Background There is a lack of expertise in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) diagnosis in primary level of Colombian medical centers, leading to misdiagnosis; many times osteoarthritis (OA) and another rheumatic diseases are misdiagnosed as RA which derives in wrong treatment for patients with clinical and health economics implications. Objectives The objective of this study was to describe demographic and clinical characteristics of a cohort of patients derived to a specialized RA center with presumptive RA diagnosis and finally diagnosed as osteoarthritis. Methods A descriptive, cross sectional study. Were included patients who were referred from primary care centers to a RA specialized center in a 36 month period with presumptive diagnosis of this disease. Each patient was evaluated to confirm or rule-out diagnosis of RA as follows: a rheumatologist fulfilled a complete medical record, including joint counts; it was assessed rheumatoid factor and anti-citrullinated antibodies, and other laboratories depending on each case. Also were made x-rays of hands and feet, and in some cases of persistent doubt about the diagnosis was requested comparative MRI of hands or/and feet. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for the demographic and clinical characteristics of the cohort of patients in which the diagnosis of RA was ruled-out. Results Of the 4780 patients evaluated, in 2905 patients (60.7%) diagnosis of RA was confirmed, the remaining 1875 patients (39.3%) had a wrong diagnosis of RA. Of these misdiagnosed patients, 1377 (73.5%) were women, and 498 (26.5%) men, with an average age of 57.6 (±12 years). Between differential diagnosis which were found in this cohort of misdiagnosed patients: osteoarthritis in 1108 patients (50.1%), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in 84 patients (4.5%), Sjögren syndrome in 62 patients (3.3%), spondyloarthropathies in 21 patients (1.1%), gout in 31 patients (1.7%), and (39,3%) other diagnoses in of the remaining population. Conclusions Almost half patients with presumptive RA diagnosis in primary care centers in Colombia are misdiagnosed as shown in this large cohort. The most important cofounding diagnosis was osteoarthritis and many patients were receiving DMARDs for treatment. For this reason there is an urgent need of education strategies for primary care physicians and the implementation of centers of excellence in RA, in order to conduct a proper diagnose and avoid clinical and health economics consequences of misdiagnosis. Disclosure of Interest None declared


A systematic approach to innovating business models can help identify new business models that encourage sustainable use of products and services, or facilitate wider adoption of new environmentally friendly technologies. This paper provides a brief summary of a conceptual framework that we have developed to systematize the study and identification of new business models. Our approach advocates that the key to identifying new business models is understanding the context of decision making in existing models and the associated inefficiencies. We propose a three-step approach: First, existing business models must be audited for identifying information and incentive misalignment inefficiencies that destroy value. Next, new business models can be identified by changing the context of the decision associated with the most consequential of these inefficiencies. We conjecture that four elements of the decision context are most significant: WHAT decisions are made, WHEN they are made, WHO makes them, and WHY they are made. We provide a set of idea triggers to stimulate brainstorming of new business models by changing one of these four Ws. Finally, we advise that generated business models should be analyzed and experimented with to identify the most promising ones. We close the paper by describing the design of a pedagogical program based on this framework.


 Abstract — Flammability analysis of extruded polystyrene (XPS) has become crucial due to its utilization as insulation material for energy efficient buildings. Using the Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa methods, the degradation kinetics of two pure XPS from the local market, red and grey ones, were obtained from the results of thermogravity analysis (TG) and microscale combustion calorimetry (MCC) experiments performed under the same heating rates. From the experiments, it was discovered that red XPS released more heat than grey XPS and both materials showed two mass loss stages. Consequently, the kinetic parameters for red XPS were higher than grey XPS. A comparative evaluation of activation energies from MCC and TG showed an insignificant degree of deviation signifying an equivalent apparent activation energy from both methods. However, different activation energy profiles as a result of the different chemical pathways were presented when the dependencies of the activation energies on extent of conversion for TG and MCC were compared.


Chromatographic separation is often an important part of mass-spectrometry-based proteomic analysis. It reduces the complexity of the initial samples before they are introduced to mass-spectrometric detection and chromatographic characteristics (such as retention time) add analytical features to the analyte. The acquisition and analysis of chromatographic data are thus of great importance, and specialized software is used for the extraction of quantitative information in an efficient and optimized manner. However, occasionally, automatic peak picking and correct peak boundary setting is challenged by, for instance, aberration of peak shape, peak truncation, and peak tailing, and a manual review of a large number of peaks is frequently required. To support this part of the analysis, we present here a software tool, Peakfit, that fits acquired chromatographic data to the log-normal peak equation and reports the calculated peak parameters. The program is written in R and can easily be integrated into Skyline, a popular software packages that is frequently used for proteomic parallel reaction monitoring applications. The program is capable of processing large data sets (>10 000 peaks) and detecting sporadic outliers in peak boundary selection performed, for instance, in Skyline. In an example data set, available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD026875, we demonstrated the capability of the program to characterize chromatographic peaks and showed an example of its ability to objectively and reproducibly detect and solve problematic peak-picking situations.


Background: Sacroiliac joint dysfunction (SJD) is an important cause of low back pain (LBP), commonly overlooked. Although the association of leg length discrepancy (LLD) and LBP was established, no study has examined the association between LLD and asymptomatic SJD (ASJD). Objective: To examine the correlation between LLD and ASJD in young males. Methods: One hundred subjects wearing a comfortable and thin uniform were randomized into three rooms (consisting of leg length measurement, palpation and special test rooms). One high valid and reliable assessor was allocated in each room. All subjects were assessed three times (one time a room and then randomly assigned by a project manager to other rooms until reaching three times a test) to reduce potential biases and errors. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between the degree of LLD and ASJD. The association between ASJD and affected leg was examined by Chi-square test. Results: The mean age and LLD of subjects were 20.3  1.4 years and 6.3  3.8 mm., respectively. The number of structural and functional LLD were found (50 subjects each type). The ASJD was found in 95 (46 structural, 49 functional) subjects. There was no significant correlation between the degree of LLD and ASJD (odds ratio = 0.99 (95% confident interval (0.78, 1.26), P = 0.94). However, the affected leg (short leg) associated with ASJD (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Young males with mild LLD can have ASJD. The study suggests that the shorter leg in people with mild LLD could have higher chance for ASJD. Shoe lifts may be an optional procedure to prevent symptomatic SJD, especially structural LLD.


This short paper, placed in the symposium on child psychiatry within the Congress, is concerned with the psychoanalytic points of view which support the theory of treatment of children with autistic phenomena. After a brief description of the clinical of an autistic three-year boy with mutism, a theoretical point of view is elaborated through a concise revision of the contributions of various classical authors; focusing mainly on M. Mahler and the symbiotic and separation-individuation processes, M. Klein and the schizo-paranoid mechanisms, and finally the technique of treatment based on the transference-countertransference phenomena in the analytic situation.


Structure (grammar) in TOEFL test consists of 40 questions that must be done in 25 minutes which become big problem for the most language learners. It happens because they less knowledge about grammar in TOEFL and less exercise that using timer in it, but how to get it while deepen their understanding in grammar in limited time? Many websites and sources are created now and easy to use especially in education, one of them is Edmodo. Edmodo is one of free and secure educational learning networked used to provide a simple way to conduct and manage virtual class and to enable the learners to connect and discuss with the teacher as well as their classmates everywhere and every time as long as the connection of internet is available. The purpose of this study is to determine the language learners' understanding in learning Grammar for TOEFL through online exercises in Edmodo that using timer in it as in official TOEFL test does. Using quantitative with One-Group pretest-posttest design, the study was done in one of the biggest English courses in 'Kampung Inggris' Pare Kediri. The participants were the students in Grammar TOEFL class that consisting of 25 students as the sample. The result of the study shows that the students' understanding in learning grammar TOEFL significantly increase.


The authors report about one case of retroperitoneal benign schwannoma located near the right kidney and causing renovascular arterial hypertension. The diagnosis of benign schwannoma, which is unfrequent in the absence of Recklinghausen's disease, was established after the pathological study of the complete specimen including the right kidney.


This article examines how upper secondary school teachers perceive and respond to the consequences for their professional autonomy of recent school reforms and restructurings. Based on empirical material from interviews of 119 teachers in three studies conducted between 2002 and 2014, the findings indicate that teacher autonomy has been reduced by school reforms and restructurings since the late 1980s. Regardless of their individual aims, these reforms have collectively created a power structure that distributes power to the state, municipalities, principals and the school market, including 'customers', that is, students, at the expense of teacher autonomy. Teacher agency follows certain policies at the discourse level, such as decentralisation and management by objectives and results, but in practice seems to be based on individuals' and groups' capacities to exploit opportunities for agency in combination with more or less facilitative management and organisation cultures. This development is multifaceted and varies locally, but the overall trend can be described as a shift from occupational to organisational professionalism and from 'licensed' to 'regulated' autonomy but emphasising the influence of market logics.


We report a 21-year-old white woman who developed a large basal cell carcinoma (BCC) on her left upper vermilion border. Her mother and maternal grandmother both had a history of BCCs occurring in the same location. No documented BCC-related genetic disorder was suspected. Our case supports a theory of site-specific inheritance of nonmelanoma skin cancer, which should be further explored.


Imaging experiments are performed on a solution-cathode glow discharge. Laser scattering is used to observe droplet trails ejected at a range of angles from the solution surface. Interference filters are used to photograph a variety of analyte emission lines and background emission bands. The effects of low molecular weight organic compounds (HCOOH and CH3CH2OH) and non-ionic surfactants (Triton X-45 and Triton X-405) on the spatial distributions of emission are studied. Low molecular weight organic compounds are found to affect the degree of emission for some species, but do not detectibly change the plasma structure. The lighter surfactant affects the degree of emission for some background species, but does not noticeably affect analyte emission or plasma structure. The heavier surfactant (Triton X-405) is found to affect both the degree of emission from some species and the overall structure of the plasma.


