Purpose
In wireless communication system, use of multiple antennas for different requirements of system will increase the system complexity. However, reconfigurable antenna is maximizing the connectivity to cover different wireless services that operate different frequency range. Pattern reconfigurable antenna can improve security, avoid noise and save energy. Due to their compactness and better performance at different applications, reconfigurable antennas are very popular among the researchers. The purpose of this work, is to propose a novel design of S-shaped antenna with frequency and pattern diversity. The pattern and frequency reconfiguration are controlled via ON/OFF states of the PIN diode.

Design/methodology/approach
The geometrical structure of the proposed antenna dimension is 18 × 18 × 0.787 mm3 with

εr = 2.2 dielectric constant. Three S-shaped patches are connected to a ring patch through PIN diodes. The approximate circumference of ring patch is 18.84 mm and length of patch is 5 mm, so approximate length of radiating patch is 14.42 mm and effective dielectric constant is 1.93. Conductor backed coplanar waveguide (CPW) is used for feeding. The proposed antenna is designed and simulated on CST microwave studio and fabricated using photolithography process. Measurements have been done in anechoic chamber.

Findings
Antenna shows the dual band operation at 2.1 and 3.4 GHz frequency. The first band remains constant at 2.1 GHz resonant frequency and 200–400 MHz impedance bandwidth. Second band is switched at seven different resonant frequencies as 3.14, 3.45, 3.46, 3.68, 3.69, 3.83 and 3.86 GHz with switching of the diodes. The −10 dB bandwidth is more than 1.4 GHz.

Research limitations/implications
Pattern reconfigurability can be achieved using mechanical movement of antenna easily but it is not a reliable approach for planar antennas. Electronic switching method is used in proposed antenna. Antenna size is very small so fabrication is very crucial task. Measured results are deviated from simulation results due to fabrication error and effect of leads of diodes, connecting wires and battery.

Practical implications
The reconfiguration of the proposed antenna is controlled via ON/OFF states of the three PIN diodes. The lower band of 2.1 GHz is fixed, while second band is switched at five different resonant frequencies as 3.27, 3.41, 3.45, 3.55 and 3.88 GHz, with switching of the PIN diodes with all state of diodes and exhibit pattern reconfigurability at 2.1 GHz frequency. At second band center frequency is significantly changed with state of diodes and at 3.4 GHz pattern is also changed with state of diodes, hence antenna exhibits frequency and pattern reconfigurability.

Originality/value
A novel design of pattern and frequency reconfigurable antenna is proposed. Here, work is divided into two parts: first is frequency reconfiguration and second is radiation pattern reconfiguration. PIN diodes as switch are used to select the frequency band and reconfigure the radiation pattern. This proposed antenna design is novel dual band frequency and pattern reconfigurable antenna. It resonates at two distinct frequencies, i.e. 2.1 and 3.4 GHz, and has a pattern tilt from 0° to 355°. The conductor backed CPW feed technique is used for impedance matching.


Social robotics and HRI are in need of a unified and differentiated theoretical framework where, relative to interaction context, robotic properties can be related to types of human experiences and interactive dispositions. The aim of this paper is to contribute to this task by providing new descriptive tools. In social robotics and HRI it is commonly assumed that social interactions with robots are due to 'anthropomorphizing'. We challenge this assumption and argue, on conceptual and empirical grounds, that social interactions with robots are not always the result of anthropomorphizing, i.e., the projection of imaginary or fictional human social capacities, but of sociomorphing, i.e., the perception of actual non-human social capacities. Sociomorphing can take many forms which phenomenally manifest themselves in various types of experienced sociality. We very briefly sketch core elements of the descriptive framework OASIS (the Ontology of Asymmetric Social Interactions) in order to show how one might develop a classificatory system for types of experienced sociality.


Abstract If the variables describing wave–mean flow interactions are chosen to include a set of fluid–particle labels corresponding to the mean flow, then the generalized Lagrangian mean (GLM) theory takes the form of an ordinary classical field theory. Its only truly distinctive features then arise from the distinctive feature of fluid dynamics as a field theory, namely, the particle-relabelling symmetry property, which corresponds by Noether's theorem to the many vorticity conservation laws of fluid mechanics. The key feature of the formulation is that all the dependent variables depend on a common set of space–time coordinates. This feature permits an easy and transparent derivation of the GLM equations by use of the energy–momentum tensor formalism. The particle-relabelling symmetry property leads to the GLM potential vorticity law in which pseudo-momentum is the only wave activity term present. Thus the particle-relabelling symmetry explains the prominent importance of pseudo-momentum in GLM theory.


We consider a directed search environment where capacity constrained sellers reach uncoordinated buyers through costly advertising while buyers observed all prices probabilistically. We show that: (i) the equilibrium advertising intensity has an inverted U-shape in market tightness, (ii) the equilibrium advertising intensity is higher under an auction mechanism than under posted pricing, and (iii) the equilibrium price and measure of informed buyers may be positively correlated even in large markets. JEL Classification: E52, E63.


This paper presents the qualitative nature of communication network operations as abstraction of typical thermodynamic parameters (e.g., order parameter, temperature, and pressure). Specifically, statistical mechanics-inspired models of critical phenomena (e.g., phase transitions and size scaling) for heterogeneous packet transmission are developed in terms of multiple intensive parameters, namely, the external packet load on the network system and the packet transmission probabilities of heterogeneous packet types. Network phase diagrams are constructed based on these traffic parameters, and decision and control strategies are formulated for heterogeneous packet transmission in the network system. In this context, decision functions and control objectives are derived in closed forms, and the pertinent results of test and validation on a simulated network system are presented.


The most dangerous security-related software errors, according to the OWASP Top Ten 2017 list, affect web applications. They are potential injection attacks that exploit user-provided data to execute undesired operations: database access and updates (SQL injection); generation of malicious web pages (cross-site scripting injection); redirection to user-specified web pages (redirect injection); execution of OS commands and arbitrary scripts (command injection); loading of user-specified, possibly heavy or dangerous classes at run time (reflection injection); access to arbitrary files on the file system (path-traversal); and storing user-provided data into heap regions normally assumed to be shielded from the outside world (trust boundary violation). All these attacks exploit the same weakness: unconstrained propagation of data from sources that the user of a web application controls into sinks whose activation might trigger dangerous operations. Although web applications are written in a variety of languages, Java remains a frequent choice, in particular for banking applications, where security has tangible relevance. This article defines a unified, sound protection mechanism against such attacks, based on the identification of all possible explicit flows of tainted data in Java code. Such flows can be arbitrarily complex, passing through dynamically allocated data structures in the heap. The analysis is based on abstract interpretation and is interprocedural, flow-sensitive, and context-sensitive. Its notion of taint applies to reference (non-primitive) types dynamically allocated in the heap and is object-sensitive and field-sensitive. The analysis works by translating the program into Boolean formulas that model all possible data flows. Its implementation, within the Julia analyzer for Java and Android, found injection security vulnerabilities in the Internet banking service and in the customer relationship management of large Italian banks, as well as in a set of open-source third-party applications. It found the command injection, which is at the origin of the 2017 Equifax data breach, one of the worst data breaches ever. For objective, repeatable results, this article also evaluates the implementation on two open-source security benchmarks: the Juliet Suite and the OWASP Benchmark for the automatic comparison of static analyzers for cybersecurity. We compared this technique against more than 10 other static analyzers, both free and commercial. The result of these experiments is that ours is the only analysis for injection that is sound (up to well-stated limitations such as multithreading and native code) and works on industrial code, and it is also much more precise than other tools.


The associations of plasma levels of hemostatic factors, other than fibrinogen, with risks of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and all-cause mortality are not well defined. In two phases of the Glasgow MONICA study, we assayed coagulation factors (VII, VIII, IX, and von Willebrand factor), coagulation inhibitors (antithrombin, protein C, protein S), coagulation activation markers (prothrombin fragment 1 + 2, thrombin–antithrombin complexes, D-dimer), and the fibrinolytic factors, tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) antigen and plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1. Over 15 to 20 years, we followed up between 382 and 1,123 men and women aged 30 to 74 years, without baseline CVD, for risks of CVD and mortality. Age- and sex-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for CVD (top third vs bottom third) were significant only for factor VIII (1.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06–1.58) and factor IX (1.18; 95% CI, 1.01–1.39); these HRs were attenuated by further adjustment for CVD risk factors: 1.17 (95% CI, 0.94–1.46) and 1.07 (95% CI, 0.92–1.25), respectively. In contrast, factor VIII (HR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.35–1.96), D-dimer (HR, 2.34; 95% CI, 1.26–4.35), and t-PA (HR, 2.81; 95% CI, 1.43–5.54) were strongly associated with mortality after full risk factor adjustment. Further studies, including meta-analyses, are required to assess the associations of these hemostatic factors with the risks of stroke and heart disease and causes of mortality.


This paper introduced a kind of reflector mirror support structure of IRST system. The scanning reflector mirror support frame material is Ly2 aluminum under the principle of the suited of material expanding quotient. The support form of the reflector was talked, and the system bracket structure was designed following the requests of the certain complex IRST. The bracket was optimized and analyzed under the best structure quality and the least moment of inertia, and the bellowing of bracket plane thickness, mode frequency restriction and deadweight restriction. From the result we can see that the bracket mass can reduce from 0.73kg to 0.49kg and the moment of inertia can reduce from 0.0109kg㎡ to 0.0056 kg㎡ under the first precondition of the structure mode frequency being low and the biggest transmogrification being teeny. The base frequency and intension of the complex IRST system can be indicated well after the finite element analysis static checking.


