The paper describes the noun phase and anaphora annotation in OpenCorpora and compares it to that in other corpora. We discuss the choice of representative texts for anaphoric annotation and the basic principles of syntactic annotation. In case of noun phrase annotation we followed the scheme introduced earlier for morphological annotation: it was carried out in two stages: firstly, all noun phrases and some other syntactic units were annotated by a heterog-enous group of people, then a linguist compared all markup results and found the best one, or corrected mistakes. We present some annotation results and cases of annotator's disagreement and proceed to introduce our data-driven anaphora resolution system based on decision trees. We then list the features used to fit the classificator and discuss their relevance and some changes which improved the classificator performance. We also present out rule-based approach to automated noun phrase extraction using Tomita parser. A baseline for anaphora resolution is introduced and we compare it with our results.


Leukemic lymphoblasts expressing the E2A-HLF oncoprotein possess wild-type p53 genes, but do not undergo apoptosis in response to DNA damage. Experimentally, E2A-HLF prevents apoptosis due to growth factor deprivation or g-irradiation in interleukin-3 (IL-3)–dependent murine pro-B cells. To directly test the chimeric protein's ability to abrogate p53-mediated cell death, we used mouse myeloid leukemia cells (M1p53tsval) that constitutively express a temperature-sensitive (ts) mutant p53 gene and undergo apoptosis when p53 assumes an active wild-type configuration. This effect is blocked by treatment with IL-6, which allows the cells to survive in culture despite wild-type p53 activation. We introduced E2A-HLF into M1p53tsval cells and found that they were resistant to p53-mediated apoptosis and that E2A-HLF effectively substituted for the survival functions of IL-6. The expression of p53-responsive genes such as p21 and Bax was upregulated normally, suggesting that E2A-HLF acts downstream of p53 to block execution of the p53-induced apoptotic program. NFIL3, a growth factorregulated bZIP protein that binds to the same DNAconsensus site as E2A-HLF, delays apoptosis in IL-3– dependent pro-B cells deprived of growth factor. By contrast, in the present study, enforced expression of NFIL3 failed to protect M1p53tsval cells from p53-dependent apoptosis and actively antagonized the ability of IL-6 to rescue cells from that fate, consistent with its role as either a transcriptional repressor or activator, depending on the cell type in which it is expressed. We conclude that the E2A-HLF chimera abrogates p53-induced apoptosis in leukemic cells, possibly through the transcriptional modulation of cell death pathways that are activated by p53 in response to DNA damage. r 1998 by The American Society of Hematology.


The most recent model residential building code has been modified to require increased use of water/weather resistive barrier (WRB) materials in construction, and to require some means of draining water from the building enclosure. However, "drainage" performance is not defined, and the Code is unclear about which currently available WRB products and design approaches help provide a durable water-resistant exterior wall enclosure. The present work is a qualitative, "order of magnitude" study of the drainage characteristics of various types of WRB materials (felts, housewraps, drainage wraps, drainage boards, and furring strips), and is a "first step" toward developing an overall durable wall approach for the building enclosure. The ASTM E2273 drainage efficiency test was used in 40 wall assembly mockups to evaluate 11 WRB materials in 8 design configurations. Traditional WRBs and housewraps provided little or no drainage capability to the exterior wall designs tested. Drainage-enhanced housewraps provided an improved level of drainage, but they still retained water. The retained water can migrate through fastener holes to the underlying construction. Best drainage performance was obtained by using WRBs with furring, drainage mats, and profiled sheets (drainage boards). These overall results are in general agreement with similar research by others. These results can guide designers and builders in the proper selection and use of such materials, which should be used as part of an overall durable wall approach to protecting the building enclosure.


Soybean (Glycine max), as an important oilseed crop, is constantly threatened by abiotic stress, including that caused by salinity and drought. bZIP transcription factors (TFs) are one of the largest TF families and have been shown to be associated with various environmental-stress tolerances among species; however, their function in abiotic-stress response in soybean remains poorly understood. Here, we characterized the roles of soybean transcription factor GmbZIP15 in response to abiotic stresses. The transcript level of GmbZIP15 was suppressed under salt- and drought-stress conditions. Overexpression of GmbZIP15 in soybean resulted in hypersensitivity to abiotic stress compared with wild-type (WT) plants, which was associated with lower transcript levels of stress-responsive genes involved in both abscisic acid (ABA)-dependent and ABA-independent pathways, defective stomatal aperture regulation, and reduced antioxidant enzyme activities. Furthermore, plants expressing a functional repressor form of GmbZIP15 exhibited drought-stress resistance similar to WT. RNA-seq and qRT-PCR analyses revealed that GmbZIP15 positively regulates GmSAHH1 expression and negatively regulates GmWRKY12 and GmABF1 expression in response to abiotic stress. Overall, these data indicate that GmbZIP15 functions as a negative regulator in response to salt and drought stresses.


Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) accounts for around 20% of diagnosed childhood leukemia. Cytarabine (CYT) is involved in the AML treatment regimen. AML and CYT showed impairment in spermatogenesis in human and rodents in adulthood. We successfully developed an AML disease model in sexually immature mice. Monocytes and granulocytes were examined in all groups: untreated control, AML alone, CYT alone and AML+CYT (in combination). There was a significant increase in the counts of monocytes and granulocytes in the AML-treated immature mice (AML) compared to the control, and AML cells were demonstrated in the blood vessels of the testes. AML alone and CYT alone impaired the development of spermatogenesis at the adult age of the AML-treated immature mice. The damage was clear in the structure/histology of their seminiferous tubules, and an increase in the apoptotic cells of the seminiferous tubules was demonstrated. Our results demonstrated a significant decrease in the meiotic/post-meiotic cells compared to the control. However, CYT alone (but not AML) significantly increased the count of spermatogonial cells (premeiotic cells) that positively stained with SALL4 and PLZF per tubule compared to the control. Furthermore, AML significantly increased the count of proliferating spermatogonial cells that positively stained with PCNA in the seminiferous tubules compared to the control, whereas CYT significantly decreased the count compared to the control. Our result showed that AML and CYT affected the microenvironment/niche of the germ cells. AML significantly decreased the levels growth factors, such as SCF, GDNF and MCSF) compared to control, whereas CYT significantly increased the levels of MCSF and GDNF compared to control. In addition, AML significantly increased the RNA expression levels of testicular IL-6 (a proinflammatory cytokine), whereas CYT significantly decreased testicular IL-6 levels compared to the control group. Furthermore, AML alone and CYT alone significantly decreased RNA expression levels of testicular IL-10 (anti-inflammatory cytokine) compared to the control group. Our results demonstrate that pediatric AML disease with or without CYT treatment impairs spermatogenesis at adult age (the impairment was more pronounced in AML+CYT) compared to control. Thus, we suggest that special care should be considered for children with AML who are treated with a CYT regimen regarding their future fertility at adult age.


This thesis aims to evaluate the role of rehabilitation in improving outcomes for patients admitted to critical care. Patients admitted to critical care experience significant muscle weakness, which when present is associated with prolonged stays in both ICU and hospital and higher mortality levels. Although overall survival rates from critical illness are improving, survivors are often left with significant and ongoing physical, functional and psychological dysfunction. Preventing the physical consequences of critical illness and supporting recovery from intensive care therefore remains a high priority area for critical care practice and research.
This thesis presents and critiques 11 peer reviewed publications and 2 national guidelines to demonstrate the role of rehabilitation in improving outcomes. The first 5 papers presented investigate the impact of a novel post ICU rehabilitation programme to improve long term outcomes. This begins with the initial feasibility testing of the programme and demonstrates development of the analysis into a more robust multi-centre trial. The impact of exercise based rehabilitation is evaluated with regards to physical, psychological and quality of life measures.
The next 6 papers presented investigate the potential for early rehabilitation which commences in ICU to reduce the negative impact of critical illness and improve patient outcomes. Specifically they evaluate the impact of a structured approach to rehabilitation within critical care, identifying the key components required and potential barriers to implementation. The findings of the papers included in this thesis provide valuable insights to inform future research opportunities and challenges in order to continue to develop the evidence for critical illness rehabilitation and recovery.


Extracted from text ... HTS 60(3) 2005 1023
Scheffler, E H 2001 - Politics in ancient Israel
Publisher: Biblia Publishers: Pretoria. 176 Pages. Price: Unknown
Reviewer: Dr J Beyers (Groblersdal)
Eben Scheffler teaches Old Testament and Biblical Archaeology at the University of South
Africa. He has a special interest in the politics, culture, religion and literature of the people of
the biblical world and the ancient Near East.
The purpose of this book is to increase political awareness among South Africans.
The book is also dedicated to all longing for a better South Africa. The varying political
situations Israel was subjected to during the ..


In developing countries, the effects of natural disasters and accidents are often more serious in those buildings with a high number of occupants as a consequence of deficiencies in the built design and insufficiency of inspections. We have surveyed a number of state primary schools to examine their interior physical environment with respect to school safety and security. We studied all the 37 state primary schools located in the Isparta region of Turkey during the period between March and May of 2002. The results showed that all the schools of the region had a number of inadequacies because they had not been adequately adapted to comply with existing standards. Most of the schools had over-large class sizes, had one or more classrooms in an underground floor (proscribed in areas where there is a high risk of earthquakes), inadequate security and safety precautions to ensure pupil safety and had no proper air ventilation within the classrooms. The survey showed that local and central official bodies must reinforce the need for standards and ensure the implementation of high standards in the schools to ensure the pupil health, safety and security, and that they should work together with parents and other local associations.