Diversity and plasticity are hallmarks of mononuclear phagocytes, which are reflected in plaque formation and evolution. Different monocyte subsets, which differentially contribute to plaque infiltration and to atherosclerosis complications, have been identified. Similarly, depending on different environmental signals plaque-associated macrophages can express polarized pro- and antiatherogenic programs by influencing lipid metabolism, inflammatory responses, and plaque stability. Thus, a "macrophage balance" plays a major role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerotic plaques and affects evolution and complications of atherosclerosis.


Most Escherichia coli strains associated with neonatal meningitis express the K1 capsule, a sialic acid polysaccharide that is directly related to their pathogenicity. Metabolic oligosaccharide engineering (MOE) has mostly been developed in eukaryotes, but has also been successfully applied to the study of several oligosaccharides or polysaccharides constitutive of the bacterial cell wall. However, bacterial capsules are seldom targeted despite their important role as virulence factors, and the K1 polysialic acid (PSA) antigen that shields bacteria from the immune system still remains untackled. Herein, we report a fluorescence microplate assay that allows the fast and facile detection of K1 capsules with an approach that combines MOE and bioorthogonal chemistry. We exploit the incorporation of synthetic analogues of N-acetylmannosamine or N-acetylneuraminic acid, metabolic precursors of PSA, and copper-catalysed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) as the click chemistry reaction to specifically label the modified K1 antigen with a fluorophore. The method was optimized, validated by capsule purification and fluorescence microscopy, and applied to the detection of whole encapsulated bacteria in a miniaturized assay. We observe that analogues of ManNAc are readily incorporated into the capsule while those of Neu5Ac are less efficiently metabolized, which provides useful information regarding the capsule biosynthetic pathways and the promiscuity of the enzymes involved. Moreover, this microplate assay is transferable to screening approaches and may provide a platform to identify novel capsule-targeted antibiotics that would circumvent resistance issues.


Contents: Preface. Z. Kunda, P.G. Davies, E. Hoshino-Browne, C.H. Jordan, The Impact of Comprehension Goals on the Ebb and Flow of Stereotype Activation During Interaction. S. Fein, E. Hoshino-Browne, P.G. Davies, S.J. Spencer, Self-Image Maintenance Goals and Sociocultural Norms in Motivated Social Perception. D. Dunning, The Zealous Self-Affirmer: How and Why the Self Lurks So Pervasively Behind Social Judgment. I. McGregor, Defensive Zeal: Compensatory Conviction About Attitudes, Values, Goals, Groups, and Self-Definition in the Face of Personal Uncertainty. S.L. Koole, B.W. Pelham, On the Nature of Implicit Self-Esteem: The Case of the Name Letter Effect. C.H. Jordan, S.J. Spencer, M.P. Zanna, "I Love Me...I Love Me Not": Implicit Self-Esteem, Explicit Self-Esteem, and Defensiveness. C. Wolfe, J. Crocker, What Does the Self Want? Contingencies of Self-Worth and Goals. M.W. Baldwin, J.R. Baccus, An Expectancy-Value Approach to Self-Esteem. J.A. Bargh, G.M. Fitzsimons, K.Y.A. McKenna, The Self, Online. M. Schaller, Ancestral Environments and Motivated Social Perception: Goal-Like Blasts From the Evolutionary Past. S.T. Fiske, Five Core Social Motives, Plus or Minus Five. J.Y. Shah, A.W. Kruglansk, R. Friedman, Goal Systems Theory: Integrating the Cognitive and Motivational Aspects of Self-Regulation. G.L. Pennington, N.J. Roese, Counterfactual Thinking and Regulatory Focus. R.M. Sorrentino, Motivated Perception and the Warm Look: Current Perspectives and Future Directions.


Objectives Dog owners walking their dog in natural outdoor environments (NOE) may benefit from the physical activity facilitated by dog walking and from time spent in nature. However, it is unclear whether dog owners receive additional health benefits associated with having access to NOE above the physical activity benefit of walking with their dog. We investigated associations between dog ownership, walking, time spent in NOE and health and whether these associations differed among those with good and poor access to NOE and those living in green and less green areas. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting The Positive Health Effects of the Natural Outdoor Environment in Typical Populations in Different Regions in Europe project. Participants n=3586 adults from Barcelona (Spain), Doetinchem (the Netherlands), Kaunas (Lithuania) and Stoke-on-Trent (UK). Data collection and analysis We calculated access to NOE with land maps and residential surrounding greenness with satellite data. Leisure time walking, time spent in NOE and general and mental health status were measured using validated questionnaires. Associations were estimated using multilevel analysis with a random intercept defined at the neighbourhood level. Results Dog ownership was associated with higher rates of leisure time walking and time spending in NOE (OR 2.17, 95% CI 1.86 to 2.54 and 2.37, 95% CI 2.02 to 2.79, respectively). These associations were stronger in those living within 300 m of a NOE and in greener areas. No consistent associations were found between dog ownership and perceived general or mental health status. Conclusions Compared with non-dog owners, dog owners walked more and spent more time in NOE, especially those living within 300 m of a NOE and in greener areas. The health implications of these relationships should be further investigated. In a largely physically inactive society, dog walking in NOE may be a simple way of promoting physical activity and health.


This publication is one of a series of thirteen regional analyses of sport and recreational data prepared for SPARC by the AERU at Lincoln University.


BACKGROUND
Various maxillary sinus floor augmentation techniques using bone grafts and bone substitutes are frequently used to enable placement of dental implants in the posterior maxilla. A previous case report demonstrated the possibility of promoting bone formation in the sinus by lifting the membrane without using a grafting material. However, the predictability of the technique is not known.

PURPOSE
The aim of this study was to investigate whether sinus membrane elevation and the simultaneous insertion of titanium implants without additional grafting material constitute a valid technique for bone augmentation of the maxillary sinus floor.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
The study group comprised 10 patients in whom a total of 12 maxillary sinus floor augmentations were performed. A replaceable bone window was prepared in the lateral sinus wall with a reciprocating saw. The sinus membrane was dissected, elevated superiorly, and sutured to the sinus wall to create and maintain a compartment for blood clot formation. One to three dental implants were inserted through the residual bone and protruded at least 5 mm into the maxillary sinus. The bone window was replaced and secured with the overlying mucosa. Bone height was measured directly at each implant site at the time of insertion. Resonance frequency analysis (RFA) was performed on each implant at the time of initial placement, at abutment surgery, and after 12 months of functional loading. Computed tomography (CT) was performed in the immediate postoperative period and 6 months later, prior to exposure of the implants.

RESULTS
A total of 19 implants (Brånemark System, TiUnite, Nobel Biocare AB, Gothenburg, Sweden) in lengths of 10 to 15 mm were placed, with an average residual bone height of 7 mm (range, 4-10 mm). All implants remained clinically stable during the study period. Comparisons of pre- and postoperative CT radiography clearly demonstrated new bone formation within the compartment created by the sinus membrane elevation procedure. RFA measurements showed mean implant stability quotient values of 65, 66, and 64 at placement, at abutment connection, and after 12 months of loading, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS
The study showed that there is great potential for healing and bone formation in the maxillary sinus without the use of additional bone grafts or bone substitutes. The secluded compartment created by the elevated sinus membrane, implants, and replaceable bone window allowed bone formation according to the principle of guided tissue regeneration. The precise mechanisms are not known, and further histologic studies are needed. Sinus membrane elevation without the use of additional graft material was found to be a predictable technique for bone augmentation of the maxillary sinus floor.


Various types of voltage gated potassium channels (Kv) are responsible for setting the resting potential and shaping the membrane potential waveform in the subcellular domains of neurons. In order to visualize the expression behaviour of recombinant Kv channels, we have fused green fluorescent protein (GFP) to the N-terminal of the alpha subunits Kv1.3 and Kv1.4. In transiently transfected HEK 293 cells the GFP-Kv chimeras localize to the plasma membrane. Whole-cell voltage clamp recordings demonstrate that they form functional potassium channels. Kinetic analysis reveals that the gating kinetics of GFP-Kv1.3 are virtually indistinguishable from those displayed by its wild-type correlate. For GFP-Kv1.4 channels we find that their gating is modified in an expected manner. In response to short depolarizing voltage pulses they do not inactivate, indicating that the attached GFP interferes with the fast N-type inactivation mechanism present in wild type Kv1.4 channels. We suggest that GFP tagging of Kv channels might be a useful tool to monitor the spatiotemporal distribution of recombinant potassium channels expressed in living neurons.


We consider a multiple target detection problem in which there are N target sites, or cells, which can be energized independently, while the total energy available is finite. In the specific model used here, the data are conditionally Poisson, with the mean being the product of the transmitted energy and the gamma distributed reflectivity. A Bayesian sequential analysis procedure for target detection is proposed and strategies for partitioning the available energy at each iteration are compared.


