Abstract This paper aims to outline an analysis and interpretation of the process that led to First-Order Logic and its consolidation as a core system of modern logic. We begin with an historical overview of landmarks along the road to modern logic, and proceed to a philosophical discussion casting doubt on the possibility of a purely rational justification of the actual delimitation of First-Order Logic. On this basis, we advance the thesis that a certain historical tradition was essential to the emergence of modern logic; this traditional context is analyzed as consisting in some guiding principles and, particularly, a set of exemplars (i.e., paradigmatic instances). Then, we proceed to interpret the historical course of development reviewed in section 1, which can broadly be described as a two-phased movement of expansion and then restriction of the scope of logical theory. We shall try to pinpoint ambivalencies in the process, and the main motives for subsequent changes. Among the latter, one may emphasize the spirit of modern axiomatics, the situation of foundational insecurity in the 1920s, the resulting desire to find systems well-behaved from a proof-theoretical point of view, and the metatheoretical results of the 1930s. Not surprisingly, the mathematical and, more specifically, the foundational context in which First-Order Logic matured will be seen to have played a primary role in its shaping. Mathematical logic is what logic, through twenty-five centuries and a few transformations, has become today. (Jean van Heijenoort)


Conserved Patterns Across Ion Channels Correlate With Variant Pathogenicity and Clinical Phenotypes Brünger T, Pérez-Palma E, Montanucci L, Nothnagel M, Møller RS, Schorge S, Zuberi S, Symonds J, Lemke JR, Brunklaus A, Traynelis SF, May P, Lal D. Brain. 2022:awac305. doi:10.1093/brain/awac305. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36036558. Clinically identified genetic variants in ion channels can be benign or cause disease by increasing or decreasing the protein function. Consequently, therapeutic decision-making is challenging without molecular testing of each variant. Our biophysical knowledge of ion channel structures and function is just emerging, and it is currently not well understood which amino acid residues cause disease when mutated. We sought to systematically identify biological properties associated with variant pathogenicity across all major voltage and ligand-gated ion channel families. We collected and curated 3,049 pathogenic variants from hundreds of neurodevelopmental and other disorders and 12,546 population variants for 30 ion channel or channel subunits for which a high-quality protein structure was available. Using a wide range of bioinformatics approaches, we computed 163 structural features and tested them for pathogenic variant enrichment. We developed a novel 3D spatial distance scoring approach that enables comparisons of pathogenic and population variant distribution across protein structures. We discovered and independently replicated that several pore residue properties and proximity to the pore axis were most significantly enriched for pathogenic variants compared to population variants. Using our 3D scoring approach, we showed that the strongest pathogenic variant enrichment was observed for pore-lining residues and alpha-helix residues within 5 Å distance from the pore axis center and not involved in gating. Within the subset of residues located at the pore, the hydrophobicity of the pore was the feature most strongly associated with variant pathogenicity. We also found an association between the identified properties and both clinical phenotypes and functional in vitro assays for voltage-gated sodium channels (SCN1A, SCN2A, SCN8A) and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor (GRIN1, GRIN2A, GRIN2B) encoding genes. In an independent expert-curated dataset of 1,422 neurodevelopmental disorder pathogenic patient variants and 679 electrophysiological experiments, we show that pore axis distance is associated with seizure age of onset and cognitive performance as well as differential gain vs. loss-of-channel function. In summary, we identified biological properties associated with ion-channel malfunction and show that these are correlated with in vitro functional read-outs and clinical phenotypes in patients with neurodevelopmental disorders. Our results suggest that clinical decision support algorithms that predict variant pathogenicity and function are feasible in the future.


Three patients, two men and one woman, diagnosed as having adenocarcinoma of the lung were found to have changes in cholestatic biochemical values, and CT scan of the abdomen demonstrated dilation of the biliary tree. Upon further evaluation using ERCP marked dilation of the biliary tree was confirmed. There was no anatomic obstruction to bile flow, no neoplastic involvement of the liver or bile ducts and no evidence of any infiltrative process or disease to explain the dilation. A paraneoplastic syndrome is proposed as the etiology of the biliary tract abnormality. Along with other more common causes, this newly described paraneoplastic syndrome should be considered in the differential diagnosis of lung cancer in patients presenting with cholestasis and biliary tract dilation.


Hair loss is a feared side effect of chemotherapy treatment. It may be prevented by cooling the scalp during administration of cytostatics. The supposed mechanism is that by cooling the scalp, both temperature and perfusion are diminished, affecting drug supply and drug uptake in the hair follicle. However, the effect of scalp cooling varies strongly. To gain more insight into the effect of cooling, a computer model has been developed that describes heat transfer in the human head during scalp cooling. Of main interest in this study are the mutual influences of scalp temperature and perfusion during cooling. Results of the standard head model show that the temperature of the scalp skin is reduced from 34.4 °C to 18.3 °C, reducing tissue blood flow to 25%. Based upon variations in both thermal properties and head anatomies found in the literature, a parameter study was performed. The results of this parameter study show that the most important parameters affecting both temperature and perfusion are the perfusion coefficient Q10 and the thermal resistances of both the fat and the hair layer. The variations in the parameter study led to skin temperature ranging from 10.1 °C to 21.8 °C, which in turn reduced relative perfusion to 13% and 33%, respectively.


Ubiquitous smart environments, equipped with low-cost and easy-deployable wireless sensor networks (WSNs) and widespread mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs), are opening brand new opportunities in wide-scale urban monitoring. Indeed, MANET and WSN convergence paves the way for the development of brand new Internet of Things (IoT) communication platforms with a high potential for a wide range of applications in different domains. Urban data collection, i.e., the harvesting of monitoring data sensed by a large number of collaborating sensors, is a challenging task because of many open technical issues, from typical WSN limitations (bandwidth, energy, delivery time, etc.) to the lack of widespread WSN data collection standards, needed for practical deployment in existing and upcoming IoT scenarios. In particular, effective collection is crucial for classes of smart city services that require a timely delivery of urgent data such as environmental monitoring, homeland security, and city surveillance. After surveying the existing WSN interoperability efforts for urban sensing, this paper proposes an original solution to integrate and opportunistically exploit MANET overlays, impromptu, and collaboratively formed over WSNs, to boost urban data harvesting in IoT. Overlays are used to dynamically differentiate and fasten the delivery of urgent sensed data over low-latency MANET paths by integrating with latest emergent standards/specifications for WSN data collection. The reported experimental results show the feasibility and effectiveness (e.g., limited coordination overhead) of the proposed solution.


We report the case of a forty-nine year-old Native American female who presented with two-month history of headaches and unsteady gait. MRI brain showed a 6.5 cm by 5 cm enhancing dural-based mass with leftward midline shift. She was taken to the operating room for gross-total tumor resection. Pathology was supratentorial haemangioblastoma. This is the first known case of a supratentorial dural-based haemangioblastoma in a person of Native American descent. We review the literature and describe the unique characteristics of this tumor.


Wireless Capsule Endoscopy (WCE) is an omnipotent noninvasive and painless diagnostic method for capturing digital images of entire Gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In this paper, we propose a method to detect colonic polyps and tumors from WCE images. Extractions of textural features are not only from single key point by utilizing single scale-invariant feature but also from neighborhood key points. Haralick texture features are extracted from each of patch size of 16∗16 around the key points. For the best classification performance, the SIFT feature strategy is integrated with 22 Haralick textural features. In our prospective system, feature based classification is performed using Neural Network (NN) classifier for detecting colonic polyps and tumors accurately from the WCE images with an accuracy of about 97.5%.


Traditionally three independent types of analogical change in inflectional paradigms are distinguished: proportional analogy, paradigmatic leveling and analogical extension. However, the investigation of the data reveals that out of these types only that of proportional analogy can be empirically verified, being supported by clear evidence from languages with well documented history. Moreover, as shown by data from Russian, Old High German dialects, Old Saxon, Old English, and Latin, even in the most secure cases of paradigmatic leveling or analogical extension found in the literature the assumption of proportional analogy is either probable or cannot be excluded. Consequently the three traditional types of analogical change seem to differ with respect to their ontological status. On the one hand, paradigmatic leveling, i.e. the elimination of allomorphy in inflectional paradigms, is to be viewed merely as a motivation for change whose operating principle really is proportional analogy. On the other hand, analogical extension, i.e., the extension of already existing inflection forms through affixes with comparable function, seems to be just a possible way to describe the results of changes which, again, may in fact be instances of proportional analogy. These findings have the following implications for linguistic theory and practice. In practical work on inflectional morphology paradigmatic leveling and analogical extension without the use of proportional analogy can no longer be used in explanations on reconstructed stages of language development. All proposed explanations of this kind are to be supported by establishing an underlying proportional analogy or reconsidered if this is impossible. The proposed distinction between the motivational factors of change, to which paradigmatic leveling may belong, and its operational principle, which always seems to be proportional analogy, leads to a new three-level model of analogical change in inflectional paradigms: On the first level there are the motivational factors, on the second the proportional relations, and on the third level we find the factors governing the choice of a particular proportional relation. Furthermore, it can be shown that a number of morphological processes that have been described recently, such as the spread of the so called ?superstable inflectional markers? in nominal paradigms, the ?externalization of inflection? in pronouns and ?product-oriented modifications? in verbal conjugation, actually operate on the basis of proportional analogy. The widespread belief that assumed ?superstable markers? can be transferred from one inflectional type to another without a proportional base is founded on an unnecessary modification of the notion of proportional analogy that can be shown to be highly problematic by adducing empirical evidence. The most prominent instances of ?superstable marker? transfer in the North Germanic noun inflection are in fact clearly based on proportional relations between the inflectional patterns involved as soon as the chronology of the development is taken into consideration. It can also be shown that the shape of the ?externalized? inflection forms in pronominal paradigms of Old Norse cannot be accounted for by means of analogical extension but that, again, only proportional analogy provides a sufficient explanation for the attested structures. In addition, it can be demonstrated that proportional analogy offers an explanation for a similar development in Georgian. The often-supposed cases of ?product oriented modifications? without proportional analogy in the history of English verb inflection can be explained differently with the help of dialectal variation. Hence, they are not a counterargument against the notion of proportional analogy as the only empirically supported operational principle of analogical change in inflectional paradigms, argued for in this paper.


