An experiment on coherent control of energy and angular distribution of autoionized electrons of calcium performed by van Leeuwen et al (van Leeuwen, Bajema and Jones 1999 Phys. Rev. Lett. 82 2852) using the Ramsey pump-probe technique is investigated theoretically. The peculiar features observed in this experiment are ascribed to the fact that three overlapping resonances are excited by the isolated core excitation process (ICE) 4s14s → 4p3/214s, leading to interference in the decay of the 4p3/214s wavepacket created by the pump and probe short pulses. Predictions dealing with the ICE excitation of two isolated resonances 4p1/2ns from the 4s20s level are presented. The dynamics of autoionizing wavepackets of calcium created by one or two short pulses is analysed by calculating the time dependence of radial electron flux at fixed macroscopic distances from the atom. Some results on radial flux obtained by using a chirped pulse are also reported.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Drug-resistant leukemia cells may exhibit cross-resistance towards immunological effector mechanisms by alterations of apoptosis pathways. This is particularly relevant in allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for leukemia, where the graft-versus-leukemia effect acts on cells pretreated with cytostatic drugs. Here, we clarify the mechanism underlying cross-resistance of drug-resistant variants of the T-leukemia cell line CEM towards natural killer cells.

DESIGN AND METHODS
We determined the sensitivity of different CEM sublines to natural killer (NK) cytotoxicity, and separately analyzed the components of the killing machinery by detection of granzyme B-induced caspase cleavage and HLA class I-dependent recognition mechanisms. Furthermore, we studied regulation of HLA class I expression comparing CEM with other cell lines.

RESULTS
We found that CEM cells resistant to cytostatic drugs or CD95 were cross-resistant towards NK cells from a variety of donors. Granzyme B-induced caspase and PARP cleavage in the sensitive and resistant cells were comparable, indicating that downstream apoptosis pathways were not altered in the drug-resistant cells. HLA class I molecules were upregulated in the resistant cells, inhibiting NK cells at the level of killer/target recognition. HLA class I upregulation was not found in other leukemia cell lines.

INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSIONS
This is the first description of HLA class I-mediated NK cross-resistance in drug-resistant cells. This finding may have a clinical impact since it may be considered as a possible reason for resistance to a graft-versus-leukemia approach in allogeneic bone marrow transplantation


This paper is about the role of a heuristic algorithm for load balancing that can be incorporated in Multi-Protocol Label Switching/ Differentiated Services (MPLS/DS) networks based on self-management principles for automated traffic configuration. Delivery of Quality of Services (QoS) differentiation according to specific service level agreements, Service Level Agreement (SLA), has to be in relation to resource management and bandwidth allocation, to ensure better end-to-end QoS provisioning and to avoid traffic congestion. To ensure simultaneous traffic flows with different priorities we need some load-balancing procedure. It could start much earlier than usual, possibly during SLA negotiation. If SLA creation is supported by load control mechanism it can ensure better performances of the network in the moment of service invocation. LSP (Label Switching Path) creation could be influenced by former contracted SLAs and such approach could be more effective than pure routing technique based on the shortest path algorithm (LSP creation in the moment of service invocation). So we propose application of heuristic algorithm tested on numerical examples with maximum M routers on the path and with differentiation of N service classes. Further, we introduced some capacity state restrictions in the process of network optimization, considering different algorithm options. We compared their performances, especially the algorithm complexity that is very important for efficient load control in huge networks.


Service Oriented Infrastructures allow for on-demand provision of Information and Communication Technologies assets. What virtual environments require from such infrastructures refers to the offered Quality of Service (QoS) levels, which have direct impact on the end users experience. In this paper, we describe a new approach to improve the user experience, with regard to QoS, of collaborative Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) working sessions. One of the main issues that have to be addressed in such a use case is the requirement for keeping QoS with regards to real-time of the shared multimedia content of the AR. Therefore we adapted our application to a new and innovative real-time enabled framework for service-based infrastructures, implemented within the framework of the IRMOS EU project. This framework provides the necessary guarantees for successful collaborative VR and AR sessions as derived from the desired user experience. We also demonstrate the operation of the implemented framework and evaluate its effectiveness to the collaborative Virtual and Augmented Reality scenario.


Soil microrelief is one of the factors affecting wind and water erosion process. Spatial variability of soil surface (microrelief) influences initiation of the surface runoff and water flow mainly through depressions, where the runoff is delayed and infiltration increases owing to the interception of the flowing water. The research was conducted to assess the changes of relief of two soils (sandy loam and fine sand) under the influence of rainfall in a model experiment. The soil microrelief was determined by means of a contactless 3D scanner using the effect of line distortion as light beam illuminating the object surface (so called Moire pattern). On the basis of obtained results, maps of the differences in the scanned surface elevations were plotted in ArcGIS programme and the soil losses volume was computed. RR indicator calculated for sandy loam was decreasing with increasing depth of simulated rainfall. No such dependence was observed for loose sand.


Glycyrrhetinic Acid Ointment SIR,-I have read with interest your annotation (Journal, April 4, p. 914) on glycyrrhetinic acid ointment and would like the opportunity of expanding on my clinical trial" mentioned therein. In my opinion the best way of carrying out a blind control trial in dermatology is that the drug to be assessed and the control should be used on the same patient, at the same time, on symmetrical lesions on two different parts of the body. In tins way many extraneous factors such as stress, strain, menstrual disturbances, etc., can be equalized.


Abstract Machine learning (ML) provides the ability to examine massive datasets and uncover patterns within data without relying on a priori assumptions such as specific variable associations, linearity in relationships, or prespecified statistical interactions. However, the application of ML to healthcare data has been met with mixed results, especially when using administrative datasets such as the electronic health record. The black box nature of many ML algorithms contributes to an erroneous assumption that these algorithms can overcome major data issues inherent in large administrative healthcare data. As with other research endeavors, good data and analytic design is crucial to ML-based studies. In this paper, we will provide an overview of common misconceptions for ML, the corresponding truths, and suggestions for incorporating these methods into healthcare research while maintaining a sound study design.


The primary goal of this article is to analyse the use of the term 'tax avoidance' in the legislative framework and case law of the European Union to point out the absence of a common linguistic approach. The consequences derived from the terminological chaos will also be discussed; thus, the study will try to display how big and deep the problem is by giving special attention to the semantic aspects that cannot, in fact, be ignored anymore. Furthermore, the principles stemming from the case law will be reviewed, since they are regarded as the outcome of the interpretation of tax avoidance by the judiciary.


Most managers after viewing the financial reports received from the accounting department ask one question "Where is the money?". Mostly they ask this question because the trial balance shows profit while most firms in Romania struggle in money slumps. Usually this sort of problems can be overcome in two ways: using a quick short time loan or by postponing some of the debts. Both ways are costly: the first one in money and the second one in image. In the conditions of the current Romanian market most managers of the small and medium firms take the second choice. In order to reduce these risks we developed an application which mainly warns and in a certain degree predicts shortages in cash.


Maintenance planning plays an important role in assets management because it directly affects assets availability. In the aviation industry, maintenance planning becomes even more important due to the high availability expectations from aircraft operators and the high costs incurred when an aircraft becomes out of service. Gathering and combining all the relevant information to generate an optimized maintenance planning is not a simple task because the number of variables to be considered is high. The aim of this paper is to present a new model to plan maintenance interventions, using RUL (Remaining Useful Life) estimations obtained from a PHM (Prognostics and Health Monitoring) system. This information is used to verify whether spare parts will be available when the next failures are expected to occur. Since spare parts are finite resources, the goal of the proposed model is to reduce the probability that multiple similar components will fail in a short period of time because, when it happens, there is not enough time to repair all failed components and fleet availability is penalized. To avoid this situation, the model suggests the anticipation of some replacements. This paper presents a simulation comparing a situation in which PHM information is not available with the proposed model in terms of fleet availability and investment in spare parts. Life cycle cost considering a time horizon of 15 years was also computed in simulations. The results showed that the proposed model allowed an increase in fleet availability and a reduction in the lifecycle cost.


Evaluating water quality indicators is a crucial issue in integrated water resource management, since potable water is an essential resource for the world's health and sustainable development. The current study was developed using a coupled model of MODFLOW and MT3DMS (Mass Transport 3-Dimension Multi-Species) to integrate two water supply systems, surface water (polluted drains and canals) and ground water, to identify the contamination process of the groundwater from drains as fresh water is polluted and the contamination level exceeds the standard limits. The study was applied to two cases: the first was a hypothetical simulation and the second was the real case of the Nile Delta Aquifer (NDA). Four different scenarios were simulated to first identify groundwater contamination by total dissolved solids (TDS), and then select the more efficient protection process. The first scenario involved changing polluted drain and canal boundary conditions regarding head and concentration; the second consisted of studying the location of the polluted drain in a low permeability layer or a confined aquifer; the third was based on installing a cut-off wall in the polluted drain sides; and the fourth investigated the use of lining materials for polluted drains. The results reveal that aquifer contamination was decreased by increasing the water head of canals by 50 cm and decreasing the drain head by 50 cm and concentration by 25%, whereby large quantities of groundwater were protected. The percentages of salt repulsion in the hypothetical case were +10.66, +12.89, and +24.99%, while in NDA they were +6.29, +8.71, and +25% respectively compared with the base case. Decreasing the aquifer hydraulic conductivity led to decrease in aquifer contamination, in which the confined aquifer pollution was less than the unconfined aquifers due to the clay cap, which plays a significant role in minimizing the solute transport into the groundwater reservoir, and to reduction of the aquifer salt variation by +19.01% for the hypothetical case. The results indicate that the cut-off wall is effective for contamination management in shallow aquifers (hypothetical case) and the reduction in aquifer salt was +28.49%, whereas it had no effect in the deep aquifer (NDA), where the salt was reduced by just +0.34%. Using the drain lining scenario prevented contamination from the polluted drains and protected the freshwater in the aquifer, so that the aquifer salt mass reductions were +91.02 and +70.13% for the hypothetical case and NDA respectively, indicating that this method is more effective for controlling groundwater contamination. Polluted drains should be located in a low permeability layer to minimize the water degradation. This study represents a new contribution to groundwater protection techniques by changing the boundary conditions, installing a cut-off wall and using linings for polluted drains, and shows the way forward for the future treatment of polluted stream networks.


