A custom integrated circuit for detecting alpha particles for application in the monitoring of radon has been designed and tested. The design uses the reverse-biased well to substrate capacitance of a p-n junction in a conventional CMOS process as a sense capacitor for incident alpha particles, A simple CMOS inverter is used as an analog amplifier to detect the small potential change induced by an alpha-particle strike on the sense capacitor. The design was implemented in a 1.2-/spl mu/m conventional CMOS process with a sense capacitor area of 110 /spl mu/m/sup 2/. Tests carried out under vacuum conditions using a calibrated /sup 241/Am alpha-particle source showed an output voltage swing of /spl ges/2.0 V for an alpha event. The detector is also shown to have good immunity to noise and high-quantum efficiency for alpha particles.


SUMMARY To rehabilitate profoundly deaf patients who cannot benefit from the cochlear implant due to bilateral interruption of the auditory nerve, particularly from neurofibromatosis II, the histological and physiological effects of an auditory brainstem prosthesis on the cochlear nuclei of guinea pigs were examined in order to establish the safety and the efficacy of this prosthesis.


Although the random number generation in a cryptographic system is a key element of the security chain, bibliography dealing with attacks on this part is not really wide. However, among the large number of attacks targeting cyphers, the ones exploiting electromagnetic side channel (in near field) could be very effective against random number generators. This presentation gives an insight on the first results of electromagnetic analysis performed on random number generators. The main idea is to evaluate if the tools elaborated to perform electromagnetic analysis on cyphers could be used on random number generators, too.


Water scarcity has become a serious global problem. Therefore, there is an urgent need to understand land use changes in watershed areas and their impact on river flows. This study models the impact of land use changes on river flows in the Arror watershed in Elgeyo Marakwet County, Kenya. The primary study sources included remotely sensed and socio-economic data. Landsat 5 thematic mappers for 1986, 2000 and 2012 (resolution 30 m) were used. A 90 m Digital Elevation Model resolution was used to delineate the Arror watershed. Secondary data included climate, river discharge and soil data. Field surveys and questionnaires were used to collect socio-economic data. GIS was integrated with a Soil and Water Assessment Tool model to determine the impact of land use changes on water quantity. The calibration goodness of fit results for the model were 0.9 and 0.8, for EF (Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency) and R-squared, respectively. The results show a reduction of 3.5% of deciduous forest and 11.8% of grassland, while agricultural land increased by 14.3% from 1986 to 2012. The 1986, 2000 and 2012 land uses yielded an annual average flow of 2.0, 2.5 and 1.9 m 3 /s respectively. Flow variation was attributed mainly to land use changes. Agroforestry and afforestation are recommended for sustainable watershed management.


Despite detailed knowledge of the sensory-motor interactions during elevator muscle timing for the generation of a 'functional' flight motor pattern in flying locusts, there is little information about how a possible shift in the onset of elevator activity is correlated with changes in flight variables under closed-loop conditions (i.e. during free flight). Free-flight variables were investigated with respect to ascent angle during climbing flight in locusts Schistocerca gregaria. The motor pattern during free flight was examined by telemetric electromyography of particular antagonistic flight muscles in both ipsilateral hemisegments of the pterothorax while flight variables were recorded simultaneously on video. In the majority of the animals tested, the onset of elevator muscle activity within the wingbeat cycle is delayed when animals increase their ascent angle during climbing flight. In accordance with the motor pattern, the downstroke phase and the stroke amplitude of the wings increased with increasing the ascent angle. This suggests that the relative elevator timing during the wingbeat cycle may be related to the generation of the additional aerodynamic lift required for ascending flight and may, therefore, play a role in the regulation of ascent angle during free flight in the locust.


Ant‐mimicking spiders are a well‐known example of Batesian mimicry. Earlier studies have proposed that plant‐based diets (e.g. extrafloral nectar) are an important food source for ant‐mimicking spiders. However, it is still unclear whether the plant‐based diets are a main food source or supplementary energy source to the spiders. To examine the feeding habits, we measured stable nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios (δ15N and δ13C) of ant‐mimicking spiders (six species of Myrmarachne; one species of Agorius, Salticidae; and two species of Corinnidae) collected from a tropical rain forest in Malaysia and a dry evergreen forest in Thailand. We also investigated the isotopic signatures of several ant species sampled from the two forests for comparison. In general, the ant‐mimicking spiders had relatively low δ15N values, which were comparable to those of the nectar‐feeding and omnivorous ants. The δ15N values of the ant‐mimicking spiders differed significantly among the species: some species (e.g. Myrmarachne sp. H and Myrmarachne sp. 2) showed δ15N values similar to those of the nectar‐feeding ants, whereas the δ15N values of others (e.g. Myrmarachne maxillosa and Myrmarachne malayana) were close to those of the omnivorous ants. The δ13C values of the ant‐mimicking spiders did not differ significantly among the species, but tended to be similar to those of the nectar‐ and honeydew‐feeding ants rather than the predatory ants. These results indicate that plant‐based diets are important for the nutrition of ant‐mimicking spiders and suggest that the importance would differ among the ant‐mimicking spider species.


Objective: To see the frequency and histological pattern of malignant skin lesions on histopathological examination. Study Design: Prospective descriptive study. Place and Duration of Study: Histopathology Department, Army Medical College Rawalpindi, from 1st Nov 2016 to 31st Oct 2018. Material and Methods: Malignant skin lesions diagnosed on the skin biopsies received in histopathology department of Army Medical College, were analyzed to see the frequency and histological pattern of malignant skin lesions. All malignant skin lesions diagnosed on histopathological examination of skin biopsies received were included in the study. Skin biopsies having inadequate material, benign skin lesions or showing equivocal diagnosis of malignancy were excluded from the study. Data was entered and analyzed by using SPSS version 17. Results: A total of 15500 biopsies were dealt with during the study period. Out of these 15500 biopsies, 1450 were malignant lesions. Out of 1450 malignant lesions, 100 were malignant skin lesions accounting 6.89% of all skin malignancies. On histological analysis, out of 100 malignant skin lesions, 45 (45%) were basal cell carcinoma, 25 (20%) were squamous cell carcinoma, 05were malignant melanoma and 03 were Bowen's disease. Other malignant epithelial lesions included 03 malignant adnexal tumours. Among the non epithelial malignant lesions, 10 were cutaneous lymphomas, 03 were Kaposi sarcoma, 03 were angiosarcomas, 03 metastatic malignancies. Conclusion: The frequency of skin malignancies is relatively less in our population as compared to the western world. In our population, most of the skin malignancies are non melanoma skin cancers


ABSTRACT Leadership is vital in engineering for individual career advancement and innovation across the profession. Although engineering educators have a key role in developing students' leadership, it is unclear what leadership training and experience they have. This research explores the sources of knowledge, experiences, and roles that engineering educators draw upon to inform their understanding of leadership. The second objective is to examine how, if at all, these experiences and roles influence educators' teaching of leadership. This study employed an exploratory qualitative approach and thematic analysis, drawing on interviews with 16 engineering educators in the United States. Findings indicated the importance of learning and practicing leadership in their current role, drawing on industry experience or speaking with professionals, leveraging personal experiences and relationships, and learning from formal training. These sources manifested in three ways in the classroom: intentional leadership instruction, informal leadership modelling and encouraging, and not feeling prepared to teach leadership. The findings contribute to a conceptualisation of the experiences that inform educators' understanding of leadership while pointing to the lack of formal training. Implications include considerations for faculty hiring and development, ways for faculty to draw on their experience, and suggestions for creating a culture supportive of leadership education.


Abstract Using data from 1,177 families in eight countries (Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States), we tested a conceptual model of direct effects of childhood family adversity on subsequent externalizing behaviors as well as indirect effects through psychological mediators. When children were 9 years old, mothers and fathers reported on financial difficulties and their use of corporal punishment, and children reported perceptions of their parents' rejection. When children were 10 years old, they completed a computerized battery of tasks assessing reward sensitivity and impulse control and responded to questions about hypothetical social provocations to assess their hostile attributions and proclivity for aggressive responding. When children were 12 years old, they reported on their externalizing behavior. Multigroup structural equation models revealed that across all eight countries, childhood family adversity had direct effects on externalizing behaviors 3 years later, and childhood family adversity had indirect effects on externalizing behavior through psychological mediators. The findings suggest ways in which family-level adversity poses risk for children's subsequent development of problems at psychological and behavioral levels, situated within diverse cultural contexts.


Laser tweezers Raman spectroscopy (LTRS) combines optical trapping with micro-Raman spectroscopy to enable label-free biochemical analysis of individual cells and small biological particles in suspension. The integration of the two technologies greatly simplifies the sample preparation and handling of suspension cells for spectroscopic analysis in physiologically meaningful conditions. In our group, LTRS has been used to study the effects of external perturbations, both chemical and mechanical, on the biochemistry of the cell. Single cell dynamics can be studied by performing longitudinal studies to continuously monitor the response of the cell as it interacts with its environment. The ability to carry out these measurements in-vitro makes LTRS an attractive tool for many biomedical applications. Here, we discuss the use of LTRS to study the response of cancer cells to chemotherapeutics and bacteria cells to antibiotics and show that the life cycle and apoptosis of the cells can be detected. These results show the promise of LTRS for drug discovery/screening, antibiotic susceptibility testing, and chemotherapy response monitoring applications. In separate experiments, we study the response of red blood cells to the mechanical forces imposed on the cell by the optical tweezers. A laser power dependent deoxygenation of the red blood cell in the single beam trap is reported. Normal, sickle cell, and fetal red blood cells have a different behavior that enables the discrimination of the cell types based on this mechanochemical response. These results show the potential utility of LTRS for diagnosing and studying red blood cell diseases.


