Iron oxide nanoparticles have been synthesized by laser-induced vapor-phase reaction. Mean diameter of the particles varied from approximate 4 nm to 40 nm and the crystalline phase was transited from γ-Fe2O3 to α-Fe2O3 with increasing operation temperature. The nanometer-sized α-Fe2O3 powders were used to fabricate a thick film based gas-sensitive sensor. The effects of the doped noble metals or carbonate and the calcination temperature on sensitivity of the sensor were studied. The results show that the α-Fe2O3 was doped with 3% noble metal or SrCO3 presents the best sensitivity to CO.


We address the problem of surface reconstruction from unoriented point clouds. Implicit neural representations (INRs) have become popular for this task, but when information relating to the inside versus outside of a shape is not available (such as shape occupancy, signed distances or surface normal orientation) optimization relies on heuristics and regularizers to recover the surface. These methods can be slow to converge and easily get stuck in local minima. We propose a two-step approach, OG-INR, where we (1) construct a discrete octree and label what is inside and outside (2) optimize for a continuous and high-fidelity shape using an INR that is initially guided by the octree's labelling. To solve for our labelling, we propose an energy function over the discrete structure and provide an efficient move-making algorithm that explores many possible labellings. Furthermore we show that we can easily inject knowledge into the discrete octree, providing a simple way to influence the result from the continuous INR. We evaluate the effectiveness of our approach on two unoriented surface reconstruction datasets and show competitive performance compared to other unoriented, and some oriented, methods. Our results show that the exploration by the move-making algorithm avoids many of the bad local minima reached by purely gradient descent optimized methods (see Figure 1).


Cloud computing offers the potential to make parallel discrete event simulation capabilities more widely accessible to users who are not experts in this technology and do not have ready access to high performance computing equipment. Services hosted within the "cloud" can potentially incur processing delays due to load sharing among other active services, and can cause optimistic simulation protocols to perform poorly. This paper proposes a mechanism termed the Time Warp Straggler Message Identification Protocol (TW-SMIP) to address optimistic synchronization and performance issues associated with executing parallel discrete event simulation in cloud computing environments.


BACKGROUND--Single lung function is usually assessed by radioisotopes or, more rarely, by bronchospirometry in which a double lumen catheter is used to separate ventilation of the two lungs. The latter is more precise but less comfortable. An alternative bronchoscopic method is described for determining the volume of a single lung. METHODS--One mainstem bronchus was temporarily occluded with an inflatable balloon during fibreoptic bronchoscopy in 12 healthy volunteers aged 18-29 years. The functional residual capacities (FRC) of the right, left, and both lungs were measured in duplicate by closed circuit helium dilution. Supplementary vital capacity (VC) manoeuvres permitted calculation of single lung capacities (TLC) and residual volumes (RV). RESULTS--The standard deviation of a single determination of capacities of the right, left, and both lungs were: TLC, 80, 96, and 308 ml; VC, 56, 139, 171 ml; FRC, 131, 74, and 287 ml; RV, 112, 185, and 303 ml, respectively. The sum of the right and left unilateral TLC was not different from bilateral TLC (6.12 v 5.95 l) and the sum of the unilateral FRC was not different from the bilateral FRC (2.60 v 2.78 l). The sum of the unilateral VC was lower than bilateral VC (4.52 v 4.80 l), that of the unilateral RV was higher than bilateral RV (1.60 v 1.16 l). For all subdivisions of lung volume, the right lung was larger than the left. The most common complaint was substernal discomfort during complete exhalation. Oxygen saturation rarely fell below 90%. CONCLUSIONS--Temporary occlusion of a mainstem bronchus in normal subjects is safe, relatively simple, and allows fairly precise and accurate measurements of unilateral static lung volumes. Occlusion at TLC, however, probably prevents proper emptying of the non-occluded lung.


Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a respiratory disease characterized by chronic inflammatory response in the airways and lung parenchyma that involves the influx of inflammatory, structural cells and mediators. The inflammatory process resulting in lung tissue destruction, emphysema, includes the excess of uninhibited proteases released from inflammatory cells. alpha1-antitrypsin (AAT), an acute phase protein, is the prototypic member of the serpin super family and a major inhibitor of serine proteases such as neutrophil elastase. The clinical importance of AAT is highlighted in individuals with inherited AAT deficiency who exhibits an increased susceptibility to develop chronic inflammatory conditions including COPD. Both native (inhibitory) and modified (non-inhibitory) molecular forms of AAT, such as oxidized, nitrated, polymerized, cleaved and complexed with other proteins, have been detected in vivo. Recently it has become apparent that various forms of AAT express biological properties which are independent of protease inhibition. Studies characterizing these new biological activities of AAT are incomplete, particularly with regard to understanding the involvement of signalling mechanisms. We hypothesize that novel biological activities of native AAT and its by-products may play an important role in the pathological processes characterized by chronic inflammation. We therefore examined; a) the effects of polymerized AAT on neutrophil activation, in vitro; b) the role of oxidized AAT on monocyte/macrophage activation both in vitro and in vivo; c) the effects of augmentation therapy on levels of plasma inflammatory markers and the properties of blood neutrophils obtained from a severe AAT-deficient COPD subject; d) the relationship between AAT levels and endotoxin receptor CD14 expression in young AAT-deficient subjects, and because low plasma AAT levels have been linked to diabetes type 1 we; e) measured plasma AAT levels in diabetes type 2 subjects. Our findings show that: 1. Some of the reported pro-inflammatory activities of polymerized AAT may be due to bacterial or other contaminants and that endotoxin-free polymerized AAT does not exhibit pro-inflammatory activity. 2. Oxidized AAT induces a pro-inflammatory activation of both structural and inflammatory cells and may be involved in the development of COPD. 3. Blood neutrophils from a COPD patient with severe PiZZ AAT deficiency isolated after augmentation therapy release significantly lower levels of IL-8 in response to zymosan as compared to neutrophils obtained before therapy. Our results support the idea that augmentation therapy with human AAT has anti-inflammatory effects. 4. Blood monocytes from clinically healthy subjects with severe AAT-deficiency show significantly higher expression of CD14, an endotoxin receptor, than age and gender matched non-deficient controls. This finding in part explains why reduced AAT levels are related to increased susceptibility to infections and the development of chronic inflammation. 5. A possible link may exist between low plasma levels of AAT and the development of diabetes type 2. To summarize, the findings from our studies further improve our understanding of the biological activities of AAT and highlight the potentially broader modulatory role of AAT in inflammatory diseases. (Less)


Interdisciplinary projects involving electrical engineering (EE), mechanical engineering (ME), and computer science (CS) students are both exciting and difficult to conceptualize. Answering this challenge, this paper presents an interdisciplinary educational platform on radio frequency identification based assistive devices. The combination of software, hardware, and mechanical design makes this platform an excellent choice for undergraduate student projects and curriculum development. Through working on these interdisciplinary projects, students will be able to study a complex engineering and technology system that: (1) exposes them to applied and cutting-edge technologies; (2) encourages them to participate in an integrated, interdisciplinary curriculum; and (3) involves them in methods of applied technology and skills necessary to transition from academic to professional environments.


All mobile robots share the need to navigate, creating the problem of motion planning. In multi-robot domains with agents acting in parallel, highly complex and unpredictable dynamics can arise. This leads to the need for navigation calculations to be carried out within tight time constraints, so that they can be applied before the dynamics of the environment make the calculated answer obsolete. At the same time, we want the robots to navigate robustly and operate safely without collisions. While motion planning has been used for high level robot navigation, or limited to semi-static or single-robot domains, it has often been dismissed for the real-time low-level control of agents due to the limited computational time and the unpredictable dynamics. Many robots now rely on local reactive methods for immediate control of the robot, but if the reason for avoiding motion planning is execution speed, the answer is to find planners that can meet this requirement. Recent advances in traditional path planning algorithms may offer hope in resolving this type of scalability, if they can be adapted to deal with the specific problems and constraints mobile robots face. Also, in order to maintain safety, new scalable methods for maintaining collision avoidance among multiple robots are needed in order to free motion planners from the "curse of dimensionality" when considering the safety of multiple robots with realistic physical dynamics constraints. This thesis contributes the pairing of real-time motion planning which builds on existing modern path planners, and a novel cooperative dynamics safety algorithm for high speed navigation of multiple agents in dynamic domains. It also explores near real-time kinematically limited motion planning for more complex environments. The thesis algorithms have been fully implemented and tested with success on multiple real robot platforms.


The ability to generate biomimetic 3D skeletal muscle tissues in vitro would have important implications for both cell biology and medicine. To that end, a significant body of work has recently been published detailing the efforts of various groups to synthesise such a model. These protocols involve the seeding of muscle derived cells (MDCs) within a biomimetic scaffold of extra cellular matrix proteins and rely on the ability of MDCs to self-orientate between two fixed points. The contractile ability of our collagen based 3D model, constructed in such a way, is well established1 and our goal now is towards making the model more biomimetic. Since denervated muscle quickly undergoes atrophy, it is likely that the introduction of a neural input will significantly improve the maturation of MDCs within our culture system, as well as establish a complex 3D co-culture model that better mimics in vivo conditions that exist within innervated muscle. Furthermore, the possibility of neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) formation in vitro opens the door to future research testing the effects of neuromuscular agents in culture, which may help to minimize the need for in vivo testing of such agents. Here we present our data characterising the development and maturation of this 3D co-culture system, compare results with both 2D and in vivo controls and discuss the implications for the future of skeletal muscle tissue culture techniques.


We introduce TWINS, Time-of-flight based Wireless Indoor Navigation System, that estimates in near real-time the position of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) devices equipped with WiFi. TWINS uses COTS WiFi Access Points (APs) and it does not require access to any inertial sensors on the mobile devices. We study the performance of TWINS in a harsh environment, strongly affected by the presence of metallic objects. The scenario can be considered representative of an industrial indoor environment with open spaces surrounded by metal obstacles. We experimentally show that our system can localize four mobile robots tracked together, with median error between 1.8 and 3.8 m.


