Purpose: Many radiomics features were originally developed for non‐medical imaging applications and therefore original assumptions may need to be reexamined. In this study, we investigated the impact of slice thickness and pixel spacing (or pixel size) on radiomics features extracted from Computed Tomography (CT) phantom images acquired with different scanners as well as different acquisition and reconstruction parameters. The dependence of CT texture features on gray‐level discretization was also evaluated. Methods and materials: A texture phantom composed of 10 different cartridges of different materials was scanned on eight different CT scanners from three different manufacturers. The images were reconstructed for various slice thicknesses. For each slice thickness, the reconstruction Field Of View (FOV) was varied to render pixel sizes ranging from 0.39 to 0.98 mm. A fixed spherical region of interest (ROI) was contoured on the images of the shredded rubber cartridge and the 3D printed, 20% fill, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic cartridge (ABS20) for all phantom imaging sets. Radiomic features were extracted from the ROIs using an in‐house program. Features categories were: shape (10), intensity (16), GLCM (24), GLZSM (11), GLRLM (11), and NGTDM (5), fractal dimensions (8) and first‐order wavelets (128), for a total of 213 features. Voxel‐size resampling was performed to investigate the usefulness of extracting features using a suitably chosen voxel size. Acquired phantom image sets were resampled to a voxel size of 1 × 1 × 2 mm3 using linear interpolation. Image features were therefore extracted from resampled and original datasets and the absolute value of the percent coefficient of variation (%COV) for each feature was calculated. Based on the %COV values, features were classified in 3 groups: (1) features with large variations before and after resampling (%COV >50); (2) features with diminished variation (%COV <30) after resampling; and (3) features that had originally moderate variation (%COV <50%) and were negligibly affected by resampling. Group 2 features were further studied by modifying feature definitions to include voxel size. Original and voxel‐size normalized features were used for interscanner comparisons. A subsequent analysis investigated feature dependency on gray‐level discretization by extracting 51 texture features from ROIs from each of the 10 different phantom cartridges using 16, 32, 64, 128, and 256 gray levels. Results: Out of the 213 features extracted, 150 were reproducible across voxel sizes, 42 improved significantly (%COV <30, Group 2) after resampling, and 21 had large variations before and after resampling (Group 1). Ten features improved significantly after definition modification effectively removed their voxel‐size dependency. Interscanner comparison indicated that feature variability among scanners nearly vanished for 8 of these 10 features. Furthermore, 17 out of 51 texture features were found to be dependent on the number of gray levels. These features were redefined to include the number of gray levels which greatly reduced this dependency. Conclusion: Voxel‐size resampling is an appropriate pre‐processing step for image datasets acquired with variable voxel sizes to obtain more reproducible CT features. We found that some of the radiomics features were voxel size and gray‐level discretization‐dependent. The introduction of normalizing factors in their definitions greatly reduced or removed these dependencies.


Co/Cu composite interconnect systems were studied. Since wide Cu lines require a diffusion barrier which is simultaneously applied also to fine Co lines to reduce Co volume fraction, through-Cobalt Self-Formed-Barrier (tCoSFB) was employed to thin down TaN barrier to <1 nm which works as an adhesion layer for Co lines. Line R of fine Co lines was reduced by 30% successfully. The Co/tCoSFB-Cu composite interconnect system is promising to achieve low line R for both fine and wide lines simultaneously in 7nm BEOL and beyond.


The increasing popularity of intensive longitudinal designs has also spawned an interest in the analysis of inter-individual differences in within-person effects. The aim of the present thesis was twofold: First, boundary conditions necessary to use estimates of inter-individual differences in within-person effects as predictors for future behavior were explored. Results from two simulation studies showed that under optimistic, but realistic conditions, these parameters can be assessed with sufficient reliability. The second aim was to investigate whether meaningful inter-individual differences in the within-person effect of competence fulfillment on well-being exist. Self-Determination Theory (SDT), a prominent theory in the realm of social-motivational psychology, proposes that such differences should be negligible, but a robust investigation from a within-person perspective has been missing. Findings from an initial set of studies showed that competence fulfillment should not be considered a one-dimensional construct, but competence satisfaction and dissatisfaction should be considered somewhat orthogonal constructs. Using a daily diary study, it was shown that there were inter-individual differences in the within-person association of both competence satisfaction and competence dissatisfaction with well-being (coined competence satisfaction strength, CSS, and competence dissatisfaction strength, CDS, respectively). In the final study of the present dissertation, an integrative study combining a daily diary part and an experimental part showed that the interaction of CSS and CDS moderated the effect of an experimentally induced frustration of the need for competence on negative affect: Individuals who reacted particularly strong towards daily competence dissatisfaction and who reacted less strong towards daily competence satisfaction were most strongly affected by an experimentally induced frustration of the need for competence. These findings challenge SDT's universality assumption of the need for competence. The dissociation into competence satisfaction and competence dissatisfaction lends further support to a two-process model of need fulfillment that is used as a basis for a dynamic model of need fulfillment that is proposed in the final part of this dissertation.


The binding of [³H]opioid ligands to homogenates prepared from the
spinal cords of rat and other species has been studied. Similar numbers
of sites were seen in all areas of the cord when measured in a rostrocaudal
direction. There was found to be approximately 2 x higher density
of sites in the dorsal half of the cord compared with the ventral half.
Binding studies suggested a similar relative distribution of mu, delta
and kappa sites in all areas of the cord. The results are discussed in
relation to the reported distribution of opioid peptides.
In the above study the kappa binding site was defined as the binding of
[³H] unselective opioids in the presence of cold ligands to suppress
binding to mu- and delta-sites. Competitive binding assays, however,
suggested this site did not have the properties of a single homogeneous
group. Approximately 50% of the apparent kappa binding was consistent
with a classical kappa site. Saturated binding assays afforded Bmax values
which suggested lower 'true' kappa site numbers than previously supposed,
values which were confirmed using the kappa peptide' [³H]Dynorphin A-(1-9),
and the kappa selective [³H]U-69593. Heterogeneity was also seen in other
central nervous system tissues.
The heterogeneous nature of the kappa site may be due to different sites,
due to interactions at a non-opioid site or may represent different
conformations of the same site. The second possibility was discounted since
observed binding followed the cellular distribution of the plasma marker
Na+/K+-ATPase was stereoselective for levorphanol over dextrorphan, and
fully displaceable by naloxone. The third possibility was investigated by
studying the role of Na+ and MG2+ ions, which are reported to affect
receptor conformation in binding assays employing brain tissues. None of
the results obtained suggested that conformational changes were responsible
for the observed effects, although the experiments were not exhaustive.


Purpose: Although Verification and Validation (V&V) are two prevalent processes for the industry, there is still vagueness regarding their implementation. These processes are linked with appraisal costs and can occupy up to 70% of the total design time. This work sets out to provide clarity on the current use of V&V practices across the products lifecycle and propose a novel product lifecycle management-based V&V approach. Design/methodology/approach: A Systematic Literature Review in the fields of V&V was conducted. From the analysis of the literature, the stages, methods and techniques applied for V&V were studied from the Product Lifecycle Management perspective, leading to 70 distinct V&V methods or techniques that were classified into 20 clusters. The analysis of the clusters provided insights on how V&V can be applied across the product lifecycle. Findings: The analysis revealed that V&V are not currently addressed as lifecycle processes and that they are largely absent from the post-production phases. Further, this work proposes a novel approach for V&V from the product lifecycle perspective by identifying five additional key pillars to support its implementation. Originality/value: This paper is the first to map the as is V&V practices across the products lifecycle and provide insight to the engineers and academics on how those processes are currently applied per PLM stage. Moreover, it proposes a Product Lifecycle Management-based approach for V&V to guide how V&V processes can be applied beyond the internal organisational boundaries. Paper Type: Literature Review


A removal trapping method that employed individual lure-baited insect suction traps for the reduction of adult biting midges (Culicoides spp.) was evaluated in a coastal residential neighborhood of northwestern Florida during 2000. Six backyards were used in the study. Lure-baited traps consisted of one ABC PRO insect suction trap (fitted with a 30 by 30-mesh polyester screen bag) baited with carbon dioxide (500 ml/min) and a 4:1:8 mixture of 1 octen-3-ol, 3-n-propylphenol, and 4-methylphenol (5.39 +/- 0.54 mg/h) placed in each of three backyards. Lure-baited traps ran continuously during the 4-mo study. Three backyards without lure-baited traps served as controls. Adult midge populations were monitored twice weekly for 24-h in each backyard using an additional ABC PRO trap baited with carbon dioxide (500 ml/min) only. Five species of biting midges were collected from all traps in each backyard (in descending order): Culicoides mississippiensis, C. barbosai, C. melleus, C. furens, and C. hollensis. Overall reduction was not consistent in lure-baited backyards and ranged from 2.3% to 70.6% on 16 of the 30 sample dates. But when biting midge populations seasonally declined to a weekly average of < 500 midges per lure-baited trap, reduction occurred more frequently. Midge reduction did not appear to be species specific.


Among the new credit-based derivatives are options on the yield spread between a credit-sensitive instrument and a comparable riskless bond. Valuation requires considering the behavior of both the risk-free interest rate and the credit spread, which may be correlated. A challenge in implementing valuation models for such derivatives is the need to match observed market pricing for both riskless and risky securities. In this article, Chu and Kwok show how a pricing model for credit spread options can be constructed and calibrated to the market, while maintaining its ability to produce option prices in closed form. The two correlated processes are assumed to follow the "extended Vasicek" model developed by Hull and White for arbitrage-free modeling of the interest rate. The article also shows how models of the Black-Karasinski and Heath-Jarrow-Morton type may also be fitted, though not in closed form.