Abstract. In the absence of strong formal institutions, social networks play a significant role in contract enforcement and in determining the scope of co-investment. Social norms and rules of thumb may dictate how friends vs. strangers decide to share an economic surplus or how popular vs. socially isolated individuals sustain cooperation with others. We shed light on the effects of network characteristics on investment decisions through a framed field experiment. Our laboratory protocol builds on a basic two-party trust game with a sender and receiver. In some treatments, we introduce third-party monitors or punishers that may or may not be identifiable by the other two participants. We find that the social network interacts with the play of the game in economically meaningful ways. First, social proximity mitigates the co-investment problem. Both senders and receivers in socially close pairs make larger transfers to each other. Second, while on average, third-party punishment decreases the size of investments made by the sender, socially important punishers are efficiency enhancing. Third, characteristics such as caste and elite status affect play, but in ways distinct from network centrality. Elites benefit from higher partner transfers, but do not use their status to increase total surplus. Finally, we use our results to provide the first assessment of institutional structures as a function of network shape. Typically, socially far judges encourage efficient behavior, while socially close judges are prone to collusion. However, high centrality judges are able to resist proximity-based collusion and restore high levels of investment.


Predicting molecular conformations from molecular graphs is a fundamental problem in cheminformatics and drug discovery. Recently, significant progress has been achieved with machine learning approaches, especially with deep generative models. Inspired by the diffusion process in classical non-equilibrium thermodynamics where heated particles will diffuse from original states to a noise distribution, in this paper, we propose a novel generative model named GeoDiff for molecular conformation prediction. GeoDiff treats each atom as a particle and learns to directly reverse the diffusion process (i.e., transforming from a noise distribution to stable conformations) as a Markov chain. Modeling such a generation process is however very challenging as the likelihood of conformations should be roto-translational invariant. We theoretically show that Markov chains evolving with equivariant Markov kernels can induce an invariant distribution by design, and further propose building blocks for the Markov kernels to preserve the desirable equivariance property. The whole framework can be efficiently trained in an end-to-end fashion by optimizing a weighted variational lower bound to the (conditional) likelihood. Experiments on multiple benchmarks show that GeoDiff is superior or comparable to existing state-of-the-art approaches, especially on large molecules.


It is well known that repetitive noxious stimulation leads to mcreased excitability of dorsal root ganglion neurons and to mcreased activity within the dorsal horns, and nerve growth factor (NGF) has been shown to play important roles m peripheral neurons involved m this process. Less is known, however, about the role of NGF in central plasticity m pain. Recently, Pazet et al. (1) used immunocytochemical methods to study immunoreactivity for the high-affinity tyrosine receptor kmase A (TrkA) NGF receptor at spmal levels m a rat model of inflammatory chromc pam, adjuvant-mduced arthritis. They observed a specific increase m the number of TrkA-


A 16-year-old male presented with a 2-year history of a 5 x 5 cm dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (DFSP) on the medial aspect of his right lower leg. Wide local excision (WLE) with a 2cm margin was performed and a free anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap was used to reconstruct the defect. This technique satisfactorily reconstructed a large defect in an adolescent with minimal donor site morbidity, as the donor site was closed primarily, and a functionally and aesthetically acceptable outcome. There was no evidence of tumour recurrence at 6 months follow-up.


rn A procedure is described which leads to experimentally based models for the transitionstate structures of enzyme-catalyzed reactions. Substrates for an enzymic reaction are synthesized with isotopically enriched atoms at every position in which bonding changes are anticipated at the enzyme-enforced transition state. Kinetic isotope effects are measured for each atomic substitution and corrected for diminution of the isotope effects from nonchemical steps of the enzymic mechanism. A truncated geometric model of the transition-state structure is fitted to the kinetic isotope effects using bond-energy bondorder vibrational analysis. Full molecularity is restored to the transition state while maintaining the geometry of the bonds which define the transition state. Electronic wave functions are calculated for the substrate and the transition-state molecules. The molecular electrostatic potential energies are defined for the van der Waal surfaces of substrate and transition state and displayed in numerical and color-coded constructs. The electronic differences between substrate and transition state reveal characteristics of the transition state which permits the extraordinary binding affinity of enzyme-transition state interactions. The information has been used to characterize several enzymatic transition states and to design powerfully inhibitory transition-state analogues. Enzymatic examples are provided for the reactions catalyzed by AMP deaminase, nucleoside hydrolase, purine nucleoside phosphorylase, and for several bacterial toxins. The results demonstrate that the combination of experimental, classical, and quantum chemistry approaches is


Face recognition is a fundamental cognitive function that is essential for social interaction – yet not everyone has it. Developmental prosopagnosia is a lifelong condition in which people have severe difficulty recognising faces but have normal intellect and no brain damage. Despite much research, the component processes of face recognition that are impaired in developmental prosopagnosia are not well understood. Two core processes are face perception, being the formation of visual representations of a currently seen face, and face memory, being the storage, maintenance, and retrieval of those representations. Most studies of developmental prosopagnosia focus on face memory deficits, but a few recent studies indicate that face perception deficits might also be important. Characterising face perception in developmental prosopagnosia is crucial for a better understanding of the condition. In this thesis, I addressed this issue in a large-scale experiment with 108 developmental prosopagnosics and 136 matched controls. I assessed face perception abilities with multiple measures and ran a broad range of analyses to establish the severity, scope, and nature of face perception deficits in developmental prosopagnosia. Three major results stand out. First, face perception deficits in developmental prosopagnosia were severe, and could be comparable in size to face memory deficits. Second, the face perception deficits were widespread, affecting the whole sample rather than a subset of individuals. Third, the deficits were mainly driven by impairments to mechanisms specialised for processing upright faces. Further analyses revealed several other features of the deficits, including the use of atypical and inconsistent strategies for perceiving faces, difficulties matching the same face across different pictures, equivalent impact of lighting and viewpoint variations in face images, and atypical perceptual and non-perceptual components of test performance. Overall, my thesis shows that face perception deficits are more central to developmental prosopagnosia than previously thought and motivates further research on the issue.


We study the L x-ray emission from Zr, Mo and In targets and M x-ray emission from Pb target under bombardment of low energy Ar^q+ (q = 13, 14, 15, 16) ions. The relative x-ray yields were measured in the projectile kinetic energy range 210-360 keV. It is found that the relative x-ray yields from Zr, Mo and Pb targets increase with the increasing projectile kinetic energy for Ar^14+ and Ar^16+ projectiles and depend on the potential energy of the projectile remarkably.


In recent years, coordination polymers constructed from multidentate carboxylate ligands and N-containing ligands have attracted much attention since these ligands can adopt a rich variety of coordination modes which can lead to crystalline products with intriguing structures and interesting properties. A new coordination polymer, namely poly[[diaqua[μ-2,7-bis(1H-imidazol-1-yl)fluorene-κ2N3:N3'][μ-5,5'-methylenebis(3-carboxy-2,4,6-trimethylbenzoato)-κ2O1:O1']zinc(II)] hemihydrate], {[Zn(C23H22O8)(C19H14N4)(H2O)2]·0.5H2O}n, 1, was prepared by the self-assembly of Zn(NO3)2·6H2O with 5,5'-methylenebis(2,4,6-trimethylisophthalic acid) (H4BTMIPA) and 2,7-bis(1H-imidazol-1-yl)fluorene (BIF) under solvothermal conditions. The structure of 1 was determined by elemental analysis, single-crystal X-ray crystallography, powder X-ray diffraction, IR spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Each ZnII ion is six-coordinated by two O atoms from two H2BTMIPA2- ligands, by two N atoms from two BIF ligands and by two water molecules, forming a distorted octahedral ZnN2O4 coordination geometry. Adjacent ZnII ions are linked by H2BTMIPA2- ligands and BIF ligands, leading to the formation of a two-dimensional (2D) (4,4)-sql network, and intermolecular hydrogen-bonding interactions connect the 2D layer structure into the three-dimensional (3D) supramolecular structure. Each 2D layer contains two kinds of helices with the same direction, which are opposite in adjacent layers. The luminescence properties of complex 1 in the solid state have also been investigated.


