This thesis is about automatic motion control systems for remotely operated vehicles (ROV). The work has focused on topics within guidance and navigation. In addition, a motion control system has been developed, implemented, tested and used on two ROVs in sea trials.The main motivation for the work has been the need to automate ROV tasks in order to make the ROV a more efficient tool for exploring the ocean space. Many parts of a motion control system for a ROV is similar to that of surface vessels and ships. However, there are many differences as well which require special solutions. This thesis proposes solutions to some of these challenges.Underwater navigation is one of the main challenges of developing a motion control system as no global positioning system (GPS) is available below the surface. The work here contains contributions in both model-based and sensor-based state estimation methods. Model-based Kalman filters, both linearized and extended, have been developed and tested successfully on ROVs in sea trials. However, the need for an observer that works during manipulation work, and other cases with uncertain and rapid varying disturbances and dynamics, inspired the research on sensor-based state estimation. Specifically, a new type of attitude estimator known as an explicit complementary filter has been adopted and modified for ROV use. This attitude estimator is also used in an integration filter to estimate the translational positions. The main contribution here is a new method to include velocity measurements from a Doppler velocity log (DVL), or velocity estimates, to approximate the proper acceleration of the vehicle. This is used to improve the attitude estimation for accelerated vehicles, and hence the estimated positions when used in cascade with an integration filter.Guidance of the ROV is needed to perform automatic tasks such as trajectory tracking and terrain following. The guidance modes require different levels of operator interaction. The thesis contains contributions on joystick in closed-loop control, reference models for A to B moves and path tracking, and altitude control and terrain following.Joystick in closed-loop control compensates for dynamical and environmental forces in order for the pilot to easily guide the ROV. This work uses a filter-based reference model to generate desired trajectories based in the joystick commands. These trajectories are tracked by a closed-loop controller. The reference model is modified to reduce pilot induced oscillations. The human-in-the-loop is a special case where the interaction between the operator and the controller determines the overall performance of the ROV operation.A simple and intuitive reference model for A to B moves and path tracking is a useful tool for surveys of the sea floor. This thesis proposes a constant jerk reference model. The idea is to generate feasible desired velocities and positions from integration of a constant jerk (time derivative of acceleration) that is on or off. Some benefits over filter-based reference models are that the maximum velocity is low and acceleration and deceleration stages are short. This gives a predictable behavior of the ROV for the pilot who is monitoring the operation.In order to perform video surveys or photomosaicking of the sea floor, the ROV must be able to follow the terrain automatically. A new method for sea floor geometry approximation and altitude control based on DVL range measurements is proposed. The method has also been implemented in the developed motion control system and has been successfully used on two ROVs. The main contributions here are the sea floor geometry approximation method and a new guidance law for desired depth corresponding to the reference altitude. Thus, altitude control is obtained by using the depth controller. The main new contribution in the guidance law is a feed forward term that assures proper heave velocity.As part of the work with the thesis, a motion control system, including software and hardware, has been developed in collaboration with other PhD candidates and MSc students, where the author has had the responsibility of putting every thing together under the supervision of postdoc Martin Ludvigsen and prof. Asgeir J. Sorensen. This motion control system has been implemented on two ROVs and it has been used in cruises for ocean sciences and pipeline inspection.


The present study aims to compare the strength of right and left legs and reaction times of soccer players depending on their hand and foot preferences. The study included 92 volunteers chosen from amateur soccer players. The measurements conducted on the subjects were anthropometric characteristics, foot reaction times (sound, light) and right and left foot squat parameters. The t-test was used for statistical procedures. Among the amateur soccer players who participated in this study, it was found that 19.57% used left hand and 67.39% used right hand as preferred. Soccer players using both hands equally were found with a rate of 13.4%. In terms of foot preference, it was found that 22.83% of the participants used left foot and 43.48% of the participants used right foot as preferred. The soccer players using both feet equally was found as 33.70%. No significant difference was found between right handers and left handers in reaction time measurements when the soccer players were grouped by hand preference. When compared with left footed players (0.29 sec), only the right foot sound reaction time of right footed players was significantly shorter (0.21 sec) at p<. 05 level. Statistically significant correlation was found between soccer players' hand and foot preference at a level of p< 0.01. Left footed players had significantly higher left leg mean squat (37.19 kg) when compared with right footed players (32.27 kg). No significant difference was found between right footed (35.36 kg) and left footed (33.98) subjects in terms of mean of right leg squat. Conclusion: According to the hand preference, the proportion of those who use equally two feet increased. Reaction times and force's squat of the dominant hands and feet were better. Training programs for soccer players planned according to individual characteristics including footedness may result in performance increase and decrease in injury as a result of reduced strength and reaction time asymmetry between legs and arms.


The discussion concerns onset and pathogenesis of functional intestinal diseases. Current data are presented on association of functional intestinal diseases with different infectious agents with illustration on the model of postinfectious irritable colon syndrome (ICS). ICS-like conditions in patients who had previously intestinal infections are considered.


The representation of women in research and as researcher has greatly evolved according to our analysis. We trace four generations of representations, from a long pre-stage to modernist times, followed by shifting paradigms, and finally the current stage of finding new ground focusing on integration, collectivity and centering. For each generation, relevant methodological issues are discussed, with respect to the study of immigration in a Canadian context woven of antecedents situated in studies of ethnicity and culture.


The ancient art of origami can be harnessed for the development of adaptive structures, including those at civil-engineering scale. This can be enhanced with biomimetics, the study and development of synthetic mechanisms that mimic the structure or functionality of biological organisms in nature. The origami structure presented in this paper draws inspiration from pill bugs, a species of woodlice that can alter its shape between a flat and a rolled configuration. The panel type origami pill bug structure is modelled as bars, hinges, and active elements for actuation. This paper provides analysis and comparison of a new formulation of the form-finding method called dynamic relaxation for the analytical study with a computer vision algorithm for the experimental study of a 3D-printed model. The objective of this study is to simulate and experimentally validate the quasi-static and dynamic response to characterize the kinematic properties and dynamic behavior of the origami pill bug structure.


Lactobacillus sakei is a nonpathogenic bacterial species exhibiting high fitness in heme-rich environments such as meat products, although it does not need iron or heme for growth. Heme capture and utilization capacities are often associated with pathogenic species and are considered virulence-associated factors in the infected hosts. For these reasons, iron acquisition systems have been deeply studied in such species, while for nonpathogenic bacteria the information is scarce. Genomic data revealed that several putative iron transporters are present in the genome of the lactic acid bacterium L. sakei. In this study, we demonstrate that one of them is an ECF-like ABC transporter with a functional role in heme transport. Such evidence has not yet been brought for an ECF; therefore, our study reveals a new class of heme transport system. ABSTRACT Lactobacillus sakei is a nonpathogenic lactic acid bacterium and a natural inhabitant of meat ecosystems. Although red meat is a heme-rich environment, L. sakei does not need iron or heme for growth, although it possesses a heme-dependent catalase. Iron incorporation into L. sakei from myoglobin and hemoglobin was previously shown by microscopy and the L. sakei genome reveals the complete equipment for iron and heme transport. Here, we report the characterization of a five-gene cluster (from lsa1836 to lsa1840 [lsa1836-1840]) encoding a putative metal iron ABC transporter. Interestingly, this cluster, together with a heme-dependent catalase gene, is also conserved in other species from the meat ecosystem. Our bioinformatic analyses revealed that the locus might correspond to a complete machinery of an energy coupling factor (ECF) transport system. We quantified in vitro the intracellular heme in the wild type (WT) and in our Δlsa1836-1840 deletion mutant using an intracellular heme sensor and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for quantifying incorporated 57Fe heme. We showed that in the WT L. sakei, heme accumulation occurs rapidly and massively in the presence of hemin, while the deletion mutant was impaired in heme uptake; this ability was restored by in trans complementation. Our results establish the main role of the L. sakei Lsa1836-1840 ECF-like system in heme uptake. Therefore, this research outcome sheds new light on other possible functions of ECF-like systems. IMPORTANCE Lactobacillus sakei is a nonpathogenic bacterial species exhibiting high fitness in heme-rich environments such as meat products, although it does not need iron or heme for growth. Heme capture and utilization capacities are often associated with pathogenic species and are considered virulence-associated factors in the infected hosts. For these reasons, iron acquisition systems have been deeply studied in such species, while for nonpathogenic bacteria the information is scarce. Genomic data revealed that several putative iron transporters are present in the genome of the lactic acid bacterium L. sakei. In this study, we demonstrate that one of them is an ECF-like ABC transporter with a functional role in heme transport. Such evidence has not yet been brought for an ECF; therefore, our study reveals a new class of heme transport system.


This study will evaluate if and in which way, the perception of numerosity of retail products on the shelf can be conditioned by supplying appropriate additional information, under the shape of Pop material. In two laboratory experiments, 382 participants had to order in terms of increasing numerosity of items, three different images depicting three different shelf displays. Each of these images had varying degrees of additional information. As theoretically predicted, our study shows that ("ceteris paribus", and in particular, in presence of an identical number of items characterizing each set) the estimate of product numerosity within the compared sets decreases monotonically when the amount of additional information on display increases. The introduction, and, a fortiori, the increase of additional information to certain products within the decision-making context is capable of generating an illusion of scarcity within these sets of products. Recent studies have shown that in certain circumstances within a product category, consumers choose the product characterized by a higher degree of shelf-based scarcity. Our study highlights that judgment of relative scarcity can be conditioned by using appropriate Pop material on display. Such material can be used in order to generate an illusion of scarcity within a category in correspondence with certain sub-categories. Similarly, within a sub-category, an illusion of scarcity could be produced in order to give certain brands advantages over others.


