This article assesses the ability of the Rotterdam Model (RM) and of three versions of the Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS) to recover the time-varying elasticities of a true demand system and to satisfy theoretical regularity. Using Monte Carlo simulations, we find that the RM performs better than the linear-approximate AIDS at recovering the signs of all the time-varying elasticities. More importantly, the RM has the ability to track the paths of time-varying income elasticities, even when the true values are very high. The linear-approximate AIDS, not only performs poorly at recovering the time-varying elasticities but also badly approximates the nonlinear AIDS.


A novel approach for probabilistic timed structure that is based on combining the formalisms of timed automata and probabilistic automata representation of the system is proposed. Due to their real-valued clocks can measure the passage of time and transitions can be probabilistic such that it can be expressed as a discrete probability distribution on the set of target states. The usage of clock variables and the specification of state space are illustrated with real value time applications. The transitions between states are probabilistic by events which describe either the occurrence of faults or normal working conditions. Additionally, the passage of discrete time and transitions can be probabilistic by mean of the theory of expectation sets to obtain a unified measure reasoning strategy.


Three years after the Egyptian revolution, demands for social justice continue to be articulated but remain largely unfulfilled. Many of those demands revolve around the need for urban development, including more equitable spatial distribution of public services, further democratization of planning processes and local government, and urban development policies which serve the general public, rather than wealthy residents, foreign investors, or real estate speculators. Unfortunately, the current urban local administrative system lacks representativeness and does not allow for local participation. More recently, there have been a growing number of mobilized initiatives that are searching for ways to build a more reciprocal relationship between urban communities and the state. Yet the government remains ambivalent to further democratize local administration and local politics and increase representation at the local level, and continues to design and implement plans that do not address the urban challenges affecting the daily lives of millions of Egyptians. Building on the work of "TADAMUN: The Cairo Urban Solidarity Initiative," and in light of global experiences in participatory local governance, this article argues that reforming local government through institutionalizing communication channels between citizens and the state and broadening their engagement through coalitions, creating new channels for government accountability and responsiveness, and providing more equitable services, may help meet the demands for social injustice generated by the 2011 Revolution and consolidate the democratic process in Egypt.


Idiopathic epiretinal membranes were observed in six patients, all under 35 years of age. The clinical features were similar to those of idiopathic epiretinal membranes seen in older age groups. The center of the membrane was located over a large retinal vessel in five of the patients. Follow-up periods, mostly without surgery, ranged from four months to nine years. Fluctuating levels of vision were observed, but the vision eventually improved in three patients, and remained stable in two others. In one patient the vision worsened, and vitreous surgery was used to remove the epiretinal membrane, resulting in improved vision.


This article deals with the control of the geometry of manufactured tools. The geometry of the cutting tool has a great influence on the machining process. One of the processes of manufacturing cutting tools is grinding. Grinding cutting tools is a complex process after which it is necessary to check the geometry of the tools. Five solid drilling tools were manufactured for the experiment. The measured parameters were tool diameter, helix angle, point angle, rake angle, relief angle and core diameter of the cutting tools. The geometry of the cutting tools was measured on a non-contact structured 3D scanner ATOS Triple Scan light. The measurement results were evaluated using GOM software. The scanning results were compared with the geometry measurement on an optical measuring device Zoller Genius 3s. It has been found that the use of a non-contact structured 3D scanner is suitable for checking the geometry of cutting tools. Furthermore, the article deals with the roughness arising when grinding a sintered carbide flute.


Background: There are different studies highlighting the role of using prophylactic antibiotics in clean surgeries, but still there is conflicting evidence regarding whether prophylactic antibiotics are beneficial or not in preventing post-operative surgical site infection. Aim: This study aims to evaluate the use of peri-operative prophylactic antibiotics in preventing or reducing surgical site infection in the elective open repair of pediatric inguinal hernia. Patients and method: Over a ten-month period a total 150 pediatric patients underwent elective surgical repair for inguinal hernia were enrolled in this randomized prospective study, they were categorized into two equal Groups alternating at the time of operation. The patients in group A (Control) were followed a standard regimen of giving pre-operative parenteral antibiotic (in the ward or at the beginning of anesthesia) & then post-operative oral antibiotics for five days duration, while the patients in group B (Case) underwent the same surgery, but neither preoperative nor post-operative antibiotics were given. A written informed consent from the parents or child guardian was obtained after explanation. The rate of surgical site infection was compared between the two groups. A p value of less than 0.05 was considered to be significant statistically. Results: The total infection rate in both (case and control groups) was 3.33%, the rate of postoperative wound infection in "case group" was 4 % compared to that in "control group" which was 2.67 %. This noticed variance was statistically insignificant (P value by Chi-Square Test = 0.9883, Two –tailed p value using paired samplest test was = 0.6578). 80% of the infections were mild (grade 1 & 2) & 60% was noticed in the 3rd post-operative day. Conclusion: This study pointed out that peri-operative prophylactic antibiotics are not justified routinely in pediatric inguinal herniotomy as there is no significant increased risk of postoperative wound infection in "group B" compared to "group A" (p value = 0.6578 using paired samples ttest), & this low risk of wound infection does not warrant the economic burden of their usage in such clean surgical operations. Date Submitted: 24/11/2015 Date Accepted:10/4/2016 Address for Correspondence: Dr. Ali E. Joda , College of Medicine, Al-Mustansiriya University. Department of Pediatric Surgery Central Child Teaching Hospital,


Ciguatoxins (CTXs) are a group of neurotoxins responsible for the syndrome ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) as a result of the consumption of contaminated fish. The presence of these toxins has been detected around the Pacific, Caribbean and Indian coasts. Recent reports indicate the emergence of CFP in other geographic areas, in particular in European coasts, of the Canary Islands (Spain) and Madeira (Portugal). A neuroblastoma cell line of murine origin (N2a) has been applied to assay different groups of neurotoxins, acting on voltage-gated sodium channel (VGSC) of excitable cells, N2a-MTT. The great potential of N2a-MTT as a sensitive tool for the CTXs screening is clearly recognized, notably because it allows the detection of these toxins at levels below recommended as security levels. However, the complexity of the matrix is a critical point on the application of N2a-MTT, which needs to be evaluated. The aim of this work is to provide recommendations for an implemented N2a-MTT method for CTXs determination in fish that avoids matrix effects, particularly those related to high lipid content.


CGI has led to a theoretical revolution in media studies. What is cinema when reality can be created on a computer? What is animation when superflat 2D aesthetics are becoming haunted by 3D digital graphics? This article adds a third term to the debate: rotoscoping. The author analyzes the first exclusively rotoscoped Japanese anime, Aku no Hana (The Flowers of Evil), a contemporary reinterpretation of Charles Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal that reflects on postmodern malaise, rural decay and depopulation, and otaku escapism, in order to examine the aesthetic of the rotoscope in relation to cinema and anime. He argues that rotoscoping is an uncannying of the cinematism and animitism, or a polemical response to both the ideologies of Disney immersive realism and anime flat animation. The article investigates the narrative's 'writer of postmodern life' Sawa Nakamura in relation to Baudelaire's modernism and the conditions of postmodernity themselves: the structure of Japanese imperialism today and its effect on Gunma prefecture, the setting of the show. Finally, the author analyzes the hostile response to the show among otaku to explore how the hauntology of the rotoscopic machine channels the ghosts of neoliberalism, the super-exploited laborers of the third world.


OBJECTIVE
To histomorphometrically compare the use of collagen-stabilized anorganic bovine bone (ABBM-C) (test) to anorganic bovine bone + autogenous bone (ABBM + AB) (control) in maxillary sinus augmentation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Forty (n = 40 sinuses) patients underwent sinus augmentation and received either control (20 sinuses) or test bone graft (20 sinuses). Bone samples were harvested from the augmented sinuses 5 months postgrafting. The samples were processed for histomorphometry, which assessed within the primary region of interest (ROI-1), the area fraction of new bone (%NB), graft particle osseointegration (% OI), residual graft (%RG), and soft tissue components (% STM). The same analysis was also carried out in a second region of interest (ROI-2) located in a zone 1 mm proximal to the previous maxillary sinus floor.

RESULTS
In both ROI-1 and ROI-2, the mean % NB, %RG, and %STM in the control group were similar to mean values in the test group. The % OI was significantly greater in the control group (42.0 +/- 26.8) when compared to the test group (19.6 +/- 27.3) in ROI-2 (P < 0.05). No statistically significant differences were seen when ROI-1 and ROI-2 were compared except for improved %OI in ROI-2 in the control group. The mean proportion of lamellar bone to woven bone in the control group (1.22 ± 1.48) was significantly greater than the test group (0.38 ± 0.29) (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
ABBM-C exhibited very similar histomorphometric parameters to the composite graft of ABBM + AB. The ABBM + AB group was more mature as indicated by the significantly greater proportion of lamellar bone when compared to the ABBM-C. Improved % OI was seen in the zone proximal to the resident bony floor in the ABBM + AB group. Based on histological assessment, ABBM-C is a suitable bone substitute for the purposes of maxillary sinus augmentation. Its clinical utility may be indicated in cases of sinus membrane perforation and insufficient autogenous bone in the local area.


The Sichuan golden monkey is deserving of conservation and the welfare of this species is receiving increasing attention. However, it is difficult to identify physiological parameters for assessing its conservation status. In the present study, we employed noninvasive sampling methods and immunochemical assays to determine if measurements of cortisol and immunoglobulin in feces allowed monitoring of physiological status. The results indicated that the cortisol and immunoglobulin concentrations in feces could serve as biomarkers for monitoring stress and immune status, and that there was a relationship between stress and the immune response. A tendency toward seasonal fluctuation in immunoreactive cortisol and fecal immunoglobulin concentrations emerged, indicating that these indices could be useful tools for monitoring the welfare of the monkey and could be used in the field of wildlife research.