Background Continuous monitoring of the vital signs of critical care patients is an essential component of critical care medicine. For this task, clinicians use a patient monitor (PM), which conveys patient vital sign data through a screen and an auditory alarm system. Some limitations with PMs have been identified in the literature, such as the need for visual contact with the PM screen, which could result in reduced focus on the patient in specific scenarios, and the amount of noise generated by the PM alarm system. With the advancement of material science and electronic technology, wearable devices have emerged as a potential solution for these problems. This review presents the findings of several studies that focused on the usability and human factors of wearable devices designed for use in critical care patient monitoring. Objective The aim of this study is to review the current state of the art in wearable devices intended for use by clinicians to monitor vital signs of critical care patients in hospital settings, with a focus on the usability and human factors of the devices. Methods A comprehensive literature search of relevant databases was conducted, and 20 studies were identified and critically reviewed by the authors. Results We identified 3 types of wearable devices: tactile, head-mounted, and smartwatch displays. In most cases, these devices were intended for use by anesthesiologists, but nurses and surgeons were also identified as potentially important users of wearable technology in critical care medicine. Although the studies investigating tactile displays revealed their potential to improve clinical monitoring, usability problems related to comfort need to be overcome before they can be considered suitable for use in clinical practice. Only a few studies investigated the usability and human factors of tactile displays by conducting user testing involving critical care professionals. The studies of head-mounted displays (HMDs) revealed that these devices could be useful in critical care medicine, particularly from an ergonomics point of view. By reducing the amount of time the user spends averting their gaze from the patient to a separate screen, HMDs enable clinicians to improve their patient focus and reduce the potential of repetitive strain injury. Conclusions Researchers and designers of new wearable devices for use in critical care medicine should strive to achieve not only enhanced performance but also enhanced user experience for their users, especially in terms of comfort and ease of use. These aspects of wearable displays must be extensively tested with the intended end users in a setting that properly reflects the intended context of use before their adoption can be considered in clinical settings.


The use of alcohol and prescription opioids is common among people in pain and poses significant public health burdens. This review identifies factors associated with motivation to use alcohol and prescription opioids in the context of pain. Pain-relevant, cognitive-affective, transdiagnostic vulnerability factors—expectancies/motives, pain catastrophizing, pain-related anxiety, distress intolerance, anxiety sensitivity, and perceived interrelations—were selected from theoretical conceptualizations of pain and substance use. Searches conducted in PubMed, PsycINFO, and Embase returned 25 studies that examined associations between identified variables of interest and the use of alcohol and prescription opioids in the context of pain. Consistent with a larger literature on pain and substance use, the studies included in this review demonstrated that people with chronic pain are motivated to use alcohol and opioids in response to negative affect and hold expectancies/motives for coping with pain. Vulnerabilities that engender difficulty managing aversive internal states (distress intolerance and anxiety sensitivity) and maladaptive responses to pain (pain-related anxiety and pain catastrophizing) also were implicated in motivation for alcohol and opioid use. Although one study found that pain-related anxiety was associated with co-use of alcohol and opioids, no studies examined simultaneous use. Future research directions that can explicate causal associations, identify patterns of alcohol and opioid co-use, clarify the role of pain in cessation processes, and inform treatment development are discussed.


The Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians was awarded a grant through the Department of Energy First Steps program in June of 2006. The primary purpose of the grant was to enable the Tribe to develop energy conservation policies and a strategy for alternative energy resource development. All of the work contemplated by the grant agreement has been completed and the Tribe has begun implementing the resource development strategy through the construction of a 1.0 MW grid-connected photovoltaic system designed to offset a portion of the energy demand generated by current and projected land uses on the Tribe's Reservation. Implementation of proposed energy conservation policies will proceed more deliberately as the Tribe acquires economic development experience sufficient to evaluate more systematically the interrelationships between conservation and its economic development goals.


Acute otitis media (AOM) in young children consumes a substantial amount of medical care services provided by primary-care physicians. A recent increase in the number of young children with AOM prompted a review of the associated risk factors. Eustachian tube dysfunction, bacterial colonization, and host inflammatory response form the basis for the development of AOM. Signs and symptoms of AOM in young children are often nonspecific and subtle, particularly in infants. Physical examination and pneumatic otoscopy verify the diagnosis. New modalities including tympanometry and acoustic reflectometry may be helpful. Amoxicillin remains the drug of choice for AOM, despite recent trends in microbial resistance. Second- and third-line antimicrobial agents might be considered in selected clinical settings. Young children with recurrent episodes of otitis media must be monitored closely. Preventive measures and medical or surgical intervention should be considered in order to minimize the long-term medical and developmental effects of AOM.


This work, the first of two parts, presents the design and modeling of VHF single-crystal silicon (SCS) capacitive disk resonators operating in their elliptical bulk resonant mode. The disk resonators are modeled as circular thin-plates with free edge. A comprehensive derivation of the mode shapes and resonant frequencies of the in-plane vibrations of the disk structures is described using the two-dimensional (2-D) elastic theory. An equivalent mechanical model is extracted from the elliptic bulk-mode shape to predict the dynamic behavior of the disk resonators. Based on the mechanical model, the electromechanical coupling and equivalent electrical circuit parameters of the disk resonators are derived. Several considerations regarding the operation, performance, and temperature coefficient of frequency of these devices are further discussed. This model is verified in part II of this paper, which describes the implementation and characterization of the SCS capacitive disk resonators.


The problem of learners' engagement is receiving renewed attention against the background of the transition from traditional to technology-enhanced learning environments and the ensuing shift from the transmission to the (co-)construction of knowledge model in teaching/learning. Recent studies on the use of social media for academic purposes have also revealed transformations in student and teacher roles and behaviour. This study is part of an ongoing research on various pedagogical aspects related to early adoption of Web 2.0 tools (wikis) in a blended language learning programme of English for Academic Purposes attended by undergraduate students in social sciences in a Romanian university. The authors' prior research on student behaviour suggested low participation levels during the semester and high activity under the pressure of finals. Our current objective is to continue the research in an attempt to provide a more accurate learner profile that could help teachers improve the learning environment to further activate their students. We applied the ROC analysis, a cost/benefit analysis of diagnostic decision making, in order to diagnose the features of students who would use successfully a Web 2.0 tool for learning. The study aims to exemplify how ROC analysis can be used to offer a classification of students with positive/negative inclinations to adopt a Web 2.0 tool by eliminating the false-positives, respectively the false-negatives. Consequently, it may become a tool to select a possible optimal model to be considered in the process of needs analysis and of taking important decisions regarding teaching methods, course contents and design.


ALTHOUGH EXERCISE STRESS TESTING FOR CARDIAC PATIENTS has been in use for nearly 50 years, widespread acceptance of the technique as an important diagnostic tool in cardiology has been accomplished only recently. This has occurred with the recognition that patients with cardiac disease, even in advanced degree, can perform exercise safely under controlled conditions, and that objective information regarding cardiac functional capacity and the presence or absence of myocardial ischemia can be determined. In addition, epidemiologic follow-up studies and correlative studies comparing exercise electrocardiographic findings with coronary arteriograms have provided documentation of the sensitivity and specificity of the test in patients with coronary artery disease. In spite of considerable scientific input into this field in the last ten years, controversy regarding the usefulness and role of exercise stress testing in a variety of clinical settings persists.' This review will consider those aspects of exercise testing most relevant to the practicing physician. Several comprehensive monographs dealing with various aspects of this field have been published recently.2-8 The reader is referred to these sources for technical details or further discussion of some of the material covered here.


Enzymes and transporters that catalyse reactions involving inorganic carbon are well characterized with respect to the species of inorganic carbon (CO2 or HCO3-) with which they interact. There is less information on the species recognized by proteins that sense inorganic carbon. In this issue of the Biochemical Journal, Hammer and colleagues show conclusively that cyanobacterial adenylyl cyclases are activated by CO2 and not HCO3-, as was believed previously. While in some circumstances a similar in vivo regulatory outcome is achieved from sensing HCO3- as from sensing CO2, there are cases in which the outcomes are significantly different. The most striking example is where a compartment lacks carbonic anhydrase yet supports large metabolic fluxes of inorganic carbon species so that CO2 and HCO3- are not at equilibrium. Other examples involve changes in pH, or temperature, of a compartment containing an equilibrium mixture of CO2 and HCO3-.


OBJECTIVE
To examine the similarity of extent (sectors) and severity (stage) of acute-phase retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) between fellow eyes and the concordance of cicatricial outcomes at age 1 year of eyes that did not develop threshold disease.

METHODS
Four thousand ninety-nine infants with birth weights of less than 1251 g who participated in a natural history segment of the Cryotherapy for Retinopathy study underwent biweekly eye examinations from 4 to 6 weeks after birth until retinal vasculature was complete or until ROP regressed or reached threshold severity. Eyes were categorized as follows: (1) no ROP, (2) less than prethreshold ROP, (3) prethreshold ROP, (4) threshold ROP, and (5) unable to determine. The presence and stage of ROP residua in fellow eyes were evaluated at 12 months.

RESULTS
Acute-phase ROP status between 32 and 42 weeks postconceptional age showed a high degree of correspondence between fellow eyes in severity (stage) and location (zone) of ROP, presence of plus disease, and sectors of stage 3 retinopathy. More variability between eyes was seen when cicatricial status at age 1 year was examined. This higher variability was evident even though results from patients with threshold ROP (many of whom underwent cryotherapy) were excluded.

CONCLUSION
The usual course of ROP during its acute phase is for fellow eyes to be very similar in ROP status. However, asymmetry between eyes is not unusual in eyes with posterior pole residua of ROP.


Suberin is a biopolymer that acts as a barrier between plants and the environment. It is known to be a complex polyester based on glycerol and long-chain alpha,omega-diacids and omega-hydroxyacids. How these monomeric units are assembled at a macromolecular level remains mostly unknown. The knowledge gathered in the last 10 years has opened new insights into suberin structure. Suberin oligomeric blocks have been obtained after the partial depolymerization of the biopolymer, and in-situ studies by solid-state (13)C NMR spectroscopy have shown different molecular domains and how they are spatially related. Based on these latter developments, a model is proposed for the suberin macromolecular structure. The uniqueness of the suberin polyester opens perspectives for its use as a source of bio-based materials.


