The common goal for biological research is to develop models for the biological processes we seek to understand. Such models, in the form of biochemical pathway networks which describe the physical interactions between a living cell's genes, transcripts, proteins, and metabolites ("Omics"), accumulate in different repositories for several model organisms as well as non-model organisms. This thesis presents a set of integrated statistical bioinformatics tools that address key problems in integrating large-scale Omics datasets with pathway network models. A hardware accelerated non-parametric Omics mining method (Monte Carlo on the GPU) allows faster screening of custom test statistics and functions. A software platform for mining pathway databases (PathwayAccess) confers knowledge integration and comparison. Omics and pathway mining are combined for a novel method for statistically discriminating functionally meaningful subnetworks for their interaction with lists of entities mined from Omics data, so that software can intelligently mine large and complex pathway databases to answer a wide variety of questions and generate hypotheses (Discriminating Omics Response Groups in Pathways). The method, called PathwayFlow, can discriminate pathways, reactions, metabolite classes, or any other biological entity grouping (Response Groups), and automatically accounts for connectivity-caused biases in the pathway network. It also differentiates between regulators (or inputs) and regulatees (or outputs) for a given Query List of Omics entities. It is applied to three real datasets: a simple E. coli gene expression dataset which validates the method, a more complex Vitis gene expression dataset which complements functional enrichment analysis (Grapevine's Response to Short Days), and an ultra-high throughput re-sequencing dataset for assessing genetic differences between two wine grape varieties (DNA Sequencing Appendix).


Experimental results are presented for transonic flow post cone-cylinder, axially symmetric bodies. The drag coefficient and surface Mach number are studied as the free-stream Mach number is varied and, wherever possible, the experimental results are compared with theoretical predictions. Interferometric results for several typical flow configurations are shown and an example of shock-free supersonic-to-subsonic compression is experimentally demonstrated. The theoretical problem of transonic flow past finite cones is discussed briefly and an approximate solution of the axially symmetric transonic equations, valid for a semi-infinite cone, is presented.


We present the analysis and results of the first dataset collected with the MARS neutron detector deployed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) for the purpose of monitoring and characterizing the beam-related neutron (BRN) background for the COHERENT collaboration. MARS was positioned next to the COH-CsI coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering detector in the SNS basement corridor. This is the basement location of closest proximity to the SNS target and thus, of highest neutrino flux, but it is also well shielded from the BRN flux by infill concrete and gravel. These data show the detector registered roughly one BRN per day. Using MARS' measured detection efficiency, the incoming BRN flux is estimated to be 1.20 ± 0.56 neutrons/m^2/MWh for neutron energies above ∼3.5 MeV and up to a few tens of MeV. We compare our results with previous BRN measurements in the SNS basement corridor reported by other neutron detectors.


Beating Down the Lowly: The Criminalization of the Homeless and Alternative Solutions In the current economy, the issue of homelessness is increasingly pervading the normal constructs of society. Thousands of men, women, and children struggle to find a place to sleep and enough food to satisfy their hungry stomachs. While many people suffer under these conditions, local governments continue to create new anti-homeless legislation to further eject them out of society. Bans prevent the homeless from urinating, sleeping, camping, and panhandling in public through fines and prison sentences. The laws specifically target the homeless, discriminating against them for actions which are necessary for daily survival. The legal system only further hurts this already destitute population rather than alleviating the problem. Thus, this paper looks at the numerous reports and case studies that evaluate the current criminalizing efforts in order to offer alternative solutions to this social injustice. The accumulating effect of constant segregation and punishment results in a constant cycle of homelessness and the dehumanization of certain citizens. By reevaluating the current trend of criminalization, local governments can actually assist the homeless and provide life changing services rather than contribute to the discrimination. Handcuffing the homeless only exacerbates the social problem plaguing America.


As urbanization increases, the locus of poverty is slowly shifting from rural to urban areas in what is known as urbanization of poverty. Thus, understanding how urban food system operate and finding ways to ensure that they remain sustainable is a mounting preoccupation. But urban livestock production has the potential to provide a significant contribution to the urban food security now and in the future and can lift the urban poor out of poverty. Information on resource use in deep litter poultry system is largely limited. Stochastic production frontier functions was used for data from deep litter poultry farmers to examine their efficiency technically, output orientation and level of farm. Farmers' consideration was through the multistage sampling procedure. Maximum likelihood based on estimation of parameters helped in the determination of efficiency. The study revealed that, land, water,medication, capital and labour. The result 0.76 mean efficiency suggests output from deep litter poultry production could be increased with available technology. Policies aimed at encouraging farmers to access productive resources would be sensible decision.
Citation: Etim, N. A., Etim, N. N. and Mohammed, J. Resource Use in Deep Litter Poultry System: Implications for Urban Food Security, 2020; 5(3): 38-44.
Received: April 4, 2020Accepted: September 30, 2020


An analysis of the distributed generation (DG) and network topology impact on studies of voltage sags caused by system faults is presented. The simulation of 62 case studies of phase-to-ground faults on 13.8, 69, 138 and 230 kV transmission lines were performed and the voltage of a 380 V sensitive industrial busbar client was monitored. These lines are part of the electrical system of the city of Goiania, Brazil. For each case study, different fault positions were simulated by considering different DG levels connected to the consumer busbar. Long-term simulation scenarios were obtained by the Monte Carlo method and analyzed based on their cumulative distribution functions and probability density curves of voltage sags. This is one major contribution of this work. Key Words—Power quality, voltage sags, distributed generation, Monte Carlo method, Network Topology.


In this work, we explore the lossless compression of 32-bit floating-point buffers on graphics hardware. We first adapt a state-of-the-art 16-bit floating-point color and depth buffer compression scheme for operation on 32-bit data and propose two specific enhancements: dynamic bucket selection and a Fibonacci encoder. Next, we describe a unified codec for any type of floating-point buffer: color, depth, geometry, and GPGPU data. We also propose a method to further compress variable-precision data. Finally, we test our techniques on color, depth, and geometry buffers from existing applications. Using our enhancements to an existing technique, we have improved bandwidth savings by an average of 1.26x. Our unified codec achieved average bandwidth savings of 1.5x, 7.9x, and 2.9x for color (including buffers incompressible by past work), depth, and geometry buffers. Even higher savings were achieved when combined with our variable-precision technique, though specific ratios will depend on the tolerance of the application to reducing its precision.


Apart from the theory of local inflammation in etiopathogenesis of the arteriosclerosis, hypotheses concerning the role of mitochondria in this process arise growing interest. Some proteins of the respiratory chain (OXPHOS) are coded on mitochondrial DNA. Their damage leads to interruption of oxidative phosphorylation, what in turns raises the free oxygen radicals (ROS) generation. The relationship of insufficient mechanism of mitochondrial ROS elimination with the initiation of the atherosclerosis was confirmed in experimental data. The mutagenesis of mitochondrial DNA is tied with the etiology of coronary artery disease (CAD). Some disturbances of the structure of mt-DNA are primal. The second group is probably determined by the effect of CAD influence on the structure of mt-DNA in cardiomyocytes. The mitochondrial energetic transformations are described in the article, with special regard on their potential influence on the process of mt-DNA mutagenesis and secondarily on the formation of CAD.


Previous research suggests that individuals tend to form spatial habits (i.e., placing objects in consistent locations in space) when interacting with objects in the environment (Zhu & Risko, in press). However, it remains unclear how such spatial habits develop over time. One hypothesis suggests that spatial habit formation may involve a process of stabilization whereby individuals' spatial behaviour becomes progressively fixed over time. We examined this hypothesis by tracking students' seating behaviour in a classroom over the course of 12 weeks. Although individuals' overall seating choice tended to cluster near where they initially sat, we did not find evidence that seating behaviour stabilized over time. However, a significant curvilinear relation was found between seating choice and time such that seating choice near the beginning and end of the 12-week period were more varied than those in the middle. Implications of this study for understanding spatial habit formation will be discussed.


The Financial Sector Charter (FSC) requires South African retail banks to provide retail products and services to the rural-based unbanked. The challenge is deciding whether or not banking the unbanked must be pursued through personal or remote channels. This study considers the challenge facing the four largest South African retail banks. It investigated trends in servicing this market since the effective date of the Charter. It found that banks are currently using an integrated approach combining personal and remote interaction and emphasising the promotion of financial literacy. It remains to be seen whether this approach truly adds value for the unbanked. It is recommended that further research be done to establish exactly what the behavioural characteristics of the unbanked are over a period of continuous use of bank products and services.


RATIONALE
Alcohol use disorders cause oxidative stress in the lower airways and increase susceptibility to pneumonia and lung injury. Currently, no therapeutic options exist to mitigate the pulmonary consequences of alcoholism.

OBJECTIVES
We recently determined in an animal model that alcohol ingestion impairs pulmonary zinc metabolism and causes alveolar macrophage immune dysfunction. The objective of this research is to determine the effects of alcoholism on zinc bioavailability and alveolar macrophage function in human subjects.

METHODS
We recruited otherwise healthy alcoholics (n = 17) and matched control subjects (n = 17) who underwent bronchoscopy for isolation of alveolar macrophages, which were analyzed for intracellular zinc, phagocytic function, and surface expression of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor receptor; all three of these indices are decreased in experimental models.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS
Alcoholic subjects had normal serum zinc, but significantly decreased alveolar macrophage intracellular zinc levels (adjusted means [SE], 718 [41] vs. 948 [25] RFU/cell; P < 0.0001); bacterial phagocytosis (adjusted means [SE], 1,027 [48] vs. 1,509 [76] RFU/cell; P < 0.0001); and expression of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor receptor β subunit (adjusted means [SE], 1,471 [42] vs. 2,114 [35] RFU/cell; P < 0.0001]. Treating alveolar macrophages with zinc acetate and glutathione in vitro increased intracellular zinc levels and improved their phagocytic function.