The convolutive blind source separation (BSS) problem has been received much more attentions in recent years. This paper investigates a convolutive BSS algorithm via employing the time-delayed second-order statistics information and exact diagonalization without any a priori knowledge on the mixtures. This decorrelated second-order statistics and its multi-sample delayed copies, which form two positive-definite symmetry matrices, are obtained from whitened mixtures. By using a set of transforms such as Cholesky decomposition and singular value decomposition (SVD) to these two matrices, a unitary matrix is obtained and utilized to diagonalize them exactly. It attributes the estimates of source signals to this matrix. The similarity between the estimated and original signals is quantified by calculating their correlation coefficients (CC). For the mixtures of speech and noise, ItakuraSaito distance (ISD) is applied to measure the intelligibility of estimated speech signals. Better performance of the investigated algorithm is demonstrated in experimental results compared with the previous algorithm.


SIR,-In his article on otitis media (21 February, p 443) Mr J F Birrell, writing of glue ear, states that "unlike acute otitis media, in which wax never obscures the membrane, cerumen may fill the external meatus." I should like to ask Mr Birrell (whose article I found most enlightening) whether this really means that patients with acute otitis media never have a waxy obstruction. Could the converse also be true, that if a patient complains of pain in the ear and a waxy obstruction is found there cannot be underlying otitis media? In addition, if such an inflammation is possible is it safe to syringe such an ear before the pain has subsided ?


Extracts of in vitro-cultured human dental plaque contain factors toxic to mammalian cells. Previous studies demonstrated that those toxic factors most readily released from cultured plaque had very low molecular weights and were heat stable. Studies reported here demonstrate that metabolic end products including short-chain fatty acids were present in fractions containing the low-molecular-weight, heat-stable factors. The salts of two of these acids, butyrate and propionate, inhibited proliferation of both mouse L929 cells and human gingival fibroblasts. Furthermore, when tested at concentrations present in plaque extracts, the inhibitory effects of butyrate and propionate accounted for essentially all the inhibitory potential of the extracts. These findings, taken together with those of other groups, suggest that butyrate and propionate, end products of dental plaque metabolism, may have an etiological role in periodontal disease.


ER-lipid raft associated 1(ERIN 1) is a protein coding gene encoded by ERLIN 1 gene. Autosomal Recessive HSP associated with ERLIN 1 .Structure prediction of ERLIN 1 was done using a server based approach. I-Tasser an online structure prediction tool was used for tertiary structure prediction of the protein. The best model was selected by using model evaluation tools like PROSA, ERRAT and Ramachnadran plot. Keywords: ERLIN 1, Hereditary Spastic Paralegia (HSP), 3D structure modeling Cite this Article Rane Riya, Ravichandran Rahul. 3D Structure Determination and Analysis of ER-Lipid Raft Associated 1 Protein from Homo sapiens. Research & Reviews: A Journal of Bioinformatics , 2015; 2(3): 1–7p.


"Plundered Kitchens, Empty Wombs" examines the symbolic language of food, fertility, and infertility in a small, mountainous African kingdom to explore more general notions of gender, modernity, and cultural identity.In the Cameroon grassfields, an area of high fertility, women hold a paradoxical fear of infertility. By combining symbolic, political-economic, and historical analyses, Pamela Feldman-Savelsberg traces the way reproductive threat is invoked in struggles over gender and ethnic identities. Women's fears of reproductive disorders, she finds, are an important mode of expression for their worries about much larger issues, such as rural poverty, brought about or exacerbated by political and economic changes in this century.A lively case study of an infertile queen who flees the palace sets the stage for discussions of the ethnographic and historical setting, the symbolism of fertility and infertility, and the development and interaction of cosmopolitan and ethno-gynecologies. The book concludes with an analysis of the links between women's role in human reproduction and the divine king's role in social reproduction, both occurring in the rapidly changing context of a multiethnic African nation."Plundered Kitchens, Empty Wombs" underscores the relevance of medical anthropology to other anthropological specializations, as well as to epidemiologists, population specialists, and development planners. It should reach a broad audience in medical anthropology, public health, and women's studies.Pamela Feldman-Savelsberg is Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Carleton College.


PURPOSE
To assess the feasibility and antitumor activity of oblimersen sodium, an antisense oligonucleotide directed to the Bcl-2 mRNA, combined with irinotecan in patients with advanced colorectal carcinoma, characterize the pharmacokinetic behavior of both oblimersen sodium and irinotecan, and examine Bcl-2 protein inhibition in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Patients were treated with escalating doses of oblimersen sodium administered by continuous intravenous infusion (CIVI) days 1-8, and irinotecan administered intravenously on day 6 once every 3 weeks.

RESULTS
Twenty patients received a total of 84 courses at doses ranging from 3 to 7 mg/kg/day for oblimersen sodium and from 280 to 350 mg/m2 for irinotecan. Febrile neutropenia and diarrhea limited escalation of oblimersen sodium and irinotecan to 5 mg/kg/day and 350 mg/m2, respectively. Other toxicities included nausea, vomiting, fever and fatigue. Steady-state plasma concentrations were achieved within 48 h of beginning oblimersen sodium treatment and the agent was undetectable 24 h after the discontinuation of the infusion. Reduction in levels of Bcl-2 protein in PBMC was documented following treatment with oblimersen sodium. One patient experienced a partial response and 10 additional patients had stable disease lasting 2.5-10 months.

CONCLUSIONS
The combination is well tolerated at the recommended phase II oblimersen sodium dose of 7 mg/kg/day CIVI days 1-8 with irinotecan 280 mg/m2 intravenously on day 6 every 3 weeks.


Late in his life, Desiderius Erasmus recalled a dinner invitation that he once received from the mercenary captain Bartolomeo d'Alviano (1455– 1515) . At the time, Erasmus was in Venice working with Aldus Manutius on the 1508 edition of his Adages, and d'Alviano was captain general of Venice's army . Although Erasmus dismissed d'Alviano as a man of war, this article proposes that the men shared a good deal in common, particularly an appreciation of Hellenistic studies in Venice . D'Alviano nurtured a literary circle and argued for the construction of what became the Biblioteca Marciana . The article also shows that each man (scholar and soldier by profession) at some point held the tools of the other's craft . By investigating this exchange and their attempts to cross new linguistic divides, it argues for the importance of tracing connections between warcraft and literary production in the Renaissance .


Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is involved in the regulation of numerous reproductive and morphogenic processes across an array of taxa. Extracellular H2O2 can be widespread in oceanic waters, and elevated sea surface temperatures can cause increased levels of intracellular H2O2 within cnidarian tissue, but it remains unclear how this compound affects early life-history processes in corals, such as fertilization, metamorphosis, and settlement. To evaluate the effects of H2O2 on multiple stages of recruitment, experiments were conducted using Caribbean corals with various reproductive modes, including the brooders Porites astreoides and Favia fragum and the broadcast-spawning species Acropora palmata and Orbicella franksi. H2O2 accelerated settlement in all brooding species tested. Concentrations of 1000 µmol l−1 H2O2 caused close to 100% settlement in all larval age classes, regardless of exposure duration. As larvae aged, the required threshold of H2O2 capable of inducing settlement decreased. In contrast, H2O2 concentrations of 100 µmol l−1 or greater caused a significant reduction in metamorphosis and settlement in the larvae of spawners. Furthermore, fertilization of their gametes was inhibited in the presence of H2O2 concentrations as low as 100 µmol l−1. In Porites astreoides larvae, internal levels of H2O2 reached a maximal value of 75 µmol l−1 following 48 h of incubation at 31 °C. This concentration was found to significantly alter settlement rates in both brooding coral species and likely induced a cellular cascade in the settlement signaling pathway. The results of this study suggest that temperature stress influences H2O2 production, which in turn impacts coral settlement. While it is unlikely that the current levels of externally derived concentrations of oceanic H2O2 are affecting coral larvae, internal concentrations (produced under heat stress) have the capacity to impact recruitment under a changing climate.


This paper seeks to understand why improved information technology (IT) might strengthen the case for decentralization, as recent empirical work suggests. We study a firm with a headquarters and two managers, each of whom gathers information about her changing local environment. The firm earns a gross profit that depends on actions taken as well as the current local environments. More information permits better actions, and information-gathering costs drop as IT improves. When the firm is centralized, information-gathering expenditures are first best, but after the firm decentralizes, each manager becomes a self-interested player of a "sharing game" in which she collects a share of gross profit and bears the cost of her chosen information-gathering activities. The firm's actions are determined by the information gathered at the equilibria of the game. As a result, the firm experiences a decentralization penalty, namely the change in net profit (gross profit minus informational costs) after decentralizing. If the penalty is small, then it is outweighed by the advantages of decentralizing-the vanishing of monitoring costs and perhaps the improved motivation of a decentralized manager's staff. To gather information a manager chooses (once and for all) a partitioning of her possible local environments and then searches to find the set in which her current environment lies. Our main measure of a manager's information cost is a technology parameter, θ, times the number of sets in her chosen partitioning. A second measure is θ times the partitioning's "Shannon content," which may be interpreted as average search time when search is efficient. We ask whether improved IT, i.e., a drop in θ, indeed lowers the decentralization penalty. We obtain a strongly affirmative answer to this question for both cost measures in a class of examples and a mixed answer when we generalize so as to preserve some of the key properties of those examples. In a parallel manner we explore another conjecture suggested in the empirical literature, namely that better IT raises the coordination benefit, which we define as the increase in net profit when the firm bases its actions on pooled information, rather than letting each action variable depend on the information gathered by just one manager. Copyright 2004 Blackwell Publishing, 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA, and 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK..


