Access to housing is difficult for minorities in France. An audit study we run in the Paris area showed that minority applicants do not face a strong disadvantage in the first step of the application; however, the fact that applicants come from a deprived area leads to more frequent unfavorable outcome (we call this residential discrimination as opposed to ethnic discrimination). The puzzle and paradox come from the fact that face-to-face interviews with real-estate agents in the city of Paris and the Parisian region do not confirm this result. If anything, all discrimination arise from ethnicity and agents dismiss residential discrimination. Our paper, forthcoming in Urban Studies, documents this contrast between quantitative and qualitative methods and proposes interpretations.


This review-essay presents an overview of Malcolm Cowley's life as a professional man of letters. A poet at the beginning, Cowley became best known for books about twentieth-century literary history, enlivened by incisive personal portraits of its practitioners. As a writer and editor, he played a crucial role in establishing and advancing the careers of contemporaries Hemingway, Faulkner, and Fitzgerald, and of younger writers Cheever and Kerouac. During the 1930s and stretching into the next decade, Cowley was involved in the political wars as a fervent left-winger supporting communist causes, a passion he came to regret. These subjects emerge vividly in Hans Bak's edition of Cowley's letters, sent to a wide array of well-known poets and prose writers. The book, with a first-rate introduction by son Robert Cowley and periodic commentaries by Bak, reads like a biography in the making of this important and undervalued figure in American literary history.


Worker in the Cane is both a profound social document and a moving spiritual testimony. Don Taso portrays his harsh childhood, his courtship and early marriage, his grim struggle to provide for his family. He tells of his radical political beliefs and union activity during the Depression and describes his hardships when he was blacklisted because of his outspoken convictions. Embittered by his continuing poverty and by a serious illness, he undergoes a dramatic cure and becomes converted to a Protestant revivalist sect. In the concluding chapters the author interprets Don Taso's experience in the light of the changing patterns of life in rural Puerto Rico.


There is a substantial gap in public health school curricula regarding advocacy. Development of such a curriculum faces three challenges: faculty lack advocacy skills and experience; the public health literature on effective advocacy is limited; and yet a successful curriculum must be scalable to meet the needs of approximately 9,000 public health students graduating each year. To meet these challenges, we propose a 100-hour interactive online curriculum in five sections: campaigning and organizing, policy making and lobbying, campaign communications, new media, and fund-raising. We outline the content for individual modules in each of these sections, describe how the curriculum would build on existing interactive learning and social media technologies, and provide readers the opportunity to "test-drive" excerpts of a module on "grasstops" organizing. Developing advocacy skills and expertise is critical to meeting the challenges of public health today, and we provide a blueprint for how such training might be brought to scale in the field.


Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is a malodorous gas which can cause nuisance and health effects to people who live and work in the contaminated air environment. Therefore, the main objective of this work was to study the removal of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) using a biofilter packed with mixture of compost, organic fertilizer, wood chips and municipal wastewater sludge at a ratio of 60:10:20:10 by weight. The experiment was carried out at hydrogen sulfide concentration of 5-200 ppmv and empty bed residence time (EBRT) of 60 seconds. The results indicated that completer H2S removal can be achieved at H2S inlet concentration of 200 ppmv. Elimination capacity of the biofilter reached as high as 24.38 gm−3 h−1.


SIR.-I was interested to read Captain A. A. Williams's report of tenosynovitis of .the tendo Achillis (September 13, p. 377). The assumption that it is caused by repeated minor traumata bears out my own observations. At one time a group of some fifty men of a unit in my charge lived in a village about three miles. from the general parade ground, the road in between being one long hill of varying gradients. Among these men tenosynovitis was a veritable scourge, as many as eight men being off duty at one time, while among the rest of the unit it was rare. 1 think the explanation of this incidence lies in the fact that coming in to parade in the morning the men were usually hurrying, and consequently taking a long pace. Coming down hill this caused increased plantar flexion and an accentuation of the wrinkles at the back of their boots. These wrinkles coming at every step pressed on the tendo Achillis, giving repeated minor traumata. I have also found these cases frequently occur after short speed marches in which a long pace is taken, while they are rare after a route march of thirty miles. I agree with the treatment, particularly the wearing of civilian shoes, but I would like to bring the following point to notice. This condition is recurrent, so I have the men put 2 oz. of castor-oil in each boot when they return to duty, taking care it gets well round the heel, 'and they wear the same sticky oily socks for three days. This makes an Army boot as soft as cloth-topped affairs of yester-years, and the condition seldom recuirs.-I am. etc.. Ocr .. E. SYMONDSON, O;ct. 20). Captain, R.A.M.C.


Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is well established as an etiological agent responsible for a number of pathologies affecting the stratified epithelia of skin and anogenital sites. More recently, the infection by (mucosal) high-risk HPV types has also been found to be causally associated with squamous cell carcinoma in the head and neck region (HNSCC), especially in the oropharynx. Intriguingly, HPV-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas (OPSCC) represent a distinct clinical entity compared to HPV-negative tumors with particular regard to treatment–response and survival outcome. The association between HPV infection and OPSCC may therefore have important implications for the prevention and/or treatment of OPSCC. The improved survival of patients with HPV-related tumors also raises the question, as to whether a better understanding of the underlying differences may help to identify new therapeutic concepts that could be used in targeted therapy for HPV-negative and improved therapy for HPV-positive cancers. This review summarizes the most recent advances in our understanding of the molecular principles of HPV-related OPSCC, mainly based on functional genomic approaches, but also emphasizes the significant role played by the tumor microenvironment, especially the immune system, for improved clinical outcome and differential sensitivity of HPV-related tumors to current treatment options.


Abstract Palmar hyperhidrosis is a potentially disabling condition for which management remains a therapeutic challenge. Given the significant impact on quality of life, various treatment options are available, ranging from topical agents and medical devices to systemic therapies and surgical interventions. Nonsurgical approaches, i.e. topical antiperspirants, botulinum toxin injections, iontophoresis, and systemic agents, are all supported by the current literature. Patients with mild-to-moderate disease can often benefit from topical therapies only. As disease severity progresses, systemic oral medication, such as anticholinergic drugs, usually becomes necessary. Last-line surgical approaches (sympathetic denervation) should be reserved for severe refractory cases. Recently, therapeutic strategies have been evolving with several new agents emerging as promising alternatives in clinical trials. In practice, however, each modality comes with its own benefits and risks. An individual therapeutic ladder is generally recommended, taking into account disease severity, benefit-to-risk profile, treatment cost, patient preference, and clinician expertise. This review will provide an update on current and emerging concepts of management for excessive hand sweating to help clinicians optimize therapeutic decision-making.


A readily computable formula to perform versatile analysis of the nonstationary pulse-to-pulse correlation properties of ocean altimeter returns is presented. Using this formula, the correlation coefficient and correlation interval depending on the reference time, sea state, and system parameters have been analyzed. The results have suggested that the pulse repetition frequency should adaptively be adjusted to the sea state to ensure precise altitude measurements.


Background

Interval training is an important strategy for promoting physiological adaptations. Therefore, this study aimed to verify the chronic effects of interval training (TI) with different intensities on hemodynamic, autonomic and cardiorespiratory variables of physically active elderly people.
Methods

Twenty-four physically active older men (age: 68.8 ± 6.8 years, body mass: 74.4 ± 18.1 kg, height: 170 ± 8 m, body mass index: 25.1 ± 2.2 kg / m²) participated in the study. Participants were randomized into three experimental groups: training group A (TGA, n = 8), training group B (TGB, n = 8), and control group (GC, n = 8). TGA and TGB groups performed 32 training sessions separated by a 48-hour interval. TGA showed 4-min with intensity relative to 55 to 60% of the HRmax and 1-min at 70 to 75% of the HRmax. TGB training group performed the same protocol but performed 4-min at 45 to 50% HRmax and 1-min at 60 to 65% HRmax. Both training groups performed each series for six times, totaling 30-min per session. The evaluations were carried out in the pre (baseline) moments after the 16th and 32nd intervention sessions. GC only carried out assessments. Hemodynamic variables (HRR, SBP, DBP, MBP, and DP), autonomic (HRV indices, in the time and frequency domain), and cardiorespiratory (VO2max estimated) variables were evaluated.
Results

There were no statistically significant differences in comparisons between protocols and moments (p > 0.05). However, the size of the effect and the percentage delta indicated clinical results with relevant magnitudes between protocols and moments, indicating favorable responses to the IT intervention in hemodynamic, autonomic, and cardiorespiratory variables.
Conclusion

IT can be an essential strategy in the prescription of training for conditional improvement of variables of cardioprotective function in physically active and healthy older people. However, other studies are suggested to establish the efficiency of this method for cardiovascular and cardiorespiratory variables in the elderly.


The notion of bounded rationality has recently gained considerable popularity in the behavioural and social sciences. This article surveys the different usages of the term, in particular the way 'anomalous' behavioural phenomena are elicited, how these phenomena are incorporated in model building, and what sort of new theories of behaviour have been developed to account for bounded rationality in choice and in deliberation. It also discusses the normative relevance of bounded rationality, in particular as a justifier of non-standard reasoning and deliberation heuristics. For each of these usages, the overview discusses the central methodological problems.