Three vegetable crops, namely coriander (Coriandrum sativum), fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum), and carrot (Daucus carota), were inoculated with vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhiza (VAM) fungi and grown in nutrient-deficient sandy-loam soils amended with organic matter. Under field conditions, shoot and root dry weights and total uptake of P and N were significantly increased in all the inoculated plants. The crops differed in the extent to which they were colonized by VAM fungi, the colonization being 76% in coriander, 63% in carrot, and 60% in fenugreek. Infection propagules were produced in greater numbers on coriander and fenugreek. The extent of increase in green yield following VAM inoculation was greater in plots amended with leaf compost in equal proportions (1:1) than in those amended with a higher proportion (2:1). The high levels of VAM colonization and large number of infectious propagules demonstrated the potential of these crops as substrates for inoculum production. The increased yields indicate the possibilities of using VAM to increase yield.


An integrated structural and stratigraphic study of the Hammam Faraun fault block, Suez Rift, Egypt, provides insights into the rift-initiation tectonostratigraphic evolution of the crustal-scale normal fault blocks. The shallow marine to offshore Tayiba Formation (Lower Oligocene) represents the youngest preserved pre-rift unit, and key stratal surface development indicates that relative sea-level variations exerted a marked control on its stratigraphic evolution. A major sea-level fall, which may have been a regional (i.e. eustatic) event, occurred during the mid-Oligocene and was synchronous with the onset of rifting. A major erosional unconformity (the base synrift unconformity) formed in response to the sea-level fall and defines a series of NNE–SSW- to NE–SW-trending palaeovalleys up to 40 m deep by 500 m wide, which are infilled by continental deposits and volcanic rocks of the Abu Zenima Formation (Upper Oligocene–Lower Miocene). During the rift initiation, palaeovalleys controlled depositional patterns and the evolving fault-controlled topography was insufficient to modify drainage patterns. Through time, however, surface-breaking faults began to exert a marked control on deposition. This study indicates the complexity that can occur during the rift-initiation phase caused by extrabasinal factors such as eustatic sea-level variations and antecedent drainage.


traced to that feeling associated with 'the sense of being male or female'. Finally, the chapter on the ethical aspects of sex-reassignment and its possible consequences for the future, must be mentioned. It was beyond the scope of this collection to include a lengthy tract on the ethical issues. Nevertheless, this chapter is superficial being only an inadequate summary of the problems. It is concluded with a personal recommendation that the operations, when therapeutic, be allowed to proceed. Unfortunately, Ross continues by urging 'extreme caution' with respect to its recipients bearing (by abdominal surgery) or adopting children. Against this recommendation it can be argued that sex-reassignment is only ethical if transsexuality is a genuine sex/gender disorder. In which case, the sufferer must be perceived as one who has, through no fault of his/her own, been 'trapped' within an unsuitable body, undergone a series of potentially dangerous, painful, therapeutic operations and has been rendered infertile as a result. Within this context it is unjust to declare that the transsexual is therefore ipso facto unsuitable to rear children, which is what Ross implies. This publication is a reminder of the philosophical objections to current diagnostic techniques for transsexuality, and also of the ethical problems inherent in the use of the sexchange operation as a treatment for the transsexual condition. Hopefully, it will renew and broaden debate of these issues. HEATHER DRAPER Part-time Lecturer in Philosophy, Department ofPhilosophy, Crewe and Alsager College


A cobweb model is developed where the heterogeneous expectation hypothesis is examined. An agent's heterogeneous expectation involves the development of a "higher ordered learning" process in which agents over time develop expectations that are consistent with rational expectations. In addition, as cob web models are production based systems, an agents' heterogeneous expectations are influenced by a specialization of activities. The case of the industrialization of the U.S. hog-pork industry is used to illustrate the influence of these features on the equilibrium and non-equilibrium properties of a modified cob-web model.


BACKGROUND AND AIMS
In temperate woody perennials, flower bud development is halted during the winter, when the buds enter dormancy. This dormant period is a prerequisite for adequate flowering, is genetically regulated, and plays a clear role in possibly adapting species and cultivars to climatic areas. However, information on the biological events underpinning dormancy is lacking. Stamen development, with clear differentiated stages, appears as a good framework to put dormancy in a developmental context. Here, stamen developmental changes are characterized in apricot (Prunus armeniaca) and are related to dormancy.

METHODS
Stamen development was characterized cytochemically from the end of August to March, over 4 years. Developmental changes were related to dormancy, using the existing empirical information on chilling requirements.

KEY RESULTS
Stamen development continued during the autumn, and the flower buds entered dormancy with a fully developed sporogenous tissue. Although no anatomical changes were observed during dormancy, breaking of dormancy occurred following a clear sequence of events. Starch accumulated in particular places, pre-empting further development in those areas. Vascular bundles developed and pollen mother cells underwent meiosis followed by microspore development.

CONCLUSIONS
Dormancy appears to mark a boundary between the development of the sporogenous tissue and the occurrence of meiosis for further microspore development. Breaking of dormancy occurs following a clear sequence of events, providing a developmental context in which to study winter dormancy and to evaluate differences in chilling requirements among genotypes.


Physical activity is important for physical well-being, quality of life, and coping among cancer survivors. Social support plays a role in physical activity experiences in this population, in terms of encouraging adoption and maintenance of physical activity behaviour, and that physical activity programs can be important sources of social support for coping with cancer. Many qualitative studies have examined cancer survivors' lived experience with social support in the context of physical activity. The purpose of this meta-study was to synthesize the research on cancer survivors' lived experience with social support related to physical activity. Following recommendations for meta-study procedures (Paterson et al., 2001) we searched nine databases and retrieved 48 qualitative studies addressing social support and physical activity in adult cancer survivors. Common ways in which peer survivors provided support included creating a positive environment, sharing first-hand experiences with cancer, and commitment to exercise together, while support from exercise leaders included providing knowledgeable, safe activity experiences, and teaching and empowering participants. Findings were shaped by variations in method across studies, such as sampling frame (i.e., exercise intervention participants, community programs, or lifestyle physical activity), and theoretical perspectives adopted. This study synthesizes themes representing social support processes in physical activity, discusses study elements that shape perspectives on the findings, and identifies directions for future qualitative study.Acknowledgments: The authors would like to acknowledge assistance from Alix Hayden, University of Calgary Librarian, and support from a University of Calgary Faculty of Kinesiology seed grant.


As a compaction control parameter, stiffness has been investigated as an alternative to dry unit weight, because the design of pavement is based on the elastic modulus of pavement layers. A reliable and practical quality assurance system was proposed to accelerate the quality assessment of field compaction. The proposed system, which has evolved from the spectral analysis of surface waves (SASW) method, profiles the shear wave velocity of the unbound aggregate base and subgrade. The system consists of dedicated hardware for surface wave measurements and an analysis algorithm to automate the interpretation and analysis procedures. The measurement hardware consists of two sensor units and one source unit and can be operated by one person. The automation in interpretation and analysis was implemented with the peak–trough method and the frequency wave number technique. Consequently, the surface wave measurement for stiffness profiling is reduced to a 10- to 15-min task. The validity of the proposed hardware and algorithm was verified by a comparison of the results acquired by the conventional SASW measurements with the results acquired by the accelerated SASW system. Twenty-one subgrade and 11 base sections were selected at three pavement construction sites and tested with the accelerated SASW system, the dynamic cone penetrometer (DCP), the plate-bearing test, and the falling weight deflectometer (FWD). Results indicated that the shear wave velocity predicted by the accelerated SASW system showed a favorable agreement with DCP index at both subgrades and bases. Young's modulus evaluated from the shear wave velocity also agreed roughly with the FWD modulus and subgrade reaction coefficients.


Research indicates that deaf children can have marked social difficulties compared with their hearing peers. Factors that influence these social interactions need to be reviewed to inform interventions. A systematic search of 5 key databases and 3 specialized journals identified 14 papers that met the inclusion criteria. Methodological quality of the articles was assessed using an adapted checklist. There was a general lack of consensus across studies. The main factors investigated were the deaf child's communication competency, age, and level of mainstreaming, which overall were positively associated with peer interactions. Some studies also found that females were more likely to have positive social interactions. The majority of studies were cross-sectional. Some studies lacked appropriate control groups and did not recruit an appropriate range of informants. A wide range of factors were associated with social interactions between deaf and hearing children. The role of communication gained the highest consensus across studies. Other factors were involved in more complex interactions.


This research is an investigation of the causes of call drops in a GSM network in Benin City, Nigeria. Call drop is inability of call to connect and go through the network successfully. For a drop call the subscriber does not enter into a queue for potential assignment. In this work, a drive test was conducted over a period of three months (March, April and May 2010) in cells around Benin City area. The drive test was conducted with the use of test mobile. A test mobile is a kit comprising mobile phone, drive testing proprietary software called TERMS on a laptop computer and GPS (global positioning system). A total of twenty seven cells out of forty cells around Benin City area were discovered to have severe call drops leading to very poor network performance. The problems that caused the call drops were determined and corrected leading to high improvement in call performance.


This paper describes the nature and evolution of poverty in Nigeria between 1985 and 1992. It highlights the potential wealth of the Nigerian economy and examines how the economic policies pursued in the 1980s and 1990s impacted economic growth and welfare. The headcount measure of poverty in Nigeria declined from 43 percent to 34 percent between 1985 and 1992. Decomposing the factors causing the reduction in poverty shows that the overall decline of 9 percentage point was the net result of a 14 percentage point decline owing to the growth factor and a 5 percentage point increase owing to the income distribution factor. The paper proposes that promoting broad-based growth and targeted interventions in health, education, and infrastructure need to be central strategies in the fight against poverty in Nigeria.