Statistics of seasonal and daily rainfall in nine regions covering the United Kingdom are presented, together with the best currently available predictions of changes in rainfall and evaporation, based on various general circulation model (GCM) assessments of the climate 40 years ahead. On that basis, runoff sequences are generated for the region of northwest England with north Wales (NWE & NW, humid temperate) and for southeast England (SEE, temperate but less humid), both for the current climate and for the year 2030 estimate, the latter incorporating higher evaporation losses. The future annual runoff is reckoned as 8% less than the current average in the SEE region and 4% less than that in the NWE & NW region. Direct supply reservoir yield versus storage graphs are then derived in each case for a range of duration-based probability of emptiness, their yields (i.e. sustained draw-off rates) and storage capacities being expressed as proportions of current annual runoff. The year 2030 graphs fall systematically below those for the current climate, representing 8% to 15% loss of yield from existing storage in the SEE region and 4% to 25% loss of yield in the NWE & NW region.


This engaging study introduces the reader to one of the greatest achievements of Western art: the climactic phase of Gothic architecture in the first half of the thirteenth century. Through a comparative analysis of the cathedrals of Chartres, Reims, and Amiens, the author illuminates the technical, theological, artistic, and social factors that formed the High Gothic synthesis. Drawing on a lifetime of scholarship, he successively characterizes the different parts of the Gothic cathedral and describes the human context of the three great buildings.


Organic fluorescent molecules are infiltrated in the channels of zeolite L nanocrystals, thus creating organic–inorganic fluorescent nanoparticles. Combined with dielectric matrices, these fluorescent nanopigments open the way to the realization of novel optical devices. In this paper, the optical measurement of the quantum yield of fluorescent zeolites by means of a precise and reliable diffuse reflectance technique is presented. Several possible factors that may affect the fluorescence quantum yield are also investigated.


The change of critical duration and of the form of the function relating threshold energy to stimulus duration was determined during the first 22 s of dark adaptation following light adaptation to several luminances. For all adapting luminances tested, the critical duration increased during dark adaptation from the value obtained for the increment threshold. As adapting luminance decreased or time in the dark increased, the form of the summation function changed, so that the transition from complete temporal summation to no summation became less abrupt. The data show departures from the equivalent-background analysis of dark adaptation. A filter model relating threshold energy and time constant under varying adaptation conditions provides a general, but not precise, description of the data. The change of temporal summation during dark adaptation is similar to that found for decreased size of test field, decreased wavelength of test field, and decreased background luminance.


We show that a student's ordinal ability rank in a high-school cohort is an important determinant of engaging in risky behaviors. Using longitudinal data from representative US high schools, we find a strong negative effect of rank on the likelihood of smoking, drinking, having unprotected sex and engaging in physical fights. We further provide evidence that these results can be explained by sorting into peer groups and differences in career expectations. Students with a higher rank are less likely to be friends with other students who smoke and drink, while they have higher expectations towards their future educational attainment. JEL-Classification: I12, I14, I21, I24


Poly-Si/sub 0.8/Ge/sub 0.2/-and poly-Si-gated PMOS capacitors with very thin gate oxides were fabricated. Boron penetration and poly-gate depletion effects (PDE) in these devices were both analyzed. Observations of smaller flat-band voltage shift and superior gate oxide reliability suggest less boron penetration problem in poly-Si/sub 0.8/Ge/sub 0.2/-gated devices. Higher dopant activation rate, higher active dopant concentration near the poly/SiO/sub 2/ interface and therefore improved PDE were also found in boron-implanted poly-Si/sub 0.8/Ge/sub 0.2/-gated devices as compared to poly-Si-gated devices. A larger process window therefore exists for a poly-Si/sub 0.8/Ge/sub 0.2/ gate technology with regard to the tradeoff between boron penetration and poly-gate depletion.


Risk of leukemia relapse after T cell-depleted hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is lower in the "HLA-C mismatched" recipient-donor combinations. This might be attributable to increased natural killing by allogeneic NK cells carrying a KIR that does not bind to HLA-C on target cells (HLA-C-uncoupled KIR). Considering a new strategy of allogeneic NK cell transfer with rituximab to treat B-cell lymphomas, however, it is unknown whether the HLA-C matching status also affects rituximab-mediated antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). To address this issue, we investigated the levels of ADCC by purified NK cells carrying an HLA-C-uncoupled KIR, where the NK cell donors had either matched or mismatched HLA-C combination with target cells. Purified NK cells carrying an HLA-C-uncoupled KIR consistently showed enhanced ADCC against target cells when NK cell donors had an HLA-C-mismatch. When NK cell donors did not have an HLA-C mismatch, it was inconsistent whether HLA-C-uncoupled KIR caused ADCC enhancement. When the levels of ADCC by whole NK cells were compared, there were substantial differences among the donors regardless of the HLA-C matching status. Subjects with HLA-C mismatch may not have an advantage when cytoimmunotherapy using allogeneic NK cells is considered in combination with rituximab.


Electrified vehicle (EV) batteries that have reached the automotive end of life are providing a low-cost energy storage solution for grid-connected systems, such as DC fast charge stations (DCFCs). There are several challenges associated with the integration of second life batteries (SLBs) in power systems, such as the definition of a systematic approach for the concurrent optimization of performance and lifetime with the aim of minimizing the investment and operating costs. This paper proposes the application of automotive SLBs to DCFC stations where high-power grid connection is not available or feasible. The SLBs are charged using a low-power grid connection and then provide DCFC power to the EVs. An optimal control problem has been formulated to identify the energy management control (EMC) strategy that allows minimizing the replacement rate of the SLBs, while ensuring the EV load request is match.


Merino ewes have been selected, over 18 generations, for calm (C) or nervous (N) temperament using using an arena test and an isolation box test. We investigated the relative contributions of genotype versus the post-partum behaviour of the dam on the temperament of the lambs using a cross-fostering procedure. Forty-eight multiparous calm and 52 nervous ewes were artificially inseminated with the semen of a sire of the same temperament. At birth, 32 lambs of a given temperament line were cross fostered to ewes from the other line (16 N × C, 16 C × N), 34 lambs were cross fostered to ewes from the same line (15 C × C, 19 N × N) and 30 lambs were left with their birth mother (15 C, 15 N), to control for the effect of cross fostering. The temperament of the progeny was assessed at two occasions, one week after birth by measuring locomotor activity during an open-field test and at weaning (16 weeks) by measuring locomotor activity during an arena test and agitation score measured during an isolation box test. There was a genotype effect but no maternal or fostering effect on the lamb temperament at one week. This may be because the maternal behaviour of the foster ewes did not differ considerably between the calm and nervous mothers during adoption or within the first week, post partum. Similarly, at weaning, only a genotype effect was found on the locomotor and agitation score. Therefore, it appears that temperament in Merino sheep is mainly determined by the genetic transmission of the trait across generations rather than behaviours learned from the mother.


A high temperature superconducting magnetic energy storage device (SMES) has been realised using a 350 m-long BSCCO tape wound as a ''pancake'' coil. The coil is mounted on a cryocooler allowing temperatures down to 17.2 K to be achieved. The temperature dependence of coil electrical resistance R(T) shows a superconducting transition at T = 102.5 K. Measurements of the V(I) characteristics were performed at several temperatures between 17.2 K and 101.5 K to obtain the temperature dependence of the critical current (using a 1 ?V/cm criterion). Critical currents were found to exceed 100 A for T < 30 K. An electronic DC-DC converter was built in order to control the energy flow in and out of the superconducting coil. The converter consists of a MOS transistor bridge switching at a 80 kHz frequency and controlled with standard Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) techniques. The system was tested using a 30 V squared wave power supply as bridge input voltage. The coil current, the bridge input and output voltages were recorded simultaneously. Using a 10 A setpoint current in the superconducting coil, the whole system (coil + DC-DC converter) can provide a stable output voltage showing uninterruptible power supply (UPS) capabilities over 1 s.


GEIA (Global Emissions Inventory Activity), an integrating project of the AIMES (Analysis, Integration and Modeling of the Earth System) project of the International Geosphere Biosphere Program (IGBP) brings together people, analyses, data, and tools to: - Quantify the anthropogenic emissions and natural exchanges of trace gases and aerosols that drive earth system changes and - Facilitate use of this information by the research, assessment and policy communities. This presentation provides an overview of some of the latest global emission efforts and discusses how to make this information more readily available. Highlights include: - Data bases: data currently accessible through the GEIA portal; new information on IPCC emissions, past and future, being developed; and other international efforts on emissions - Reviews: upcoming updated overviews of state-of-the-science for man-made and natural sources - Catalogues: planned creation of a data base of papers and reports publicly available concerning emissions - New studies: improved understanding of biogenic emissions - Assessments: strategies to better integrate data from multiple countries - Wiki system: initiation of wiki-based system for emission information exchange


Background: The significance of Candida in pulmonary secretions is unclear, and usually is regarded as colonization, not contributing to symptoms or disease. Yet, in our experience, Candida seemed associated with chronic sputum, mucus plugging, atelectasis, and poor outcome. Objective: The aim of this study is to describe the clinical findings of patients with Candida in pulmonary (sputum or bronchoscopy) secretions and the significance of Candida. Methods: Retrospective study of inpatients and outpatients referred for pulmonary consultation with Candida in pulmonary secretions. Clinical parameters and estimates of whether Candida was likely clinically significant, were determined. Results: 82 inpatients and 11 outpatients were identified, of which 61 (66%) had atelectasis and 68 (73%) bronchoscopies. Of patients having bronchoscopies, 56 (82%) had mucus, and 43 (63%) mucus plugging. Of the inpatients death (or probable death) occurred in 43 (63%), 42 (98%) of which were from definite or probable respiratory failure, with 13 (31%) likely related to mucus plugging, 16 (38%) possibly from mucus plugging, 6 (14%) unknown, and 7 (17%) not due to mucus plugging. Candida was felt likely clinically significant in 57 patients (61%), uncertain significance in 23 (25%), and not significant in 13 (14%). All outpatients had exacerbations, including 7 (64%) within a year. Conclusion: Patients requiring pulmonary consultation with Candida in pulmonary secretions often have chronic sputum production, exacerbations, mucus plugging, atelectasis, and death from respiratory failure. Candida was likely clinically significant in most patients. Recommendations to consider Candida in pulmonary secretions as colonization should be reconsidered.


