Of 75 regions, some continental and others insular, the diversity as expressed in the number of Phanerogam genera is compared. As could be expected it is found that richness in both continental and insular regions is positively correlated with size and with proximity to source areas. In comparable continental and insular regions the former are always richer; increase in the number of genera with increasing size is stronger in the former. There are various factors disturbing the relations between size/diversity and isolation/diversity. The role of these factors, such as climate, age, topography and the like are discussed. It is shown that isolated islands are not always poor (New Caledonia, Fiji, Lord Howe I., Rapa, etc.). On the other hand the poverty of islands (e.g. New Zealand) need not be primarily due to the distance from a source area but may be caused by impoverishment of an originally rich flora. Once isolated, an island flora is much more subject to losses than a continental area where the losses in general may be readily replenished. It would be wrong therefore to conclude on the basis of poverty that an island has always been as much isolated as it is at present. Not only are isolated islands in general poorer in genera, there are also less genera per family than in a comparable continental area. This is shown to be caused by a preponderance of families represented by a single genus in the former.


In this paper, we derive a probability density function that generalizes the Burr XII distribution. The cumulative distribution function and the $n^{th}$ moment of the generalized distribution are obtained while the distribution of some order statistics of the distribution are established. A theorem that relate the new distribution to another statistical distribution is established.


We report the design of limited sections of polarization-mode dispersion and polarization-dependent loss (PMD-PDL) emulators that lead to the lowest averaged frequency interchannel correlation in the wavelength-division-multiplexed systems. We show that emulators with the elements with the minimum PMD and PDL values at the end of the emulator setting with respect to the light propagation have the lowest averaged frequency autocorrelation in the neighboring channels, therefore, the lowest averaged frequency interchannel correlation. Both experiments and simulations are performed to confirm the design principle


Isolation can affect our well-being negatively To prevent the spread of the infection COVID-19, many workers, including university lecturers, are required to work from home In order to maintain high levels of well-being and team cohesion, academics at the University of Derby Online Learning initiated a virtual huddle to briefly socialise and check on their colleagues' well-being every morning This piece of field notes reports the context (COVID-19 in the United Kingdom), the details of this morning socialization, the first-hand experience of attending this huddle, and possible applications Perceived positive impacts of our huddles include better well-being, cultivating compassion in team culture, and enhanced team cohesion These advantages can be also useful in student supervision, wider socialization with colleagues to counter the silo mentality, and other occupational sectors Our field notes will be helpful for lecturers and other types of employees who work collaboratively yet in isolation during this uncertain and challenging time of crisis


The traditional method for producing polymer-based products is the use of moulding technologies such as injection moulding. CNC machining methods are predominantly used for metal part manufacture. The use of CNC machining methods for direct machining of polymers has been discussed in previous studies, particularly for hard polymers such as polypropylene. The CNC machining of soft elastomers, such as ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), even at significantly reduced temperatures presents a number of challenges, with one being the formation of a machining phenomenon termed adiabatic shear bands, which can lead to increased part surface roughness and reduced part quality. The adiabatic shear band is an area on a chip where the ductile properties of the material being machined have been exceeded and the heat generated does not have sufficient time to be removed. This can lead to permanent material damage resulting in reduced fatigue resistance. The adiabatic shear formation has the potential to be even more evident with the machining of elastomers, leading to rapid material degradation, poor surface finish characteristics, and reduced material attenuation. In this paper the state of the art in cryogenic manufacturing is described and the concept of cryogenic CNC machining of elastomers is discussed. The experimental work consists of machining EVA and Neoprene utilizing the described cryogenic CNC machining facility. Sample chips are taken from the experimental testing and analysed using a scanning electron microscope to illustrate the adiabatic shear band formation in some cases. It is observed that in order to reduce this effect, correct machining parameters corresponding to the elasticity values need to be used and the glass transition temperature needs to be maintained.


Background. Nursing students perceive human physiology as one of the most challenging courses, and it is also the course most often failed. To address this perceived challenge, a university campus introduced concept mapping to facilitate learning among nursing students in the human physiology course. Despite evidence of its use in other disciplines and educational contexts, it is not known how nursing students perceive and experience its use when learning human physiology. Objective. To explore and describe the perceptions and experiences of nursing students' use of concept mapping as a learning tool in a human physiology course. Methods . A qualitative descriptive study was conducted at a university campus in Namibia. Data were obtained through three focus group discussions with 18 second-year nursing students in the Bachelor of Nursing Science (Clinical) Honours programme, who were conveniently sampled. Transcriptions from the discussions were analysed following Tesch's 8-step coding process. Ethical approval and permission to conduct the study were granted by the campus Research Ethics Committee in the School of Nursing, University of Namibia. Results. Four themes emerged from the analysis: concept mapping facilitates deep learning; concept mapping as a group activity; effects of concept mapping on students' academic performance; and implications of concept mapping for learning resources. Conclusion. Nursing students had positive experiences and perceptions of concept mapping as a learning tool for human physiology. However, students felt that this learning tool is time consuming and requires many learning resources. Considering its benefits for learning, it is recommended that concept mapping be used as it promotes deep learning, which in turn leads to in-depth knowledge of human physiology. Nevertheless, students should be guided on time-management strategies and learning resource options available in resource-constrained settings.


In March of 2005, the Texas Department of Transportation issued work authorization #575-01-SA005 to the Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) at the University of Texas at San Antonio to conduct a survey of areas affected by proposed improvements to the Plainview hike and bike trail in southern Plainview, Hale County, Texas. The survey was conduced under Texas Antiquities Permit #3707 between March 31 and April 7, 2005. Steve Tomka and Raymond Mauldin served as Principal Investigators. Trail construction included 2.0 miles of additional construction and 1.3 miles of improvements to existing trails. The Right-ofWay is 50 feet and extends from one to three feet below ground surface. Archeological services included a pedestrian survey, excavation of fifty-five auger tests placed no more than 100 m apart, and twenty-one Gradall trenches. Two of these trenches exposed the stratigraphy of Running Water Draw near the Plainview Site, 41HA1. Bulk samples were collected for OSL dating, diatoms analysis, and lithologic analysis for further examination of the age and stratigraphic context of the Plainview Site, which is a State Archeological Landmark, a National Landmark, and a National Register of Historic Places property. Site 41HA12 was re-examined with 10 mechanical auger tests and 1 trench, which found only recent alluvial and cultural deposition. No additional archeological sites were recorded. This report includes descriptions of the fieldwork, results of the special analyses performed on bulk sediment samples collected, and a discussion of the geomorphology of Running Water Draw with specific focus on the results from trenches excavated near the Plainview Site. The single artifact and all documents and photographs generated from this project are curated at the Center for Archaeological Research at The University of Texas at San Antonio.


Emergency medical care, both prehospital and hospital-based, is currently provided by general practitioners in over 90% of the emergency departments in Turkey. In the early 1990s, government and university leaders recognized that Turkey needed to improve its emergency medical care system, and they chose to adapt the mature and tested Anglo-American model of emergency medicine (EM). EM was declared to be an independent specialty by the Ministry of Health in 1993. The first paramedic school and the first EM residency programme (36 months in length) were opened at the Dokuz Eylul University in 1993 and 1994, respectively. In 1995, the Emergency Medicine Association of Turkey (EMAT) was established. Today, there are 14 EM residency programmes around the country, and these are trying to design a common curriculum. The connection between departments is improving with annual meetings organized by EMAT. In addition, EMAT is developing international collaboration in the Middle East region. The Turkish government is trying to promote EM specialist physicians and paramedics in the national emergency care system.


Training large vocabulary Neural Network Language Models (NNLMs) is a difficult task due to the explicit requirement of the output layer normalization, which typically involves the evaluation of the full softmax function over the complete vocabulary. This paper proposes a Batch Noise Contrastive Estimation (B-NCE) approach to alleviate this problem. This is achieved by reducing the vocabulary, at each time step, to the target words in the batch and then replacing the softmax by the noise contrastive estimation approach, where these words play the role of targets and noise samples at the same time. In doing so, the proposed approach can be fully formulated and implemented using optimal dense matrix operations. Applying B-NCE to train different NNLMs on the Large Text Compression Benchmark (LTCB) and the One Billion Word Benchmark (OBWB) shows a significant reduction of the training time with no noticeable degradation of the models performance. This paper also presents a new baseline comparative study of different standard NNLMs on the large OBWB on a single Titan-X GPU.


This research explores the connections between campaign contributions, congressional behavior, and electoral outcomes. Previous research on the role of money in politics has focused primarily on the influence of political action committees and other organized interests, despite the fact that individual contributions account for over 50 percent of the donations members of Congress receive. This research addresses the influence members' financial ties with affluent individual donors has on their roll call voting, bill sponsorship, and primary election prospects. The results suggest big donors shift members further to the ideological right and decrease their likelihood of introducing direct government spending bills in Congress. These financial ties also influence the electoral landscape for incumbents in the primary election by giving Republican incumbents an electoral edge and increasing the chances Democratic incumbents face a tough primary election battle. This research suggests individual donors influence political outcomes with implications for policy outcomes, representation, and party polarization.


