The Internet of Things (IoT) represents a new paradigm of integration of various communication technologies and solutions, having applications in many domains, such as agriculture, health, smart buildings and cities, security and surveillance, and in many other areas. One area of application that should be studied in the scope of IoT is the management of information systems projects. Project management applies knowledge, skills and techniques for carrying out activities related to a set of predefined objectives, in a certain period, with a certain cost and quality, through the mobilization of technical and human resources. IoT can play an important role by enabling the creation of new tools for improving the processes and techniques of project management. Our research question is: What are the potential impacts of IoT for project management improvement?


This manuscript is focused in two of the most prominent techniques for the next years for education advancement, which are learning analytics and gamification. There are a lot of research works in both of these lines independently, but not many research papers combine both techniques in order to improve the educational experience. One of the most used gamification techniques is the use of badges as a reward for making specific student actions. The analysis of users' interactions and behaviors with the badge system can be used to improve the learning process. We present four high level indicators related to the behavior of students with a badge system and we particularize it for the Khan Academy platform. An extensive analysis of 291 different students interacting with the Khan Academy badge system is done processing real data from freshmen courses at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. This analysis includes an overview of the global usage of badges, correlations between the badge indicators and other indicators related to the learning process and a Two-Step Cluster Analysis to group students by their badge preferences in order to personalize future experiences.


With the rapid growth of audio and video applications on the Internet, caching media objects in transcoding proxies has become an important research topic. We address the problem of finding the optimal locations for placing a fixed number of transcoding proxies among the nodes in a network such that the specified objective is achieved. We present an original model for this problem, which makes transcoding proxy placement decisions on all the en-route nodes along the routing path in a coordinated way. In our model, proxy status information along the routing path of requests is used for optimally determining the locations for placing a fixed number of transcoding proxies. We formulate this problem as an optimization problem and the optimal locations are obtained using a low-cost dynamic programming-based algorithm. We implement our algorithm and evaluate our model on different performance metrics through extensive simulation experiments. The implementation results show that our model significantly outperforms the random algorithm which places transcoding proxies among the nodes randomly in a network.


BACKGROUND AND AIMS. Drug development has been classically associated with large pharmaceutical companies developing 'blockbuster' drugs aimed at large patient populations through high market penetration and multiple indication life cycle management. Higher costs and lower output have rendered this model inefficient and unsustainable. The aims of this thesis were to assess: suitability of test procedures, benefit to risk profile during development, importance of stages of discovery and development for benefit/risk and entrepreneurship, expert judgement in making 'go/nogo' decisions, and implications for innovation. METHODS. Literature review was used to identify why drugs fail and characterise drug regulation history. Examples of drugs in different development stages were critically reviewed for choice of test procedure and assessment of benefit/risk in context with knowledge and scientific expertise today. An 18-step model of drug discovery and development was defined. Using web-based questionnaires, health experts were asked the importance of each step for assessing benefit/risk, and entrepreneurial input. Individual judgement using real drug case scenarios was studied by scoring 'go/no-go' decisions on a Likert scale. Relative importance of assessment of risk versus entrepreneurial need was compared on the model. Influence of entrepreneurial characteristics on the expert assessments and on decision making was explored. RESULTS. Drugs failed development for inefficacy and toxicity. Choice of test procedure confirmed anti-hypertensive and anti-asthmatic efficacy of K+ channel openers in the laboratory, but these models were poor predictors of clinical potential. Alternative indications and potential routes of administration were left unexplored. Advances in molecular biology and screening have still failed to yield a product with full clinical potential. Retrospective case studies and prospective multicentre studies for an approved immunosuppressant proved valuable approaches for assessing risk of malignancy and risk during pregnancy. Identifying risk factors helps patients and carers in counselling to reach better outcomes. Health experts perceived toxicology, clinical trials, and pharmacovigilance most important for benefit/risk assessment. In contrast, drug discovery and later phases of development were of entrepreneurial importance. Results modelling revealed in-house entrepreneurial 'core' and external outsourcing opportunity. Experts showed marked variability in individual judgment for making 'go/no-go' decisions despite having the same information. Expert risk perception and decision making were not consistently influenced by entrepreneurial character. Optimised decision making was identified to be critical for effective drug development. CONCLUSIONS. These findings reinforce the opinion that restructuring and opening up drug discovery and development to more external input is likely to increase the innovative capacity and efficiency of the whole drug discovery and development process.


It is proved that there are many methods for measuring intellectual capital, and only their combination will lead to the most reliable data. It was determined that the intellectual capital of the enterprise is derived from intellectual resources, where resources acquire the form of capital when used and create a specific product. Therefore, the primary basis of the innovative achievements of the enterprise is intellectual resources. Outlined key characteristic features of the model helped confirm its innovative character. As experience in managing the intellectual capital of enterprises shows, the competitiveness of the latter primarily depends not on the financial and material resources it controls, but on the result of using intellectual capital, which leaves its mark on its reflection in annual reports or in separate statements of enterprises.


This paper presents a 16QAM direct-conversion transceiver in 65nm CMOS, which is capable of 60-GHz wireless standards. The capacitive cross-coupling neutralization contributes a high common-mode rejection and a high reverse isolation, and a fully-balanced mixer can improve the error vector magnitude due to the reduced local leakage. The maximum data rates with an antenna built in a package are 10Gb/s in QPSK mode and 16Gb/s in 16QAM mode and the transmitter and the receiver consume 181mW and 138 mW, respectively.


Objective—MicroRNAs are important intracellular regulators of gene expression, but also circulate in the blood being protected by extracellular vesicles, proteins, or high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Here, we evaluate the regulation and potential function of HDL- and low-density lipoprotein–bound miRs isolated from healthy subjects and patients with coronary artery disease. Approach and Results—HDL-bound miRs with known effects in the cardiovascular system were analyzed in HDL isolated from healthy subjects (n=10), patients with stable coronary artery disease (n=10), and patients with an acute coronary syndrome (n=10). In HDL from healthy subjects, miR-223 was detected at concentrations >10 000 copies/µg HDL, and miR-126 and miR-92a at about 3000 copies/µg HDL. Concentrations of most miRs were substantially higher in HDL as compared with low-density lipoprotein. However, HDL-bound miR-223 contributed to only 8% of the total circulating miRs. The signatures of miRs varied only slightly in HDL derived from patients with coronary artery disease. We did not observe a significant uptake of HDL-bound miRs into endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, or peripheral blood mononuclear cells. However, patient-derived HDL transiently reduced miR expression particularly when incubated with smooth muscle and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Conclusions—Circulating miRs are detected in HDL and to a lesser extent in low-density lipoprotein, and the miR-signatures are only slightly altered in patients with coronary artery disease. Lipoprotein-bound miRs were not efficiently delivered to endothelial, smooth muscle, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells suggesting that the lipoprotein-associated pool of miRs is not regulating the function of the studied cells in vitro.


What do we watch when we watch war? Who manages public perceptions of war and how? Watching War on the Twenty-First-Century Stage: Spectacles of Conflict is the first publication to examine how theatre in the UK has staged, debated and challenged the ways in which spectacle is habitually weaponized in times of war. The 'battle for hearts and minds' and the 'war of images' are fields of combat that can be as powerful as armed conflict. And today, spectacle and conflict – the two concepts that frame the book – have joined forces via audio-visual technologies in ways that are more powerful than ever.
Clare Finburgh's original and interdisciplinary interrogation provides a richly provocative account of the structuring role that spectacle plays in warfare, engaging with the works of philosopher Guy Debord, cultural theorist Jean Baudrillard, visual studies specialist Marie-Jose Mondzain, and performance scholar Hans-Thies Lehmann. She offers coherence to a large and expanding field of theatrical war representation by analysing in careful detail a spectrum of works as diverse as expressionist drama, documentary theatre, comedy, musical satire and dance theatre. She demonstrates how features unique to the theatrical art, namely the construction of a fiction in the presence of the audience, can present possibilities for a more informed engagement with how spectacles of war are produced and circulated.
If we watch with more resistance, we may contribute in significant ways to the demilitarization of images. And what if this were the first step towards a literal demilitarization?


The application of the Ronchi ruling beam characterization method to axially symmetric optical beams is analyzed. Specific results are derived for the Airy and focused annulus diffraction patterns. Plots of the ratio of minimum to maximum transmitted optical power versus the first null radius of the beam functions show that for the Airy pattern and other focused annuli with obscuration ratios smaller than approximately 0.30, the method should be just as useful as with Gaussian beams.


Research and development in the pioneering field of quantum computing involve just about every facet of science and engineering, including the significant areas of mathematics and physics. Based on the firm understanding that mathematics and physics are equal partners in the continuing study of quantum science, Mathematics of Quantum Computation and Quantum Technology explores the rapid mathematical advancements made in this field in recent years. Novel Viewpoints on Numerous Aspects of Quantum Computing and Technology Edited by a well-respected team of experts, this volume compiles contributions from specialists across various disciplines. It contains four main parts, beginning with topics in quantum computing that include quantum algorithms and hidden subgroups, quantum search, algorithmic complexity, and quantum simulation. The next section covers quantum technology, such as mathematical tools, quantum wave functions, superconducting quantum computing interference devices (SQUIDs), and optical qua ntum computing. The section on quantum information deals with error correction, cryptography, entanglement, and communication. The final part explores topological quantum computation, knot theory, category algebra, and logic. The Tools You Need to Tackle the Next Generation of Quantum Technology This book facilitates both the construction of a common quantum language and the development of interdisciplinary quantum techniques, which will aid efforts in the pursuit of the ultimate goal-a "real" scalable quantum computer.