Business Process Management (BPM) has increased in popularity and maturity in recent years. Large enterprises engage use process management approaches to model, manage and refine repositories of process models that detail the whole enterprise. These process models can run to the thousands in number, and may contain large hierarchies of tasks and control structures that become cumbersome to maintain. Tools are therefore needed to effectively traverse this process model space in an efficient manner, otherwise the repositories remain hard to use, and thus are lowered in their effectiveness. In this paper we analyse a range of BPM tools for their effectiveness in handling large process models. We establish that the present set of commercial tools is lacking in key areas regarding visualisation of, and interaction with, large process models. We then present six tool functionalities for the development of advanced business process visualisation and interaction, presenting a design for a tool that will exploit the latest advances in 2D and 3D computer graphics to enable fast and efficient search, traversal and modification of process models.


This thesis is an exercise in comparative theology inspired by Brueggemann's call for Jewish-Christian 'co-reading' of the Old Testament/Tanakh. It re-reads the Book of Esther from a Christian perspective after interreligious engagement with the rabbinic midrash, Esther Rabbah. Using an approach exemplified by Clooney and Moyaert, this thesis engages the midrash through a hermeneutic reader-text conversation where the text 'speaks' not only through its academic critical interrogation but also through the reader's empathy and vulnerability.
I suggest that Esther Rabbah interprets Esther through two key themes: exile and redemption which are utilised to bring the biblical text into the rabbis' experience of life in extended exile, awaiting redemption. Intrinsic to this interpretation are two concepts: election and God. That is, even while living in protracted exile, the Jewish covenantal relationship with God provides them with the necessary hope that God will remain with them until the World to Come when the divine presence will be fully revealed. In the meantime, God is to be sought in the Scriptures, with the great divine acts, primarily the Exodus, remembered, so that, by faithful observance, the final redemption may be ushered in.
This study uses Esther Rabbah to re-read Esther in the light of recent discussion of what Beach has called 'the Church in exile'. I suggest that, after Christendom, contemporary Christians who are in a state of spiritual 'exile', would do well to follow the example of the rabbis in searching for the presence of God even in times when humanity seems loveless and the divine seems hidden. Esther Rabbah helps the Christian reader to remember God's acts in Scripture and live in accordance with the divine commandment of love of God and neighbour, in anticipation of the future redemption when people may be truly restored to the eternal presence of God.


Computer simulations of fabrication processing p-and n-channel junction fieldeffect transistor with design norms of 1.5 μm is presented. Corrections to parameters of Klassen mobility model are proposed. They ensure the correspondence between calculated current-voltage characteristics and experimental data. For the investigated device structures of JFET, an analysis of the influence of various types of penetrating radiation on electrical characteristics is carried out. Optimization calculations gave the modes of processing procedure, which reduce the effect of the neutron flux with energy 1.5 MeV on the electrical characteristics of n-JFET device structure by 1.45 times.


OpenAIRE is the European Union initiative for an Open Access Infrastructure for Research in support of open scholarly communication and access to the research output of European funded projects and open access content from a network of institutional and disciplinary repositories. This article outlines the curation activities conducted in the OpenAIRE infrastructure, which employs a multi-level, multi-targeted approach: the publication and implementation of interoperability guidelines to assist in the local data curation processes, the data curation due to the integration of heterogeneous sources supporting different types of data, the inference of links to accomplish the publication research contextualization and data enrichment, and the end-user metadata curation that allows users to edit the attributes and provide links among the entities.


In this article, I outline a general framework for the evolutionary analysis of mental disorders based on the concepts of life history theory. I synthesize and extend a large body of work showing that individual differences in life history strategy set the stage for the development of psychopathology. My analysis centers on the novel distinction between fast spectrum and slow spectrum disorders. I describe four main causal pathways from life history strategies to psychopathology, argue that psychopathology can arise at both ends of the fast–slow continuum of life history variation, and provide heuristic criteria for classifying disorders as fast or slow spectrum pathologies. I then apply the fast–slow distinction to a diverse sample of common mental disorders: externalizing disorders, schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, eating disorders, and depression. The framework integrates previously disconnected models of psychopathology within a common frame of reference and has far-reaching implications for the classification of mental disorders.


Recent work has shown that supervised learning alone, without temporal difference (TD) learning, can be remarkably effective for offline RL. When does this hold true, and which algorithmic components are necessary? Through extensive experiments, we boil supervised learning for offline RL down to its essential elements. In every environment suite we consider, simply maximizing likelihood with a two-layer feedforward MLP is competitive with state-of-the-art results of substantially more complex methods based on TD learning or sequence modeling with Transformers. Carefully choosing model capacity (e.g., via regularization or architecture) and choosing which information to condition on (e.g., goals or rewards) are critical for performance. These insights serve as a field guide for practitioners doing Reinforcement Learning via Supervised Learning (which we coin"RvS learning"). They also probe the limits of existing RvS methods, which are comparatively weak on random data, and suggest a number of open problems.


Background: The principles and philosophy of palliative care are grounded in person-centred and family-centred care. Clinical practice in caring for individuals who are dying, and their families, is complex. In an attempt to guide this practice, numerous theoretical approaches have been developed to assist in understanding the various considerations and challenges encountered by dying patients and their families. Health care professionals encounter many challenges themselves—particularly in relation to pain and symptom management, psychosocial and spiritual care—while also attempting to protect themselves in the midst of complex caring, grief and loss. Reflective practice, in the form of Death Reviews, provides an ideal forum for interdisciplinary team members to examine the intricacies of caring, so that the practices of end of life care can be enhanced.
Aim: The primary aim of this study is to gain an understanding of the lived experience of two Irish interdisciplinary Community Palliative Care teams'
perceptions of attending a monthly Death Review meeting.
Methodology: A qualitative approach, specifically Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used in this study. Semi-structured interviews were utilised to
extrapolate participants' experiences.
Results: The findings suggest that all ten participants could see the benefit of this type of reflective practice meeting. One out of the ten participants did not feel that
it was beneficial personally, but could see the benefit for others on the team. Lack of participation and time constraints were perceived as challenges associated with
Death Reviews.
Conclusion: Death reviews provide a useful forum to reflect on practice and
remember and acknowledge the patients and families who have died. They also bring a sense of closure, while highlighting the importance of self-care when caring for individuals who are dying and their families. Diverse coping mechanisms with
regard to responding to exposure to death and dying emerged from the findings. The importance of learning from our experiences was highlighted in this study with the ultimate aim of improving patient care.


Cannabidiol (CBD) is a natural nonpsychotropic cannabinoid from marijuana (Cannabis sativa) with anti-epileptic and anti-inflammatory properties. Effect of CBD on naive immune system is not precisely understood. In this study, we observed that administering CBD into naive mice triggers robust induction of CD11b+Gr-1+ myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) in the peritoneum, which expressed functional arginase 1, and potently suppressed T cell proliferation ex vivo. Furthermore, CBD-MDSC suppressed LPS-induced acute inflammatory response upon adoptive transfer in vivo. CBD-induced suppressor cells were comprised of CD11b+Ly6-G+Ly6-C+ granulocytic and CD11b+Ly6-G−Ly6-C+ monocytic subtypes, with monocytic MDSC exhibiting higher T cell–suppressive function. Induction of MDSC by CBD was markedly attenuated in Kit-mutant (KitW/W-v) mast cell–deficient mice. MDSC response was reconstituted upon transfer of wild-type bone marrow–derived mast cells in KitW/W-v mice, suggesting the key role of cKit (CD117) as well as mast cells. Moreover, mast cell activator compound 48/80 induced significant levels of MDSC in vivo. CBD administration in mice induced G-CSF, CXCL1, and M-CSF, but not GM-CSF. G-CSF was found to play a key role in MDSC mobilization inasmuch as neutralizing G-CSF caused a significant decrease in MDSC. Lastly, CBD enhanced the transcriptional activity of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ in luciferase reporter assay, and PPAR-γ selective antagonist completely inhibited MDSC induction in vivo, suggesting its critical role. Together, the results suggest that CBD may induce activation of PPAR-γ in mast cells leading to secretion of G-CSF and consequent MDSC mobilization. CBD being a major component of Cannabis, our study indicates that marijuana may modulate or dysregulate the immune system by mobilizing MDSC.