Context: Information technology is playing an important role in creating innovation in business. Due to increase in demand of information technology, web development has become an important field. PHP is an open source language, which is widely used in web development. PHP is used to develop dynamic web pages and it has the ability to connect with database. PHP has some good features i.e. cross platform compatibility, scalability, efficient execution and is an open source technology. These features make it a good choice for developers to choose PHP for web development. The maintenance of an application becomes difficult and performance being considerably reduced, if PHP is to be used without using its frameworks. To resolve these issues, different frameworks have been introduced by web development communities on the internet. These frameworks are based on Model, View, Controller design pattern. These frameworks provide, different common functionalities and classes in the form of helpers, components, and plug-in to reduce the development time. Due to these features like robustness, scalability, maintainability and performance, these frameworks are mostly used for web development in PHP, with performance being considered the most important factor. Objectives:The objective of this thesis is to compare and analyze the affect of data abstraction layer (ORM) on the performance of two PHP frameworks. These two frameworks are CakePHP and CodeIgniter. CAKEPHP has built-in support of object-relational mapping (ORM) but CodeIgniter has no built-in support of object-relational mapping (ORM). We considered load testing and stress testing to measure the performance of these two frameworks. Methods: We performed the experiment to show the performance of CakePHP (with ORM) and CodeIgniter (no ORM) frameworks. We developed two applications in both the PHP frameworks, with the same scope and design and measured the performance of these applications, with respect to load testing, with automated testing tool. The results have been obtained by testing the performance of both the applications on local and live servers. Conclusions:After analyzing the results we concluded that CodeIgniter is useful for small and medium sized applications. But CAKEPHP is good for large and enterprise level applications, as in stress conditions the CAKEPHP performed better than CodeIgniter on both local and live environment.


This is a chapter from version 1.1 of the book "Mathematics of Public Key Cryptography" by Steven Galbraith, available from http://www.isg.rhul.ac.uk/̃ sdg/crypto-book/ The copyright for this chapter is held by Steven Galbraith. This book is now completed and an edited version of it will be published by Cambridge University Press in early 2012. Some of the Theorem/Lemma/Exercise numbers may be different in the published version. Please send an email to firstname.lastname@example.com if you find any mistakes. All feedback on the book is very welcome and will be acknowledged.


One inflammatory event that may be involved in erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) is the activation of complement, and thalidomide could suppress ENL by inhibiting its activation. To determine if thalidomide inhibits the activation of complement, we first incubated normal serum with Mycobacterium leprae or with zymosan in the presence of thalidomide. Residual functional complement was then determined by defining the dilution of the serum required to lyses 50% of the rabbit antibody sensitized sheep cells (CH50 Assay). Zymosan and M. lepraeactivated complement. The CH50 values in the serum incubated with M. leprae or with zymosan were equivalent to the CH50 values in the serum incubated with M. leprae or zymosan in the presence of thalidomide. Thalidomide did not disrupt the activation of complement by zymosan, a know initiator of complement activation by the alternative pathway, or by M. leprae.

 Key words: ENL, thalidomide, complement.


Summary A screening method allowing the quantification of 24 aerosol constituents using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry has been developed to assess the aerosol chemistry of heat-not-burn tobacco products. The aim of this method was to quantify phenol, o-cresol, m-cresol, p-cresol, catechol, resorcinol, hydroquinone, 1,3-butadiene, isoprene, benzene, acrylonitrile, toluene, pyridine, styrene, 1,2-propylene glycol, menthol, 2-furanmethanol, acrylamide, naphthalene, nicotine, acetamide, quinoline, triacetin, and glycerine in the aerosol emitted by heated tobacco products. The aerosol was generated by an electrically heated tobacco system (PMI's Heated Tobacco System (THS 2.4)) with one single aerosol collection method, using the Health Canada smoking regimen and analyzed with two analytical methods. The method was validated according to the International Conference on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use and the Association of Official Analytical Chemists guidelines. A regression model based on a linear relationship between concentration and response ratio with a 1/x weighting factor was selected for phenol, o-cresol, m-cresol, p-cresol, 1,3-butadiene, isoprene, benzene, acrylonitrile, toluene, pyridine, styrene, 2-furanmethanol, acrylamide, naphthalene and acetamide. A quadratic regression model with a 1/x weighting factor was chosen for catechol, resorcinol, hydroquinone, 1,2-propylene glycol, menthol, nicotine, quinoline, triacetin and glycerine. Coefficients of variation for repeatability were determined between 7.9% and 17.8% and for intermediate precision between 8.1% and 19.9%. The matrix effect of the heated tobacco aerosol extract was assessed by performing a recovery study, where the aerosol extracts were spiked at different concentrations for the compounds to be analyzed. In addition, the mainstream smoke from 3R4F reference cigarettes was analyzed, and results were compared with previously published studies. The method was successfully validated, providing data consistent with published data and it was shown to be selective, precise and accurate.


BACKGROUND
Acute subdural hematoma represents an important cause of disability and mortality. Its surgical treatment takes advantage of two surgical procedures: craniotomy and decompressive craniectomy, nevertheless the effectiveness of one procedure rather than the other is still debated. This study was conducted to identify which of the surgical procedures could provide better neurological outcome after traumatic acute subdural hematoma; as a secondary endpoint, the study tries to settle pre-operative prognostic factors useful to identify the most appropriate surgical technique for every specific patient and kind of trauma.

METHODS
A retrospective analysis was performed on patients who underwent craniotomy or decompressive craniectomy between January 2010 and July 2017 at the Department of Neurosurgery of Umberto I Hospital in Rome. Ninty-four patients were selected and reviewing clinical records, pre-operative and post-operative's data were collected (e.g. GCS, mechanism of trauma, CT findings, mortality rate, neurological outcome at discharge, mRS at 12 months). Data were analyzed using X2 test and the F test. The multivariate analysis was performed using a stepwise logistic regression. The analysis was carried out using SPSS software and a p value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS
On 94 patients 46.8% underwent decompressive craniectomy and 53.2% underwent craniotomy. The mortality rate was (53.2%); it was shown to be related to a GCS < 8 (p = 0.033) and to age > 60 years old (p = 0.0001). Decompressive craniectomy was performed most frequently for high energy trauma (p =0.006); the mean GCS at admission was 7.91 for decompressive craniectomy and 9.64 for craniotomy (p = 0.05). Patients who underwent decompressive craniectomy and survived surgery showed a better neurological outcome compared to those who underwent craniotomy (p = 0.009). The evaluation of mRS after 12 months didn't show a statistically significant difference between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS
In case of high energy trauma and GCS ≤8 different neurosurgeons decided to perform most frequently decompressive craniectomy rather than craniotomy. Furthermore, even if not related to survival rate, decompressive craniectomy showed a better neurological outcome especially in patients with GCS ≤8 at admission. In conclusion, even if prospective studies are required, these results depict the current attitude about the choice between craniotomy and decompressive craniectomy.


Although cold ring rolling (CRR) process is largely used in the manufacturing of profiled rings like bearing races, research on this purpose has been scant. In this study, based on a validated finite element (FE) model, CRR process is simulated regarding the variable and constant feed speeds of the mandrel roll which lead to constant and variable values of the ring's diameter growth rates respectively using a 3D rigid-plastic finite element method (FEM). Major technological problems involved in the process including plastic deformation behavior, strain distribution and its uniformity, Cockcroft and Latham damage field and final outer diameter of ring are fully investigated. The results of simulations would provide a good basis for process control especially feed speed controlled mills and guiding the design and optimization of both cold and hot ring rolling process.


Don't let the expectations and opinions of other people affect your decisions. Do what matters most to you; do what makes you feel alive and happy. Just like I did . Wear the white coat with dignity and pride. It is an honor to get to serve the public as a physician. And in that context, to be a NSS volunteer was privilege and I learned a lot from that opportunity. Some things cannot be taught; they must be experienced. You never learn the most valuable lessons in life until you go through your own journey. Hence, experience the feeling of joy by serving.


With the rapid progress of science and technology, innovation activities have become increasingly globalized and become the main driving force of the world's economy and social development. Now U. S. A. is one of the great economic powers of the world. On one hand, it gets benefit from its own industrial developing process of more than 100 years. On the other hand, it also gets benefit from its world-famous innovation speed and innovation number. Therefore, the American training model of innovative talents is focused on by the whole world. Starting from the instructional characteristics of American universities, this article does some research work on how to foster innovative talents from the following aspects including teaching methods, assessment methods, allocation of educational resources, ability-fostering and so on, so that it can provide some reference to the teachers on how to foster and educate innovative talents in China's universities.


ABSTRACT This study integrates research on contraceptive prevalence with research on contraceptive dynamics in hookup culture to examine college women's use of withdrawal with sexual partners. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 57 women at a midwestern U.S. university, we analyzed women's explanations for using withdrawal for pregnancy prevention and framed our study within the research on gender norms, sexual scripts, and power dynamics. Findings showed withdrawal was normalized within collegiate hookup culture, and that women frequently relied on withdrawal as a secondary or backup method or when switching between methods. Women often followed up with emergency contraceptives if using withdrawal alone. With casual partners, women advocated for their own preferences, including for partners to withdraw. In committed relationships, women prioritized their partner's desires for condomless sex, but also linked withdrawal with trust and love. Thus, women in relationships may be disadvantaged by hookup culture norms suggesting sex is freely available, putting pressure on them to acquiesce to withdrawal. Many women used withdrawal despite acknowledging it was not the most desirable or effective method, emphasizing the need for a sexual health approach that acknowledges these tensions and strives to help women and their partners safely meet their sexual and contraceptive preferences.