A controversial issue in contemporary bioethics has emerged in recent years: moral bioenhancement (MB). Human bioenhancement in general has seen its share of controversy, but it is generally agreed that there is potential to improve human physical and mental capacities through biotechnological interventions such as medicinal drugs and genetic modification. The discussion has turned to whether biotechnological interventions could similarly improve human moral capacities. Ingmar Persson and Julian Savulescu have argued that MB is imperative if humans are to survive into the future, because our current moral capacities do not equip us to address future catastrophic problems, Ultimate Harm, which will be caused by modern advanced scientific progress. I suggest related but distinct reasons why MB is appealing: scientific progress and deficient human moral capacities are jointly responsible for enormous amounts of harm all over the world, Widespread Harm, and MB has the potential to reduce that harm. Human moral capacities are deficient because of their dependence on what I call 'moral intuitions'; evolved psychological traits that shape our many societies' varied moral values, resulting in moral disagreement and the disruption of inter-group cooperation. Addressing modern problems requires a broader level of cooperation that is unlikely to be achieved by depending on our current moral intuitions. This is why our moral capacities should be improved. However, typical accounts of MB do not describe interventions that will improve our moral capacities in this way. They are focused on the vague objective of 'making people morally better', assuming that this will address human moral deficiency and that this will in turn address the resulting problems. 'Making people morally better' means making them more satisfactory to our current moral intuitions, which are the root of moral deficiency, so these MB strategies are unlikely to be effective. An alternative MB strategy, which I propose, instead focuses on the objective of modifying current moral intuitions so that they promote broad cooperation. This will result in improved moral capacities in the sense that our moral capacities will be more practically useful to us. However, because this strategy disregards the importance of satisfying our current moral intuitions, it will be morally unpalatable. This is its main disadvantage over the typical MB strategy, though it is better at handling many common objections. Ultimately, there are a number of practical concerns that cannot be completely satisfactorily responded to even by my new MB strategy, such as the issues of mandatory MB and of fine-tuning our moral capacities. These concerns may mean that MB is too risky, and therefore not the best course of action in response to modern problems rooted in scientific progress and moral deficiency, particularly since we have promising alternatives available such as traditional moral enhancement techniques and further scientific progress. The prospect of MB should continue to be investigated, but it should focus on improving upon our current problematic moral intuitions rather than better satisfying them.


In the domination game, introduced by Bre s ar, Klavžar, and Rall in 2010, Dominator and Staller alternately select a vertex of a graph $G$. A move is legal if the selected vertex $v$ dominates at least one new vertex –  that is, if we have a $u\in N[v]$ for which no vertex from $N[u]$ was chosen up to this point of the game. The game ends when no more legal moves can be made, and its length equals the number of vertices selected. The goal of Dominator is to minimize whilst that of Staller is to maximize the length of the game. The game domination number $\gamma_g(G)$ of $G$ is the length of the domination game in which Dominator starts and both players play optimally. In this paper we establish an upper bound on $\gamma_g(G)$ in terms of the minimum degree $\delta$ and the order $n$ of $G$. Our main result states that for every $\delta \ge 4$,$$\gamma_g(G)\le \frac{15\delta^4-28\delta^3-129\delta^2+354\delta-216}{45\delta^4-195\delta^3+174\delta^2+174\delta-216}\; n.$$ Particularly, $\gamma_g(G) < 0.5139\; n$ holds for every graph of minimum degree 4, and $\gamma_g(G) < 0.4803\; n$ if the minimum degree is greater than 4. Additionally, we prove that $\gamma_g(G) < 0.5574\; n$ if $\delta=3$.


To analysis cutting mechanism and heat transfer coefficient of Ni-based superalloy IN718, this paper introduced a three-dimensional finite element model for cutting process based on DEFORM-3D V6.1, and cutting force Fy and cutting temperature T under different feed rate f , cutting speed v and back engagement ap were obtained. The temperature variation during cutting process under different cooling method was analyzed. The simulation results indicate that the influence of back engagement ap on the cutting force Fy is the greatest, while that of cutting speed v is minor; and for cutting temperature T, influence of cutting speed v is the greatest, while that of back engagement ap is minor. Influence of heat transfer coefficient on highest temperature and average cutting force Fy is minor, but its influence on average temperature is quite obvious. Greater heat transfer coefficient is less average temperature.


Identifying the language origin of a personal name without context is interesting and useful in many areas. Morphological structure, which has long been considered as the main source of language origin information, is modeled by N-grams of letters or letter chunks. In this paper, we introduce a new information source, the appearance number of a name in web pages of different languages, for identifying its language origin. Since the distribution of web pages in various languages is not identical, and the state-of-the-art search engines can only provide the number of pages that contain the queried words, we propose a method to normalize the appearance number obtained from a search engine and use it as a new feature. When this new feature is used independently to identify language origin of names among four closely related languages (English, German, French, and Portuguese), the error rate is 26.9%, which is comparable to that of letter 4-gram features. When it is used together with the letter N-gram models, the error rate is reduced to 14.2%, which is about 43.2% error reduction, compared with the letter 4-gram based baseline model.


Isobaric labeling is one of the wide-spread high throughput proteome quantification strategies, where enzymatically digested protein extracts from different experimental groups are labeled with chemical tags and yield identical mass shift for individual peptides in MS precursor scan, whereas quantitation can be achieved by comparing reporter ion ratios upon fragmentation in tandem MS scan. In addition to commercial tags such as TMT and iTRAQ, we developed 4-plex and 12-plex N,N-dimethyl leucine (DiLeu) tags as cost-effective alternatives with comparable performance 1,2. DiLeu labeling methods allow multiplexing of samples and enable comparative analysis of acetyl-CoA flux regulated proteomes from different mouse models in the same LC-MS runs, providing statistically reliable data that avoids run-to-run variations. This protocol describes steps including 40 hrs of sample preparation of lysis, tryptic digestion, tag labeling, SCX purification and high pH fractionation, as well as details about LC-MS/MS analysis and data processing. The protocol can be applied to other proteome quantitation systems.


Imatinib and other Abl tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), such as dasatinib and nilotinib, have significantly improved the outcome of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia. Imatinib and dasatinib are currently Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved, and nilotinib is expected to gain FDA approval soon. In addition, several other Abl TKIs are being evaluated in various clinical trials. Imatinib has also shown efficacy in the therapy of gastrointestinal stromal tumors, Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphocytic leukemia and hypereosinophilic syndrome. Because of their efficacy, more patients will receive Abl TKIs for a longer period of time. Imatinib was FDA approved after a short follow-up because of its exceptional efficacy and safety profile. The most common adverse events reported included fluid retention, fatigue, diarrhea, and muscle cramps. With longer follow-up, issues related to the long-term use of imatinib have been discussed. Our aim is to review the emerging safety issues of Abl TKIs after a longer follow-up.


BACKGROUND
Research on clinical application of oral naltrexone agrees on several things. From a pharmacological perspective, naltrexone works. From an applied perspective, the medication compliance and the retention rates are poor.

OBJECTIVES
To evaluate the effects of naltrexone maintenance treatment versus placebo or other treatments in preventing relapse in opioid addicts after detoxification.

SEARCH STRATEGY
We searched: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL - The Cochrane Library issue 6 2010), PubMed (1973- June 2010), CINAHL (1982- June 2010). We inspected reference lists of relevant articles and contacted pharmaceutical producers of naltrexone, authors and other Cochrane review groups.

SELECTION CRITERIA
All randomised controlled clinical trials which focus on the use of naltrexone maintenance treatment versus placebo, or other treatments to reach sustained abstinence from opiate drugs

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
Three reviewers independently assessed studies for inclusion and extracted data. One reviewer carried out the qualitative assessments of the methodology of eligible studies using validated checklists.

MAIN RESULTS
Thirteen studies, 1158 participants, met the criteria for inclusion in this review.Comparing naltrexone versus placebo or no pharmacological treatments, no statistically significant difference were noted for all the primary outcomes considered. The only outcome statistically significant in favour of naltrexone is re incarceration, RR 0.47 (95%CI 0.26-0.84), but results come only from two studies. Considering only studies were patients were forced to adherence a statistical significant difference in favour of naltrexone was found for retention and abstinence, RR 2.93 (95%CI 1.66-5.18).Comparing naltrexone versus psychotherapy, in the two considered outcomes, no statistically significant difference was found in the single study considered.Naltrexone was not superior to benzodiazepines and to buprenorphine for retention and abstinence and side effects. Results come from single studies.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
The findings of this review suggest that oral naltrexone did not perform better than treatment with placebo or no pharmacological agent with respect to the number of participants re-incarcerated during the study period. If oral naltrexone is compared with other pharmacological treatments such as benzodiazepine and buprenorphine, no statistically significant difference was found. The percentage of people retained in treatment in the included studies is however low (28%). The conclusion of this review is that the studies conducted have not allowed an adequate evaluation of oral naltrexone treatment in the field of opioid dependence. Consequently, maintenance therapy with naltrexone cannot yet be considered a treatment which has been scientifically proved to be superior to other kinds of treatment.


Super-enhancers (SEs) are large clusters of enhancers that control transcription of genes that define cell identity, and they are frequently acquired by cancer cells to drive key oncogenes. Indeed, the prominent oncogene MYC recurrently acquires SEs in many types of cancer, which may explain its overexpression in a broad array of cancers. Elevated levels of MYC promote transcriptional elongation at promoters of all active genes, thereby amplifying RNA output of the cellular gene expression program. High levels of MYC also lead to increased binding of MYC at enhancers, but the significance of enhancer invasion by MYC is unclear. Here, we propose a model that at tumor cell SEs MYC amplifies the production of enhancer RNAs (eRNAs), which in turn facilitate maintenance of SEs by stabilizing transcription factor and co-factor occupancy. We found that in Burkitt9s lymphoma cells SEs depend on high levels of MYC and eRNAs, and that MYC is required for elevated levels of eRNA transcription. We demonstrate that eRNAs directly interact with RNA-binding transcription factors at SEs, and that perturbation of eRNA affects SE signal. Elevated MYC thus contributes to the dynamic formation and maintenance of SEs through amplification of eRNAs. Our results may identify novel RNA targets for new therapies for Burkitt9s lymphoma, as well as other cancers. New ways to modulate the immune response may also be revealed by our studies. Citation Format: Yang Eric Guo, Michael Seyffert, Brian Abraham, Xiong Ji, Richard Young. Oncogenic MYC contributes to tumor super-enhancers via eRNA amplification [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Second CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; 2016 Sept 25-28; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2016;4(11 Suppl):Abstract nr B121.


