By establishing a crucial figural relation between image and text in the cinema, this dissertation offers a detailed analysis of the uses of writing through select canonical works of a significant period in the history of the German cinema. Drawing on Walter Benjamin's theory of allegory and Gilles Deleuze's conceptions of the cinematic image, as well as a Derridean definition of writing, I argue that instances of written text in images of the German cinema are social hieroglyphs rendered as allegorical gestures, which inscribe questions of authority in the form of grammatological constellations within the movement of images. These hieroglyphic configurations, spelled out as writing on the screen, stand in reference to specific modalities which affirm the presence of a larger organizational regime of truth. Instances of writing thus constitute the inscriptions through which such structures of power acquire legibility and, conversely, become visible. Ultimately, this figural regime delineates questions of the political constitution of the state because the struggle for authority and its legitimacy as an organizational system become embodied in allegorical forms of writing that inscribe the body politic into filmic texts as subject positions. This approach is predicated on a subjunctive dimension that redefines the intrinsic relation of the text to its "outside." Chapters discuss the figure of authority in "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "Kameradschaft," circularity in Fritz Lang's "M" and his "Mabuse" films, titles and writing in early Weimar film censorship decisions, the star figure of Emil Jannings in the Nazi film "Ohm Kruger," and the postwar films "Die Morder Sind Unter Uns" and "Rotation." An epilogue investigates the reconfigurations of writing on the screen in R.W. Fassbinder's "Die Dritte Generation" (1979) and the 1998 hacker film "23". In all of these case studies, I contend that writing in film remains significant when the image as such must be augmented by gestures toward a figural language.


We determine the morphological mix of field galaxies down to mI ≃ 24.25 mag (mB ~ 26.0 mag) from a single ultradeep Hubble Space Telescope wide field planetary camera (WFPC2) image in both the V606 and the I814 filters. In total, we find 227 objects with mI ≤ 24.5 mag and classify these into three types: ellipticals (16%), early-type spirals (37%), and late-type spirals/irregulars (47%). The differential number counts for each type are compared with simple models in a standard flat cosmology. We find that both the elliptical and the early-type spiral number counts are well described by little-or-no-evolution models, but only when normalized at bJ = 18.0 mag. Given the uncertainties in the luminosity function (LF) normalization, both populations are consistent with a mild evolutionary scenario based on a normal/low rate of star formation. This constrains the end of the last major star formation epoch in the giant galaxy populations to z ≥ 0.8. Conversely, the density of the observed late-type/irregular population is found to be a factor of 10 in excess of the conventional no-evolution model. This large population might be explained by a modified local dwarf-rich LF and/or strong evolution acting on the local LF. For the dwarf-rich case, a steep faint-end Schechter slope (α ≃ -1.8) is required, plus a fivefold increase in the dwarf normalization. For a purely evolving model based on a flat Loveday et al. LF (α ≃ -1.0), a ubiquitous starburst of ΔI ~ 2.0 mag is needed at z ≃ 0.5 for the entire late-type population. We argue for a combination of these possibilities, and show that for a steep Marzke et al. LF (α ≃ -1.5) a starburst of ~1.3 mag is required at z ≃ 0.5 in the entire late-type population, or ~2.0 mag in ~20% of the population.


Significance The general public funds the vast majority of biomedical research and is also the major intended beneficiary of biomedical breakthroughs. We show that increasing research investments, resulting in an increasing knowledge base, have not yielded comparative gains in certain health outcomes over the last five decades. We demonstrate that monitoring scientific inputs, outputs, and outcomes can be used to estimate the productivity of the biomedical research enterprise and may be useful in assessing future reforms and policy changes. A wide variety of negative pressures on the scientific enterprise may be contributing to a relative slowing of biomedical therapeutic innovation. Slowed biomedical research outcomes have the potential to undermine confidence in science, with widespread implications for research funding and public health. Society makes substantial investments in biomedical research, searching for ways to better human health. The product of this research is principally information published in scientific journals. Continued investment in science relies on society's confidence in the accuracy, honesty, and utility of research results. A recent focus on productivity has dominated the competitive evaluation of scientists, creating incentives to maximize publication numbers, citation counts, and publications in high-impact journals. Some studies have also suggested a decreasing quality in the published literature. The efficiency of society's investments in biomedical research, in terms of improved health outcomes, has not been studied. We show that biomedical research outcomes over the last five decades, as estimated by both life expectancy and New Molecular Entities approved by the Food and Drug Administration, have remained relatively constant despite rising resource inputs and scientific knowledge. Research investments by the National Institutes of Health over this time correlate with publication and author numbers but not with the numerical development of novel therapeutics. We consider several possibilities for the growing input-outcome disparity including the prior elimination of easier research questions, increasing specialization, overreliance on reductionism, a disproportionate emphasis on scientific outputs, and other negative pressures on the scientific enterprise. Monitoring the efficiency of research investments in producing positive societal outcomes may be a useful mechanism for weighing the efficacy of reforms to the scientific enterprise. Understanding the causes of the increasing input-outcome disparity in biomedical research may improve society's confidence in science and provide support for growing future research investments.


"Sounds American" provides new perspectives on the relationship between nationalism and cultural production by examining how Americans grappled with musical diversity in the early national and antebellum eras.During this period a resounding call to create a distinctively American music culture emerged as a way to bind together the varied, changing, and uncertain components of the new nation. This played out with particular intensity in the lower Mississippi River valley, and New Orleans especially. Ann Ostendorf argues that this region, often considered an exception to the nation--with its distance from the center of power, its non-British colonial past, and its varied population--actually shared characteristics of many other places eventually incorporated into the country, thus making it a useful case study for the creation of American culture.Ostendorf conjures the territory's phenomenally diverse "music ways" including grand operas and balls, performances by church choirs and militia bands, and itinerant violin instructors. Music was often associated with "foreigners," in particular Germans, French, Irish, and Africans. For these outsiders, music helped preserve collective identity. But for critics concerned with developing a national culture, this multitude of influences presented a dilemma that led to an obsessive categorization of music with racial, ethnic, or national markers. Ultimately, the shared experience of categorizing difference and consuming this music became a unifying national phenomenon. Experiencing the unknown became a shared part of the American experience.


Introduction: Now, male partners' involvement in prenatal screening and diagnostic testing for Down syndrome is becoming increasingly recognized as well to ensure that parents are well informed of the risks and benefits of screening. The aim of study was to understand the degree of male partners' involvement during pregnancy in Singapore population. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of male partners' attending prenatal counseling was performed. The instrument used to measure the level of involvement is a self-assessment questionnaire that identifies the role of male partners with a Likert scale. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze data gained. Result: A total of 107 participants completed the questionnaire. Sixty-seven percent of male partners were found to have a highlevel of involvement while 32.7% was found to have a medium level of involvement. Most of them stated that women can pursue prenatal testing without their permission. Male partners found it more important for them to accompany their spouse to amniocentesis or CVS than to the Down syndrome screening test. When participants were asked about how much information about Down syndrome they sought prior to the appointment, how much discussion they had with their spouse about Down syndrome testing, and about whether they or their spouse should be the first person to receive test results, most stated that they were undecided. Conclusion: These results revealed that male partners were very well involved in the Down syndrome testing during pregnancy and future studies should assess possible underlying factors that influence male partners' involvement.


Embedded wavelet codes are very sensitive to channel noise because a single bit error can lead to an irreversible loss of synchronization between the encoder and the decoder. Sherwood and Zeger protected a zero-tree based embedded wavelet code sent through a memoryless noisy channel by using cyclic redundancy detection codes (CRC) and channel correction codes. Chande and Farvardin proposed an optimal joint source-channel allocation strategy for such systems. We show how to accelerate their algorithm without quality loss. For grey scale test images of size 512 × 512, our speedup factors ranged from 1.2 to 6 for total bit rates between 0.25 and 1.0 bits per pixel. Moreover, by using turbo codes as channel codes, we obtained competitive peak-signal-tonoise ratio (PSNR) results.


Spontaneous resolution of bulla associated with infection or tumor is occasionally observed. However, resolution of progressively enlarging giant bullous emphysema (GBE) after medical therapy has not been reported. A 51-year-old man smoker with GBE on the right lung was referred to Samsung Medical Center for the consideration of bullectomy. A review of his medical records revealed that right-side bullous emphysema had been detected 4 years previously and it had progressively enlarged with a concomitant deterioration of lung function. Although he had a history of chronic asthma, he had never been treated on a regular basis. After combination therapy, including regular tiopropium, a salmeterol/flucatisone inhaler, a salbutamol inhaler as needed, and oral theophylline therapy, right side bulla showed marked regression. This regression of bulla was associated with an improved forced expiratory volume in one second and normalization of residual volume. This case serves as a reminder to clinicians that medical treatment for underlying diseases should precede surgical consideration in patients with GBE.


Nearly one quarter of the world's population is infected with helminth parasites. A common feature of helminth infections is the manifestation of a type 2 immune response, characterized by T helper 2 (Th2) cells that mediate anti-helminth immunity. In addition, recent literature describes a close association between type 2 immune responses and wound repair, suggesting that a Th2 response may concurrently mediate repair of parasite-induced damage. The molecular mechanisms that govern Th2 responses are poorly understood, although it is clear that dendritic cells (DCs), which are the most efficient antigen-presenting cells in the immune system, play a central role. Here, we review the molecular mechanisms by which DCs polarize Th2 cells, examining both helminth antigens and helminth-mediated tissue damage as Th2-inducing triggers. Finally, we discuss the implication of these findings in the context of metabolic disorders, as recent literature indicates that various aspects of the Th2-associated inflammatory response contribute to metabolic homeostasis.


