Curcuma have been widely used in traditional medicine in India and Southeast Asia
 to treat many human ailments including cancer, inflammation and neurodegeneration.
 However, there is a lack of consistency in the phytochemical profiles and biological
 activities of the rhizomes of Curcuma species such as C. zedoaria, C. xanthorrhiza,
 C. aeruginosa and C. mangga. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the
 antioxidant, nitric oxide and α-glucosidase inhibitory properties and characterize the
 metabolites in selected Curcuma extracts by 1H-NMR based metabolomics approach.
 In the first part of the present study, rhizomes from four Curcuma species were dried
 using three different drying methods and extracted with two different ratios of ethanol
 (50% and 100%). The extracts were compared in terms of total phenolic contents
 (TPC), free radical scavenging (DPPH), α-glucosidase and nitric oxide inhibition.
 Absolute ethanol and freeze-drying were selected to process C. xanthorrhiza and C.
 mangga samples used in the second part of the study. The metabolite alterations at
 seven, eight and nine months old of C. xanthorrhiza and C. mangga were also
 investigated. Consequently, eight-month-old C. xanthorrhiza and nine-month-old C.
 mangga extracts were fractionated using solid phase extraction (SPE) to obtain nhexane,
 chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol fractions. The active fractions were
 profiled using 1H-NMR and UPLC-DAD-ESIMS/MS analysis. Due to the richness of
 curcuminoids in Curcuma species, the last part of this study was focused on the
 synthesis of curcumin analogs. This effort was aimed to overcome the major
 drawbacks associated with poor solubility of curcumin.The freeze-dried C. xanthorrhiza extracted with absolute ethanol had the highest
 antioxidant and NO inhibitory activities, whereas the C. mangga extract with the same
 treatment showed the highest α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. Additionally, eightmonth-
 old C. xanthorrhiza exhibited the highest NO inhibitory activity, with a large
 quantity of curcuminoids. Nine-month-old C. mangga displayed the highest α-
 glucosidase inhibitory activity, with high amounts of diterpenoids. The ethyl acetate
 fraction from C. xanthorrhiza and C. mangga displayed the most significant
 bioactivities. Six curcuminoids were identified from C. xanthorrhiza and eleven
 compounds, including curcuminoids and diterpenoids, were identified from C.
 mangga. Fourteen curcumin analogs were synthesized and evaluated for their
 biological activity. Compounds 2, 6, 8 and 9 showed inhibitory activity against NO,
 with IC50 values ranging from 17 to 21 μM, and four compounds (1, 7, 13 and 14)
 demonstrated α-glucosidase inhibitory activity, with IC50 values ranging from 19 to
 24 μM. A structure-activity relationship (SAR) study revealed that the existence of a
 hydroxyl substituent and a bromine group in the aromatic rings are crucial for antiinflammatory
 and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities.
 In conclusion, a 1H-NMR-based metabolomics approach is an excellent tool that can
 be used to monitor the quality of Curcuma species. To the best of our knowledge, this
 is the first study reporting on the untargeted metabolite profiling of Curcuma species
 using metabolomics approach. This study may support the development of Curcuma
 as an ingredient in medicinal preparations and as a source of food with potential in the
 development of nutraceutical products.


Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a common systemic autoimmune disease with complex aetiology, in which susceptibility is determined by the combination of genetic, environmental, epigenetic and stochastic factors. SLE is very heterogeneous in its clinical manifestations and the presence of different autoantibodies may predict different set of clinical outcome. However, despite considerable accumulated knowledge, the detailed pathogenesis of SLE still remains unknown. Several studies have indicated the importance of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) hypomethylation in the aetiology of SLE. Recent advances in high-throughput genotyping technologies and high-density genetic association studies have identified and replicated many SLE susceptibility genes in different populations. In this article, we outline our current understanding of some genetic and epigenetic aspects of SLE.

Keywords:

SLE;
Candidate gene;
Linkage;
Association;
Epigenetic;
DNA methylation


In this study we consider the role of cross-linguistic influence in the domain of wh-movement and subject-verb inversion in children simultaneously acquiring Dutch and French, two typologically different languages. Wh-questions were elicited in Dutch by means of an elicited production task. The participants consisted of 5- and 7-year-old Dutch-French bilingual children, and two control groups of monolingual Dutch children and adults (N = 46). Target-like wh-fronted questions with subject-verb inversion formed the majority of responses. However, two qualitatively different structures were produced as a result of transfer from French: wh-in-situ questions and wh-fronted questions without inversion. Structural overlap approaches to transfer can predict cross-linguistic influence from the language with more structural options (French) to the one with only one interrogative construction (Dutch). However, we argue that a complexity-based theory of transfer provides a better account for the presence of the attested structures than a structural overlap approach.


In this study, the production and properties of titanium tri-aluminide (Al3Ti) particle reinforced functionally graded composites (FGCs) by a centrifugal casting method, are investigated. FGCs were produced by using Al-Ti master alloy which was alloyed with copper and silicon and without alloying to obtain three types of composites, namely Al3Ti/Al, Al3Ti/Al-Si and Al3Ti/Al-Cu FGC. It was observed that produced composites contain two different area: the functionally graded and Al3Ti-free area. The ratio and size of Al3Ti particles were found to change regionally in functionally graded area of each composite type. The effects of the regional change in functionally graded area and both the reinforcement ratio and particle size of composite types were discussed using statistical techniques. In addition, density, Brinell hardness and abrasive wear property of Al3Ti particle reinforced FGCs have been examined inwardly from the outer surface of composites depending on the centrifugal force direction. The results showed an improvement in Brinell hardness value inwardly from the outer surface of composites in each composite type. It was observed that the volumetric wear loss of composites were reduced by increasing the ratio of Al3Ti particles in the matrix.


ABSTRACT Protein nuclear import is generally mediated by basic nuclear localization signals (NLSs) that serve as targets for the importin α (Imp α) NLS receptor. Imp α is in turn bound by importin β (Imp β), which targets the resultant protein complex to the nucleus. Here, we report that the arginine-rich NLS sequences present in the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 regulatory proteins Tat and Rev fail to interact with Imp α and instead bind directly to Imp β. Using in vitro nuclear import assays, we demonstrate that Imp α is entirely dispensable for Tat and Rev nuclear import. In contrast, Imp β proved both sufficient and necessary, in that other β-like import factors, such as transportin, were unable to support Tat or Rev nuclear import. Using in vitro competition assays, it was demonstrated that the target sites on Imp β for Imp α, Tat, and Rev binding either are identical or at least overlap. The interaction of Tat and Rev with Imp β is also similar to Imp α binding in that it is inhibited by RanGTP but not RanGDP, a finding that may in part explain why the interaction of the Rev nuclear RNA export factor with target RNA species is efficient in the cell nucleus yet is released in the cytoplasm. Together, these studies define a novel class of arginine-rich NLS sequences that are direct targets for Imp β and that therefore function independently of Imp α.


Background We describe a critical observation during a novel use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for aortic coarctation repair in children. Although NIRS has been used in adults to assess tissue oxygen saturation changes in the perispinal microvasculature during repair of thoracoabdominal aneurysms, its use has not been described in infants. The purpose of this study was to characterize tissue oxygen saturation at the T10 level in neonates and children undergoing repair of aortic coarctation. Methods Ten neonates (< 30 days old) and 4 children (ages 4 to 11 years) with aortic coarctation were enrolled in the study. Cerebral and perispinal regional oxygen saturations (C-rSO2 and S-rSO2) were measured by NIRS sensors (SomaSensors, Somanetics Corp., Troy, MI) placed on the left forehead and lower thoracic dorsal midline at the level of T10. All measurements were made at 1-minute intervals. Ten baseline measurements were made on each patient prior to incision. These were averaged and all subsequent values are reported as percent change from baseline. Results: Neonates demonstrated significant percent drop in S-rSO2 from baseline during each minute following application of cross-clamp while there was no significant change in saturation in older children. Neonates demonstrated return to baseline saturation after cross-clamp removal in all cases. Conclusions: Spinal oximetry in the smallest children is interpretable. Neonates with severe aortic coarctation exhibit a significant drop in lower body tissue saturation during cross clamp, a drop that is not seen in older children. These findings suggest that collateral blood supply after the neonatal period in children with severe coarctation, that clamp times are more critical in the neonate, and may explain postoperative issues with visceral ischemia and reperfusion.


Renewable energy could be the key for sustainable next-generation cellular networks. The authors' approach would let mobile operators feed base stations in a heterogeneous network using renewable energy sources. The authors compare their method to a classical grid-powered solution. They evaluate costs and CO2 emissions savings for different scenarios to demonstrate that properly powering a heterogeneous network with renewable energy can be a sustainable and economically convenient solution.


Feasibility study on producing components with embedded channel by powder injection moulding (PIM) is conducted in this paper. The base plate with open channel was produced by co-injection moulding of polymeric material and ceramic feedstock. The polymeric material acted as the sacrificial material to fill the channel feature. A cover plate was then over-moulded onto the base plate to form green assembly, which was then debinded and sintered. The embedded channel was created when the sacrificial material was removed during the debinding and sintering stage. This process eliminates the need for additional joining process required by conventional manufacturing process which could cause misalignment and leakage under harsh working environment such as high pressure and high temperature. Joining was found between the cover plate and the base plate in over-moulding stage. Temperature and time during solvent debinding played important roles in order to obtain defect free component. Low temperature and short time in solvent debinding resulted in insufficient wax loss which led to various types of defects. A fair good sintered component was obtained under optimal debinding condition at 50 °C for 48 hours. The embedded channel was observed clearly by x-ray inspection without blockage by foreign particles. The shape of the channel was well retained and perfect bonding was formed in the central area of the two plates.