This research is intended for associating STEM disciplines and kinetic-potential energy conversion with the mechanical clock elements, with the purpose of informing 7 grade students about STEM and energy conversion. Throughout the qualitative research period, Mechanical clock components were visually presented to the students and they designed their own energy-conversionoperated mechanical clocks. In the end of the task, the students were asked for delivering their opinions about mechanical clockSTEM disciplines and mechanical clock-energy conversions which they observed during the process. The findings and the results obtained from the task are presented as tables and graphics. According to the Mechanical Clock-STEM (MCS) Association and Task Assessment Rubric (TAR), it has been observed that there were almost completely positive (90%) results for both of the associations mentioned above. When it came to associating Mechanical Clock with the Energy Conversion (MCEC), while some of the questions in the pretest were answered by none of the students, there was an increase about 50% in the posttest for all of those questions. In addition, the analysis of the interviews was shown that the task positively affected understanding Energy conversion and the relation between STEM disciplines.


BACKGROUND
Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a common infectious agent in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients. In this prospective case-control study, we aimed to investigate the influence of chronic HCV infection on erythropoietin (EPO) and iron requirement in HD patients.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
49 HD patients (24 male, 25 female, mean age 47 +/- 15 years) were included. The mean time spent on dialysis was 39 +/- 38 months, and follow-up time was 1 year for this study. Biochemical analyses and complete blood counts together with iron status of the patients (transferrin saturation and serum ferritin levels) were measured monthly. Highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels were measured within 3-month intervals. Endogenous EPO levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunoassay 2 weeks after cessation of EPO treatment.

RESULTS
Eleven of the HD patients (22%) were anti-HCV(+). There was no difference in age, sex, time on dialysis, distribution of primary renal diseases, predialytic BUN, Kt/V, albumin and i-PTH levels between HCV(+) and (-) patients. Anti-HCV-positive patients required significantly lower weekly doses of EPO (87 +/- 25 IU/kg vs 129 +/- 11 IU/kg, p = 0.042) and iron (16.8 +/- 12.2 mg vs 32.6 +/- 16.1 mg, p = 0.02) replacement than anti-HCV(-) group; hs-CRP levels were similar between study groups. Serum endogenous EPO levels were significantly higher in HCV(+) patients than HCV(-) HD patients (9.43 +/- 6.47 mU/ml vs 3.59 +/- 2.08 mU/ml, p = 0.008).

CONCLUSION
Anti-HCV(+) HD patients had higher serum EPO levels and required less EPO and iron replacement as compared to anti-HCV(-) patients. Because of the changes in iron metabolism, iron treatment should be carefully administered in HD patients with HCV.


Author has been working about mechanisms of some manipulation methods for micro-assembly, i.e., a mechanical method, an electro-adhesive method, and a capillary method. For the purpose of optimization and breakthrough of the micro-assembly technology, theoretical understanding of adhesion phenomenon is essential, because the adhesional force is proportional to the size of objects meanwhile gravitational force is proportional to the third power of it. Consequently the adhesion phenomenon is no more negligible for the smaller objects usually less than 1 mm, e.g., micro-objects. Author will introduce our analyses about the manipulation mechanisms and related basic approaches to the adhesion phenomena including an adhesion force measurement in Auger electron spectroscope, an elastic continuum approximation approach using contact mechanics, a quantum mechanics approach for surface energy, a molecular mechanics approach for surface and interfacial energies. Also it will be expressed that our data base project for the surface and interfacial energies is based on these basic approaches for the purpose of optimization and/or breakthrough of the micro-assembly technology.


We propose a vision of the structure of knowledge and processes of learning based upon the particularity of experience. Highly specific cognitive structures are constructed through activities in limited domains of experience. For new domains, new cognitive structures develop from and can call upon the knowledge of prior structures. Applying this vision of disparate cognitive structures to a detailed case study, we present an interpretation of addition-related matter from the corpus and trace the interplay of specific experiences with the interactions of ascribed, disparate structures. The interpretive focus is on learning processes through which a broadly applicable skill emerges from the interaction and integration of knowledge based on specific, particular experiences.


Protein phosphorylation has been known to be a pivotal modification regulating many cellular activities and functions. Except for several conventional techniques, mass spectrometry-based strategies are increasingly considered as vital tools that can be utilized to characterize phosphorylated peptides or proteins. In this article, we summarized currently available mass spectrometry-based techniques for the analysis of phosphorylation. Due to the low abundance of phosphopeptides, enrichment steps such as specific antibodies, immobilized metal affinity chromatography, and specific tags are crucial for their use in detection. Since the non-specific binding of the enrichment techniques are constantly of major concerns, phosphatase treatment, neutral loss scan, or precursor ion scan enable the recognition of the phosphopeptide signals. In addition, quantitative methods including isotope labeling and mass tags are also discussed. Phosphoproteome analysis seems to provide elucidation of signaling networks and global decipherment of cell activities, which require powerful analytical methods for complete and routine identification of the phosphorylation event. Despite that numerous approaches have been exploited, comprehensive analysis of protein phosphorylation remains a challenging task. With the progressively more improvements of instruments and methodologies, we can foresee the implementation of a comprehensive approach for the analysis of phosphorylation states of proteins.


Weight regulation depends on the difference between weights of absorbed and metabolised carbon and excretion of the end products of metabolism, calories and carbon dioxide, which can be independently and variably excreted. Calories can be variably excreted as heat by vasoconstriction or vasodilation and carbon dioxide can be excreted variably as exhaled carbon dioxide (the major route of carbon excretion). Unless there are changes in ventilatory carbon excretion, 'metabolism,' 'genetic factors,' 'hormones' or 'exercise' do not provide complete explanatory mechanisms for weight changes, obesity and failure of diets. Low sensitivity of respiratory centres to carbon dioxide may cause overweight and dietary failures after initial weight loss.


The patient, aged 25, was a neurotic female. She has had scarlet fever, and had studied diligently for proficiency upon the piano from early life, and was subject to severe headaches since menses were established at 15. Her father died of tuberculosis; mother, of cancer of uterus. A sister had chorea; two sisters were exceedingly irritable. She came under observation Jan. 14, 1902, complaining of gastric disturbances, headaches, languidness and general malaise. In about a week she said she was all right in regard to previous trouble, but complained of strange noises and delusions. She seemed conscious of these troubles and said she tried to avoid them, but found it impossible. She appeared then to be a neurasthenic of pronounced type. At that time her sister was told of the possibility of acute melancholia developing, which derangement occurred one week later. At the time of the melancholia developing, care was


Lexical collocations are idiosyncratic combinations of two syntactically bound lexical items (e.g., "heavy rain" or "take a step"). Understanding their degree of compositionality and idiosyncrasy, as well their underlying semantics, is crucial for language learners, lexicographers and downstream NLP applications. In this paper, we perform an exhaustive analysis of current language models for collocation understanding. We first construct a dataset of apparitions of lexical collocations in context, categorized into 17 representative semantic categories. Then, we perform two experiments: (1) unsupervised collocate retrieval using BERT, and (2) supervised collocation classification in context. We find that most models perform well in distinguishing light verb constructions, especially if the collocation's first argument acts as subject, but often fail to distinguish, first, different syntactic structures within the same semantic category, and second, fine-grained semantic categories which restrict the use of small sets of valid collocates for a given base.


We compute the anisotropic in-plane thermal conductivity of suspended single-layer black phosphorus (SLBP) using three molecular dynamics (MD) based methods, including the equilibrium MD method, the nonequilibrium MD (NEMD) method, and the homogeneous NEMD (HNEMD) method. Two existing parameterizations of the Stillinger–Weber (SW) potential for SLBP are used. Consistent results are obtained for all the three methods and conflicting results from previous MD simulations are critically assessed. Among the three methods, the HNEMD method is the most and the NEMD method the least efficient. The thermal conductivity values from our MD simulations are about an order of magnitude larger than the most recent predictions obtained using the Boltzmann transport equation approach considering long-range interactions in density functional theory calculations, suggesting that the short-range SW potential might be inadequate for describing the phonon anharmonicity in SLBP.


Recent advances in imaging technology now provide us with 3D images of developing organs. These can be used to extract 3D geometries for simulations of organ development. To solve models on growing domains, the displacement fields between consecutive image frames need to be determined. Here we develop and evaluate different landmark-free algorithms for the determination of such displacement fields from image data. In particular, we examine minimal distance, normal distance, diffusion-based, and uniform mapping algorithms and test these algorithms with both synthetic and real data in 2D and 3D. We conclude that in most cases, the normal distance algorithm is the method of choice and wherever it fails, diffusion-based mapping provides a good alternative.


Background The term 'triple whammy' (TW) refers to the risk of acute kidney injury when an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor antagonist (ARA) is combined with a diuretic and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID). Different mechanisms are probably involved; ACEIs and NSAIDs adversely affect renal blood flow and diuretics have the potential to cause dehydration. Further, NSAIDs antagonise the beneficial antihypertensive effects of ACEIs and diuretics in patients with heart failure. There are also a number of commonly used medicines that can impair renal function, for example digoxin Purpose To evaluate the frequency of TW in patients with therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of digoxin and the possibility of developing renal disorders and to analyse the acceptability of clinical pharmacist interventions. Material and methods Prospective observational study of non-hospitalised patients with any TDM for digoxin. A review of pharmacotherapeutic treatment, serum creatinine (Cr) and serum digoxin concentrations (SDCs) obtained in routine digoxin monitoring was performed between September and October 2014. Pharmacist interventions were performed when TW was detected and doctors were informed about this interaction. The following variables were recorded: demographics (age and gender) and evolution of renal function (Cr). Results 90 patients were studied (68.9% women and 31.1% men, average age 81 ± 10.1 years and average serum creatinine 1.07 mg/dL). TW was observed in 16 patients (17.8%) with 2 TW patients with acute renal failure who were hospitalised (creatinine concentrations were 3.75 mg/dL and 2.07 mg/dL, respectively). 6 of 16 pharmacist interventions performed were approved: 4 NSAIDs were switched to paracetamol, 1 changed treatment from ARA II to calcium channel blockers and 1 diuretic was withdrawn. Average TDM was 0.95 ng/mL (0.19–3.61 ng/mL). No significant differences existed between TW patients and the rest of the patients. Conclusion TW is a well known interaction and it is documented in the retrieved bibliography. Nonetheless, this association appears frequently in chronic treatments and therefore it is necessary to implement processes with the aim of avoiding TW potential problems. Routine TDM of digoxin may be a tool to detect potential drug related problems as TW associated. This differentiated pharmaceutical intervention contributed to improved health outcomes and strengthened the regulatory framework in multidisciplinary health teams. No conflict of interest.