The solid-state fermentation (SSF) is the best option to produce spores of biological control agents (BCA), because the spores have a long shelf life, compared with the obtained in liquid cultures. The spore production under SSF conditions using poly‐ ethylene bioreactors (bag-type) is a new topic. Only little information mainly about bioreactors design and adequate conditions to spore production is available. The main aim of this study was to use the corn cob as substrate in SSF and produce spores of the fungi BCA Trichoderma asperellum in a polyethylene bioreactor. In the process was added biomass of the phytopathogenic fungi Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and Phytophthora capsici as inducers of hydrolase enzymes (endoglucanases, exoglucanases and chitinases). It is possible to obtain high levels of spores, cellulases and chitinases using a polyethylene bioreactor under SSF conditions by T. asperellum and corn cob as substrate. Under the SSF conditions evaluated, the biomass of C. gloeosporioides has an inducer effect just on the spore production. However, P. capsici have effect on all response variables evaluated. The spore production was twice when used P. capsici as inducer. The most influential factor under SSF was the moisture. Levels of 66 and 50% of this factor increase the yield in all response variables evaluated (sporulation, cellulases and chitinases), C. gloeosporioides and P. capsici , respectively.


Over 50 years ago, Jencks and Gilchrist showed that formaldehyde catalyses the hydrolysis of phosphoramidate through electrophilic activation, induced by covalent attachment to its nitrogen atom. Given our interest in the use of aldehydes as catalysts, this work was revisited to identify a superior catalyst, o-phthalaldehyde, which facilitates hydrolyses of various organophosphorus compounds bearing P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-NH subunits under mild conditions. Interestingly, chemoselective hydrolysis of the P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-N bonds could be accomplished in the presence of P([double bond, length as m-dash]O)-OR bonds.


revision of uterine cavity after spontaneous delivery the office hysteroscopy (HSC) without anaesthesia and dilatation to evaluate and eventually treat the intrauterine pathologies. We compared the results with previous ultrasound examination (US). Methods: We examinated at 6 weeks after delivery with vaginal ultrasound 141 patients. All patients were scheduled for office hysteroscopy. We divided women according the ultrasound into 3 groups: Group A-negative: endometrium less than 5 mm; Group B-suspicious: non-homogenous content from 5 to 10 mm; Group C-positive: hyper-echogenic content more than 10 mm. The ESGE classification was used for HSC description of IU adhesions. The residua were described as mild (< 15 mm) and severe (> 15 mm). Results: In group A we classified 61 (43.3%) in group B 36 (25.5%) and in group C 44 (31.2%) patients. Results are described in the Table 1. The US sensitivity for residua is 0.92 and specificity 0.80. Sensitivity for adhesions is 0.15 and specificity 0.19 only. Conclusions: There is good sensitivity and specificity of vaginal US for residua but it does not detect any adhesions. The high number of pathologies (57.6%) justify office hysteroscopy in this risk group of patients. It might be superior to sonohysterography because offers the treatment at the same session. This study was supported by the Grant Agency of the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic, grant NR 10576-3.


Open and endovenous surgery of varicose veins are excellent ways of treating varicosis. However, there are great differences in how the techniques are performed. No matter which procedure is carried out, certain standards should be observed. The state of the art of open venous surgery with radical crossectomy is well-known, but unfortunately is still not always performed correctly. The state of the art of endovenous surgery has not yet been sufficiently documented, but should be based on open surgery techniques. This work describes in detail what are (or should be) the standards of both methods today. A definition of recurrence applicable to both techniques is established. Key Words: Varicose veins, crossectomy,


The paper presents the evaluation plan and the first results of DIDeL (Didactics in e-Learning), a research and development project of the University of Florence, aimed at promoting faculty professional development on e-learning methods and technologies. From a theoretical point of view the project is based on a multi-levels model characterized by the combination of methodological approaches and teaching tools. The evaluation plan reflects this articulation with the aim to measure users' satisfaction, the impact of the programme on teachers' techno-didactic competences on the short and medium run, as well as the impact on students' career progression. Specifically, this papers illustrates and discusses the results of a questionnaire administered online to all the teachers who participated in at least one of the project's training activities during the first half of 2018: it was investigated the level of satisfaction of training and teachers' self-perception of learning in terms of knowledge and skills. 166 teachers answered the questionnaire. The results show a high level of appreciation for the various types of training initiatives, which confirms the design hypotheses and the methodologies adopted.


The complex problem related to the transmission channel of underwater polarized lasers is caused by underwater suspended particles. In order to study the effect of suspended particles on underwater optical communication links and laser polarization characteristics, a method based on a combination of Mie scattering theory and Monte Carlo numerical simulation is used to establish the transmission model of underwater photons. This method is applied to analyze the effect of suspended particles on normalized received energy and channel delay. We also investigate the effects of particle and channel length on the polarization characteristics of four different types of polarized lasers. Theoretical analysis and simulation results indicate that the optical coefficients of particles increase with increasing particle size. Thus, when the transmission channel length is the same, the received normalized energy and light intensity will decrease, and the channel time delay will increase. Meanwhile, a depolarization phenomenon with respect to the laser will be generated with increasing particle size, and particle size has a greater effect on linearly polarized light than circularly polarized light. Therefore, circularly polarized light maintains good polarization characteristics in the underwater laser transmission process.


The space of maximal ideals is studied on semiprimitive rings and reduced rings, and the relation between topological properties of Max(R) and algebric properties of the ring R are investigated. The socle of semiprimitive rings is characterized homologically, and it is shown that the socle is a direct sum of its localizations with respect to isolated maximal ideals. We observe that the Goldie dimension of a semiprimitive ring R is equal to the Suslin number of Max(R).


A tunable-bandwidth filter system (TBFS), now undergoing development, is intended to be part of a remote sensing multispectral imaging system that will operate in the visible and near infrared spectral region (wavelengths from 400 to 900 nm). Attributes of the TBFS include rapid tunability of the pass band over a wide wavelength range and high transmission efficiency. The TBFS is based on a unique integration of two pairs of broadband Raman reflection holographic filters with two rotating spherical lenses. In experiments, a prototype of the TBFS, was shown to be capable of spectral sampling of images in the visible range over a 200 nm spectral range with a spectral resolution of 30 nm. The figure depicts the optical layout of a prototype of the TBFS as part of a laboratory multispectral imaging system for the spectral sampling of color test images in two orthogonal polarizations. Each pair of broadband Raman reflection holographic filters is mounted at an equatorial plane between two halves of a spherical lens. The two filters in each pair are characterized by steep spectral slopes (equivalently, narrow spectral edges), no ripple or side lobes in their pass bands, and a few nanometers of non-overlapping wavelength range between their pass bands. Each spherical lens and thus the filter pair within it is rotated in order to rapidly tune its pass band. The rotations of are effected by electronically controlled, programmable, high-precision rotation stages. The rotations are coordinated by electronic circuits operating under overall supervision of a personal computer in order to obtain the desired variation of the overall pass bands with time. Embedding the filters inside the spherical lenses increases the range of the hologram incidence angles, making it possible to continuously tune the pass and stop bands of the filters over a wider wavelength range. In addition, each spherical lens also serves as part of the imaging optics: The telephoto lens focuses incoming light to a field stop that is also a focal point of each spherical lens. A correcting lens in front of the field stop compensates for the spherical aberration of the spherical lenses. The front surface of each spherical lens collimates the light coming from the field stop. After the collimated light passes through the filter in the spherical lens, the rear surface of the lens focuses the light onto a charge-coupled-device image detector.


Underwater is a complex structured environment because of inhomogeneous light absorption and light scattering by the environment. These factors make 3D reconstruction in underwater more challenging. In the literature, only calibrated cameras and predefined camera motions are allowed for 3D reconstruction. In this study, 3D representation of underwater scenes are reconstructed from uncalibrated video sequences.3D reconstruction consists of the following stages: Image enhancement, feature detection and matching, fundamental matrix estimation, auto-calibration, recovery of extrinsic parameters, rectification, stereo matching and dense reconstruction. In this paper, various algorithms are implemented for each stage and the best performing ones for underwater applications are defined. As a result, a single camera based automatic 3D modelling system, which is ready to be used in underwater applications, is developed


The use of transmission Raman spectroscopy for quantitative assessment of pharmaceutical tablets using different multivariate approaches was investigated. Although Raman spectroscopy is most often used in backscatter geometry, in this paper a transmission approach was utilized, where the Raman scattered light is detected at the back side of the tablets. Raman spectra were recorded using a dispersive spectrometer with a 785 nm excitation laser and a typical exposure time of 10 s. The tablets were loaded to a 32‐position sample rack and measured by an automated procedure. Tablets with variation in content of paracetamol were manufactured. The data were evaluated with respect to the content of paracetamol, using partial least squares (PLS) and multivariate curve resolution (MCR). In addition, classical least squares (CLS), curve fitting and peak ratios were included for comparison. MCR, CLS and PLS gave comparable results with relative prediction errors for an independent test set in the range of 2.4–3.4%. Curve fitting and peak ratios gave higher prediction errors, typically around 4 and 6%, respectively. Interestingly, quantitative models based on only two samples in the calibration sets resulted in almost as good results as if half of the available tablets were included in the calibration. Due to the simple calibration models and the selective Raman spectra, the loadings and spectra were easy to interpret for all the multivariate methods used in this paper. The implications for content uniformity analysis by using transmission Raman in this simplified approach are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This article explores histories of the science of stress and its measurement from the mid 19th century, and brings these into dialogue with critical sociological analysis of emerging responses to work stress in policy and practice. In particular, it shows how the contemporary development of biomedical and consumer devices for stress self-monitoring is based on selectively rediscovering the biological determinants and biomarkers of stress, human functioning in terms of evolutionary ecology, and the physical health impacts of stress. It considers how the placement of the individual body and its environment within particular spatio-temporal configurations renders it subject to experimental investigation through standardized apparatus, electricity, and statistical normalization. Examining key themes and processes such as homeostasis, metricization, datafication, and emotional governance, we conclude that the figure of the 'body electric' plays a central limiting role in current technology-supported approaches to managing work stress, and that an historical account can usefully open these to collective scrutiny.