Coall & Hertwig (C&H) demonstrate the importance of grandparents to children, even in low fertility societies. We suggest policy-makers interested in reproductive timing in such contexts should be alerted to the practical applications of this cooperative breeding framework. The presence or absence of a supportive kin network could help explain why some women begin their reproductive careers "too early" or "too late."


A guide to accessing and using the HUHS digital book collections (text and audio), as well as a variety of free resources.


Liquid cell electron microscopy (LCEM) has long suffered from irreproducibility and its inability to confer high-quality images over a wide field of view. LCEM demands the encapsulation of the in-liquid sample between two ultrathin membranes (windows). In the vacuum environment of the electron microscope, the windows bulge, drastically reducing the achievable resolution and the usable viewing region. Herein, we introduce a shape-engineered nanofluidic cell architecture and an air-free drop-casting sample loading technique, which combined, provide robust bulgeless imaging conditions. We demonstrate the capabilities of our approach through the study of in-liquid model samples and quantitative measurements of the liquid layer thickness. The presented LCEM method confers high throughput, lattice resolution across the complete viewing window, and sufficient contrast for the observation of unstained liposomes, paving the way to high-resolution movies of biospecimens in their near native environment.


Oxidative direct arylation polymerization has recently emerged as a simple, mild, and atom economical homopolymerization method; however, the application of this promising method to unsymmetrical or binary monomer systems, where different C–H reactivities are present, is limited. Two random copolymer families of poly(hexyl thiophene-3-carboxylate), herein referred to as poly(3-hexylesterthiophene) (P3HET), featuring either thieno[3,4-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione (TPD) or 4,4′-dimethyl-2,2′-bithiazole (BTz) comonomers are synthesized by oxidative direct arylation polymerization (oxi-DArP) conditions that enable high regioregularities despite the lack of preactivation of the monomers. Through refinement of the reaction parameters and minimization of auxiliary reagent loadings, polymers with good molecular weights are achieved and the feed ratio is closely correlated to the polymer composition. These random copolymers are evaluated by 1H NMR, SEC, UV-Vis, GIXRD, and SCLC hole mobility analyses to determine the compatibility of this emerging synthetic method with increasingly popular random copolymer architectures.


This article discusses the unintended consequences of the billable hour derby and suggests changes to address the deleterious effects of increasing billable hour requirements. A brief introduction identifies law firms' recent tendency to increase the billable hour requirements to fund the heightened salaries of associates. This article analyzes the results from an empirical study focused on the effects of billable hour expectations and firm cultures. Part I generally reviews the study findings. Part II discusses the work and report of the ABA Commission, while Part III indentifies those issues and approaches that the ABA and firm managers should explore. Recognizing the unlikelihood that hourly billing can be completely eliminated, the conclusion calls on bar and firm leaders to reexamine compensation and partnership models that result in attorneys sacrificing their personal lives in order to achieve professional success.


This thesis examines the role of Leo Amery as a military commentator and his decision to create the Army League in 1937. The League went on to argue for the introduction of conscription prior to the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1948 Leo Amery decided to resurrect the Army League and use it publicise defence issues at the beginning of the Cold War. Leo and Julian Amery attempted to shape defence policy in the late 1940s and early 1950s by using the Army League as a pressure group to influence Government policy and public opinion. It focuses particularly on the League's report, The Army in the Nuclear Age, the culmination of several years of work by a small study group which included a considerable contribution from Basil Liddell Hart. The League published its report in November 1955 seeking to 'educate' the public on the key defence issues of the day including the impact of nuclear weapons on strategic planning and the need for a reorganisation of the Army. At a time when Britain was involved in two major counterinsurgency operations in Kenya and Malaya and a third was beginning in Cyprus the report also attempted to make a strategic case for retaining the remaining colonies and overseas bases at least until the end of the Cold War. However, on the contentious question of the continuing validity of National Service the League was ambiguous, proffering a solution based on utilising colonial manpower to make up any shortfall in recruitment and a reorganisation of the existing army manpower back into a small professional force with a limited conscript element. The report arrived as the Government was discussing the future of conscription and commencing a long-term defence review which meant that the League's proposals were studied in detail by the War Office and Ministry of Defence at the behest of defence ministers. Therefore the report and the Government's response to it add to our understanding both of the formation of defence policy immediately prior to the Suez crisis and of an alternative policy based on an aggressive response to further decolonization and anti-colonialism based on national security concerns.


It is well known that large-scale organised motions, usually called coherent structures, exist in many transitional and turbulent flows. The topology and range of scales of coherent structures change widely in different flows. However, it is not well established what kind of large-scale coherent structures exists in separated/reattached transitional flows. Large Eddy Simulation (LES) with a dynamic subgrid-scale model is employed to investigate a separated boundary layer transition under 2% free stream turbulence level and without free stream turbulence on a flat plate with a blunt leading edge. Flow visualization is employed to show the entire transition process leading to breakdown to turbulence and large-scale coherent structures have been identified at various stages of the transition process. However, there are some noticeable difference between the flow case with and without free stream turbulence. The Kelvin-Helmholtz rolls, which are clearly visible under no free stream turbulence (NFST), are not so clearly visible under 2% free steam turbulence (FST) case. The Lambda-shaped vortical structures which can be clearly seen in the NFST case can hardly be identified in the FST case. Generally speaking, the effects of free-stream turbulence have led to an early breakdown of the separated boundary layer and hence increased the randomisation in the vortical structures, degraded the spanwise coherence of those large-scale structures.


In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that overconditioning in dairy cows at the end of the dry period leads to infiltration of fat and alterations of the insulin secretory capacity of the pancreas. Pregnant Holstein Friesian dairy cows were selected based on body condition score (BCS) at the start of the dry period. Body condition score varied between cows to have optimal conditioned (2.5 < BCS ≤3.5, n = 5) and overconditioned (3.5 < BCS ≤5, n = 5) cows. All animals underwent an intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) at an average of 260 d of gestation to measure the pancreatic insulin secretory capacity and assess peripheral insulin sensitivity regarding glucose metabolism. Eight days after the IVGTT, animals were slaughtered. The pancreas was dissected and weighed and tissue samples were taken for histological analysis. Results revealed that overconditioning in dairy cows led to fat infiltration in the pancreas and an increase in size of pancreatic islets expressed relative to the total area of pancreatic tissue. In addition, results revealed a positive correlation between serum fatty acid concentration and peak insulin concentration and area and number of pancreatic islets expressed relative to the total area of pancreatic tissue. The IVGTT revealed that overconditioned animals have a higher insulin secretory capacity of the pancreas, as demonstrated by higher peak insulin concentration, higher acute insulin response to glucose, and higher area under the curve (AUC) for insulin compared with optimal conditioned cows. A higher AUC for glucose during the first 60 min following administration of the glucose bolus in overconditioned cows indicates an insulin-resistant state regarding glucose metabolism. Our results suggest that the pancreas of overconditioned dairy cows at the end of gestation compensates for the concomitantly elevated level of peripheral insulin resistance by greater secretion of insulin.


The state of serotoninergic system in thyrotoxic and euthyroid gland were compared. It was shown that in patients with hyperthyroidism (diffuse toxic goiter) serotonin and 5-hydroxytryptophan content, velocity and the latter uptake were augmented. The authors stress the role of the delay in serotonin oxidative deamination as one of the reasons for increased serotonin content in thyrotoxic thyroid gland. Possible ways of increasing intrathyroid serotonin accumulation and its role in the development of thyroid hyperfunction are discussed.


New structural and calorimetric data for samples of NiAl2O4 quenched from 600° to 1560°C are presented The spinel remains stoichiometric for all heat treatments. Based on the refinement of X-ray powder patterns, it is shown that the degree of disorder, defined as the mole fraction of tetrahedral sites occupied by Al3+, changes from x = 0.82 at 600°C to 0.78 at 1560°C. Simultaneously, the lattice parameter and enthalpy vary in a complex manner with quench temperature. The largest lattice parameter (0.80500 ± 0.00004 nm) and most exothermic enthalpy of annealing (heat released when sample is equilibrated at 780°C; -10.1 kJ/mol) occur for the sample quenched from 1100°C. A linear correlation exists between the heat of annealing and the lattice parameter. The results have been interpreted as a superposition of at least two effects: (1) the disordering of Ni2+ and Al3+ ions between octahedral (16d) and tetrahedral (8a) sites and (2) a second process, which may be a small amount of the disordering of ions into the usually empty (16c) sites.


This paper deals with the orthogonality factor (alpha), a transfer coefficient which allows the transformation of a transmitted orthogonal signal into a received Gaussian noise to be made. Both produce the same degradation in terms of quality of service and have the same power. This paper shows the impact of the pulse shaping filter on alpha: A right choice of the pulse shaping chip waveform can reduce a. A new theoretical expression of a is established for the large response in time domain of the pulse shaping filter: A pronounced increase of a with pulse shaping filter length is clearly established. For frequency selective invariant channels, the simulation results are in perfect concordance with the theoretical results. However for frequency selective Rayleigh channels, the new expression of a must be modified to take into consideration the different statistic laws of the intra-cellular and inter-cellular interferences. So a coefficient (whitening coefficient) can be introduced with that in mind.


In order to investigate the influence of grain size on notch sensitivities in fatigue of a fine-grained carbon steel, rotating bending fatigue tests were carried out using specimens with a V-grooved circumferential notch of commercial fine-grained carbon steel with grain size of 6.5µm. The results were compared with those of a larger grain sized carbon steel (grain size: 20 µm) and the notch sensitivities were evaluated based on Linear notch mechanics proposed by Nisitani. Notch sensitivities for both of fatigue limits for a crack initiation and its propagation of the fine grained steel were high. The results were discussed from the view points of the size of area related to crack initiation and the crack growth resistance.


