BACKGROUND : Communicable diseases affecting military personnel in sub-Saharan Africa impact the overall health of soldiers and their contacts, and include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and syphilis infections. Understanding the risks of acquisition and transmission of sexually transmissible infections, particularly of HIV, is critical in shaping effective prevention interventions among soldiers in Sierra Leone. Sexual behaviors including partner types and condom use, as well as other behaviors such as alcohol use and gender-specific beliefs surrounding female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) were investigated in order to determine their influence on HIV and syphilis transmission risk. METHODS : This cross- sectional study recruited soldiers from the Sierra Leone Armed Forces using random systematic sampling in 2013. Participants were individually interviewed using a structured computer-assisted questionnaire. The seroprevalence of HIV and syphilis was assessed using rapid testing algorithms. Alcohol-related sexual disinhibition (ARSD) was examined among male soldiers living in Eastern Sierra Leone. Opinions towards the influence of FGM/C on partner selection, STI protection, and condom use were evaluated. Demographic and behavioral characteristics associated with these beliefs were analyzed. RESULTS : We found that female gender, unplanned sex after alcohol use, using a condom at last sex, having multiple concurrent sexual partnerships, and HIV testing outside of military clinics were positively associated with HIV status (p<0.05). Positive syphilis serology was associated with older age, and HIV-infection. Secondly, ARSD was significantly associated with cohabitating with a sexual partner, paying for sex, no previous HIV testing, and acquiring an STI. Overall, 1 in 6 men believed that FGM/C affected their choice in sexual partner, that the practice was protective against STIs and the justification for unprotected sex. Similarly, 1 in 4 women reported the same beliefs. Attitudes on partner selection were associated with lower education and low knowledge of HIV transmission pathways among men. Among women participants, believing that FGM/C protected from STIs was positively associated with being HIV-positive. CONCLUSION : This research demonstrated several behaviors and beliefs that expose soldiers to STIs. These behaviors should be addressed among soldiers through integrated interventions covering education on HIV transmission, alcohol use reduction, and sensitization on the adverse outcomes of FGM/C


. The growth of fullerene films on Si(111)-7 (cid:2) 7 surfaces and the formation of the C 60 = Si . 111 / -7 (cid:2) 7 interface was studied using low-energy electron diffraction, Auger electron spectroscopy and x-ray as well as ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy. The initial growth of C 60 proceeds layer-by-layer. No chemical reactions or interdiffusion were observed. The C 60 deposition does not change the binding energies of Si(2p) and C(1s) electrons. Therefore, the band bending of the clean Si(111)-7 (cid:2) 7 surface remains the same, irrespective of the C 60 coverage. The photoemission measurements yield a valence-band discontinuity of 0 : 6 (cid:6) 0 : 2 eV at the C 60 = Si . 111 / -7 (cid:2) 7 interface. The band line-up at semiconductor interfaces is explained by the adjustment of the branch points in the continuum of the interface-induced gap states. Our experimentally observed valence-band offset agrees well with the theoretical predictions if the branch point of C 60 is assumed at midgap position.


Objective. To describe the main qualitative research techniques through systematic review of Spanish studies published during the previous 5 years. Design. Systematic review. Data sources. The Indice Medico Espanol (bibliographic database of items published in Spanish health sciences journals) was searched, and systematic searches of the journals Atencion Primaria, Gaceta Sanitaria, and Revista de Calidad Asistencial were done. Study selection. We included studies carried out with any type of qualitative research technique. Also included were studies that reviewed qualitative research techniques. We excluded studies that used a qualitative technique but were based mainly on quantitative research techniques. The review was done during the period from April 1997 to April 2002. Results. Most of the studies we reviewed used only one technique (80.5%). When more than one technique was used in combination (19.5% of the articles we reviewed), focus groups and interviews were usually used. The techniques identified were focus group (used in 34% of the articles reviewed), interview (24%), the Delphi technique (10%), content analysis (8%), nominal group (8%), metaplan (2%), and Philips 6/6 (2%). Conclusions. Qualitative research is a valid alternative, and if used with appropriate methodological rigor it can be of considerable use to health care professionals.


Presented in this thesis are the results obtained from the project: Asymmetric synthesis of substituted 2-aminotetralins. The initial goal was to establish new or improved routes to enantiopure 2-aminotetralin (2-AT) derivatives. The motivation for this project was based on the diverse applications various 2-ATs represent as biologically active compounds. Despite the role of 2-aminotetralins as interesting target molecules, reflected by the massive research activity in the field, no general and cost efficient route has really been established. Chapter 1 in this thesis gives an introduction to 2-ATs as biologically active compounds, as well as a brief survey of the concepts of chirality and asymmetric synthesis. Aziridines are also presented, given their role as key intermediates in our developed strategies (chapters 2-4). In chapter 2, a total synthesis of substituted (S)-2-ATs is presented, starting from natural L-aspartic acid. Two 2-AT derivatives were successfully synthesised, but especially one step (ring-closing to tetralones) proved difficult, providing up to 41% yield only. Chapter 3 is directly based on the experiences we made in the former chapter, and presents an improved route from the same starting point (chiral pool strategy utilising L-aspartic acid). Again we struggled with one specific cyclisation reaction (up to 36% yield), but the remaining steps provided overall good yields. In Chapter 4, a different approach has been targeted, i.e. asymmetric aziridination of 1,2-dihydronaphthalenes. Here, various copper, rhodium and ruthenium catalytic systems were tested with alternative nitrogen sources. While we were able to achieve quite good results for non-substituted 1,2-dihydronaphthalene, substituted substrates provided only mediocre yields and enantioselectivity. Aziridines were selectively ring-opened by catalytic hydrogenation to their respective N-protected 2-ATs in good yields.


Abstract Rising income inequality was a major factor in the surge of household debt that brought on the financial crash and Great Recession. Other studies have identified rising household debt as a cause of the crash but not income inequality as a cause of the rising debt. Here the unusual rise in household debt post 1995 is documented. Econometric evidence links rising income inequality to the rise of household debt. Consumer expenditure data shows that prices of major necessities —shelter, healthcare and education—rose faster than inflation as demand by high-income households surged. In order to maintain their consumption of such necessities, lower-income households resorted to massive borrowing. Their rising debt precipitated the financial crash and Great Recession. That link was overlooked by mainstream economists because they adhere to a theory of household consumption that posits no role for income inequality.


BACKGROUND: Freezing is a common way and one of the best methods of seafood preservation for long periods of time; however, the freeze thawing process may influence the quality of food. OBJECTIVES: Oxidation and denaturation of proteins, sublimation and recrystallization of ice crystals can cause changes in the quality of the frozen products. This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of three different thawing methods including microwave, refrigerator, and water thawing on the quality of pink shrimp (Penaeus duorarum). METHODS: For this purpose, the pink shrimps were hunted from Persian Gulf. Then, 200 g of peeled undeveined shrimps were frozen in vacuum-packed polyethylene bags at -40°C. The samples were transferred to Kerman Veterinary School and were kept at -18°C freezer. After four days, the shrimp were defrosted by three mentioned methods. Three cycles of freezing and defrosting with four days intervals were performed. Percentage of thawing loss (%TL), thiobarbituric acid (TBA), total volatile base (TVB), and salt-soluble protein (SSP) were detected at each freeze-thaw cycle. RESULTS: An increase in the freeze-thaw cycles increased TBA and TVB value slightly and significantly decreased the SPP value (p<0.05). Microwave thawing method gave the samples with the highest thawing loss in comparison to the other methods in each freeze-thaw cycle (p<0.05). A significant increase was seen in TBA value in water and microwave thawing methods in comparison to refrigerator thawing method (p<0.05). Refrigerator thawing method had higher SSP value in comparison to the other thawing methods (p<0.05). Likewise, there was no significant difference between three mentioned methods in TVB value (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The obtained results showed that refrigerator thawing method had lower effect in decreasing chemical quality of the pink shrimp than two other methods, and multiple freeze-thawing processes caused some deleterious effects on the quality of the frozen shrimps.


AS EARLY as 1579 Ambrose Pare described some of the symptoms of traumatic diaphragmatic hernia, which is translated as follows. "When the Diaphragma or Midriff is wounded, the party affected is troubled with a weight or heaviness in that place, he is taken with a Delirium, or Raving, by reason of the sympathy of the Nerves of sixth conjugation which are spread over the Midriff; difficulty of breathing, a cough and sharp pain troubles the Patient, the Guts are drawn upwards; so that it sometimes happens by the vehemency of breathing, that the Stomach and Guts are drawn through the wound into the capacity of the Chest, which thing I observed in two." 1 The first antemortem diagnosis of a traumatic hernia was not made until 1853; and in 1886 the first successful repair of this defect was accomplished. 2,3 The diaphragmatic rupture resulting from either blunt or penetrating trauma


Tirzepatide (TZP) is a novel dual GIP/GLP-1 receptor agonist for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Across the SURPASS 1-5 clinical studies, TZP 5, and 15 mg demonstrated significant improvements in HbA1c (-1.9 to -2.6%) , body weight (-6.6 to -13.9%) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) (-2.8 to -12.6 mmHg) at primary endpoint. Post-hoc mediation analyses were conducted to evaluate weight loss dependent (WL-D) and independent (WL-IND) effects of TZP on SBP reductions across 5 SURPASS studies. The difference in mean SBP change from baseline at 40-weeks (Total effect) between TZP and comparator group was -1.3 to -5.1 mmHg (TZP 5 mg) , -1.7 to -6.5 mmHg (TZP mg) and -3.1 to -11.5 mmHg (TZP 15 mg) . The contribution of WL-D and WL-IND effects on these treatment differences are presented below (Figure) . In SURPASS-4 study which enrolled patients with established cardiovascular disease, WL-IND effects explained 33% to 57% of difference in SBP change between TZP and insulin glargine groups, with the remainder of 67% to 43% of the effect being WL-D. In a pooled analysis of SURPASS 1-5 studies, there was a significant (p<0.001) but weak correlation (r = 0.18 to 0.22) between change in body weight and SBP. In conclusion, TZP induced SBP reduction was primarily mediated through weight loss, with different degrees of contributions from weight loss independent effects across the different trials.