Studying effects of Ni content (0.6%, 0.8% and 1.0%) on structure and properties of aluminum brass (Cu-22.7Zn-3.0Al) as-cast ingot, cold-rolled and annealed sheet. The results show that: Ni can restrain the precipitation of β phase, and increase percentage of α phase during casting process. The proportion of α phase of ingot as-cast grows up with the increase of Ni content in the alloy. α phase refines gradually and shape changes to needle-like and distributes more uniform with the increase of Ni. The average grain size of α phase of ingot as-cast is 33.57μm, 31.78μm and 28.32μm respectively, and the percentage of α phase as-cast is 69.73%, 75.18% and 78.91% corresponding to 0.6%, 0.8% and 1.0% Ni respectively in the alloy. The tensile strength and hardness enhance and elongation drops with the increase of Ni content. The hardness, tensile strength and elongation is 238.7HV, 784.9MPa and 3.7% respectively for 0.2mm thickness cold-rolled sheet with 1.0% Ni in the alloy. The sheet from 1.0mm to 0.2mm thickness undergoes deformation and heat-treatment process. The hardness and tensile strength of cold-rolled strip of 0.2mm thickness are 205HV and 691.16MPa that increase 13.25% and 16.45% than cold-rolled sheet of 1.0mm thickness.


An experimental work was carried out to investigate some mechanical properties of Reactive Powder Concrete (RPC) which are particularly required as input data for structural design. These properties include compressive strength, tensile strength (direct, splitting and flexural), flexural toughness, load-deflection capacity and static modulus of elasticity. The effects of three variable parameters on these properties were carefully studied which are the silica fume content SF (0%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, and 30%) as a partial replacement by weight of cement, steel fibers volume fraction Vf (0%, 1%, 2% and 3%) and superplasticizer type (Sikament®-163N, PC200). The experimental results showed that as the silica fume content (SF) increases from 0% to 30% the compressive strength significantly increases, while the increase in tensile strength is relatively lower. The inclusion of steel fibers leads to a considerable increase in tensile strength, while the addition of steel fibers causes a slight increase in compressive strength of RPC as fiber volume fraction increases from 0% to 3%. The increase in the steel fibers volume fraction and silica fume content improved the load-deflection behavior and consequently gave larger ductility and fracture toughness of RPC.


In 2008, Colombia joined the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which includes measures related to price and taxes designed to reduce supply and demand. By 2015, the overall prevalence of smokers in the country had decreased slightly but still reached 17 percent. The impact of tobacco on the mortality and quality of life of Colombians was estimated as a direct loss of more than 600,000 years of life and more than 26,000 deaths each year. The price of cigarettes in Colombia in 2015 was so low (approximately 2 US dollars per pack of 20 cigarettes), that it was higher than just one other country in Latin America and in the Caribbean. At the time, Colombia was contending with shrinking oil revenue (owing to a sharp drop in oil prices) and constantly rising public expenditure. In the health sector cost pressures stemmed, among other factors, from a change in the government's responsibility for health coverage in the subsidized system that covers the cost of health services for the country's lowest population segments. It was in this context that the government in early 2015 created a committee of experts responsible for proposing changes in the country's tax structure. This document describes the course of events that led to the phased adjustment of the tobacco tax approved by Congress in December 2016, with a view to aligning the price of cigarettes in Colombia with the Latin American average. Despite the failed attempt to introduce a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages, the discussion was framed and will most likely be renewed in the future.


Two experimental investigations of the electromagnetic method to measure body composition are presented. In the first experiment, the impedance of a single-loop transmitting antenna, located at the centre of a 150 m helical receiving coil, was observed to have a sharp minimum at 2.40 MHz. The impedance of the antenna at this frequency with respect to a series resistor was observed to go through a maximum when a small volume of 1% saline, of cross-section 0.5 cm2, was introduced coaxially into the coil. The frequency shift for larger volumes of saline (> 0.8 l) was highly correlated with the surface area of the liquid (r = 0.998, 0.997) and less well correlated with volume (r = 0.966, 0.967). In the second experiment, a five-turn solenoid, 2 m long and 1.5 m in diameter, was used to induce voltages in two coaxial receiving antennae placed 1 m apart inside the solenoid. The differential induced voltage was observed to vary as coaxial saline phantoms were traversed through the solenoid, with the variation being well correlated with the surface area of the liquid (r = 0.993, 0.996) and less well correlated with the volume of liquid in the phantom (r = 0.987, 0.958) for volumes above 100 ml. These observations suggest that the (resonant or non-resonant) electromagnetic field only responds to surface eddy currents in a coaxial saline phantom and therefore the TOBEC method may not be valid.


In this thesis, we study three problems related to expanders, whose analysis involves understanding the intimate connection between expanders, spectra and semidefinite programming. Our first result is related to Khot's Unique Games conjecture (UGC) [?], whose validity is one of the most central open problems in computational complexity theory. We show that UGC is false on expander graphs. This result, in particular, rules out a natural way of proving hardness of approximation for SPARSEST CUT. Our second result is in the area of graph sparsification. We say that a graph H is a sparsifier for a graph G if the respective graph Laplacians of the two graphs satisfy xT L Hx a xT L Gx for all vectors x. Given a union of two graphs G + W, we show how to choose a sparse subgraph W' ⊆ W so that G + W' is a good sparsifier for G + W. We apply the result to optimizing the algebraic connectivity of a graph by adding very few edges. We also show how to use this result in order to create optimal ultrasparsifiers for every graph, which can be used as good graph-theoretic preconditioners for symmetric, positive semidefinite, diagonally dominant linear systems. Lastly, we study the integrality gap of the well known Sparsest Cut semidefinite program. We present a simple construction and analysis of an Ω(log logN) integrality gap for Sparsest Cut while our gap instance, vector solution, and analysis are somewhat simpler and more intuitive than those which appear in the literature.
Our techniques use tools both from the area of semidefinite programming and spectral graph theory. This is not surprising since, when delving into the beautiful theory underlying spectra and SDPs, one finds that they are deeply connected in more ways than one. Semidefinite programs are nothing but linear programs with variables representing entries of a matrix, together with eigenvalue bounds for that matrix and could, therefore capture the spectral expansion of a graph. Similarly, most of eigenvalue optimization problems can be cast as SDPs, which leads to developing semidefinite programming based algorithms for a plethora of other important graph problems. In this thesis we further explore the connections between expansion, spectra and SDPs by applying them to solving these three problems described above.


Due to betrayal aversion, people take risks less willingly when the agent of uncertainty is another person rather than nature. Individuals in four countries (Brazil, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and the United States) confronted either a binary-choice trust game or a risky decision offering the same payoffs and probabilities. Risk acceptance was calibrated by asking individuals their "minimal acceptable probability" (MAP) for securing the high payoff that would make them just willing to accept the risky rather than the sure payoff. People's MAPs are significantly higher when another person rather than nature determines the outcome. This indicates betrayal aversion.


Even in this modern era today, life's extent is still being challenged by many pathological diseases such as cancer. One such hazard is leukemia. Even a trivial setback in detecting leukemia lead to a severe outcome: the affected cells may eventually prove to be fatal. To combat this, we propose an algorithm to better segment the nucleus region of White Blood Cells (WBC) found in stained blood smear images with the intent of identifying Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). In our proposal, the image is made ready for segmentation in the preprocessing stage by changing its size, brightness, and contrast. In the segmentation stage, the nucleus region is segmented by mathematical operators and Otsu's thresholding. Then mathematical morphological operators are applied in post-processing stage, which makes the nucleus region convenient for feature extraction. Finally, the segmented regions are classified into ALL affected and regular cells by means of the proposed Customized K-Nearest Neighbor classifier algorithm. This work was experimented with over 80 images of the ALL-IDB2 dataset and attained an accuracy rate of 96.25%, 95% of sensitivity and 97% of specificity.


This article explores the question of whether bond insurers are able to sufficiently evaluate the credit risk of insured bonds, the answer to which would determine the future of municipal bond insurance. A sample of insured municipal bonds is investigated to determine whether bond insurance premia can predict the future credit rating transition, the proxy for bond credit risk. The results show that municipal bond insurance premia, conditional on bond credit ratings and other explanatory variables, have explanatory power over credit rating downgrades but not over upgrades. As such, bond insurance premia convey extra information about the underlying credit risk of a bond issue than the original credit rating reveals. This research also provides evidence that the rating agencies might not be doing as a good job as they could potentially do.


Two hundred seventy-seven Salmonella (27 serotypes) were isolated from Kansas swine over a 5-year period (1979 to 1983). Salmonella cholerae-suis was the predominant isolant from all tissues and made up 94.4% of the Salmonella isolants from the lungs. The percentage of Salmonella isolants susceptible to various antimicrobial agents was determined. The percentage of Salmonella susceptible to carbadox decreased from 1980 to 1983.


SUMMARYSeventeen colonies of honey bees from 13 different sources were dosed with Nosema apis spores in sugar syrup. Spore loads carried by foraging bees were recorded for 11 weeks thereafter. Eleven further colonies, fed plain sugar syrup, were sampled as controls. Mean spore loads in all N. apis-dosed colonies increased to between 8 million and 27 million spores per bee two weeks after dosing. Five weeks after dosing, spore loads had decreased to levels comparable to those found in the control colonies (about 4 million spores per bee or less). There were no significant differences in the responses of colonies from different sources. Colonies from different sources showed a similar uniformity with regard to the rate of spread of infection among caged bees and chymosin levels in the guts of workers. These results show little variation in response to N. apis infection, and indicate a lack of genetic variability among New Zealand bees in respect of susceptibility to N. apis infection.