CONCLUSIONS
These novel clinical findings provide evidence that alcohol abuse is associated with significant zinc deficiency and immune dysfunction within the alveolar space and suggest that dietary supplementation with zinc and glutathione precursors could enhance airway innate immunity and decrease the risk for pneumonia or lung injury in these vulnerable individuals.


Available for the first time in English, "Early Christian Greek and Latin Literature" highlights the special character of the gospel message, the nucleus of every Christian literary form. The earliest Christian works from the first through the fourth centuries are presented along with respected contemporary writings in the first volume. The second volume moves to the Golden Age of Christian literature. The major personalities of the time-Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, all writers of the highest rank-are matched with Greek-speaking authors such as Athanasius, the Cappadocians, and John Chrysostom, thinkers to whom present-day Christians turn once again for spiritual direction.


Purpose We present a framework, in which we compare a conventional standard dose of 50 Gy in 25 fractions with accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) using electronic brachytherapy (eBT). We discuss how radiobiological modelling enables us to establish a framework, within which we can compare external beam radiotherapy (EBRT). This leads to a determination of the shell of isoeffect in breast tissue, at which very low kV eBT can be considered to be clinically equivalent to standard EBRT. Material and methods To estimate relative biological effectiveness (RBE) values as a function of dose and irradiation time, we used a modified linear quadratic (LQ) approach, taking into account the ability of this new device, to deliver 20 Gy at the surface of a 40 mm diameter rigid, hollow spherical applicator in less than 2 minutes. In this study, we considered the radiobiological effectiveness of the Papillon +™ X-ray brachytherapy device operating at 30 kV, 0.3 mA producing dose rates in excess of 14 Gy/min. Results Calculated clinical RBEs ranged from 1.154 at the surface of a 40 mm diameter applicator to 1.100 at 35 mm from the applicator surface for the Papillon+ device. The absolute physical dose D (abs) 30 kV ranged from 20.00 Gy at the applicator surface to 1.20 at 35 mm distant. The product of the isoeffective single dose of 60Co reference radiation – (RBE)60Co, and the RBE corrected standard 2 Gy equivalent dose fractions (EQD2) doses, EQD2(30 kV) * (RBE)60Co ranged from 98.62 Gy at the applicator surface to 1.13 at 35 mm. The 'shell of isoeffect', the value on the X-axis where the EQD2(30 kV) * (RBE)60Co line crosses the 50 Gy mark on the Y-axis, was found to be approximately 3.5 mm beyond the applicator surface. Conclusions The 'shell of isoeffect' can serve as a useful metric with which to compare the radiobiological effectiveness of low kV eBT with various regimes of conventional EBRT.


Measures for prevention and control of nosocomial aspergillosis include the proper maintenance of air conditioning installations, cleaning of surfaces, adherence of personnel to recommendations on circulation, use of barrier methods and the proper isolation of selected areas, specially during construction work.


Interactions between colloidal particles have hitherto usually been fixed by the suspension composition. Recent experimental developments now enable the control of interactions in situ. Here we use Brownian dynamics simulations to investigate the effect of controlling interactions upon gelation, by "quenching" the system from an equilibrium fluid to a gel. We find that, contrary to the normal case of an instantaneous quench, where the local structure of the gel is highly disordered, controlled quenching results in a gel with a much higher degree of local order. Under sufficiently slow quenching, local crystallisation is found, which is strongly enhanced when a monodisperse system is used. The higher the degree of local order, the smaller the mean squared displacement, indicating an enhancement of gel stability.


The optimal reduced-order estimator is completely characterized by necessary conditions, resulting from the optimal projection equations. The solution consists of one Riccati equation and two Lyapunov equations coupled by two projections. Explicit expressions for all of the estimator parameters are given. The relation between the reduced-order singular estimator and the full-order optimal singular estimator (which is of reduced order itself) is investigated. It is shown that under certain conditions the optimal estimator is recovered from the reduced-order estimator. >


: Tissue-mimicking phantom is a biological tissue replacement which has been used as a replacement to understand the relationship between the electromagnetic and the human body. However, many of the developed phantoms are produced for several MHz to several GHz region, and less in the kHz region. This research introduces a new phantom to understand the electromagnetic effect at kHz region. The phantom is a 500 kHz phantom which mimics human muscle dielectric properties. The dielectric properties of the phantom are adjusted by aluminum powder content, which is 40% of the total phantoms content. In this research, we use different phantom dielectric properties measurement method compared to the one at higher frequencies. Furthermore, the phantom thermal properties and density are measured to be used in numerical calculations.


Over the past several decades, invasive species have become one of the largest issues in the field of ecology. Invasive earthworms have received much attention, especially in northern North America, where native earthworms were extirpated by Pleistocene glaciations and the more recent earthworm invasions have altered Northern Forests significantly. These invasions were primarily by European species and invasions elsewhere in the continent by other earthworm taxa have received less attention. We studied the impacts of invasion by Asian earthworms in the genus Amynthas in a field study and two laboratory studies. Amynthas agrestis invasion in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was found to be a dynamic process on monthly time scale. This invasion altered soils by decreasing the depth of partially decomposed organic horizons and increasing soil aggregation. A significant decrease in millipede abundance and species richness was also associated with the invasion, which suggested competitive interactions between the epigeic earthworm and epigeic millipedes. To further examine this interaction, two microcosm studies were performed. The first study used C enriched Red Oak and Eastern Hemlock litter to assess millipede (Pseudopolydesmus erasus) and earthworm (Amynthas corticis) food preference. Negative effects of earthworms on millipede C assimilation were observed as was a mitigation of earthworms' impacts on soil aggregation by millipedes. A. corticis caused significant soil aggregation throughout microcosms and increased respiration rates relative to millipede and control treatments. The second microcosm experiment examined millipedes' (Sigmoria ainsliei) and earthworms' (Amynthas agrestis) reliance on fresh versus partially decomposed litter as a food resource and whether there was direct competition for these resources. These taxa were found to compete for partially decomposed material and millipedes relied on this resource for survival. The results of these studies suggest that Asian earthworm invasion in the southern Appalachian Mountains poses a threat to the millipede species endemic to this region. To assist land managers in conservation of this vital resource, a preliminary checklist of millipedes of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has been compiled. This assembles the knowledge of millipede diversity and species distributions within the Park for the first time.


This research analyzes consumers' different purchasing attitudes in traditional and on-line markets. Italy's on-line direct selling process for organic farm products is still in its formative phase, and the prospective developments mark an interesting research area, not least because it may represent a tool to integrate the relationship with customers and improve companies' marketing strategies. The research carried out on the direct selling on-line channels allowed the authors to prove a direct and indirect utility for the choice of organic food products. Information obtained with word-of-mouth among consumers seems to be playing an increasingly relevant role in the purchasing process of the virtual community, representing a strong generator of messages and experiences both in virtual and traditional markets. This paper analyzes the behavior of consumers to understand whether it is conditioned more by off-line than on-line channels and which parameters condition the purchasing process. The research confirms that off-line channels for organic products condition the consumers' choices, linked to traditional word-of-mouth as well as to experiential and sensory direct marketing contact with the producer. An inverse behavior was observed with positive conditions that mostly emanate from on-line channels in the process of buying organic products. The on-line purchasing process involves the system of information linked to the product, i.e., the e-community, which allows the product to be shown together with the comments, evaluations, and recommendations of consumers on the net, reducing the effects generated by the packaging and the brand.


We study how disruptions in international production networks propagate across countries. We use comprehensive data on natural disasters around the globe over the last two decades from the EM-DAT and SHELDUS database to identify exogenous shocks to sourcing foreign inputs. We then trace out the effect of these shocks on activity of multinationals located in the United States. and their network of foreign affiliates using U.S. Bill of Lading microdata and data on domestic and international ownership linkages from Orbis. Our findings indicate that major natural disasters can have an economically significant negative impact even far from the directly affected areas. Furthermore, the strength of the propagation depends on whether the shocks led to disruptions in intra-firm or arms-length trade. This technical note provides detailed information on the construction of the novel dataset used in Alviarez et al. (2021).


On day 30 after autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT), 20 patients were randomized to receive either erythropoietin at a dose of 500 U/kg/week s.c. (Epo group) or no treatment (control group). After 3 weeks, hemoglobin (p<0.0001) and serum transferrin receptor (p<0.0001) concentrations were higher in the Epo group. Hb response (+2 g/dL) was achieved in 100% vs 28% (p<0.0001) and Hb correction (> or =13 g/dL) in 70% vs 10% (p=0.0238) of the patients, respectively. This is the first randomized study showing an efficacy of erythropoietin therapy on Hb levels after autologous PBSCT.


The characterization of fatigue crack closure is an important objective because of its influence on fatigue crack propagation, particularly under conditions of variable amplitude loading. This paper describes a nontraditional technique for characterizing closure, in which ultrasonic scattering measurements are used to obtain estimates of the number density and size of asperities bridging the crack faces, with subsequent estimates of the crack tip shielding being based on those geometrical parameters. The paper first reviews the experimental configuration and the basic elasto-dynamic theory underlying the technique. It then presents recent results obtained in studies of the influence of block overloads and load shedding on the growth of fatigue cracks in aluminum alloys. In both cases, the change in the closure state after the overload can be unambiguously seen even in the raw data. Moreover, data analysis suggests that it may be possible to predict when the crack will reinitiate based on more subtle changes in the ultrasonically inferred closure state. In the case of load shedding, a massive closure region is observed, whose characteristics appear consistent with the notion that threshold phenomena can be explained in terms of crack closure. 20 refs., 10 figs.