Allergic diseases are complex diseases caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. To determine the genetic components of these diseases and to discover the genes and cellular pathways underlying them, a large number of genetic studies have been conducted. Progress in genetics enables us to conduct genome-wide association studies (GWASs), which is a comprehensive and unbiased approach to identify susceptibility loci for multifactorial diseases. Recent GWASs have convincingly detected a large number of loci associated with allergic diseases. Candidate genes in the susceptibility loci suggest roles for epithelial barrier functions, innate-adaptive immunity, IL-1 family signaling, regulatory T cells and the vitamin D pathway in the pathogenesis of allergic diseases. Interestingly, the IL1RL1, HLA, IL13 and C11orf30 regions are overlapping susceptibility loci among atopic dermatitis and asthma or allergic rhinitis. Although a more complete collection of associated genes and pathways is needed, biologic insights revealed by GWASs improve our understanding of the pathophysiology of human allergic diseases and contribute to the development of better treatment and preventive strategies.


One of the features distinguishing SARS-CoV-2 from its more pathogenic counterpart SARS-CoV is the presence of premature stop codons in its ORF3b gene. Here, we show that SARS-CoV-2 ORF3b is a potent interferon antagonist, suppressing the induction of type I interferon more efficiently than its SARS-CoV ortholog. Phylogenetic analyses and functional assays revealed that SARS-CoV-2-related viruses from bats and pangolins also encode truncated ORF3b gene products with strong anti-interferon activity. Furthermore, analyses of more than 15,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences identified a natural variant, in which a longer ORF3b reading frame was reconstituted. This variant was isolated from two patients with severe disease and further increased the ability of ORF3b to suppress interferon induction. Thus, our findings not only help to explain the poor interferon response in COVID-19 patients, but also describe a possibility of the emergence of natural SARS-CoV-2 quasispecies with extended ORF3b that may exacerbate COVID-19 symptoms. Highlights ORF3b of SARS-CoV-2 and related bat and pangolin viruses is a potent IFN antagonist SARS-CoV-2 ORF3b suppresses IFN induction more efficiently than SARS-CoV ortholog The anti-IFN activity of ORF3b depends on the length of its C-terminus An ORF3b with increased IFN antagonism was isolated from two severe COVID-19 cases


This guidebook provides instruction for local leaders aiming to improve the efficiency of their justice systems by managing and allocating scarce resources more cost-effectively and generating savings that can be reinvested in prevention-oriented strategies. It describes the steps involved in this justice reinvestment process, the challenges that may be encountered, and how those challenges can be overcome. While the intended audience is local county and city managers and their criminal justice leaders, this document is designed to be accessible to a wide array of local government stakeholders, along with criminal justice practitioners, consultants, and researchers.


Eutherian spermatozoa are dependent on the environment of the proximal epididymis to complete their maturation; however, no specific epididymal factors that mediate this process have so far been identified. Here, we show that targeted disruption of the novel gene Rnase10 encoding a secreted proximal epididymal protein in the mouse results in a binding defect in spermatozoa and their inability to pass through the uterotubal junction in the female. The failure to gain the site of fertilization in the knockout spermatozoa is associated with a gradual loss of ADAM3 and ADAM6 proteins during epididymal transit. In the distal epididymis, these spermatozoa appear to lack calcium-dependent associations with the immobilizing glutinous extracellular material and are released as single, vigorously motile cells that display no tendency for head-to-head agglutination and lack affinity to the oviductal epithelium. In sperm-egg binding assay, they are unable to establish a tenacious association with the zona pellucida, yet they are capable of fertilization. Furthermore, these sperm show accelerated capacitation resulting in an overall in vitro fertilizing ability superior to that of wild-type sperm. We conclude that the physiological role of sperm adhesiveness is in the mechanism of restricted sperm entry into the oviduct rather than in sperm-egg interaction.—Krutskikh, A., Poliandri, A., Cabrera-Sharp, V., Dacheux, J. L., Poutanen, M., Huhtaniemi, I. Epididymal protein Rnase10 is required for post-testicular sperm maturation and male fertility. FASEB J. 26, 4198–4209 (2012). www.fasebj. org


Because sieve elements are generally regarded as the specialized conducting cells in the phloem tissue, their structure in relation to function has been the subject of many studies and discussions. ' Both the protoplast and the walls of sieve elements have distinctive characteristics, some of which are difficult to relate to the rapid flow of materials-at the rate of up to 100 cm. per hour-recorded in the phloem tissue. We have recently stressed one such feature2 not previously observed: in many dicotyledons having relatively long cambial initials, various anticlinal divisions of the cambial derivatives result in sieve elements shorter than such initials. Thus reduction in the potential length of the sieve elements introduces additional end walls, and the moving solution must pass through a greater number of sieve plates. The present study is concerned with another feature that would seem to interfere with a free flow of materials through the sieve elements-the remarkably thick walls that occur in sieve elements of many species of dicotyledons. The material included 142 species in 121 genera of 58 families of dicotyledons. In 67 per cent of the species, each was represented by more than one collection, usually two, one taken during dormancy, the other during the early or late part of the growth season. Part of the collections was made in California, part in Rhode Island. Only secondary phloem was examined, mostly from branches over ten years old. The methods of preparation of material for microscopic study were the same as described by Cheadle and Esau.I To obtain some notion of the relation of wall thickness to cell size, the sieve elements and their lumina were measured in transections along their tangential and radial diameters, 10 measurements of each for each plant. The cell diameters were measured from middle lamella to middle lamella, the lumina from wall to wall. The difference between the diameter of the cell and that of the lumen, divided by 2, gave the thickness of the wall. The product of the tangential and radial diameters was used to estimate the transectional area of the sieve element and of its lumen. It should be emphasized that these measurements and calculations have only a rough comparative value. The material used was in killed condition, and in such material the walls are somewhat thinner than in fresh sections. Further, the transections of sieve elements and their lumina are not rectangular (see figures), and thus the products of tangential and radial diameters give only approximate size values of these areas. The walls of sieve elements of different species show a wide range of variations in thickness. Some species have walls approximately 1 1A thick (Figs. 1, 2, 5); in others the wall almost occludes the lumen of the cell (Figs. 3, 11). Many intermediate thicknesses occur in various other species (e.g., Figs. 7, 8). There is also a variation in the appearance of the walls. In some species the walls seem to be rather homogeneous (Figs. 1, 2, 5); even the middle lamella may not be distinguish-


Although previous research suggests that off-job activities are generally important for recovery from work stress, a profound understanding of which aspects of recovery activities benefit the recovery process and why is still lacking. In the present work, we introduce a dimensional approach toward studying recovery activities and present a taxonomy of key recovery activity dimensions (physical, mental, social, spiritual, creative, virtual, and outdoor). Across four studies (total N = 908) using cross-sectional, time-lagged, and a diary design, we develop and validate the Recovery Activity Characteristics (RAC) questionnaire, a multidimensional measure of RAC. Results demonstrate its content validity, high scale reliabilities, and a strong factor structure. With a 10-day diary study involving two daily measurement occasions, we demonstrate the role of RAC for recovery experiences and downstream well-being outcomes. Findings underscore the importance of carefully differentiating the active ingredients of recovery activities as they differentially relate to same evening and next-morning exhaustion and vigor. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).


We propose the concept and implementation of a graphical information hiding technique for interactive tabletops where users can view the information by simply casting real shadows. We placed three projectors (one in the rear and two in the front) in such a way that the rear one projects graphical information onto a tabletop surface, and the front ones project a complementary image, so that the combined image displayed on the surface becomes uniformly gray, thus hiding the information from the viewer. Users can view the hidden information by blocking the light from the front projector, revealing the complementary image that is being projected onto the occluder. We use the other front projector and polarization filters to make the complementary image projected onto the occluder also uniformly gray. Because the technique completely relies on optical phenomena, users can interact with the system without suffering from any false recognitions or delays.


Searches for new astrophysical phenomena often involve several sources of non-random uncertainties which can lead to highly misleading results. Among these, model-uncertainty arising from background mismodelling can dramatically compromise the sensitivity of the experiment under study. Specifically, overestimating the background distribution in the signal region increases the chances of missing new physics. Conversely, underestimating the background outside the signal region leads to an artificially enhanced sensitivity and a higher likelihood of claiming false discoveries. The aim of this work is to provide a unified statistical strategy to perform modelling, estimation, inference, and signal characterization under background mismodelling. The method proposed allows to incorporate the (partial) scientific knowledge available on the background distribution and provides a data-updated version of it in a purely nonparametric fashion without requiring the specification of prior distributions. Applications in the context of dark matter searches and radio surveys show how the tools presented in this article can be used to incorporate non-stochastic uncertainty due to instrumental noise and to overcome violations of classical distributional assumptions in stacking experiments.


Bulking therapy for the minimally invasive treatment of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) may be offered to women with urodynamic SUI, wishing to avoid the complications associated with more invasive surgery, on the basis of low operative morbidity and low long-term success rates. These bulking agents may be injected by a retrograde or antegrade technique in the periurethral tissue around the bladder neck and proximal urethra. This therapy is strongly dependent on the anesthetic technique of choice; moreover its application as an outpatient procedure implies the potential for a cost-effective treatment for selected patients with SUI. In the present paper all factors affecting the choice of different types of anesthetic techniques are discussed.