Women naturally gain weight during pregnancy and many gradually lose it afterwards. Some women, though, find it difficult to lose the gained weight in the year or two following the birth of the baby and there is concern that this may be a health risk for them. The retention of weight gained during pregnancy may contribute to obesity, which can increase the risk of diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure. It is suggested that women who return to their pre-pregnancy weight by about six months have a lower risk of being overweight 10 years later. The review looked for randomised studies to assess the impact of dieting or exercise, or both, on women's weight loss in the months after giving birth. It paid particular attention to breastfeeding women to be sure that breastfeeding was not compromised. The review of trials found 14 studies, with 12 studies involving 910 women carrying excess weight after childbirth that contributed data for analysis. The findings suggest that diet combined with exercise or diet alone compared with usual care seemed to help with weight loss after giving birth. There is potential for these interventions to play a role in preventing future maternal obesity. There was not sufficient evidence to be sure that exercise or diet did not interfere with breastfeeding though it appeared not to in the included studies. It seems preferable to lose weight through a combination of dieting and exercise, compared to dieting alone, because exercise is thought to improve circulation and heart fitness, and to preserve lean body mass. Further research is needed.


Climate change threatens the livelihood of rural communities that depend on natural resources for food. Many people in developing countries living in the rural areas depend on indigenous food resources which in years are scarce and in poor supply as a result of marginal and erratic rainfall, low soil and ambient temperatures below the minimum temperature. Consumption of indigenous vegetables is among the indigenous livelihood patterns that are declining due to erratic rainfall patterns, excessive heat and persistent drought. The present study examined the implications of climate change on the availability and consumption of indigenous vegetables in Dikgale community in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Focus group discussions with a sample of 100 informants revealed awareness of change in climatic conditions in the form of erratic rainfall patterns and excessive heat. The implications of this change have led to the scarcity of indigenous vegetables and their rare consumption.


A control apparatus for plasma immersion ion implantation of a dielectric substrate which includes an electrode disposed above a generated plasma in a plasma chamber. The electrode is biased with negative voltage pulses at a potential that is higher than a potential of a substrate or cathode configured to receive ion implantation. The electrode is more negative to give the electrons generated as secondary electrons from the electrode sufficient energy to overcome the negative voltage of the high voltage sheath around the substrate thereby reaching the substrate. These electrons are accelerated toward the substrate to neutralize charge build-up on the substrate.


Chronic non-healing wounds, such as venous stasis ulcers, diabetic ulcers, and pressure ulcers are seri- ous unmet medical needs that affect a patient's morbidity and mortality. Common pathogens observed in chronic non-healing wounds are Staphylococcus including MRSA, Pseudomonas, Enterobacter, Stenotrophomonas, and Serratia spp. Topical and systemically administered antibiotics do not adequately decrease the level of bacteria or the associated biofilm in chronic granulating wounds and the use of sub-lethal concentrations of antibiotics can lead to resistant phenotypes. Furthermore, topical antiseptics may not be fully effective and can actually impede wound healing. We show 5 representative examples from our more than 30 clinical case studies using Neutro- Phase ® as an irrigation solution with chronic non-healing wounds with and without the technique of negative pres- sure wound therapy (NPWT). NeutroPhase ® is pure 0.01% hypochlorous acid (i.e. >97% relative molar distribution of active chlorine species as HOCl) in a 0.9% saline solution at pH 4-5 and is stored in glass containers. NovaBay has three FDA cleared 510(k)s. Patients showed a profound improvement and marked accelerated rates of wound healing using NeutroPhase ® with and without NPWT. NeutroPhase ® was non-toxic to living tissues.


An experimental apparatus called an ion-current shuttlebox, was developed to evaluate quantitatively the biological effects of ion-current in air. It consists of an ion-generating long narrow cage for a rat and an automatic data acquisition system. The cage is divided into two parts, i.e., an ion-exposing area and a control area. Ion-current is generated by corona discharge of thin wires located above the cage. Two pairs of grids control the amount of ion-current in the exposing area and eliminate ion-current in the control area. In a computer simulation, the loci of ion-particles were obtained which provide the appropriate conditions of potentials for the two grids. In basic experiments it was confirmed that ion-current distribution is uniform in each area and is symmetrical between the two areas. The apparatus can expose ion-current of between 0 to 1 μA/m2 (continuously controllable) to a rat. A technique was devised which depresses the ozone generation by heating the corona wires. The behavior of a rat is recorded and analyzed in an automatic position sensing system controlled by a microcomputer. In sham exposing experiments, it was confirmed that this apparatus does not affect the circadian rhythm of the rat and there is no preference by the rat for either of the two areas.


Why did Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution initiate a peaceful democratic transition, while the 2014 protests were followed by violent conflict? This paper complements previous studies on Russia's role in Ukraine by focusing on domestic explanations of the recent violence. It shows that structural factors were already conducive to violence in 2004, making it fruitful to analyse the role of agency to explain the 2014 conflict. It then demonstrates that while the 2004 transition introduced power‐sharing guarantees that mitigated commitment problems for the relevant parties, the 2014 transition saw no such guarantees, making violence a rational strategy for the pro‐Russian separatists.


Background: Research efforts have focused upon uncovering critical leukemia-associated genetic alterations that may be amenable to therapeutic targeting with new drugs. Targeting the oncogenic BCR-ABL1 fusion protein in Philadelphia chromosome-positive B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) with tyrosine kinase inhibitors to shut down constitutive signaling activation and induce leukemia cell cytotoxicity has remarkably improved patients' survival and has established a precision medicine paradigm for kinase-driven leukemias. However, multiple subtypes of B-ALL are driven through non-tyrosine fusion proteins, including the high-risk KMT2A-rearranged (KMT2A-R) subtype common in infants with B-ALL, leaving many patients with insufficient treatment options.
 Objectives: KMT2A-R B-ALL is associated with chemoresistance, relapse, and poor survival with a frequency of 75% in infants and 10% in older children/adults with B-ALL. Current intensive multiagent chemotherapy regimens induce significant side effects yet fail to cure the majority of patients, demonstrating continued need for novel therapeutic approaches. The goals of our study were to i) identify signaling molecules required for KMT2A-R B-ALL cell survival, ii) select ALL-associated targets that are not essential in normal tissues, and iii) develop new treatment strategies that may benefit patients with KMT2A-R ALL.
 Results: We performed a genome-wide kinome CRISPR screen using the pediatric KMT2A-R cell line SEM and identified DYRK1A among other signaling molecules as required for leukemia cell survival. DYRK1A is a member of the dual-specificity tyrosine phosphorylation-regulated kinase family and has been reported as a critical oncogene in a murine Down syndrome (DS) model of megakaryoblastic leukemia. In normal hematopoiesis, DYRK1A controls the transition from proliferation to quiescence during lymphoid development. Deletion of DYRK1A results in increased numbers of B cells in S-G2-M phase, yet also significantly reduces cell proliferation.
 Meta-analysis of ChIP-Seq data from two KMT2A-AFF1 cell lines (SEM and RS4;11) and a human KMT2A-Aff1-FLAG-transduced ALL model demonstrates that both N-terminal (KMT2AN) and C-terminal (AFF1C) and the FLAG-tagged KMT2A-Aff1 fusion directly bind to the DYRK1A promoter. Gene expression and RT-PCR analyses of SEM cells treated with inhibitors against two important KMT2A fusion complex proteins, DOT1L (histone methyltransferase) and menin (tumor suppressor), demonstrate that only menin inhibition induced DYRK1A downregulation. Interestingly, deletion of germline KMT2A in murine B-cells did not decrease DYRK1A expression. Taken together, these results suggest direct transcriptional regulation through the KMT2A fusion complex. Surprisingly, RNA and protein expression of DYRK1A was reduced in KMT2A-R ALL compared to other B-ALL subtypes. We then identified MYC as a potential negative regulator of DYRK1A that could explain the lower RNA and protein expression levels observed. A gain-of-function experiment showed marked downregulation of DYRK1A when MYC was ectopically expressed in murine B-cells, while loss of MYC resulted in DYRK1A upregulation. Parallel analysis of publicly available gene expression data from children with high-risk B-ALL (NCI TARGET database) showed significantly higher MYC RNA expression levels in KMT2A-R ALL as compared to other ALL subtypes, further validating our findings that MYC acts as a negative regulator of DYRK1A. Finally, to assess pharmacologic inhibition, we treated multiple KMT2A-rearranged ALL cell lines with the novel DYRK1A inhibitor EHT 1610 and identified sensitivity to DYRK1A inhibition. We then queried the Achilles database and identified that DYRK1A is not a common essential gene in normal tissues, suggesting minimal potential for on-target/off-tumor effects of DYRK1A inhibition.
 Conclusions: We identified a novel mechanism in KMT2A-R ALL in which DYRK1A is positively regulated by the KMT2A fusion protein and negatively regulated by MYC. Genetic deletion and pharmacologic inhibition of DYRK1A resulted in significant growth disadvantage of KMT2A-R ALL cells. While further studies are needed, we predict that combining DYRK1A inhibitors with chemotherapy could decrease relapse risk and improve long-term survival of patients with KMT2A-R B-ALL.

 Crispino: MPN Research Foundation: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Sierra Oncology: Consultancy; Scholar Rock: Research Funding; Forma Therapeutics: Research Funding. Tasian:Incyte Corportation: Research Funding; Gilead Sciences: Research Funding; Aleta Biotherapeutics: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Carroll:Astellas Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding; Incyte: Research Funding; Janssen Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy.


This report examines the cocoa supply chain, its associated deforestation, and the role and limitations of certification schemes to reduce deforestation. The deforestation-related commitments from cocoa companies are analyzed across the value chain by looking at commitment types, implementation, and the enabling environment. These findings are compared with lessons from palm oil since it has the most similarities to cocoa due to its large contingent of smallholder producers and limitations that exacerbate deforestation. Finally, a vision for zero-deforestation cocoa with key principles and strategies is described. This work is meant to inform industry, governments, and development partners to be effective actors in a zero-deforestation cocoa future.