Impact of heat treatment on hot isostatically pressed (HIP) Ni-base superalloy has been investigated before and after conducting HIP process. HIP was performed by applying a stress of 120 MPa at a temperature of 1200 °C for 2 hours under argon atmosphere followed by furnace cooling to room temperature. Heat treatment cycle was conducted on the samples according to GEB50A563. Microstructural observation demonstrated the deleterious change of  morphology after HIP process which causes to decrease of hardness and creep strength. However, pre heat treatment in compared with cast specimen show slight changes in microstructure but, post heat treatment can revert this change of  morphology completely and also increase the mechanical properties.


Aim To report serious adverse events and long-term outcomes of initial experience with intraocular bevacizumab in retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Methods Consecutive vascularly active ROP cases treated with bevacizumab, in addition to laser and surgery, were analysed retrospectively from a prospective computerised ROP database. Primary efficacy outcome was regression of new vessels. Secondary outcomes included the anatomic and visual status. Serious systemic and ocular adverse events were documented. Results 24 ROP eyes in 13 babies, received single intraocular bevacizumab for severe stage 3 plus after failed laser (seven eyes), stage 4A plus (eight eyes), and stage 4B/5 plus (nine eyes). Drug was injected intravitreally in 23 eyes and intracamerally in one eye. New vessels regressed in all eyes. Vision salvage in 14 of 24 eyes and no serious neurodevelopmental abnormalities were noted up to 60 months (mean 30.7 months) follow-up. Complications included macular hole and retinal breaks causing rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (one eye); bilateral, progressive vascular attenuation, perivascular exudation and optic atrophy in one baby, and progression of detachment bilaterally to stage 5 in one baby with missed follow-up. One baby who received intracameral injection developed hepatic dysfunction. One eye of this baby also showed a large choroidal rupture. Conclusions Though intraocular bevacizumab, along with laser and surgery salvaged vision in many otherwise progressive cases of ROP, vigilance and reporting of serious adverse events is essential for future rationalised use of the drug. We report one systemic and four ocular adverse events that require consideration in future use of the drug.


The purpose of this study was to evaluate the morphologic findings in small-diameter freeze-dried decellularized carotid artery grafts implanted in goats as carotid artery interposition grafts for 6-7 months. Unimplanted decellularized carotid artery grafts did not contain intact cells; however, remnants of smooth muscle cells were present in the media. The extracellular matrix was well preserved. All decellularized grafts were patent at explant, without significant dimensional changes or aneurysm formation. Their luminal surfaces were lined by a thin neointima, consisting of myofibroblasts, collagen, and a discontinuous layer of endothelial cells. Histologic evidence of calcification within the explants was not observed; however, electron microscopy showed calcification of minute remnants of cell membranes. Inflammatory cells were not present in the graft wall. Host cell migration was greatest in the adventitia along the length of the graft. Migration of host cells into the media was more apparent close to the anastomoses, forming cellular nests rich in extracellular proteoglycans, whereas cell migration into areas subjacent to the lumen was minimal. Ingrowth of host blood vessels was not observed. These results demonstrate satisfactory structural and morphologic features of a decellularized carotid artery small-diameter graft implanted for up to 7 months.


BACKGROUND
Cross-sectoral collaborations are considered necessary to address detrimental health, social, educational and economic outcomes that impact marginalised and disadvantaged populations. There is a strong relationship between the health of children and their educational attainment; good health promotes positive learning. This paper reports cross-sectoral executive and senior management level systems changes required to enable the design of a collaborative primary healthcare service model for children and young people in rural Australia.

METHODS
A descriptive qualitative design was used. Data were collected from executive and senior managers from three organisations (Education, Health and a University Department of Rural Health [n=6]) through individual semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using an inductive, thematic approach. The study draws on Lewin's Model of Change.

RESULTS
Three overarching themes were generated from the data: an embedded challenge and experimental solutions; building a shared language and understanding; and the role of relationships and trust. Despite the unique geographical and social context of the study area, strategies emerged from the data on how a solution to an embedded challenge, through design of a primary healthcare model, was established and how the strategies described could be transferred and scaled to other rural and remote communities.

CONCLUSION
Contextual differences make each rural and remote area unique. In this study, strategies that are described in the managing change literature were evident. The authors conclude that drawing on strong management of change principles could mean that a service model designed for one remote community might be transferrable to other communities.


Stereologists are aware that the experimental evaluation of component volume fractions and surface-to-volume ratios are subject to systematic errors whenever the requirements for cell identification impose the necessity for component-biased sectioning. Mathematical corrections of biased volume proportion data have recently been published; these corrections assume that the components under analysis are spherical, and that the nucleated particle phase is monodispersed. In this report, general methods for obtaining corrections of biased nuclear volume fraction data are set out for polydispersed phases of nucleated particles, in terms of the relevant shapes and joint size distribution of nucleus and cell; the scope and limitations of these methods are thereby discussed. Explicit corrections of an immediate applicability are obtained, together with their standard errors, for monodispersed phases where nucleus and cell are two dissimilar biaxial ellipsoids (spheroids). When nucleus and cell are two concentric and similar convex bodies of a certain class--to which triaxial ellipsoids belong--the corrections are shown to be very simple. The corrections for the spheroid-spheroid systems are easily accessible with the aid of a small programmable calculator, whereas those for the sphere-spheroid models are directly obtainable from two nomograms.


The present invention, long-term stabilized aqueous etanercept pharmaceutical composition suitable for storage of stabilized with amino acids etanercept, to a process for the preparation of these compositions, to provide a method of administration and kits containing the this.


Two-dimensional (2D) barrier materials such as graphene, boron nitride, and molybdenum disulfide hold great promise for important applications such as DNA sequencing, desalination, and biomolecular sensing. The 2D materials commonly span pores through an insulating membrane, and electrical fields are applied to drive cross-barrier transport of charged solvated species. While the low-voltage transmembrane transport is well-understood and controllable, high-voltage phenomena are uncontrolled and result in the apparent breakdown of the 2D material's critical insulating properties. Here we use suspended graphene over a 50 nm silicon nitride nanopore as a model system and show that delamination of the 2D material occurs at higher voltages and can directly cause a number of the puzzling high-voltage transport observations. We confirm the occurrence of delamination and observe via atomic force microscopy measurement a micron-scale delaminated patch in a system using chemical vapor deposition graphene. Furthermore, we show that the conductivity of the same system is strongly correlated to the area of delamination via coincident current measurements and optical imaging of the delaminated area. Finally, we demonstrate that delamination alone can cause a dramatic breakdown of barrier function through observation of a reversible increase in conductance of samples prepared with pristine defect-free graphene. These findings should have a great impact on the design and interpretation of 2D barrier material for both experiments and applications.


Background: Sarcopenia may explain, in a large proportion, physical disability, falls and fractures, especially in aged elderly. However, a diagnosis in an operationally systematic, simple and low cost way is extremely important, particularly for home-based, epidemiological studies. Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate predictive equations of appendicular lean soft tissue (ALST) in elderly older than 80 years. Design and settings: A validation study was performed in 106 elderly (men and women) aged 80 years and older. Measurements: Body weight, height, circumference (arm, midcalf, hip and waist) and triceps skinfold were measured in the elderly. ALST were measured using as the reference method dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Results: Two models were predicted. The first model (ALST, in kg = 0.074*height + 0.277*weight – 0.144*triceps skinfold – 0.103*waist circumference + 1.831*gender -0.966), which considered all possible variables in stepwise multiple regression, presented better statistical performance (r2 = 0.82; SEE = 1.67 kg), compared to the second model (ALST, in kg = 0.138*height + 0.103*weight + 3.061*gender – 12.489), a more practical equation, due to a lesser quantity of predictive variables (r2 = 0.75; SEE = 1.94 kg). Both models were validated, however, it was verified trend (p<0.05) for overestimation of predicted ALST. Conclusion: In summary, two models for predicting ALST in men and women with age ≥ 80 years were developed and crossvalidated. Model 1, with a greater number of predictive variables, presented a better accuracy than did the model with only three variables (height, weight, and gender). Validation studies are needed to test the usefulness of both models in other populations.


. This study was on climate change and rural livelihoods in Makun-Omi, Ode-Omi and Iwopin communities in Waterside Local Government Area in Ogun State, Nigeria. Ex post facto design was adopted and three hundred and forty nine respondents randomly selected participated in the study. Analysis of data generated from an adapted Climate Change and Livelihoods' Questionnaire showed that participants' livelihoods activities were crop production, fishing and fishing related activities and non-farm activities. Eight types of manifestation of climate change ranked were flooding mean score 3.7, temperature mean score 3.64, rainfall mean score 3.6, water salinity mean score 3.54. Sea level mean score 1.51, heat waves mean score 1.48, drought with mean score 1.45 and storm activity mean score 1.36. The correlation matrix showed that temperature (r = -0.4221), rainfall (r = -0.0788), flooding (r = -0.7469) and water salinity (r = -0.1949) have negative relationship with livelihoods. It also showed that temperature (r= -0.6480), rainfall (r = -0.5754), flooding (r = -0.5813) and water salinity (r = -0.0547) all had negative relationship with livelihoods income at 0.05 alpha level. Therefore, the two null hypotheses were rejected. It is concluded that climate change increased poor livelihoods through reduction in agricultural production, poor outcomes of fishing and fishing related activities, low non-farm activities outcomes, loss of livelihoods income. It is recommended that inhabitants of these communities should be trained on new strategies for sustainable livelihoods strategies.


