Although Notch signaling has been widely implicated in neoplastic growth, direct evidence for in vivo initiation of neoplasia by the pathway in murine models has been limited to tumors of lymphoid, breast, and choroid plexus cells. To examine tumorigenic potential in the eye and brain, we injected retroviruses encoding activated forms of Notch1, Notch2, or Notch3 into embryonic mice. Interestingly, the majority of animals infected with active Notch3 developed proliferative lesions comprised of pigmented ocular choroid cells, retinal and optic nerve glia, and lens epithelium. Notch3-induced lesions in the choroid, retina, and optic nerve were capable of invading adjacent tissues, suggesting that they were malignant tumors. Although Notch3 activation induced choroidal tumors in up to 67% of eyes, Notch1 or Notch2 activation never resulted in such tumors. Active forms of Notch1 and Notch2 did generate a few small proliferative glial nodules in the retina and optic nerve, whereas Notch3 was 10-fold more efficient at generating growths, many of which were large invasive gliomas. Expression of active Notch1/Notch3 chimeric receptors implicated the RBPjk-association molecule and transactivation domains of Notch3 in generating choroidal and glial tumors, respectively. In contrast to our findings in the optic nerve and retina, introduction of active Notch receptors, including Notch3, into the brain never caused glial tumors. Our results highlight the differential ability of Notch receptor paralogs to initiate malignant tumor formation, and suggest that glial precursors of the optic nerve, but not the brain, are susceptible to transformation by Notch3.


Abstract. Due to low calcium carbonate saturation states, and winter mixing that brings anthropogenic carbon to the deep ocean, the Nordic Seas and their cold-water corals are vulnerable to ocean acidification. Here, we present a detailed investigation of the changes in pH and aragonite saturation in the Nordic Seas from preindustrial times to 2100, by using in situ observations, gridded climatological data, and projections for three different future scenarios with the Norwegian Earth System Model (NorESM1-ME). During the period of regular ocean biogeochemistry observations from 1981–2019, the pH decreased with rates of 2–3 × 10−3 yr−1 in the upper 200 m of the Nordic Seas. In some regions, the pH decrease can be detected down to 2000 m depth. This resulted in a decrease in the aragonite saturation state, which is now close to undersaturation in the depth layer of 1000–2000 m. The model simulations suggest that the pH of the Nordic Seas will decrease at an overall faster rate than the global ocean from the preindustrial era to 2100, bringing the Nordic Seas' pH closer to the global average. In the esmRCP8.5 scenario, the whole water column is projected to be undersaturated with respect to aragonite at the end of the 21st century, thereby endangering all cold-water corals of the Nordic Seas. In the esmRCP4.5 scenario, the deepest cold-water coral reefs are projected to be exposed to undersaturation. Exposure of all cold-water corals to corrosive waters can only be avoided with marginal under the esmRCP2.6 scenario. Over all timescales, the main driver of the pH drop is the increase in dissolved inorganic carbon (CT) caused by the raising anthropogenic CO2, followed by the temperature increase. Thermodynamic salinity effects are of secondary importance. We find substantial changes in total alkalinity (AT) and CT as a result of the salinification, or decreased freshwater content, of the Atlantic water during all time periods, and as a result of an increased freshwater export in polar waters in past and future scenarios. However, the net impact of this decrease (increase) in freshwater content on pH is negligible, as the effects of a concentration (dilution) of CT and AT are canceling.


This study examines the short fiction of the Norwegian writer Cora Sandel (pseudonym for Sara Fabricius, 1880-1974), primarily the short story collections En bla sofa (A blue sofa, 1927), Carmen og Maja (Carmen and Maja, 1932), Mange takk doktor (Thank you, doctor, 1935), Dyr jeg har kjent (Animals I have known, 1945) and Figurer pa mork bunn (Figures against a dark background, 1949).The first chapter gives an introduction to the short story genre and some of its theories. A survey of the reception of Sandel's short stories in Norway and Sweden is also presented. This is followed by a discussion of realist and modernist traits in Sandel's short fiction. Sandel's exile and its meaning for her writing is also examined, as well as the complex of gender, power, and language in her stories. The use of gender theory in the readings is also discussed.The two following chapters consist of readings of the short stories. They show how Sandel represents women in her stories as powerless, but also as connected with a hidden, not verbalized truth. This is also visible in the stories' technique, where Sandel pays special attention to the narrative act. In the animal stories from 1945, it is shown how Sandel elaborates the same themes and techniques, and also problematizes biographical truth. Sandel's representation of women and the Second World War, which is the theme of her last short story collection, is also examined.The conclusion is that Sandel was an innovator of the short story in Scandinavia. Her acute awareness of the form as well as the content of the text resulted in short stories where power-related and gendered truth is examined and problematized.