A Monte Carlo computational model of a fluoroscopic imaging chain was used for deriving optimal technique factors for paediatric fluoroscopy. The optimal technique was defined as the one that minimizes the absorbed dose (or dose rate) in the patient with a constraint of constant image quality. Image quality was assessed for the task of detecting a detail in the image of a patient-simulating phantom, and was expressed in terms of the ideal observer's signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for static images and in terms of the accumulating rate of the square of SNR for dynamic imaging. The entrance air kerma (or air kerma rate) and the mean absorbed dose (or dose rate) in the phantom quantified radiation detriment. The calculations were made for homogeneous phantoms simulating newborn, 3-, 10- and 15-year-old patients, barium and iodine contrast material details, several x-ray spectra, and for imaging with or without an antiscatter grid. The image receptor was modelled as a CsI x-ray image intensifier (XRII). For the task of detecting low- or moderate-contrast iodine details, the optimal spectrum can be obtained by using an x-ray tube potential near 50 kV and filtering the x-ray beam heavily. The optimal tube potential is near 60 kV for low- or moderate-contrast barium details, and 80-100 kV for high-contrast details. The low-potential spectra above require a high tube load, but this should be acceptable in paediatric fluoroscopy. A reasonable choice of filtration is the use of an additional 0.25 mm Cu, or a suitable K-edge filter. No increase in the optimal tube potential was found as phantom thickness increased. With the constraint of constant low-contrast detail detectability, the mean absorbed doses obtained with the above spectra are approximately 50% lower than those obtained with the reference conditions of 70 kV and 2.7 mm Al filter. For the smallest patient and x-ray field size, not using a grid was slightly more dose-efficient than using a grid, but when the patient size and field size were increased a fibre interspaced grid resulted in lower doses than imaging without a grid. For a 15-year-old patient the mean absorbed doses were up to 40% lower with this grid than without the grid.


Objective: The scaphoid bone is the most injured carpal bone and is the cause of severe wrist dysfunction seen in nonunion cases. The probability of avascular necrosis is very high especially in fractures of the proximal pole, due to the retrograde blood flow in the region. In these cases, vascularized pedicle bone grafts, with high rates of union, is a good alternative to the conventional techniques. In this study, we present the results of vascularized bone grafting with grafts harvested from the 4-5 extensor compartment artery (ECA) and fixation with the Herbert screw in patients with avascular pseudoarthroses of the scaphoid proximal pole.
Methods: Fifteen patients who presented to our clinic due to nonunion of the scaphoid and who were applied vascularized pedicle bone grafts harvested from the ECA between 2006 and 2015 were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 30.1 (19-42) and all patients were male. Patients were followed up for an average period of 22.7 (18-56) months. Union in the patients were evaluated with the preoperative and postoperative wrist ranges of motion. VAS (visual analog scale) and, for functional evaluation, the Turkish version of the Quick-DASH scale were used.
Results: Union was achieved in all patients after a mean period of 8.2 (6-10) weeks. The most significant improvements after surgery were detected in the VAS and functional Quick-DASH scores. No significant improvement was observed in wrist contractures. Other than the hematoma in one patient, no complication was observed.
Conclusion: In cases of nonunion of the scaphoid proximal pole fractures accompanied by avascular necrosis, pedicle grafts from the 4-5 ECA offer high rates of union and improvement in the pain and functional scores of the patients.

Level of evidence
Level IV, therapeutic study.

Keywords : Scaphoid, proximal pole, vascularized pedicle bone graft


Several weeks ago, I asked companies to send me information about the demos that would be showing at DAC this year. I am pleased to say that many companies responded. I hope you find this better than another list of what you must see at DAC, instead, you can be guided by some real information that may actually be helpful in planning your trip around the show floor. Companies that did not get information to me, feel free to add your information by placing a comment on this article.


Understorey insectivorous birds are highly vulnerable to different forms of habitat disturbance in tropical forests. Here we examine the effects of an unprecedented surface fire on understorey insectivores and forest litter arthropods in a terra firme forest of central Brazilian Amazonia, and compare species and guild abundance both close to and far from the clearly distinguishable fireline separating burnt and unburnt forest. All six of the most abundant insectivorous foraging guilds examined were detrimentally affected by fire, with dead‐leaf gleaners and professional ant‐followers being the most heavily affected. While army ants were apparently absent from the burnt forest, results from pit‐fall traps showed that wildfires had only a limited effect on the abundance of most leaf‐litter invertebrates. The fireline appeared to be an abrupt barrier to many understorey insectivorous birds, and there was little evidence to suggest that primary forest species were recolonizing burnt forest up to 1 year after the fires. Factors affecting the capture frequency of insectivorous birds are discussed.


In this paper, an in-depth analysis is undertaken into effective strategies for integrating the audio-visual speech modalities with respect to two major questions. Firstly, at what level should integration occur? Secondly, given a level of integration how should this integration be implemented? Our work is based around the well-known hidden Markov model (HMM) classifier framework for modeling speech. A novel framework for modeling the mismatch between train and test observation sets is proposed, so as to provide effective classifier combination performance between the acoustic and visual HMM classifiers. From this framework, it can be shown that strategies for combining independent classifiers, such as the weighted product or sum rules, naturally emerge depending on the influence of the mismatch. Based on the assumption that poor performance in most audio-visual speech processing applications can be attributed to train/test mismatches we propose that the main impetus of practical audio-visual integration is to dampen the independent errors, resulting from the mismatch, rather than trying to model any bimodal speech dependencies. To this end a strategy is recommended, based on theory and empirical evidence, using a hybrid between the weighted product and weighted sum rules in the presence of varying acoustic noise for the task of text-dependent speaker recognition.


Introduction Treatment failure is a key challenge in the management of HIV-1 infection. We examined the association of nevirapine blood levels with virologic treatment outcome and adherence among Kenyan patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART). Methods A cross-sectional study involving 58 subjects receiving nevirapine as part of ART regimen. Clinical, demographic and adherence data were captured using structured questionnaires. Five millilitres of EDTA blood was collected at 1, 4 and 24 h post-dosing and used for quantification of nevirapine levels using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Plasma viral load was determined on m 2000 Abbott RealTi m e HIV-1 assay platform and used to determine virologic treatment failure (VF). Results Median duration of ART was 42 months and 43.1% of the patients had VF with a mean viral load of 4.24 log 10 copies. Measured at 1 hr (log 2.93, p = 0.003) and at 4 hrs (log 3.07, p 2 p 2 = 0.218, p = 0.002) and at 4 hrs (R 2 = 0.156, p = 0.001) were significantly and inversely correlated with same day VL in a Spearman's rho model. Up to 53.4%, 24.1% and 22.4% of the patients had good, fair and poor adherence respectively, with adherence being significantly associated with plasma nevirapine levels at 1 hr (c 2 p = 0.001) and at 4 hr (c 2 p = 0.021). No significant associations were found at 24 hrs post nevirapine dosing. Conclusion Majority of VF patients attained nevirapine levels in plasma that were significantly lower than non-VF patients. These patients were also more likely to have poor adherence than virologic responders with higher nevirapine levels. Suboptimal exposures to nevirapine may be mitigated partly by improving adherence support mechanisms. Additional investigations should focus on pharmacogenetics and other factors influencing optimal drug uptake in blood. Disclosure of interest statement ISSTDR and IUSTI recognise the considerable contribution that industry partners make to professional and research activities. We also recognise the need for transparency of disclosure of potential conflicts of interest by acknowledging these relationships in publications and presentations.


We test the statistical properties of static, atmospherelike wave fronts in glass that allow repeatable testing of astronomical adaptive optics instrumentation. The technology is mask-structured ion exchange (MSI) in glass and has significant advantages over other transmissive technologies. The screens are easy to clean, are insensitive to ambient temperature changes, and have high optical-to-near-infrared transmission. However, the effective coherence length (r0) on each of the fabricated screens is systematically too large or, equivalently, the fabricated aberrations are too weak. Despite this strong caveat, the screens appear to be quite useful: Long-exposure point-spread functions have realistic shapes, and power spectrum indices closely match those of the computer-generated wave fronts. Most significant, stacking screens with similar r0 values reduced r0 by the amount predicted by turbulence theory. The refractivity of MSI screens remains unmeasured. Finally, we present our design of an optical system that emulates the key characteristics of the Very Large Telescope, made to contain glass phase screens and to mimic an array of stars for multiconjugate adaptive optics system testing.


Common genetic variants buffered by Hsp90 are candidates for human diseases of signaling such as cancer. Like cancer, morphological abnormalities buffered by Hsp90 are discrete threshold traits with a continuous underlying basis of liability determining their probability of occurrence. QTL and deletion maps for one of the most frequent Hsp90-dependent abnormalities in Drosophila, deformed eye (dfe), were replicated across three genetically related artificial selection lines using strategies dependent on proximity to the dfe threshold and the direction of genetic and environmental effects. Up to 17 dfe loci (QTL) linked by 7 interactions were detected based on the ability of small recombinant regions of an unaffected and completely homozygous control genotype to dominantly suppress or enhance dfe penetrance at its threshold in groups of isogenic recombinant flies, and over 20 deletions increased dfe penetrance from a low expected value in one or more line, identifying a complex network of genes responsible for the dfe phenotype. Replicated comparisons of these whole-genome mapping approaches identified several QTL regions narrowly defined by deletions and 4 candidate genes, with additional uncorrelated QTL and deletions highlighting differences between the approaches and the need for caution in attributing the effect of deletions directly to QTL genes.