Mutations affecting the three isoforms of the RAS gene – KRAS, HRAS and NRAS – represent the most common oncogenic event in several cancer types. RAS mutations lead to constitutive activation of the corresponding protein and contribute to different hallmarks of cancers, including increased proliferation and resistance to apoptosis. Activating mutations in KRAS are currently used in the clinic to exclude colorectal cancer patients from treatment with ineffective epidermal growth factor receptor targeted-based therapies. Future studies are needed to fully elucidate the role of all RAS oncogenic variants in cancer biology, as well as to assess the potential prognostic and predictive value of individual RAS genetic alterations in clinical settings other than colorectal cancer.

Key Concepts:

RAS in human consists in 4 isoforms (KRAS4A, KRAS4B, NRAS, and HRAS) encoded by 3 genes (KRAS, NRAS, and HRAS).

Isoforms of the RAS gene (KRAS, NRAS, HRAS) are the major oncogenes mutated in several cancer types.

Mutations in RAS family genes lead to constitutive protein activation by inhibition of the catalytic reaction which converts active RAS–GTP to inactive RAS–GDP.

Different types of mutations occur in different cancers.

Mutations in RAS family genes may differ in terms of biochemical effectors, biological activities and prognostic or predictive value.

Keywords:

RAS;
cancer;
oncogenic mutation;
KRAS;
HRAS;
NRAS


Bladder cancer is the 5th most common and the 9th most lethal cancer in the UK. Based on histopathological and genomic analysis, a model of two independent pathogenesis pathways has been suggested, resulting in either non-invasive superficial or invasive urothelial tumours with potential to metastasise. Prominently, the fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) is found mutated in up to 84% of non-invasive superficial tumours. Alterations in FGFR3 such as mutation or wild type receptor overexpression are also found in 54% of muscle-invasive tumours. FGFR3 is a tyrosine kinase receptor for fibroblast growth factors (FGFs), which stimulates both the RAS/MAPK and the PI3K/AKT pathways and regulates a range of cellular processes such as cell growth and division during development. In this study we examined the role of FGFR3 in bladder cancer by using mice as a model organism.

Firstly, we addressed whether combination of Fgfr3 and Pten mutation, UroIICre Fgfr3+/K644E Ptenflox/flox, is able to drive non-invasive superficial bladder cancer. We observed that the thickness of the double mutant urothelium was significantly increased compared to singly mutated Fgfr3 or Pten, UroIICre Fgfr3+/K644E and UroIICre Ptenflox/flox. Moreover, several cellular abnormalities were detected that were accompanied by differential expression of layer-specific markers, which strongly suggested that they were caused cooperatively by Fgfr3 mutation and Pten deletion. The results supported the hypothesis that FGFR3 activation can play a causative role in urothelial pathogenesis of non-invasive superficial bladder cancer together with upregulated PI3K-AKT signalling.

Secondly, we aimed to identify mutations that cooperate with Fgfr3 and with other common bladder cancer mutations such as Pten and Ras, in promoting urothelial tumourigenesis by Sleeping Beauty (SB) insertional mutagenesis in mice. The SB system may constitute an inefficient tool in the bladder to induce urothelial tumourigenesis, since it failed to produce bladder tumours in Fgfr3 as well as in Hras mutant mice. In mice with Pten deletion, one tumour was generated and general hypertrophy with cellular abnormalities was observed in all samples. No direct association between Fgfr3 and Pten mutations was found; however, SB mutagenesis supported that Fgfr3 and Pten cooperation may merge at the signalling downstream.

Thirdly, we examined the role of the most common mutation in FGFR3, S249C, in the urothelium and in tumour progression and invasion by subjecting Fgfr3 mutant mice to a bladder-specific carcinogen, N-butyl-N-(hydroxybutyl)-nitrosamine (OH-BBN). We showed that FGFR3 S249C mutation by itself does not lead to urothelial abnormalities. However, in OH-BBN-induced tumours the presence of S249C increased the number of animals that formed bladder tumours by 4.4-fold. Our results present for the first time an effect of FGFR3 S249C mutation in invasive bladder cancer.

Lastly, we sought to establish methods to generate and assess invasive bladder tumours using in vivo and in vitro techniques. First we examined the effectiveness of a Cre-expressing adenovirus (AdenoCre) to generate mouse models of bladder cancer with different combinations of genetic mutations. p53 deletion or mutation together with Pten loss led to formation of aggressive bladder tumours; however the origin of these tumours was likely to be the bladder muscle. Hras activation in combination with Pten deletion did not produce tumours or any cellular abnormalities by 8 months. AdenoCre-mediated tumour induction was successful in the presence of β-catenin and Hras mutation. However, an issue of AdenoCre transduction was the frequent observation of tumours in various other tissues such as the pelvic soft tissue, liver, pancreas and lung. Using an optimised AdenoCre procedure, the technique would allow lineage tracing of cancer stem cells in a developing bladder tumour and potentially during metastatic spread. Secondly, we tested imaging techniques in the living animals and validated ultrasound as a functional method to detect bladder wall thickening, as well as to monitor tumour growth in vivo. Thirdly, with the aim to assess cell transformation, migration and response to drug treatment, we tested essential ex vivo techniques and assays such as 3D sphere culture, organotypic slice culture as well as a Collagen-I invasion assay. The 3D tumour sphere culture was successful with murine Wnt-activated tumours as well as with invasive human cell lines. The organotypic slice culture was assessed as a system to test the effect of therapeutic drugs on the tumour cells; however, an issue of tissue disintegration has yet to be overcome. The Collagen-I assay successfully recapitulated invasion of a human bladder cancer cell line; however, the system needs to be adapted to murine bladder tumours.

Taken together, this study presents for the first time evidence that support the functional role of FGFR3 signalling in the early stages of non-invasive urothelial carcinoma as well as in tumour progression of established neoplasms in mice. Given the wide availability of inhibitors specific to FGF signalling, our FGFR3 mouse models in conjunction with optimised ex vivo assays and imaging systems may open the avenue for FGFR3-targeted translation in urothelial disease.


Fracture stimulation treatments of tight formations in the Cooper Basin can be associated with hydraulic fracture complexity that results in abnormally high treating pressures, low proppant placement and poor economic success. Pre-completion (image log and rock testing data) and post-completion data (fracture stimulation pressure decline plots) were reviewed in 13 treatment zones from the Cooper Basin. Rock strength, image log and stimulation data were available for seven of those zones. From this analysis, a distinct relationship between rock properties (shear and tensile rock strength), geological weaknesses (natural fractures and other fabrics) and fracture stimulation complexity (net pressure, near-wellbore pressure loss and pressure-dependent leak-off) was observed. It is proposed that high in situ stress (Shmin≧0.8 psi ft−1; 18.1 MPa km−1), a large contrast in tensile strength between intact rock (T>1015 psi (7 MPa)) and pre-existing weaknesses in the reservoir (T∼0) promote the propagation of fracturing fluid along multiple fracture pathways, and thus abnormally high treating pressures, low proppant placement and poor economic success during fracture stimulation treatments in the Cooper Basin. The methodology used to predict in situ stress and hydraulic fracture complexity herein presents a potential generic approach that can be used in similar basins where hydraulic fracture complexity is a problem or where conventional stimulation practices are unsuccessful.


Fatigue strength and fracture mechanism of a medium carbon steel having carbon content of 0.35%C with gas flame thermally sprayed Co-based alloy coatings were investigated by rotating bending tests. After fusing treatment, machining was done to make three kinds of specimens having 0.3mm, 0.5mm and 1.0mm in coating thickness. The fatigue strength of all coated specimens was much higher than that of the substrate and that of the grit blasted ones. Especially, it was found that the fatigue strength of the specimens with 1.0mm coating was remarkably higher compared to those with 0.3mm and 0.5mm coatings. That is, fatigue characteristics depend on coating thickness, and fatigue strength increases with the increase of coating thickness. The result showed that at lower stress levels, the fatigue cracks were initiated only inside the substrate of 0.3mm and 0.5mm coated specimens (Internal failure in the substrate). At higher stress levels the fatigue cracks were initiated at the coating layer, originated from the porosity located in coating layer of all coated specimens (Coated layer failure). But no fracture mode transition was noticed for the case of 1.0mm coated specimen. The cause of the fracture mode transition depending on the coating thickness was discussed on the basis of the results from calculation of the stress at the location where the fatigue fracture was initiated.


Aiming at tedious preparation procedures for 2D porous graphitic carbon nitride (2DPCN) nanosheets, a one-step thermal polymerization method based on a supramolecular precursor has been developed. As-prepared 2DPCNs exhibit enlarged specific surface areas with rich reaction sites, better crystallinity, stronger visible-light harvesting capability, aligned energy levels and faster charge transfer. A superior photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rate of 220 μmol h−1 under visible-light (λ > 420 nm) irradiation, has been achieved. In the meantime, an apparent quantum yield of 1.3% at 490 nm is also obtained, indicating that 2DPCN possesses green light activity. Our one-step thermal polymerization method based on a supramolecular precursor provides a new way to develop C3N4 photocatalysts with different morphologies and better photoelectric properties.


The stem cells keep us young by endogenously repairing us upon need. They do so bysmartly one step forward towards differentiation while another step backward to nurturethe undifferentiated stem cells. They are building blocks for every organ witha differential rate of repair of worn out tissues. Since stem cells can be cultured with a normal karyo type, they could be the ideal source for heart repair after myocardial infarction. As opposed to lower vertebrates and neonatal mice, cardiac regeneration in adult mammalian heart seems to be difficult to assess with a solid evidence of cytokinesis. It becomes more difficult to quantify the level of regeneration after myocardial infarction injury against a background of a large invasion of proliferating inflammatory cells. The question to beraised is how the renewal of a piece of myocardium follows the time line of picking upcell types in series: cardiomyocytes, endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, fibroblast, pacemaker cells, conducting and Purkinje cells to bring the orchestration of rhythmically contracting and relaxing heart. This review focuses on where we are onthe status of heart repair and cardiac regeneration.


