The problem of extracting more compact rules from a rule-based knowledge base is approached by means of a chunking mechanism implemented via a neural system. Taking advantage of the parallel processing potentialities of neural systems, the computational problem normally arising when introducing chuncking processes is overcome. Also the memory saturation effect is coped with using some sort of forgetting mechanism which allows the system to eliminate previously stored, but less often used chunks. Even though some connection weights are changed in the process of storing or discarding chunks, we emphasize that this neural system cannot be regarded as a connectionist system, since a localist semantic interpretation is adopted and no classical learning algorithm is employed.


Scanning-tunneling spectroscopy experiments have been performed on conjugated polymer films and have been compared to a three-dimensional numerical model for charge injection and transport. It is found that field enhancement near the tip apex leads to significant changes in the injected current, which can amount to more than an order of magnitude, and can even change the polarity of the dominant charge carrier. As a direct consequence, the single-particle band gap and band alignment of the organic material can be directly obtained from tip height-voltage (z-V) curves, provided that the tip has a sufficiently sharp apex.


A plethora of decarbonization pathways have been suggested over the last few years and it has been generally accepted that substantial progress toward more sustainable transport requires a significant contribution from the freight sector. Deep decarbonization of road freight by conventional means is difficult, so alternatives need to be investigated. One of the most potentially beneficial approaches is electrification which is the subject of the paper. The challenges of conventional electric freight vehicles for long-haul operations are discussed and then innovative power delivery systems that could alleviate the problems are reviewed. A logistics concept to provide a framework for the electrification of most road freight transport operations is considered and based on that, simulation tools and methods are presented to set the performance requirements for a practical system. Finally, four case studies are developed for assessing the feasibility of electrification of various road freight operations. Overall, it is shown that electrification of road freight is a viable route for more sustainable transportation.


Recovery of psychomotor and perceptual performance from two combinations of intravenous sedatives was assessed in 124 oral surgical patients undergoing third molar extractions under local infiltration anesthesia. Ninety-four patients in the experimental group received 15 mg of diazepam and 20 to 200 mg of methohexital intravenously on one occasion and 12.5 mg of diazepam, 20 to 200 mg of methohexital, and 0.1 mg of fentanyl intravenously on another occasion in a randomized, crossover design. Thirty patients in the control group received saline placebo intravenously during a single surgery. Both drug combinations produced significantly prolonged decrements in performance in comparison to placebo. Reduction in the diazepam dose from 15 to 12.5 mg and the addition of fentanyl, a short-acting narcotic, produced greater sedation without prolonging recovery. Psychomotor function recovered to preoperative levels before perceptual performance. These results show that postsurgical deficits in psychomotor and perceptual function result from the sedative drugs and not from the effects of local anesthetics or physiologic and psychological responses to surgery. These results also suggest that psychomotor tests are inappropriate measures of recovery and that superior sedation with rapid recovery may be achieved with reduced doses of longer acting agents such as diazepam and with the addition of shorter acting agents that do not prolong recovery.


In this chapter we illustrate how the public sector might fail in narrowing spatial inequalities, and how both underdeveloped markets and urgent territorial needs create in peripheral areas robust individual incentives to turn into non-profit activities or even household production. In all those situations, a well-developed non-profit sector can offer marginalized or excluded social groups a legal and ethical opportunity to obtain a decent income by offering rewards (monetary or nonmonetary) in exchange for volunteering, allowing households to afford the cost of living. Laying on the results of the analysis, we discuss four cases of successful cooperation among SSE institutions by one side, and the private and the public sector on the other. In all those cases, the private and the public sector decided to facilitate the development of the non-profit sector by contracting out part of the production process to reduce costs and achieve a higher level of effectiveness. The result was successful because the non-profit sector did not incur in the opportunistic behaviors that might affect profit-oriented activities. Therefore, we suggest how local inter-institutional cooperation among the SSE, the private and the public sector should become the norm rather than the exception, in order to achieve at the same time a higher level of equitable and sustainable development and well-being.


BACKGROUND
Growth factors have been shown to improve healing in impaired models but not after malnutrition. The effects of growth factors on altered tissue repair caused by malnutrition were examined.

METHODS
Nondiabetic and diabetic mice fed a 1% protein diet received full-thickness skin wounds. Wounds were treated topically with vehicle, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF, 10 micrograms) or basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF, 1 microgram), for 5 days.

RESULTS
Malnourished animals developed significantly impaired wound closure. PDGF or bFGF did not enhance closure in nondiabetic C57BL/KsJ-db/m mice, whether fed normal or restricted diets. The same treatment regimen was effective in reversing the delayed wound closure in their genetically diabetic C57BL/KsJ-db/db littermates. The growth factors significantly enhanced tissue repair in diabetic mice fed a 1% protein diet starting as early as day 15 and continuing until day 21. Protein-depleted diabetic wounds had significantly decreased cellularity and granulation tissue formation. These deficiencies were reversed with growth factor treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
Despite the lack of effects in nondiabetic animals, growth factors improve healing in diabetic mice with restricted protein intake. The differential effects may result from different healing mechanisms: nondiabetic animals heal mainly by contraction; diabetic animals require granulation tissue formation and reepithelialization.


Three to eight-year-old children's spontaneous and creative actions provide them with opportunities to call on their own stories and life experiences in their symbolic representations. Their symbolic representations offer a window onto their identities and their meanings, while providing the adults around them with an insight into their world by constructing meaning from the children's activities. These representations are frequently composed in the unofficial spaces that children inhabit, on the edges of the main literacy teaching and learning activities of the classroom, nursery playroom and home, and are
indicative of the children's social worlds and literacy practices, made visible in their artefacts as they draw, model, make marks and role play.
The study takes place in a small nursery and primary school, and consists of ethnographic case studies which allow for the scrutiny and analysis of the artefacts made by the children at home and at school. The data comprise
images of fifteen children's representations, supported by field notes and conversational interviews. The analysis of the data recognises the need for a respectful and ethical approach to the interpretation of children's meaningmaking
strategies. Role play, drawings, cut-outs and selected artefacts and found objects are some of the methods and contexts children employ to express their voices and to build theories of action through reflection and representation of their thoughts, experiences and feelings. The children's meanings provide opportunities for exploration, experimentation and critical thinking. The approach, which is taken in the interpretation of the children's attempts to communicate meaning through their symbolic representations, reflects an ethical pedagogy where the child is listened to and their meaningmaking
is interpreted on their own terms.

The thesis argues that literacy is predicated on making meaning, and that this should be supported by recognising the need for children to communicate and make their meanings visible in their artefacts and symbolic behaviour. The findings support the thesis and suggest that there is a need to acknowledge that young children are literate in the way in which they use their symbolic representations to say what they mean, and that the richness of children's
meaning-making practices is particularly evident when they are engaged on the periphery, or edges, of the main literacy activities in their homes and educational settings.


Within this study, an improved indicator was developed to assess the ecological footprint of the inhabitants of a country, more specifically, the Netherlands. Here, models for production and consumption, on the one hand, and biodiversity, on the other, were linked. In addition, an operational model was developed and calculations of consumption and the effect of policy options as an example were carried out. In this improved indicator, all influences of the inhabitants of the Netherlands are important. These comprise not only land-use, but also climate change, land distribution, pollution, use of (fresh) water, bio-exploitation (e.g. hunting and fishing) and biological disruption (e.g. introduction of strange species). The effect on biodiversity is expressed in the Natural Capital Index (NCI), which was developed and discussed under the Convention on Biological Diversity. In principle, the NCI enables the assessment of both habitat loss and loss of quality in the remaining natural area as a result of climate change, fisheries and logging. The model links the relationship between the consumption of specific products, sectors and individuals to the global loss of natural capital in terms of a single indicator. Results will be used to support the discussion on the ecological footprint and how it can be operationalized.


This essay charts the intersection of how three of the most prominent 19th-century serial writers—E.D.E.N. Southworth, Ann Stephens, and Laura Jean Libbey—connect "brain fever" with racial intimacy, a narrative strategy registering cultural anxieties about social stability. A forgotten convention of serial fiction, such fevers introduce other symptoms, like insanity, amnesia, and syncope so that women especially might evade post-Civil War racial fears or desires. In all these novels, mental and psychic debilities signal a culture's need for reconstruction. All of these writers draw on plots where characters at key moments are struck by "brain fever," portrayed as lost consciousness, disempowered thinking, psychic damage, erasure of memory and personality—that reveal social dysfunction.


This paper makes an attempt to improve the retrieving algorithm for an intelligent communication instrument. The instrument is developed for visually impaired computer users, and it converts texts displayed on a computer screen into audio messages to help them operate the computer. The conversion is performed based on a user dictionary, and a retrieving algorithm is needed to search the dictionary. In order to accelerate the retrieving speed, we adopt an index table when retrieving the first two alphabets of a word in the dictionary. The time for retrieving words is measured in the experiments. The experimental results reveal that the retrieving operations can be finished within an acceptable time.