This paper presents the critical success factors (CSFs) for knowledge transfer via a Malaysian government education website, from the perspective of provider. The research explores CSFs from a case study at Department of Education in Malaysia that is known as MASED. The research adapted Szulanski's four stages, namely initiation, implementation, ramp-up and integration that is known as intra-organisational knowledge transfer model to identify CSFs for knowledge transfer via government education website. The research has employed an interpretive case study approach, applying qualitative data capture and analysis methods. Primary data were derived from the interviews with 15 government officers that are involved in the development and management of government education website. Qualitative content analysis by inductive approach was used as analysis technique. From the analysis, 14 CSFs were identified and grouped into six themes, namely management role, user focus, employee focus, content focus, technology focus and organisational focus. Then these CSFs were validated in a focus group with the same 15 respondents to finalise the CSFs for knowledge transfer via Malaysian government education website. This research used a single study of one government agency in Malaysia. The research provides practical guidance to practitioners particularly to the government website providers. In order to increase the level of knowledge transfer to users, the CSFs can support government website providers in taking strategic decisions related to the internal operation of their website's content development and delivery activities.


Abstract. Gaseous elemental mercury is a global pollutant that can lead to serious health concerns via deposition to the biosphere and bio-accumulation in the food chain. Hourly measurements between June 2004 and May 2005 in an urban site (Milwaukee, WI) show elevated levels of mercury in the atmosphere with numerous short-lived peaks as well as longer-lived episodes. The measurements are analyzed with an inverse model to obtain information about mercury emissions. The model is based on high resolution meteorological simulations (WRF), hourly back-trajectories (WRF-FLEXPART) and a chemical transport model (CAMx). The hybrid formulation combining back-trajectories and Eulerian simulations is used to identify potential source regions as well as the impacts of forest fires and lake surface emissions. Uncertainty bounds are estimated using a bootstrap method on the inversions. Comparison with the US Environmental Protection Agency's National Emission Inventory (NEI) and Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) shows that emissions from coal-fired power plants are properly characterized, but emissions from local urban sources, waste incineration and metal processing could be significantly under-estimated. Emissions from the lake surface and from forest fires were found to have significant impacts on mercury levels in Milwaukee, and to be underestimated by a factor of two or more.


Sheehan's syndrome is a rare disease which cause hypopituitarism, occurs as a result of ischemic necrosis in pituitary gland due to severe postpartum bleeding. We report a rare case of dizygotic twin pregnancy induced by gonadotropin therapy and in vitro fertilization (IVF) in a 30 years old Korean woman with Sheehan's syndrome. The patient had been on hydrocortisone, L-thyroxine and insulin therapy because of pre gestational diabetes mellitus during pregnancy. She and her babies were well following Cesarian section at 36 weeks of gestation.


In the past few decades, the frequency of pandemics has been increased due to the growth of urbanization and mobility among countries. Since a disease spreading in one country could become a pandemic with a potential worldwide humanitarian and economic impact, it is important to develop models to estimate the probability of a worldwide pandemic. In this paper, we propose a model of disease spreading in a structural modular complex network (having communities) and study how the number of bridge nodes n that connect communities affects disease spread. We find that our model can be described at a global scale as an infectious transmission process between communities with global infectious and recovery time distributions that depend on the internal structure of each community and n. We find that near the critical point as n increases, the disease reaches most of the communities, but each community has only a small fraction of recovered nodes. In addition, we obtain that in the limit n→∞, the probability of a pandemic increases abruptly at the critical point. This scenario could make the decision on whether to launch a pandemic alert or not more difficult. Finally, we show that link percolation theory can be used at a global scale to estimate the probability of a pandemic since the global transmissibility between communities has a weak dependence on the global recovery time.


Oswego Lake, the namesake of one of Portland, Oregon's most affluent suburbs, has been managed by a private corporation comprised of adjacent landowners for generations. The corporation has excluded the public, claiming the lake is privately owned, even though it easily satisfies the state's definition of a navigable-in-fact waterway, as the lake is frequently used by recreational watercraft. Recently, the city of Lake Oswego enacted an ordinance supporting the corporation's policy of exclusion by banning lake access to the lake from adjacent municipally-owned parklands. Two residents who attempted to access the lake for recreational purposes filed suit, challenging the city's ordinance as a violation of the state's public trust doctrine. But a lower court upheld the ordinance, in significant part because the state refused to acknowledge that it had public trust obligations to protect public access. An appeal to the Oregon Court of Appeals ensued, and 36 law professors filed this brief in support of the recreationalists' appeal.The brief claims that the city and the corporation have wrongfully excluded the public from recreating on Oswego Lake, a navigable-in-fact waterbody. The brief also maintains that the state's unwillingness to take action to vindicate the public rights in the lake is also unlawful, a violation of the state's public trust doctrine. The professors claim that the doctrine does not give the state the discretion to sanction monopolization of a trust resource, as in this case. The brief contends that the state's public trust doctrine has existed at least since statehood and is codified in the 1859 Oregon Statehood Act's promise that "all the navigable waters [of the state] shall be common highways and forever free."


A method is presented to measure lattice and grain boundary diffusion coefficients using secondary ion mass spectroscopy and 2-dimensional diffusion simulations. SIMS is used to measure concentration profiles of implanted species before and after annealing. The as-implanted concentration profile is used as the initial condition for 2-dimensional diffusion simulations using the finite element method. The geometry of the simulation is based on the microstructure of the sample observed by transmission electron microscopy. Both lattice and grain boundary diffusion are simulated. The final 2-dimensional concentration distribution is projected on the depth axis to obtain a simulated depth profile. The diffusion coefficients are adjusted to fit the profiles measured after annealing. We find that this method allows to determine simultaneously and independently the lattice and grain boundary diffusion coefficients from the same profiles. This method is used to measure the diffusion coefficients of As in polycrystalline Ni2Si thin films. The simulations are found to fit the measured profiles with accuracy. The coefficients are measured between 550 and 700°C. An activation energy ratio Qgb/Qv is found greater than one. This result is corroborated by existing data in silicides and is compared to results in other materials for discussion.


This paper presents a low voltage, low power continuous-time (Gm-C) 4th order low pass Butterworth filter with a 3-dB bandwidth of 1MHz and capable of operating at supply voltage as low as 0.5V in 0.18 μm. The filter uses bulk-driven technique for achieving the necessary head-room. The simulation results show that the filter has a peak-to-peak signal swing of 1.2V (differential) for 1% THD and a dynamic range of 54 dB. The power consumed by the filter is 36μW when operating at a voltage of 0.5 V. The Figure of Merit (FOM) achieved by the filter is 0.05 fJ and is found to be lowest among the similar filters found in the literature.


Lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) are regarded as the next-generation high-performance energy storage devices due to their high energy density. However, the long-term use of LSBs in practical applications is limited by the shuttle effect resulting from the diffusion of lithium polysulfides (LiPS) in electrolyte. To address these challenges, a novel aqueous-processable polymer with multiple functional groups, catechol-conjugated chitosan sulfate (CCS), is developed as the binder of the sulfur cathode. The CCS binder demonstrates strong adsorption capability to trap LiPS, as evidenced by ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectra and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Its excellent mechanical and binding properties also result in stabilization of sulfur cathodes in long-term cycling. LSBs assembled with CCS exhibit remarkable improvement in cycling performance with high capacity retention of 80.14% after 400 cycles at 0.5C, and the electrodes maintain their integrity without any clear cracks. At a high rate of 2C, the LSBs can still maintain 77.30% capacity after 300 cycles with high coulombic efficiency of 99.37%. Our results provide new insights into the significance of sulfate and catechol groups in CCS binder for sulfur cathode and pave a new way for the tailoring of the chemical structures of natural polymers to realize LSBs with superior electrochemical performance.


The present study explores gender differences in help-seeking attitudes and the effects of counsellor gender and problem type on those attitudes among Turkish high school students. The Attitudes towards Seeking Help Scale and a survey instrument concerning related factors were administered to 342 adolescents. ANOVAs show that male and female students displayed different help-seeking attitudes. Females held much more positive help-seeking attitudes than did males. For females, neither counsellor gender, problem type nor their interaction affected help-seeking attitudes. By contrast, among males, the interaction of counsellor gender and problem type influenced total help-seeking attitudes as well as two of the subscales – psychological distress and confidence in mental health professionals. Limitations, suggestions for further research and implications are discussed.


Molecular and cellular mechanisms of the interrelations between the feeding and defense behaviour were studied in a snail Helix lucorum. The dynamics of defense reactions was investigated in snails with different levels of feeding motivation. Defense reactions were suppressed in hungry snails, while 15-20 min after the beginning of food intake they were facilitated. The facilitation depended on a duration of starvation. Injection of 0.5 ml of 5 mM glucose solution (up to the glucose level in the haemolymph of a food satiated snail, 1.6-2.0 mM) or injections of 20-30 ng of synthetic analogues of the gastrointestinal peptides (pentagastrin of octapeptide cholecystokinin, CCK-8) facilitated the defense reaction in a hungry snail. Parameters of the facilitation were similar to those in the period of food intake. Activity of the command neurons of defense behaviour (L-PPL1) after the carrot juice application to the lip of a semi-intact preparation from a hungry snail was glucose-dependent. Similar glucose-dependent changes of L-PPL1 activity were found after CCK-8, but not FMRFamide application during the perfusion with 0.5 mM glucose. L-PPL1, but not L-PPa2-3 neurons were most sensitive to glucose and CCK-8 level changes in the Ringer solution. Adaptive significance of the behavioural phenomena as well as glucose and gastrin/CCK-like peptide participation in these processes are discussed.


A measurement technique is presented for recording positions of the bones of the shoulder mechanism, i.e., thorax, clavicula, scapula and humerus, in 3-D space, based on palpating and recording positions of bony landmarks. The palpation technique implies that only static positions can be measured. Accuracy of retrieving bony landmarks is checked on-line using rigid body assumptions. The measurement error is calculated afterwards and is comparable with cinegraphic methods. Axial rotation of the clavicula is estimated by minimizing rotations in the acromioclavicular joint. A number of motion definitions is compared by means of interindividual variation and subjective interpretability. Two useful definitions are proposed for describing motions of the shoulder mechanism. Four conditions have been recorded: abduction and anteflexion of the humerus both with and without additional weight in the hand. Abduction and anteflexion result in large differences in scapular and clavicular motions. The effect of additional weight in the hand on the position of the shoulder girdle is negligible.