Global games of regime change that is, coordination games of incomplete information in which a status quo is abandoned once a sufficiently large fraction of agents attacks it have been used to study crises phenomena such as currency attacks, bank runs, debt crises, and political change. We extend the static benchmark examined in the literature by allowing agents to accumulate information over time and take actions in many periods. It is shown that dynamics may lead to multiple equilibria under the same information assumptions that guarantee uniqueness in the static benchmark. Multiplicity originates in the interaction between the arrival of information over time and the endogenous change in beliefs induced by the knowledge that the regime survived past attacks. This interaction also generates interesting equilibrium properties, such as the possibility that fundamentals predict the eventual regime outcome but not the timing or the number of attacks, or that dynamics alternate between crises and phases of tranquillity without changes in fundamentals. JEL Codes: C7, D7, D8, F3.


The mechanisms of support of the prooxidant-antioxidant balance in the liver tissues of geese in hypo- and hyperoxia during the transition from embryonic to postnatal development. It is proved that the formation of adaptive response to these conditions by running the neuro-humoral mechanisms that are, first, to stimulate the synthesis of antioxidants of protein nature, and secondly, to reduce the unsaturation of fatty acids in the lipids of the liver, which greatly increases their resistance to the active forms of oxygenation and thirdly, to increase the efficiency of the antioxidant defense system by improving the consistency of its components performance.


ADP-stimulation of washed human platelets suspended in Tyrode/albumin solution containing Ca2+ (2 mM) and fibrinogen (0.4 mg/ml) causes extensive, reversible aggregation without appreciable secretion of granule contents. Under these conditions ADP (10 microM) stimulation decreased the amounts of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdInsP2) and phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PtdInsP) at 10 s. Omitting fibrinogen from the suspending medium or blocking fibrinogen binding to the platelets using Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (RGDS, 0.23 mM) inhibited these decreases in PtdInsP2 and PtdInsP. In contrast, ADP-induced decreases in PtdInsP2 and increases in PtdInsP at 60 s compared to 10 s were not affected by RGDS or the absence of fibrinogen. In platelets prelabelled with [3H]glycerol and [32P]phosphate, changes in labelling of the inositol phospholipids paralleled the changes in amount. The ADP-induced changes in phosphatidic acid (PtdOH) at 10 s were unaffected by RGDS; this finding supported previous reports that phospholipase C was not the cause of the early decreases in PtdInsP2 and PtdInsP. These results indicate that the early decreases in PtdInsP2 and PtdInsP at 10 s are dependent on fibrinogen binding to the platelets and occur after fibrinogen binding which is activated by ADP stimulation. It is proposed that the fibrinogen-dependent changes in PtdInsP2 and PtdInsP may have a feedback role augmenting platelet aggregation or other responses of platelets that might occur after fibrinogen binding, possibly due to effects on actin polymerisation.


ABSTRACT Although the role of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFLT-1) in preeclampsia is well-established, the mechanism related to its synthesis remains poorly understood. We evaluated the association among the circulating microRNAs (miRs) and sFLT-1 levels in preeclampsia pregnant women. For this purpose, we measured the plasma sFLT-1 levels in 24 preeclampsia women and selected from these, three subjects with the lowest and three with the highest levels of sFLT-1 in order to screen for potential miRs associated with plasmatic sFLT-1 concentrations using a polymerase chain reaction-array (PCR-array) methodology. From screening results, we found three statistically different expressed miRs with fold change (FC-high/low levels) ≥3.0: miR-195-5p (FC = 5.2 increase in group with high sFLT-1 levels), miR-16-5p (FC = 3.2; increase in group with high sFLT-1 levels), and miR-375 (FC = −3.0; decrease in group with high sFLT-1 levels) which were later validated in all samples (n = 24). To correlate these miRs and plasma sFLT-1 levels, we used two extremes of analysis. In one part, we compared 12 preeclampsia women with the lowest sFLT-1 levels (L-50% group) to 12 with the highest levels (50% H group); and in the second analysis, 6 preeclampsia women (L-25%) from the L group to 6 preeclampsia women from the H group (H-25%). Our results showed increased expression of miR-195-5p in the H group, considering both the analyses with 50%, FC = 2.1 and 25%, FC = 4.2. Regarding other miRs, lack of correlation was found in both analyses (50% and 25%). In conclusion, our data demonstrate an association of higher levels of sFLT-1 with increased expression of miR-195-5p in preeclampsia pregnant women.


Purpose of the article: The Czech Republic is still considered an emerging economy and MNEs are important
players in most of its markets. Hence, knowledge of their strategies is essential and valuable not only for
companies already present on the Czech market, but also for those who intend to enter the Czech market.
Methodology/methods: The analysis centres on a sample of 155 foreign multinationals and 118 Czech
companies. Using the empirical data, a logistic regression model was subsequently employed to determine
whether the strategies chosen by the firms are related to any of the environmental variables. I employed
ANOVA and linear regression model to determine whether certain strategy choices are related to higher
company performance for MNEs and DCs.
Scientific aim: This study examines the strategy-environment configurations adopted by multinational and
domestic companies in the Czech Republic and makes an assessment of which strategy is the most advantageous.
Findings: The author concludes that the strategies of MNE and domestic companies differ in such a dynamic
and hostile environment. The performance implications of the strategies deployed are also examined. The most
significant result indicates that the adoption of a heterogeneous strategy-environment configuration by MNEs
and domestic companies in a small-scale transition economy leads to better performance for both of them.
Conclusions: The results imply that the adoption of a heterogeneous strategy-environment configuration by
MNE and domestic companies in smaller transition economy leads to better performance for both of them. This
study offers a different insight into the strategic behaviour of companies and extends the existing knowledge by
adding the ownership variable into the strategy-environment relationship. Output of this study can serve as the
basis for decision-making in companies already active in the Czech marketplace and, particularly, as important
entry information for companies considering entering the market.


Background. Lacunar stroke (LS) accounts for a quarter of all ischemic strokes and is considered to have a benign prognosis. However, 20-30% of patients experience worsening of neurological deficit in hours or days after stroke onset. Mechanisms of progression are not known and no reliable clinical predictor has been identified. Aim of this study was to explore vascular risk factors and baseline clinical or laboratory features potentially associated with progression in LS. Methods. We performed a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients with LS admitted to the Stroke Unit of Careggi University Hospital (Florence, Italy) between January 2002 and December 2010. Patients were included in the study if they presented with a lacunar syndrome according to OCSP classification and/or small vessel disease according to TOAST classification and/or a lacunar infarct on neuroimaging consistent with the clinical deficit. Patients were divided into "progressive" and "non progressive". Progression was defined as an increase of at least one point on one of the motor items of the NIHSS during the first 72 hours after stroke onset. Factors associated with progression after univariate analysis were entered into a multiple logistic regression model in order to select independent determinants of progression. Results. Out of 1502 patients with ischemic stroke admitted during the study period, 156 met the inclusion criteria. Thirty-nine (25%) patients showed neurological worsening. Latency of progression was 25.7 hours. Patients who progressed were younger than those who did not (mean age: 67.9±10.7 vs 70.6±13.0). There were no significant differences for single vascular risk factors distribution, laboratory parameters and baseline stroke severity comparing the two groups. When considering the presence of one versus more than one factor among hypertension, diabetes, smoking and hypercholesterolemia, the risk of progression increased with increasing number of risk factors: neurological worsening was observed in 0% (0/17) of patients with no risk factor, 24% (15/62) of those with one risk factor and 31% (24/77) of those with more than one risk factor (p=0.025). After adjustment for univariate predictors (age, sex, diastolic hypertension and lesion location in pons or internal capsule), the presence of multiple vascular risk factors maintained an independent effect on progression: risk of progression increased with an OR=1.7 (95%IC=1.1-2.8) for any additional risk factor. Conclusion. Our results suggest that a high risk factors profile is associated with an increased risk of progression. Translating this observation into a hypothetical pathological setting, it could support the hypothesis of mural atheroma involving the parent artery and proximal portion of the perforating arteries, eventually leading to the progressive enlargement of the ischemic area as a putative mechanism of progressive LS.


A general self-aligned fabrication scheme is reported here for a diverse class of electronic devices based on van der Waals materials and heterojunctions. In particular, self-alignment enables the fabrication of source-gated transistors in monolayer MoS2 with near-ideal current saturation characteristics and channel lengths down to 135 nm. Furthermore, self-alignment of van der Waals p-n heterojunction diodes achieves complete electrostatic control of both the p-type and n-type constituent semiconductors in a dual-gated geometry, resulting in gate-tunable mean and variance of antiambipolar Gaussian characteristics. Through finite-element device simulations, the operating principles of source-gated transistors and dual-gated antiambipolar devices are elucidated, thus providing design rules for additional devices that employ self-aligned geometries. For example, the versatility of this scheme is demonstrated via contact-doped MoS2 homojunction diodes and mixed-dimensional heterojunctions based on organic semiconductors. The scalability of this approach is also shown by fabricating self-aligned short-channel transistors with subdiffraction channel lengths in the range of 150-800 nm using photolithography on large-area MoS2 films grown by chemical vapor deposition. Overall, this self-aligned fabrication method represents an important step toward the scalable integration of van der Waals heterojunction devices into more sophisticated circuits and systems.