Forecasting models have provided timely and critical information about the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, predicting both the timing of peak mortality, and the total magnitude of mortality, which can guide health system response and resource allocation. Out-of-sample predictive validation--checking how well past versions of forecasting models predict subsequently observed trends--provides insight into future model performance. As data and models are updated regularly, a publicly available, transparent, and reproducible framework is needed to evaluate them in an ongoing manner. We reviewed 384 published and unpublished COVID-19 forecasting models, and evaluated seven models for which publicly available, multi-country, and date-versioned mortality estimates could be downloaded. These included those modeled by: DELPHI-MIT (Delphi), Youyang Gu (YYG), the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Imperial College London (Imperial), and three models produced by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), a curve fit model (IHME-CF), a hybrid curve fit and epidemiological compartment model (IHME-CF SEIR), and a hybrid mortality spline and epidemiological compartment model (IHME - MS SEIR). Collectively models covered 171 countries, as well as the 50 states of the United States, and Washington, D.C., and accounted for >99% of all reported COVID-19 deaths on July 11th, 2020. As expected, errors in mortality predictions increased with a larger number of weeks of extrapolation. For the most recent models, released in June, at four weeks of forecasting the best performing model was the IHME-MS SEIR model, with a cumulative median absolute percent error of 6.4%, followed by YYG (6.5%) and LANL (8.0%). Looking across models, errors in cumulative mortality predictions were highest in sub-Saharan Africa and lowest in high-income countries, reflecting differences in data availability and prediction difficulty in earlier vs. later stages of the epidemic. For peak timing prediction, among models released in April, median absolute error values at six weeks ranged from 23 days for the IHME-CF model to 36 days for the YYG model. In sum, we provide a publicly available dataset and evaluation framework for assessing the predictive validity of COVID-19 mortality forecasts. We find substantial variation in predictive performance between models, and note large differences in average predictive validity between regions, highlighting priority areas for further study in sub-Saharan Africa and other emerging-epidemic contexts.


Background: Prospective epidemiologic studies indicate that the risk for advanced prostate cancer is increased among men with high levels of serum calcium. Because serum calcium levels are influenced by the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR), we examined prostate cancer in African American men in relation to three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the CaSR gene, A986S, R990G, and Q1011E. This is the first study of CaSR polymorphisms and risk of prostate cancer Methods: We genotyped three CaSR SNPs for 458 African American prostate cancer cases and 248 controls from a population-based case-control study, the California Collaborative Prostate Cancer Study. Results: The CaSR genotypes were not associated with prostate cancer overall. However, we observed significant heterogeneity by disease stage for the Q1011E polymorphism (p=0.02). Advanced cases were significantly less likely than controls or localized cases to be homozygous for the minor allele of the Q1011E polymorphism (1% vs. 5%). Cases with advanced disease were six times less likely to carry two copies of the minor allele than were controls (OR=0.16, p=0.02) or localized cases (OR=0.15, p=0.01) and were significantly older at diagnosis (68.8 ±5.7 vs. 64.0 ± 9.0 years for the QQ and EE genotypes, p = 0.004). Conclusions: The CaSR Q1011E minor allele, which is common in populations with African ancestry, may be associated with a less aggressive form of prostate cancer among African American men.


How Did the Great Recession Affect Different Types of Workers? Evidence from 17 Middle-Income Countries This paper examines how different types of workers in 17 middle-income countries were affected by labor market retrenchment during the great recession. Impacts on different types of workers varied by country and were only weakly related to the severity of the shock. Among active workers, youth experienced by far the largest adverse impacts on employment, unemployment, and wage employment, particularly relative to older adults. The percentage employment reductions, for example, were greatest for youth in each sector of the economy, as firms reacted to the shock by substituting away from inexperienced workers. Employment rates, as a share of the population, also plummeted for men. Larger drops in male employment were primarily attributable to men's higher initial rate of employment, although men's concentration in the hard-hit industrial sector also played an important role. Within each sector, percentage employment declines were similar for men and women. Added worker effects among women were mild, even among less-educated workers. Differences in labor market outcomes across education groups and urban or rural residence tended to be smaller. These findings bolster the case for targeted support to displaced youth and wage employees. Programs targeted to female and unskilled workers should be undertaken with appropriate caution or empirical support from timely data, as they may not benefit the majority of affected workers. JEL Classification: E24, E32, J21, O15


Background: Increased drug overdose deaths have become a serious public health problem. Primary care providers prescribe about 50% all opioid medications. This study examined opioids prescribing during primary visits to patients with a pain-depression dyad and patient demographic characteristics associated with opioids prescribing. Method: This study analyzed data from the 2014 to 2015 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey and included primary care visits by adult patients (aged 18 years or older) with noncancer pain. Results: An opioid medication was prescribed in 26.4% (95% CI, 22.6% to 30.6%) of the primary care visits by patients with noncancer pain. Opioid medications were more likely to be prescribed during visits by patients with a pain and depression dyad (adjusted odds ratios [AOR] = 1.8; 95% CI, 1.4 to 2.4). Narcotic analgesics were more likely to be prescribed during visits by patients aged 46 to 64 years; by male patients or non-Hispanic white patients. Discussion/Conclusions: Pain-depression dyad is associated with higher odds of opioids prescribing during primary care visits. Future studies are needed to understand the complexity of these factors and identify effective strategies to prevent opioids addiction and overdose among patients with pain and depression.


There is an urgent need for economical, clean, sustainable energy supplies, not only in densely populated areas where electricity grids are appropriate, but also in rural areas where stand-alone power supply systems are often more suitable. Although electrical power supply is very versatile and convenient, it introduces unnecessary complexity for some off-grid applications where direct mechanical shaft power can conveniently be provided by a wind turbine. Wind energy is one of the more promising renewable energy sources. Most wind turbines are of the horizontal axis type, but vertical axis wind turbines or VAWTs have some advantages for direct mechanical drive applications. They need no tail or yaw mechanism to orient them into the wind and power is easily transmitted via a vertical shaft to a load at ground level. Blades may be of uniform section and untwisted, making them relatively easy to fabricate or extrude, unlike the blades of horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWTs) which should be twisted and tapered for optimum performance. Savonius rotor VAWTs are simple and may have a place where the power requirement is only a few Watts, but they are inefficient and uneconomical for applications with larger power requirements. VAWTs based on the Darrieus rotor principle are potentially more efficient and more economical, but those with fixed pitch blades have hitherto been regarded as unsuitable for stand-alone use due to their lack of starting torque and low speed torque. This starting torque problem can be overcome by using variable pitch blades, but most existing variable pitch VAWTs, variously known as giromills or cycloturbines, need wind direction sensors, microprocessors and servomotors to control the blade pitch, making them impracticable for stand-alone, non-electrical applications. A simpler but less well known concept is passive or self-acting variable pitch in which the blades are free to pitch under the combined action of aerodynamic and inertial forces in such a way that a favourable blade angle of attack is maintained without the complexity of conventional variable pitch systems. Several fonns of self-acting variable pitch VAWTs or SAPVAWTs have been described in the literature, several patents exist for variants on the concept, and at least two companies world-wide have attempted to commercialise their designs. However the aerodynamic behaviour of these devices has been little understood and most designs appear to have been based on nothing more than a qualitative appreciation of the potential advantages of the concept. This thesis assesses the potential of both fixed and passive variable pitch vertical axis wind turbines to provide economical stand-alone power for direct mechanical drive applications. It is shown that the starting torque and low speed torque problems of VAWTs can be overcome either by passive variable pitch or by a combination of suitable blade aerofoil sections, either rigid or flexible, and transmissions which unload the rotor at low speeds so that high starting torque is not necessary. The work done for this thesis is made up of a sequence of stages, each following logically from the previous one: 1. Several tasks have been identified which could be performed effectively by a self-starting vertical axis wind turbine using direct mechanical drive. These include, a. pumping water, b. purifying and/or desalinating water by reverse osmosis, c. heating and cooling using vapour compression heat pumps, d. mixing and aerating water bodies and e. heating water by fluid turbulence. Thus it is apparent that such a system has the potential to make a useful contribution to society. 2. A literature survey of existing VAWT designs has been carried out to assess whether any are suitable for these applications. 3. As no suitable existing design was identified, an improved form of SAPVAWT has been developed and patented. 4. To optimise the performance of the improved SAPVAWT, a mathematical model has been developed in collaboration with Mr Leo Lazauskas of the University of Adelaide (see Kirke and Lazauskas, 1991, Lazauskas and Kirke, 1992). As far as the author of the present thesis is aware, this is the only existing mathematical model able to predict the performance of this particular type of SAPVAWT, and one of only two worldwide which model SAPVAWTs. 5. In order to use the mathematical model to predict the performance of a given SAPVAWT, it is necessary to have lift, drag and moment data for the aerofoil profile to be used, over a wide range of incidence and Reynolds numbers. A literature search has revealed large gaps in the existing data. 6. Wind tunnel testing has been carried out to assess the effect of camber on the performance of one set of NACA sections at low Reynolds number, and performance figures for other sections have been estimated by interpolation from existing data. 7. Using the assembled aerofoil data, both experimental and estimated, the mathematical model has been used to predict the performance of both fixed and variable pitch VAWTs. It has been found to predict correctly the performance of known fixed pitch VAWTs and has then been used to predict the performance of fixed pitch VAWTs with cambered blades using newly developed profiles that exhibit superior characteristics at low Reynolds numbers. Results indicate that fixed pitch VAWTs using these blade sections should self-start reliably. 8. To validate the mathematical model predictions for self-acting variable pitch, a two metre diameter physical model has been built and tested in a wind tunnel, and acceptable agreement has been obtained between predicted and measured performance. 9. To demonstrate the performance of a SAP VA WT under field conditions, a six metre diameter turbine has been designed, fabricated, erected and tested. 10. Because a prime mover such as a wind turbine is of no use unless it drives a toad, particular attention has been paid to the behaviour of complete systems, including the wind turbine, the transmission and the load. It is concluded that VAWTs with the improved self-starting and low speed torque characteristics described in this thesis have considerable potential in stand-alone, direct mechanical drive applications.