CONTEXT: Adhesive capsulitis (AC) is a common musculoskeletal manifestation in elderly having long standing history of diabetes. This hinders the function of shoulder which is crucial in many activities of daily living. This painful, functional deficit may decrease the quality of life in elderly. AIMS: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of AC on quality of life in diabetic elderly subjects. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: District government Hospital, Udupi; Dr. T. M. A. Pai, Udupi, Kasturba Hospital, Manipal; and the study design is cross-sectional design. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two hundred and thirty-three diabetic elderly patients were recruited from the settings based on cluster sampling. They were evaluated for pain and restriction of range of motion in the shoulder joint and were. Severity of condition was classified on Oxford shoulder score and quality of life was calculated by SF- 36. Statistical analysis used: Descriptive statistics and spearman's correlation coefficient done in SPSS. RESULTS: Forty-nine percent of women had diabetic AC. Majority of the subjects without AC fell in average quality of life. Women with AC fell in unhealthy category, whereas men were clustered in the average category. CONCLUSIONS: Adhesive capsulitis was an important factor in reducing the quality of life of the elderly with diabetes.


When Peter Herman Barclay (1781-1833), a Norwegian of Scottish descent was sixteen, he went to Copenhagen for his medical education, during which he suffered from illness and financial distress. He qualified as a surgeon and, during the Napoleonic Wars, served with the Danish and French navies (allies at the time) and in the land campaigns in Holland and France. This article describes Barclay's experience as a surgeon on the Virgin Islands of St. Thomas and St. Johns in the 1820s. These islands were under Danish jurisdiction from 1755 to 1917, at which time they were sold to the USA. Barclay had a hospital with 40 beds at his disposal. He observed various infectious diseases and the efficacy of his treatments. An experienced surgeon, he did not hesitate to trepan or amputate. He used Hagedorn's apparatus for fractures of the hip and a French caustics treatment for strictures of the urethra. Barclay wrote about his experience in Bibliothek for Laeger, a medical journal, and in a book published in 1830.


In this work we present our result on investigation of pump power combiner fabrication process in configuration (N+1)x1. Our fabrication method is based on tapering of fiber bundle consisting of 6 multimode fibers and one signal fiber. We present results on fabrication power combiners based on single mode fibers and large mode area fibers for the signal. Full Text: PDF References D. Noordegraaf et al., "All-fiber 7x1 signal combiner for incoherent laser beam combining", Proc. SPIE 7914 79142 (2011) CrossRef E. Snitzer, H. Po, F. Hakimi, R. Tumminelli, B. C. McCollum,"Double Clad Offset Core Nd Fiber Laser", Opt. Fiber Sensor Topical Meeting., New Orleans, LA, 1988. CrossRef Zervas, M.N., Codemard, C.A., "High Power Fiber Lasers: A Review," Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics, IEEE Journal of, vol.20, no.5, pp.219,241, Sept.-Oct. 2014 CrossRef F. Hakimi, H. Hakimi, "New side coupling method for double-clad fiber amplifiers", Lasers and Electro-Optics, 2001. CLEO '01. Technical Digest. Summaries of papers presented at the Conference on, pp.116, 11-11 May 2001. CrossRef J.P. Koplow, S.W. Moore, D.A.V. Kliner, "A new method for side pumping of double-clad fiber sources", IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, 39, 4, Apr 2003. CrossRef Ch. Li, D. Shen, J. Song, N. S. Kim, K. Ueda, "Absorption characteristics of high-power disc fiber laser by side pumping of laser diode", Lasers and Electro-Optics. CLEO/Pacific Rim '99, 3 (1999). CrossRef J. Swiderski, A. Zając, M. Skorczakowski, "Pulsed ytterbium-doped large mode area double-clad fiber amplifier in MOFPA configuration", Opto-Electronics Review, 15, 2, (June 2007). CrossRef Y. Jeong, et al., "40-Gb/s Widely Tunable Transceivers", IEEE Journal of Selected Topics In Quantum Electronics, 13, 3 (May/June 2007). CrossRef W. Shi, Q. Fang, X. Zhu, R. A. Norwood, N. Peyghambarian, "Fiber lasers and their applications", Applied Optics 53, 28 (2014). CrossRef D. J.Richardson, J. Nilsson, and W. A. Clarkson, "High power fiber lasers: current status and future perspectives", J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 27, 11 (2010). CrossRef F. Gonthier et al., "High-Power all-fiber components: The missing link for high power fiber lasers", Fiber Lasers: Technology, Systems and Applications, 266-276, (2004). CrossRef A. Braglia, A. Califano, Y. Liu and G. Perrone, "Architectures and components for high power CW fiber lasers", International Journal of Modern Physics B, 28, 12 (2014). CrossRef G. Sobon, P. Kaczmarek, D. Sliwinska, J. Sotor, K. Abramski, "High-Power Fiber-Based Femtosecond CPA System at 1560 nm", IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics, 20, 5 (2014). CrossRef D. J. DiGiovanni, and A. J. Stentz, "Tapered fiber bundles for coupling light into and out of cladding-pumped fiber devices", U.S. Patent 5,864,644 A, Jan. 26, (1999). DirectLink A. Braglia, A. Califano, Y. Liu and G. Perrone, "Architectures and components for high power CW fiber lasers", International Journal of Modern Physics B, 28, 12 (2014). CrossRef J. K. Kim et al., "Monolithic all-glass pump combiner scheme for high-power fiber laser systems", Optics Express, 18, 12, (24 May 2010). CrossRef B. Sevigny, P. Poirier, M. Faucher, "Pump combiner loss as a function of input numerical aperture power distribution", Proc. SPIE 7195, 719523 (2009) CrossRef A. Kosterin, V. Temyanko, M. Fallahi,M. Mansuripur, "Tapered fiber bundles for high power applications", Technical Digest. OFC/NFOEC 2 (2005) CrossRef P. Koska, Y. Baravets,P. Peterka, J. Bohata, M. Pisařik, "Mode-field adapter for tapered-fiber-bundle signal and pump combiners", Applied Optics, 54, 4 (1 February 2015) CrossRef R. Wiley, B. Clark, "High-power fused assemblies enabled by advances in fiber-processing technologies", Proc. SPIE 7914, 79140F (2011). CrossRef


Motor vehicles were one of the sources of air pollution that was important in the area of urban areas. Considered the sector of the transport as the air pollution contributor and the impact of air pollution towards the health and the global warming and climate exchange, then pollution of air was one of the problems of the environment at this time. In the marketing field, the problem of the environment not only became the marketer's responsibility, but also all the consumer. Rumours of the environment could become the competitive superiority criterion that influenced
the behaviour of the purchase of the consumer. The increase in the quality of the environment could be controlled by the consumer's individual by carrying out the change chose and consumed the certain thing that was friendly to the environment. The consumer who had the high awareness towards the environment will choose environment-friendly products although his price was relative more expensive. The electric bicycle became transport means that were environment-friendly because of not dismissing gas emissions discarded so as to be classed as the vehicle without emissions. This research aimed at knowing relations between the attitude towards the environment and the interest in buying the electric bicycle. This research including in the quantitative correlation research that is relations between the attitude towards the environment and the interest in buying the electric bicycle. The sample in this research was some electric visitors of the bicycle shop. The taking of the sample used the accidental sample technique. The characteristics of the sample that was used were the respondent who learned that the electric bicycle was the environment-friendly product. In this research the instrument that was used was the scale, that is (1) the scale of the attitude towards the environment, (2) the scale of the interest in buying the electric bicycle. The data kind that was used in this research was the interval data. Was based on this matter then the statistical technique that was used in analysing the data that was received is Product Moment correlation. Was based on results of the research could be taken by the conclusion that there is positive relations and very significant between the attitude towards the environment and the interest in buying the electric bicycle. This was shown with the value r of 0,807 with the level of the significance 0.000<0.001. Thought r of 0,807 showed that increasingly positive the attitude towards the environment then increasingly high the interest bought the electric bicycle. On the other hand, increasingly negative the attitude towards the environment then increasingly low the interest bought the electric bicycle. The effective contribution the attitude variable towards the environment towards the interest in buying the electric bicycle of 65,1%, whereas 34,9% the rest of them were affected the other variable that was not researched.


The aim of this thesis was to increase the knowledge about children born to
mothers with an intellectual or developmental disability by investigating
incidence (Study I), support at the stra
tegic level (Study II), support at the
family level (Study III), and experiences of having grown up with a mother
with a developmental disability (Study IV).
The first study investigated the 5-year
 incidence of children being born to
mothers with an intellectua
l disability in a Swedish county. Three types of
registers were used, together with
personal identification numbers. The
resulting incidence rate, 2.12 children per 1,000 children indicates that there
are currently approximately 4000 children (aged 0-18 years) that have been
born to a mother with an intellectual disability in Sweden.
Data for Studies II and III were collect
ed by means of focus group interviews
with 29 professionals supporting families
with parental intellectual disability,
and the data were analysed by means of content analysis.
Study II described results on the strategic level of support; roles and activities
of the professionals involved, identification of families in need, problems with
identifying mothers with an intellectual disability, existing collaboration and
dilemmas concerning legislative actions. The results indicated a rich web of
support to these families from all kinds of
 welfare sectors, but further needs
for building collaboration were identified, such as the need to coordinate
education efforts. Study III described results on the family level of support: support practices,
pedagogical strategies, and maintaining the child perspective. The results
indicated the need for concrete training, the importance of involving the
father/ partner, and the value of not losing the child perspective and of
creating support practices with a clearer focus on the children.