Iron-bearing phyllosilicate minerals help establish the hydrogeological and geochemical conditions of redox transition zones because of their small size, limited hydraulic conductivity, and redox buffering capacity. The bioreduction of soluble U(VI) to sparingly soluble U(IV) can promote the reduction of clay-Fe(III) through valence cycling. The reductive precipitation of U(VI) to uraninite was previously reported to occur only after a substantial percentage of clay-Fe(III) had been reduced. Using improved analytical techniques, we show that concomitant bioreduction of both U(VI) and clay-Fe(III) by Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 can occur. Soluble electron shuttles were previously shown to enhance both the rate and extent of clay-Fe(III) bioreduction. Using extended incubation periods, we show that electron shuttles enhance only the rate of reduction (overcoming a kinetic limitation) and not the final extent of reduction (a thermodynamic limitation). The first 20% of clay-Fe(III) in nontronite NAu-2 was relatively "easy" (i.e., rapid) to bioreduce; the next 15% of clay-Fe(III) was "harder" (i.e., kinetically limited) to bioreduce, and the remaining 65% of clay-Fe(III) was effectively biologically unreducible. In abiotic experiments with NAu-2 and biogenic uraninite, 16.4% of clay-Fe(III) was reduced in the presence of excess uraninite. In abiotic experiments with NAu-2 and reduced anthraquinone 2,6-disulfonate (AH2DS), 18.5-19.1% of clay-Fe(III) was reduced in the presence of excess and variable concentrations of AH2DS. A thermodynamic model based on published values of the nonstandard state reduction potentials at pH 7.0 (E'H) showed that the abiotic reactions between NAu-2 and uraninite had reached an apparent equilibrium. This model also showed that the abiotic reactions between NAu-2 and AH2DS had reached an apparent equilibrium. The final extent of clay-Fe(III) reduction correlated well with the standard state reduction potential at pH 7.0 (E°'H) of all of the reductants used in these experiments (AH2DS, CN32, dithionite, and uraninite).


By insertional mutagenesis, human cytomegalovirus recombinants deleted of each of the US6 glycoprotein family genes were isolated. A recombinant lacking IRS1, US1 through US5, and most of the US6 family was also isolated. The growth kinetics of these mutants were similar to that of the wild type. A dispensable cluster of genes was identified.


Novel narrowband multilayer coatings efficient at a wavelength as short as 100 mn are presented, which pushes shortwards the existing limit of reported narrowband multilayers. Such limit had been established at ~120 nm, close to the MgF2 cutoff wavelength. The new multilayers combine layers of Al, LiF, and SiC, in an Al/LiF/SiC/LiF multilayer design (four layers, starting with the innermost layer). Among these materials, Al and LiF are deposited by evaporation and SiC by ion-beam-sputtering. In addition to a high, narrow peak close to H Lyman β (102.6 nm), these multilayers simultaneously provide a very small reflectance at H Lyman α (121.6 nm). This combined performance is demanded in space instrumentation for astrophysics and solar physics observations among others, where imaging the sky at the important diagnostic spectral line of Lyman β line requires rejecting the frequently much more intense background at Lyman α line. Such is the case for solar corona observations at Lyman β, which is masked by the strong Lyman α line. The multilayer peak is placed close to another important diagnostic tool: the OVI doublet at 103.2 and 103.8 nm. The target of small reflectance at 121.6 nm was seen to be the most critical. The best strategy in multilayer preparation was to prepare it with such minimum reflectance at slightly shorter wavelengths so that the coating evolved to shift it longwards over time. Multilayers kept a remarkable 102.6 nm/121.6 nm reflectance ratio over time in spite of some performance degradation. Hence, a multilayer coating aged of 4 years kept a reflectance of 43% at 102.6 nm and 0.2% at 121.6 nm.


With the rise in use of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), there has been an increased awareness of potential genetic problems that may be initiated or propagated using these techniques. Several population studies have suggested a small but significantly increased risk of imprinting disorders like Angelman syndrome, Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome, and possibly transient neonatal diabetes in children born through ARTs. Although the absolute risk appears to be very small, this association logically leads to the question of how ARTs affect gene imprinting. Studies investigating culture medias, timing of embryo transfer, intracytoplasmic sperm injection, and type of infertility have not yielded an association. There is evidence that the period of gamete development and the period during which imprinted genes must maintain methylation are vulnerable points at which errors may occur. Further evidence linking aberrant methylation to subfertility and superovulation make epigenetics and ARTs an area that requires additional research.


This book examines the environment and society of North Africa during the late Roman period (fourth and fifth centuries CE) through the writings of Helvius Vindicianus, Theodorus Priscianus, Caelius Aurelianus, and Cassius Felix. These four medical writers, whose translation into Latin of precious Greek texts has been hailed as 'the achievement of the millennium' by one modern scholar, provide a unique opportunity to understand North Africa, the most prosperous region of the Roman World during Late Antiquity. Although focusing on medical knowledge and hygiene, their writings provide fresh insights on the environment, economy, population, language, and health facilities of the region. Roman North Africa: Environment, Society and Medical Contribution includes the first full discussion of the exceptional career of the physician Helvius Vindicianus, as well as a valuable reassessment of other writers whose works were read throughout the Middle Ages. It will therefore prove invaluable not only for scholars of Late Antiquity and North Africa, but also for those working on later periods.


A study of genetic markers was undertaken in a kindred containing 19 individuals affected with a depressive illness. The pedigree was selected for study because the distribution of affected family members is consistent with transmission of an autosomal gene for susceptibility to psychiatric abnormality. Evidence against linkage of the postulated dominantly transmitted susceptibility gene with 29 segregating marker loci, including HLA, excluded the postulated gene from 6% of the autosomal genome. However, the distribution of HLA haplotypes in affected sibling pairs and within the family as a whole is compatible with the hypothesis that expression of affective disorder in this family depends in part on an HLA-linked susceptibility gene.


The proposed method is based on extraction of non-linearity from the nearest neighbourhood elements of image. To detect non-linearity, relation between the nearest neighbourhood elements of the image, have been expressed in terms of Gaussian membership functions. All the elements of the image are connected with the nearest neighbourhood elements with some membership degree of the Gaussian functions. It results in the formation of number of fuzzy lattices. The lattices have been expressed in the form of Schrodinger equation, to find the kinetic energy (KE) used, corresponding to change occurring in the facial activity of a person. Finally, the KE embedded in three dimension space is used to distinguish non-linear changes during occurrence of various facial activities. Experimental results show that proposed method is effective in recognition of facial expression as it focuses on extracting the non-linear features corresponding to contours of maximum energy which are appearing because of different expressions.


The article focuses the concept of narrative (redegorelse) as it appears in teachers' and students' utterances in and about history as a subject matter. The main finding of the article concerns the observation that narrative on the one hand reflects a dichotomy between narrative understood as both knowledge transfer and knowledge construction. On the other hand, since history teaching is organized and regulated through ideas of cognitive taxonomy thinking and progression, narrative gets evaluated and assessed as knowledge transfer only. The article discusses the fact that narrative as knowledge construction appears in the way teachers and students reflect on subject issues meanwhile the transferring of a grand and common narrative occupy a great deal of the history teaching. In the light of a postmodern perspective, the article draws the conclusion that history as a subject matter can gain from considering its approach to narrative as knowledge construction.The findings of the article rely on thorough and in-depth analysis of teachers' and students' utterances transformed into speech act codes established during ethnographic field-studies in Danish upper secondary schools. In supporting the study, theorists such as J.L. Austins, Ole Togeby, Kathy Charmaz and Peter Seixas have all been helpful.


We present the first direct evidence that reactant particle size determines the mechanism of thermally induced solid-state reactions and can be used as the tuner of the product crystal structure. This control of the polymorphous character of the products through the particle size of precursor is demonstrated upon following the process of isothermal decomposition of Prussian Blue at 350 °C in air. The reaction mechanism was studied by 57Fe Mossbauer spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, magnetization measurements, and transmission and scanning electron microscopy. The decomposition of Prussian Blue nanoparticles (10–15 nm) gave preferential formation of γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles (10–20 nm), while Prussian Blue microcrystals (20–50 μm) afforded formation of β-Fe2O3 nanoparticles (50–70 nm). The final polymorphous composition of the iron(III) oxide product is thought to be driven by the different diffusion conditions for penetration of the reaction gas (oxygen) into the Prussian Blue crystals as well as release of the gas (dicyane) during the Prussian Blue decomposition. Therefore, the reactant particle size control provides a new method for the large-scale preparation of rare β-Fe2O3 nanoparticles.


Modelling of fixed-film reactors, as for suspended growth systems has to account for all the major components and biochemical processes responsible for the removal of substrate. Traditionally fixed-film reactors are viewed as two-component (substrate/biomass) systems interacting with the governing effect of molecular diffusion. Recent developments however have shown the importance of viability and product formation in the modelling of biological systems. This paper emphasizes these two new parameters and evaluates the kinetic relationships between the bulk substrate concentration and biofilm composition as it affects substrate removal and residual product formation.


Antiretroviral drug therapy has significantly improved the prognosis and life expectancy of People Living with HIV over the years. But this progress comes with an important caveat that antiretroviral regimens generally require adherence to life-long, daily dosing, to keep viral multiplication under check. Non-adherence to such dosing leads to decreased efficacy and increased drug resistance against antiretroviral drugs. Besides, poor drug penetration to certain tissues like CNS and lymph nodes leads to build-up of viral reservoirs in these sites. To combat some of these challenges and improve patient compliance, long-acting antiretroviral drugs, are a new weapon in the arsenal, in fight against HIV. Few long acting preparations have been approved, and several others are in various clinical and preclinical stages of development. However, longacting formulations also have their share of clinical issues like limited drug distribution, long term adverse drug reactions, drug-drug interactions, and gradual development of drug resistance. Modern technological premises are being tested to mitigate some of these problems. One such promising approach involves nanotechnological methods, which are being used to develop ultra-long acting formulations and drug delivery systems, targeting tissues with residual HIV concentration. LongActing Slow Effective Release Antiretroviral Therapy aka LASER ART, also builds on nanotechnology and prodrug modifications to design preparations with tailor-made favorable pharmacokinetics and wider drug distribution. These recent advances are fueling the progression of antiretroviral therapy towards eliminating the disease.