We study experimentally the outcome of a 50 periods repetition of a two-player coordination game, which admits two-pure strategy Nash equilibria that are Pareto-ranked: a payoff-dominant equilibrium and a risk-dominant equilibrium. The experiment consists of a 2x3 factorial design, with two different matching rules –global an local interaction–, and three sizes for the basin of attraction of the risk-dominant equilibrium. Under global interaction, each player can be matched in each period with any player in the population. Under local interaction, each player can be matched only with one of his two neighbours. Our results confirm earlier experimental results obtained under global interaction (for a survey see Ochs (1995)). On the contrary, the results contrast sharply with Keser, Ehrhart & Berninghaus (1998), who found that subjects interacting 'locally' with their neighbours around a circle, coordinate mostly on the risk-dominant equilibrium. Moreover, we found no evidence for a faster convergence to an equilibrium under local interaction than under global interaction. Keywords: Coordination games, Experimental economics, Evolutionary game theory, Local interactions


The clay specimens taken from Aksaray-Guzelyurt studied area taking place in the southeast part of Aksaray province in the Central Anatolia Region have been investigated by means of FT-IR spectroscopy. Firstly, the FT-IR spectra of the clays known as standard clays such as illite, mixed layered illite-smectite, beidellite, kaolinite, chlorite (ripidolite), nontronite, montmorillonite have been taken, and then the spectra of illite+quartz+feldspar, quartz+feldspar mineral associations have been taken together with the standard clays. Minerals in every clay sample have been determined by comparing the spectra of the samples mentioned above with the spectra of the clay samples taken from studied area. It has been observed that the existence of the O-H Al-Al-OH, Si-O-Al and Si-O-Si groups in the FT-IR spectrum measurements of the samples belonging to the lower, middle and upper levels of Guzelyurt clay profiles. In addition, it has been found that Guzelyurt clay samples included quartz, illite (T-O-T), kaolinite and amorf silica, and they have T-O or O-T structure. The main clay mineral in the clay samples is kaolinite. Characteristic bands of illite mineral in middle level clays have been observed at 1030 and 914 cm-1 while characteristic bands of kaolinite mineral in lower and upper levels clays are being observed at 3679, 3655, 3623, 942 and 754 cm-1.


Current estimates of gross primary productivity (GPP) of the terrestrial biosphere vary widely, from 100 to 175 Gt C year−1. Ecosystem GPP cannot be measured directly, and is commonly estimated using models. Among the many parameters in those models, three leaf parameters have strong influences on the modelled GPP: leaf mass per area, leaf lifespan and leaf nitrogen concentration. The first two parameters affect the modelled canopy leaf area and the last two determine the maximal leaf photosynthetic rate. Ecological studies have firmly established that these three parameters are significantly correlated at regional to global scales, but this knowledge is yet to be used in predicting global GPP. We hypothesize that incorporating multi‐trait covariance can reduce uncertainties of model predictions in a way likely to provide improved realism. Using the Australian community land surface model (CABLE), we find that correlations among these three parameters reduce the variance among GPP estimates by CABLE by over 20% for shrub, C4 grassland and tundra, and by between 5% and 20% for most other PFTs, as compared with the simulated GPP without considering the correlations. Globally the correlations do not alter the mean but reduce the variance of modeled GPP by CABLE by 28% and result in fewer extremely high or extremely low (and unlikely) global GPP predictions. Therefore correlations among the three leaf parameters, and possibly other parameters, can be used as a significant constraint on the estimates of model parameters or predictions by those models.


Compilation of Islamic Law (KHI) Indonesia is the Indonesian fiqh in the language of the law. Called as Fiqh of Indonesia because Indonesia besides tempered personality, also adopted the customary laws that live in the local tradition as part of Islamic law. This paper demonstrates the accommodating attitude KHI with customary law. Among other provisions concerning joint property and inherit each other between the adopted child and the adoptive parents through the institution was borrowed. Both laws were adopted in customary law is the result of ijtihad scholars of Indonesia, because the issues are both not found in Jurisprudence. Indonesian cleric's innovative creations, besides being a form of manifestation of the characteristics of Islamic law that is dynamic and creative, also an Indonesian Islamic identity in the field of law.


This thesis presents research that combines the benefits of intelligent tutoring systems (ITS), Arabic conversational agents (CA) and learning theories by constructing a novel Arabic conversational intelligent tutoring system (CITS) called Abdullah. Abdullah CITS is a software program intended to deliver a tutorial to students aged between 10 and 12 years old, that covers the essential topics in Islam using natural language. The CITS aims to mimic a human Arabic tutor by engaging the students in dialogue using Modern standard Arabic language (MSA), whilst also allowing conversation and discussion in classical Arabic language (CAL).
Developing a CITS for the Arabic language faces many challenges due to the complexity of the morphological system, non-standardization of the written text, ambiguity, and lack of resources. However, the main challenge for the developed Arabic CITS is how the user utterances are recognized and responded to by the CA, as well as how the domain is scripted and maintained. This research presents a novel Arabic CA and accompanying a scripting language that use a form of pattern matching, to handle users' conversations when the user converse in MSA. A short text similarity measure is used within Abdullah CITS to extract the responses from CAL resources such as the Quran, Hadith, and Tafsir if there are no matching patterns with the Arabic conversation agent's scripts.
Abdullah CITS is able to capture the user's level of knowledge and adapt the tutoring session and tutoring style to suit that particular learner's level of knowledge. This is achieved through the inclusion of several learning theories and methods such as Gagne's learning theory, Piaget learning theory, and storytelling method. These learning theories and methods implemented within Abdullah's CITS architecture, are applied to personalise a tutorial to an individual learner.
This research presents the first Arabic CITS, which utilises established learning typically employed in a classroom environment. The system was evaluated through end user testing with the target age group in schools both in Jordan and in the UK. Empirical experimentation has produced some positive results, indicating that Abdullah CITS is gauging the individual learner's knowledge level and adapting the tutoring session to ensure learning gain is achieved.


This ecological and geomorphological assessment of Horokiri Stream and Ration Creek was conducted across four longitudinal zones to explore the effects of sediment delivery, run-off, channel form, riparian and in-stream habitat. The Horokiri Stream channel has moved approximately 7 metres westward over the last 20 years, with both banks now covered in long grass, flaxes, natives with a mix of tall canopy trees. Looking at stream, Spearman's for Ration at Figure 27 (n = 16, rho -0.243, p = 0.36) as deposited sediment increased, MCI decreased, non-significant. Spearman's for Horokiri at Figure 28 (n = 16, rho 0.247, p = 0.35) as MCI increased with sediment, non-significant. Results from upstream of the riparian zones showed more deposited fine sediment. However, within both the riparian zones the sediment deposition was much lower. The native riparian planting along the stream banks had a positive effect on reducing sedimentation. The findings support the concept that the restoration of riparian zones with buffer widths exceeding 10 metres can improve stream habitat and invertebrate health. There was no relationship between flow and deposition rate P(X2>241.84) = 0.24. Figure 24 shows deposited sediment on MCI depending on land use groups (X2 = 11.81, df = 4, p = 0.019). No statistically significant differences were found (comparing the effect of sediment between different land use management groups).  An experiment investigated a disturbance hypothesis in both Ration Creek and Horokiri Stream was conducted during February 2019. The experiment was designed to be long enough to study the effects of four weekly pulse flushing events created by scrapping the stream bed with a drain drag tool and the effects of a press sustained disturbance on the macroinvertebrate community. I measured the sediment and the macroinvertebrate captured in each trap within the experiment site every seven days. My prediction was that macroinvertebrate communities subject to sustained fine sediment delivery (press disturbance) are affected by simulated pulse flushing events (pulse disturbance). A comparison of sediment depositional rate before and after the manipulative experiment (Figure 36) showed higher sediment deposition after the pulse flushing events (1.55 W/A/D) compared to before during the assessment phase (0.88 W/A/D) in Horokiri (t = 2.35, df = 8.95, p = 0.04), but no significant difference before (1.57 W/A/D) or after (1.38 W/A/D) in Ration (t = -0.818, df = 7.71, p = 0.44). It appeared that the smaller riparian buffer width of 2-5m at Ration Creek did not limit sediment deposition. The effects of sediment disturbance in the experiment reflect the rapid ability of macroinvertebrates to respond to sediment by drifting out of unsuitable areas. The weekly pulse disturbance events resulted in increased sediment deposition compared to the background levels of sediment deposition (indicative of a press disturbance) in both streams. As pulse disturbance events increased, the number of macroinvertebrate taxa decreased. Horokiri Stream invertebrate communities declined by 33% compared to Ration Creek which declined by 50%.


Ventilatory efficacy of mouth-to-mouth artificial respiration: Airway obstruction during manual and mouth-to-mouth artificial respiration. By Peter Safar. JAMA 1958; 167:335–41. BackgroundFor respiratory resuscitation without devices, the author hypothesized that providing upper airway patency requires lifting the base of the tongue off the posterior pharyngeal wall and that artificial ventilation with intermittent positive pressure using exhaled air, i.e., direct mouth-to-mouth ventilation (MMV), is more effective than back or chest pressure with or without arm lift. MMV leaves the operator's hands free for backward tilt of the head, forward displacement of the mandible, or both. Methods The author studied 25 sedated, nonintubated adult human volunteers under neuromuscular blockade with succinylcholine for 1–3 h each. One hundred sixty-seven untrained lay persons performed various direct MMV methods after one demonstration. Eighteen trained ambulance rescuers performed back or chest pressure arm-lift methods. Ventilation volumes were recorded during MMV from a calibrated pneumograph and during the manual methods from a taped face mask on a spirometer. Arterial oxygen saturation was monitored by an ear oximeter, and end-tidal carbon dioxide was measured by an infrared analyzer. ResultsWith the head in the mid position or flexed, airway obstruction occurred in all volunteers, equally in the supine or prone position. With the head tilted backward and the mouth held open, one half to two thirds of the volunteers had an open airway; the remaining volunteers required additional forward displacement of the mandible or a pharyngeal tube. Ninety percent of the lay persons performed MMV effectively. Moderate hyperventilation by the operator achieved normoxemia and normocapnia in the volunteer and moderate hypocapnia in the operator. Apnea-induced moderate hypoxemia was reversed with 5–9 MMVs. In the majority of volunteers, the manual methods caused no ventilation (mostly because of neck flexion), and in others, it caused progressive airway obstruction. In some volunteers, there was valve-like nasopharyngeal obstruction. Conclusions In coma without a tracheal tube, direct MMV is effective because of the ability of the rescuer to support the head and jaw for upper airway patency and because of controllable high inflation pressures and volumes, whereas manual methods frequently fail to ventilate, mainly because of upper airway obstruction. The author recommends that backward tilt of the head plus exhaled air inflation methods be taught for general use in adults and children.