Growing scientific evidence from modern climate science is loaded with implications for the environmental history of the Roman Empire and its successor societies. The written and archaeological evidence, although richer than commonly realized, is unevenly distributed over time and space. A first synthesis of what the written records and multiple natural archives (multi-proxy data) indicate about climate change and variability across western Eurasia from c. 100 b.c. to 800 a.d. confirms that the Roman Empire rose during a period of stable and favorable climatic conditions, which deteriorated during the Empire's third-century crisis. A second, briefer period of favorable conditions coincided with the Empire's recovery in the fourth century; regional differences in climate conditions parallel the diverging fates of the eastern and western Empires in subsequent centuries. Climate conditions beyond the Empire's boundaries also played an important role by affecting food production in the Nile valley, and by encouraging two major migrations and invasions of pastoral peoples from Central Asia.


Experimental research in low-power wireless networking lacks a reference benchmark. While other communities such as databases or machine learning have standardized benchmarks, our community still uses ad-hoc setups for its experiments and struggles to provide a fair comparison between communication protocols. Reasons for this include the diversity of network scenarios and the stochastic nature of wireless experiments. Leveraging on the excellent testbeds and tools that have been built to support experimental validation, we make the case for a reference benchmark to promote a fair comparison and reproducibility of results. This abstract describes early design elements and a benchmarking methodology with the goal to gather feedback from the community rather than propose a definite solution.


Sexually violent predator (SVP) statutes define some sex offenders as dangerous enough to be segregated from society, but then require their release into local communities. This article examines how decision makers and community members interpret and respond to this inherent contradiction during disputes over SVP placements. The article departs from traditional moral panic explanations of reactions to sex offenders by linking literature on local siting conflicts to insights from legal mobilization studies in order to understand the origins and features of community opposition to sex offenders. Data from three case studies of SVP placements in California suggest that interpretations of what I call legal signals, or implicit messages embedded in state laws, produced these conflicts. The findings shed new light on the role of law in siting conflicts and collective action by explaining how state laws facilitate communities' exclusion from siting decisions, encourage local opposition, and disempower already marginalized communities.


In a number of countries in Africa, young women who become pregnant are excluded from school. This article presents a critique of policy and practice in this area drawing partly on Diana Leonard's scholarship concerning the relational dynamic of gender, generation, social division, and household forms. Much of the policy prescription of large global organisations concerned with the expansion of secondary schooling in Africa does not sufficiently take account of the connection between the gender dynamics of the private and that of the public outlined in Leonard's work. In showing some of the effects of this oversight, this article reports on data from research studies in five countries in Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana) to show how aspects of silence, evasion, and stereotyping often characterise teachers' and education officials' reflections on youth and pregnancy. Young women's concerns with the risk of pregnancy are often given inadequate attention, while harsh actions to shame young women who become pregnant are reported. The importance of working across sectors to link social policy in this area is shown to be difficult and in need of much more focused resource.


We investigate the ϕ2 inflationary model in the Bianchi-I spacetime using the effective spacetime description of loop quantum cosmology to understand the issues of the resolution of initial singularity, isotropization, effect of anisotropies on the amount of inflation, and the phase-space attractors in the presence of non-perturbative quantum gravitational modifications. A comparative analysis with the classical theory by including more general initial conditions than the ones previously considered in the latter is also performed. We show that, in general, the classical singularity is replaced by a bounce of the mean scale factor in loop quantum cosmology. Due to the underlying quantum geometric effects, the energy density of the inflaton and the anisotropic shear remain bounded throughout the non-singular evolution. Starting from arbitrary anisotropic initial conditions, a loop quantum universe isotropizes either before or soon after the onset of slow-roll inflation. We find a double attractor behavior in the phase-space dynamics of loop quantum cosmology, similar to the one in classical theory, but with some additional subtle features. Quantum modifications to the dynamical equations are such that, unlike the classical theory, the amount of inflation does not monotonically depend on the initial anisotropy in loop quantum cosmology. Our results suggest that a viable non-singular inflationary model can be constructed from highly anisotropic initial conditions in the Planck regime.


The mortality rate from ischaemic heart disease (I.H.D.) has increased in young women by about 50% in 12 years, and it is now possible to report the findings in 150 women who developed symptoms and signs of I.H.D. under the age of 45. Data obtained from 145 of these women form the basis of this report: 81 presented with myocardial infarction and 64 with angina. In the remaining five there was a definite nonatherosclerotic cause for the premature onset of I.H.D. Hypercholesterolaemia, hypertension, or excessive cigarette smoking each occurred in a large minority, and more than one of these major risk factors was present in most patients. Hypercholesterolaemia was the commonest factor. In women in whom lipoprotein typing was undertaken the type II pattern was more frequent than type IV. The prevalence of hypercholesterolaemia and hypertension was the same in those with myocardial infarction and in those with angina. Excessive cigarette smoking was more common in women with myocardial infarction than in those with angina. The latter did not differ in their cigarette smoking habits from the normal population. A premature menopause had occurred in 20% of these women, but there was no relation between the early onset of I.H.D. with age at menarche, parity, or the incidence of abortion. Oral contraceptives did not increase the risk of myocardial infarction unless one of the major risk factors was also present. Altogether 75% of patients with angina or myocardial infarction survived 12 years. Coexisting hypertension worsened the prognosis. The prognosis after myocardial infarction was similar in these women to that previously described for men under the age of 40.


The TOmographic Model of the IONospheric electron content (TOMION) software implements a simultaneous precise geodetic and ionospheric modeling, which can be used to test new approaches for real-time precise GNSS modeling (positioning, ionospheric and tropospheric delays, clock errors, among others). In this work, the software is used to estimate the Zenith Tropospheric Delay (ZTD) emulating real time and its performance is evaluated through a comparative analysis with a built-in GIPSY estimation and IGS final troposphere product, exemplified in a two-day experiment performed in East Australia. In addition, the troposphere mapping function was upgraded from Niell to Vienna approach. On a first scenario, only forward processing was activated and the coordinates of the Wide Area GNSS network (relative) were loosely constrained, without fixing the carrier phase ambiguities, for both reference and rover receivers and the ionospheric modeling was turned off. On a second one, precise point positioning (PPP) was implemented, every 900 seconds, introducing IGS transmitted orbits and clocks. Comparisons between TOMION and GIPSY estimates and IGS final product have been performed and the agreement between the the first two ones was of ±5mm, while both were over 2cm biased with respect to IGS products, despite using IGS satellite clocks and orbits for TOMION computations. Moreover, the standard deviation of the TOMIONs estimates computed in PPP mode was between 3 and 13mm, when compared to both external references. Additionally, Vienna mapping function showed in general a fairly better agreement than Niell although further improvement could be achieved for such estimations with coefficients for the Vienna mapping function calculated from raytracing as well as integrating meteorological comparative parameters.


Abstract. The paper deals with the feasibility study of the sea state monitoring starting from X-band radar images. The exploitation of radar images allows to achieve a global vision of the sea state compared to the local vision given by the usual sensors as the buoys. The processing approach is based on the formulation of problem as an inverse one where starting from the electromagnetic field backscattered by the sea surface, the information about the sea state are retrieved. The reliability of the inversion procedure is shown by processing synthetic and experimental data where particular attention is focussed to the determination of the sea current and speed of the vessel.


This paper introduces a methodology to evaluate and calculate the transmissible torque of the HSK-E tool system based on FEM. Calculation method of the transmissible torque and building of the FEM analysis model was first introduced. Using the model to analyze the effect of the interference, spindle speed, and drawbar force on the stress distributions of the contact surfaces of toolholder-spindle interface, then the transmissible torque is finally calculated. The results show that the HSK-E tool system satisfies high speed cutting requirements provided that reasonable parameters of the interference and the drawbar force are designed.


The nucleation and growth behavior of magentoplombite has been observed during the abnormal grain growth in the presence of liquid phase. Abnormal grain growth was explained in terms of grain orientation due to liquid phase. It has been observed that the nuclei formation for abnormal grain growth was driven by the capillary force due to the liquid phase. Because magnetoplumbite crystal structure has an anisotropic crystal nature, abnormal grain growth with faceted grain shape was observed depending on its chemical composition. The formation of nuclei and particle orientation was important for the occurrence of abnormal grain growth.


Among-individual heterogeneity in growth is a commonly observed phenomenon that has clear consequences for population and community dynamics yet has proved difficult to quantify in practice. In particular, observed among-individual variation in growth can be difficult to link to any given mechanism. Here, we develop a Bayesian state-space framework for modeling growth that bridges the complexity of bioenergetic models and the statistical simplicity of phenomenological growth models. The model allows for intrinsic individual variation in traits, a shared environment, process stochasticity, and measurement error. We apply the model to two populations of steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) grown under common but temporally varying food conditions. Models allowing for individual variation match available data better than models that assume a single shared trait for all individuals. Estimated individual variation translated into a roughly twofold range in realized growth rates within populations. Comparisons between populations showed strong differences in trait means, trait variability, and responses to a shared environment. Together, individual- and population-level variation have substantial implications for variation in size and growth rates among and within populations. State-dependent life-history models predict that this variation can lead to differences in individual life-history expression, lifetime reproductive output, and population life-history diversity.


Place is here defined as a space given social, cultural and historical meaning through an ongoing intervention of people who are objects as well as subjects within this process. Thus place can be seen as a continuously ongoing process of (re)creation by those who live it. This essay intends to set out and illustrate parts of this process.  Fieldwork was carried out in Monte, the fictive name of a small village situated about an hour's drive from Rome, Italy. In order to show how place may be used as an analytical concept, three different ways in which this particular local (re)creation process takes place will be presented, followed by a theoretical discussion. The first example comes from Montese social life, the second from the village cemetery and the last comes from the yearly pilgrimages dedicated to the local patron saint.