The increased interest in weather-based risk management tools in developed and developing nations gives rise to examining a new set of risk-contingent structured financial products. This paper examines a variety of models applicable to agriculture and the sovereign debt of developing agrarian nations including from the corporate side, weather-linked bonds, and from the producer side weather-linked loans and weather linked mortgages. These weather risk management tools are targeted towards mitigating both business and financial risk by reducing the contractual obligation of debt (principal and/or interest) depending on the intrinsic value of an attached weather option (e.g. excess heat or precipitation) which pays off if a specific weather event occurs. The paper also discusses the structure of a famine bond, which provides funds in advance of a high probability famine event brought about by a specific weather event such as drought. The models presented have broad application to agricultural economies that suffer from weather induced volumetric (production) risk.


The problem of fresh water scarcity is becoming a global issue, due to rapid urbanisation, population growth, water pollution, climate change and compounded effects. The incorporation of water reuse in upcoming urban water systems will not only satisfy a large part of water demand but also create a situation where wastewater treatment will be essential due to accountability towards the end users of water reuse. There are various technical and non-technical challenges towards the conceptualisation and materialisation of water reuse for a sustainable urban water system. The selection of appropriate technologies for a specific urban settlement is one of the key challenges. A plethora of existing technologies, such as membrane assisted technologies, for wastewater treatment and reuse may pose difficulty in decision making. Decision makers, such as water authorities and industries, often come across a lot of information and facts for a variety of technologies and reuse concepts. A systematic analysis of available technologies and options is necessary in order to increase the chances of success in wastewater reuse projects. Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) is a decision making method for systematic appraisal of wastewater reuse technologies. In this research the MCA has been carried out for the ranking of candidate technologies, after incorporating all the factors in terms of numerical values. Eight membrane assisted technologies have been short-listed due to their suitability under considered water reuse scenarios. Subsequently, most relevant technology selection criteria have been assessed. The MCA based ranking of candidate technologies provides a relative indication of the suitability of various membrane assisted water reuse technologies. It has been concluded that a systematic and rigorous analysis of candidate technologies can help decision makers to compare various available technological options and select the best available option for a sustainable water reuse concept.


ABSTRACT Three nanocomposite materials with the same nominal stoichiometric thermite composition of 2Al-3CuO were prepared by three different methods: ultrasonic mixing (USM) of constituent nanopowders, electrospraying (ES), and arrested reactive milling (ARM). Prepared powders were placed in a 6.7-mm diameter, 0.5-mm-deep cavity in a brass substrate and ignited by electro-static discharge. The experiments were performed in air, argon, and helium. The mass of powder removed from the sample holder after ignition was measured in each test. Using a multi-anode photo-multiplier tube coupled with a spectrometer, time-resolved light emission traces produced by the ignited samples were recorded in the range of wavelengths of 373–641 nm. Time-resolved temperatures were then determined by fitting the recorded spectra assuming Planck's black body emission. Temporal pressure generated by ignition events in the enclosed chamber showed that the powder's combustion properties were tied to both their preparation technique as well as the environment they were ignited in. We found that agglomeration of nanoparticles hindered combustion of USM powders; while it was not observed for the ES powders. In oxygen-free gas environments, lower temperatures and pressures were observed for USM and ES powders prepared using starting nano-particles. For the ES powders, the effect of gas environment was less significant, which was interpreted considering that ES materials included gasifying nitrocellulose binder, enhancing heat, and mass transfer between individual Al and CuO particles. Higher pressures and temperatures were observed in inert environments for the ARM-prepared powder.


Molecular markers derived from resistance gene analogs of HcrVf2, the first apple resistance gene cloned, may pave the way to the cloning of additional apple scab resistance genes. The Malus xdomestica 'Florina' (Vf) bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) genomic library was screened by hybridization using HcrVf2 as a probe. Positive BAC clones were assembled into contigs and microsatellite markers developed from each contig mapped. Only linkage groups 1 and 6 contained HcrVf2 paralogs. On linkage group 1, five loci in addition to the Vf locus were identified. A single locus was detected on linkage group 6. Representative BAC clones of these loci including the Vf locus were sequenced and the gene structure compiled. A total of 22 sequences, showing high sequence similarity to HcrVf2, were identified. Nine sequences were predicted to encode all seven protein domains described in HcrVf2, while three were truncated. Transcriptional analysis indicated that six genes with a complete HcrVf-like structure were constitutively expressed in young uninfected leaves of 'Florina'. The map position of each HcrVf analog was compared with the location of the major apple scab resistance genes. None of the major genes conferring scab resistance co-localized with HcrVf paralogs, indicating that they are unlikely to belong to the leucine-rich repeat - transmembrane class, which includes the Vf gene.


Abstract. We present the set-up and a scientific application of the Stratospheric Air Sub-sampler (SAS), a device to collect and to store the vertical profile of air collected with an AirCore (Karion et al., 2010) in numerous sub-samples for later analysis in the laboratory. The SAS described here is a 20 m long 1/4 inch stainless steel tubing that is separated by eleven valves to divide the tubing into 10 identical segments, but it can be easily adapted to collect smaller or larger samples. In the collection phase the SAS is directly connected to the outlet of an optical analyzer that measures the mole fractions of CO2, CH4 and CO from an AirCore sampler. The stratospheric part (or if desired any part of the AirCore air) is then directed through the SAS. When the SAS is filled with the selected air, the valves are closed and the vertical profile is maintained in the different segments of the SAS. The segments can later be analysed to retrieve vertical profiles of other trace gas signatures that require slower instrumentation. As an application, we describe the coupling of the SAS to an analytical system to determine the 17O excess of CO2, which is a tracer for photochemical processing of stratospheric air. For this purpose the analytical system described by Mrozek et al. (2015) was adapted for analysis of air directly from the SAS. The performance of the coupled system is demonstrated for a set of air samples from an AirCore flight in November 2014 near Sodankyla, Finland. The standard error for a 25 mL air sample at stratospheric CO2 mole fraction is 0.56 ‰ (1σ) for δ17O and 0.03 ‰ (1σ) for both δ18O and δ13C. Measured Δ17O(CO2) values show a clear correlation with N2O in agreement with already published data.


Scholars of widely diverging persuasions have recognized the implications of the world constellation in which the discourse on foreign intervention with all its manifestations in a civil war has an explanatory value. How-ever, a number of long-standing theoretical, methodological and epistemological challenges still resist clearcut solution. This study analyzes the roles of the great powers and the OAU in the Nigerian civil war with the empirical ambition of identifying central tendencies relevant to this case. Badom submits that periodization can serve an analytical purpose. Thus, the author treats as a unity the dynamics of great power politics in the period 1967-1970. A period that spans the so-called limited detente. In these years, the Sino-Soviet rivalry increased and led to a split of the al-lian--ce of the 1950s. These years witnessed a change in leadership in Mos-cow, Peking and in Washington. These years witnessed the opening of the American-Chinese relations, the Cultural Revolution in China, the Israeli airstrike on Egyptian and other Arab airbases, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, the importance of both China and Soviet Union to the US, the series of military take-overs in Africa, the crackdown on the IRA, and above all, the internal and international revulsion against the horrors of the war in Vietnam in the aftermath of the assassinations of both the Kennedy brothers and Dr. King. All over Western Europe, there were deep sources of discontent which overlapped and fused, urban squalor and overcrowded schools and universities but in France, it was bad enough to inflame a generation which had been attuned to political activism by the Algerian war. It led to the students uprising. These cases were not isolated. Thus, the author argues that the observed pattern of involvement in the Nigerian civil war finds its explanation in the very dynamics of great power politics suggesting that the distribution of power determines who is whose friend and whose enemy at a given time. Badom argues that what constitutes intervention during an ongoing civil war might not even register as intervention otherwise in the light of global interdependence. Consequently, the study contributes to both our theoretical and empirical understandings of intervention as a compound phenomenon central to the study of international relations in a given context. The author argues that despite the fears whether Nigeria would be transformed into an arena for the Sino-Soviet conflict, the superpowers hegemonic rivalry between Washington and Moscow, the colonial competition between France and Britain over their former colonies, and the apprehensions as to whether the balkanization of Nigeria would be achieved through foreign intervention, the war did not escalate as feared. The rea-sons, he argues that the controlling mechanisms of great power politics, the recognition of the risks and limits of the war, the active role of the OAU and Prime Minster Harold Wilson's diplomacy in sum, helped to control escalation. The conclusion serves as a step for further research. (Less)


OBJECTIVE
Minimal invasive cardiac surgical techniques recently have been applied in the management of various cardiac lesions. The aim of the study was to evaluate right anterolateral minithoracotomy as an alternative procedure with a better cosmetic and clinical outcomes.

METHODS
Fifteen male and 64 female patients underwent open heart surgery during cardiopulmonary bypass through a right anterolateral minithoracotomy at the fourth intercostal space. The average age was 41+/-6 years. Fifty-two (65.8%) patients underwent mitral valve replacement, 5 (6.3%) patients underwent mitral valve replacement + tricuspid annuloplasty, 5 (6.3%) patients underwent tricuspid valve replacement, 7 (8.9%) patients underwent closure of the atrial septal defect (ASD), 3 (3.8%) patients underwent closure of the ventricular septal defect (VSD), 1 (1.2%) patient underwent closure of the ASD+VSD and 5(6.3%) patients underwent mitral re-replacement.

RESULTS
The postoperative average ventilation time was 6+/-2 h in 38 (48.1%) patients and 11+/-3 h in 41 (51.9%) patients. The postoperative average mediastinal drainage was 350+/-110 ml during first 24 hours, and postoperative stay in intensive care was 1.8+/-0.8 days.

CONCLUSION
As a result, the right anterolateral minithoracotomy incision is a safe and effective alternative to the median sternotomy for open heart surgical procedures. Most of minimal surgical accesses can be achieved with better cosmetic results and faster recovery.