The micro-end-milling process of aluminum alloy Al2024-T6 has been investigated by numerical simulations and experimental approach. The effects of different tool edge radii on the micro-cutter wear were investigated. A three-dimensional finite element model is adopted to determine the effects of tool edge radii on the effective stress and micro-cutter wear during the micro-end-milling process. It is observed that the the tool nose wears out much more quickly due to the high maximal effective stress occurring in this zone. The experimental verification of the simulation model is carried out on a micro-end-milling process of aluminum alloy 2024-T6. The experimental results of the micro-cutter morphologies are in a good agreement with the simulation results. The experimental results show that the model is suitable for studying the mechanism of micro-cutter wear.


BACKGROUND Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) is widely used to improve the lower facial contour. OBJECTIVE To determine the difference in the changes in the lower facial contour achieved with 1 and 2 sessions of BoNT-A injections using 3-dimensional (3D) laser scanning. MATERIALS AND METHODS Twenty volunteers were randomly divided into 2 groups. Group I (n = 10) received a single injection, whereas Group II (n = 10) received 2 sessions of injections, the second being administered 4 months after the first. Each injection comprised of 25 U of BoNT-A and was administered to the masseter muscle bilaterally. Evaluation of the effect of BoNT-A injection was performed using 3D laser scan images obtained before the injection and 6 months thereafter in Group I, and before the first injection and 6 months thereafter in the Group II. RESULTS The mean changes in the volume and thickness in Group I were −1,186 mm3 and –1.52 mm, respectively; the corresponding changes were −4,072 mm3 and –3.84 mm in Group II. The reductions were significantly greater in Group II than in Group I. CONCLUSION The administration of a second BoNT-A injection is effective for better aesthetic results for the lower facial contour.


A right subhepatic abscess complicated a case of cesarean delivery. The absence of an obvious pelvic infection or nongynecologic etiology of the abscess made the case particularly unusual. Broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy and percutaneous abscess drainage under the guidance of computed tomography resulted in a satisfactory resolution of the abscess.


This paper describes recent results obtained in collaboration with M. Huesmann and F. Otto on the regularity of optimal transport maps. The main result is a quantitative version of the well-known fact that the linearization of the Monge-Amp{e}re equation around the identity is the Poisson equation. We present two applications of this result. The first one is a variational proof of the partial regularity theorem of Figalli and Kim and the second is the rigorous validation of some predictions made by Carraciolo and al. on the structure of the optimal transport maps in matching problems.


It is evident from research that there is a strong link between poor indoor environments, external facade of school buildings, schoolchildren's health and academic performance. In order to provide a better indoor environment for schoolchildren, meeting strict criteria in relation to indoor air quality (IAQ), thermal comfort, aesthetics and longevity is highly important. Stringent health criteria for school buildings' design and construction have led to innovations in selecting and manufacturing of materials that meet such criteria. However, the uses of prescriptive specification and outdated national building codes have proved to be challenging leading to the application of Performance Specification (PS). The prescriptive method, unlike the PS which permits innovation, is disruptive and cumbersome; using codes that hamper the adoption of newer and safer materials for today's environmental challenges. This study developed a guidance document known as a PS to aid the design, selection of materials and construction of schools buildings in the Niger Delta area (NDA) where gas flaring (GF) is predominant. This excessive pollution poses the biggest challenge to indoor environments and building deterioration. School buildings in Nigeria currently follow the prescriptive specification and national building codes that were last updated in 2006. Such practices are clearly inadequate for tackling environmental challenges in the NDA. Therefore, PS, based on performance requirements and fit for purpose, is more likely to help in achieving clean indoor air and durable external facade of school buildings in the vicinity. The study adopted the design science (DS) method as the philosophical approach due to its advantages in integrating other research strategies. Literature on GF impacts and the use of PS was reviewed followed by qualitative and quantitative data collection using both open-ended questionnaire and semi-structured interview. While 120 open-ended questionnaires were administered, 102 valid responses were retrieved and 10 expert professionals with more than ten years of experience in professional practice in the primary area of study were interviewed. Consequently, the data that emerged were analysed using Nvivo 11 and SPSS to identify specific environmental issues for potential mitigation. The final PS was demonstrated in three iterative processes through subsequent data collection exercise using open-ended questionnaires administered to 102 respondents to provide the required environment specific requirements for design and construction purposes. This was carried out through experienced professionals and evaluated by potential dominant users in the study area. It concludes that the developed PS will potentially change current practices in terms of design and selection of materials for school construction. The use of PS as opposed to the sole reliance on the Nigerian building code which is prescriptive in nature is deemed feasible. The research outcomes also included the development of immediate environmental criteria for limits on hazardous substances and space cooling levels for performance requirements, among others. In addition, innovative triple and double filtration systems for use as air purifiers without energy costs were designed. These locally tailored criteria provide environment specific requirements without mirroring international codes to offer clean IAQ for the research environment. It is expected that the DPS would be used by professionals in the Built environment and policy makers as a guiding tool during the design, selection and construction of buildings in the VGF and/or for (re) designing and renovation process to meet growing indoor air quality needs and achieves building durability in the NDA.


We examined the formation and maintenance of spherical multicellular aggregates (spheroids) of rat primary hepatocytes on dishes coated with lactose-silk fibroin conjugates bearing galactose residues (Lac-CY-SF) as substrate materials. Rat hepatocytes that had attached onto the conjugate-coated dishes were subsequently cultured in a medium supplemented with epidermal growth factor (EGF) and insulin. After the rat hepatocytes extended flat on the conjugate-coated dishes in 2 days of culture, these hepatocytes formed spheroids about 100 to 300 μm in diameter at day 4. After 6 days of culture the spheroids were maintained without any obvious change in size on the conjugate-coated dishes. However, the detachment of the spheroids from the conjugate-coated dishes began from day 8, and the spheroids clearly shrank at day 10. These results suggested that hepatocyte spheroid formation was induced on the Lac-CY-SF conjugate-coated dishes in the presence of EGF and insulin, but the conjugate-coated dishes were not capable of keeping the spheroids for more than 5 days.


Inclusion of 1,3-butandiol as a synthetic source of nutritional energy into the composition of a low-carbohydrate diet produced a fall in the ration of free [NAD+]:[NADN] and [NADP]:[NADPN] calculated for the cytoplasm and mitochondria of the liver cell in rats according to the concentration of oxidated and reduced metabolites and the equilibrium constant of the lactate-dehydrogenase, glutamate-dehydrogenase and malic-fermentative systems. In these conditions the concentration of metabolites, at whose level the conjugation of the carbohydrates decomposition during glycolysis and their synthesis at the time of gluconeogenesis (phosphoenol-pyruvate, malate, oxaloacetate) is realized, as well as the activity of key gluconeogenesis enzymes (phosphoenol-pyruvate carboxykinase, fructose-1,6-diphosphatase) increase. The NADN generation in the course of oxidative metabolism of 1,3-butandiol gives rise to reducing properties of the free NAD-par cytoplasm and mitochondria pool, which leads to the intensification of gluconeogenesis in the liver, attended by a drop of the phosphate potential level.


Summary form only given. Atom chips [1] have shown to be very successful for trapping and manipulating cold atoms. Atom interferometry in the vicinity of an atom chip has been recently achieved by coherently splitting a Bose-Einstein condensate with radiofrequency [2] and microwave [3] dressing. However, some limitations on the precision of the phase measurement occur in this case due to the phase diffusion process resulting from mean field interactions in the Bose-Einstein condensate.In this communication, we will discuss the possibility of using a thermal (i.e. non-condensed) ensemble of ultra-cold atoms trapped on an atom chip in order to create a trapped-atom interferometer with much weaker atomic interactions. In such a scheme (which can be seen as the atomic equivalent of a white light interferometer in optics), the coherence time will strongly depend on the level of symmetry that can be achieved between the potentials forming the two arms of the interferometer. For example, in a simple model of two harmonic potentials, it can be shown that a slight relative frequency difference Δω/ω can be associated with a limitation on the coherence time T given by the following expression: T≈ 2π1ίω kΘ Δω where Θ is the temperature of the atomic ensemble and k the Boltzmann constant (the latter expression being valid only for kΘ >> ! ω). For example, a relative asymmetry of 10-3 will result, for a temperature of about 1μK, to a limitation on the coherence time of 40ms, which favourably compares to what has been achieved experimentally with Bose-Einstein condensates [2]. We will then discuss how we plan to achieve, with the on-going experiment at Thales TRT [4], a splitting of the atomic cloud with the highest possible level of symmetry. The basic idea is to use internal state labelling on the so-called "clock states" of the 87Rb atom and microwave dressing [3] with two independent coplanar waveguides, each waveguide being preferentially resonant with one of the two internal states involved in the process. This way, we expect to have quasi-independent control over the two arms of the interferometer and thus to be able to achieve a coherent splitting as much symmetrical as possible.We will finally discuss the potential applications of this technique in terms of acceleration and gravity measurement with cold atoms on a chip, which could be of great interest in the future if combined, for example, with high bandwidth microelectromechanical sensors.


Abstract Aim and objective To appraise the validity of measuring macular ganglion cell layer (mGCL) thickness as an indicator of early glaucoma, as compared to measurement of peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL) thickness. Materials and methods This was a single-center, single-observer, cross-sectional, retrospective study. Records included Filipino adult patients seen from January 2017 onward. Patients underwent testing of both automated visual field (VF) testing with either Humphrey Visual Field Analyzer (24-2 SITA program) or Octopus 311 (G1 program), and standard Spectral-Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (Cirrus HD-OCT 5000). Modified Hodapp–Anderson–Parrish criteria were used to classify subjects as either healthy, suspect, or early glaucomatous eyes. Thickness changes were directly observed through optical coherence tomography. Area under receiver operating curve (AUC) analysis was used to determine ability of mGCL and pRNFL to discriminate between healthy and early glaucomatous states. Results A total of 96 eyes were included. Progressive thinning for all parameters was noted for both pRNFL and mGCL from healthy to suspect to early glaucomatous eyes. The highest AUC of 0.744 was seen in average pRNFL of healthy vs early glaucomatous eyes. However, AUC values for both pRNFL and mGCL were all above 0.500. Conclusion Measurements of mGCL thickness in Filipino patients exhibit comparable performance to pRNFL measurements in detecting early anatomic glaucomatous change. It is a tool that can be utilized for early glaucoma detection in addition to current standard diagnostic tests. Clinical significance This study, the first to be performed on Filipino patients, validates using mGCL thickness as a good parameter in discriminating between normal and early glaucoma patients for this particular population and Ethnic group. How to cite this article Aquino LG, Aquino NM. Evaluation of Macular Ganglion Cell Layer Thickness vs Peripapillary Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness for Glaucoma Detection Using Spectral-domain Optical Coherence Tomography in a Tertiary Philippine Hospital. J Curr Glaucoma Pract 2020;14(2):50–56.