Using a global sample of multinational corporations (MNCs) and their foreign subsidiaries, we find that repatriation taxes impair subsidiary-level investment efficiency. Consistent with internal agency conflicts between the central management of the MNC and the manager of the foreign subsidiary being the driver, we show that this effect is concentrated in subsidiaries with high information asymmetry and in subsidiaries that are weakly monitored. Quasi-natural experiments in the U.K. and Japan establish a causal relationship for our findings and suggest that a repeal of repatriation taxes increases subsidiary-level investment efficiency while reducing the level of investment. Our paper provides timely empirical evidence to inform expectations for the effects of a recent change to the U.S. international tax law that eliminated repatriation taxes from most of the future foreign earnings of U.S. MNCs.
 JEL Classifications: H21; H25; F23; G31.
 Data Availability: Data are available from the public sources cited in the text.


(Revision 3). The security of electronic mail sent through the Internet may be described in exactly three words: there is none. The Privacy and Security Research Group has recommended implementing mechanisms designed to provide security enhancements. The first set of mechanisms provides a protocol to provide privacy, integrity, and authentication for electronic mail; the second provides a certificate-based key management infrastructure to support key distribution throughout the internet, to support the first set of mechanisms. This paper describes these mechanisms, as well as the reasons behind their selection and how these mechanisms can be used to provide some measure of securtiy in the exchange of electronic mail.


: Membranous nephropathy has been shown to be an immune-mediated lesion in both human and experimental animal models. Primary biliary cirrhosis and bullous pemphigoid are also diseases of probable autoimmune origin. In this brief report, a woman with all three disease entities is described and an interrelationship among the three is discussed.


Older adults who have never used smartphone often suffers from getting used to smartphone gestures because of their lack of basic knowledge or skills with the latest technologies like gesture-oriented touchscreens. In this paper, we propose a user modeling method for inferring problems novice users face for smartphone from their touchscreen gestures. The output of user model is used by automated help enabling them to acquire touchscreen gestures. We apply a feature extraction approach based on the frequent pattern mining of gesture sequence to the user modeling. The learned user model detects types of problems in real time and is used for automated help. To optimize of instruction timing and its selection, we use a Bayesian reinforcement learning approach, which balances the exploration-exploitation trade-off. We evaluate the effectiveness of the method by using a prototype assistant system for a map application. The evaluation with older (60+) novice users showed positive results. The performance of the prototype system and the potential for further application is discussed.


Researchers are continuously seeking to develop and improve the stock forecasting models by analyzing the past value of a company and predicting future performance based on past data trends. Many previous studies of technical analyses of stocks have focused heavily on forecasting a single stock price based on its own past data. This type of analysis is susceptible to stock market volatility and not very effective for intraday trading. In addition, it is difficult to apply a method used for a particular stock market sector to other market sectors. In this study, we present a cross-correlation-based forecasting model using sets of closely related stocks to forecast future stock performance. For highly correlated pairs with a time delay of K days, the two stocks are assumed to exhibit a similar pattern in the short term—that is, predicting stock B's price based on stock A's price will reflect stock A's future performance K days earlier. The forecasting model generates a buy or sell signal depending on the performance of one stock that influences the other stock with the lag. The accuracy of the developed model is measured using US stocks from the energy sector, which is more volatile than other indexes (i.e., S&P 500), and the technology sector. The proposed model accurately forecasts outcomes 87.2% of the time and generates 3.2% profit per dollar over the span of the 47-day forecast interval. This result shows that the developed forecasting model is ideal for high-risk, high-return investments.


STUDY DESIGN
Prospective cohort.

OBJECTIVE
To investigate fear-avoidance beliefs across different anatomical regions for patients with musculoskeletal pain.

BACKGROUND
Fear-avoidance beliefs were first widely studied in patients with low back pain. The early results of studies involving patients with cervical spine, knee, and shoulder disorders suggest that fear-avoidance beliefs have the potential to influence pain and function in different anatomical regions. However, very few prospective studies of fear-avoidance beliefs involve multiple anatomical regions.

METHODS
The sample of this study consisted of 313 patients (mean age, 45.5 years; 115 males, 198 females) seeking outpatient physical therapy for cervical spine (n = 63), upper extremity (n = 58), lumbar spine (n = 79), or lower extremity (n = 113) complaints. During the intake session, patients completed the Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire physical activity scale (FABQ-PA), modified for the appropriate anatomical location. Patients also rated pain intensity and function on the Therapeutic Associates Outcomes System (TAOS) Functional Index at intake and discharge. The collection of treatment-related parameters included the number of visits, calendar days of physical therapy, and treatment received. FABQ-PA scores were compared across anatomical regions. Elevated FABQ-PA scores and anatomical regions were also investigated for association with intake pain and function, clinical outcomes, and treatment utility parameters.

RESULTS
Similar FABQ-PA levels were observed across the 4 anatomical regions (P>.05). Number of visits, calendar days of physical therapy, and treatment received did not differ between elevated and lower fear-avoidance belief levels (P>.05). Findings for pain intensity and function were similar for each anatomical region. Patients with elevated fear-avoidance beliefs had higher intake scores (P<.05), larger improvements (P<.05), but similar discharge scores (P>.05), compared to those with lower fear-avoidance beliefs.

CONCLUSION
These data suggest that, in patients with cervical, upper extremity, lumbar, or lower extremity complaints, fear-avoidance beliefs may have a similar influence on intake and change scores for pain intensity and function. General assessment of fear-avoidance beliefs using the FABQ-PA, especially to predict change scores, may be appropriate for use in patients with various musculoskeletal pain conditions.


For oscillator-like systems, connected with the Laguerre, Legendre and Chebyshev polynomials, coherent states of Glauber-Barut-Girardello type are defined. The suggested construction can be applied to each system of orthogonal polynomials including classical ones as well as deformed ones.


Fiji is undergoing rapid urbanization. Over fifty percent of Fiji's population has moved from traditional villages to the city. Changes in lifestyle associated with urbanization bring challenges to traditional Fijian values and ways of life. The occurrence of menarche ceremonies in Fiji is a lens by which to explore the implications of these social changes on Fijian women. Inductive interviews with sixteen Fijian women reveal that birth order, proximity to home villages, and maternal agency are three general factors that determine the occurrence of menarche ceremonies. Education is also identified as an impacting force on first menstruation events in Fiji, and reinforces the social changes occurring with urbanization in Fiji.


Water is an essential commodity for all living things. It is an inorganic compound that can exist in solid, liquid and gaseous state under normal condition. The quality of any water body depends on certain factors such as the absence and or very neglectable amount of Total Heterotrophic bacteria count, heavy metal including physicochemical parameters among others. This study was carried during the dry season of 2021, and accounts for groundwater, surface and well water in Abuloma, Borikiri, Eagle-Island, Fimie, Macoba-Isaka, Ruekini and Rumuokoro respectively. Water samples were collected in 10ml sterile containers and labeled appropriately. Sample for the River was collected at the pelegial level stoppered while submerged. Sample from the boreholes and hand-dogged wells were collected in line with the American Public Health Association (APHA, 2107). The samples for the determination of heavy metal contents were fixed with 2 drops of concentrated trioxonitrate (V) acid (HNO3) while that for microbial analysis were preserved in ice chests to inhibit the activity of microbes and were sent to the laboratory for further analysis. Results indicated that the nutrients (NO3-, SO43- and PO42-) values appeared insignificant (i.e., values are within the acceptable levels) when compared with European Union guidelines for water consumption except PO42- for well water at Rumuekini and Rumuokoro respectively. The THBC factor was high in Abuloma for all the nutrients in surface water. Also, in well water, at Eagle-Island, Pb appeared elevated above the European Union standard for drinking water quality. Thus, it is recommended that well water from Eagle-Island be treated (i.e., the removal of Pb) to ensure it quality and safety for human consumption.


The thesis consists of five self-contained essays in Labour Economics and Econometrics.Essay I examines the potential effects of altered payroll taxes on unemployment by using a general equilibrium model with wage bargaining and two groups of labour: skilled and unskilled. The results within the framework of the paper are not very encouraging, though. Differentiated or generally lowered payroll taxes cannot be expected to provide relief for the unemployed unskilled. However, increasing the progressiveness of the payroll tax could induce positive effects through wage moderation. This policy is however likely to have adverse effects on skill formation, a problem which is addressed by modelling individuals' choices of education explicitly.Essay II (with Sara Lindberg) investigates the potential influence of financial leverage on the intertemporal hiring decisions of firms. Using the hierarchy of finance approach to corporate finance, we derive the Euler equation of employment in the presence of convex adjustment costs. We show the empirical implications for the Euler equation of firms facing a hierarchy of financial costs, and estimate a linearised version thereof using a large panel of Swedish manufacturing firms over the period 1979-88. To alleviate some of the estimation problems involved we make use of recently suggested bootstrap methods. Our empirical findings indicate that the influence of financial leverage on firms' hiring decisions differs significantly between firms in different financial regimes.In Essay III (with Matz Dahlberg and Eva Johansson) we investigate the determinants of municipal labour demand in Sweden 19881995. Utilising a major grant reform in 1993, through which a switch from mainly targeted to mainly general central government grants occurred, we are able to identify which type of grants that have the largest effects on municipal employment. We find a larger municipal employment elasticity with respect to grants before the reform, implying that the more freedom given to the municipalities, the less they seem inclined to spend on municipal employment.It is a well known property that standard GMM estimators for dynamic panel data might perform poorly in small samples. The aim of Essay IV (with Matz Dahlberg and Eva Johansson) and Essay V is to compare how two recently suggested bootstrap procedures can assist inference in dynamic panel data models, when the mentioned small-sample bias is a potential problem. We do this by means of Monte Carlo experiments, forming tests using both standard errors estimated by asymptotic approximations, as well as by bootstrap procedures. The results give a fairly clear support for using bootstrap inference. Whereas the tests based on asymptotics have empirical levels that may deviate substantially from their nominal ones, the bootstrap procedures appear to perform quite well in the context of dynamic panel data estimation.