The finite element method (FEM) has been used to model high speed turning processes with orthogonal cutting conditions. In most of the situations, continuous chip formation is used to analyze the turning process due to its stability and allowing many conditions to simplify the process. However with the increasing applications of high speed turning, serrated chip formation is becoming a more common phenomenon in metal cutting. Serrated chips usually occur in machining of difficult to cut materials at or above a threshold speed. An updated Lagrangian formulation has been used in this study which works with element deletion technique based on a failure criterion. The Johnson Cook strain-hardening thermal-softening material model is used to model serrated chip formation. In addition high speed turning experiments were conducted on AISI H13 tubes using PCBN to analyze serrated chip phenomenon. The chips were analyzed after surface treatment using scanning electron microscope. It has been found that the length of cuts in the chip increases with the cutting speed and the chip changes from serrated to discontinuous. Different process variables like cutting forces, chip morphology, stress, strain and temperature distributions are predicted at different process parameters using FEM. The results show cyclic variation in the cutting forces at high cutting speeds due to varying chip load.


The incorporation of geologic realism into numerical models of subduction is becoming increasingly necessary as observational and experimental constraints indicate plate boundaries are inherently three-dimensional (3D) in nature and contain large viscosity variations. However, large viscosity variations occurring over short distances pose a challenge for computational codes, and models with complex 3D geometries require substantially greater numbers of elements, increasing the computational demands. We modified a community mantle convection code, CitcomCU, to model realistic subduction zones that use an arbitrarily shaped 3D plate boundary interface and incorporate the effects of a strain-rate dependent viscosity based on an experimentally derived flow law for olivine aggregates. Tests of this implementation on 3D models with a simple subduction zone geometry indicate that limiting the overall viscosity range in the model, as well as limiting the viscosity jump across an element, improves model runtime and convergence behavior, consistent with what has been shown previously. In addition, the choice of method and averaging scheme used to transfer the viscosity structure to the different levels in the multigrid solver can significantly improve model performance. These optimizations can improve model runtime by over 20%. 3D models of a subduction zone with a complex plate boundary geometry were then constructed, containing over 100 million finite element nodes with a local resolution of up to 2.35 km, and run on XSEDE. These complex 3D models, representative of the Alaska subduction zone-transform plate boundary, contain viscosity variations of up to seven orders of magnitude. The optimizations in solver parameters determined from the simple 3D models of subduction applied to the much larger and more complex models of an actual subduction zone improved model convergence behavior and reduced runtimes by on the order of 25%. One scientific result from 3D models of Alaska is that a laterally variable mantle viscosity emerges in the mantle as a consequence of variations in the flow field, with localized velocities of greater than 80 cm/yr occurring close to the subduction zone where the negative buoyancy of the slab drives the flow. These results are a significant departure from the paradigm of two-dimensional (2D) models of subduction where the slab velocity is often fixed to surface plate motion. While the solver parameter optimization can improve model performance, the results also demonstrate the need for new solvers to keep pace with the demands for increasingly complex numerical simulations in mantle convection.


There is a popular perception that because of the Internet, misinformation spreads faster and farther than ever, presumably because information can be created, shared and accessed so easily that anyone can make or find support for anything they wish to believe (Keen, 2006). Somewhat contradictorily, the abundance of information on the Internet might also make it easier than ever to verify information (Floridi, 1996), while at the same time leading to echo chambers where Internet users encounter only information that confirms their beliefs (Sunstein, 2007). Yet regardless of how much misinformation is created or how quickly it spreads, it does not misinform unless someone believes it. Indeed, in light of concerns about the social construction of knowledge, what constitutes misinformation is often determined by who believes it (Stahl, 2006). This suggests that the actual concern about misinformation in the digital age is a concern about how individual Internet users decide what to believe. To explore this, this study investigates debates on the Internet about vaccine safety. The focus of the study has not been to determine the correctness or incorrectness of any particular belief, but rather to understand what people believe about vaccine safety, how and why they believe it, and the relationship between the Internet and those beliefs.


The Teaching Teachers for the Future (TTF) project is funded by the Australian Government's Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) through the ICT Innovation Fund and is an $8.8 million project involving all 39 universities that are involved in teacher education. This symposium involves presenters from four of these universities who are working in various ways in the project. The first paper involves an overview of the project and a summary of some of the projects currently being conducted using the TPACK framework at the various universities. The second paper is on the evaluation strategy and provides a preliminary analyzes. The third paper explores the benefits of prospective teachers creating and sharing new media in their professional learning activities. The final paper is about a Social Ecological Model (SEM) has been used to positively inform integration support efforts of individual academics through their personal, institutional, professional, societal and temporal perspectives on ICT integration.


The essential zinc finger protein ASCIZ (also known as ATMIN, ZNF822) plays critical roles during lung organogenesis and B cell development in mice, where it regulates the expression of dynein light chain (DYNLL1/LC8), but its functions in other species including invertebrates are largely unknown. Here we report the identification of the Drosophila ortholog of ASCIZ (dASCIZ) and show that loss of dASCIZ function leads to pronounced mitotic delays with centrosome and spindle positioning defects during development, reminiscent of impaired dynein motor functions. Interestingly, similar mitotic and developmental defects were observed upon knockdown of the DYNLL/LC8-type dynein light chain Cutup (Ctp), and dASCIZ loss-of-function phenotypes could be suppressed by ectopic Ctp expression. Consistent with a genetic function of dASCIZ upstream of Ctp, we show that loss of dASCIZ led to reduced endogenous Ctp mRNA and protein levels and dramatically reduced Ctp–LacZ reporter gene activity in vivo, indicating that dASCIZ regulates development and mitosis as a Ctp transcription factor. We speculate that the more severe mitotic defects in the absence of ASCIZ in flies compared to mice may be due to redundancy with a second, ASCIZ-independent, Dynll2 gene in mammals in contrast to a single Ctp gene in Drosophila. Altogether, our data demonstrate that ASCIZ is an evolutionary highly conserved transcriptional regulator of dynein light-chain levels and a novel regulator of mitosis in flies.


As oceans cover over 70% of the planet's surface, they represent a large reservoir of resources that remained vastly untapped. Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) are becoming key technology for ocean exploration. Ocean thermal gradient is a permanent and reliable energy source that can be used to power UUVs using phase change material (PCM)-based thermal engines. When using PCM-based thermal engines to power UUVs, there are different energy conversion stages, thermal, hydraulic, kinetic, and electrical, dependent on a wide variety of parameters. Thus, optimization of the overall energy conversion is still a challenge for powering the increasing energy demanding UUVs for long missions.
 The goal of this study is to propose a PCM-based ocean thermal energy harvesting system for powering float type UUVs such as the Solo II float. This reduces the cost for battery replacement and expands the float's mission time. For this purpose, we developed a model consisting of hydraulic and electrical systems, designed to provide the electrical power needed by the UUV. The hydraulic and electrical systems are implemented using MATLAB-Simulink. The model developed can provide 13.66 kJ of electrical energy, which is more than 1.5 times the energy requirement per cycle for the SOLO II float.


Imagery is important in cognitive therapy because images often trigger strong emotions, and imagery techniques such as imaginal reliving and imaginal rescripting are increasingly used in therapeutic treatments. Imagery and the Threatened Self considers the role that images of the self play in a number of common mental health problems and how these images can be used to help people to recover. Stopa and her contributors focus specifically on images of the self which are often negative and distorted and can contribute to both the cause and the progression of clinical disorders. The book includes chapters on current theories of the self and on imagery techniques used in therapy, alongside chapters that examine the role of self-images and how images can be used in the treatment of disorders including: * social phobia
 * post-traumatic stress disorder
 * eating disorders
 * depression
 * bipolar disorder. Imagery and the Threatened Self is an original and innovative book that will appeal to both clinicians and students who are studying and practising cognitive therapy.


The social influence in the form of peer pressure is prevalent in many countries across the globe. Peer pressure is the influence of a group on behaviors of individual members of that group such that the individuals tend to follow what everybody does. In the field of business, understanding consumer's interest is of paramount importance and therefore understanding peer pressure can be a useful tool to persuade consumers to follow their peers and buy the targeted products. How this can help businessmen promote sales and increase the brand awareness thus remains an open question for many researchers. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the importance of peer pressure on the consumption behavior of customers in Taiwan. The hypothesis is that peer pressure has a positive correlation with consumers' decisions to buy, that is, the more consumers are affected by their peers, the more they are willing to buy products that their friends buy. This study also investigated the possible explanations for the influence of peer pressure on consumption behaviors in Taiwan (if any) and from the results obtained, suggestions on how to attract more customers and increase brand awareness in Taiwan, with respect to peer pressure, were also proposed. Online and printed questionnaires were given to a wide range of participants of different characteristics including age groups, races and gender. The results were then statistically processed using SPSS software. A total of 103 participants took part in the research and the impacts of peer pressure, together with possible explanations, were examined. Possible applications of the results in real life businesses were also given.