In the agricultural marketing literature the marketing activities of individual farmers are not adequately described, and it is often assumed that the strategic behavior of farmers is relatively homogeneous. Likewise, the farm management discipline does not emphasise the marketing behavior of farmers. This contrasts with the business management literature that places considerable emphasis on the marketing and strategic activities of individual firms. Strategic group studies empirically identify groups of firms within an industry that follow similar business strategies. Although the investigation of strategic groups within the agribusiness sector has been identified as an important area for future research, only a small number of studies have examined strategic groups at the farm business level. This article presents the results of an analysis of farm business marketing and strategic management processes. These show that strategic groups of New Zealand intensive crop farmers exist, and the marketing, business, and management characteristics associated with following each distinctive strategy are described. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


BACKGROUND
The tools for high throughput flow cytometry have been limited in part because of the requirement that the samples must flow under pressure. We describe a simple system for sampling repetitively from an open vessel.

METHODS
Under computer control, the sample is loaded into a sample loop in a reciprocating eight-way valve by the action of a syringe. When the valve position is switched, the plug of sample in the sample loop is transported to the flow cytometer by a pressure-driven fluid line. By coupling the plug-forming capability to a second multi-port valve, samples can be delivered sequentially from separate vessels.

RESULTS
The valve is able to deliver samples at rates ranging up to about 9 samples per minute. Each plug of sample has uniform delivery characteristics with a reproducible coefficient of variation (CV). Even at the highest sampling rate, carryover between samples is limited.

CONCLUSIONS
Plug-flow flow cytometry has the potential to automate the delivery of small samples from unpressurized sources at rates compatible with many screening and assay applications.


Ethylene oxide (ETO) in the form, "Cryoxcide,"' is used to sterilize surfaces and objects that cannot be treated with heat or corrosive chemicals. Cryoxcide is a gaseous formulation consisting of 11 per cent of ethylene oxide, 44.5 per cent of trichloromonofluoromethane (Freon 11), and 44.5 per cent of dichlorodifluoromethane (Freon 12). Cryoxcide is used at this laboratory to sterilize sensitive equipment that might be contaminated with foot-and-mouth disease virus. Sterilization was performed in the following manner. The contaminated equipment was placed in a gas autoclave at 78 F for 30 min at 40 per cent relative humidity. Cryoxcide was admitted into the chamber to a pressure of 11 lb per sq in. and the equipment was maintained for a 5-hr exposure under these conditions. An office calculating machine from a contaminated


In addition to providing substantial performance enhancements, future 5G networks will also change the mobile network ecosystem. Building on the network slicing concept, 5G allows to "slice" the network infrastructure into separate logical networks that may be operated independently and targeted at specific services. This opens the market to new players: the infrastructure provider, which is the owner of the infrastructure, and the tenants, which may acquire a network slice from the infrastructure provider to deliver a specific service to their customers. In this new context, we need new algorithms for the allocation of network resources that consider these new players. In this paper, we address this issue by designing an algorithm for the admission and allocation of network slices requests that (i) maximises the infrastructure provider's revenue and (ii) ensures that the service guarantees provided to tenants are satisfied. Our key contributions include: (i) an analytical model for the admissibility region of a network slicing-capable 5G Network, (ii) the analysis of the system (modelled as a Semi-Markov Decision Process) and the optimisation of the infrastructure provider's revenue, and (iii) the design of an adaptive algorithm (based on Q-learning) that achieves close to optimal performance.


To meet evacuation needs from carless populations who may require personalized assistance to evacuate safely, we propose a ridesharing-based evacuation program that recruits volunteer drivers before a disaster strikes, and then matches volunteers with evacuees who need assistance once demand is realized. We optimize resource planning and evacuation operations under uncertain spatiotemporal demand, and construct a two-stage stochastic mixed-integer program, first with an expectation-based objective and then a probabilistic constraint, to ensure high demand fulfillment rates. In addition to optimizing the sample average approximations of the two formulations, we study a heuristic approach that is able to provide quick, dynamic and conservative solutions. We demonstrate the performance of our approaches using five test networks of varying sizes based on regions of Charleston County, SC, an area that experienced a mandatory evacuation order during Hurricane Florence. We utilize demographic data and hourly traffic count data from the day of evacuation to estimate the demand distribution. The risk-neutral formulation ensures an average 97% demand fulfillment rate for all test cases and complete fulfillment rates for larger instances at peak-demand time. For smaller instances at off peak time, the risk-averse approach achieves better reliability results.


Here, the concept of quantum potential that has been illustrated in Extended Phase Space (EPS) in previous works is explored for its marginal behavior. Unlike in configuration space, different representations of the quantum mechanics can be found in EPS when exploiting appropriate canonical transformations. These canonical transformations revealed that there exist several representations in which the quantum potential could be removed not only for a particle in constant, linear and quadratic potentials, but also for a free particle. In these representations one still has the form-invariance of the ordinary Hamilton-Jacobi equation. The present work is an attempt to show that the Squeezed Wigner representation is a possible representation in which, for large values of squeezing parameter, the quantum potential disappears from the dynamical equation for a particle in the general potential


Variation in quantity of light has driven plants to employ many strategies in order to persist in high and low light. It is also a primary driver of lower branch mortality and crown recession. Fine roots and leaves are complimentary tissues representing belowground and aboveground resource acquisition. This balance is likely to the influence forest stands as they age. The objective of my thesis is to understand how hydraulic architecture, crown form and resource allocation are affected by shading trees of opposing shade tolerance. Four tree species were examined: Pinus banksiana, Pinus contorta, Picea glauca and Picea mariana. The following are key findings of my thesis:  A reduced light environment alters the xylem vulnerability of shoots. Shaded shoots are not as drought resistant as those in high light. The effect of shade on hydraulic conductivity is likely tied to both the position of the shoots being examined as well as the quantity of light reduced. Evaporative demand in an understory environment is low, however, a rapid change into full light could be detrimental for shaded conifers.  Asymmetric shading (where part of the tree crown is fully illuminated while the other part is shaded) placed less-illuminated shoots at a greater disadvantage in terms of bud expansion and growth compared with uniform shading of the entire crown. Relative reductions in TNC appear to follow similar patterns to bud expansion and growth observations, suggesting that carbon dynamics or fluxes are playing a role in dictating physiological activity of branches. In all cases, responses to asymmetric shade were always more extreme in Pinus contorta compared with Picea glauca. This is likely due, in part, to different C storage patterns as Pinus contorta exhibited lower overall TNC concentrations and smaller (or non-existent) seasonal fluxes in TNC compared with P.glauca.  In a P.contorta chronosequence, fine root surface area is the first stand parameter to level-off while wood production increases for another 30 years and leaf area to age 100. During the period of peak wood production, a number of pressures are also converging including: light asymmetry (driving crown recession), crown friction and reduced soil resources.


Reservoir operation charts have been widely researched and applied to reservoir operation. However, these achievements are generally used for a single reservoir and have rarely been applied to cascade reservoirs. Considering the requirements of flood control and water supply, this paper studied the extraction and application of energy storage operation chart (ESOC) for cascade reservoirs. Steps in the methodology mainly include: (1) model building of cascade reservoirs operation optimization (CROO), (2) extracting ESOC based on discriminant coefficient method (DCM) and CROO model, (3) simulation operation of ESOC based on DCM, (4) choosing the optimal ESOC and verifying its efficiency through the results. Cascade reservoirs in the Yangtze River of China were selected for a case study. Compared with the conventional operation method, the simulation results show that the ESOC presents better performance in terms of power generation, guaranteed output and assurance rate. In detail, the annual power generation of ESOC can be increased by 0.9%, the total guaranteed output can be increased by 3.4% and the assurance rate can be increased by 9.6%, which indicates that the proposed ESOC method can greatly improve the hydropower energy efficiency and reliability of cascade reservoirs' power supply.


OBJECTIVES
Some patients with complex congenital heart disease (cCHD) also require aortic valve (AoV) procedures. These cases are considered high risk but their outcome has not been well characterized. We aim to describe these scenarios in the current practice, and provide outcome data for counselling and decision-making.

METHODS
This was a retrospective study using the UK National Congenital Heart Disease Audit data on cCHD patients undergoing aortic valve replacement, balloon dilation (balloon aortic valvuloplasty) or surgical repair (surgical aortic valve repair) between 2000 and 2012. Coarsened exact matching was used to pair cCHD with patients undergoing AoV procedures for isolated valve disease.

RESULTS
A total of 201 patients with a varied spectrum of cCHD undergoing 242 procedures were included, median age 9.4 years (1 day-65 years). Procedure types were: balloon aortic valvuloplasty (n = 31, 13%), surgical aortic valve repair (n = 57, 24%) and aortic valve replacement (n = 154, 63%). Mortality at 30 days was higher in neonates (21.8% vs 5.3%, P = 0.02). Survival at 10 years was 83.1%, freedom from aortic valve replacement 83.8% and freedom from balloon aortic valvuloplasty/surgical aortic valve repair 86.3%. Neonatal age (P < 0.001), single ventricle (P = 0.08), concomitant Fontan/Glenn (P = 0.002) or aortic arch procedures (0.02) were associated with higher mortality. cCHD patients had lower survival at 30 days (93% vs 100%, P = 0.003) and at 10 years (86.4% vs 96.1%, P = 0.005) compared to matched isolated AoV disease patients.