The purpose of this thesis was to look at the relationship between the experiences of work related stress among male bank employees and how they dealt with potential stress. The thesis focused on male bank employee's experiences and management of work related stress with the control requirements and support model as a starting point. Work related stress is a phenomenon that has become a serious problem with economic impact for both the individual and organizations. Increased absence from work due to medical issues is one example of such consequences. The study is based on a field survey at a bank office located in a municipality in the middle part of Sweden. Four male bank employees were interviewed. The result of the study showed that working conditions affected how the men experienced and dealt with work related stress. The conclusion was that a lack of demands, control and support in the workplace affected the personal life, and this imbalance could lead to stress. In order to deal with the work related stress, the bank employees tried to take control over their work situation and after work they dealt with the stress by exercising and dog-walks to name a few examples.


Due to its attractive properties, generalized frequency division multiplexing (GFDM) is recently being discussed as a candidate waveform for the fifth generation of wireless communication systems (5G). GFDM is introduced as a generalized form of the widely used orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) modulation scheme and since it uses only one cyclic prefix (CP) for a group of symbols rather than a CP per symbol, it is more bandwidth efficient than OFDM. In this paper, we propose novel modem structures for GFDM by taking advantage of the particular structure in the modulation matrix. Our proposed transmitter is based on modulation matrix sparsification through application of fast Fourier transform (FFT) to reduce the implementation complexity. A unified demodulator structure for matched filter (MF), zero forcing (ZF), and minimum mean square error (MMSE) receivers is also derived. The proposed demodulation techniques harness the special block circulant property of the matrices involved in the demodulation stage to reduce the computational cost of the system implementation. We have derived the closed forms for the ZF and MMSE receiver filters. Additionally, our algorithms do not incur any performance loss as they maintain the optimal performance. The computational costs of our proposed techniques are analyzed in detail and are compared with the existing solutions that are known to have the lowest complexity. It is shown that through application of our structures a substantial amount of computational complexity reduction can be achieved.


Non-specific Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) are particularly troublesome diseases affecting the human digestive tract, in particular the intestine. These diseases manifest themselves in chronic intestinal inflammation that is difficult to control, with periods of uncontrolled exacerbations and self-reminiscent occurrences. Depending on the symptoms and their location in the human gastrointestinal tract, these diseases may occur in various forms. Among the two most common forms of these diseases, Ulcerative Colitis (UC), and Crohn's Disease (CD) can be distinguished. Although the underlying cause of activation as well as the subsequent development of these diseases is not clearly defined, these disorders are known to have autoimmune background. The pathogenesis of IBD is associated with chronic idiopathic, recurrent, inflammatory-mediated gastrointestinal inflammation. The disease may be caused by changes in genes caused by various factors or family genetic predisposition. Exposure to a range of environmental risk factors may lead to disease activation in susceptible individuals. Many of the various factors mentioned in the article, which people are exposed to in their lives, may influence the development of these diseases.


In southern Africa, the Middle Stone Age (MSA), spanning more than 200,000 years, is a critical time period, in which Homo sapiens first appears. MSA sites located in the Eastern and Western Cape provinces of South Africa have yielded extensive faunal assemblages accumulated by anatomically modern humans. Many of these faunal assemblages include evidence of rhinoceros. To investigate how rhinoceros were potentially hunted/scavenged, we compare the representation of rhinoceros with that of large bovids and zebras in these faunal assemblages across seven sites in the region. All sites contain individual specimens of rhinoceros; however most faunal assemblages yielded only a few isolated specimens (201 specimens in total, representing 5% of the total sample). Similarly low representation was found for elephant and hippopotamus. In total, 60% of all the remains of rhinoceros accumulated during the MSA were found at a single site, Die Kelders. This indicates that people rarely brought back portions of rhinoceros carcasses containing bones to cave and shelter sites. The low frequency of rhinoceros findings suggests that people either did not regularly hunt or scavenge carcasses of these large ungulates, which are known for their aggressive behaviour; or, due to their large size inhibiting portability, they camped and feasted on rhino carcasses at sites where the animals were killed. In the latter scenario, meat containing a few bones could have been dried and brought to caves.


Hippocampal subfields CA(3) and CA(1) are hypothesized to differentially support the generation of associative predictions and the detection of associative mismatches, respectively. Using high-resolution functional MRI, we examined hippocampal subfield activation during associative retrieval and during subsequent comparisons of memory to matching or mismatching decision probes. Activity in the dentate gyrus/CA(2/3), CA(1), and other medial temporal lobe subregions tracked associative retrieval success, whereas activity in CA(1) and the perirhinal cortex tracked the presence of associative mismatches. These data support the hypothesis that CA(1) acts as a "comparator," detecting when memory for the past and sensory input in the present diverge.


The fire behaviour of light-weight material used in structural applications is regarded as the main challenge to be solved for mass transportation. The task is to perform realistic experiments, including a mechanical test scenario under fully developed fires, to improve the material's reliability in structural applications. Our approach utilises an intermediate-scale test set-up (specimen size 500 × 500 mm) to apply realistic compressive loads and fully developed fires directly to one side of a carbon-fibre-reinforced sandwich composite. Three different intumescent coatings were applied to sandwich structures and compared to a bench-scale study. The results emphasise intumescent coatings as a promising method to sustain fire resistance, multiplying the time to failure. Nevertheless, the realistic intermediate-scale test using severe direct flame application underlines the extremely short failure times when the actual composite components are tested without any additional insulation.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE
The authors studied the efficacy and complications of intraoperative mitomycin-C in glaucoma associated with ocular inflammation.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
The authors retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 24 consecutive patients (24 eyes) with glaucoma and ocular inflammation who had been treated with trabeculectomy and intraoperative mitomycin-C. Patient ages ranged from 10 to 83 years (mean 43 years). All patients were observed for at least 6 months.

RESULTS
With a mean follow-up time of 14.6 months, 18 of the 24 patients (75%) retained vision and had an intraocular pressure of 21 mm Hg or lower with or without medications (range 4 to 21 mm Hg; mean 13.4 mm Hg). Fifteen of 24 patients (62%) had an intraocular pressure of 21 mm Hg or lower with no medications. Three patients required tube shunt implants. One patient had a retinal detachment and lost light perception. One patient had endophthalmitis 14 months after surgery. Seven of 24 patients lost two or more lines of Snellen acuity.

CONCLUSION
Trabeculectomy with mitomycin-C can control intraocular pressure in glaucoma associated with ocular inflammation, but complications are frequent.


We present the thermal analysis of liquid containing Al(2)O(3) nanoparticles in a microfluidic platform using an infrared camera. The small dimensions of the microchannel along with the low flow rates (less than 120 μl min(-1)) provide very low Reynolds numbers of less than 17.5, reflecting practical parameters for a microfluidic cooling platform. The heat analysis of nanofluids has never been investigated in such a regime, due to the deficiencies of conventional thermal measurement systems. The infrared camera allows non-contact, three dimensional and high resolution capability for temperature profiling. The system was studied at different w/w concentrations of thermally conductive Al(2)O(3) nanoparticles and the experiments were in excellent agreement with the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations.


A 72-year-old man who had been treated for 20 years with warfarin for auricular fibrillation was scheduled for resection of a sessile mass (3.5 x 4 cm) on the posterior wall of the left atrium and a smaller mass (1.5 x 2 cm) in the right atrium. The masses were diagnosed by transthoracic ultrasonography and computed tomography. After anesthetic induction, a tube was inserted for transesophageal ultrasound guidance during resection of the masses. During surgery, the presence of a large mass was confirmed on the posterior wall of the left atrium, which was enlarged due to chronic fibrillation. The smaller, mobile, pediculated mass attached to the right free wall of the atrium or to the tricuspid valve was also confirmed. Given these findings and the patient's history, differential diagnosis with either biatrial myxoma or thrombus was considered. After opening both atria, an organized thrombus in the left atrium and a large hypertrophic trabecula in the trabeculated portion of the right atrium was found to be responsible for the misleading ultrasonographic image suggesting masses.


Drone Warfare is the first comprehensive analysis of one of the fastest- growing - and most secretive - fronts in global war: the rise of robot warfare. In 2000, the Pentagon had fewer than fifty aerial drones; ten years later, it had nearly 7,500. Drones are already a $5 billion business in the US alone; the US Air Force now trains more drone "pilots" than bomber and fighter pilots combined. Medea Benjamin provides the first extensive analysis of who is producing the drones, where they are being used, who pilots these unmanned planes, and what are the legal and moral implications. In vivid, readable style, the book also looks at what activists, lawyers, and scientists across the globe are doing to ground these weapons. Benjamin argues that the assassinations we are carrying out from the air will come back to haunt us when others start doing the same thing - to us.


Public works programs have been an important safety net intervention in both developed and developing countries for many years. By providing temporary low-wage jobs to unskilled manual workers, income is transferred to poor households in a self-targeted manner while achieving useful projects such as road construction and maintenance, irrigation infrastructure, reforestation, and soil conservation.