When a large LPG low-carbon steel storage tank was put into service for the first time and filled beyond the proof testing level, a brittle fracture crack initiated at a fillet weld between a stiffener ring and the wall. The crack propagated to a length of 5.5 m and arrested. Analysis showed that the plates satisfied the criteria of BS 4741. It was concluded that the cause of crack initiation was the lack of a mouse hole at the junction between the stiffening ring and the wall of the tank. The tank was repaired and put back in service. When it was filled beyond the proof test level, again a brittle crack was initiated at a horizontal weld defect and propagated vertically, destroying the tank and the liquefaction plant. The initiation site was a thumbnail elliptical crack in a horizontal weld, having a depth of 1.5 mm, and a length of 4.5 mm. This showed that as late the mid-1970s, misunderstanding of brittle fracture led to the wrong design and construction of an LPG storage tank. The best design specification is to use a correlation between LAST, the Lowest Anticipated Service Temperature, and the DBTT measured by either Charpy tests or DTT.


In recent years, a wide array of tools have emerged for the purposes of conducting educational data mining (EDM) and/or learning analytics (LA) research. In this article, we hope to highlight some of the most widely used, most accessible, and most powerful tools available for the researcher interested in conducting EDM/LA research. We will highlight the utility that these tools have with respect to common data preprocessing and analysis steps in a typical research project as well as more descriptive information such as price point and user-friendliness. We will also highlight niche tools in the field, such as those used for Bayesian knowledge tracing (BKT), data visualization, text analysis, and social network analysis. Finally, we will discuss the importance of familiarizing oneself with multiple tools—a data analysis toolbox—for the practice of EDM/LA research.


An algorithm is presented for generating near-time-optimal trajectories for an open-kinematic-chain manipulator moving in a cluttered workspace. This is the first algorithm to guarantee bounds on the closeness of an approximation to a time-optimal trajectory. The running time and space required are polynomial in the desired accuracy of the approximation. The user may also specify tolerances by which the trajectories must clear obstacles in the workspace to allow modeling of control errors.<<ETX>>


As grief is both an individual and shared experience, adopting a systemic perspective is most appropriate for health-care professionals seeking to assist the bereaved. Within this framework, the family virtually always constitutes the most significant social group in which grief is experienced. In this paper we review the literature on family grief, covering clinical case reports, the observations of family therapists, systematic family bereavement research and family intervention studies. An understanding of patterns of family grief and vulnerability factors for morbid grief is pivotal to both preventive intervention and treatment of an established disorder.


A strain of Pseudomonas sp. C-171 capable of tolerating hexavalent chromium (Cr +6 ) up to 2000 ppm as potassium dichromate was isolated from domestic sewage. The Cr +6 reduction was checked by growing the isolated strain in a medium containing potassium dichromate as Cr +6 source. The rate of growth of Pseudomonas sp. C-171 decreased with the increase in Cr +6 concentration of the medium. The maximum rate of chromium reduction was observed during the log phase of bacterium growth. The reduction of hexavalent chromium was inoculum concentration dependent. The accumulation of chromium hydroxide around the bacterial cells and slight elongation of cells were observed.


A major source of influence on Japanese musicians has historically been Western art, and the resulting music has also served to influence much of Western contemporary music. This paper forms a timeline containing some key moments in Japanese music history, including the pioneering of Japanese-language rock, synth-pop, and Shibuya-kei. This investigation into these important moments is supplemented by quotes from interviews of musicians, including Haruomi Hosono of Yellow Magic Orchestra and Happy End, Keigo Oyamada of Flipper's Guitar, and Yasuharu Konishi of Pizzicato Five. This paper finds that a country's art and culture, in this case Japanese music, can evolve through the importation and assimilation of foreign culture.


Coal is one of the biggest commercial fuel all over the world. Fly ash, a coal combustion by-product, is consequently produced. This project is focused on the synthesis of Fe- and Mg-based nanomaterials from Victorian brown coal fly ash and the applications to water remediation and water gas shift reaction. Additionally, this research is expected to address the global environmental challenge facing the industrial solid waste: how to utilize the coal fly ash waste in a value-added strategy, which is a pivotal trend in sustainable development.


Abstract Purpose: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) involving the inferior vena cava (IVC) and/or right atrium (RA) can affect systemic circulation, causing fatal complications. Standard treatment is yet to be established due to its rarity and intractability. We sought to determine the clinical efficacy of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) in HCC treatment. Patients and methods: Our group designed this multicenter trial and recruited patients with HCC and IVC and/or RA involvement. Forty-nine patients from six institutions received EBRT with median dose of 46.7 (range: 35.4–71.5) Gy during 2009–2016. The primary outcome was overall survival (OS), and relevant predictors were evaluated. Results: Median follow-up length was 9.3 (range: 1.1–119) months. Median survival, 1-, and 2- year OS rates were 10.1 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 7.5–12.7 months), 43.5%, and 30.1%, respectively. Significant factors affecting OS were alpha-fetoprotein level ≥300 ng/mL (risk ratio [RR]: 2.34, p = .025), tumor multiplicity (RR: 2.56, p = .028), and patient volume of institutions (high- vs. middle volume centers) (RR: 3.58, p = .001). Local control rates were 88.7% and 74.5% at 1 and 2 years, respectively. The most common first failure site was the lung (21/49, 42.9%) followed by liver outside the EBRT field (17/49, 34.7%). One case of possible radiation-induced liver disease was noted, with transient alkaline phosphatase elevation. Conclusion: EBRT can yield favorable local control in HCC with IVC and/or RA involvement. Systemic treatment may be more indicated as factors reflecting tumor aggressiveness were significant, and first distant failure is common.


: Cooperative compliance ensures that the taxpayer – Tax Administration relationship is based on transparency, mutual trust, and preventive actions of assistance and collaboration. These three foundations are formalized into six characteristics, two of which (transparency and disclosure) apply to taxpayers and five of which (commercial awareness, fairness, proportionality, transparency, and responsiveness) apply to the Tax Administration. This article discusses cooperative compliance concepts, requirements, advantages, tax control framework (TCF), tax risk, and governance issues. It then considers some Brazilian initiatives, highlighting the exposure of the CONFIA proposal as a cooperative compliance program of the Brazilian Revenue Service (RFB). Using a SWOT analysis based on international experiences, we discuss the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threat points for success in implementing the CONFIA program. Additionally, we offer recommendations regarding how to ensure an environment of increasing cooperation in the tax field in order to reduce tax litigation, which is a chronic problem of the Brazilian tax system. Cooperation between taxpayers and Tax Administration should be based on the responsibility of both parties operating under mutual trust and not tolerating opportunistic behavior on either side of the tax relationship.


In a scene from the movie, Sleepless in Seattle, a recent widower suffering from the typical grief reaction of insomnia tries to rest on the couch. We don't know if the widower, played by Tom Hanks, is actually asleep and dreaming or just trying to sleep, but his late wife appears with him on the couch, and they carry on a conversation as if she were alive and well. Only she is not talking from the perspective of this life. She's communing with him "from the other side," so to speak. One thing we know for sure; he is aware of her presence. Then, as instantaneously as she appears, she disappears.
The scene is not unlike an experience I had about a year after my wife died. In my case, I was awake. I was aware of my late wife Doris's presence in the room, although I was not completely sure of her identity until she spoke. She but called my name and disappeared—an ever so brief moment that has affected my life profoundly. It has proven to be an epiphany for me in my  bereavement, for with it the light of God's mercy began to shine in the darkness of my grief.
That is not to say, of course, that the epiphany was the only healing event in the aftermath of my wife's death. From the first day, I was surrounded by concern, care, prayer, empathy, and love from friends and relatives. I knew that my family had a history of not dealing well with bereavement, so, within a week of her death, I began therapy that lasted for two years. Also, I joined a twelvestep group. These were all major threads in the fabric of my healing. Still, as I reflect on the history of that healing, I have come to see the epiphany as the turning point, the moment I can actually mark as the one when I knew that I would not just survive but, in fact, thrive. Then, on a more spiritual level, I began to understand that survival wasn't the issue at all, that death and resurrection were the issues, for in some sense in Doris's death I experienced my own. I found myself in the confines of the tomb with darkness surrounding me and permeating my being. The question became, Was there life after death—for Doris in eternity, for me on this side of physical death, for the world?


Background: Colon cancer is the 3rd most common cancer in men and women combined, with an occurrence rate of 4.49% for men and 4.15% for women. The 2018 expectation is 50,630 deaths related to colon cancer in the United States (American Cancer Society Facts and Figures 2018). Early detection is increasing with nearly 45% of colon cancers diagnosed as stage I/II (Sarah Cannon Cancer Registry 2015). Treatment for early stage I/II colon cancer patients usually involves surgery then surveillance. On-site navigators perform their duties by patient need and barriers to care. Late stage III/IV colon cancer patients require more assistance and face more barriers, which often leaves early stage I/II patients without an advocate. This disparity can lead to lower rates of follow-up care for early stage I/II patients. Sarah Cannon created a program for virtual colon navigation (VCN) to determine if early stage I/II patients benefit from a virtual navigator who offers support by phone throughout their disease process. Objectives: The goal was to increase early stage I/II patients' knowledge of their cancer and convey the importance of compliance with follow-up care, such as repeat colonoscopy as recommended by their physician and NCCN Guidelines. Methods: By developing software that utilizes artificial intelligence, Sarah Cannon created an automated process to identify colon cancer patients at the time of diagnosis. This technology then routes positive pathology reports to a VCN who contacts the early stage I/II patients by telephone, ensuring patient connection to the suitable physician for treatment. The VCN helps patients understand their diagnosis, provides education, assesses barriers to care, connects to resources, provides emotional support, and offers assistance with follow-up for physician visits, imaging and procedures such as colonoscopies, based upon NCCN Guidelines and physician guidelines. The VCN also connects stage III/IV patients with an on-site navigator in their region for more hands-on navigation. Results: Through September 2018, Sarah Cannon navigated 734 colon cancers, 332 stage I/II and 402 stage III/IV. With our increased capacity, Sarah Cannon/HCA maintained a 98% rate of follow-up care with new diagnoses of all stages of colon cancer. Conclusions: The VCN program allowed Sarah Cannon/HCA to improve care continuity and compliance based upon NCCN Guidelines for early stage I/II colon cancer patients throughout 5 regions and 37 facilities.


