extension of a substorm initial-brightening arc at Gillam (magnetic latitude: 65.6 ) at 08:13 UT on 10 January 2008. The speed of the eastward arc extension was ∼2.7 km/s. The extension took place very close to the footprints of the longitudinally separated THEMIS E and D satellites at ∼12RE . The THEMIS satellites observed field dipolarization, weak earthward flow, and pressure increase, which propagated eastward from E to D at a speed of ∼50 km/s. The THEMIS A satellite, located at 1.6RE earthward of THEMIS E, observed fluctuating magnetic field during and after the dipolarization. The THEMIS E/D observations suggest that the longitudinal extension of the brightening arc at substorm onset is caused by earthward flow braking processes which produce field dipolarization and pressure increase propagating in longitude in the nearearth plasma sheet.


There are many rules and measures governing the integrity of public administrations. They concern the quality of actions taken by public servants, measured on the basis of fundamental rules and public values. In particular, transparency rules, risk management programs, and codes of conduct for public officials aim to promote accountability, fairness, and discipline in public administrations; others, instead, correspond to limits and sanctions, such as restrictions (e.g., definitions of potential conflicts of interest), administrative responsibilities, and disciplinary sanctions. All these integrity rules and measures are established by global regimes and implemented by both national systems and the global regimes themselves. Global regimes set standards and oversee the compliance of national systems with global integrity rules. At the same time, they are themselves subject to administrative constraints and diversified integrity controls. Global regimes therefore play a dual role, as both controllers and controlled. This raises some questions, including how the application of integrity rules and measures can be controlled, the differences between integrity controls related to national systems and those pertaining to global regimes, and how integrity controls can contribute to the development of global administrative law. All these come together in a central question of why these controls represent a new challenge in global administrative law.


CTSRC structure is a new composite structural system for residential buildings and it consists of walls and floors which are made of the prefabricated steel skeleton and the infill of concrete. Four pieces of CTSRC shear wall specimens and one piece of RC shear wall specimen are tested under low cyclic lateral loads to study the final failure modes and analyze its structural seismic performance. It shows that the CTSRC shear wall structure possess adequate bearing capacity, fine seismic performance and ductility. CTSRC shear walls are better than RC shear walls in the seismic behavior, and it could replace traditional shear walls structure applying to practical engineering. Inserting ring used for connecting profile steel can transfer stress well and it is recognized as a reasonable construction measure.


This paper describes a new practical approach for approximating the inverse kinematics of a manipulator using a RBFN (radial basis function network). In fact, there are several traditional methods based on the known geometry of the manipulator to calculate the relationship between the joint variable space and the world coordinate space. However, these traditional methods are impractical if the manipulator geometry cannot be easily determined, in a robot-vision system for example. Therefore, a neural network with its inherent learning ability can be an effective alternative solution for the inverse kinematics problem. In this paper, a training approach using the strict interpolation method combined with the LMS (least mean square) is presented. The strict interpolation method with regularly spaced position training patterns in the workspace can produce an appropriate approximation of the inverse kinematic function. Additionally, the LMS algorithm can improve the approximate function iteratively through on-line training with arbitrary position patterns. The combination of these techniques can deal with variation in the set-up of the visual system used to measure the position of the manipulator in the workspace. To verify the performance of the proposed approach, a practical experiment has been performed using a Mitsubishi PA10-6CE manipulator observed by a webcam. All application programmes, such as robot servo control, neural network, and image processing tool, were written in C/C++ and run in a real robotic system. The experimental results prove that the proposed approach is effective.


MaDViWorld is an object oriented software framework supporting the implementation of fully distributed virtual worlds on the Internet. While the World Wide Web proposes a document paradigm with HTTP servers containing documents consulted by users with the help of browser applications, MaDViWorld supports a much richer paradigm based on room servers hosting spaces populated by full-fledged objects, that avatar applications can activate, move and share transparently. Nevertheless, the dissemination of virtual worlds on the Internet suffers from two main weaknesses: (1) they are typically based on centralized architectures and do not scale well; and (2) they usually propose a rather closed software environment with limited extension and programming facilities. Within this context, the MaDViWorld project main goal is to provide its users with the appropriate software environment for creating all kinds of new collaborative objects and for sharing them transparently with others. The present paper illustrates this process with several examples from projects recently accomplished at the DIUF (Department of Informatics of the University of Fribourg, Switzerland) and shows how MaDViWorld provides the hooks for taking care of some of the most challenging distributed virtual world problems such as managing event propagation and securing access to ressources.