Objectives Publication of NICE caesarean section guideline re-established debate about whether obstetricians fear childbirth. This study aimed: To determine personal choices of practising obstetricians on mode of delivery for themselves or their partners in various clinical scenarios; To determine actual rates of modes of deliveries amongst obstetricians and gynaecologists in South West (SW) England. Methods A piloted online survey link was sent to all obstetricians and gynaecologists (consultants and trainees) in SW England using a robust email database. Obstetricians mode of delivery data between 2006–2011 was compared to regional/national population data, using Hospital Episode Statistics (HES). Results Response rate: 165/242 (68%). 89.9% of SW obstetricians stated they would plan vaginal delivery for themselves/their partners; 10.1% would opt for caesarean section in an uncomplicated primiparous pregnancy. 94/165 (60%) respondents had their own children (201 children). Mode of delivery for first born child; normal vaginal 48%, caesarean section 26.5% (elective 8.5%, emergency 18%), instrumental 24.5% and vaginal breech 1%. Elective caesarean was performed in 8.5%. Only one chose an elective caesarean for maternal request. SW obstetricians statistically have the same overall actual modes of birth (Kruksal-Wallis p = 0.932). Conclusions 10% report they would request caesarean section for themselves/their partner, which is the lowest rate reported within UK studies. Only 1% had a caesarean solely for maternal choice. SW Obstetricians would choose non interventional delivery if possible. They currently have modes of delivery that are not statistically different from the general population. These results challenge long held misconceptions about birth choices made by obstetricians.


The presence of mobile-internet has led to the emergence of the e-hailing industry. As the e-hailing services usage increased, it led riders to share their opinions or discontent after indulging in the services. Therefore, in this study, online sentiments on social media (Twitter) with specific keywords mentioned, were examined to identify the rider opinions towards the e-hailing services in both Malaysia and Indonesia. Service Quality (SERVQUAL) model was used as the foundation to examine the service quality offered by the e-hailing service providers. The dimensions included were: 'Availability', 'Accessibility', 'Information', 'Comfort', 'Safety', and the additional dimension of 'Price'. All the data (tweets) collected were classified into either a positive or negative sentiment, and to respective dimensions manually, by referring to keywords. The results revealed that all the dimensions show a negative trend in both countries. 'Comfort' and 'Availability' was ranked the first in Malaysia and Indonesia respectively, and the results shown were due to riders demanded an e-hailing service that is available anywhere and anytime when they need it. The study results provide a strong reference to practitioners to improve on their service quality and allowed to identify which dimensions were concerned the most by the riders in both countries.


Waste biomass densification into briquettes and pellets improves the characteristics of loose biomass residue for efficient transport, storage and thermochemical conversion into advanced fuels (e.g., syngas, for electricity, liquid fuels and chemicals). Briquettes of good and consistent quality are required but often difficult to achieve as more work is still required to understand how the chemical and physical properties of different biomass types, along with process variables, affect their quality. Also, the additional energy and cost associated with biomass briquetting has raised the issue of the sustainability of briquetting loose biomass before its conversion. This research focuses on the use of novel approaches to improve the quality of fuel briquettes for thermal applications, and further evaluates the sustainability of fuel briquetting, using life cycle assessment (LCA). Experiments were conducted to investigate the potential benefits of blending waste rice husks, corn cobs and bagasse, and with novel binders including enhanced treated biosolids, and microalgae (Chlorella sorokiniana), on fuel briquette properties, using factorial design methods. The new binders were also compared with existing starch binder. The range of briquettes produced in this study had unit densities of up to 3.3 times the loose biomass bulk density, and were stronger than briquettes from the individual biomass materials. Considering average values from two biomass sources, an unconfined compressive strength of 176 kPa was achieved at a compaction pressure of 31 MPa for a 3:7 blend of rice husks to corn cobs with 10% binder (starch + water). These briquettes were durable, with only 4% mass loss during abrasion, and 10% mass loss during shattering, tests. They absorbed 36% less water than loose corn cobs. An unconfined compressive strength of 175 kPa was also achieved for a 2:4:1 blend of rice husks, corn cobs and bagasse with 17% binder (microalgae), also at a compaction pressure of 31 MPa. The statistical analysis of the above results showed that the source of the biomass had a significant effect on densification, which emphasises the need to understand factors underlying biomass variability. Of all the briquettes produced with the three binders, those containing the microalgae binder were found to be most durable, with a higher energy density, slower mass loss during briquette combustion, and a higher afterglow time. Since microalgae may be grown using CO2 from biomass combustion, discovery of their advantages as a binder in briquetting is particularly welcome. To evaluate the sustainability of fuel briquetting, a detailed review of the existing LCA studies on fuel briquetting was carried out. These were found to provide insufficient and inconsistent information, due to different choices in system boundary, data sources, functional unit, allocation procedure, briquetting technology and biomass/briquette properties. An LCA model of biomass briquetting was therefore developed to enable transparent comparison of life cycle environmental impacts of briquetting with individual or blends of biomass feeds with a variety of technological options. The main model components include materials and process inventory databases derived from standard sources, main process calculations, user inputs and results sections. The model is open-access in a user accessible format (Microsoft Excel). A representative case study with mixed rice husks and corn cobs showed that the briquetting unit itself made the largest contribution, 42%, to the total life cycle operational energy of the briquetting system. For all the blends of rice husks and corn cobs explored in this study, the total life cycle energy of briquetting was in the range 0.2 to 0.3 MJ per MJ of fuel briquette energy content. Variation of the LCA input parameters in a sensitivity test for the same blend ratios, gave a range of total life cycle energy of briquetting from 0.2 to 1.7 MJ per MJ of fuel briquette energy content. This indicates that energy use in briquetting is not necessarily recovered, highlighting the need for continuous process optimisation and high quality LCA data. An increase in rice husks content of the blend increased the environmental impact of briquetting including the global warming potential (kg CO2-eq), acidification potential (kg SO2-eq), human toxicity (kg 1,4-DB-eq), ozone layer depletion (kg CFC-11-eq), and terrestrial ecotoxicity (kg 1,4-DB-eq) per MJ briquette energy content, as it was associated with a lower briquette density, which increased the energy required for handling.


In this paper we present a survey of a framework for modeling and specifying information systems. Our method [4. 5) is supported by a software tool for checking and executing specifications. An executable specification may be considered as a prototype for a target system. The specification language resembles the language of mathematics; it is related to the Z and VDM methods [1, 3J. However, specifications in Z and VDM are descriptive (and therefore not executable), whereas ours are constructive. All these methods share almost the same power and versatility. In section 1 we give our viewpoint on the engineering of information systems. In section 2 we give an informal treatment of our framework and design method. In section 3 we survey the specification language. In section 4 our solution to the inventory control case study [6] is presented and finally in section 5 we give a full specification of that case study.


Micellar-like nanoassemblies of a sulfonate amphiphilic calix[4]arene ( 1 ) are able to effectively co-entrap the fluoroquinolone antibacterial norfloxacin ( 2 ) and a hydrophobic nitric oxide (NO) photodonor ( 3 ), leading to a ternary supramolecular complex having a diameter of ca. 150 nm and a zeta potential of –48 mV. Outstanding photochemical stabilization of the otherwise photolabile fluoroquinolone 2 is observed under UVA excitation. Besides, visible light excitation leads to a remarkable enhancement of the NO photorelease efficiency of 3 . Both the results can be explained on the basis of a "cage effect" of the micellar host that, in the case of 2 , hinders the formation of the precursor complex responsible for the photodegradation, whereas in the case of 3 it provides a low polarity environment and easily abstractable hydrogens, which facilitate the radical-mediated mechanism involved in NO photorelease. Therefore, this supramolecular ternary nanoassembly simultaneously overcomes the main limitations of the free individual guests such as photolability and low photoreactivity. In view of the well-known antibacterial properties of the NO radical and the biocompatibility of the calixarene host, this nanoassembly represents a suitable bimodal system to be tested in antibacterial research.


Herein a simplified quasi-two dimensional horizontal hydro-morphological mathematical model is presented. The governing equations for the quasi-2D horizontal time-depending flow field are represented by the well-known approach of interconnected cells. New discharge laws between cells are incorporated. The model is capable of predicting temporal changes in water depth, velocity distribution,sediment transport, bed elevation, as well as water and suspended sediment exchanges between main stream and flood plains. An application of the model to the middle reach of the Argentinean Parana River is presented. Satisfactory results were obtained during model calibration, validation and application.


In China, a new railway middle-span emergency steel truss girder, which can adapt to the technical requirements about quickly repairing the damaged railway bridges, is developed under the new situation. The old emergency steel truss girder for the railway bridges can not adapt to the current technical requirements. So, the new railway middle-span emergency steel truss girder (hereinafter referred to as the new girder) is developed after hard work. The great changes on the structure, the connections, the structural details and the multi-purpose have taken place on it compared to the existing old similar girder. In this paper, the structure and technical characteristics of the new girder are introduced. In order to improve the new girder's design, the dynamic responses of the new girder are calculated using the train-bridge coupling vibration theory. In the paper, the 32m-span girder are the main object of study. The vibration-related laws are revealed versus the different train speeds, and the proposals about the largest traffic safety speed are given.


We investigate the role of consumer switching costs in a three-stage model in which the entrant and the incumbent firm set prices sequentially and then the consumers decide from which firm to buy. We characterize the unique subgame perfect equilibrium and find that even an entrant with a higher marginal cost may profitably invade part of the market due to the existence of switching costs. Switching costs benefit both firms but harm consumers. This model is used to understand pricing behavior in the US telecommunications industry. Copyright (c) 1998 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.