 I. Lingvay: Advisory Panel; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, Lilly, Mannkind, TARGET PharmaSolutions; Valeritas;; Altimmune; DataRevive; Click; Medscape Duke CRI; Janssen Pharma; Bayer; Intercept, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi, Zealand Pharma A/S. Consultant; Novo Nordisk. Research Support; NovoNordisk; Mylan; Merck, Sanofi. O. Mosenzon: Advisory Panel; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, BOL Pharma, Eli Lilly and Company, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Novo Nordisk, Sanofi. Research Support; AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk. Speaker's Bureau; AstraZeneca, Bayer AG, Eli Lilly and Company, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi. K. Brown: Employee; Eli Lilly and Company. X. Cui: Employee; Eli Lilly and Company. L. Fernandez Lando: Employee; Eli Lilly and Company. Stock/Shareholder; Eli Lilly and Company. H. Patel: Employee; Eli Lilly and Company. Stock/Shareholder; Eli Lilly and Company.

 Eli Lilly and Company


Not teaching but transforming – an educational process which is easy to espouse but frequently hard to achieve in practice. This case study, set in the building technology environment of a tertiary institution, shows that by immersing students in the practicalities of construction waste management, they can cross a threshold of understanding of the wider principles of sustainability (Timmermans, 2009). By persuading degree students to climb into construction waste bins, analyse the contents and investigate reor up-cycling for all of the products, they became able to appreciate the role that waste reduction can play at each stage of a product's life cycle, from sensitive design to careful deconstruction. Using the guidelines provided by Jaques (2013) teams of students are subsequently required to search for examples of recycling and debate the relative advantages and disadvantages critically in an online forum as part of their degree course. This process in turn encouraged transformational thinking, clearly evident in students' critical analysis and implied that all trades and disciplines, including the construction and infrastructure industry, can transform their perspectives on sustainability. The Construction and Infrastructure industry is New Zealand's fastest growing sector with employment currently forecast to grow at 2.6% (Daly, 2014). With this growth in the building and construction industry, it is clear that many more students will be entering this trade in the near future. Therefore, this research indicates that educating these future builders on wider principles of sustainability will be a determining factor in the sustainable development of New Zealand. It is imperative that the systemic approach of sustainability is embedded into their curriculum to ensure that there is transformation in values and attitudes of the future New Zealand workforce.


INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: The grading of segmental vascular injuries (SVI) following blunt renal trauma represent a controversial topic with the 2011 revised injury staging classification categorizing these as Grade 4 injuries while the original 1989 organ injury scale (OIS) does not mention them at all. Previous work has shown that these injuries in isolation typically do not require urologic intervention. While the current AUA urotrauma guidelines recommend that routine follow-up CT imaging be performed for all high-grade injuries, we sought to examine the utility of repeat imaging in this cohort. METHODS: Patients treated at our level 1 trauma center between 2005 and 2017 were identified by ICD-9/10 codes from our institutional trauma registry. Individual patient charts and imaging were reviewed to identify all patients with SVI due to blunt trauma without associated urinary extravasation or severely graded renal injuries. Patients with penetrating injuries and those who died during the index hospitalization were excluded. RESULTS: Of 342 patients with Grade 4 renal injuries due to blunt trauma, 61 patients with SVI on initial CT scan were identified. Of these, 46 (76.7%) were male and 38 (63.3%) were due to motor vehicle collision. The mean injury severity score was 36.6 (SD 13.1), with 39 (66.1%) hemodynamically stable at presentation. Repeat follow-up CT scans were performed in 21 (34.4%) patients at a mean 2.8 (SD 2.6) days after admission. No patient underwent urologic intervention or renal angioembolization. Patients who received a routine follow up CT scan had a significantly higher number of abdominal CT imaging during their hospitalization (2.0 vs 1.3, p<0.0001). Compared to other types of Grade 4 injuries, patients with SVI were less likely to have gross hematuria on presentation (28.3% vs 70.8%, p<0.0001), had higher ISS on presentation (36.6 vs 28.9, p<0.0001), and were less likely to have an intervention p<0.0001. Of the 23 of patients who underwent follow up renograms at a median 100 days after injury, overall renal salvage rate (renogram showing split function >20% in the injured kidney) was 91.3%. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, patients with isolated SVI following blunt trauma do not benefit from dedicated renal-specific repeat imaging and are unlikely to require urologic or angiographic intervention. These data indicate that routine repeat imaging is not necessary in the absence of clinical signs or symptoms and support prior claims that isolated SVI may be managed as a low-grade injury. Source of Funding: none


Background: Diabetes is a known risk factor for stroke. We sought to assess the reduction of secondary complications of diabetes in stroke patients through an education initiative. We identified prediabetic pts as a group not receiving any instruction in glucose control to prevent diabetes. Methods: At our private, community health center, we introduced a pilot education program for all ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack patients from March to July 2011. Patients were included if they tolerated oral diet and were placed on the stroke protocol at our center. Patients were identified by a certified dietician and divided into two groups: HbA1c ≤ 6.4% and HbA1c > 6.4%. Patients with an HbA1c of 5.8 -6.4% (prediabetics) were placed on a calorie controlled diet and received diet and activity education from the dietician. Meters were available for them to take home if they desired. Patients with an HbA1c greater than 6.4% received diet and activity education, and also met with the diabetes nurse educator for more in depth education on controlling their diabetes. Our endpoint was to increase the number of patients receiving diabetic education. Results: The program saw 214 patients, and education was provided to 81 prediabetics and 51 diabetics. In the first 4 months of the pilot program, 76% of prediabetics and 71% of diabetics received education. Limitations to education included pts not on stroke protocol so HbA1c was not ordered, difficulty getting orders for calorie controlled diet, and difficulty placing order for Diabetes Educator. By month 5 only 1 pt did not receive education and 5 had not had HbA1c drawn to assess need for education. Conclusion: Education of glucose control strategies for prediabetic and diabetic stroke pts has been effectively initiated. The large population of prediabetic pts has received education to begin to reduce their risk of developing diabetes in the next 3-5 years. Patient feedback has been entirely positive at this time. Future evaluation to determine if pts with prediabetes were able to delay onset of diabetes and reduce development of future stroke would be beneficial.


Alatengae Village on the basis of history is attached to the noble goals and ideals to always act and intend towards a better direction. The purpose of STIBA Makassar Community Service Program (KKN) III is as a form of community service which is a pillar of higher education tri dharma. The method of community service implementation in Alatengae Village began with an analysis of problems or community needs through SOAR analysis and independently created instruments. After the analysis carried out, an activity plan program was prepared which was adaptive to the needs of the community. The main program of students of STIBA Makassar Community Service Program (KKN) III in Alatengae Village were to build relation between people, teaching in elementary schools, or TK/TPA, Dirosa teaching, Islamic discouce for men and women, Tablig Akbar, Health and Cupping Seminar, and Festival for Righteous Children (FAS). The results of Community Service implementation in the form of KKN is that, in general, local people has developed in terms of Islamic knowledge, are enthusiastic in learning and has been able to read the Koran correctly, and the growth of self-confidence of students in TK/TPA in competing and high enthusiasm in enhancing interest and talent.


The researches on competitive mode choice behavior between electric bike and bike are useful for the analysis and forecasting of traffic mode, non-motorized traffic planning and related policy. With the sampling survey data in Kunming, individuals' attitude and preference are analyzed based on SP data. The competitive choice model between electric bike and bike based on discrete choice model is established. The impact of latent variables on mode choice behavior between bike and electric bike is measured based on the estimation results. The result shows that the latent variables have significant impact on the choice behavior. The latent variables can be used to improve the performance of the model and to better capture taste heterogeneity.


METHODS
In this split-face, evaluator-blinded study, 18 subjects were randomly assigned to receive either the SSR or NFL treatments on each side of the face. For the SSR facial sides subjects followed two morning-evening regimens. On the NFL sides subjects were treated 3 times with the 1927-nm laser at 4-week intervals. Three physician evaluators were asked to rate hyperpigmentation, global photoaging, and ne lines and wrinkles for each side of the face at baseline and at 3 months using a 5-point scale.

RESULTS
The SSR and NFL treatments provided comparable results for each skin attribute. Improvement from baseline was signi - cant in both treatment programs for each skin attribute. The greatest 3-month improvement for both programs was in hyperpigmen- tation. For global photoaging and ne lines and wrinkles, positive responses were slightly greater in the NFL than in the SSR facial sides. Subject preference for the SSR over the NFL was greatest for ne lines around the eyes, ne lines around the mouth, smooth texture, radiant complexion, and overall improvement while the NFL was preferred for skin rmness and evenness. When the study was completed5 of 18 split-face subjects decided to undergo NFR laser treatment on the non laser treated side along with using the SSR product and 13 of the 18 subjects continued to use the SSR products to their full face after the study.

CONCLUSION
The mass market skin care system of the present study provides improvement in hyperpigmentation, global photoaging, and ne lines and wrinkles comparable to that of a series of treatments with a non-ablative fractional laser. J Drugs Dermatol. 2016;15(11):1366-1372..