From July, 1987 to Oct, 1989 , 104 patients underwent 111 transurethral ureteroscopy procedures at the Air Force Medical Center. All intramural ureters were dilated by flexible metal dilators. The overall success rate for ureteral stone removal was 95.8 per cent. Ureteroscopy was done for evaluation of gross hematuria, strictures, ureteral stent, and ureteral and pyelocalyceal tumors. The overall mean hospital stay was 2.5 days with no important complications. MJIRI, Vol. 4, No.4, 253-255, 1990


In 1544, Henry VIII led the largest army then ever raised by an English monarch to invade France. This book investigates the consequences of this action by examining the devastating impact of warfare on the native population, the methods the English used to impose their rule on the region (from the use of cartography to the construction of fortifications) and the development of English colonial rule in France. As Murphy explores the significance of this major financial and military commitment by the Tudor monarchy, he situates the developments within the wider context of English actions in Ireland and Scotland during the mid-sixteenth century. Rather than consider the plantations established in the mid-sixteenth century Ireland as the 'laboratory' for a new form of empire, this book argues that they should be viewed along with the Boulogne venture as the English crown's final attempt to establish colonies through the use of state resources alone.


We present a multi‐instrument multiscale study of a channel of enhanced, inhomogeneous flow in the cusp ionosphere occurring on November 30, 2014. We provide evidence that strong Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) phase scintillations indices (σϕ>0.5 rad) can arise from such events, indicating that they are important in the context of space weather impacts on technology. We compare in detail two‐dimensional maps of ionospheric density, velocity, and temperatures obtained by the European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association Svalbard Radar with scintillation indices detected from a network of four GNSS receivers around Svalbard and examine the different sources of free energy for irregularity creation. We observe that the strongest phase scintillations occur on the poleward side of the flow channel in a region of sheared plasma motion and structured low‐energy particle precipitation. As inhomogeneous plasma flows are evident in our observations, we perform a quantitative, nonlinear analysis of the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability (KHI) and its impact on phase scintillations using numerical simulations from the first principles‐based Geospace Environment Model of Ion‐Neutral Interactions and Satellite‐beacon Ionospheric‐scintillation Global Model of the upper Atmosphere. Using representative values consistent with the radar data, we show that KHI can efficiently create density structures along with considerable scintillations and is thus likely to contribute significantly under similar conditions, which are frequent in the cusp.


The exhibition is presenting the work of eleven designers. Each designer has investigated a selected value, to be expressed through one outfit or accessory in the webbased exhibition To make clothes that matter. The work is photographed with a special technique which allows the viewer to look around each piece, and to zoom in on the details. This work, is a part of the EU financed project Baltic Fashion and the aim is to reserach about the value of clohtes to contribute to a new design perspective of clothing.


When the European Union began to finance transport and pipeline infrastructure constructions in Bulgaria, large-scale development-led archaeological projects emerged. After 2011, many 'polluter pays' projects were executed with the outlined workflow containing preliminary reports and fieldwork activities in accordance with Bulgarian legislation and a defined price list. As part of the process the national 'sites and monuments' archaeological information system 'Archaeological Map of Bulgaria' (AIS AKB) plays an important part as a source of archaeological data for the territory of Bulgaria. This centralised structure controls the quality of the archaeological fieldwork and data standardisation. The aim is to transform the 'sites and monuments' information system to an archaeological geographic information system (GIS) based on geospatial features, largely using an accumulation of standardised data.


The HPV L1 VLP vaccines are immensely important developments in public health and the benefits that they promise are immense, offering the opportunity to prevent, in the long term, 80% of cervical cancers, 60% of vulval cancers and 80% of anal cancers in women. In the short to medium term they will prevent at least 90% of genital warts and have a major impact on the incidence of high grade CIN, thus reducing the number of women who have to undergo LEEP and LLETZ. The health economic benefits will be substantial but the overwhelming benefit is the major improvement for human health and well-being. (


We present a novel approach for tracking space-filling features, i.e., a set of features covering the entire domain. The assignment between successive time steps is determined by a two-step, global optimization scheme. First, a maximum-weight, maximal matching on a bi-partite graph is computed to provide one-to-one assignments between features of successive time steps. Second, events are detected in a subsequent step; here the matching step serves to restrict the exponentially large set of potential solutions. To this end, we compute an independent set on a graph representing conflicting event explanations. The method is evaluated by tracking dissipation elements, a structure definition from turbulent flow analysis.


Annual housing starts have been between 500-600 thousand dwelling units in most years during the last two decades in Turkey, and went up as high as 823 thousand in the year 2011. These figures are likely to be greater than the need. High levels of housing production occur without noticeable policies addressed to demand or supply sides of the housing market. This implies that housing markets in Turkey operate under highly competitive conditions without much regulation by central and local governments. However, one of the outcomes of the less regulated housing markets is the great variation of housing starts among provinces of Turkey. Much less than needed number of dwelling units in accordance to the newly formed households are produced in certain provinces, whereas authorized housing production comfortably meets the need in many other provinces. Holiday homes production, particularly along the coastal areas contribute to high housing output in those provinces. It appears that housebuilders produce more housing in the regions where they can sell easily and at relatively higher price, with respect to less affluent regions. Housebuilders have developed peculiar ways of production and marketing housing in settlements where they have difficulties of selling dwellings that they produce. In this paper, after discussing the level of regulation of housing markets in Turkey, the relationship between housing price levels and the amount of housing starts per newly formed household in the eight sampled cities is studied. This is followed by the investigation of the ways in which housebuilders produce and sell housing in those cities in order to identify the factors that affect housebuildersi bussiness strategies and behaviour.


Achieving the goals of sustainable development largely depends on the state machinery effectiveness and the professionalism of civil servants. Continuous education (life-long training) is an effective tool for ensuring competence level of civil servants. According to the results of the analysis of the education system of civil servants, it can be argued that in the Republic of Belarus it has developed a mixed framework of education for civil servants, which is characterized by a combination of innovative and traditional forms and teaching methods aimed at their professional and personal development. The training of civil servants is carried out within the annual governmental order. The existing educational framework was developed before the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, in this regard, the education of public servants does not fully take into account the paradigm of sustainable development. The solution is seen in the transition from the annual government order for training of civil servants to long-term, medium-term and short-term planning of their training, which correlates with the Sustainable Development Goals. It is also important to implement the principle of inclusion in education. This will entail not only the improvement of the scientific and methodological support of the educational process and the creation of new educational programs, but also an increase in the requirements for the level of teachers training and the intensification of the students role. We also believe that the use of advanced foreign experience in the learning process will strengthen the personnel capacity of the state machinery and promptly implement changes to reflect the new realities. The listed aspects of the civil servants education framework transformation in the Republic of Belarus can become potential growth points that in the long term will allow Belarus to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.


The conical grass hat known as Mokorotlo is considered to be part of the national dress of Lesotho. This paper will trace the physical and cultural evolution of the hat, as part of the emergence of a national identity in Lesotho during the twentieth century. The level of cultural prominence which these hats have obtained illustrates the process by which clothing achieves both cultural and national significance. Contrary to popular belief the Basotho have not always worn these hats. There is no evidence of these hats existing during the nineteenth century. In the early part of the twentieth century chiefs began to wear a hat which was the forerunner of the modern Mokorotlo. At this time men would wear this hat and sing a song known as Mokorotlo on their way to the chiefs court. It is from this connection that the modern hat would become known as Mokorotlo. In the years proceeding the Second World War hat makers began to introduce new designs which drastically altered their position in Basotho society.

Previously these hats had been exclusively the domain of men, but these new designs resulted in a change as women began to manufacture them for sale to Europeans. These new designs which were mass produced for commercial reasons, became increasingly popular with the general public in Lesotho. During the 1950's political figures adorned themselves with these hats in an attempt to link themselves with Lesotho's traditional power structure, the chieftainship. By wearing these hats at rallies the politicians contributed to their growing popularity. These new designs developed cultural significance only after being harnessed as a symbol by political leaders. Another factor which accelerated the emerging importance of these hats was their increasing association with Lesotho's founder, Moshoeshoe. Even though they appeared several decades after his death it was a plethora of myths connecting Moshoeshoe with the Mokorotlo hat which solidified it as a national symbol. The process by which these hats became associated with Moshoeshoe is reflective of the construction of national identity in Lesotho. The hat had become a powerful symbol of the nation, as one Mosotho stated, "everytime we see that hat on the flag or on the automotive licence plates we are reminded of Moshoeshoe."
 Review of Southern African Studies Volume 3 No. 2 December 1999, pp. 37-60


Abstract IN THIS PAPER, I DISCUSS THE AFFECTIVE POTENTIAL OF LAUGHTER IN THE HUGELY POPULAR COMEDY PODCAST SERIES; THE GUILTY FEMINIST. SPECIFICALLY, I EXPLORE HOW THE SOUNDS OF LAUGHTER – AS DISSEMINATED BY THE PODCAST – CAN LEAD TO EXPLOSIONS OF EMOTION IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE; SETTING THE BODY IN MOTION AND LEADING TO NEW WAYS OF THINKING, FEELING AND BEING. WHILE THESE PUBLIC EXPLOSIONS OF EMOTION CAN BE TRANSGRESSIVE, I POSTULATE THAT THEY CAN ALSO RELIEVE SOME OF THE TENSION CREATED BY THE NEGATIVE AFFECTS SWIRLING AROUND FEMINISM, WHICH, ACCORDING TO AHMED, "IS ALWAYS ASSUMED TO BE BRINGING OTHERS DOWN" (AHMED, 2010:65). USING GUATTARI'S IDEAS ON THE PRODUCTION OF SUBJECTIVATION, I ARGUE THAT THESE EXPLOSIONS CAN INTENSIFY THE EMERGENCE OF A GLOBAL, INTERSECTIONAL FEMINIST COMMUNITY, PROVOKING A CONSIDERATION OF HOW PODCASTS SUCH AS THE GUILTY FEMINIST COULD EXTEND OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY AND ONLINE ACTIVISM WITHIN CONTEMPORARY FEMINISMS.