This chapter has been designed with the purpose of providing a theoretical approach regarding the influence of both the composition of academic spin-offs' management teams and the entrepreneurial orientation exhibited by such firms on the performance of academic spin-offs. To this end, we have drawn on the main theoretical premises of the upper echelon theory, and we have specifically focused on the impact exerted by the proportion of nonacademic managers within management teams, the heterogeneity of such teams with respect to the age and main educational area of their managers, as well as the potential mediating role of the entrepreneurial orientation. From the literature review carried out and the main arguments of the chapter will be expected a further empirical development.


A new approach to artificial muscle actuator design is presented, and is implemented using shape memory alloys (SMA). An array of SMA actuators is segmented into many independently controlled, spatially discrete volumes, each contributing a small displacement to create a large motion. The segmented cellular architecture of SMA wires is extended to a multiaxis actuator array by arranging the segments in a two-dimensional (2-D) array. The multiaxis control is streamlined and coordinated using a 2-D segmentation method in order to activate multiple links of a robot mechanism in a coordinated manner. The basic principle of segmented binary control (SBC) is first presented, followed by multiaxis segmentation theory and a design procedure. The method is applied to a five-fingered robotic hand capable of taking a variety of postures. A 10-axis SMA actuator array is built, and SBC is implemented using Peltier-effect thermoelectric devices for selective local heating and cooling. Experiments demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the new method


This thesis considers the radio resource management (RRM) of advanced wireless communication systems. With the emerging of more advanced and more complicated systems, such as cognitive radio, nodes with energy harvesting capacities (green communications), and the application of Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) technology, RRM problems introduce more difficulties and challenges to optimize system performances. Due to specific structure of communication systems, water-filling (WF) plays an important role in RRM. This thesis introduces the fundamental theory and development of WF algorithm. The proposed Geometric Water-Filling (GWF) is presented and compared with the conventional WF algorithms. It can break through the limitations of the conventional WF to solve the more complicated optimization problems in the advanced wireless communication systems. For the application of the proposed GWF to solve the RRM problems in the advanced MIMO communication systems, cognitive radio communication systems, green communication systems and the "dual problems", which are the sum power minimization problems, of the throughput maximization problems is investigated in this thesis. Efficient algorithms are presented to achieve the optimal resource allocation.


This paper is about performance evaluation of two optical flow (OF) methods for extracting sea surface curved motions like eddies. By incorporating a simple matrix and its rotation in programming procedure, curved motion can be obtained. These two OF methods are Horn/Schunk and Lucas/Kanade. The Horn/Schunk method depends on a smoothness parameter (α) and when it changes, smoothness and reality change too. The Lucas/Kanade method is more complex than previous one. It depends on two parameters, smoothness parameter (Sigma) and window size (Win). Different values for Win and Sigma change smoothness and reality of the flows. Sea surface currents are extracted from two sequential sea surface temperature (SST) images by using OF methods. By using these methods and selecting the appropriate parameters like smoothness (for Horn/Schunk) and window size and smoothness (for Lucas/Kanade) extracting real flows or smooth flows are possible and investigated in this paper.


Saddle polyhedra have faces that are skew polygons, with edges that do not lie in one plane. The surface of a face can be undefined [1], a minimal surface [2], triangulated [3], or filled using a spidron nest [4,5]. Identifying circuits in three dimensional periodic networks of vertices and edges [6] with saddle faces generates space-filling saddle polyhedra, described in [2]. We consider these space-fillers, and by extending the concept of a spidron so it can be applied to the faces create forms that are visually interesting, both as individual polyhedra and in aggregations.


Thanks to the beneficial properties of probiotic bacteria, there exists an immense demand for their consumption in probiotic foods worldwide. Nevertheless, it is difficult to retain a high number of viable cells in probiotic food products during their storage and gastrointestinal transit. Microencapsulation of probiotic bacteria is an effective way of enhancing probiotic viability by limiting cell exposure to extreme conditions via the gastrointestinal tract before releasing them into the colon. This research aims to develop a new coating material system of microencapsulation to protect probiotic cells from adverse environmental conditions and improve their recovery rates. Hence, Lactobacillus rhamnosus was encapsulated with emulsion/internal gelation techniques in a calcium chloride solution. Alginate–probiotic microbeads were coated with xanthan gum, gum acacia, sodium caseinate, chitosan, starch, and carrageenan to produce various types of microcapsules. The alginate+xanthan microcapsules exhibited the highest encapsulation efficiency (95.13 ± 0.44%); they were simulated in gastric and intestinal juices at pH 3 during 1, 2, and 3 h incubations at 37 °C. The research findings showed a remarkable improvement in the survival rate of microencapsulated probiotics under simulated gastric conditions of up to 83.6 ± 0.89%. The morphology, size, and shape of the microcapsules were analyzed using a scanning electron microscope. For the protection of probiotic bacteria under simulated intestinal conditions; alginate microbeads coated with xanthan gum played an important role, and exhibited a survival rate of 87.3 ± 0.79%, which was around 38% higher than that of the free cells (49.4 ± 06%). Our research findings indicated that alginate+xanthan gum microcapsules have a significant potential to deliver large numbers of probiotic cells to the intestines, where cells can be released and colonized for the consumer's benefit.


In 546 women with a first episode of salpingitis, the degree of inflammation of the fallopian tubes, as seen during laparoscopy, was graded into mild, moderate, and severe. The patients were subgrouped according to contraceptive use into (1) reference group (women not using intrauterine [contraceptive] devices [IUDs] or oral contraceptives [OCs]) (2) IUD group, and (3) OC group. Mild, moderate, and severe salpingitis occurred in 51.3%, 34.6%, and 24.1% of the women in the reference group. The corresponding percentages for the women in the IUD group were 54.6%, 29.7%, and 15.7%, and for the patients in the OC group, 73.5%, 17.1%, and 9.4%, respectively. Women using OCs had significantly milder degrees of inflammation of the fallopian tubes than women with other contraceptive methods. Age could not explain the differences.


Cryogenic upgrading of biogas aims to provide energetically efficient process for high purity biomethane production, to be injected in the national gas grid or for vehicle fuel uses. Major components of biogas are methane and carbon dioxide, and for particular type of biogas, called landfill gas, important amount of nitrogen is also present. Cryogenic upgrading processes involve dry ice formation [Clodic and Younes., 2002]., thus accurate predictions of solid-liquid, solid-vapor, and solid-liquid-vapor equilibria are fundamental for a correct design of the heat exchanger surface in order to achieve the desired biomethane purity. Moreover, Liquefied BioGas (LBG) production process is particularly interesting for cryogenic upgrading processes due to the low temperature of the obtained biomethane. It consequently requires an accurate knowledge of carbon dioxide solubility in liquid methane to avoid solid deposition. Finally, knowledge on thermodynamic properties of solid CO2 is needed to simulate the process of upgrading through capture of carbon dioxide as a solid on the fins of a heat exchanger.
This work proposes original solid-liquid equilibrium measurements for the binary mixture CO2-CH4 and a thermodynamic model able to represent phase equilibria involving a solid phase for binary (CO2-CH4) and ternary mixture (CO2-CH4-N2), to be used in a heat exchanger simulator with solid formation.
Experimental data are obtained with a static analytic experimental method at high pressure (8-15 MPa), conditions at which literature data are missing [Riva et al., 2014]. Measures also allowed to indirectly obtain values of thermodynamic properties of the solid CO2 at temperatures at which direct measures are not available in literature.
Thermodynamic model, consisting in a solid phase fugacity expression coupled with a cubic equation of state (Peng Robinson EoS), has been calibrated on solid-liquid-vapor data in order to optimize the representation of phase equilibrium at low temperatures, with particular emphasis on the equilibria involving a solid phase.
Comparison of model and data shows a good agreement, so it is possible to conclude that the thermodynamic model is able to predict solid formation condition during the biogas upgrading process. Model and thermodynamic properties are thus used into a simplified heat exchanger dynamic simulator for reproducing solid CO2 capture during the cryogenic process.


In this paper, we offer an entirely new view to the problem of high level video parsing. We developed a novel computation method for affective level video segmentation. Its function was to extract emotional segments from videos. Its design was based on the pleasure-arousal-dominance (P-A-D) model of affect representation , which in principle can represent a large number of emotions. Our method had two stages. The first P-A-D estimation stage was defined within framework of the dynamic Bayesian networks (DBNs). A spectral clustering algorithm was applied in the final stage to determine the emotional segments of the video. The performance of our method was compared with the time adaptive clustering (TAC) algorithm and an accelerated version of it which we had developed. According to Vendrig , the TAC algorithm was the best segmentation method. Experiment results will show the feasibility of our method.


The exterior complex rotated Coupled-Channel formulation of potential scattering makes it possible to calculate energies and widths for a non-adiabatic model of a diatomic molecule or quasimolecule. The structure and decay pattern of a diatomic system is in this way described in a non-perturbative way. In this contribution we use the non-adiabatic form of an empirically derived potential energy curve matrix, previously used by Martin (1988 J. Chem. Phys. 88 1997), for the four lowest 2Σ+-states of the CaH radical to demonstrate how one can calculate term positions as well as non-radiative decay widths in a realistic case for a large range of rovibronic levels. The differences between the previously derived Born-Oppenheimer term values and the present non-adiabatic results are discussed and compared with previous work.


An actively mode-locked, fiber-coupled semiconductor ring laser that employs both a phase modulator and an amplitude modulator was built. The laser was mode-locked by loss modulation at 10 GHz and the intracavity phase modulator was driven at the cavity fundamental frequency of 1.63 MHz. The effects of the intracavity phase modulation on the stability of the optical spectrum, the timing jitter, and the amplitude noise of the pulse train was analyzed. It was found that using this method, the amplitude fluctuation can be reduced by 40%, and the stability of the optical spectrum can be improved while keeping the phase noise of the system unchanged.