Research has previously demonstrated that
aromas of both Salvia officinalis and Salvia lavandulaefolia are capable of modulating aspects of retrospective
memory, attention and mood. This study is the first to report the potential for
these aromas to enhance everyday prospective memory performance in healthy
young adults. In an independent groups design, three conditions, Salvia officinalis aroma, Saliva lavandulaefolia aroma and no aroma were
employed with 45 healthy volunteers in each condition. Prospective memory
performance was assessed using the Prospective Remembering Video Procedure. Data
analysis revealed that the Salvia
officinalis aroma group performed significantly better than the control
group on both event and action subscales of the prospective memory task. Saliva lavandulaefolia aroma only led to enhancement for the event measure
when compared to controls. No differences were found between the aroma
conditions. These findings offer support for those previously reported for the
effects of the aromas of Salvia sp.
on cognition and again demonstrate differential effects of the two aromas. The
results are considered in terms of pharmacological mechanisms.


What are we dating? Some remarks on the dating of biblical texts When a date is ascribed to a Biblical text, it is at times unclear precisely what is being dated. Does the date relate so some historical event which may have occurred, or alternatively, is it projected into another era? Does it refer to the possible formation date of an oral tradition, or is it perhaps some phase in its development through history which is being dated? Is it the a quo date for when a text is judged to have been written down, or the date ad quem, or some process of rewriting – either between these two dates, or possibly some minor editorial alteration after the ad quo date – which is to be given? Is it referring to a time when an interpretative frame was placed around existing text? This article provides an overview of what it is about a text that may be dated. It concludes with an appeal for greater accuracy of formulation in the already precarious matter of dating biblical texts.


Impact crater Dantu not only exhibits a very complex geological history but also shows an exceptional heterogeneity of its surface composition. Because of its location within a low‐lying region named Vendimia Planitia, which has been proposed to represent an ancient impact basin, Dantu possibly offers a window into the composition of Ceres's deeper crust, which apparently is enriched in ammonia. Local concentration of carbonates within Dantu or its ejecta blanket may be either exposed or their emplacement induced by the Dantu impact event. Because carbonates can be seen along Dantu's crater walls, exposed due to recent slumping, but also as fresh spots or clusters of spots scattered across the surface, the deposition/formation of carbonates took place over a long time period. The association of several bright spots enriched in carbonates with sets of fractures on Dantu's floor might be accidental. Nevertheless, its morphological and compositional similarity to the faculae in Ceres's prominent impact crater Occator including its hydrated state does not exclude a cryo‐volcanic origin, i.e., upwelling of carbonate‐enriched brines influenced by H2O ice in the subsurface. Indeed, an isolated H2O ice spot can be identified near Dantu, which shows that ice still exists in Ceres's subsurface at midlatitudes and that it can exist on the surface for a longer period of time.


World War I played a key role in shaping modern housing policy. While in the pre-War era, there was virtually no housing policy, hostilities led to an almost immediate and comprehensive state intervention in the housing market, particularly among those engaged in the war. Originally, Russia went the same way as the other countries. However, after the communists seized power in November 1917, they started conducting a different policy reflecting their specific objectives. These differences become apparent when Soviet Russia is compared with Germany—a large European market economy that faced similar challenges: the devastating consequences of World War I, hyperinflation in the early 1920s, and the dictatorship regime of the 1930s. Thus, the diverging characteristics of the housing policy of both countries can to a large extent be attributed to the ideological differences between the centrally planned and the market economies.


It is argued that the so-called holographic principle will obstruct attempts to produce physically realistic models for the unification of general relativity (GR) with quantum mechanics, unless determinism in the latter is restored. The notion of time in GR is so different from the usual one in elementary particle physics that we believe that certain versions of hidden-variable theories can - and must - be revived. A completely natural procedure is proposed, in which the dissipation of information plays an essential role. Unlike earlier attempts, it allows us to use strictly continuous and differentiable classical field theories as a starting point (although discrete variables, leading to fermionic degrees of freedom, are also welcome), and we show how an effective Hilbert space of quantum states emerges naturally when one attempts to describe the solutions statistically. Our theory removes some of the mysteries of the holographic principle; apparently non-local features are to be expected when the quantum degrees of freedom of the world are projected onto a lower-dimensional black hole horizon. Various examples and models illustrate the points we wish to make, notably a model showing that massless, non-interacting neutrinos are deterministic.


Alan Coulson has two main roles at the Sanger Centre, revolving around the worm and the human genome projects. Although the worm sequence is essentially finished, the tidying-up of that and the physical map is ongoing. There is also a continuous need for communication with the worm field with regard to information and materials relating to the sequence project. For example, the cosmids and YACs of the physical map continue to be, as they have been for many years now, an extremely powerful resource, and the Sanger Centre distributes in the order of 500 clones per month to the community. Alan is team leader of the worm functional genomics group, which is currently small but will be expanding shortly. Patricia Kuwabara is a member of the team and a description of their activities can be found below. The Human Genome Project is sequencing mapped PAC and BAC clones. Alan's primary involvement is with the team that is responsible for subcloning the 10 000 or so clones that will be required to complete the one-third of the genome sequence to be contributed by the Sanger Centre. Patricia Kuwabara has been using Caenorhabditis elegans as a model for understanding how protein–protein interactions regulate cell-to-cell signalling. Her research has focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying the genetics of C. elegans sex determination. This work has led into a study of regulated proteolysis involving calpains and also into the roles of the multiple C. elegans Patched proteins, which in other organisms have been shown to be receptors for the Hedgehog morphogen. In addition, the group is taking advantage of the completion of the C. elegans genome sequence to develop whole genome DNA microarrays for expression profiling. At the Sanger Centre, DNA microarrays are providing opportunities to examine how development and physiology are regulated globally, because most nematode genes have now been identified at the sequence level. The group are being assisted in this endeavour by Dr Stuart Kim (Stanford, CA).


The establishment of Toxoplasma gondii infection in the tissues of SCID mice and SCID mice transplanted with human peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) was investigated. The presence of bradyzoites and tachyzoites was analysed in hu‐PBL SCID mice using Southern blot of reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction products for the expression of B1, BAG1 and SAG1 of T. gondii. BAG1 was present by week 1 in brain, lung, liver and spleen of some animals; by week 3, BAG1 was present in all animals and in all of these tissues. In contrast, SAG1 was rarely detected until week 2 (mainly in the lung and brain) and by week 3, some animals still did not have detectable SAG1 in brain, lung, liver and spleen. SAG1 expression was increased in the lungs of animals transplanted with human PBL compared to nontransplanted SCID mice. Human PBL engraftment was demonstrated, initially in uninfected mice, by the presence of human CD3+ T cells in the spleen (3.1 × 105 positive cells) and peritoneal cavity (3.4 × 105 cells) 4 weeks after transplantation. The final outcome of infection was not influenced by the presence of human PBL, with similar mortality in human PBL transplanted and nontransplanted mice. These studies provide a detailed analysis of the kinetics and distribution of both the cyst and tachyzoite stage of T. gondii. This system has been established to allow evaluation of therapies against T. gondii immunodeficient mice in the presence of human immune cells.


This paper compares the performance of full beam energy detection and split beam cross correlation for detecting the persence of a sinusoidal directional signal in the presence of interfering directional clutter and uncorrelated noise. The sensor is assumed to be a line array and a detection is made by comparing the mean of a spectral analysis bin with the mean of neighboring bins. The comparisons are based on calculations of the mean and standard deviation of the detection statistic for the two processors. The results indicate that there are situations when split beam cross correlation can provide a substantial advantage in detecting a sinusoidal signal against a fluctuating background of directional clutter and noise. In addition to the detection comparisons, the ability of the two approaches to separate two contacts that overlap spectrally by using the additional discriminants of bearing and bearing rate are compared. These comparisons indicate that the split beam cross correlator is more effective at resolving contacts than the full beam energy detector.


Limited natural resources, high energy consumption, economic considerations, and environmental concerns demand that we develop new technologies for the sustainable production of chemicals and fuels. New methods that combine the selective activation of C-H bonds of hydrocarbons with oxidation by a green oxidant such as molecular oxygen would represent huge advances toward this goal. The spectacular selectivity of transition metals in cleaving C-H bonds offers the potential for the direct use of hydrocarbons in the production of value-added organics such as alcohols. However, the use of oxygen, which is abundant, environmentally benign, and inexpensive (particularly from air), has proven challenging, and more expensive and less green oxidants are often employed in transition-metal-catalyzed reactions. Advances in the use of oxygen as an oxidant in transition-metal-catalyzed transformations of hydrocarbons will require a better understanding of how oxygen reacts with transition metal alkyl and hydride complexes. For alkane oxidations, researchers will need to comprehend and predict how metals that have shown particularly high activity and selectivity in C-H bond activation (e.g. Pt, Pd, Rh, Ir) will react with oxygen. In this Account, we present our studies of reactions of late metal alkyls and hydrides with molecular oxygen, emphasizing the mechanistic insights that have emerged from this work. Our studies have unraveled some of the general mechanistic features of how molecular oxygen inserts into late metal hydride and alkyl bonds along with a nascent understanding of the scope and limitations of these reactions. We present examples of the formation of metal hydroperoxide species M-OOH by insertion of dioxygen into Pt(IV)-H and Pd(II)-H bonds and show evidence that these reactions proceed by radical chain and hydrogen abstraction pathways, respectively. Comparisons with recent reports of insertion of oxygen into other Pd(II)-H complexes, and also into Ir(III)-H and Rh(III)-H complexes, point to potentially general mechanisms for this type of reaction. Additionally, we observed oxygen-promoted C-H and H-H reductive elimination reactions from five-coordinate Ir(III) alkyl hydride and dihydride complexes, respectively. Further, when Pd(II)Me(2) and Pt(II)Me(2) complexes were exposed to oxygen, insertion processes generated M-OOMe complexes. Mechanistic studies for these reactions are consistent with radical chain homolytic substitution pathways involving five-coordinate M(III) intermediates. Due to the remarkable ability of Pt(II) and Pd(II) to activate the C-H bonds of hydrocarbons (RH) and form M-R species, this reactivity is especially exciting for the development of partial alkane-oxidation processes that utilize molecular oxygen. Our understanding of how late transition metal alkyls and hydrides react with molecular oxygen is growing rapidly and will soon approach our knowledge of how other small molecules such as olefins and carbon monoxide react with these species. Just as advances in understanding olefin and CO insertion reactions have shaped important industrial processes, key insight into oxygen insertion should lead to significant gains in sustainable commercial selective oxidation catalysis.