Information Technology (IT) has been widely applied to business operations and service systems and derived various innovative business models and novel areas, especially e-business. E-business provides service by websites via IT with online information or systems to create multiple innovative values which change user behavior. Under this trend, e-business (hereinafter referred to as native e-business firms) has deeply threatened the survival of traditional service firms. To overcome difficulties, many traditional firms select bottom-up integration to increase e-services (hereinafter referred to as tradition-to-e-business firms) for expanding their multiple marketing channels. To face the challenge, native e-business firms, on the other hand, choose top-down integration, including physical stores, logistics, cash flow, supply chain, etc., to increase service values. Under competition in many years, the tradition-to-e-business firms are hard to surpass native e-business firms. On the contrary, native e-business firms cannot defeat traditional firms also. In this study, we explore the reason why native e-business and traditional firms cannot supersede each other. We find that the nature of firms and development strategy influences business focus, growth trajectory and advantage position. In the emerging stage, "e-business" is core business in native e-business firms. The firms are led by entrepreneur insights and their IT capabilities. Traditional firms were forced to build e-business, when they perceived customer disappearance. E-business is just one of their marketing channels. In the growth stage, e-Business and complementary assets oppositely lead enterprise resource integration, and the capability of which affects the company's competitive advantage. This article adopts qualitative research methods to investigate innovative capability, IT competence and complementary assets which derive the impact of e-business value creation on firms with different origins and background. Then we interpret the phenomenon of change by resource-based view (RBV) and structure inertia theory, analyze the advantages and limitation of native e-business firms and traditional service firms, and explain why it is difficult to surpass and hard to be defeated by each other. Finally, we proposed theory contribution and management implication.


Abstract This paper presents a methodology for traffic control using a distributed model predictive control scheme based on game theory (GT-DMPC). Using the traffic model METANET as prediction model, the control objective is to minimize the total time spent by vehicles in the traffic network. The proposed control methodology is compared with a centralized model predictive control approach and a non-controlled-case. The simulations show that the GT-DMPC controller efficiently distributes the vehicles entering the highway, and presents a similar performance in comparison with centralized MPC.


Abstract Background Relationships develop through social interaction and assist with participation and inclusion. Little is known about how relationships develop between people with severe intellectual disability who have limited communication and others. Method Interactions were observed between 6 adults with severe intellectual disability and paid workers or family members with whom those adults had positive relationships. Workers and family members were interviewed. The data were analysed through a grounded theory approach. Results Data analysis led to the identification of 5 processes that underpin positive relationships: recognising individuality, sharing the moment, connecting, feeling good, and sharing the message. Conclusions A relationship model with clearly identified processes and sub-elements provides a framework for teaching others how to have positive relationships with people with severe intellectual disability. The model could be applied in training to support relationships between workers and people with a disability and more widely with other community members.


We present a classical analog of quantum optical deformed oscillators in arrays of waveguides. The normal modes of these one-dimensional photonic crystals are given in terms of Jacobi polynomials. We show that it is possible to attack the problem via factorization by exploiting the corresponding quantum optical model. This allows us to provide an unbroken supersymmetric partner of the proposed Jacobi lattices. Thanks to the underlying SU(1, 1) group symmetry of the lattices, we present the analytic propagators and impulse functions for these one-dimensional photonic crystals.


In this paper we propose a Bayesian framework for unsupervised image fusion and joint segmentation. More specifically we consider the case where we have observed images of the same object through different imaging processes or through different spectral bands (multi- or hyperspectral images). The objective of this work is then to propose a coherent approach to combine these images and obtain a joint segmentation which can be considered as the fusion result of these observations. The proposed approach is based on a hidden Markov modeling of the images where the hidden variables represent the common classification or segmentation labels. These label variables are modeled by the Potts Markov random field. We propose two particular models for the pixels in each segment (iid. or Markovian) and develop appropriate Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithms for their implementations. Finally we present some simulation results to show the relative performances of these models and mention the potential applications of the proposed methods in medical imaging and survey and security imaging systems.


The CoronaVac vaccine is an inactivated type two-dose regimen vaccine developed and manufactured by Sinovac Life Sciences Company, in China. It has already been used in China's vaccination program, while 21 other countries (including Indonesia, Turkey and Brazil) also granted emergency use authorization for this vaccine. In Turkey, on January 14, 2021, healthcare workers (HCWs) started to be vaccinated with CoronaVac as the priority group in vaccination. An important question that arose at this time was about how the vaccination schedule would be for people who had previously had Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that those who have had a previous COVID-19 infection can be vaccinated regardless of their previous infection. CDC guidelines also mention that "…if antibody (Ab) testing was done after the first dose of an mRNA vaccine, the vaccination series should be completed regardless of the Ab test result". It should be noted here that this statement applies particularly to mRNA type vaccines, whereas CoronaVac jab is an inactivated type two-dose regimen vaccine. The aim of this study was to present interim results of our ongoing study to compare the effect of two doses of inactivated CoronaVac vaccine on humoral immunity of people who had previously severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, and those people who did not have the infection. In our study, CoronaVac jab containing 600 SU inactivated SARS-CoV-2 antigen was administered as 0.5 ml to 62 HCWs in Yeditepe University Hospital (Istanbul, Turkey), in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations. Ab levels against spike receptor binding region of SARS-CoV-2 were measured quantitatively. SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay were performed using Abbott Architect i2000 instrument (Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Park, IL, USA). Ab titers were measured before vaccination (Ab0), one month after the first vaccination (Ab1), and one month after the second vaccination (Ab2). The Ab responses of 62 HCWs before and after CoronaVac vaccination were determined. Two groups were created. Group 1 consisted of 18 females and 15 males who were tested as COVID-19 positive, previously. Group 2 consisted of 20 females and 9 males who never had the infection. Minimum, median and maximum Ab0 values of Group1 were 1.6, 180.8 and 5582.6, respectively and Ab1 values were 26.3, 1005.7 and 3923.1; Ab2 values were 202.1, 1119.1 and 2885.9, (in au/mL) respectively. On the other hand, minimum, median and maximum Ab0 values of Group 2 were 0.1, 1.8, and 37.2, Ab1 values were 4.7, 72.7, 470.2, and Ab2 values were 270.3, 746.2 and 5554.1, respectively. In Group 1, 20 of the HCWs showed lower Ab2 titers, while 13 of the HCWs showed higher Ab2 titers than the Ab1 titers. Whereas in Group2 all HCWs had higher Ab2 titers than the Ab1 titers. When the increasing and decreasing Ab2 titers of both groups were evaluated with the 2×2 contingency table and Fisher's exact chi-square test, a statistically significant difference was found between the groups (p<0.001). As a result, we think that a single dose of CoronaVac vaccine similarly to mRNA vaccines can be administered to people who have had COVID-19 due to the possibility that the Ab levels measured after the first dose of vaccine will decrease after the second dose of vaccine.


The recent surge of complex attention-based deep learning architectures has led to extraordinary results in various downstream NLP tasks in the English language. However, such research for resource-constrained and morphologically rich Indian vernacular languages has been relatively limited. This paper proffers team SPPU\_AKAH's solution for the TechDOfication 2020 subtask-1f: which focuses on the coarse-grained technical domain identification of short text documents in Marathi, a Devanagari script-based Indian language. Availing the large dataset at hand, a hybrid CNN-BiLSTM attention ensemble model is proposed that competently combines the intermediate sentence representations generated by the convolutional neural network and the bidirectional long short-term memory, leading to efficient text classification. Experimental results show that the proposed model outperforms various baseline machine learning and deep learning models in the given task, giving the best validation accuracy of 89.57\% and f1-score of 0.8875. Furthermore, the solution resulted in the best system submission for this subtask, giving a test accuracy of 64.26\% and f1-score of 0.6157, transcending the performances of other teams as well as the baseline system given by the organizers of the shared task.


The problem of identifying geometric structure in heterogeneous, high-dimensional data is a cornerstone of representation learning. While there exists a large body of literature on the embeddability of canonical graphs, such as lattices or trees, the heterogeneity of the relational data typically encountered in practice limits the applicability of these classical methods. In this paper, we propose a combinatorial approach to evaluating embeddability, i.e., to decide whether a data set is best represented in Euclidean, Hyperbolic or Spherical space. Our method analyzes nearest-neighbor structures and local neighborhood growth rates to identify the geometric priors of suitable embedding spaces. For canonical graphs, the algorithm's prediction provably matches classical results. As for large, heterogeneous graphs, we introduce an efficiently computable statistic that approximates the algorithm's decision rule. We validate our method over a range of benchmark data sets and compare with recently published optimization-based embeddability methods.