Vafina, G., Ivanov, R. & Kalashnik, N. (2020). Features of the formation of Аrg-X proteolytic system of cellular nuclei during germination of wheat seeds. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 26 (6), 1158–1165 The processes of assembly and disassembly of chromatin with the participation of the nuclear proteome are the most important part of the regulatory network that controls the movement of cells the on cell cycle. In this aspect, histones play an important role, since their synthesis is coordinated with DNA synthesis and any changes in their sequence or structure can lead to an effect on cellular metabolism. The aim of the work was to study the dynamics of the activity of Arg-X proteolysis in nonhistone and histone fractions of nuclear structures (nucleoplasm, chromatin, nuclear matrix) during germination of wheat seeds under conditions of deacetylation inhibition of nuclear proteins (sodium butyrate). Seeds were germinated in distilled water (control) and in 0.004 mM NaB (sodium butyrate). Cell nuclei were isolated from germs, cleared, and then nucleoplasm, chromatin, nuclear matrix were extracted by increasing ionic strength of solution. From isolated supramolecular structures, non-histone proteins were separated from histones by using ion exchange chromatography. The Arg-X proteolytic activity was assessed by cleavage of Arg-X bonds in the arginine-enriched protein protamine. The duration of mitosis phases under conditions of deacetylation inhibition of nuclear proteins was determined. It is shown that Arg-X proteolysis appears in the fractions of nonhistone proteins and core histones (H2A + H2B; H3 + H4), mainly in the H3 + H4 block at the level of chromatin tightly bound. In addition, the increasing in Arg-X proteolytic activity (24 h-48 h) coincides with the beginning of proliferative activity, which may be due to chromatin rearrangements in cells during germination of seeds. The presented results can be considered as one of the illustrations of a complex regulatory proteinase network formed in cell nuclei, which can participate in proteolytic processing of histones, thereby affecting chromatin reorganization


We consider the task of causal structure learning over measurement dependence inducing latent (MeDIL) causal models. We show that this task can be framed in terms of the graph theoretic problem of finding edge clique covers,resulting in an algorithm for returning minimal MeDIL causal models (minMCMs). This algorithm is non-parametric, requiring no assumptions about linearity or Gaussianity. Furthermore, despite rather weak assumptions aboutthe class of MeDIL causal models, we show that minimality in minMCMs implies some rather specific and interesting properties. By establishing MeDIL causal models as a semantics for edge clique covers, we also provide a starting point for future work further connecting causal structure learning to developments in graph theory and network science.


Abstract A reactive transport model (RTM) is used to simulate the diagenetic evolution of a siliciclastic reservoir with a known burial and thermal history. The diagenetic phenomena occurring in two temperature regimes are simulated: kaolinite/chlorite formation at low/medium temperatures by means of isothermal zero-dimensional (0D) flush models, and smectite illitization and quartz precipitation at high temperatures by means of 0D and 1D non-isothermal models. Zero-dimensional models show that at 30°C kaolinite forms only in freshwater from K-feldspar and quartz. In river or seawater, muscovite is stable instead of kaolinite. Calcite formation depends on pH and total inorganic carbon. At 50°C, seawater promotes Mg-chlorite formation from mica alterations. At 70–110°C, evaporated seawater favours smectite–illite transformation and quartz precipitation. The non-isothermal 1D models are used to simulate the diagenesis of a compacting clay expelling fluid into an underlying sandstone. An sensitivity analysis of the clays' thermodynamic and kinetic parameters is carried out to assess the possibility of modelling the transformation of smectite into illite in the clay, with the concomitant formation of a quartz cement in the adjacent sandstone. The results of the numerical simulations point out that the extent of the smectite–illite conversion and quartz precipitation is dependent primarily on the availability of potassium: temperature, however, does not seem to play a major role.


Summary Pattern recognition is important in converting digital document image into electronic document. Today there are some OCR softwares to read the documents from scanned papers. We have designed a process to recognize the Bangla digits from digital images. Bangla digits are discrete when they are used in documents to write numbers. Each character has its own shape and design. We have used these characteristics of Bangla digits to recognize them from digital images. We have applied different morphological operation and segmentation techniques to separate each digit or character from the image. Then we have just drawn a single bit outline of the character, and generated a sequence based on the traversing path of the border outline. Then we applied a longest common subsequence operation between the generated sequence of the character and the pre-defined sequence of the 10 digits and detected the unknown Bangla digit. This is a sequence-based method.


Formative Assessment Case Studies (FACS) are an e-learning resource consisting of a case scenario punctuated with decision-making steps (multiple-choice questions) and feedback for wrong answers. FACS was developed to enhance clinical decision-making skills. We wrote six FACS scenarios covering preoperative assessment topics and made them accessible to 149 final year medical students as part of their two-week anaesthesia module. A data management system recorded usage and performance by each student. Eighty-one percent of students attempted FACS (six cases 53%, five cases 17%, one to four cases 9%) and 61 to 70% completed all steps. On average FACS was attempted 1.5 times. Students required 44 to 95% more steps than the minimum to complete each case. There were two patterns of use: some students completed the cases within five to seven minutes (first quartile) focusing on the questions, while others spent over 22 to 35 minutes (fourth quartile) exploring the FACS and feedback. FACS usage correlated (r2=0.32: P <0.01) with written case report marks. The students' evaluation of FACS was high. FACS is an e-learning resource that is interactive and facilitates higher learning. It can be applied successfully to disciplines less well represented in the medical curriculum, such as anaesthesia. FACS facilitated our teaching of preoperative assessment to a group of final year medical students. It was well received and shown to facilitate the learning of decision-making skills. The students' usage of FACS could have been enhanced by making FACS compulsory and using summative FACS for assessment.


AimCold events determine the distributional range limits of woody species. Despite global warming, the magnitude of late frost events in boreal and temperate regions is not expected to change. Hence, the risk for late spring frost damage of woody species may increase with an earlier onset of the growing season. Here, we investigated biogeographical, phenological and phylogenetic effects on late frost sensitivity. LocationEcological-Botanical Gardens Bayreuth, Germany (49 degrees 5545N, 11 degrees 3510E). MethodsWe inspected 170 woody species in the Ecological-Botanical Gardens from across the entire Northern Hemisphere for frost damage after an extreme late frost event in May 2011 (air temperature -4.3 degrees C after leaf unfolding of all species). Distribution range characteristics, climatic parameters of place of origin and phenological strategy were linked to sensitivity to the late frost event. ResultsThe northern distribution limit and the range in continentality across the distributional ranges correlated negatively with a taxon's late frost sensitivity (pseudo-R-2=0.42, pseudo-R-2=0.33, respectively). Sensitivity to the late frost event was well explained by the climatic conditions within species' native ranges (boosted regression trees;receiver operating characteristic 0.737). Average (1950-2000) May minimum temperature in species' native ranges was the main explanatory variable of late frost sensitivity (51.7% of explained variance). Phylogenetic relatedness explained additional variance in sensitivity to the late frost event. Sensitivity to the late frost event further correlates well with species phenological strategy. Frost-tolerant species flushed on average 2 weeks earlier than frost-sensitive species. Main conclusionsRange characteristics and the prevalent climatic parameters across species native ranges are strongly related to their susceptibility to late spring frost damage. Further, more late frost-sensitive species unfolded their leaves later than more tolerant species and late frost tolerance is phylogenetically conserved. Thus, late frost sensitivity may challenge natural and human-assisted migration of woody species under global warming.


The Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 571.201 discusses occupant protection with interior impacts of vehicles. Recent rule making by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has identified padding for potential injury reduction in vehicles. Head injury mitigation with padding on vehicular roll bars was evaluated. After market 2 to 2.5 cm thick padding and metal air gap padding reduced the head injury criterion (HIC) and angular acceleration compared to the stock foam roll bar padding. Studies were conducted with free falling Hybrid 50% male head form drops on the fore head and side of the head. Compared to the stock roll bar material, a nearly 90% reduction in HIC was observed at speeds up to 5.4 m/s. A concomitant 83% reduction in angular acceleration was also observed with the metal air gap padding. A 2 to 2.5 cm thick Simpson roll bar padding produced a 70 to 75% reduction in HIC and a 59 to 73% reduction in angular acceleration. DYNAMAN analysis closely predicted the HIC and angular acceleration results. All HIC values with padding were below 560 for metal air gap padding and Simpson roll bar padding tests. The studies demonstrate that padding can markedly reduce the potential for head injury based on a substantial reduction in HIC and angular acceleration when impacts occurred on a padded surface.


In this paper a novel test-rig for the investigation of low-frequency thermoacoustic instabilities in aero-engines with air-staging RQL (rich-quench-lean) is presented. The new approach is to separate the rich primary zone from the lean secondary zone to allow for an isolated thermoacoustic characterization of each combustion zone. In addition the test-rig offers the possibility to combine both zones to judge the transferability of the findings from the separated to the compact configuration. The high modularity of the test-rig is already considered in the design-phase and allows a cost and time efficient manufacturing. Heat losses in the primary zone and the transition duct between the two zones play a crucial role for the functionality of the facility and are estimated during design to guarantee a stable re-ignition in the secondary zone. The main design steps in the secondary zone for achieving complete burn-out of the hot primary combustion gases are described. The realization of the acoustic excitation via loudspeakers is described and damping measures to improve combustor stability are explained. The operation of both zones, their acoustic behavior and the operational limits of the test-rig are demonstrated experimentally. They include first thermoacoustic measurement data of naturally occurring instabilities, the corresponding eigenfrequencies and the validation of the test-rig design. Finally an outlook on the future work in the research project concludes this paper.