Abstract α-Tocopherol transfer protein (α-TTP) was first described to play a major role in maintaining α-tocopherol levels in plasma, while α-tocopherol was primarily reported to be a factor relevant for reproduction. Expression of α-TTP is not only seen in the liver, from where it was first isolated, but also in mouse uterus, depending on its state of pregnancy, stressing the importance of α-TTP for embryogenesis and fetal development. The cellular localization of α-TTP in mouse uterus is reported here. By immunohistochemistry, α-TTP could be localized in the secretory columnar epithelial cells of the pregnant uterus on Days 4.5 and 6.5 postcoitum as well as in the glandular epithelial cells and the inner decidual reaction zone surrounding the implantation site. On Days 8.5 and 10.5 postcoitum (midterm of mouse pregnancy), α-TTP could still be detected in the uterine secretory columnar epithelial cells, while in α-TTP knockout mice, no immunostaining was visible. It is suggested that α-TTP plays a major role in supplying the placenta and consecutively the fetus with α-tocopherol throughout pregnancy. We conclude that α-tocopherol plays a role in the process of implantation and that α-TTP may be necessary for adequate α-tocopherol status of the fetus.


A simple and reproducible method for the rapid extraction and determination of trace amounts of copper(II) ions using octadecyl-bonded silica membrane disks modified by 1,2bis(salicylideneamino)ethane (SALET) and atomic absorption spectrometry is presented. The method is based on complex formation on the surface of the ENVI-18 DISK disks followed by stripping of the retained species by minimum amounts of appropriate organic solvents. The elution is efficient and quantitative. The effect of potential interfering ions, pH, ligand amount, stripping solvent, and sample flow rate were also investigated. Under the optimal experimental conditions, the break-through volume was found to about 1000mL providing a preconcentration factor of 400. The maximum capacity of the disks was found to be 465± 5 μg for Cu.The limit of detection of the proposed method is 7ng per 1000mL.The method was applied to the extraction and recovery of copper in different water samples.  2008 Trade Science Inc. INDIA Trade Science Inc. ACAIJ, 7(1) 2008 [28-34] Full Paper An Indian Journal Volume 7 Issue 1 January 2007 Analytical CHEMISTRY


We provide the parameters of Stillinger–Weber potentials for GeSiSn ternary mixed systems. These parameters can be used in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to reproduce phonon properties and thermal conductivities. The phonon dispersion relation is derived from the dynamical structure factor, which is calculated by the space-time Fourier transform of atomic trajectories in an MD simulation. The phonon properties and thermal conductivities of GeSiSn ternary crystals calculated using these parameters mostly reproduced both the findings of previous experiments and earlier calculations made using MD simulations. The atomic composition dependence of these properties in GeSiSn ternary crystals obtained by previous studies (both experimental and theoretical) and the calculated data were almost exactly reproduced by our proposed parameters. Moreover, the results of the MD simulation agree with the previous calculations made using a time-independent phonon Boltzmann transport equation with complicated scattering mechanisms. These scattering mechanisms are very important in complicated nanostructures, as they allow the heat-transfer properties to be more accurately calculated by MD simulations. This work enables us to predict the phonon- and heat-related properties of bulk group IV alloys, especially ternary alloys.


Nucleopolyhedrosis virus inclusion bodies specific for Hemerocampa pseudotsugata, Neodiprion sertifer, Porthetria dispar, and Heliothis zea have been purified by using a continuous-sample-flow-with-isopycnic-banding centrifuge in quantities up to 6 x 10(13) polyhedral inclusion bodies per day. Continuous-flow methods for S-rho type purification have been evolved to deal with mass isolation of bioparticles.


Although we teach BIM since 2006 at the Faculty of architecture at Czech Technical University in Prague, the education has never been fully integrated into the curriculum of the school. In 2013/2014 this changed, and three tracks were initialized to integrate BIM: (1) teaching BIM in the first year; (2) applying BIM in a selected first year design studio; and (3) applying BIM in a selected third year Bachelor graduation design studio. The implementation of the work is described, results are presented, and we draw conclusions for future work.


An effective algorithm for the design of punctured serially concatenated convolutional codes (SCCCs) is proposed. The algorithm is based on the density evolution technique, and its main goal is to design a code matching the outer and the inner encoder in order to reduce the bit error rate (BER) in the SNR operating region ranging from the waterfall to the error floor of the designed SCCCs. The concepts are illustrated for some specific SCCC schemes. Finally, simulation results and comparisons with other approaches proposed in the literature confirm the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.


Objectives: In this study, we measured hearing thresholds in patients diagnosed with hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism with high-frequency audiometry and otoacoustic emission before and after treatment to determine whether hearing losses were cochlear or retrocochlear and whether they would improve with medical therapy. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on patients diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism at Cumhuriyet University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism and accepting to participate in the study. We measured the hearing thresholds of the study population during the pretreatment period and in posttreatment euthyroid period. Result: The audiometric findings of patients with hyperthyroidism were better than those of the control group especially at high frequencies. Sensorineural hearing loss was detected in the euthyroid period. We compared the audiometric findings of the patients with hypothyroidism and the controls. We found sensorineural hearing loss in patients with hypothyroidism, especially at low frequencies. Conclusions: The results of this study showed that both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism may have an effect on hearing pathway disorders. Medical therapy may lead to hearing loss in patients with hyperthyroidism, and the underlying factors should be investigated in detailed future studies. It was shown in our study that the hearing loss induced by hypothyroidism may improve with medical therapy. Therefore, in all patients with thyroid dysfunction, hearing levels should be monitored closely with audiometric tests.


˚ ABSTRACT: Antibacterial activity of zinc oxide nanoparticles in self-curing acrylic resin against Streptococcus mutans . The main objective of this study was to investigate whether nanoparticles of zinc oxide (ZnO) in self-curing acrylic resin, have antimicrobial properties against Streptococcus mutans , one of the microorganisms involved in the development of caries. Self-cured acrylic resin samples were prepared by incorporating ZnO nanoparticles at different concentrations based on the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for Streptococcus mutans ATCC 25175. Antibacterial activity against a biofilm was evaluated in samples that were aged in artificial saliva for different times using spectral confocal laser microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Kruskal-Wallis test using IBM SPSS Statistics version 23.0 software (SPSS Inc. ¤, Chicago, IL, United States) were used, establishing the value of p <0.05 for statistical significance. The volume of the total biomass that formed in the samples aged for one day was significantly lower than the volume of the total biomass that was formed in those aged for additional days (p <0.001). Electron microscopy analysis revealed high porosity surfaces in all samples. Bacterial clusters were located next to large pores and irregular surfaces, while smooth surfaces had defined and linear organization cocci or simple chains. Considering the limitations of this study, the results suggest that the antibacterial activity of ZnO nanoparticles added to self-curing acrylic (ALIKE) is effective, mainly in fresh 1-day samples, independent of their concentration, and in samples with 16 MIC aged for 14 days, indicating it does not lose its antibacterial activity despite setting for more days. In addition, the ZnO nanoparticles added to ALIKE have the ability to inhibit the formation of biofilms, although they do not minimize the number of viable bacteria.


A cloud object partitioning algorithm is developed to provide a widely useful database of deep convective clouds. It takes contiguous CloudSat cloudy regions and identifies various length scales of clouds from a tropical, oceanic subset of data. The methodology identifies a level above which anvil characteristics become important by analyzing the cloud object shape. Below this level in what is termed the pedestal region, convective cores are identified based on reflectivity maxima. Identifying these regions allows for the assessment of length scales of the anvil and pedestal of deep convective clouds. Cloud objects are also appended with certain environmental quantities from European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts. Simple geospatial and temporal assessments show that the cloud object technique agrees with standard observations of local frequency of deep convective cloudiness. Deep convective clouds over tropical oceans play important roles in Earth's climate system. The newly developed data set is used to evaluate the response of tropical, deep convective clouds to sea surface temperature (SST). Several previously proposed responses are examined: the Fixed Anvil Temperature Hypothesis, the Iris Hypothesis, and the Thermostat Hypothesis. When the data are analyzed per cloud object, increasing SST is found to be associated with increased anvil thickness, decreased anvil width, and cooler cloud top temperatures. Implications for the corresponding hypotheses are discussed. A new response suggesting that the base temperature of deep convective anvils remains approximately constant with increasing SSTs is introduced. These cloud dependencies on SST are integrated to form a more comprehensive theory for deep convective anvil responses to SST.


Estimating the location of a target is essential for many applications such as asset tracking, navigation, and data communications. Time-difference-of-arrival (TDOA) based localization has the main advantage that it does not require synchronization between the transmitting and the receiving sides. Phase-difference-of-arrival (PDOA) provides additional information that can be leveraged to enhance localization performance. The combination of TDOA and PDOA for localization has not been reported in the literature. In this letter, we propose a novel approach that incorporates both TDOA and PDOA to achieve improved position estimation. In the proposed approach, an initial location estimate is obtained by optimizing a TDOA cost function. Next, a PDOA, or a hybrid TDOA-PDOA cost function is optimized using a particle swarm optimizer to obtain the final location estimate. Simulation results show that the proposed approach sufficiently, and justifiably, improves localization performance relative to pure TDOA methods.


Physicians and others conducting medical and dental research involving children as participants face quite challenging questions and responsibilities, especially in developing countries. Age, maturity, cognitive development, previous experience, social and cultural contexts, are all factors involved in a minor's competence to assent. However, the literature has suggested some age thresholds for children to meet assent requirements and skills that they should have to participate meaningfully in decision-making situations regarding their health. This paper discusses the international regulatory documents regarding children consent in Clinical Research.