Calvin has written extensively on prayer, not only in his Institutes, but also in his commentaries, sermons and letters. His views in this regard have been reflected in a substantial number of publications by various Calvin scholars. This article particularly researches his views on God's answering of prayer, on which relatively little has been published yet. Some of Calvin's views in this regard may be debatable — for instance his huge and often repeated emphasis on repentance as primary element of prayer, and his view that in delaying his answer to our prayers God is exercising us in patience. On the other hand he has said much that may currently be of significant importance for theology, and particularly for the pastoral care of the faithful in their search for understanding the ways of God.


Two acceptor–donor–acceptor (A–D–A)-type oligomers 1 and 2 comprising dithieno[3,2-b:2′,3′-d]pyrrole as a central unit and dicyanovinylene (DCV) or 1,3-indanedione as terminal acceptor groups have been synthesized for use as a donor in a solution-processed bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) solar cell in combination with [6,6]-phenyl-C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) as an acceptor. By employing PEDOT:PSS as a HTL and two-step annealing treatment i.e. thermal annealing followed by solvent vapor annealing (TSA) of the active layer the power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) were significantly improved from 3.72% to 6.95% for 1 and 4.18% to 7.54% for 2. The improvement of the PCE was mainly due to the increase in JSC and FF values which can be attributed to the re-organization of the donor material within the blend leading to balanced charge transport and improved crystallinity of the donor in the active layer. The influence of TSA on the degree of crystallinity and blend morphology was investigated by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). When PEDOT:PSS was replaced by CuSCN as the HTL, a further enhancement of the photovoltaic parameters is realized leading to an increase in the PCE to 7.63% for 1 and 8.22% for 2. These results not only provide important insight into the influence of the two-step annealing process on molecular packing and charge transport properties, but also reveal the significance of CuSCN as the HTL on the device performance of tailored molecular materials.


Epilepsy remains a major medical problem of unknown aetiology. Potentially, viruses can be environmental triggers for development of seizures in genetically vulnerable individuals. An estimated half of encephalitis patients experience seizures and approximately 4% develop status epilepticus. Epilepsy vulnerability has been associated with a dynorphin promoter region polymorphism or low dynorphin expression genotype, in man. In animals, the dynorphin system in the hippocampus is known to regulate excitability. The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that reduced dynorphin expression in the dentate gyrus of hippocampus due to periadolescent virus exposure leads to epileptic responses. Encephalitis produced by the neurotropic Borna disease virus in the rat caused epileptic responses and dynorphin to disappear via dentate granule cell loss, failed neurogenesis and poor survival of new neurons. Kappa opioid (dynorphin) agonists prevented the behavioural and electroencephalographic seizures produced by convulsant compounds, and these effects were associated with an absence of dynorphin from the dentate gyrus granule cell layer and upregulation of enkephalin in CA1 interneurons, thus reproducing a neurochemical marker of epilepsy, namely low dynorphin tone. A key role for kappa opioids in anticonvulsant protection provides a framework for exploration of viral and other insults that increase seizure vulnerability and may provide insights into potential interventions for treatment of epilepsy.


To circumvent the intractable disadvantages of a hyper-cross-linked strategy based on the Friedel–Crafts reaction, a new type of microporous organic polymer (MOP) has been successfully prepared using fumaronitrile and divinylbenzene via alternating radical polymerization. The obtained MOPs exhibit a maximum surface area of 805 m2 g−1 and excellent thermochemical stability. By pyrolyzing the copolymer precursor, a rich nitrogen-doped porous carbon material can be produced, which possesses a specific surface area of 1450 m2 g−1 with a CO2 uptake of 30 wt% at 273 K. The porous carbon also shows a high specific capacitance of 330 F g−1 at a current density of 1.0 A g−1 and a good cycling stability of 96.8% retention after 8000 cycles in a three electrode system. The unique synthesis strategy inspires researchers to seek novel building blocks for the scaled-up preparation of MOPs and the resulting porous carbon has promising application for gas adsorption and energy storage.


As communication networks increase in performance and complexity, and more dependence is placed upon them, it becomes ever more important that their behaviour is understood in an efficient and timely manner. Visualisation is an established technique for the presentation of the vast volume of data yielded in monitoring such networks. It is apparent, however, that much of the work in this area has been performed in isolation, and it is timely that a review of this research is conducted. The techniques for the visualisation of communication networks and related measurements are surveyed. The research is classified by the type of visualisation used and is separated into three classes: geographic visualisations, in which the data are presented with respect to the physical location of nodes in the network; abstract topological visualisations, in which the relationships between nodes are presented independently of physical location; and plot-based visualisation, in which the focus is a single point in the network, often presented with respect to time. The research in this area is reviewed and the techniques proposed are discussed in terms of these three classes.


The laser-induced ripple structure of dye-doped liquid crystals has been investigated with the various polarization of pump beam. The process of laser-induced ripple structure involves two stages, the dye adsorption on substrate and the ripple structure formation. According to the dynamic measurement, the maximum intensity of transmission was due to the twisted nematic configuration induced by homogeneous dye adsorption on the command surface and the decay of transmission was due to the gradual formation of ripple structure. From the observations of atomic force microscopy (AFM), the directions of ripple structure were formed parallel to the polarization of linear polarized pump beam or the elliptical long axis of elliptically polarized pump beam.


252,806 research on a series of the epidemiological trends in the gender and age-specific adjusted CMR among Korean adults with the Objective: The purpose of this paper is to estimate the epidemiological trends in the gender and age-specific adjusted crude mortality rate (CMR) among Korean adults with diabetes mellitus (DM) by the International Classification of Diseases (Codes of ICD: E10-E14) in the last half-decade between 2011 and 2015. Methods: Raw data analyzed in this study were obtained from the website of "the Crude Mortality of Diabetes" of Annual Report on the Cause of Death Statistic between 2011 and 2015 managed by the Korea Statistics Promotion Institute (KSPI). Results: There were a total of 10,793 nationwide fatal-cases (FCs) of DM with a CMR of 21.3 per 100,000 populations in 2011, while there were a total of 10,558 FCs with a CMR of 20.5 in 2015; the CMR of DM decreased in 2015 since 2011 (p<0.01). The male to female mortality ratio (MFMR) was similar between 2011 and 2015. The distribution of the CMR with DM by age adjusted groups under the 69-year-old groups in 2011 decreased in 2015 (p<0.01). However, the age group of over 70-year-old clearly showed higher occurrences in 2015 (p<0.01). Trends in FCs and CMR of DM by gender were compared with respect to the 10 key classification of ICD (E10-E14) among men between 2011 and 2015 as follows; DM with ketoacidosis, and renal complications increased in 2015 since 2011, while DM with neurological multiple and unspecified complications decreased (p<0.01). During the same period among women, DM with coma renal complications increased in 2015 than those in 2011, while DM with neurological and multiple complications decreased, respectively (p<0.01). On the other hand, trends in the age adjusted CMR among adults with DM by the ICD in less than 49 (30-49) year-old age groups between 2011 and 2015; DM with multiple complication was decreased in 2015 than that in 2011 (p<0.01), while in over 50 year-old age groups; DM with ketoacidosis, renal, peripheral, other specified, and unspecified complications were statistically significantly increased from 2011 to 2015 (p<0.05 ∼ p<0.01). Conclusion: DM is one of the most severe and relatively common chronic diseases in worldwide including Korea. The number of elderly FCs with a CMR of DM is overwhelmingly increasing in Korea as well as in westernized countries. It is necessary for us to care for the elderly who have DM in order to maintain their function and quality of life.


This review article summarizes clinical data on adjuvant long-term oral anticoagulation therapy (OAC) of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). It analyzes the underlying risk model of oral anticoagulation. Definitions of runoff patterns, of major and minor bleeding complications, of predictors of major bleedings as well as a classification of patient risk groups are described. The indication for OAC treatment of chronic limb ischemia remains still due to an individual decision. Clinical decision making is facilitated by the risk model. Improved oral anticoagulation control results in fewer bleeding complications. Studies on patient weekly self-testing and self-dosing which support this hypothesis are reviewed in the context of adjuvant OAC therapy.


Abstract Due to the wide-spread consumption of Western media, by the beginning of the 1980s also Punk had its followers among youths and adults in the GDR. However, this sub-culture as well as its later manifestations in the course of the 1980s developed under completely different auspices than in the West. The years up to the mid-1980s were completely characterized by persecution by State Security, whereas the second half of the decade was characterized by compromises and attempts at integration. Now, under the label of "the other bands", this recently persecuted music was heard on state radio and was funded and supported by the FDJ. The article sketches the development and asks about essential actors and discourses.


Rats were conditioned to avoid shock on a free-operant avoidance schedule in which no exteroceptive stimulus signaled impending shock. Injections of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) or dexamethasone raised blood levels of glucocorticoids. These increases were accompanied by changes in avoidance performance: there was a higher frequency of long-duration interresponse times, a greater stability among them, and fewer short interresponse times, total responses, and shocks.