The transition-piece of an aero-derivative gas turbine engine transfers high temperature combusted gases from the gas generator to a power turbine, and it is manufactured from Iron-Base Superalloy A286 in this investigation. Due to the thermal stress levels developed in the casing of the transition-piece after long operating hours, the life expectancy of the transition-piece becomes shorter. The present study aims to investigate the thermal stress field development in the casing of the aero-derivative gas turbine engine transition-piece in relation to the flow and heat transfer situation inside the transition-piece. The typical operating conditions, under which the transition-piece is subjected, are accommodated in the model study to determine the amount of heat transfer from the combusted gases to the casing using CFD FLUENT code. The two-Dimensional CFD model is adopted in the study due to the axisymmetric flow situation in the transition-piece. Since the day to-day operation varies depending on the engine output demand, the model study is carried out under different operating conditions: (i) typical operating condition, (ii) +-10% change in mass flow rate, and (iii) +-10% change in combusted gas temperature. Temperature predictions of the numerical study are used as input to the thermal stress model to predict the thermally induced stress level in the transition-piece outer casing. The thermally induced stresses are computed through Finite Element Method (FEM) using the ANSYS code. Experimental work is carried out to determine the mechanical properties of the As Received (AR) and Heat Treated (HT) A286 alloy through tensile and 3-point bending tests.
The A286 alloy was heat treated to resemble the actual operating conditions of the transition-piece. Using the Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Optical Microscopy (M), the microstucture of the alloy prior and after the heat treatment is examined. The investigation concluded that the A286 alloy Young's Modulus of Elasticity (E) will reduce significantIy due to operation at elevated temperature and that the fixed ends of the transition-pieces are the most likely meas to fail and result in reduction of tlze life expectancy of the transition-piece.


This guide contains links to information resources related to Physics, including indexes & databases that can be used to find publications, reference works, data resources, style guides, and pages linking to resources on specific topics in Physics.


Design-build is a project delivery system where one party, the design-builder, is responsible for both the design and construction of a project under a single agreement. This book sheds light on the design-build practice as applied in building construction in the United States, where the system's popularity has increased dramatically. The report divides into two parts. The first part provides a general introduction of design-build and outlines some of its key characteristics and related practical considerations. It also defines design-build in relation to other project delivery systems. Some comparative studies on project delivery methods are also summarized in order to illuminate the talked up superiority of design-build over the other methods. The second part constitutes the main portion of the book by presenting the various procedures that are part of design-build. It focuses on six different aspects of designbuild: the design-builder selection process, the design practice and related division of labor, proposal evaluation and comparison methods, pricing and incentive systems, organization of the design-build entity, and distinction between the construction of shell and core and interior systems. Thus, the presented issues are mostly related to the interfaces between the owner and the design-builder. Design-build is not, however, just a rigid procedure for carrying a project through which is the key reason for writing this book. There are many alternative operational modes and procedures. Therefore, the book deals with these alternatives by examining designbuild practices from one standpoint at a time. Each previously listed aspect is dealt with by introducing modes that are, at least to some extent, alternatives. Each presentation of an alternative emphasizes its mode, advantages and weaknesses, and applicability. For instance, the design-builder selection process is such a standpoint providing various options for operations. Similarly, design-builder selection can be based on qualifications or it may follow a two-stage process involving design proposals, etc. The applicability of various procedures, naturally, depends on the complexity, size and scale of the project as well as the objectives, experience and available resources of the owner, etc. These issues are also discussed in connection with each procedure. The same structure has been used for all alternative procedures independent of the aspect in order to maintain the illustrative and comparative format. In addition to alternative procedures proper, around forty thematic boxes have been included in order to inform the reader about some key issues and examples related to the design-build practice in general. These are called "nutshells" and "mini-cases", respectively.


3D-microCT images of vertebral bodies from three different individuals have been segmented into trabecular bone, bone marrow and bone surface cells (BSC), and then introduced into the spongiosa voxels of the MAX06 and the FAX06 phantoms, in order to calculate the equivalent dose to the red bone marrow (RBM) and the BSC in the marrow cavities of trabecular bone with the EGSnrc Monte Carlo code from whole-body exposure to external photon radiation. The MAX06 and the FAX06 phantoms consist of about 150 million 1.2 mm cubic voxels each, a part of which are spongiosa voxels surrounded by cortical bone. In order to use the segmented 3D-microCT images for skeletal dosimetry, spongiosa voxels in the MAX06 and the FAX06 phantom were replaced at runtime by so-called micro matrices representing segmented trabecular bone, marrow and BSC in 17.65, 30 and 60 µm cubic voxels. The 3D-microCT image-based RBM and BSC equivalent doses for external exposure to photons presented here for the first time for complete human skeletons are in agreement with the results calculated with the three correction factor method and the fluence-to-dose response functions for the same phantoms taking into account the conceptual differences between the different methods. Additionally the microCT image-based results have been compared with corresponding data from earlier studies for other human phantoms. For more information on this article, see medicalphysicsweb.org


This paper investigates how lexical Graecisms are used by Plautus to modulate his characters' identities and to position different 'selves' in the local context of interaction, with the aim of identifying the import of contextual, pragmatic and sociolinguistic factors. As known, the use of Greek pointed to a precise socially low identity in 3 rd -2 nd cent. BCE Latin, and is typically found in Plautus in the speech of men of low social status like cooks, parasites, slaves. A corpus-based research based on the DiSCIS corpus, which allows to search for contact phenomena and to intersect their distribution with sociolinguistic features, however, reveals some new insights. Through the discussion of illustrative examples, I will show that Greek is exploited by Plautus to construct identity positions, to modulate temporary and interactionally specific 'selves' also of socially high characters and to linguistically express context-bound reversal of roles and identity changes. Also in an ancient language like Latin, therefore, identity appears to be an interactional construct that emerges and acquires meaning in communicative and social exchanges, where it can be constantly (re)shaped and (re)negotiated.


A crucial issue in digital topology is to ensure topology preservation for reductions acting on binary pictures (i.e., operators that never change a white point to black one). Some sufficient conditions for topology-preserving reductions have been proposed for pictures on the three possible regular partitionings of the plane (i.e., the triangular, the square, and the hexagonal grids). In this paper, the relationships among these conditions are stated.


It is a first principle for modern economics that people tend to make decisions based upon calculations of their self-interest. Thus, some critics believe they can topple the whole edifice of modern economics if this presumption is shown to be unsound. Other critics more friendly to the discipline have seen challenging self-interest as a revolutionary breakthrough. Indeed, Nobel laureates Amartya Sen, Richard Thaler, Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, and Vernon Smith have all critiqued the presumption of self-interest in their work. This essay seeks to contribute to the philosophy of economics by both complicating and clarifying the topic. Dylan Pahman, "Self-Interest in Six Dimensions," Journal of Markets & Morality 23, no. 1 (2020): 173-189.


Background and Aims: Glomerular diseases are the third leading cause of kidney failure worldwide, behind only diabetes and hypertension. The molecular mechanisms underlying the cause of glomerular diseases are still largely unknown. The identification and characterization of new molecules associated with glomerular function should provide new insights into understanding the diverse group of glomerular diseases. The Chd2 protein belongs to a family of enzymes involved in ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling, suggesting that it likely functions as an epigenetic regulator of gene expression via the modification of chromatin structure. Methods: In this study, we present a detailed histomorphologic characterization of mice containing a mutation in the chromodomain helicase DNA-binding protein 2 (Chd2). Results: We show that Chd2-mutant mice present with glomerulopathy, proteinuria, and significantly impaired kidney function. Additionally, serum analysis revealed decreased hemoglobin and hematocrit levels in Chd2-mutant mice, suggesting that the glomerulopathy observed in these mice is associated with anemia. Conclusion: Collectively, the data suggest a role for the Chd2 protein in the maintenance of kidney function.


This essay questions the continuity of chemistry across the eighteenth century based on an analysis of its relationship to pharmacy in France. Comparing a text by Nicolas Lémery (1675) with one by Antoine Baumé (1773), the article argues for a key transformation in chemistry across this period. The elimination of the practical side of pharmacy (indications and dosages) from chemistry texts is symptomatic of a reorientation of chemistry toward more theoretical or philosophical concerns. The essay considers several possible explanations for this change in orientation, including developments within pharmacy, but in the end privileges an approach in terms of the changing publics for chemistry in eighteenth-century France.


Overview of literature: Potential complications of screw misplacement and pedicle wall violation have focused attention on screw placement techniques. Moreover, evaluation of any new postoperative pain or neurological deficit should rule out the causal relation between the screws and neurological complication.
Purpose: The aim of the study is to evaluate the incidence and accuracy of pedicle screw placement comparing the conventional and percutaneous techniques of screw insertion. Study design: the study was done on 103 patients of both sexes and different ages. Patients are evaluated by postoperative C.T. scan with 2 mm axial slices with bone window performed.
Methods: Data were collected from the Department of neurosurgery, Kasr Al-Ainy, Cairo University Hospital. The valid patient sample was collected (n0=103). In addition to the standard study protocol evaluation, patients were evaluated for the presence or absence of pedicle breach generally comparing both techniques (hypothesis 1), and comparing the degree of deviation between both techniques (hypothesis 2). Blinded several observers CT assessment was done.
Results: Studying the presence of pedicle wall violation in general, there is no statistical difference between both techniques. However, at the S1 level, there is a statistical difference in favor of the percutaneous technique. Regarding the side of violation, there is a lower incidence of pedicle breach on the left side in favor of the percutaneous technique. Regarding the direction of pedicle breach, there is no statistically significant difference between both techniques.
Studying the extent of pedicle breach in general, we found no effect of technique or level on the extent of pedicle breach. However, percutaneous technique had a lower amount of pedicle breach taking the side into consideration. The amount of medial deviation is smaller with the percutaneous technique.
Conclusion: There is no statistical difference between open and percutaneous techniques, except at the S1 level, in favor of the percutaneous technique. Moreover, percutaneous technique had a lower amount of pedicle breach taking the side into consideration. The amount of medial deviation is smaller with the percutaneous technique.