The success of Law and Economics obscures, to some extent, a striking fact: the movement has virtually ignored criticisms of its foundations that are increasingly influential in mainstream economics, and by now commonplace (at least as points to grapple with) in utilitarian philosophy. These criticisms are hardly new-indeed, in philosophy most of them have been around since the fourth century B.C., when Aristotle criticized Plato's ambitious attempt to propose a "science of measurement" dealing with ethical value. By not informing itself about, and confronting, these criticisms, Law and Economics, which typically sees itself as a forward-looking and scientific movement, risks being stuck in the confusions that plagued philosophy during that interesting century. Law and Economics could be understood as involving simply a commitment to bring economics to bear upon law. So understood, the project would involve no particular claims about the proper foundations for economics. It would be as compatible with Amartya Sen's neo-Aristotelian conceptions as with those used by the "Chicago School," as hospitable to Adam Smith's complex cognitive analyses of emotion (based on Aristotle and the Stoics) as to the various views of preference and desire more commonly found in neoclassical economics. But in fact, although recently the movement has become somewhat broader, taking more account of approaches such as those of Sen and Smith, Law and Economics has been built on a particular set of conceptual foundations. These involve at least the following ideas: that rational agents are self-interested maximizers of utility; that utility can best be understood (for explanatory/predictive purposes) as a single item varying only in quantity; that utility is best analyzed in terms of the satisfaction of preferences; that preferences are exogenous, i.e., not significantly shaped by laws and institutions; and that the ends adopted by an agent cannot themselves be the


Background: Obesity, as measured by BMI, is an established risk factor for endometrial cancer in postmenopausal women. However, whether weight gain and weight cycling, both which occur frequently, are associated with risk of endometrial cancer independent of BMI is not clear. Previous studies of weight gain have found mixed results, but there was considerable variation in how the potential influence of BMI on this association was accounted for. Some studies did not adjust for BMI at all while others adjusted for BMI from different points during life. Similarly, inconsistent findings have been reported from studies of weight cycling and risk of endometrial cancer. Because weight cycling has been suggested to influence fat distribution and the ability to lose weight, it may affect risk of endometrial cancer. Methods: The associations of weight gain and weight cycling with endometrial cancer risk were investigated in a large, well characterized prospective study, the American Cancer Society9s Cancer Prevention Study II (CPS-II) Nutrition Cohort. Included in this analysis were 38,152 women with an intact uterus who provided information on weight history and weight cycling on the 1992 baseline questionnaire. Of these, 560 were diagnosed with endometrial cancer between 1992 and June 30, 2007. Adult weight change was calculated from the reported weight at age 18 and current weight on the 1992 baseline questionnaire. Number of lifetime weight cycles was assessed based on responses to the 1992 baseline questions asking how many times 10 or more pounds were intentionally lost and later regained. Multivariate-adjusted hazards ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using Cox proportional hazards regression. Results: Total weight gain during adulthood was statistically significantly positively associated with risk of endometrial cancer (HR=3.93, 95% CI:2.73–5.65 for gained 61+ lbs versus stable weight, p Conclusions: Our finding that adult weight gain is positively associated with risk of endometrial cancer even after adjustment for BMI suggests that both adult weight gain and BMI might have independent effects on the risk of endometrial cancer. The absence of association of weight cycling with endometrial cancer incidence after adjustment for BMI suggests that cycles of intentional weight loss followed by regain do not contribute to risk of this cancer. These findings underscore the importance of avoiding adult weight gain and indicate that encouraging women to try to lose weight is unlikely to increase risk of endometrial cancer even if weight is lost and subsequently regained. Citation Information: Cancer Prev Res 2011;4(10 Suppl):A77.


Background. Problem-based learning (PBL) has been adopted across many health professions training institutions. Small-group student tutorials are a major component of PBL. Facilitator feedback during a tutorial is a key activity to promote self-regulated learning. Objective. To explore ways in which students use feedback to promote self-regulated learning in a PBL environment. Methods. This was an exploratory qualitative study in which individual interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with health science students who had experience of the tutorial process. Data were collected through audio recording and writing of field notes. Thematic analysis was employed to generate the reported themes. Results. Students used feedback in various ways that can lead to self-regulated learning. Their experiences were summarised into three themes, i.e. activation of prior knowledge; reflection; and formulation of a personal learning plan. From the findings, a conceptual model linking feedback and selfregulated learning in a PBL context was developed. Conclusion. In this study, we propose a conceptual model illustrating how feedback is a major activity in the critical pathway that leads to self-regulated learning.


Abstract The region comprising central to eastern Dronning Maud Land (2°W to 40°E), East Antarctica, is underlain by Mesoproterozoic to Cambrian metamorphic rocks and post-kinematic intrusive rocks with varied compositions. The post-kinematic mafic dykes linked to the Pan-African orogen include various types of lithologies: lamprophyre and lamproite in Mühlig-Hofmannfjella in central Dronning Maud Land and lamprophyre and high-K dolerite in the Sør Rondane Mountains in eastern Dronning Maud Land. Most of the mafic dykes have been weakly affected by low-grade metamorphism, but clearly preserve their igneous textures. The mafic dykes show a high abundance of Rb, Ba, Sr and light rare earth elements with negative anomalies of Nb, Ta and Ti in a multi-element primitive mantle-normalized diagram. The geochemical characteristics of the mafic dykes suggest that they were derived from a metasomatized mantle source leaving phlogopite, rutile and/or titanite as residual phases. Considering Sr and Nd isotopic systematics of the mafic dykes and the host metamorphic rocks and coeval felsic intrusive rocks, a large crustal boundary potentially related to a suture zone of West and East Gondwana should pass between Mühlig-Hofmannfjella and the Sør Rondane Mountains.


The global economy and especially its poorest members, face a perfect storm. The crisis has been created by a Global LIE: leverage that is unfathomable, institutions that are discredited, and, experts who are uncertain about the uncertainty. The poorest countries have been the hardest hit by the crisis, and their recovery may be years away. Under these circumstances, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are not a best bet development strategy for Africa. As a financing decision, developed countries have never adequately resourced the MDGs and are unlikely to do so in future as they face more pressing priorities: entitlements, terror, climate, stimulus, and unwinding. As an investment decision, the MDGs focus on social services, not infrastructure, which creates fiscal stress on the budget. The failure of the MDG to address revenue mobilization means that this strategy is fiscally unsustainable. A better strategy for foreign aid are DIGs (Decade Infrastructure Goals) that focus on the investment in growth promoting infrastructure (revenue, roads, power, and agriculture) rather than social services.


The facility of ion beam laboratory at Kochi University of Technology (KUT) has been extended by installing the Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) technique, in order to provide qualitative and quantitative elemental analysis and in-air micro-PIXE analysis. This paper is a description of PIXE setup and its application in biological sample for qualitative elemental analysis. The energy calibration of the system shows linearity. The minimum detection limit indicates that the system has good detection limit. The homogeneity shows uniformity of the sample itself and the internal standard within the sample. A 4 MeV He ++ ion beam was used to analyze shellfish samples. Analyzing samples, it was found that the lower Z elements as well as some trace elements were detected. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/rujs.v39i0.16538 Rajshahi University J. of Sci. 39 , 01-10 (2011)


This article explains a puzzle created by the Standard and Poor's 500 cash and futures prices during the crash of October 1987. The cash index appears to be a moving average of the futures, but nontrading in constituent stocks explains only the initial period of delayed openings. However, execution of stale limit buy orders, given the high volume and NYSE market mechanisms at the time, resulted in extraordinary levels of stock prices that were not caused by nontrading. The model is supported in aggregate S&P data and transactions data for individual stocks. Copyright 1992 by University of Chicago Press.


Multiprotocol-label-switch virtual private network (VPN) service has emerged as a value-added cost-effective VPN- based service, and its market opportunity is tremendous for network service providers (NSPs). Quality of service (QoS) control is one of the critical issues to be addressed, for NSPs to maximize their profits. This paper proposes a QoS control system that combines the service admission control (SAC) and the rate feedback control together to maintain the preset QoS parameters (the packet loss probability case) in the provider's backbone network. First, one measurement module employs distributed intelligent agents to measure the VPN traffic from all of the heterogenous remote network nodes. The packet loss probability is then estimated on line by applying the large-deviation theory. SAC strategy decides the amount of permitted VPN services, while the feedback controller dynamically throttles ingress traffic rates of instantiated VPN services to maintain the preset packet loss targets. The performance is evaluated in the live network of the National Capital Institute of Telecommunications (NCIT*net2). Numeric results show that, under appropriately selected control parameters, it is possible to maintain the network operation within a prescribed loss limit


BACKGROUND
Sarcopenia, commonly determined by measuring skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) at the third lumbar level, has been identified as a predictor of clinical outcome in a variety of diseases. For patients with PAOD, we hypothesized that lower extremity skeletal muscle mass index (LESMI) might be a more precise predictor of outcome and the extent of chronic ischemia than the systemic muscle mass at the L3 level. We investigated the association between complete muscle volume and muscle area derived with single-slice 2- dimensional measurements in the legs to identify at which level cross-sectional single-slice measurements are most representative of the muscle volume and investigated whether LESMI is associated with systemic sarcopenia and PAOD severity.

METHODS
Muscle volumes and areas were semiautomatically segmented from computed tomography (CT) scans of the affected and contralateral legs of 50 PAOD patients with Fontaine stage IIb and 50 PAOD patients with Fontaine stage IV. The muscle mass was determined for the complete volumes of the upper and lower legs and for cross-sectional slices at 40%, 50%, and 60% of the length of the femur and tibia. Patients were determined as sarcopenic based on sex-specific cutoff values at the L3 spinal segment. Two observers segmented 20 randomly selected patients to determine the interobserver reliability with the intraclass correlation coefficient.

RESULTS
The correlation between the LESMI of the complete muscle volume and the three cross-sectional slices in all 200 upper and 200 lower legs was moderately strong to strong. Interobserver reliability of cross- sectional slice segmentation was excellent. The LESMI, both measured volumetrically and cross-sectionally, were significantly lower in patients with sarcopenia compared to patients without sarcopenia. The LESMI was lower in patients with Fontaine stage IV compared with patients with Fontaine stage IIb for both volumetric and cross-sectional measurements.

CONCLUSIONS
Segmentation of skeletal muscle mass from cross-sectional single-slice CT in the upper and lower leg can accurately and precisely substitute complete volume segmentations. These findings warrant the use of measurements based on cross-sectional single-slice CT for assessing the LESMI. Patients with systemic sarcopenia are also at increased risk for muscle mass loss in the lower extremities. In the current study, LESMI was lower in patients with Fontaine class IV PAOD compared to patients with Fontaine classIIb PAOD. Future studies should assess the predictive value of the LESMI on clinical outcomes in PAOD patients.