Hospitals, need a lot of energy for their Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning therefore it is important to look at possibilities to reduce the energy use. However, this of course has to be done without endangering the primary functions related to the patient's and staff safety. The HVAC energy consumption in isolation rooms is mainly caused by large volumes of air supply and are continuous supplying to the rooms, regardless the occupancy of the room. Resulting in over conditioned rooms, which leads to excessive energy consumption. It is concluded that the actual energy supply must be aligned to the energy demand. Solutions frequently used for this problem is HVAC setback using time schedules based on occupancy profiles. HVAC set back in isolation rooms require an unconventional approach, others than time schedules. A possible solution is manual HVAC setback for heating, cooling and ventilation. However, an important note to manual HVAC setback in ventilation rate is the increased risk of disease transmission through human failure. The risk of HVAC setback for heating and cooling is expected to be low. This research focusses on the amount of HVAC set back. The manner of setback is not investigated. The amount of HVAC setback depends on the type of occupancy in the room. For non-airborne infectious patients, a reduction of ACH to the guidance for single bedrooms (100 m3/h per person = 2 ACH) is possible, provided that the comfort requirements are reached with these requirements. The ACH for isolation type of patients is doubtful. For not occupied rooms, the ACH need to be sufficient to maintain the space conditions for the time a patient need to be hospitalized. But also to keep the room at a low positive pressure in order to keep contaminants outside the room. According to the room model results it is concluded that the ACH for isolation patients can be reduced to < 6 ACH, however a more detailed model is needed which provides more certainty. The room model as defined in this research revealed that transmission of infectious particles through undefined cracks and gaps is most crucial (has most influences on transmission). Additionally, it is concluded that at low ACH the contamination concentrations are higher, however, more evenly distributed.


Ageing and deterioration of infrastructure is a challenge facing transport authorities. In particular, there is a need for increased bridge monitoring in order to provide adequate maintenance and to guarantee acceptable levels of transport safety. The Intelligent Infrastructure group at Queens University Belfast (QUB) are working on a number of aspects of infrastructure monitoring and this paper presents summarised results from three distinct monitoring projects carried out by this group. Firstly the findings from a project on next generation Bridge Weight in Motion (B-WIM) are reported, this includes full scale field testing using fibre optic strain sensors. Secondly, results from early phase testing of a computer vision system for bridge deflection monitoring are reported on. This research seeks to exploit recent advances in image processing technology with a view to developing contactless bridge monitoring approaches. Considering the logistical difficulty of installing sensors on a 'live' bridge, contactless monitoring has some inherent advantages over conventional contact based sensing systems. Finally the last section of the paper presents some recent findings on drive by bridge monitoring. In practice a drive-by monitoring system will likely require GPS to allow the response of a given bridge to be identified; this study looks at the feasibility of using low-cost GPS sensors for this purpose, via field trials. The three topics outlined above cover a spectrum of SHM approaches namely, wired monitoring, contactless monitoring and drive by monitoring.


The crystal structure and surface morphology of the CaTiO3:Sm3+ nanomaterials prepared by combustion synthesis were determined by XRD Rigaku Ultima IV diffractometer using Cu Kα radiation (1.54184 A) depicting orthorhombic phase of CaTiO3:Sm3+ with space group Pbnm & scanning electron microscopy (SEM) respectively. The phosphor particles size was found about 10-15nm. Upon excitation using 407nm light, the PL emission spectra obtained due to 4f transition of Sm3+ from 4G5/2 → 6HJ(J=5/2, 7/2 ,9/2 ,11/2) consists of five peaks located at 564nm, 601-611nm, 647nm and 711 nm respectively. Among these Peaks, the peak located at 564 nm (4G5/2→6H5/2) was purely due to magnetic-dipole transition (MD), and at 648 nm (4G5/2→6H9/2) was purely due to electric dipole transition (ED). But the main peak located at 601 nm (4G5/2→6H7/2) was due to a partly magnetic and partly a force dielectric-dipole transition showing bright orange-red emission thus prove CaTiO3:Sm3+ phosphor a strong promising orange-red phosphor for display application.


The Cdc14 family of phosphatases specifically reverses proline-directed phosphorylation events. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Cdc14p promotes Cdk1p inactivation at mitotic exit by reversing Cdk1p-dependent phosphorylations. Cdk1p is a proline-directed kinase whose activity is required in all eukaryotes for the transit into mitosis. At mitotic commitment, Cdk1p participates in its own regulation by activating the mitotic inducing phosphatase, Cdc25p, and inhibiting the opposing kinase, Wee1p. We have investigated the ability of Schizosaccharomyces pombe Clp1p, a Cdc14p homolog, to disrupt this autoamplification loop. We show here that Clp1p is required to dephosphorylate, destabilize, and inactivate Cdc25p at the end of mitosis. Clp1p promotes recognition of Cdc25p by the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome, an E3 ubiquitin ligase. Failure to inactivate and destabilize Cdc25p in late mitosis delays progression through anaphase, interferes with septation initiation network signaling, and additionally advances the commitment to mitotic entry in the next cycle. This may be a widely conserved mechanism whereby Cdc14 proteins contribute to Cdk1p inactivation. The EMBO Journal (2004) 23, 919–929. doi:10.1038/ sj.emboj.7600103; Published online 12 February 2004 Subject Categories: cell cycle; genome stability & dynamics


This thesis builds on and contributes to work in theories of affect that has risen within diverse fields, including geography, cultural studies, media studies and feminist writings, challenging the nature of textual and representational-based research. Although numerous studies have examined how affect emerges in- and through- the occupation of architectural spaces, little analytical attention has been paid to the creative process of design and the role that affect plays in the many contingencies and uncertainties that arise in the process. In this context, the question that this thesis explores is what architectural and theoretical relations can be drawn out when architectural practices are viewed through the lens of affect. Such inquiry is critical to allow practices of architecture to be seen not through defined patterns or contained agenda's but rather through intensities and forces between bodies (both human and non-human); it is to discover practice as sites of potential - and in doing so to address the usefulness of affect to be applied to more grounded empirical fields. In order to explore the above question, the study is based on a qualitative research methodology, including interviewing; writing of observational notes; visiting the architectural offices as well as the projects, where possible/appropriate; and collection of key documents, architectural drawings, and images relating to the design project discussed. This thesis begins with a review of current critical thinking of affect. Its focus is upon how these renderings present particular links between affect, body and space. Further, the thesis considers a range of ideas from architectural scholars and geographers attempting to identify connections between architecture, affect and architectural practice, through notions of affective mediation, tinkering, and stuttering. The thesis then moves forward to present an in-depth case study of three architectural practices, RUR Architecture PC, Kerstin Thompson Architects and Shigeru Ban Architects, with specific architectural projects, in order to evaluate how affect is a significant element in the design process for emergent practices of architecture. Ultimately, this thesis argues how architectural practice may extend theories of affect, particularly broadening Sara Ahmed's notion of 'sticky affects' within the context of architecture, through sticky images, sticky processes and sticky objects, respectively to each case study. Importantly, the thesis engages with the often mundane but highly creative aspect of design processes, not so much in terms of the results, or impact, of affect in the final architectural space, but in terms of how design processes consist of stuttering's where affect can bring bodies together through affective stickiness. The thesis offers an alternative and extended model for the study of how affect plays itself out in the dynamic relationships between different bodies, happenings and relations in practices of architecture.


Naval historians have had a good fewyears recently, with a number of informative and readable scholarly works reaching publication that have taken a wide range of approaches to the subject: operational, technical, cultural, policy and social. The complexities of British naval policy, operations, administration, technology and finance defy the tidy grouping of research into discrete chronological boundaries; in many ways the Navy's contemporary history can best be seen as the cumulative effect of previous successes and failures of naval and defence policy. After all, the Royal Navy's behaviour at the start of the second world war and during the interwar period cannot be fully understood without a clear comprehension of the first world war and the legacy of Jutland and submarine warfare. Yet at the same time, any analysis of the first world war is rooted in the administrative, strategic and technological changes made by Admiral Sir John Fisher during his time as First Sea Lord between 1904 and 1910, and the Fisher period and its navalism, competition andDreadnoughts cannot be fully understood without reference to the problems and concerns of the pre-Dreadnought era.


Enterprise fraud costs hundreds of millions of dollars every year. Enterprise fraud management (EFM) solutions analyze transaction data to see if it matches known fraudulent patterns. If it does, an alert is raised, and a fraud investigator is assigned to the alert. EFM solutions typically are sold as software products with a fixed-term license. We highlight best practices for these product-based solutions and consider an alternative architecture that leverages cloud computing. Cloud computing is an emerging system architecture where the user accesses software services using the Internet. Users only need Internet connectivity to utilize computation and storage services. Users needn't know about the inner workings of the server software or the location of the servers. Thus, cloud computing relieves the user from the burdens of designing and building an in-house server architecture and purchasing licenses to run software. In this paper, we develop a framework that assesses the costs and benefits of enterprise fraud management solutions. We extend our framework to weigh the costs and benefits of EFM solutions deployed as a licensed product and also in the cloud. Finally, we present a costbenefits analysis of comparable EFM solutions deployed using these two system architectures.


Hypernasality is associated with various diseases and interferes with speech intelligibility. A recently developed quantitative index called voice low tone to high tone ratio (VLHR) was used to estimate nasalization. The voice spectrum is divided into low-frequency power (LFP) and high-frequency power (HFP) by a specific cutoff frequency (600 Hz). VLHR is defined as the division of LFP into HFP and is expressed in decibels. Voice signals of the sustained vowel [a:] and its nasalization in eight subjects with hypernasality were collected for analysis of nasalance and VLHR. The correlation of VLHR with nasalance scores was significant (r=0.76, p<0.01), and so was the correlation between VLHR and perceptual hypernasality scores (r=0.80, p<0.01). Simultaneous recordings of nasal airflow temperature with a thermistor and voice signals in another 8 healthy subjects showed a significant correlation between temperature rate of nasal airflow and VLHR (r=0.76, p<0.01), as well. We conclude that VLHR may become a potential quantitative index of hypernasal speech and can be applied in either basic or clinical studies.