After the development of the OCAM2 EMCCD fast visible camera [1] dedicated to advanced adaptive optics wavefront sensing, First Light Imaging moved to the SWIR fast cameras with the development of the C-RED One and the C-RED 2 cameras. First Light Imaging's C-RED One infrared camera is capable of capturing up to 3500 full frames per second with a subelectron readout noise and very low background. C-RED One is based on the last version of the SAPHIRA detector developed by Leonardo UK. This breakthrough has been made possible thanks to the use of an e-APD infrared focal plane array which is a real disruptive technology in imagery. C-RED One is an autonomous system with an integrated cooling system and a vacuum regeneration system. It operates its sensor with a wide variety of read out techniques and processes video on-board thanks to an FPGA. We will show its performances and expose its main features. In addition to this project, First Light Imaging developed an InGaAs 640x512 fast camera with unprecedented performances in terms of noise, dark and readout speed based on the SNAKE SWIR detector from Sofradir. The camera was called C-RED 2. The C-RED 2 characteristics and performances will be described. The project leading to this application has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement N° 673944. C-RED2 development is supported by the "Investments for the future" program and the Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur Region, in the frame of the CPER.


Dynamic changes in chromatin accessibility coincide with important aspects of neuronal differentiation, such as fate specification and arealization and confer cell type-specific associations to neurodevelopmental disorders. However, studies of the epigenomic landscape of the developing human brain have yet to be performed at single-cell resolution. Here, we profiled chromatin accessibility of >75,000 cells from eight distinct areas of developing human forebrain using single cell ATAC-seq (scATACseq). We identified thousands of loci that undergo extensive cell type-specific changes in accessibility during corticogenesis. Chromatin state profiling also reveals novel distinctions between neural progenitor cells from different cortical areas not seen in transcriptomic profiles and suggests a role for retinoic acid signaling in cortical arealization. Comparison of the cell type-specific chromatin landscape of cerebral organoids to primary developing cortex found that organoids establish broad cell type-specific enhancer accessibility patterns similar to the developing cortex, but lack many putative regulatory elements identified in homologous primary cell types. Together, our results reveal the important contribution of chromatin state to the emerging patterns of cell type diversity and cell fate specification and provide a blueprint for evaluating the fidelity and robustness of cerebral organoids as a model for cortical development.


Hydrolysis of the methyl ester ( )-threo-methyl phenidate afforded the free acid in 40% yield, viz. ( )-threo-ritalinic acid, C13H17NO2. Hydrolysis and subsequent crystallization were accomplished at pH values between 5 and 7 to yield colourless prisms which were analysed by X-ray crystallography. Crystals of ( )-threo-ritalinic acid belong to the P21/n space group and form intermolecular hydrogen bonds. An antiperiplanar disposition of the H atoms of the (HOOC—)CH—CHpy group (py is pyridine) was found in both the solid (diffraction analysis) and solution state (NMR analysis). It was also determined that ( )-threo-ritalinic acid conforms to the minimization of negative gauche–gauche interactions.


The article offers a threefold perspective on preliminary references to the ECJ, through an analysis of the case law of the ECJ itself, of (some) constitutional courts and of the ECtHR. Although in the latter two cases, a close connection is made between preliminary references and the right to effective judicial protection, in the EU legal order they are conceived as a "dialogue between judges". The article looks at their role in light of recent case law concerning this procedure as well as Article 47 of the Charter and Article 19(1)(2) TEU. It aims to identify whether and to what extent preliminary references may be covered by the right to effective judicial protection under EU law. It argues that the preliminary reference procedure may be linked more closely to individuals' rights if analysed in light of Article 47 of the Charter. Accordingly, some proposals for a more "protection-oriented" system are presented.


An improvement of synchronously rotating reference frame based voltage sag detection for voltage sag compensation applications under distorted grid voltages is proposed. The voltage sag detection is the one of important parts in the voltage sag compensation processes. In the past, the conventional synchronously rotating reference frame (CSRRF) based voltage sag detection is widely used in the voltage sag compensation applications. Its disadvantage is a long delay of detection time. This means the next process initiation of voltage sag compensation is also delayed, and then the load voltage can be affected from voltage sag. The modified synchronously rotating reference frame (MSRRF) based voltage sag detection is able to detect the voltage sag in a short delay of detection time by differentiator employment. However, its operation under the distorted grid voltages condition is unavailable because of the sensitivity of differentiator action to the high frequency components that caused by voltage harmonic. This paper proposed the improvement of MSRRF based voltage sag detection under distorted grid voltages. The operation of proposed improved MSRRF, MSRRF, and CSRRF based voltage sag detections are investigated via computer simulation to verify the advantage of proposed voltage sag detection.


This report surveys the core concept of creativity. It sets out an original way to disentangle the range and variety of theories and understandings of the concept. Most of us use the word 'creativity' or 'creative' casually with a range of different meanings. However, the key insight of this report is that it is helpful to understand the term in its historical and social context. The report was produced for Creative Partnerships in 2006. This organisation aimed to develop schoolchildren's potential, ambition, creativity and imagination, by building sustainable partnerships between schools, creative and cultural organisations and individuals, which impact on learning. To download this publication go to www.creative-partnerships.com/literaturereviews


Electroporation is a widespread technique adopted to increase the uptake of molecules by biological targets. This approach is gaining momentum due to its low cost and feasibility both in basic and in applied science. Notwithstanding the raise in interest in this method at scientific and clinical level, there are very few books completely dedicated to this argument. The principal purpose of this book is a comprehensive and up to date overview on electroporation in mathematic modeling, bioengineering, molecular biology, plant biology, pathology, veterinary and human oncology.


The La2O3 and Al2O3/La2O3 layers were grown on 4H-SiC by atomic layer deposition (ALD) method. The electrical properties of La2O3 on 4H-SiC were examined using metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) structures of Pt/La2O3(18nm)/4H-SiC and Pt/Al2O3(10nm)/La2O3(5nm)/4H-SiC. For the Pt/La2O3(18nm)/4H-SiC structure, even though the leakage current density was slightly reduced after the rapid thermal annealing at 500 oC, accumulation capacitance was gradually increased with increasing bias voltage due to a high leakage current. On the other hand, since the leakage current in the accumulation regime was decreased for the Pt/Al2O3/La2O3/4H-SiC MIS structure owing to the capped Al2O3 layer, the capacitance was saturated. But the saturation capacitance was strongly dependent on frequency, indicating a leaky interfacial layer formed between the La2O3 and SiC during the fabrication process of Pt/Al2O3(10nm)/ La2O3(5nm)/ 4H-SiC structure.


We propose a solution to determine the optimal elastic matching of a deformable template to an image. The central idea is to cast the optimal matching of each template point to a corresponding image pixel as a problem of finding a minimum cost cyclic path in the three-dimensional product space as well as in four-dimensional product space spanned by the template and the input image. We introduce a cost functional associated with each cycle, which consists of three terms: a data fidelity term favoring strong intensity gradients, a shape consistency term favoring similarity of tangent angles of corresponding points, and an elastic penalty for stretching or shrinking. The functional is normalized with respect to the total length to avoid a bias toward shorter curves.Optimization is performed by Lawler's Minimum Ratio Cycle algorithm parallelized on state-of-the-art graphics cards. The algorithm provides the optimal segmentation and point correspondence between template and segmented curve in computation times that are essentially linear in the number of pixels.A new approach to 4-D shape-based segmentation and tracking of multiple,deformable anatomical structures used in cardiac MR images can be implemented here.We propose to use an energy-minimizing geometrically deformable template(GDT) which can deform into similar shapes under the influence of image forces.The degree of deformation of the template from its equilibrium shape is measured by a penalty function associated with mapping between the two shapes.By minimizing this term along with the image energy terms of the classic deformable model,the deformable template is attracted towards objects in the image whose shape is similar to its equilibrium shape.This allows the simultaneous segmentation of multiple deformable objects using intra-as well as inter-shape information.Simulated Annealing(SA),a stochastic relaxation technique is used for segmentation while Iterated Conditional Modes(ICM),a deterministic relaxation technique is used for tracking


Purpose: To evaluate the symphyseal changes in patients with ankylosing spondylitis. Material and Methods: Radiological-morphological changes of the symphysis were studied in 68 patients (66 men, 2 women) with ankylosing spondylitis whose age ranged from 21 to 75 years. The duration of the disease was from 2 to 50 years. Results and Conclusion: Changes in the symphysis were found in 16 patients (23.5%) and were less prominent than findings in the sacroiliac joints. We classified these changes into four stages: minimal changes, apparent destruction, reparation and ankylosis. The third and the fourth stages of the changes in the symphsis were found more frequently in patients who suffered from the disease for more than 15 years. Radiological evaluation of symphyseal changes can be helpful in the evaluation of disease progression as well as in establishing a differential diagnosis.


Photoswitchable phospholipids, or "photolipids", that harbor an azobenzene group in their lipid tails are versatile tools to manipulate and control lipid bilayer properties with light. So far, the limited ultraviolet-A/blue spectral range in which the photoisomerization of regular azobenzene operates has been a major obstacle for biophysical or photopharmaceutical applications. Here, we report on the synthesis of nano- and micrometer-sized liposomes from tetra-ortho-chloro azobenzene-substituted phosphatidylcholine (termed red-azo-PC) that undergoes photoisomerization on irradiation with tissue-penetrating red light (≥630 nm). Photoswitching strongly affects the fluidity and mechanical properties of lipid membranes, although small-angle X-ray scattering and dynamic light scattering measurements reveal only a minor influence on the overall bilayer thickness and area expansion. By controlling the photostationary state and the photoswitching efficiency of red-azo-PC for specific wavelengths, we demonstrate that shape transitions such as budding or pearling and the division of cell-sized vesicles can be achieved. These results emphasize the applicability of red-azo-PC as a nanophotonic tool in synthetic biology and for biomedical applications.