 Key words: Peer pressure, business, consumer behavior, Taiwan.


Take home lab equipment and hands-on learning tools are still in demand for control theory and vibrations courses. The existing equipment are extremely expensive and require wide lab space. The aim of this research is to build vibratory mechanical system that is compact, modular and small scale so that each student can work on their setup and take it home if necessary. For this purpose, in this study, a semi-compliant mechanism is designed to be utilized in systems control and vibrations courses which would enhance the understanding of students by using experimental demonstration of the theoretical systems. The superiorities of the design over commercially available equipment are their low cost and simplicity.
 A parallel arm mechanism consisting of several flexible links that can be attached at different points on the slider is designed, finite element analysis (FEA) is performed in Solidworks, and the flexible beams are 3D printed using polyactic acid (PLA) and Polyethylene terephthalate glycol-modified (PETG) filaments. Different configurations of the mechanism are explored by changing the number of flexible beams attached to the slider. The mathematical model of the proposed mechanism can be represented by a single mass and multiple springs in parallel. Since mass is a known property, the equivalent stiffness can be experimentally found from the frequency analysis of free response. For this purpose, a PCB model tri-axial accelerometer is attached to the slider and the equations of motion are derived from the analysis of frequency characteristics of the complaint dual arm mechanism for each configuration. System properties including the equivalent friction are obtained from the acceleration vs time data using logarithmic decrement. The forced response is studied by attaching a load to the mass through a pulley system. The load deflection curve is obtained experimentally from LabVIEW. Since the system parameters are obtained from the free response, Matlab Simulink model outputs for the same initial displacement and force input are verified with the experimental data.


During my PhD I was involved in many studies concerning the nucleophilic (SNAr) and electrophilic (SEAr) aromatic substitution reactions.
My research activity was focused on the study of different electrophile/nucleophile combinations between strongly activated species, with the purpose to investigate on their reactivity, to detect new intermediates of the aromatic substitution reaction and to obtain new higly conjugated structures bearing contemporaneously electron donor and acceptor moieties on the same unit for application in different fields.
Different reactions between both neutral or charged electrophilic and nucleophilic species were performed and from their combinations new products for applications in different fields (e.g. medicine, biology and materials) were obtained and new intermediates of the aromatic substitution reactions [e.g. Wheland (W), Meisenheimer (M), and even Wheland-Meisenheimer (WM)], were detected and characterized, mainly using NMR spectroscopic techniques.
In particular the involved nucleophilic species were: tri- and diaminobenzene derivatives, trihydroxybenzene, trimethoxybenzene, anisole derivatives and aminothiazole derivatives; whereas the selected electrophilic species were: aryldiazonium ions, benzofuroxan and benzofurazan derivatives, thiophene derivatives and benzhydrylium ions.
Furthermore, the last year of my PhD course, I spent a period in the Department of Chemistry, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, in collaboration with Prof. Herbert Mayr's group, with the aim to investigate on the nucleophilic reactivities of di- and triaminobenzene derivatives performing their combination with different reference electrophiles, selected from the Mayr's reactivity scales.


Localized neuropathic pain (LNP) is a type of neuropathic pain that is characterized by "consistent and limited area(s) of maximum pain associated with negative or positive sensory signs and/or spontaneous symptoms characteristic of neuropathic pain". This definition encompasses a huge number of neuropathic orofacial pain syndromes. We present a case report of a patient who was affected with sleep apnea syndrome treated with nocturnal oxygen mask delivery, in whom orofacial LNP hampered the wearing of a mask due to unbearable burning and throbbing pain. The application of 5% lidocaine medicated plaster during the night led to an impressive reduction of both the pain level and the size of the painful area due to the plaster's pharmacological mechanisms, which were associated with a secondary benefit due to its mechanical protective action. This case report shows how these two factors could be of clinical value and have to be considered more systematically in the treatment of LNP in reducing pain and the size of the painful area.


Biogenic micro/nanpocapsules, comprised of bovine serum albumin (BSA), were successfully prepared by depositing BSA multilayer on SiO2 particles followed by glutaraldehyde cross-linking and the removal of templates. Silica particles with two sizes, BMS (bimodal silica) and smaller silica particles with sizes of about 3 m and 200 nm, respectively, are used. The BSA hollow microcapsules were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) after signed by fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC). The as-prepared BSA hollow microcapsules are potentially valuable in biotechnology and medicament applications.


Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a small, enveloped virus with a positive stranded
RNA genome that encodes a polyprotein of approximately 3000 amino acids. HCV polyprotein requires two distinct proteases for viral replication, the NS2 and the NS3. HCV NS2/3 protease is a cysteine protease that features a highly unusual active site where NS2 forms a dimer with the active site cysteine on one monomer and histidine and glutamate on the other. Initial in vitro studies for identification of site-derived cleavage products as inhibitors of NS2 protease showed that the decapeptide from the N-terminal cleavage inhibits the cleavage between NS2 and NS3 with an IC50 of 90 �M thus providing a useful starting point for the development of other inhibitors in the current studies. Our approach involves the synthesis of truncated NS2 site-derived
peptide cleavage products in order to evaluate the importance of hydrogen bonding interactions that are essential for host recognition and to aid in the reduction of the size of the polypeptide chain. Therefore, a number of truncated peptides were synthesized through solid-phase peptide synthesis. Furthermore, immunoblotting and UPLC-MS/MS methods were used for characterization of the NS2/3 protease and quantification of the peptide inhibitors. Our results demonstrate that a hexapeptide has encouraging potency towards inactivation of the NS2/3 auto-cleavage process.
The second project involves synthesis of islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) helical mimetics. Misfolding and aggregation of islet amyloid fibrils lead to the conversion of their secondary structure into cytotoxic �-sheet aggregates. Deposition of islet amyloid fibrils is related to the development and progression of type II diabetes, since their aggregation causes the impairment and death of the pancreatic beta cells. In order to prevent the formation of amyloid fibrils, we have designed aryl-substituted heteroaromatic core scaffolds to direct the secondary structure of pro-amyloidogenic peptides into non-amyloidogenic conformers to mimic and induce/stabilize the IAPP helical state. A range of 2,5-diarylated thiophenes were synthesized as small molecule mimetics of the �-helix to modulate the amyloidogenesis and cytotoxic effect of islet amyloid polypeptide. 3-Substituted thiophene-2-carboxylic acids were used as key intermediates and functionalized by palladium decarboxylative cross-coupling and direct CH activation successively with overall yields ranging from 23 to 95%. The effect of the ligands on IAPP amyloid fibril formation was evaluated with the thioflavin T (ThT) fluorescence-based assay. Furthermore, the capacity of these compounds to inhibit the cytotoxic effect of IAPP was assessed using �-pancreatic cells.


This article aims to understand the practices related to the Lotus Sūtra in Yongming Yanshou's 永明延壽 (904–975) life and in one of his works, the Z hijue chanshi zixing lu 智覺禪師自⾏錄 (Records of Yanshou's self cultivation). In this text, 108 daily events are listed as Yanshou's self-cultivation. Of those related to the Lotus Sūtra, I have identified three categories: 1. the construction of Lotus halls (fahua tang 法華堂); 2. the veneration, printing and distribution of the Lotus Sūtra; 3. cultivation of the Lotus Samādhi. As this article shows, although Yanshou is well-known as a synthetic practitioner, embracing the doctrines of different schools and engaging in various practices, he always tried hard to integrate them under the ultimate goal ofattaining enlightenment.


This article provides an analysis of the water history regarding the Wonderfontein Spruit Catchment in the former Far West Rand in South Africa. The major scope for discussion is a short analysis of environmental ethics and crime in this area in the past, and how it has affected man and environment as analysed from a 21st Century perspective. The Wonderfontein Spruit Catchment forms part of the present-day Merafong municipal area, formerly Carletonville. Although voices of concern have featured prominently since the 1960s and even earlier, no extraordinary ethical approach towards this environment and its inhabitants is recorded in history. Bibliographic sources of the Wonderfontein Spruit Catchment currently number over 5000 entries. Despite this impressive production resulting from especially research, reports and whistle blowing in the past 55 years, the area was exposed to limited and insufficient ethically inspired actions, that should have had the ingredients to confirm a positive approach by primary role players regarding environmental management.


Deliverable 5.4 collects reflections on the promotion and sustainability of Commonfare proposal as a whole and the commonfare.net platform even after the end of the project. D5.4 includes also proposals and goals all partners have suggested in the mid-term internal report. The information and insights shared within the Consortium as well as exchanges of views with different stakeholders have led to identify different scenarios whose synthesis is the establishment of the Commonfare Legal entity Association.


Nano-structuring of polymeric carbon nitride (PCN) is an important strategy to improve its photocatalytic performance, while facile and green methods are scarce yet. Herein, we proposed a novel steam-assisted method to prepare holey PCN nanosheets in one step. Only a green gas template, i.e. steam, decomposed from the recyclable steam source Mg(OH)2 is needed for PCN nano-structuring. Moreover, in situ element doping of nano-structured PCN can be synchronously realized via this method. The holey PCN nanosheets and doped counterparts have boosted visible-light photocatalytic H2 evolution activities 12-35 times that of bulk PCN, benefitting from enlarged specific surface area, suppressed photogenerated electron-hole recombination and prolonged charge carrier lifetime. Steam-assisting may be a useful strategy for the facile and green synthesis of other nanosized PCN materials.