Abstract This article develops a frequentist solution to the functional calibration problem, where the value of a calibration parameter in a computer model is allowed to vary with the value of control variables in the physical system. The need of functional calibration is motivated by engineering applications where using a constant calibration parameter results in a significant mismatch between outputs from the computer model and the physical experiment. Reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces (RKHS) are used to model the optimal calibration function, defined as the functional relationship between the calibration parameter and control variables that gives the best prediction. This optimal calibration function is estimated through penalized least squares with an RKHS-norm penalty and using physical data. An uncertainty quantification procedure is also developed for such estimates. Theoretical guarantees of the proposed method are provided in terms of prediction consistency and consitency of estimating the optimal calibration function. The proposed method is tested using both real and synthetic data and exhibits more robust performance in prediction and uncertainty quantification than the existing parametric functional calibration method and a state-of-art Bayesian method.


Summary: A Mycobacterium sp. which grows on ethylene and ethylene glycol was isolated from ditch water. Growth of the organism, respiration of washed organisms, experiments on excretion of metabolic intermediates and enzyme studies were consistent with a new route for the degradation of ethylene glycol via acetaldehyde and acetate. Cell-free extracts of organisms grown on ethylene glycol contained a diol dehydratase which required K+ or NH4
+ for activity as well as coenzyme B12 (5′-deoxyadenosyl cobalamin). Ethylene glycol was not an intermediate in ethylene metabolism.


Ultrasonic subaperture processing using aperture synthesis and beam space interpolation is presented. The number of beam lines scanning the image plane for a given transmit-receive subaperture combination is chosen according to the spatial sampling criteria for that combination. On each beam line, echo signals over the entire array are collected through electronic multiplexing of array channels, where the transmit subaperture at the transducer center is fired K successive times, with K equal to the number of nonoverlapping receive subapertures. For every receive subaperture, the number of beam lines is increased through digital interpolation using a linear filter with spatial frequency band associated with the subaperture. Interpolated beam lines from all receive subapertures are then added to obtain a high resolution sector image. The efficiency of subaperture processing for different system configurations is tested on experimental rf data acquired from two different phantoms using a 3.5 MHz, 128-element transducer array. The proposed subaperture processing reduces the number of firings for data acquisition, and thus allows real-time imaging with very low susceptibility to motion artifacts.


: A total of 48 patients submitted to partial shoulder replacement for fracture and fracture-dislocation of the proximal humerus were evaluated after a mean follow-up of 5.2 years (range 2 to 10 years). The absolute mean Constant score was 57.8, relative score 76.8% and corrected score 80.4%. A mean of 8.8 points were totalled in the Simple Shoulder Test. Out of 45 patients evaluated radiographically, tuberosity consolidation in the anatomical site was evident in 25 shoulders (55%) and the subacromial space appeared to be preserved in 20 shoulders (44%). More than 90% of the patients declared that he or she was satisfied with treatment. A comparative study on subgroups of patients in an attempt to identify the prognostic value of several factors was conducted. Better functional results were obtained in subjects aged under 70 years, in fracture-dislocations, in shoulders with whole rotator cuffs, in patients with dedicated modular prostheses.


In order to obtain a high quality in speech synthesis, it is necessary to increase the frame rate in speech analysis. It has not been thoroughly investigated how frequent the optimal frame rate should be. First, we examined time fluctuating characteristics of the LPC parameters, such as log area ratio (LAR) and line spectrum pair (LSP) by spectral analysis. Next, we discuss the spectral interpolation distortion of these parameters, and the optimum coding to minimize the distortion. In case of LAR, it is possible to decrease to decrease the frame rate by 10 % through a non-uniform allocation of frame rates among different parameters. In case of LSP, the non-uniform allocation of frame rates is not necessary because the fluctuation characteristics of spectral interpolation distortion do not heavily depend on the order of LSP.


ABSTRACT Teacher research can be defined as research carried out by teachers for teachers. This type of educational research emphasises a transformative perspective through which teachers become agents of change. In the case of teacher research, it is hoped that findings resonate with other teachers in the broad contexts in which they originate and that there is impact, knowledge flow and knowledge democracy. This requires findings to be accessible for teachers to locate so colleagues are aware of what is produced in their own professional context. The aim of this article is to understand the extent to which studies authored by Argentinian teacher-researchers in English language teaching (ELT) make an impact in the local ELT professional community of practice by tracking Argentinian ELT author references in their outputs. Data were collected from a corpus consisting of 98 articles published in two local venues between 2014 and 2018 and a questionnaire completed by 65 authors included in the corpus. Findings reveal weak impact and knowledge flow within the Argentinian ELT professional community of practice caused by hegemonic practices and a tendency to value works situated in the UK/US.


Global coronal models seek to produce an accurate physical representation of the Sun's atmosphere that can be used, for example, to drive space-weather models. Assessing their accuracy is a complex task, and there are multiple observational pathways to provide constraints and tune model parameters. Here, we combine several such independent constraints, defining a model-agnostic framework for standardized comparison. We require models to predict the distribution of coronal holes at the photosphere, and neutral line topology at the model's outer boundary. We compare these predictions to extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) observations of coronal hole locations, white-light Carrington maps of the streamer belt, and the magnetic sector structure measured in situ by Parker Solar Probe and 1 au spacecraft. We study these metrics for potential field source surface (PFSS) models as a function of source surface height and magnetogram choice, as well as comparing to the more physical Wang–Sheeley–Arge (WSA) and the Magnetohydrodynamic Algorithm outside a Sphere (MAS) models. We find that simultaneous optimization of PFSS models to all three metrics is not currently possible, implying a trade-off between the quality of representation of coronal holes and streamer belt topology. WSA and MAS results show the additional physics that they include address this by flattening the streamer belt while maintaining coronal hole sizes, with MAS also improving coronal hole representation relative to WSA. We conclude that this framework is highly useful for inter- and intra-model comparisons. Integral to the framework is the standardization of observables required of each model, evaluating different model aspects.


Current information kiosks and ATMs are designed to facilitate users by providing a single modal interaction approach. They are generally accessed and operated via a small touch screen and a basic numberpad. Considering that most Information kiosks and ATMs are located in conjested and low lit areas, it becomes a usability challenge for users to operate such machines. As such kiosks become more and more complex and multifaceted their usability begins to fall considerably, even for experienced users. In this situation we see that disabled users, who often require the services of such kiosks the most, are facing serious accessability issues which limit, and in some cases outrite restrict the usage of such machines. For much of this evalution of IKs and ATMs, the disabled users accessability and usability concerns have gone unheard, giving raise to a technology bias and hence the current form of such machines, where touch screen are quickly replacing all mechanical buttons and keypads The impact of this evalution has left scaring effects for most disabled users. This research aims to understand the gap created by the advancements in IKs and ATMs, and provide a working design using a multimodal approach to bridge this gap. The reseach also tries to explore some of the on going efforts to design and implement IKs and ATMs for the disabled as well as some commercial products which have surfaced to facilitate the target users.


Syringocystadenoma papilliferum (SP) commonly arises in conjunction with nevus sebaceous. Other less common lesions reported with SP include apocrine adenoma, condyloma acuminatum, hidradenoma papilliferum associated with hidrocystoma, poroma folliculare, and a single case ofverrucous carcinoma. We report the second case of verrucous carcinoma in conjunction with SP.


The advancements made to digital technology have enabled academic libraries today to digitize their collections as a continuing process of improving their services to the academic community. Various factors determine whether a library should embark on a digitization project and the extent of the digitization. These include the policy of the institution, its financial resources, its manpower, its technical capability and the legality of digitization under the copyright law of each country. The objective of this study is to examine how Malaysian copyright law impacts on the digitization of collections in academic libraries in this country. The focus is on materials which are in the form of literary works as these represent the bulk of most academic libraries' collections. The study discusses the principles of copyright law that have a direct bearing on digitization, the potential liability of libraries for copyright infringement, the circumstances under which digitization is exempted from copyright infringement and the options available to academic libraries to embark on digitization projects without infringing copyright law. The methodology used is the doctrinal research methodology in the discipline of law. The findings of this study serve to expand the current body of knowledge on how digitization of library collections in academic libraries may be carried out within the confines of copyright law. The recommendations are two-fold. First, academic libraries may digitize materials if the purpose is to cater to the needs of those who are visually or hearing impaired. Secondly, in other cases, digitization may only be carried out after obtaining a licence or an assignment of copyright from the copyright owner. It is hoped that the study would provide librarians with a better understanding of the copyright issues that arise from digitization and the principles of copyright law that govern digitization so that libraries can act within the confines of copyright law.


A large literature emphasizes the importance of testing for measurement equivalence in scales that may be used as observed variables in structural equation modeling applications. When the same construct is measured across more than one developmental period, as in a longitudinal study, it can be especially critical to establish measurement equivalence, or invariance, across the developmental periods. Similarly, when data from more than one study are combined into a single analysis, it is again important to assess measurement equivalence across the data sources. Yet, how to incorporate nonequivalence when it is discovered is not well described for applied researchers. Here, we present an item response theory approach that can be used to create scale scores from measures while explicitly accounting for nonequivalence. We demonstrate these methods in the context of a latent curve analysis in which data from two separate studies are combined to estimate a single longitudinal model spanning several developmental periods.


In this paper, we propose an intelligent mediator that is based on XML technology for heterogeneous data source. We call it an XML Mediator or XMed for short. XMed is expected to reduce the overhead that may arise when adding a new data source and to allow uniform processing of data that may be received from different data sources. It is also to allow for dynamic connectivity to accessible data sources provided that the connection protocol is either already available with it or it can be uploaded dynamically. XMed receives requests from the client, analyzes, and forwards them to their corresponding destinations. Results are wrapped in XML and sent back to their corresponding client. It manages the users' accounts, authorization and security to facilitate the connection to the desired data source remotely. It is presumed that XMed will fulfill the role of an open system by exposing its services to any developed application. XMed maintains a knowledge base of user histories and metadata about database connections and queries. The system uses its knowledge base to assist users when accessing desired data or running queries.