Engineering education has expanded recently to include emphasis on the development of some very specific non-technical attributes that match a strong technical base to produce well-rounded engineering graduates who are flexible and adaptable to suit the constantly developing and changing requirements of the workplace. These non technical skills include communication skills, the ability to function in teams, knowledge of societal and contemporary issues, development of global perspective, and ethics awareness. A great importance of these abilities to engineering education has emerged over the last decade even within the international and local scene. Within the Malaysian context, the Engineering Accreditation Council's (EAC) Engineering Program Accreditation Manual(BEM, 2007) , outlines ten learning outcomes that encompasses both the technical and non technical skills which are considered essential for graduating engineers. Similarly, the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) Criterion 3 (ABET, 2000), outlines eleven criterion which targeted many of these as essential program outcomes in order for engineering programs to be accredited and which are seen as critical for the success in the twenty first century. Communication skills development(CSD) is one of the outcomes required by an undergraduate engineering program in the Engineering Accreditation Council (EAC) for Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL) in Malaysia as well as in the ABET Engineering Criteria 2000 (ABET, 2000). CSD is essential for an engineer who aspires to carry out his/her professional practice in the global arena and especially in the English language. With an increasingly global economy, the Malaysian education system must produce graduates who can communicate effectively in English. Otherwise, it would lose one of its vital selling points for foreign investors to ensure that skilled labor force are sufficient to support internationally competitive commerce and industry and to provide individuals with opportunities to optimize their potentials (Muhammad Rashid bin Rajuddin, 2006; Riemer, 2002).


†† Summary In distributed systems, the communication among group members often needs ordered messages to guarantee that every member receives the messages in the same order. Oftentimes, changes in distributed computing environment occur and this undermines the assumption of any ordering algorithm. Therefore, it is difficult to presume a suitable ordering algorithm and apply a single algorithm throughout the lifetime of the system. In this paper, we present an adaptive total ordering protocol and its implementation on our reconfigurable object model. Our adaptive protocol selects a suitable ordering protocol from optimistic and pessimistic total ordering protocols dynamically depending on the runtime environment. With optimistic protocol, it is possible to reduce the affect of the network latency which is not negligible in the pessimistic protocol, because the optimistic protocol delivers messages immediately after receiving them. The optimistic protocol though incurs high ordering cost during rollback, and so in this case, it is worth using the pessimistic algorithm instead. The adaptive protocol is realized on the reconfigurable object model. This object model enables dynamic changing of object behaviors by reconfiguring consists of meta-objects. The total ordering processes are dealt in one of the meta-objects, called reordering meta-object. Therefore reconfiguration makes it possible to switch a total ordering protocol to others dynamically depending on the runtime environment. We introduce the reconfigurable object model and the method to realize the total ordering protocol in this model. To explain the adaptive ordering protocol, we show the implementation including detecting environmental change and reconfiguring object. We looked into the feasibility of our adaptive total ordering protocol in this paper. We present the requirements to realize our adaptive protocol, and show how the adaptive protocol is implemented on the reconfigurable object model.


Maximal elastance (E/sub max/: maximal ratio of pressure over volume) of left ventricular myocardium obtained from time-varying elastance curves represents myocardial contractility, which is independent of preload and afterload. A non-invasive method of quantifying myocardial global contractility using a single systolic PV loop was developed by Senzaki et al. and extended by Lee et al. by measuring time-volume curve using gated myocardial SPECT. Since these previous methods provide only the overall contractile function of left ventricle, we developed a method to quantify the regional contractility of myocardium. For total 55-72 regions, regional volume curve was estimated. Regional volume curves were obtained by extracting endocardial surface of left ventricle from each gated frame.


The p73 proteins alpha and beta were identified based on their similarity to the tumour suppressor gene product p53. p53 and the p73 proteins activate transcription from p53-responsive promoters. The large T antigen of simian virus 40 (SV40) forms a specific complex with p53 and inhibits p53-mediated transcription. Here we show that the large T antigens from SV40 and JC virus strongly reduce the transcriptional activity of p53 but do not detectably affect the ability of the p73 proteins to transactivate. p53 but not the p73 proteins associate with SV40 T antigen in vitro. Finally, p53 colocalizes with a cytoplasmic mutant of SV40 T antigen, whereas both variants of p73 fail to colocalize with cytoplasmic T antigen. These results indicate that T antigen selectively binds and inactivates p53 but does not detectably affect the p73 proteins.


The benefits of innovations for firms strongly depend on their ability to develop complementary appropriability means, including intellectual property (IP) rights. This paper aims at assessing the interrelated effects of two types of IP rights, namely patents and trade marks, considering them in their core function as legal protection devices. Based on a supermodularity analysis, we show that the complementary relationship between trade marks and patents is not straightforward. Depending on the levels of advertising spillovers and depreciation rate, trade marks are found to be either complementary or substitute to patents. Based on a data set encompassing the IP activity of a sample of French publicly traded firms, we find that patents and trade marks are complementary in chemical and pharmaceutical sectors, but substitute in high-tech business sectors (computer products and electrical equipment).


With the continuing proliferation of web services offering similar efficacies, around the globe, it has become
a challenge for a user to select the best web service. In literature, this challenge is exhibited as a 0-1 knapsack
problem of multiple dimensions and multiple choices, known as an NP-hard problem. Multi-Criteria Decision
Making (MCDM) method is one of the ways which suits this problem and helps the users to select the best
service based on his/her preferences. In this regard, this paper assists the researchers in two conducts: Firstly, to
witness the performance of different MCDM methods for large number of alternatives and attributes. Secondly,
to perceive the possible deviation in the ranking obtained from these methods. For carrying out the experimental
evaluation, in this paper, five different well-known MCDM methods have been implemented and compared
over two different scenarios of 50 as well as 100 web services, where their ranking is defined on an account
of several Quality of Service (QoS) parameters. Additionally, a Spearman's Rank Correlation Coefficient has
been calculated for different pairs of MCDM methods in order to provide a clear depiction of MCDM methods
showing the least deviation in their ranking. The experimental results comfort web service users in conquering
an appropriate decision on the selection of suitable service.


Metaphors are a way of understanding and expressing difficult and abstract matters. The image of a community infected with a fatal and disgusting disease is a popular medium for social criticism utilized in different cultural contexts, including the literary field. In this article, the author examines the specifics of the use of the maladic metaphor in the novel Libenkraft's Disease by Oleksandr Irvanets. The various approaches to the issues that are the crux of the anxious and dark meaning of this text allow us to come to several conclusions. The perspective of utopian studies proves that — contrary to previous fi ndings — the novel should be classified as an apocalyptic utopia. Postcolonial criticism of the cultural representation of violence shows that Libenkraft's Disease is one of numerous texts in Ukrainian literature that propose settling past accounts by way of revenge. The findings of René Girard and Susan Sontag allow us to confirm the dangerous closeness of the epidemic metaphor to the phenomena of symbolic violence and social oppression also in the contents of Irvanets's novel. The confrontation between the visions included in Libenkraft's Disease and the current situation in Ukraine prompts readers to conclude that, at least in the case of this novel, the author deserves to be called a prophet of the past.


Analysis of three-dimensional morphological properties of 24 coastal drainage basins that have evolved in areas of low ( 3 m/1,000 yr) rates of uplift near the Mendocino triple junction (MTJ), coastal northern California, identified channel gradients as the best indicator of tectonism in the landscape. Lower-order tributaries best reflect tectonically controlled differences. The largest streams examined, of third order, are able to adjust to most base-level change and maintain their profile form, whereas lower-order streams farther upstream tend to accumulate the effects of net base-level fall and have steepest profiles in the areas of highest uplift rates. Variations in steepness of first-order channel gradients indicate that (1) high uplift rates in the wake of the MTJ have existed for at least 73,000 yr and (2) differential tilt of the region to the north and south of the current locus of highest uplift rate is occurring in association with regional uplift. Although first-order streams are excellent indicators of areas of both high uplift rates and regional differential tilting, they are less useful in distinguishing between areas of low and intermediate uplift rate. Analysis of the longitudinal profile of the main trunk stream of ten of the 24 drainage basins, using the stream-gradient index, was more useful to categorize broadly the uplift rates and to distinguish between streams in low- and intermediate-uplift-rate areas. Although the hypotheses tested herein do not identify the exact mechanism off uplift in the MTJ region, they do indicate that the nature of deformation is most likely regional tilt rather than crustal shortening with localized compressional folding and thrust faulting. They also indicate that geomorphic responses trail in the wake of the uplift-rate response caused by development of a slab window beneath the North American plate; (1) maximum uplift rates occur ∼9 km south of the northern boundary of the slab window, (2) maximum mean first-order channel gradient occurs 16 km south of the northern edge of the slab window, and (3) maximum drainage-basin relief occurs 20 km south of the northern edge of the slab window. Associated lag times between passage of the southern edge of the subducted Gorda plate slab and geomorphic responses are ∼160,000 yr for maximum uplift rates, ∼290,000 yr for maximum channel gradients, and ∼370,000 yr for maximum relief.


The indiscriminate use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as antipyretic and analgesic agents causes potential side effects in patients. Therefore, the quest for the identification of analgesic drugs without side effects is continuing. In this process, the efficacy of plant-based drugs used in the traditional medicine system is gaining momentum nowadays due to their cost effectiveness, greater availability and lesser side effects. In the present study, the methanolic leaf extract of Aristolochia tagala was tested for the antipyretic and analgesic effect in Swiss albino mice. The antipyretic activity was investigated by the brewer's yeast induced pyrexia method. The rectal temperature was measured after 18 h of yeast injection. The temperature decrease was recorded for four hours after the administration of plant extract. For the determination of analgesic effect, tail immersion test was followed. The animals were treated with the plant extract at the doses of 200 mg/ kg and 400 mg/ kg. The reaction time was recorded after the drug treatment. The results were subjected to statistical analysis using one-way ANOVA for their significance. The results indicate that Aristolochia tagala methanolic extract possesses antipyretic and analgesic effect, which are dose dependent.