This paper shows that large cash reserves lead to systematic future market share gains at the expense of industry rivals. Using shifts in import tariffs to identify exogenous intensification of competition, difference-in-difference estimations support the "causal" impact of cash on product market performance. Moreover, the analysis reveals that the "competitive" effect of cash is markedly distinct from the strategic effect of debt on product market outcomes. This effect is stronger when rivals face tighter financing constraints and when the number of interactions between competitors is large. Overall, the results suggest that cash policy encompasses a substantial strategic dimension. Copyright (c) 2010 The American Finance Association.


This paper aims to evaluate the existing research on the Turkish house, which investigates the subject under such titles as the "Turkish house", the "Ottoman house" or the "Anatolian house". The way the "Turkish house" ideal is treated in academic discourse is an intriguing case. The concept of the "Turkish house" has been the subject of different interpretations and objections under changing conditions. Yet, it has always been a subject of research and discussion since the time it appeared as a concept, and its emphasis on architectural essentials has informed survey drawings and typological research in Turkey. Although the objections against the concept of the "Turkish house" have gradually boosted since the 1970s and made a peak in the 1990s, the concept has still remained as an indispensable paradigm for discussions of the Ottoman or Anatolian house culture. This paper aims to explain the parallel or diverse meanings attributed to the ideal "Turkish house" and attempts to understand the endeavor to create essential bonds between various housing cultures in the Ottoman geography through an idealized concept.


OBJECTIVES
Both school-books as well as teachers in elementary education play an important role in the dissemination of concepts on health education. To evaluate the content of the books used for elementary education with regard to their concepts and information on vaccination.

METHODS
A total of 50 schoolbooks in the domains of Sciences and Biology was analyzed to verify their content on vaccination. The work was carried out by two fifth year students of medicine and also by a professor in the area of Pediatrics.

RESULTS
Of the 50 books analyzed, 17 (34%) had no information whatsoever on vaccination. Regarding content, of the 33 books that did have information on vaccines, 19 (57.5%) had incorrect information: errors on the definition of vaccines, errors on the vaccination calendar, absence of content updating, omission of the content and inadequate illustration. Among the errors are: mention of inexistent vaccines (dengue) or in disuse (smallpox), the fallacy that vaccine is a remedy, vaccine indication only for children and association of vaccines with pain and discomfort. Moreover, regarding content, 26 books (78.7%) cited concept/definition of vaccines, 29/33 (87.8%) associated vaccine with prevention of disease, 10/33 (30.3%) cited a basic calendar of vaccination and only 7/33 (21.2%) informed on vaccination in other age brackets other than the pediatric one.

CONCLUSION
In spite of the importance of vaccination and notwithstanding the guidelines of MEC (Brazilian Education Ministry), more than half of the books analyzed had some misconception or wrong information on the subject.


A syllabus study was conducted to indicate potential directions for the library instruction program at the University of Notre Dame, a comprehensive Level One institution in Indiana. In addition to identifying those courses which might benefit from library instruction that are not currently utilizing these services, the authors also tested several hypotheses regarding library use. A total of 144 syllabi were collected from a random sample of classes and were analyzed to determine the degree to which library resources are utilized. A summary analysis of the course syllabi showed that 62 syllabi (43 percent) required no library use, and 82 syllabi (57 percent) required at least some library use. Further analysis of the data revealed that class size, discipline, and even days on which classes are taught have an impact on the extent to which any type of library component is included in syllabi. The disciplines with the highest percentage of required library research were arts/architecture and the social sciences, the disciplines with the lowest percentage of library use were business and the sciences/engineering. This study reinforces the value of examining course syllabi as a method for uncovering opportunities for instruction and outreach.


From the 1860s onwards, the Slovene press in the Austrian Littoral, in Trieste and Gorizia, notified the public in due time of each anti-Slovene or anti-Slavic action, national affront, occurring in public, on the streets, at an inn, in a coffee house or at a city council meeting. We could claim that such reporting was complementary to the expansion of the national awareness or part and parcel of the nationalist discourse. It aimed to familiarize its Slovene readers with the contents of the said affronts, reasons leading to verbal and physical conflicts, to raise awareness about their national belonging and to reaffirm the national neighbour's and competitor's malevolence. By escalating the national conflict from the nineties onwards, the Slovene political leadership started to promote the individuals' demands for legal sanctioning of anti-Slovene and anti-Slavic hate speech. This was sanctioned by the judicial authorities that were more favourably disposed towards Slovenes. The subject at hand would not be examined completely if we failed to mention that anti-Italianita was a constituent part of the Slovene national discourse. In the Slovene press, the anti-Italian discourse is intertwinned with the denunciation of anti-Sloveneness or anti-Slavism and is indicated as a result thereof.


Information on delays in obtaining appointments in a city practice was collected. The results showed that although overall 89% of patients could be offered appointments with one of the doctors by the next day, only 60% chose to accept one, the remainder electing to wait for a particular doctor or surgery time. When patients making urgent requests for appointments were analysed separately, it was shown that 98% were offered same-day appointments and 96% accepted. Only 17% of patients making an urgent request expressed a preference for a particular doctor or time, compared with 68% of non-urgent requests. The frequency of urgent requests was greater for patients under five years of age and lower for those over 65 years old. The study suggested that longer waiting times for an appointment were the result of patient choice for a particular doctor or time, which in turn was dependent on the degree of urgency, rather than the unavailability of appointments.


Purpose: To derive an appropriate CTV‐to‐PTV margin that will ensure delivery of 100% of the prescribed dose to 95% (on average) of daily CTV's during a treatment course. Method and Materials: Daily CBCTimages are taken for setup of Stage I–IVa cervical cancer patients at our institution. Daily CTV contours drawn on these images take into account the effect of interfraction motion due to organ motion/deformation and tumor regression. To date, we have acquired CBCT data for 15 patients out of which 5 have been analyzed so far. On each CBCT, expert radiation oncologists manually segment CTV, bladder and rectum of that particular day. The CTV contours from all the CBCT scans of the same patient are superimposed on the planning CT scan after rigidly registering each CBCT scan to the planning CT scan. A uniform margin of 0, 3, 5, 7, 10, or 15 mm etc is added around the planning CTV and the average volume of CTV missed over all fractions is analyzed. The isotropic margin that encompasses 95% of daily CTVs on an average is considered adequate for the patient. Results:Statistical analysis of 5 patient's shows that a 7 mm margin is sufficient to cover on an average 98% (min: 95.2, max: 99.6) of daily CTVs of these 5 patients. However a bigger margin of 15 mm is required to adequately cover the high risk cervix region. The mean of the standard deviations in average volume of CTV covered for these 5 patients at 7 mm margin is 2.4 % indicating large inter‐patient variation. Analysis of more patients is required to reduce variation in average CTV volumes among patients. Conclusion: Clinical implementation of CBCTimaging devices has made possible margin evaluation based on daily images that provides a more accurate means of accounting for interfraction motion.


Aims The aim of this study is to investigate the medicalising of gambling problems by comparing the political discussions on gambling in the Swedish Parliament in the early 1970s and the early 2010s. Design Against a theoretical background on medicalising processes in general, and medicalisation of gambling problems in particular, we have analysed discussion protocols and parliamentary bills in the Swedish Parliament from the years 1970–1975 and 2012–2013. Results The problem descriptions of the 1970s and 2010s are, in certain respects, strikingly similar, identifying proactive operators such as the gambling companies and highlighting an inadequate legal framework. But where the MPs of the 1970s put some effort into describing the drab society which fed the need for gambling, the elected representatives of the 2010s shortcut to individual dependence. Conclusions EU membership and the development of the Internet have made effective control and regulation impossible in the early 2010s and the political handling of the Swedish gambling problem is therefore a clear example of how market liberalisation can pave the way for individualisation, medicalisation and depoliticisation of social problems.


This paper presents the results of studies on ZrO2 containing 10% Eu3+ as a nanofiller in polyurethane nanocomposites with luminescent properties. The nanocomposites, which are potential materials for electro-optical-electronic applications, were prepared by in-situ polymerization. Emission spectra, thermodegradation, thermal analysis and mechanical properties of polyurethane ZrO2/10% Eu3+ were investigated and the structure examined using HRSEM. The aim was to investigate the influence of the distribution of nanofillers in the composite and the structure of hard domains of polyurethanes on the relevant properties for opto-electronic applications.


For diverse reasons, the problem of phenomenal consciousness is persistently challenging. Mental terms are characteristically ambiguous, researchers have philosophical biases, secondary qualities are excluded from objective description, and philosophers love to argue. Adhering to a regime of efficient causes and third-person descriptions, science as it has been defined has no place for subjectivity or teleology. A solution to the "hard problem" of consciousness will require a radical approach: to take the point of view of the cognitive system itself. To facilitate this approach, a concept of agency is introduced along with a different understanding of intentionality. Following this approach reveals that the autopoietic cognitive system constructs phenomenality through acts of fiat, which underlie perceptual completion effects and "filling in"—and, by implication, phenomenology in general. It creates phenomenality much as we create meaning in language, through the use of symbols that it assigns meaning in the context of an embodied evolutionary history that is the source of valuation upon which meaning depends. Phenomenality is a virtual representation to itself by an executive agent (the conscious self) tasked with monitoring the state of the organism and its environment, planning future action, and coordinating various subagencies. Consciousness is not epiphenomenal, but serves a function for higher organisms that is distinct from that of unconscious processing. While a strictly scientific solution to the hard problem is not possible for a science that excludes the subjectivity it seeks to explain, there is hope to at least psychologically bridge the explanatory gulf between mind and matter, and perhaps hope for a broader definition of science.