Structural impairments can be detected by monitoring and analyzing dynamic structural responses. In this paper, accurate dynamic deformations of multiple vibrating structures are estimated using one off-the-shelf CCD (Charge-coupled Device) camera and a novel target configuration and computation algorithm. In this method, a CCD camera, which can be mounted on either an adjacent vibrating structure or stationary support, is used to track global movements of a vibrating structure. The method utilizes subpixel feature extraction, Zhang's camera calibration-based method, and a novel approach for target configuration which eliminates the need of having a stationary support for the recording camera. Two scaled models of a traffic signal structure were designed and constructed to implement the proposed method in laboratory conditions. The camera is mounted on one of the structures while facing targets on the other structure. The image data from the camera is processed to extract the structural response of both the structures in the field-of-view (FOV) of the camera as well as the structure on which the camera is mounted. Data from strain gages mounted on these structures provide measurement benchmarks for the dynamic structural responses. Experimental results indicate that one CCD camera and the presented method adequately capture displacements with similar accuracy and precision of strain gages. In practice, a camerabased method may be less expensive and more easily installed


Background— Staff education is critical to improving nursing home dementia care practice. However, a lag in translation to practice is a barrier to improving care. As part of a clinical trial testing effects of a communication intervention on behaviors of residents with dementia, participant-reported likelihood of using learned skills in practice was evaluated in relation to organizational and individual factors in ten nursing homes. Hypotheses— We hypothesized that organizational and individual factors would influence staff intention to use new skills in practice. Results— Pre and post-training comparisons confirmed that staff gained knowledge about communication effectiveness. Staff reported high likelihood for using skills in practice based on modified Duke Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) Scale scores. Care organization was correlated with total DOI scores (r = .82, p < .01). DOI subscales correlations to organizational and individual attitudes are reported. Conclusion— Evaluating quality improvement interventions in relation to translation to practice is essential in today's nursing home environment.


Klebsiella pneumoniae synthesized only b-type and d-type cytochromes under the wide range of growth conditions tested, and reaction with CO revealed two potential oxidases. The o-type oxidase was produced only in the presence of O2 and appeared to be repressed by glucose. The d-type oxidase was, by contrast, produced only in the absence of measurable O2 (less than 1 microM), and was the only oxidase expressed in nitrogen-fixing conditions. It was extracted from the membrane, purified and shown to be similar to that from E. coli in being a heterodimer (subunits of Mr 52,000 and 35,000), in containing two distinguishable b haems and haem d (one or two molecules per molecule of oxidase), and in being able to react with O2 to give a stable oxygenated intermediate. The purified d-type cytochrome oxidase had a very high affinity for O2 (Km 20 nM; measured by the spectral properties of leghaemoglobin). It is proposed that this provides a role for this oxidase in lowering the O2 concentration to allow nitrogenase synthesis and function, and to provide a terminal oxidase to permit electron-transport-coupled ATP synthesis which supports the increase in efficiency of nitrogen fixation observed under microaerobic conditions.


Recent work demonstrated that flow-based invertible neural networks are promising tools for solving ambiguous inverse problems. Following up on this, we investigate how ten invertible architectures and related models fare on two intuitive, low-dimensional benchmark problems, obtaining the best results with coupling layers and simple autoencoders. We hope that our initial efforts inspire other researchers to evaluate their invertible architectures in the same setting and put forth additional benchmarks, so our evaluation may eventually grow into an official community challenge.


Aloe vera is one of the medicinal plants, resistant to drought and high temperatures, that its gel has many applications in pharmaceutical, health and food industry. This experiment was conducted to determine the effects of salinity stress, caused by sodium chloride (NaCl) and calcium chloride (CaCl2), on leaf weight, gel content and ratio of some nutrients in Aloe vera, in Research Greenhouse of Shahrekord University, in 2012. This experiment was based on a randomized complete blocks design with 16 treatments and three replications. Treatments included four levels of NaCl concentration (0 (control), 30, 60 and 90 mM), three levels of CaCl2 (5, 10, 20 mM) and combinations of the two salts Based on the results, effect of salinity on wet and dry weight of leaf and gel, percentage of sodium, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and K/Na and Ca/Na ratio was significant. Increasing the concentration of NaCL, CaCl2 or their combination, reduced the percentage of magnesium, calcium, potassium, wet and dry weight of gel content and leaf yield. Results of this study showed that Aloe vera is not much tolerant to salt stress and its cultivation is not recommended in soils with EC value of more than 7 dS/m. Overall, under similar EC, the toxicity of NaCl is more than CaCl2 and attention to potassium and calcium nutrition is important under salinity stress.


Abstract Older people now currently drink alcohol more frequently than previous generations, indicating a need to understand how this influences health and wellbeing in older adults. However, knowledge and awareness of the changing role alcohol plays in the lives of older people is not necessarily widely understood by allied health professionals in acute hospital contexts. In turn, conversations about drinking alcohol in later life may not be routinely addressed as part of practice, limiting an older person's choice to make informed decisions about their drinking. This paper qualitatively examines when occupational therapists (N = 17) in an acute hospital setting will initiate a conversation with older people (65+ years) about their drinking, guided by a theoretical lens that encompasses both person-centredness and collective occupation. Adopting a qualitative methodology, this study illustrates a typology of reasoning describing how, and in what circumstances, therapists ask older people about their alcohol use. Three themes were generated that provide further insight into the typology, these being 'hesitancy in practice', 'failure to link life transitions to alcohol use' and 'challenges of focusing on healthfulness'. These findings provide a potentially useful tool for therapists, services and organisations to self-assess their approach to asking older people about alcohol use; a necessary element of professional health-care practice as social trends in alcohol use continue to increase.


Sorghum is one of the main staple food crops of the world's poorest and most food-insecure people. Approximately
90% of the world's sorghum areas are located in Africa and Asia. During 1992-94, 42% of the total sorghum
produced worldwide was utilized for food, and 48% for animal feed. A preliminary study was conducted to
understand the various storage conditions of sorghum grain, and the potential occurrence of mold fungi under such
conditions. A total of 67 sorghum grain samples were collected from two surveys, 15 samples from the 1996 rainy
season harvest, and 11 from the 1996/97 postrainy season harvest collected in June 1997, and 19 samples from
the 1996/97 postrainy season and 22 from 1997 rainy season harvest collected in October 1997. Approximately
1 kg grain from each of the grain lots stored under various conditions (gunny bags, mud-lined baskets, metallic
containers, polypropylene bags, and grains piled in a corner of a room) by farmers in rural India was collected.
Each grain sample (200 grains treatment1) was examined to identify fungi up to the species level. Grains with and
without surface sterilization were transferred separately to pre-sterilized petri dish humid chambers under aseptic
conditions. The petri dishes were incubated for 5 days at 28±1 °C in an incubator with a 12-h light cycle. Under each
treatment, 200 grains (25 grains dish-1) were examined for 49 mold fungi, including the species of Aspergillus and
Penicillium. The major fungi observed on the grains included species of Alternaria, Curvularia, Drechslera,
Fusarium, and Rhizopus. The frequency of occurrence of the various fungi on each grain sample under the various
treatments was analyzed. This bulletin reports some new mold fungi on sorghum grain in India: Alternaria longipes,
Bipolaris zeicola, Curvularia affinis, C. clavata, C. fallax, C. geniculata, C. harveyi, C. ovoidea, C. pallescens,
 C. tuberculata, Drechslera halodes, Gonatobotrys simplex, Nigrospora oryzae, Periconia macrospinosa, Spadicoides
obovata, Torula graminis, and Trichothecium roseum.


Chiari malformations type 1 is characterized by herniation of the hindbrain tissue below the foramen magnum. It's more frequently recognised now due to better imaging modalities. The symptoms are typically subtle and evolve slowly. These could be related to the compression of neural structures at the cranio-cervical junction. We describe 5 children diagnosed with Chiari 1 malformation over last 1 year. Clinical features varied from snoring to spastic quadriplegia. Symptoms improved after surgery in four children. These cases highlight the varied clinical spectrum associated with it.


A variety of short time delays inserted between pairs of subjects were found to affect their ability to synchronize a musical task. The subjects performed a clapping rhythm together from separate sound-isolated rooms via headphones and without visual contact. One-way time delays between pairs were manipulated electronically in the range of 3 to 78 ms. We are interested in quantifying the envelope of time delay within which two individuals produce synchronous performances. The results indicate that there are distinct regimes of mutually coupled behavior, and that 'natural time delay'—delay within the narrow range associated with travel times across spatial arrangements of groups and ensembles—supports the most stable performance. Conditions outside of this envelope, with time delays both below and above it, create characteristic interaction dynamics in the mutually coupled actions of the duo. Trials at extremely short delays (corresponding to unnaturally close proximity) had a tendency to accelerate from anticipation. Synchronization lagged at longer delays (larger than usual physical distances) and produced an increasingly severe deceleration and then deterioration of performed rhythms. The study has implications for music collaboration over the Internet and suggests that stable rhythmic performance can be achieved by 'wired ensembles' across distances of thousands of kilometers.


State-sponsored organizations are increasingly linked to efforts aimed to exploit social media for information warfare and manipulating public opinion. Typically, their activities rely on a number of social network accounts they control, aka trolls, that post and interact with other users disguised as "regular" users. These accounts often use images and memes, along with textual content, in order to increase the engagement and the credibility of their posts.In this paper, we present the first study of images shared by state-sponsored accounts by analyzing a ground truth dataset of 1.8M images posted to Twitter by accounts controlled by the Russian Internet Research Agency. First, we analyze the content of the images as well as their posting activity. Then, using Hawkes Processes, we quantify their influence on popular Web communities like Twitter, Reddit, 4chan's Politically Incorrect board (/pol/), and Gab, with respect to the dissemination of images. We find that the extensive image posting activity of Russian trolls coincides with real-world events (e.g., the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville), and shed light on their targets as well as the content disseminated via images. Finally, we show that the trolls were more effective in disseminating politics-related imagery than other images.