Some of the world's poor and most disaster-vulnerable communities are also those most reliant on livestock. Whenever disasters strike, in addition to the immediate devastation, food insecurity and loss of life, the loss of livestock can leave a secondary legacy of economic instability, debt and dependency. In 2011, a collaborative approach to mitigate both immediate and long-term effects of the devastating drought affecting Kenya's livestock and people was conducted in Mwingi. In that year, East Africa had suffered the worst drought in 60 years following three years of poor or failed rains. More than 11 million people faced starvation in the region and in Kenya alone, 3.5 million people were affected by the crisis, which was declared a national disaster. For the people of Mwingi in Kenya, the keeping of livestock – including cattle, goats, sheep and camels – is the primary source of livelihoods and forms the basis of the regional economy. As the drought continued, daily life of Mwingi people became a struggle for survival for both people and their animals. Of their estimated animals thought to have been affected, in some areas, up to 45 per cent of the animal population died. A strategy to mitigate the effects of the drought was designed through participatory drought analysis and needs assessment. Subsequently, a drought response team was deployed in the region targeting to secure and restore valued asset of the people of Mwingi - the livestock. Management of livestock during that crisis helped to safeguard livelihoods and food security of the affected region. By the end of the disaster management there were perceived benefits in terms of improved body condition of the animals, avoided animal mortalities and indirect benefits derived from surviving livestock. With resumption of rains, farmers were able to continue depending upon their secured animals assets for livelihood. The cost-benefit analysis indicated the intervention generated $2.74 of benefits in the form of avoided losses for every $1 spent. If the time period was extended to 3 years, the benefit-cost ratio increases to $6.69 in benefits for every $1 spent. This case demonstrates that interventions on drought crisis focusing on actions aimed at animal welfare could help maintain and restore the livestock as a livelihoods asset of the regions' farmers and help to enhance their food security. Key words : Drought, Livestock, Livelihoods, Food Security


Abstract The term "network" has often been used to characterize Fluxus's internationalism and to identify its membership. This has led a number of scholars to argue that Fluxus anticipated forms of artistic exchange now associated with Internet-based art. More recently, it has cast Fluxus as a precedent for applying a network model to other transcontinental avant-gardes, particularly in curatorial practice. Yet in the rush to relate Fluxus to contemporary discourses on global connectivity, insufficient attention has been paid to the specific apparatuses that facilitated its cohesion. This article stages an intervention into Fluxus studies (and by extension Conceptual art, mail art, and other transnational movements associated with communication and the "dematerialization" of the art object) by drawing on the field of German media theory to analyze the "paperwork" that makes up much of the movement's material production. Specifically, it focuses on how the artist George Maciunas's engaged the postal system in order to facilitate Fluxus's collectivity, as well to insinuate Fluxus's methods of experimental composition into larger power structures. After an opening discussion of Maciunas's important diagrammatic history of Fluxus's development (a.k.a. the John Cage chart), the article tracks Maciunas's deployment of newsletters to organize Fluxus activities, his infamous mail-based sabotage proposals, his collaborations with Mieko Shiomi and Ben Vautier, and his "Flux Combat" with the New York State Attorney General.


A method is described for determination of the base composition (as guanine+cytosine or adenine+thymine content) of DNA by accurate measurement of the adenine/guanine ratio. The DNA is hydrolysed with 0.03n-hydrochloric acid for 40min. to release the purines. The hydrolysate is subjected to ion-exchange chromatography on Zeo-Karb 225. Apurinic acids are eluted with 0.03n-hydrochloric acid and then guanine and adenine are eluted separately with 2n-hydrochloric acid. Guanine and adenine are each collected as a single fraction, and the amount of base in each case is determined by measuring the volume and the extinction at suitable wavelengths. For use in the calculations, millimolar extinction coefficients in 2n-hydrochloric acid of 12.09 for adenine at 262mmu, and 10.77 for guanine at 248mmu, were determined with authentic samples of bases. The method gives extremely reproducible results: from 12 determinations with calf thymus DNA the adenine/guanine molar ratio had a standard deviation of 0.011; this corresponds to a standard deviation in guanine+cytosine content of 0.2% guanine+cytosine.


Many of the problems with native XML databases relate to query performance and subsequently, it can be difficult to convince traditional database users of the benefits of using semi- or unstructured databases. In particular, the ongoing development of the XQuery language requires that performance related issues are resolved. Presently, there still lacks an index structure providing efficient support for both navigational and structural queries and the traditional data-centric and content queries. This thesis presents a new extended index structure based on the preorder traversal rank and the level (or depth) rank of each node in a document tree. The extended index fully supports the navigation of all XPath axes while efficiently supporting data-centric queries. The ability to start path traversals from arbitrary nodes in a document tree also enables the extended index to support the evaluation of path traversals embedded in XQuery expressions. Furthermore, an encoding technique for this extended index structure is presented, whereby properties of a level ranking may be exploited to provide efficient and optimised path traversals and in certain cases, optimal solutions to path traversals.


An optimal midcourse guidance law is presented that maximizes the final speed for missiles against a target at far distance or at low attitude in which the final speed is a prime factor. An explicit acceleration command is derived analytically in which the trajectory-dependent optimal control gains are written in terns of thrust, lift, drag, and intercept boundary condition. The optimal guidance law can be implemented either in airframe coordinates or inertia coordinates. It is shown that the acceleration commands with constant control gain are adequate when the range is relatively short; during midcourse guidance, however, the optimal control gains are required to enhance the performance.


Well-stabilized vortices inside a physical cavity using direct injection of reactants can be used to provide stable combustion with performance benefits. The adaptation of the Trapped Vortex Combustion (TVC) concept involves the placement of the cavity-based flame stabilization device in the main duct of the combustor using annular or planar geometric configurations. In this work, we compare the performance of inner annular, outer annular and planar arrangements of the cavity with dual-vortex structure configuration enabled by a single injection port on the upstream wall of the cavity. The comparison is done using Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations. The effect of cavity implementation methods on the flame stabilization, temperature distribution at the exit of the combustor and pollutant emissions are analyzed with three combustor operating conditions based on the flow parameters. Significant differences in the flame stabilization are observed in the combustors due to the dissimilarity of the velocity and fuel distribution. The parameter, jet momentum flux ratio, denoted by J, is defined based on the inlet conditions and the estimate of actual cavity flow velocity from numerical results. This parameter is used to correlate the combustor performance among the various configurations studied. The inner annular combustor can be scaled to higher power by increasing the combustor radius (R) with same cavity size, flow parameters and chemical parameters, however, the flame stabilization and performance are affected by the geometric parameters, combustor radius (R) and cavity depth (D). Strategies to scale-up the combustor to obtain the required performance are discussed along with the challenges faced in comparing results of the various configurations studied.


Infant mortality in Chile decreased from 120 to 12 per thousand between 1960 and 1994. Outstanding events of this "great descent" are reviewed, based on past research and on updated information. Demographic and socioeconomic changes and improvements in health care that occurred during this period of decline are shown. It is estimated that 30% of the reduction of infant mortality between 1972 and 1982 was due to the decreasing proportion of births of high mortality risk, as a consequence of the fertility decline initiated in the mid 60s. Possible explanations for the continuing decline of infant mortality during the economic crisis of 1975 and 1982 are discussed. Finally, neonatal and postneonatal mortality rates by causes are compared between 1994 and 1980 and causes of death in extreme groups of infant mortality differentials by age of mother, birth order, gestational age, place of residence and educational level of the mother are shown.


Ethnic division and inequality lie at the heart of Myanmar's internal conflicts. In these conflicts, ethnic women are the most vulnerable group based on their ethnicity and gender. They are not only victims of violence, they have also been systematically marginalized from formal peace processes under both military and civilian governments. This thesis uses a feminist constructivist approach to examine the gendered role of women and girls in Myanmar society and the impacts of armed conflicts on women and girls in the conflict areas. The thesis discusses the history of ethnic divisions in Myanmar since independence in 1948, various peace initiatives pursued by Myanmar governments and the experiences of women and girls during conflict and their involvement in the more recent peace-building process. Drawing on extensive interviews with officials, politicians and civil society representatives, the thesis argues that if a sustainable and just peace is to be built in Myanmar, women need to be given a greater role. It also identifies obstacles that need to be overcome if women are to participate effectively in both formal and informal peace processes.


In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been adapting as fugitives of this accidental encounter with an "untouchable" virus, while being rendered into the shared virtual arena, where our discursive bodies are situated within, embedded in and tele-commuted to. Our increasing dependence on online interaction and video conferencing during the pandemic is not only facilitating social connectedness, but also contemplating the question: How to elongate our somatosensation and echo the embodied experience of touching through the incorporeal virtual connectivity? This essay focuses on the embodied nature of tele-synaesthesia performance, its potential effect of forging a rhythmic connection from one sensuous modality to another, and the concurrent emergences of glitch and internet latency as non-verbal cues of internet-situated communication. In reference to Laura Mark's theory of haptic visuality, where vision triggers a tactile experience in the body; Naomi Bennett's concept of virtual touch, in which an affective sensory response of touch can be elicited through non-tactile senses, Paul Sermon's artistic production of Telematic Quarantine (2020) and Pandemic Encounter (2020), that telepresents the stories of self (isolation), and in relation to Michel Foucault's concept Heterotopia in the context of internet-situated performance, I examine the performance work I have been developing during lockdown since March 2020: The Best Facial (2021), supported by Centre for Digital Media Cultures Research and School of Art Postgraduate Research at University of Brighton, a number of sessions of 25-minute 1-to-1 participatory tele-synaesthesia performances that take place on Zoom, where I become a virtual aesthetician and use telepresence to perform meditative virtual facial tactics, and to make tele-contact improvisation upon the surface of the participant's face to trigger tactile experiences through haptic visuality, virtual touching, and auditory fantasization.


Multinuclear 1H−13C heterocorrelated (HETCOR) NMR spectroscopy combined with X-ray diffraction revealed the unusual dual properties of identical guest molecules confined in two crystallographically distinct host cavities within single crystals based on hexagonal frameworks comprising guanidinium ions and organomonosulfonates. The environments of the two cavities differ substantially, as one is lined by the highly polar quasihexagonal guanidinium-sulfonate network, while the other is defined by walls consisting of nonpolar aromatic groups. The effect of these different environments on the NMR properties of the guest molecules is evident from chemical shift data and two-dimensional HETCOR spectra. The large magnetic susceptibility effect due to ring currents of the aromatic hosts enables determination of the host−guest distances and suggests intermolecular CH···π interactions. The 13C relaxation times reveal the molecular dynamics of the guests in two nanoscale environments that differ with respect to shape...