Medical records of 73 patients with AML who underwent HCT, 2005-2011. The OS was 51.8% and the EFS were 48%. Median follow-up time for the cohort was 50.667 ± 2.4 months (95%CI: 45.9-55.4). 39 patients were alive with a median follow-up time of 50.1 months (Min: 1.8, Max: 111.8). Sixteen patients survived for more than 5 years (Min: 65.2, Max: 111.8 months). The cumulative incidence of acute GVHD was 6.8 ± 2.9 and of chronic GVHD was 9.9 ± 3.6. Median time to ANC and platelet recovery was 16 days (range 9-37) and 29 days (range 15-180) respectively. Three patients acquired CMV infection after transplant. There was a significant impact of patient's age at diagnosis on the overall survival (Infantile: 100%, others: 45.6% ± 6.4%, P=0.016) and event free survival (Infantile: 100%, others: 40.6% ± 7.1%, P=0.013). Percentage of blasts at transplant, patients or donors gender, donor source and HLA disparity did not significantly affect OS or EFS. Journal of Blood & Lymph Jo rn al o f Blood Lym ph


This Article assesses recent proposals to use risk-adjusted costs of producing an invention as a basis for either setting patent damages or valuing patents taken by eminent domain. In theory, cost-plus damages can address one of the central challenges of patent law: ensuring that a patentee does not obtain excessive rents for an invention. But cost-plus damages have three principal problems. First, risk may be difficult to estimate, and estimates may be infected by hindsight. Second, if the permitted rate of return is too low, there may be insufficient incentives to invent.

Indeed, even a rate of return that seems generous for existing companies may discourage entry into the industry. Third, inventors may spend much more on invention, anticipating that these greater expenses will not only increase the chance of success, but also increase the amount that they can charge. This Article assesses recent literature proposing cost-plus patent damages, and it offers a simulation model to assess the magnitude of these problems. It concludes that while these problems are serious, social welfare still might be increased by considering costplus damages as a factor in the patent damages calculus.


Storytelling is the term used nowadays by marketers, journalists, psychologists, lecturers, and is understood as a communicative strategy aimed at making narration interesting and memorable for the audience. The purpose of the research is to examine the specifics of the storytelling phenomenon in Russian lecture discourse and to summarize its typical characteristics. The research corpus is comprised of three lectures in linguistics delivered by Russian linguists (total length of 210 minutes). These lectures were studied by means of content analysis, discourse analysis as well as observation, systematization and classification. The study of the three lectures demonstrated the use of storytelling by all the lecturers. The lecturers construct their stories using emotional-evaluative linguistic means together with factual data, action verbs, and means of dialogicity such as elements of direct speech, inclusive pronoun we, rhetorical questions and exclamations. As a result of the theoretical and empirical analysis, the conclusion is made about the expedience of the storytelling use in educational context and in lecture discourse in particular.


We study the problem or generating efficient, equivalent rewritings using views to compute the answer to a query. We take the closed-world assumption, in which views are materialized from base relations, rather than views describing sources in terms of abstract predicates, as is common when the open-world assumption is used. In the closed-world model, there can be an infinite number of different rewritings that compute the same answer, yet have quite different performance. Query optimizers take a logical plan (a rewriting of the query) as an input, and generate efficient physical plans to compute the answer. Thus our goal is to generate a small subset of the possible logical plans without missing an optimal physical plan.
We first consider a cost model that counts the number of subgoals in a physical plan, and show a search space that is guaranteed to include an optimal rewriting, if the query has a rewriting in terms of the views. We also develop an efficient algorithm for finding rewritings with the minimum number of subgoals. We then consider a cost model that counts the sizes of intermediate relations of a physical plan, without dropping any attributes, and give a search space for finding optimal rewritings. Our final cost model allows attributes to be dropped in intermediate relations. We show that, by careful variable renaming, it is possible to do better than the standard "supplementary relation" approach, by dropping attributes that the latter approach would retain. Experiments show that our algorithm of generating optimal rewritings has good efficiency and scalability.


A current to voltage lowpass filter using a single CCII is proposed. This filter can absorb all finite CCII resistances and capacitances and offer both non-inverting and inverting output. Convenient compensation methods exist for gain inaccuracy and excess phase effects. The sensitivities are also very low. The filter is particularly useful for data converting and sampled-data filtering systems as it can fulfil both filtering for antialiasing or smoothing purpose and interfacing between current-mode and voltage-mode systems. We also present a current-mode filter topology using a single dual output CCII, which can realise various types of lowpass, bandpass and highpass filters. Since the output current is taken from one CCII output terminal, the structure is suitable for direct cascade for high-order filter design and less sensitive to the CCII parasitic effects compared with those taking current output from capacitor or resistor branches. Both voltage- and current-mode high-order filters can be readily realized using the proposed two filters as basic sections.


Cryptocurrency applications have spurred a resurgence of interest in the computation of ECDSA signatures using threshold protocols---that is, protocols in which the signing key is secret-shared among n parties, of which any subset of size t must interact in order to compute a signature. Among the resulting works to date, that of Doerner et al. requires the most natural assumptions while also achieving the best practical signing speed. It is, however, limited to the setting in which the threshold is two. We propose an extension of their scheme to arbitrary thresholds, and prove it secure against a malicious adversary corrupting up to one party less than the threshold under only the Computational Diffie-Hellman assumption in the Random Oracle model, an assumption strictly weaker than those under which ECDSA is proven. Whereas the best current schemes for threshold-two ECDSA signing use a Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange to calculate each signature's nonce, a direct adaptation of this technique to a larger threshold t would incur a round count linear in t; thus we abandon it in favor of a new mechanism that yields a protocol requiring log(t)+6 rounds in total. We design a new consistency check, similar in spirit to that of Doerner et al., but suitable for an arbitrary number of participants, and we optimize the underlying two-party multiplication protocol on which our scheme is based, reducing its concrete communication and computation costs. We implement our scheme and evaluate it among groups of up to 256 of co-located and 128 geographically-distributed parties, and among small groups of embedded devices. We find that in the LAN setting, our scheme outperforms all prior works by orders of magnitude, and that it is efficient enough for use even on smartphones or hardware tokens. In the WAN setting we find that, despite its logarithmic round count, our protocol outperforms the best constant-round protocols in realistic scenarios.


Abstract: Sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim (SMZ-TMP), a commonly prescribed antibiotic for backyard hens, is neither Food and Drug Administration approved nor prohibited in laying hens in the United States. The aim of this study was to determine whether plasma concentrations above targeted minimum inhibitory concentration breakpoint values for Enterobacteriaceae could be achieved with oral dosing. Five Rhode Island red hens (Gallus gallus domesticus) were administered a single dose of 96 mg/kg SMZ-TMP (80 mg/kg SMZ and 16 mg/kg TMP) IV followed by the same dose orally after a washout period. Following oral dosing, mean SMZ concentrations exceeded the target breakpoint for approximately 12 hours; however, TMP only briefly exceeded the target breakpoint. Bioavailability was 60.5% for SMZ and 82.0% for TMP. Ten naïve birds were allocated into control (n = 4) and treatment (n = 6) groups for a 7-day multi-dose study. Treatment birds received an oral suspension dosed at 16 mg/kg TMP and 80 mg/kg SMZ every 48 hours (on days 1, 3, 5, and 7); TMP tablets were additionally dosed at 25 mg/bird on days 1, 3, 5, and 7, and 50 mg/bird on days 2, 4, and 6. Plasma SMZ-TMP concentrations were measured on a multiple time interval by ultraperformance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry, and pharmacokinetic analyses were performed using a noncompartmental model. No accumulation for either drug was noted following repeated dosing, and no statistical differences in biochemical values, packed cell volumes, or weight were found between pre- and posttreatment in either the treatment or control groups. Sulfamethoxazole (80 mg/kg q48h PO) and TMP (24.1–28.0 mg/kg q24h PO) maintained therapeutic plasma concentrations at or exceeding the minimum inhibitory concentration breakpoint of Enterobacteriaceae for 72 and 24 hours for TMP and SMZ, respectively, without evidence of adverse effects or drug accumulation. Further studies are needed to refine this dosage regimen and evaluate adverse effects in ill birds.


Over the past few years, a large number of studies have aimed at estimating changes in relative income distribution both across countries and globally. Some of the studies find the distribution to have worsened considerably, others that it has become more even. One objective of this article is to identify and quantify the reasons for these conflicting results. Another objective is to highlight the difference between changes in relative and absolute income distribution. While the relative distribution over the entire range of countries seems to have improved somewhat over the past two to three decades according to the most relevant indicators, the absolute income gaps between rich and poor countries have widened considerably. It is further demonstrated that these gaps will inevitably continue to grow for many decades to come.


I estimate the cyclicality of Italian real wages over the period 1985-2003 controlling for the so-called "composition bias". Aggregate real wage statistics, commonly used to measure real wage elasticity, are affected by the bias arising from the cyclical change in the skill-composition of the labor force. An analysis on WHIP longitudinal data shows that the degree of Italian real wage procyclicality significantly increases after controlling for composition bias: this result is robust to several checks and it is consistent with Solon, Barsky and Parker's 1994 seminal paper on the US. Finally, I discuss the effects of the the 90's labor market's reforms on Italian real wage cyclicality.


Abstract Background The ability to identify patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) and distinguish them from patients with similar conditions in healthcare administrative databases is uncertain. We aimed to measure the sensitivity and specificity of different ADPKD administrative coding algorithms in a clinic population with non-ADPKD and ADPKD kidney cystic disease. Methods We used a dataset of all patients who attended a hereditary kidney disease clinic in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between 1 January 2010 and 23 December 2014. This dataset included patients who met our reference standard definition of ADPKD or other cystic kidney disease. We linked this dataset to healthcare databases in Ontario. We developed eight algorithms to identify ADPKD using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes and provincial diagnostic billing codes. A patient was considered algorithm positive if any one of the codes in the algorithm appeared at least once between 1 April 2002 and 31 March 2015. Results The ICD-10 coding algorithm had a sensitivity of 33.7% [95% confidence interval (CI) 30.0–37.7] and a specificity of 86.2% (95% CI 75.7–92.5) for the identification of ADPKD. The provincial diagnostic billing code had a sensitivity of 91.1% (95% CI 88.5–93.1) and a specificity of 10.8% (95% CI 5.3–20.6). Conclusions ICD-10 coding may be useful to identify patients with a high chance of having ADPKD but fail to identify many patients with ADPKD. Provincial diagnosis billing codes identified most patients with ADPKD and also with other types of cystic kidney disease.