Nitrogen increases of 23 kg/ha/year were associated with annually burned loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) in the lower Coastal Plain of South Carolina. Unburned areas showed no increase of N. Nitrogen fixation in cores from the forest floor and at depths of 0–1 and 3–4 cm was assayed using the acetylene-ethylene technique, with the ethylene produced related to N fixation. In the 0–4 cm of mineral soil on burned plots more than 4 g/ha of N were fixed in 24 hours, but only 0.2 g/ha were fixed on unburned areas. Up to 61 g/ha of N were fixed in 24 hours in individual samples from burned areas. Most fixation in the burned areas took place in 14% of the samples; half the samples fixed no N or an insignificant amount, regardless of burning treatment. Fixation rate increased as moisture content increased from below to above field capacity and as temperature increased from 25 to 35C. However, the rate of increase related to temperature and moisture was usually associated with samples which had fixed N under less favorable conditions, rather than with the initiation of fixation in more samples.


BACKGROUND
Forensic psychiatric patients can be treated in different security levels. Clear criteria to estimate the required security level or transfer to a less secure setting are not yet available. A literature review shows that, of the few instruments that are used internationally, the DUNDRUM and the HoNOS-Secure are the most promising. AIM: To investigate whether these instruments can be used in Flemish forensic psychiatric settings. METHOD: DUNDRUM-1 scores were collected for 150 internees. The psychometric qualities of the scale were examined. In a subpopulation, the DUNDRUM-1 was compared with the HoNOS-Secure. RESULTS: The psychometric properties of the DUNDRUM-1 were good and exceeded those of the HoNOS-Secure. CONCLUSION: The DUNDRUM-1 is an instrument that can help clinicians and judges to better - and in a more transparent way - substantiate their decision-making to secure care. However, further research regarding the practical applicability is needed.


Advancements in technology have led to a paradigm shift from traditional to personalized learning methods with varied implementation strategies. Presenting an optimal personalized learning path in an educational hypermedia system is one of the strategies that is important in order to increase the effectiveness of a learning session for each student. However, this task requires much effort and cost particularly in defining rules for the adaptation of learning materials. This research focuses on the adaptive course sequencing method that uses soft computing techniques as an alternative to a rule-based adaptation for an adaptive learning system. The ability of soft computing technique in handling uncertainty and incompleteness of a problem is exploited in the study. In this paper we present recent work concerning concept-based classification of learning object using artificial neural network (ANN). Self Organizing Map (SOM) and Back Propagation (BP) algorithm were employed to discover the connection between the domain concepts contained in the learning object and the learner's learning need. The experiment result shows that this approach is assuring in determining a suitable learning object for a particular student in an adaptive and dynamic learning environment.


The makers of Pamergan, May and Baker, have had a total of five adverse reports on this drug between 1963 and 1976. Three of these involved neonates, one was a report of laryngitis associated with Pamergan use, and the fifth was a case of apnoea. I was unable to obtain the reference referring to this incident. No case was fatal. The Committee on the Safety of Medicines have had four reports concerning Pamergan. None ofthem were really relevant to respiratory depression. The poisons unit at New Cross Hospital checked its case records and could find no incident of acute poisoning due to Pamergan. To summarise, I have been unable to find figures comparing the relative frequency of vasovagal faints during the insertion of an intrauterine contraceptive device and profound respiratory depression following parenteral Pamergan or pethidine. I agree that the former are rare, but, from the evidence (or rather the lack of it) that I have been able to find so far, profound respiratory depression seems to be even more rare. It is certainly important for anyone using Pamergan AP100/ 25 to have nalorphine ampoules available should it be necessary to use this narcotic antagonist to counteract respiratory depression.


Underwater observations on the genus Strombus around the coasts of Trinidad and Grenada show that the same species are common to the two areas but that they are today living under very different conditions. Grenada is surrounded by clear, oceanic water which supports the growth of reef corals while Trinidad, being close to the South American continent and the mouths of the Orinoco River, is surrounded by continental water of variable salinity and carrying much suspended material. In addition, the water at 100 feet depth on the north coast of Trinidad was found to be some 15° F. colder than it is off Grenada due to cold upwelling in the former case. Deep water and strong ocean currents effectively separate Strombus colonies in the two islands which lie 90 miles apart . The ecological differences as they affect the five species involved include the discovery that there is a tendency for colonies to be found considerably deeper in Grenada where the higher water temperatures and better light penetration allow this. Habitat differences illustrated by this study of Strombus species point to the care necessary in drawing paleoecological conclusions by extrapolation from the Recent to fossil forms.


To approach the applied aspects of support to operator interacting with the aerospace technical systems, the authors are working on the problems of structuring the motor programs and deformation caused to them by semantic stressful agents. Possibility for varying the composition of locomotion programs to ensure success of a general motor task had been experimentally demonstrated. Data obtained are viewed from the standpoint of revision of the motor image in the psychic control system.


In this technical demonstration, we propose a cloud-based Big Data Platform for Social Multimedia Analytics called bBridge that automatically detects and profiles meaningful user communities in a specified geographical region, followed by rich analytics on communities' multimedia streams. The system executes a community detection approach that considers the ability of social networks to complement each other during the process of latent representation learning, while the community profiling is implemented based on the state-of-the-art multi-modal latent topic modeling and personal user profiling techniques. The stream analytics is performed via cloud-based stream analytics engine, while the multi-source data crawler deployed as a distributed cloud jobs. Overall, the bBridge platform integrates all the above techniques to serve both business and personal objectives.


While the structure and dynamics of boundary layers on rigid no-slip walls in rotation dominated enclosed flows are still an area of active research, the interactions between rotating or swirling flows with a free surface have received comparatively less attention. For the most part, investigations in this area have been focused on clean free surfaces, which may be treated as stress-free. However, in most practical situations the surface is rarely clean, and even under laboratory conditions, it is quite difficult to achieve a clean free surface. Most impurities in fluids are surface active, and hence the name surface active agent or surfactant. These surfactants tend to establish an equilibrium surface concentration which alters the interfacial tension and interfacial viscoelastic properties of the gas/liquid interface. The coupling between the bulk swirling flow and the interface is provided via the stress boundary conditions, and these are dependent upon the surface concentration of surfactant, which in turn is altered by the interfacial flow. Forces acting on the interface include surface tension gradients (elastic) and the viscous resistance to shear and dilation. These viscoelastic properties are functions of the surfactant concentration on the surface. Here, we present numerical studies of flow in a cylinder driven by the constant rotation of the bottom endwall with the top free surface being contaminated by a Newtonian surfactant. Comparisons with a clean free surface and a no-slip top endwall provide added insight into the altered dynamics that result from the presence of a small amount of surfactant.


Knowledge is one of the indispensable elements for organizations to achieve their goals. One of the ways to increase the knowledge of the organization is to share the knowledge of the employees with their colleagues. In other words, knowledge sharing behavior is critical in increasing organizational knowledge. For this reason, it is important to investigate the factors behind the knowledge sharing behavior of the employees. The aim of this study is to test the effect of organizational identification on knowledge sharing behavior and the mediating role of altruism in this effect. The research was carried out on academic and administrative staff working at Duzce University. The data set consisting of 345 questionnaires was analyzed with the least squares regression technique using the PROCESS plugin. According to the research findings, altruism shows "partial mediation" effect in the relationship between organizational identification and knowledge sharing behavior. At the end of the study, some suggestions for researchers and practice were also presented.


The paper examines changes in the levels of efficiency as a result of privatisation in Pakistan. By comparing the growth rates of the privatised industries in pre- and post- Privatisation period, changes in relative prices and the rate of return on equity, it concludes that producers may have indulged in monopolistic exploitation. The paper argues that even if the private firms have lower cost curves as compared to public sector at all the levels of output, at the equilibrium, public-sector firms may have lower cost. Accordingly, the regulation of the private monopoly, especially in the non-traded sector, is absolutely necessary. However, if regulation implies uncertainty and less flexibility to private sector firms, even compared with public sector enterprises, then regulated privatesector firms would be counter-productive. It suggests that the perfect contest-ability model which allows the firm to make sufficient profits and leave them free to take the decisions will be a better alternative. The price caps in line with changes in productivity and the general inflation rates may be a more efficient intervention.