Crystallization of polycarbonate (PC) was attempted by a precipitated method in a ternary system of PC/solvent/nonsolvent. Chloroform was used as a solvent, and isopropanol was used as a nonsolvent. Crystallization of PC was clearly observed as a powdery state when chloroform/isopropanol mixtures were prepared by 68/32 and 61/39 vol%. Crystallinity of PC was evaluated by differential scanning calorimeter and X-ray diffractometer. As the difference of solubility parameters between PC and binary solvent/nonsolvent mixtures became smaller, the relative crystallinity of PC was increased. The highest degree of PC crystallization was obtained when chloroform/isopropanol was mixed by 61/39 vol%. Subsequently, crystallized PC was used as a filler to high-density polyethylene (HDPE) composite. HDPE composite incorporated by crystallized PC filler improved its mechanical and thermal properties. Flexural modulus was increased from 620 to 990 N/mm2, and flexural strength was increased from 720 to 1080 N/mm2. And heat deflection temperature measurement and flammability test supported the enhancement of thermal property when crystallized PC was added to HDPE composite up to 40 wt%. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 54:1893–1899, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers


Cell surface markers of 18 patients with non-T, non-B acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) were analysed with a panel of monoclonal antibodies (McAbs) by indirect immunofluorescence. The results showed that the cells of 13/18 patients originated from immature B cell or B progenitors. The cells of 12/18 patients expressed B cell antigens (CD 19+ or CDw 40+). It was suggested that antibodies directed to these two surface markers could help each other in the diagnosis of ALL of B cell origin. Diagnosis might be further improved if anti-CD19 and CDw 40 McAb be used at the same time. CD 9 antigen was expressed on immature B cell surface. 13/14 patients with B-CLL did not react with anti-CD 9, but 14/18 with non-T, non-B ALL were positive. Cells of 7/18 patients expressed CALLA (CD 10), HLA-DR and CD 19/CDw 40, but did not express T cell associated antigens (CD1, CD2, CD3, CD7), so CALLA(+)-ALL also belongs to B cell lineage.


Fifteen patients with symptomatic iliac artery stenosis were treated with intraluminal placement of balloon-expandable stents. Before treatment, 14 patients had intermittent claudication, and one had a limb at risk for amputation. One patient had diabetes mellitus, nine had hypertension, and all were long-term smokers. Two patients had surgical placement of the stent; in one patient this was part of a combined revascularization procedure. All other stents were placed percutaneously. The transstenotic gradient after injection of vasodilating drugs distal to the lesion decreased from a mean of 32.3 mm Hg +/- 16.7 to 3.1 mm Hg +/- 4.2 after stent placement. Ankle-arm Doppler systolic pressure index increased from a mean of 0.68 +/- 0.22 to 0.96 +/- 0.24 after the procedure. The treatment eliminated intermittent claudication in 14 patients and increased exercise tolerance to 500 m in the patient with a limb at risk for amputation before the procedure. The improved condition persisted in all patients during the follow-up of 6-12 months. Stent placement may be a valuable adjunct in the management of iliac artery disease.


This Note examines the institutional biases underlying courts' persisting, and deeply criticized, resistance to expert testimony on the reliability of eyewitnesses. While such resistance is generally explained as preserving the jury's authority over fact-finding, protecting the democratic jury trial against "professionalization" by an elite class of experts, I argued that it more frequently reflects judges' sense that eyewitness experts fail to improve on traditional safeguards provided by judge and attorneys, such as jury instructions and cross-examination — effectively preserving the trial as the professionalized realm of expert jurists. In context, advocates urging the admission of expert testimony should focus less on establishing the gap between expert and lay knowledge regarding eyewitnesses, and more on establishing the gap between expert testimony and judicial alternatives in correcting juror misconceptions.


Considering the advantages and disadvantages of hydrate formation, which were mentioned in the previous section, hydrate has always been considered as a problem that should be avoided, and has been considered as an opportunity for revolution in various industries. Solutions have always been proposed to prevent its occurrence and also to improve the conditions of its formation. Among the various solutions, the use of additives may be the most appropriate method. In this article, first, the types of additives and how they affect the formation of hydrates, then the results of some recent research in this field are mentioned. The effect of additives on hydrate formation. In general, additives used in the hydrate formation process are divided into two categories: inhibitors and improvers. Injection of chemical inhibitors is a priority over other solutions used to prevent hydrate formation and is widely used in the gas industry. Factors influencing the choice of inhibitors include: cost, degree of poisoning, degree of corrosion, environmental aspects, bulk density, etc.


: The Mission Services Division of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word Health Care Corporation, Houston, has established training sessions to help various facilities develop criteria-based job descriptions that integrate values. A major problem with traditional job descriptions is that they do not contain enough information for value integration to occur. Each facet of the job description--the responsibility statement, the task statement, and the standard--can integrate the facilities' values in explicit and implicit ways. Such integration reduces the possibility of a supervisor arbitrarily defining the qualitative aspects of how an employee performs the job and provides a better method for evaluating the quality of the employee's performance. The first step in value integration is to identify the organization's values. Next, illustrative behaviors are identified to emphasize value integration in both activity-based task statements and results-based standards. The final step is to integrate the values in the job description, which makes the value operational and bridges the gap between commitment to values and behavior that exemplifies those values. Although values cannot be measured as objectively as the successful accomplishment of a procedure with a specified method of measurement, evaluation of values is not fruitless. When the employee and supervisor agree on specific qualitative aspects of patient care or other tasks, the consistency of the qualitative aspects of the job can be evaluated.


This work will specifically detail the development of a processing and fabrication route for a three-dimensional asynchronous field-programmable gate array (3D-AFPGA) design based on an extension of pre-existing two-dimensional-field-programmable gate array (2D-FPGA) tile designs. The periodic nature of FPGAs permits the use of an alternative approach, whereby the design entails splitting the FPGA design along tile borders and inserting through silicon vias (TSVs) at regular spatial intervals. This serves to enable true 3D performance (i.e., full 3D signal routing) while leaving most of the 2D circuit layouts intact. 3D signal buffers are inserted to handle communication between vertical and adjacent neighbors. For this approach, the density of vertical interconnections was shown to be determined by the size of the bond pads used for tier–tier communications and bonding. As a consequence, reducing bond pad dimensions from 25 μm to 15 μm, or 10 μm, bond pads are preferred to increase the connectivity between layers. A 3D-AFPGA mockup test structure was then proposed for completing development and exercising the 3D integration process flows. This mockup test structure consists of a three-tier demonstration vehicle consisting of a chip-to-wafer and a subsequent chip-to-chip bond. Besides, an alternate copper bonding approach using pillars was explored. Although the intended application is for the 3D integration process compatible with the 3D AFPGA design, the test structure was also designed to be generally applicable to various applications for 3D integration. Because of the importance of thermal management of 3D-AFPGA, it is important to predict the temperature distribution and avoid the maximum junction temperature. The numerical thermal modeling for predicting the equivalent thermal conductivity in every layer and the 3D temperature distribution in the 3D-AFPGA are developed and discussed as well.


This paper considers the potential of ecotourism as a form of environmental education for sustainability. It reviews current concepts of education for sustainability and research on the educational impact of ecotourism, and points to a gap between the aspirations of education for sustainability and the outcomes of current ecotourism programs. The paper further argues that a critical approach to environmental education through ecotourism is the most appropriate form for contemporary concepts of sustainability, and illustrates how this approach can be applied to environmental education using a strategy of critical discourse analysis.


Objectives There are safety issues associated with propofol use for flexible bronchoscopy (FB). The bispectral index (BIS) correlates well with the level of consciousness. The aim of this study was to show that BIS-guided propofol infusion is safe and may provide better sedation, benefiting the patients and bronchoscopists. Methods After administering alfentanil bolus, 500 patients were randomized to either propofol infusion titrated to a BIS level of 65-75 (study group) or incremental midazolam bolus based on clinical judgment to achieve moderate sedation. The primary endpoint was safety, while the secondary endpoints were recovery time, patient tolerance, and cooperation. Results The proportion of patients with hypoxemia or hypotensive events were not different in the 2 groups (study vs. control groups: 39.9% vs. 35.7%, p = 0.340; 7.4% vs. 4.4%, p = 0.159, respectively). The mean lowest blood pressure was lower in the study group. Logistic regression revealed male gender, higher American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status, and electrocautery were associated with hypoxemia, whereas lower propofol dose for induction was associated with hypotension in the study group. The study group had better global tolerance (p<0.001), less procedural interference by movement or cough (13.6% vs. 36.1%, p<0.001; 30.0% vs. 44.2%, p = 0.001, respectively), and shorter time to orientation and ambulation (11.7±10.2 min vs. 29.7±26.8 min, p<0.001; 30.0±18.2 min vs. 55.7±40.6 min, p<0.001, respectively) compared to the control group. Conclusions BIS-guided propofol infusion combined with alfentanil for FB sedation provides excellent patient tolerance, with fast recovery and less procedure interference. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials. gov NCT00789815


We present a fully dynamical model to study nonequilibrium effects in both the chiral and the deconfinement phase transition. The sigma field and the Polyakov loop as the corresponding order parameters are propagated by Langevin equations of motion. The locally thermalized background is provided by a fluid of quarks and antiquarks. Allowing for an exchange of energy and momentum through dissipative and stochastic processes we ensure that the total energy of the coupled system remains conserved. We study its relaxational dynamics in different quench scenarios and are able to observe critical slowing down as well as the enhancement of long-wavelength modes at the critical point. During the fluid dynamical expansion of a hot plasma fireball typical nonequilibrium effects such as supercooling and domain formation occur when the system evolves through the first-order phase transition.