This study assessed the accessibility to nutrition education sources and level of knowledge on soya bean products as alternative/cheap source of protein by rural women. Multistage sampling procedure was utilized in selecting 234 respondents in the study area. Interview schedule and focus group discussion was used to collect information from the rural women. Data was analysed through descriptive statistics (percentages, frequencies and means) and inferential statistics (Analysis of variance). The results showed that the women had access to nutrition education on soya beans mostly through; family and friends (x̅= 0.82), local health centres (x̅= 0.78), radio (x̅= 0.80) and television (x̅= 0.71) programmes. The women had overall 'below average' knowledge on the products. There was no significant difference in the knowledge scores of the women across the three products (soya milk, iru and cake) (F= 0.167, p≥ 0.05). The result of the bivariate analysis indicated that local health centres (P = 0.035) and Women in Agriculture (P = 0.019) were nutrition education sources whose accessibility had significant relationship with the level of soya bean product knowledge of the rural women. There is urgent need for aggressive campaign on soya product nutrition education programme in order to increase the knowledge on this important and cheap protein source.


Over the past 50 yr, direct observations of the inlet status (open or closed) of San Dieguito Lagoon, a typical southern California lagoon located in Del Mar, California, have shown that river flooding is the major natural determinant of inlet conditions on time scales longer than a few years. River flooding is strongly dependent on rainfall in the San Dieguito River watershed and on the influences of two water storage reservoirs in the area. Rainfall fluctuates on yearly and longer time scales and undergoes cycles of wet and dry periods. Over short time periods, ranging from a few months to several years, inlet status is primarily determined by the available tidal prism and littoral sand transport. Recognition of these factors is crucial in order to correctly evaluate the probability that a small lagoon will remain open naturally. A probability approach is essential because the variables controlling inlet conditions are random in nature. The results of our study show that the inlet will remain open naturally 34% of the time. The tendency to remain open is vastly smaller during years of dry weather (12%) versus times of above-average rainfall (66%).


A detailed study is presented in which the CD-MUSIC modeling approach is used in a new modeling approach that can describe the binding of large organic molecules by metal (hydr)oxides taking the full speciation of the adsorbed molecule into account. Batch equilibration experiments were performed using the iron (hydr)oxide goethite to determine the adsorption of a series of weak organic acids (e.g. lactic acid, oxalic acid, malonic acid, phthalic acid, citric acid, and fulvic acid). In order to develop the new modeling approach, the binding of weak organic acids with a well-defined structure and charging behavior is first described using the classical CD-MUSIC model approach. The adsorption can be described accurately with a limited number of surface species, which differ in the degree of protonation and in the number of inner sphere and outer sphere complexes formed between the reactive groups of the organic molecule and the oxide surface. For the formation of inner and outer sphere complexes, a constant distribution of charge over the solid/water interface is assumed. With the same charge distribution for inner and outer sphere complexes, the adsorption of FA is described with the CD-MUSIC model using a small set of discrete surface species. This approach is not fully satisfactory since it does not take the full speciation of the adsorbed weak organic acids into account as can be inferred from spectroscopic data. In order to take the full possible speciation of the adsorbed organic molecule into account, a new model concept was developed. In the ligand and charge distribution (LCD) model concept, the number of inner sphere, outer sphere and proton complexes of the reactive groups of one adsorbed organic molecule is calculated using the NICCA equation. From the resulting speciation of the adsorbed molecule, the main input parameters of the CD-MUSIC model are obtained. The new model concept is successfully tested on the adsorption and infrared data of benzenecarboxylic acid adsorption on goethite by Boily et al. (2000a,b). The LCD model was extended for the surface complexation of the phenolic groups in order to describe the previously determined data of FA adsorption by goethite. Simultaneously, the concentration, pH, and salt dependency of the FA adsorption are described well. Furthermore, the co-adsorption of protons upon the adsorption of FA by goethite is predicted accurately. The developed model approach offers new insights in the fundamental understanding of ion adsorption under natural conditions.


SARS-CoV2 is a single strand RNA virus member of the type 2 coronavirus family, responsible for causing COVID-19 disease in humans. The objective of this study was to test the ivermectin drug in a murine model of coronavirus infection using a type 2 family RNA coronavirus similar to SARS-CoV2, the mouse hepatitis virus (MHV). BALB/cJ female mice were infected with 6,000 PFU of MHV-A59 (Group Infected; n=20) and immediately treated with one single dose of 500 μg/kg of ivermectin (Group Infected + IVM; n=20), or were not infected and treated with PBS (Control group; n=16). Five days after infection/treatment, mice were euthanized to obtain different tissues to check general health status and infection levels. Overall results demonstrated that viral infection induces the typical MHV disease in infected animals, with livers showing severe hepatocellular necrosis surrounded by a severe lymphoplasmacytic inflammatory infiltration associated with a high hepatic viral load (52,158 AU), while ivermectin administration showed a better health status with lower viral load (23,192 AU; p<0.05) and few livers with histopathological damage (p<0.05), not showing statistical differences with control mice (P=NS). Furthermore, serum transaminase levels (aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase) were significantly lower in treated mice compared to infected animals. In conclusion, ivermectin seems to be effective to diminish MHV viral load and disease in mice, being a useful model for further understanding new therapies against coronavirus diseases.


This paper looks at a recent phenomenon on the Internet referred to as the Mandela Effect, which states that small details from the past have been changed, altered, and edited to create a parallel universe. The reasons for the Mandela Effect becoming such a popular conspiracy theory and Internet meme shed light on our contemporary technoscience culture and the influence of advanced information technology on human cognition, memory, and belief. This phenomenon involves aspects familiar to esotericism, since both conspiracy theories and esoteric knowledge cohabit the same marginalized cultural space, sometimes referred to as the "cultic milieu." In fact, the Mandela Effect signals a possible transformation of this space. The recent ideas from tech author and founding editor of  Wired  magazine, Kevin Kelly, as well as memory research by experimental psychologist Endel Tulving, illustrate potential factors behind conspiratorial creations and the reshaping of underground culture. This article seeks to bring the Mandela Effect to the attention of scholars by highlighting the web of relationships embedded in the phenomenon, as well as the implications for historical consciousness and the construction of conspiratorial worldviews.


We have studied the effect of Mg deficiency on both tissue mineral content and liver oxidative status. Male Wistar rats kept for eight weeks on a Mg-deficient diet (Mg 152ppm) quickly developed a severe plasma Mg deficiency (73% decrease). The content of Cu and Fe significantly increased in different tissues following the treatment. Liver glutathione, CuZn-superoxide dismutase, and vitamin E were significantly reduced (by about 16%, 18% and 30% respectively). Lipid peroxidation, induced in vitro by NADPH/ADP-Fe3+ and measured as MDA formation, increased by about 100% after 20 min incubation in liver microsomes isolated from Mg-deprived rats. The alterations found in the content of transition metals and in the level of both cytosolic and membrane antioxidants, as well as the higher sensitivity of liver microsomes to lipid peroxidation in vitro, are consistent with an oxidative stress occurring in vivo in the tissues of Mg-deficient animals.


Using a modified Khan and Watts (2009) method, we find that accounting conservatism in years during which seasoned equity offerings (SEOs) occur is significantly lower than that in the same issuers' pre-SEO periods or that for non-SEO issuers. The finding is robust to alternative conservatism measures based on the Basu (1997) method and the cumulative previous accruals method. The degree of conservatism and its changes around the time of SEOs are negatively associated with levels of governance and information asymmetry, consistent with the findings of prior studies. Issuers with low conservatism experience less underpricing, suggesting that investors naively extrapolate the effect of low conservatism on earnings. The level of conservatism during the year of an equity offering is negatively associated with post-SEO operating and stock return performance, indicating that SEO issuers with conservative accounting policies are likely to experience underperformance in the post-issue period. Our work adds to the literature by demonstrating that companies opportunistically manage levels of conservatism at the time of SEOs.


Understanding seasonal cycles of viruses originating in wildlife can provide insight into their likelihood of persistence in animal populations and inform policies to limit spillover to human populations. Avian influenza virus (AIV) is an important zoonotic agent causing seasonal occurrence of avian influenza (AI) in wild birds in temperate areas. Although the seasonality of AIV transmission in tropical birds is largely unknown, peaks of influenza activity in human populations in the tropics coincide with the rainy season. To assess the seasonality of AI in tropical birds, from 2010-14, we sampled 40,099 birds at 32 sites in Central Africa (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo-Brazzaville, and Gabon) and West Africa (Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, and Togo). Although AIV was not isolated by egg culture, in Central Africa, detection rates by real-time RT-PCR were 3.57% for passerine songbirds and 8.74% for Anatid ducks. RT-PCR positivity in resident birds increased when Palearctic migrants arrived in Central Africa. At sampling sites with two annual wet seasons, the positive rate in wild birds was greatest during the big rainy season in September – October. This study provides the first evidence that AI is present in Central African birds and identifies environmental factors associated with cases.


Seismic images from a 250 km Lithoprobe reflection profile in the interior of the eastern Grenville province provide important new constraints on the crustal architecture of this part of the orogen. Prominent upper-crustal reflections can be correlated with exposures of high-pressure metamorphic rocks in the Manicouagan shear belt, providing the first direct evidence for eclogite reflectivity in the Grenville province. The eclogites are cut by major late Grenvillian normal faults that penetrate the deep crust and preserve evidence of extensional collapse of the overthickened orogen. North-to-south crustal thinning, indicated by a change in Moho reflection time from 16 to 13 s, correlates well with regional Bouguer gravity trends and is accompanied by a dramatic increase in the reflectivity of the lower crust. These features underscore the significance of recently recognized along-strike variations in tectonic style within the Grenville province and point to the internal complexity that characterizes the root zones of collisional orogens.