A drawback of the sparse principal component analysis (PCA) procedures using penalty functions is that the number of zeros in the matrix of component loadings as a whole cannot be specified in advance. We thus propose a new sparse PCA procedure in which the least squares PCA loss function is minimized subject to a pre-specified number of zeros in the loading matrix. The procedure is called unpenalized sparse matrix PCA (USMPCA), as it does not use a penalty function and obtains component loadings matrix-wise, i.e., simultaneously rather than sequentially. The key point of USMPCA is to use the fact that the PCA loss function can be decomposed into sum of two terms, one of them irrelevant to loadings, and another one being a function easily minimized under the considered cardinality constraint. This decomposition makes it possible to construct an efficient alternate least squares algorithm for USMPCA. Another useful feature is that the PC score matrix is column-orthonormal, which helps to define naturally the percentage of explained variance by the sparse PCs. USMPCA is illustrated with real data examples.


This paper aims to explore causes of binge drinking in young people and the effects that they seek when they drink alcohol, based on age and alcohol intake. 4,083 questionnaires were administered to 1,361 university students and 2,722 adolescents at their educational institutions. The findings corresponding to those who reported practising binge drinking -2,917 subjects- are presented in the paper. Taking into account the regularity of the practice and the alcohol intake, cluster analysis differentiated two consumer types in each group: the radical type (21.2% university students-18.2% adolescents): 10-11 drinks 3 days a week and for more than 10 months a year; and the average type (78.7% university students-81.7% adolescents): 4-5 drinks twice a week and for 8-9 months. Drinking as a way of having fun (75.2%) and drinking for the sake of drinking (81.9%) are two of the main causes underlying binge drinking, economical reasons being secondary for adolescents As for the expected effects, the short-term positive aspects of moderate consumption (being more talkative, euphoric...) stand out. Adolescents also expect to improve some of their personal skills (more self-confidence...). These results corroborate and increase the information currently available and allow us to propose alternatives adapted to young people's real needs.


The clinical status of 30 patients suffering from ischemic heart disease, their serum lipids and other biochemical parameters, exercise tolerance were studied. 20 patients from the group were on a specially developed antiatherosclerosis vegetarian diet VA-1; the control group comprised 10 patients who had a mixed diet A-1. It is shown that the vegetarian diet used made it possible to normalize the serum lipid spectrum, the levels of the blood pressure, to increase the tolerance to exercise, to eliminate functional disturbances of the digestive system. The investigation demonstrated the effectiveness of the vegetarian diet as a means of rehabilitation of patients suffering from ischemic heart disease.


The fractures observed following the Northridge earthquake in welded beam-to-column connections have been linked to a number of different material and manufacturing parameters such as fracture toughness, crack size and yield strength all of which are in general random. In a previous study of a simple sway frame, where randomness of the above variables was considered, fracture of the connections was found to result in the reduction of the frame's lateral stiffness with an accompanying reduction of the natural frequency of the frame. In this paper, the linear elastic behaviour of a multi degree-of-freedom frame under earthquake loading is examined probabilistically as an extension of the previous investigation. The results demonstrate that most of the connections fail early on in the seismic event and that fracture probabilities are heavily dependant on the storey on which they are located. Removal of the backing bar is found to reduce the failure probability of the connection without, however, being able to prevent fracture when used as a sole measure.


The extent to which polypeptide conformation depends on side-chain composition and sequence has been widely studied, but less is known about the importance of maintaining an α-amino acid backbone. Here, we examine a series of peptides with backbones that feature different repeating patterns of α- and β-amino acid residues but an invariant side-chain sequence. In the pure α-backbone, this sequence corresponds to the previously studied peptide GCN4-pLI, which forms a very stable four-helix bundle quaternary structure. Physical characterization in solution and crystallographic structure determination show that a variety of α/β-peptide backbones can adopt sequence-encoded quaternary structures similar to that of the α prototype. There is a loss in helix bundle stability upon β-residue incorporation; however, stability of the quaternary structure is not a simple function of β-residue content. We find that cyclically constrained β-amino acid residues can stabilize the folds of α/β-peptide GCN4-pLI analogues and restore quaternary structure formation to backbones that are predominantly unfolded in the absence of cyclic residues. Our results show a surprising degree of plasticity in terms of the backbone compositions that can manifest the structural information encoded in a sequence of amino acid side chains. These findings offer a framework for the design of nonnatural oligomers that mimic the structural and functional properties of proteins.


This investigation examined Pakistani Muslim understandings of the animal sacrifice that occurs during Eid-ul-Adha at the end of the Hajj. Pakistani university students (N = 156) responded to a number of items expressing possible interpretations of this ritual. A Faithful Sacrifice factor operationalized sincere religious reasons for the sacrifice and correlated positively with an Intrinsic Religious Orientation and with Muslim Experiential Religiousness. Extrinsic and Troublesome Sacrifice factors recorded nonreligious implications of the practice and displayed direct associations with the Extrinsic Social Religious Orientation and inverse linkages with Muslim Experiential Religiousness. Extrinsic Sacrifice also correlated negatively with the Intrinsic Orientation. These results further documented the complexity of Muslim beliefs and practices and once again illustrated how a dialectic between tradition-specific and more general social scientific perspectives can promote progress in the psychology of religion.


Seven patients with gunshot wounds to the cervical, thoracic, or lumbar spine were evaluated with conventional radiography, complex motion tomography, and computed tomography (CT). Computed tomography was better than complex motion tomography or conventional radiography for the assessment of the presence of fracture(s), bony and metallic fragments, and associated soft tissue injuries. In each case CT provided additional information not available by the other techniques.


Wildlife managers need empirical data about pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) movements in North Dakota to assess whether mid-summer surveys represent occupancy of pronghorn in hunting units during the fall hunting season. Using data from 121 radiocollared pronghorn we evaluated patterns of pronghorn migrations in southwestern North Dakota from 2004 to 2007. Pronghorn exhibited 2 primary movement patterns between summer and winter ranges: migrations >15 km (45%) and movement <15 km (55%). Most migratory pronghorn moved northeast or east in the spring and southwest or west in the fall. Average distance moved for migratory pronghorn was 70.6 km (range ¼ 17.4-253 km). Mean date of pronghorn migration in spring was 20 March (SD ¼ 20 days) and in fall was 22 October (SD ¼ 17 days). Nearly all migratory pronghorn (97%) returned to within 15 km of their previous summer range, whereas only 61% of pronghorn returned to within 15 km of their previous winter range. Most pronghorn moved across hunting and survey unit boundaries; however, only 7 fall migrations occurred between the aerial survey and the hunting season. During years of our study, the mid-summer survey provided representative information about hunting unit occupancy of radiocollared pronghorn for the fall hunting season. 2011 The Wildlife Society.


Clinical trials following the "gold standard" of random assignment frequently use independent lotteries to allocate patients to treatment and control arms. Unfortunately, independent assignment can generate treatment and control arms that are unbalanced (i.e. treatment and control populations with significantly different demographics). This is regrettable since other assignment methods such as matched pair designs ensure balance across arms while maintaining randomization and permitting inference. This paper seeks to measure the cost of imbalance with respect to gender in a sample of roughly 2000 clinical studies. We document significant imbalance: 25% of experiments have at least 26% more men in one treatment arm than in the other. In addition, clinical trials with greater imbalance have more dispersed treatment effects, indicating that imbalance reduces the informativeness of experiments. A simple structural model suggests that for a typical experiment, using a balanced random design could deliver informativeness gains equivalent to increasing the sample size by 18%.


Ankle disk training has been used as an exercise in sports medicine clinics to help protect against ankle sprains. This study investigated the effects of ankle disk training on the contraction pattern of the anterior tibialis, posterior tibialis, peroneus longus, and flexor digitorum longus muscles in a simulated ankle sprain. Twenty adults were recruited and divided into a control group and an experimental group. A platform with a trapdoor was used to simulate a lateral ankle sprain. Electromyographic data were recorded from each sub ject in pretraining and posttraining tests. The experi mental group underwent ankle disk training for 8 weeks between the pretraining and posttraining tests. In the pretraining test, the four muscles started to contract simultaneously; in the posttraining test, the contrac tions of the anterior and posterior tibialis muscles were delayed. This delay favors the correction of excessive ankle inversion. This study examined the effects of one form of proprioceptive training on muscle reaction times, and its results may explain why such training can help protect against ankle sprains.


In this review, we focus on summarizing everything that is known about the neurological effects of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2). It has been shown that Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) may result in neuromuscular disorders or damage to nerves outside of the brain and spinal cord, which may lead to weakness, numbness, and pain. Published literature has stated that SARS-COV-1 may infect the central nervous system and due to its similarities to SARS-COV-2, we suspect that SARS-COV-2 has the same potential. We conclude that Covid-19 has neurological manifestations. Further research should be done in this field to understand the full extent of this virus.