Non-native invasive species (NIS) release chemicals into the environment that are unique to the invaded communities, defined as novel chemicals. Novel chemicals impact competitors, soil microbial communities, mutualists, plant enemies, and soil nutrients differently than in the species' native range. Ecological functions of novel chemicals and differences in functions between the native and non-native ranges of NIS are of immense interest to ecologists. Novel chemicals can mediate different ecological, physiological, and evolutionary mechanisms underlying invasion hypotheses. Interactions amongst the NIS and resident species including competitors, soil microbes, and plant enemies, as well as abiotic factors in the invaded community linked to novel chemicals. However, we poorly understand how these interactions might enhance NIS performance. New empirical data and analyses of how novel chemicals act in the invaded community will fill major gaps in our understanding of the chemistry of biological invasions. A novel chemical-invasion mechanism framework shows how novel chemicals engender invasion mechanisms beyond plant-plant or plant-microorganism interactions.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
AKI is an increasingly common and devastating complication in hospitalized patients. Severe AKI requiring RRT is associated with in-hospital mortality rates exceeding 40%. Clinical decision making related to RRT initiation for patients with AKI in the medical intensive care unit is not standardized.

DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS
We conducted a 13-month (November of 2013 to December of 2014) prospective cohort study in an academic medical intensive care unit involving the implementation of an AKI Standardized Clinical Assessment and Management Plan, a decision-making algorithm to assist front-line clinicians caring for patients with AKI. The Standardized Clinical Assessment and Management Plan algorithms provided recommendations about optimal indications for initiating and discontinuing RRT on the basis of various clinical parameters; 176 patients managed by nine nephrologists were included in the study. We captured reasons for deviation from the recommended algorithm as well as mortality data.

RESULTS
Patients whose clinicians adhered to the Standardized Clinical Assessment and Management Plan recommendation to start RRT had lower in-hospital mortality (42% versus 63%; P<0.01) and 60-day mortality (46% and 68%; P<0.01), findings that were confirmed after multivariable adjustment for age, albumin, and disease severity. There was a differential effect of Standardized Clinical Assessment and Management Plan adherence in low (<50% mortality risk) versus high (≥50% mortality risk) disease severity on in-hospital mortality (interaction term P=0.02). In patients with low disease severity, Standardized Clinical Assessment and Management Plan adherence was associated with lower in-hospital mortality (odds ratio, 0.21; 95% confidence interval, 0.08 to 0.54; P=0.001), but no significant association was evident in patients with high disease severity.

CONCLUSIONS
Physician adherence to an algorithm providing recommendations on RRT initiation was associated with lower in-hospital mortality.


Behavioral theory suggests that human actions spring from a mix of motivations. According to this theory, human actions are not a result of the conventional assumption of exclusive motivation of self -interest. Human actions are influenced by a general ethical factor of inclination to help one another and uphold justice and equity. However, a number of human actions may be more centered on self-interest than others, whereas some may be more centered on the interest of others. Given these tendencies, the motivations of business entrepreneurs can be expressed by a continuous scale. Centeredness on self-interest occupies one end of the scale, whereas centeredness on the interest of others occupies the other end. Scholars hypothesized that a balanced tendency of entrepreneurs between self-interest and the interest of others would contribute to social justice and equity in society. They also hypothesized that the goals and objectives of most business entrepreneurs in Bangladesh are influenced by a mix of motivations instead of conventional assumptions of exclusive motivation of self-interest. The majority of entrepreneurs in Bangladesh prefer to be labeled as social enterprises engaged in the well-being of a community. They want to be viewed as enterprises that earn normal, fair, and ethical profits instead of maximizing profit for themselves. The primary aim of this study is to test the hypothesis by identifying and analyzing the motivational, cultural, and socio-economic factors and personal traits that influence the intentions and actions of entrepreneurs in Bangladesh to apply this perspective in practice. This study is an exploratory and in-depth investigation that uses field data collected through in-depth personal interviews with eight business entrepreneurs in Chittagong, the largest port and commercial city of Bangladesh. Results strongly confirm the hypothesis that a mix of motivations influences business entrepreneurs in Bangladesh to set their enterprise goals and objectives. Results also indicate that the motivations of entrepreneurs centered on the well-being of the community. This investigation is only a pilot study. Thus, the results must be regarded as merely indicative.
Keywords: self-interest-centric, community wellbeing-centric, not-for-profit, for-profit, societal well-being, entrepreneurship, paradox, social enterprise, social business, motivation–continuum, intention