AIM
The aim of the present study is to assess the prevalence of Kennedy's classification, status of existing prosthodontic appliances if any, awareness of the subjects regarding various treatment options, and treatment needs in a group of elderly institutionalized residents.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
The subjects were selected from various old age homes present in Mangalore city, with ages ranging from 60 to 80 years. The subjects were interviewed and examined by a single trained examiner and findings were recorded on a clinical case history report sheet.

RESULTS
Kennedy's class I was most prevalent and class IV the least. Among the subjects examined, only 12.4% were wearing prosthesis. Based on the Nevalainen's index and Karslon's index, most of the prosthodontic appliances were found to be in poor condition. 86% of the subjects were in need of prosthodontic treatment. 75% of the subjects interviewed were unaware of the treatment options available.

CONCLUSION
The elderly patients living in institutions do not achieve a deserving and satisfactory oral health care. The oral care assistance in institutionalized elderly patients has been an unfulfilled service.


The advancement of computational software within the last decade has facilitated enhanced uptake of mass appraisal methodologies by the valuation and prediction accuracy in computer-assisted mass appraisal community for price modelling, estimation and tribunal defence. Applying a sample of 2694 residential properties, this paper assesses and analyses a number of geostatistical approaches relative to an artificial neural network (ANN) model and the traditional linear hedonic pricing model for mass appraisal valuation accuracy and price estimation purposes. The findings demonstrate that the geostatistical localised regression approach is superior in terms of model explanation, reliability and accuracy. ANNs can be shown to perform very well in terms of predictive power, and therefore valuation accuracy, outperforming the traditional multiple regression analysis (MRA) and approaching the performance of spatially weighted regression approaches. However, ANNs retain a 'black box' architecture that limits their usefulness to practitioners in the field. In relation to cost-effectiveness and user-friendly applicability for the valuation community, the MRA approach outperforms the 'black box' nature of the ANN technique, with the geographically weighted regression approach providing the best balance of outright performance and transparency of methodology. It is this spatially weighted approach utilising absolute location which appears to represent the way forward in developing the practice of mass appraisal.


Dam bulia in Gorontalo province is a dam with type urugan which type dam is very weak against runoff. To avoid this, the dam of this type should dilengkapai urugan the overflow structure that is used for solving the overflow discharge and increased flood water surface elevation that may result in runoff-runoff dam above the tree top, Under the guidance of technical planning and building height dam overflow can function effectively as a container and raise the water level, then this study formulated a plan How much discharge flood back 1000 years time (Q1000) and the maximum flood discharge (QPMF), How big is the optimum width of the overflow building as viewed from the economic and effective dam height How big is the optimum review from the economy with 5 alternative overflow width is 18, 22, 26, 30 and 35 m. From the results of analysis of hydrological data is obtained Q1000 134 075 m3/sec. The technical data
as the basis for the calculation of cost containment is high HWL + 127.88, high NWL + 126.00, and high LWL + 116.00, and the high tree top weir is at elevation + 131.00. As for the overflow channel is planned with a width of 25 meters at an elevation of 126.00. From the analysis of optimization obtained optimm wide by 35 m wide overflow costs Rp. 11,599,255,011.23 while for the high dam body is needed for the overflow of 35 meters width is 23 m at a cost of Rp. 18.602.548,562.09


This paper analyses the incidence of chronic and transitory poverty in Pakistan in both urban and rural settings. The findings are that rural poverty is severer and also chronic as compared to transitory poverty in urban centres. The main factor behind this phenomenon is the homogeneity of the rural set-up which affects the employment and wage levels adversely. On the other hand, in the urban areas, heterogeneous population with diverse occupations provides better employment and wage opportunities. Furthermore, illiteracy, landlessness, lack of ownership of dwellings, and dependency on sharecropping are the main factors accentuating rural poverty. The paper also analyses the zakat element of the safety net strategy. Contrary to the prevailing perception that zakat does not reach the actually poor, it turns out that in fact zakat has become an identification mark for the chronic poor. The findings of this paper have significant implications for the poverty reduction strategy of the Government of Pakistan.


The composition and identity characteristics of the American workforce are changing. The population in this country is rising, aging, and becoming much more racially and ethnically diverse. Appearance norms are shifting too. These changes have enormous implications for constitutional and employment discrimination law. In both equal protection and employment discrimination cases, recovery usually depends on membership in a constitutionally or statutorily protected category. Yet the statutory approach to anti-discrimination law has stagnated. Part of the difficulty of the protected class approach is that it is based on something of a paradox — the paradox of exceptionalism. Class-based protection requires individuals to prove immutable or deeply embedded differences to obtain protection from being treated differently. The categorical approach also means that some types and lived experiences of discrimination are simply omitted from federal and state protection. The article discusses cramped doctrinal interpretations, narrow intersectional analysis, and the problematic of intra-group distinctions — all of which inhibit the reach of Title VII and state laws. The proposal to reinvigorate the anti-discrimination frontiers envisions constructing a judicial and regulatory patchwork of protections. The article recommends expanding doctrinal coverage for new types of discrimination, as well as building on the efforts of various states and municipalities, which have begun to provide somewhat more robust anti-discrimination protection than is afforded under federal law. Finally, the article suggests that one of the more promising avenues for addressing the types of discrimination that will face the workforce of the future is to endeavor to change cultural understandings about identity characteristics through media efforts.


INTRODUCTION
The majority of combat deaths occur before arrival at a medical treatment facility but no previous studies have comprehensively examined this phase of care.

METHODS
The UK Joint Theatre Trauma Registry was used to identify all UK military personnel who died in Afghanistan (2004-2014). These data were linked to non-medical tactical and operational records to provide an accurate timeline of events. Cause of death was determined from records taken at postmortem review. The primary objective was to report time between injury and death in those killed in action (KIA); secondary objectives included: reporting mortality at key North Atlantic Treaty Organisation timelines (0, 10, 60, 120 min), comparison of temporal lethality for different anatomical injuries and analysing trends in the case fatality rate (CFR).

RESULTS
2413 UK personnel were injured in Afghanistan from 2004 to 2014; 448 died, with a CFR of 18.6%. 390 (87.1%) of these died prehospital (n=348 KIA, n=42 killed non-enemy action). Complete data were available for n=303 (87.1%) KIA: median Injury Severity Score 75.0 (IQR 55.5-75.0). The predominant mechanisms were improvised explosive device (n=166, 54.8%) and gunshot wound (n=96, 31.7%).In the KIA cohort, the median time to death was 0.0 (IQR 0.0-21.8) min; 173 (57.1%) died immediately (0 min). At 10, 60 and 120 min post injury, 205 (67.7%), 277 (91.4%) and 300 (99.0%) casualties were dead, respectively. Whole body primary injury had the fastest mortality. Overall prehospital CFR improved throughout the period while in-hospital CFR remained constant.

CONCLUSION
Over two-thirds of KIA deaths occurred within 10 min of injury. Improvement in the CFR in Afghanistan was predominantly in the prehospital phase.


The present paper assesses the access to livelihood assets in rural areas of the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan. Considering the highland-lowland context, it subsequently analyses the market and non-market importance of forest resources for rural households. The analysis is based on data from three selected study locations in the province, collected through a field survey carried out from April to August 2004. Results show that access to various assets widely differs between the high- and lowland context. Forest resources, i.e. fuelwood, are of utmost importance for subsistence-oriented strategies especially in the highland areas, where affordable alternatives are missing. The role of forests in income-oriented strategies, however, is negligible both in the high- and lowland context.


As cells divide, they must replicate both their DNA and generate a new set of histone proteins. The newly synthesized daughter strands and histones are unmodified and must therefore be covalently modified to allow for transmission of important epigenetic marks to daughter cells. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) display a unique cell cycle profile, and control of the cell cycle is known to be critical for their proper differentiation and survival. A major unresolved question is how hPSCs regulate their DNA methylation status through the cell cycle, namely how passive and active demethylation work to maintain a stable genome. TDG, an embryonic essential gene, has been recently implicated as a major enzyme involved in demethylation1. Here we present new data showing that TDG regulates cell cycle related gene expression in human neural progenitors (NPCs) derived from hPSCs and controls their capacity for neural differentiation. These observations suggest that TDG and active demethylation play an important role in hPSC cell cycle regulation and differentiation.


Cryogenic Laser Interferometer Observatory (CLIO) is a laser interferometric gravitational wave detector using cryogenic cooled mirrors. In order to cool the mirrors, cryogenic environment is necessary. We made four vacuum chambers with cryogenic cooled shields inside. The mirror is suspended by a mirror suspension system with a heat path for transferring heat from the mirror to the shield. Test cooling of the chambers and the mirror suspension system has been done. After one week cooling, the chambers was cooled from 8 K to 10 K and the mirror were cooled at 21 K successfully.