The rehabilitation of international humanitarian law (IHL) has become a priority for those who think that the horrors of contemporary wars are largely due to the blurring of the distinction between civilians and combatants and for those who think that campaigning for the respect of IHL could result in more civilised wars. Similarly, respect for humanitarian principles is still seen by many as the best tool available to protect the safety of aid workers. In this text, I argue that both assumptions are misled. The distinction between civilians and combatants, a cornerstone of IHL, has been blurred in practice since the late nineteenth century. In addition, humanitarian agencies claiming to be 'principled' have been victims of attacks as much as others. History and current practice tell us that neither IHL nor humanitarian principles provide safety or can guide our decisions. Accepting their symbolic value, rather than their unrealised potential to protect and solve operational dilemmas, would free humanitarian agencies from endless speculations.


Malaise trap sampling of Hemiptera (Heteroptera; Auchenorrhyncha) was conducted at 500 m intervals along an elevational gradient from 200 m to 3,700 m on the east slope of Mount Wilhelm, Madang Province, Papua New Guinea. Hemiptera had a decrease in morphospecies richness and overall abundance with increasing elevation, however, the Heteroptera did not exhibit either pattern. A few species were relatively abundant at each elevation, whereas the majority of species were represented by ≤5 specimens. Morphospecies richness of Auchenorrhyncha, Cicadomorpha, Fulgoromorpha, Cicadellidae, Cixiidae, and Derbidae also decreased with increasing elevation but abundance decline was not significant due to the large number of specimens captured at 200 m relative to those captured at higher elevations. The percentage of Cicadomorpha specimens decreased with increasing elevation relative to that of the Fulgoromorpha which increased with increasing elevation. Environmental factors that may influence patterns of species richness along the elevational gradient are discussed.


In this study, research was carried out on absorber (in and exit) in the wet flue gas desulfurization (WFGD) system of a local thermal power plant. WFGD plays a vital role in terms of environment since it includes water, chloride ion, gypsum, and coal ash. In the progress of WFGD in power plants, absorber has the key role of SO2 removal. This study focuses on modeling of the absorber in the WFGD system. In the context of this study, sample from absorber in limestone slurry was analyzed based on particle size distribution (PSD) and elemental composition, and a model was proposed to predict SO2 removal rate. The model proposed employs basically the parameters previously proposed by some researchers, and in addition, the PSD, i.e., size parameters like D32 and D43. The model proposed is in good agreement with the results obtained.


The identification of atypical observations and the immunization of data analysis against both outliers and failures of modeling are important aspects of modern statistics. The forward search is a graphics rich approach that leads to the formal detection of outliers and to the detection of model inadequacy combined with suggestions for model enhancement. The key idea is to monitor quantities of interest, such as parameter estimates and test statistics, as the model is fitted to data subsets of increasing size. In this paper we propose some computational improvements of the forward search algorithm and we provide a recursive implementation of the procedure which exploits the information of the previous step. The output is a set of efficient routines for fast updating of the model parameter estimates, which do not require any data sorting, and fast computation of likelihood contributions, which do not require matrix inversion or qr decomposition. It is shown that the new algorithms enable a reduction of the computation time by more than 80%. Furthemore, the running time now increases almost linearly with the sample size. All the routines described in this paper are included in the FSDA toolbox for MATLAB which is freely downloadable from the internet.


Where one stands on "climate change" has been such a vexed and often confusing issue, at dinner parties, over coffee, with the taxi driver, and in terms of media reporting of where the Australian public is at.

A simple reality is that most people are trying to make some reasonable sense of this seemingly profound threat, quite complex phenomenon, "the science", and what seems to be happening in terms of global and local weather patterns and extreme weather events. And the myriad information lines available to us are often not much help, and the messages often confusing and conflicting. All, of course, further complicated by the contested politics, the carbon tax, and how to survive a climate change conversation. Not to mention, of course, the mediated nature of the average person's encounters with climate change.


The purpose of the present study is to explore the specific contributions of various
nominal and real rigidities in monetary DGE models in a systematic way and in
a common framework. I will concentrate on a quite simple model setup in order
to find out the important transmission mechanisms at work. The focus will be on
exogenous money growth shocks as the driving force of the business cycle and not
on interest rate shocks. The book contains five main chapters. All these chapters are presented in a way
that allows the reader to study them separately. Therefore the building blocks of
the models will be repeated in every chapter. The first four chapters are concerned
with the question which rigidities are essential to explain actual business cycles while
Chapter 6 analyzes optimal monetary policy in a stochastic DGE model.
In Chapter 2 the basic model is presented. Prices are set in a staggered way
as in Taylor (1980). The chapter addresses two questions that have not yet been
answered in the literature. First: Is there a difference between money introduced
via a CIA-constraint or via a MIU-specification? Second: Does it matter how the
household's preferences look like? The answers are yes in both cases. It turns out
that the CIA-model with a standard CRRA utility function can better account for
the business cycle. Thus in Chapter 3 the MIU-setup as well as GHH preferences
will be discarded. But the model will be augmented by capital accumulation considerations.
The chapter considers instead the implications of the price setting scheme:
Taylor pricing is compared to Calvo pricing. It turns out that the failure of the basic
model to generate persistent output responses is due to Taylor type price staggering.
The model version with Calvo pricing can account quite well for the empirical
impulse responses, confirming the results of Kiley (2002) in a more general setup.
Chapter 4 considers the role of habits in consumption. While this feature has
already been analyzed by others, e.g. Christiano, Eichenbaum and Evans (2003),
there is no study that tries to figure out the specific effects of habit formation in
isolation. In addition, related studies use Calvo pricing. Here the MIU-model with
Taylor price staggering will again be considered in order to examine whether this
can improve the model with respect to its ability to create persistence in output.
Unfortunately only the response of consumption to a money growth shock can be
improved. For a high enough value of the habit persistence parameter consumption
can even be hump-shaped, as it is empirically (see Figure 1.4).
Chapter 5 presents a model with Taylor wage staggering and adjustment costs
of price changes as in Rotemberg (1982). It turns out that this specific combination
is important to get persistent output responses to a money growth shock. When
using also Taylor price staggering the result breaks down and output and prices will
not be persistent. Sticky prices through adjustment costs of prices operate similar
as sticky prices under Calvo pricing. When they interact with adjustment costs of
capital they can even strengthen the persistence in output. In the absence of the
costs for adjusting the capital stock there are only very moderate effects on output.
Chapter 6 goes a step further. Here the question is not whether a monetary
stochastic DGE model can generate persistence but whether a central bank can
stabilize the price level as claimed by King and Wolman (1999). The analysis builds
upon the framework used before: the household maximizes life-time utility and firms
maximize profits. The central bank acts as a social planner that takes into account
the optimizing behavior of the household and the firms. Maximizing welfare is then
equivalent to maximizing utility of the representative household. It is shown that
the result of King and Wolman does not hold under a different specification of the
preference function so that in general the monetary authority will not be successful
in completely stabilizing the price level, as is also observed empirically. Chapter 7 summarizes the main findings and gives some suggestions for future research while Chapter 1 discusses briefly important advances in macroeconomic theory as well as in empirical methods to characterize the business cycle.


Carbon dots (CDs) are an emerging family of nanostructures due to their unique optical properties, high chemical stability, biocompatibility, and low toxicity, they have been able to attract a lot of attention and cause significant changes in various scientific fields. In this study, the green synthesis of stable CDs by hydrothermal and pyrolysis methods (H-CDs and P-CDs) is performed from Nigella sativa seeds as a natural precursor. Using these methods, the formation and the surface passivation of the CDs are done simultaneously, resulting in the intrinsic fluorescence emission. The as-prepared CDs are characterised by UV–vis spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, elemental analysis, dynamic light scattering, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy, from which their structural information and property are interpreted. The fluorescence intensity graph of H-CDs and P-CDs, with excitation wavelengths in 360 nm, shows the highest emissions at 430 and 410 nm, respectively. Particle size distribution was obtained at about 4 nm. The fluorescent quantum yield (QY) of H-CDs and P-CDs was measured to be 7% and 2%, respectively. The synthesised CDs showed good photoluminescence (PL) responses to acetone solution. Acetone had a different effect on the PL properties of CDs obtained from pyrolysis and hydrothermal methods so that in P-CDs, it increased the intensity of PL, and in H-CDs; it decreased the intensity of PL.


Integrated watershed management has a positive impact on groundwater balance. However, most parts of the study area particularly, Borana is the one which is suffering from severe rangeland degradation. Among others, heavy grazing, bush encroachment, gully expansion, topsoil fertility loss, sedimentation and less adequate water availability account for the greatest noticeable rangeland degradation phenomena. Due to these, water remains the most limiting resource for the pastoral and agro-pastoral communities of Borana (Coppock et al., 2006). To overcome these problems, efforts have been made to launch integrated watershed management programs; however, knowledge to quantify the impact of integrated watershed management on groundwater availability has been limited to date. The hydrology of the area was characterized based on its land use, land cover, soil type, slope position, rainfall, humidity, wind speed, temperature, evapotranspiration and runoff. Thornthwaite's soil-water balance model was used to determine the potential and actual evapotranspiration and results were 796.27 and 465.89 mm, respectively. The mean annual runoff from the catchment was computed using the runoff coefficient method. The catchment is characterized by two rainy seasons during the year. The mean annual rainfall of the catchment is 585.1 mm. As the result of soil and water conservation measures, the volume of surface runoff was reduced from 45.98 to 33.44% of the mean annual rainfall of the catchment. Inversely, the groundwater recharge increased from 12.8 to 55.14% of the mean annual rainfall of the catchment. Though, the difference in groundwater level in cistern and hand-dug wells after interventions was found to be 1.1 and 1.3 m, respectively. Thus, construction of additional physical conservation structures is suggested to further improve the groundwater availability in the area.