Some chemicals commonly used in personal care products, household items, food vessels, cosmetics, and other consumer products are potentially harmful, and several reviews of epidemiological studies have suggested the associations between the chemical exposure from consumer products, and respiratory diseases, skin sensitization, and reproductive problems. Therefore, risk assessment is essential for management of consumer products safety. Necessarily, the estimation of human exposure is an essential step in risk assessment, and the absorption rate of those chemicals via the gastrointestinal tract, respiratory tract, and skin are very critical in determining the internal dose of the exposed chemicals. In this study, parallel artificial membrane permeability assays (PAMPA) for the gastrointestinal tract and skin were performed to evaluate the permeability of parabens (4-hydroxybenzoic acid, methyl-, propyl-, and butyl paraben), bisphenols (bisphenol A, bisphenol F, and bisphenol S), isothiazolinones (methyl-, chloromethyl-, benz-, octyl-, and dichlorooctyl isothiazolinone), and phthalates [diethyl-, dibutyl-, Di-isononyl-, and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate]. Lipid solubility of test chemicals indicated by log P values was shown as the most critical factor and showed a positive association with the permeability of parabens, bisphenols, and isothiazolinones in PAMPA assay. However, phthalate showed a reverse-association between lipophilicity and permeability. The permeability of all the tested chemicals was higher in the gastrointestinal tract membrane than in the skin membrane. The pH in donor solution did not show significant effects on the permeability in all the chemicals, except the chemicals with a free hydrophilic moiety in their chemical structures.


The institutions of higher education are in need of an infusion of a new model of education in order to keep the curriculum in pace with changing environment which includes technology adoption, changing industry requirement, changing aspiration of students and changing expectations of society. It is expected that two models and two systems of higher education are going to get importance in this changing environment. The two models of higher education which are going to be relevant in future days are (1) Conventional classroom-based education model and (2) Technology supported online ubiquitous education model. The two higher education systems which are expected to be attractive to the learners are Choice Based Credit system and Competency based Credit system. University Grants Commission has come up with the Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) programme in which the students have a choice to choose from the prescribed courses, which are referred as core, elective or minor or soft skill courses and they can learn at their own pace and the entire assessment is graded based on a credit system. The basic idea is to look into the needs of the students so as to keep up-to-date with the development of higher education in India and abroad. CBCS aims to redefine the curriculum keeping pace with the liberalisation and globalisation in education. CBCS allows students an easy mode of mobility to various educational institutions spread across the world along with the facility of transfer of credits earned by students. In this paper, we have attempted to make a comparative analysis of "Choice Based Credit System" using SWOC analysis and ABCD analysis.


Cross-reactive antibodies are shown to be responsibile for the difference in final levels of agglutination reached after dissociation of a centrifuged group O serum-erythrocyte mixture as compared with duplicate mixtures allowed toaggregate freely. This difference is seen only with certain group O sera, it is independent of complement, and it may be eliminated by absorption of the serum with A or B erythrocytes. The phenomenon is most likely the result of steric inhibition of smaller, cross-reactive antibodies in the aggregative system.


Hurdle model is an alternative model to overcome overdispersion caused by excess zero. The model consists of two stages: a binary process that determines whether the response variable has zero values or positive values, and the second stage to model only the positive counts. The first stage is modelled using binary logistic regression, and the next stage is modeled with the zero-truncated model using Poisson regression. Bayesian method was employed to estimate the models' parameters. Non-informative priors were specified for the parameters, and combined with the likelihood from the data, the non-closed form of posterior distributions were obtained, thus leading to the use of Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) with Gibbs Sampling to obtain samples from the posterior distributions. This method was applied to model the frequency of motoric complication in people with Parkinson's disease. The result showed that subtotal scores from the three parts of Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) could explain the frequency of motoric complication well, implied by the significance of the regression coefficients.


Ascending optic atrophy was produced in 13 eyes of owl monkeys (Aotestrivirgatus) by retinal photocoagulation. Color fundus photography and fluorescein angiography were used to study and document the evolution of nerve head abnormalities. The optic nerve heads were also studied histopathologically. Except in certain instances of early transient (relative) filling defects, normal disc fluorescent patterns were preserved, despite clinically apparent optic nerve head pallor. Sectorial defects did not persist into the later phases of the angiogram. These findings may suggest a reduced blood flow, but neither angiographic nor histopathologic studies detected a reduced vascularity in the atrophic optic nerve. Pallor of the optic nerve head seems to result from alterations in the tissue reflectance and translucency following axonal loss and glial reorganization rather than from a decreased microvascular bed.


Classic finance theory observes that while debt can mitigate the conflict between equity and management, its issuance creates a conflict between debt and equity. We search for evidence of this conflict in the incidence of secured debt, which can be used by financially distressed firms to finance unduly risky projects for the benefit of equity at the expense of unsecured creditors. Skeptics of the debt-equity conflict's practical importance believe that distressed-firm management avoids secured credit, which may compel equity to relinquish control of a firm. Consistent with the classic account, our controlled study shows a significant run-up of secured credit, as a proportion of assets and of liabilities, prior to bankruptcy filings of publicly traded firms. Together with recent evidence of inefficiency as firms approach bankruptcy, our results support proposals for the subordination of secured debt to nonconsensual claims and for enhanced enforcement of covenants against the issuance of secured credit.


Massive open online courses (moocs) are much less in the news today—but that does not mean that they are no longer important. Rather, their importance now derives from what they demonstrated about the fractured nature of college curricula. Almost all moocs were one-offs—a single instructor/performer and a well-bounded subject. moocs almost never connected either to another mooc or to another aspect of the curriculum—and that is the issue. What the fascination with moocs demonstrated was just how easily it was to conceive of the college curriculum as a series of largely disconnected events. What is needed instead is a commitment to rebuilding the connective tissue that once made college curricula in general and general education curricula in particular substantially more than the sum of their disconnected parts.


Nucleos(t)ide analogs such as tenofovir, lamivudine, or emtricitabine are active against both HBV and HIV. Tenofovir confers potent and durable HBV‐DNA suppression but the best strategy in case of resistance of HBV to tenofovir remains unknown. A case of a 22‐year‐old patient with co‐infection with HBV and HIV transmitted perinatally is reported. After prolonged and intermittent treatment of HIV with lamivudine and tenofovir, HBV became resistant to lamivudine. Subsequently, clinical resistance to tenofovir occurred, manifesting as HBV‐DNA breakthrough. The non‐compliance was reasonable excluded and HIV‐RNA remained constantly suppressed. Entecavir (1 mg daily) was added and the combination therapy resulted in a rapid and continuous suppression of HBV‐DNA for over 12 months. The treatment was well‐tolerated and safe. No known mutations, such as rtA181T/V associated with rtN236T or A194T that are associated with reduced susceptibility or resistance to tenofovir were detected. However, a unique and complex HBV substitution pattern was found: with a development of rtR192PR mutation at the time of virological failure. Adding entecavir to failing therapy with tenofovir and emtricitabine was feasible, well‐tolerated and resulted in virological success. The rtR192PR, which is located in the B domain near the rtA194T, occurring in a context of a very complex substitutions patterns, might be associated with resistance to tenofovir. J. Med. Virol. 84:1340–1343, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


BACKGROUND
Migrant workers have been one of the groups most affected by the economic crisis. This study evaluates the influence of changes in employment conditions on the incidence of poor mental health of immigrant workers in Spain, after a period of 3 years, in context of economic crisis.

METHODS
Follow-up survey was conducted at two time points, 2008 and 2011, with a reference population of 318 workers from Colombia, Ecuador, Morocco and Romania residing in Spain. Individuals from this population who reported good mental health in the 2008 survey (n = 214) were interviewed again in 2011 to evaluate their mental health status and the effects of their different employment situations since 2008 by calculating crude and adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for sociodemographic and employment characteristics.

FINDINGS
There was an increased risk of poor mental health in workers who lost their jobs (aOR = 3.62, 95%CI: 1.64-7.96), whose number of working hours increased (aOR = 2.35, 95%CI: 1.02-5.44), whose monthly income decreased (aOR = 2.75, 95%CI: 1.08-7.00) or who remained within the low-income bracket. This was also the case for people whose legal status (permission for working and residing in Spain) was temporary or permanent compared with those with Spanish nationality (aOR = 3.32, 95%CI: 1.15-9.58) or illegal (aOR = 17.34, 95%CI: 1.96-153.23). In contrast, a decreased risk was observed among those who attained their registration under Spanish Social Security system (aOR = 0.10, 95%CI: 0.02-0.48).

CONCLUSION
There was an increase in poor mental health among immigrant workers who experienced deterioration in their employment conditions, probably influenced by the economic crisis.


This study aims to retrieve the relationship between emotional intelligence, social physique anxiety and life satisfaction among physical education students whom engaged to all kinds of sport activities and a physically active population. 141 students, 89 male (%63.1) and 52 female (%36.9), average age=21.6 participated to the study and completed Schutte Emotional Intelligence Scale, Social Physique Anxiety Scale (SPAS) and The Satisfaction With Life Scale. Students with high appraisal of emotions score have lower life satisfaction. Students with high social physique anxiety (SPA) have high positive emotional intelligence (EI) total score and appraisal of emotions score but negative correlation found with life satisfaction score and SPA. Results show that gender doesn't have a direct effect on SPA, a Univariate ANOVA conducted to reveal the difference between gender group, EI group and SPA. According to results, gender & EI has an important effect on SPA. Female students with high EI level have a higher SPA than lower EI group of both males and females.