This paper considers how uncontrolled mobiles can be used to collaboratively accomplish sensing tasks. Uncontrolled mobiles are mobile devices whose movements cannot be easily controlled for the purpose of achieving a task. Examples include sensors mounted on mobile vehicles of people to monitor air quality and to detect potential airborne nuclear, biological, or chemical agents. We describe an approach for using uncontrolled mobile devices for collaborative sensing. Considering the potentially large number of mobile sensors that may be required to monitor a large geographical area such as a city, a key issue is how to achieve a proper balance between performance and costs. We present analytical results on the rate of information reporting by uncontrolled mobile sensors needed to cover a given geographical area. We also present results from testbed implementations to demonstrate the feasibility of using existing low-cost software technologies and platforms with existing standard protocols for information reporting and retrieval to support a large system of uncontrolled mobile sensors


We hypothesize that results of football (soccer) teams affect the risk perception of people. People choose riskier investments after a win and less risky investments after a loss; this leads to higher (lower) returns in the stock market. These hypotheses are tested for the international matches of Turkey's three most popular teams (Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, and Galatasaray). The empirical findings suggests that the teams' wins led to higher asset returns and lower risk aversion on the following business day of the Borsa Istanbul and lower returns and higher risk aversion after a loss or a tie.


As the field and application of mechatronics grows, Engineering and Vocational and Technical education must grow with it to meet the needs of industry. This paper focuses on the designing of a mechatronics courses for industry. University-government-industry and Private Companies have collaborated in a project and shared responsibilities and tasks. In this article, we describe our experience in running mechatronics courses for Engineers, Higher Technician and Technician Courses in Ankara's industry since 2001.We also describe an industryuniversity co-operation model, training of trainers, the designing of a mechatronics laboratory and course in accordance to the expectations of industry, setting up the feedback mechanism of keeping quality of courses, developing projects financing and management methods


Abstract In light of the accelerating nature of climate change and its effect, it is unsurprising that various entities increasingly resort to courts and tribunals to seek to address the many harms and wrongs that clearly stem from climate change. This article discusses the opportunities in this context for those who face displacement by the effects of climate change, an issue that is not necessarily at the heart of either climate justice debates or climate displacement debates. Discussions about how to respond to displacement arising in the context of climate change often focus on the 'protection space' or 'assistance space', in which those affected are conceptualized as actual or potential seekers of protection or assistance, who may or may not be owed refuge elsewhere on account of unmet needs for shelter, support or safety. This article takes a different approach and conceptualizes those affected as potential or actual seekers of justice, who may be owed rectification for inflicted harm. The article thus contributes to emerging scholarship concerning climate change litigation and climate harm reversal, by focusing on the corrective justice potential for those who face the specific issue of displacement stemming from climate change. To this end, the article provides the relevant practical and analytical background, and discusses key recent law and policy developments in both the domestic and cross-border spheres. The article considers not merely the nexus between displacement stemming from climate change and considerations of justice, but also how and where justice in this context is or may be sought.


Glimpsing the archive is a conference paper that reflectively examines the significance of a set of homemade shellac recordings from the 1940s lovingly preserved by Dorsett's family even though the records are too fragile to be played on a gramophone.

Dorsett presents his first thoughts as an artist for a new body of graphic and photographic work exploring the fertile absence of functionality in museum stores. He offers a rationale for archive-only artworks that would be resolved, not as exhibits, but as interventions within the managerial and conservational life of reserve collections. Drawing on ideas from Walter Benjamin and the American poet Louise Gluck, 'Glimpsing the archive' describes how artworks might be productively placed within the insulating temporal interval made possible by archival practices.


The fruitbodies and mycelial culture of the wood destroying fungus Trametes hirsuta (Wulf. ex Fr.) Lloyd were investigated as a source of polysaccharides. Four different polysaccharide fractions were isolated from these sources with the good yield 4.76% (PfA) and 1.18% (PfB)--(fruitbodies) and 2.33% (PmcA), 3.25% (PmcB)--(mycelium) respectively. Some chemical differences were found in the composition of isolated polysaccharides. Some of them contained aminoacids as the structural components, especially those isolated from mycelial culture of the fungus. In all polysaccharide fractions glucose was present as a main monosugar.


[The author examines the arguments used by the magisterium against same-sex marriage. Most of these arguments have features that make them problematic for public debate in pluralistic societies. The most plausible argument concerns the health of marriage as an institution within which adults take responsibility for child rearing. If the magisterium wishes to present a more persuasive argument for its position against same-sex marriage, it ought to develop this line of reasoning and jettison the practice of casting gay people in a negative light.]


Protecting metallic implants from the harsh environment of physiological fluids is essential to guaranteeing successful long-term use in a patient's body. Chemical degradation may lead to the failure of an implant device in two different ways. First, metal ions may cause inflammatory reactions in the tissues surrounding the implant and, in extreme cases, these reactions may inflict acute pain on the patient and lead to loosening of the device. Therefore, increasing wear strength is beneficial to the performance of the metallic implant. Second, localized corrosion processes contribute to the nucleation of fatigue cracks, and corrosion fatigue is the main reason for the mechanical failure of metallic implants. Common biomedical alloys such as stainless steel, cobalt-chrome alloys, and titanium alloys are prone to at least one of these problems. Vapor-deposited hard coatings act directly to improve corrosion, wear, and fatigue resistances of metallic materials. The effectiveness of the corrosion protection is strongly related to the structure of the physical vapor deposition layer. The aim of this paper is to present a comprehensive review of the correlation between the structure of physical vapor deposition layers and the corrosion properties of metallic implants.


We consider the problem of nding lower dimensional subspaces in the presence of outliers and noise in the online setting. In particular, we extend previous batch formulations of robust PCA to the stochastic setting with minimal storage requirements and runtime complexity. We introduce three novel stochastic approximation algorithms for robust PCA that are extensions of standard algorithms for PCA { the stochastic power method, incremental PCA and online PCA using matrix-exponentiated-gradient (MEG) updates. For robust online PCA we also give a sub-linear convergence guarantee. Our numerical results demonstrate the superiority of the the robust online method over the other robust stochastic methods and the advantage of robust methods over their non-robust counterparts in the presence of outliers in articial and real scenarios.


The glutamate analogs N-methyl-D,L-aspartate (NMA) and kainic acid are involved in the regulation of GnRH and LH release in mammals. It has recently been reported that the increase in GnRH release induced by NMA is accompanied by an increase in GnRH mRNA levels, as measured by in situ hybridization. In the present study we assessed the effects of NMA and kainic acid on cytoplasmic mRNA levels using the more quantitative solution hybridization/RNase protection assay. To address the mechanism responsible for these mRNA changes, we also examined changes in heteronuclear RNA transcripts as a reflection of gene transcription. Adult male rats were implanted with a jugular catheter, and 1-2 days later, NMA (14 mg/kg BW), kainic acid (2 mg/kg BW), both NMA and kainic acid, or saline vehicle were injected through the cannula. Rats were killed 15 min or 1 h later by decapitation, blood samples were collected for RIA of LH, brains were removed, and the preoptic area was dissected and frozen. Cytoplasmic and nuclear RNA were extracted and assayed separately by RNase protection assay. Treatment with NMA or NMA plus kainic acid resulted in significantly elevated cytoplasmic mRNA levels 15 min and 1 h later compared to saline control values, with no differences between the two drug treatments observed. Kainic acid stimulated mRNA levels 1 h, but not 15 min after injection. Nuclear RNA transcripts were unaffected by all drug or vehicle treatments. As nuclear primary transcript levels presumably reflect GnRH gene transcription, and these levels are unaltered, the present study indicates that the regulation of GnRH gene expression by excitatory amino acids occurs at a posttranscriptional level. The increase in cytoplasmic GnRH mRNA levels also does not result from an increased translocation of the relatively large nuclear GnRH mRNA pool into the cytoplasm, because nuclear GnRH mRNA levels are also unchanged. Therefore, the elevation of cytoplasmic mRNA levels after excitatory amino acid treatment is probably due to an increase in mRNA stability.


FMI (Functional Mockup Interface) is a standard for exchanging and co-simulating model components (called FMUs) coming from potentially different modeling formalisms, languages, and tools. Previous work has proposed a formal model for the co-simulation part of the FMI standard, and also presented two co-simulation algorithms which can be proven to have desirable properties, such as determinacy, provided the FMUs satisfy a formal contract. In this paper we discuss the principles for encoding different modeling formalisms, including state machines (both untimed and timed), discrete-event systems, and synchronous dataflow, as FMUs. The challenge is to bridge the various semantic gaps (untimed vs. timed, signals vs. events, etc.) that arise because of the heterogeneity between these modeling formalisms and the FMI API.