Aim: The purpose of this study was to evaluate sTfR and ferritin level in beta thalassemia major for diagnosis and management of iron chelating therapy. Materials and methods: This study was conducted on 400 samples from β thalassemia major patients. ELISA tech-nique was used for the detection of serum ferritin and sTfR according to the manufacturer's instructions. Results: In male beta thalassemia major patients sTfR level was 89.2±20.1 nmol/l while in female patients mean sTfR was 97.4±23.3 nmol/l which were high on comparing with control. Serum ferritin level in male patient was 3013.35±914.08 ng/ml while in female patients was 3213.43±1014.08 ng/ml. Conclusion: The concentration of sTfR, and ferritin level was increased in beta thalassemia major patients which indicate increased marrow activity and increased body iron.


Several self-healing protocols utilizing virtual paths have been proposed in the relevant literature. Those which work in a mesh topology function according to three main rerouting strategies (though specific flooding administrations differ): local rerouting, source-destination rerouting, and local-destination rerouting. Most performance studies of self-healing protocols have considered restoration time as the sole performance metric. This would have to be within the 2s threshold 1 in order to guarantee service continuity. This one-sided metric needs to be completed. In this paper, we propose an extended performance metrics framework in order to catch more performance aspects. In addition, this analysis uses survivability functions to measure the performance of rerouting strategies.


Ionophore A-23187 releases histamine from normal mast cells apparently by promoting Ca++ influx (Foreman et al, Nature 245: 249, 1973). In our hands at concentrations of greater than 0.2 mug/ml release occurs in 1 to 2 min, is blocked by metabolic inhibitors, and is unaccompanied by cytotoxicity (trypan-blue uptake, lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) release). At higher doses (0.5 mug/ml) histamine release is followed by significant cytotoxicity, but again Ca++ is required. In parallel studies, we examined cultured rat basophilic leukemia (RBL-1) cells. These cells, which apparently have normal surface receptors for IgE, contained approximately 700 ng histamine/10(6) cells but did not release histamine when IgE-mediated release was looked for. They do not respond to doses of ionophore which would be expected to give non-cytotoxic histamine release. At higher doses histamine release is preceded by progressive LDH release: LDH release is 75% complete at 5 min whereas 10 min are required for 75% maximal histamine release. This reaction requires Ca++ and is temperature dependent but is not inhibited by metabolic poisons (2-deoxyglucose, dinitrophenol, CN-). These studies suggest that either Ca++ does not enter into these cells normally or that one or more mechanisms which are ordinarily triggered by the changes in Ca++ flow are unresponsive in the RBL-1 cells. These studies also underline the importance of ruling out cytotoxicity in ionophore-induced phenomena.


An experimental verification of a 3-D eddy current analysis code based on the T-method was performed by applying it to an eddy-current testing (ECT) problem. Specifically, signal trajectories for ECT of a block with a flaw were measured. The experiment was performed for the ECT benchmark problem defined by the TEAM Workshops for two frequencies. Numerical results for 500 Hz and 1 kHz agreed well with measured values, demonstrating the validity of the method and the code for 3-D eddy-current problems. >


A lot of research has been done regarding Bergmann"s rule. Bergmann"s rule means that from the surface area to volume ratio it becomes clear that warm-blooded animals, from the same species, tend to be larger at higher latitudes and in cooler climates. But in the literature Bergmann"s rule is revised in the time and also the mechanism behind the pattern of latitudinal body size variation is debated among researchers. Therefore this thesis deals with two goals. The first goal is to give a first impression whether both endotherms and ectotherms are following the trend of larger size at higher latitudes in the same strength. Therefore I compiled correlation coefficients of endothermic and ectothermic species of the literature. I found that endotherms are strongly following the pattern of large size at higher latitudes (~90%), whereas ectotherms follow it (50%), but not as strong as the endotherms.
The second goal is to discuss whether the heat conservation mechanism, as originally proposed by Bergmann is a more or less valid explanation for latitudinal body size variation than other proposed mechanisms in the literature. I suggest that a combination of abiotic factors (i.e. temperature) and biotic factors (i.e. food quality and food abundance) is responsible for latitudinal body size variation in animals, instead of one mechanism (i.e. heat conservation). This is supported by the fact that latitude alone is not the explanation for body size variation among latitudes, but that a combination of factors, i.e. temperature and precipitation, drives latitudinal body size variation. Therefore I encourage further studies to look at the interaction between abiotic and biotic factors to explain the mechanism behind Bergmann"s rule, in which it is important to investigate the effects of global warming on vegetation types and the direct and indirect effects on food quality and food abundance.


This paper investigates a cross-modal retrieval problem in which a user would like to retrieve a passage of music from a MIDI file by taking a cell phone picture of a physical page of sheet music. While audio-sheet music retrieval has been explored by a number of works, this scenario is novel in that the query is a cell phone picture rather than a digital scan. To solve this problem, we introduce a mid-level feature representation called a bootleg score which explicitly encodes the rules of Western musical notation. We convert both the MIDI and the sheet music into bootleg scores using deterministic rules of music and classical computer vision techniques for detecting simple geometric shapes. Once the MIDI and cell phone image have been converted into bootleg scores, we estimate the alignment using dynamic programming. The most notable characteristic of our system is that it does test-time adaptation and has no trainable weights at all -- only a set of about 30 hyperparameters. On a dataset containing 1000 cell phone pictures taken of 100 scores of classical piano music, our system achieves an F measure score of .869 and outperforms baseline systems based on commercial optical music recognition software.


The pacemaker tissues of the heart are a complex set of specialized cells that initiate the rhythmic heartbeat. The sinoatrial node (SAN) serves as the primary pacemaker, whereas the atrioventricular node can serve as a subsidiary pacemaker in cases of SAN failure or block. The elucidation of genetic networks regulating the development of these tissues is crucial for understanding the mechanisms underlying arrhythmias and for the design of targeted therapies. Here we report temporal and spatial self-organized formation of the pacemaker and contracting tissues in three-dimensional aggregate cultures of mouse embryonic stem cells termed embryoid bodies (EBs). Using genetic marker expression and electrophysiological analyses we demonstrate that in EBs the pacemaker potential originates from a localized population of cells and propagates into the adjacent contracting region forming a functional syncytium. When Shox2, a major determinant of the SAN genetic pathway, was ablated we observed substantial slowing of spontaneous contraction rates and an altered gene expression pattern including downregulation of HCN4, Cx45, Tbx2, Tbx3, and bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4); and upregulation of Cx40, Cx43, Nkx2.5, and Tbx5. This phenotype could be rescued by adding BMP4 to Shox2 knockout EBs in culture from days 6 to 16 of differentiation. When wild-type EBs were treated with Noggin, a potent BMP4 inhibitor, we observed a phenotype consistent with the Shox2 knockout EB. Altogether, we have generated a reproducible in vitro model that will be an invaluable tool for studying the molecular pathways regulating the development of cardiac pacemaker tissues.


Abstract Comparing observed versus theoretically expected evolutionary responses is important for our understanding of the evolutionary process, and for assessing how species may cope with anthropogenic change. Here, we document directional selection for larger female size in Atlantic salmon, using pedigree‐derived estimates of lifetime reproductive success as a fitness measure. We show the trait is heritable and, thus, capable of responding to selection. The Breeder's Equation, which predicts microevolution as the product of phenotypic selection and heritability, predicted evolution of larger size. This was at odds, however, with the observed lack of either phenotypic or genetic temporal trends in body size, a so‐called "paradox of stasis." To investigate this paradox, we estimated the additive genetic covariance between trait and fitness, which provides a prediction of evolutionary change according to Robertson's secondary theorem of selection (STS) that is unbiased by missing variables. The STS prediction was consistent with the observed stasis. Decomposition of phenotypic selection gradients into genetic and environmental components revealed a potential upward bias, implying unmeasured factors that covary with trait and fitness. These results showcase the power of pedigreed, wild population studies—which have largely been limited to birds and mammals—to study evolutionary processes on contemporary timescales.


The SPLADE (SParse Lexical AnD Expansion) model is a highly effective approach to learned sparse retrieval, where documents are represented by term impact scores derived from large language models. During training, SPLADE applies regularization to ensure postings lists are kept sparse --- with the aim of mimicking the properties of natural term distributions --- allowing efficient and effective lexical matching and ranking. However, we hypothesize that SPLADE may encode additional signals into common postings lists to further improve effectiveness. To explore this idea, we perform a number of empirical analyses where we re-train SPLADE with different, controlled vocabularies and measure how effective it is at ranking passages. Our findings suggest that SPLADE can effectively encode useful ranking signals in documents even when the vocabulary is constrained to terms that are not traditionally useful for ranking, such as stopwords or even random words.


Over the next few decades we must boost crop productivity if we are to feed a growing world population, which will reach more than 9A—109 people by 2050; and we should do it in the frame of a sustainable agriculture, with an increasing scarcity of new arable land and of water for irrigation. For all important crops, average yields are only a fraction-somewhere between 20% and 50%-of record yields; these losses are mostly due to drought and high soil salinity, environmental conditions which will worsen in many regions because of global climate change. Therefore, the simplest way to increase agricultural productivity would be to improve the abiotic stress tolerance of crops. Considering the limitations of traditional plant breeding, the most promising strategy to achieve this goal will rely on the generation of transgenic plants expressing genes conferring tolerance. However, advances using this approach have been slow, since it requires a deep understanding of the mechanisms of plant stress tolerance, which are still largely unknown. Paradoxically, most studies on the responses of plants to abiotic stress have been performed using stress-sensitive species-such as Arabidopsis thaliana-although there are plants (halophytes, gypsophytes, xerophytes) adapted to extremely harsh environmental conditions in their natural habitats. We propose these wild stress-tolerant species as more suitable models to investigate these mechanisms, as well as a possible source of biotechnological tools ('stress tolerance' genes, stress-inducible promoters) for the genetic engineering of stress tolerance in crop plants.