One of the main characteristics of wind power is the inherent variability and unpredictability of the generation source, even in the short-term. To cope with this drawback, hydro pumped-storage units have been proposed in the literature as a good complement to wind generation due to their ability to manage positive and negative energy imbalances over time. This paper investigates the combined optimization of a wind farm and a pumped-storage facility from the point of view of a generation company in a market environment. The optimization model is formulated as a two-stage stochastic programming problem with two random parameters: market prices and wind generation. The optimal bids for the day-ahead spot market are the ldquohere and nowrdquo decisions while the optimal operation of the facilities are the recourse variables. A joint configuration is modeled and compared with an uncoordinated operation. A realistic example case is presented where the developed models are tested with satisfactory results.


Conidia were germinated at three temperatures in media in which available water, expressed as water activity, was controlled at three levels. Rate of germination in the basal medium (0.9964 water activity) was most rapid at 25 C and was inhibited at 15 and 30 C. Lowering the water activity at a particular temperature decreased rates of germination. However, at a low water activity (0.9778) germination rate was greater at 30 C than at 25 C. Thus, the effect of temperature on germination appears to be dependent on the water activity of the medium.


The Cretaceous to Eocene succession in central and south Jordan is characterised by passive continental margin depositional sequences, which pass upward from alluvial/paralic to carbonate shelf and pelagic ramp settings. Detailed section logging and outcrop mapping have produced robust lithostratigraphic and lithofacies schemes that can be correlated throughout the region and in the subsurface. These schemes are set in a sequence-stratigraphic context in relation to the evolution sedimentation on the Arabian and Levant plates. Three major megasequences are described (Kurnub, Ajlun and Belqa), and these are further subdivided into large-scale depositional sequences separated by regional sequence boundaries that represent maximum flooding surfaces. There is close correspondence between maximum flooding surfaces recording major sea-level rise with those derived for the Arabian and Levant plates, although there are some discrepancies with the precise timing of global sea-level fluctuations.
 An upward change from braided to meandering stream fluvial environments in central and south Jordan during the Early Cretaceous, reflects a decreasing geomorphological gradient of the alluvial plain, declining siliciclastic sediment flux, and increased floodplain accommodation, associated with a regional Late Albian (second-order) rise in relative sea-level. The Late Albian to Early Cenomanian marine transgression across the coastal alluvial plain marks a major sequence boundary. During Cenomanian to Turonian times a rimmed carbonate-shelf was established, characterised by skeletal carbonates showing small-scale, upward-shallowing cycles (fourth- to fifth-order parasequences) ranging from subtidal to intertidal facies, arranged into parasequence sets. Rimmed carbonate shelf sequences pass laterally to coeval coastal/alluvial plain facies to the south and east. Eustatic (third-order) fluctuations in relative sea level during the Cenomanian and Early Turonian resulted in deposition of ammonite-rich wackestones and organic-rich marls, during high sea-level stands (maximum flooding surfaces). Progradational sabkha/salina facies passing landwards to fluvial siliciclastics were deposited during an Early Turonian sea-level low stand, marks a regional sequence boundary, above which a highstand carbonate platform was established.
 A second-order, regional rise in sea level and marine transgression during the Early Coniacian marks a Type 2 sequence boundary, and subsequent drowning of the rimmed carbonate shelf by Late Coniacian times. Sedimentation during the Santonian to Maastrichtian was characterised by a hemi-pelagic chalk-chert-phosphorite lithofacies association, deposited in shallow to moderate water depths on a homoclinal ramp setting, although thicker coeval sequences were deposited in extensional rifts. The marked change in sedimentation from rimmed carbonate shelf to pelagic ramp is attributed to Neo-Tethyan mid-oceanic rifting, tilting, intracratonic deformation and subsidence of the platform; this is reflected in changes in biogenic productivity and ocean currents. Oceanic upwelling and high organic productivity resulted in the deposition of phosphorite together with giant oyster banks, the latter developing within oxygenated wave-base on the inner ramp. Chalk hardgrounds, sub-marine erosion surfaces, and gravitational slump folds indicate depositional hiatus and tectonic instability on the ramp. In the Early Maastrichtian, deeper-water chalk-marl, locally organic-rich, was deposited in density-stratified, anoxic basins, that were partly fault controlled.
 Pulsatory marine onlap (highstand sequences) during the Eocene is manifested in pelagic chalk and chert with a paucity of benthic macro-fauna, indicating a highly stressed, possibly hypersaline, and density-stratified water column. Comparison with global and regional relative sea-level curves enable regionally induced tectonic factors (hinterland uplift and ocean spreading) to be deduced, against a background of global sea-level rise, changing oceanic chemistry/productivity and climatic change.


A 25-year-old woman with a history of juvenile idiopathic arthritis and rheumatoid factor-positive polyarthritis developed dyspnoea. Progressive cystic lung disease was diagnosed. Biomarkers of autoimmunity, such as antinuclear antibodies, antiextractable nuclear antigen antibodies, anti-SCL-70, rheumatoid factor, cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies, c-antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody and MPO, were found. No familial disease was reported. Despite lack of kidney manifestations, coatomer-associated protein subunit alpha syndrome was suggested. Type 1 interferon signature score was 40.8 (range, <2.3). A class 4 heterozygous mutation (c.725T>G, p.Val242Gly) was confirmed. Due to abnormal trafficking between the Golgi complex and the endoplasmic reticulum, a Mendelian monogenic autosomal dominant syndrome associating inflammatory arthritis with interstitial lung disease, with several high-titre autoantibodies, was identified. Treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors, Janus kinases-signal transducers and activators of transduction, may be beneficial.


Abstract In order to examine the qualitative effect of different fats and specific fatty acids on plasma lipids and lipoprotein metabolism, six low fat, cholesterol-free diets were fed to young male hamsters (10/group) for a 4-week period. Fat blends were formulated with coconut oil, palm oil, soybean oil, high oleic acid safflower oil, butter, corn oil, and canola oil. Diets contained 13% energy as fat and dietary polyunsaturate/saturate ratios ranged from 0.12 to 1.04, one of which incorporated the American Heart Association-recommended concentrations of saturates, monoenes, and polyenes and another reflected the current American Fat Blend. In three diets the polyunsaturate/monounsaturate/saturate ratio was held constant while only the 12:0, 14:0, and 16:0 were varied. Plasma lipoproteins and apoproteins were assessed in conjunction with the abundance of specific hepatic and intestinal mRNA for the low density lipoproteins (LDL) receptor and various apolipoproteins associated with cholesterol metabolism. The plasma cholesterol response was lowest with the American Heart Association blend and equally elevated by the more saturated, low polyene diets (polyunsaturate/saturate, 0.12–0.38). Replacing 12:0 plus 14:0 from coconut oil with 16:0 as palm oil induced a significant increase in high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol with a trend toward decreased LDL. These shifts in lipoprotein cholesterol were corroborated by measures of the LDL/HDL ratio, the plasma apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A1 ratio, and differences in the synthesis of apolipoproteins and the LDL receptor based on estimates of the mRNA for these proteins in the liver and gut, using specific cDNA probes for apolipoprotein A1, apolipoprotein B, apolipoprotein E, and the LDL receptor. Although it has been suggested that dietary polyenes lower total plasma cholesterol, including HDL, and that saturated fat increases both these pools of cholesterol, the current data represent the first evidence that a specific saturated fatty acid, i.e., palmitic acid, may enhance HDL production.


Porous silicon was fabricated at p-n junction wafer by photoelectrochemical (PEC) etching. Silicon wafer with various electrolyte containing different HF concentration s was used to explain PS formation by the reaction at the Si/ electrolyte interface. An investigation of the dependence on HF concentration to formed PS layer was made. The surface morphology of PS layer was study as a function of HF concentration. Pillar like structures are formed at low HF concentration and pores structures are obtained a at higher HF concentration (40%). The etching rate increases with increasing HF concentration causing faster silicon dissolution. Thus the total pillar volume would increase by increasing the HF concentration.


For this study I gathered information on sources of ambulatory care and ambulatory care utilization, together with social, demographic, and health information. I applied a revision of Andersen's behavioral utilization model to all these data to try to explain patterns of ambulatory care utilization. Data are from a household survey of Rhode Island residents that was conducted in 1974. I have used multiple classification analysis (MCA), since the provider variable formed from the information on medical care sources is best conceptualized as being measured at a nominal level. It emphasizes both the number of different affiliations and the specialty and type of each affiliation. The MCA analysis with the provider set variable and the social, demographic, and need variables has a multiple R2 (adjusted) of 0.40. The most important explanatory variable is the number of conditions, a need variable; the next most important is the provider variable. This study demonstrates the value of variables that account for providers of care and ambulatory care patterns as well as measures of need and social and demographic variables in a complete model of utilization behavior.