Screening mammography programs have contributed to an overall decline in breast cancer mortality. The screening process, however, also results in detection and biopsy of many nonpalpable lesions that eventually prove to be benign, contributing to the burden of costs to our health care system. Percutaneous imaging-guided core biopsy has proven to be a safe and accurate technique for obtaining a histologic diagnosis in most patients who have screening-detected lesions; it is done at lower cost with lower resultant morbidity to the patient compared with traditional surgical excisional biopsy. I review the indications, techniques, method of correlating the histology with mammographic findings, and accreditation requirements for imaging-guided core biopsies of the breast done under mammographic (ie, stereotactic) or sonographic guidance.


As ascites is related to liver cirrhosis in 80% of the patients, the present therapeutic guidelines are focused on ascites in liver cirrhosis. A combination of spironolactone and furosemide is recommended as first line therapy in patients with mild to moderate ascites and is effective in 90% of patients. In patients with pronounced or tense ascites, first line treatment is total paracentesis with intravenous infusion of human albumin as colloid replacement. Maintenance therapy for the prevention of recurrent ascites is based on spironolactone with or without furosemide. The indications for peritoneovenous shunt, or transjugular intrahepatic stent-shunt (TIPSS), are limited and only recommended in strictly selected patients with refractory ascites. Ascites in liver cirrhosis is a symptom of advanced liver disease, and liver transplantation should always be considered in eligible patients.


This paper traces the conceptual foundations of the Brunswik based Social Judgment Theory. The historical transition from measurement through probability of responding (i.e., a constancy ratio) to measurement via correlations is documented. It is shown that there are substantive limitations with the correlation approach for the idiographic analysis of human perception or decision-making. Instead, the constancy ratio developed originally by Brunswik as well as the measurement of the probability of accuracy in responding are better suited to the analysis of human responding under conditions of uncertainty and complexity. These measures are relevant for the development of psychological laws of individual responding. It was concluded that focusing on the probability of individual responses to situations through analysing the pattern of responding intensively is more consistent with the original approach of Brunswik.


Author(s): Sarfati, Liora | Abstract: "'Rabbi Ifargan is approaching! Please make room to let him pass! Women! Move aside! The Rabbi will not enter the place if you stay so thickly crowded! Please, please…'The request resonates from the loudspeakers into the forested dark valley in the Galilee region of Israel. Women reluctantly give up their places in front of the big metal fireplace where hundreds of candles are burning. Rabbi Ifargan, a young Jewish orthodox man, clad in a black cloak and a hat comes in followed by a dozen young men. It is slightly after midnight and freezing cold. The 'Tikkun Hazot' ritual is about to begin on a mountain slope by the grave of Zaddiq Yonatan ben Uziel. An elderly man who is holding the microphone starts singing popular religious songs . The crowd joins in loudly. About 300 people are standing on the muddy ground, far away from their warm beds. They are waiting for the Rabbi to start his prayers.In immigration societies, two different strands constantly intertwine. On the one hand, immigrants seek their special ethnic identity, tending to socialize among themselves, while on the other, they are a part of the larger society, influencing it and influenced by it. In this paper, I will discuss the stories of 5 pilgrims in Israel who currently participate repetitively in rituals held at sites where sacred graves exist. I will show how for second and third-generation Moroccan-immigrants in Israel, such pilgrimages enhance continuity with their ancestor heritage. For other pilgrims it is a new tradition they choose to embrace.Israel is an immigrant society. By 1948 the Jewish population of Israel was estimated at about 700,000. In 50 years the number has risen to about 5,000,000. Immigration of Jews, in waves, was the main reason for this population increase. In the 50s and 60s, most immigrants were from Northern Africa, especially from Morocco. These immigrants encountered a society composed mainly by people of European origin. The official cultural policy was called 'The melting pot' and aimed to create one cultural entity. The result was that North-African immigrants had to conform to the mainstream ideas and give up many of their traditions. Two decades later, composing about a third of the Jewish population in Israel, the groups of North-African origin started a struggle to recover some of their lost heritage. By the year 2000, the Israeli cultural arena became more diverse. My ethnographic fieldwork was conducted mainly in the years 1998 and 1999, with a few follow-ups during 2000 and 2001. My main focus is on a nightly ceremony conducted in the vicinity of Zaddiq graves in the northern and southern regions of Israel. A Zaddiq is a righteous person who cures ill people and helps those in need. This is accomplished by miracles, attributed to his faith in God and his distinct and holy way of life. In some aspects it is a Jewish parallel to a Christian or a Muslim saint."


ABSTRACT During Leishmania major infection in mice, gamma interferon (IFN-γ) plays an essential role in controlling parasite growth and disease progression. In studies designed to ascertain the role of IFN-γ in Leishmania amazonensis infection, we were surprised to find that IFN-γ could promote L. amazonensis amastigote replication in macrophages (MΦs), although it activated MΦs to kill promastigotes. The replication-promoting effect of IFN-γ on amastigotes was independent of the source and genetic background of MΦs, was apparently not affected by surface opsonization of amastigotes, was not mediated by interleukin-10 or transforming growth factor β, and was observed at different temperatures. Consistent with the different fates of promastigotes and amastigotes in IFN-γ-stimulated MΦs, L. amazonensis-specific Th1 transfer helped recipient mice control L. amazonensis infection established by promastigotes but not L. amazonensis infection established by amastigotes. On the other hand, IFN-γ could stimulate MΦs to limit amastigote replication when it was coupled with lipopolysaccharides but not when it was coupled with tumor necrosis factor alpha. Thus, IFN-γ may play a bidirectional role at the level of parasite-MΦ interactions; when it is optimally coupled with other factors, it has a protective effect against infection, and in the absence of such synergy it promotes amastigote growth. These results reveal a quite unexpected aspect of the L. amazonensis parasite and have important implications for understanding the pathogenesis of the disease and for developing vaccines and immunotherapies.


Relative positional embeddings (RPE) have received considerable attention since RPEs effectively model the relative distance among tokens and enable length extrapolation. We propose KERPLE, a framework that generalizes relative position embedding for extrapolation by kernelizing positional differences. We achieve this goal using conditionally positive definite (CPD) kernels, a class of functions known for generalizing distance metrics. To maintain the inner product interpretation of self-attention, we show that a CPD kernel can be transformed into a PD kernel by adding a constant offset. This offset is implicitly absorbed in the Softmax normalization during self-attention. The diversity of CPD kernels allows us to derive various RPEs that enable length extrapolation in a principled way. Experiments demonstrate that the logarithmic variant achieves excellent extrapolation performance on three large language modeling datasets. Our implementation and pretrained checkpoints are released at~\url{https://github.com/chijames/KERPLE.git}.


Background: Growing evidences show that the successful treatment of pediatric obesity requires consideration not only of medical issues but also of psychological and social environmental and familial factors. Special emphasis is given to the psychological and spiritual aspects of pediatric obesity in the context of a holistic perspective. In this regard this study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of multi-faceted training focused on spiritual parenting to mothers on promoting spirituality of overweight children. Methods: In this study, 48 volunteer (24 boy students and 24 their mothers) eligible to exclude-include criteria were selected and randomly assigned into two experimental and control groups. An orientation session was held to explain the research goals and intervention. The experimental group trained, 90 minutes sessions weekly for 3 months (10 sessions), but control group did not receive any intervention. Prior to and after Training, all participant completed demographic information questionnaire and then children completed religiosity and spirituality scale for youth (rassy) scale and childrens' BMI were measured. Data analysis with 22th version of SPSS was done. Results: Data analysis with applying one-way and multivariate analysis of covariance ( ancova and mancova) revealed that Multi-faceted training focused on spiritual parenting could significantly promote the total score and faith-based coping and religious social support/activities but BMI were decreased significantly (P<0.05). Conclusions: The results showed that the multi-faceted training focused on spiritual parenting to mothers leads to promotion of spirituality scores of children with overweight. Also, it seems that the body mass index (BMI) will be reduced. This study demonstrated that spiritual parenting benefits are similar to the dietary restriction and physical activity. And it can cause weight loss and enhance spirituality in children.