Sedentary obesity is associated with increased risk of many cardio-metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes. Weight loss is therefore a desirable goal for sedentary adults with obesity. Weight loss is also a well-documented side effect of sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibition, a pharmaceutical strategy for diabetes treatment. We hypothesized that, compared with placebo, SGLT2 inhibition as an adjunct to out-patient dietary counselling for weight loss would lead to more favorable modification of body mass and composition, and greater improvement in glucose regulation and lipid profile. Using a randomized, double-blind, repeated measures parallel design, 50 sedentary men and women (body mass index: 33.4 ± 4.7 kg/m2; mean ± SD) were assigned to 12 weeks of dietary counselling, supplemented with daily ingestion of either a placebo or SGLT2 inhibitor (dapagliflozin: up to 10 mg/day). Dietary counselling favorably modified body mass, body fat, glucose regulation, and fasting concentrations of triglyceride and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (main effects of counselling: p < 0.05); SGLT2 inhibition did not influence any of these adaptations (counselling × medication interactions: p > 0.05). However, SGLT2 inhibition when combined with dietary counselling led to greater loss of fat-free mass (counselling × medication interaction: p = 0.047) and attenuated the rise in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (counselling × medication interaction: p = 0.028). In light of these data and the health implications of decreased fat-free mass, we recommend careful consideration before implementing SGLT2 inhibition as an adjunct to dietary counselling for weight loss in sedentary adults with obesity.


The ability to react quickly to unpredictable changes in the environment is a key requirement in pervasive computing. This paper presents fANFARE, a framework for the autonomic management of service-oriented applications in pervasive environments. Specifically, it focuses on the configuration and optimization of pervasive applications deployed on OSGi platforms. We propose to handle runtime administration through a hierarchy of autonomic managers, that is a platform manager and a number of application managers and dependency managers. Our approach has been implemented and validated on pervasive use cases within the MEDICAL project funded by the French Ministry of Industry.


Diamonds and other ultrahigh pressure (UHP) minerals have been reported previously from the Luobusa ophiolite of Tibet, but these minerals have thus far been found only as individual grains. Here we report the occurrence of diamond as an inclusion in OsIr alloy and coesite as part of a silicate assemblage rimming a grain of FeTi alloy, both of which were recovered from chromitite. These occurrences confirm the presence of UHP minerals in the Luobusa chromitite requiring minimum pressures of ∼2.8–4 GPa. Individual coesite "crystals" have external form similar to that of stishovite and are polycrystalline, suggesting pseudo morphic replacement and implying a pressure >9 GPa. We propose that the UHP minerals were incorporated into the chromitites in the deep upper mantle or that they have an impact origin; the preponderance of evidence favors the former.


OBJECTIVES
In the United States, Black persons are disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including gonorrhea. Individual behaviors do not fully explain these racial disparities. We explored the association of racial residential segregation with gonorrhea rates among Black persons and hypothesized that specific dimensions of segregation would be associated with gonorrhea rates.

METHODS
We used 2003 to 2007 national STI surveillance data and 2000 US Census Bureau data to examine associations of 5 dimensions of racial residential segregation and a composite measure of hypersegregation with gonorrhea rates among Black persons in 257 metropolitan statistical areas, overall and by sex and age. We calculated adjusted rate ratios with generalized estimating equations.

RESULTS
Isolation and unevenness were significantly associated with gonorrhea rates. Centralization was marginally associated with gonorrhea. Isolation was more strongly associated with gonorrhea among the younger age groups. Concentration, clustering, and hypersegregation were not associated with gonorrhea.

CONCLUSIONS
Certain dimensions of segregation are important in understanding STI risk among US Black persons. Interventions to reduce sexual risk may need to account for racial residential segregation to maximize effectiveness and reduce existent racial disparities.


Dietary glycaemic index (GI) and glycaemic load (GL) are indices used to quantify the effect of carbohydrate quality and quantity on postprandial glycaemia. GI/GL-health associations are widely studied but data on the validity of integrated GI/GL measurements are scarce. We evaluated the performance of a food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) specifically developed to assess GI/GL. In total, 263 Dutch men and 212 women (aged 55 ± 11 years) completed a 58-item GI-FFQ, an 183-item general-FFQ and a 2-day 24 h-recall and donated blood for glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) determination. The level of agreement between these methods was evaluated by (1) cross-classification, (2) correlations and (3) Bland and Altman plots. The three dietary assessment methods provided comparable mean intake estimates for total carbohydrates (range: 214–237 g/day), mono/disaccharides (100–107 g/day), polysaccharides (114–132 g/day), as well as bread, breakfast cereals, potatoes, pasta, rice, fruit, dairy, cakes/cookies and sweets. Mean (±SD) GI estimates were also comparable between the GI-FFQ (54 ± 3), general-FFQ (53± 4) and 24 h-recalls (53± 5). Mean (±SD) GI-FFQ GL (117± 37) was slightly lower than the general-FFQ GL (126± 38) and 24 h-recalls GL (127 ± 37). Classification of GI in quartiles was identical for the GI-FFQ and general-FFQ for 43% of the population (r = 0.58) and with 24 h-recalls for 35% of the population (de-attenuated r = 0.64). For GL, this was 48% (r = 0.65) and 44% (de-attenuated r = 0.74). Correlations between GI and HbA1c were low (r = −0.09 for GI-FFQ, r = −0.04 for general-FFQ and r = 0.07 for 24 h-recalls). In conclusion, compared to a general-FFQ and 24 h-recalls, the GI-FFQ showed a moderate to good relative validity for carbohydrates, carbohydrate-rich foods and GI/GL. No metric predicted HbA1c.


Abstract In this paper we introduce the s-monotone index selection rules for the well-known criss-cross method for solving the linear complementarity problem (LCP). Most LCP solution methods require a priori information about the properties of the input matrix. One of the most general matrix properties often required for finiteness of the pivot algorithms (or polynomial complexity of interior point algorithms) is sufficiency. However, there is no known polynomial time method for checking the sufficiency of a matrix (classification of column sufficiency of a matrix is co-NP-complete). Following the ideas of Fukuda, Namiki and Tamura, using Existentially Polynomial (EP)-type theorems, a simple extension of the crisscross algorithm is introduced for LCPs with general matrices. Computational results obtained using the extended version of the criss-cross algorithm for bi-matrix games and for the Arrow-Debreu market equilibrium problem with different market size is presented.


The main purpose of the study is to examine the causal relationship between government revenues and expenditures of the Jordan government over the period from 1990 to 2011 using Granger causality and VECM tests methodology. Which provides channels of causation between government revenues (GR) and government expenditures (GE).The empirical results show that bidirectional causality running between revenues and expenditure. This result supports lend support to the fiscal synchronization hypothesis, implying that government of Jordan makes its revenues and expenditures decisions simultaneously. On other hand, it shows that allocated expenditures decide the amount of revenues which in turn affects the size of expenditures for the present and the next fiscal year(s).Thus the policy maker should pay attention to the bidirectional causality between government expenditures and revenues which might complicate the government's efforts to control the budget deficit and may contribute in explaining the high national debt figure.


A common phenomenon on the Internet is the appearance of collective emotions, in which many users share an emotional state. Online communities allow users to emotionally interact with large amounts of other users, creating collective states faster than in offline interaction. We present our modeling framework for collective emotions in online communities. This framework allows the analysis and design of agent-based models, including the dynamics of psychological states under emotional interaction. We illustrate the applications of our framework through an overview of two different models. Based on this framework, our first model of emotions in product reviews communities reproduces the empirical distribution of emotions towards products in Amazon. The second model within our framework reproduces the emergence of emotional persistence at the individual and collective level. This persistence pattern is similar to the one revealed by our statistical analysis of IRC chatrooms. Further applications of our framework aim at reproducing collective features of emotions in a variety of online communities.


We built a collector to filter interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) larger than 5 μm from the clean air at the Amundsen Scott South Pole station. Our sampling strategy used long duration, continuous dry filtering of near‐surface air in place of short duration, high‐speed impact collection on flags flown in the stratosphere. We filtered ~107 m3 of clean Antarctic air through 20 cm diameter, 3 µm filters coupled to a suction blower of modest power consumption (5–6 kW). Our collector ran continuously for 2 years and yielded 41 filters for analyses. Based on stratospheric concentrations, we predicted that each month's collection would provide 300–900 IDPs for analysis. We identified 19 extraterrestrial (ET) particles on the 66 cm2 of filter examined, which represented ~0.5% of the exposed filter surfaces. The 11 ET particles larger than 5 µm yield about a fifth of the expected flux based on >5 µm stratospheric ET particle flux. Of the 19 ET particles identified, four were chondritic porous IDPs, seven were FeNiS beads, two were FeNi grains, and six were chondritic material with FeNiS components. Most were <10 µm in diameter and none were cluster particles. Additionally, a carbon‐rich candidate particle was found to have a small 15N isotopic enrichment, supporting an ET origin. Many other candidate grains, including chondritic glasses and C‐rich particles with Mg and Si and FeS grains, require further analysis to determine if they are ET. The vast majority of exposed filter surfaces remain to be examined.


A coupled map is suggested to investigate various spatial or temporal designs in biology: several cells (or tissues) in an organ are considered as connected to each other in terms of some molecular diffusions or electrical potential differences and so on. The biological systems (groups of cells) start from various initial conditions for spatial designs (or initial signals for temporal designs) and they evolve in time in terms of the mentioned interactions (connections) besides some individual feedings. The basic aim of the present contribution is to mimic various empirical data for the heart (in normal, quasi-stable, unstable and post operative physiological conditions) or brain (regular or irregular; for epilepsy) signals. The mentioned empirical data are borrowed from various works in the literature which are cited. The suggested model (to be used besides or instead of the artificial network models) involves simple mathematics and the related software is easy. The results may be considered as in good agreement with the mentioned real signals.