Precipitation is an important element of the hydrologic cycle and lack of this data is one of the most serious problems facing research on hydrological and climatic analysis. On the other hand, using satellite images has been proposed by many researchers as one of practical strategies to estimate precipitation. The present paper aims to evaluate the accuracy of satellite precipitation data, provided by PERSIANN and TRMM-3B42 V7 in Gorganrood basin, Iran. To achieve this aim, two sets of daily precipitation ground-based data, 2003 to 2004 and 2006 to 2007, from six stations of Gorganrood basin, named; "Tamer", "Ramian", "Bahalkeh-ye Dashli", "Gorgan Dam", "Ghaffar Haji" and "Fazel Abad" have been used in this paper. The evaluation indices have been calculated and analyzed in different time scales, including daily, monthly and seasonal. The results indicated that the two above mentioned satellite models are not accurate in daily scale. However, they showed reasonable accuracy in monthly and seasonal scales. The highest correlations between satellites and recorded data in daily and monthly scales, for TRMM-3B42 V7 in "Gorgan Dam" and "Bahlke Dashlei" stations, are 0.397 and 0.404, respectively. The comparison of measured and satellite data of winter showed better agreement for PERSIANN model. However, TRMM-3B42 V7 shows better correlation in other seasons. The results also indicated that while TRMM-3B42 data displays higher correlation with measured data, PERSIANN provids better results in predicting the number of rainy days.


Transition protein 2 (TP2), which is expressed during stages 12–15 of mammalian spermiogenesis, has been shown to undergo phosphorylation immediately after its synthesis. We reported earlier that TP2 is phosphorylated in vitro at threonine 101 and serine 109 by the salt extract of sonication-resistant (elongating and elongated) spermatid nuclei and the protein kinase phosphorylating TP2 was identified to be protein kinase A (PKA). We now report that the cytosol from haploid spermatids but not from premeiotic germ cells is able to phosphorylate recombinant TP2 in vitro at threonine 101 and serine 109. The kinase present in the haploid spermatid cytosol that phosphorylates TP2 has been identified to be the sperm-specific isoform of protein kinase A (Cs-PKA). Reverse transcription-PCR analysis indicated that Cs-PKA was present in the haploid spermatids and absent from premeiotic germ cells. The rat Cs-PKA transcript was amplified and sequenced using the isoform-specific primers. The sequence of rat Cs-PKA at the N terminus differs from mouse and human by one amino acid. Western blot analysis using specific anti-Cα1 antibodies revealed that Cα1-PKA is absent in haploid spermatid cytosol. We have also established an in vitro nuclear transport assay for the haploid round spermatids. Using this assay, we have found that the cytoplasmic factors and ATP are absolutely essential for translocation of TP2 into the nucleus. Phosphorylation was found to positively modulate the NLS dependent import of TP2 into the nucleus.


The Pearl River Delta (PRD) is a river dominated floodplain in southeast China. Decreasing space for water, through dike-ring construction, channelization, and urbanization, has led to increased flood risk from river, rain, and sea. To protect from flood risk, a more adaptive urbanization strategy is required; one takes into account a multiscale approach while investigating agri-aquaculture, i.e. ecological agriculture, for example, the dike-pond system which makes use of traditional water management methods. The objective of this article is to identify landscape architecture principles for multiscale water-sensitive design based on traditional agri-aquacultural practices in the region. In the Shunde district (a flood prone lowland located between the West and North rivers of the PRD) there is a centuries' old tradition of working with water via integrated agri-aquaculture systems. By learning from traditional agri-aquacultural practices, new design principles can be developed to mitigate flood risk while allowing for increased but sustainable urbanization, not just for the Shunde district, but also for the PRD, so that these areas can be more resilient to floods in the future.


The media industry is demanding increasing fidelity for their rendered images. Despite the advent of modern GPUs, the computational requirements of physically based global illumination algorithms are such that it is still not possible to render high-fidelity images in real time. The time constraints of commercial rendering are such that the user would like to have an idea as to just how long it will take to render an animated sequence, prior the actual rendering. This information is necessary to determine whether the desired quality is achievable in the time available or indeed if it is possible to afford to carry out the work on a render farm for example. This paper presents a comparison of different pixel profiling strategies which may be used to predict the overall rendering cost of a high fidelity global illumination solution. A fast rasterised scene preview is proposed which provides a more accurate positioning and weighting of samples, to achieve accurate cost prediction.


Inbodied design is an emerging area in HCI that focuses on using knowledge of the body's internal systems and processes to better inform em-bodied and circum-bodied design spaces. The current challenge in developing an inbodied approach to HCI research/design is domain expertise: accessing sufficient and appropriate information about how the body itself works and how the body's different systems interact dynamically. In this workshop, we review and build on last year's introduction to inbodied foundations, focusing on applying inbodied knowledge to design challenges to explore (1) the foundational pillars of the inbodied design approach, and (2) how inbodied knowledge can affect / alter our understanding of em-bodied and circum-bodied design challenges and better inform design decisions. Our aim with this hands-on and cross-domain workshop is for HCI researchers to create innovative designs taking the body as a starting point


This thesis includes four research papers, each devoted to a topic in philosophy of cognitive disability and its intersection with other areas of philosophy. Three focus on issues of cognitive or developmental disability and epistemic injustice, drawing from theories by Miranda Fricker, Rebecca Mason, and Josè Medina. The fourth argues that attention to people with communication disability has important implications for our understanding of human rights. Specifically, distinguishing one's right to communicate from one's right to freedom of expression. Lessons are drawn along the way for our understanding of philosophically difficult concepts like identity, decision making, social capital, inclusion, and ignorance. Throughout, the philosophical approach involves attending to the lived experience of people with communication, cognitive, or developmental disability as a way to test the suitability of philosophical theories developed with other people in mind, and as such can be described as a project in Applied Philosophy.


Measurements have been made in the field and in a wind tunnel of the transport of Lycopodium spores to grass an d other surfaces, and wind tunnel experiments also have been done with aerosols of various smaller particle sizes. The spores and other particles were made radioactive to enable the deposition of small numbers on rough surfaces to be detected. In principle the experiments in the wind tunnel were similar to those previously done with gases (Chamberlain 1966), but the mechanisms by which particles and gases are transported across the boundary layer are different. The velocity of deposition vg of the particle to the surface is equal to the terminal velocity vs if the wind speed is very small, but at higher speeds deposition by impaction on roughness elements becomes progressively more important. If the roughness elements are of a form which gives good impaction efficiency, and have a sticky surface, vg is determined by the rate of eddy diffusion in the turbulent boundary layer above the surface, and may equal or even exceed the analogous velocity of deposition of momentum. The effect of surface texture and stickiness was investigated by comparing the catch of particles on segments of real leaves with the catch on similarity shaped segments of PVG treated with adhesive. Stickiness is important in determining vg for particles of about 10 μm diameter upwards, but not for smaller particles. In the field experiments, the use of radioactive tagging enabled the presence of a few Lycopodium spores in several grams of grass or soil to be detected, and the deposition could be measured at ranges up to 100 m from the source. At low wind speeds, vg was only a little greater than vs but at higher speeds the contribution of impaction became evident. A particularly high value was obtained when the grass was wet after recent rain. The field results with Lycopodium give a ratio of velocity of deposition to wind speed of 0·01, and this value is used to calculate the percentage of large spores or pollen grains which will travel various distances in normal meteorological conditions. It is found that the median range is about 1 km if the particles are liberated at a height of 50 cm, but 10 km if the height is 10 m. The relative importance of direct deposition to the ground and washout by rain of the air spora is considered, and is shown to depend on the effective height of the cloud of particles. For an effective height of 500 m, derived from vertical profiles of concentration observed from aircraft, it is calculated that about 25% of the total deposition of pollen grains may be in rain.


Producing Pleasure in the Contemporary University is a collected work published by the brave Netherlands-based publisher Sense, which in recent years has disseminated a growing number of alternative outlooks on higher education, creativity and global perspectives. This volume is the 59th included in the book series Bold Visions in Educational Research edited by Kenneth Tobin (City University of New York, USA) and Carolyne Ali-Kahn (University of North Florida, USA). The series covers the areas of teaching and learning to teach, together with research methods in education. However, its stated purpose is not to propose generalisations or standardisation of methods, but rather to illustrate diverse examples of perspectives and practices for practitioners and novices. The present volume is well embedded in the series' themes and purposes, and contributes originally by bringing the higher education scholars' own educational and scholarly practice to the surface. The theme the authors have chosen to write about -the pain and pleasure of scholarly work cannot be investigated except by means of intimate narratives. Understandably enough, many of the methodological tools used and described in this book derive from reflexive methods and authoethnography, which makes the narratives not only relevant but also pulsating with academic life.


Introduction Brucellosis is one of the most prevalent diseases in Torbate Heidarieh, Iran; it is a common disease between human and animals. The present study aimed to review the psychometric properties of a questionnaire on brucellosis prevention behaviors based on the PRECEDE model among rural farmers and their family members (PRECEDE-QBPB). Materials and Methods The study was a combination of qualitative and quantitative stages. In the qualitative stage, an 86-item questionnaire including interviews with 30 farmers, their family members and other effective people, as well as literature review, was designed. In the quantitative stage, psychometric properties of the PRECEDE-QBPB including the face, content, and constructs validities, as well as reliability measurement of the questionnaire were evaluated. Item impact, content validity ratio (CVR) and content validity index (CVI) for all items were calculated. Besides, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was done to evaluate the construct's validity; AMOS 20 was used for this purpose. In this stage, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 500 rural farmers and their family members. To estimate the internal consistency of this questionnaire, Cronbach's alpha was used for each variable. Further, descriptive statistics and Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin and Bartlett's test of sphericity were used to describe the characteristics of the participants and collect samples, respectively. Results Based on the results of face validity and content validity (CVR, CVI and CFA 9), 19 and 22 items were removed, respectively, leaving the final questionnaire with 36 items and eight subscales including knowledge, attitude, self-efficacy, social support, enabling factors, environmental factors, behavioral factors, and reinforcing factors. The Cronbach's coefficient alpha was calculated for the total questionnaire (α= 0.92, 0.69–0.87 for subscales). The evaluation of model fit indices showed that all indices confirmed the suitability of the final model fit; therefore, the questionnaire has suitable construct validity. Conclusion A questionnaire, as a valid tool, was designed in the present study. Healthcare providers, policymakers, planners, researchers may use this tool to find a comprehensive understanding of enabling, reinforcing, environmental and behavioral factors that affect brucellosis before implementing health education and health promotion programs.