The focus of this thesis is on sexual selection within a behavioural and evolutionary framework. Sexual selection is concerned with the factors that determine reproductive success. I have used a laboratory population of zebra finches to address fundamental questions that remain unanswered despite decades of research on this model organism in studies of sexual selection in monogamous species. The aim of this thesis was to perform a rigorous investigation of how male zebra finches achieve reproductive success. To do this, I tried to evaluate the signalling value of candidate traits and investigate the mechanisms that lead to reproductive success through both intra- and intersexual selection.
The honesty of signals has had a special place in my work. Current theory suggests that secondary sexual signals should be costly to be able to function as honest indicators of male quality in a mate choice context. If ornaments are costly to develop or maintain, this would lead to condition dependent expression of ornaments. I tested the condition dependence of a broad range of traits so that I could compare the condition dependence of sexual and non-sexual traits and between traits in males and females (chapter 1). I found that zebra finches are remarkably resilient to stressful conditions during early development and can develop normally in most traits with very little consequences for fitness or longevity. These results indicate that not all traits that appear to be sexually selected characters will exhibit condition dependence.
To study fitness consequences, I used an aviary breeding set-up. This allowed me to study the process of sexual selection in a socially complex environment where natural selection pressures had been relaxed. Since only selection acting on the genetic component of a trait can lead to evolutionary change, I used a quantitative genetic approach to look at selection pressures. Contrary to the prevailing view, I found that beak colour and courtship song rate and song complexity were not subject to female choice and not relevant for reproductive success (chapter 3). Beak colour was also not important in male-male competition (chapter 2). These findings necessitate a re-evaluation of the function of these traits. I suggest that courtship song rate reflects male reproductive strategies, while song structure is important for individual recognition in this highly social species and the beak colour might function as a signal of breeding status.
The strongest candidate for a condition-dependent trait with consequences for fitness was body size (measured as tarsus length). Tarsus length was dependent on early condition (chapter 1), played a role in intrasexual competition (chapter 2) and was related to reproductive success in the aviaries (chapter 3). However, the quantitative genetic approach revealed that the selection was acting mainly on the environmental, not the genetic component of tarsus length, explaining why sexual size dimorphism has not evolved.
Contrary to the expectations of honest signalling theory, males with a higher undirected song rate (i.e. non-courtship song) were less successful in the aviaries (chapter 4). However, females invested more into reproduction when paired to a high undirected song rate male, indicating that this type of song might function in reproductive stimulation of the partner and maintenance of the pair bond.
Furthermore, female reproductive investment can be influenced by male quality. In contrast to previous studies, I found that females invested more when paired to a less attractive male (chapter 5). This investment pattern fits with the breeding system of this species, since life-time monogamy and a short lifespan means that the chances of breeding with a higher quality male in the future is very low. Thus, females should do the 'best of a bad job' and compensate by investing more when paired to a less attractive partner.
Collectively, this work has provided several unexpected insights that call for a reinterpretation of several of the classical views of this model organism. This illustrates how novel experimental approaches can provide new insights into the process of sexual selection, also in well-studied model systems.


The binding of Plasmodium falciparum parasitized erythrocytes to uninfected erythrocytes (rosetting) is associated with severe malaria. The glycosaminoglycan heparan sulfate is an important receptor for rosetting. The related glycosaminoglycan heparin was previously used in treatment of severe malaria, although abandoned because of the occurrence of severe bleedings. Instead, low anticoagulant heparin (LAH) has been suggested for treatment. LAH has successfully been evaluated in safety studies and found to disrupt rosettes and cytoadherence in vitro and in vivo in animal models, but the effect of LAH on fresh parasite isolates has not been studied. Herein, we report that two different LAHs (DFX232 and Sevuparin) disrupt rosettes in the majority of fresh isolates from Cameroonian children with malaria. The rosette disruption effect was more pronounced in isolates from complicated cases than from mild cases. The data support LAH as adjunct therapy in severe malaria.


Salinity stress has negative effects on agricultural yield throughout the world, affecting production whether it is for subsistence or economic gain. This study investigates the inductive role of vitamin C and its application mode in mitigating the detrimental effects of irrigation with diluted (10, 20 and 30 %) NaCl + water on Silybum marianum L. plants. The results show that 10% of salt water exhibited insignificant changes, while the higher levels impaired growth by reducing seed germination, dry weights of shoot and root, water status and chlorophyll contents. However, irrigation with salt water enhanced carotenoids and antioxidant enzyme activities. The detrimental effects of salt water were ameliorated by application of 100 ppm ascorbic acid (vitamin C). The inductive role of vitamin was associated with the improvement of seed germination, growth, plant water status, carotenoids, endogenous ascorbic acid and antioxidant enzyme activities. Moreover, vitamin C alone or in combination with 30% NaCl water increased the intensity of protein bands as well as synthesized additional new proteins with molecular weights of 205, 87, 84, 65 and 45 kDa. This could increase tolerance mechanisms of treated plants towards water salinity.


Histone deacetylases (HDACs) execute biological regulation through post-translational modification of chromatin and other cellular substrates. In humans, there are eleven HDACs, organized into three distinct subfamilies. This large number of HDACs raises questions about functional overlap and division of labor among paralogs. In vivo roles are simpler to address in Drosophila, where there are only five HDAC family members and only two are implicated in transcriptional control. Of these two, HDAC1 has been characterized genetically, but its most closely related paralog, HDAC3, has not. Here we describe the isolation and phenotypic characterization of hdac3 mutations. We find that both hdac3 and hdac1 mutations are dominant suppressors of position effect variegation, suggesting functional overlap in heterochromatin regulation. However, all five hdac3 loss-of-function alleles are recessive lethal during larval/pupal stages, indicating that HDAC3 is essential on its own for Drosophila development. The mutant larvae display small imaginal discs, which result from abnormally elevated levels of apoptosis. This cell death occurs as a cell-autonomous response to HDAC3 loss and is accompanied by increased expression of the pro-apoptotic gene, hid. In contrast, although HDAC1 mutants also display small imaginal discs, this appears to result from reduced proliferation rather than from elevated apoptosis. The connection between HDAC loss and apoptosis is important since HDAC inhibitors show anticancer activities in animal models through mechanisms involving apoptotic induction. However, the specific HDACs implicated in tumor cell killing have not been identified. Our results indicate that protein deacetylation by HDAC3 plays a key role in suppression of apoptosis in Drosophila imaginal tissue.


New trends in wireless communication systems require multi-standard coexistence and high data rates. In order to meet these requirements, we propose a reconfigurable baseband platform with coarse grained heterogeneous execution units and flexible interconnections, which are controlled by configuration information. In addition, we demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach in three sample implementations, namely RFID, WLAN OFDM and MIMO-OFDM systems. The performance results reveal that this platform is flexible enough to handle various baseband operations with good efficiency and at reasonable resource cost.


This study analyses the effects of changes in government spending on aggregate economic activity and the way these effects are transmitted in case of Pakistan for the period 1971–2008. To analyse the transmission mechanism of government spending innovations, the Vector Autoregressive Model is estimated for following five variables: government spending per capita, GDP per capita, consumption per capita, debt to GDP ratio, long term interest rate and real exchange rate. The consumption and output respond negatively to the innovation in government spending which is consistent with the standard neoclassical model. The interest rates increase in the face of expansionary fiscal spending. As government debt builds up with fiscal expansion, the rising risk of default or increasing inflation risk reinforce crowding out through interest rates. The real exchange rate tends to appreciate in response to rise in government spending. This finding is according to the open economy literature and also with the conventional literature.


Iryna Kozlova, Carleton University Dmitri Priven, Algonquin College Although language learning in 3D Virtual Worlds (VWs) has become a focus of recent research, little is known about the knowledge and skills teachers need to acquire to provide effective task-based instruction in 3D VWs and the type of teacher training that best prepares instructors for such an endeavor. This study employs a situated learning approach to teacher training and explores what online teaching skills emerge in the process of collaborative situated learning, how these skills develop, and whether collaborative situated learning is an effective method of training instructors to teach in 3D VWs. Six English as a second language (ESL) teacher trainees enrolled in the Teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language (TES/FL) program participated in the study. During the preteaching stage, teacher trainees developed language tasks to implement during the teaching stage with eight EFL students in 3D VWs. Blackboard wikis used for designing tasks allowed for observing the acquisition of five 3D-specific, integrated skills. The analysis of teaching sessions recorded through screen capturing software Camtasia Relay in conjunction with the teacher trainees' wikis and journals demonstrates that for this group of teachers, a situated learning approach was an effective method of teacher training.