The purpose of the research is to examine the causal relationship between stock prices and the variables representing the real sector of the economy for example real GDP, and real investment, in Pakistan. In this study, annual data is used (quarter-wise) from December 1980 to June 2007 and the correlation analysis has been applied, to investigate the relationship. For better understanding of the Market's Behavior, data has been grouped in to Liberalization periods; Preliberalization and Post-Liberalization. The stock market in Pakistan provides an average quarterly return of 2.86%.The average annual growths in real variables are just lower than 1% for GDP and returns slightly over 1% in investments. A comparison of the descriptive statistics between the two sub-periods indicates decline in the average growth in real variables. Real GDP fell ,and real investment also decreased. The decline is significant both in GDP and investment. Though the magnitude of the average growth in stock price index increased in the second period it is not significantly different from that of the first period. The descriptive statistics indicates a much higher expansion in stock prices relative to real variables. However, the stock prices also experienced higher volatility during the sample period whereas the real variables seem to be stable.


THE RENAISSANCE OF stereotactic functional neurosurgery has resulted in increased interest in its origins. Twenty articles concerning this field trace the history back to a paper published in 1873 by Dittmar: "Über die Lage des sogenannten Gefaesszentrums in der Medulla oblongata" [On the location of the so-called vasomotor center in the medulla oblongata]. Few facts are presented. But, taken together, the impression given by the secondary sources is that Dittmar, in 1873, presented a guiding device for localization of intracranial structures for the positioning of electrodes/blades in the medulla oblongata in rats. Of the publications that cite Dittmar's original article as their only quoted source, half did not specify the inserted object and the animal of the experiment. The remaining articles reported either that the introduced object was an electrode or that the experiments were performed on rats. Dittmar's original article, however, did not report use of his apparatus for insertion of electrodes, nor did he use rats. All experiments were performed by making incisions in the medulla oblongata in rabbits. Dittmar's apparatus was constructed to allow more precision when performing incisions in the medulla oblongata than could be obtained performing incisions freehand. The incision point was chosen and the blade introduced with direct visual guidance. This has been described as "spatial localization of intracranial structures," "a special targeting instrument," or simply, "a guiding device." In our opinion, it can most properly be classified as a supportive arm.


This article discusses some of the costs and benefits of multilingual legislation, focusing largely on Canada and the European Union. Courts interpreting these laws must take into account the different language versions, since each version is equally authoritative. Fidelity to the legislature's will comes with very high stakes in this context, because multilingual legislative systems are most typically a means for recognizing the autonomy of minority groups, which, in exchange, cede some of that autonomy to a higher legal order. Thus, there is a special moral duty to ensure that the laws are construed faithfully at the same time that language barriers make it appear, at least on the surface, that it is more difficult to do so. Moreover, the risk of judges substituting their own values for those of the legislature when there is no single, definitive legal text, appears to become magnified in multilingual settings, creating the risk of decision making that would not stand up to moral scrutiny even in monolingual systems. This article argues that despite the apparent difficulties inherent in multilingual legislation, it actually reduces uncertainty in meaning by creating additional data points for statutory interpreters to consider. Multilingualism does, however, lead to certain additional problems of ambiguity. These, for the most part, however, are generally resolved fairly easily. It is further argued that the European approach to interpretation, which I call Augustinian Interpretation, is likely to lead to results more faithful to the legislature's intent than is the standard Canadian approach, called the Shared Meaning Rule. Arguments from the case law, from linguistics and from the philosophy of language are adduced to support these conclusions.


To determine whether the cheilognathopalatoschisis is syndromic or non-syndromic. Cheilognathopalatoschisis or complex cleft (involves cleft of the lip, upper jaw, and hard and soft palates) is a severe birth defect. It occurs isolated or associated with other medical conditions. A 29-year-old Caucasian female, pregnant for the first time, was referred at 17 weeks' gestation for a routine prenatal ultrasound. The couple had normal general health and was not consanguineous. There was no family history of cheilognathopalatoschisis. Routine ultrasonography at 17 weeks of pregnancy, triple test (AFP, uE3, hCG), selective ultrasonography for detection of fetal abnormalities, and amniocentesis were performed. Ultrasound examination revealed a single fetus with an orofacial cleft and no other developmental abnormalities. Triple test was not sensitive to the presence of trisomy 13 but chromosome analysis was recommended because orofacial cleft as a sonographic marker suggested the possibility of a chromosomal anomaly. FISH and QF-PCR detected no aneuploidy in chromosomes X, Y, 13, 18 and 21. Cheilognathopalatoschisis was diagnosed by performing 3D US in the second trimester of pregnancy. Our results suggested a non-syndromic cleft. Prenatal diagnosis was useful in management, prognosis and prevented the negative emotional effects of the parents.


Abstract Collaboration Engineering (CE) is an approach for the design and deployment of repeatable collaborative work practices that can be executed by domain experts without the ongoing support of external collaboration professionals. Since 2001, CE has been an active and productive topic of research that has attracted scientists from different backgrounds and disciplines. CE research started with studies on ways to transfer professional collaboration expertise to novices using a pattern language called thinkLets. Subsequent research focused on the development of theories to explain key phenomena, the development of a structured design methodology, training methods, technology support, design theories, and various field and experimental studies focusing on specific aspects of the CE approach. This paper details the contributions from CE research and practice based on a literature assessment of 331 publications. It extracts the key insights from the body of CE research thus far, identifies significant areas of inquiry that have not yet been explored, and looks ahead at the CE research opportunities that are emerging as our society, organizations, technologies, and the nature of collaboration evolve.


Renomegaly has been reported in dogs with congenital portosystemic shunts (PSS). However, no study has objectively evaluated the degree of renomegaly in dogs with different types of PSS. The purpose of this retrospective, analytical, cross-sectional study was to determine kidney size (renal length-to-L2 vertebral body ratio; RL/L2 ratio) using CT in dogs with different types of PSS and correlate with clinical information. A medical record search for dogs with a PSS diagnosed using CT between 2016 and 2020 was conducted. Breed, age, sex, body weight, and biochemistry results were recorded. Kidney and L2 vertebral body lengths were measured using multiplanar reformatted CT images, and the RL/L2 ratio was calculated. Dogs were categorized into four groups based on PSS morphology for comparisons: intrahepatic (IH; n = 19), extrahepatic portocaval (EHPC; n = 20), extrahepatic portoazygos (EHPA; n = 7), or extrahepatic portophrenic (EHPP, n = 7). The RL/L2 ratio (mean ± SD) was largest in IH (3.55 ± 0.38) and EHPC (3.55 ± 0.38), followed by EHPP (3.10 ± 0.23), and EHPA (2.78 ± 0.18). RL/L2 ratio was significantly larger in EHPC and IH (vs. EHPA and EHPP [P < .01]). Significant correlations between kidney size and creatinine, alkaline phosphatase, albumin, total protein, and ammonia were present. Renomegaly was observed in 86.8% of dogs with PSS overall, but it was uncommon in dogs with EHPA and less common in dogs with EHPP, as these two groups showed clinical signs later in life, made evident by older age at presentation. The authors suggest that the severity of hepatic dysfunction and the shunted blood volume may influence the development of renomegaly in dogs with PSS.


ABSTRACT Distinctive sedimentary structures and textures characterize flaggy siltstone interbeds sporadically distributed within the predominantly terrigenous clastic strata of the Washita Group, such as the Kiamichi, Denton, and Pawpaw formations. The 1 to 10 cm thick strata consist mainly of silt- and sand-sized grains; and the grain-size distribution is normally graded. Both basal and uppermost surfaces of these strata are in sharp contact with overlying and underlying shale. Burrow casts, tool marks and flute marks are common on the basal surfaces. Upper surfaces display low-amplitude interference ripples crossed by burrows. Internal structures are parallel laminae at the base overlain by climbing ripple or rarely trough cross laminae. Most strata persist at a given stratigraphic position or less than a few kilometers. These siltstone strata resemble classic distal turbidites. However, the small scale of their properties and the absence of thick, rhythmically bedded sequences indicate shallow-water deposition by rather sporadic agents. Some form of advective density current generated by storms, tides, rip flow, or floods transported this clastic debris from a nearby shelf zone.


Many mathematical models have been developed to describe the lateral dynamics of a moving web including Shelton's model. Experimental results in this study showed that the existing model doesn't fully describe the characteristic of the lateral dynamics for some typical operating conditions. An experimental model was derived by means of system identification using a well-known least square method to improve the prediction capability of the lateral dynamics. Commercial guidance system usually has the proportional and integral (PI) control structure. Sometimes it may not eliminate the effect of periodic lateral disturbances efficiently which are transferred from upstream spans because the controller relying solely on feedback generates control action only when an output measurement signal differs from a reference value. But if the disturbance is deterministic, a feedforward control structure may offer simple and effective disturbance rejection performance. In this paper, the lateral position of a web at the upstream span and the identified model of lateral dynamics for the span were used to estimate the effect of disturbance on the lateral dynamics of a moving web at the exit span of the guidance system. A feedforward controller was designed to reject the deterministic disturbance of lateral dynamics of a moving web. The disturbance rejection performance of the proposed controller was verified by computer simulation and experiments. These results showed that the proposed feedforward scheme with an improved mathematical model greatly improved control performance in overcoming the dynamic disturbance.