ABSTRACT Despite advances in tracking technologies, migration strategies remain poorly studied for many small-bodied passerines. Understanding variation within a migration strategy is important as variation impacts a population's resilience to environmental change. Timing, pathway, and stopovers vary based on intrinsic and extrinsic factors that impact individual migration decisions and capacity. Here, we studied drivers of variation in migration across a linked population of Golden-winged Warbler (Vermivora chrysoptera) using data from 37 light-level geolocators. We tested if behaviors vary in response to extrinsic factors: season, year, and proximity to a large geographic barrier—the Gulf of Mexico—and intrinsic factors: age and wing chord. Spring migration was nearly twice as fast as fall migration, with tightly correlated arrival and departure dates that were consistent among years, in contrast to no correlation or consistency in fall. This aligns with predictions for selection to minimize time spent migrating in spring and a relaxation of that pressure in fall. Twenty-nine birds staged for multiple days (mean: 7.5, SE: 0.6) in stopover habitats before crossing the Gulf of Mexico in spring, but 6 individuals overwintering closer to the Gulf coast forewent the stopover and completed migration 8 days faster. These findings suggest birds capable of crossing the Gulf without a stopover may experience a selective advantage by minimizing total migration time. After crossing the Gulf, individuals reduced travel speed and stopover duration, indicating constraints on movement differ before and after the barrier. Wing chord, but not age, positively predicted the total distance and duration of migration, and neither varied with timing, suggesting migration distance impacts morphology, but strategies do not vary with age. Ultimately, we find undescribed stopover locations south of the Gulf are important for most of the population, while high variation in migration behaviors suggest potential resilience to changing environmental conditions.


The article relates to the fabrication of embedded P-N junction capacitors, using System-in-Package (SiP) technology, on a silicon interposer wafer with Through-Silicon-Via (TSV). The P-N junction capacitors are fabricated using current micromachining technologies, including etching high aspect-ratio, three-dimensional honeycomb structure and thermal oxidation, thermal dopant diffusion, sputtering, and metallization and so on. The fabricated capacitor displays high capacitance density compared with common two-dimensional (2D) P-N junction capacitors. Tests at high frequency (10 Mhz–40 GHz) were conducted to evaluate the properties of these capacitors. Test results show that the capacitors have a high capacitance density up to 12nF/mm2 of wafer area, with reverse bias voltage of 1V, which is about 10–12 times that of 2D semiconductor capacitors, and is attributed to the increased junction area inherent in the three-dimensional via structure. These capacitors can be used for decoupling under a wide frequency range from 300 MHz to 3.2 GHz. they show a low parasitic inductance by measuring. Capacitor has a characteristic that capacitance value also keeps up constant with the increase of frequency.


This article unifies two areas of property scholarship that have not historically intersected. In the field of biotechnology and the law, it is generally understood that human remains and many body parts are not objects of legal property. This general rule has a startling exception, which heretofore has gone unnoticed in the literature and relevant case law. The bodily remains of Native Americans were, and I argue, continue to be, objects of legal property.

With the passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990 (NAGPRA) Native American remains are classified as familial and tribal property. The distinction and significance of property status under NAGPRA has been overlooked in the Native American legal scholarship. The perpetuation of property status is surprising given that NAGPRA was passed to address the systematic disrespect for Native American burial grounds and commercialization of Native American remains. Property status is all the more striking and important because some federal circuits have also interpreted NAGPRA to apply to contemporary individuals with Native American ancestry. With the rise of genetic testing technologies, application of this property rule takes on some surprising implications.

At first glance, we might condemn the property status of Native American remains as continued evidence of dehumanization. Property is traditionally associated with rights of alienability, exclusion, commensurability, and commodification. The understanding of property in Native American human remains advocated for in this paper challenges classic property constructs of wealth-maximization and an individually centered right of exclusion. Instead, after re-considering the paradigm of property, I argue that the communal property approach embodied by the Act enables Native Americans to more effectively protect their dead compared to any other American group. NAGPRA, therefore, represents an intriguing pathway for human biological materials regulation reform more broadly.


The Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) data warehouse integrates genomes from all three domains of life, as well as plasmids, viruses and genome fragments. IMG provides tools for analyzing and reviewing the structural and functional annotations of genomes in a comparative context. IMG's data content and analytical capabilities have increased continuously since its first version released in 2005. Since the last report published in the 2012 NAR Database Issue, IMG's annotation and data integration pipelines have evolved while new tools have been added for recording and analyzing single cell genomes, RNA Seq and biosynthetic cluster data. Different IMG datamarts provide support for the analysis of publicly available genomes (IMG/W: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/w), expert review of genome annotations (IMG/ER: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/er) and teaching and training in the area of microbial genome analysis (IMG/EDU: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/edu).


: Genetic linkage between the albino (c) and hemoglobin beta-chain (Hb beta) genes in rabbits was demonstrated by means of segregation data from one full-sib family. The map distance was estimated at 9 +/- 6 cM, which is similar to the 8 cM previously estimated between the same pair of loci in both mice and rats. The interspecies conservation of the chromosome segment comprising c and Hb beta thus extends outside the rodent family. Indications that it also may be conserved in man are discussed.


Members of the tribe Podismini (Orthoptera: Acrididae: Melanoplinae) are distributed mainly in Eurasia and the western and eastern regions of North America. The primary aim of this study is to explore the phylogenetic relationship of Japanese Podismini grasshoppers by comparing partial sequences of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) mitochondrial gene. Forty podismine species (including nineteen Japanese species) and thirty-seven species from other tribes of the Melanoplinae (Dactylotini, Dichroplini, Melanoplini, and Jivarini) were used in the analyses. All the Japanese Podismini, except Anapodisma, were placed in a well-supported subclade. However, our results did not correspond with the classification on the basis of morphological similarity for the status of Tonkinacridina. This group of Japanese species constituted a single clade with other species of Miramellina and Podismina, while Eurasian continental species of Tonkinacridina were placed in other separate clades. This incongruence might have resulted from historical migratory events between continent and ancient islands and subsequent convergent/parallel evolution in morphology. Some remarks on phylogenetic positions in Podismini and other tribes were also made in terms of reconstructed phylogeny.


Amongst the impacts of converting forest to agricultural activities is the degradation of ecology service values and goods (ESVG). Impacts on ESVG can be devastating in environmental, biological, and socio-economics manners. This paper highlights the study undertaken on the impacts of agricultural development in 0.8x106 ha of forest dominated landscape in Pasoh Forest Region (PFR), Malaysia, within period of 8 years from 1995 to 2003. Three folds of impacts on agricultural development examined and analysed are: (i) relationship of total soil loss and changes in land use pattern, (ii) mapping trends of ESVG for PFR in 1995 and 2003, and (iii) risk assessment of ESVG based on simulation of converting 339x103ha of primary forest into mass-scale oil palm plantation. Results of this study indicated that although only minor changes of about 1464ha (~0.2% of PFR) of primary forest was converted to agricultural activities, it have significantly increased the total soil loss from 59x106 to 69x106 t/ha/yr. The mean rate of soil loss within PFR is 0.8x106 t/yr, and if translated into ESVG term, costing US$4.8x106/yr. However, majority of the soil loss within all land use classes are within range of very low - low risk categories (<10 t/ha/yr). Estimated cost of ESVG for PFR was US$179x106 in 1995, declined to US$114x106 in 2003 due to 0.2% reduction of forested land. Converting 339x103 ha primary forest into mass plantation cost less than original forest within period of 20 years examined; the 20th year of conversion, the ESVG of plantation and to-remain as forest cost US$963x106 and US$575x106, respectively. This difference, however, is only marginal when full 17 attributes of ESVG were considered.


Purpose: Visitor restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic limit in-person family meetings for hospitalized patients. We aimed to evaluate the quantity of family meetings by telephone, video and in-person during the COVID-19 pandemic by manual chart review. Secondary outcomes included rate of change in patient goals of care between video and in-person meetings, the timing of family meetings, and variability in meetings by race and ethnicity. Methods: A retrospective cohort study evaluated patients admitted to the intensive care unit at an urban academic hospital between March and June 2020. Patients lacking decision-making capacity and receiving a referral for a video meeting were included in this study. Results: Most patients meeting inclusion criteria (N = 61/481, 13%) had COVID-19 pneumonia (n = 57/61, 93%). A total of 650 documented family meetings occurred. Few occurred in-person (n = 70/650, 11%) or discussed goals of care (n = 233/650, 36%). For meetings discussing goals of care, changes in patient goals of care occurred more often for in-person meetings rather than by video (36% vs. 11%, p = 0.0006). The average time to the first goals of care family meeting was 11.4 days from admission. More documented telephone meetings per admission were observed for White (10.5, SD 9.5) and Black/African-American (7.1, SD 6.6) patients compared to Hispanic or Latino patients (4.9, SD 4.9) (p = 0.02). Conclusions: During this period of strict visitor restrictions, few family meetings occurred in-person. Statistically significant fewer changes in patient goals of care occurred following video meetings compared to in-person meetings, providing support limiting in-person meetings may affect patient care.


(Full translation from the Dutch: Rapportage Ouderen 2001)
Report on the Elderly 2001 presents an overview of the position of the elderly
in Dutch society. The central themes of the Report are participation in
education and the labour market, financial status, housing situation, health,
participation in physical exercise, take-up of services and care provisions,
and use of computers. Elderly members of ethnic minorities and residents of
residential care homes and nursing homes are also included.

This Report shows that the majority of elderly people living in the
Netherlands are doing well. The social participation of elderly people
increased in several areas during the 1990s: their participation in the labour
market increased and their financial status improved. Nevertheless, there are
some areas where additional policy measures are called for. The policy on the
elderly needs to focus above all on elderly persons with severe health problems
and on those with low socio-economic status.

Report on the Elderly 2001 is the fifth in the series published by the
Social and Cultural Planning Office (SCP) at the request of the Dutch Ministry
of Health, Welfare and Sport.