This study presents a comprehensive evaluation of five widely used multisatellite precipitation estimates (MPEs) against 1° × 1° gridded rain gauge data set as ground truth over India. One decade observations are used to assess the performance of various MPEs (Climate Prediction Center (CPC)‐South Asia data set, CPC Morphing Technique (CMORPH), Precipitation Estimation From Remotely Sensed Information Using Artificial Neural Networks, Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission's Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA‐3B42), and Global Precipitation Climatology Project). All MPEs have high detection skills of rain with larger probability of detection (POD) and smaller "missing" values. However, the detection sensitivity differs from one product (and also one region) to the other. While the CMORPH has the lowest sensitivity of detecting rain, CPC shows highest sensitivity and often overdetects rain, as evidenced by large POD and false alarm ratio and small missing values. All MPEs show higher rain sensitivity over eastern India than western India. These differential sensitivities are found to alter the biases in rain amount differently. All MPEs show similar spatial patterns of seasonal rain bias and root‐mean‐square error, but their spatial variability across India is complex and pronounced. The MPEs overestimate the rainfall over the dry regions (northwest and southeast India) and severely underestimate over mountainous regions (west coast and northeast India), whereas the bias is relatively small over the core monsoon zone. Higher occurrence of virga rain due to subcloud evaporation and possible missing of small‐scale convective events by gauges over the dry regions are the main reasons for the observed overestimation of rain by MPEs. The decomposed components of total bias show that the major part of overestimation is due to false precipitation. The severe underestimation of rain along the west coast is attributed to the predominant occurrence of shallow rain and underestimation of moderate to heavy rain by MPEs. The decomposed components suggest that the missed precipitation and hit bias are the leading error sources for the total bias along the west coast. All evaluation metrics are found to be nearly equal in two contrasting monsoon seasons (southwest and northeast), indicating that the performance of MPEs does not change with the season, at least over southeast India. Among various MPEs, the performance of TMPA is found to be better than others, as it reproduced most of the spatial variability exhibited by the reference.


Face detection technique recognition is developed by using and fine tuning the Gabor Wavelet parameters. An extensive study of these parameters have been made and checked on a large acquired data set of face images, for extracting the features. The Facial data consists of 320 frontal face 180 non-face images. (Total=500 images) Artificial Neural Network is then used on the extracted features for training. An effect of pixels size of the face on the image was studied. A strong correlation between the pixels size of the Face and the Scaling parameter of Gabor filter was observed.


Racial/ethnic discrimination is associated disparate health outcomes among racial/ethnic minorities. Theory and empirical evidence suggest that stress associated with experiencing discrimination can lead to the adoption of unhealthy behaviors such as poor diet, tobacco and alcohol use. Our study sought to explore the relationship between discrimination, stress and health behaviors among Latinos in both rural and urban settings in Washington state. Latinos were recruited for the study through community based organizations serving Latinos in both Seattle (urban) and the lower Yakima valley (rural). The sample of 40 participants included both men and women, United States and foreign-born, and a broad age range (20 – 70). Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted in participants' preferred language (Spanish or English). Interviews were transcribed, entered into Atlas. ti and coded for analysis. Analysis allowed for deductive codes based on theory and previous literature, as well as deductive codes that emerged from the data. Transcripts were also analyzed to identify differences by urban/rural setting, language use and immigrant status. The analysis revealed several key themes related to types of discrimination, health effects of discrimination and stress, and coping strategies. The majority of the participants had experienced discrimination in their lifetime, most often related to their race/ethnicity or language use. Settings in which discrimination occurred included work, school, and when seeking services. Common reactions to discrimination were to avoid it, ignore it, talk with someone about it, or pray about it. Respondents also reported that discrimination and other stressors influenced their sleeping habits, diet, physical activity, smoking and alcohol use. The findings reveal important relationships between discrimination, stress and behavioral risk factors for cancer. The results can inform future research on the health impact of discrimination among Latinos, including the measurement of discrimination and stress. Citation Information: Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2010;19(10 Suppl):B34.


This paper intends to work out an expected inventory level formula for the retailer in the two-stage supply chain. It aims at disclosing the quantitative relationship between bullwhip effect and expected inventory level and does analysis of simulation experiment. The model supposes the market demand faced by the retailer follows the autoregressive process AR(1) and that the retailer makes anticipation of the market demand during the replenishment lead time by mean square error method. Moreover, if the interference factor follows normal distribution with mean 0 and variance σ, market demand in every period, demand estimation during the replenishment lead time and the order quantity made by the retailer are all proved to follow normal distribution.


In this paper, the effect of sodium carbonate (Na 2 CO 3 ) on the flexural and compressive strength of cement mortars containing natural zeolite subjected to high temperatures were examined. The results obtained from the tests were compared with the reference mortars. In the mortar mixtures, sand and water quantities were kept constant. Water/binder and sand/binder ratios were 0.5 and 3.0, respectively. In the mixtures, the crushed sand was used and ordinary Portland cement (OPC) was replaced with 5, 10, 15 and 20% natural zeolite by weight. For activation of zeolite, sodium carbonate having 7% Na dosage was used as an activator. The findings showed that the resistance of mortars subjected to high temperatures were dependent on the temperature level, and that the fire resistance of zeolite mortars was higher than that of mortar made with OPC only. Additionally, it was seen from the test results that Na 2 CO 3 used for activation in zeolite mortars led to a decrease in the flexural and compressive strength values after the high temperatures.


This paper aims to assess the benefits gained and the challenges experienced by companies listed on the UAE stock market following the introduction of IFRS. Since the announcement by the European Union to adopt IFRS by listed companies, many countries have followed suit, hoping to gain competitive edge in attracting the Foreign Direct Investment to boost their economic growth. This study focuses on examining the advantages and challenges faced by companies listed on the UAE stock market listed companies as a result of adopting IFRS.
The framework used in this analysis will be based on the identification and assessment of key drivers influencing companies listed on the UAE stock market. To what extent are these factors internal or external to the financial sector, but which have a direct bearing on the overall economic environment? The views and perceptions of the Chief Financial Officers' (CFOs) for Dubai and Abu Dhabi listed companies, financial analysts of the financial statements in the two listed companies and auditors will be analysed.

Methodology: Questionnaires were used as the main method of data collection. Questionnaire were distributed in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi markets, The data obtained through the questionnaires have been imported into software for analysis, namely, the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).

Findings: The results clearly show that the benefits of adopting IFRSs in UAE inevitably far outweigh the difficulties and costs. The findings also reveal that adoption of IFRSs in UAE stock markets has improved the
overall standard of the quality of financial reporting, which help in attracting investors to invest in the UAE stock markets. However, many respondents were still apprehensive that effective and professional financial reporting decisions will be affected by the level of education of accounting users, the methods provided by some IFRSs, and the inadequate enforcement mechanisms.


Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a life threatening condition with high morbidity and mortality. Inflammatory mechanisms are proposed to play a significant role in disease progression. Previous studies have described mild PAH in western-diet fed Apolipoprotein E knock out mice (ApoE−/−). Our group has previously reported that ApoE−/− mice fed the Paigen diet develop 40% more atherosclerosis than littermates fed the western diet, and that treatment with IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) reduced atherosclerosis. We subsequently hypothesised that ApoE−/− fed the Paigen diet would develop a more severe pulmonary hypertension phenotype than previously reported with the western diet, and that treatment with IL-1Ra would be able to reduce this phenotype. ApoE−/− mice fed the Paigen diet for 8 weeks developed significantly increased right ventricular systolic pressure compared to chow-fed littermates mean (50 vs 23 mm Hg, n=7 p<0.01). Immunohistological analysis of the lungs revealed evidence of a severe pulmonary vasculopathy, including heavily muscularised, and obliterative lesions in the small resistance pulmonary arteries (<50 μm) in Paigen diet-fed ApoE−/− mice. The media/CSA ratio of the small (<50 μm) and medium-sized pulmonary arteries (51–100 μm) was significantly increased in the Paigen diet-fed ApoE−/− mice compared to chow-fed controls. To test whether IL-1Ra could reduce this phenotype Paigen-fed ApoE−/− mice were treated with IL-1Ra or placebo for 4 weeks via a subcutaneous osmotic mini pump, following an initial 4 weeks on diet. ApoE−/− mice treated with IL-1Ra had significantly reduced RVSP (23 mm Hg) and pulmonary vascular remodelling (55%) compared to placebo treated controls. These data suggest that IL-1Ra may have beneficial effects in treating PAH.


During the years of adolescence the effects of parental control becomes more complex and signifi cant in many ways. In this research, the relationship between the two types of control -psychological and behavioral controlof parents perceived by the adolescent and the two indicators of social functioning -friendship quality and loneliness was examined according to the gender of the parent and the adolescent. Moreover, the mediating role of the adolescents' relational aggression was investigated in this association. The participants of the study consisted of 780 adolescents (428 female and 352 male) coming from middle SES families and from 7th-8th and 9th-10th grades. The average age of the adolescents was 14.8 (range = 11.9-18.3; SD = 1.42). Psychological Control-Disrespect, Monitoring, Positive Friendship Quality, Relational Aggression, Loneliness and Social Dissatisfaction, and UCLA Loneliness Scales were used as the measurement tools. According to Structural Equation Modeling fi ndings, perceived psychological control of the mother was positively related to the relational aggression of both male and female adolescents; fathers' psychological control was positively related to only males' relational aggression, perceived behavioral control by the father was negatively related to male and female adolescents' relational aggression. Relational aggression positively predicted loneliness and negatively predicted positive friendship quality among male adolescents. Relational aggression mediated the relation between perceived psychological control from both parents and male adolescent's social functioning (positive friendship quality and loneliness); and the relation between perceived behavioral control of the father and loneliness level of male adolescent.


Hot judder characteristics of a ventilated disc brake system are discussed. Three dimensional finite element models of the ventilated disc, pads and pistons are created, and a fully coupled thermo-mechanical analysis of the hot judder phenomenon of the disc brake system is performed using SAMCEF. The brake dynamo test is carried out according to the high speed judder test mode. The evolution of the temperature distribution on the disc surface is described, and the hot spot generation process is investigated. The simulation results such as the maximum disc temperature, BTV are compared to the data from the dynamo test, and the reliabilities of the analysis technique and simulation model presented in this paper are verified.