The Ti-Zr-Ni quasicrystal alloys have prospected to be one of the promising materials for hydrogen storage. This is because this type of quasicrystal contains 140 interstitial sites (T-sites) constituted in the Bergman Cluster that could accommodate hydrogen. The number of available sites is far greater than the number found in regular crystals, therefore the improvement of hydrogen storage capacity could be expected. For this study, we focus on the effect of substitution of Cr, in place of Ni in Ti-Zr-Ni amorphous and quasicrystal alloys. The studied samples are synthesized by the combination of mechanical alloying and sintering process. The subsequent measurements of electrochemical hydrogenation and dehydrogenation are carried out by a three-electrode cell at room temperature. The studied samples are structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction and their morphology is analyzed by scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope. The influence of the 4^th substituted element on the possibility of a new-formed Cr quasicrystalline phase and the potential improvement of hydrogenation and dehydrogenation kinetics for both amorphous and quasicrystalline phase is evaluated. Our measurements showed the maximum discharge capacity achieved by Ti_45Zr_38Ni_7Cr_10 amorphous and Ti_45Zr_38Ni_12Cr_5 i-phase electrodes at a current density of 15 mA•g^-1 to be 9.8 mAh•g^-1and 55.2 mAh•g^-1 respectively. The maximum estimated H/M value for the Ti_45Zr_38Ni_12Cr_5 i-phase electrode reached 1.36. These results are encouraging and show the merit of the usage of quasicrystals as hydrogen storage materials.


Background One-lung ventilation (OLV)-associated hypoxemia is a major concern and a challenge for the anesthesiologist. Lung recruitment maneuvers (RMs) are ventilator strategies in which the main goal is to restore the functional residual capacity and improve arterial oxygenation. Hemodynamic side effects are mainly associated with 'fast' RM not with 'slow' cycling RM and their effects are self-limited; therefore, they must be performed repetitively. Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of single versus repeated stepwise cycling RMs during OLV in patients with normal lung function. Settings and design The study design is a randomized, double-blinded, controlled one. Patients and methods Sixty adult patients of ASA I–II who were scheduled for elective thoracoscopic lung surgery were randomized into groups C, single recruitment maneuver (SRM), and repeated recruitment maneuver (RRM) comprising 20 patients each. Group C patients received standard ventilation protocol: volume-controlled ventilation mode, VT 6 ml/kg, I : E ratio 1 : 2, positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) 5 cmH2O, and respiratory rate 10–12 breaths/min. SRM patients received standard ventilation protocol with one alveolar RM 10 min after initiation of OLV with a PEEP of 10 cmH2O until end of surgery. RRM patients received standard ventilation protocol with first RM 10 min after initiation of OLV and then repeated every 30 min during OLV and a PEEP of 10 cmH2O until end of surgery. The following were assessed: hemodynamic parameters – heart rate, mean arterial blood pressure, and central venous pressure; respiratory mechanical parameters – peak airway pressure (Paw-peak), plateau pressure (Paw-plat), and static lung compliance; and oxygenation parameters – partial arterial oxygen tension (PaO2), PaO2/FiO2, and oxygen saturation (SpO2). Results PaO2 and PaO2/FiO2 ratio increased in the SRM and RRM groups after RM from T2 (10 min after first RM) to T4 (45 min from first RM), with a significant difference compared with group C (P<0.05). Peak and plateau airway pressures declined in the SRM and RRM groups after RM from T2 to T4, with a significant difference when compared with group C (P<0.05). Static lung compliance increased in the SRM and RRM groups after RM, with a significant difference among the groups (P<0.05). Conclusion Single or repeated cycling RM was considered effective with high safety profile in patients with normal pulmonary function undergoing thoracoscopic lung surgery using OLV.


OBJECTIVE
This study examined the relationship between initiation of outpatient mental health service use and level of child welfare involvement.

METHODS
Three levels of child welfare involvement were examined: in-home care and no child welfare services beyond an initial investigation, in-home care and additional child welfare services, and placement in out-of-home care (foster care). Longitudinal data were collected for a subsample of children (N=3,592) aged two through 14 years who were enrolled in the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, a nationally representative sample of children undergoing investigation for abuse or neglect. Event history analysis was used to model relative risk of initiation of mental health service use over time.

RESULTS
Hazard functions revealed a large increase in onset of mental health services immediately after the time of the initial contact with child welfare, varying by level of child welfare involvement and leveling off by three months after the initial contact. The multivariate Cox proportional-hazards model indicated that compared with children who were placed in out-of-home care, those in in-home care who did not receive any further child welfare services were about one-third as likely to use mental health services and those in in-home care who received additional child welfare services were one-half as likely to use mental health services. Other covariates in the model predicted mental health service use, including being older, being Caucasian, having a history of maltreatment (specifically, physical abuse, physical neglect, or abandonment), being uninsured, and need for mental health services, as measured by the Child Behavior Checklist.

CONCLUSIONS
Contact with child welfare functions as a gateway into mental health services for children in child welfare, even when need for such services is controlled for.


Research goals Platelets are reactive cells with the main function to maintain blood vessel integrity. Altered platelet function can lead to cardiovascular diseases such as thrombosis or bleeding disorders and platelets can also play a role in atherosclerosis. Current methods to quantify platelet function are laboratory techniques such as flow cytometry, aggregometry or luminescent assays. However, these techniques are complex and time consuming. Therefore we are interested in novel methods suited for future application in a lab-on-a-chip format. In our research we have focused on the use of well-established biomarkers, such as membrane marker expression, cytosolic calcium signaling and secretion markers, to quantify platelet activation as well as responsiveness. We report studies on platelet function using these read-out parameters and we discuss the relevance of the results for lab-on-a-chip biosensor research. Measurement of platelet membrane markers using antibody coated magnetic beads Magnetic beads are convenient carriers for rapid capture and manipulation of biological cells in a miniaturized system. We have studied the use of antibody coated magnetic beads to measure platelet function via membrane markers expressed upon activation. We used anti-P-selectin coated beads to capture activated platelets from samples stimulated with Thrombin Receptor Activator Peptide (TRAP). The responsiveness of the platelets was analyzed via the remaining unbound platelets in solution and compared to a reference method in which the number of activated platelets is analyzed via fluorescent labeling. The effective concentration for platelet responsiveness found with the bead capture assay (17.9 ± 4.9 µM) was in good agreement with the effective concentration found with the reference assay (23.5 ± 0.4 µM) in buffer. In 10% plasma the effective concentrations were 14.0 ± 4.4 µM and 13.8 ± 0.3 µM respectively, proving that platelet responsiveness can be quantified using antibody coated magnetic beads. In addition, we showed that we were able to discriminate between non-specific and specific interactions between functionalized beads and immobilized platelet with the use of magnetic actuation. The demonstrated read-out method is an interesting first step toward a lab-on-a-chip system for platelet function testing. Measurement of calcium signaling to study platelet-surface interactions Most lab-on-chip biosensor concepts are based on the use of a substrate for immobilization and subsequent detection of the biological system of interest. So for lab-on-chip platelet function testing it is important to understand the influence that a substrate can have on the platelets. We studied the interaction between platelets and various surfaces with calcium signaling in platelets. We used a calcium indicator and studied the response of individual platelets upon adhesion to Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA), Poly-L-lysine (PLL), mouse immunoglobulin (IgG), anti-GPIb and collagen coated surfaces. We recorded the fraction of cells that increase their cytosolic calcium upon binding to these surfaces. Furthermore, we recorded the delay time between the moments of platelet adhesion or chemical stimulation and the increase of cytosolic calcium. The experiments showed binding of platelets to PLL, IgG, anti-GP1b and collagen, but not to BSA coated surfaces. We found that under static conditions the number of cells that respond upon binding to an IgG coated surface (40 ± 7 % with Fc-receptor blocker; 41 ± 6 % without Fcreceptor blocker) was the lowest, followed by adhesion on a PLL coated surface (74 ± 7 %). On an anti-GPIb (88 ± 3 %) or a collagen coated surface (89 ± 4 %), the percentage of responding cells was similar. In addition, we found that the percentage of responding immobilized cells on a chemical stimulus was the lowest on anti-GPIb (7 ± 4 %) or collagen (6 ± 4 %), followed by an IgG coated surface with Fc-receptor blocker (39 ± 3 %) or without Fc-receptor blocker (35 ± 2 %). The percentage of cells responding to chemical stimulation was the highest on a BSA coated surface (95 ± 4 %). These measurements showed that there is a negative correlation between the percentage of cells that respond upon binding and that respond to chemical stimulation after binding. The delay times found upon binding ranged from 11 ± 8 s for platelets on PLL, followed by an anti-GPIb (29 ± 19 s) or collagen (24 ± 21 s) coated surface, and IgG coated surfaces with Fc-receptor blocker (62 ± 19 s) and without Fc-receptor blocker (51 ± 26 s). The delay times recorded on chemical stimulation were probably not sensitive enough to measure the physiological processes in adhered platelets. From the data we conclude that BSA is the most quiescent surface for platelet immobilization, while an anti-GPIb coated surface showed to be as thrombogenic as a collagen coated surface. Our experiments demonstrate that the analysis of the responding cells upon binding and chemical stimulation can discriminate between different types of platelet-surface interactions. We expect that the discrimination can be further improved e.g. by automated data processing. In conclusion, we find that the measurement of the responding fraction and the response delay time by calcium signaling are convenient methods to study the time-dependent interaction of platelets with surfaces relevant for lab-on-chip applications. Measurement of exocytosis to study platelet-surface interactions In our second approach to investigate the interaction between platelets and surfaces, we have studied the secretion process of dense granules of a cell ensemble, as well as single cell exocytosis. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) secretion was quantified by the luminescent luciferin/luciferase reaction. Platelets were allowed to interact with BSA, PLL, mouse IgG and anti-GPIb coated surfaces, and after incubation the amount of secreted ATP was analyzed. The baseline signal was given by ATP secretion from resting platelets in suspension. ATP levels secreted from platelets immobilized on BSA were approximately 2 times as high as the baseline. The immobilization of platelets on PLL showed about 4 times baseline ATP concentrations. On IgG as well as anti-GPIb the maximum amount of ATP was secreted after 1 hour of platelet incubation. Again, we can conclude that the most quiescent surface for platelet immobilization is BSA, followed by PLL, mouse IgG and anti-GPIb. We have also studied the immobilization of the enzyme luciferase on a surface, in order to enable the detection of ATP direct at a surface. We have demonstrated that luciferase adsorbed onto PLL is indeed active and generates luminescence in the presence of ATP. However, the assay still has a low sensitivity and needs further optimization. Finally, we have investigated an exploratory method to resolve exocytosis in single platelet cells, using the fluorescent staining of the dense granules by the quinacrine dye. In our experiments we have observed that the exocytosis events are induced by the fluorescence excitation light. Very probably this is caused by the production of reactive oxygen, which disintegrates the vesicle membrane thereby releasing the vesicle content. Further studies may focus on the use of lower quinacrine concentrations, the use of lower light intensities, or on ways to scavenge reactive oxygen. It will be interesting to further develop the exocytosis assay, as a quantitative method for research on biosensor assays and surfaces suitable for biosensor applications. Conclusions and outlook The scope of the research presented in this thesis was to develop knowledge to support future technological developments, aiming at the measurement of platelet activation or responsiveness in a lab-on-chip device. We found that magnetic particles functionalized with specific antibodies can be used to measure platelet responsiveness. We have also studied the interaction of platelet with different surfaces, by an intracellular calcium signaling assay and by an ATP exocytosis assay using luciferin/luciferase. The most quiescent surface for platelets was BSA, but this surface has a low binding affinity for platelets. Anti-GPIb and collagen coated surfaces show stronger binding, but these surfaces change the activation status of the platelets. In view of these results, we have proposed a new concept to measure platelet function in a lab-on- chip device, namely by labelling platelet activation markers prior to platelet immobilization on a surface. We envision that this design will enable the sensitive labelling of platelets as well as the accurate readout of the platelets at a detection surface in the lab-on-chip device.