Avilés, C., Juárez, M., Larsen, I. L., Rodas-González, A. and Aalhus, J. L. 2014. Effect of multiple vacuum packs on colour development and stability in beef steaks. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 94: 63-69. The aim of this study was to compare the colour stability of steaks from longissimus dorsi muscle previously submitted to four treatments of vacuum packaging and aged for 15 d. Muscle portions were either vacuum packed and aged for 15 d (NRP), or repacked after 2 h (RP2h), 8 d (RP8d) and after 2 h and 8 d (RP2h+8d). Purge loss values from RP8d and RP2h+8d treatments were higher (P=0.019) than those from NRP and drip loss was higher (P=0.001) for RP2h and RP8d. Colour changes during a 30-min period of exposure to atmospheric oxygen immediately after opening the packages were similar for repackaged-aged steaks and NRP steaks (P>0.05). Nevertheless, colour stability during subsequent retail display under atmospheric air conditions was affected by the packaging treatment. The decrease in chroma values (P=0.043) and the increase in hue (P=0.011) between day 3 and day 6 was minimum for RP2h+8d, compared with NRP, RP2h and RP8d. Also, the proportion of pigment in the myoglobin form in these three treatments dramatically increased from day 3 to day 6, while no effect was observed for RP2h+8d (P=0.005). Similarly, the decrease over time in the proportion of pigment in the oxymyoglobin form in meat from the RP2h+8d treatment was much lower (P=0.002) than for the other three packaging treatments. Changes in colour stability associated with multiple vacuum packagings may confound results in experimental designs. Thus, if beef colour is to be evaluated, repeated vacuum packaging should be limited.


Incremental and quantitative improvements of two-way interactions with extended realities (XR) are contributing toward a qualitative leap into a state of XR ecosystems being efficient, user-friendly, and widely adopted. However, there are multiple barriers on the way toward the omnipresence of XR; among them are the following: computational and power limitations of portable hardware, social acceptance of novel interaction protocols, and usability and efficiency of interfaces. In this article, we overview and analyse novel natural user interfaces based on sensing electrical bio-signals that can be leveraged to tackle the challenges of XR input interactions. Electroencephalography-based brain-machine interfaces that enable thought-only hands-free interaction, myoelectric input methods that track body gestures employing electromyography, and gaze-tracking electrooculography input interfaces are the examples of electrical bio-signal sensing technologies united under a collective concept of ExG. ExG signal acquisition modalities provide a way to interact with computing systems using natural intuitive actions enriching interactions with XR. This survey will provide a bottom-up overview starting from (i) underlying biological aspects and signal acquisition techniques, (ii) ExG hardware solutions, (iii) ExG-enabled applications, (iv) discussion on social acceptance of such applications and technologies, as well as (v) research challenges, application directions, and open problems; evidencing the benefits that ExG-based Natural User Interfaces inputs can introduce to the area of XR.


The coupling of several areas of the medical field with recent advances in robotic systems has seen a paradigm shift in our approach to selected sectors of medical care, especially over the last decade. Rehabilitation medicine is one such area. The development of advanced robotic systems has ushered with it an exponential number of trials and experiments aimed at optimising restoration of quality of life to those who are physically debilitated. Despite these developments, there remains a paucity in the presentation of these advances in the form of a comprehensive tool. This book was written to present the most recent advances in rehabilitation robotics known to date from the perspective of some of the leading experts in the field and presents an interesting array of developments put into 33 comprehensive chapters. The chapters are presented in a way that the reader will get a seamless impression of the current concepts of optimal modes of both experimental and ap- plicable roles of robotic devices.


Background: There is scientific evidence that using the partogram reduces maternal and foetal morbidity and mortality. The use of partograms by doctors and midwives at Odi District Hospital has been reported as inadequate by external audits. The level of knowledge of and use of partograms amongst doctors and midwives at Odi District Hospital was investigated. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of doctors and midwives was undertaken using a self-administered questionnaire. A mixed-methods research approach was used to elicit information on the knowledge and use of the partogram. Results: Despite 57 (83.8%) participants having had some form of training on the partogram, only 54 (79.4%) routinely used it. All but one participant had heard of the partogram. Reasons for not using the partogram included being unsure how to use it (13%), partogram charts not available (8.7%), partogram takes too long (21.7%), being too busy (26.1%), and a feeling that the partogram was not the doctor's responsibility (26.1%). Overall knowledge of partograms was insufficient, resulting in inadequate use of partograms. In-service training is required to improve the skills of doctors and midwives in the correct knowledge and use of partograms. Conclusion: Partograms are not used as required by doctors and midwives, and further training is needed.


Insect herbivores exploit plant cues to discern host and non-host plants. Studies of visual plant cues have focused on colour despite the inherent polarization sensitivity of insect photoreceptors and the information carried by polarization of foliar reflectance, most notably the degree of linear polarization (DoLP; 0–100%). The DoLP of foliar reflection was hypothesized to be a host plant cue for insects but was never experimentally tested. Here, we show that cabbage white butterflies, Pieris rapae (Pieridae), exploit the DoLP of foliar reflections to discriminate among plants. In experiments with paired digital plant images, P. rapae females preferred images of the host plant cabbage with a low DoLP (31%) characteristic of cabbage foliage over images of a non-host potato plant with a higher DoLP (50%). By reversing the DoLP of these images, we were able to shift the butterflies' preference for the cabbage host plant image to the potato non-host plant image, indicating that the DoLP had a greater effect on foraging decisions than the differential colour, intensity, or shape of the two plant images. Although previously not recognized, the DoLP of foliar reflection is an essential plant cue that may commonly be exploited by foraging insect herbivores.


The task of building and maintaining effective multi-disciplinary relationships is a constant challenge for the residential child care sector in Scotland. The absence of effective multi-disciplinary collaboration has been cited regularly as a contributing factor to instances of poor and problematic practice. Social pedagogy has much to offer in terms of enabling the residential child care sector to address some of these issues and assist with the task of establishing effective multi-disciplinary relationships. This article will explore how this can be achieved in practice, drawing on research based on multi-disciplinary social pedagogy training delivered in Scotland. The evidence demonstrates that social pedagogy can begin to break down the very real barriers that often prevent residential child care practitioners from developing and maintaining multi-disciplinary relationships. It can assist with the task of developing a shared language and understanding; the creation of a clear focus on the developmental needs of children and young people; and a more nuanced approach to dealing with issues of risk. The messages from this article will hold relevance for the professions of residential child care, health and education and be applicable to practitioners throughout Europe and beyond.


Mutations of exon 2 of Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homologue (KRAS) (exon 2 codons 12/13) lead to constitutive activation of the EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor) mediated signal transduction pathway and been shown to be a negative predictive biomarker for EGFR-directed monoclonal antibodies among patients with colorectal cancer (CRC). As selection of patients is very important for administration of anti-EGFR therapy, this lone biomarker has proved to be insufficient for selecting the appropriate patients as more patients lacking exon 2 KRAS mutation were resistant to anti-EGFR therapy. The results of various randomized clinical trials have confirmed the presence of other RAS mutation including additional RAS mutations (KRAS exons 3/4 and NRAS exon 1/2/3/4). Extended RAS analysis should be considered before initiating anti-EGFR therapy to patients of metastatic CRC. This can help in proper selection of patients leading to tailored individualistic treatment, decreasing cost of treatment and the adverse effects related to use of monoclonal antibody therapy. The new evidence is supporting the need to make 'Extended RAS' analysis essential before start of treatment with anti-EGFR monoclonal antibody therapy. Prior to this the Extended RAS testing should be standardized.


Introduction: Arteriovenous (AV) access maturity and patency is critical for patients on hemodialysis. Maintaining a functioning AV access for these patients is of paramount importance. Salvage of failing AV accesses has been traditionally done mainly with angiographic techniques requiring significant amounts of contrast agent and radiation exposure. Ultrasound-guided angioplasty has been described, but its utility needs to be further studied. Methods: Group 1: 42 patients undergoing ultrasound-assisted angioplasty (UAA) for AV access salvage were assessed prospectively for 9 months (October 2016 to June 2017). Group 2: Retrospective data of 47 patients who underwent angioplasty for failing AV access without ultrasound assistance, over 9 months was collected (January to September 2016). This group was matched with Group 1 in terms of age, sex, type of AV access, and cause of AV access dysfunction. Results: There was a statistically significant decrease in the average number of angiographic runs (2.5 vs. 7.9) and fluoroscopy time in minutes (3.8 vs. 13.1) recorded during UAA (P < 0.01). The average quantity of contrast agent used in milliliters (17.6 vs. 49.8) was also significantly less when ultrasound assistance was used (P < 0.01). Conclusion: UAA for failing AV access reduces the radiation exposure and the amount of contrast agent used in these patients who require multiple of these sessions and need dialysis to get the contrast agent out of their circulation. This technique is feasible and reliable; hence should be used more frequently and effectively. Our model of UAA for AV access salvage allows all cases including complex cases to be performed with the added advantage of reduced radiation exposure and contrast agent; serving as a boon to these already distressed patients. Immediate complication management and adjunctive open procedures also become possible because of the hybrid operating room setup with fluoroscopy facility.