Introduction: Resistin is a novel adipokine that has been reported as an independent predictor for hypertension. Its role in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), however, has not been investigated yet. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the role of resistin in non-diabetic OSA patients with nocturnal hypertension and to study its association with markers of obesity, insulin resistance and oxidative stress. Methods: A total of 54 non-diabetic hypertensive OSA patients participated in the study. OSA was newly detected by a standard polysomnography. Patients had controlled hypertension. According to ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) they were divided into patients with normal nocturnal BP (25) and patients with nocturnal hypertension (29). Anthropometric, sleep study and glucometabolic parameters were defined. Resistin plasma levels were determined by an ELISA kit. Oxidative stress (urinary 8-isoprostane levels) were measured in addition by mass spectrometry (Cayman Chemical, USA). Results: Resistin plasma levels were higher in subjects with nocturnal hypertension in comparison to those with normal BP - (7.81±4.43 vs 4.90±2.92ng/mL). Resistin correlated neither to markers of adiposity, nor to those of insulin resistance. Its association with urinary isoprostane levels was of significance (p-0.036). Resistin was higher in patients with severe apnea, but was not associated with respiratory disturbance parameters. Conclusion: Our results suggest that hyperresistinemia is associated with higher levels of oxidative stress and may contribute to the pathogenesis of nocturnal hypertension in non-diabetic OSA patients. This may provide adequate cardiovascular risk assessment and improve the therapeutic control.


Sepsis syndromes have been recognized since antiquity yet still pose significant challenges to modern medicine. One of the biggest challenges lies in the heterogeneity of triggers and its protean clinical manifestations, as well as its rapidly progressive and lethal nature. Thus, there is a critical need for biomarkers that can quickly and accurately detect sepsis onset and predict treatment response. In this review, we will briefly describe the current consensus definitions of sepsis and the ideal features of a biomarker. We will then delve into currently available and in-development markers of pathogens, hosts, and their interactions that together comprise the sepsis syndrome.


The purpose of this article is to estimate the workforce involved in spinning from the late sixteenth century until the eve of mechanization. In addition, the potential contribution to family earnings from spinning will be examined. Just about all of the millions of yards of woollen yarn that went into making English cloth had to be spun by women and children, but this activity has not been investigated to the extent that it deserves. Spinning was a skilled occupation where there was a great demand for the best quality product. Sources exist which make it possible to make general estimates of the amount of spinning needed in the economy, and its cost. This evidence shows that employment in spinning increased dramatically from the late seventeenth century, and continued to increase until there were probably over one million women and children employed in spinning by the mid‐eighteenth century. In addition earnings increased to the extent whereby earnings from spinning could contribute over 30 per cent of household income for poorer families. This has implications for looking at trends in real wages over time, as well as for the concept of the industrious revolution.


The politics of microfinance is essential to an understanding both of the success and, the crises of microfinance. It has been argued that the boom of microfinance — while building on the economics of group approaches, which address problems like adverse selection and moral hazard through peer pressure and peer monitoring — cannot be explained without the ideational success of the microfinance movement, nor without the underlying state policies. In the Indian case this is both the "priority sector lending" that fuelled the fast growth of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) and the government-supported self-help groups bank linkage program (SHG-BLP). Furthermore, three out of four Indian microfinance crises — including the major 2010 Andhra Pradesh crisis — were political not economic. Certainly, the crises also stemmed from internal management problems within the MFIs that led to problematic incentives and not enough attention given to staff and group capacity building, which in turn led to easy loans, multiple and chain loans and heavy-handed loan recovery methods. However, it is argued in the thesis that ultimately it was a state-market conflict that led to the devastating Andhra crisis, shrinking the state-wide MFI loan portfolio to a tenth and existentially threatening some of the major MFIs. As a result, it is argued that MFIs have to work more actively with the involved political stakeholders at the local, regional, state and federal levels. At the same time, they have to invest more into group building, clients´ agency and establish adequate mechanisms enabling the expression and constructive handling, of complaints and problems.

Perception — like trust and reputation — is core to the sustainable success of any bank, and even more so for Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), which operate in the inherently political arena of development. Additionally microfinance is a sector that is often poorly regulated and supervised. MFI operations do not only disrupt local vested interests (like that of moneylenders of all sorts, e.g. the agricultural input selling middlemen, businessman and ground landlords) but also local and regional political interests. Politicians perceived the fast growth of MFIs as "eating" into "their" self-help groups bank linkage program (SHG-BLP). This was seen as threatening either to the genuine success of the SHG-BLP or to the usage of the program for political purposes like vote bank fostering. There are enough influential interest groups who would be happy to cut down to size, the self-declared poverty-fighting heroes, who on top made a profit from their activities. Therefore, public perception and principally, the perception of clients are central. While this study found that allegations regarding strong-armed recollection methods are not unsubstantiated, the perception of specific MFIs differs substantially. In fact, the overall perception is unexpectedly positive — given that a major crisis occurred just three years before the survey of more than 550 individuals, designed for the purpose of this thesis, was conducted.

Empowerment is political and multidimensional and a key stated goal of microfinance initiatives. Political, in the sense that it encompasses the struggle of marginalised groups for their political, civil and social rights. Given the argumentation, that microfinance is intrinsically political and that perception determines the long-term success of any bank, MFIs will only be sustainable if their clients see themselves as stakeholders with a strong interest in the political survival of their microfinance loan provider(s). Therefore the thesis argues that MFIs should "invest" in their clients´ agency, in their capabilities to organise themselves and rectify grievances before they can be politically exploited, endangering the MFIs. The implemented multidimensional empowerment index found expectedly that male clients are more empowered than female clients. Furthermore, female clients were found to be more empowered with regard to decision-making than female non-clients. This was the hypothesized expectation, due either to the self-selection of already more empowered women or the positive impact of group-based microfinance on the role of women in the household.


AT THE JANE AUSTEN BICENTENNIAL CONFERENCE held at the University Alberta in 1975, George Whalley gave a paper in which he suggested that Austen is a poet. In saying this he wasn't merely stating the obvious, which is that she did write verse, but instead he was arguing that it is something about the power of her prose that makes her a poet. He writes, I should like to suggest that Jane Austen is a poet in two senses: (a) in her craftsmanship in language; and (b) in the conduct of the action within each novel. In the first sense, we need to consider fine-grained detail with an ear alert to the dynamics of language; in the second, we are concerned with the disposition of forces within the whole universe of the novel, particularly that mutual definition of plot and character the product of which Aristotle called drama. (108) The elements of the first sense he identifies as irony, precision, and the symbolic naming (rather than describing) of things; the second sense is the "realising of a stylised plot in probable action" (132). He admits that his argument "may be a bit dense," but says that the topic is "too simple to be anything but unmanageable" (109). Testing the full implications of Whalley's argument as it applies to the novels in general would be a lengthy undertaking; for now I shall focus very specifically on the ending of Emma, which seems to me to bear a remarkable similarity to the poetic genre of the epithalamium, or marriage poem, despite the fact that it is prose. The epithalamium is usually thought of as a classical or renaissance genre, with Edmund Spenser's "Epithalamion" (1595) as the most famous example in English. (There are a number of variants of the word--"epithalamium" and "epithalamia" are the Latin terms, with English versions such as "epithalamion" and "epithalamies," and, for a betrothal poem, "prothalamion.") During the renaissance revival of the genre, Spenser, Sidney, Shakespeare, Donne, Jonson, Herrick, Milton, Crashaw, Vaughan, and Dryden all composed epithalamia inspired by the wedding poetry of Sappho, Aristophanes, Euripides, Theocritus, Catullus, Statius, and Claudian. There were even a few medieval epithalamia, by Chaucer, Dunbar, Lydgate, and James I of Scotland. Highly formal and often quite formulaic--George Puttenham's Art of English Poesie (1689) and Julius Caesar Scaliger's Poetices libri septem (1561) provided guidelines for conventional composition--epithalamia usually praise the beauty and character of bride and bridegroom, talk about t heir families, and celebrate unity, stability, and harmony, sometimes incorporating traditional fescennine verses designed to ward off evil by poking fun at it, and invariably ending with blessings and benedictions. Literally, the term "epithalamium" (from the Greek words epi + thalamos) refers to a song, often a kind of folk-song, sung outside the nuptial chamber, just before the consummation of the marriage, but as Virginia Tufte writes in The Poetry of Marriage: The Epithalamium in Europe and its Development in England (1970), even in classical times poets "had begun to call almost any kind of wedding song or poem an epithalamium, and before long they applied the term to certain types of poetry and prose which dealt with subjects unrelated to marriage except in a metaphorical way" (3)-such as spiritual marriage or the union of two rivers (Spenser, "The Thames doth the Medway Wed"). The boundaries of the genre are not firm, and thus the term is not limited to poetry; therefore, whether the conception of Austen is expanded from novelist to poet, or the definition of the epithalamium is expanded to include prose as well as poetry, it is possible to see Austen as the author of an epithalamium. How, then, does the traditio n of the epithalamium emerge in the ending of Emma, and why is it useful to think of Austen in this unconventional way? Near the ending of the novel, as is conventional in the epithalamium, bride and bridegroom are individually and jointly praised. …


This article discusses applications of Lonergan's thinking on tradition and innovation to the world of Catholic education. Even now, at the beginning of the 21st century and 20 years after his death, it is worthwhile to explore his understanding of tradition and innovation, with attention to how it related to the Catholic intellectual culture of his own time, and more importantly, how it might contribute to an understanding of the identity of Catholic educational institutions in today's period of great transition. In recent years, faculty members and administrators at Catholic universities have been engaged in many discussions about the Catholic intellectual tradition and Catholic higher education. Most of the attention in these conversations has gone to the issue of what it means to be Catholic. The next step is to explore what it means to have a tradition. Thus, this essay examines the usefulness of one leading 20th century Catholic intellectual's approach to tradition as it relates to Catholic education in general and to Catholic universities in particular.