Objective: Spasticity often initially presents to family physicians, however clinicians with spasticity management expertise can manage it best. The purpose of this study was to quantify family physician spasticity health literacy, as well as compare spasticity resource availability between rural and urban areas to determine whether these factors are barriers to patients accessing higher-level spasticity care. Methods: This study was a cross-sectional survey, mailed to 500 rural and 500 urban Ontario family physicians. Results: Out of 1000, 99 completed questionnaires were returned; 56 from rural and 43 from urban physicians. Only 23.7% respondents correctly identified the definition of spasticity, and 49.0% felt adequately trained to recognize spasticity. Urban family physicians reported significantly higher availability of spasticity resources (support groups, occupational therapy, and physicians and surgeons with expertise in managing spasticity) while rural family physicians reported significantly higher problems with the availability of spasticity resources (p<0.05). Discussion: This study found that family physicians have low spasticity health literacy. Also, spasticity resource availability is significantly higher for urban family physicians than rural ones. Ultimately, these factors may present a barrier to many patients affected by spasticity to accessing appropriate higher-level spasticity care.


This article presents the reflections of The Self-Study Group, a community of teacher educators and scholars. In this article, we utilize the theoretical framework of Bildung and the literary genre of Bildungsroman to explore the work of being a teacher educator. Drawing upon the results of a narrative self-study, we explore how, for individual teacher educators, the significance of teacher education stems from one's life story, including lived experiences from being a child, being a student, and being a teacher. We argue that the acts of authoring and telling of stories have the potential to illuminate the interconnected nature of the personal and the professional dimensions of teacher educator self-formation.


We consider an out-of-equilibrium one-dimensional model for two electrical double-layers. With a combination of exact calculations and Brownian dynamics simulations, we compute the relaxation time (τ) for an electroneutral salt-free suspension, made up of two fixed colloids, with N neutralizing mobile counterions. For N odd, the two double-layers never decouple, irrespective of their separation L; this is the regime of like-charge attraction, where τ exhibits a diffusive scaling in L 2 for large L. On the other hand, for even N, L no longer is the relevant length scale for setting the relaxation time; this role is played by the Bjerrum length. This leads to distinctly different dynamics: for N even, thermal effects are detrimental to relaxation, increasing τ, while they accelerate relaxation for N odd. Finally, we also show that the mean-field theory is recovered for large N and moreover, that it remains an operational treatment down to relatively small values of N (N > 3).


This thesis presents a reading of Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as a continuation of two separate literary traditions: the picaresque genre, and that of American journey narratives. It is focused on the literary aspects of Fear and Loathing a novel that has been treated for the most part as a work of journalism. Based on Thompson's own definition of Gonzo Journalism as being a hybrid form of journalism mixed with fiction, I have tried to shed light on the literariness of the novel. URI http://hdl.handle.net/1956/3081 Publisher The University of Bergen Collections English 207 Copyright the author. All rights reserved The author University of Bergen Library Contact Us | Send Feedback The Savage Journey Continues: Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as a Modern American Picaresque BORA  


Abstract The broad-scale assessment of natural resource conditions (e.g., rangeland health, restoration needs) requires knowledge of their spatial distribution. We argue that creating a database that links state-and-transition models (STMs) to spatial units is a valuable management tool for structuring ground-based observations, management planning for landscapes, and for housing information on the responses of land areas to management actions. To address this need, we introduce a multifactor classification system based on ecological sites and STMs that is directly linked to recent concepts of vegetation dynamics in rangelands. We describe how this classification was used as a basis for creating a spatial database and maps of ecological states. We provide an example of how the classification and mapping has been applied in over 1.2 million ha of public rangelands in southern New Mexico using aerial photo interpretation supplemented with existing inventory data and rapid field assessments. The resulting state map has been used by the Bureau of Land Management: 1) to design landscape-level shrub control efforts, 2) to structure and report district-wide rangeland health assessments, and 3) to evaluate locations for energy development. We conclude by discussing options for the development of state maps and their current limitations, including the use of satellite imagery and concepts for defining states. We argue that cataloging ecological states in a spatial context has clear benefits for rangeland managers because it connects STM concepts to specific land areas. State mapping provides a means to generate and store spatially explicit data resulting from tests of the propositions in STMs and conservation practices.


In the thesis we discuss Google App Engine (GAE) platform, which represents a platform as a service (PaaS). It is a service model of cloud computing, which enables development and deployment web applications on the same scalable systems that power Google applications. Platform GAE enables developers to develop and host web applications without the costs associated with the investments and management of the server infrastructure. GAE platform solves the problem of congestion in the existing system and achieves better utilization of computing resources compared to the traditional web applications development. With App Engine, we only pay for what we use. There are no set-up costs and no recurring fees. We only pay the actual consumption of processor cycles, bandwidth, operations on the database and storage used by web application. It is a better value for money compared to investing in additional hardware and software required for traditional web application development. To understand how application works on App Engine the thesis part of cloud computing introduces and describes architecture and structure of Google App Engine platform. Development and hosting of web applications are different from traditional kind, so we presented advantages and disadvantages of both ways. Because we wanted to examine GAE platform in practice we developed web application, which combines the supply chain management. The successful implementation of web application shows performance and the way how to develop web application in the environment designed for developing applications on Google App Engine platform.


When dealing with time series with complex non-stationarities, low retrospective regret on individual realizations is a more appropriate goal than low prospective risk in expectation. Online learning algorithms provide powerful guarantees of this form, and have often been proposed for use with non-stationary processes because of their ability to switch between different forecasters or ``experts''. However, existing methods assume that the set of experts whose forecasts are to be combined are all given at the start, which is not plausible when dealing with a genuinely historical or evolutionary system. We show how to modify the ``fixed shares'' algorithm for tracking the best expert to cope with a steadily growing set of experts, obtained by fitting new models to new data as it becomes available, and obtain regret bounds for the growing ensemble.


Route selection based on performance measurements is an essential task in inter-domain Traffic Engineering. It can benefit from the detection of significant changes in RTT measurements and the understanding on potential causes of change. Among the extensive works on change detection methods and their applications in various domains, few focus on RTT measurements. It is thus unclear which approach works the best on such data.In this paper, we present an evaluation framework for change detection on RTT times series, consisting of: 1) a carefully labelled 34,008-hour RTT dataset as ground truth;2) a scoring method specifically tailored for RTT measurements. Furthermore, we proposed a data transformation that improves the detection performance of existing methods.Path changes are as well attended to. We fix shortcomings of previous works by distinguishing path changes due to routing protocols (IGP and BGP) from those caused by load balancing.Finally, we apply our change detection methods to a large set of measurements from RIPE Atlas. The characteristics of both RTT and path changes are analyzed; the correlation between the two are also illustrated. We identify extremely frequent AS path changes yet with few consequences on RTT, which has not been reported before.