Abstract Organic-inorganic hybrid coatings were developed via a sol-gel method using hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) as a ceramic filler material incorporated into a polymeric matrix. To investigate the effects of h-BN on the properties of polymer-based coatings, parameters such as hardness, coefficient of friction, and hydrophobicity were investigated. Colloidal silica (CS), methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS), water, and acid catalyst containing coatings were prepared by varying the content of h-BN from 10% to 25%. All the coatings were prepared with the same experimental procedure and coated on 1050 aluminum alloy plates. The compensating contents of MTMS and colloidal silica with a fixed molar ratio of MTMS and CS were set to be 1:1.2, and a specific amount of the catalyst was utilized. Coatings were examined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The most promising physical properties were determined to be the pencil hardness of 8B, adhesion strength of 5B, coefficient of friction of 0.332 N, and water contact angle of 114.75°. Therefore, it can be concluded that the h-BN improves the physical properties of polymeric coatings. In addition, this study demonstrates the effect of h-BN on the adherence of polymer matrix-based hybrid coatings.


This article examines the new phenomenon of the convergence of platform and pipeline business models. It examines the potential synergies and challenges for platforms to add pipeline components and vice versa for pipeline businesses.,This paper uses a conceptual approach that synthesizes and integrates the literature from service, hospitality, and strategy, and supplements them with two illustrative mini-case studies.,While the extant literature typically focuses on the dichotomy between incumbent pipeline businesses that create value by controlling a linear series of activities and network effects-driven platforms, we differentiate between two types of platform business models (i.e. platforms with asset control and platforms with peer-provided assets). Further, we identify three common pathways of convergence; that is, pipelines moving towards (1) platforms with asset control and (2) those with peer-provided assets, and (3) platforms with peer-provided assets adopting defining business characteristics of pipelines. Furthermore, we contrast key characteristics of the three business models and examine potential synergies and challenges for business model convergence. Our findings suggest that convergence from pipelines to platforms with asset control seems to be a natural extension that offers many potential synergies and relatively minor challenges. In contrast, convergence from pipelines to platforms with peer-provided assets is likely to encounter more serious challenges and few synergies. Finally, the synergies and challenges of convergence from platforms with peer-provided assets to pipelines seem to be in between the other two in terms of synergies and challenges.,This article helps managers think through key considerations regarding potential synergies to develop and challenges to mitigate for embarking on convergence strategies between pipeline and platform business models.,This article is the first in the service, business model and strategy literature to identify, define, and conceptualize business model convergence between platforms with asset control, those with peer-provided assets and pipeline businesses. It is also the first to examine potential synergies and challenges these different paths of business model convergence may entail.


The kinetics of CO2 absorption in ethylethanolamine based solutions were investigated using a wetted wall column (WWC) from 298 to 328 K. In the nonaqueous solutions, monoethylethanolamine (EMEA) was the reactant with a concentration range from 0.5 to 3.0 kmol m–3, and diethylethanolamine (DEEA) was the solvent. Water with volume ratio range from 0 to 150 % was added into 3.0 kmol m–3 EMEA + DEEA solution forming hydrated solutions. The overall reaction rate constants were obtained from the CO2 flux under the condition of a pseudo-first-order and fast reaction regime. The reaction rate of CO2 with nonaqueous solutions increased with either EMEA concentration or temperature, which can be represented by the termolecular mechanism. The reaction rate of CO2 with hydrated solutions increased with water volume ratio, which can be represented by both the zwitterion and the termolecular mechanisms.