A description is given of the cryogenic part of an electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR)/ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) spectrometer using Ka-band (26.5-40 GHz) and U-band (40-60 GHz) frequencies for resonance measurements on large magnetic thin-films. The unit has two cryostats; the first has a room-temperature vertical inlet tube giving access to the center of the superconducting magnet. This cryostat can be rotated around the central axis of the inlet tube and enables rotation of the magnetic field around a fixed sample, placed in the center of the magnet. This cryostat also contains a superconducting Helmholtz-like coil (up to 5 T at the center). Also there is a flow cryostat placed freely in the inlet tube of the first cryostat. This cryostat is used to cool the EPR/FMR sample. The discussion of the EPR/FMR presented places emphasis on the construction of both cryostats, as well as on the design calculations and construction of the superconducting magnet coil. The calculations are compared with experimental data. >


The recent demand for architectural transparency has drastically increased the use of glass material also for structural purpose. However, connections between structural glass members represent one of the most critical aspects of glass engineering, due to the fragile behaviour of this material. This work presents the experimental and numerical investigations of embedded metal-to-glass connections realized by embedding a thin metal plate within an ionomer interlayer usually used for laminating glass panels. The tested specimens consist of small rectangular glass panels combined with rectangular stainless-steel plates, laminated with a transparent ionomer polymer. The experimental investigations are performed by pulling out the metal plate from the laminated glass panel, at constant displacement rate. Tests at different temperatures are carried out, because of the temperature sensitivity of the interlayer polymer. The connection's response in terms of load versus relative displacement is here presented. Then, numerical investigations on this type of metal-to-glass connection are performed, with the goal to compute the non-linear distribution of both strain and stress's fields within the interlayer. In that regard, the experimental tests are simulated by a non-linear FE model. The effects of geometrical non-linearity are taken into account. Comparisons between experimental and numerical results are here presented focusing on the interface level between interlayer and glass material. From the study it is concluded that (i) the use of the adhesion properties of the interlayer material of laminated glass is a promising technique for joining structural glass member (ii) the numerical model developed in this work represents an efficient tool to predict the behaviour of such type of connection.


A fracture mechanics analysis valid for long cracks is applied to three crack-bridging problems that arise in the composites area, namely, (1) matrix cracking in perfectly bonded unidirectional composites, (2) transverse cracking in perfectly bonded cross-ply laminates, and (3) matrix cracking in unidirectional composites in which frictional slip occurs at fiber matrix interfaces governed by the constant shear-stress shear-lag model of stress transfer. The fracture mechanics analysis is also applied to the three models of cracking in composites for the case in which the preexisting crack can have any length. For the first two models, which assume that there is perfect interface bonding, and which lead to linear relationships between the bridging tractions and the crack opening displacement, it is necessary to solve a linear integral equation. A unique master curve is then derived relating the cracking stress to the length of the preexisting defect. The influence of material properties and nature of the composite (that is, whether unidirectional or cross-ply laminate) is through the value of two normalizing parameters having the dimensions of stress and length, respectively. The cracking stress tends to a nonzero limit as the crack length increases. The master curve takes into account the effect of thermal residual stresses. For the third case of frictionally slipping interfaces in a unidirectional composite, the relationship between the bridging tractions and the crack opening is nonlinear. A nonlinear integral equation is formulated which can be solved for any nonlinear crack-bridging relation. Numerical solutions are obtained by iteration, and for longer crack lengths, convergence problems have led to the need to use a quasi-linearization of the nonlinear integral equation. Although the analysis is of general applicability, it is applied only to the constant shear-stress shear-lag model of stress transfer at the fiber matrix interface. A unique master curve relating the matrix cracking stress to the length of the preexisting matrix crack is determined and is shown to be identical to results derived earlier using a technique that is specific to the shear lag model. The master curve takes into account the effect of thermal residual stresses. Consistency of the new general technique with earlier work is demonstrated. Consistency of the new nonlinear technique is also demonstrated by applying it in the linear case to generate the master curve described above for the case of perfectly bonded composites. The new general technique is also shown to be applicable when fiber fracture occurs.


Abstract Increasing the germination potential of dormant seeds in a population over time generally requires afterripening. Research was conducted to study the relationship between temperature and seed moisture content on afterripening of dormant leafy spurge seeds. Germination of nonafterripened seeds was 59 and 36% after 21 d for the Harwood and Fargo populations, respectively. Germination of 85 to 87% and 58 to 62% was obtained for the Harwood and Fargo populations, respectively when afterripened for 12 to 24 wk under the most effective conditions of 30 C and 2.6% seed moisture; increasing the afterripening temperature to 45 C did not increase germination. Germination decreased slightly at 30 C as the seed moisture content increased to 5.6%, but germination still exceeded that of nonafterripened seeds. Afterripening at 30 C with a seed moisture content of ≥9% greatly decreased germinability due to seed ageing. A temperature of 5 C was effective for afterripening when the moisture content was 3.3%, but germination was still slightly less than for the low moisture content seeds afterripened at 30 C. Afterripening seeds with 6 to 13% moisture at 5 C generally did not increase germination compared with the control, but did not result in seed ageing. Nomenclature: Leafy spurge, Euphorbia esula L. EPHES


The double header league is 12 games of seeding into a double elimination tournament. Two games, back to back every Tuesday until playoffs. Awards for tournament champs, runner up, and individual batting champ. Cost includes: USSSA fees, umpires, balls, scorekeepers, stats, field prep and awards.


This thesis examines the development of military culture in, and its effects on, early modern English society. Militarism during the late Elizabethan and early Stuart periods was not reinforced by military institutions directly interfering with the private lives of individuals, or by controlling the thoughts and actions of the whole nation. It was, however, strongly influenced by the culture of a military elite, represented by leading noblemen such as Leicester, Sidney, Essex, and Prince Henry, who paid considerable attention to the theatrical aspects of formal and ceremonial occasions and how their military role was portrayed in art and literature.

Unlike the usual traditional portrayal of these prominent figures as incompetent military leaders who rushed blindly forwards in pursuit of military glory, we will see that through their aristocratic patronage of various art forms they promoted their image as competent Protestant warriors, and helped the public to be receptive to a variety of military ideas.

The principal motivation of this study is to consider a multiplicity of perspectives on how a military culture was constructed, through a variety of genres, and how particular views on military matters were integrated into popular culture. Literary critics and historians have previously examined certain aspects of militarism in this period but this study aims to take a holistic view of how the military culture developed and affected the public sphere.


Objective To describe the characteristics of wrestling injuries occurring in male athletes aged 7–17 treated in United States (U.S.) emergency departments (ED) from 2000–2006, and to compare injury patterns between younger & older youth wrestlers. Methods A stratified probability sample of U.S. hospitals providing emergency services in the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System was used for 2000–2006. ED visits for injuries sustained in organized wrestling were analyzed for male patients ages 7–17 years old (subdivided into 7–11 years old [youth group] and 12–17 years old [scholastic group]). Results During the study period, there were an estimated 167,606 ED visits for wrestling injuries in 7–17 years old U.S. males, with 152,710 (91.1%) occurring in the older (12–17 years old) group. The annual injury incidence was 6.49 injuries/1,000 wrestlers in the youth group and 29.57 injuries/1,000 wrestlers in the scholastic group. The distribution of diagnoses was similar in both age groups, with sprain/strain as the most common diagnosis, followed by fracture and contusion/abrasion. Distributions of injury by location were significantly different between groups (p=0.02), although both groups exhibited approximately 75% of all injuries from the waist up. Overexertion and struck by/against were the most common precipitating and direct mechanisms in both groups, respectively. Over 97% of all injured wrestlers were treated and released. Conclusion The types of injury in youth (7–11 years old) wrestlers are similar to those of scholastic (12–17 years old) wrestlers, although the distribution of body parts injured differs between the age groups. The majority of injuries occurs above the waist and may be a target for prevention strategies.


The contraction of a species' distribution range, which results from the extirpation of local populations, generally precedes its extinction. Therefore, understanding drivers of range contraction is important for conservation and management. Although there are many processes that can potentially lead to local extirpation and range contraction, three main null models have been proposed: demographic, contagion, and refuge. The first two models postulate that the probability of local extirpation for a given area depends on its relative position within the range; but these models generate distinct spatial predictions because they assume either a ubiquitous (demographic) or a clinal (contagion) distribution of threats. The third model (refuge) postulates that extirpations are determined by the intensity of human impacts, leading to heterogeneous spatial predictions potentially compatible with those made by the other two null models. A few previous studies have explored the generality of some of these null models, but we present here the first comprehensive evaluation of all three models. Using descriptive indices and regression analyses we contrast the predictions made by each of the null models using empirical spatial data describing range contraction in 386 terrestrial vertebrates (mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles) distributed across the World. Observed contraction patterns do not consistently conform to the predictions of any of the three models, suggesting that these may not be adequate null models to evaluate range contraction dynamics among terrestrial vertebrates. Instead, our results support alternative null models that account for both relative position and intensity of human impacts. These new models provide a better multifactorial baseline to describe range contraction patterns in vertebrates. This general baseline can be used to explore how additional factors influence contraction, and ultimately extinction for particular areas or species as well as to predict future changes in light of current and new threats.