Thesis (Ph.D.)--Georgetown University, 2008.; Includes bibliographical
 references. This study examines the proliferation of militias and other armed groups who act
 in conjunction with, but outside, the state's military apparatus. Groups like the Sudanese
 janjaweed, the Serbian paramilitaries, and Colombian self-defense forces figure prominently in
 a host of contemporary conflicts in the developing world. They are widely identified as banes
 of human and international security and harbingers of anarchy. Their very existence violates
 the Weberian ideal-type of the state as a monopolist over the use of force. I argue, however,
 that reliance on non-state violence-wielders has been a common form of military development
 and is not necessarily associated with state failure. I use small, medium, and large-n methods
 to develop a theory of how and why developing states rely on non-state actors to implement
 coercion. Through historical case studies of Indonesia and Iraq, regional comparisons of
 Southeast Asia and the Middle East, and statistical analysis across eighty-five cases, I draw
 the following conclusions: First, decolonization was a critical juncture that led states to
 adopt different techniques for organizing coercion. Specifically, revolutionary states tended
 to decentralize coercive power by assimilating former revolutionary fighters into informal
 local militias. In contrast, non-revolutionary states directly inherited European-trained
 armies with more conventional, centralized organizational patterns that placed the use of
 force firmly in state hands. Second, post-colonial conditions of regional competition
 compelled some states to continually upgrade and centralize coercive power, while states
 facing weaker external challengers could co-opt militias for counterinsurgency without needing
 direct control over coercion. By exploring the dynamics of state-militia relations and the
 historical and structural factors that inhibit or enable the use of state-sponsored militias,
 I highlight the futility of many efforts at state reconstruction aimed to regain the illusory
 monopoly over coercion. The emergence of both centralized and decentralized institutions of
 violence are responses to the international system and can scarcely be addressed through
 piecemeal efforts at the country level. Rather, I suggest that violence devolution may
 alleviate, rather than cause, some of the dangers commonly attributed to frail or failed
 states.


Purpose: To determine the prevalence rate of primary nocturnal enuresis (PNE) in Shanghai; evaluate the impact of PNE and the effects of PNE treatments. Methods: Anonymous questionnaires containing close-ended questions were completed by the children's parents. The impact of enuresis and effect of treatment were quantitatively analysed using numerical rating scales (NRSs). Findings: PNE prevalence was 4.0%, decreasing with age. "Annoyance" with PNE was reported by 70.6% parents and 55% children (51.3% children aged 7-9.9 years; 75% children aged 10-12 years). 32.6% patients had visited a hospital, of whom, 62% were advised lifestyle modification to promote self-healing. In all, 87% parents thought the treatments effective (NRS score, ≥2). Conclusions: PNE prevalence among children in Shanghai City is not low, especially, in the low-income group. PNE had a greater impact on parents than on children. Few children had visited a hospital, and the treatments prescribed generally produced small improvements.


Abstract:Blockchain technology, while commonly associated with cryptocurrencies, stands to bring radical structural change to the arts and creative industries. This paper presents a history, primer, and taxonomy of blockchain use cases in the arts and then explores the implications of blockchain in three regards: the blurring of the for-profit / nonprofit distinction, changes in the ownership structure of art, and potential for new structures of public and private support and related policy changes. These developments raise important questions of governance of a technology which requires expertise in cryptography, coding, and securities law for implementation. Ultimately, blockchain holds the potential to tip the role of the arts toward democratic availability through collective ownership structures or toward further commodification of cultural assets.


This investigation continues the study of the classical problem of stationary configurations of an elastic rod on a plane. The length of the rod, the ends of the rod and the directions at the ends are fixed. The problem was first studied by Leonard Euler in 1744 and the optimal synthesis problem is still an open problem. Euler described a family of geodesics containing the solutions, which are called Euler elasticae. It is known that sufficiently small pieces of Euler elasticae are optimal, i.e., they have a minimum of the potential energy. In theory, the point where an optimal curve loses its optimality is called a cut point. Usually several optimal curves arrive at such points, so the points have multiplicity more than 1 and are called Maxwell points. The aim of this work is to describe numerically Maxwell points where two nonsymmetric elasticae come with the same length and energy value.


Jingju as a genre has been extensively studied and its performance is not unfamiliar
to the Western audience, who know it by the terms "Chinese opera" or "Peking
opera". There are however few studies on the texts of jingju plays. The present
thesis examines jingju plays written from 1790 to 1911, analyzing their features and
achievements. It makes extensive use of texts from the Che Wang Fu Repertoires,
which have been edited and published only in recent years. It will argue that,
contrary to the accepted scholarly opinions, fin& plays are highly significant
because they deal with new ideas, reinterpretations of history and the critique of
traditions.
The thesis devotes each chapter to one major subject area in jingju plays. They are:
Marketplace Play and Love Story Play produced during the incubating period of
jingju, History Play, Courtroom Play and Frontier Fortress Play created during the
later stage of the development of jingju. In dealing with each area the thesis will
analyze the achievements and significance of the texts of jingju plays. Developed from various popular xiqu in the late eighteenth and nineteenth century,
jingju plays arose at a time when the traditional Chinese hierarchical society was on
the verge of collapse. In the depiction of daily life or matters involving historical or
ideological issues, jingju playwrights raised a number of major questions not
touched on by classical xiqu playwrights. Jingju playwrights have achieved
breakthroughs in their criticisms of traditional culture, traditional moral codes and The thesis argues that three main factors contributed to the breakthroughs of jingju
plays. Firstly, commercialism played an important role in the rise of popular
playwrights and the expansion of popular arts and literature in the later periods of
Chinese traditional society, particularly in the late Qing. Another factor was
political. The abolition of the official musician prostitutes, for example, facilitated
the further commercialization of the performing arts. The third factor was literary.
Jingju playwrights inherited new ideas, plots, characterization and settings of
popular literature such as popular novels.


The paper provides an introduction into the innovative use of the methodological approach of Mediated Discourse Analysis (MDA) and illustrates this with examples from an interventionist insider action research study. An overview of the method, including its foundation and association with the analysis of practice and how it can be situated within a reflexive ethnographic and critical realist stance is presented.
It offers samples of findings and analysis for each of the different aspects of method, structured by a set of heuristic questions, as well an example showing the possibilities of theory development. The paper constructs and shows an analytical pathway for potential MDA researchers to use and concludes with a discussion about the advantages of utilising MDA, in terms of theory and practice, as well as the practical issues in conducting an MDA study. The implications for the Human Resource Development (HRD) research community is that MDA is a new, innovative and germane approach for analysing HRD practice within organisational settings.


This study aimed to investigate the relationship between children's prosocial behavior and self-regulation skills. To collect the data of the study, demographic information form developed by the researcher was used for the demographic information of children, the prosocial behavior sub-dimension of the social behavior scale was used for the prosocial behavior, and the self-regulation skills scale was used for the self-regulation skills of the children. The collected data were analyzed by independent sample t-test, Pearson's product moment correlation analysis and simple linear regression analysis in a computer package software. As a result of the research, while the self-regulation and prosocial behaviors of children differed according to gender and age of children, the situation of the children whether they have siblings and duration of the pre-school education did not make any significant difference. According to these results, girls' self-regulation and prosocial behavior scores were higher than that of boys and 6 years of age children's scores were higher than that of 5 years of age children. While there was a moderate positive significant relationship between self-regulation skills and prosocial behavior, it was concluded that the prosocial behavior of children predicted self-regulation skills at the level of 11%.


Abstract. Significance: Spatial frequency domain imaging (SFDI) is an imaging modality that projects spatially modulated light patterns to determine optical property maps for absorption and reduced scattering of biological tissue via a pixel-by-pixel data acquisition and analysis procedure. Compressive sensing (CS) is a signal processing methodology which aims to reproduce the original signal with a reduced number of measurements, addressing the pixel-wise nature of SFDI. These methodologies have been combined for complex heterogenous data in both the image detection and data analysis stage in a compressive sensing SFDI (cs-SFDI) approach, showing reduction in both the data acquisition and overall computational time. Aim: Application of CS in SFDI data acquisition and image reconstruction significantly improves data collection and image recovery time without loss of quantitative accuracy. Approach: cs-SFDI has been applied to an increased heterogenic sample from the AppSFDI data set (back of the hand), highlighting the increased number of CS measurements required as compared to simple phantoms to accurately obtain optical property maps. A novel application of CS to the parameter recovery stage of image analysis has also been developed and validated. Results: Dimensionality reduction has been demonstrated using the increased heterogenic sample at both the acquisition and analysis stages. A data reduction of 30% for the cs-SFDI and up to 80% for the parameter recover was achieved as compared to traditional SFDI, while maintaining an error of <10  %   for the recovered optical property maps. Conclusion: The application of data reduction through CS demonstrates additional capabilities for multi- and hyperspectral SFDI, providing advanced optical and physiological property maps.


A magnesium ion conducting polymer blend electrolytes based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) complexed withmagnesiumacetate ((CH3COO)2Mg) was prepared using solution cast technique. The typical complex impedance spectrumof the optimumsample at different temperatures comprises of a broadened semicircle in the high frequency region followed by a tail in the lower frequency region. The ionic conductivity increased with increasing dopant concentration. The 30 wt. % (CH3COO)2Mg doped systemhas amaximumconductivity of 3.23 x 10–5 S/ cm at 373 K. The frequency dependent ac conductivity of optimum conducting composition (OCC) at different temperatures shows a frequency independent plateau in the lowfrequency region and exhibits dispersion at higher frequencies. The ionic conductivity of polymer blend electrolyte was measured by varying the temperature ranging from 303 to 373 K. The temperature dependence of ionic conductivity reveal that conduction mechanism is Arrhenius type thermally activated process. The dielectric and modulus studies were studied at different temperatures.


For the high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) power transmission system of offshore wind power, dc/dc converters are the potential solution to collect the power generated by off-shore wind farms to HVDC terminals. The converters operate with high-voltage gain, high efficiency, and fault tolerance over a wide range of operating conditions. In this paper, an isolated ultrahigh step-up dc/dc converter with a scalable modular structure is proposed for HVDC offshore wind power collection. A flyback-forward converter is employed as the power cell to form the expandable electrically isolated modular dc/dc converter. The duty ratio and phase-shift angle control are also developed for the proposed converter. Fault-tolerant characteristics of the converter are illustrated through the redundancy operation and fault-ride-through tests. Redundancy operation is designed to maintain high operation efficiency of the converters and fault-ride-through operation improves the converter reliability under harsh operating conditions. Analytical studies are carried out, and a 750-W prototype with three modular cells is built and experimentally tested to verify the performance of the proposed modular dc/dc converter.