Disclaimer Any opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and not those of the IIIS. All works posted here are owned and copyrighted by the author(s). Papers may only be downloaded for personal use only.


Orientation software produced today is generally designed for the navigation of cars. However, the navigation needs of pedestrians are different from those of drivers. The aim of this study is the design of a cartographic interface that supports the navigation of pedestrians in unfamiliar areas using landmarks and evaluation of this geo-mobile application by usability testing. In this study, an approach to landmark orientation based on the Voronoi diagram is proposed. Furthermore, the developed mobile application that uses this approach is explained in detail. The results of user tests are also given.


ABSTRACT In this paper, the performance of the Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technique evaluated in term of Bit Error Rate (BER) with respect to Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) by using Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) modulation for two algorithms Maximum Likelihood (MLD) and Zero-Forcing (ZF) with different configurations of antennas array in Rayleigh and Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN) channels. The results were compared between them to determine which of the numbers antenna elements are suitable in the transmitter and receiver of each algorithm. The results of MLD offers a better configuration when 4×4 and 3×4 antennas array were used, while the ZF remains the same performance for the 2×2, 3×3 and 4×4 configurations. In different numbers of antennas, the best performance of ZF is got when the number of transmitter and receiver antennas are equal to 2×4 respectively. Also, the last one is better than the 4×4 and 3×4 configurations of MLD algorithm.


Objective: The effect of antacid therapy for patients with COPD and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) remains unclear. Patients and methods: This nationwide population-based study was conducted using data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database, and enrolled COPD patients with or without GERD. Patients with COPD who were not prescribed COPD medications were excluded. Patients with GERD who underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy or 24-hour pH monitoring and received at least 1 antacid were enrolled as symptomatic GERD group. The primary endpoint was acute exacerbation and mortality. Results: This study included 3,485 patients with COPD and symptomatic GERD, and 13,938 patients with COPD alone and covered 12,806.57 and 56,809.78 person-years, respectively, from 2000 to 2011. After multivariate adjustment, symptomatic GERD was associated with acute exacerbation (adjusted hazard ratio [HR]: 1.35, 95% CI: 1.23–1.48, p , 0.0001) and mortality (HR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.25–1.61, p , 0.0001). In the COPD with symptomatic GERD group, use of proton pump inhibitors was associated with a lower risk of acute exacerbation and mortality (acute exacerbation, HR 0.31, 95% CI: 0.20–0.50, p , 0.0001; mortality, HR 0.36, 95% CI: 0.20–0.65, p = 0.0007), whereas no significant benefit was observed for histamine2-receptor antagonists. Conclusion: Use of proton pump inhibitors was associated with a lower risk of acute exacerbation and mortality in the patients with COPD and symptomatic GERD.


Common cancers, including breast cancer, exhibit familial aggregation, consistent with substantial variation in inherited susceptibility. Over the past 25 years, the underlying genetic basis for this susceptibility has been increasingly understood. Three important classes of genetic loci have been identified: · "High-penetrance" genes, principally BRCA1 and BRCA2. Mutations in these genes confer a high lifetime risk of breast, ovarian, and other cancers. However, mutations in these genes are rare and explain less than 20% of the familial risk of breast cancer. · "Intermediate-penetrance" genes currently include ATM, CHEK2, BRIP1 and PALB2. Mutations in these genes confer a 2-3 fold increased risk of breast cancer. · Common "low-penetrance" alleles, principally identified through genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Eighteen such loci have been identified to date. For the most significant such loci, in FGFR2 and TOX3, the susceptibility allele confers relative risks of 1.2 to 1.3 fold. Altogether, the known breast cancer loci probably explain 25-30% of the familial aggregation of breast cancer, implying that many additional loci remain to be found. It is unlikely that there any further important high-penetrance loci, but many more lower penetrance loci should be identifiable, through GWAS, large-scale replication studies and resequencing. The mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 (and, so far, those in the intermediate risk genes) involve inactivating coding alterations. In contrast, many if not all the low-penetrance loci involve noncoding regions (including "gene deserts") and are presumably regulatory. Most of these regions have not previously been related to carcinogenesis and point to novel mechanisms. Fine-scale mapping of the FGFR2 locus has shown that the likely causal variant regulates FGFR2 expression through differential transcription factor binding. Similar mechanisms may operate for the other loci, but the causal variants at the other loci are not yet known and, in most cases, even the target genes have not been unambiguously identified. While the risks associated with the common low-penetrance alleles are modest, these risks combine multiplicatively with each other, and this raises the possibility that genetic profiles based on combinations of alleles may become important in risk prediction. Based on the currently estimated relative risks, the 5% of the population of at highest risk have a risk that is approximately twice the population average, while the 5% of the population at lowest risk are at about half the risk of the general population. These differences are unlikely to be sufficient to change prevention strategies by themselves, but may be more important when combined with other risk factors such as family history and breast density. Many of the breast cancer susceptibility loci show strong subtype specificity. Specifically, many of the loci (such as FGFR2) predispose predominantly to ER-positive breast cancer. These pathological differences may have implications both for risk prediction and prevention. There is also strong evidence that most of the common susceptibility alleles modify the breast cancer risks in BRCA2 mutation carriers, to a similar relative extent as in the general population. In contrast, few of the loci (specifically TOX3 and 2q35) appear to modify the risks in BRCA1 carriers. These differences mirror the difference in pathology between tumours in BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers. SNP profiling may significantly improve risk prediction and genetic counseling in BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers. Citation Information: Cancer Prev Res 2010;3(12 Suppl):PL02-05.


The proliferation and survival of B-chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL) cells may be regulated by autocrine growth factor loops. Furthermore, it has been suggested the reduction in lymphocytosis following therapy with interferon-alpha may be associated with the interruption of autocrine growth factor production. We have therefore examined the effects of a number of cytokines on the proliferation of B-CLL cells, and also on the regulation of programmed cell death, and the role of interferon-alpha in these systems. In the ten patients studied, neither interferon-alpha alone or together with either interferon-gamma, IL1, IL4, IL6, TNF, or serum containing high levels of soluble CD23 was able to induce proliferation of B-CLL cells. Incubation with TPA or IL2 resulted in variable proliferative responses. Co-incubation with interferon-alpha enhanced TPA-induced proliferation in 4 cases, but reduced IL2-induced proliferation in all cases studied. In contrast, all the cytokines studied were able to protect B-CLL cells against programmed cell death, both spontaneous and that induced by hydrocortisone, with the exception of TNF. These data suggest a role for interferon-alpha in disrupting autocrine survival pathways rather than inhibiting proliferation.


With an obvious characteristic of innovation, the development of renewable energy (RE) industry is a process of industry innovation itself. There are serious market failures and barriers in the RE technology innovation process. The reasons for RE innovation's market failure include "dual information externalities", "coordination failure" and "lock-in effect". As an emerging strategic industry, the RE industry has gained sound support from policies in recent years. Nevertheless, industrial development is being impeded by difficulties such as a lack of core technology, disorderly competition and a rupture in market demands, which also brought to the light the deviation of the current industry policies. Combined with industrial innovation theories of Neoclassical Economics, New Institutional Economics, and Evolutionary Economics, and based on the perspective of new industry policies, this paper reexamines the RE industrial policies in China and tries to explore new industry policies that accord with the innovative essence in the RE industry.


Objectives: To investigate the prevalence, sociodemographic and maternal factors associated with spontaneous preterm birth in women delivering at the University Teaching Hospital, Lusaka.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study on postnatal women delivering at UTH Lusaka. Between 1st February 2018 and 31st august 2018, a structured questionnaire was used to collect data on socio-demographic, past and present medical and obstetric history. Babies were physically examined to assess for gestational age using the Finnstrom scoring. A sample size of 210 women was collected out of which 105 had preterm and 105 term deliveries. The risk of spontaneous preterm birth was estimated with OR and 95%CI for several predictors. A logistic regression analysis was then performed to identify independently associated factors.
Results: The mean gestation age was 33.1weeks and 39.4 weeks respectively for preterm and term pregnancies. Of the preterm births, 48 (45.7%) were ranged between 34+0 and 36+6 weeks. Four babies were born with a weight 1000gr and 58 (52.3%) with weight between 1500-2499gr. The prevalence of spontaneous preterm birth was 7.7%. On multivariate analysis, age was not associated with preterm birth (p=0.06). Single status was (OR :2.65, p=0.001), low education level (OR:3.85, p=0.03), low family income (OR: 7.75, p=0.025) and.549 alcohol intake (OR:2, P=0.006) were significantly associated with preterm birth. For the maternal factors, Parity was not associated with preterm birth (p=0.878). However, gestational age of less than 20weeks at booking was protective (OR: 0.485, P=0.013). A few antenatal visits was significantly associated with preterm birth (OR: 8.06, P<0.001).
 Conclusion: Spontaneous preterm birth remains a major problem at UTH Lusaka with the prevalence of 7.7%. Being single, low education level, low family income, occasional alcohol drinking and fewer antenatal visits were significantly associated with preterm birth. However, early booking at less than 20 weeks was protective.


The Handbook of Research on the Adverse Effects of Pesticide Pollution in Aquatic Ecosystems provides emerging research exploring the theoretical and practical aspects of the prevention of accumulation of toxic pollutants such as agrochemicals and organochlorine pesticides in aquatic ecosystems and applications within ecology and agriculture. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as pesticide monitoring, metabolites, and risk assessment, this book is ideally designed for scientists, researchers, engineers, policymakers, agricultural specialists, industrialists, academicians, and students seeking current research on the risks of water contaminants in small ecosystems.