In this paper we study a key phase in the formation of massive galaxies: the transition of star-forming galaxies into massive (Mstars ∼ 1011M⊙), compact (re ∼ 1 kpc) quiescent galaxies, which takes place from z ∼ 3 to z ∼ 1.5. We use HST grism redshifts and extensive photometry in all five 3D-HST/CANDELS fields, more than doubling the area used previously for such studies, and combine these data with Keck MOSFIRE and NIRSPEC spectroscopy. We first confirm that a population of massive, compact, star-forming galaxies exists at z ≳ 2, using K-band spectroscopy of 25 of these objects at 2.0 < z < 2.5. They have a median [N ii]/Hα ratio of 0.6, are highly obscured with SFR(tot)/SFR(Hα) ∼10, and have a large range of observed line widths. We infer from the kinematics and spatial distribution of Hα that the galaxies have rotating disks of ionized gas that are a factor of ∼2 more extended than the stellar distribution. By combining measurements of individual galaxies, we find that the kinematics are consistent with a nearly Keplerian fall-off from Vrot ∼ 500 km s−1 at 1 kpc to Vrot ∼ 250 km s−1 at 7 kpc, and that the total mass out to this radius is dominated by the dense stellar component. Next, we study the size and mass evolution of the progenitors of compact massive galaxies. Even though individual galaxies may have had complex histories with periods of compaction and mergers, we show that the population of progenitors likely followed a simple inside-out growth track in the size–mass plane of Δ log r e ∼ 0.3 Δ log M stars . ?> This mode of growth gradually increases the stellar mass within a fixed physical radius, and galaxies quench when they reach a stellar density or velocity dispersion threshold. As shown in other studies, the mode of growth changes after quenching, as dry mergers take the galaxies on a relatively steep track in the size–mass plane.


Job satisfaction and other unit-level organizational behavior characteristics have been widely explored in the management literature. This study contributes to the organizational behavior literature by empirically investigating important unit-level organizational behavior characteristics in the airline industry such as work-family conflict, sympathy, networking, job satisfaction and job autonomy. Data collected from a survey of 108 employees working in a low-cost airline was used in the present study. The results indicate a significant positive effect of work-family conflict, sympathy and job autonomy on job satisfaction, and a significant positive impact of servant leadership on sympathy. Our findings can lead to improved job satisfaction, which, in turn, leads to better tangible outcomes such as higher customer satisfaction and higher firm profit for the airline industry.


In recent years, much work has been devoted to designing certified defences for neural networks, i.e., methods for learning neural networks that are provably robust to certain adversarial perturbations. Due to the non-convexity of the problem, dominant approaches in this area rely on convex approximations, which are inherently loose. In this paper, we question the effectiveness of such approaches for realistic computer vision tasks. First, we provide extensive empirical evidence to show that certified defences suffer not only worse accuracy but also worse robustness and fairness than empirical defences. We hypothesise that the reason for why certified defences suffer in generalisation is (i) the large number of relaxed non-convex constraints and (ii) the strong alignment between the adversarial perturbations and the "signal" direction. We provide a combination of theoretical and experimental evidence to support these hypotheses.


The effect of different continuous material parameter functions in the non-homogeneous region on the eigen-functions of crack tip fields is studied by means of the semi-analytical numerical method based on the wedge shaped non-homogeneous sector model. The cases of the different opening angles of the non-homogeneous region, the different dissimilar material ratios, the different configurations, etc. are analyzed systematically. The result shows that the effect becomes smaller as the opening angle of the wedge shaped non-homogeneous sector becomes smaller. The valuable conclusion is drawn that the differences among the eigen-functions corresponding to the cases can be neglected as long as the opening angle is small enough for the engineering application, which facilitates the engineering application of the non-homogeneous region model.


This paper is a video representation formulated from existing literature offering an arts-based approach to literature review in inquiry. Research videos seek to offer an alternative method for understanding the existing research and issues involved in the grooming process and sexual abuse in sport. By weaving, orchestrating and spacing visuals and music to explore a research topic, this type of arts-based approach created as art and inquiry is aimed at stimulating dialogue and is a powerful method to survey a current topic combining creative work and critical studies with individual expression and aesthetic reflection. This video representation assumes an attitude of persuasiveness and is intended to be a communicative tool for social justice to help us see things in new and unanticipated ways giving a voice to taboo topics that are often silenced.

Video as literature review:
Owton, H. (2013) Sexual abuse in sport. Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsgnABvsIT4

Other resources:
Owton, H. (2015). Learning from Bella's story. Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_R6EQXEKV8


The technique of permeability assessment for high-molecular compounds is presented in present work. Isolated hamster cheek pouches as a simple and convenient model for the transport studies were used. It was shown that a mucous membrane is permeable for alpha-interferon, insulin but not for nucleic acids and peroxidase. Buccal permeability for insulin is provided by its transport through the intercellular ways. Data obtained in experiments with use of rodent keratinized mucous membrane could not be directly extrapolated to human buccal mucous permeability due to significant differences in the nature and organization of intercellular lipids in these species. However, we supposed that freshly isolated hamster cheek pouch could be employed as initial step of assessment for the fast screening of buccal permeability for the high-molecular compounds.


The current thesis consists of a chapter as literature review in which different scientific sources and the results of investigation of various researchers are reviewed, followed by 5 chapters (2 to 6) and an appendix covering the results of the experimental work performed. The results can be divided in 3 main sections: Section 1: Short-fibre rubber composites. In the first section rubber composites reinforced with short aramid fibres are focused upon; the reinforcement mechanisms and the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of the composites are explored. • In the second chapter, short fibre reinforced NR and EPDM rubbers are the subjects of investigation. In the different short fibre-rubber systems examined, clear chemical adhesion only happened in the case of peroxide-cured EPDM with RFL-treated fibres. This phenomenon was most clearly reflected in the tensile curves for this system, showing a large reinforcement factor particularly at tensile elongations below 100%. Next to potential chemical bonding, mechanical interaction between fibres and rubber matrix plays an important role. Surface phenomena on the fibres, as bending/buckling, dog-bone shaped fibre ends and surface roughness due to the RFL-coating cause mechanical interlocking. So, even in the absence of chemical adhesion, adding short aramid fibres improves the mechanical properties of rubber compounds because of the mechanical interaction. • Chapter three describes the results of the investigation of the composite morphology and interaction of two different types of short aramid fibres in an EPDM radiator hose compound and its corresponding model system. PPTA fibres with RFL-dip could not be dispersed completely to filament level due to the gluing effect of the dip. Irrespective of the mixing time, PP/ODPTA fibres could better withstand the applied shear stresses during mixing and maintain a high level of fibre length, which resulted in better mechanical properties in composites reinforced with these fibres compared to those reinforced with PPTA fibres. On the other side, the RFL-dip acted as protective layer and prevented the fibres from excessive breaking, which was especially the case for PPTA. It was shown that for RFL-coated fibres, chemical bonding only happens between a part of RFL-treated filaments and EPDM rubber. Still the composites containing these fibres showed better mechanical properties compared to those reinforced with standard finish. The reason for this superiority is not only the partial chemical bonds, but two more factors are involved: better mechanical interlocking of the RFL-treated fibres and the surrounding matrix (due to the roughness of the coating), and the higher final length of these fibres after mixing. • Due to the importance of viscoelastic properties in performance of a lot of rubber parts, especially tires, the dynamic properties of the short fibre-reinforced compounds are the subject of the fourth chapter. It was shown that mechanical and chemical interactions between short fibres and a rubber matrix, which are the reasons for an increase in storage modulus, can affect loss properties in different ways, depending on the type of matrix, temperature, dynamic strain and the possible application of a static pre-strain. In this respect two main influencing factors needed to be considered: 1) Reinforcement as a result of interaction between fibres and rubber which results in an increase in storage modulus of the composite; 2) If there is no perfect interphase and fibres and rubbers are not fully bonded, sliding of the rubber matrix along the fibre surface causes additional losses due to friction. There is no general rule that adding fibre increases or decreases the loss angle and it totally depends on the balance of these two factors at different strain, frequency and temperature regimes. The importance of mechanical interaction in short fibre reinforcement was emphasized again to be an important parameter also in determining the viscoelastic properties of the composites. Section 2: RFL-rubber interaction. This section consists of two chapters dedicated to the subject of the adhesion mechanism between rubbers and the RFL-layer itself. The effect of RFL-aging, the role of rubber curing systems and inter-diffusion of the latex part of RFL and elastomer are focused upon. • In chapter five the effect of physical interaction between fibres and rubbers was shown to be minor. Un-aged RFL is able to generate good adhesion to both sulphur and peroxide cured rubbers due to the generation of chemical bonds. As a result of the aging of RFL, ozone is able to decrease the number of double bonds of the latex part of the RFL, which negatively affects the RFL-rubber adhesion in sulphur-cured systems, while it has almost no effect in peroxide-cured systems. It was also discussed that, unlike in sulphur vulcanization in which bonding happens only between the latex in the RFL and rubber, peroxide is able to generate bonds also between elastomer and the resin structure of the RFL-coating. It was also shown that mechanical interlocking increases the total interaction between (roughened) fibres and rubbers when the adhesion tests are done in the shear mode, while this effect is not reflected in peeling tests. • In the sixth chapter the adhesion of aramid fibres after being coated with RFL, in compounds based on NR and in NR blended with a small amount of SBR is investigated. It was shown that though having very similar tensile properties, the latter compound has much better adhesion to RFL which is also less sensitive to RFL aging, compared to the pure NR compound. It is argued that an interphase region is formed between RFL and the elastomer, which is stronger for the compound containing SBR due to its enhanced compatibility with the latex part of the RFL. Even if the RFL-treated fibres are aged, better compatibility causes better mutual diffusion between the latex of the RFL and the elastomer chains and increases the chance of co-vulcanization between rubber and intact latex chains in greater depth from the initial contact zone. This can partly compensate the negative effect of RFL aging. Section 3: Enhancement of rubber-fibre interaction. The last section based on the results of the two previous sections, deals with two different approaches for enhancement of the interaction between the aramid fibres and rubber matrices. • In the appendix, two different methods were employed to enhance the interaction between fibres and rubbers based on the two mentioned mechanisms. Increasing the roughness of the surface of aramid fibres with a laser, and functionalizing the surface of the fibres with chloroformates and isocyanates. Laser irradiation is performed on uncoated fibres (standard fibres) and the SEM pictures showed that roughening was successfully achieved. For chemical modification, fibres with an epoxy sub-coating only, were chosen because of the existence of hydroxyl/amine groups on the surface which provide reactive sites for the reaction with the chemicals mentioned. The presence of bound reactants on the fibre surface was demonstrated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Furthermore, the tensile curves showed enhanced properties of the composites reinforced with these modified fibres.