This book is not for beginners; it is targeted for statistical researchers looking for more effective ways to display and visualize complex data relationships, both as a tool for understanding experimental results, and as a means of communicating the results of their work. These are advanced techniques, and the author assumes both some familiarity with SAS programming, and with the basics of statistical analysis and data visualization.


This paper focuses on how children develop particular understandings about health and about their bodies through formal and informal learning processes. It will discuss findings from a two year long ethnographic study undertaken in Aotearoa New Zealand that explored how primary school aged children reproduce health messages. The study drew on Shilling's (2008) notion of corporeal perfection, referring to the 'ideal body', an image that is often cultivated as acceptable with children. This paper discusses opportunities that teachers have to reinforce messages about health during and following a health intervention called Healthy Homework. Findings from this doctoral research illustrate ways in which health programmes and resources overtly and inadvertently limit understandings of what it is to be healthy and what constitutes a healthy body. The reading book Mum's Diet (Cowley, 1987) provides a framework for discussion on children's understanding of health and healthy bodies. The findings illustrated that understandings of health can often be re-contextualised, resulting in children's voice being a reproduction of the cultural norms afforded them through their school and home environments.


Functional insulin receptors are known to occur in pancreatic beta cells; however, except for a positive feedback on insulin synthesis, their physiological effects are unknown. Amperometric measurements at single, primary pancreatic beta cells reveal that application of exogenous insulin in the presence or absence of nonstimulatory concentrations of glucose evokes exocytosis mediated by the beta cell insulin receptor. Insulin also elicits increases in intracellular Ca2+ concentration in beta cells but has minimal effects on membrane potential. Conditions where the insulin receptor is blocked or cell surface concentration of free insulin is reduced during exocytosis diminishes secretion induced by other secretagogues, providing evidence for direct autocrine action of insulin upon secretion from the same cell. These results indicate that the beta cell insulin receptor can mediate positive feedback for insulin secretion. The presence of a positive feedback mechanism for insulin secretion mediated by the insulin receptor provides a potential link between impaired insulin secretion and insulin resistance.


: Results of treatment of 335 patients with an acute ileus (AI) was analyzed. Application of the SAPS system (Simplified Acute Physiology Score) had permitted to estimate the severity of the patient's state with AI and of degree of the homeostasis disorder in any moment of therapeutic-diagnosis process. Three stages of AI are delineated: compensated (in 41.8% of patients), subcompensated (in 38.8%), decompensated (in 19.4%), which demand different approach to diagnosis and treatment.


Three parts are represented. They are: (1) some characteristics of aerosol pollution in China, (2) lidar-radiometer monitoring of the dust storm in 1988 and 1999, (3) monitoring of aerosol by using our two new lidar systems.


Anopheles jeyporiensis and Anopheles nivipes appear to play an important role in contemporary malaria transmission in Bangladesh. However, very little is known about the natural host selection of these vectors. Therefore, host selection of these two species was investigated in Bandarban, the most malarious region of Bangladesh. A total of 480 engorged mosquitoes were analyzed. The human blood index (HBI) of An. jeyporiensis varied from 4.17% in outdoor to 19.17% in indoor collections. Similarly, HBI of An. nivipes ranged between 0.83% and 22.50% from outdoor to indoor. For both species, cow blood indices were significantly higher than HBI in both indoor and outdoor collections. These data demonstrate the opportunistic and zoophilic nature of An. jeyporiensis and An. nivipes, which suggests that approaches such as zooprophylasis may prove beneficial as a control strategy.


Visualization is a useful method for understanding both learning and computation in artificial neural networks. There are a large number of parameters in a neural network. By viewing these parameters pictorially, a better understanding can be gained of how a network maps inputs to outputs. eLoom is an open source graph simulation tool, developed at the University of New Mexico, that enables users to specify and simulate various neural network models. Its specification language enables users to construct and simulate arbitrary, potentially hierarchical network structures on serial and parallel processing systems. In addition, eLoom is integrated with UNM's Flatland, an open source virtual environment development tool to provide real-time visualizations of the network structure and activity. ART-1 and LAPART-II neural networks are presented to illustrate eLoom and Flatland's capabilities.


Abstract. Extreme sensitivity of soil organic carbon (SOC) to climate and land use change warrants further research in different terrestrial ecosystems. The aim of this study was to investigate the link between aggregate and SOC dynamics in a chronosequence of three different land uses of a south Chilean Andisol: a second growth Nothofagus obliqua forest (SGFOR), a grassland (GRASS) and a Pinus radiata plantation (PINUS). Total carbon content of the 0-10cm soil layer was higher for GRASS (6.7 kg C m-2) than for PINUS (4.3 kg C m-2, while TC content of SGFOR (5.8 kg C m-2) was not significantly different from either one. High extractable oxalate and pyrophosphate Al concentrations (varying from 20.3-24.4 g kg-1, and 3.9-11.1 g kg-1, respectively) were found in all sites. In this study, SOC and aggregate dynamics were studied using size and density fractionation experiments of the SOC, δ13C and total carbon analysis of the different SOC fractions, and C mineralization experiments. The results showed that electrostatic sorption between and among amorphous Al components and clay minerals is mainly responsible for the formation of metal-humus-clay complexes and the stabilization of soil aggregates. The process of ligand exchange between SOC and Al would be of minor importance resulting in the absence of aggregate hierarchy in this soil type. Whole soil C mineralization rate constants were highest for SGFOR and PINUS, followed by GRASS (respectively 0.495, 0.266 and 0.196 g CO2-Cm-2d-1 for the top soil layer). In contrast, incubation experiments of isolated macro organic matter fractions gave opposite results, showing that the recalcitrance of the SOC decreased in another order: PINUS>SGFOR>GRASS. We deduced that electrostatic sorption processes and physical protection of SOC in soil aggregates were the main processes determining SOC stabilization. As a result, high aggregate carbon concentrations, varying from 148 till 48 g kg-1, were encountered for all land use sites. Al availability and electrostatic charges are dependent on pH, resulting in an important influence of soil pH on aggregate stability. Recalcitrance of the SOC did not appear to largely affect SOC stabilization. Statistical correlations between extractable amorphous Al contents, aggregate stability and C mineralization rate constants were encountered, supporting this hypothesis. Land use changes affected SOC dynamics and aggregate stability by modifying soil pH (and thus electrostatic charges and available Al content), root SOC input and management practices (such as ploughing and accompanying drying of the soil).


This paper presents results of side-by-side experimental testing of a technology, referred to as Phase Change Frame Wall (PCFW), whose primary purpose is to increase building thermal mass by the application of phase change materials (PCMs) for lowering peak heat transfer rates across walls of residential and small commercial buildings. A PCFW is a typical wall in which phase change materials (PCMs) have been incorporated via macroencapsulation to enhance the energy storage capabilities of the wall via the high latent heats of the PCMs. The main goal of this study was to determine the feasibility of using PCFWs for peak air conditioning demand reduction, thermal load shifting, energy conservation, and thermal comfort. The results showed that the PCFWs offer the potential to reduce wall peak heat transfer rates by an average of approximately 27 percent. The results also indicate that interior surface temperatures and wall temperature fluctuations (wall temperature swing) could both be reduced by about 2.6 o F. The PCM used in this research was a commercially available mixture whose main component was calcium chloride hexahydrate.


A flow process for Pd-catalyzed carbon fluorine bond formation is described. A microreactor using a packed-bed design allows for easy handling of large quantities of insoluble CsF with precise control over reaction times, efficient mixing, and the ability to safely handle elevated temperatures and pressures. A variety of aryl triflates, including heteroaryl ones, were converted to their corresponding aryl fluoride in short reaction times that would be difficult to achieve in a typical batch process.


BACKGROUND
The choice of the correct concentration of potential uremic toxins for in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo experiments remains a major area of concern; errors at this level might result in incorrect decisions regarding therpeutic correction of uremia and related clinical complications.

METHODS
An encyclopedic list of uremic retention solutes was composed, containing their mean normal concentration (CN), their highest mean/median uremic concentration (CU), their highest concentration ever reported in uremia (CMAX), and their molecular weight. A literature search of 857 publications on uremic toxicity resulted in the selection of data reported in 55 publications on 90 compounds, published between 1968 and 2002.

RESULTS
For all compounds, CU and/or CMAX exceeded CN. Molecular weight was lower than 500 D for 68 compounds; of the remaining 22 middle molecules, 12 exceeded 12,000 D. CU ranged from 32.0 ng/L (methionine-enkephalin) up to 2.3 g/L (urea). CU in the ng/L range was found especially for the middle molecules (10/22; 45.5%), compared with 2/68 (2.9%) for a molecular weight <500 D (P < 0.002). Twenty-five solutes (27.8%) were protein bound. Most of them had a molecular weight <500 D except for leptin and retinol-binding protein. The ratio CU/CN, an index of the concentration range over which toxicity is exerted, exceeded 15 in the case of 20 compounds. The highest values were registered for several guanidines, protein-bound compounds, and middle molecules, to a large extent compounds with known toxicity. A ratio of CMAX/CU <4, pointing to a Gaussian distribution, was found for the majority of the compounds (74/90; 82%). For some compounds, however, this ratio largely exceeded 4 [e.g., for leptin (6.81) or indole-3-acetic acid (10.37)], pointing to other influencing factors than renal function, such as gender, genetic predisposition, proteolytic breakdown, posttranslation modification, general condition, or nutritional status.