Numerical studies have been conducted to determine the employees' job satisfaction and organiza-tional commitment particularly in the corporates' settings. There are few studies pertaining to the institutional staff's job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Therefore, this study seeks to identify the influence of job satisfaction on organizational commitment among the academic and non-academic staff in institute of higher learning. The antecedent selected to identify the organization commitment was staff's job satisfaction. Questionnaires were constructed and distributed to the aca-demic and non-academic staff of an institute of higher learning. This study identified three important findings namely male staff were more satisfied with their jobs compared to female staff, there was no significant difference between male and female staff on organizational commitment and levels of job satisfaction has significant influence on staff's organizational commitment. The results showed that staff who were satisfied with their jobs demonstrated higher level of commitment and more unlikely to change their job. Research paper Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Seng, E. L. K.., Choi Wai, C. (2016). "An Empir-ical Study of Academic and Non-academic Staff's Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment in an Institute of Higher Learning", Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 45–72


Bufadienolides-like chemicals, which mostly composed the active ingredient of Chansu, 17 had been widely discovered to possess anti-inflammatory, tumor-suppressing and antipain 18 activity, but the mechanisms of action were not clearly illuminated. In this research, in order to 19 explore the potential mechanism of bufadienolides-like chemicals on breast cancer, a serious of 20 bioinformatics analysis, included (1) differentially expressed genes identification combined with 21 gene set variation analysis, (2) tissue specific co-expression network construction, (3) differentially 22 regulated sub-networks detection with disease phenome, (4) hub gene selection and it's relation to 23 survival probability, and (5) similar small molecule detection were performed with gene 24 expression profiles of bufadienolides-like chemicals. Results indicated bufadienolides-like 25 chemicals had the most same target with valproic, estradiol and etc, could disturbed the pathways 26 in RNA splicing, apoptotic process, cell migration, extracellular matrix organization, adherens 27 junction organization, synaptic transmission, Wnt signaling, AK-STAT signaling, BMP signaling 28 pathway and unfolded protein response, and had the potential ability to be used as anticancer, 29 hormones and vasoprotectives agents. 30


The onset of planet formation in protoplanetary disks is marked by the growth and crystallization of sub–micrometer-sized dust grains accompanied by dust settling toward the disk mid-plane. Here, we present infrared spectra of disks around brown dwarfs and brown dwarf candidates. We show that all three processes occur in such cool disks in a way similar or identical to that in disks around low- and intermediate-mass stars. These results indicate that the onset of planet formation extends to disks around brown dwarfs, suggesting that planet formation is a robust process occurring in most young circumstellar disks.


Background and objective: Increased circulating levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been associated with myocardial infarction. Because myocardial infarction is an atherosclerotic disease, we investigated, in a cross-sectional study, whether POP levels are related to atherosclerosis. Methods: In the population-based Prospective Investigation of the Vasculature in Uppsala Seniors (PIVUS) study (n = 1,016 participants 70 years of age), the prevalence of carotid artery plaques was determined by ultrasound. The number of carotid arteries with plaques (0, 1, or 2) was recorded. Also, the intima-media thickness (IMT) and gray scale median of the intima-media complex (IM-GSM) were measured. Twenty-three POPs, comprising 16 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 5 pesticides, 1 dioxin, and 1 brominated compound (brominated diphenyl ether congener BDE-47), were analyzed by high-resolution chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry. Results: Seven of the POPs (PCB congeners 153, 156, 157, 170, 180, 206, and 209) were significantly associated with the number of carotid arteries with plaques even after adjusting for multiple risk factors (sex, waist circumference, body mass index, fasting blood glucose, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, serum triglycerides, smoking, antihypertensive treatment, and statin use; p = 0.002–0.0001). Highly chlorinated PCBs (congeners 194, 206, and 209) were associated with an echolucent IM-GSM (p < 0.0001 after adjustment), whereas associations between POPs and IMT were modest. Conclusions: Circulating levels of PCBs were associated with atherosclerotic plaques and echogenicity of the intima-media complex independent of cardiovascular risk factors, including lipids. This suggests that POPs may be a risk factor for myocardial infarction, but associations need to be confirmed in prospective studies.


We investigate the inverse scale space flow as a decomposition method for decomposing data into generalised singular vectors. We show that the inverse scale space flow, based on convex and even and positively one-homogeneous regularisation functionals, can decompose data represented by the application of a forward operator to a linear combination of generalised singular vectors into its individual singular vectors. We verify that for this decomposition to hold true, two additional conditions on the singular vectors are sufficient: orthogonality in the data space and inclusion of partial sums of the subgradients of the singular vectors in the subdifferential of the regularisation functional at zero. We also address the converse question of when the inverse scale space flow returns a generalised singular vector given that the initial data is arbitrary (and therefore not necessarily in the range of the forward operator). We prove that the inverse scale space flow is guaranteed to return a singular vector if the data satisfies a novel dual singular vector condition. We conclude the paper with numerical results that validate the theoretical results and that demonstrate the importance of the additional conditions required to guarantee the decomposition result.


OBJECTIVES
When two auditory stimuli of different frequency are presented to each ear, binaural beats are perceived by the listener. The binaural beat frequency is equal to the difference between the frequencies applied to each ear. Our primary objective was to assess whether steady-state entrainment of electroencephalographic activity to the binaural beat occurs when exposed to a specific binaural beat frequency as has been hypothesized. Our secondary objective was to gather preliminary data on neuropsychologic and physiologic effects of binaural beat technology.

DESIGN
A randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled crossover experiment in 4 healthy adult subjects.

INTERVENTION
Subjects were randomized to experimental auditory stimulus of 30 minutes of binaural beat at 7 Hz (carrier frequencies: 133 Hz L; 140 Hz R) with an overlay of pink noise resembling the sound of rain on one session and control stimuli of the same overlay without the binaural beat carrier frequencies on the other session.

OUTCOME MEASURES
Data were collected during two separate sessions 1 week apart. Neuropsychologic and blood pressure data were collected before and after the intervention; electroencephalographic data were collected before, during, and after listening to either binaural beats or control. Neuropsychologic measures included State Trait Anxiety Inventory, Profile of Mood States, Rey Auditory Verbal List Test, Stroop Test, and Controlled Oral Word Association Test. Spectral and coherence analysis was performed on the electroencephalogram (EEG), and all measures were analyzed for changes between sessions with and without binaural beat stimuli.

RESULTS
There were no significant differences between the experimental and control conditions in any of the EEG measures. There was an increase of the Profile of Mood States depression subscale in the experimental condition relative to the control condition (p = 0.02). There was also a significant decrease in immediate verbal memory recall (p = 0.03) in the experimental condition compared to control condition.

CONCLUSIONS
We did not find support for steady-state entrainment of the scalp-recorded EEG while listening to 7-Hz binaural beats. Although our data indicated increased depression and poorer immediate recall after listening to binaural beats, larger studies are needed to confirm these findings.


We synthesized a Si-based clathrate, composed entirely of Earth abundant elements, and using ab initio calculations and spectroscopic and Hall mobility measurement showed that it is a promising material for solar energy conversion. We found that the type-I clathrate K8Al8Si38 exhibits a quasi-direct band gap of ∼1.0 eV, which may be tuned to span the IR and visible range by strain engineering. We also found that upon light absorption, excited electron and hole states are spatially separated in the material, with low probability of charge recombination. Finally, we computed and measured electron and hole mobilities and obtained values much superior to those of a-Si and approximately 6 to 10 and 10 to 13 time smaller than those of crystalline Si.


This chapter examines the climate change mitigation law and policy of five major developing countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (i.e., the BRICS). It will first analyze the case of Brazil, then India, China, Russia, and lastly South Africa. The chapter explores the main causes of Brazil's contribution to global climate change (namely deforestation, cattle ranching, agricultural expansion, and energy production). It then offers mitigation strategies for the case of India and makes the case for investing in cities, solar energy, hydropower, and electric vehicles. The chapter then explores China's position in the mitigation of climate change by analyzing key policies such as carbon pricing, energy efficiency, renewable energy, and fossil fuels. It then turns to Russia to examine its domestic policies to reduce carbon emissions. Lastly, it examines South Africa's climate change mitigation regime.


ABSTRACT We compared the clinical performances of the BacT/Alert Plus (bioMérieux) and Bactec Plus (Becton Dickinson) aerobic and anaerobic blood culture (BC) media with adsorbent polymeric beads. Patients ≥16 years old with suspected bloodstream infections (BSIs) were enrolled in intensive care units and infectious disease wards. A single 40-ml blood sample was collected from each and used to inoculate (10 ml/bottle) one set of BacT/Alert Plus cultures and one set of Bactec Plus cultures, each set consisting of one aerobic and one anaerobic bottle. Cultures were incubated ≤5 days in the BacT/Alert 3D and Bactec FX instruments, respectively. A total of 128 unique BSI episodes were identified based on the recovery of clinically significant growth in 212 aerobic cultures (106 BacT/Alert and 106 Bactec) and 151 anaerobic cultures (82 BacT/Alert and 69 Bactec). The BacT/Alert aerobic medium had higher recovery rates for Gram-positive cocci (P = 0.024), whereas the Bactec aerobic medium was superior for recovery of Gram-negative bacilli (P = 0.006). BacT/Alert anaerobic medium recovery rates exceeded those of the Bactec anaerobic medium for total organisms (P = 0.003), Gram-positive cocci (P = 0.013), and Escherichia coli (P = 0.030). In terms of capacity for diagnosing the 128 septic episodes, the BacT/Alert and Bactec sets were comparable, although the former sets diagnosed more BSIs caused by Gram-positive cocci (P = 0.008). They also allowed earlier identification of coagulase-negative staphylococcal growth (mean, 2.8 h; P = 0.003) and growth in samples from patients not on antimicrobial therapy that yielded positive results (mean, 1.3 h; P < 0.001). Similarly high percentages of microorganisms in BacT/Alert and Bactec cultures (93.8% and 93.3%, respectively) were identified by direct matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry assay of BC broths. The BacT/Alert Plus media line appears to be a reliable, timesaving tool for routine detection of BSIs in the population we studied, although further studies are needed to evaluate their performance in other settings.