ABSTRACT Introduction: A non-invasive tool to diagnose respiratory diseases and to follow treatment has long been looked-for. Exhaled nitric oxide (NO) is a promising marker of inflammation in asthma but nearly 25-years of research has shown that it works in only certain endotypes of asthma. The modelling of NO dynamics of the lung can give more information than a single FENO value. Areas covered: The estimation of the NO production in the conducting airways and in the gas exchange area has given new insight of the NO production in diseases beyond asthma. In this article, we discuss the importance of methodology for NO measurement in the exhaled breath and the indication of applying this technique to detect respiratory disorders. This narrative review is an attempt to examine and discuss the physiological basis underlying exhaled NO measurements and the clinical evidence of the usefulness of this method in asthma and various other respiratory disorders. Expert commentary: Estimation of the NO parameters would aid in our understanding of the NO dynamics of the lung and thereby give more knowledge how to interpret the measured FENO value in clinical practice.


Perspective for rural development of municipalities bordering the Danube River, lies in the possibilities for development of plant production, in the untouched nature and rich tourist offer. The strategic position of the municipality of Bac, Backa Palanka and Apatin, which are covered by these work, is it of the great importance for the further development and attract investments that should affect on the strengthening of agriculture and economy of whole area . An orientation of small producers to the major markets will influence the search for smaller niches in which they will be able to assert themselves and develop their production and brand their products, whether in terms of the primary agricultural products or products from other sectors of agriculture. The review of EU Rural Development Policy (2001-2013), arising from CAP (Common Agricultural Policy), the manufacturers of this part of Serbia have a great chance to restore the primary crop and livestock production on normal economy flow. Development of production the safe health food origin while preserving the environment regroup the production resources of this part of Balkans, and will influence the development of navigable traffic and stronger connection with Europe.


It is necessary to measure the performance of outdoor/protective clothing materials in terms of comfort properties under dynamic enduse conditions. A vertical type human-clothing-environment simulator was used to evaluate the thermal comfort performance of layered textile materials under dynamic conditions. Fabric layers of PET knit/fleece and PET knit/micro-porous membrane (MPM), which simulate clothing systems, were compared at a transient state from 25 to -10°C. PVC film was used to compare the effects of permeability. Relative humidity and vapor pressure data confirmed condensation on the fabric layers of the clothing systems during the transient period of temperature decrease. At the subzero condition, fabrics with low air permeability kept the water molecules on their inner surface, which deteriorates the permeability of the membranes. The vapor pressure of the air layer next to the environment was maintained at a relatively high level, which will reduce the driving force for moisture transport from sweating skin to the environment.


The ultimate objective of this academic venture is to investigate empirically the impact of cross-frontier new owners, representing the foreign capital as a consequence of a change in the shareholder structure, on the efficiency and productivity of the local banking industry over a period encompassing 2002-2011. Divided into two fiscal periods of 2002-2005 and 2006-2011 for technical measurement purposes, the discriminant analysis performed on the financial data pertaining to 10 banks exposed to foreign capital since 2005 revealed that they were significantly discriminated between the two disparate periods covered. In the subsequent stage of the analysis, productivity indicators were adopted as the dependent variable and the financial ratios as the independent variable, thereby enabling us to construct the methodological infrastructure for conducting a comprehensive "multivariate multiple regression" analysis, taking into account the dates of foreign capital injection. After accounting for the control variables, findings coerced us to infer the conclusion that a significant and positive transformation has occurred in fundamental performance benchmarks associated with scores relating to employees per branch and deposit-base per branch. In the concluding phase of the research, the "multivariate multiple regression" testing was implemented once again for a comparison between 10 banks accommodating foreign capital investment and the remaining nine banks with constant equity-ownership structure during the 2006-2011 era, as we discovered that particularly the large banks with non-resident equity participation demonstrated substantially plausible performance and achieved tangible efficiency and productivity gains relative to the small entities.


Abstract THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTERAbstract of thesis submitted in November 2014 by Jacqueline Gaile for the degree of Master of Philosophy in the Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences. The nature of metacognition in speech and language therapy for children with pragmatic language impairmentMetacognition is thinking about thinking and taking action to ensure success on tasks. Metacognitive knowledge of the person, task and strategy variables in any given cognitive enterprise are monitored and controlled in acts of self-monitoring to make progress. Metacognitive knowledge and skills support self-monitoring and generalisation. Comprehension monitoring is a metacognitive skill and children with developmental language disorders (DLDs) are known to benefit from speech and language therapy (SLT) that includes metacognition, but the nature of metacognition in SLT or how it operates in therapy delivery is unknown. Theories of therapy in SLT typically use theories of impairment to determine therapy goals; intervention studies typically report therapy outcomes. The result is that there are relatively few theories of therapy that can describe the process of therapy in terms of clinical actions in delivery and the interaction in therapy that controls how tasks are delivered. This study aimed to determine the nature of metacognition in therapy from a manualised SLT intervention as delivered within a randomised controlled trial, the Social Communication Intervention Project (SCIP) (Adams et al. 2012a). The current study aimed to examine SCIP therapy in more detail using thematic analysis in order to contribute to a ?theory of therapy? and add to the evidence base for practice by providing clarity for practitioners on how SCIP therapy was implemented in the RCT. Video data of therapy sessions collected in the SCIP RCT were purposively sampled to select a representative sample of SCIP participants and therapy content and delivery for analysis (N=8). Existing theory on metacognition as a construct in learning was incorporated into analysis from the beginning. Through cycles of iterative analysis, a preliminary list of key concepts in metacognition was developed into a Metacognitive Coding Framework (MCF). Thematic analysis revealed the presence of metacognition in the content and delivery of SCIP intervention. Metacognition was a feature of how children?s ability to monitor language, pragmatic and social interaction skills in themselves and other people was developed. Error detection was employed to teach problem-solving, that is, metacognitive skills of monitoring and control were an explicit feature of SCIP intervention. SCIP therapy agents were observed to change the task design and delivery to include a particular focus on self-monitoring as a distinct part of the therapy process. A model of the SCIP therapy process has been developed to show the nature of metacognition in SCIP therapy content and delivery.


The vascularization of new tissue within a reasonable time is a crucial prerequisite for the success of different cell- and material-based strategies. Considering that angiogenesis is a multi-step process involving humoral and cellular regulatory components, only in vivo assays provide the adequate information about vessel formation and the recruitment of endothelial cells. The present study aimed to investigate if neonatal human dermal fibroblasts could influence in vivo neovascularization. Results obtained showed that fibroblasts were able to recruit endothelial cells to vascularize the implanted matrix, which was further colonized by murine functional blood vessels after one week. The vessels exhibited higher levels of hemoglobin, compared with the control matrix, implanted without fibroblasts, in which no vessel formation could be observed. No significant differences were detected in systemic inflammation. The presence of vessels originated from the host vasculature suggested that host vascular response was involved, which constitutes a fundamental aspect in the process of neovascularization. Fibroblasts implanted within matrigel increased the presence of endothelial cells with positive staining for CD31 and for CD34 and the production of collagen influencing the angiogenic process and promoting the formation of microvessels. New strategies in tissue engineering could be delineated with improved angiogenesis using neonatal fibroblasts.


Bergmann glial cells enclose synapses throughout the molecular layer of the cerebellum and express extrasynaptic AMPA receptors and glutamate transporters. Accordingly, stimulation of parallel fibres leads to the generation of inward currents in the glia due to AMPA receptor activation and electrogenic uptake of glutamate. Elimination of AMPA receptor Ca 2+ permeability leads to the withdrawal of glial processes and synaptic dysfunction, suggesting that AMPA receptor-mediated Ca 2+ signalling is essential for glial support of the neuronal network. Here we show that glial extrasynaptic currents (ESCs) exhibit activity-dependent plasticity, specifically, long-term depression during repetitive stimulation of parallel fibres at low frequencies (0.033‐1 Hz) ) conditions in which Purkinje neuron excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) remain stable. Both the rate of onset and the magnitude of ESC depression increased with stimulation frequency. Depression was reversible following brief periods of stimulation, but became increasingly persistent as the duration of repetitive stimulation increased. All glial currents ) AMPA receptors, glutamate transporter and a recently discovered slow 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-6-nitro-2,3-dioxo-benzo[f]quinoxaline-7-sulphonamide (NBQX)-sensitive current ) were depressed. Increasing presynaptic release probability by doubling external Ca 2+ concentration did not affect the time course of depression, suggesting that neither decreased release probability nor fatigue of release sites contribute to depression. Inhibition of glutamate uptake caused a dramatic enhancement of the rate of depression, implicating glutamate in the underlying mechanism.The strength of neuron to glial signalling in the cerebellum is therefore dynamically regulated, independently of adjacent synapses, by the frequency of parallel fibre activity.


Many final term papers can be disappointing to read because they are badly written, reflecting inadequate preparation, poor planning, or a paucity of discipline-specific research or writing skills. A lack of engagement with the subject matter often compounds technical or critical thinking problems. Indeed, one of the biggest frustrations for a teacher can be to read final projects that display little or no enthusiasm. This article makes a case for alternative project formats that require the same tools of the trade and discipline specific thinking, but that are more closely aligned with the interests and career goals of music majors or graduate students in performance, music education, theory, conducting, or composition, all of whom are required to take music history courses. By presenting historical research in the format of focused program notes with accompanying recorded performances, classroom lesson plans, educational websites, source readings, or emulation compositions coupled with research essays, for instance, students become more engaged as they discover how music history can have relevance for their careers. This more pragmatic approach allows students to meld praxis and theory, or musicology and musicking while channeling the new technologies of our age to do so.