CONCLUSIONS
AoV procedures in cCHD can be performed with good results outside infancy, but with higher mortality than in isolated AoV disease. Neonates and patients with single ventricle defects, especially those undergoing concomitant Fontan/Glenn, have worse outcomes.


Venous thromboembolism (VTE) has a strong genetic component. This review summarizes what is known at the seventeen genes that are now well established to harbour VTE‐associated genetic variants. In addition, it discusses additional candidate genes that deserve further validation before being claimed as VTE associated genes. Finally, several research strategies are briefly described to identify other molecular determinants of the disease.


The filling process is studied in the manufacture of elastic skin by optimizing the filling composition. At the same time, the four-component composition includes oligomers and polymers of natural and synthetic origin. The process of filling the tannery is carried out using the technology of private joint-stock company "Chinbar" (Ukraine, Kiev). The aim of research is producing highly elastic leather from the semi-finished product of chrome tanning, obtained from the raw materials of pig skins, with a complex of improved consumer properties by optimizing the composition of the filling composition. Investigation of the composition consists in using a mathematical model for the four-component composition, developing a multithreaded program using the McLean-Anderson method, taking into account the type of model, determining the experimental compositions by the D-optimality criterion. The optimum composition is established at the maximum of the desirability function, which corresponded to the best compromise value of the consumer skin indices volume yield of the material, its stiffness and imaginary specific mass. The technology of filling is developed to ensure the formation of more homogeneous topographic patches of skin material from pig skins with a complex of high consumer properties. At the same time, the received leather material by conditional module exceeds 15% of the skin, manufactured using the technology of PJSC "Chinbar", and according to physical and mechanical characteristics it meets the requirements for the properties of garments in accordance with GOST 3115-95 and the quality management system according to interstate standards "ISO 9001:2008 ".


1. Background to RNA structure 200 1.1 Types of RNA 200 1.1.1 Transfer RNA (tRNA) 200 1.1.2 Messenger RNA (mRNA) 201 1.1.3 Ribosomal RNA (rRNA) 201 1.1.4 Other ribonucleoprotein particles 202 1.1.5 Viruses and viroids 202 1.1.6 Ribozymes 202 1.2 Elements of RNA secondary structure 203 1.3 Secondary structure versus tertiary structure 205 2. Theoretical and computational methods for RNA secondary structure determination 208 2.1 Dynamic programming algorithms 208 2.2 Kinetic folding algorithms 210 2.3 Genetic algorithms 212 2.4 Comparative methods 213 3. RNA thermodynamics and folding mechanisms 216 3.1 The reliability of minimum free energy structure prediction 216 3.2 The relevance of RNA folding kinetics 218 3.3 Examples of RNA folding kinetics simulations 221 3.4 RNA as a disordered system 227 4. Aspects of RNA evolution 233 4.1 The relevance of RNA for studies of molecular evolution 233 4.1.1 Molecular phylogenetics 234 4.1.2 tRNAs and the genetic code 234 4.1.3 Viruses and quasispecies 235 4.1.4 Fitness landscapes 235 4.2 The interaction between thermodynamics and sequence evolution 236 4.3 Theory of compensatory substitutions in RNA helices 238 4.4 Rates of compensatory substitutions obtained from sequence analysis 240 5. Conclusions 246 6. Acknowledgements 246 7. References 246 This article takes an inter-disciplinary approach to the study of RNA secondary structure, linking together aspects of structural biology, thermodynamics and statistical physics, bioinformatics, and molecular evolution. Since the intended audience for this review is diverse, this section gives a brief elementary level discussion of the chemistry and structure of RNA, and a rapid overview of the many types of RNA molecule known. It is intended primarily for those not already familiar with molecular biology and biochemistry. Ribonucleic acid consists of a linear polymer with a backbone of ribose sugar rings linked by phosphate groups. Each sugar has one of the four 'bases' adenine, cytosine, guanine and uracil (A, C, G, and U) linked to it as a side group. The structure and function of an RNA molecule is specific to the sequence of bases. The phosphate groups link the 5′ carbon of one ribose to the 3′ carbon of the next. This imposes a directionality on the backbone. The two ends are referred to as 5′ and 3′ ends, since one end has an unlinked 5′ carbon and one has an unlinked 3′ carbon. The chemical differences between RNA and DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) are fairly small: one of the OH groups in ribose is replaced by an H in deoxyribose, and DNA contains thymine (T) bases instead of U. However, RNA structure is very different from DNA structure. In the familiar double helical structure of DNA the two strands are perfectly complementary in sequence. RNA usually occurs as single strands, and base pairs are formed intra-molecularly, leading to a complex arrangement of short helices which is the basis of the secondary structure. Some RNA molecules have well-defined tertiary structures. In this sense, RNA structures are more akin to globular protein structures than to DNA. The role of proteins as biochemical catalysts and the role of DNA in storage of genetic information have long been recognised. RNA has sometimes been considered as merely an intermediary between DNA and proteins. However, an increasing number of functions of RNA are now becoming apparent, and RNA is coming to be seen as an important and versatile molecule in its own right.


Canada's vast landscape has produced challenges in providing equitable access to healthcare for those living in rural and remote areas. Over several decades physician shortages have increasingly compromised rural communities' access to medical services. In response, provinces and territories have recruited international medical graduates (IMGs) to address these shortages. Synthesizing literature and frameworks from American, Australian and Canadian sources, this paper will explore issues related to IMG recruitment and retention to rural practice. Using an evidence-based review of the literature and data from the Canadian Residency Matching Service (CaRMS) this investigation will examine the profiles of IMGs who voluntarily pursue rural practice in hopes of identifying trends and future directions for recruitment and retention efforts.


Background Although telemedicine intensive care unit (tele‐ICU) nurses are integral to the tele‐ICU model of care, few studies have explored the influence of tele‐ICU nursing interventions on preventing failure to rescue in critically ill patients. Objective To determine how tele‐ICU nurses characterize their interventions to prevent failure to rescue. Methods This qualitative interpretive study recruited a purposive sample from 11 tele‐ICU centers across the United States for structured open‐ended interviews. An inductive and deductive approach suitable for health services qualitative research was adapted to further explain and extend a relevant conceptual framework for tele‐ICU nursing practice. Results Of 33 nurses practicing in tele‐ICUs who responded to a recruitment email, 19 participated in this study. Findings included 4 major interrelated themes: (1) fundamental attributes of the tele‐ICU nurse, (2) proactive clinical practice, (3) effective collaborative relationships, and (4) strategic use of advanced technology. Conclusion A conceptual framework extending the American Association of Critical‐Care Nurses model of success for tele‐ICU nursing practice is proposed to prevent failure to rescue. Tele‐ICU nurses use systems thinking and integration of complex factors in their practice to prevent failure to rescue. Tele‐ICU nurses' perception of their role in preventing failure to rescue and emotional intelligence competence are key to building and maintaining effective relationships with the ICU. Tele‐ICU nurses' intentional use of advanced technology, rather than the technology itself, supports and enhances proactive tele‐ICU practice to prevent failure to rescue.


Fluorinated electroactive polymers (FEPs) are among the most interesting insulating materials for the production of organic electronic devices. Their ability to tune their response to an applied electric field makes them appropriate for vastly different applications in electronics. However, due to the chemical inertness of such polymers and the rather complex synthetic processes required for their production, introducing additional unctionality to FEPs remains an open challenge. Here, we present a facile way to introduce additional functionality to FEPs and more specifically photopatternability by a simple etherification method, which allows us to introduce almost any functional group on FEPs. Photo-cross-linkable moieties were introduced on FEPs using this method, inducing photopatternability, while tuning their electroactive response with great property enhancement up to 60% in terms of relative permittivity in several cases.


Following previous cyclic voltammetric studies of tetrakis(thiadiazole)porphyrazines [TTDPzM] where M = Zn(II), Mg(II)(H(2)O), Cu(II), or 2H(I) in nonaqueous media, a thin-layer spectroelectrochemical investigation was carried out in pyridine to characterize each stepwise one-electron reduction of the electrogenerated [TTDPzM](n-) complexes where n = 1-4. A similar UV-visible spectrum was observed for each form of the anion, independent of the central metal ion and detailed theoretical calculations by density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT (TDDFT) methods were applied to interpret the spectral features of [TTDPzZn](n-) (n = 1-4) which was selected as representative for describing the ground and excited-state electronic structures of the entire [TTDPzM](n-) series. The use of two exchange-correlation functionals, the pure, asymptotically correct statistical average of orbital potentials (SAOP) and the hybrid B3LYP functionals, proved to be essential for attaining a correct assignment of the key spectral features. The nature and intensity of the main spectral features are highlighted and interpreted on the basis of the ground-state electronic structure of the complexes.


The purpose of this analysis was to evaluate to what extent subsequent malignant neoplasms account for the increasing rates of cancer occurrence among children. Data from the population-based Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program were used to calculate age-standardized annual incidence rates from 1974-1989 for 10 common cancers among children 14 years of age or younger. Mean rates and linear trends were evaluated using least squares regression, first for all neoplasms and then excluding subsequent neoplasms, to determine if the removal of subsequent neoplasms would attenuate increasing trends. Increasing annual incidence rates were found for all childhood cancers combined, acute lymphoid leukemia, and brain tumors, but not for other cancer types. Excluding subsequent neoplasms from the analysis had a negligible effect on the trends we observed. Although it remains largely undetermined why childhood cancer incidence rates are increasing in the United States, this study presents evidence that subsequent primary neoplasms do not substantively contribute to these observed trends.