 Key words: Soil and water conservation, surface runoff, groundwater, water balance.


Aims: Whether phacoemulsification or phacotrabeculectomy (with adjunctive mitomycin C) is the surgery of choice in eyes with chronic angle closure glaucoma (CACG) with concomitant cataract. Settings and Design: Prospective comparative case series. Materials and Methods: Patients with CACG and cataract were randomized into two groups, comparing phacoemulsification (Group A) versus combined phacotrabeculectomy with mitomycin C (Group B). Group A had 60 eyes of medically controlled CACG with cataract and 58 eyes of medically uncontrolled CACG with cataract. Group B had 53 eyes of medically controlled CACG with cataract and 61 eyes of medically uncontrolled CACG with cataract. The two groups had identical study designs. All patients were reviewed 3-monthly for 2 years after surgery. The primary outcome measure was to compare the surgical complications of phacoemulsification versus phacotrabeculectomy and the secondary outcome measures were intraocular pressure (IOP) control and disease progression in the two groups. Statistical analysis used: Fisher's exact test and chi-square test. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in IOP control, glaucomatous progression, or final visual acuity, during the 24-month follow-up, between two groups. In Group A, 5 (4.2%) of 118 eyes reported four surgical complications while in Group B, 18 (15.8%) of 114 eyes had 16 surgical complications. The difference in the proportion of eyes with one or more surgical complications between the two groups was statistically significant [P = 0.003, 95% confidence interval (CI)*]. In addition to this the risk of surgical complication with phacotrabeculectomy was significantly higher when compared to phacoemulsification [3.73 (P = 0.003, 95% CI, 1.43-9.70)]*. Conclusions: Postsurgical complications were more frequently seen after phacotrabeculectomy. However, the data did not reveal statistically significant differences in IOP control, visual acuity, or disease progression between both groups.


The aim of this conceptual paper is to add knowledge to the existing leadership development field. We examine the development of core intra- and interpersonal values, specifically the individual collaborative features, by considering life experiences (Day, Fleenor, Atwater, Sturm, & McKee, 2014), and how these personal collaborative features become integrated when leadership members (members of the leadership process) collaborate (Cullen-Lester, Maupin, & Carter, 2017). We formulate the following four relevant propositions: (1) Individual collaborative features should be integrated with the essential features of the leadership members' collaboration during a decision-making process. (2) A life-story aspect has substantive contents and the information drawn from it will therefore shape the leadership members% collaborative features and develop their meaning-making system, while participating in a collaborative decision-making process. (3) The subject under discussion, the context, the actors, and the time of occurrence are the four basic criteria of a life story aspect, in which an event is selected to be placed in. (4) A life story aspect provides fertile grounds for unpacking collaborative tendencies in general and thus implies such tendencies, particularly in the work setting. Consequently, the theoretical contributions of this paper entail advancing and integrating the existing literature of the life-story approach and collaborative decision-making in the leadership development field.


We investigate the tip region of a power law fluid driven fracture propagating at constant velocity V in an impermeable linear elastic medium with the presence of fluid lag of a priori unknown length. The fracture is loaded by the internal fluid pressure pf and by the far field confining stress. The power law fluid is characterized by a fluid index n and a consistency index M. Interest in the tip region is the key to know the correct structure of the solution and to recognize the strong coupling fluid-solid which is mainly shown in a small region near the tip. The scheme is organized as follows. First, we formulate the governing equations and derive a dimensionless form of these equations which only depends on the dimensionless toughness. The nonlinear system of equations is discretized using the Gauss-Chebyshev polynomials [2,3]. This technique uses trigonometric values for the abscissas and the colocation points as made when using the Gauss-Chebyshev for solving singular integral equations corresponding to finite fractures. We transform the coordinate in order to evaluate integrals in infinite integration interval. The numerical results will include the fracture opening w, the fluid pressure pf and the relationship between the fluid lag and the toughness. We show that the solution is not only consistent with the square root singularity of linear elastic fracture mechanics, but that its asymptotic behaviour in the far field is given by the solution of a semi-infinite hydraulic fracture constructed on the assumption of zero toughness solution [1]. The two asymptotes define the two limiting regimes : in the viscosity-dominated regime, the toughness of the solid is small enough that the solution can be approximated by the zero toughness solution; while in the toughness-dominated regime the fluid can be assumed to be inviscid. The intermediate part of the solution between the two asymptotes is obtained numerically.


Myositis Ossificans is classified into three types: progressive, post traumatic and paraplegic. The progressive form, myositis ossoificans congenita, is a hereditary disease which is usually autosomal dominant or an isolated mutation and more common in boys. Post-traumatic myositis is found following massive trauma and paraplegic myositis occurs below the level of paralysis. Here, a heterotopic bone formation is evident in the muscle or soft tissue, which can occur almost anywhere in the body. An incidental case of myositis ossificans was found in the Department of Radiology & Imaging, Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka in March, 2009. A male patient of 22 years of age was sent for radiological investigations from the medicine out patient department (MOPD) of Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka having complaints of backache and pain in the neck and chest. He was diagnosed as a case of myositis ossificans after the radiological report. It was an incidental finding having no history of trauma or familial predisposition. This case is presented for journal record and academic interest. Key words: Myositis Ossificans; autosomal dominant. DOI: 10.3329/jdmc.v18i1.6312 J Dhaka Med Coll. 2008; 18(1) : 79-81


To improve the quality of the teacher workforce, some states have tightened teacher preparation and certification requirements while others have eased requirements and introduced "alternative" ways of being certified to attract more people to teaching. Donald Boyd, Daniel Goldhaber, Hamilton Lankford, and James Wyckoff evaluate these seemingly contradictory strategies by examining how preparation and certification requirements affect student achivement.  If strong requirements improve student outcomes and deter relatively few potential teachers, the authors say, then they may well be good policy. But if they have little effect on student achievement, if they seriously deter potential teachers, or if schools are able to identify applicants who will produce good student outcomes, then easing requirements becomes a more attractive policy.  In reviewing research on these issues, the authors find that evidence is often insufficient to draw conclusions. They do find that highly selective alternative route programs can produce effective teachers who perform about the same as teachers from traditional routes after two years on the job. And they find that teachers who score well on certification exams can improve student outcomes somewhat. Limited evidence suggests that certification requirements can diminish the pool of applicants, but there is no evidence on how they affect student outcomes. And the authors find that schools have a limited ability to identify attributes in prospective teachers that allow them to improve student achievement.  The authors conclude that the research evidence is simply too thin to have serious implications for policy. Given the enormous investment in teacher preparation and certification and given the possibility that these requirements may worsen student outcomes, the lack of convincing evidence is disturbing. The authors urge researchers and policymakers to work together to move to a more informed position where good resource decisions can be made.


We describe a general procedure for the synthesis of miktoarm star triblock copolymers with a hydrocarbon, a fluoropolymer, and a hydrophilic segment. Several μ-(polyethylethylene)(poly(ethylene oxide))(poly(perfluoropropylene oxide)) [μ-(PEE)(PEO)(PFPO)] star triblock copolymers were prepared using two successive anionic polymerization steps and one polymer−polymer coupling reaction. Initially, living polybutadienyllithium chains were end-capped with 2-methoxymethoxymethyloxirane forming a heterobifunctional 1,2-polybutadiene (PBD) precursor, with a hydroxyl group and a protected hydroxyl group at one chain end. Catalytic hydrogenation of this PBD gave the corresponding polyethylethyene (PEE) while preserving the end group structures. Transformation of the terminal hydroxyl group in the PEE precursor to a potassium alkoxide followed by addition of ethylene oxide and subsequent end-capping with ethyl bromide generated polyethylethylene−poly(ethylene oxide) (PEE−PEO) diblock copolymers with a protected hyd...


The book questions whether and how young citizens in Africa engage with media and communications technologies and platforms in a desire to be included in the change processes of their societies. The theme echoes some of the claims made by disenchanted and frustrated youth and other citizens in the streets of North Africa's cities in 2011 and 2012. They were severely critical of the governance structures in their countries, mass social mobilizations took place, governments fell and, in the aftermath, the slow process of transition continued, now with one tyrant less but still with uncertain outcomes and huge challenges for the social and economic development of these countries. Youth in particular engaged massively, visibly, loudly and dramatically around demands to be involved and included in their countries' development processes. This yearbook taps into the less visible and dramatic, but nevertheless highly dramatic and influential process of media development and the enlargement of youth-driven, deliberative spaces which Sub-Saharan Africa is currently experiencing.


The present study is pioneer in analyzing the chemical composition of the essential oil from aerial parts of Turnera subulata Sm. and evaluates their antibacterial activity against a panel of drug-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus. The aerial parts were kiln-dried and then powdered in mechanical mill, and was subjected to hydrodistillation in a Clevenger-type apparatus. The components were analyzed using a mass spectrometrycoupled gas chromatography (GC-MS), and the identification of substances was performed by comparison of the mass spectra obtained with the mass spectra of the database of the GC-MS and retention indices . The essential oil was evaluated using the method of broth dilution at concentrations ranging from 3.125µg/mL to 3200µg/mL. It was possible to identify 45 substances (92.1%) of the essential oils, and the major components were trans-caryophyllene (6.7%), citronellol (5.6%), sphatulenol (5.3%), α-cadinol (4.3%), n-tricosano (4.3%), geraniol (4.1%) and trans-geranilacetone (3.7%), n-pentacosano (3.5%), globulol (3.4%), caryophyllene oxide (3.2%). The essential oil of T. subulata Sm. showed effective antibacterial activity for the various strains of S. aureus tested, with the MIC values between 25 µg/mL and 1600 µg/mL. The study of the essential oil of Turnera subulata Sm. showed that it consists of a complex mixture of several classes of compounds having the sesquiterpenes as major constituents followed by monoterpenes, and showed an antibacterial activity significant front the strains tested.