Capacity development has been the core of JICA's technical cooperation, especially after 2000s. The issue has been repeatedly debated among the professional institutions including such as UNDP, JICA and so forth. However, even now, there are not so much articles analyzing the issue from the perspective of management science though some arguments called for the conduct of theory-guided, systematic research about episodes of support for organizations in partner countries. The paper argues and proposes the necessity of a conceptual settings for a case study research and its utilization for systematic learning from the standpoint of management science, particularly public management. It illustrates the conceptual framework by using the knowledge of on-going E-JUST case study. The paper also explore the further steps for strengthening the capacity for organizational development. It proposed "triathlon" approach, namely, conducting the case study research, engagement of professional practitioners through organizational learning and professional development, and vocabulary clarification and integration. Considering the fact that organizational capacity development projects are ex ante novel and ex post unique, the idea of "design references" and "design precedents" are presented for development practitioners to work as "designers" and to create novel solutions in the future.


Sanidine 40 Ar/ 39 Ar geochronology confirms that Silver Creek caldera, which straddles the eastern edge of the Colorado River extensional corridor near Oatman, Arizona (United States), is the source of the Peach Spring Tuff. Eight new dates (five from outflow, three from caldera fill) are analytically indistinguishable, and combined with the most precise previously published date give a weighted mean average age of 18.78 ± 0.02 Ma. A fragment of the caldera identified in the midst of the extensional corridor is structurally juxtaposed with mesozonal plutons of identical age. The implied extension direction (182°–225°) is compatible with abundant previously published structural data for the region.


ABSTRACT This study investigates the applicability of the Subset Principle in the second language (L2) acquisi:ion of the Oblique-Case Parameter by 45 learners of French. First, the Subset Principle is defined and discussed, along with its learnability predictions in first language (L1) acquisition. Then, a brief overview of the relevant literature in L2 acquisition shows that the applicability of the Subset Principle is very much debated. In the present study, the results of a grammaticality judgment task and a correction task provide partial support for the Subset Principle. It seems that the learners have acquired the lack of Exceptional-Case marking and preposition stranding, two of the syntactic properties tested, based on the positive evidence available to them. However, they failed to reject a number of ungrammatical instances of dative alternation and dative passive, leading them to an overgeneralized grammar. It is suggested that L2 learners may need direct or indirect negative evidence to constrain their grammar. Further research is needed to conclude whether the Oblique-Case Parameter really is a parameter of Universal Grammar, and if so, whether adult L2 learners are able to reset their parameters to the proper target language values.


: One of the key challenges confronting a production system is the accurate prediction of flow time (completion time) and due date of jobs coming into the job-shop. The inaccuracy in the determination of flow time and due date could lead to problems of dead line misses, high holding cost for waiting jobs and/or completed jobs, technical and cost inefficiency; and customer dissatisfaction, among others. In this paper, a Computer-Aided System which is based on an empirical model for predicting job-shop flow time and due-date was developed. The Computer-Aided System makes use of historical production data and other peculiar in-house factors of an organization. The Computer-Aided System was tested with real life job-shop data in order to test its efficiency and it was found to be efficient in predicting flow time and due date of jobs.


Abstract: The Andaman ophiolites form the basement of the Andaman Islands, which is a part of the outer forearc that links the Indo-Burma accretionary complex to the north with the Java–Sumatra trench–arc system to the SE. Upper mantle harzburgite and dunite are overlain by a cumulate peridotite–gabbro complex, high-level intrusive rocks and a tholeiitic volcanic series. The upper crust in the South Andaman ophiolite shows also a prominent andesite–dacite volcanic suite, suggesting arc volcanism built onto ocean crust. U–Pb zircon dating of a trondhjemitic rock from Chiriya Tapu in South Andaman Island using laser ablation inductively coupled mass spectrometry reveals an age of crustal formation of 95 ± 2 Ma. The trondhjemites have geochemistry comparable with that of plagiogranites associated with ophiolite complexes, and εNd values around +7 further confirm that they are derived from depleted mantle melts. Basaltic pillow lava and basaltic dykes that cut the trondhjemites have mid-ocean ridge basalt-like trace-element geochemistry. The new data show that the Andaman volcanic arc was built on Cenomanian ophiolite–oceanic crust and that subduction was initiated at this time along Tethys, at least from Cyprus through Oman to the Andaman Islands.


Nigeria and India are former British colonies. Both countries have similar constitutional framework on fundamental rights and directive principles of state policy. South Africa, with Dutch and British colonial legacies, on the other hand, is arguably, the most advanced constitutional democracy in Africa, and perhaps, in the world today. Nigeria, India and South Africa are developing countries in the Global South. They all lean strongly towards patriarchal and socio-religious mythology. These three countries belong to the same common law family of mixed legal systems. Legal transplant is, therefore, possible between them. Strategically speaking, Nigeria and India are the largest democracies in Africa and Asia respectively. Statistically, women outnumber men in South Africa while in Nigeria and India they constitute nearly half of the population. These women unfortunately are vulnerable. They suffer similar indignity of rape, marital rape, sexual harassment and other humiliation arising typically from patriarchal mind-sets, beliefs in certain socio-religious mythologies or ancient customary practices including castes, dowry and bride price, widowhood rites and son preference, which diminish the self-worth and dignity of women. On the basis of some of these abuses only, these countries have been derided as dangerous places for women to live in. Nigeria, in particular, is further ridiculed as being "notorious for violating international agreements". The Nigerian legal framework, comprising constitutional guarantees, law and policy formulations as well as judicial responses, for the protection of the right to dignity of women, has been vigorously criticized for falling short of international law, unsustainable and incapable of supporting the United Nations' Millennium Development Goal No. 3 on gender equality and empowerment of women. In South Africa, things are however different. The pragmatism of the Constitutional Court and the superior Bill of Rights provisions in the Constitution are legendary. They
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easily rank among the best in the Global South as well as the Global North. India is also forward-looking. With basic legal and policy protection of women's right to dignity and sexual safety, coupled with judicial independence, creativity and activism in the interpretation of both positive and negative constitutional rights, India, too, is exemplary. It showcases and distinguishes the Indian Supreme Court, alongside the more outstanding Constitutional Court of South Africa, as consequential courts and activist tribunals in the Global South in the 21st Century. This thesis highlights certain abuses of the right to dignity of women in Nigeria, India and South Africa (as mirror of the most African and Asian women). It explores international law, as well as the transformational advances in the legal framework (constitutional, judicial, legislative and policy) governing the protection of women's right to dignity in India and South Africa, from which valuable lessons may reasonably be applied to bridge the inherent fundamental gaps in the existing Nigerian framework. Finally, it recommends reforms in the quest for a sustainable legal framework for the protection of the right to dignity of women in Nigeria. Incidentally those recommendations may also be useful to other developing common law jurisdictions in similar circumstances. This research is qualitative and doctrinal. It is based purely on library and desktop research including analysis and valuable information from legal provisions, case-law, as well as writings and opinions of eminent scholars and jurists.


A unique risk faced by nocturnally migrating birds is the disorienting influence of artificial light at night (ALAN). ALAN originates from anthropogenic activities that can generate other forms of environmental pollution, including the emission of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). PM2.5 concentrations can display strong seasonal variation whose origin can be natural or anthropogenic. How this variation affects seasonal associations with ALAN and PM2.5 for nocturnally migrating bird populations has not been explored.Western Hemisphere.2021Nocturnally migrating passerine (NMP) bird species.We combined monthly estimates of PM2.5 and ALAN with weekly estimates of relative abundance for 164 NMP species derived using observations from eBird. We identified groups of species with similar associations with monthly PM2.5. We summarized their shared environmental, geographical, and ecological attributes.PM2.5 was lowest in North America, especially at higher latitudes during the boreal winter. PM2.5 was highest in the Amazon Basin, especially during the dry season (August–October). ALAN was highest within eastern North America, especially during the boreal winter. For NMP species, PM2.5 associations reached their lowest levels during the breeding season (<10 μg/m3) and highest levels during the nonbreeding season, especially for long‐distance migrants that winter in Central and South America (~20 μg/m3). Species that migrate through Central America in the spring encountered similarly high PM2.5 concentrations. ALAN associations reached their highest levels for species that migrate (~12 nW/cm2/sr) or spend the nonbreeding season (~15 nW/cm2/sr) in eastern North America.We did not find evidence that the disorienting influence of ALAN enhances PM2.5 exposure during stopover in the spring and autumn for NMP species. Rather, our findings suggest biomass burning in the Neotropics is exposing NMP species to consistently elevated PM2.5 concentrations for an extended period of their annual life cycles.


The basis of the legal and judicial reform that is being carried out in Ukraine is the reform of the judicial system. At the same time, the purpose and activities of other law enforcement agencies are changing. In this regard, the legislator improves the activities and increases the role of the pre-trial investigation bodies, the prosecutor, the court, and especially the investigating judge in criminal proceedings, including expanding their powers and influence on the rights and freedoms of participants in criminal proceedings. Since there is no separate article of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, which would indicate the powers (rights and obligations) of the investigating judge, we summarize the powers of the investigating judge, which are "scattered" throughout the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine and actualize the problems of both theoretical and practical directions.