This paper provides a summary of key reports and papers published by UK HE sector organisations between February and August 2017. The organisations featured are: Careers Research and Advisory Centre (CRAC); Department for Education (DfE); Equality Challenge Unit (ECU); Government Office for Science (GO-Science); Higher Education Academy (HEA); Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE); Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI); Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA); Institute for Employment Studies (IES); Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS); Jisc; Leadership Foundation for Higher Education (LFHE); National Union of Students (NUS); Office for Fair Access (OFFA); Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA); Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA); Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS); UK Trade Policy Observatory (UKTPO); Unite Students; Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA); Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association (UCISA); Universities UK (UUK); and Universities UK International (UUKi). The election manifestoes of the major political parties in England are also featured in this paper. The themes covered in this paper include: the UK general election; the Higher Education and Research Act 2017; student expectations and experiences; student complaints; the Teaching Excellence Framework; learning gain; quality assurance; accelerated degrees; degree apprenticeships; credit transfer; supporting transition; equality and diversity; student wellbeing; students and public engagement; technology-enhanced learning and digital capability; The Smith Review (of post-16 mathematics education); employability and graduate outcomes; internationalisation (including outward mobility and transnational education); and the HE workforce.


The liver is Associate in Nursing organ solely found in vertebrates that detoxifies numerous metabolites, integrates proteins, and produces biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it's positioned within the right higher quadrant of the abdomen, at a lower place the diaphragm. Its different roles in metabolism embrace the regulation of polyose storage, decomposition of red blood cells, and the assembly of hormones. The liver is an adjunct biological process organ that produces digestive juice, Associate in Nursing alkalic fluid limiting sterol and digestive juice acids, that helps the breakdown of fat. The vesica, a little pouch that sits just below the liver, stores digestive juice generated by the liver that is after touched to the tiny gut to complete digestion. The liver's extremely specialized tissue, involving of principally hepatocytes, regulates a large style of high-volume organic chemistry reactions, as well as the synthesis and breakdown of tiny and convoluted molecules, several of that are necessary for traditional important functions.


Older adolescents were surveyed concerning three issues: behaviors which constitute infidelity in a dating relationship, reasons for a dating partner to be unfaithful, and reactions to a dating partner's infidelity. Responses from 247 participants indicated more similarities than differences between dating infidelity and extramarital affairs with regard to behaviors, causes, and consequences. Results are discussed in terms of similarities between dating and marital infidelity, and the rationale for professionals to interact with adolescents concerning the potential long-term consequences of dating infidelity.


We have measured the production by (C57 x CBA)F1 mice of hapten-binding antibody in response to a standard dose of 50 µg of alum-precipitated NIP12-CG and the influence on this response of the prior administration of hyperimmune antisera raised against the homologous conjugate, the carrier globulin alone, the hapten conjugated to a non-cross-reactive carrier (NIP4-OA), or a related hapten (NP) coupled to CG. The homologous antiserum was strongly immunosuppressive; a dose capable of binding about 1% of the administered hapten caused significant suppression. High doses of anticarrier serum caused significant but modest suppression (about 50%); low doses had no effect. High doses of the serum prepared against NIP4-OA suppressed the 19 day response by more than 97%, while 100–1,000 times lower doses caused the response to be elevated to about double the control level. The antibodies responsible for immunosuppression could be removed from this serum, as could the NIP-binding antibodies, by absorption with NIP coupled through ethylenediamine to insoluble Sepharose. The ability of this serum to augment the response was not reduced by such absorption. Augmenting antibodies could be removed by absorption with HOP-BSA-Sepharose. Thus, immunosuppression and augmentation are functions of two different populations of antibody. The former are specific hapten-binding antibodies, the latter seem to be directed against new antigenic determinants created by coupling any of the family of haptens through lysine to protein carriers. In support of this contention, it was observed that rabbit antiserum to NP-CG, after absorption with CG-Sepharose, augmented the response of mice to standard immunization with NIP12-CG. Female mice produced significantly more NIP-binding antibody than did males.


The commercially pure(CP) titanium specimens were modified with Direct current(DC) plasma nitriding and arc ion plating of TiN film. The duplex treated titanium samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy(SEM), microhardness tester and ball-on-disc tribotester. The results showed that the duplex treated CP titanium appeared uniform and bright golden, microhardness and wear resistance improved substantially and were superior to that of only TiN coated ones. All these results indicate plasma nitriding and TiN film deposition duplex treatment can improve surface characteristics of CP titanium significantly. The method can be applied to the titanium denture to improve the tribological properties and color.


We have designed, built and tested an experimental apparatus for in vitro performance testing of an artificial urinary sphincter. A simulated urinary tract delivered a simulated urine to either an excised porcine urethra or artificial urethra at a physiologically normal pressure range of 0-93 cm H2O (0-9.12 kPa) and flow rate range of 0-830 ml/min (0-1.38 x 10(-5) m3/s). Inlet urine pressure, sphincter temperatures at several locations, urine flow, differential pressure across the urethra, and linear motion of the sphincter were measured with appropriate transducers and recorded on a PC-based data acquisition system. We conclude that the simulated urinary tract is adequate for testing artificial sphincter performance and that the data acquisition system accurately measures, displays, and records the parameters which indicate system performance.


This paper presents and analyzes a group of statistics which characterize the level and evolution of the labor income polarization in Greater Buenos Aires over the past two decades (1986-2006). The empirical evidence reveals two stages throughout those years: the first one distinguished by an increment of all indices and the second one, by shrinkage of them. Inspecting potential factors which could explain those changes, returns to education surge as the main polarization force in the labor market. Hence, an equalizing distribution of the human capital is a possible alternative for a less polarized labor market.


In this paper, the influence of temperature on the cracking of reinforced concrete frame is studied. Finite element analysis software is used to simulate the concrete cracking. In the modeling process, separate model element of SOLID65+LINK8 is used. Also, the Hongestad model is applied to the stress-strain relation of concrete and the rule of BISO is applied to the stress-strain relation of steel. By comparing the stress and strain of three different structure frames before and after temperature increasing, the extending rules of concrete cracking and the stress character of beam and column are analyzed. It is found that the maximum stress of beam is located in the end of the beam-column joints and the middle of beam under the temperature action. It is suggested that they are caused by moment and axis-force respectively. However, the greatest stress of column is situated at the end of beam-column joints. The reason is that the end of beam-column joints should deform to coordinate the influence of temperature. Thus, greater peak stress is caused. So, the concrete cracking is always distributed in the middle of beam span or beam-column joints, where the position of stress concentrates. In addition, the stress of steel in beams increases greatly under the temperature load, suggesting that the temperature leads to the internal force redistribution in the concrete component and the cracking of component.


The present study is intended to know the kinds of learning strategies used by students at SMPN 1 SrengatBlitar, to find out the most dominant strategies used by students at SMPN 1 Srengat Blitar. This study used a descriptive quantitative. The subjects of the study were the first year students at SMPN 1 SrengatBlitar in the academic year of 20082009 and the total number of the first year students were 24 students. To collect the data of this study, the researcher used questionnaire. Questionnaires were given to 24 students who learn English. Questionnaires were used to get the data on kinds of learning strategies used in learning English and the most dominant strategies used by the firs year student's classes. Based on the result of the data analysis, the writer found that the students used all the strategies to support and improve their learning process especially in learning English. Furthermore, the
most dominant learning strategies among six strategies (metacognitive strategies, compensatory strategies, cognitive strategies, affective strategies, social strategies and memory related strategies) used by the first year students in learning English were metacogniotive strategies which accounted for (19.1%). Meanwhile, the second strategy used was compensatory strategies
(18.2%), the third strategy was cognitive strategies (16.8%), the fourth dominant strategy used by the students was affective strategies (16.4%), the fifth strategy used was social strategies (15.8%), and the last strategy employed by the students in learning English classes was memory related strategies (13.7%).


Law Number 6 of 2014 and its implementation regulation have mandated a more independent village government in managing its governanceand the various village's natural resources, including assets and financial management. The counseling on managing and accountability village funds in East Sukamulia village, Sukamulia sub-district, East Lombok district, aims to 1). Increase the village officials' knowledge and understanding of the village funds or financial management, including planning and implementation stages; 2). Improve the village officials' technical accounting skills, especially the village fund or financial management unit, including the village financial reporting and administration. in conclusion, the community service program is very beneficial because it is following the village's needs, such as managing the village funds, especially those sourced from central funds or APBN. Also, its material fits the village's demand perfectly within the governance, accountability, and the village funds reporting, especially those sourced from the APBN. Technically, it is very communicative and interactive because it can involve participants actively in presenting the material


Rapidly increasing congestion and delays have put serious pressure towards close airport performance monitoring. Airport decision makers should be able to cope with multiple – even conflicting – objectives and priorities assigned by various stakeholders. The assessment of the airport performance requires a deep understanding of the manifold performance aspects supported by advanced modelling capabilities. A wealth of decision support models and tools have appeared in both literature and practice, however, most addressed only partial aspects of the airport performance and exhibited several deficiencies with the most important being the clear lack of integrated modelling capabilities. This chapter presents the development of a system (SPADE) that will not only capture the manifold aspects of airport performance, but will also deploy a decision-oriented approach capable of analysing at a reasonable effort and at various levels of detail (e.g. strategic, tactical) the trade-offs among airport performance measures, entities, or elements. The objective of this chapter is twofold: (1) to introduce the structure and constituting elements of the SPADE system and (2) to demonstrate its decision support capabilities under 'real-world' conditions by means of two applications for strategic (Athens International Airport) and operational/tactical decision making (Amsterdam Airport Schiphol).