My understanding of urban lake governance and sustainability in India is presented through this research. The approach of understanding is intrigued by the usefulness of the social-ecological system framework, which is a legacy of Elinor Ostrom's theoretical and empirical foundations on long term sustainable resources and their management. Urban lake is a social-ecological system, wherein an ecological system is linked with and affected by one or more social systems in complex manner. Governing and sustaining an urban lake entails investigations and improvements in its social and ecological characteristics such as, the lake ecology, its use and users, governance and the contextual environment (urban- an important criteria) within which they are located. Governing and sustaining these characteristics involve complex problems and processes and understanding them requires sound analytical tool and systematic analysis. The social-ecological system framework with its multivariate classificatory structure proved useful theoretical and methodological opportunity to explore, describe and explain the complexity of urban lake governance and sustainability in India. The framework is applied in multiple stages using multiple methods and multiple cases. The multi-stage findings present a comprehensive (broad to in-depth) overview of what is happening in the governance and sustainability of urban lake systems in India. Learning the theoretical and methodological application of the social-ecological system framework became an integral part of learning about the urban lake systems. The research, therefore, is as much about the application of the social-ecological system framework as it is about the governance and sustainability of urban lake systems in India.


The healthcare ecosystem continually produces huge volumes of structured and unstructured data. Cognitive computing, a new computing paradigm, promises to effectively help healthcare researchers and practitioners to derive precious information from data. Arguably, the most famous cognitive computing system is called IBM Watson, which has been adapted to different domains, including healthcare. In this paper, we investigate whether there is a natural demand for cognitive computing systems coming from healthcare workers. Specifically, using the technology acceptance model to guide our efforts, we study different perceptions from healthcare professionals from the Netherlands regarding IBM Watson. The results from our interviews show that virtually all the perceptions are very negative. We list several reasons underlying these perceptions alongside potential ways of changing them. We believe our results are of great value to health information technology professionals trying to introduce a potentially groundbreaking product and to organizations that are contemplating investing in those technologies.


One of the three pillars of CA is the use of crop residues (CR) for mulching. However, in smallholder farming systems that combine crop production and livestock husbandry (mixed systems), CR are usually an essential source of feed, restricting their availability for mulching. Additionally in these systems, CR fulfil other functions such as providing fuel and additional income through sale. Smallholder production in mixed systems supports the livelihoods of almost two thirds of the global population, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia (Herrero et al., 2010). The integration between crops and animals not only enhances agricultural production, but also improves household food intake and income and provides a buffer against climate risks (Thornton, 2010). The need to cover their own food requirements and household expenses pushes smallholder farmers to favour practices with positive returns in the short term, which may affect the sustainability of the systems in the long term. Farmers' decisions are influenced by biophysical and socio-economic drivers including climate, population dynamics, market access and other institutional mechanisms. The focus of this paper is on the trade-offs of CR use in a range of smallholder mixed systems in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and South Asia (SA). The objective of this paper is threefold: (i) to describe the different CR farmer uses in these mixed systems; (ii) to understand what biophysical and socio-economic drivers explain differences in CR allocation; and (iii) to include these findings in the broader discussion on long term sustainability issues in mixed systems and constraints for CA practices adoption.


The value of new archaeological knowledge is strongly determined by how credible it is, and a key measure of scientific credibility is how replicable new results are. However, few archaeologists learn the skills necessary to conduct replication as part of their training. This means there is a gap between the ideals of archaeological science and the skills we teach future researchers. Here we argue for replications as a core type of class assignment in archaeology courses to close this gap and establish a culture of replication and reproducibility. We review replication assignments in other fields and describe how to implement a replication assignment suitable for many types of archaeology programs. We describe our experience with replication in an upper-level undergraduate class on stone artifact analysis. Replication assignments can help archaeology programs give students the skills that enable transparent and reproducible research.


A three-pronged approach has been used to design rational improvements in self-assembled monolayer field-effect transistors: classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to investigate atomistic structure, large-scale quantum mechanical (QM) calculations for electronic properties, and device fabrication and characterization as the ultimate goal. The MD simulations reveal the effect of using two-component monolayers to achieve intact dielectric insulating layers and a well-defined semiconductor channel. The QM calculations identify improved conduction paths in the monolayers that consist of an optimum mixing ratio of the components. These results have been used both to confirm the predictions of the calculations and to optimize real devices. Monolayers were characterized with X-ray reflectivity measurements and by electronic characterization of complete devices.


The loading cycle in an Open Pit mine is a critical stage in the production process that needs to be controlled in detail for performance optimization. A comprehensive Alert System designed to notify supervisors of cycle times that are below the required performance standards is proposed. The system gives an alert message when one or several trucks are idle or the time of completing production tasks are over a predefined value. This alert is identified by the system and compared with pre-established Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in order to determine corrective actions. The goal is to determine the strategies that help the production supervisor to optimize the haulage cycle model. A discrete-event simulator has been built in order to analyze different scenarios for route design and queue analysis. A methodology that utilizes different algorithms has been developed in order to identify the least productive times of the fleet. These results are displayed every time the simulation has finished. This research focuses on the optimization of haulage. However, the system is intended for implementation in subsequent stages of the production process, and the resulting improvement could impact mine planning and management as well. Topographic and drilling exploration data from a mine located hypothetically in the state of Arizona, were used to build a block model and to design an open pit; an Arena-based simulation was used to generate operating cycles that represent actual operations (As-Is model). Once the Alert System is implemented, adjustments were applied, and a new simulation was performed taking into consideration these adjustments (To-Be model), including comparative analysis and statistical results.


The dynamics of fermentation were studied with Italian ryegrass ensiled in the laboratory silos. The silos were kept in the room set at 25°C, and then were opened on 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 14 days after ensiling, respectively. The samples were taken from three silos at each sampling time for chemical analyses. Mono-and disaccharides composition was determined for glucose, fructose and sucrose by high performance liquid chromatography. The Italian ryegrass silage succeeded to achieve lactate type fermentation; high values of lactic acid (85.83 g/kg) and lactic acid/acetic acid at the end of ensiling (14 day), low values of pH (3.74), acetic acid (5.38 g/kg), ethanol (19.20 g/kg) and NH3-N/Total N (75.84 g/kg), no or only small amounts of butyric acid, valeric acid and propionic acid. The fermentation dynamics showed a fast and large pH decrease caused by a fast and large production of lactic acid during the first 5 days. Mono-and disaccharides composition largely decreased within initial 0.5 day (12 h) of ensiling. Sucrose disappeared rapidly within initial 0.5 day of ensiling, and fructose and glucose contents showed an initial rise during ensiling, and then decreased gradually. These indicated that the enzymes of plant tissue were active within 2 days of ensiling, which caused the initial rise in fructose and glucose from the hydrolysis of sucrose and fructans. After 5 days of ensilage, glucose was consumed completely, suggesting that glucose was the first fermentation substrate. After 2 days of ensiling, sum amounts of lactic acid and remaining mono-and disaccharides proved to be larger than the quantity of mono-and disaccharides in the initial grass. From the facts mentioned above, it was suggested that considerable amounts of lactic acid were produced from some other substrate such as fructans than initial mono-and disaccharides. (Asian-Aust. J. Anim. Sci. 2002. Vol 15, No. 11 : 1606-1610)


Objective
Research into the cognitive consequences of the recreational use of ketamine in humans is sparse. Research that does exist has indicated impairments in cognition and memory, including deficits in working memory and executive function. Whether such deficits extend to everyday memory, such as prospective memory (PM: memory for future plans and actions), is unclear. The present study attempts to address this by comparing recreational ketamine users with a group of non-users on self-reported and objective measures of PM.

Method
An existing-groups design was utilised, comparing a group of 18 recreational ketamine users (using ketamine between 1-3 times per week, but had not used the substance for at least 48 hours) and 19 non-users (who reported never having used ketamine). Scores on the self-report Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire (PRMQ) and scores on a Prospective Remembering Video Procedure (PRVP: an objective measure of PM for location-action combinations remembered whilst viewing a video clip of busy shopping district) constituted the dependent measures. Age, mood, IQ, and other drug use were also measured.

Results
A series of one-way ANOVAs revealed no between-group differences in terms of age, mood, IQ and other drug use. A MANCOVA (controlling for retrospective memory scores) revealed that although the two groups did not differ in terms of their self-reported PM deficits on the PRMQ, ketamine users did recall significantly fewer location-action combinations on the PRVP than the non-using group.

Conclusion
The results from the present study suggest that recreational ketamine users exhibit deficits in their objective PM that are independent of retrospective memory. PM deficits should therefore be added to the growing list of neuropsychological sequelae associated with sub-acute recreational usage of ketamine.


The purpose of the study was to assess the characteristics of dental trauma in individuals with cerebral palsy (CP). The study group consisted of 68 individuals (36 boys and 32 girls) who visit daily a school dedicated for children with CP. Their age ranged between 7 and 21 years with a mean age of 12.6 years. The majority (74%) required a wheel chair for mobility, 13% used a walker and the others were able to walk with crutches or without aid. The parents were asked to complete a questionnaire regarding their child's age, gender, medical history, and history of dental trauma. The teeth were evaluated clinically for evidences of past injuries to the teeth, enamel defects in the permanent incisors, scars on the chin and size of overjet. Thirty-nine individuals (57%) had signs of trauma to the permanent teeth. Sixty-eight teeth, mostly the maxillary central incisors, were injured. Boys were slightly less affected than girls, 56% (20/36) and 59% (19/32), respectively. Fracture of enamel and dentine was the most common type of injury (62%). Scars on the chin were detected in 28% of the individuals but only one had fractures of the molar (primary) teeth. The overjet ranged between -3.0 and +14 mm but no correlation could be found between the size of the overjet and tendency to injure the teeth. Localized enamel defects were detected on the labial surface of 13 teeth in nine individuals, probably due to luxation injuries to the primary incisors. The prevalence of dental injuries in a group of individuals with CP was found to be much higher than that of healthy populations despite the fact that CP individuals do not take part in violent sport activities as healthy children do. This should alert caregivers to carry out a profound investigation of the events that result in dental injuries in disabled individuals and suggest methods to reduce this type of morbidity.