We studied the receptor-effector coupling mechanism responsible for alpha 1-adrenergic receptor-induced increases in abnormal automaticity (AA) occurring at low membrane potentials in "ischemic" Purkinje fibers, superfused with Tyrode's solution containing [K+]o 10 mmol/L, pH 6.8, PO2 < 25 mm Hg. To exclude beta-adrenergic actions, propranolol was added to all solutions. We derived membrane slope resistance (Rsl) from the current-voltage relation obtained with two microelectrodes for intracellular current injection and transmembrane voltage recording. We also measured the membrane time constant, Tm, to assess changes in membrane resistance (Rm). Phenylephrine effects on Rsl in simulated ischemia were studied in the absence or presence of the alpha 1-subtype blockers WB 4101 (WB) or chloroethylclonidine (CEC), both 0.1 mumol/L, and in Purkinje fibers from dogs injected with pertussis toxin (PTX) (30 micrograms/kg i.v., 60 to 72 hours before study). There were no significant differences in mean values of Rsl before phenylephrine superfusion among all groups of Purkinje fibers. Tm increased by 23% during phenylephrine 0.1 mumol/L superfusion, and Rsl increased by 11%. These two results suggest a 23% increase in Rm with no concordant change in longitudinal resistance. In the presence of CEC, phenylephrine increased Rsl by 12%. In contrast, WB blocked phenylephrine effects on Rsl (0.3%). In PTX-treated Purkinje fibers, the levels of PTX-sensitive G protein as well as phenylephrine effects on Rsl (3%) were significantly reduced. In the absence of WB and of CEC, the phenylephrine effects both on Rsl and on the incidence of AA were directly related to the level of PTX-sensitive substrate.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


One of the most important factors during the process of comminution of minerals is their power consumption rate, which is determined by calculating the WI (work index), which in short is to analyze the amount of kWh consumed per ton of material, to reach a certain particle size and achieve the desired. Along with the quality of the ore is defined and use the classification of the ore. Ores of jaspelite type, high hardness, and with lower iron content 60% with silica content above 10.5%, tends to be considered economically unsuitable for merger cases in the Brazilian market. The work presented here consists of a technique that acts by transforming this type of ore at an acceptable quality product and with a lower power consumption than the previously calculated by WI analysis. The procedure presented here recovers a quantity of more than 75% by weight, taking an ore 56% Fe, for an average content of 65% SiO2 and lowering the 10% to 4.5%. Although reducing by 50% the amount of phosphorus present. The procedure presented here using known methods, but with a variation with respect to the operation, which gives you innovative character, acting together with a selective screening.


This paper takes another look at the concept of employee participation in European Workplaces. It does so by combining a review of the research literature and case study material to describe contemporary practice inside enterprises, and documents the variety and differentiated forms of workplace social dialogue that exist. That review and research suggests that whilst the more formalistic kinds of structures have declined in recent years, interest in and the operation of workplace social dialogue have burgeoned. The article investigates how participative structures are adapting to current enterprise reality and use the term "productive reflection" as another way of describing the process of participation. This draws attention to the possibility that dialogue can take place within different spaces and at different levels of the organisation. The article suggest that, for it to be effective, productive reflection requires a number of pre-conditions, including equality of esteem and high levels of trust relations between actors.


We study the amplification of a resonant standing-wave light field due to the interaction with a beam of monovelocity two-level atoms moving in the Raman-Nath regime and in the Bragg regime. The atomic density is low so that, at most, one atom is inside the cavity at a time. This system is very similar to the well-known micromaser but it is operating in the optical region of the field frequencies. Therefore, the situation corresponds to a microlaser. Unlike the micromaser system, the momentum transfer between the atoms and photons in the microlaser essentially effects the center-of-mass motion of the atoms and the evolution of the field.


We compare judgments of green turtle (Chelonia mydas) captures elicited from local gillnet skippers and not‐for‐profit conservation organization employees operating in a small‐scale fishery in Peru, to capture rates calculated from a voluntary at‐sea observer program operating out of the same fishery. To reduce cognitive biases and more accurately quantify uncertainty in our experts' judgments, we followed the IDEA ("Investigate," "Discuss," "Estimate," and "Aggregate") structured elicitation protocol. The elicited mean monthly estimates of green turtle gillnet captures within summer and winter fishing seasons were higher than the equivalent green turtle capture rates calculated from the fisheries observer data; however, no statistically significant differences were identified when comparing the means of the datasets using bootstrap hypothesis tests (winter observed difference‐in‐means: 83.15, adj mean ± SD = 42.39 ± 32.59; summer observed difference‐in‐means: 68.58, adj mean ± SD = 54.06 ± 41.22). We investigated respondent performance in relation to the observer data capture rates. The not‐for‐profit employees scored high on accuracy and calibration performance metrics. The gillnet skippers' judgments ranked higher on informativeness yet lower on accuracy and calibration, potentially reflective of overconfident judgments. This research presents a new context for using the IDEA protocol, which may prove helpful for rapid, exploratory evaluations of capture and bycatch impact in data‐limited small‐scale fishery management scenarios.


Aesthetic Surgery Journal Open Forum 2023, 1 © The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Aesthetic Society. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. https://doi.org/10.1093/asjof/ojad049 www.asjopenforum.com


1. An Overview of Public Health Nutrition 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Organization of the book 1.3 Definitions used in public health 1.4 What are the key public health problems? 1.5 Food and nutrition policy 1.6 The public health nutrition cycle 1.7 Step 1: Identify key nutrition-related problems 1.8 Step 2: Set goals and broad aims 1.9 Step 3: Define objectives 1.10 Step 4: Create quantitative targets 1.11 Step 5: Develop nutritional programs 1.12 Step 6: Implementation. Step 7 Evaluation Further reading 2 Nutritional Epidemiology 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Types of study 2.3 Study design: sampling, study size and power 2.4 Measuring exposure 2.5 Measuring outcomes 2.6 Measuring diet-disease (exposure-outcome) associations 2.7 Interpretation of associations 2.8 Expressing results from nutritional epidemiological studies 2.9 Perspectives on the future Further reading 3 Assessment of Nutritional Status in Individuals and Populations 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Dietary assessment 3.3 Biomarkers as measures for the assessment of nutritional status 3.4 Anthropometric and other clinical measures 3.5 Errors in methods of assessment of nutritional status 3.6 Perspectives on the future Further reading 4 Assessment of physical activity 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Definition of commonly used terms 4.3 Dimensions of physical activity 4.4 reliability and validity of physical activity assessment instruments 4.5 Physical activity assessment methods 4.6 Perspectives on the future Further reading 5 Public Health Nutrition Strategies for Intervention at the Ecological Level 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Definition of the ecological approach 5.3 Individual versus ecological approaches 5.4 Key principles in the ecological approach 5.5 Intervention 5.6 Advantages and disadvantages of this approach 5.7 Guidelines for using the ecological approach to design nutrition interventions 5.8 Ethical issues to consider 5.9 Ecological interventions to change eating habits 5.10 Perspectives on the future Further reading 6 Public Health Nutrition Strategies for Intervention at the Individual Level 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Interventions of supplementary feeding, foods or nutrients 6.3 Changing Behaviour without giving foods 6.4 Evaluation of programs and interventions 6.5 Perspectives on the future Further reading 7 Dietary Guidelines 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Overview of dietary recommendations 7.3 Quantitative dietary guidelines 7.4 Qualitative Dietary Guidelines 7.5 Steps involved in devising food-based dietary guidelines 7.6 Visual presentations of food guides related to dietary guidelines 7.7 Perspectives on the future directions Further reading 8 Food Choice 8.1 Introduction 8.2 The study of food choice 8.3 Population issues affecting food choice 8.4 Individual issues affecting food choice 8.5 Perspectives on the future Further reading 9 Public Health Aspects of Onernutrition 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Macronutrients, excess energy intake and overweight 9.3 Obesity as a determinant of mortality and morbidity 9.4 Perspectives on the future Further reading 10 Public Health Aspects of Undernutrition 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Definitions of undernutritiom 10.3 Clinical syndromes of undernutrition 10.4 Micronutrient deficiency: "hidden hunger" 10.5 Time trends and contemporary prevalences 10.6 Etiology: determinants and conditioning factors for undernutrition 10.7 Public health consequences of undernutrition 10.8 Policy and programmatic issues in preventing undernutrition 10.9 Policy and programmatic issues in reversing undernutrition 10.10 Perspectives on the future Further reading 11 Vitamin A Deficiency 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Consequences of vitamin A deficiency 11.3 Epidemiology 11.4 Prevention and control 11.5 Assessment of vitamin A status 11.6 Monitoring and evaluation 11.7 Perspectives on the future Further reading 12 Iodine and Iodine-deficiency Disorders 12.1 Introduction 12.2 Definition of iodine deficiency 12.3 Clinical features 12.4 Iodine metabolism 12.5 Reference intakes for iodine 12.6 Public health aspects of iodine deficiency 12.7 Management of iodine deficiency 12.8 Assessment and elimination of iodine deficiency disorders 12.9 Perspectives on the future Further reading 13 Iron-deficiency Anemias 13.1 Introduction 13.2 Definition and clinical features of iron-deficiency anemia 13.3 Iron metabolism 13.4 Reference intakes for iron 13.5 Public health implications of iron-deficiency anemia 13.6 Perspectives on the future Further reading 14 Fear of Fatness and Fad Slimming Diets 14.1 Introduction 14.2 Epidemiology 14.3 Life-cycle fatness trends 14.4 Definitions and descriptions 14.5 Etiology 14.6 Consequences for public health 14.7 Prevention strategies 14.8 Assessing body image 14.9 Perspectives on the future Further reading 15 Nutrition and Child Development 15.1 Introduction 15.2 Child development and the role of the environment 15.3 Possible mechanisms linking undernutrition to poor development 15.4 Prevalence of nutritional deficiencies 15.5 Intrauterine growth retardation 15.6 Breast-feeding and its influence on child development 15.7 Wasting, Stunting and severe clinical malnutrition 15.8 Iron-deficiency anemia 15.9 Iodine deficiency 15.10 Zinc deficiency 15.11 Vitamin A deficiency 15.12 Studies on the effects of short-term hunger and school feeding 15.13 Perspectives on the future Further reading 16 Infant Feeding 16.1 Introduction 16.2 Role and importance of breast-feeding 16.3 Barriers to successful breast-feeding 16.4 Breast-feeding challenges 16.5 Potential feeding difficulties 16.6 Breast-feeding and human immunodeficiency virus transmission 16.7 Infant feeding after 6 months 16.8 Monitoring the child's growth: the road-to-health 16.9 Perspectives on the future Further reading 17 Adverse Outcomes in Pregnancy: The Role of Folate and Related B-Vitamins 17.1 Introduction 17.2 Biochemical basis for the role of folate in adverse outcomes of pregnancy 17.3 Evidence that folate and other related vitamins play a protective role against adverse outcomes of pregnancy 17.4 Prevention of folate-responsive adverse outcomes of pregnancy 17.5 Perspectives on the future Further reading 18 Maternal nutrition, Fetal Programming And Adult Chronic Disease 18.1 Introduction 18.2 Observations establishing the link between size at birth and later cardiovascular disease 18.3 Potential confounding influences 18.4 Findings for particular cardiovascular and metabolic disorders 18.5 Determinants of fetal growth and programming: the importance of fetal nutrition 18.6 Maternal influences on fetal nutrition 18.7 Perspectives on the future Further reading 19 Cardiovascular Disease 19.1 Introduction 19.2 Epidemiology 19.3 Correlations between coronary heart disease rates and food intake 19.4 Prospective observation of subjects for whom diet histories are available 19.5 Cardiovascular risk factors and their nutritional determinants 19.6 Clinical trials of cardiovascular risk reduction by dietary modification 19.7 Nutritional strategies for high-risk populations 19.8 Perspectives on the future Further reading 20 Diabetes Mellitus 20.1 Introduction 20.2 Classification of diabetes 20.3 Diagnosis of diabetes 20.4 Risk factors for the development of diabetes 20.5 Diabetes as a public health issue 20.6 Prevention and management of diabetes 20.7 Scope for primary prevention of diabetes 20.8 Perspectives on the future Further reading 21 Cancer and Diet 21.1 Introduction 21.2 Mechanisms of effect of diet 21.3 Carcinogenesis: initiation, promotion and progression to metastases 21.4 Gene-nutrient interactions in carcinogenesis 21.5 Epidemiological studies of diet and cancer 21.6 Dietary constituents of interest 21.7 Prevention: preventive potential 21.8 Prevention guidelines for individuals and populations 21.9 Perspectives on the future Further reading 22 Disease Prevention: Osteoporosis and Hip Fracture 22.1 Introduction 22.2 Definition 22.3 Epidemiology: the scale of the problem 22.4 The biology of bone health 22.5 Perspectives on the future Further reading Index.