Analysis of light detection and ranging (lidar) derived topography combined with fi eld data enables measurement of small (<30 m), previously unrecognized dextral offsets beneath dense temperate rainforest along New Zealand's central Alpine fault. Field offset measurements often have lower uncertainties than lidar measurements. Offsets of 7.5 ± 1 m for the most recent earthquake (ca. A.D. 1717) and cumulative offsets of 12.9 ± 2 m and 22 ± 2.7 m can be averaged into three 7.1 ± 2.1 m increments of repeated dextral slip at a point, and when combined with an offset compilation show a uniform slip distribution of ~7.5 ± 2.0 m over 300 km in A.D. 1717. Comparing these offsets with the 1.1 ka paleoseismic record and slip rate demonstrates a mismatch between offsets, timing, and slip rate that can be explained in two ways: (1) major (full) ruptures (moment magnitude, M w ≥7.9) every 270 ± 70 yr (e.g., A.D. 1717) and with moderate to large (partial rupture) Alpine fault earthquakes (M w ≥6.5; e.g., A.D. 1600) occurring between full ruptures, and (2) some off-fault shaking data may instead refl ect paleoseismicity from other faults. If explanation 1 is true, the Alpine fault has two (i.e., bimodal) or more modes of behavior (or the slip rate has not been constant since 1.1 ka) and rupture is perhaps width limited. If explanation 2 is true, perhaps the Alpine fault behavior is characteristic, and other faults are responsible for some shaking records. Ultimately, bimodal behavior is our preferred interpretation, which has implications for our understanding of plate boundary seismic hazards worldwide.


This paper undertakes a review of the report of the Adult Education and Community Learning Working Party released by government in September 2001. It discusses a number of themes arising out of this report. However, the report is not seen in isolation, and the paper locates it in a wider context. It identifies some of the difficulties faced by those involved in adult education and community learning (ACE) and by the Working Party itself in trying to move forward after a decade or more of neglect by government. It also identifies some influences of the Tertiary Education Advisory Commission. Themes discussed include the need to adopt a broadly based statement of purpose, to develop stronger links with other 'sectors', to make a stronger claim for increased funding for ACE, to undertake further clarification of the contributions and requirements of different organisations and institutions, and to undertake further research. The paper concludes with key recommendations.


Foss-Harbottle J : In this unfortunate matter, Mr Knight sues his daughter Miss Knight (an appropriate name as it turns out) for the long-term effects of sleep deprivation caused by her when she was an infant. The plaintiff is one of those unrealistic people who think that children should be seen and not heard. What he wanted, he said, was an heir apparent only. His daughter's first three years of causing him sleepless nights have, he claims, caused him chronic insomnia and an addiction to late night television which is about as bad as addictions can get. He wants compensation.


Recently, LCL filter which is commonly preferred in grid connected inverters has found its common usage in shunt active power filters. LCL filter can suppress the switching harmonic ripples effectively. However, it has resonance problem which results unstable system. The resonance problem can be solved with damping the resonance using passive damping methods. The design of LCL filter with using PD is a challenging issue because APF generates currents in a wide harmonic spectrum range to compensate harmonics. The aim of this paper is to present the design procedure of LCL filters with different passive damping methods for SAPF and analyze them in terms of damping performances and power losses. The performance and analysis of LCL filters designed for SAPF is performed with simulation model developed in MATLAB/Simulink.


This volume marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the groundbreaking fashion designer who bridged the exclusivity and sex appeal of fashion and the universality and masculinity of sports. One of the much-written-about Antwerp Six group of influential cutting-edge Belgian fashion designers, Dirk Bikkembergs audaciously chose to focus his designs on the intersection between fashion and sport, particularly pieces designed for or inspired by soccer. Seeing sports as a universal language, Bikkembergs designed haute couture for athletes who are themselves already aesthetic icons of masculinity. The first designer to hold a fashion show in a sports stadium, Bikkembergs uses his local soccer team as a laboratory for styling with the latest fabric technology, creating designs that are sexy yet comfortably flexible, from exclusive jackets to high-performance underwear and sporty street shoes. In this handsome book, all of his one-of-a-kind designs are showcased in photographs taken in various locations around the world.


Safety represents the main goal for Natural Gas (NG) Distribution System Operators (DSOs) that have to operate very complex networks to supply gas to customers. However, the identification of the optimum strategy to manage NG distribution is a very challenging task for decision makers because of the size of the networks. Therefore, priorities have to be identified and many data about the operative conditions of the networks are required. While for the first topic a standardized and internationally accepted procedure has to be identified, for the second one the new NG metering philosophy, i.e. the Smart Metering gas, seems to be appropriate for the scope even if some technical issues have still to be solved.
Consequently, the thesis is divided in two main parts. In the first one, attention is given to the distribution networks and to the proposal of a risk management approach to improve maintenance procedures. Thus, after a brief overview of the sector, existing safety performances of NG distribution sector are analysed. Furthermore, failure causes and consequences are investigated in order to propose a risk assessment approach in NG distribution. A case study is finally examined identifying several positive outcomes respect to the state of the art.
In the second part of the thesis the NG smart metering is analysed with particular attention to the power supply that is one of the technical issues to be overcome for the success of the technology: in fact, because of the use of electrical batteries in smart meters, a limited capacity is now available. Consequently, the estimation of battery supply's operative life is considered an important information for the success of the technology. For this reason, an experimental approach has been proposed and performed to estimate battery's operative life.


A novel hybrid active power filter (HAPF) applied to a high-voltage grid is proposed. The passive filter of this topology can be used for reactive power compensation as well as for harmonic mitigation caused by the nonlinear load. The active power filter, which is shunted to a fundamental resonance circuit, is connected in series with a matching transformer, thus forming the injection-type hybrid active power filter. Because of this advantage, it is effective to be used in the high-voltage distribution grid. The basic principle of this topology is introduced particularly. Then, the steady compensation characteristic and the resonance-damping characteristic of this system are analyzed in detail. The principle about the designing method of HAPF is proposed. A HAPF prototype with the proposed designing method was built, and installed in a copper plan in Southern China. Experimental and application results prove that the proposed HAPF is good in harmonics elimination, reactive power compensation, and reliability.


Abstract. Atmospheric carbon monoxide (CO) is a key player in global atmospheric
chemistry and a regulated pollutant in urban areas. Oxidation of volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) is an important component of the global CO budget
and has also been hypothesized to contribute substantially to the summertime
urban CO budget. In principle, stable isotopic analysis of CO could
constrain the magnitude of this source. However, the isotopic signature of
VOC-produced CO has not been well quantified, especially for the oxygen
isotopes. We performed measurements of CO stable isotopes on air samples
from two sites around Indianapolis, US, over three summers to investigate
the isotopic signature of VOC-produced CO. One of the sites is located
upwind of the city, allowing us to quantitatively remove the background air
signal and isolate the urban CO enhancements. as well as the isotopic
signature of these enhancements. In addition, we use measurements of Δ14CO2 in combination with the CO:CO2 emission ratio from fossil fuels to constrain the fossil-fuel-derived CO and thereby isolate the
VOC-derived component of the CO enhancement. Combining these measurements
and analyses, we are able to determine the carbon and oxygen isotopic
signatures of CO derived from VOC oxidation as -32.8‰±0.5‰ and 3.6 ‰±1.2 ‰, respectively. Additionally, we analyzed CO stable
isotopes for 1 year at Beech Island, South Carolina, US, a site thought
to have large VOC-derived contributions to the summertime CO budget. The
Beech Island results are consistent with isotopic signatures of VOC-derived
CO determined from the Indianapolis data. This study represents the first
direct determination of the isotopic signatures of VOC-derived CO and will
allow for improved use of isotopes in constraining the global and regional
CO budgets.


We examined the relationship between endocrine, clinical and metabolic parameters in 35 women (mean age 27.3 years) with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and 30 age- and body mass index-matched normal ovulatory women. In PCOS women, serum leptin, homocysteine, insulin, insulin-like growth factor-1, insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 levels and the insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) were significantly higher, while sex hormone-binding globulin and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were lower compared with healthy women. Serum luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol (E2), androstenedione, testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate levels were found to be significantly higher in PCOS women compared with healthy women. The levels of E2, LH and testosterone were positively correlated with leptin levels in PCOS women. Similarly, androstenedione levels and HOMA-IR were positively correlated with homocysteine levels and insulin levels were positively correlated with LH. We conclude that increased homocysteine levels, hyperandrogenaemia, insulin resistance and impaired lipid metabolism contribute to the risk of premature atherosclerosis in PCOS women.


BACKGROUND
The risk of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has been related to refined cereals and starchy foods, but the association has not been studied in terms of glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL). To provide information on this issue, we analyzed data from an Italian multicentric case-control study.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Cases were 767 patients with histologically confirmed, incident RCC. Controls were 1534 subjects admitted to the same hospitals as cases for a wide spectrum of acute, non-neoplastic conditions, unrelated to known risk factors for RCC. Information on dietary habits was derived through a food-frequency questionnaire. Multivariate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for GI and GL intake were adjusted for major relevant covariates.

RESULTS
Compared with the lowest quintile, the ORs for the highest quintile were 1.43 (95% CI 1.05-1.95) for GI and 2.56 (95% CI 1.78-3.70) for GL, with significant trends in risk. Compared with the lowest quintile, the risk of RCC for all subsequent levels of GL was higher in never drinkers than in ever drinkers.

CONCLUSIONS
We found direct relations between dietary levels of GI and GL and RCC risk. This can be related to mechanisms linked to insulin resistance and sensitivity.