Estimates of effort and duration for a new software project often have to be adjusted to deal with an imposed target delivery date or a constraint on staffing. Estimating methods assume an effort/duration trade-off relationship based mostly on theory or expert judgment. This paper describes a process for analyzing actual project effort and duration data which is designed to explore the trade-off relationship. I assume a reference relationship of a simple power-curve with variable power 'N' and use this (a) as a means of comparing the trade-off relationships assumed by four well-known estimating methods, and (b) as the basis for a process to analyze actual project data. Results are presented of applying the process to 16 sub-sets of project data. These suggest, for example, that the value of 'N' differs between new development projects and enhancement projects. The Web Extra presents more results for each step in the effort-duration trade-off process described in the main article.


This paper explores the spatial practices of public engagement through the consideration of an audio walk project that took place in Ebbw Vale in the summer of 2010. In the current political climate public engagement is often seen as a universal good, a way of demonstrating the productive dialogues that exist between 'experts' and their manifold publics. As studies in science communication have shown, however, this is a little misleading, for the term 'public engagement' masks a great diversity of projects and initiatives, which vary in the degree, methods and effectiveness of their engagement. In this paper, we argue that what is missing from many of these critiques is an attentiveness to the 'placing' and 'spacing' of our public engagement practices: where we work, who we work with and how we work all affect the nature, meaning and effectiveness of public engagement. Drawing on the idea of spatial practices, this paper explores the situated doing of the Ebbw Vale audio walk project.


In numerical simulations of fluid flow by discrete-vortex methods, the natural processes of vorticity creation at solid boundaries and vorticity evolution in the flow domain are directly modelled. The governing equations are formulated in terms of vorticity, with the pressure terms eliminated. The calculations then yield directly the evolution of the vorticity field. From the vorticity field, streamlines and pressure fields are readily obtainable. The derivation of the pressure field involves evaluation of the time-rate of change of the velocity potential resulting from variation with time of the surface-vorticity on solid boundaries. The velocity potential, and hence the pressure, can formally have physically-inadmissible multiple values. Numerical procedures for the derivation of the pressure field from the vorticity field are detailed, which prevent the occurrence of multiple values or discontinuities in the calculated pressure. Introduction A numerical scheme, based on the discrete vortex and surfacevorticity boundary-integral methods, has been developed to calculate the time-dependent, two-dimensional flow over arrays of bluff bodies. Calculations yield directly the evolution of vorticity field in terms of the distribution of discrete vortices in the flow domain and of surface-vorticity on solid boundaries. Flow development is derived from the evolution of the vorticity field. Variation of stagnation pressure in the flow is induced by two mechanisms: the movement of vortices in the flow, and the time-rate of change of surface vorticity on solid boundaries. Calculation of the stagnation-pressure variation induced by surface-vorticity elements involves the evaluation of the velocity potential associated with the surface-vorticity elements. However, the multi-valued nature of the velocity potential is not consistent with the continuous and single-valued nature of the pressure field. These problems are addressed and the derivation of numerical procedures for their solution presented. Theoretical Background In the absence of external force, the Navier-Stokes equation for an incompressible flow can be expressed in the form , 1 x 2 0 u p u u t ∇ + ∇ − = − ∂ ν ρ ω (1) or, in terms of vorticity, as ω ν ω ω ω ω 2 ∇ + ∇ • = ∇ • + ∂ u t , (2) where u is fluid velocity vector, =∇×u the vorticity, t time and Eq. (2) in vortex methods for calculating two-dimensional flow involves splitting the advective-diffusive motion in each time step into two fractional steps [1]: convection (∂t +u⋅∇ ∇ of vorticity (vortex stretching ⋅∇u can occur only in three-dimensional flow). In a system consisting of a solid body which is represented by M panels, the boundary condition of zero-velocity at solid boundaries is satisfied (at collocation points of the panels) by creating a vorticity sheet which is approximated by a set of twodimensional surface-vorticity elements with strengths n, n = 1,2,...M, each element being equivalent to a discrete vortex of stren satis the s cont vorti creat vorti is re = 1,2 the m circu the vorti


This paper compares the notion of "possession" as it is expressed in the verbs of Haitian Creole, French, and Fongbe (a West African language of the Kwa family). It is argued that the notion of possession in verbal semantics is best represented as an implicit argument, i.e., an argument that is present in the semantic representation, but not in the syntax. The implicit argument [POSSESSION] is ambiguous, allowing it to be manifested in the syntactic representation in different ways. The properties of the creole verbs are consistently parallel with those of the Fongbe verbs, and they are often in contrast with the properties of the French verbs. Since French and Fongbe are among the historical sources of Haitian Creole (Lefebvre & Lumsden 1989), these patterns have consequence for the evaluation of theories of creole genesis.


Score-based generative models (SGMs) are a powerful class of generative models that exhibit remarkable empirical performance. Score-based generative modelling (SGM) consists of a ``noising'' stage, whereby a diffusion is used to gradually add Gaussian noise to data, and a generative model, which entails a ``denoising'' process defined by approximating the time-reversal of the diffusion. Existing SGMs assume that data is supported on a Euclidean space, i.e. a manifold with flat geometry. In many domains such as robotics, geoscience or protein modelling, data is often naturally described by distributions living on Riemannian manifolds and current SGM techniques are not appropriate. We introduce here Riemannian Score-based Generative Models (RSGMs), a class of generative models extending SGMs to Riemannian manifolds. We demonstrate our approach on a variety of manifolds, and in particular with earth and climate science spherical data.


Learn about an ordered cellular material that has been designed and manufactured using direct ink writing (DIW), a 3-D printing technology being developed at LLNL. The new material is a patterned cellular material that can absorb mechanical energy-a cushion-while also providing protection against sheering. This material is expected to find utility in application spaces that currently use unordered foams, such as sporting and consumer goods as well as defense and aerospace.


A novel technique has been developed for anomaly detection of rocket engine test stand (RETS) data. The objective was to develop a system that postprocesses a csv file containing the sensor readings and activities (time-series) from a rocket engine test, and detects any anomalies that might have occurred during the test. The output consists of the names of the sensors that show anomalous behavior, and the start and end time of each anomaly. In order to reduce the involvement of domain experts significantly, several data-driven approaches have been proposed where models are automatically acquired from the data, thus bypassing the cost and effort of building system models. Many supervised learning methods can efficiently learn operational and fault models, given large amounts of both nominal and fault data. However, for domains such as RETS data, the amount of anomalous data that is actually available is relatively small, making most supervised learning methods rather ineffective, and in general met with limited success in anomaly detection. The fundamental problem with existing approaches is that they assume that the data are iid, i.e., independent and identically distributed, which is violated in typical RETS data. None of these techniques naturally exploit the temporal information inherent in time series data from the sensor networks. There are correlations among the sensor readings, not only at the same time, but also across time. However, these approaches have not explicitly identified and exploited such correlations. Given these limitations of model-free methods, there has been renewed interest in model-based methods, specifically graphical methods that explicitly reason temporally. The Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) in a Linear Dynamic System approach assumes that the multi-dimensional test data is a mixture of multi-variate Gaussians, and fits a given number of Gaussian clusters with the help of the wellknown Expectation Maximization (EM) algorithm. The parameters thus learned are used for calculating the joint distribution of the observations. However, this GMM assumption is essentially an approximation and signals the potential viability of non-parametric density estimators. This is the key idea underlying the new approach.


Abstract The effects of mutation on phenotypic expression are supposed to be mainly deleterious because mutations disrupt the expression of genes that function relatively well under current environmental conditions. Thus, mutations are assumed to give rise to deviant phenotypes that are generally selected against. Radioactive contamination in the Chernobyl region of Ukraine is associated with a significant increase by a factor two to 10 in mutation rate in microsatellite markers of the barn swallow, Hirundo rustica. Barn swallows from Chernobyl had a temporally constant, elevated frequency of partial albinism compared to the situation before radioactive contamination and compared to birds from a control area. Albinism disproportionately affected the carotenoid-based plumage of the head, suggesting that carotenoid metabolism is particularly susceptible to the effects of radiation. Individuals with partially albinistic plumage had, on average, lower mean phenotypic values than other birds, and this was particularly the case for males. Furthermore, differences in phenotypic variation, as determined using Levene's test, were significantly larger in partial albinos compared to nonalbinos in males, but not in females, even though the null expectation would be the opposite due to the lower mean phenotypic values of partial albinos. Although small phenotypes were commonly associated with germline mutations, there was no general decrease in overall body size during the period 1991–2000, implying that small individuals were selected against. Because partial albinism is disfavored by natural selection, the effects of mutations are deleterious, giving rise to a balance between mutation and selection. Corresponding Editor: S. Edwards


This paper presents a simplified strain-based fracture mechanics approach to study the effect of pressure induced hoop stress on bi-axially loaded through walled cracked (TWC) pipes subjected to an external bending load in combination with internal pressure. Elastic-plastic finite element analyses are conducted to establish the relation between global strain and Crack tip opening displacement (CTOD). In the finite element model X65 pipeline steel is considered using power-law idealization of stress-strain, and the inelastic deformations, including ductile tearing effects, are accounted for by use of the Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman model. Several parameters are taken into account, such as crack length, internal pressure and material hardening. Strain based crack driving force equation is used and maximum load criterion is adopted to determine the critical strain from ductile tearing in the cracked pipeline. The results suggest that presence of pressure-induced hoop stresses increases the fracture response in high-hardening materials and their effects are significant due to large plastic-zone size.