It is with great honor that we edit the proceedings of "8th World Conference on Business, Economics and Management (BEM-2019)", Grand Park Lara Hotel Convention Center, Antalya, Turkey, 26-28 April 2019. This privileged scientific event has contributed to the field of ELT for the eight year.
As the guest editors of this issue, we are glad to have received a variety of articles focusing on Accounting, International Finance, Advertising Management, Labor Economics, Business & Economics, Labor Relations & Human Resource Management, Business Ethics, Law and Economics, Business Intelligence, Management Information Systems, Business Information Systems, Management Science, Business Law, Market Structure and Pricing, Business Performance Management, Marketing Research and Strategy, Business Statistics, Marketing Theory and Applications, Change Managementi Operations Research, Communications Management, Organizational Behavior & Theory, Comparative Economic Systems, Organizational Communication, Consumer Behavior, Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles, Corporate Finance and Governance, Product Management, Corporate Governance, Production and Organizations, Cost Management, Production/Operations Management, Decision Sciences, Public Administration and Small Business Entrepreneurship, Development Planning and Policy, Public Choice, Economic Development, Public Economics and Finance, Economic Methodology, Public Relations, Economic Policy, Public Responsibility and Ethics, E-Bussiness, Regulatory Economics, E- Marketing, Resource Management, Economic Systems, Strategic Management, Entrepreneurship, Strategic Management Policy, Finance & Investment, Stress Management, Financial Economics, Supply Change Management, Global Business, Systems Management, Global Marketing, Systems Thinking, Growth; Aggregate Productivity, Taxes (related areas of taxes), Household Behavior and Family Economics, Technological Change; Research and Development, Human Resource, Technology & Innovation, Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, Time Management, Information Systems, Total Quality Management, Information Technology Management, Travel/Transportation/Tourism, International Business, Welfare Economics, International Economics etc. Furthermore, the conference is getting more international each year, which is an indicator that it is getting worldwide known and recognized. Scholars from all over the world contributed to the conference. Special thanks are to all the reviewers, the members of the international editorial board, the publisher, and those involved in technical processes. We would like to thank all who contributed to in every process to make this issue actualized. A total of 45 full papers or abstracts were submitted for this conference and each paper has been peer reviewed by the reviewers specialized in the related field. At the end of the review process, a total of 12 high quality research papers were selected and accepted for publication.
I hope that you will enjoy reading the papers.
Best Regards

Guest Editors
Prof. Dr. Cetin Bektas, Gaziosmanpasa University, Turkey
Editorial Assistant
Zeynep Genc, Phd. Istanbul Aydin University, Istanbul, Turkey


A seroepidemiological study of bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV) and bovine leukemia virus (BLV) infections was conducted in four different cattle herds in Turkey. A total of 300 blood samples were analyzed and 12.3% were found to be positive for anti-BIV p26 antibodies by Western blot analysis and 1.6% positive for anti-BLV gp51 antibodies by an immunodiffusion test. BIV infection was confirmed with the detection of BIV-provirus DNA using the nested polymerase chain reaction. This is the first evidence for the presence of BIV in cattle in Turkey.


OBJECTIVE
To determine the mortality rate and associated factors for laparoscopic and open colectomy as derived from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database.

DESIGN
Retrospective cohort.

SETTING
Nationwide Inpatient Sample database.

PATIENTS
Between 2002 and 2007, the Nationwide Inpatient Sample estimated 1,314,696 patients underwent colectomy in the United States. Most (n = 1,231,184) were open, but 83,512 were laparoscopic. Patients who underwent a laparoscopic procedure that was converted to open were analyzed within the laparoscopic group on an intention-to-treat basis.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE
Mortality rate. Using a logistic regression model, patient and institutional characteristics were analyzed and evaluated for significant associations with in-hospital mortality.

RESULTS
In a multivariate analysis, significant predictors of increased mortality included older age, male sex, lower socioeconomic status, comorbidities, and emergency or transfer admission. Additionally, a laparoscopic approach was an independent predictor of decreased mortality when compared with open colectomy (relative risk, 0.51; P < .001).

CONCLUSION
Even when controlling for comorbidities, socioeconomic status, practice setting, and admission type, laparoscopy is an independent predictor of decreased mortality for colon resection.


Introduction: Caffeinated drinks are used for improve performance. Animal models represent investigational strategy that circumvents most of the drawbacks of research in humans, including motivational factors and the placebo effect. No animal model that could test whether different forms of administering caffeine affect exercise propensity was found in the literature. Methods: An animal model of grouped voluntary exercise was tested. Two-month-old male C57/bl mice were housed in a cage fitted with one running wheel and a monitoring system. Six animals per cage were introduced individually. To assess the sensitivity of the model, the effect of different caffeinated drinks was observed in mice exercising ad libitum . During 2 days, the mice received: 1) pure anhydrous caffeine 0.125 mg/mL (PC), 2) cola drink (CC), and 3) caffeine-taurine-glucuronolactone drink (CTG), intercalating wash-out periods of 2 days, receiving pure water. Results: The distance run during the periods of water ingestion was significantly lower than during the periods of stimulant drinks ingestion: PC (5.6±1.3 km; p = 0.02), of CC ingestion (7.6±0.6 km; p = 0.001), and of CTG ingestion (8.3±1.6 km; p = 0.009). The performances when ingesting the three caffeinated drinks do not follow a dose-response curve. Conclusions: The model described here was able to measure the effect of caffeine intake on voluntary exercise of mice. The sensitivity of the model to the effect of caffeine needs to be further validated. The action of each component of the drinks on exercise performance needs to be clarified in future research. The present model is adequate for such investigation. Key words: Exercise; caffeine; energy drinks; running


Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy, based on vibrational spectroscopy, is able to perform label-free imaging with high sensitivity, high spatial and spectral resolution, 3D sectioning, and fast time of image acquisition, i.e., a few seconds. In this chapter, the implementation of a femtosecond SRS microscope, working in C▬H or O▬H region (>2800 cm) of Raman spectra of biomolecules, is reported. Our microscope is realized by integration of a femtosecond (fs) SRS experimental setup with an inverted optical microscope equipped with fast mirror scanning unit. The microscope is provided with two femtosecond laser sources: a titanium-sapphire (Ti:Sa) laser oscillator and an optical parametric oscillator (OPO). In addition, the reliability of our system in C▬H region is tested by localizations of lipid droplets inside adipocyte cells. Finally, the extension of microscope to silent region of <1800 cm and fingerprint region of 1800–2800 cm is also achieved by adding a second-harmonic generator to cascade the OPO and double its energy radiation. Definitely, our microscope is able to take on some recent challenges of SRS microscopy, including improvements of sensitivity and detection specificity.


Larvae and adults of the marine bryozoan Watersipora cucullata invariably possess numerous extracellular mycoplasma-like, organisms. Mesodermally encapsulated groups of these atypical bacteria occur in the visceral coeloms of all colony members. In contrast, thousands of the symbionts are externally attached to each larva along a unique superficial groove; the microorganisms are internalized during the complex metamorphosis, thus inoculating the incipient colony. The consequences to the bryozoan of this association are not known.


This study was performed in order to determine the Braconidae fauna of meadows and forest areas around Gala Lake National Park. Samples were collected from June to October 2011 in selected pasture, forest, and rice agricultural areas. As a result of the study, a total of 38 taxa species belonging to 12 genera within 5 subfamilies were identified. Among the species identified, four species [ Eubazus (Brachistes) gigas, Triaspis thoracica, Pseudovipio deserti, Opius (Opius) trucantulus ] were recorded for the first time in Turkey and four species [ Bracon (Bracon) kozak, Pseudovipio inscriptor, Opius (Opius) quasipulvis, Aleiodes (Neorhogas) ductor ] were recorded for the first time in the Thrace region.


There has been a universal agreement in the last couple of decades that bioethics education at all levels should be provided to citizens through the adoption of the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights by the UNESCO General Conference in 1997 and by the United Nations General Assembly in 1998. The work of bioethical educators in moral and (bio)ethical values was applied to the issues raised by modern science and technology. The process of learning is also recognized as being the result of complex interacting influences. Teaching in a bioethical context must recognize these interconnections because of the internal application to and impact on peoples' lives. Furthermore, teaching in a bioethical context needs to use pedagogies that engage students in participatory activities to enable the development of multiple dimensions of knowledge. These dimensions include the scientific content as well as the personal, social, and emotional aspects associated with any particular bioethical issue. Therefore, it is crucial to highlight the importance of focusing on the nature of the controversy, recognizing that opinions are based on particular worldviews and critical reflection of personal views, as well as promoting open-mindedness or willingness to accommodate new views and develop a new bioethical perspective on life. The paper presents several examples of bioethical activism in Croatia that provided an impetus for teaching students in bioethical activism at the Faculty of Education. I will mention an example of the inclusion of the NGO Pobjede in a bioethical course on the subject of the ethical relation to animals. An example of NGO Pobjede activity was a stimulating example of bioethical activism for students.


A study aimed at examining the outcome of activities of daily living (ADL) of patients undergoing geriatric stroke rehabilitation was performed. Background and admission data of 99 patients surviving the acute phase and needing further hospital rehabilitation were registered. Forty per cent of the patients improved their ADL ability. The logistic regression modelling with the dichotomous dependent variable improvement versus no improvement showed the following factors associated with improvement: a diagnosis of intracerebral haemorrhage, male sex, high postural stability score at the admission and cohabitation. In conclusion, the most severely affected stroke patients, especially patients with intracerebral haemorrhage, have a great potential for improving their ADL. The results of the logistic regression model can serve as a useful guide when it comes to identifying patients that stand a fair chance of improving during their rehabilitation stay. Equally important, patients with a poor rehabilitation prognosis who may need intensified rehabilitation efforts to achieve optimum improvement can now be identified.