YBCO bulks with submicron Y2BaCuO5 particles have been prepared under oxygen partial pressures of 0.21atm and 1atm, respectively, by the powder melting process (PMP). The microstructures, oxygen contents and critical current densities of the samples have been investigated. The results showed that the sample grown under P(O2) = 1 atm contained Y2BaCuO5 particles with a little bigger average size and had a slightly higher density of stacking faults than the one prepared under P(O2) = 0.21 atm. Oxygen content measurements indicated that the as-grown sample under P(O2) = 1 atm had a higher oxygen content. After post-annealing in flowing oxygen, the oxygen content of the P(O2) = 1 atm sample was still higher than that of the P(O2) = 0.21 atm sample. They were examined to be 6.94 and 6.88 with X-ray diffraction for the two oxygenated samples, respectively. Magnetization measurements have been performed on the two types of oxygenated samples and critical current densities (Jc) have been calculated based on the extended Bean critical state model. The P(O2) = 0.21 atm sample exhibits Jc values of 5.47×105 A/cm2 and 2.22×104 A/cm2 in 1 T magnetic field at 20K and 77K, respectively. The P(O2) = 1 atm sample, meanwhile, has Jc values of 9.46×105 A/cm2 and 1.47×104 A/cm2 in 1 T magnetic field at 20K and 77K, respectively. Moreover, at 20K, the Jc of the P(O2) = 1 atm sample is higher than that of the P(O2) = 0.21 atm sample in an applied magnetic field up to 5 T. At 77K, however, the Jc of the P(O2) = 1 atm sample drops more quickly than that of the P(O2) = 0.21 atm sample. The mechanisms of the different microstructures, oxygen contents and magnetic field dependence behaviors of Jc for the two kinds of samples have been discussed.


Abstract "Carpodaptes" jepseni is a morphologic intermediate between Carpodaptes and Carpolestes, with the number and position of cusps on p4 more consistent with placement in Carpodaptes but relative size of p4 more like Carpolestes. The type and only previously known specimen of "C." jepseni, a partial dentary with p4–m2, is from Divide Quarry (Tiffanian Land-Mammal Age) in the Fort Union Formation of the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. New specimens of "C." jepseni from Divide Quarry include a nearly complete dentary with p4–m3 and alveoli for all anterior teeth, and the first known upper dentitions with P1–M2 and an alveolus for C1. Specimens of Carpodaptes cygneus are also described from Divide Quarry, demonstrating the occurrence of two distinct carpolestid species at the same locality. Stratocladistic analysis of the thirteen known carpolestid species, using thirty-two morphologic characters and stratigraphic order, produced eight most-parsimonious phylogenetic trees associated with a single cladogram. The topology of the cladogram generated using stratocladistics is identical to that of the single most-parsimonious cladogram from cladistic analysis of the same morphologic data, but stratocladistics allows greater resolution than cladistics at the level of phylogenetic trees. New specimens demonstrate extreme shortening of the anterior jaw of C. jepseni, a derived state not present in other carpolestids. This suggests that C. jepseni occupies a side-branch close to, but not at, the ancestry of the Carpolestes clade (an ancestor-descendant lineage composed of the sequence C. dubius, C. nigridens, and C. simpsoni, in that order). "C." jepseni is here placed in a new genus, Carpomegodon.


Holographic data storage (HDS) provides the high storage density and fast data-access rate because of the page-oriented data processing, and by the same reason, the performance of retrieving original user data is mainly affected by 2D intersymbol interference (ISI). An 8/10 2D modulation code for mitigating a 2D ISI in HDS systems is proposed. The simulation results show that the proposed code provides a gain of approximately 6 dB at BER of 10−6 compared to the raw signal without encoding. Especially, in comparison to a recently suggested 6/8 modulation code, the proposed scheme not only offers a higher code rate, but it also exposes a boost of the system performance under misalignment conditions.


The magnetically mesoporous SiO2@Fe3O4 nanocomposites were synthesized by sol-gel method and extracted by ethanol solution. The support was characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms and vibration sample magnetometer (VSM). A long carbon chain Oxime Carbapalladacycle complex was grafted onto this support and the effect of the catalyst was investigated for the Heck reaction of aryl halides with olefins. The results demonstrated that the support with diameter 150 nm was superparamagnetic characteristics (saturation magnetization was 8.78 emu/g) and the thus recycled catalyst could be reused for 6 times with significant loss of activity in the coupling-reaction of iodobenzene and ethyl acrylate. In addition, the catalyst could be simply recycled with the assistance of an external magnet.


Keratoplasty is considered the most successful organ transplantation procedure in the world. Reisinger was the first to use the term keratoplasty (Reisinger, 1824), when he suggested using an animal's eye to provide donor corneal tissue for corneal transplantation in a human. In 1906, the first successful penetrating keratoplasty was performed by Edward Konrad Zirm on a patient suffering from bilateral alkali burns (Zirm, 1906). Ramon Castroviego created some fine instruments that were named after him and was the first to perform successful penetrating keratoplasty using fine sutures (Castroviejo, 1932). His square-shaped grafts survived for many years and provided good vision for his patients. In 1886, Von Hipple erformed lamellar corneal transplantation (Von Hipple, 1888). The concept of deep lamellar corneal dissection and leaving the Descemet membrane (DM) intact was first proposed by Von Walther and was described further by Muhlbauer (Muhlbauer, 1824). A full-thickness donor corneal tissue without any dissection through the corneal stromal tissue was proposed for lamellar keratoplasty in 1959 (Hallermann, 1963). Hallermann proposed both full-thickness donor graft with the endothelium (FTDGE) and full-thickness donor graft without the endothelium (FTDG) over a deeply dissected corneal stromal recipient's bed for lamellar keratoplasty. Morrison and Swan provided histopathologic evidence that FTDG is associated with less inflammation and scarring than FTDGE (Morrison & Swan, 1982). Today, removing the corneal stromal tissues down to the DM or the pre-Descemet membrane level and using a FTDG is the standard of care for patients requiring deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK) surgery. Many techniques have been developed for performing DALK surgery. Before reviewing some surgical techniques for the procedure, I will discuss some factors that influence the visual outcomes.


In 1975, in Montreal, a nonconstrained total anatomic resurfacing prosthesis was designed. After a follow-up period of ten to 13 years, 79% of knees had an excellent or good result (Hospital for Special Surgery score) and 21% had a fair or poor result. Seven knees had been revised. The flexion range, stability, and capacity to climb stairs normally were significantly better in the knees where both posterior and anterior cruciate ligaments were preserved. Only one knee was revised in the anterior cruciate ligament intact knees. The incidence of aseptic component loosening was 1.2%.


Calibration means that forecasts and average realized frequencies are close. We develop the concept of forecast hedging, which consists of choosing the forecasts so as to guarantee that the expected track record can only improve. This yields all the calibration results by the same simple basic argument while differentiating between them by the forecast-hedging tools used: deterministic and fixed point based versus stochastic and minimax based. Additional contributions are an improved definition of continuous calibration, ensuing game dynamics that yield Nash equilibria in the long run, and a new calibrated forecasting procedure for binary events that is simpler than all known such procedures.


Abstract
The present research was done to evaluate proline, proteins and sugars of flower buds of pistachio trees during phonological stages. This study was conducted using a split-plot design with three replications considered time as main factor (5 Stages) and cultivars (Ahmad-aghaee, Ouhadi, Kaleh-ghochi and Akbari) as secondary factor. The experiment was conducted at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and Institute of Pistachio Research of Iran (PRI). The Studied Variables included proline, soluble sugars and total protein which were assessed during rest (winter), flowering (beginning of spring) and after spring frost. The highest (27.36 mili mol/gram weight of fresh flower bud) and lowest (7.86 mili mol/gram weight of fresh flower bud) rates of proline were found in Ahmad-aghaee after chilling injury and bud swelling, respectively. The highest rate of total protein was shown by Akbari (70.79%) and Ouhadi (71.25%) at flower burst, and the lowest amount was obtained at bud swelling of Ouhadi (25.39%). Results indicated that sugars accumulated during winter and reduced by beginning of spring. Amount of proline increased during flowering and after spring frost. overall proteins were fixed and low after falling leaves (autumn) to bud dormancy (winter), but its amounts increased after bud dormancy till after flowering and spring frost
Keywords: Cold resistance, Spring frost, Late autumn frost


The storage modulus, loss modulus, loss tangent (tanδ), stress and strain have been determined for painted steel specimens by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) operated in Dual Cantilever mode. Analysis of the composite system enabled the elastic modulus of the paint layer to be calculated and the result can be useful to analyze the mechanical properties of the coil coating. The calculation was found to be very sensitive to the geometry (especially thickness of the substrate and coating) and properties of the substrate and coating, leading to considerable variability in the calculated coating modulus. The DMA method was successful in detecting the glass transition temperature (Tg) as a peak in the tanδ curve. The value of Tg is sensitive to the preparation conditions (e.g. curing temperature) and composition of the paint. The results show that DMA in Dual Cantilever can be useful as a characterization tool for painted steel.


Abstract. New particle formation (NPF) and growth is an important source of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). In this study, we investigated the chemical species driving new particle growth to the CCN sizes on the basis of particle hygroscopicity measurements carried out at the research station Melpitz, Germany. Three consecutive NPF events occurred during summertime were chosen as examples to perform the study. Hygroscopicity measurements showed that the (NH4)2SO4-equivalent water-soluble fraction accounts for 20 and 16 % of 50 and 75 nm particles, respectively, during the NPF events. Numerical analysis showed that the ratios of H2SO4 condensational growth to the observed particle growth were 20 and 13 % for 50 and 75 nm newly formed particles, respectively. Aerosol mass spectrometer measurements showed that an enhanced mass fraction of sulfate and ammonium in the newly formed particles was observed when new particles grew to the sizes larger than 30 nm shortly after the particle formation period. At a later time, the secondary organic species played a key role in the particle growth. Both hygroscopicity and aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) measurements and numerical analysis confirmed that organic compounds were major contributors driving particle growth to CCN sizes. The critical diameters at different supersaturations estimated using AMS data and κ-Kohler theory increased significantly during the later course of NPF events. This indicated that the enhanced organic mass fraction caused a reduction in CCN efficiency of newly formed particles. Our results implied that the CCN production associated with atmospheric nucleation may be overestimated if assuming that newly formed particles can serve as CCN once they grow to a fixed particle size, an assumption made in some previous studies, especially for organic-rich environments. In our study, the enhancement in CCN number concentration associated with individual NPF events were 63, 66, and 69 % for 0.1, 0.4, and 0.6 % supersaturation, respectively.