Background: CPX-351 (Vyxeos®; daunorubicin and cytarabine liposome for injection) is a treatment for adults with newly diagnosed AML with myelodysplasia-related changes or therapy-related AML. Intensive induction chemotherapy causes marked symptom burden, quality of life (QOL) impairment, and psychological distress, but data on the patient experience with CPX-351 are lacking. We aimed to compare the patient experience of physician-chosen CPX-351 to standard induction regimens using validated patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures collected prospectively in a randomized clinical trial.
 Methods: This was an exploratory analysis of a US, multi-site supportive care trial in AML (NCT02975869). PRO assessments were collected at baseline, 2 weeks later (when studies show patients feel their worst during a typical induction hospitalization), and then at 1, 3, and 6 months. PROs assessed the following patient experience domains: symptoms (Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale [ESAS]), QOL (FACT-Leukemia and FACT-TOI), anxiety (HADS-A), depression (HADS-D), and post-traumatic stress (PTSD Checklist). All analyses were adjusted for baseline PROs, patient age, receipt of additional targeted therapy, and supportive care interventions. Analysis of covariance models were used to find adjusted 2-week PRO scores by treatment, and logistic regression models were used to find adjusted odds ratios (aOR) for dichotomous PROs at 2 weeks. Linear mixed effects models were used to estimate adjusted mean between-group differences in PROs across the 6-month study period (reported as B). Given the exploratory nature of this study, we defined a 2-sided P value of <0.20 as hypothesis-generating, consistent with standard approaches to exploratory analysis, and not to imply significance.
 Results: Across 4 sites, we enrolled 109 patients with newly diagnosed AML. Thirty-five (32%) received CPX-351 and 74 (68%) received a standard regimen (72 received 7+3, 1 received FLAG, and 1 received MEC). Baseline sociodemographic characteristics and PROs were similar across groups. Mean age was 67 years (SD: 6.8) in the CPX-351 group and 65.2 (SD: 8.9) in the standard group. Most patients were white (>90%) and partnered (>70%). At 2 weeks, those receiving CPX-351 had better PRO scores (adjusted means) for symptoms (ESAS total score: 25.89 vs 31.73; P = 0.11) and depression (HADS-D: 5.17 vs 7.0; P = 0.08); CPX-351 was favored on all other PROs, including quality of life (FACT-Leu: 118.02 vs 112.56; P = 0.44), anxiety (HADS-A: 4.51 vs 5.27; P = 0.465), and PTSD symptoms (PTSD-checklist: 27.08 vs 28.16; P = 0.6). At 2 weeks, patients receiving CPX-351 were less likely to have worsening ESAS total symptoms (45.7% vs 54.1%; aOR = 0.52; P = 0.172), physical symptoms (45.7% vs 63.5%; aOR = 0.41; P = 0.064), and clinically significant depression symptoms (27.3% vs 37.7%; aOR = 0.48; P = 0.159), but no difference in clinically significant anxiety symptoms (28.9% vs 30.3%; aOR = 0.62; P = 0.392). In longitudinal analyses, those receiving CPX-351 had better QOL (FACT-TOI: B = 6.41; P = 0.173), lower anxiety (B = −1.47; P = 0.153), less depression symptoms (B = −1.58; P = 0.09), and less leukemia symptoms (B = 3.67; P = 0.16), but no differences in total symptom burden (ESAS: B = −0.06; P = 0.988) or in PTSD symptoms (PTSD Checklist: B = 2.23; P = 0.354). While patients receiving CPX-351 had a longer index hospitalization length of stay compared to standard induction (mean of 44.3 vs 39 days; P = 0.072), they also had fewer hospitalizations during the 6-month follow-up period (2.82 vs 3.55; P = 0.158). Furthermore, the total number of days hospitalized after the index admission was lower for those receiving CPX-351 (17.71 vs 22.27 days; P = 0.199). Patients receiving CPX-351 had an average of 94.08 days alive and out of the hospital, while those receiving standard induction had 91.85 days (P = 0.849).
 Conclusions: This exploratory analysis supports the observation that patients receiving CPX-351 may have an overall better patient experience during induction treatment, as measured by validated PROs assessing symptoms, QOL, mood, and PTSD. Our ability to draw more definitive conclusions is limited by sample size and the fact that treatment with CPX-351 is only indicated for certain AML subtypes, resulting in a non-random allocation to treatment groups and potential differences in clinical outcomes.

 Leblanc: AstraZeneca: Research Funding; Agios, AbbVie, and Bristol Myers Squibb/Celgene: Speakers Bureau; UpToDate: Patents & Royalties: Royalties; American Cancer Society, BMS, Duke University, NINR/NIH, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; AbbVie, Agios, Amgen, AstraZeneca, CareVive, BMS/Celgene, Daiichi-Sankyo, Flatiron, Helsinn, Heron, Otsuka, Medtronic, Pfizer, Seattle Genetics, Welvie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Morris:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Hooks:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. El-Jawahri:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding.


BACKGROUND
If medical treatment fails in uveitic glaucoma a surgical approach should be considered. Classical trabeculectomy is known to have a less favourable outcome in uveitis. Our intention is to report the first series of uveitis patients with glaucoma resistant to medical therapy who were treated with deep sclerectomy (DS).

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Fourteen eyes of 13 patients (mean age 39.0 +/- 18.5 years; range 8 to 76 years) with chronic uveitis underwent non-penetrating filtering surgery from 1995 to 2003. All patients had their uveitis controlled before and after surgery by immunomodulatory therapy. Non-penetrating filtering surgery consisted of DS with collagen implant (Staar(R)) in 4 eyes, DS with draining device (T-Flux Ioltech(R)) in 2 patients, DS without implant in 7 patients and with viscocanalostomy in 1 patient. Nine eyes (65 %) received mitomycin C peri-operatively.

RESULTS
Intra-ocular pressure (IOP) was reduced from a mean pre-operative value of 42.8 +/- 13.6 mmHg to a 1-year mean post-operative value of 12.1 +/- 4.0 (71.7 % reduction). Eleven of the 14 eyes completed 12 months of follow-up, resulting in complete success in 5 (45.4 %) and in qualified success in 5 (45 %) and in failure in one patient (9.2 %), later controlled by a second operation. Anti-glaucomatous medication was reduced from a mean of 3.7 +/- 0.5 medications preoperatively to 1.2 +/- 0.8 medications (71.4 % reduction) at the 12 month follow-up. Nine of the 14 patients achieved a 24 month follow-up with a mean IOP of 14.1 +/- 3.8 mmHg and mean of anti-glaucomatous medications of 1.6. Four patients have been examined 4 years after the DS: mean IOP was 13.2 +/- 2.2 mmHg and mean medication 1.7 +/- 1.0. Post-operative complications included one case of lens opacity and 2 cases of hypotony lasting for five months and four weeks after the intervention respectively.

CONCLUSION
Non-penetrating filtering surgery controlled the intra-ocular pressure in 90 % of eyes with uveitic glaucoma resistant to medical therapy at 12 months. Surgical complications were low which may explain the high success rate of the procedure, compared to classical penetrating surgery.


Abstract. The Indian megacity of Delhi suffers from some of the
poorest air quality in the world. While ambient NO2 and particulate
matter (PM) concentrations have received considerable attention in the city,
high ground-level ozone (O3) concentrations are an often overlooked
component of pollution. O3 can lead to significant ecosystem damage and
agricultural crop losses, and adversely affect human health. During October 2018,
concentrations of speciated non-methane hydrocarbon volatile organic
compounds (C2–C13), oxygenated volatile organic compounds
(o-VOCs), NO, NO2, HONO, CO, SO2, O3, and photolysis rates,
were continuously measured at an urban site in Old Delhi. These observations
were used to constrain a detailed chemical box model utilising the Master
Chemical Mechanism v3.3.1. VOCs and NOx (NO + NO2) were varied
in the model to test their impact on local O3 production rates,
P(O3), which revealed a VOC-limited chemical regime. When only NOx
concentrations were reduced, a significant increase in P(O3) was
observed; thus, VOC co-reduction approaches must also be considered in
pollution abatement strategies. Of the VOCs examined in this work, mean
morning P(O3) rates were most sensitive to monoaromatic compounds,
followed by monoterpenes and alkenes, where halving their concentrations in
the model led to a 15.6 %, 13.1 %, and 12.9 % reduction in
P(O3), respectively. P(O3) was not sensitive to direct changes in
aerosol surface area but was very sensitive to changes in photolysis rates,
which may be influenced by future changes in PM concentrations. VOC and
NOx concentrations were divided into emission source sectors, as
described by the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR) v5.0 Global Air Pollutant Emissions and EDGAR
v4.3.2_VOC_spec inventories, allowing for the
impact of individual emission sources on P(O3) to be investigated.
Reducing road transport emissions only, a common strategy in air pollution
abatement strategies worldwide, was found to increase P(O3), even when
the source was removed in its entirety. Effective reduction in P(O3)
was achieved by reducing road transport along with emissions from combustion
for manufacturing and process emissions. Modelled P(O3) reduced by
∼ 20 ppb h−1 when these combined sources were halved. This study
highlights the importance of reducing VOCs in parallel with NOx and PM
in future pollution abatement strategies in Delhi.


Gap junction channels and hemichannels formed by concatenated connexins were analyzed. Monomeric (hCx26, hCx46), homodimeric (hCx46-hCx46, hCx26-hCx26), and heterodimeric (hCx26-hCx46, hCx46-hCx26) constructs, coupled to GFP, were expressed in HeLa cells. Confocal microscopy showed that the tandems formed gap junction plaques with a reduced plaque area compared to monomeric hCx26 or hCx46. Dye transfer experiments showed that concatenation allows metabolic transfer. Expressed in Xenopus oocytes, the inside-out patch-clamp configuration showed single channels with a conductance of about 46 pS and 39 pS for hemichannels composed of hCx46 and hCx26 monomers, respectively, when chloride was replaced by gluconate on both membrane sides. The conductance was reduced for hCx46-hCx46 and hCx26-hCx26 homodimers, probably due to the concatenation. Heteromerized hemichannels, depending on the connexin-order, were characterized by substates at 26 pS and 16 pS for hCx46-hCx26 and 31 pS and 20 pS for hCx26-hCx46. Because of the linker between the connexins, the properties of the formed hemichannels and gap junction channels (e.g., single channel conductance) may not represent the properties of hetero-oligomerized channels. However, should the removal of the linker be successful, this method could be used to analyze the electrical and metabolic selectivity of such channels and the physiological consequences for a tissue.


Visual scene understanding is an important capability that enables robots to purposefully act in their environment. In this paper, we propose a novel deep neural network approach to predict semantic segmentation from RGB-D sequences. The key innovation is to train our network to predict multi-view consistent semantics in a self-supervised way. At test time, its semantics predictions can be fused more consistently in semantic keyframe maps than predictions of a network trained on individual views. We base our network architecture on a recent single-view deep learning approach to RGB and depth fusion for semantic object-class segmentation and enhance it with multi-scale loss minimization. We obtain the camera trajectory using RGB-D SLAM and warp the predictions of RGB-D images into ground-truth annotated frames in order to enforce multi-view consistency during training. At test time, predictions from multiple views are fused into keyframes. We propose and analyze several methods for enforcing multi-view consistency during training and testing. We evaluate the benefit of multi-view consistency training and demonstrate that pooling of deep features and fusion over multiple views outperforms single-view baselines on the NYUDv2 benchmark for semantic segmentation. Our end-to-end trained network achieves state-of-the-art performance on the NYUDv2 dataset in single-view segmentation as well as multi-view semantic fusion.