In Study IV, four women were interviewed about their experiences of growing
up in a family with a mother who has a developmental disability. Narrative
inquiry and content analysis were employed. The findings showed
recollections of a vulnerable childhood filled with worries, fear, and anxiety,
and with a strong feeling of responsibility. No effective support from the
authorities was ever offered to the four informants, who dealt differently with
their lives as adults with regard to their own family and children. The results of this thesis provide new knowledge about the complex situation
of being a child in a family with maternal intellectual or developmental
disability, and they may be used by staff in the welfare sectors in order to
improve the visibility of these children and offer support adapted to the
children's situation.


Crystal lattice bending in which the lattice compresses and stretches differentially is a very common phenomenon that has frequently been observed in a variety of long nanostructures. The few studies carried out so far on this topic suggest that bending can significantly modify the properties of such nanostructures, and that they therefore deserve closer study. To explore such effects, we use a new strategy, named "cyclic replacement", to computationally produce bent silicon nanostructures. For these, ab initio density functional theory calculations predict charge separation with electrons and holes localized in different regions (varying with the lattice orientation), and a decreasing band gap is found with increasing curvature. We show that the underlying mechanism can be understood in terms of the different behavior of near-gap wave functions in the stretched and compressed atomic layers. Bent silicon nanostructures may be useful for solar-cell design where type II homojunctions are formed and charge s...


The power quality issues have become an exponentially demanding research field for electric utilities and customers, which usually involve transient variation in power supply voltage or current. This paper presents a new method using wavelet transformation and neural network, investigating the power quality in qualitative and quantitative results. The major feature of wavelet transformation is the multi-resolution analysis technique which can decompose the transient signal into several signals with different levels of resolution. From the decomposed signals, the original signal can be recovered without losing any information. By means of signal singularity detection analysis, the wavelet transformation can accurately detect and locate the transient voltage waveform. The combination of wavelet transformation with neural network has make progress in neural network, where the wavelet is introduced as activation function of the hidden neurons with a linear output neuron. The simulation results illustrate the efficiency of the proposed method in power quality disturbances detection and analysis.


Understanding the growth of cognition, intelligence, creativity and innovativeness is essential for the development of design education, generally stymied by uneasy tussle between science and arts. The same may be better resolved through an understanding of the progression from cognition to innovation. The paper articulates the basic difference between human cognition, intelligence, creativity, inventiveness and innovations and claries concepts to facilitate innovative propensities in design and engineering curricula. Human intelligence is attributed to brain size and complexity of the synaptic structures of brain cells which enable a learner to think fast, analyze problems and consequently perform well in examinations and class tests. Inventiveness and innovations are characterized by co-activation of certain parts of the brain, which enable a person to think creatively. It is recognized that frontal lobes need to be employed critically. Inventiveness and innovation are steps beyond creativity; it cannot be assumed to develop automatically by passing certain types of examinations; it requires a different set of skills, training and encouragement. Authors present a discourse on the subject with some examples of student work which demonstrates the need for teaching-learning processes in order to promote the development of creativity, inventiveness and innovations.


Abstract The rapid adoption of genetically engineered (GE) crops by U.S. farmers suggests that these technologies have been perceived to improve farm financial performance. This study develops and applies an econometric model to data from corn and soybean producers in order to evaluate the financial impacts of the adoption of GE crops. Results indicate that the adoption of GE crops has had a limited impact on financial performance that varies by crop, type of technology, type of farm, and region of the nation. Factors other than the financial impacts appear to be important reasons for the rapid adoption of GE crops.


The authors report a case of type A viral hepatitis in an 8 year old boy in whom the clinical course was marked by prolonged cholestasis associated with porta hepatis lymphadenopathy. The positivity of anti-HVA IgM, the negativity of the other serodiagnostic tests, the parallel course of the hepatitis and the porta hepatis lymphadenopathy argus strongly in favour of the responsibility of hepatitis A in the development of this porta hepatis lymphadenopathy.


This paper explores the affective capacity of Trinh T. Minh-ha's experimental documentary, Reassemblage: Fire Light to the Screen. Examining Trinh's unconventional use of sound and image, I argue that Reassemblage's disruptive aesthetics have the affective capacity to produce, rather than represent, new subjectivities wherein the line between subject/object, filmmaker/viewer, self/other, and insider/outsider begin to dissolve. In so doing, the paper builds an unlikely theoretical alliance between Gilles Deleuze's delineation of affect, the Kantian notion of disinterestedness, and feminist scholarship on aesthetics. Paying particular attention to the space in-between an interested and disinterested aesthetic approach, the paper stresses that one must engage in an oscillation of otherness in order to reconsider both the distance and proximity between self and other.


PURPOSE
Using multiple imaging modalities, we evaluated the changes in photoreceptor cells and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) that are associated with bone spicule-shaped melanin pigmentation in retinitis pigmentosa.

METHODS
In a cohort of 60 patients with retinitis pigmentosa, short-wavelength autofluorescence, near-infrared autofluorescence (NIR-AF), NIR reflectance, spectral domain optical coherence tomography, and color fundus images were studied.

RESULTS
Central AF rings were visible in both short-wavelength autofluorescence and NIR-AF images. Bone spicule pigmentation was nonreflective in NIR reflectance, hypoautofluorescent with short-wavelength autofluorescence and NIR-AF imaging, and presented as intraretinal hyperreflective foci in spectral domain optical coherence tomography images. In areas beyond the AF ring outer border, the photoreceptor ellipsoid zone band was absent in spectral domain optical coherence tomography and the visibility of choroidal vessels in short-wavelength autofluorescence, NIR-AF, and NIR reflectance images was indicative of reduced RPE pigmentation. Choroidal visibility was most pronounced in the zone approaching peripheral areas of bone spicule pigmentation; here RPE/Bruch membrane thinning became apparent in spectral domain optical coherence tomography.

CONCLUSION
These findings are consistent with a process by which RPE cells vacate their monolayer and migrate into inner retina in response to photoreceptor cell degeneration. The remaining RPE spread undergo thinning and consequently become less pigmented. An explanation for the absence of NIR-AF melanin signal in relation to bone spicule pigmentation is not forthcoming.


The bacteria present in the oral cavity may produce organic acid through actions on sugars, result in a rapid of plaque pH, leading to demineralization. Of the enamel and decay of the tooth. The arginine-containing tetrapeptide in saliva may correct the pH drop. In the present paper we introduced a new varnish that is composed mostly of derivatives of arginine molecule (SL varnish). This material can prevent pH fall in plaque in vitro and the dissolution of enamel surface after four weeks of cariogenic challenge.


In this article I first relate and analyze the overall development of cultural policy and the intellectual property rights (IPR) legal structure in China, in order to show how China's policy and its legal environment increasingly adapt to global conditions. I then use Lijiang, a tourist area, as an example to show how national cultural policy and global IPR overlap in the local economy. I also demonstrate how this history escapes Aihwa Ong's theorization of "exception," as the related global and state interests converge not at areas of exception but at the heart of numerous local economies, allowing the new economy to penetrate and prevail.


Background and Aim: In recent years, introducing the quantitative methods for diagnosing the joints injuries and its level of severity, surveying the recovery progress and effectiveness of rehabilitation methods are important for clinical practice. Using the inertial sensors is one of the custom methods for quantifying joints motion. The purpose of this study is to quantify injuries in ankle joint. Materials and Methods: By setting the Sharif-HMIS inertial sensors on the leg and ankle of patients and control subjects, the motion of their ankle was evaluated and the amount of velocity and acceleration in 8 distinct motions were measured. Results: Using the gathered data from the sensors in different motions and by implementing the assumed criterions, several parameters are calculated that can give a rather precise and quantitative distinction between injured people and control subjects. The results showed that RAV, M and P scores indicate the differences between patients and control subjects clearly, although their performance as a parameter for qualifying the level of ankle injuries is not good. Conclusion: Motion analysis of ankle and comparing the results of patients and control subjects showed that the assumed criterions are valid and can be used for diagnosing the ankle injury. Also, this method is utilized to measure the ankle motion of both elderly and young groups and the results showed that this method is suitable for indicating the ankle motion differences between two groups.


A number of today's state-of-the-art planners are based on forward state-space search. The impressive performance can be attributed to progress in computing domain independent heuristics that perform well across many domains. However, it is easy to find domains where such heuristics provide poor guidance, leading to planning failure. Motivated by such failures, the focus of this paper is to investigate mechanisms for learning domain-specific knowledge to better control forward search in a given domain. While there has been a large body of work on inductive learning of control knowledge for AI planning, there is a void of work aimed at forward-state-space search. One reason for this may be that it is challenging to specify a knowledge representation for compactly representing important concepts across a wide range of domains. One of the main contributions of this work is to introduce a novel feature space for representing such control knowledge. The key idea is to define features in terms of information computed via relaxed plan extraction, which has been a major source of success for non-learning planners. This gives a new way of leveraging relaxed planning techniques in the context of learning. Using this feature space, we describe three forms of control knowledge---reactive policies (decision list rules and measures of progress) and linear heuristics---and show how to learn them and incorporate them into forward state-space search. Our empirical results show that our approaches are able to surpass state-of-the-art non-learning planners across a wide range of planning competition domains.