Population genetic studies display an astonishing degree of genetic diversity, making understanding the generation and maintenance of genetic diversity a major focus of evolutionary biology. Mutation generates variation, but directional selection will remove variation, leaving the neutral process of genetic drift as a likely cause. Another possible mechanism is frequency-dependent selection, that is, differential survival and reproduction based on allele or genotype frequencies of other individuals in the same population. Negative frequency-dependent selection favours rare genotypes and promotes genetic variation in populations. Positive frequency-dependent selection favours common alleles, accelerates the loss of rare alleles and decreases genetic variation. Pathogen–host coevolution, sex ratio, self-sterility alleles and mimicry may often result from frequency-dependent selection. For example, the African sleeping sickness parasite Trypanosoma brucei sequentially changes surface antigens as hosts develop antibodies. Host antibodies target the most common antigens, and frequency-dependent selection preserves genetic diversity of antigens of parasites and antibodies of their hosts.

Key Concepts:

Frequency-dependent selection occurs when the fitness of a genotype depends on whether it is rare or common, that is, an individual's fitness is affected by allele or genotype frequencies of other individuals in the same population.

Pathogen–host coevolution, sex ratio, self-sterility alleles and mimicry are situations where frequency-dependent selection is often hypothesised to be important in maintaining genetic variation.

A central focus of evolutionary biology is understanding roles of neutral processes (e.g. genetic drift) versus selection (e.g. frequency dependence, spatial or temporal environmental variation and heterozygote advantage) in maintaining the surprisingly large amount of genetic variation.

Frequency-dependent selection is an intuitively appealing mechanism for maintaining genetic variation: when a genotype becomes common, its fitness declines and different, rare genotypes are favoured.

Population genetic models show that negative frequency dependence (higher fitness of rare alleles) promotes genetic variation; and positive frequency dependence (selection favours common alleles) accelerates the loss of rare alleles, decreasing genetic variation.

Balanced polymorphism from heterozygote advantage, spatial/temporal variation in fitness and disruptive selection are alternate mechanisms for maintaining genetic polymorphisms.

Documentation of frequency-dependent selection requires demonstrating an observed polymorphism is in fact genetic, followed by testing for frequency dependence rather than balanced polymorphism or fluctuating selection. There are several excellent examples of documenting frequency-dependent selection in nature.

Reviews suggest about 30% of cases of alternative reproductive phenotypes and resource polymorphisms might be frequency-dependent selection.

Future studies to understand the role of frequency-dependent selection in helping parasites avoid host immune responses may be key to human efforts to develop vaccines.

Keywords:

genetic polymorphism;
host–parasite coevolution;
genetic diversity;
population genetic model


The purpose of this study was to examine how patients perceived the professionalism of University of Minnesota School of Dentistry students, faculty, and staff. Professionalism is defined by the authors as an image that will promote a successful relationship with the patient. Patients within comprehensive care clinics were asked to assess physical attributes and behaviors of the dental care providers using a questionnaire. The patients read statements dealing with characteristics of the dental care providers and responded as to whether they agreed, were neutral, or disagreed with the statement. The surveyed population consisted of 103 males and 97 females, 64 percent of whom lacked insurance coverage. Fifty-one percent of the patients were between the ages of forty-four and sixty-nine, but the overall age distribution was dispersed over a range of eighteen to one hundred. Our research found that all dental care providers displayed a professional appearance as well as behavior. The attire of the dental care provider affected the comfort and anxiety levels of patients, as did first impressions of both students and faculty. Most patients reported that students and faculty displayed effective time management and used appropriate language during the appointment. Finally, hairstyle, makeup, and jewelry appeared to have little effect on patients' opinions of the various dental care providers. Dr. Brosky is Assistant Professor, Division of Prosthodontics, Department of Restorative Sciences; Mr. Keefer is a Dental Student and participant in the Summer Research Fellowship Program; Dr. Hodges is Senior Research Associate, Division of Biostatistics; Dr. Pesun is Associate Professor, Division of Prosthodontics, Department of Restorative Sciences; and Dr. Cook is Associate Clinical Specialist, Division of Prosthodontics, Department of Restorative Sciences—all at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry. Direct correspondence and requests for reprints to Dr. Mary Elizabeth Brosky, University of Minnesota, 9-470 Moos Tower, Minneapolis, MN 55455; 612-626-2470 phone; 612-626-1496 fax; email@example.com. This research was supported in part by the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry Summer Research Fellowship Program (NIH/5T35-DE07098-19) and the Minnesota Oral Health Clinical Research Center (NIH/NIDCR P30-DE09737).


Dirofilaria immitis is an important nematode of dogs and cats which causes fatal heartworm disease in their hosts. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of D. immitis by serologic and molecular methods in shelter dogs, in the Thrace Region of Turkey. Blood samples were collected from 402 dogs in shelters which were located in four cities (Istanbul, Edirne, Tekirdag and Kirklareli) in this region. The blood smears were examined for the presence of D. immitis microfilariae under the light microscope. The commercial Snap3Dx test kit and PCR assay for amplifying the ITS-2 gene region were used for the serological and molecular analyses, respectively. The serologic and molecular prevalence of D. immitis was determined as 6.7% and 2.7%, respectively. D. immitis microfilariae were also determined in the blood smears of three dogs (0.8%). The distribution of the infection according to the provinces was 14.7% in Edirne, 11% in Kirklareli, 1% in Tekirdag and 0% in Istanbul. The occult infection rate was determined as 59.3%. This study revealed the presence of D. immitis for the first time in the Thrace Region of Turkey. This region is the transition point to Europe and obtained data in this study could contribute to the control of heartworm disease in the area.


EvoCOMNET Contributions.- Web Application Security through Gene Expression Programming.- Location Discovery in Wireless Sensor Networks Using a Two-Stage Simulated Annealing.- Wireless Communications for Distributed Navigation in Robot Swarms.- An Evolutionary Algorithm for Survivable Virtual Topology Mapping in Optical WDM Networks.- Extremal Optimization as a Viable Means for Mapping in Grids.- Swarm Intelligence Inspired Multicast Routing: An Ant Colony Optimization Approach.- A Framework for Evolutionary Peer-to-Peer Overlay Schemes.- Multiuser Scheduling in HSDPA with Particle Swarm Optimization.- Efficient Signal Processing and Anomaly Detection in Wireless Sensor Networks.- Peer-to-Peer Optimization in Large Unreliable Networks with Branch-and-Bound and Particle Swarms.- Evolving High-Speed, Easy-to-Understand Network Intrusion Detection Rules with Genetic Programming.- Soft Computing Techniques for Internet Backbone Traffic Anomaly Detection.- Testing Detector Parameterization Using Evolutionary Exploit Generation.- Ant Routing with Distributed Geographical Localization of Knowledge in Ad-Hoc Networks.- Discrete Particle Swarm Optimization for Multiple Destination Routing Problems.- EvoENVIRONMENT Contributions.- Combining Back-Propagation and Genetic Algorithms to Train Neural Networks for Ambient Temperature Modeling in Italy.- Estimating the Concentration of Nitrates in Water Samples Using PSO and VNS Approaches.- Optimal Irrigation Scheduling with Evolutionary Algorithms.- Adaptive Land-Use Management in Dynamic Ecological System.- EvoFIN Contributions.- Evolutionary Money Management.- Prediction of Interday Stock Prices Using Developmental and Linear Genetic Programming.- An Introduction to Natural Computing in Finance.- Evolutionary Approaches for Estimating a Coupled Markov Chain Model for Credit Portfolio Risk Management.- Knowledge Patterns in Evolutionary Decision Support Systems for Financial Time Series Analysis.- Predicting Turning Points in Financial Markets with Fuzzy-Evolutionary and Neuro-Evolutionary Modeling.- Comparison of Multi-agent Co-operative Co-evolutionary and Evolutionary Algorithms for Multi-objective Portfolio Optimization.- Dynamic High Frequency Trading: A Neuro-Evolutionary Approach.- EvoGAMES Contributions.- Decay of Invincible Clusters of Cooperators in the Evolutionary Prisoner's Dilemma Game.- Evolutionary Equilibria Detection in Non-cooperative Games.- Coevolution of Competing Agent Species in a Game-Like Environment.- Simulation Minus One Makes a Game.- Evolving Simple Art-Based Games.- Swarming for Games: Immersion in Complex Systems.- Fitness Diversity Parallel Evolution Algorithms in the Turtle Race Game.- Evolving Strategies for Non-player Characters in Unsteady Environments.- Grid Coevolution for Adaptive Simulations: Application to the Building of Opening Books in the Game of Go.- Evolving Teams of Cooperating Agents for Real-Time Strategy Game.- EvoHOT Contributions.- Design Optimization of Radio Frequency Discrete Tuning Varactors.- An Evolutionary Path Planner for Multiple Robot Arms.- Evolutionary Optimization of Number of Gates in PLA Circuits Implemented in VLSI Circuits.- Particle Swarm Optimisation as a Hardware-Oriented Meta-heuristic for Image Analysis.- EvoIASP Contributions.- A Novel GP Approach to Synthesize Vegetation Indices for Soil Erosion Assessment.- Flies Open a Door to SLAM.- Genetic Image Network for Image Classification.- Multiple Network CGP for the Classification of Mammograms.- Evolving Local Descriptor Operators through Genetic Programming.- Evolutionary Optimization for Plasmon-Assisted Lithography.- An Improved Multi-objective Technique for Fuzzy Clustering with Application to IRS Image Segmentation.- EvoINTERACTION Contributions.- Interactive Evolutionary Evaluation through Spatial Partitioning of Fitness Zones.- Fractal Evolver: Interactive Evolutionary Design of Fractals with Grid Computing.- Humorized Computational Intelligence towards User-Adapted Systems with a Sense of Humor.- Innovative Chance Discovery - Extracting Customers' Innovative Concept.- EvoMUSART Contributions.- Evolving Approximate Image Filters.- On the Role of Temporary Storage in Interactive Evolution.- Habitat: Engineering in a Simulated Audible Ecosystem.- The Evolution of Evolutionary Software: Intelligent Rhythm Generation in Kinetic Engine.- Filterscape: Energy Recycling in a Creative Ecosystem.- Evolved Ricochet Compositions.- Life's What You Make: Niche Construction and Evolutionary Art.- Global Expectation-Violation as Fitness Function in Evolutionary Composition.- Composing Using Heterogeneous Cellular Automata.- On the Socialization of Evolutionary Art.- An Evolutionary Music Composer Algorithm for Bass Harmonization.- Generation of Pop-Rock Chord Sequences Using Genetic Algorithms and Variable Neighborhood Search.- Elevated Pitch: Automated Grammatical Evolution of Short Compositions.- A GA-Based Control Strategy to Create Music with a Chaotic System.- Teaching Evolutionary Design Systems by Extending "Context Free".- Artificial Nature: Immersive World Making.- Evolving Indirectly Represented Melodies with Corpus-Based Fitness Evaluation.- Hearing Thinking.- EvoNUM Contributions.- Memetic Variation Local Search vs. Life-Time Learning in Electrical Impedance Tomography.- Estimating HMM Parameters Using Particle Swarm Optimisation.- Modeling Pheromone Dispensers Using Genetic Programming.- NK Landscapes Difficulty and Negative Slope Coefficient: How Sampling Influences the Results.- On the Parallel Speed-Up of Estimation of Multivariate Normal Algorithm and Evolution Strategies.- Adaptability of Algorithms for Real-Valued Optimization.- A Stigmergy-Based Algorithm for Continuous Optimization Tested on Real-Life-Like Environment.- Stochastic Local Search Techniques with Unimodal Continuous Distributions: A Survey.- Evolutionary Optimization Guided by Entropy-Based Discretization.- EvoSTOC Contributions.- The Influence of Population and Memory Sizes on the Evolutionary Algorithm's Performance for Dynamic Environments.- Differential Evolution with Noise Analyzer.- An Immune System Based Genetic Algorithm Using Permutation-Based Dualism for Dynamic Traveling Salesman Problems.- Dynamic Time-Linkage Problems Revisited.- The Dynamic Knapsack Problem Revisited: A New Benchmark Problem for Dynamic Combinatorial Optimisation.- Impact of Frequency and Severity on Non-Stationary Optimization Problems.- A Critical Look at Dynamic Multi-dimensional Knapsack Problem Generation.- EvoTRANSLOG Contributions.- Evolutionary Freight Transportation Planning.- An Effective Evolutionary Algorithm for the Cumulative Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem.- A Corridor Method-Based Algorithm for the Pre-marshalling Problem.- Comparison of Metaheuristic Approaches for Multi-objective Simulation-Based Optimization in Supply Chain Inventory Management.- Heuristic Algorithm for Coordination in Public Transport under Disruptions.- Optimal Co-evolutionary Strategies for the Competitive Maritime Network Design Problem.