This study seeks an understanding of how tutors perceived the online part of a blended learning course in the context of teaching English as a foreign language at a German university. To gain knowledge about the ways in which the tutors experienced the phenomenon, a phenomenographic methodological framework was employed. Identified were four different ways of conceiving the online course as: A a one-way street of communication: to provide students with extra materials to practice individually and for asynchronous communication, B an add-on to on-campus classes; C a distant relationship between students and online tutors; and D an opportunity for tutor's professional development and team communication. The phenomenographic approach allowed to reveal variations of tutors' perceptions of teaching online with a view of enhancing the university curriculum. The findings may have implications for university teachers and educational designers.


We investigate how the assumption that individuals are characterized by some recent forms of behavioural preferences changes the analysis of an otherwise classical welfare problem, namely the optimal allocation of a scarce resource among a finite number of claimants. We consider two preference specifications: inequity aversion and reference dependence. In the latter case we also study the implications of the claimants displaying a self-serving bias when setting their reference point. Using standard welfare criteria, we compute the optimal allocations that a benevolent social planner should implement in the various scenarios. Results are often remarkably different with respect to traditional (i.e., rational preferences) analysis. We discuss the policy implications and the role of a social planner.


BACKGROUND/AIM
Thoracic spine insufficiency is a subject of interest in neck problems. The aim was to investigate thoracic spinal curvature and mobility in subjects with and without chronic neck pain (CNP), cut-off points, and the relationship with pain.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Fifty-six patients with CNP (CNP group) and 53 healthy volunteers (control group) were included. Neck pain intensity of the patients was assessed by visual analogue scale and sagittal thoracic curvature and mobility of all participants were assessed by Spinal Mouse (Idiag, Fehraltorf, Switzerland).

RESULTS
Thoracic curvature was higher (P < 0.001) and mobility lower in the CNP group in comparison to the control group (P = 0.013). There was a positive correlation between pain intensity and thoracic curvature (r = 0.391, P < 0.001), while there was a negative correlation between pain intensity and thoracic mobility (r = -0.260, P = 0.006). For detecting neck pain, it was observed that the cut-off points for thoracic curvature and mobility were 45.5° and 30.0°, respectively.

CONCLUSION
An increase in thoracic curvature of more than 45° and a decrease in mobility more than 30° may be critical for CNP patients.


The free energies interconnecting nine tungsten complexes have been determined from chemical equilibria and electrochemical data in MeCN solution (T = 22 °C). Homolytic W-H bond dissociation free energies are 59.3(3) kcal mol(-1) for CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H and 59(1) kcal mol(-1) for the dihydride [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)(H)(2)](+) (where IMes = 1,3-bis(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidene), indicating that the bonds are the same within experimental uncertainty for the neutral hydride and the cationic dihydride. For the radical cation, [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H](•+), W-H bond homolysis to generate the 16-electron cation [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)](+) is followed by MeCN uptake, with free energies for these steps being 51(1) and -16.9(5) kcal mol(-1), respectively. Based on these two steps, the free energy change for the net conversion of [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H](•+) to [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)(MeCN)](+) in MeCN is 34(1) kcal mol(-1), indicating a much lower bond strength for the 17-electron radical cation of the metal hydride compared to the 18-electron hydride or dihydride. The pK(a) of CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H in MeCN was determined to be 31.9(1), significantly higher than the 26.6 reported for the related phosphine complex, CpW(CO)(2)(PMe(3))H. This difference is attributed to the electron donor strength of IMes greatly exceeding that of PMe(3). The pK(a) values for [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H](•+) and [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)(H)(2)](+) were determined to be 6.3(5) and 6.3(8), much closer to the pK(a) values reported for the PMe(3) analogues. The free energy of hydride abstraction from CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H is 74(1) kcal mol(-1), and the resultant [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)](+) cation is significantly stabilized by binding MeCN to form [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)(MeCN)](+), giving an effective hydride donor ability of 57(1) kcal mol(-1) in MeCN. Electrochemical oxidation of [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)](-) is fully reversible at all observed scan rates in cyclic voltammetry experiments (E° = -1.65 V vs Cp(2)Fe(+/0) in MeCN), whereas CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)H is reversibly oxidized (E° = -0.13(3) V) only at high scan rates (800 V s(-1)). For [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)(MeCN)](+), high-pressure NMR experiments provide an estimate of ΔG° = 10.3(4) kcal mol(-1) for the displacement of MeCN by H(2) to give [CpW(CO)(2)(IMes)(H)(2)](+).


Although several studies have empirically investigated the connection between corporate governance structures and financial performance, evidence from the literature indicates that findings from these studies are inconsistent, hence inconclusive. In this light, some scholars suggest that the inconsistency in the findings could be an indication that there is factor(s) moderating the relationship between the two variables. For this reason, we investigate how corporate board structures relate to financial performance and the effect of directors' financial compensation on such relationship using samples of the UK top firms. The findings of the study suggest that board composition is positively associated with financial performance (Tobin q). Other than that, the study also indicates that the effect of directors' financial compensation interacts positively with board composition to influence financial performance. By implication, this finding demonstrates that financial rewards to the outside directors play an inevitable role in influencing the relationship between corporate board and financial performance.


As a secular institution the University of Sydney has been constantly engaged from its foundation in accommodating religious bodies, organisations and movements. The first process of accommodation emerged from the decision of the colonial state to provide financial and other support for the establishment of denominational colleges. This had the effect of ensuring that all the major religious denominations were treated equally but it also led to serious divisions within those denominations, although the Catholic community in particular secured a college base that would meet the social aspirations as well as the religious commitments of Catholic youth.

The second process of accommodation involved the creation of Christian student organisations which became the first student youth movements within the University, and nationally, being supported by a number of the Professors. But this ultimately led to a series of divisions within Protestant Christian youth as well as fierce contest between fundamental religious and non-religious students over the role of religion within the University.

The final process involved the University from 1945 accepting the emerging multi-faith nature of Australia and engaging organised religion in forms of social welfare for the student body. By the early 21st century religion had a new multi-ethnic face, while 'secularism' seemed to be leading to the possibility of new privileges for all religions.

Geoff Sherington has a Personal Chair in the History of Education.


Context: The Kidney Disease Outcomes and Quality Initiative guidelines are the most widely disseminated guidelines regarding the clinical evaluation and management of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Purpose: Assess the prevalence of diagnosis and staging of CKD by primary care providers (PCPs). Methods: For the purpose of this assessment, stage 3 CKD was defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) between 30 and 59 mL/min/1.73 m2 for at least 3 months. Eligible individuals were 1447 white, nondiabetic patients 40-74 years of age. Results: Information on a random sample of 110 patients was analyzed. Chronic kidney disease was reported in 22% of the patients, whereas only 7% of patients had both CKD and stage 3 reported in their medical record. PCPs were significantly more likely to record CKD in male than in female patients (79% vs 34%; P < .001). Patients who had CKD recorded were significantly more likely to be referred to a nephrologist (46% vs 3%; P < .001). Even among patients who had a diagnosis of coronary artery disease, were older, or had lower eGFR, a diagnosis of CKD was less likely to be recorded. Only 22% had their serum phosphorus, 12% their parathyroid hormone, and 64% a urinalysis recorded. Conclusions: This study found that the prevalence of recording CKD and staging by PCPs was low. Primary care providers were more likely to record CKD in male than in female patients. Finally, testing for bone disease is underperformed. There is a need to identify mechanisms to improve evaluation and management of CKD by PCPs.


As hundreds of residents are evacuated from the Himalayan pilgrimage town of Joshimath, the realities of the scale of impact of extreme disasters associated with a changing climate and other uncertainties loom large in India. Globally, scientists have proven beyond belief that these disastrous events are caused by human action, that is, they are anthropogenic in nature. They agree that the anthropogenic emission of greenhouse gases, especially since the Industrial Revolution, originates from the energy sector: the mining and burning of coal, generation of thermal power, vehicular emissions, and other emissions, such as those from industries. One way to deal with the growing incidence of climate-related extreme events is to reduce fossil-fuel consumption and gradually move to a decarbonised world. This is why nations across the world have committed to reducing carbon emissions to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 at the Conference of Parties (CoP) 21, held in Paris in 2015, and CoP 26, held in Glasgow in 2022. While the review of Ruth Gamble's book directly addresses the Himalayan problem, all the other book reviews in this issue address the question of climate change.


While cotton has traditionally been the dominant crop in irrigated broad-acre farming systems of subtropical Australia, high grain prices triggered a record area of
irrigated wheat production in the winter of 2008. Unfortunately wheat yields were substantially lower than expected, probably due to widespread lodging (a disorder
where crops fall over). And while irrigation water was plentiful for the 2008 season, the typical water availability for irrigated wheat production in the region involves water rather than land being the limiting factor to production.

Little research has been conducted on the potential yield, water use requirement or water productivity of irrigated spring wheat in the northern grain production region of eastern Australia, often referred to as the 'northern grains region'. Such information would allow growers to assess lodging-related yield losses, compare the
profitability of irrigated wheat against alternative crops, and determine the irrigation strategies that maximise economic returns. Additionally, there is uncertainty within
the region over which agronomic techniques can be used to minimise the risk of lodging without reducing grain yield.

The overarching question to be addressed by this study is therefore: what are the agronomic practices required to achieve maximum water productivity in irrigated wheat, across the northern grain production region of eastern Australia? Two specific hypotheses were investigated in answering this question: (1) that lodging constrains irrigated wheat yields in the northern grains region, and agronomic techniques can be used to control lodging, and (2) that when irrigation water availability is limited, maximum whole-farm crop water productivity for wheat is achieved by partially irrigating a larger crop area rather than fully irrigating a smaller area. These hypotheses were investigated in the context of spring-wheat production systems within the northern grains region, where water rather than irrigable area is generally the limiting factor to crop production.