This article is intended to orient school administrators and managers to the existing evidence for usefulness of ABA-based instruction for children with autism spectrum disorders, and to identify salient aspects of the educational system and setting that should be addressed by consultants when newly implementing ABA-based instruction. No one dimension of ABA implementation in schools is fully addressed--rather, selected recommendations are included and readers are directed to the primary sources cited throughout. The Need to Provide Behavioral Education Services to Children Presently one of the areas of greatest controversy in special education is the development of intensive educational services for children with autism. Parents often arrive at preschools and schools and with their preschooler or primary schooler in tow, and high expectations for performance by the educational system. These expectations have been fueled by a variety of factors, not least of which is the emergence of a body of research studies demonstrating that children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) can realize very extensive benefits from intensive, behavioral educational intervention, in many instances benefits that include apparent and enduring recovery from the effects of ASD. Although parental expectations for intensive intervention, and related benefits, may appear unrealistic at first blush to teams, principals, and educators who are not experienced in behavioral educational approaches, in fact there are several sources that have documented that these expectations are not out of line. A number of evaluation studies of intensive early intervention services have shown that substantial and continuing gains can be realized, including very substantial benefits for about half of the children referred at an early age, and varying benefits for others. These include studies by Anderson, Avery, DiPietro, Edwards, and Christian (1987), Graff, Green, & Libby (1998), Lovaas (1987), Perry, Cohen, and DeCarlo (1995). Findings have suggested that more intensive rather than moderately intensive educational participation, and inception of services at an earlier age are associated with greater benefit (Birnbrauer & Leach, 1993; Fenske, Zalenski, Krantz, & McClannahan, 1985). But, either one of these considerations rules out value of interventions that begin upon primary school entry, and involve heightened instructional intensity, through an extended school day, extended school year, or parental participation as therapists in home and community. The research foundations upon which behavior analytic strategies in autism education are based are extremely broad and well-developed, and, indeed, the research underpinning these strategies in educating children with autism is more extensive than the research foundation for any other educational model for children with ASD (Matson, Benavidez, Compton, Paclwaskyj, & Baglio, 1996). This conclusion, and the conclusions that behavioral approaches (a.k.a. applied behavior analysis--ABA--or behavior analysis) are of recognized utility and encompass instructional procedures with recognized utility, are supported by government reports from California and New York, an administrative review in Maine, and in a recent report on mental health by the Surgeon General of the United States (Collaborative Work Group on Autistic Spectrum Disorders, 1997; Department of Health, 1999; Department of Health and Human Services, 1999; MADSEC Autism Taskforce, 1999). Although researchers and evaluators might be occasionally accused (usually entirely unjustified) of having a vested interest in reaching conclusions that reflect well on the services they provide, no such factors taint, however faintly, the conclusions of the comprehensive governmental reports cited above. The Surgeon General, New York, and Maine reports directly cite the benefits of ABA strategies in serving children with ASD, while the California report stresses the importance of a wide range of educational program characteristics that in turn are conspicuously present in ABA-based educational programs. …


The dominant model of teaching has shifted from a transmission model to an interpretive model with a concomitant focus on the role of teacher experiences and beliefs. This topic is explored from the perspective of six English as a Foreign Language teachers in Armenia. These teachers originally trained in Soviet and post-Soviet Armenia with a transmission model of teaching with a strong emphasis on grammar and translation. They later completed a threeterm Teaching English as a Foreign Language Certificate programme at a Western-sponsored graduate university in Armenia with a more interpretive model of teaching with a strong communicative language teaching orientation. The main research questions are: (1) How do EFL teachers develop personal practical theories? (2) What are the influences that shape personal practical theories? (3) To what extent are personal practical theories reflected in classroom practices? Interpretive analysis of e-mail interviews, classroom observations, and in-person interviews reveals that a variety of experiences and beliefs inform personal practical theories, including formal pedagogical education, personal experiences of language learning and teaching, personal beliefs and values, and the sociocultural context. Theory has several important roles to play in personal practical theories: it can offer explanations of experiences and practices as well as articulations of them, and it can offer directions for practices as well as hypotheses to test. Uptake of theory occurs through transmission, application, and critical reflection, all requiring interpretation. Classroom practices often, but not always, reflect personal practical theories. More experienced and more articulate teachers appear to have more coherent personal practical theories that are more consistently reflected in classroom practices. There are several implications for language teacher education programmes. Theory has a role to play in language teacher development. Teachers who voluntarily choose to engage in development are more likely to profit from it. Teachers need to become aware of what they do and don't know. Teachers need to be autonomous in order to successfully adopt new practices. A professional community offers support to teachers. These implications are linked through a view of the teacher as an autonomous individual able to understand theory and practice as evidenced by the ability to articulate and integrate them in a personal practical theory reflected in effective classroom practices.


Binding of receptor-recognized forms of tetrameric human alpha 2-macroglobulin (alpha 2M*) to a macrophage signaling receptor induces cAMP synthesis, increases in inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3) synthesis, and a concomitant rise in cytosolic free calcium ([Ca2+]i). The alpha 2M* signaling receptor is coupled to a pertussis-toxin insensitive G protein. Binding of alpha 2M* also occurs to the low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein/alpha 2M receptor (LRP/alpha 2MR), but this binding does not induce signal transduction. Rat alpha 1-inhibitor-3 (alpha 1I3) is a monomeric member of the alpha-macroglobulin/complement superfamily. Like alpha 2M, it can react with proteinases or methylamine which induces a conformational change causing activated alpha 1I3 to bind to LRP/alpha 2MR. We now report that alpha 1I3-methylamine binds to the macrophage alpha 2M* signaling receptor inducing a rapid rise in the synthesis of IP3 with a subsequent 1.5- to 3-fold rise in [Ca2+]i. alpha 1I3-methylamine binding to macrophages also caused a statistically significant elevation in cAMP. Native alpha 1I3, like alpha 2M, was unable to induce signal transduction. alpha 1I3 forms a complex with alpha 1-microglobulin, which has a distinct conformation from alpha 1I3 and is recognized by LRP/alpha 2MR. This complex also induces an increase in [Ca2+]i comparable to the effect of alpha 1I3-methylamine on macrophages. It is concluded that activation of alpha 1I3 by methylamine or binding of alpha 1-microglobulin causes similar conformational changes in the inhibitor, exposing the receptor recognition site for the alpha 2M* signaling receptor, as well as for LRP/alpha 2MR.


Synaptic devices with linear high‐speed switching can accelerate learning in artificial neural networks (ANNs) embodied in hardware. Conventional resistive memories however suffer from high write noise and asymmetric conductance tuning, preventing parallel programming of ANN arrays. Electrochemical random‐access memories (ECRAMs), where resistive switching occurs by ion insertion into a redox‐active channel, aim to address these challenges due to their linear switching and low noise. ECRAMs using 2D materials and metal oxides however suffer from slow ion kinetics, whereas organic ECRAMs enable high‐speed operation but face challenges toward on‐chip integration due to poor temperature stability of polymers. Here, ECRAMs using 2D titanium carbide (Ti3C2Tx) MXene that combine the high speed of organics and the integration compatibility of inorganic materials in a single high‐performance device are demonstrated. These ECRAMs combine the speed, linearity, write noise, switching energy, and endurance metrics essential for parallel acceleration of ANNs, and importantly, they are stable after heat treatment needed for back‐end‐of‐line integration with Si electronics. The high speed and performance of these ECRAMs introduces MXenes, a large family of 2D carbides and nitrides with more than 30 stoichiometric compositions synthesized to date, as promising candidates for devices operating at the nexus of electrochemistry and electronics.


Random Sequential Adsorption (RSA) of polymer, modelled as a chain of identical spheres, is systematically studied. In order to control precisely anisotropy and number of degrees of freedom, two different kinds of polymers are used. In the first one, monomers are placed along a straight line; whereas in the second, relative orientations of particles are random. Such polymers fill a flat homogeneous surface randomly. The paper focuses on maximal random coverage ratio and adsorption kinetics dependence on polymer size, shape anisotropy and numbers of degrees of freedom. Obtained results were discussed and compared with other numerical experiments and theoretical predictions.


Abstract:This article considers fan fiction as (self-)publication, particularly noting the tensions between institutional notions of textual production within academia and how fan writing works against paradigms of publishing espoused in higher education. Such tensions are indicative of institutional pressures for "legitimate" publications. Offering a fan writer's first-person perspective on fan fiction, this article questions who defines "publishing" and how that definition affects fan creators within academia and offers a consideration of these relationships as meaningful in ongoing conversations regarding how "publishing" is conceived.


Out-of-pile corrosion experiments form a part of the program implemented to progress in understanding power water reactor (PWR) fuel rod waterside corrosion. Thus, out-of-pile loop tests were performed in order to correlate the thermal/hydraulic and chemical environment of the fuel rods to the corrosion rates of the Zircaloy-4 cladding material. Comparison of corrosion data yielded by in-loop, PWR, and autoclave tests then made it possible to demonstrate the effects of heat flux on corrosion kinetics through the temperature gradient in the oxide layer. PWR corrosion data also showed that the activation energy corresponding to Zircaloy oxidation by water does not vary under neutron flux compared to out-of-pile conditions. The influence of irradiation is either a threshold phenomenon dependent on fast neutron flux or a factor related to the chemical environment (for example, inclusion of lithium by recoil effect caused by thermal neutrons). Different destructive examination techniques to characterize the zirconium oxide morphology and (Li/K) concentration profile in the oxide have allowed us to suggest a relationship between operating conditions, such as two-phase flow heat transfer, lithium hydroxide/potassium hydroxide (LiOH/KOH) levels at the metal-coolant interface, and the kinetics of the growing oxide film. Then, the corrosion model makes the following calculations possible: (1) the precise thermal/hydraulic conditions in the environment of the fuel rods in the core of a PWR; (2) the localized coolant pH and overconcentration of soluble species in the coolant under boiling regime and its influence on the waterside corrosion of the Zircaloy cladding; (3) the contribution of irradiation flux to the enhancement of the oxidation rate, and (4) the axial and azimuthal oxide thicknesses on fuel rods. Simultaneously, a study has consisted in correlating the behavior of the Zircaloy materials under different autoclave experiments, out-of-pile tests, and in-reactor conditions. The future objective is to include the metallurgical properties in the corrosion model.