Groundwater is one of the main sources of drinking water in Sweden. Groundwater fluctuations and the detection of flow direction is of significant environmental importance especially when there is a risk for transport of contaminations. The Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company (SKB) has done detailed geotechnical investigations at two potential sites for a final nuclear waste deposition. This report presents the results from groundwater modeling in quaternary deposits in one of these sites.A steady state three dimensional groundwater model was developed for a 71 km2 large area in the Laxemar-Simpevarp, 320 km south of Stockholm close to the nuclear power plant Simpevarp. For this purpose, the Groundwater Modelling System (GMS) was used. The model uses finite difference method to solve the partial differential equation for the water movement with constant density through porous medium. The main objectives were to predict the groundwater heads and the flow directions, and to study the water balance. A conceptual model approach was used by creating five heterogynous soil and rock layers. GIS (Geographic Information System) was used to create top and bottom elevation of the layers by interpolating the GIS data. The model was calibrated using observation data in groundwater monitoring wells and the optimum values for recharge and hydraulic values were found. The numerical simulation was done for two different grid sizes (511×316 m2 and 255×158 m2) referred to coarse and fine grid model respectively.Results from the multilayer model showed flow towards the sea and in the quaternary deposits but not in high elevated rocks. The water balance in the multilayer model was satisfied in both grid sizes. The 3D groundwater model GMS was successfully applied to the large Laxemar-Simpevarp region. The choice of grid size was studied and better agreements between observed and simulated groundwater heads were found in the finer grid model. Large simulation errors in some of the observation wells can indicate GMS model's weakness in modelling thin soil layers and large variance in topography.


We present photorefractive measurements in undoped GaAs performed at 1.06 pm, 1.32 ,xm, and at u" 1.55 ,um. Using concentrations of EL2 that we determined through optical absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance measurements in the same sample, we show that a single defect model with an electron-hole competition quantitatively explains our results of photorefractive wave The photorefractive effect (PRE) is based on the redistribution of charges in a deep defect under a nonuniform illumination. The effect is thus closely linked to the photo-ionization properties of this deep defect. Discussions currently occur on the exact nature of the deep levels that are source of the photorefractive effect in III-V and II-VI materials.rm3 GaAs is the most studied among the infrared photorefractive materials, for ten years4 and correlations were found between the occupancy of the EL2 defect estimated from absorption


Objective: We aimed to evaluate the state of oxidative stress, level of molecular damage in relationship with the subcellular distribution of iodine in patients with community-acquired pneumonia from the iodine deficiency region.
Materials and Methods: Our study involved 70 children, 4-14 years old, with CAP (moderate severity in 35 children (Group 1); severe - in 35 (Group 2)) and 35 healthy children of the control group (Group 3). The state of organificated/inorganic, antioxidant defense system, stress-dependent systems, apoptosis and the level of molecular damage were assessed in serum samples.
Results: Lower concentration of organificated iodine (12% and 59%, respectively) and high concentration of inorganic iodine (21% and 48%, respectively) were found in Groups 1 and 2. Patients of Group 2 had an inverse relationship between the levels of iodine distribution for the organic and inorganic iodine (r = - 0.645, p<0.05). In patients of Group 1, this relationship tends to decrease. The oxidative stress indicators correlated with disease severity. ROS generation indices in patients of Group 1 is 28.1 (24.2; 32.1) RFU/mg; (p < 0.05); Group 2 – 40.2 (34.2; 42.5) RFU/mg (p < 0.05); Caspase-3 is 25.77 (21.45–32.16) pmol/mg Group 1 and 39.42 (32.41–44.21) pmol/mg Group 2, (respectively, p < 0.05). We found that children with a severe pneumonia have a prooxidant activation, manifested by a significant increase of oxidation-modified proteins [2.21 (1.88–2.53) nmol/mg)] and DNA fragmentation [13.42 (10.3–15.46) %], (p < 0.05). The extent of DNA damage correlates with the extent of apoptosis.
Conclusions: Increase in the concentration of inorganic iodine with a simultaneous decrease in the level of organic iodine in the blood, which leads to a more severe course of pneumonia. Fluctuations in the indices of oxidative stress, the level of molecular damage and the intensity of apoptosis in children with pneumonia correlate with the severity of the disease.


Florida native range is grazed in winter and cows are moved to bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flugge) pasture in March for breeding and calf rearing. Winter weight loss of cows is a major problem, and one possibility to reduce it is to alter the breeding season. This 4-year study evaluated October-February range grazing with movement of cows to bahiagrass in late February for breeding and calf rearing beginning in March (spring-bred cows) vs. December-April range grazing with movement of cows to bahiagrass in May (summer-bred cows). Spring-bred cows weighed less coming off range (439 kg) than summer-bred cows (459 kg), but spring-bred cows gained more weight on bahiagrass (38 kg) by the time calves were weaned than summer-bred cows (1 kg). At weaning, there were no differences in weights of cows. Weight loss of cows on range was related to weight going onto range in the fall (r = -0.62 and -0.49 for spring- and summer-bred cows). Declining nutritive value of bahiagrass and heavy rains in the late summer and early fall appeared to lead to the inability of summer-bred cows to regain weight on bahiagrass. In 2 years, rain interfered with range burning in October which was needed to improve the palatability and nutritive value of forages for spring-bred cows, but this appeared to have no effect on cow performance. Weaning weight of calves from the spring-bred cows (205 kg) tended to be higher than that of calves from summer-bred cows (181 kg). There were no differences in pregnancy rates (74.5%). A March-May breeding season is recommended over a May-July breeding season for cows using a combination of range and bahiagrass. DOI:10.2458/azu_jrm_v53i4_pate


One hundred American Sign Language signs selected from sign vocabularies used with mentally retarded persons were rated for iconicity by 20 college students, 12 deaf adults, and 20 first-graders. A Pearson Product-Moment correlation showed that ratings tended to be highly similar for the three groups. Classification of signs based on ratings by each group, however, showed that perceptions of iconicity were not identical across the groups. Deaf subjects rated more items as iconic than did hearing groups. Hearing subjects rated about one-half of the signs as noniconic. Results suggest that sign ratings for iconicity will be helpful for teachers in determining which signs will be most easily acquired by retarded learners. Findings also suggest that factors other than iconicity contribute to the ease of sign acquisition in nonverbal retarded learners.


Traditionally, vehicle braking generally follows the driver's braking intention. It is impossible for the driver to work out the optimal braking trajectory. However, unmanned vehicle can decide when to brake and how to brake. In this paper, we propose a braking scheme for unmanned electric vehicles. It adopts different braking control strategy according to different braking conditions. When the situation is urgent, the vehicle adopts emergency braking. Otherwise, the vehicle adopts normal braking. In the case of normal braking, the vehicle can automatically set the optimal braking trajectory. The setting of the braking trajectory is based on the characteristics of the motor and vehicle states. When the vehicle follows the set braking trajectory, the electric vehicles can obtain the maximum braking energy recovery. The simulation results show that the proposed braking method is able to achieve the maximum braking energy recovery in the case of normal braking.


Four prototype heteroleptic copper(I) complexes [Cu(bpy)(pop)][PF6] (bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine, pop = bis(2-(diphenylphosphino)phenyl)ether), [Cu(phen)(pop)][PF6] (phen = 1,10-phenanthroline), [Cu(bpy)(pdpb)][PF6] (pdpb = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)benzene) and [Cu(phen)(pdpb)][PF6] are presented. The synthesis, X-ray structures, solution and solid-state photophysical studies, and the performance in light-emitting electrochemical cells (LECs) of these complexes are described. Their photophysical properties are interpreted with the help of density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The photophysical studies in solution and in the solid-state indicate that these copper(I) complexes show good luminescent properties which allow them to be used as active materials in electroluminescent devices such as LECs. Additionally, these materials are very attractive since we can take advantage of their low-cost, due to the copper abundance, and their limited environmental damaging effects for producing cheap large-area panels based on the LEC technology for lighting applications. LEC devices were fabricated using the four prototype copper(I) complexes together with an ionic liquid (IL), 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluoridophosphate, at a molar ratio of 1 : 1. They yield devices that are comparable to those obtained for most LEC devices based on ruthenium(II) and iridium(III) complexes. Hence, this work shows that promising electroluminescent devices can be prepared using cheap and environmentally friendly copper(I) complexes.


The Institute of Digital Image Processing of the Joanneum Research has set up a low-cost airborne platform which provides high flexibility with respect to data acquisition and data processing. Applications being typically envisaged are mapping of disasters which often require near 'real-time' image processing. For the direct geo-referencing of each image, the parameters of the exterior orientation have to be determined with sufficient accuracy in real-time. Today the determination of the trajectory of a moving platform is increasingly based on the integration of satellite-based positioning and inertial measurement systems. The best GPS and IMU combination for the above mentioned application will be identified within a study of the Institute of Navigation and Satellite Geodesy of the Graz University of Technology. Within these tasks GPS receivers and IMUs of different quality and price classes are tested. In this paper preliminary results of the comprehensive investigation of diverse types of GNSS/IMS integration are presented. Moreover these results were used to analyse the 2D mapping potential of the low-cost airborne platform. * Corresponding author.