We report the structure of the Zr metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) UiO-66 and UiO-67 to very fine detail using synchrotron single-crystal X-ray diffraction and the synthesis method used to obtain single crystals. Zr terephthalate MOF UiO-66 is known to have missing linkers, and the nature of these are shown to be coordinating water and solvent molecules. Single crystals of the isoreticular material UiO-67 does not show such missing linker defects.


Background and Objectives Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) is the most polymorphic system in the genome of different species. In human beings, these genes named HLA are located on the chromosome 6. HLA class I and II undertake genetic control of the immune system. Identification of HLA alleles is useful in transplantation, disease, and anthropological studies. Among different antigens of HLA, DR (DRB1) antigens are the most variable. In this research, due to the importance of DRB1 antigens in bone marrow transplantation, these antigens were studied in normal population. This study was performed on different Iranian races and did not suffice to a specific group. Materials and Methods DNA was extracted from the whole blood sample of 466 normal individuals after randomized sampling. Some HLA-DRB locus segments were amplified using 23 primer pairs by using PCR-SSP method. Finaly, PCR products were evaluated by electrophoresis in 2% agarose gel. Results The most prevalent alleles in DRB1 locus in normal poulation of Iran were DRB1*11, DRB1*13, DRB1*15, and DRB1*04 (20%, 11.4%, 11.4%, 10%, respectively). Whereas DRB1* 09 was the least frequent allele. Conclusions This research showed genetic diversity of HLA DRB1 in the mixed Iranian population. The data suggest that the Iranian population share certain HLA class II genetic components with the populations residing in Russia and Eastern and Southern European countries.


In this paper, we use a simulation model to measure the potential market and welfare effects of recently introduced genetically modified (GM) canola in Australia. The short-run results indicate that non-GM canola may emerge as a niche product commanding a premium. In the long run, GM technology appears to enhance aggregate welfare. However, when production cost savings are trivial and consumers become highly concerned about GM food products, aggregate welfare may decline. The policy implications of the analysis are explored.


Chemoprevention of cancer is a means of cancer control in which the occurrence of this disease is prevented by administra tion of one or several chemical compounds. This Perspective deals with the areas in cancer control that this field addresses, the promise that it holds, and the problems that must be solved in order to realize its goals. The most desirable way of eliminating the impact of cancer in humans is by prevention. The first set of strategies for achieving this objective is to remove the causative agents. In some instances, as with cigarette smoking, it is possible to eliminate the etiological agent. However, in others it is not. The causes of most cancers in the human are not known. Under some circumstances, even when causative factors are known, neoplasia may have been initiated, and prevention now falls into the realm of suppressing the evolution of the neoplastic process. Individuals already exposed to carcinogens fall into this category as do individuals at high risk to cancer because of genetic factors. Finally, there are a considerable number of suspect carcinogens in the environment that have been identified by virtue of mutagenicity testing. Many of these mutagenic substances occur in food. The carcinogenic potential of these compounds for the human is not clear. If they do in fact play a role in the occurrence of cancer, it would be exceedingly difficult to remove them from the environment. Flavones in food are an example of a class of compounds that are mutagenic and that would be virtually impossible to remove because of their ubiqui tous distribution. Likewise, if exposure to oxygen radicals and epoxides poses a hazard, as has been suggested by some investigators, such exposures would be difficult to prevent. While removal of causative agents is the primary goal of cancer pre vention, for the foreseeable future it is likely to be incomplete. Accordingly, the development of a second line of prevention based on Chemoprevention assumes considerable importance. The human constituencies that would be the target for Chemoprevention vary. Two extremes are apparent, but in all likelihood a continuum exists between them. At one extreme are individuals at very high risk of developing cancer because of genetic predisposition or exposure to carcinogens. At the other end of the risk spectrum are individuals lacking any evidence of an increase in risk factors. The strategies for dealing with groups at varying risks differ. As the risk for developing cancer increases, the compounds likely to be most effective are those that sup press evolution of the neoplastic process. The permissible risk of toxicity from the chemopreventive agent also will increase. In contrast, when one considers chemopreventive agents to be directed at populations with no enhanced risk from cancer, protection against attack from compounds that are involved in the causation of cancer assumes a greater importance. For this


Deep Metric Learning (DML) serves to learn an embedding function to project semantically similar data into nearby embedding space and plays a vital role in many applications, such as image retrieval and face recognition. However, the performance of DML methods often highly depends on sampling methods to choose effective data from the embedding space in the training. In practice, the embeddings in the embedding space are obtained by some deep models, where the embedding space is often with barren area due to the absence of training points, resulting in so called"missing embedding"issue. This issue may impair the sample quality, which leads to degenerated DML performance. In this work, we investigate how to alleviate the"missing embedding"issue to improve the sampling quality and achieve effective DML. To this end, we propose a Densely-Anchored Sampling (DAS) scheme that considers the embedding with corresponding data point as"anchor"and exploits the anchor's nearby embedding space to densely produce embeddings without data points. Specifically, we propose to exploit the embedding space around single anchor with Discriminative Feature Scaling (DFS) and multiple anchors with Memorized Transformation Shifting (MTS). In this way, by combing the embeddings with and without data points, we are able to provide more embeddings to facilitate the sampling process thus boosting the performance of DML. Our method is effortlessly integrated into existing DML frameworks and improves them without bells and whistles. Extensive experiments on three benchmark datasets demonstrate the superiority of our method.


The simplified modeling for analysis on MHD stability of free surface jet flow in a gradient magnetic fields is based on the theoretical and experimental results on channel liquid metal MHD flow, especially, the results of MHD flow velocity distribution in cross-section of channels (rectangular duct and circular pipe), and the expected results from the modeling are well agreed with the recent experimental data obtained. It is the first modeling which can efficiently explain the experimental results of liquid-metal free surface jet flow.


Previous studies done on wound infections in this environment had been mostly on the surgical variety rather than the non-surgical. However,few studies available on the non-surgical type have indicated that changes do occur in the pattern and antibiogram of the bacterial isolates of these non-surgical wound infections. This study was therefore designed to investigate the bacteriology of non-surgical wound infections in this environment. A retrospective review of seven hundred and fifty four cases of non-surgical wound infections was conducted between September 2002 and February 2005 at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. A total number of 871 bacterial, and seven fungal isolates were obtained from these wound cultures. In 477 (70.3%) cases, cultures were monomicrobial and 202 (29.8%) polymicrobial. Staphylococcus aureus (38%) was the predominant pathogen, followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (18.7%), Klebsiella species (17%), Escherichia coli (10.6%), Proteus species (7.4%), Staphylococcus epidermidis (4.4%), Streptococcus species (1.6%), Enterococcus faecalis (1.4%), and Candida albicans (0.8%). High rates of antibiotic resistance were recorded among these isolates. 53.4% of them were sensitive to ceftriaxone, 42.5% to gentamycin and 39.3% to ofloxacin. This high antibiotic resistance gives credence to the value of determining the antibiogram of these pathogens in their management. Continuous interaction between the wound care practitioners and microbiology department is also advocated.


Most decision tree algorithms using selective induction focus on univariate, i.e. axis-parallel tests at each internal node of a tree. Oblique decision trees use multivariate linear tests at each non-leaf node. One well-known limitation of selective induction algorithms, however, is its inadequate description of hypotheses by task-supplied original features. To overcome this limitation this paper reports a novel approach to constructive induction, called non-linear decision trees. The crux of this method consists of the generation of new features and the augmentation of the original primitive features with these new ones. This method can be considered as a powerful tool in KDD, because the constructed new features remain understandable and permit an interpretation by experts. The resulted non-linear decision trees are more accurate than their axis-parallel or oblique counterparts. Experiments on several artificial and real-world data sets demonstrate this property.


Celesstin, a system that converts mechanical engineering drawings into a format suitable for CAD, is described. Celesstin integrates several modules in a blackboard-based interpretation system. Once a drawing has been digitized, a first processing step separates the text and the dimensioning lines from the pure graphics part. Celesstin vectorizes the graphics part and assembles the resulting lines into blocks, the basic elements for the technical entities that it creates. The result is transferred to the CAD system. Celesstin tries to match the extracted entities with the corresponding models from the CAD library. It puts the remaining blocks and lines into different layers of the CAD description. The system is based on the assumption that even when the vectorized drawing is distorted, it can be correctly interpreted by using knowledge about the representation rules used in technical drawings and about the manufacturing technology associated with the represented objects.<<ETX>>


Egypt faces two nutritional challenges. The first is the "growth-nutrition disconnect.†High economic growth has not been accompanied by reduction in chronic child malnutrition, at least throughout the 2000s. Instead, the prevalence of child stunting increased during this decade—an atypical trend for a country outside wartime. The second challenge is the simultaneous presence of chronic undernutrition and overnutrition (due to excess consumption of calories). This "double burden of malnutrition†exists not only at the national level but also within families and even individual children. Both challenges are exceptionally pronounced in Egypt compared to other developing countries. Nutrition and Economic Development: Exploring Egypt's Exceptionalism and the Role of Food Subsidies examines the two nutritional challenges in depth and their relationship to public policy.