The study begins by considering the nature of symbolism, and various types of symbol. It moves on to examine the power of visual images, and argues that a sense of that power may lie behind the Jewish prohibitions, and partly explain the persistent urge to produce visual images in the Church. The next stage examinee visual elements inevitably present in primitive Christianity, such as water in baptism, and the elements and utensils of the eucharist, which carried over Jewish symbolic associations. There follows an examination of the visual images consciously produced, particularly in the catacombs. It is argued that some pictures were felt to acquire a presence of their own, and this led to the development of the icon. The contextual influences in which the use of icons evolved are examined, before tracing the emergence of a theology of the image through the iconoclastic controversies. 'Attention moves to a consideration of developments in the West, from Charlemagne's reaction to the Second Council of Nicaea, through an examination of the moral, spiritual and theological influences of the Middle Ages, to the relevant decrees of the Council of Trent. The attitudes of the continental Reformers are discussed, before focussing attention on England. Reference is here made to the Thirty Nine Articles, Henrician iconoclasm, and contemporary arguments. The need for visual elements in the Free Churches is seen to be met initially in the place of the Bible and the imagery in the hymns of the Evangelical Revival. It is argued that the re-emergence of the image in its own right is a result of a renewed concept of the catholicity of the Church, and the influence of the liturgical and ecumenical movements. Examples are given of visual images incontemporary churches, and of the importance being attached to them. The conclusion suggests that there are pastoral and theological reasons for their re-emergence and continuing place.


This paper explores a decision making model for a multidisciplinary problem in nature. This problem considers the role of energy use in sustainable development and the potential sources to increase energy efficiency during its whole life cycle; it also deals with multicriteria decision making of plastic materials used in a day to day basis. Exergy analysis of plastic materials used to the manufacture of disposable polyethylene bags comparing them with other materials that can be used for substitution will be important to take decisions. We are also interested in plastic poly (ethylene Terephthalate or PET) bottles. The calculation of the incoming and outgoing Exergy flows during the production processes are carried out. The Exergy loss considering the sustainability concept, Green House Gases emissions, real energy flows needed to the chain of processes, material balances in the productions chains and value added, are presented as a set of criteria to make decisions of alternative materials including the actual ones. A case study for Mexico's market will be developed in order to prove the methodology. It offers some interesting data about consumption and production of bags and bottles.


Scaling ideas and renormalization group approaches proved crucial for a deep understanding and classification of critical phenomena in thermal equilibrium. Over the past decades, these powerful conceptual and mathematical tools were extended to continuous phase transitions separating distinct non-equilibrium stationary states in driven classical and quantum systems. In concordance with detailed numerical simulations and laboratory experiments, several prominent dynamical universality classes have emerged that govern large-scale, long-time scaling properties both near and far from thermal equilibrium. These pertain to genuine specific critical points as well as entire parameter space regions for steady states that display generic scale invariance. The exploration of non-stationary relaxation properties and associated physical aging scaling constitutes a complementary potent means to characterize cooperative dynamics in complex out-of-equilibrium systems. This article describes dynamic scaling features through paradigmatic examples that include near-equilibrium critical dynamics, driven lattice gases and growing interfaces, correlation-dominated reaction-diffusion systems, and basic epidemic models.


Transnational manufacturing firms operate in highly competitive marketplaces. This means that they are continuously seeking ways to reduce order response and fabrication cycle times, maintain the desired product quality, manage unanticipated machine failures, and provide timely delivery to effectively minimize overall operating cost and maintain a competitive advantage over their intra-supply chains. To assist firms in achieving these operational goals, we examine a buyer-vendor coordinated system with an expedited fabrication rate, unreliable machines, scrap, and rework, with the objective of minimizing the overall operating costs. An imperfect manufacturing process is assumed, which arbitrarily produces repairable and scrap items, with the latter being reworked in each fabrication cycle. Additionally, the process is subject to a Poisson-distributed machine breakdown. The corrective action is undertaken immediately when the machine fails, and the production of unfinished/interrupted lot resumes when the process is restored. The expedited fabrication rate option is used at an extra cost to reduce the cycle length. We built a fabrication-shipment model to characterize the problem's features explicitly. Mathematical and optimization approaches assist us in determining the optimal fabrication runtime policy. A numerical example illustrates the capability/applicability of our outcomes. Furthermore, it exposes a diverse set of information relating to the collective/individual effect of differences in the expedited rates, mean-time-to-breakdown, frequency of shipment, and rework/disposal rates of defective items on the optimal policy, utilization, total operating cost, and various cost contributors. This information can contribute to facilitating better decision-making.


By applying a staggered driving force in a prototypical discrete model with a quartic nonlinearity, we demonstrate the spontaneous formation and destruction of discrete breathers with a selected frequency due to thermal fluctuations. The phenomenon exhibits the striking features of stochastic resonance: a nonmonotonic behavior as noise is increased and breather generation under subthreshold conditions. The corresponding peak is associated with a matching between the external driving frequency and the breather frequency at the average energy given by ambient temperature.


OBJECTIVE--To develop and evaluate a short (10 item) simple measure of outcome mainly for use with patients with mild to moderate head injuries. DESIGN--Two studies on patients at three and six months after injury, comparing different methods of administration (two raters and postal questionnaire), and comparing ratings with other assessments. SUBJECTS--Forty three patients seen three months after injury and 46 seen six months after injury; both groups had head injuries covering a range of severity from minor to severe. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Differences between ratings in different groups of patients (Mann-Whitney U test); differences in ratings used different methods of administration (Wilcoxon signed rank test); and correlation between ratings from the same patient (Spearman r). RESULTS--The sum total ratings were consistent between raters and between methods (postal questionnaire v face to face interview) with no evidence of selective bias between rates or methods. Ratings on individual items were also reasonably consistent. The sum total rating varied as anticipated between groups divided by clinical judgement of recovery and patient assessment of recovery, and related as expected to the extent of post-concussion symptomatology. The 10 items included covered the most important problem areas reported by patients. CONCLUSION--The Rivermead head injury follow up questionnaire (RHFUQ) is a short, simple, adequately reliable, and valid measure of outcome, across the entire range of severity, but particularly after mild to moderate head injury.


While it is true that some types of fluorescent tubes have, in the past, over-emphasized the blues and greens, and so could give rise to danger to which Dr. Bacon refers, during recent years there have been great improvements in colourrendering properties, and modern instaljations are completely satisfactory. From the wide range available tubes may be chosen to give almost any desired colour rendering, including that of tungsten, and if the installation is designed by a competent lighting engineer there need be no fear of a patient becoming cyanosed and escaping attention due to poor lighting. Fluorescent tubes have been used in the lighting of the surgical corridor of this hospital, which includes a thoracic surgical unit, with perfectly satisfactory results, following conversations with the consultant surgical staff, who were naturally interested in the points now raised by your correspondent.-I am, etc.,


BACKGROUND
In Norway, intervention in childbirth has increased from 3 percent in 1967 to 37 percent in 2006. The objectives of this study were, first, to estimate to which extent women who expressed a preference for natural birth actually were delivered vaginally without interventions, and second, to estimate the influence that emotions and maternal background factors have on the mode of delivery.

METHODS
We used data from 39,475 pregnancies of participants in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study in which the pregnant woman had expressed a preference for natural birth, and linked these data with the pregnancy outcome as registered in the population-based Medical Birth Registry of Norway during 2000 to 2006. The influence of maternal factors on the mode of delivery was estimated with log-binomial regression models, stratified by parity.

RESULTS
Among primiparas, 29.3 percent delivered vaginally without interventions (natural birth), 56.1 percent gave birth vaginally with interventions, and 14.5 percent had a cesarean section. The strongest predictor for actually having a natural birth was age below 25 years, having more than 12 years' education, carrying a single fetus, and having a low score for anxiety and depression. Among multiparas, 61.1 percent gave birth vaginally without interventions, 30.6 percent vaginally with interventions, and only 8.3 percent had a cesarean section. The effects of maternal age, education, and anxiety or depression on the outcome were smaller for multiparas than for primiparas.

CONCLUSIONS
The chance of actually having a natural birth for women with a preference for a natural birth is much greater for multiparas than for primiparas. The factors that influence the chance of having a natural birth are different for primiparas and multiparas.


Frank C. (Case) McCordick (1873-1946) was the son of William Henry (1849-1930) and Emily D. Howell (1851-1927) McCordick. William H. McCordick was in the coal business. The McCordick family included Frank Case, Mabel Gertrude, Ethel Howell and Arthur Stanley. Frank C. McCordick was educated in St. Catharines, and worked with his father in the coal business and eventually opened up a leather tanning operation. McCordick was active in the Lincoln Regiment and in 1906 was promoted to captain and in command of Company A, 19th Regiment. He was promoted to major and at the outbreak of war he was sent overseas as a commander of the 35th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Forces (CEF). Upon arrival in France he was made officer commanding the 15th Battalion, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (KOYLI). After the war and his return to Canada he continued to play an active role in the local military units in the area as well as in Hamilton. After his retirement from the military in 1927 McCordick served as alderman and then mayor of St. Catharines from 1930 to 1931. He was a member of a large number of civic clubs, including St. Catharines Chamber of Commerce, Y.M.C.A., Lion's Club, St. Catharines Golf Club, Detroit Boat Club, the St Catharines Club, as well as a member of several Masonic lodges. He continued to operate McCordick Tannery and other local investments. In 1903 Frank C. McCordick married May Beatrice Simson, daughter of Thomas E. Simson of Thorold. They had three children, E. (Edward) Frank McCordick, Bruce McCordick and (Margaret) Doris McCordick (m. Hubert Grigaut, d. 1977). The McCordick family resided at 82 Yates Street, near Adams Street.

May Simson McCordick (b. 1873) was the daughter of Thomas Edward (1836-1908) and Julia Headlam (1844-1887) Simson of Thorold. Her siblings included: Edward, Frances, John, Augusta, Georgia and Gertrude.