A clear gauge of current perceptions of professionals on the effectiveness and success of economic development planning allows for a more comprehensive discussion of the status of economic development planning in the State of Oregon. Oregon has continually lagged behind its coastal neighbors in the archetypal economic development metrics of job growth, wage growth, and lessening of unemployment. This project examines the perceptions of economic development professionals and elected officials gathered through a statewide survey. Perceptions help to determine robustness, effectiveness, and success of strategic economic development plans in the State of Oregon. This project also provides discussion for how the perceived positive impact of economic development can help improve strategic economic development planning.


A common problem among aging women, salt and pepper facial hair poses a significant psychosocial impact as well as a challenge for treatment. Various laser therapies or topical eflornithine HCl 13.9% cream are commonly used to reduce the rate of hair growth. We report a case of a woman with salt and pepper hair in the beard distribution. A combination of laser hair removal with concurrent use of topical eflornithine was used in the treatment.


Background: Racial and ethnic disparities in health care have been well documented, but poorly explained. Objective: To examine the effect of access barriers, including English fluency, on racial and ethnic disparities in health care. Research Design: Cross-sectional analysis of the Community Tracking Survey (1996–1997). Subjects: Adults 18 to 64 years with private or Medicaid health insurance. Measures: Independent variables included race, ethnicity, and English fluency. Dependent variables included having had a physician or mental health visit, influenza vaccination, or mammogram during the past year. Results: The health care use pattern for English-speaking Hispanic patients was not significantly different than for non-Hispanic white patients in the crude or multivariate models. In contrast, Spanish-speaking Hispanic patients were significantly less likely than non-Hispanic white patients to have had a physician visit (RR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.72–0.83), mental health visit (RR, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.32–0.76), or influenza vaccination (RR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.15–0.52). After adjustment for predisposing, need, and enabling factors, Spanish-speaking Hispanic patients showed significantly lower use than non-Hispanic white patients across all four measures. Black patients had a significantly lower crude relative risk of having received an influenza vaccination (RR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.58–0.87). Adjustment for additional factors had little impact on this effect, but resulted in black patients being significantly less likely than non-Hispanic white patients to have had a visit with a mental health professional (RR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.37–0.55). Conclusions: Among insured nonelderly adults, there are appreciable disparities in health-care use by race and Hispanic ethnicity. Ethnic disparities in care are largely explained by differences in English fluency, but racial disparities in care are not explained by commonly used access factors.


Abstract Pleistocene basalts from Daisen and Mengameyama in the SW Japan volcanic arc of western Honshu are characterized by an abundance of olivine crystals with Fe-rich rims. At Daisen, these have previously been interpreted to have formed from their host melt by equilibrium crystal fractionation and by disequilibrium fractionation during supercooling. Here we use combined electron probe microanalysis, isotopography, transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction to show that crystal rims are significantly enriched in aluminium (up to c. 1 wt%) and hydrogen (up to c. 10 000 ppm) hosted in oriented low-density amorphous domains. These domains are interpreted to have formed by melting of deuteric and/or post-deuteric metasomatic alteration minerals upon uptake of older olivine crystals into fresh, initially aphyric host melts up to a few hours prior to eruption. It is argued that uptake of variably altered crystals into initially aphyric or sparsely phyric melts may be a common process at subduction zones, and can account for typical disequilibrium textures displayed by arc magmas erupted in SW Japan and elsewhere. Analyses of the altered crystal cargo in arc volcanic rocks therefore provides an important tool for understanding subvolcanic hydrothermal systems and the interaction of ascending melts with such systems. Supplementary material: Olivine mineral chemistry data from two typical Daisen basalts and one typical Mengameyama basalt, and a figure showing the locations of all focussed ion beam (FIB) sections studied here, are available at http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/SUP18760.


Wetland is a part of natural ecosystem that provides many intangible services to human. However, many of these wetlands have been destroyed and converted to other land uses. Beaufort, Sabah, consists of an extensive wetland ecosystem. This wetland ecosystem lays pieces of pristine peat swamp forest (PSF) that has been degraded due to human activities. This study aims at examining the dynamics of
wetland vegetation changes in relation to anthropogenic activities in Beaufort area. Multitemporal satellite data of landsat MSS (June 29, 1985), Landsat TM (June 14, 1991), Landsat 7 ETM+ (November 2, 1999), Landsat 7 ETM+ (Jan 14, 2003) and SPOT4-HRVIR (March 26, 2003) were used in this study. A supervised classification approach was performed to classify satellite images into ten land cover types. The overall accuracies for all classifications are more than 89%. The result from the land cover classification shows a Significant changes to PSF, bareland and grassland
cover type throughout the 18-year period. The PSF had drastically plummeted by about 70% from 1985 to 2003. The grassland had almost doubled from 1985 to 2003 and bareland also increased more than 100%. These changes were mainly
due to fires occurred in 1998 and 2003 during El-Nino event. The El-Nino fires did not affect the mangrove. The dynamics change pattern analysis showed that the PSF area has severely degraded, leading to deforestation. The main dynamic pattern indicate that the PSF areas have changed to grassland and bareland from 1985 to 2003. Fragmentation analysis based on mean patch size and largest patch index provide the evidence that the PSF has undergone an increase of fragmentation between 1985 to March 2003. The mean nearest neighbour distance value has increased indicating that the patches of PSF have low connectivity and
become more Isolated. Buffering and overlay analysis showed that agriculture was the main factor contributing to deforestation in Beaufort area. Questionnaire survey
discovered that El-Nino fires in 1998 and 2003 was due to land clearing for plantation using slash and burn. In short, the PSF in Beaufort area has been decreasing at an alarming rate due to uncontrolled human activities. Therefore, the
authorities such as Sabah Forestry Department are suggested to take action in controlling and managing the human activities for agriculture near the PSF especially during dry season.


In order to reduce the reflection of solar collector cover tube and improve its transmissivity, a kind of SiO2 anti-reflective coating on the cover tube was prepared using acid-base two-step sol-gel method. The surface morphology of the anti-reflective coating was observed using atomic force microscope and electronic scanning microscope. The scratch resistance of the coating was tested using pencil hardness apparatus. The transmissivity and anti-impact properties of the cover tube coated with the coating were measured respectively by means of the spectrophotometer and the relative standard method. The results showed that the anti-reflective coating possesses a higher scratch resistance and the coated cover tube has good transmissivity and anti-impact.


Now -a-days renewable sources are very useful for domestic applications. By observing these advantages an aggregated or accumulated model has to be proposed for an integration of renewable sources such as wind and solar power. The power which can be produced from the renewable sources will be synchronized to the ac grid or directly to dc consumers. In these operation BESS (battery energy storage system) is equipped with the system for maintaining the power balance. For obtaining the power balance the adaptive droop control technique has to be proposed and droop curves are evaluated. The droop characteristics are selected on the basis of the deviation between the optimized and real-time SOC of the BESS. Operational controls within the micro grid (such as cost have to be optimized at the same time it will satisfy the demand) are designed to support the integration of wind and solar power. By these process micro grid real time supply and demand will be maintain in symmetry. The simulation results are to be developed in MATLAB SIMULINK process for renewable power generation and fast charging load connected to the dc bus, droop control based responses.


Background After the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, a preliminary ultrasound-based screening for thyroid cancer was conducted to establish a baseline for subsequent evaluations. In this survey, we assessed the relationship between the proportion of non-examinees and characteristics of the target populations. Methods After summarizing a regional difference of non-examinees among the population of 359,200 (primary evaluation) and 2,246 (confirmatory testing) individuals who were living in Fukushima Prefecture on March 11, 2011, we estimated odds ratios (ORs) for each characteristic, including age, sex, area of residence, and moving after the accident, based on the proportion of non-examinees for the primary examination and the confirmatory testing, using a multivariate logistic regression model. Results The dataset included 64,117 non-examinees (primary evaluation) and 194 (confirmatory testing). The logistic regression result indicated that girls were not likely to be non-examinees compared to boys, with adjusted OR of 0.80 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.78–0.81) for the primary evaluation. Odds were lowest for children 6–10 years old (OR 0.26; 95% CI, 0.25–0.27), and higher for those 11–15 years old (OR 1.28; 95% CI, 1.25–1.32) and over 16 years old (OR 5.30; 95% CI, 5.16–5.43) when compared to children 0–5 years old. Individuals residing in the western part of the prefecture showed higher ORs. There was a higher proportion of non-examinees among those who moved after the accident compared to those who did not in the primary evaluation (OR 1.72; 95% CI, 1.64–1.79). Conclusions In addition to demographic characteristics, a change of residence could be a potential factor that influenced the proportion of non-examinees. Our results will help proper interpretation of reports and prospective management of the survey.


Two stage least squares are a popular method of estimation of spatial auto-regressive models, where the dependent variable in an area is a function of the value of the same variable in contiguous areas. Existing literature on this topic points out, however, that this creates problems of consistency. Nevertheless, studies such as Fingleton (2003) show that such an approach is being used to test the central hypothesis of New Economic Geography that increasing returns to agglomeration lead to the concentration of economic activity. It is therefore important to investigate the validity of the methodology in this case. The focus of this study is twofold: first to replicate the methodology of Fingleton (2003) on the French case and investigate the presence of increasing returns to agglomeration in the spatial structure of wages in France. Secondly, because of the econometric problems inherent to the specification pointed out in the literature, the study tests the validity and robustness of the results obtained. The first central finding is the significant presence of such returns to scale for France, similar to the ones found in the UK and in other studies of French spatial wage disparities. The second finding is that rigorous tests on the instrumentation strategy defined in Fingleton (2003) reveal that the instruments are typically strong and lead to consistent estimates. Finally, the methodology is shown to be robust to changes in the specification of the spatial weights matrix, and that taking into account a larger time-dimension through a simple pooled regression is valid and leads to an improvement of the significance of the parameters.