In the present work, TZ-3Y20A/Mo multilayer composites were prepared by sedimentation method. Appropriate settling parameters were chosen and green bodies of multilayer composites were obtained by settling TZ-3Y20A powder and Mo powder in turn according to the designed individual layer thickness. Then green laminates were hot pressed at 1773K for an hour under the pressure of 20MPa. Three-point Bending and Single Edge Notched Beam (SENB) tests were adopted to evaluate the flexure strength and fracture toughness of the samples. The results showed that, compared to TZ-3Y20A ceramics, the fracture toughness and the work of fracture increased due to the layered structure. The microstructure and crack deflection of the fracture surface of the laminated composites was also observed by optical microscopy.


Large scale biomass power plants can make substantial contributions to the carbon savings needed to address the challenges of climate change. However, it is important to ensure that they also perform well across a broad range of sustainability issues. The rapidly evolving political and legislative agenda has resulted in a number of different sustainability reporting frameworks being developed for different bioenergy systems in different counties. Most of these give general consensus on the ecological principles applied, but there are some differences in approach and scope. Whilst many aspects of sustainability can be effectively managed using existing assessment methods and certification schemes, the differences in reporting frameworks can make it difficult for developers to objectively assess every sustainability aspect of all the links in their supply chains. This paper identifies the key challenges in assessing sustainability within that context. RES has carried out such an assessment of some theoretical but plausible supply chains, using the Cramer framework and this paper gives indications of some of the key considerations that arise from that assessment.


While sleep states have existed for mobile devices and workstations for some time, these sleep states have not been incorporated into most of the servers in today's data centers. High setup times make data center administrators fearful of any form of dynamic power management, whereby servers are suspended or shut down when load drops. This general reluctance has stalled research into whether there might be some feasible sleep state (with sufficiently low setup overhead and/or sufficiently low power) that would actually be beneficial in data centers. This paper investigates the regime of sleep states that would be advantageous in data centers. We consider the benefits of sleep states across three orthogonal dimensions: (i) the variability in the workload trace, (ii) the type of dynamic power management policy employed, and (iii) the size of the data center. Our implementation results on a 24-server multi-tier testbed indicate that under many traces, sleep states greatly enhance dynamic power management. In fact, given the right sleep states, even a naive policy that simply tries to match capacity with demand, can be very effective. By contrast, we characterize certain types of traces for which even the "best" sleep state under consideration is ineffective. Our simulation results suggest that sleep states are even more beneficial for larger data centers.


Adventure tourism is one of the main travel activities in the world. For instance, adventure tourism is among the primary contributors to the economy in Sabah, which is undertaken by most travellers who visit the state. This study was conducted to identify the perceptions of the local Sabahan visitors regarding adventure tourism activities at Tunku Abdul Rahman Park. Other than identifying the services and activities offered at Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, this study also seeks to examine how adventure tourism activities impact the environment of the islands. A 300 set of self-administrated questionnaires were distributed to the local visitors of Tunku Abdul Rahman Park islands (Manukan, Mamutik, Sapi, and Gaya). It was found that the majority of the local visitors indeed know about adventure tourism activities and they were satisfied with the services and activities offered at Tunku Abdul Rahman Park. While adventure tourism activities are deemed unharmful to the environment as they are believed to benefit the economy, it remains imperative that the infrastructure on the islands be improved. This study will benefit policymakers and tourism operators in Malaysia, especially in Sabah with insightful findings for the Sabah Parks management and Sabah Tourism Board in undertaking promotional ideas that pique the interests of potential tourists to visit the islands whilst sustaining the long-term environment of the islands.


This thesis provides a comparative theoretical analysis and empirical description of teachers' Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in Abuja and Portsmouth. The theoretical sections comprise a comprehensive review of literature that examines teaching as a profession and key developments and the contribution of CPD towards teacher professionalization in both countries.
The empirical aspect investigates and discusses the findings relating to teacher professional development, providing a comparative analysis of teacher profile and CPD in both countries.
The aim of this research is to identify, compare and evaluate teachers' CPD in English and Nigerian primary schools, in order to explore any transferable best practices that can enhance the quality of teachers in an urban district of Abuja. It draws upon literature on comparative education research as an underpinning concept, and examines the peculiarities between the public and private primary schools foregrounding the unique context of urban Abuja.
The study uses qualitative research design and a combination of mixed methods including interviews, questionnaires and a comprehensive review of literature and documents over the last two decades. Field work was carried out between September 2009 and June 2010, and the survey sample consisted of 205 teachers in Abuja, 48 in Portsmouth, and interviews with headteachers and CPD coordinators. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and cross tabulations using PASW 18 which are presented in tables, figures and charts.
Findings suggest that teaching conditions and opportunities for CPD in both countries may differ based on contextual factors; however, there is a common drive towards professionalism and teacher quality. Better opportunity for teacher professional development exists in private schools in Abuja, which is attributable to more autonomy, competitive market and high demand for quality education. The study highlights some transferable practices which include a planning and implementation model, and a SPARC framework for teachers' CPD which constitutes skills, professional training, attitude, and research and collaborative activities. It suggests implications for further research and recommendations for school leaders, researchers and policy makers.


Brain-damaged patients with slow mental processes may be taught compensatory strategies that might enable them to minimise disabilities and participation problems in daily life. The effects of the application of compensatory strategies should be measured in these domains of functioning. We systematically reviewed existing outcome measures used to evaluate the consequences of mental slowness. We classified measures into four categories: (1) standardised neuropsychological tests; (2) tests or questionnaires measuring general cognitive impairment; (3) measures of general everyday functioning; and (4) measures of everyday consequences of mental slowness. The majority of measures for mental slowness focus on performance in specific cognitive tasks. We found seven studies that used nine measures which focused on task-related or perceived limitations in everyday functioning. We discuss a series of reasons why measures of the perception of slowness (including the perceived consequences of slowness) and the performance in everyday activities should be used. Such measures may be more likely to detect change or differences in performance and are certainly more relevant to patients.


The 1000-year climatic and environmental history of the Earth contained in various proxy records is examined. As indicators, the proxies duly represent or record aspects of local climate. Questions on the relevance and validity of the locality paradigm for climatological research become sharper as studies of climatic changes on timescales of 50–100 years or longer are pursued. This is because thermal and dynamical constraints imposed by local geography become increasingly important as the air-sea-land interaction and coupling timescales increase. Because the nature of the various proxy climate indicators are so different, the results cannot be combined into a simple hemispheric or global quantitative composite. However, considered as an ensemble of individual observations, an assemblage of the local representations of climate establishes the reality of both the Little Ice Age and the Medieval Warm Period as climatic anomalies with world-wide imprints, extending earlier results by Bryson et al. (1963), Lamb (1965), and numerous other research efforts. Furthermore, these individual proxies are used to determine whether the 20th century is the warmest century of the 2nd Millennium at a variety of globally dispersed locations. Many records reveal that the 20th century is likely not the warmest nor a uniquely extreme climatic period of the last millennium, although it is clear that human activity has significantly impacted some local environments.