The sperm acrosome reaction is a Ca(2+)-dependent exocytotic event that is triggered by adhesion to the mammalian egg's zona pellucida. Previous studies using ion-selective fluorescent probes suggested a role of voltage-sensitive Ca2+ channels in acrosome reactions. Here, wholecell patch clamp techniques are used to demonstrate the expression of functional T-type Ca2+ channels during mouse spermatogenesis. The germ cell T current is inhibited by antagonists of T-type channels (pimozide and amiloride) as well as by antagonists whose major site of action is the somatic cell L-type Ca2+ channel (1,4-dihydropyridines, arylalkylamines, benzothiazapines), as has also been reported for certain somatic cell T currents. In sperm, inhibition of T channels during gamete interaction inhibits zona pellucida-dependent Ca2+ elevations, as demonstrated by ion-selective fluorescent probes, and also inhibits acrosome reactions. These studies directly link sperm T-type Ca2+ channels to fertilization. In addition, the kinetics of channel inhibition by 1,4-dihydropyridines suggests a mechanism for the reported contraceptive effects of those compounds in human males.


State-of-the-art multilingual models depend on vocabularies that cover all of the languages the model will expect to see at inference time, but the standard methods for generating those vocabularies are not ideal for massively multilingual applications. In this work, we introduce a novel procedure for multilingual vocabulary generation that combines the separately trained vocabularies of several automatically derived language clusters, thus balancing the trade-off between cross-lingual subword sharing and language-specific vocabularies. Our experiments show improvements across languages on key multilingual benchmark tasks TyDi QA (+2.9 F1), XNLI (+2.1\%), and WikiAnn NER (+2.8 F1) and factor of 8 reduction in out-of-vocabulary rate, all without increasing the size of the model or data.


We address the problem of scheduling robots' moves in a robotic cell that is used by a Dallas-area semiconductor equipment manufacturer. The cell has parallel machines, multiple robots, and Euclidean travel times. We describe a plan of operation that allows the robots to operate concurrently, efficiently, and with no risk of colliding. We propose a set of sequences of robot moves, analytically determine this scheme's throughput, and determine problem instances for which it is optimal. Through simulation, we demonstrate that our scheme is superior to the heuristic dispatching rule currently in use by the manufacturer.Note to Practitioners-Efficient scheduling of a robotic cell can greatly increase productivity and revenue for manufacturers in many different industries. This increase becomes more pronounced for larger cells that employ multiple robots and parallel machines at various production stages. This paper describes a schedule of robotic actions that is optimal under a common set of conditions for such large cells, in addition to many other types of cells. When this set of conditions does not hold, even though optimality could not be proven, this schedule is shown to be superior to one currently in use by some semiconductor manufacturers. We also present a scheme that allows the robots to operate concurrently, efficiently, and with no risk of colliding. Additionally, an approximation to the improvement in revenues realized by using this schedule is provided.


Abstract This article addresses how neoliberalism as a utopian ideal of the urban affects the practices of planners and parents, drawing on Stockholm, Sweden, as an example and foregrounding how these adult conceptions of the city are manifested, both socially and physically, and shape children's geographies. Through an analysis of planning documents and interviews with planners and parents, this study shows how Stockholm's planning is clearly conditioned by neoliberal beliefs, but rather than being linked with political sympathies, neoliberalism is expressed as a contemporary urbanism. This specific urbanism is not compatible with children's independent mobility and easy access to nature and play spaces, but demands, as expressed by planners and parents, certain "sacrifices" in order to be achieved. The study shows that age is an organizing norm in terms of spatial justice in the city and that ideological beliefs about the urban development affect how this (in)justice is organized. The planning documents reflect utopian neoliberal ideas about a specific urban identity, and when private actors are given more influence over what is being built and which spaces are developed, there is a deliberate transition from welfare‐planning values and the belief that children and adults have equal rights to urban neighbourhoods. This is expressed as a necessary transformation to a more urban and globally competitive city but given the extent to which welfare values are taken for granted in Sweden it is unlikely that the effect this transition will have on social and spatial justice in the city is recognized.


Models of defence against multiple enemies predict that specialized responses to each enemy should evolve only under restrictive conditions. Nevertheless, tadpoles of Rana temporaria can differentiate among several predator species. Small tadpoles used a refuge when Notonecta backswimmers were in the pond, but showed a weaker hiding response to adult Triturus alpestris newts and no response to aeshnid dragonfly larvae (Aeshna and Anax). All predators caused a decline in feeding and swimming activity. Large tadpoles reserved the strongest behavioural response for dragonflies, while Triturus caused no response. The shift during development suggests that tadpoles distinguished among predators, rather than exhibiting a graded dosage response to a single cue associated with predation. Information on habitat distributions of predators suggests that they are regularly encountered, which would facilitate evolution of adaptive behavioural responses. Morphological responses to all predators were similar, perhaps because similar morphologies defend against all four predators. The evolutionary maintenance of specialized responses to multiple predators may be possible because adaptive responses do not conflict and the predators themselves do not interact strongly.


This paper shows the floristic composition of forest patches in a zone of transition vegetation which exists in the central-east region of Mato Grosso state, more specifically in the municipality of Gaucha do Norte (13° 10'S and 53° 15' W) where it connects the tropical rain-forest and the seasonal forest. The floristic survey was performed in March 1999 and bisemesterly from August 1999 to March 2001 (during excursions of an average of five days duration) on treks through the border and inside the forests and fanerogamous flora were collected in the reproductive phase. Vegetational samples of shrub-woody species which do not flower or fruit during the sample period were also collected from the 3 ha of the phytosociological survey. The floristic survey resulted in 72 families, 168 genera and 268 species. Of the species, 66 % were woody and 18 % were lianas. The herbs and shrubs were practically restricted to the border areas or clearings and formed 13 % of the total. The epiphytic flora was not very expressive (1 %) when compared to the rest of the Amazon forest, due to the extremely dry regional climate. Hemiepiphytas, parasites and palm trees constituted the remaining percentage. Thirty nine of the species sampled in Gaucha do Norte had not, at that time, been deposited in the herbaria which maintain representative collections of the flora of Mato Grosso, emphasizing the need for collections in the forest areas of this state.


Background. Xenotransplantation may provide a solution to the increasing shortage of donor organs. Acute vascular rejection and cell-mediated rejection remain the primary barriers to successful xenotransplantation. In animal models where acute vascular rejection can be attenuated, xenografts succumb to cell-mediated rejection. The mechanisms of acute vascular rejection and cell-mediated rejection are poorly understood. Methods. Using a heterotopic rat-to-mouse cardiac transplantation model, we demonstrate that IL-12p40 attenuates both allogeneic and xenogeneic acute vascular rejection pathology by suppressing B-cell activation and anti-rat isotype switching. To study the mechanism of xenogeneic cell-mediated rejection, we use B-cell deficient mice that only develop cell-mediated rejection pathology. To elucidate the role of IL-12 in cell-mediated rejection, we generated B cell/ IL-12p40 double knockout mice. Results. We demonstrate that xenogeneic cell-mediated rejection is mediated by CD4+ T cells, and is accompanied by elevated FasL and granzyme mRNA expression. Strikingly, by generating B cell/IL-12p40 double knockout mice, we demonstrate that xenogeneic cell-mediated rejection is IL-12p40 dependent. In contrast, we demonstrate that allogeneic cellular rejection is IL-12p40 independent. Conclusions. We conclude that IL-12 plays a dual role in xenotransplantation by driving xenogeneic CD4+ T cell responses but suppressing both allogeneic and xenogeneic B cell responses. Therefore, the mechanism of allogeneic and xenogeneic transplantation rejection is differentially regulated by IL-12.


We study the relationship between molecular gas and dust in the California Molecular Cloud over an unprecedented dynamic range of cloud depth (A V = 3–60 mag). We compare deep Herschel-based measurements of dust extinction with observations of the 12CO, 13CO, and C18O J = 2 − 1 lines on sub-parsec scales across the cloud. We directly measure the ratio of CO integrated intensity to dust extinction to derive the CO X-factor at over 105 independent locations in the cloud. Confirming an earlier study, we find that no single 12CO X-factor can characterize the molecular gas in the cold (T dust ≤ 20) regions of the cloud that account for most of its mass. We are able to derive a single-valued X-factor for all three CO isotopologues in the warm (T dust > 25 K) material that is spatially coincident with an H ii region surrounding the star LkHα 101. We derive the LTE CO column densities for 13CO and C18O since we find both lines are relatively optically thin. In the warm cloud material, CO is completely in the gas phase and we are able to recover the total 13CO and C18O abundances. Using CO abundances and deep Herschel observations, we measure lower bounds to the freeze-out of CO onto dust across the whole cloud, finding some regions having CO depleted by a factor of >20. We construct the first maps of depletion that span the extent of a giant molecular cloud. Using these maps we identify 75 depletion-defined cores and discuss their physical nature.


The basic theoretical research on sheath dress pattern with elastic fabric has put forward higher requirements. In this paper, based on dressing in dynamic change, combining with the body extend measure, the change of the pattern's control parts' specification and detail parts' specification are studied, and a basic sheath dress pattern with elastic fabric based on dynamic change is established. The human body's dynamic and static data show that the parameter of detail parts specification has great changes, while the parameter of control parts' specification parameter has small changes. For body detail parts' specification and structure, the parts that have not great changes only solve the problem of the fabric elastic utilization to meet the needs of the state of tight dress. According to the positions that produce dynamic increment, combining wearing condition, fabric elastic utilization and dynamic parameter, to design detail specification and pattern to satisfy sheath condition and dynamic demand.