The APSIM (Agricultural Production Systems Simulator) model was used to determine the potential yield and water use requirement of irrigated spring wheat, but first required validation against field data. Crop production data (e.g. biomass and grain yield) were collected from 21 wheat crops throughout the northern grains region in 2008 and 2009, and recorded crop conditions and inputs (e.g. weather data, sowing dates, irrigation) were used to parameterise APSIM simulations for each crop.

APSIM predicted biomass production satisfactorily in 2008 but substantially over-predicted grain yield of lodged fields. The mean difference (yield gap) between APSIM-estimated potential yield and farmer-realised yield was 0.9 t ha−1 in nonlodged fields, and 2.5 t ha−1 in lodged fields. The average effect of lodging was therefore estimated as a decrease in grain yield of 1.6 t ha−1, the difference between the yield gap calculated for lodged and non-lodged fields. In 2009 commercial fields generally experienced little lodging, probably due to the use of in-crop nitrogen (N) application to control canopy development. APSIM generally under-predicted biomass production and yield in these fields, suggesting that the N uptake parameters in APSIM may require adjustment. However, observed yields from fields of a quickmaturing cultivar that experienced little lodging were simulated accurately when N was assumed to be non-limiting. Further simulations of fully irrigated, quick maturing wheat using 50 years of climate data at six representative locations found that the potential yield of irrigated spring wheat in the northern grains region was approximately 8 to 9 t ha-1, and average growing season evapotranspiration of such crops was approximately 490 to 530 mm, depending on location.

The canopy management techniques of in-crop N application and reduced plant population are widely used in rainfed wheat production in temperate climates. However they are untested on irrigated wheat in the subtropics, and may not reduce lodging risk in the northern grains region without simultaneously reducing yield potential. Irrigated small plot experiments were therefore conducted in 2009 and 2011 to examine the effect of alternative N timing and plant populations on lodging and yield for two cultivars, under well-watered conditions.

Low sowing N treatments exhibited moderate to severe vegetative N stress,having soil plus fertiliser N at sowing of less than 80 kg ha-1 (sometimes as low as 15 kg N ha-1) and the majority of fertiliser N applied in-season. These low sowing N treatments had significantly less lodging and were the highest yielding, exhibiting yield increases of up to 0.8 t ha-1 compared to high sowing N treatments. Increasing plant population above 100 plants m-2 increased lodging and decreased yield in high N treatments, but did not always increase lodging in low N treatments. Increased LAI, biomass and tiller count at the end of the vegetative growth phase were correlated with increased lodging in both cultivars, although the strength of the correlation varied with cultivar and season. Optimal N regime varied slightly between the cultivars, indicating that the optimisation of canopy management techniques for irrigated spring wheat systems would require further investigation of genotype × management interaction. It was therefore determined that canopy management techniques can be used to simultaneously increase yield and decrease lodging in irrigated spring wheat in the subtropics, but should be implemented differently to the techniques used in temperate regions of Australia, where recommended plant population and sowing N rates are higher than those identified in the present study.

While full irrigation of wheat in 2008 was forecast to be profitable (before the impact of lodging was apparent), irrigation water availability for irrigated wheat growing in the northern grains region is usually limited, and water rather than land is typically the limiting factor to production. Previous studies in other regions indicate that deficit (i.e. partial) irrigation of wheat is often considered to have greater economic water productivity (EWP) under such circumstances. Unfortunately, the cost/revenue functions traditionally used to evaluate alternative irrigation strategies are not applicable across multiple environments, and such studies have not accounted for the intrinsic value of water stored in the soil at the end of the cropping season.

The APSIM model was therefore used to determine whether growing larger areas of deficit irrigated wheat is more profitable than full irrigation of a smaller area in the northern grains region, when water rather than land is the limiting factor. The analyses accounted for the value of stored soil water across the entire farm by simulating rainfed crop production on unirrigated land, and/or by assigning an economic value to stored soil water remaining at the end of the season. Whole-farm profitability was assessed for alternative economic analyses where different values (inexpensive vs. expensive) were assumed for both irrigation water and stored soil water. Optimal irrigation strategies were those considered to be the most risk efficient, being closest to a 1:2 'line of indifference' that identifies the two unit increase in risk (measured as standard deviation) acceptable to farmers in return for a unit increase in profit. The results of the simulation study demonstrated that irrigation strategies involving deficit irrigation of larger areas of wheat generally had greater levels of absolute profitability, and were typically more risk-efficient than smaller areas of fully irrigated wheat. When precipitation or stored soil water at sowing was increased, the most risk-efficient strategies were those that spread the water across a larger area at a reduced frequency of irrigation. However in a low rainfall environment when water was expensive and soil water was given the same economic value as irrigation water, fully irrigated wheat in conjunction with fallow land was found to be the most profitable and risk-efficient option. The importance of evaluating farm-management strategies using EWP (i.e. incorporating gross margins) instead of crop water productivity (grain yield per unit of water use) was evident, as re-ranking of farm-management strategies occurred between these alternative methods of calculating whole-farm EWP. Accounting for the intrinsic value of stored soil water and precipitation was fundamental to understanding the benefit of deficit irrigation strategies in water limited situations, as the larger crop area sown in
conjunction with deficit irrigation strategies accessed much larger absolute volumes of soil water and precipitation. Future evaluations of deficit irrigation strategies should account for such considerations.

The results of this study therefore support the hypothesis that lodging constrains irrigated wheat production in the northern grain production region of eastern Australia, and that agronomic techniques can be used to control lodging. The study also supports the second hypothesis that maximum whole-farm water productivity is achieved by partially irrigating a larger area of wheat when water availability is limited, except in low rainfall environments where irrigation water is expensive and soil water is assigned an economic value equivalent to the irrigation water.


Results from two experiments suggest that stereotype-threat effects are special cases of a more general process involving the need to maintain or enhance status. We hypothesized that situations capable of confirming a performance stereotype might represent either a threat to status or an opportunity for enhancement of status, depending on the nature of the stereotype. The positive relationship between baseline tes- tosterone and status sensitivity led us to hypothesize that high testosterone levels in males and females would amplify existing performance expecta- tions when gender-based math-performance stereotypes were activated. In Study 1, high-testosterone females performed poorly on a math test when a negative performance stereotype was primed. In Study 2, high- testosterone males excelled on a math test when a positive performance stereotype was primed. The moderating effect of testosterone on perfor- mance suggests that a stereotype-relevant situation is capable of conferring either a loss or a gain of status on targets of the stereotype.


A multiplexing scheme onto K OFDM subcarriers arranges M ≤ K dimensions to shape the signal's transmit spectrum while the remaining K - M dimensions are used to orthogonally multiplex data symbols. This results in a new class of basis functions along with an equivalent precoder structure. In particular, N-continuous OFDM signals are realized as an orthogonal multiplex.


In acute myocardial ischemia of dogs glycogen is mobilized most completely and its break down products are utilized most efficaciously after administration of izatin rather than after gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GABA) and guthymin. Izatin potentiates a beneficial effect of GABA on myocardial energy efficiency.


Electron beam loss due to intra-beam scattering, the Touschek effect, in a storage ring depends on the electron beam polarization. The polarization of an electron beam can be determined from the difference in the Touschek lifetime compared with an unpolarized beam. In this paper, we report on a systematic experimental procedure recently developed at Duke FEL laboratory to study the radiative polarization of a stored electron beam. Using this technique, we have successfully observed the radiative polarization build-up of an electron beam in the Duke storage ring, and determined the equilibrium degree of polarization and the time constant of the polarization build-up process.


The microbiomes of rhizocompartments (nodule endophytes, root endophytes, rhizosphere and root zone) in soya bean and alfalfa were analysed using high‐throughput sequencing to investigate the interactions among legume species, microorganisms and soil types. A clear hierarchical filtration of microbiota by plants was observed in the four rhizocompartments – the nodule endosphere, root endosphere, rhizosphere and root zone – as demonstrated by significant variations in the composition of the microbial community in the different compartments. The rhizosphere and root zone microbial communities were largely influenced by soil type, and the nodule and root endophytes were primarily determined by plant species. Diverse microbes inhabited the root nodule endosphere, and the corresponding dominant symbiotic rhizobia belonged to Ensifer for alfalfa and Ensifer–Bradyrhizobium for soya bean. The nonsymbiotic nodule endophytes were mainly Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. The variation in root microbial communities was also affected by the plant growth stage. In summary, this study demonstrated that the enrichment process of nodule endophytes follows a hierarchical filtration and that the bacterial communities in nodule endophytes vary according to the plant species.


The article reports on findings from the TALIS (Teaching and Learning International Survey) 2013 study for Abu Dhabi which gathered teachers' views on teaching and learning with a focus on professional development. The aim of this study is to better understand teachers' perceptions of professional development needs and impacts as well as the barriers faced by teachers from secondary schools in Abu Dhabi. The study provides some insights into the variations of those perceptions relative to other independent variables such as teachers' age and gender, and type of schools. With regard to the perceived need for professional development activities, the most significant variation is observed with regard to public or private schools. With regard to the impact of those activities, male teachers almost consistently assign higher perceived impact scores than female teachers. Public schools also assign higher perceived impact scores for all activities that they participated in. However, female teachers assign significantly higher perceived barrier scores to five of the seven listed barriers to participating in professional development activities. The research has implications for professional development providers to ensure the effectiveness of professional development opportunities for educators in Abu Dhabi.