In 2000s traditional shop-based retailing has had to adapt to competition created by internet-based e-commerce. As a distinction from traditional retail, e-commerce can gather unprecedented amount of information about its customers and their behaviour. To enable behaviour-based analysis in traditional retailing, the customers need to be tracked reliably through the store. One such tracking technology is depth camera people tracking system developed at VTT, Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd. This study aims to use the aforementioned people tracking system's data to enable ecommerce style behavioural analysis in physical retail locations. This study is done following the design science research paradigm to construct a real-life artefact. The artefact designed and implemented is based on accumulated knowledge from a systematic literature review, application domain analysis and iterative software engineering practices. Systematic literature review is used to understand what kind of performance evaluation is done in retail. These metrics are then analysed in regards to people tracking technologies to propose a conceptual framework for customer tracking in retail. From this the artefact is designed, implemented and evaluated. Evaluation is done by combination of requirement validation, field experiments and three distinct real-life field studies. Literature review found that retailing uses traditionally easily available performance metrics such as sales and profit. It was also clear that movement data, apart from traffic calculation, has been unavailable for retail and thus is not often used as quantifiable performance metric. As a result this study presents one novel way to use customer movement as a store performance metric. The artefact constructed quantifies, visualises and analyses customer tracking data with the provided depth camera system, which is a new approach to people tracking domain. The evaluation with real-life cases concludes that the artefact can indeed find and classify interesting behavioural patterns from customer tracking data.


Objective To determine the impact of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) ventilation on hemodynamics and a clinical test for assessment of dynamic liver performance in patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). Design Prospective, descriptive patient study. Setting University hospital intensive care unit. Patients A total of 25 patients after OLT. Interventions All patients were intubated and mechanically ventilated with biphasic positive airway pressure. The effects of three different randomly chosen levels of PEEP (0 cm H2O, 5 cm H2O, and 10 cm H2O) were studied in the immediate postoperative period. Measurements and Main Results Systemic hemodynamics, arterial and venous blood gas analyses, and plasma disappearance rate of indocyanine green (ICGPDR), using the transpulmonary indicator dilution technique, were obtained simultaneously. For data evaluation, patients were grouped retrospectively according to their hemodynamic response to PEEP (Group A and Group B). In Group A (n = 13), PEEP did not alter cardiac index. In Group B (n = 11), PEEP levels of 5 cm H2O and 10 cm H2O significantly reduced cardiac index and oxygen delivery. ICGPDR remained statistically unchanged in both groups. Conclusions Short-term pressure-controlled ventilation with PEEP levels of up to 10 cm H2O does not exert detrimental effects on systemic hemodynamics in OLT patients and does not interfere with ICGPDR. However, it remains to be determined whether these findings could be confirmed under the application of higher PEEP levels over a longer period of time and whether they could be of clinical relevance for the use of indocyanine green as a dynamic liver function test.


The classic indicator of secure attachment in infancy and childhood is exploration of the environment. This is no less true in adulthood; however, researchers have substituted the term "effectance motivation" for exploratory behavior following earned secure attachment. The term refers to "natural approach-based motivational tendencies" that result in effective interactions with the environment. Earned secure adults demonstrate a shift from an avoidance-oriented achievement motivation profile in achievement settings to a more appetitive, effectance-like achievement motivation profile in these settings and are less hesitant to investigate matters of concern, to master techniques or skills, or to engage fully in their environments in general. This article presents a case study from a larger narrative intervention in which it was hypothesized that the participant would demonstrate new levels of effectance motivation following an attachment-focused integrative reminiscence (AFIR) intervention. Through the case study methodology, the reader can ascertain the mental life of the participant, which cannot be captured in quantitative or objective ways. It gives the reader access, to some extent, to the phenomenology of the shift in attitude from an avoidance orientation to an effectance orientation as it unfolds in this particular human story. A comparison between pre-intervention and post-intervention evaluations shows clear evidence of increased effectance motivation in the work environment following the AFIR intervention. Future research is needed to establish that it is the AFIR intervention that causes the beneficial effect observed in the present study.