CONCLUSION
Concentrations of retention solutes in uremia vary over a broad range, from nanograms per liter to grams per liter. Low concentrations are found especially for the middle molecules. A substantial number of molecules are protein bound and/or middle molecules, and many of these exert toxicity and are characterized by a high range of toxic over normal concentration (CU/CN ratio). Hence, uremic retention is a complex problem that concerns many more solutes than the current markers of urea and creatinine alone. This list provides a basis for systematic analytic approaches to map the relative importance of the enlisted families of toxins.


Thin films of AlN, CrN and Al1-xCrxN were grown epitaxially on c-cut sapphire by radio frequency (RF) plasma assisted pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The PLD growth mode employed for these Al1-xCrxN films was by delta doping layers of CrN 0.05-0.10 nm thick between layers of AlN of approximately 3.6 nm thick giving an estimated 1.3% and 2.5% Cr doping. The substrate temperature, nitrogen pressure and power parameters of the RF plasma were varied to optimize crystalline growth. X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed hexagonal wurtzite thin film growth of highly crystalline AlN and highly crystalline cubic CrN. The electronic structure of these thin films was examined by x-ray absorption (XAS) and soft x-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) at the N K edge. These measurements are compared with the results of density functional calculations for wurtzite-AlN, cubic-CrN and wurtzite-Al1-xCrxN. [DOI: 10.1380/ejssnt.2009.497]


Compared with the traditional space-borne and aviation synthetic aperture radar (SAR synthetic aperture radar) which can only make limited time sampling analysis after the event for large oil spill, the ship-borne x-band radar has the real-time navigation superiority which may real-time detect the accident at the initial stage and can provide emergency treatment references for the Marine environmental protection department in order to take emergency reflect strive for the time. Given the domestic and foreign research achievement on oil spill at sea, the study based on maritime radar is still rarely. In this paper, the authors has summarized the predecessor oil spill study by the SAR and comprehend maritime radar characteristics, worked out a technical route using of maritime radar for oil spill monitor who provides the theoretical foundation for further research and system development.


Summary Enzymatic reactions taking place in minimally processed vegetables are considered as a major problem, because they adversely affect sensorial and nutritional quality. Polyphenol oxidase (PPO), peroxidase (POD) and lipoxygenase (LOX) from lettuce were purified on a column packed with positively charged diethylaminoethyl (DEAE) cellulose by applying pH gradient elution from pH=4.0 to 9.0. The main purified fractions (PPO1 and PPO4, POD1 and POD2, LOX1 and LOX2) were characterized for enzyme concentration-reaction rate relationship, thermal stability, pH activity and kinetic parameters. Kinetic properties of each isoform were considerably different. Cysteine was found as the most effective inhibitor of both fractions of PPO. Kinetic parameters of lettuce POD were presented using guaiacol at various H2O2 concentrations. b-carotene directly influences lettuce LOX in the reaction medium available for the catalytic conversion of linoleic acid into hydroperoxides. Ascorbic and oxalic acids appear as effective PPO inhibitors, protecting phenolic compounds against oxidation in lettuce. Understanding the characteristics of deteriorative enzymes becomes important to maintain suitable conditions for fresh-like quality of lettuce. The results can be useful to keep the nutritional quality of minimally processed lettuce during shelf-life.


The rehabilitation of native plant communities in urban bushland remnants is an increasingly important activity requiring the collection of large amounts of seed. Best practice generally identifies that local seed are best, but how far does the local provenance extend? Using the DNA fingerprinting technique amplified fragment length polymorphism, we assessed genetic differentiation between potential seed source populations and the target population, Bold Park, a large and significant bushland remnant in Perth, Western Australia. For each of 15 species, analysis of molecular variance was used to partition genetic variation within and among populations. Genetic differentiation between Bold Park and potential seed source populations was assessed by non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination, and statistically by Fisher 19s exact tests. The partitioning of variation among populations (:6ST) varied from 0.66 for Santalum acuminatum to 0.04 for Mesomelaena pseudostygia. For eight of 15 species, Bold Park plants were completely or largely non-overlapping with other populations in ordinations, suggesting genetic differentiation and a narrow provenance. Five species showed overlap between Bold Park and some other, but not all, populations sampled, with geographically closest populations generally undifferentiated. Only two species, Acanthocarpus preissii and Mesomeleana pseudostygia, showed little genetic differentiation between Bold Park and all other populations, suggesting a regional genetic provenance. These species can be classified into three broad provenance classes 13 narrow, local and regional 13 to help guide decisions about appropriate seed-collection zones for the rehabilitation of urban bushland remnants.


On most of the islands on which it has become established, the small Indian mongoose has commanded more attention than all indigenous mammals and introduced exotics. As a consequence of its impact on the neotropical single island ecosystems, both as a predator and as a vector of human and animal diseases, the mongoose is uniquely significant. The present study of the mongoose was initiated in 1968 when Everard was appointed by the United Kingdom Medical Research Council (MRC) to the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre (CAREC), formerly the Trinidad Regional Virus Laboratory (TRVL). The terms of the appointment included a study of the biology of the mongoose in Trinidad and Grenada, surveillance of mongoose rabies in Grenada, and an investigation of methods to control mongoose rabies. Coincidentally, in 1968 Nellis was contracted by the Government of the U.S. Virgin Islands to investigate the wild hosts of the African Bont Tick Amblyomma variegatum (the mongoose being of primary concern). The study was continued in a survey of wild animal parasites and diseases of concern to man or livestock, and it gained impetus as part of the rabies contingency plan for the Virgin Islands. Throughout the course of their work, the investigators continuously exchanged ideas, opinions, data and techniques.


Abstract We present a new geological map and new structural, petrographical and geochronological data from the Uppermost Unit of the Cretan nappe pile exposed south of the Dikti Mountains in eastern Crete (Greece). Based on these data, the Uppermost Unit in the study area can be subdivided (from bottom to top) into the Arvi Unit, Theodorii Greenschist and Asterousia Crystalline Complex (ACC)-type rocks. The ACC-type rocks have been affected by polyphase deformation (D1–D3) and metamorphism. Relics of the D1 phase are preserved as internal foliation in garnet porphyroblasts. D2 top-to-the SE shearing under upper amphibolite facies conditions led to the dominant foliation. After post-D2 exhumation, parts of the ACC-type rocks were affected by contact metamorphism of a non-exposed pluton, which intruded at a depth below 10 km during Campanian time (74±2Ma; laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry on zircon). This age, obtained from zircon of chiastolite hornfels, is in line with intrusion ages of ACC-type (meta)granitoids exposed on Crete and on Anafi. The S2-foliation of the ACC-type rocks was reactivated during the late phase of contact metamorphism by D3 top-to-the SE shearing. Latest Cretaceous cross-mica with low silicon content post-dates this shearing event. During middle Paleocene time, the ACC was thrust on top of the Theodorii Greenschist. This thrusting event as well as subsequent brittle thrusting of the greenschists and the ACC-type rocks on top of the prehnite-pumpellyite facies metamorphic Arvi Unit was still accommodated by top-to-the SE kinematics, which is the dominant kinematics of the Uppermost Unit on Crete and on Anafi.


We have demonstrated sub-shot-noise FM spectroscopy on thermal cesium atoms, using amplitude-squeezed light from a semiconductor laser. The light source used in our experiment was a custom-made GaAs transverse junction stripe semiconductor laser featuring broadband amplitude squeezing and a large FM bandwidth. We have also developed a new technique by which a semiconductor laser can be frequency modulated with infinitesimally small residual AM and with complete preservation of the squeezed-amplitude fluctuations.


Today most demolition projects undertaken are complex and involve many parties who must comply with a myriad of regulations as well as other constraints (e.g. finance). The management of demolition projects requires individual team members to have a wide range of skills and
knowledge in addition to practical experience.
Demolition processes currently operated are frequently performed in an unstructured, intuitive
manner with considerable reliance on experience, skill, knowledge or subjective judgement of the demolition engineer or other individual responsible for a demolition project. Research on
demolition 'process management' is a new area that has rarely been addressed. However, within
the building design and construction management sectors, there are a number of intelligent
solutions that have been developed to assist in the management of business processes and
business process re-engineering. Process management systems and process mapping through the
use of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) technology have been applied to help the construction industry significantly improve performance. In an attempt to provide intelligent support to the management of dynamic demolition processes, this research reports upon that was developed using ICT applications a management system prototype entitled "Demolish-IT". The prototype of Demolish-IT utilises four tiers of
information which includes: (1) the standard demolition process map; (2) user-defined
demolition process map; (3) demolition task manager; and (4) database of demolition process
requirements. The prototype provides on ICT platform that unifies demolition processes and
requirements to achieve improved process management. The research involved a combination of face-to-face interviews with demolition experts; real projects document reviews and site observation to produce the generic demolition process map. Other products of the work included: database solutions to store demolition process requirements; and process modelling to manage demolition task compliance flow within relevant industry standards. Evaluation of the research work proved its validity, acceptance and applicability within industry. Future work will aim to transpose the outputs into commercially viable software.


We experienced a very rare case of maxillary bone metastasis from lung cancer. The patient was a 77-year-old Japanese man with 1-month history of right alar swelling with hard pain as his chief complaint. Computed tomography scan showed a 1 cm length round lesion in the right nasal vestibule close to the pyriform fossa edge of the right maxillary bone. He had severe pulmonary dysfunction due to recurrent end stage lung cancer and diabetes. The expected remainder of his life would be half a year. Therefore, his very poor condition precluded general anesthesia. To relieve the nasal pain, shorten the stay in the hospital and improve the quality of life (QOL), we performed minimally invasive surgery under local anesthesia. Our minimally invasive surgery could improve QOL by relieving the hard nasal pain until the recurrence of cancer and enable the patient to live at home.