Following on from recent research about the history of gender in colonial Algeria, this article focuses on the experiences of Algerian women communist militants, from the creation of the Union des femmes d'Algerie (Union of Women of Algeria) in 1944 until Algerian independence in 1962. The Parti communiste algerien (Algerian Communist Party) and its "mass" women's organizations represent an excellent field of study to understand how women militants adapted to or subverted the gender roles produced by various social actors. Yet studying these groups also enables us to investigate the interaction between militancy and the gender and race-based social relations specific to colonial Algerian society. Communism was the political movement that brought together the largest number of women in Algeria in the decade after the Second World War, and it was the main space for political and sentimental interactions between men and women beyond the legal and racial barriers of colonial society. This created different issues within the ranks of Algerian communists than those faced by communists in Europe.


Because of the numerous changes in the motivations and objectives of aid policy over the past decades, Jean-Michel Severino compares official development assistance (ODA) to a Hydra. Yet while today's global "macro-social" complexities create new ground for international solidarity, he argues that a profound reconsideration of the objectives, measurements, policy content and financing modes of development assistance is not only necessary and welcome, but also inevitable. A new generation of shared, long-term goals is needed to set the pace for collective mobilisation by reconciling social concerns with concepts of public goods and global macroeconomic management, shifting the focus from finance only to more inclusive policy approaches. Yet the challenge, he sustains, is not only to define objectives, but to measure results against them. To this end, a new international measurement system is needed. Severino foresees a gradual shift in financing of public welfare, with the rich in all countries bearing the burden of financing for the poor, for instance through international taxation.


The present anti-racial discrimination legislation in the United Kingdom is embodied in the 1976 Race Relations Act. In essence this Act attempts to avoid any form of direct or indirect discrimination on the basis of racial or ethnic origin. However, health professionals are acutely aware that there are important racial differences in disease, some of which are, in fact, not racial but merely associated with social deprivation, poor housing and, of course, the incapacity to speak English. These new findings present the medical profession, in the climate of scarce resources, with the challenge of meeting these needs without discriminating in favour of, or against, individuals on the basis of their race. This is because there are few provision in the 1976 Act to allow for such discrimination, even when it is for an ethnic group's advantage. The dilemmas this raises for health professionals who are involved in planning services for ethnic minorities are discussed.


There has been great interest and research initiatives in the biomedical community around harnessing " big data " , including data from the literature, high-throughput gene expression experiments, array CGH and high‑throughput siRNA and many other types of data to generate novel hypothesis to address the most crucial biomedical questions and aid in the discovery of more effective and improved therapeutic options for the treatment of complex and pervasive diseases such as cancer. Cancer research has progressed rapidly in the last decade with the implementation of high-dimensional genomic technologies. The large amount of data generated over the years has enabled a systems-based approach to uncovering and elucidating the complex signaling networks associated with cancer. However, even though new technologies have advanced our understanding of cancer biology beyond what could be imagined even a decade ago, there still exist unique challenges associated precisely with the amount of data that is now routinely generated from even a single patient. The data must be stored and processed, with novel analysis strategies called for to uncover new insights into cancer biology that are literally hidden in 'big data'. Interest in taming 'big data' through methods and systems to extract, represent, and transform it into knowledge that can effectively be used for reasoning and question answering will only increase over time, enabling scientists to finally use the data for personalized treatment, discovery and validation. Work presented in this session includes novel approaches to explore cancer gene expression data, applying algebraic topology (Lockwood and Krishnamoorthy) and Denoising autoencoders (Tan et al) to identify significant properties of genomic data that cannot be found by traditional algorithms. There is also a novel methodology for leveraging somatic mutation data for predicting survival in cancer samples (Kim et al), a computational system for automated gene expression pattern annotation on mouse brain images that could prove to be key to understanding the pathogenesis of brain tumors and their early detection (Yang et al). With respect to knowledge extraction, this session includes work on a weakly supervised machine learning approach for automatic pathway extraction from PubMed abstracts (Poon et al), and on the use protein interaction data from multiple sources to investigate mutations in 125 genes that were earlier identified as driving tumorigenesis when mutated (Engin et al).


The authors describe a patient who showed intermittent left bundle branch block at a slow heart rate. The perpetuation of left bundle branch block is suggested because of rate dependent bundle branch block and trans-septal retrograde concealed penetration by the contralateral bundle as it is resolved by a premature ventricular extrasystole. This phenomenon is called "linking." This case report aims to present and emphasize this interesting phenomenon.


A recently published Letter rediscovers a simple closed-form expression for the ergodic capacity integral when the instantaneous signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) follows the gamma distribution with an integer shape parameter, i.e. the Erlang distribution. In this Comment, a few earlier references for the exactly same expression are pointed out and a precision problem is discussed, overlooked by the original Letter, affecting the direct application of the proposed formulas.


Class extensions allow for a modular addition of new behavior to an existing class hierarchy. However, the reliance on position-dependent parameters in mainstream programming languages has often a negative impact on the way new behavior can be specified. This observation has led us to explore the concept of forms, which are first-class extensible records that, in combination with a small set of purely asymmetric operators, provide a core language for an extensible, flexible, and robust software development approach. In this paper, we present a refinement of our recent work on a substitution-free lambda calculus with forms. More precisely, we develop the λF@-calculus in which names are replaced with shared forms and parameter passing is modeled using explicit contexts and show, how this calculus can be used to model open classes, a key mechanism for class extensions. A Form-based Framework for Class Extensions Markus Lumpe Department of Computer Science Iowa State University 113 Atanasoff Hall Ames, IA-50011, USA firstname.lastname@example.com


Today's augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) systems do not provide body, hand or mouth tracking without special worn sensors or external infrastructure. Simultaneously, AR/VR systems are increasingly being used in co-located, multi-user experiences, opening the possibility for opportunistic capture of other users. This is the core idea behind BodySLAM, which uses disparate camera views from users to digitize the body, hands and mouth of other people, and then relay that information back to the respective users. If a user is seen by two or more people, 3D pose can be estimated via stereo reconstruction. Our system also maps the arrangement of users in real world coordinates. Our approach requires no additional hardware or sensors beyond what is already found in commercial AR/VR devices, such as Microsoft HoloLens or Oculus Quest.


Techniques for characterizing seismic sources, borrowed from earthquake seismology, can provide useful information for microseismic studies. Various magnitude scales are used in earthquake seismology, the oldest of which (Richter magnitude) is specific to California earthquakes. All such scales are logarithmic and yield an estimated 30-fold increase in radiated seismic energy per unit magnitude increment. Simple models of fault displacement yield acceleration and displacement spectra from which seismic moments and corner frequencies can be determined. The corner frequency, in turn, may be used to estimate stress drop and source radius. The seismic moment tensor provides a general description of a source in terms of force couples, of which several types are of particular interest for microseismic studies. Double-couple sources describe slip on existing fracture surfaces, whereas tensile compensated linear vector dipole (CLVD) mechanisms describe a plausible mechanism for generation of new fractures within a competent rock mass. The role of stress transfer in earthquake occurrence has recently been recognized. Coulomb stress change provides a simple predictive model for discriminating between regions that move close to (or farther from) failure in the aftermath of an earthquake. Such models may have application to far-field induced seismicity associated with hydraulic fracturing.


The charismatic stream popularly called the "prosperity gospel" lives uncomfortably on the edge of the Pentecostal movement. Its location is in part due to controversy surrounding its teaching and practices. It is scorned by non-Pentecostals and Pentecostals alike for its apparent shameless appeal to material wealth. The animus against the prosperity gospel by mainstream Pentecostals in particular is judged in part due to weak biblical exegesis, over-claims for results, temptation to greed, and absence of a theology of suffering. This essay is a brief case study of Kingdom Covenant Ministries, Toronto, and its Jamaican founder and pastor, Pat Francis. The purpose is to explore her understanding of the prosperity gospel and how it is lived out in her ministry in Canada's largest multicultural city. I begin by reviewing the two historical movements which have shaped the prosperity gospel: its Pentecostal roots and neoliberal economics. This will be followed by an overview of Francis's prosperity gospel theology and its outworking in her ministry. The paper concludes with a series of reflections intended to locate her Kingdom theology and ministry within a broader typology offered by theologian, Howard Snyder, and raise questions regarding the strengths and dangers of the robust promotion of wealth accumulation, even with the most laudable of motives.