— The aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of introducing a set of core archetypes to succeed with the national consensus work on archetypes in Norway. This is illustrated by emphasizing on four important challenges identified through the national work with archetypes in Norway from 2012-2016. First, the process of establishing a well-functioning national archetype organization, including a network of competent healthcare personnel to participate in the consensus process. This comprises how to increase the pace of developing these national archetype. Second, the interdependence between the archetypes and the new electronic patient record system (EPR), focusing on the need for archetypes to enable developing an EPR system, at the same time as an EPR system is required to develop and test out high quality archetypes. Third, the development of local archetypes at a specialized hospital clinic, including the first attempts of using archetypes for clinical practice, and useful lessons learned for the national archetype work. Fourth, the need to define the number of archetypes to plan the future archetype work, including estimating resources for the work, and the challenges of governing archetypes in relation to who is responsible for what aspects of the archetypes. Establishing a prototype of an EPR system based on generic core archetypes may increase clinicians understanding of structured EPR. Our research questions are therefore: What has been the challenges in the national archetype process so far, and how could these challenges be met through developing a set of core archetypes? Empirically the paper focuses on the national archetype work, and the regional archetype organization in the North Norwegian health authority. Our qualitative case also includes other archetype initiatives in Norway like for instance the use of archetypes for clinical practice at the small clinic in the Southern and Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority. Except from being a status report on national archetype development, this paper also contributes to a longitudinal interpretive study, related to the development of a large-scale EPR system by the North Norwegian Health Authority.


In ten Parkinsonians who developed dose-related response fluctuations under long-term levodopa therapy, regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and plasma levodopa levels were measured simultaneously, once during an "off" phase and again at an "on" stage of clinical benefit induced by a single oral dose of levodopa. Although plasma levodopa increased threefold during the "on" period, rCBF and the degree of its reduction from normal age-matched control values remained unchanged and similar to those in the "off" phase. Study suggests that the rCBF decreases in Parkinson's disease are unaffected by levodopa and are not due to deficient dopaminergic neurotransmission in the brain.


In his letter, Dr Dimond referred to a "State" or "Branch" submission to the inquiry. In fact, only one submission is being made by the Association-a joint one prepared by the federal body and the Branch. To all members who have been so heavily involved in the production of this joint submission, not only on my own behalf but also on behalf of the members of the Australian Medical Association, I express congratulations and profound thanks for their selfless devotion to the task.


English Learners (ELs) are the fastest growing subset of the population in U. S. k-12 schools. ELs are students whose primary language is one other than English and who qualify for specialized services based on an English language proficiency test (Francis, Rivera, Lesaux, Kieffer & Rivera, 2006). One popular approach for supporting ELs academically is the inclusion model (Reeves, 2004). The inclusion method places ELs in classes with Native English Speakers (NES) in which teachers are required to teach English and content to ELs and grade level content to NESs. However, due to the failure of many pre-service programs, teachers assigned to teach these classes have little or no training on procedures to make content comprehensible for ELs. This is particularly true of secondary science classes where ELs scores are approximately 40 points below NESs on standardized tests. This paper details a study using the Professional Learning Community (PLC) format to support inclusion science teachers of ELs. During the meetings, approximately 48 ELappropriate instructional strategies and the Second Language Acquisition (SLA) process were explored and modeled. The purpose of the PD was to change participants' instructional practices and beliefs about ELs which in turn may impact ELs' academic success in science. Results revealed that participants gained an average of 20.5 EL-appropriate strategies and changed some beliefs they held concerning ELs. The findings also showed that participants embraced the PLC format, citing communication and collaboration with colleagues as inspiration for teacher growth and improvement. The study's findings identified specific changes participants were willing to make in their instructional practice and exact barriers to change following the PLC PD that go beyond the current literature. It is suggested that in service general education teachers receive training in ESL methods through PLCs, that departments of education


Objectives Shear wave elastography is a rapidly evolving new technique. The purpose of the present study was to determine the sonoelastographic features of the submandibular glands in healthy individuals. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of 45 healthy individuals, whose submandibular glands were studied using shear wave elastography. The stiffness of both submandibular glands was measured and its relationships with the age, sex, body mass, body mass index (BMI), and height of the participants were assessed. Results The participants had a mean age of 31.82 ± 5.53 years, a mean height of 158.30 ± 7.16 cm, a mean body mass of 57.83 ± 8.84 kg, and a mean BMI of 22.99 ± 2.72 kg/m2. The mean shear elastic modulus of the right and left submandibular glands were 18.02 kPa and 19.09 kPa, respectively. Positive correlations were found between the elasticity of the right submandibular gland and the anthropometric parameters. Conclusion The elastic modulus of the submandibular glands has been determined in healthy individuals and the data generated can serve as a reference for future studies of pathological conditions of these structures.


Within the 6th Framework Programme EU project APROSYS, the Sub-project 7 is fully devoted to virtual testing. The aim is to improve the quality of the crash simulation in order to be able to come to rating and qualification by virtual analysis. One of the main issues lies in the evaluation of scatter sources and the consequences of scatter on the results of the analysis. Therefore, great effort was devoted in the project to identify and quantify sources of dispersions, and to assess their relevance. To evaluate the influence of scatter on crash responses a series of stochastic models has been developed. Within the APROSYS project a series of generic car models was developed to perform this task. Generic car models are virtual vehicles, derived from the geometry, layout, and characteristics of the best-in-class models currently available on the market according to EuroNCAP ratings, generated to have commonly shared models to work out towards improvement in crash simulations. In this work a stochastic analysis developed by using one of these generic car model, called GCM4, a multi-purpose vehicle, will be reported. The stochastic model was generated by considering the stochastic variation of some parameters. In particular, the steel sheet properties were used as stochastic variables (input). Moreover, to evaluate the structure influence on the passenger behavior, a simpler stochastic passenger compartment model was developed. The simulation runs were managed by a specific tool, called ADVISER, developed within the APROSYS project and its antecedent ADVANCE. The results were analyzed by means of the postprocessor included in the same ADVISER tool. The results give further insight in the problem of the improvement of simulations for passive safety applications.


Many dermatologic cases are first evaluated by primary care physicians or nurse practitioners.

 This study aimed to evaluate an artificial intelligence (AI)-based tool that assists with interpreting dermatologic conditions.

 We developed an AI-based tool and conducted a randomized multi-reader, multi-case study (20 primary care physicians, 20 nurse practitioners, and 1047 retrospective teledermatology cases) to evaluate its utility. Cases were enriched and comprised 120 skin conditions. Readers were recruited to optimize for geographical diversity; the primary care physicians practiced across 12 states (2-32 years of experience, mean 11.3 years), and the nurse practitioners practiced across 9 states (2-34 years of experience, mean 13.1 years). To avoid memory effects from incomplete washout, each case was read once by each clinician either with or without AI assistance, with the assignment randomized. The primary analyses evaluated the top-1 agreement, defined as the agreement rate of the clinicians' primary diagnosis with the reference diagnoses provided by a panel of dermatologists (per case: 3 dermatologists from a pool of 12, practicing across 8 states, with 5-13 years of experience, mean 7.2 years of experience). We additionally conducted subgroup analyses stratified by cases' self-reported race and ethnicity and measured the performance spread: the maximum performance subtracted by the minimum across subgroups.

 The AI's standalone top-1 agreement was 63%, and AI assistance was significantly associated with higher agreement with reference diagnoses. For primary care physicians, the increase in diagnostic agreement was 10% (P<.001), from 48% to 58%; for nurse practitioners, the increase was 12% (P<.001), from 46% to 58%. When stratified by cases' self-reported race or ethnicity, the AI's performance was 59%-62% for Asian, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, other, and Hispanic or Latinx individuals and 67% for both Black or African American and White subgroups. For the clinicians, AI assistance–associated improvements across subgroups were in the range of 8%-12% for primary care physicians and 8%-15% for nurse practitioners. The performance spread across subgroups was 5.3% unassisted vs 6.6% assisted for primary care physicians and 5.2% unassisted vs 6.0% assisted for nurse practitioners. In both unassisted and AI-assisted modalities, and for both primary care physicians and nurse practitioners, the subgroup with the highest performance on average was Black or African American individuals, though the differences with other subgroups were small and had overlapping 95% CIs.

 AI assistance was associated with significantly improved diagnostic agreement with dermatologists. Across race and ethnicity subgroups, for both primary care physicians and nurse practitioners, the effect of AI assistance remained high at 8%-15%, and the performance spread was similar at 5%-7%.

 This work was funded by Google LLC.

 AJ, DW, VG, YG, GOM, JH, RS, CE, KN, KBD, GSC, LP, DRW, RCD, DC, Yun Liu, PB, and Yuan Liu are/were employees at Google and own Alphabet stocks.


Before 1994, Black Liberation Theology saw it as its mission to be the voice of the voiceless in South Africa. This has always been a missiological discourse. Post-1994, or eighteen years into democracy, voice and voicelessness continue to be pertinent in missiological discourse. It is for this reason that missiological issues continue to shape society and reposition the voice of the voiceless not only in South Africa, but also on the continent and in the diaspora.


Purpose
This study aims to explore the association between internet addiction and problem behaviours on social networking sites (SNS) using the general strain theory (Agnew, 1992).

Design/methodology/approach
Using the purposive sampling method, a survey was conducted, which collected data from 414 college students studying in two public universities in South Australia. The Delphi method was used to develop the questionnaire used for the survey.

Findings
'Results of this research indicated a significant association between internet addiction and problem behaviours on SNS. Respondents who had engaged in problem behaviours on SNS had high internet addiction test scores (Young, 1998). On the basis of this finding, the present research argues that the general strains associated with the suffering of newly emerging challenges such as internet addiction might contribute to victimisation and deviant and problem behaviours on SNS in specific and possibly in cyberspace in general.