Food products are analyzed to meet compliance with labeling and legal requirements, establish nutritive value, determine product quality, identify defects, research and development. This information is vital for economically producing safe and nutritious food. Ion chromatography is known to be an effective tool in identifying many types of cations and anions, with this work focusing on water soluble ions that are readily available in common fresh fruit products. Extraction into an aqueous partition layer revealed numerous anions and cations that were effectively separated by fast ion chromatography. Cation analysis utilized a Metrosep Cation 1-2 column and a ICSep AN1 column for anion analysis. Ions identified and measured included sodium, ammonium, potassium, calcium,magnesium, fluoride, chloride, nitrate, phosphate, and sulfate. Chromatograms identified the well resolved anion and cation species associated with consumption of fruits. Their concentrations were determined for dietary and nutritive considerations. Fast ion chromatography under conditions specified in this study coupled with non-suppressed conductivity detection is an efficacious approach to measure ion species associated with fresh fruits. Nutritive considerations, manufacturing regulations, and response to consumer demands make important the monitoring and determination of minerals and vitamins in fresh produce. Ion chromatography effectively measures various ions found in fresh fruits that are necessary nutriments for dietary sustainment. A broad spectrum of monovalent and multivalent ions were identified and measured utilizing these ion chromatography parameters.


Objective Evaluation of surgical outcomes, survival, and morbidity associated with pelvic exenteration (PE) performed for gynecologic malignancies. Methods Review of 36 consecutive patients who underwent PE between June 1999 and April 2010. Results Pelvic exenteration was performed for cancer of the cervix (n = 18), endometrium (n = 9), vagina/vulva (n = 8), and ovary (n = 1). Four patients underwent PE as primary treatment and 32 patients for recurrent disease after pelvic radiotherapy. Median age was 57 years (range, 35–81 years). Bricker (n = 17), Mainz pouch (n = 10), and augmentation after bladder resection (n = 6) were used as urinary derivations. J-pouch coloanal anastomosis was performed in 14, colostomy in 13, and side-to-end anastomosis in 4 patients. There was no operative mortality. The most important postoperative complications were rectovaginal fistula (5), urinary leakage (2), vesicovaginal fistula (1), and sepsis (3). One of the 6 patients with a partial cystectomy developed a vesicovaginal fistula, which was successfully treated with a Martius flap. With a median follow-up of 78 months (range, 2–131) months, the 5-year overall and disease-specific survival (DSS) rates were 44% and 52%, respectively. Five-year DSS for cervical, endometrial, and vaginal/vulvar cancer was 44%, 80%, and 57%, respectively. Combined operative and radiotherapeutic treatment (CORT) was performed in 3 patients with pelvic side wall relapse. Of the 15 patients 65 years or older, a 5-year DSS of 71% was observed in comparison with 42% in the younger subgroup, and their complication rates were similar to the younger patient group. Thirteen patients (36%) reported to have psychological disturbances associated with stoma-related problems. Only 3 patients requested a vaginal reconstruction during follow-up. Conclusions Pelvic exenteration offers a sustained survival with an acceptable morbidity in patients with advanced or recurrent gynecologic cancer. Older age was not associated with higher morbidity/mortality in this series.


Silkworm silk has been recognized as a satisfactory biomaterial for long time due to its exceptional biocompatibility, biodegradability, mechanical properties etc. For example, silk fibers in the form of sutures have been used for centuries. The aim of this study is to discuss the potential usage of silk as the novel biomedical devices, such as blood vessels. In this study, cuit silks prepared from degummed raw silks were twisted as threads with four different yarn linear densities. A specific braiding machine was used to weave those threads into a tube. Subsequently two different groups of silk tubes were prepared. One was treated by ethanol and the other without. Thickness, porosity, mass per unit area of two groups of braided tubes were measured. Its mechanical properties were also studied. The influence of ethanol treatment and various yarn linear densities on its structural and mechanical properties was also studied. Results indicated that structural and mechanical properties of the tubes were significatly changed by the yarn linear densities and ethanol treatment. Conclusively, braided silk tube could be a potential blood vessel tissue engineering scaffold.


Recently, changes in plant equipment have been becoming more frequent because of the short lifetime of the products, and constructing 3D shape models of existing plants (as-built models) from large-scale laser scanned data is expected to make their rebuilding processes more efficient. However, the laser scanned data of the existing plant has massive points, captures tangled objects and includes a large amount of noises, so that the manual reconstruction of a 3D model is very time-consuming and costs a lot. Piping systems especially, account for the greatest proportion of plant equipment. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to propose an algorithm which can automatically recognize a piping system from terrestrial laser scan data of the plant equipment. The straight portion of pipes, connecting parts and connection relationship of the piping system can be recognized in this algorithm. Eigenvalue analysis of the point clouds and of the normal vectors allows for the recognition. Using only point clouds, the recognition algorithm can be applied to registered point clouds and can be performed in a fully automatic way. The preliminary results of the recognition for large-scale scanned data from an oil rig plant have shown the effectiveness of the algorithm.


The main indication for Caesarean section in cases of placental abruption is fetal distress. We report a patient in whom clinical examination, including auscultation of the fetal heart, suggested a mild haemorrhage, which would normally have been managed conservatively, but continuous fetal heart rate monitoring showed severe asphyxia, necessitating emergency Caesarean section at which a large concealed haemorrhage was found.


Theme in Oral Epic and in Beowulf. Milman Parry Studies in Oral Tradition. By Francelia Mason Clark. (New York: Garland, 1995. Pp. xxxvi + 252, appendix, bibliography, ISBN 0-8153-1874-X.) Beowulf and the Demise of Germanic Legend in England. Albert Bates Lord Studies in Oral Tradition, 17. By Craig R. Davis. (New York: Garland, 1996. Pp. xvii + 237, appendices, bibliography, ISBN O-8153-2354-9.) Albert Lord, in The Singer of Tales (Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1960) argued against the existence of "transitional" texts, texts could be a product of a single creator who composed both orally and literately at the same moment of his career: We may in actuality discover what might be called special categories of texts, but it is more than doubtful that they should be labeled "transitional," that is, part way between oral and written (p. 129). Yet Beowulf provided Lord with a challenge. Here was an epic that did not conform to the oral-formulaic theory quite so neatly as did the Homeric and South Slavic epics. Lord kept his definition narrow enough, however, that he could safely argue that Beowulf, although unusual, is not a transitional text in the way that he chose to define the term. Beowulf nevertheless is the product of a transitional period in Anglo-Saxon poetry and culture. It contains themes and story patterns different from those of Homeric and South Slavic epics, and it is not entirely traditional in its subject matter, as two recent Garland publications, the subject of this review, convincingly argue. Each book is part of a Garland's series named for one of the two founders of oral-formulaic theory, and as participants in the continuing discussions that Parry and Lord's theories have spawned, the authors both pay tribute to and challenge the ideas of their predecessors. Each also addresses one or more of the major unresolved questions in Beowulf studies. Clark meets the orality/literacy issue head on in her discussion of theme, while Davis's book illuminates the pagan/Christian question. Francelia Mason Clark addresses the idea of oral theme and Beowulf through a variety of means, primarily through comparison with the South Slavic epic, The Song of Baghdad. She begins by critiquing Lord's own definitions of theme in oral tradition as they changed and developed over time. Of particular concern is the idea of repetition. Beowulf has always posed a problem in this regard, because its themes are not all strictly repeated, nor are there other epics from which to draw a corpus of traditional themes. The concept of theme, Clark argues, needs to be re-evaluated for each culture; Anglo-Saxon themes do not have the same aesthetic function as those of South Slavic epic: "[M]uch of the power of the Song narrative comes from action; in Beowulf much of the power comes from emotion. Thus, instead of a second directly comparable subject, this chapter offers another subject we know is aesthetically moving" (p. 151). Thus Clark argues that the characteristics of the Beowulf poet's patterns are "mobile" (p. 183) and as such, they can be hard to detect. Craig R. Davis also argues for elusive patterns of meaning in Beowulf as he tackles the issue of myth and legend and their relationship with the Anglo-Saxon epic. The pagan-Christian question gets a thorough review here both in the first appendix and in the scholarship which undergirds the entire study. Davis argues for a new perspective on the Beowulf poet, one which admits that the poet was aware of the conflict between his pagan poem and its new Christian context (p. 162): "Beowulf is thus neither a Christian poem nor a pagan one, nor an especially convincing reconciliation of the two world-views: it is a strange, beautiful, but terminal mutation, a short and unsuccessful evolutionary sport." Beowulf is more than an attempt by a Christian poet to preserve a pagan epic. Pagan mythology, Germanic legend, and the developing Christian culture all find their way into the poem, whose final lament, Davis argues, is not only over Beowulf the hero but the demise of traditional Germanic poetry. …


This thesis explores the ethics of end of life decision making by examining the experiences of family members who were involved with the care of a loved one with terminal cancer. There are two main objectives to this research. The first is to understand the nature of the encounters between clinical care and families, how the dying trajectory affects decision making and how family dynamics impact end of life care. The second objective is to understand the process of moral reasoning and to determine whether the nature of ethical engagement differs for end of life decision making.