This paper describes the design of a digital badge that provides support for learners who participate in blended instruc-tional-design (ID) workshops. The workshops are hosted by Kumamoto University as lifelong learning activities, and their purpose is to introduce a practical method that enhances participants' education and supports them in applying ID in their jobs. We designed the digital badge as a tool that continues to support participants after the workshop has finished. The digital badge constitutes not just a program certification, but also an index of the learning outcomes of the blended workshop, such as online report assignments, and an asynchronous discussion record of forum posts made during the workshop. We confirmed through actual use that the acquired digital badge accumulated learning outcomes that would be useful in the participants' jobs and reflected their skill mastery.


Dogs play an important role in our society as companions and work partners, and proper training of these dogs is pivotal. For companion dogs, training helps preventing or managing dog behavioral problems—the most frequently cited reason for relinquishing and euthanasia, and it promotes successful dog-human relationships and thus maximizes benefits humans derive from bonding with dogs. For working dogs, training is crucial for them to successfully accomplish their jobs. Dog training methods range widely from those using predominantly aversive stimuli (aversive methods), to those combining aversive and rewarding stimuli (mixed methods) and those focusing on the use of rewards (reward methods). The use of aversive stimuli in training is highly controversial and several veterinary and animal protection organizations have recommended a ban on pinch collars, e-collars and other techniques that induce fear or pain in dogs, on the grounds that such methods compromise dog welfare. At the same time, training methods based on the use of rewards are claimed to be more humane and equally or more effective than aversive or mixed methods. This important discussion, however, has not always been based in solid scientific evidence. Although there is growing scientific evidence that training with aversive stimuli has a negative impact on dog welfare, the scientific literature on the efficacy and efficiency of the different methodologies is scarce and inconsistent. Hence, the goal of the current study is to investigate the efficacy and efficiency of different dog training methods. To that end, we will apply different dog training methods in a population of working dogs and evaluate the outcome after a period of training. The use of working dogs will allow for a rigorous experimental design and control, with randomization of treatments. Military (n = 10) and police (n = 20) dogs will be pseudo-randomly allocated to two groups. One group will be trained to perform a set of tasks (food refusal, interrupted recall, dumbbell retrieval and placing items in a basket) using reward methods and the other group will be trained for the same tasks using mixed methods. Later, the dogs will perform a standardized test where they will be required to perform the trained behaviors. The reliability of the behaviors and the time taken to learn them will be assessed in order to evaluate the efficacy and efficiency, respectively, of the different training methods. This study will be performed in collaboration with the Portuguese Army and with the Portuguese Public Security Police (PSP) and integrated with their dog training programs.


The paper analyzes a single-layer settlement Simonikha I of the middle Bronze Age in the Udmurt Kama region. More than 1000 potsherds and 133 flint objects were found on the area of 288 sq. m. Among them there are ceramic objects with a diameter of 9-38 cm, decorated in geometric style with horizontal streaks, triangles, rhombs, and stamp rows; shredded shell, chamotte, sand and its combinations were added to clay. The collection also contains a series of the fragments of flat bottoms of the vessels with a diameter of 6-14 cm. The ceramic collection of the settlement demonstrates a significant inner unity and originates from the East by being related to the Ural Cherkaskul culture. As to flint findings, they are not numerous and consist of arrows, scrapers and chisel-like objects. The author concludes that Simonikha I is an uncommon for the forest area of the Kama basin example of a single-layered site with a short time of existence, and its collection demonstrates cultural variety during rather small chronological period of the Bronze Age in the Kama region.


Recently, crowdsourcing has emerged as an effective paradigm for human-powered large scale problem solving in various domains. However, task requester usually has a limited amount of budget, thus it is desirable to have a policy to wisely allocate the budget to achieve better quality. In this paper, we study the principle of information maximization for active sampling strategies in the framework of HodgeRank, an approach based on Hodge Decomposition of pairwise ranking data with multiple workers. The principle exhibits two scenarios of active sampling: Fisher information maximization that leads to unsupervised sampling based on a sequential maximization of graph algebraic connectivity without considering labels; and Bayesian information maximization that selects samples with the largest information gain from prior to posterior, which gives a supervised sampling involving the labels collected. Experiments show that the proposed methods boost the sampling efficiency as compared to traditional sampling schemes and are thus valuable to practical crowdsourcing experiments.


Recently, considerable effort has been put into developing fast algorithms to reconstruct a rooted phylogenetic network that explains two rooted phylogenetic trees and has a minimum number of hybridization vertices. With the standard app1235roach to tackle this problem being combinatorial, the reconstructed network is rarely unique. From a biological point of view, it is therefore of importance to not only compute one network, but all possible networks. In this article, we make a first step toward approaching this goal by presenting the first algorithm--called ALLMAAFs--that calculates all maximum-acyclic-agreement forests for two rooted binary phylogenetic trees on the same set of taxa.


TODAY'S PATIENTS take their lives in their hands. With health information, good or bad, now more available than ever, many people approach their health care in the way they would any other purchase. They shop around, looking for best 'value' and the benefits accrued by making the right choice.


OBJECTIVE
To quantify circulating nitric oxide (NO) levels and inducible NO synthase (iNOS) expression in peripheral blood monocyte-derived macrophages (PB-MDM) from patients with inflammatory arthritis (IA) as a measure of disease activity, and to determine if there is a correlation between expression of iNOS and protein kinase C-eta (PKC-eta).

METHODS
PB-MDM were isolated from whole blood of 20 patients with IA (14 rheumatoid arthritis and 6 peripheral spondyloarthropathies). Thirteen patients with osteoarthritis (OA) and 9 healthy individuals were controls. Serum NO levels were measured by indirect determination of nitrite and nitrate. Expression of PKC-eta and iNOS was investigated by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis.

RESULTS
Serum NO (189.9 +/- 49.7 microM) was significantly higher (p < 0.0028) in IA patients than in controls (131.1 +/- 18.5 microM) or patients with OA (126.9 +/- 37.1 microM). IA patients with severe inflammation had highest levels of NO, while those with mild inflammation had normal levels of NO. RT-PCR showed that PB-MDM from IA patients with active disease co-expressed iNOS and PKC-eta. This was observed in 15 out of 16 cases. All other groups with normal plasma NO expressed neither gene.

CONCLUSION
Our findings show that elevated plasma NO levels were only present in IA patients with severe disease activity. We show for the first time a positive correlation between PKC-eta and iNOS expression in arthritis, supporting our earlier in vitro findings that PKC-eta expression was essential for lipopolysaccharide-mediated iNOS induction and NO production in human monocytes. PKC-eta may be important for the development of IA-induced iNOS positive phenotype in human PB-MDM.


We investigate the dependence of the site frequency spectrum on the topological structure of genealogical trees. We show that basic population genetic statistics, for instance, estimators of θ or neutrality tests such as Tajima's D, can be decomposed into components of waiting times between coalescent events and of tree topology. Our results clarify the relative impact of the two components on these statistics. We provide a rigorous interpretation of positive or negative values of an important class of neutrality tests in terms of the underlying tree shape. In particular, we show that values of Tajima's D and Fay and Wu's H depend in a direct way on a peculiar measure of tree balance, which is mostly determined by the root balance of the tree. We present a new test for selection in the same class as Fay and Wu's H and discuss its interpretation and power. Finally, we determine the trees corresponding to extreme expected values of these neutrality tests and present formulas for these extreme values as a function of sample size and number of segregating sites.


We present a theoretical and numerical study of the bifurcations of the stationary patterns supported by a chemotactic model of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). We derive the normal forms of the dynamics which allows to predict the appearance and stabilization of the emerging branches describing the concentric patterns typical of Balo's sclerosis, a very aggressive variant of MS. Spatial modulation of the Turing-type structures through a zigzag instability is also addressed. The nonlinear stage of the Eckhaus and zigzag instability is investigated numerically: defect-mediated wavenumber adjustments are recovered and the time of occurrence of phase-slips is studied as the system parameters are varied.


The p-median problem is one of choosing p facilities from a set of candidates to satisfy the demands of n clients such that the overall cost is minimised. In this paper, PBS, a population based hybrid search algorithm for the p-median problem is introduced. The PBS algorithm uses a genetic algorithm based meta-heuristic, primarily based on cut and paste crossover operators, to generate new starting points for a hybrid local search. For larger p-median instances, PBS is able to effectively utilise a number of computer processors. It is shown empirically that PBS is able to effectively solve p-median problems for a large range of the commonly used p-median benchmark instances.


At present there is international interest in MA. Different factors are responsible: the severity and prevalent frequency of these diseases; the health cost that they create: more adequate diagnosis and treatment. Understanding of the epidemiology, pathological mechanisms, favouring factors, the start and development of the disease, is essential to establish a diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Several factors trigger MA, with hereditary disposition and allergen exposure the most significant. Without these two associated factors the disease does not appear. However, there are other factors that play an important part in the prevalence of the allergic state and its development. Some are concerned with the individual (age, sex, race), others with the environment (pollution, socio-economic, environment, infections...). The author has devoted this article to analysis of these individual factors.


The kinds and the properties of composite materials and superhard cutting-tool materials are introduced in this paper. By using five kinds of superhard cutting tools, such as polycrystal cubic boron nitride (PCBN), polycrystal diamond (PCD), thin film and thick film of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond and carbon nitride (CxNy), two kinds of composite materials (fiber reinforced and particle reinforced) have been turned. Many experiment data have been gotten. It is shown that the superhard cutting tool is the best for machining composite materials. Moreover, surface finish and cutting force in composite material machining are discussed.