Research limitations/implications
Results of the present study need to be interpreted cautiously due to many limitations it has. This research is a cross-sectional study, which might not adequately explain the associations between internet addiction and problem behaviours on SNS. Longitudinal studies involving larger samples might have added significant value to this study. The present study uses purposive sampling technique, which has limited its generalizability, and its findings may not be generalised to large populations.

Originality/value
Limited information is available pertaining to the association between problem behaviours on SNS and internet addiction. The present study is a pioneering effort, which argues that rapid popularity of SNS is likely to increase internet addiction and the frustration of not getting proper treatment for their internet addiction might lead to deviant behaviours on SNS.


Abstract Glyphosate resistance was found in a rigid ryegrass population in northern California. A sample of the resistant plants were collected and grown under greenhouse conditions. The objective of this study was to evaluate glyphosate resistance in the progeny of the collected plants by recurrent selection, obtain the homozygous resistant and sensitive lines to establish dose-response curves, and to determine the inheritance of glyphosate resistance in rigid ryegrass. Diverse levels of resistance were observed in the first generation with survival of 89, 59, 45, and 9% from glyphosate at 1x, 2x, 4x, and 8x respectively, where x = 1.12 kg ha−1 isopropylamine salt of glyphosate. Clones of plants that died from 1x were allowed to produce seed and were further subjected to recurrent selection to generate the most sensitive plants (S lines), which died from 0.125x glyphosate. The most resistant plants (R lines) were generated from the survivors receiving 8x glyphosate. The ratio between I50 rates for the glyphosate resistant and the glyphosate sensitive plants was > 100-fold. The R and S lines were crossed reciprocally and F1 progeny of both (R × S) and (S × R) showed intermediate resistance. These survived up to 2x glyphosate. The F2 progeny were generated by intercrossing of F1 plants. The ratio of sensitive, intermediate, and resistant plants in the F2 population before the treatment of glyphosate at 0.125x followed by 8x was 1 : 16, 14 : 16, and 1 : 16 respectively, which corresponded to the Mendelian segregation ratio of two genes. The results indicated that the inheritance of glyphosate resistance in rigid ryegrass from California appeared to be nuclear, incompletely dominant, multigenic, and pollen-transmitted with no indication of maternal inheritance. Nomenclature: Glyphosate; rigid ryegrass, Lolium rigidum Gaud. LOLRI.


Explicit discourse connectives in a source language text are not always translated to comparable words or phrases in the target language. The paper provides a corpus analysis and a method for semi-automatic detection of such cases. Results show that discourse connectives are not translated into comparable forms (or even any form at all), in up to 18% of human reference translations from English to French or German. In machine translation, this happens much less frequently (up to 8% only). Work in progress aims to capture this natural implicitation of discourse connectives in current statistical machine translation models.


After decades of research, automatic speech processing has become more and more viable in recent years. Audio-video speech recognition has been shown to improve the recognition rate in noise-degraded environments. However, which audio and video speech parameters to choose for an optimal system and how they are related is still an open research issue. Here we present a number of statistical analyses that aim at increasing our understanding of such audio-video relationships. In particular, we look at the canonical correlation analysis and the coinertia analysis which investigate the relationship of linear combinations of parameters. The analyses are performed on Australian English as an example.


pity, therefore, that in parts the book is needlessly repetitive, at times uncritical and at others verging on the anecdotal. But these criticisms are minor and the faults difficult to avoid in works of multiple authorship, even with ruthless editing. The up-to-date material, with its extensive documentation, is bound to be of great interest to all those concerned with human reproduction and for this reason can be recommended strongly.


In our chapter, we overview the main clinical conditions that increase arrhythmogenic‐ ity, and we present the surface electrocardiogram (ECG) markers that could be suitable for the prediction of atrial and ventricular arrhythmias. We highlight the clinical value of the prolongation of the P‐wave duration and P dispersion (Pd) in the prediction of atrial fibrillation, and we also expound the utility of QT interval, T‐wave peak‐to‐end interval (Tpe), and Tpe/QT ratio (known as arrhythmogenic index (AIX)) in the prediction of ventricular arrhythmias. Furthermore, we present the results of our clinical investigations with regard to surface ECG markers among patients with increased arrhythmia vulnerability. Moreover, we mention other, novel, effectively used ECG markers.


The article is concerned with the definition of notion and contents of modern infrastructure of criminality in the sphere of economic activity. In this article are considered the principles of building, the elements of modern infrastructure of economic crimes and within this infrastructure act the criminal technologies of this sphere.


This paper addresses the problem of blind multiuser equalization for OFDM. A vector constant modulus algorithm (VCMA) is developed for a specific multiple input-multiple output (MIMO) system. The proposed algorithm relies on a combined criterion, to cancel both intersymbol interference (ISI) and interuser interference (IUI). ISI is minimized by using a constant mean block energy criterion, while IUI is reduced by using a decorrelation criterion. Reliable performance is achieved with relatively fast convergence and small steady-state error, as well as low computational complexity.


Objectives C-terminal tensin-like gene (CTEN, also known as TNS4) localizes to focal adhesions and is reported to function as an oncogene in colonic, breast, lung, and gastric cancers. Its role in pancreatic cancer is unknown and was thus investigated in this study. Methods C-terminal tensinlike gene expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in a series of pancreatic cancers. Functional activity of the CTEN was tested by manipulating cellular CTEN levels using a dual approach of gene knockdown/forced expression. Results The CTEN is overexpressed in 31 (70.45%) of 44 pancreatic cancers. Functionally, changes in CTEN level did not alter cellular proliferation, but CTEN levels were positively associated with enhanced colony-forming efficiency in both Panc-1 and PSN-1 cell lines. Forced CTEN expression in Panc-1 cells stimulated cell motility, whereas knockdown of CTEN in PSN-1 inhibited cell motility in both transwell migration and wound-healing assays. Evaluation of downstream targets demonstrated that alterations in CTEN levels induced changes in focal adhesion kinase and E-cadherin, whereas integrin-linked kinase (ILK) remained unchanged. Conclusions These are the first data showing an oncogenic role for CTEN in pancreatic cancer through promotion of colony formation and cell motility. The latter may be mediated by signaling through focal adhesion kinase and inhibiting E-cadherin.


This article describes and analyzes the configuration process, characteristic features, and future prospects of the Spanish model of independent audiovisual regulators. This model currently has a national multisectoral regulator (Comision Nacional de los Mercados y de la Competencia), which was created in 2013, and two regional audiovisual regulators, which were created more than a decade ago. This combination of a national multisectoral regulator and regional audiovisual regulators is unlike any other in the European Union.


Computational material design is progressively gaining momentum in the engineering world. Recent breakthroughs in high performance computing and emerging multiscale algorithms have facilitated the simulation of materials at different scales of observation. In particular, the multiscale study of failure phenomena becomes crucial to assess the performance of engineering materials and structures. In this thesis, a concurrent multiscale method is proposed for the failure analysis of quasi-brittle materials. Domain decomposition techniques, such as the Finite Element Tearing and Interconnecting (FETI) method, are used to partition the structure in a number of non-overlapping domains. A different treatment, from a numerical standpoint, is given to linear elastic and non-linear domains in the sense that most of the computational effort is spent in non-linear regions. Multiscale analysis is achieved by means of an adaptive refinement at those domains that are affected by damage processes. This refinement is done in terms of material scale and finite element size. It is verified that the framework is able to correctly capture the initiation and growth of non-linearity at a reduced computational cost when compared to full scale computations. The multiscale framework is found specially attractive for the study of failure in quasi-brittle materials.


In social media, the magnitude of information propagation hinges on the virality and susceptibility of users spreading and receiving the information respectively, as well as the virality of information items. These users' and items' behavioral factors evolve dynamically at the same time inter-acting with one another. Previous works however measure the factors statically and independently in a restricted case: each user has only a single adoption on each item, and/or users' exposure to items are observable. In this work, we in-vestigate the inter-relationship among the factors and users' multiple adoptions on items to propose both new static and temporal models for measuring the factors without requir-ing user - item exposure. These models are designed to cope with even more realistic propagation scenarios where an item may be propagated many times from the same user(s) to the same other user(s). We further propose an incremental model for measuring the factors in large data streams. We evaluated the proposed models and existing models through extensive experiments on a large Twitter dataset covering information propagation in one month. The experiments show that our proposed models can effectively mine the behavioral factors and outperform the existing ones in a propagation prediction task. The incremental model is shown more than 10 times faster than the temporal model, while still obtains very similar results.


Abstract This paper presents a general mathematical treatment of serial manipulators, an important example of which is the servo head. The paper includes validation by application to the angle head via comparison with the previously known transformations and a new application to the error analysis of the angle head. The usual approach to the error analysis of a servo head is to develop a geometrical model by elementary geometrical considerations using trigonometric relationships and various simplifying assumptions. This approach is very error prone, difficult to verify and extremely time consuming. The techniques described here constitute matrix methods that have been programmed in a general way to derive automatically the analytical equations relating the angles of rotation of the head and alignment errors in the head to the position of the tool and errors in that position. The approach is to use rotation and transformation matrices to evaluate the influence of the various errors such as offsets and angular errors. A general approach to the sign convention and notation for angular errors is presented in an attempt to reduce the possibility of errors of definition.