Each narrative case study provides a sequence of events from diagnosis to the end of the patient's life. It also includes both patient's and families' engagement with ethical problems which were encountered during the course of the trajectory, an analysis of their moral reasoning and what both patient and families considered to be a good death. Over thirty hours of interviews were conducted with ten participants. Narrative analysis is used to draw on pertinent contextual information along with an assessment of moral reasoning. This is done in two ways. First, it refers to the general rules of moral reasoning (Cohen, 2014) and applies the theories of three moral worlds (Zigon, 2007). Second, through a structural analysis of the narrative, other moral positions and indicators are revealed. Using a phenomenological approach to the data, important factors which proved to have a considerable impact on engagement with ethics included background and intention, the nature of the subject's life-world, and inter-subjectivity. In addition, both temporality and the emotions were given considerable focus to determine the way in which these elements also shaped end of life decision making.

This research responded to the need for more qualitative data for end of life decisions and, by combining both medical and moral anthropology, presents an innovative approach toward understanding both decision making and morality. It reveals that both life-worlds of patients and families are altered by a terminal diagnosis consequently changing the embodied moral worlds of the decision makers. The social and perceptual transformations, the sense of liminality and the power of emotions over their embodied moral worlds changed the nature of their engagement with ethics. Indeed, background experience, inter-subjectivity and emotions sometimes had a greater influence on moral choice than outside powerful social and cultural influences which made up their moral assemblage. My concluding finding is that moral reasoning, when it comes to end of life decision making, should be understood as an exceptional space which alters the parameters of our usual engagement with ethics.

The findings presented in this thesis have practical implications for medical professionals who engage with families and also for social workers and other counselors who assist families involved with end of life care. It also has implications for the study of moral anthropology by showing how death and the accompanying emotions shape our moral perspectives, decisions and worlds.


"Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." This oft-used quote from General Dwight D. Eisenhower reminds us that the act of planning is invaluable. Through planning we can inspect our decision-making processes, determine if our current force is sufficient for the assumed threat, and, if not, guide future naval and military procurement, research, and development. However, due to tight training timelines our tactical-level focus is on handling the current threat instead of an enemy that might be lurking even five years in the future. Similarly, Maritime Operations Center (MOC) training and certification is often coupled with theater security cooperation (TSC) events and multilateral exercises, as there is precious little time to devote to operational-level training and theory while simultaneously dealing with current-day crises. Focused planning must exist at all levels and in multiple venues, however, ranging from the planning directorates of MOCs to the Naval War College (NWC) to the Pentagon. The use of wargaming as a planning tool has seen increased attention over the past two to three years, but its value in the planning process is not a new and revolutionary concept. Indeed, we can see a prior example of wargaming's effect on real-world operations conducted 75 years ago this past June: the Battle of Midway.


The purpose of this thesis is to develop a vertex model framework that can be used to perform computational experiments related to the dynamics of epithelial tissues in developmental systems. We focus on three example systems: the Drosophila wing imaginal disc, the Drosophila epidermis and the visceral endoderm of the mouse embryo. Within these systems, key questions pertaining to size-control mechanisms and coordination of cell migration remain unanswered and are amenable to computational testing. The vertex model presented here builds upon existing frameworks in three key ways. Firstly, we include novel force terms, representing, for example, the reaction of a cell to being compressed and its shape becoming distorted during a highly dynamic process such as cell migration. Secondly, we incorporate a model of diffusing morphogenetic growth factors within the vertex framework, using an arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian formulation of the diffusion equation and solving with the finite-element method (FEM). Finally, we implement the vertex model on the surface of an ellipsoid, in order to simulate cell migration in the mouse embryo. Throughout this thesis, we validate our model by running simple simulations. We demonstrate convergence properties of the FEM scheme and discuss how the time taken to solve the system scales with tissue size. The model is applied to biological systems and its utility demonstrated in several contexts. We show that when growth is dependent on morphogen concentration in the Drosophila wing disc, proliferation occurs preferentially in regions of high concentration. In the Drosophila epidermis, we show that a recently proposed mechanism of compartment size-control, in which a growth-factor is released in limited amounts, is viable. Finally, we examine the phenomenon of rosettes in the mouse embryo, which occur when five or more cells meet at a common vertex. We show, by running simulations both with and without rosettes, that they are crucial facilitators of ordered migration, and are thus critical in the patterning of the early embryo.


Murine colonic adenomas induced by the loss of a single copy of the tumor suppressor gene Apc in Lrig1+/- expressing progenitor cells grow rapidly, with high penetrance and tumor multiplicity. This study investigates the prevalence of intertumoral genetic heterogeneity and phenotypic variation across tumors, and attempts to identify the genomic cause of the unusual phenotype. Adult Lrig1-CreERT2/+; Apc-flox/+ mice were intraperitoneal injected with 2mg tamoxifen for 3 consecutive days which induced highly penetrant, dysplastic adenomas in the distal colon ∼100 days later. Whole tumors (n=14) from 8 mice were excised and tumor exome DNA and mRNA were sequenced. Somatic mutations present in the tumor exome DNA were compared with adjacent normal colon (n=9 tumors from 3 mice). Putative somatic mutations were called after stringent filtering using SeuratSomatic, a Genome Analysis Toolkit software module. RNA-Seq was performed on tumor mRNA (n=5 tumors from 5 mice) compared to wildtype colon (n=3). Differential gene expression was profiled using the R package DESeq2. Copy number variations and splicing defects were assessed using custom tracks on the UCSC genome browser. Adenomas resulting from the loss of Apc in Lrig1+/-- expressing colonic progenitor cells are genetically heterogeneous and hypermutated, containing ∼25-30 high-quality somatic mutations per megabase. A loss of heterozygosity of Apc was not observed in the tumor genomes, however evidence of an epigenetic loss of heterozygosity was readily apparent in the tumor transcriptome. The tumors display a strong bias toward G: C > A: T point mutations, which are a signature of guanine adducts, associated with tobacco tar and H. pylori infections. Putative tumor-driving mutations were detected and thousands of differentially expressed genes were identified including several UDP glucuronosyltransferases. Abnormal splicing patterns characterized by a loss of intron retention were detected in several RNA-binding genes throughout the tumor transcriptome. The widespread defects in gene expression, genomic stability, and splicing patterns implies that an early epigenetic loss of Apc in Lrig1+/--expressing progenitor cells causes a rapid formation of guanine adducts and a corresponding accumulation of mutation C>A point mutations. This study demonstrates that randomly-appearing oncogenic mutations can become fixed into a latent genomic reservoir prior to advanced disease.


In the 2002 landmark decision Atkins v. Virginia 536 U.S. 304, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that executing a person with intellectual disability is a violation of the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits "cruel and unusual punishment," but left states to determine their own criteria for intellectual disability. AAIDD has always advocated against the death penalty for people with intellectual disability and has long provided amicus curiae briefs in Supreme Court cases. Thus, in this comprehensive new book published by AAIDD, notable authors in the field of intellectual disability discuss all aspects of the issues, with a particular focus on foundational considerations, assessment factors and issues, and professional concerns in Atkins assessments.


Racial bias is an important issue in biometric, but has not been thoroughly studied in deep face recognition. In this paper, we first contribute a dedicated dataset called Racial Faces in-the-Wild (RFW) database, on which we firmly validated the racial bias of four commercial APIs and four state-of-the-art (SOTA) algorithms. Then, we further present the solution using deep unsupervised domain adaptation and propose a deep information maximization adaptation network (IMAN) to alleviate this bias by using Caucasian as source domain and other races as target domains. This unsupervised method simultaneously aligns global distribution to decrease race gap at domain-level, and learns the discriminative target representations at cluster level. A novel mutual information loss is proposed to further enhance the discriminative ability of network output without label information. Extensive experiments on RFW, GBU, and IJB-A databases show that IMAN successfully learns features that generalize well across different races and across different databases.


ABSTRACT The swimming crab Charybdis longicollis, native to the western Indian Ocean, was first recorded in the Mediterranean in 1954. It is now established from Egypt to Greece, and dominates the sandy-mud bottoms at 25–80 m in the southeastern Mediterranean. The success of C. longicollis is attributed to its high fecundity, agonistic behaviour and omnivorous diet, as well as the rise in seawater temperature. Since the early 1990s its populations in Israel and Turkey have been heavily parasitized by the alien rhizocephalan Heterosaccus dollfusi, which impacts its host's behaviour, growth and fecundity, and causes mortality. Yet, 60 years after its first record in the Mediterranean, the population of C. longicollis seems durable, and has recently spread to the lower shelf and upper slope off Israel, where it is common at 80 m and is found down to 250 m, greatly increasing its spatial spread. The maximal percentage of parasitization was 87.2%, 88.8%, 75.5% and 81.8% at depths of 40, 60, 80, 100 m, respectively, and 50% at 120 and 250 m. Here, we hypothesize on the possible contribution of the depletion of its putative fish predators, mainly rays, to the prevalence of C. longicollis on the lower shelf.