. Developing solution methods for mixed-integer bilevel problems is known to be a challenging task—even if all parameters of the problem are exactly known. Many real-world applications of bilevel optimization, however, involve data uncertainty due to some kind of bounded rationality. We study mixed-integer min-max problems with a follower who faces uncertainties regarding the parameters of the lower-level problem. Adopting a Γ -robust approach, we present an extended formulation and a multi-scenario formulation to model this type of problem. For both settings, we provide a generic branch-and-cut framework. Specifically, we investigate interdiction problems with a monotone Γ -robust follower and we derive problem-tailored cuts, which extend existing techniques that have been proposed for the deterministic case. For the Γ -robust knapsack interdiction problem, we computationally evaluate and compare the performance of the proposed algorithms for both modeling approaches.


This paper reports that the doped bi-layer organic light-emitting devices are fabricated by doping in different regions of the light-emitting layer, the admittance and luminance spectra to characterize the capacitance and luminance of the device are measured. Negative capacitance (NC) appeared at low frequencies when the doped devices are biased with high voltages. The measured phase difference between AC voltage applied across the device and AC current flowing through the device show that the device is inductive when NC appears.


Background Degenerative aortic stenosis (AS) is increasingly recognised and treated with valve replacement in the elderly. The advent of percutaneous aortic valve intervention (TAVI) has opened opportunities for treatment in patients who would have been turned down for surgery just a few years ago, with a commensurate increase in health care-associated costs. However, there is a relative lack of data regarding the prevalence of AS in this very group of older patients, which can make planning and delivery of a TAVI service difficult. Aim of the study We set out to investigate the prevalence of aortic valve abnormalities by performing echocardiography with a hand-held scanner in elderly patients attending a large GP surgery for non-cardiac reasons. We hypothesised that a strategy of echo screening for AV abnormalities in this population would have a high yield in detecting clinically relevant pathology. Methods One hundred consecutive patients aged >75years old who had no history of a heart murmur, myocardial infarction or heart failure had a detailed echocardiographic exam using a hand-held scanner without spectral Doppler capabilities. Cardiac risk factors were documented. We classified aortic valves as normal, aortic sclerosis (thickened leaflets without restriction) and aortic stenosis (thickened, restricted leaflets). Qualitative LV function assessment and colour Doppler assessment of aortic and mitral regurgitation were also obtained. Results The mean age was 78.3 (8.7) years. The quality of the images was good in 74 studies, moderate in 20 and poor in 6. We found 48 normal valves, 28 cases of aortic sclerosis and 24 of aortic stenosis (of which 4 moderate and 1 severe). Aortic regurgitation was present in 35 cases (30 mild, 5 moderate), and LVEF was normal in 92 subjects, mildly impaired in 6 and moderately impaired in 2. There were 2 cases of severe MR and 4 of moderate MR, all organic. Neither cardiac risk factors nor mitral annular calcification were associated with aortic sclerosis or stenosis. Conclusions Our preliminary data suggest that a strategy of echocardiographic screening in patients >75years of age identifies a significant number of abnormalities that require formal cardiology follow-up or work up for intervention, including a 5% prevalence of moderate or severe AS, and 6% prevalence of moderate or severe MR.


While speaking of "tumble-weeds" other than those of our own country, Dr. Bessey might have mentioned the curious Crucifer, Anastatica Hierochuntina, popularly known as the " Rose of Jericho," though this name is also applied to the hygrometric Selaginellas. It is a native of the salndy deserts of the Levant. At maturity, the leaves fall, the branches (which arise near the base) cuirl inwards and form a globular mass which the winds uproot and roll about at their will. On being moistened the branches straighten anld the pods open. Undoubtedly this habit of " tumbling" has been acquired by these differenit species to secure wider dissemination. QUIQUIS. Cambridge, Mass.


Ordinary differential equation models are used to describe dynamic processes across biology. To perform likelihood-based parameter inference on these models, it is necessary to specify a statistical process representing the contribution of factors not explicitly included in the mathematical model. For this, independent Gaussian noise is commonly chosen, with its use so widespread that researchers typically provide no explicit justification for this choice. This noise model assumes 'random' latent factors affect the system in the ephemeral fashion resulting in unsystematic deviation of observables from their modelled counterparts. However, like the deterministically modelled parts of a system, these latent factors can have persistent effects on observables. Here, we use experimental data from dynamical systems drawn from cardiac physiology and electrochemistry to demonstrate that highly persistent differences between observations and modelled quantities can occur. Considering the case when persistent noise arises owing only to measurement imperfections, we use the Fisher information matrix to quantify how uncertainty in parameter estimates is artificially reduced when erroneously assuming independent noise. We present a workflow to diagnose persistent noise from model fits and describe how to remodel accounting for correlated errors.


In order to support users in inclusive lifelong learning scenarios, we propose a model of recommendations that applies to the particularities of these scenarios and intends to improve the learning performance. The goal of our model is threefold: (i) allow the management of recommendations at design time, (ii) explain on the user interface why each recommendation has been offered, (iii) request explicit feedback from the user to improve the recommender. In the paper we present how the user interface benefits from this model.


ABSTRACT Arguably the best known scientific Antarctic venture was the British Antarctic Expedition of 1911–1913 led by Captain Robert Falcon Scott. Whilst the so-called race to the geographic South Pole with Roald Amundsen's Norwegian Antarctic expedition excited international interest, the tragic death of Scott and his returning Polar Party was a striking reminder of the hazards of operating in the south. Recent work has highlighted the possible role expedition second-in-command Lieutenant Edward 'Teddy' Evans played in the deaths of Scott and his men. Here I report newly discovered documents which, when placed in a wider context, raise significant questions over Evans' behaviour during the expedition. The evidence focuses on the shortage of food at key depots, the apparently deliberate obfuscation of when Evans fell down with scurvy and the failure to pass on orders given by Scott. It is concluded that Evans actions on and off the ice can at best be described as ineffectual, at worst deliberate sabotage. Why Evans was not questioned more about these events on his return to England remains unknown.


Objective: Traditionally Ficus hispida is used as a palliative for pain, inflammation, diabetes, fever and neurological disorders. The present study set out to evaluate the antinociceptive, anti-pyretic and anti-inflammatory activity of the methanolic extract of Ficus hispida leaves (MFHL). Methods: Pithy dried leaves of Ficus hispida were extracted with sufficient amount of pure methanol. The antinociceptive activity of MFHL was evaluated by using formalin induced paw licking, acetic acid-induced writhing, tail immersion and hot plate methods in Swiss albino mice. Its anti-pyretic activity was evaluated by Brewer's yeast-induced pyrexia test. And anti-inflammatory activity was assessed by using xylene-induced ear edema test. Results: The crude extract was found to have significant (p<0.05, vs. control) analgesic activity at the oral dose of 200 & 400 mg/kg b. wt., in the tested animals. Extract at dose of 200 mg/kg and 400 Original Research Article Rahman et al.; JPRI, 24(3): 1-12, 2018; Article no.JPRI.41664 2 mg/kg significantly (p<0.05, vs. control) reduced paw licking and abdominal writhing of mice, and revealed significant increase in latency (p<0.05, vs. control) in tail immersion and hot plate test at 30 and 60 min after their administration. In Brewer's yeastinduced pyrexia test, the methanolic extract at the dose of 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg significantly (p<0.05, vs. control) reduced hyperthermia in mice in 1 hour observation and also lowering of temperature from 2 hours to 4 hours observation period respectively. In anti-inflammatory test, 200 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg of extract exhibited significant (p<0.05, vs. control) ear weight differences and inhibition of ear edema. Conclusion: Results of above study indicate that Ficus hispida leaves can be a potential source of analgesic, antipyretic and anti-inflammatory medication.


This paper considers coarse tolling of congestion under heterogeneous preferences, and especially the distributional effects of such tolls. With coarse tolling, the toll equals a fixed value during the centre of the peak; outside this period, it is zero. This paper investigates three dimensions of heterogeneity. With the first, all values of time and schedule delay vary in fixed proportions, and this heterogeneity may stem from income differences. The second has differences in flexibility of users when to arrive. The third captures differences in willingness to arrive before or after the preferred arrival time. The paper uses three models of coarse tolling: the Laih, ADL, and Braking model. All three dimensions affect the welfare gain of coarse tolling. In the Laih model, the generalised price with coarse tolling is in between the no-toll and first-best one. In the other models this is not so, and distributional effects may be non-monotonic and very different from the first-best toll's effects. In the Braking model, the capacity goes unused for some time during the tolled period. Compared with in the Laih model, this raises total cost, and it is most harmful for users with low values and difficulty to arrive late: e.g. low-income users with a strict work start time or a trip to the doctor.


Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) is an autoimmune disease, known to be the most common cause of hypothyroidism in nonendemic goitrous areas. It is usually characterized by symmetric, painless, and diffused but sometimes localized swelling of the thyroid gland with features of hypothyroidism. Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), on the other hand, is the most common yet less aggressive form of thyroid cancer, especially in iodine-deficient areas. The coexistence of the two diseases is possible but not common. This case study reports a 50-year-old female with a 10-year history of a huge goiter, which was essentially symptom-free until about 3 months prior to presentation when the patient started complaining of neck pain, dysphagia, productive cough, and cold intolerance. Physical examination revealed focal cystic and tender area in the multinodular swelling and associated cervical lymphadenopathy on the left side of the neck. The serum thyroid stimulating hormone was high, sub-normal T3, and the T4 was low. The fine needle aspiration cytology yielded 10 ml of aspirate of pus admixed with altered blood which on microscopy showed a few suspicious follicular epithelial cells with open nuclei admixed with mainly neutrophil polymorphs, siderophages, and foam cells in a hemorrhagic background. The patient had an incision biopsy that showed areas displaying PTC and HT.