Over the past two decades, offshore outsourcing to emerging economies, such as China, has been viewed by firms as an efficient way to gain competitive advantage. Literature indicates that offshore outsourcing can enhance firms' competitiveness and efficiency by reducing costs, expanding relational ties, freeing up scarce resources, and leveraging capabilities. However, the research relating to risk management of offshore outsourcing relationships has not been widely reflected in extant literature. This study addresses this research gap by developing a conceptual model that examines the association between management approaches and the risks in offshore outsourcing relationships. This study applies two types of risks being relational risk and performance risk, as dependent variables. Based on social exchange theory and transaction cost theory, this study proposes two management approaches to minimise risks in offshore outsourcing relationships, which are the relational approach and the transactional approach. Empirical testing of the conceptual model employed a quantitative approach using an online survey of 41 managers from Australia and New Zealand. The survey data was analysed using a multiple regression technique, which revealed four valuable findings. Firstly, a higher level of relational risk leads to a higher level of performance risk. Secondly, the relational approach, based on interdependence of outsourcing exchange firms, can reduce performance risk. Thirdly, an increased level of relationship-specific investments contributes to the rise of performance risk. More importantly, the survey results show that relational risk plays a mediating role between relational factors and performance risk. This study recommends that offshore outsourcing firms employ the relational approach to manage performance risk. The mediating role of relational risk also indicates that firms should not just concentrate on minimising the performance risks of offshore outsourcing relationships, but should also manage relational risks due to uncooperative behaviours such as opportunism.


Abstract Background Lung cancer is the most common type of cancer in the world and is associated with significant mortality. Nivolumab demonstrated statistically significant improvements in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for patients with advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who were previously treated. The cost-effectiveness of nivolumab has not been assessed in Canada. A contentious component of projecting long-term cost and outcomes in cancer relates to the modeling approach adopted, with the two most common approaches being partitioned survival (PS) and Markov models. The objectives of this analysis were to estimate the cost-utility of nivolumab and to compare the results using these alternative modeling approaches. Methods Both PS and Markov models were developed using docetaxel and erlotinib as comparators. A three-health state model was used consisting of progression-free, progressed disease, and death. Disease progression and time to progression were estimated by identifying best-fitting survival curves from the clinical trial data for PFS and OS. Expected costs and health outcomes were calculated by combining health-state occupancy with medical resource use and quality-of-life assigned to each of the three health states. The health outcomes included in the model were survival and quality-adjusted-life-years (QALYs). Results Nivolumab was found to have the highest expected per-patient cost, but also improved per-patient life years (LYs) and QALYs. Nivolumab cost an additional $151,560 and $140,601 per QALY gained compared to docetaxel and erlotinib, respectively, using a PS model approach. The cost-utility estimates using a Markov model were very similar ($152,229 and $141,838, respectively, per QALY gained). Conclusions Nivolumab was found to involve a trade-off between improved patient survival and QALYs, and increased cost. It was found that the use of a PS or Markov model produced very similar estimates of expected cost, outcomes, and incremental cost-utility.


Objective This study aimed to analyze patients with unsuspected pulmonary embolism (PE) in coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) and to draw some conclusions regarding their characteristics. Methods All patients suspected of coronary heart disease undergoing CCTA between May 2006 and December 2010 were prospectively analyzed. Patients with previous or suspected current PE were excluded. The CCTA images were reviewed, and the degree of contrast enhancement and the presence or absence of PE were recorded. Where PE was found, the level of the most proximal thrombus was identified. Patients' demographics were recorded. Results Of 7287 patients, 65 had unsuspected PE—an overall incidence of 0.9% (1.3% among inpatients and 0.3% among outpatients). Unsuspected PE was more common with increasing age, occurring in 0.4% of all patients younger than 60 years and 1.2% (52/4203) of those older than 60 years (P < 0.05). Of the 65 scans positive for disease, 43 (66.2%) were at the segmental or the subsegmental level. Patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) or AF history and cardiac insufficiency (3.2% and 4.1%) were more likely to have an unsuspected PE compared with those without (0.7%), and this was supported by the statistics. Deep vein thrombosis of the lower extremity was found in 8 (13.1%) of 61 patients with PE and in 12 (19.4%) of 62 patients with a D-dimer level of 500 ng/mL or higher. Conclusions Unsuspected PE was found in 0.9% of all patients undergoing CCTA, and this kind of PE has its own characteristics compared with the typical PE from the literature. Radiologists should routinely analyze the pulmonary arteries in all patients undergoing CCTA, especially for older patients and the patients with AF or AF history and cardiac insufficiency.


Abstract. We present a novel approach for modulating radar transmissions in order to improve target range and Doppler estimation accuracy. This is achieved by using non-uniform baud lengths. With this method it is possible to increase sub-baud range-resolution of phase coded radar measurements while maintaining a narrow transmission bandwidth. We first derive target backscatter amplitude estimation error covariance matrix for arbitrary targets when estimating backscatter in amplitude domain. We define target optimality and discuss different search strategies that can be used to find well performing transmission envelopes. We give several simulated examples of the method showing that fractional baud-length coding results in smaller estimation errors than conventional uniform baud length transmission codes when estimating the target backscatter amplitude at sub-baud range resolution. We also demonstrate the method in practice by analyzing the range resolved power of a low-altitude meteor trail echo that was measured using a fractional baud-length experiment with the EISCAT UHF system.


The soft base in the testing section of Jiang-zhu highwaysis 55 meters deep, and its mechanical property is not better than that of silt soil, the sand-wick drained length is one of the crucial factors for this highwaywhich influences the consolidation speed. Based on the characteristic of soft foundation, experiences and the interrelationship between the processing area and the subjacent bed effecting on draining, the mechanism of extra-long sand-wick for the extra-deep soft foundation is studied. The theoretical consolidation degree in the deep soft foundation treating with extra-long sand-wick drain had been calculated, the designed depth of sand-wick drain were 25 and 22 meters. Moreover, the total settlement will be predicted. According to the monitoring data of displacement and settlement during loading, the characteristic of consolidation settlement of the soft soil foundation had been analyzed. The results indicated that the settlement was very sensitive to the loading speed. The sedimentation became fast with the increasing loading. The sedimentation speed was always very high, which was 15 to 25mm/day on the average. During the prophase of pre-compaction, the consolidation degree of section K53+242.47 (h=25m) was up to 80% in 350 days, which was much faster than the section K53+402.47 (h=22m). Moreover, the soft soil foundation was consolidated stably according to the strict dynamic monitoring data. By using hyperbolic theory to analyze monitoring data, the predictive settlement value of post-project can meet the designed requirement. The treating effect of the 25m depth sand-wick drain was better than that of 22m, which provided available data for extra thick soft foundation treatment.


Abstract Aims. Indicators of pending state-shifts carry value for policy makers. Predator–prey relations reflect key ecological processes that shape ecosystems. Variance in predator–prey relations may serve as a key indicator of future state-shifts. Methods. Lion (Panthera leo) diet in the Kruger National Park was evaluated as such an indicator. Over the three-decade time span reviewed, variance in diet in relation to rainfall, prey abundance, management strategies and disease emergence were reviewed. Key results. Rainfall patterns, both seasonal and cyclical, were identified as key drivers of predator–prey selection. However, the intensity of management in the form of artificial waterpoints overrode and confounded natural process. The results suggest that savanna systems are stable and punctuated by climatic events in the form of extreme above-average rainfall that temporarily destabilises the system. However, droughts are a cyclical part of the savanna system. Conclusion. Lion prey selection did fluctuate with changing environmental conditions. Abrupt state shifts did occur; however, the ecosystem returned to a stable state. Implications. State shifts in ecosystems pose key challenges to conservation managers. State shifts appear to be primarily associated with management interventions and environmental factors.


An extended molecular Ornstein-Zernike (XMOZ) integral equation is formulated to calculate the spatial distribution of solvent around a solute of arbitrary shape and solid surfaces. The conventional MOZ theory employs spherical harmonic expansion technique to treat the molecular orientation of components of solution. Although the MOZ formalism is fully exact analytically, the truncation of the spherical harmonic expansion requires at a finite order for numerical calculation and causes the significant error for complex molecules. The XMOZ integral equation is the natural extension of the conventional MOZ theory to a rectangular coordinate system, which is free from the truncation of spherical harmonic expansion with respect to solute orientation. In order to show its applicability, we applied the XMOZ theory to several systems using the hypernetted-chain (HNC) and Kovalenko-Hirata approximations. The quality of results obtained within our theory is discussed by comparison with values from the conventional MOZ theory, molecular dynamics simulation, and three-dimensional reference interaction site model theory. The spatial distributions of water around the complex of non-charged sphere and dumbbell were calculated. Using this system, the approximation level of the XMOZ and other methods are discussed. To assess our theory, we also computed the excess chemical potentials for three realistic molecules (water, methane, and alanine dipeptide). We obtained the qualitatively reasonable results by using the XMOZ/HNC theory. The XMOZ theory covers a wide variety of applications in solution chemistry as a useful tool to calculate solvation thermodynamics.


Injury to the medial collateral ligament has previously been assessed primarily using the clinical examination and magnetic resonance imaging. In this article, we describe an adjunct to these diagnostic tools: an arthroscopic observation to assess the specific location of the medial collateral ligament injury.