E. (Edward) Frank McCordick (1904-1980) was born in St. Catharines, Ont., attended Lake Lodge School in Grimsby, Ridley College in St. Catharines, Beechmont Preparatory School in England, Upper Canada College in Toronto and graduated from Royal Military College in Kingston, Ont. in 1925. Upon graduation he was made a lieutenant in the 10th (St. Catharines) Field Battery. In 1929 he married Helen Stanley Smith, daughter of Stanley George and Mary Walker Smith of St. Catharines. Col. McCordick, now promoted to Major, played an active role in the 10th (St. Catharines) Field Battery, being officer commanding the battery. In late 1939 McCordick headed to England for artillery tactical training and on December 6, 1939 the battery began the long trek overseas. McCordick saw action in Italy and in Holland. Upon his return to Canada at the end of the war he was the Liberal candidate in the federal election for Lincoln County. He remained active in the local military serving as honorary lieutenant-colonel of the 56th Field Regiment (ARCA) and in 1976 as the honorary colonel of the regiment. Col. McCordick held the Efficiency Decoration, the Order of the British Empire, granted in 1945 and was made an officer in the Order of St. John in 1978. He continued to serve his community in various capacities, including the Unemployment Insurance Canada Board, Royal Trust Company and the St. John Ambulance Society. He remained an active member of the alumni of Royal Military College, editing and compiling a newsletter and organizing reunion weekends. He kept in close contact with many of his classmates.

Helen Stanley Smith McCordick lived in St. Catharines, Ont., attended Robertson School, and graduated from the University of Toronto in 1926 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Modern Languages. During the war years (1939-1945) Helen was active in the Transport division of the local branch of the Canadian Red Cross and the Women's Auxiliary of the 10th Field Battery. In 1932 E. Frank and Helen McCordick welcomed their only child, (Catharine) Anne McCordick. Helen continued to play an active role in her community until her passing in 1997.

Stanley George Smith (1865-1960) was born in St. Catharines, Ont., the only child of William Smith (d. June 16, 1876) a native of Edinburgh, Scotland and his wife Hannah Louisa Maria Bulkeley a native of Fairfield, Connecticut. Stanley George Smith married Mary Walker of Guelph, Ont.(d. 1956) Mary was the daughter of Hugh and Elizabeth (d. 1924) Walker. Her siblings included Margaret, Agnes, Jessie, Isabella, Lorne, Ada, Alice, Eva, Alexander and George. Hugh Walker was a prominent fruit and vegetable merchant in Guelph. On 1904 their only child, Helen Stanley Smith was born. He was a post office clerk, and the treasurer for the James D. Tait Co. Ltd., a clothing and dry goods retailer in St. Catharines. The family lived at 39 Church Street in St. Catharines, Ont.


Optical fiber pressure sensors developed recently have merits of compact size, installation ease and relatively low cost. However, they are normally not suitable for IMEP measurement due to the insufficient measuring accuracy in low frequency range, which is vital for the measurement of indicated mean effective pressure (IMEP). On the other hand, it is confirmed that the IMEP is determined by the frequency components which are equivalent to, or twice greater than those of the engine speeds included in the indicated pressure wave form. The IMEP calculation method discussed in the following is capable of accurate calculation of IMEP, by checking the characteristics of the pressure sensor in advance and correcting the primary and secondary components of frequency properly. This paper describes the correction method and reports the measured results obtained in actual engine operations.


This paper presents new experimental measurements of spike-type stall inception. The measurements were carried out in the single stage Deverson compressor at the Whittle Laboratory. The primary objective was to characterize the flow field in the tip clearance gap during stall inception using sufficient instrumentation to give high spatial and temporal resolution. Measurements were recorded using arrays of unsteady pressure transducers over the rotor tips and hot-wires in the tip gap. Pre-stall ensemble averaged velocity and pressure maps were obtained as well as pressure contours of the stall event. In order to study the transient inception process in greater detail, vector maps were built up from hundreds of stalling events using a triggering system based on the stalling event itself. The results show an embryonic disturbance starting within the blade passage and leading to the formation of a clear spike. The origins of the spike and its relation to the tip leakage vortex are discussed. It has also been shown that before stall the flow in the blade passage which is most likely to stall is generally more unsteady, from revolution to revolution, than the other passages in the annulus. Copyright © 2012 by ASME.


One of the most relevant drawbacks in medicine is the ability of drugs and/or imaging agents to reach cells. Nanotechnology opened new horizons in drug delivery, and silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) represent a promising delivery vehicle for their adjustable size and shape, high-density surface ligand attachment, etc. AgNPs cellular uptake involves different endocytosis mechanisms, including lipid raft-mediated endocytosis. Since static magnetic fields (SMFs) exposure induces plasma membrane perturbation, including the rearrangement of lipid rafts, we investigated whether SMF could increase the amount of AgNPs able to pass the peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) plasma membrane. To this purpose, the effect of 6-mT SMF exposure on the redistribution of two main lipid raft components (i.e., disialoganglioside GD3, cholesterol) and on AgNPs uptake efficiency was investigated. Results showed that 6 mT SMF: (i) induces a time-dependent GD3 and cholesterol redistribution in plasma membrane lipid rafts and modulates gene expression of ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1), (ii) increases reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and lipid peroxidation, (iii) does not induce cell death and (iv) induces lipid rafts rearrangement, that, in turn, favors the uptake of AgNPs. Thus, it derives that SMF exposure could be exploited to enhance the internalization of NPs-loaded therapeutic or diagnostic molecules.


We examined the anticancer effects of a novel sirtuin inhibitor, MHY2256, on HCT116 human colorectal cancer cells to investigate its underlying molecular mechanisms. MHY2256 significantly suppressed the activity of sirtuin 1 and expression levels of sirtuin 1/2 and stimulated acetylation of forkhead box O1, which is a target protein of sirtuin 1. Treatment with MHY2256 inhibited the growth of the HCT116 (TP53 wild-type), HT-29 (TP53 mutant), and DLD-1 (TP53 mutant) human colorectal cancer cell lines. In addition, MHY2256 induced G0/G1 phase arrest of the cell cycle progression, which was accompanied by the reduction of cyclin D1 and cyclin E and the decrease of cyclin-dependent kinase 2, cyclin-dependent kinase 4, cyclin-dependent kinase 6, phosphorylated retinoblastoma protein, and E2F transcription factor 1. Apoptosis induction was shown by DNA fragmentation and increase in late apoptosis, which were detected using flow cytometric analysis. MHY2256 downregulated expression levels of procaspase-8, -9, and -3 and led to subsequent poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage. MHY2256-induced apoptosis was involved in the activation of caspase-8, -9, and -3 and was prevented by pretreatment with Z-VAD-FMK, a pan-caspase inhibitor. Furthermore, the autophagic effects of MHY2256 were observed as cytoplasmic vacuolation, green fluorescent protein-light-chain 3 punctate dots, accumulation of acidic vesicular organelles, and upregulated expression level of light-chain 3-II. Taken together, these results suggest that MHY2256 could be a potential novel sirtuin inhibitor for the chemoprevention or treatment of colorectal cancer or both.


Physical properties of the Sm0.2Gd0.8Ni4B compound have been investigated by means of the X-ray powder diffraction, DC and AC-susceptibility techniques. The compound studied crystallizes in CeCo4B type structure with P6/mmm space group. The unit-cell parameters a and c are determined as 5.01 and 6.95 Å, respectively, and the unit-cell volume V is calculated as 151.08 Å3. DC and AC magnetic measurements present the visible magnetic phase transition from paramagnetic to ferromagnetic, around definite transition temperature. The magnetic phase transition temperature of the compound is obtained from DC magnetization, AC-susceptibility and the well known Kouvel-Fisher method as 36.6, 35.7 and 35.2 K, respectively. The saturation magnetization (Ms) and the coercive fields (Hc) of the compound are found to be 3.7µB/f.u and 277 Oe, respectively, by using the hysteresis loops at 9.5 K. We have also investigated the non-linear AC-susceptibility of the compound, around its ferromagnetic transition temperature, as a function of temperature, frequency and amplitude of the AC-driving field. In order to explain the measured experimental results, we have used the theory developed for ferromagnetic, based upon the mean field model. The measurements exhibit both frequency and amplitude dependencies. Observed dependencies are compared with the existing theories of linear and nonlinear susceptibilities with reference to short- and long-range interactions. In Kouvel-Fisher method, one plots 1/χ1*(dχ-1/dT) against T, obtaining a straight line. The slope of this line gives the critical exponent γ, and it intersects the T axis at Tc. In order to obtain dχ-1/dT and the best straight line, we used a two-point numerical differentiation program and linear regression method, respectively. The critical exponent γ of the sample is calculated to be 2.78 ± 0.05. The value of the critical exponent β, which is characteristic of static phase transition to a ferromagnetic state, is estimated as 2.41±0.3 from the slope of the line obtained the plot of the absolute third-harmonic values versus the reduced temperature on a log–log scale.


A novel and practical acoustic energy harvesting mechanism to harvest traveling sound at low audible frequency is introduced and studied both experimentally and numerically. The acoustic energy harvester in this study contains a quarter-wavelength straight tube resonator with lead zirconate titanate (PZT) piezoelectric cantilever plates placed inside the tube. When the tube resonator is excited by an incident sound at its acoustic resonance frequency, the amplified acoustic pressure inside the tube drives the vibration motions of piezoelectric plates, resulting in the generation of electricity. To increase the total voltage and power, multiple PZT plates were placed inside the tube. The number of PZT plates to maximize the voltage and power is limited due to the interruption of air particle motion by the plates. It has been found to be more beneficial to place the piezoelectric plates in the first half of the tube rather than along the entire tube. With an incident sound pressure level of 100 dB, an output voltage of 5.089 V was measured. The output voltage increases linearly with the incident sound pressure. With an incident sound pressure of 110 dB, an output voltage of 15.689 V and a power of 12.697 mW were obtained. The corresponding areal and volume power densities are 0.635 mW cm−2 and 15.115 μW cm−3, respectively.