This research aimed to investigate how a student music therapist used musical interactions to collaborate with teaching staff and specialist services at a special education school in New Zealand. Music therapists in this context are able to collaborate by assisting and supporting other therapy professionals and staff. I was particularly interested in how the 'music' served as a collaborative tool within the school and what was meaningful that developed from these musical interactions between school members.   Through secondary analysis of my reflective clinical journal notes I was able to explore how I used musical interactions to collaborate. Data was coded, sorted into meaning units, and themes were then drawn out using thematic analysis.   The findings suggested that musical interactions promoted staff experiences of music making with others as well as supporting student goals, by corresponding to the classroom learning agenda. Musical interactions gave support in resourcing staff to become facilitators of music in the classroom, as well as supporting the little moments when life at a special education setting can be challenging. Lastly, musical interactions were perceived to build a sense of community within the school. Music-making and facilitation of music in mostly informal settings seemed to support connecting and relationship building between students and staff.


We present a comprehensive analysis of the spatial, kinematic, and chemical properties of stars and globular clusters (GCs) in the 'ordinary' elliptical galaxy NGC 4494 using data from the Keck and Subaru telescopes. We derive galaxy surface brightness and colour profiles out to large galactocentric radii. We compare the latter to metallicities derived using the near-infrared Calcium Triplet. We obtain stellar kinematics out to � 3.5 effective radii. The latter appear flattened or elongated beyond � 1.8 effective radii in contrast to the relatively round photometric isophotes. In fact, NGC 4494 may be a flattened galaxy, possibly even an S0, seen at an inclination of � 45 degrees. We publish a catalogue of 431 GC candidates brighter than i0 = 24 based on the photometry, of which 109 are confirmed spectroscopically and 54 have measured spectroscopic metallicities. We also report the discovery of 3 spectroscopically confirmed ultra-compact dwarfs around NGC 4494 with measured metallicities of 0.4 . [Fe/H] . 0.3. Based on their properties, we conclude that they are simply bright GCs. The metal-poor globular clusters are found to be rotating with similar amplitude as the galaxy stars, while the metal-rich globular clusters show marginal rotation. We supplement our analysis with available literature data and results. Using model predictions of galaxy formation, and a suite of merger simulations, we find that many of the observational properties of NGC 4494 may be explained by formation in a relatively recent gas-rich major merger. Complete studies of individual galaxies incorporating a range of observational avenues and methods such as the one presented here will be an invaluable tool for constraining the fine details of galaxy formation models, especially at large galactocentric radii.


Scholar and statesman Conor Cruise O'Brien illuminates why peace has been so elusive in Northern Ireland. He explains the conflation of religion and nation through Irish history into our own time. Using his life as a prism through which he interprets Ireland's past and present, O'Brien identifies case after case of the lethal mixing of God with country that has spilled oceans of blood throughout this century of nationalism and that, from Bosnia to Northern Ireland, still curses the world. "O'Brien's bravura performance [is] seductive in its intellectual sweep and literary assurance."--Toby Barnard, Times Literary Supplement "Has the magical insistence which Conor Cruise O'Brien can produce at his best...Where he looks back to his own childhood the book shines. He writes of his mother and father with effortless grace and candor, with a marvelous, elegant mix of affection and detachment."--Observer


This study concerns the continuing professional development (CPD) of vocational teachers and recognizes the dual professionalism of vocational teachers as having a particular focus on the professional development related to the teachers' vocational subject areas. The study takes place in Sweden, in VET on upper secondary level. Swedish vocational teachers normally work full-time and spend most of their days at school, and how they meet the demands of contemporary vocational competence differ. They have varying opportunities and options for CPD, and this study explores to what extent and how the vocational teachers cross boundaries between school and other communities of practice to take part in various types of CPD. The vocational teachers' perceived results of the CPD, as well as barriers and opportunities/motivation for participation are also investigated. The analysis is based on survey data on vocational teachers' participation in CPD activities and draws on a socio-cultural perspective on practices, identity and learning, and theory concerning adults' participation in education and barriers towards this.


This article explores new justifications for imposing liability on underwriters. The article discusses whether civil liability should be imposed on the leader of a consortium of underwriters (the lead or, more commonly, managing underwriter) and other underwriters of initial public offerings (IPOs) for misleading information in the offering prospectus. The justification of such liability is based on two new models that simulate the decision-making process of managing underwriters. The first model indicates that a statute imposing liability on underwriters plays a crucial role in solving the problem of hidden action by the managing underwriter, in which the degree of effort that the managing underwriter makes in performing due diligence is not revealed in the aftermarket. The second model shows that the managing underwriter acts strategically in setting the offering price and in allotting securities to investors, and that the law plays a central role in reducing the offering-related costs. This model describes the convergence of supply and demand in the bookbuilding method. The principal thesis of the study is that in the current structure of capital markets, the strategic behavior of the managing underwriter of a consortium of underwriters creates substantial costs through its method of distributing securities in the primary market and that this phenomenon justifies imposing civil liability on managing underwriters. In the first model, the moral hazard problem cannot be solved without statutory backing. In the second model, the managing underwriter cultivates a two-way relationship with potential investors during the course of marketing the offering. In this model, the managing underwriter determines the offering price and the allotment of securities to investors in a way that maximizes its profits. In equilibrium, only some of the regular investors perform valuations of the offered securities to the degree that enables efficiency in building a market-demand curve. The model indicates that imposing civil liability on the managing underwriter using the bookbuilding method can increase the efficiency of the allotment mechanism operation. Imposing liability on the managing underwriter is also expected to put some restraints on its strategic behavior in the aftermarket. Another aspect of efficiency that results from imposing liability, is that the managing underwriter's power to effectively supervise company directors, such as providing oversight of executive hirings and personal interest agreements, is strengthened. Imposing civil liability on managing underwriters is further justified by the fact that managing underwriters are the least expensive insurers, particularly in the distribution of systemic risks.


In this work, a new gas diffusion electrode (GDE) of carbon nanotube/graphitic carbon nitride (CNT/g-C3N4) was prepared, which enables the substantially improved production of H2O2 (up to 1083.54 mg L−1) compared to generation without g-C3N4 (400 mg L−1). Characterized by TEM, XRD and XPS, the synthesized g-C3N4 was proved to be a thin layer sheet with low defects. Important cathode manufacturing parameters including the mass ratio of CNTs to g-C3N4 were optimized, and the dependence of H2O2 generation on pH, current density, aeration rate and performance stability were investigated. Further explored by linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) analysis, the presence of g-C3N4 was found to accelerate the electron transfer rate, benefit the oxygen surface reaction, which contributed to the enhanced performance for H2O2 production. Finally, such a CNT/g-C3N4 cathode demonstrated effectiveness for the degradation of alizarin yellow R (AYR) by electro-Fenton (EF), photo-Fenton (PF) and photoelectron-Fenton (PEF) processes. AYR was degraded completely, and 94.8% of the organic carbon was removed, which is more than 5 times the amount removed using PF degradation only. And during the PEF degradation process of AYR, electro- and photocatalysis support and optimize each other, which produces a substantial synergistic effect, proving great potential for practical application in organic wastewater treatment.


The authors report a 68-year-old white female with long-term systemic lupus erythematosus as well as morbid obesity, characterized by very elevated body mass index, who presented a classical picture of acute coronary failure ascribed to Takotsubo syndrome.