Extensive evaporites in Lower Mississippian successions from palaeoequatorial regions are commonly used as evidence for an arid to semi‐arid palaeoclimate. However, in this article, detailed studies of evaporites and their context refute this interpretation. Detailed sedimentological and petrographical analysis of the Lower Mississippian of northern Britain, is combined with archived log data from more than 40 boreholes across southern Scotland, northern England and Northern Ireland, and published literature from Canada. Two key cores from the Tweed Basin and the northern margin of the Northumberland – Solway Basin contain 178 evaporite intervals and reveal twelve distinct forms of gypsum and anhydrite across seven facies that are associated with planar laminated siltstone and intercalated thin beds of ferroan dolostone. Nodular gypsum and anhydrite, typically in intervals <1 to 2 m thick, are integral components of the succession. Nodular evaporite occurs within about 1 m of a palaeosurface, but most evaporite deposits represent ephemeral brine pans to semi‐permanent hypersaline lakes or salinas on a floodplain that was subjected periodically to storm surges introducing marine waters. Formation of evaporites under a strongly seasonal climate in a coastal wetland is supported by palaeosol types and geochemical proxies, and from palaeobotanical evidence published previously. Although 65% of modern equatorial areas experience a strongly seasonal climatic regime, salinas and sabkhas are a minor component today in comparison with the evidence from these Lower Mississippian successions. This implies that the earliest terrestrial environments were complex and dynamic, providing a diverse range of habitats in which the early tetrapods became terrestrialized and represent a setting that is rarely preserved in the geological record.


Since 2015, there has been a Saudi-led coalition displacing Yemenis within the country and across international borders. Qualitative research was conducted on this case study of Yemeni refugees who migrated across the Gulf of Aden into Puntland, Somalia. The purpose of this research is to explore migration determinants of the migrants on that particular migration flow. The rationale for this study emanates from the research objective to increasing understanding of migration factors and flows of a contemporary refugee crisis contributes to knowledge on migration. Primary Data for this research was collected from in-depth interviewing from a purposefully selected sample of Yemeni migrants. Subsequently, the data assessed using micro, meso and macro level of analysis to understand the main migration determinants. Findings from the research indicate that interactions of local-level factors influence people's migration decisions and strategies in combination with a range of political, economic and social factors and process that ultimately shape migration outcome, flow, and destination.


Federal efforts to address the impact of food marketing on children began more than thirty years ago, when the Federal Trade Commission sought comment on strategies to reduce young children's exposure to food advertising. The food, advertising, and television industries mounted a virulent response, and Congress withdrew the commission's authority to regulate unfair advertising to children. The same industries and Congress responded equally aggressively to the proposed nutrition criteria for food products marketed to children drafted by a working group of federal agencies in 2011. Although federal efforts over the past thirty years have led to modest improvements in food quality and marketing practices, commercial interests have consistently overridden the health concerns of children. Mobilization of parents as a political force to improve standards for food marketed to children, use of social media for counteradvertising, and the development of new technologies to decrease exposure to food advertisements could reduce the impact of food marketing to children.


The article contains the results of investigation on particularities of the ischemic stroke course in patients with atrial fibrillation. Neurological particularities of the ischemic stroke course in patients with atrial fibrillation are characterized with disorders of central hemodynamics, worse neurological status, high mortality. Neuroimaging features of ischemic stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation are similar to those in group without arrhythmia (P > 0.05). Ischemic focus is more frequently localized in left cerebral medium artery in all patients. Significant difference in the level of mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure between groups has not been detected (P > 0.05). The majority of patients with cardioembolic stroke had permanent atrial fibrillation (86.4%).


Surface modification is a promising technique to improve wear properties of titanium and titanium alloys by modifying either the surface composition or microstructure. Laser remelting and laser nitriding of commercial purity titanium were carried out under pure argon and pure nitrogen ambient, respectively. Characterization of the laser treated surface was done by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), microhardness tester. During laser irradiation heating, Ti exhibits a height activity and combines with N in the atmosphere of pure nitrogen forming TiN and TiN0.3, whereas Ti only transform into martensitic Ti in pure argon. The Vickers microhardnesses are greatly improved by laser remelting and laser nitriding.


This paper investigates a VoD distribution architecture that exploits the increasing uplink and local storage capacities of customer equipment in a peer-to-peer (P2P) manner in order to offload the central video servers and the core network segment. We investigate an environment where (i) the peers' upload speeds vary in time and (ii) on the subscriber's downlink a strict bandwidth limit constrains the VoD delivery, and where (iii) this downlink limit is not significantly higher than the video's own bit rate while (iv) the subscribers' upload capacities are not cut down. In such an environment providing quality for a true VoD service requires carefully selected mechanisms. We show how the components (storage policy, uplink speed management) of a P2P-VoD system should be changed to be feasible under these conditions. The main component of the system determines the minimal required server speed as a function of the prebuffered content, the uploaders' behaviours, and the given play back fault probability. Additionally, by using simulation we investigate the optimal downlink bandwidth limit for a subscriber population with different average upload speeds.


The exploration of novel antibiotic resistance determinants in a particular environment may be limited because of the presence of uncultured microorganisms. In this work, a culture-independent approach based on functional metagenomics was applied to search for chloramphenicol resistance genes in agro-industrial wastewater in Lerma de Villada, Mexico. To this end, a metagenomic library was generated in Escherichia coli DH10B containing DNA isolated from environmental samples of the residual arsenic-enriched (10 mg/ml) effluent. One resistant clone was detected in this library and further analyzed. An open reading frame similar to a multidrug resistance protein from Aeromonas salmonicida and responsible for chloramphenicol resistance was identified, sequenced, and found to encode a member of the major facilitator superfamily (MFS). Our results also showed that the expression of this gene restored streptomycin sensitivity in E. coli DH10B cells. To gain further insight into the phenotype of this MFS family member, we developed a model of the membrane protein multiporter that, in addition, may serve as a template for developing new antibiotics.


Abstract This paper aims to review what is known about the preparedness of hospital emergency departments (EDs) for a possible major earthquake expected in the near future in Istanbul and reveal the past experience and future plans from employees' viewpoints and, as well as from the related literature. For this purpose, potential effects of the earthquakes on ED operations, patient flow, and performance are discussed considering the statistical data of recent earthquakes in Turkey, a comprehensive report on the disaster preparedness of Istanbul and, one to one interviews with the earthquake experienced ED medical staff. In particular, issues on patient surge, triage and registration, communication, patient flow and transportation and, lack of enough resources and space to treat are presented as the main challenges. According to the viewpoints obtained from various sources, EDs in Istanbul are not ready to meet the needs caused by a major earthquake. It is proposed that operational research (OR) techniques can be useful to overcome these issues such as simulation modeling.


The two-dimensional thermoelastic sliding frictional contact of the functionally graded materials (FGMs) coated half-plane under plain strain-state deformation is investigated in this paper. A rigid cylindrical punch is sliding over the surface of the FGM coating with the constant velocity, which is small compared with the Rayleigh wave velocity of the medium. Frictional heating is generated at the interface between the punch and FGM coating with its value proportional to contact pressure, friction coefficient and sliding velocity. The material properties of the coating change exponentially along the thickness direction. It is assumed that the area outside the contact region is both thermally insulated and traction-free. The Fourier integral transform method is employed to convert the problem into the Cauchy singular integral equations, which is then solved numerically to obtain the unknown contact pressure and the in-plane component of the surface stress. The effects of the gradient index, Peclet number, and friction coefficient on the thermoelastic contact characteristics are discussed in detail. Numerical results show that the change of the gradient index, Peclet number and friction coefficient can influence the distributions of the surface contact stress.


Case Report A 47-year-old man developed sudden, severe left flank pain while driving, and went to a local emergency room. Initial workup included serum creatinine 1.06 mg/dl, and urinalysis negative for blood, protein, and white blood cells. Renal ultrasound was obtained and which showed left renal infarction. Computed tomography angiography revealed beading consistent with FMD at the distal main renal artery at the junction of the bifurcating branches (Figure 1) and tapered narrowing and occlusion in the more proximal artery (Figure 2) most likely caused by spontaneous dissection with intramural hematoma, with resulting substantial upper pole infarct.
Diagnosis: Left renal infarction in the setting of fibromuscular dysplasia.
Discussion: FMD is a non-inflammatory, non-atherosclerotic disorder that leads to arterial stenosis, occlusion, aneurysm, and dissection. Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) typically presents in middle aged women, often with hypertension [1]. Depending on which arteries are involved, patients may present with transient ischemic attack, headache, pulsatile tinnitus, flank pain, or stroke [2]. Computed tomography angiography, magnetic resonance angiography, duplex ultrasound and catheter based digital subtraction angiography can be ordered to confirm the diagnosis. Differential diagnosis includes atherosclerosis, polyarteritis nodosa, ehlersdanlos syndrome, marfan's syndrome, and primary and secondary hypertension. Treatment strategies include blood pressure control, angioplasty and surgery.

Conclusion: This is an atypical case of FMD in a male who presented with renal infarction. The patient had no prior history of renal disease, ehlers-Danlos syndrome, or marfan's syndrome. The patient has done well with no anticoagulation or invasive intervention and return of renal function to his prior baseline.


This paper examines the potential for using empirical models derived from real plant data for online quality control for an enamelled wire production process. Existing procedures are based around a well-established offline technique known as Tangent Delta. Using data recorded from normal production operations, models representing parameter input/output relationships are fast developed using standard linear regression. The linear models do not capture the behaviour of the process sufficiently well so other methods based on nonlinear and fuzzy methods and artificial neural networks are developed. The ability of each of these methods to capture the process characteristics are compared using test set data. The results indicate that the nonlinear models derived using the group method of data handling (GMDH) approach offer considerable promise for online quality control in this industrial application.