The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is one of the predominant causes of climate variability in southern and eastern Africa. It thus has a considerable impact on agriculture in the region. This paper will define the ENSO signal in terms of its relevance to commercial agriculture in southern and eastern Africa. The ENSO signal is often generalized in terms of either a drought year or heavy rains over a season. Analysis reveals, however, that the ENSO signal shows great variability both within and between events with obvious implications for the use of climate information by potential users. Information requirements also vary substantially from user to user. The ENSO effect is first isolated through superposed epoch analysis of rainfall data on a variety of time scales. This analysis clearly shows the variability of the signal. For example, ENSO impacts the reliability of the start of the rains in Zambia, whereas in southern Tanzania ENSO has a greater influence on the seasonal distribution of rainfall. The significance of these variations for commercial agriculture is very much related to the particular operation that is affected. Semi-structured interviews with commercial operators in Swaziland were used to assess the impact that climate variability might have on their activities. Focused interviews produced historical time lines to illustrate the influence on decisions that climate information could have. The results show that the use of climate information varies considerably between companies. A preliminary assessment highlights certain constraints on use, primarily in terms of forecast timing and scale. Recommendations for further work include a thorough exploration of the constraints issue as well as economic assessment of the perceived value of forecasts, including how these estimates are reached. [Key words: El Niño–Southern Oscillation, Africa-southeastern, climate variability, agriculture.]


In Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur has a high prevalence of Injecting Drug Use and it is associated with HIV/AIDS infection, which is fast increasing. There is an urgent need to understand the treatment seeking behaviour of IDUs. Various services and treatment options are in place for IDUs in Bilaspur. Both Government and NGOs are active in spreading awareness and providing necessary support to the drug users. But formulating policies and setting-up establishments alone will not ensure the welfare of the target population. A timely assessment of their efficacy is required. An important factor in the success of these measures is the access and adherence of IDUs to these services. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the utilization of these services by the target population and the effect of various barriers on the same. Furthermore, it is imperative to identify the services, which are underutilized to strategize and implement specific interventions. Earlier studies in this region have concentrated on mainly the prevalence of Injecting Drug Use, its determinants and prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection among IDUs but no study enquiring into the utilization of services has been done in Bilaspur. Hence, this paper will especially examine the effect of socio-demographic factors, family and community attitudes and other factors on the accessibility and appropriate utilization of various support services. Furthermore, it verifies the accountability of the government programs for IDUS. Lastly, a conclusion has been made. Keywords: NGO, IDUs, health, support systems, facilitation Cite this Article Vikram Singh, Access to Health and Support Systems: Role of NGOs in Facilitation Process among Injecting Drug Users (IDUs) in Bilaspur. Research & Reviews: A Journal of Health Professions . 2018; 8(3): 1–6p.


The study of food can divulge some of the most basic characteristics of different people's social organization at any given point in time, and is a useful way to address issues of historical change and continuity at the level of everyday life. The study of food through history is also an important way to bridge the conceptual bifurcation of labor, on one hand, and leisure on the other. Because eating is the most basic activity necessary for the reproduction of labor power, as well as a social activity thick with symbolic associations of recreation and superfluity, it reveals the tight connections between work, rest, and macroeconomic organization in ways that may otherwise not be evident. Building on these notions, in this dissertation, I examine the reconstitution of Chinese noodle-soup in modern Japan at key moments to illuminate the political and economic logic of changes in everyday life. I study the social historical implications of changing food practices by examining shifts in the popularity, material constitution, and meanings attributed to Chinese noodle-soup and its association with different categories over time. The designation of the dish as foreign, urban, cheap, nutritious, fast, slow, novel, traditional, unhealthy, or Japanese in various social- economic contexts reveals how dietary practices and ideas about nourishment are tightly interlaced with shifting labor conditions, industrialization, international trade relations, and state policy-making. Dietary change, as seen through one particular dish, therefore, serves as the medium for establishing the connections between shifts in the political economy and everyday life practices in modern Japan.


"The Rough Guide to World Music" is the unchallenged reference work on sounds from around the globe. This third edition is more comprehensive than ever - updated and expanded throughout and with a number of new countries added. "Volume 1: Africa & Middle East" has full coverage of genres from Afrobeat to Arabesque, and artists from Amadou & Mariam to Umm Kulthum. This book includes articles on more than 60 countries written by expert contributors, discographies for each article with biographical notes on thousands of musicians, and reviews of their best CDs.


In order to estimate the residual life of waste drive axle housing, the prediction model of waste axle housings with artificial neural networks is built in this paper. Take the deformation, residual stress and the gradient of magnetic intensity Kmax relating to axle housing's fatigue damage degree as the input of neural network, and compare the testing residual life of the waste drive axle housing with its predicting residual life. The result demonstrates that: the deformation, residual stress and the gradient of magnetic intensity Kmax of axle housing as the characteristic parameter estimating the degree of fatigue damage, adopting trainbr training function can get good network performance and comparatively high precision of prediction. Besides, the longer the residual life of the waste axle housing is, the more precise the prediction life will be.


ABSTRACT
In the present work, the assessment of the rooting in the preventive prisons processed before the courts of preparatory investigation of Tarapoto, during the year 2016 was investigated.
Having as a general objective to determine how the appraisal of the arraigo is carried out in the preventive prisons processed before these courts, an observational guide was applied as well as a documentary analysis guide, using the inductive, deductive and analysis - synthesis methods, in turn exegetical and hermeneutics, and as a technique, documentary observation and documentary analysis were used.
The main result was that most of the preventive custody proceedings are related to the crime of Illicit Drug Trafficking - TID, twenty three (23) of the forty (40) Preventive Prison Hearing Registry Acts collected on this matter , likewise the fiscal headquarters required preventive detention for a total of 58 people, of which preventive prison was imposed for 49 investigated, being that nine prosecuted did not fall this coercive measure.
After the analysis and discussion of the results, it was concluded that there is appraisal of the rooting in preventive prisons processed before the Tarapoto Preparatory Investigation Courts during the year 2016, in accordance with the grounds supported by the procedural subjects who, in each preventive custody hearing, have sustained by means of oral, argumentative and persuasive skills the dimensions specified by the Supreme Court through Castion No. 631-2015-Arequipa establishing fundamental criteria for the determination of the rooting in judicial decisions, stating that, if there is a comprehensive motivation, and adequate argumentation in the hearing debate, the judge will be convinced of the need to impose this measure of coercion. The jurisdictional decision will not be based only on what is required by the prosecutor, but also by virtue of the work of the other procedural subjects participating in the hearing, whose abilities to oppose the tax requirement, will cause the Judge to analyze thoroughly if it is possible or not Impose preventive detention.


The purpose of this study was to assess dental hygiene (DH) students' perceptions regarding their oral anatomy course that integrates DH students in the first quarter of the curriculum with entering undergraduate dental students. The oral anatomy course is given to both DH and dental students in their first quarter at the same point in time. The intent of combining the classes is to foster cooperation and collaboration as well as efficiently utilizing dental and DH faculty resources. Research indicates that 2 differences between entering pre-doctoral students and beginning DH students are maturity and complexity of thought processes. With this in mind, DH students are given supplemental recitation experiences, additional quizzes, and extra lab experiences, which results in a separate grade assignment. All students attend lectures and laboratories together. At the completion of the oral anatomy course, DH students (N=33) were given a 10-item survey, using a 4-point Likert scale and open-ended questions concerning their perceptions of the combined class. Ninety-seven percent either agreed (A) or strongly agreed (SA) that they liked the integration of students while 100 % either A or SA that the lecture material was aimed at both DH and dental students. One hundred percent either A or SA that the extra lab experiences including practice tooth ID exercises were helpful. Seventy-three percent either A or SA that the recitation sessions were helpful and 88% felt the difficulty level was appropriate for DH students. A student commented, "I loved having lecture with dental students." "It makes us feel as one unit, but it is nice breaking up into a small group on Thursday mornings." The DH students appear to like the integration with dental students in the oral anatomy course. Comments did reveal some DH students felt that the additional quizzes in recitation were more difficult than those given with the dental students. Students also indicated that the additional lab exercises and practice tooth ID's were very helpful.


Discrete-time optimal control (DTOC) problems are large-scale optimization problems with a dynamic structure. In previous work this structure has been exploited to provide very fast and eecient local procedures. Two examples are the diierential dynamic programming algorithm (DDP) and the stagewise Newton procedure { both require only O(N) operations per iteration, where N is the number of timesteps. Both exhibit a quadratic convergence rate. However, most algorithms in this category do not have a satisfactory global convergence strategy. The most popular global strategy is shifting: this sometimes works poorly due to the lack of automatic adjustment to the shifting element. In this paper we propose a method that incorporates the trust region idea with the local stagewise Newton's method. This method possesses advantages of both the trust region idea and the stagewise Newton's method, i.e., our proposed method has strong global and local convergence properties yet remains economical. Preliminary numerical results are presented to illustrate the behavior of the proposed algorithm. We also collect in the Appendix some DTOC problems that have appeared in the literature.


This paper critically analyzes the rules of the UEFA financial regulatory system for football clubs known as Financial Fair Play (FFP). I argue that the objectives of FFP are not really fairness but financial efficiency and that the rules are unlikely to achieve efficiency. I also contend that even from the perspective of fairness, the rules do little more than substitute one form of inequality for another. Finally I briefly assess the implications for the competition law challenge that was launched in May 2013 against the FFP breakeven rule.


Bacterial exopolysacchrides (EPSs) are produced by many bacteria. Nowadays there is an increasing interest in the isolation and exploitation of these polymers for industrial purposes. In general, biosynthesis of EPS varies from one strain to other strain and it depends on genes and enzymes involved in EPS production and secretion. In this study, EPS producing strains were isolated from municipal wastewater treatment plant and their potential of EPS production was evaluated. The role of EPS in sludge flocculation was also studied. Three types of EPS (LB-EPS (Loosely bound EPS), TB-EPS (Tightly bound EPS) and B-EPS (broth EPS)) were harvested and their characteristics were studied. Bio-flocculation capacity of the obtained EPS was evaluated by measuring the kaolin clay flocculation activity. The LB-EPS was better than TB-EPS and B-EPS for bioflocculation.