With evidence suggesting that climate change is resulting in changes within the hydrologic cycle, the ability to robustly model hydroclimatic response is critical. This paper assesses how extreme runoff—1:2- and 1:30-year return period (RP) events—may change at a regional level across the UK by the 2080s (2069–2098). Capturing uncertainty in the hydroclimatic modelling chain, flow projections were extracted from the EDgE (End-to-end Demonstrator for improved decision-making in the water sector in Europe) multi-model ensemble: five Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) General Circulation Models and four hydrological models forced under emissions scenarios Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 2.6 and RCP 8.5 (5 × 4 × 2 chains). Uncertainty in extreme value parameterisation was captured through consideration of two methods: generalised extreme value (GEV) and generalised logistic (GL). The method was applied across 192 catchments and aggregated to eight regions. The results suggest that, by the 2080s, many regions could experience large increases in extreme runoff, with a maximum mean change signal of +34% exhibited in East Scotland (1:2-year RP). Combined with increasing urbanisation, these estimates paint a concerning picture for the future UK flood landscape. Model chain uncertainty was found to increase by the 2080s, though extreme value (EV) parameter uncertainty becomes dominant at the 1:30-year RP (exceeding 60% in some regions), highlighting the importance of capturing both the associated EV parameter and ensemble uncertainty.


The response of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet to past intervals of oceanic and atmospheric warming is still not well constrained but critical for understanding both past and future sea-level change. Furthermore, the ice sheet in the Wilkes Subglacial Basin, which is characterized by a reverse-sloping bed, appears to have undergone thinning and ice discharge events during recent decades. By combining new glaciological evidence on ice sheet elevation from the TALDICE ice core with offshore sedimentological records and ice sheet modelling experiments, we reconstruct the ice dynamics in the Wilkes Subglacial Basin over the past 350,000 years. Our results indicate that the Wilkes Subglacial Basin experienced an extensive retreat 330,000 years ago and a more limited retreat 125,000 years ago. These changes coincided with warmer Southern Ocean temperatures and elevated global mean sea level during those interglacial periods, confirming the sensitivity of the Wilkes Subglacial Basin ice sheet to ocean warming and its potential role in sea-level change.


Background and context Teaching is recognised as an important part of clinical governance and is a skill taught at every stage of the medical career.1 The Hull Institute of Learning and Simulation (HILS),2 a primarily postgraduate institute, runs a Student-Selected Component (SSC)3 for undergraduate medical students in early clinical years at Hull York Medical School.4 This SSC trains students how to use simulation to deliver medical education.5 Methodology An innovative partnership of a final year medical student (who had previously completed the SSC) paired with direct senior supervision enabled design insight from both sides of the teaching partnership.6 The workshop was adapted from the highly successful postgraduate HILS Train the Trainers course2 to suit an audience at a much younger career stage. This bespoke workshop package combines an interactive plenary with a practical demonstration of what a simulation scenario entails for the both the learner and instructor. This was followed by facilitating a friendly competitive peer-assisted learning task; students were divided into teams and designed a short scenario for their opposition; allowing them time as both delegates and instructors. Pre and post-course questionnaires were utilised to assess educational value of the session. Outcomes Students demonstrated statistically and educationally significant increases in scores for confidence in designing (scale 1(not confident) to 7(confident); increase of 2.4/7, p = 0.01) and delivering their own simulated scenario (increase of 1.6/7, P = 0.04). Overwhelmingly the session was rated enjoyable, useful and suitable for their requirements quantitatively and qualitatively. Impact At the learner level, the dramatic improvement in scores between pre and post-course questionnaires gives strong support for the intended integration of this workshop as part of the SSC core programme. This pilot demonstrated the strength of staff-student professional partnerships6 in delivery of medical education, encouraging further efforts to optimise this internally highly rated SSC in striving for excellence. References General Medical Council. (GMC). (2006). Good Medical Practice 2013. London, GMC The Hull Institute of Learning and Simulation (HILS). Courses [Internet]. [cited 2014 Sept 1]. Available: http://www.hey.nhs.uk/hils/courses.htm/ NHS Medical Careers. Student-Selected Components [Internet]. [cited 2014 Sept]. Available: https://www.medicalcareers.nhs.uk/medical_students/student-selected_components.aspx Hull York Medical School (HYMS). Scholarship and Special Interest Programmes [Internet]. [cited 2014 Sept]. Available: http://www.hyms.ac.uk/undergraduate/medicine-at-hyms/scholarshipandspecialinterestprogrammes/ Swamy M, Bloomfield TC et al. Role of SimMan in teaching clinical skills to preclinical medical students. BMC Med Educ 2013;13:20 Klazina Visser Katinka JAH, Prince Albert JJA et al. Student participation in educational management and organization. Medical Teacher 1998;20(5):451–454


For a number of different reasons, some more rational than others, public sector management has often fallen for the allure of the "quick fix" promised by the latest managerial fashion. Although it is commonly accepted that complex problems rarely, if ever, have simple solutions − this has not hindered public organizations from eagerly experimenting with trendy, increasingly radical, managerial practices. More often than not, these experiences, when weighed on the background of the original promises and eventual outcomes, prove to be utter failures. In order to clarify the reasons behind this pattern of failure, this article deconstructs two of the most notable recent managerial fashions: Total Quality Management (TQM) and Business Process Reengineering (BPR). It proposes that management fashions fail to lead to effective and productive organizational change primarily due to the fact that their logical construct, which relies on over-dramatization and oversimplification of organizational realities, is at odds with the operational complexities of public sector management. In particular, they fail to account for politics. To this extent, then, they are more likely to be destructive than productive when zealously adopted in public service.


A majority of sunflower lines and hybrids were based on starting material obtained by traditional methods; so the issues of developing new trends in extending the genetic diversity of this crop require constant attention of scientists. At present, induced mutagenesis along with hybridization has become a leading method for generating new forms of crops. Their success depends largely on availability and assortment of starting material. Induction of mutations is a way to create it. The main value of induced mutagenesis for breeding is determined by opportunities to solve problems that are impossible or difficult to solve by traditional methods. The choice of an effective concentration (dose) of a mutagen is very important, since the frequency and range of mutations depend not only on the mutagen itself but also on its dose and exposure. In addition, it is relevant to search for new mutagens with reduced harmful effects at the same level of mutability. Cytological analysis of chromosomal aberrations is an important method of evaluation and identification of mutagenic effects. In this section, studies into chemical and physical mutagenesis in breeding, exemplified by new modern homozygous self-pollinated sunflower lines, are summarized; methodical recommendations on the use of induced mutagenesis in sunflower breeding are presented; and methods of generation, investigation, and further use of mutations are rationalized.


A severe burn is arguably the most significant injury that the human body can sustain. No other form of trauma causes the massive physiological changes seen in a patient with a major burn injury. This is true in the first few weeks as well as up to two years post-burn, due to the persistence of the   hypermetabolic response.1 Both the profound alterations in physiology as well as numerous anatomical changes make anaesthesia of the severely burned patient complex and challenging.


OBJECTIVE
In a survey concerning postoperative nausea and vomiting an unexpected high number of the participants stressed the impact of environmental factors, like weather and--even more surprising--the phase of the moon, on the occurrence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the influence of these factors on the incidence of PONV.

METHODS
On 203 days within the 19-month study period, 2488 patients were followed up for at least 24 hours postoperatively to determine the occurrence of PONV. For each day the actual incidence of PONV was compared with the mean predicted risk of PONV calculated with two risk scores for prediction of PONV (Koivuranta, 1997; Apfel, 1998). 32 days with the most significant difference between actual and predicted incidence of PONV were analysed retrospectively by two biometeorological experts, who were blind to the information whether each day was associated with a high or low incidence of PONV, evaluated the possible impact of the weather of these days. To analyse the influence of the cycle of the moon it was prospectively classified into four different phases.

RESULTS
The two biometeorologists rated 22 out of the presented 32 days correctly. The likelihood p that this rating happened by chance is 0.0251, assuming that the likelihood for predicting each day correctly is 0.5 (independent Bernoulli-experiments, e.g. throwing a coin). However, days with a high or low incidence of PONV were equally distributed within the four phases of the moon (p = 0.97; chi 2-test with Yates' correction).

CONCLUSION
Results from this analysis suggest that the weather may have some impact on the occurrence of PONV. However, our data do not support the hypothesis that the phases of the moon have any influence on this symptom.


Current dietary recommendations are often generalized, con�icting, and highly subjective, depending on the source biases. This results in confusion, skepticism, and frustration in the general population. Methods We have developed an objective, integrated, automated, algorithmic approach to diet and supplement recommendations that is powered by arti�cial intelligence that analyzes individualized molecular data from the gut microbiome, the human host, and their interactions. This platform enables precise, personalized, and data-driven nutritional recommendations that consist of foods and supplements, based on the individual molecular data, to establish and maintain healthy homeostasis. We describe the application of our precision nutrition technology platform to populations with depression, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and type 2 diabetes (T2D). In a blinded interventional study, we provided the study participants with precision nutritional recommendations and observed improvements in clinical outcomes by 36% in severe cases of depression, 40% in severe cases of anxiety, 38% in severe cases of IBS, and more than 30% in the T2D risk score that was validated against clinical measurements of HbA1c. Our AI-driven precision nutrition program achieved statistically signi�cant improvements in clinical outcomes of depression, anxiety, IBS, and type 2 diabetes. These data support the integration of precision food and supplements into the standard of care for these chronic conditions.


Two-stage robust optimization problems, in which decisions are taken both in anticipation of and in response to the observation of an unknown parameter vector from within an uncertainty set, are notoriously challenging. In this paper, we develop convergent hierarchies of primal (conservative) and dual (progressive) bounds for these problems that trade off the competing goals of tractability and optimality: Although the coarsest bounds recover a tractable but suboptimal affine decision rule approximation of the two-stage robust optimization problem, the refined bounds lift extreme points of the uncertainty set until an exact but intractable extreme point reformulation of the problem is obtained. Based on these bounds, we propose a primal–dual lifting scheme for the solution of two-stage robust optimization problems that accommodates for discrete, here-and-now decisions, infeasible problem instances, and the absence of a relatively complete recourse. The incumbent solutions in each step of our algorithm afford rigorous error bounds, and they can be interpreted as piecewise affine decision rules. We illustrate the performance of our algorithm on illustrative examples and on an inventory management problem.