Aim:To investigate the value of Tc-99m ciprofloxacin imaging in the differential diagnosis of chronic bacterial prostatitis. Methods: The study included 4 normal subjects as the negative controls, 2 patients with acute prostatitis or cystourethritis as the positive controls and 59 patients diagnosed as chronic bacterial prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome by traditional laboratory tests. In every subject, the single photon emission computer-ized tomography images were obtained 3 h after intravenous injection of Tc-99m Ciprofloxacin. The results of the imaging were compared with those of laboratory tests. Results: On the images, negative uptake was observed in all normal subjects, while strong hot uptake, in the whole prostate of acute prostatitis patients and in the whole urethra of acute cystourethritis patients. In 13 (68 %) of 19 patients categorized as chronic bacterial prostatitis by standard laboratory tests, hot uptake with less intensity than that of acute prostatitis was observed in the prostate area around the prostatic urethra. Negative uptake in the prostate was observed in 6 of 19 patients (32 %) categorized as chronic bacterial prostatitis. Interestingly, hot uptake in the prostate was exhibited in 28 (70 %) of the 40 patients categorized as chronic pelvic pain syndrome. Conclusion: Tc-99m ciprofloxacin imaging is helpful in the differential diagnosis of prostatitis syndrome. (Asian J Androl 2003 Sep; 5:179-183 )


AbstractThis study documents the evolution of an impressive, largely undular bore triggered by an MCS-generated density current on 20 June 2015, observed as part of the Plains Elevated Convection at Night (PECAN) experiment. The University of Wyoming King Air with profiling nadir- and zenith-viewing lidars sampled the south-bound bore from the time the first bore wave emerged from the nocturnal convective cold pool and where updrafts over 10 m s−1 and turbulence in the wave's wake were encountered, through the early dissipative stage in which the leading wave began to lose amplitude and speed. Through most of the bore's life cycle, its second wave had a higher or equal amplitude relative to the leading wave. Striking roll clouds formed in wave crests and wave energy was detected to about 5 km AGL. The upstream environment indicates a negative Scorer parameter region due to flow reversal at midlevels, providing a wave trapping mechanism. The observed bore strength of 2.4–2.9 and speed of 15–16 m s−1 agree ...


This paper examines conflicts in polices in England and Wales pertaining to the demand for alternative, non-medical crisis support for those experiencing 'psychosis'. We examine the limitations of current treatment, policy and legislative frameworks in supporting these demands. In particular, we focus on the limitations of prevailing conceptualisations of 'human rights', 'social inclusion' and 'recovery'. These concepts, we argue, are embedded within a broader treatment framework which renders medication as mandatory and all other treatment modalities as inherently subsidiary, and a broader policy framework which is complicit with bio-medical orthodoxies of 'mental illness' and prioritises treatment compliance and compulsion. Therefore, in order to advance a 'human rights' approach to mental health policy, we argue that reigning orthodoxies inherent within policy and practice must be explicitly challenged to open up spaces for the availability of alternatives.


The Cape Sable seaside sparrow is a Federally listed endangered species endemic to south Florida's Everglades. It nests near the ground in seasonally dry prairies. Consequently, the timing and depth of seasonal water flows determine its fate. With water management plans the central focus of Everglades' restoration schemes, the demography of this bird becomes central to hydrologic planning. In order to understand how its demography influences restoration options, we calculated survivorship, fecundity and dispersal within three of the sparrow's six populations. Nearly 40% of adult sparrows die from year to year. Sparrows can produce up to four broods per breeding season, and typically produce two (March to August). Females lay an average of three eggs per nest, two of which usually hatch. The success of these nests varies among populations such that nests in population E are more than four times as likely to fledge young as nests within population A. Nest success within population B is 26% early in the breeding season, but drops to 9% after the onset of summer rains in early June. Nests are built 16 to 21 cm from the soil surface making them vulnerable to water depths that exceed these values. Based on observations of marked individuals, sparrows generally remain within a 1 km area centred on their breeding grounds. We have never observed immigration between populations. A simple demographic model demonstrates that breeding success and duration appear to constrain sparrow population growth more than other demographic parameters. Maintaining suitable breeding conditions restricts water management options to those that will restore hydrological conditions to their original patterns.


Student Loans Repayment and Recovery: International Comparisons Student loans schemes are in operation in more than seventy countries around the world. Most loans schemes benefit from sizeable built-in government subsidies and, in addition, are subject to repayment default and administrative costs that are not passed on to student borrowers. We probe two issues in this paper, for 44 loans schemes in 39 countries: how much of the original loan is an individual student required to repay (the "repayment ratio") and what percentage of the total costs of loans schemes can the lending body expect to receive back in repayments (the "recovery ratio")? The analysis shows considerable variation in the size of the repayment and recovery ratios across schemes. Moreover, many loans schemes exhibit sizeable built-in subsidies accruing to student borrowers – in over 40 percent of the schemes examined, the repayment ratio is 40 percent or less. Overall loans recovery is considerably lower. Policy implications of these findings are discussed together with a consideration of steps that may be taken to improve the financial outcome of loans schemes. JEL Classification: I22, H52


Beginning with the work of Joseph Schumpeter in the 1940s and later elaborated by Robert W. Solow's work on the neoclassical growth model, economics has produced a strong consensus that the economic gains from innovation dwarf those to be had from capital accumulation and increased price competition. An important but sometimes overlooked corollary is that restraints on innovation can do far more harm to the economy than restraints on traditional output or pricing. Many practices that violate the antitrust laws are best understood as restraints on innovation rather than restraints on pricing.While antitrust models for assessing losses that result from reduced output and higher prices are fairly conventional, the losses that accrue from innovation restraints are very difficult to predict. In general, as an innovation project progresses further along and the resulting product or process comes closer to marketability, the effects of an innovation restraint become easier to assess. But many restraints on innovation occur long before we can make a reliable prediction about whether a viable product or process will result, and whether it will be a market success. In these situations one cannot rely on private antitrust enforcement, given the strict antitrust requirements for proof of harm, causation and damages. By contrast, the federal government agencies acting as enforcers have authority to restrain antitrust violations even if relevant private harm and damages cannot be proven. As a result, antitrust challenges to innovation restraints should be of greater government concern.


Availability of sophisticated ICT infrastructure combined with emerging business processes such as various service orientation configurations, constitute major characteristics of many of today''s libraries in western universities. This has created a vast amount of customer-related information in libraries. This article provides a methodology for organising customer knowledge in academic libraries. A two-dimensional Customer Knowledge Taxonomy (CKT) has been presented for organizing the customer knowledge, thus providing a formal and explicit specification to deliver a shared conceptualization of customer knowledge. Based on the proposed CKT, customer knowledge in academic libraries can be classified into (i) knowledge about customers, (ii) knowledge from customers and (iii) knowledge for customers. The knowledge in each of these three categories can be 'explicit'' and 'tacit'', thus providing six categories of customer knowledge. The second major contribution of this paper is to introduce a method for integrating the above first and second categories of customer knowledge in order to derive the third category. This integration methodology is based on an integrated cyclical knowledge flow model that consists of four phases including: (i) communication, (ii) knowledge sharing & dissemination, (iii) knowledge acquisition and application, and 'iv'' knowledge utilization and evaluation. Through a qualitative research, the proposed framework, consisting of the CKT and the corresponding integrated cyclical knowledge flow model, was then applied to a large university library for coding and classifying the vast amounts of existing customer data residing in 2,500 interview scripts within the case study organization. In doing so, a uniform coding scheme had to be developed using a focus group methodology. Data were then stored into a customer knowledge base using the Laximancer software. The proposed framework was evaluated for consistency of conceptualisation to ensure reusability in similar environments. It is expected that similar organisations will benefit from the proposed methodology for classifying the customer knowledge in academic libraries and the associated evaluation methodology for design and development of integrated knowledge based systems which in turn will support emerging processes within the organization.


Wrist-driven orthotics have been designed to assist people with C6-7 spinal cord injury, however, the kinematic constraint imposed by such a control strategy can impede mobility and lead to abnormal body motion. This study characterizes body compensation using the novel Tenodesis Grasp Emulator, an adaptor orthotic that allows for the investigation of tenodesis grasping in subjects with unimpaired hand function. Subjects perform a series of grasp-and-release tasks in order to compare normal (test control) and constrained wrist-driven modes, showing significant compensation as a result of the constraint. A motor-augmented mode is also compared against traditional wrist-driven operation, to explore the potential role of hybrid human-robot control. We find that both the passive wrist-driven and motor-augmented modes fulfill different roles throughout various tasks tested. Thus, we conclude that a flexible control scheme that can alter intervention based on the task at hand holds the potential to reduce compensation in future work.


Study Objective: To determine the short- and long-term benefits of noninvasive home mechanical ventilation (NIHMV) in patients aged 65 and older who were eligible for this treatment. Design and Setting: This retrospective, comparative, longitudinal study was carried out in a tertiary care hospital in Barcelona (Spain). Patients and Methods: The study included all patients in whom NIHMV with a nasal mask was established in the period from 1998 to 2001. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to age: group 1 (n = 10) ≧75; group 2 (n = 40) 65–74, and group 3 (n = 41) <65 years old. Clinical characteristics, pulmonary function results, and arterial blood gas findings were assessed in all patients before starting ventilation and after 6 months. Measurements and Results: Statistically significant improvements in PaO2 (13.4, 10, and 15.3 mm Hg for groups 1–3) and PaCO2 (–17.6, –9.6 and –12.8 mm Hg for groups 1–3) were found at 6 months (p < 0.001 in all cases). There were no significant differences between the groups in blood gas parameters and treatment compliance. The incidence of related adverse events was not statistically different between the study groups (40%, 35% and 32% for groups 1–3; p = 0.859). Conclusions: NIHMV is effective in all patients for whom it is indicated, regardless of their age.


Let X and Y be smooth projective varieties over C. They are called D-equivalent if their derived categories of bounded complexes of coherent sheaves are equivalent as triangulated categories, while K-equivalent if they are birationally equivalent and the pull-backs of their canonical divisors to a common resolution coincide. We expect that the two equivalences coincide for birationally equivalent varieties. We shall provide a partial answer to the above problem in this paper.


This title examines the roles and new opportunities arising from the increasing participation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in peace-making, peacekeeping and peace-building processes, both formal and informal, state-sponsored and unofficial. Drawing on both academic experts and activists, this study brings together contributions from those who have observed how NGOs have sought to reflect civil society concerns, provide humanitarian relief, monitor compliance with international norms and treaty requirements, and disseminate information of concern to advocacy networks. A critical appraisal of the opportunities and constraints of NGOs is provided alongside the examination of the NGOs role in the "new agendas" for peace.