The continued presence and importance of Christian moral values in our daily lives, coupled with the fact that faith in Christianity is in continual decline, raises the question as to why having lost faith in Christianity, we have also not lost faith in our Christian moral values. This question is also indicative of a more pressing phenomenon: not only have we maintained our faith in Christian values, we fail to see that the widespread collapse of Christianity should affect this faith.

To tackle this latter phenomenon, I claim, we have to pose the Nietzschean question of the value of our moral values, so as to see that this value can be a possible object of questioning.

In chapter one, I consider different approaches found in the history of moral philosophy that look like potential candidates for this task. I argue that, ultimately, the task requires simultaneously taking our familiarity with Christian moral values as both sui generis and a questionable phenomenon. In chapter two, I articulate in detail the sui generis nature of this familiarity with moral values,in terms of the phenomena of habituation and sedimentation. In chapter three, I consider the possibility of estrangement that is built into our familiarity with moral values, by focusing on the role of cognition. I demonstrate how cognition, in the form of self-consciousness, can disrupt the sedimented, habituated nature of our moral values through a form of ironic disruption. In chapter four, I develop this account by considering the possibility of an appeal to an alternative moral outlook. To do so, I draw upon the structural isomorphism that is present between the process of estrangement and a rite of passage.


Diabetes mellitus (DM) is associated with enhanced propensity for ventricular tachyarrhythmias (VT). We found that DM hearts exhibit attenuated APD shortening in response to ischemia (Fig). We hypothesized that altered KATP channel expression & function underlie this impaired electrophysiological (EP) adaptation.

Methods: We investigated differential effects of the SUR2a activator Pinacidil (PIN, 100 uM) and the SUR1 activator Diazoxide (DZX, 30 uM) on EP properties in Zucker Diabetic Fatty (ZDF) and control (ctrl) rats at baseline and in response to no flow ischemia. We measured the mRNA expression of KATP channel subunits (Kir6.1, Kir6.2, SUR1a, SUR1b, SUR2a, and SUR2b) in normal and ZDF animals.

Results: PIN caused comparable APD shortening in ctrl & ZDF hearts during baseline perfusion and promoted early onset of sustained VT within 6 min of ischemia in ctrl & ZDF hearts. In contrast, DZX did not alter APD (p=NS) or cause arrhythmias in either group during baseline perfusion. However, DZX accelerated APD shortening and promoted VT in all (8/8) ZDF hearts during ischemia (Fig 1). The putative molecular mechanism underlying the differential proarrhythmic sensitivity of ZDF vs ctrl hearts to DZX was investigated. We found marked upregulation of Kir6.1 (by 3.7X p<0.001) and SUR1b (by 2.8X p<0.001) mRNA levels with no changes in Kir6.2, SUR1a, SUR2a, or SUR2b expression in ZDF.

Conclusion: Remodeling of KATP channel subunits likely underlies the differential sensitivity of ZDF hearts to DZX. Our findings indicate that this classically cardioprotective agent should be avoided in DM patients at risk of ischemic events. Upregulation of Kir6.1 & SUR1b may be markers of proarrhythmia.

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Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive solid malignancy with a median overall survival of 8 months (1). First line combination therapy of cisplatin and pemetrexed has brought an overall survival benefit of only 11 weeks compared to cisplatin alone (2,3). Despite the limited efficacy of this regimen, it has continued as standard MPM therapy 14 years after its acceptance, underscoring the urgent need for novel treatments that improve the lives of MPM patients. Within this focused review (4), Wald and Sugarbaker elaborate on novel advanced classification and prognostication methods that shine a light on the path to personalized medicine, possibly matching the right therapy with the right patient. Several key principles and evolving concepts in the care of MPM patients are discussed.


This paper summarizes the current state of the social capital paradigm from the viewpoint of the authors. The paper presents and defends a social capital definition based on sympathetic relationships. The paper also summarizes an expanded set of rational preferences that depend on social capital. Then, the paper describes the origin of social capital and its economic consequences, and introduces the concept of socio-emotional goods. Socio-emotional goods may attach themselves to physical goods and services. When this happens, physical goods and services are exchanged on terms different than those values established in an arm's-length market or in exchanges between strangers. It is possible to invest in social capital and this paper reviews several opportunities for social capital investment. Moving from a micro to a macro focus in the study of social capital directs the paper's focus from informal to formal institutions. Finally, the paper summarizes agreed-on social capital principles that suggest that the social capital paradigm is maturing. Key Words: earned kernels, inherited kernels, institutions and networks, social capital, socio-emotional goods


AbstractThis study aimed to report new clinical approaches to the treatment of lymphatic disorders by microsurgical techniques based on histological and immunohistochemical findings. The authors' wide clinical experience in the treatment of patients with peripheral lymphedema by microsurgical techniques is reported. Microsurgical methods included derivative lymphatic-venous anastomoses and lymphatic reconstruction by interpositioned vein grafted shunts. In all patients, lymphatic and lymph nodal tissues were sent for histological assessment, together with specimen of the interstitial matrix. Diagnostic investigations consisted in venous duplex scan and lymphoscintigraphy. Results were assessed clinically by volumetry performed preoperatively and postoperatively at 3 to 6 months and at 1, 3, and 5 years. The outcome obtained in treating lymphedemas at different stages was analyzed for volume reduction, stability of results with time, reduction of dermatolymphangioadenitis attacks, necessity of wearing elastic supports, and use of conservative measures postoperatively. Microsurgical lymphatic derivative and reconstructive techniques allow bringing about positive results in the treatment of peripheral lymphedema, above all in early stages when tissular changes are slight and allow almost a complete restore of lymphatic drainage.


The Quality of Life (QoL) paradigm is multidimensional, dynamic and modular and its definition differs across the cancer continuum. The challenge in the interpretation of QoL data in clinical research is that QoL is influenced by psychological phenomena such as adaptation to illness. This research aims to obtain a valid and sensitive assessment of QoL change over the continuum disease, and to evaluate a rehabilitation programme aimed at inverting the observed decrease in QoL when patients return to daily living activities. The sample comprised 66 men. Patients were first assessed to establish a baseline (P1-diagnosis). This was followed by a post-test (P2-discharge) and a then-test measurement (P3-retrospective evaluation) and after returning home patients were randomized in experimental and control groups. The experimental group attended a rehabilitation programme over 24 weeks (P4). Results show that from baseline to post-test, QoL decreased significantly. The recalibration then-test confirmed a low QoL in all periods evaluated. Significant differences between the experimental and control groups prove the positive effect of the Exercise Rehabilitation Programme (ERP) on QoL. Understanding the real dynamic of QoL over time would help to adapt rehabilitation programmes by improving sensitivity and efficacy and provide professionals with a more accurate perception of the impact of treatment and side effects on patients' QoL. Our results underline the importance of changing the approach adopted by health professionals towards one of watchful waiting on patients' QoL until their complete recovery in daily life. Keywords—Prostate cancer, quality of life, rehabilitation programme, response shift.


The lattice parameters of the bcc (b) and omega (W) phases occurring metastably in a series of Zr-rich Zr-Nb alloys have been determined at and above room temperature (TR) using neutron diffraction techniques. In the first place, the effect of temperature changes upon the lattice parameters of the b and W phases in alloys with 10 and 18 at.% Nb was monitored using neutron thermodiffraction. A method of analysis is applied to the data which involves a confrontation between the observed structural properties and an idealised -or ``reference'- behaviour (RB) which admits a simple mathematical description. A generalised form of Vegard's law is adopted as RB for the b phase, whereas a specific RB is proposed for the W structure. The experimental data are well accounted for by this interpretation scheme, leading to a picture of the isothermal reactions occurring at high temperature which involves the transfer of Nb from the W to the b phase. Finally, the neutron diffraction data on the W phase are combined with an electron microscopy study for the alloy with 10 at.% Nb aged at 773 K, which provides information on the composition of this phase and its evolution towards thermodynamic equilibrium.


Resonant enhancement is seen in some gold clusters at the gold 4f7/2 and 4f5/2 threshold, indicative of an f to d transition. The existence of such resonance is generally not observed in ultrasmall Au nanoclusters because this resonant transition is forbidden in atomic gold, as gold represents a filled 5d106s1 system. Here we report, for the first time, the presence of a strong resonant enhancement in photoemission at the 4f7/2 threshold and a weaker resonant enhancement at the 4f5/2 threshold, in the open (undressed) Au38 cluster system, indicating not only an f to d Coster–Kronig resonance but also s–d hybridization, much like what is observed in gold films. This f to d Coster–Kronig photoemission resonance is not observed in the "undressed" thiol-terminated gold clusters characteristic of far more localized orbitals. These results indicate that the unusual catalytic properties of ultrasmall gold nanoclusters such as Au38 are not a result of localized orbitals, which is the case in a molecular system.


Anorexia nervosa (AN) is accompanied by an increased frequency of pre-morbid anxiety. Anxiety disorders are associated with increased brain activity of catecholamines, especially noradrenaline. It has been hypothesized that noradrenergic dysregulation may be a major factor in the causation of AN. In this article, we explore this hypothesis and how it might account for the reduction of anxiety found in starvation, the increase in anxiety found with re-feeding, and thus the reinforcement of anxiety by re-feeding. We propose that alleviation of this dysregulation through the noradrenaline precursor (tyrosine) supplementation, leading to saturation of supply, may alleviate some of the pathological changes found in AN. We consider how the hypothesis might be investigated. The success of tyrosine supplementation would have important implications from theoretical, research and clinical perspectives.