This paper studies the role of over-parametrization in solving non-convex optimization problems. The focus is on the important class of low-rank matrix sensing, where we propose an infinite hierarchy of non-convex problems via the lifting technique and the Burer-Monteiro factorization. This contrasts with the existing over-parametrization technique where the search rank is limited by the dimension of the matrix and it does not allow a rich over-parametrization of an arbitrary degree. We show that although the spurious solutions of the problem remain stationary points through the hierarchy, they will be transformed into strict saddle points (under some technical conditions) and can be escaped via local search methods. This is the first result in the literature showing that over-parametrization creates a negative curvature for escaping spurious solutions. We also derive a bound on how much over-parametrization is requited to enable the elimination of spurious solutions.


Plasticity in the central nervous system (CNS) allows for responses to changing environmental signals. While the majority of studies on brain plasticity focus on neuronal synapses, myelin plasticity has now begun to emerge as a potential modulator of neuronal networks. Oligodendrocytes (OLs) produce myelin, which provides fast signal transmission, allows for synchronization of neuronal inputs, and helps to maintain neuronal function. Thus, myelination is also thought to be involved in learning. OLs differentiate from oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs), which are distributed throughout the adult brain, and myelination continues into late adulthood. This process is orchestrated by numerous cellular and molecular signals, such as axonal diameter, growth factors, extracellular signaling molecules, and neuronal activity. However, the relative importance of, and cooperation between, these signaling pathways is currently unknown. In this review, we focus on the current knowledge about myelin plasticity in the CNS. We discuss new insights into the link between this type of plasticity, learning and behavior, as well as mechanistic aspects of myelin formation that may underlie myelin plasticity, highlighting OPC diversity in the CNS.


Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is known to be sensitive to many herbicides and, therefore, choices for using post-emergence herbicides for weed control are limited. The present study was aimed at identifying sources of tolerance to two herbicides with different modes of action (imazethapyr—amino acid synthesis inhibitor; and metribuzin—photosynthesis inhibitor) for use in breeding herbicide tolerant cultivars. Screening of 300 diverse chickpea genotypes (278 accessions from the reference set and 22 breeding lines) revealed large genetic variations for tolerance to herbicides imazethapyr and metribuzin. In general, the sensitivity of the genotypes to metribuzin was higher compared to that for imazethapyr. Several genotypes tolerant to metribuzin (ICC 1205, ICC 1164, ICC 1161, ICC 8195, ICC 11498, ICC 9586, ICC 14402 ICC 283) and imazethapyr (ICC 3239, ICC 7867, ICC 1710, ICC 13441, ICC 13461, ICC 13357, ICC 7668, ICC 13187) were identified, based on average herbicide tolerance scores from two experimental locations each. The herbicide tolerant lines identified in this study will be useful resources for development of herbicide tolerant cultivars and for undertaking genetic and physiological studies on herbicide tolerance in chickpea.


In recent studies outpatient treatment of proximal deep venous thrombosis with low-weight-molecular heparin is shown as safe and effective as the treatment within the hospital. The incidence of recurrent thromboembolism, major bleeding and mortality is not higher in an ambulatory setting than in the hospital. The comfort of the patient is higher, the costs can be reduced. The present review discusses the different conditions for ambulatory treatment of deep venous thrombosis. The question will be addressed which patients will probably be considered for outpatient treatment of deep vein thrombosis.


One of the main challenges for modern processors is the data transfer between processor and memory. Such data movement implies high latency and high energy consumption. In this context, Near-Data Processing (NDP) proposals have started to gain acceptance as an accelerator device. Such proposals alleviate the memory bottleneck by moving instructions to data whereabouts. The first proposals date back to the 1990s, but it was only in the 2010s that we could observe an increase in papers addressing NDP. It occurred together with the appearance of 3D-stacked chips with logic and memory stacked layers. This survey presents a brief history of these accelerators, focusing on the applications domains migrated to near-data and the proposed architectures. We also introduce a new taxonomy to classify such architectural proposals according to their data distance.