Using the storyThe Frog Princeas a symbol of traditional awareness of the potential marginality of men in society, Transforming Menproposes that much of patriarchy is a theatrical illusion. Presenting men as more important and powerful than they really are should be seen as a way of controlling them, rather than as a system for dominating women. The author believes that both men and women need to feel that other people are dependent on them. Dench states that women acquire a sense of responsibility through the direct dependence of children, but most men can only come to experience responsibility via women. If women reject the male breadwinning role, then men will never develop the altruistic incentive. Dench urges that men need to be given a greater stake than women in the public realm in order to be the main family providers and become caring members of society. Dispensing with male privileges and formal positions, the author continues, will simply reveal and revive older and deeper problems, to which patriarchy itself was a historical and sociological solution. Dench does not deny the possibility that if men did behave as feminists have asked or expected, then certainly we would be living in a far better world. However, he asserts that it is too simple to just blame men for the fact that this has not happened; perhaps the real failure lies in feminist approaches and theories. Thus, Dench persuasively argues that feminism may be making the male problem worse, not better by insisting on everything from absolute parity to role reversal. Transforming Mencontains examples of many different feminist viewpoints, including those of Margaret Mead, Betty Friedan, and Camille Paglia. It also uses contemporary cultural instances, such as popular movies, television shows, and books, to emphasize its points. This volume presents an intriguing argument regarding feminism versus a patriarchal society. It will provide stimulating reading for all those interested in the feminist debate.


14C measurements are reported for fractionated soil organic matter from a genetic soil sequence which was sampled several times during the period of atmospheric nuclear weapons testing. Fractionation of the soils by density followed by acid hydrolysis was successful in separating the organic matter into components with mean residence times for carbon ranging from 5 to 20 years (low density fraction) to several thousand years (residue after acid hydrolysis). Comparison of the infiltration of bomb 14C into the vertical soil profile with the distribution of 137Cs, gives clues as to the mechanism (most probably dissolved transport) for importing carbon into deeper soil layers.


ABSTRACT The aims of this study were to characterize the functional composition of benthic macrofauna of a tropical sea-grass bed and to determine temporal variations in abundance of benthic macrofauna in relation to environmental factors such as sea-grass biomass, temperature, salinity, and sediment type. Benthic macrofaunal composition and abundance were investigated by core sampler during April 1999, October 1999, March 2000, and August 2000 at three stations within a sea-grass bed at Cockle Bay in North Queensland, Australia. A total of 110 species of benthic macrofauna was collected. Polychaetes were the most abundant group (37 species; 52% of total macrofaunal numbers; 47% of biomass) followed by amphipods (27 species; 35% of total numbers). Decapods were also important, with 28 species contributing 31% of total macrofaunal biomass. Other miscellaneous groups were tanaids, isopods, and ophiuroids. Most amphipods (65%) and decapods (90%) were epifaunal, but polychaetes were equally represented by epifauna and infauna. Temporal variation in both species composition and abundance was large: the peak number of benthic macrofauna occurred in April 1999 and March 2000, and biomass was highest in April 1999. Benthic macrofauna numbers as well as biomass were lowest in August 2000. These temporal patterns of abundance of benthic macrofauna appeared to correlate closely with temporal variation of sea-grass biomass. In addition, the factors of life cycle and predation by common fish species may be indirectly associated with these patterns of macrofaunal abundance.


It has been observed [1, 2] that the locally measured Hubble parameter converges quickest to the background value and the dipole structure of the velocity field is smallest in the reference frame of the Local Group of galaxies. We study the statistical properties of Lorentz boosts with respect to the Cosmic Microwave Background frame which make the Hubble flow look most uniform around a particular observer. We use a very large N-Body simulation to extract the dependence of the boost velocities on the local environment such as underdensities, overdensities, and bulk flows. We find that the observation [1, 2] is not unexpected if we are located in an underdensity, which is indeed the case for our position in the universe. The amplitude of the measured boost velocity for our location is consistent with the expectation in the standard cosmology.


A simple equivalent series resistance (ESR) measurement technique for capacitors at high current and high frequency is presented. A low-cost square waveform voltage source coupled with a reference resistor can be used to measure the ESR of an electrolytic capacitor. By connecting a capacitor in series with a reference resistor, the ratio of the voltage magnitude across the capacitor to the voltage magnitude of the supply voltage reveals the ESR of the capacitor if the frequency of the supply source is sufficiently high. The square waveform voltage source can easily be realised using a DC voltage source and simple switching devices. An addition of a small inductor in series with the reference resistor could eliminate the effect of the equivalent series inductance and improve the measurement accuracy. A mathematical analysis is presented to demonstrate that the use of the square waveform and the addition of the small inductor are valid. Experimental results are included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.


Heavy metals are a major class of pollutants that are responsible for high level of toxicity in living beings. These metals have the tendency to bio-accumulate in the living tissues; their levels can be determined in the various organs of the body. Most of the old methods used for the indication of heavy metal contamination in the environment usually involve the killing of animals, whereas current study is used to determine the heavy metal contamination in fecal matter, feed, water and soil without causing any harm to the lives of animals. Observed level of heavy metal like cadmium (0.0073 ppm to 0.020 ppm), lead (0.029 ppm to 0.036 ppm), zinc (4.88 ppm to 5.326 ppm) and copper (0.118 ppm to 0.135 ppm) showed that their amounts are significantly high in fecal sample of Punjab Urial as compared to other samples collected both from Lahore zoo as well as Bahawalpur zoo.


PURPOSE
To determine the optimal width and timing of the electrocardiographic (ECG) pulsing window within the cardiac cycle in relation to heart rate (HR), image quality, and radiation exposure in patients who are suspected of having coronary artery disease.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
The institutional review board approved the study, and all patients gave informed consent. Dual-source computed tomography (CT) was performed in 301 patients (mean HR, 70.1 beats per minute +/- 13.3 [standard deviation]; range, 43-112 beats per minute) by using a wide ECG pulsing window (25%-70% of the R-R interval). Data sets were reconstructed in 5% steps from 20%-75% of R-R interval. Image quality was assessed by two observers on a per-segment level and was classified as good or impaired. High-quality data sets were those in which each segment was of good quality. The width and timing of the image reconstruction window was calculated. On the basis of these findings, an optimal HR-dependent ECG pulsing protocol was designed, and the potential dose-saving effect on effective dose (in millisieverts) was calculated.

RESULTS
At low HR (< or = 65 beats per minute), high-quality data sets were obtained during end diastole (ED); at high HR (> or = 80 beats per minute), they were obtained during end systole (ES); and at intermediate HR (66-79 beats per minute), they were obtained during both ES and ED. Optimal ECG pulsing windows for low, intermediate, and high HR were at 60%-76%, 30%-77%, and 31%-47% of the R-R interval, respectively, and with these levels, the effective dose was decreased at low HR from 18.7 to 6.8 mSv, at intermediate HR from 14.7 to 13.4 mSv, and at high HR from 11.3 to 4.2 mSv.

CONCLUSION
With optimal ECG pulsing, radiation exposure to patients, particularly those with low or high HR, can be reduced with preservation of image quality.


: In recent years, Livestock Associated Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (LA-MRSA) are found frequently in pigs. The colonization of the care staff with LA-MRSA is strongly associated with the intensity and duration of animal contact and LA-MRSA herd prevalence. In human medicine, staphylococcal infections have been controlled successfully by topical or systemic administration of Staphylococcus - associated bacteriophages. Therefore, the present study investigated the effect of a bacteriophage cocktail on skin and mucosal colonization of pigs with MRSA in a pig farm with high MRSA prevalence. In a first experiment, the sows were washed with a bacteriophage cocktail and nose, mouth and vagina were rinsed before the sows were admitted to the farrowing house. Then, 10 ml of the bacteriophage cocktail was administered daily to the sows over the feed until weaning. The suckling piglets were sprayed and sampled twice a week during the suckling period and treated with the bacteriophage cocktail over the feed during the weaning period. In further experiments, the weaning room was nebulized three times a day with a bacteriophage cocktail and different concentrations of bacteriophages were added to the drinking water via Dosatron®. None of the experiments, however, showed an eradication of MRSA neither in nose nor in feces. colonization of pigs with MRSA in a pig farm with high MRSA prevalence. In a first experiment, the sows were washed with a bacteriophage cocktail and nose, mouth and vagina were rinsed before the sows were admitted to the farrowing house. Then, 10 ml of the bacteriophage cocktail was administered daily to the sows over the feed until weaning. The suckling piglets were sprayed and sampled twice a week during the suckling period and treated with the bacteriophage cocktail over the feed during the weaning period. In further experiments, the weaning room was nebulized three times a day with a bacteriophage cocktail and different concentrations of bacteriophages were added to the drinking water via Dosatron ® . None of the experiments, however, showed an eradication of MRSA neither in nose nor in feces.


Fluorocarbon coatings were deposited on the surface of regenerated cellulose films by RF magnetron sputtering, using polytetrafluoroethylene targets. Argon was used as the working gas. The coatings were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and static contact angle and oxygen permeability measurements. It was found that the coatings were made up of the four components -CF3, -CF2-, -CF- and -C-. The [F]/[C] ratio varied with sputtering conditions. The static contact angle of the coatings was greater than 90° at lower power and higher pressure, and the substrate material was transformed from hydrophilic to hydrophobic character. The fluorocarbon coatings were porous and did not influence the oxygen permeability of the cellulose film substrates.