This paper presents an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model developed to predict extreme sea level variation in Santos basin on the Southeast region of Brazil, related to the passage of frontal systems associated with cyclones. A methodology was developed and applied to Petrobras water deep data set. Hourly time series of water level were used in a deep point of 415 meters. 6-hourly series of atmospheric pressure and wind components from NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data set were also used from ten points over the oceanic area. Correlations and spectral analyse were verified to define the time lag between the meteorological variables and the coastal sea level response to the occurrences of the extreme atmospheric systems. These correlations and time lags were used as input variables of the ANN model. This model was compared with multiple linear regression (MLR) and presented the best performance, generalizing the effect of the atmospheric interactions on extreme sea level variations.


A hedonic price function describes the equilibrium relationship between characteristics of a product and its price. They are used to predict prices of new goods, to adjust for quality change in price indexes, and to measure consumer and producer valuations of differentiated products. They emerge as market outcomes from both competitive and non-competitive markets. The functional form is determined by the distribution of buyers and their preferences, the distribution of sellers and their costs, and the structure of competition in the market.


The carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) algorithm has been used in the wireless medium access control (MAC) under standard 802.11 implementation due to its simplicity and generality. An extensive body of research on CSMA has long been made not only in the context of practical protocols, but also in a distributed way of optimal MAC scheduling. However, the current state-of-the-art CSMA (or its extensions) still suffers from poor performance, especially in multi-hop scenarios, and often requires patch-based solutions rather than a universal solution. In this paper, we propose an algorithm which adopts an experience-driven approach and train CSMA-based wireless MAC by using deep reinforcement learning. We name our protocol, Neuro-DCF. Two key challenges are: (i) a stable training method for distributed execution and (ii) a unified training method for embracing various interference patterns and configurations. For (i), we adopt a multi-agent reinforcement learning framework, and for (ii) we introduce a novel graph neural network (GNN) based training structure. We provide extensive simulation results which demonstrate that our protocol, Neuro-DCF, significantly outperforms 802.11 DCF and O-DCF, a recent theory-based MAC protocol, especially in terms of improving delay performance while preserving optimal utility. We believe our multi-agent reinforcement learning based approach would get broad interest from other learning-based network controllers in different layers that require distributed operation.


IZA DP No. 16331 JULY 2023 How Does Gender Quota Shape Gender Attitudes?* Starting in 2002, each electoral district in Taiwan is required to reserve one seat for women out of every four seats at the local councils, creating a 'zigzag' function of female councilors proportion across districts. Using this function, we estimate the effects of exposure to female political leadership on gender attitudes and behaviors. For son preference, we find that the gender quota reduced the propensity for parents with two daughters to give a third-parity birth, whereas there is no such effect on parents with two children of other sex compositions. This finding is confirmed by the evidence of self-reported son preference revealed in survey data. We further find that the gender quota encouraged female high school graduates to attempt college admission and pursue a college major in law or political science, which commonly prepare students to develop a career in politics. The gender quota also empowers married women to play a more active role in multiple household decisions. Our findings support the hypothesis that female political leaders perform as role models who elicit more egalitarian gender attitudes from women. JEL Classification: J16, J13, I23, D10


In this study, we consider a green supply chain to encompass two competing retailers, whose market demands include a stochastic component and a deterministic component, and we assume that consumer returns exist. We use game theory to determine the optimal decisions that retailers could make regarding greenness level and purchase quantity in either competitive environments or monopoly environments, and we perform sensitivity analysis. We show that the optimal greenness level and the purchase quantity for the stochastic demand are both higher in a competitive environment than those in a monopoly environment when the consumer return rate is low; therefore, competition is more beneficial to the increasing of the greenness level of products and the market supply than monopoly environments. We also show that, in a competitive environment, the optimal greenness level, the purchase quantity for the stochastic demand, and the revenue of retailers increase as the retail price increases, or as the wholesale price, the greenness R&D investment cost coefficient, and the consumer return rate decrease, and that this finding remains true in a monopoly environment, except that the optimal greenness level is found to increase as the return rate increases in the case of a monopoly environment. Finally, we suggest that the government should break monopolies, encourage positive competition, support small- and medium-sized companies, and subsidize the green industry to increase the greenness level of products and market supplies.


Magnesium nitride (Mg3N2) is prepared via lyotropic phases with liquid ammonia (lq-NH3). To avoid oxide contamination, the synthesis was performed in the absence of any oxygen source (e.g., solvents, starting materials, and surfactants). Specifically, the lyotropic phase was established by lq-NH3 at −50 °C as the polar phase, heptane as the non-polar dispersant phase, dimethyldioctylammonium iodide (DDAI) as the surfactant, hexylamine as the cosurfactant, and di-n-butylmagnesium as the starting material. Ammonolysis was completed by slow heating to 500–600 °C in a nitrogen atmosphere (N2). Structure and purity – especially the absence of oxygen – were studied in detail with different electron microscopic and electron spectroscopic techniques. The as-obtained yellow Mg3N2 (heated at 500 °C) exhibits high porosity (specific surface area: 176 m2 g−1; total pore volume: 0.41 cm3 g−1; and micropore volume: 0.13 cm3 g−1) and good selectivity regarding CO2 adsorption (CO2 uptake: 108 mg g−1; N2 uptake: 9 mg g−1; both at 90 bars). After heating to 600 °C, the as-obtained yellow Mg3N2 (band gap: 2.89 eV) shows intense red emission (600–900 nm) with a quantum yield of 29 ± 3%. Liquid-phase synthesis, oxygen-free Mg3N2 and intense red emission are reported for the first time, including nanostructured as well as bulk Mg3N2.


Recent evidence has demonstrated that not all seamounts are areas where productivity, biomass and biodiversity of marine life thrive. Therefore, understanding the drivers and mechanisms underlying seamount productivity is a major challenge in today's seamount research. Incorporating oceanographic data in future analyses has been suggested to be of paramount importance to unveil many of the seamount ecology paradigms. Persistent hydrographic features, such as oceanic fronts, have been recognized to enhance biological activity and to drive marine animal distributions and migration patterns. However, the importance of oceanic fronts in driving aggregations of visiting animals on seamounts has not been understood yet. Here, we analysed a data set of seamounts in the Pacific Ocean alongside satellite-derived maps of strong, persistent and frequently occurring oceanographic features, to evaluate if oceanic fronts promote aggregation of visitors on seamounts. Our analyses suggest that seamounts with a higher front frequency were more likely to aggregate tuna catch than average seamounts. However, it appears that fronts may be driving factors for aggregation only if present above a certain threshold. These results highlight the importance of environmental conditions in general, and oceanic fronts in particular, in promoting seamount productivity. We therefore argue that a thorough examination of the oceanographic conditions promoting seamount productivity at various temporal and spatial scales is warranted in future seamount research agendas.


Seedling growth analysis has been shown to be a useful tool to supplement the results of the standard viability test when evaluating seed lots for vigor. A number od indices have been proposed to describe the vigor of a particular seed lot. Few of these indices have been rigorously tested for their response to varying hypothetical emergence distributions during initial seedling development. Seedling rate of development index (SRDI), which incorporates the concepts of completeness, rate, uniformity of germination, and morphological development during initial seedling growth, was compared with five previously published indices of seed vigor. The indices were evaluated for their response to emergence distributions, which varied by number of mode levels, degree and direction of skewness, kurtosis, and seedling mortality after initial emergence. None of the five previously published vigor indices gave satisfactory results for all of the simulated conditions. The SRDI produced acceptable results for all test conditions and was particularly good for detecting latent seedling mortality after initial emergence. Data from actual seed lots grown under controlled conditions did not dispel the conclusions based on simulations. The SRDI may be a useful supplementary tool to use in combination with standard germination percentage when evaluating seedling vigor of different seed lots or genetic stocks or when measuring seedling response to varying environmental conditions


A continuous-time delta-sigma A/D modulator with 5 MS/s output rate in a 2.5 V 0.25 mum CMOS process is presented. The modulator has a fifth-order single-stage, dual-loop architecture allowing nearly one clock period quantizer delay. A multi-bit quantizer is used to increase resolution and multi-bit non-return-to-zero DACs are adopted to reduce clock jitter sensitivity. Capacitor tuning is utilized to overcome loop coefficient shifts due to process variations. Self-calibration is implemented to suppress current-steering DAC mismatch. Clocked at 60 MHz, the prototype chip achieves 81 dB peak SNR and 85 dB dynamic range with a 12X oversampling ratio. The power consumption is 50 mW.


We consider the role uncertainty in incomplete markets environment that includes housing sector. Frictions such as poorly functioning rental and mortgage markets are likely important in accounting for cross-sectional issues such as life-cycle consumption and savings patterns. To incorporate some of the aforementioned frictions, we extend the Carlstrom and Fuerst (1997) agency cost model of business cycles by including time varying uncertainty in the technology shocks that affect housing and home capital production (in the setting of Davis and Heathcote (2005)). We first demonstrate that standard linearization methods can be used to solve the model yet second moment effects still influence equilibrium characteristics. The effects of the persistence of uncertainty are then analyzed. Our primary findings fall into four categories. First, it is demonstrated that uncertainty affects the level of the steady-state of the economy so that welfare analyses of uncertainty that focus entirely on the variability of output (or consumption) will understate the true costs of uncertainty. A second key result is that time varying uncertainty results in countercyclical bankruptcy rates - a finding which is consistent with the data and opposite the result in Carlstrom and Fuerst. Third, we show that persistence of uncertainty affects both quantitatively and qualitatively the behavior of the U.S. housing stylized facts: In particular, we show that the percentage standard deviation of residential investment is more than twice that of non-residential investment. Our model can also account for important features of industry-level data. In particular, hours and output in all industries are positively correlated, and are most volatile in construction. Finally, we find evidence for time-varying uncertainty in industry level productivity growth; however, the shocks to uncertainty imply a quantitatively small role for uncertainty over the housing and business cycle.