Emerging computing architectures such as near-memory computing (NMC) promise improved performance for applications by reducing the data movement between CPU and memory. However, detecting such applications is not a trivial task. In this ongoing work, we extend the state-of-the-art platform-independent software analysis tool with NMC related metrics such as memory entropy, spatial locality, data-level, and basic-block-level parallelism. These metrics help to identify the applications more suitable for NMC architectures.


We propose a new multiwavelength almost all-optical switch architecture called the lambda-scheduler that uses wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) internally to fold the switch architecture in both the space and time domains to reduce the hardware complexity and to improve the signal characteristics through the switch. The lambda -scheduler preserves the packet order for a given input-output pair, is consistent with virtual circuit switching, and when combined with appropriate connection and flow control protocols, provides lossless communication for bursty (or nonconstant rate) traffic, provided the traffic satisfies certain smoothness properties. The lambda -scheduler uses novel scheduling and wavelength assignment algorithms, in conjunction with a series of feed-forward delay blocks, to avoid packet collisions within the switch or at the switch outputs. We present two implementations of the lambda-scheduler when the number of internal wavelengths k equal the number of inputs (and outputs) N to the switch. In the compressed lambda -scheduler, the N internal wavelengths are used to fold the architecture in the time domain, which reduces the total number of delay blocks for the switch by 2Nlog N . In the collapsed lambda-scheduler, the N internal wavelengths are used to fold the architecture in the space domain,which reduces the number of delay blocks and total fiber length used for delays by a factor of N. We examine the insertion loss for both lambda-scheduler implementations and discuss the tradeoffs between the reduction in overall component count and the improvement in the signal characteristics.


Quantifying high freestream turbulence effects on surface heat transfer and on blade boundary layer development is important for improving predictions of the thermal loading and aerodynamic losses for gas turbine blades, vanes, and endwalls. To improve our physical understanding as well as improve CFD capabilities, detailed flow and thermal field data is needed in addition to surface data. This paper discusses the development of a turbulence generator that is capable of generating turbulence intensities as high as 20% and yet allow an independent control on the turbulent length scale. The integral length scale at a turbulence intensity of TI = 20% ranged from 2.1 cm to 5.5 cm. The development of the turbulence generator took place in a wind tunnel having a large, constant area, test section. After this development, the turbulence generator was placed upstream of a scaled-up turbine vane. This paper also describes the development of the turbine vane test section that has a central first stage stator vane that was scaled up by a factor of nine. Finally, turbulence measurements, turbulent length scales, and energy spectra measured inside the turbine vane passage are presented and compared to measurements that were made in the constant area test section. The results indicate that in the first 40% of the stator vane passage, the turbulence levels rapidly decrease by a factor of four with the integral length scales having a rapid growth.Copyright © 1997 by ASME


Of all the new base-broadening rules enacted in the Tax Cut and Jobs Act, none has been subject to more complaints than the BEAT. The essay argues, that while there is much to improve about the BEAT, a significant part of the criticism against it is unwarranted. Many of the critiques make use of unlikely hypothetical business structures to demonstrate supposed failures in the operation of the new law. Many of the hypotheticals used, however, are either irrelevant (as they assume business structures that no taxpayers would reasonably use) or extremely rare. In other instances the examples used are more realistic, but the complaints are made against the successful operation of the law as intended.


The theory of plate tectonics assumes a rigid behavior of tectonic plates and therefore fails to account for observed intraplate deformation. A new theory of intraplate tectonics is developed to calculate the first-order intraplate deformation induced by horizontal displacement of deformable plate boundaries. It is based on simple assumptions that link the well-established directions of relative plate motion to the displacement and deformation fields within a plate interior adjacent to three types of deformable plate boundaries: inward-, outward-, and tangential-displaced boundaries. The theory predicts the direction of intraplate displacement, displacement rate, strain, and stress fields in terms of small circles, great circles, and 45° loxodromes around the pole of rotation of two adjacent plates. The 45° loxodromes are two orthogonal sets of directions, clockwise and counterclockwise, that intersect both small and great circles at 45°. The principal axis of the maximum horizontal stress follows small circles for inward-displaced boundaries, great circles for out ward-displaced boundaries, and loxodromes for tangential-displaced boundaries. The theoretical predictions are systematically compared with more than 4000 reliable observed directions of maximum horizontal stress provided by the world stress map project [Zoback, 1992]. The theory indicates that the first-order intraplate deformation is predominantly induced by horizontal forces acting on plate boundaries and by buoyancy forces that arise from lateral density variations between mid-ocean ridges and plate interiors (ridge push). The simplicity of the predictions and their good agreement with observations suggests that intraplate deformation should be investigated in the pole of rotation spherical coordinate system.


Burgeoning research has begun to question what the actual value for life is among drug using individuals. Why do they engage in acts they know undermine the quality and length of their lives? Can the use of drugs be directly linked to lack of value for their lives? Or does the repeated use of drugs make them value less their lives? What if, regardless of their drug abuse, they had high levels of moral self and integrity? Would the pattern of results still be the same? Interested in finding this out, we employed the snowball technique to recruit young persons (n= 158, 75.95% males, Mage= 23 years) with differing levels of tramadol abuse, and obtained data regarding their self-reported value for life and moral identity. Results revealed significant associations between tramadol use, dimensions of moral identity and value for life such that as the level of tramadol abuse increased, value for life decreased; while as moral integrity and moral self increased, value for life also increased. Moderation analysis further showed a buffering effect of moral self and integrity on the relationship of tramadol use and value for life. These findings question our already existing drug use policies, anti-drug use campaigns and intervention strategies. Will our efforts at combatting drug use become more effective if we dwell more on building moral identities in individuals rather than incarcerating them? We suggest in-depth investigation to further explore the roles of morality in the non-medical use of prescription drugs.


Absorbed doses from main charged-particle beams and charged-particle fragments have been measured with high accuracy for particle therapy, but there are few reports for doses from neutron components produced as fragments. This study describes the measurements on neutron doses produced by carbon beams; microdosimetric distributions of secondary neutrons produced by 290 MeV/nucleon carbon beams have been measured by using a tissue equivalent proportional counter at the Heavy Ion Medical Accelerator in Chiba, Japan at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences. The microdosimetric distributions of the secondary neutron were measured on the distal and lateral faces of a body-simulated acrylic phantom (300 mm height x 300 mm width x 253 mm thickness). To confirm the dose measurements, the neutron energy spectra produced by incident carbon beams in the acrylic phantom were simulated by the particle and heavy ion transport code system. The absorbed doses obtained by multiplying the simulated neutron energy spectra with the kerma factor calculated by MCNPX agree with the corresponding experimental data fairly well. Downstream of the Bragg peak, the ratio of the neutron dose to the carbon dose at the Bragg peak was found to be a maximum of 1.4 x 10(-4) and the ratio of neutron dose was a maximum of 3.0 x 10(-7) at a lateral face of the acrylic phantom. The ratios of neutrons to charged particle fragments were 11% to 89% in the absorbed doses at the lateral and the distal faces of the acrylic phantom. We can conclude that the treatment dose will not induce serious secondary neutron effects at distances greater than 90 mm from the Bragg peak in carbon particle therapy.


Existing action recognition methods typically sample a few frames to represent each video to avoid the enormous computation, which often limits the recognition performance. To tackle this problem, we propose Ample and Focal Network (AFNet), which is composed of two branches to utilize more frames but with less computation. Specifically, the Ample Branch takes all input frames to obtain abundant information with condensed computation and provides the guidance for Focal Branch by the proposed Navigation Module; the Focal Branch squeezes the temporal size to only focus on the salient frames at each convolution block; in the end, the results of two branches are adaptively fused to prevent the loss of information. With this design, we can introduce more frames to the network but cost less computation. Besides, we demonstrate AFNet can utilize fewer frames while achieving higher accuracy as the dynamic selection in intermediate features enforces implicit temporal modeling. Further, we show that our method can be extended to reduce spatial redundancy with even less cost. Extensive experiments on five datasets demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of our method.


Theory: Theories of party organizational resurgence suggest that the strength of party organizations counteracts weakness and decline in other portions of the party system. Hypotheses: Higher levels of total party organizational strength in an area lead to more supportive attitudes toward political parties as institutions. Consistent with Progressive fears of concentrated power, an imbalance in the organizational strength of the two parties in an area fosters more critical attitudes toward parties. Methods: NES survey data and county party organizational strength data from the Party Transformation Study are used in ordinary least squares and logit analysis to test three models of the relationship between party strength and public support toward parties. Results: Strong party organizations contribute to public support for parties, particularly when strength is not exercised by one party alone. Total party strength is significantly related to public support only in a limited pooled analysis, but the organizational strength gap between the two parties is significantly related to public support as expected and is robust across several alternative measures of perceived party performance.


The use of nanotechnology in medicine has the potential to have a major impact on human health for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases. One particular aspect of the nanomedicine field which has received a great deal of attention is the design and development of nanoparticulate nanomedicines (NNMs) for drug delivery (i.e., drug-containing nanoparticles). NNMs are intended to deliver drugs via various mechanisms: solubilization, passive targeting, active targeting, and triggered release. The NNM approach aims to increase therapeutic efficacy, decrease the therapeutically effective dose, and/or reduce the risk of systemic side effects. In order to move a NNM from the bench to the bedside, several experimental challenges need to be addressed. This review will discuss the current trends and challenges in the clinical translation of NNMs as well as the potential pathways for translational development and commercialization. Key issues related to the clinical development of NNMs will be covered, including biological challenges, large-scale manufacturing, biocompatibility and safety, intellectual property (IP), government regulations, and overall cost-effectiveness in comparison to current therapies. These factors can impose significant hurdles limiting the appearance of NNMs on the market, irrelevant of whether they are therapeutically beneficial or not.