Thyroid hormone resistance (THR) is a rare genetic syndrome in which tissue sensitivity to thyroid hormones is decreased, determining high levels of serum thyroid hormones and normal or elevated thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH).1 In most cases THR is due to mutations in the thyroid hormone receptor beta (THRB) gene.2 Suspicion of THR arises in the setting of inappropriate TSH secretion, where a TSH-secreting pituitary adenoma should also be ruled out. THR and TSH-omas have been classically considered two distinct entities, but differential diagnosis may be sometimes blurred.3 Thyroid autoimmunity may exist in THR,4 but reports have generally depicted a mild clinical picture. Case records describing the development of overt Graves' disease with severe cardiac alterations are extremely rare. A 46 year-old woman, with a previous history of simple hysterectomy due to uterine fibroids, was referred for evaluation of the following thyroid hormone profile: TSH 2.86 U/mL (normal 0.3--5.6), FT4 2.87 ng/dL (0.8--1.7). She only recalled occasional increased heart rate and headache. Physical examination was unremarkable, except for a subtle goiter (grade Ia). Repeated laboratory evaluation one month later revealed TSH 10.5, FT4 2.2, FT3 7.32 pg/mL (2.5--3.9), antithyroperoxidase antibodies (TPOAb) 6170 U/mL (<40), anti-thyroglobulin antibodies (TGAb) 126 U/mL (<80) and anti-TSH-receptor antibodies (TSI) 11 U/mL (<13). Pituitary laboratory evaluation showed IGF-1 142 ng/mL (normal for age and sex), prolactin (PRL) 2541 U/mL (100--410), LH 1.2 U/L, FSH 3 U/L, estradiol 81 pg/mL, ACTH 22 pg/mL (9--54), cortisol 234 ng/mL (65--230). Radioactive iodine uptake (RAIU) was not elevated. Pituitary magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed mild pituitary enlargement, with a hypoenhancing 13 mm lesion on the left side. Levels of TRH-stimulated TSH, measured in a standard 90 min test, increased more than 200% and levels of alpha-subunit were normal (0.31 mU/mL, normal <1.6, ratio TSH/TSH = 0.05, normal < 1). An octreotide suppression test showed no changes in thyroid hormones or PRL. Cabergoline 1 mg/week was started, and titrated up to 2 mg/week. Hyperprolactinemia was adequately controlled six months later, while biochemical hyperthyroidism persisted (TSH 5, FT4 2.5, PRL 401), and pituitary MRI showed reduction of the adenoma to 7 mm. Genetic testing identified a point mutation in the THRB gene (c.1642C>G) leading to a missense change of Proline 453 to Arginine (p.P453R). During the following months, the patient maintained clinical stability with TSH levels in the upper limit of normal and mildly elevated FT4 and FT3. PRL levels remained normal under cabergoline. The pituitary adenoma remained unchanged. One year later, the patient developed sleeping difficulties, tremor, and anxiety. Physical examination of her thyroid had not change, but laboratory work up at this time revealed TSH 0.45, FT4 2.91, FT3 8.16, Anti-TPO 2572, Anti-TG 443, Anti-R-TSH 5, and RAIU showed a slightly increased uptake, suggesting the onset of primary hyperthyroidism. She started carbimazole 10 mg/day, but, despite correct adherence to treatment and dose increase, euthyroidism was not achieved (Fig. 1), and she developed atrial fibrillation. I-131 therapy (16 mCi) was performed. Laboratory follow-up showed progressive increase of TSH (up to 40 U/mL), with FT4 and FT3 in the normal-high range. She started low-dose L-T4 (25 g/day), which was then cautiously increased. At the last follow-up, her thyroid hormone levels were still elevated (TSH 20.0, FT4 3.3, FT3 4.0), but she remained asymptomatic, and with an adequate heart rate. Most cases of THR occur due to mutations in the THRB gene, but its associated phenotype may vary,1 and the gene defect may remain unknown in 15% of subjects.2 Suspicion of THR arises in the setting of inappropriate TSH production, but its diagnosis may be hindered if pituitary enlargement coexists,3 or by pitfalls in laboratory findings.5 In our patient, although the lack of family history could favor the existence of a TSH-secreting tumor, the null response to the octreotide test, the elevated levels of PRL, and the mild clinical picture despite high thyroid hormone levels, supported the hypothesis of THR and prolactinoma coexistence. THR was confirmed with a positive genetic testing, whilst the significant response to cabergoline suggested the existence of a prolactinoma.


Globally, there are about 48 million couples and 186 million individuals of reproductive age that are affected by infertility. Some cases of infertility in both men and women have been attributed to impaired follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) signaling. Lack of proper function of the cognate receptor for FSH (FSHR) could contribute to infertility since the biochemical signal generated by FSH binding to FSHR stimulates the production of a sperm‐stabilizing protein in males and follicle maturation in females. It has been demonstrated that human FSHR (hFSHR) localizes to lipid rafts, which are rigid and detergent‐resistant microdomains in the cell membrane. Their structure is in part due to having higher concentrations of cholesterol and sphingolipids compared to the surrounding plasma membrane. Additionally, some lipid rafts are characterized by the presence of the protein caveolin. Signaling pathways for some cell surface receptors have been demonstrated to be regulated by residency in lipid raft domains either by separating the related molecules inhibiting premature signaling or by co‐localizing the related molecules to facilitate signaling. Based on evidence that FSHR forms direct protein‐protein interactions with caveolin, it was hypothesized that disruption of the caveolin binding motif (CBM), a conserved peptide sequence present in proteins associated with caveolin, would affect hFSHR signaling. In hFSHR this sequence is found in transmembrane helix 4 between amino acids 479‐489. The current study investigated the effect of mutations in the CBM on hFSHR signaling. The mutants were created via site‐directed mutagenesis and expression vectors were transfected in HEK293 cells. Cells stably expressing the mutant FSHRs underwent western blot analysis for qualitative comparison of signaling. Mutations in all four conserved phenylalanine residues of the CBM resulted in much higher signaling compared to the wild‐type and at a faster rate of activation. Elevated signaling at shorter FSH treatment times suggest that the mutated receptor might be more sensitive to FSH and may hint at the role of the caveolin interaction in regulating hFSHR signaling. Because current infertility treatments are costly, tend to have low success rates, and are not accessible to everyone, a greater understanding of FSH signaling pathways could lead to the design of more successful infertility treatment methods.


Currently, the most commonly used injection fillers are broadly classified into hyaluronic acid-based absorbable fillers and semi-permanent fillers. Polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAAG) is classified as a semi-permanent filler and is manufactured under diverse brands including Aquamid, Bio-alcamid, Interfall, Outline, Formacryl, Bioformacryl, Argiform, and Amagingel.

The authors experienced a case of a thirty-four-years-old female patient who underwent PAAG injection for breast augmentation and developed complications ten years after the injection. A number of articles have reported complications of PAAG injection for aesthetic purposes, but it was difficult to find any Korean reports on complications that have occurred as long as ten years after breast augmentation with PAAG.

The patient presented with breast lumps, which had developed six months earlier. The lumps were palpable in two locations: at the upper outer part of the right breast and at the center of the chest between the breasts. The patient had undergone filler injection for breast augmentation ten years earlier at a local clinic in Shenyang, China. The patient only remembered a filler material called Amazingel was used, but did not recall the quantity of the material injected. Through a tracing investigation, we determined that Amazingel was a PAAG-type of filler material manufactured in China. During physical examination, symptoms such as tenderness and a burning sensation were not observed around the lumps, and there was no discomfort other than contour abnormalities resulting from the lumps. A preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan revealed fluid-filled sacs in the retroglandular areas of both breasts, and part of the contents appeared to have leaked out of the capsules (Fig. 1). The MRI images showed filler material with a low signal on T1 weighted images and a high signal on T2 weighted images. PAAG consists of a large quantity of water and has a tendency to appear dark in T1 weighted images and bright in T2 weighted images [1].

Fig. 1

Axial magnetic resonance images show polyacrylamide hydrogel as a low signal on T1 weighted images (A) and as a high signal on T2 weighted images (B) in the retroglandular spaces of the breasts. The images show nodular lesions in the upper outer quadrant ...

The author performed breast implant removal surgery under general anesthesia. Two stab incisions were made in the inframammary folds of the breasts, and dissections were made below the mammary glands. A yellow, granular jelly-like substance was drawn out by breaking off the fibrous capsules (Fig. 2). The foreign substance was extirpated as much as possible by cannula suction and by applying pressure to the breasts. The surrounding tissues as well as the space emptied of the filler were irrigated a number of times with saline solution.

Fig. 2

(A) Preoperative view of polyacrylamide hydrogel (PAAG)-induced lumps in the upper, outer quadrant of the right breast and intermammary area. (B) The injected PAAG shows a yellow, granular, jelly-like appearance.

The T2 weighted image of the pre-operational MRI scan revealed that the gel had a bright signal similar to that of water and presented a lobular outline as well as a zebra-stripe appearance with many septa in it. These have been found to be the characteristics of PAAG in MRI findings in previous studies on polyacrylamide hydrogels [1]. The gross findings of the gel removed from the patient's body resembled those that have been found in PAAG removal cases in previous studies [1,2]. The breast filler was stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), and we observed homogeneous, atypical, violet substances under a microscope. These characteristics were identical to those found in microscopic findings in the studies of Zhao and Cristesen [1-3] (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3

(A) Microscopic findings show atypical dark violet material (H&E, ×40) and (B) a homogenously built polymer gel pool (H&E, ×200).

PAAG is a transparent jelly-type material and consists of 2.5% cross-linked polyacrylamide and 97.5% non-pyrogenic water. It is thought that PAAG is a nontoxic, non-allergenic synthetic biomaterial and is relatively safe for implants due to its hydrophilic and non-degradable characteristics [4]. PAAG was first introduced for aesthetic purposes in the Ukraine in the 1980s and was widely utilized in the old Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. In 1997, PAAG was approved by the Chinese Food and Drug Administration and it has been a popular injection option for local hospitals and private cosmetic clinics in China for correcting facial depressions, lip enhancement, and breast augmentation [4]. However, the safety and benefits of PAAG have also been controversial in China, and as the number of reports on late complications of PAAG have increased, it now rarely used in university hospitals.

Many complications from PAAG injections for aesthetic purposes have been reported thus far [4,5] including breast induration, lump formation, hematoma, inflammation, infection, mastalgia, and lactation. Among these complications, breast induration or lump formation are the most common complications, especially in patients with insufficient breast subcutaneous tissues [1,4,5]. In most cases, removal of PAAG from the breasts led to immediate improvement of the symptoms.

In this case, it was difficult for the authors to remove the gel completely, even with cannula suction, saline irrigation, and manual physical pressure on the breasts. The PAAG was spread over the breast tissues and some even reached deep into the pectoralis major muscle. Qaio et al. [5] reported that patients still had residual PAAG in breast tissues after blind suction, and that repeated blind suctions could injure the surrounding normal breast tissues. Therefore, it is helpful to perform an open surgery through periareolar and inframammary incisions for effective removal, and it is necessary to mention the possibility of incomplete removal to patients prior to the surgery.

The MRI scan was helpful for revealing and treating the complication in this case. PAAG can be easily distinguished on an MRI image from the signals of mammary glands, fat tissue, and muscles. An MRI scan is useful in demonstrating the distribution of injected PAAG and associated lesions as well as planning the treatment for complications of PAAG injection.