Luminescent inorganic nanoparticles are now widely studied for their applications as biological probes for in vitro or in vivo experiments. The functionalization of the particles is a key step toward these applications, since it determines the control of the coupling between the particles and the biological species of interest. This paper is devoted to the case of rare earth doped oxide nanoparticles and their functionalization through their surface encapsulation with a functional polysiloxane shell. The first step of the process is the adsorption of silicate ions that will act as a primary layer for the further surface polymerization of the silane, either aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) or glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTMS). The amino- or epoxy- functions born by the silane allow the versatile coupling of the particles with bio-organic species following the chemistry that is commonly used in biochips. Special attention is paid to the careful characterization of each step of the functionalization process, especially concerning the average number of organic functions that are available for the final coupling of the particles with proteins. The surface density of amino or epoxy functions was found to be 0.4 and 1.9 functions per square nanometer for GPTMS and APTES silanized particles, respectively. An example of application of the amino-functionalized particles is given for the coupling with alpha-bungarotoxins. The average number (up to 8) and the distribution of the number of proteins per particle are given, showing the potentialities of the functionalization process for the labeling of biological species.


In this research in design automation, two views are employed as the requirements of a system-namely, the functional requirements and the operations concept. A requirement analyst uses data flow diagrams and system verification diagrams (SVDs) to represent the functional requirements and the operations concept, respectively. System Architect's Apprentice (SARA) is an environment-supported method for designing hardware and software systems. A knowledge-based system, called the design assistant, was built to help the system designer to transform requirements stated in one particular collection of design languages. The SVD requirement specification features and the SARA design models are reviewed. The knowledge-based tool for synthesizing a particular domain of SARA design from the requirements is described, and an example is given to illustrate this synthesis process. This example shows the rules used and how they are applied. An evaluation of the approach is given. >


The aspect integrator platform (AIP) from ABB was designed to build the next generation of industrial automation applications. This platform is part of a set of products that provide the means to model, control and supervise continuous or discrete processes in various market domains, ranging from chemical and metal to paper and consumer industries. Each product works at a different level in the manufacture process, but all of them rely on a common architecture for interoperability. The current AIP architecture provides considerable flexibility in terms of modeling domain information and dynamically modifying it at run-time. This flexibility imposes further requirements on the installation and maintenance of applications because dependencies among its components change dynamically. In this paper, we study the different kind of dependencies that can arise between components and show them in the context of an example from automotive industry. We show how dependency tracking and consistency of domain information can be supported by representing the actual platform concepts in XML due to the structuring and validation properties of XML schemas.


In 1949 the area of mature Eucalyptus regnans F.Muell1 (the Big Ash) on the Hume Range, Victoria, was a largely even-aged 230-year-old forest with a component of the overstorey derived from a fire in 1851. Subsequent fires have resulted in patchy regeneration where suitable gaps in the overstorey were present. In 1949 three main types of the understorey were present: type A, mature Pomaderris aspera; type B, dense immature Pomaderris aspera; and type C, coppiced Olearia argophylla and Bedfordia arborescens. In type A, ground fern was patchy and statistically correlated with patches of lower density Pomaderris aspera. Over a period of 48 years the eucalypt overstorey has been depleted by death and windthrow while understorey trees and shrubs have been severely damaged by sporadic heavy snowfalls and insect and fungal attack. The type A understorey is now showing signs of changing to Olearia argophylla dominance and the cover of ground fern and tree fern strata has doubled to more than 80% over this period in spite of damage caused by infrequent, but severe, droughts. The type B understorey is now mature and resembles type A, while the type C understorey shows invasion by Pomaderris aspera and regeneration of Olearia argophylla. No successful establishment of E. regnans has occurred. The rainforest in the gullies consists of alternating patches of forest and tree fern groves, the latter, together with rotting logs and upthrown root balls, providing niches for rainforest tree establishment. In swampy flats of Leptospermum grandifolium on the plateau Atherosperma moschatum is becoming increasingly dominant. Atherosperma moschatum is also invading mature understorey adjacent to riparian communities. This species and Olearia argophylla may constitute the final stage of the long secondary succession after fire in the Big Ash area. However, the Hume Range is adjacent to drier foothills and plains to the north, west and south. Whether the Big Ash will be spared from fire in future centuries is very doubtful.


We have investigated chromosome exchanges induced in human cells by seven different energies of protons (5–2500 MeV) with LET values ranging from 0.2 to 8 keV/μm. Human lymphocytes were irradiated in vitro and chromosome damage was assessed using three-color fluorescence in situ hybridization chromosome painting in chemically condensed chromosomes collected during the first cell division post irradiation. The relative biological effectiveness (RBE) was calculated from the initial slope of the dose–response curve for chromosome exchanges with respect to low dose and low dose-rate γ-rays (denoted as RBEmax), and relative to acute doses of γ-rays (denoted as RBEγAcute). The linear dose–response term was similar for all energies of protons, suggesting that the decrease in LET with increasing proton energy was balanced by the increase in dose from the production of nuclear secondaries. Secondary particles increase slowly above energies of a few hundred megaelectronvolts. Additional studies of 50 g/cm2 aluminum shielded high-energy proton beams showed minor differences compared to the unshielded protons and lower RBE values found for shielded in comparison to unshielded beams of 2 or 2.5 GeV. All energies of protons produced a much higher percentage of complex-type chromosome exchanges when compared to acute doses of γ-rays. The implications of these results for space radiation protection and proton therapy are discussed.


: During the last decade ureteral endosplints have dramatically changed the management, urgency and risks of urinary drainage for benign and malignant hydronephrosis. In 38 cases with retroperitoneal fibrosis effective urinary drainage with endosplints was combined with cortisone/azathioprin-therapy and practically excluded the need for surgery. In 30 pregnant women with hydronephrosis, splints prevented surgery and abortion. During surgery, postoperatively and before ESWL splints solved various drainage problems. In 25 patients with tumour-induced hydronephrosis splints generally allowed for a comfortable survival time. The prerequisits and limits of medical decisions in respect to urinary drainage of malignant hydronephrosis are outlined.


A strategy is the basic pattern of current and planned objectives, operation and allocation of resources, an organization's interactions with the markets, competitors, and other environmental factors. The main focus of marketing strategy is to allocate and coordinate with marketing activities and resources, and to provide operational objectives in terms of a market - specific product. The strategy can determine success in the world of today mega competitive in the life cycle of the organization if properly allocate organization's resources and marketing mix also fit in with this strategy. The aim of this study was to examine the life cycle of Kavir Lacquered Wire of Yazd Company and its status in the company's life cycle and to review the fit between company's marketing strategy and marketing. The judgmental method sampling among managers and experts was applied and the descriptive research which employed questionnaire and survey methods was used to collect the data. Descriptive statistics showed that this company is in the growth stage of its life cycle and the company's strategic reference points shows that the attack or siege were the main reason of choosing marketing strategy. Data analysis techniques using fuzzy AHP also revealed that the company marketing mix and marketing strategy had only the promotion fit. According to the wire Kavir Yazd Company approach in the context of intelligence capabilities and scientific management; investigating the company's position in the life cycle and also company's strategy and marketing mix will eventually improve manager insight in marketing management.


Introduction: After spinal cord injury, contact heat evoked potentials (CHEPs) may represent a means to refine the clinical assessment of sensory function from each spinal cord segment by quantifying nociception, including conduction along the spinothalamic tract. Methods: The influence of stimulation site (i.e., dermatomes) on CHEPs and thermal thresholds in 19 healthy subjects (mean age, 45.2 ± 18.3 years) divided into 2 age classes (younger subjects, n = 10; mean age, 28.8 ± 5.2 years; older subjects, n = 9; mean age, 63.4 ± 3.4 years) at 5 different dermatomes (C4, C5, C6, C8, and T4) was assessed. Results: In terms of distance from the body midline (i.e., spinal cord entry), there was a reduction in CHEP amplitudes from proximal (C4 and T4) to distal (C6 and C8) dermatomes with a corresponding reduction in nociceptive perception (i.e., pain threshold and rating). Within primary and secondary cortical sensory areas, including areas associated with affective noxious processing, the cortical source density analysis showed a similar current density distribution between C4 and C8 dermatomes but consistent higher current densities for C4. Conclusions: The study supports CHEPs as a feasible tool for assessing discrete dermatomes corresponding to spinal cord segments. The results suggest that the proximodistal pattern in the intensity of perceived pain and CHEP amplitudes is likely attributable to the distribution of heat nociceptors and the increase in conduction distance from proximal to distal dermatomes. The present findings emphasize on the importance that if patients are assessed segment by segment, the underlying topographical differences need to be accounted for.


Modern deep convolutional networks (CNNs) are often criticized for not generalizing under distributional shifts. However, several recent breakthroughs in transfer learning suggest that these networks can cope with severe distribution shifts and successfully adapt to new tasks from a few training examples. In this work we study the interplay between out-of-distribution and transfer performance of modern image classification CNNs for the first time and investigate the impact of the pre-training data size, the model scale, and the data preprocessing pipeline. We find that increasing both the training set and model sizes significantly improve the distributional shift robustness. Furthermore, we show that, perhaps surprisingly, simple changes in the preprocessing such as modifying the image resolution can significantly mitigate robustness issues in some cases. Finally, we outline the shortcomings of existing robustness evaluation datasets and introduce a synthetic dataset SI-SCORE we use for a systematic analysis across factors of variation common in visual data such as object size and position.