This paper uses unique firm-level panel data from Japan and provides new evidence on the possible impact on gender equality in the workplace of human resources management (HRM) practices. Specifically we consider a number of work-life balance (WLB) practices that are developed in part to enhance gender equality as well as performance-related pay (PRP) that is one of the most often discussed changes in the Japanese HRM system in recent years. Our fixed effect estimates indicate that daycare service assistance (onsite daycare services and daycare service allowances) has a gradual yet significant positive effect on the share of women in the firm's core labor force and the proportion of female directors. However, transition period part-time work is found to result in a decrease in the proportion of female directors (or exacerbating gender inequality in management). Turning to PRP, the fixed effect estimates suggest that a switch from the traditional wage system that rewards workers for their long-term skill development through on-the-job training within the firm to PRP that makes pay more sensitive to shorter-term performance will result in a fall in the proportion of female directors. We also find that the adverse effect on gender equality of PRP is fully mediated by having a more objective performance evaluation system; a more transparent decision making process; and a more systematic, explicit and formal training program. This finding can be interpreted as evidence pointing to gender discrimination in the workplace. In designing, developing and revising public policy instruments to achieve Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ambitious policy goal of "increasing the share of women in leadership positions to at least 30% by 2020 in all fields in society," policy makers may need to pay particular attention to heterogeneous efficacy of specific WLB practices and the adverse effect of PRP as well as the mediating role played by management by objectives (MBO), information sharing, and systematic training program.


Methods for environmental risk assessment of P loss potential from soils lack uniformity and are generally difficult for routine analysis. Mehlich-1 extractable P (M1-P), an approach that is widely used to assess soil P status for plant growth, was used as a soil test P (STP) estimator of the degree of P saturation (DPS) of a soil. The concept of DPS integrates the dominant properties controlling the P sorption-desorption status of soils. Soil samples from three physiographic regions of Virginia were analyzed for M1-P and a wide range of other extractable P forms and selected chemical and physical soil properties. The DPS determined by ammonium oxalate (NH 4 -Ox) extractable P (P ox ), Al (Al ox ), and Fe (Fe ox ), ranged from 2 to 155%. Mehlich-1 P, with a range of 1 to 1100 mg kg -1 was the most suitable single variable for estimating DPS. However, soil type and properties from the three physiographic regions were sufficiently different that regression models to estimate DPS based on M1-P were significantly (P < 0.001) different between regions. Addition of other chemical or physical soil properties yielded insufficient improvements to the regression models over the strong relationships (r 2 = 0.93, 0.98, and 0.75 for the Ridge & Valley, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain regions, respectively) between M1-P and DPS. Interpretations/comparisons between studies are often limited by the numerous methods that are used to calculate DPS. We recommend DPS be determined as mmol kg -1 of NH 4 -Ox extractable P, Al and Fe and calculated as 100 (P ox ) (Al ox + Fe ox ) -1 .


Article history: Received August 25, 2013 Received in revised format 19 September 2013 Accepted 23 October 2013 Available online November 12 2013 Alcohol is the most prevalent abused drug in the world and brings out a large amount of medical expenses to the society. This paper presents an empirical investigation to devise preventive measures and identify the groups at risk. In this study, a descriptive study was conducted among people who were arrested by the police because of committing illegal actions and were suspected of alcohol usage were referred to the organization of forensic medicine. The studied variables include gender, age, state of affair, marital status, type of crime, the time of drug use, tranquillizer drugs and the times of psychiatrist visit. Out of 305 subjects, 204 (66.9%) cases had a positive respiratory test result and 101 (33.1%) were negative. The results showed that committing crimes due to quarrel and wrangling (34.3%) and being drunk in the public (29.7%) were prevalent among the people who used alcohol. Driving accidents also had 18% prevalence. 32.7% of the people who had a negative respiratory test result had committed crimes because of being drunk and 29.7% of them had quarrel and wrangling. The high rate of alcohol use in people who referred from the disciplinary office to the organization of forensic medicine demonstrated that it was necessary to devise a plan in order to improve a person's awareness of harmful alcohol use and to identify the vulnerable groups in the society. © 2014 Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved.


Saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) populations have recovered strongly across northern Australia over the 30 years since the species was protected from hunting. However, monitoring studies show large geographical variations in abundance across the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia. The Northern Territory has considerably higher densities, raising questions about constraints on recovery in the other states. We examined broad-scale environmental influences on population abundance by modelling the species–environment relationships across northern Australia. The hypothesis-based models showed strong support for the linkage to (1) the ratio of total area of favourable wetland vegetation types (Melaleuca, grass and sedge) to total catchment area, (2) a measure of rainfall seasonality, namely the ratio of total precipitation in the coldest quarter to total precipitation in the warmest quarter of a year, and (3) the mean temperature in the coldest quarter of a year. On the other hand, we were unable to show any clear negative association with landscape modification, as indicated by the extent of high-impact land uses or human population density in catchments. We conclude that geographical variations in crocodile density are mostly attributable to differences in habitat quality rather than the management regimes adopted in the respective jurisdictions.


In Ladakh, a cold arid region, subsistence agriculture has been in practice and is associated with livestock rearing in very small-scale stone-built terrace farming. Due to poor resources, public distribution systems, import/mutual exchange of plant materials and higher labour cost, high-altitude default organic farming has become a complex activity where weeds have become a recurrent problem. Moreover, they have become an integral part of fodder resources under small-scale stone-built terraced farming in barren ecosystems for enriching straw with supplementary weedy stuff. As a result, cropped areas suffer severe weed pressure as it requires 4-5 weedings under high-altitude solar radiation. An intensive survey revealed that the majority of weeds constituted of Amaranthaceae, Asteraceae, Poaceae and Fabaceae families, and they varied attitudinally. In this region, weeds are the major associated plant species, limiting the performance of crops in terms of seed quality and yields significantly. Hence, weed menace is overlooked in crops that impact the invasive weedy species to move upward to high altitudes under climate change. Conversely, people across this region have identified many of the weedy species for their day-to-day consumption as green leafy vegetables and for medicinal uses under the harsh climate of the cold arid region. This article describes the weedy species identified in crops and their utilization under low-land holding subsistence agriculture.


Introduction: Pulmonary manifestations of GERD are attracting increasing attention. The physiological link between GERD and pulmonary disease has been extensively studied in chronic cough and asthma. The gastric contents can cause throat irritation, postnasal drip and hoarseness also recurrent cough. Objectives: This study is to determine frequency of pulmonary manifestations in patients with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. Settings: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Aeer ud din Medical college during June 2019 to December 2019. All patients with heartburn, both males and females of 20-70 years of age. Results: Out of 150 patients' laryngeal symptoms were 10% have dry cough 8% have hoarseness and dry cough hoarseness both in 10% in patients with heartburn. 34% patients with GERD were found to be asthmatic. Nasal symptoms were infrequent 2%. Out of 150 patients 36% do not have any pulmonary manifestations. Conclusion: There is high prevalence of pulmonary manifestations in patients with GERD.