According to other reports on similar cases [2], patho-histological examinations have revealed macrophages, giant cells, and lymphocytes in the tissues surrounding the injected PAAG, with foreign body reaction findings. This indicates that the PAAG in breasts affects surrounding tissues and may cause serious foreign body reactions. However, our case report has its limitations in that it does not include a pathological report about the surrounding tissues.

Nonetheless, the remarkable thing about this case is that the patient visited the hospital ten years after the PAAG injection with only the appearance of breast lumps and without any other symptoms such as tenderness, induration, or changes in appearance. Under circumstances where various injection fillers for aesthetic purposes are widely used clinically, this case is clinically remarkable.


Recent use scenarios involving human–robot collaboration have revealed that the robots require elastic joints to safely interact with humans. It is also critical to know applied force/torque (f/t) during the interaction for control and motion planning purposes. In this article, we estimate the external f/t values without using any sensors other than low-cost encoders by exploiting the inherent elastic properties of the joint. For estimation, the following two different approaches are used: model based and model free. In the model-based approach, an extended Kalman filter (EKF) and an external force observer (EFOB) are used considering the dynamical behavior of the system to estimate the interaction force. In the model-free approach, the artificial neural network (ANN) utilizes the data gathered from mechanical systems. In comparative analysis, we have, therefore, considered three different estimation methods, two of which are model based and the remaining one is model free (i.e., data driven). Implementing these estimation algorithms experimentally on a variable stiffness joint, we performed an extensive evaluation of their performances. All methods show similar level of performance in terms of the root-mean-square (RMS) error with 0.0847, 0.0841, and 0.1082 N for the EKF, EFOB, and ANN, respectively. Model-based methods do not require continuous data stream through the experimental set up. On the other hand, the ANN does not need an explicit model of the system; therefore, it may become preferable when the detailed model derivation is not possible.


Alysicarpus monilifer L.(DC.) (Papilionaceae), commonly known as Samervo (Gujarati) or Juhi ghas (Hindi), is a turf forming legume and native to Africa and Asia. In India it is distributed throughout the plains- Madras, Jammu, Bombay, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. It has been used in indigenous system of medicine as anti-inflammatory, in stomach-ache, an antidote to snake bite, in skin diseases and as a diuretic. The leaves are used in fever and jaundice. Herbs show a number of problems when quality aspect is considered because of the various intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Hence, in present work, establishment of the pharmacognostic and phytochemical profile of the aerial parts of Alysicarpus monilifer is carried out, which will assist in standardization, can guarantee quality, purity and also be used to prepare a monograph for the proper identification of the plant. Next we reported the isolation and characterization of compounds from the plant namely stigmasterol and ursolic acid. Also in the study an effort has been made to establish the scientific validity to the reported anti-inflammatory property and analgesic property of methanolic extract using rats


A small change in substrate stiffness can deter striated muscle differentiation, as shown on page 877 by Engler et al. As stiffness changes of this magnitude are not uncommon in diseased tissues, injections of stem cells may be useless unless the target environment is also treated.

Figure

Striation (middle) is inefficient on too soft (left) or too hard (right) surfaces.

Muscular dystrophy patients suffer from stiffened muscle tissue. Although muscle precursors are abundant in mdx mice, a muscular dystrophy model, they fail to regenerate injured muscle. The new article shows that this failure may be due to their overly stiff environment, which prevents skeletal muscle striation.

Skeletal muscle precursors spread, assumed a spindle shape, and fused into multinucleated cells when grown on surfaces within a wide range of stiffness. However, striation—the alignment of actin and myosin into repeated units—was blocked if the substrates were either too soft (e.g., fibroblasts or weak gels) or too stiff (e.g., glass).

Adhesions were strongest on the stiffest substrate. Differentiation therefore requires enough adhesion to sense the matrix stiffness, but not so much that cytoskeletal changes leading to striation are inhibited. What translates forces felt at adhesion sites into differentiation is unknown, but the membrane-bound scaffold protein N-RAP is one possibility, as it both nucleates actin filaments and regulates transcription.

Striation was most prominent on substrates within just 25% of the stiffness of normal muscle. The authors found that mdx muscle is stiffer than this optimal range, and thus may inhibit differentiation of its own precursors. If cardiac muscles are similarly sensitive, careful application of antifibrotics may be needed before injections of precursor cells can regenerate tissue damaged by heart attacks. ▪


This excellent book illustrates the role of toxicology in the investigation of suspected poisoning and, more important still, its limitations. Herr Thorwald writes of abstruse technicalities in such a way as to be intelligible to the lay reader. He develops his argument by reference to actual cases, notorious and less well-known, in a style which holds the attention from start to finish. The evolution of tests for arsenic and their fallacies occupies a good part of the work and it is significant that there was as much conflict of expert opinion in the Besnard case in 1949-61 as there was in the affair of Marie Lafarge a hundred years before. There are still doubts as to the significance of arsenic in the soil in its relationship to that found in the body. Early studies in the extraction of vegetable alkaloids and their identification make an interesting chapter. The poisoning of Gustave Fouquies by Count Bocarrne with nicotine is related clearlv and serves as an excellent introduction to the chernistrv of these substances. Herr Thorwald also mentions morphine and, coming up to the 'present day, a parathion murder and our well-known R v. Barlow. It is sobering to realize that experience has always shown early tests for poisons to be clouded with fallacy. New possibilities of error were always cropping up and "one must know how to doubt" is the toxicologist's guiding principle. Once again we see how a case must always be viewed as a whole, and not capable of solution simply by the expert in the laboratory, useful though his contribution may be. On the whole, however, movement in toxicology has always been forwards and the vast increase in poisonous compounds will subject the science to further trials. The Hippocratic aphorism that experience is fallacious and judgment difficult applies above all to the forensic analyst. This book could be read with advantage by a student starting his course in forensic medicine, or by a postgraduate reading for the Diploma in Medical Jurisprudence. Herr Thorwald is to be congratulated on this third work of his trilogy, which is very highly recommended. GAVIN THURSTON.


This study was covered palynofacies and paleodepositional environment of the Chai Gara, Garagu, Sarmord and Qamchuqa formations along Atrush, Shaikhan and Sarsang oilfields in Duhok Region northern Iraq. Six main types of palynofacies were recognized within the studied formations. The palynofacies one (PF.1) and two (PF.2) are appeared in Chia Gara Formation, these two types of palynofacies are characterized by dominant amorphous organic matters (AOM), especially in PF.2 which reaches to 90%, moderate palynomorphs content ranges between 5 – 59%, whereas the phytoclasts are relatively low percentages (1 – 5%). The identified palynofacies indicate that the paleodepositional environment of the Chia Gara Formation is distal suboxic-anoxic basin (IX) to dysoxic-anoxic shelf (VII). Garagu Formation is represented by palynofacies three (PF.3) and palynofacies four (PF.4), the former one is characterized by the abundant of palynomorph, ranges between 41 – 85% (comprised mainly of pollen, spores, foraminifera test lining and few dinoflagellates), while the latter one is rich by amorphous organic matter which is between 55 – 63%, in both palynofacies the percentage of phytoclast is low to moderate ranges change from 7 – 19, and 3-35% respectively. Paleodepotional environment of the Garagu Formation is oxic shelf (V, VIII). The Sarmord Formation is represented by palynofacies five (PF.5), this palynofacies is characterized by high percentage of phytoclasts which reaches to 74%, with moderate palynomorphs and amorphous organic matter ranges between 11 – 31%, 12 – 38% respectively. Shelf to basin transition (IV) is the claimed environment for the Sarmord Formation. Qamchuqa Formation is represented by palynofacies six (PF.6), this facies is also high percentage of phytoclasts content but more than PF.5, which the range is 48 – 85% with a moderate percentage of palynomorphs (12 – 43%) and a low percentage of amorphous organic matter (3 – 15%). The Qamchuqa Formation was deposited under proximal oxic shelf (III) condition.


BACKGROUND
Improvements in the health and survival of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) have led to increasingly normal lifestyles, including successful pregnancies in women with CF. Concern exists among care providers about the impact of pregnancy on the health of women with CF.

STUDY OBJECTIVES
We examined data from a large longitudinal observational study, the Epidemiologic Study of Cystic Fibrosis (ESCF), to characterize health outcomes and CF-related therapies in women who became pregnant.

DESIGN
This analysis was conducted using ESCF data from 1995 to 2003.

PATIENTS
A total of 216 women, aged 15 to 38 years, who met the criteria for a qualifying pregnancy, were compared with a matched group of never-pregnant women during three time periods (ie, baseline, during pregnancy, and follow-up).

INTERVENTIONS
None.

RESULTS
The baseline pulmonary function (FEV(1)) values were 74.5% and 66.4% predicted, respectively, in the pregnant and nonpregnant women. Declines in FEV(1) values of 6.8% and 4.7%, respectively, were observed from baseline to follow-up in the pregnant and nonpregnant women (p = 0.61). During pregnancy, outpatient visits were 33% more frequent compared to baseline and 62% more frequent than in the nonpregnant group (7.19 vs 4.45, respectively, visits annually). Annual rates of respiratory exacerbation and hospitalization were similar at baseline but increased during pregnancy. The prevalence of treatment for diabetes more than doubled, from 9.3% at baseline to 20.6% during pregnancy, and was 14.4% at follow-up. In contrast, 18.7% of the never-pregnant women were being treated for diabetes at baseline, rising to 25.2% at follow-up.

CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggest that, over the same time period, women with CF who become pregnant experienced similar respiratory and health trends as nonpregnant women. However, pregnant women use a greater number of therapies and receive more intense monitoring of their health. These findings have implications for clinicians providing prepregnancy counseling for women with CF.