Orexins are hypothalamic neuropeptides that regulate feeding, reward, wakefulness and energy homeostasis. The present study sought to characterize the involvement of orexin A in glucose metabolism in HepG2 human hepatocellular carcinoma cells, and investigated the role of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) in the response. HepG2 cells were exposed to different concentrations of orexin A (10−9 to 10−7 M) in vitro, without or with the orexin receptor 1 (OX1R) inhibitor (SB334867), HIF-1α inhibitor (YC-1) or a combination of both inhibitors. Subsequently, OX1R, HIF-1α expression and localization, glucose uptake, glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) expression and ATP content were measured. We further investigated the intracellular fate of glucose by measuring the gene expression of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDK1), lactate dehydrogenase (LDHA) and pyruvate dehydrogenase B (PDHB), as well as metabolite levels including lactate generation and mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) activity. The activity of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway was also assessed. Our results showed that the expression of OX1R was predominantly located in the nucleus in HepG2 cells. Orexin A oxygen-independently promoted the mRNA and protein expression of HIF-1α as well as its nuclear accumulation in HepG2 cells and the elevated HIF-1α protein was associated, at least partly, with the activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway. Orexin A stimulated GLUT1 expression, glucose uptake as well as ATP generation in HepG2 cells via OX1R acting through the HIF-1α pathway. Moreover, orexin A inhibited LDHA, PDK1 expression and lactate production, stimulated PDHB expression and PDH enzyme activity independent of HIF-1α. Our results indicated that orexin signaling facilitated the glucose flux into mitochondrial oxidative metabolism rather than glycolysis in HepG2 cells. These findings provide new insight into the regulation of glucose metabolism by orexin A in hepatocellular carcinoma cells.


GPT-2 and BERT demonstrate the effectiveness of using pre-trained language models (LMs) on various natural language processing tasks. However, LM fine-tuning often suffers from catastrophic forgetting when applied to resource-rich tasks. In this work, we introduce a concerted training framework (CTnmt) that is the key to integrate the pre-trained LMs to neural machine translation (NMT). Our proposed CTnmt} consists of three techniques: a) asymptotic distillation to ensure that the NMT model can retain the previous pre-trained knowledge; b) a dynamic switching gate to avoid catastrophic forgetting of pre-trained knowledge; and c) a strategy to adjust the learning paces according to a scheduled policy. Our experiments in machine translation show CTnmt gains of up to 3 BLEU score on the WMT14 English-German language pair which even surpasses the previous state-of-the-art pre-training aided NMT by 1.4 BLEU score. While for the large WMT14 English-French task with 40 millions of sentence-pairs, our base model still significantly improves upon the state-of-the-art Transformer big model by more than 1 BLEU score.


Mechanical Force Generator (MFG) is a planar and one degree of freedom mechanism that can provide any desired conservative force output that acts on its input links. One can reduce energy consumption of an actuator driving an existing machine by connecting an MFG (which provides any desired, optimum force variation) to a suitable link of the machine. In previous studies, determination of the optimum force variation has been investigated. In order to experimentally verify the performance improvement by coupling an MFG to a machine, a case study has been proposed. In this case study, a DC motor drives a symmetrical slider-crank mechanism at a constant angular speed. A conservative force is applied on the slider links of the mechanism and an MFG is designed to compensate for this conservative load on the motor. In this paper, the mechanical design and the electronic components of the experimental setup are explained. Finally, the controller performance and the power consumption of the actuator, with and without the application of the MFG, are discussed.


The article describes newborn sleep patterns and includes a discussion of factors influencing neonatal sleep. An important nursing role is to teach parents about infant sleep and to reinforce American Academy of Pediatrics' recommendations on sleep position. Central nurseries, feeding schedules, and constant lighting affect newborn sleep behavior. Nurses can change policies and create an environment in the hospital that enhances parent-infant synchrony. Nurses also have a role both prenatally and in follow-up settings to educate parents about newborn sleep.


Cervical vertigo, the entity of neck disorder and associated vestibular symptoms, was investigated in 15 suspected subjects and results were compared with 15 age-matched controls. A modified dynamic posturography investigation with different head positions was used. Head position was recorded 3-dimensionally with electrogoniometry. Differences on a sway-referenced forceplate were found.


When 1 14C-palmitic acid is used to pulse label logarithmic cultures of Tetrahymena pyriformis, radioactivity appears in lipids of the various membrane types at vastly differing rates . The microsomes and postmicrosomal supernatant attain a high specific radioactivity within 1 min, while the membranes enveloping the cilia require several hours to reach the microsomal level. A similar pattern is obtained when the tracer is sodium 11 40-acetate or 8,9 8H-hexadecyl glycerol . In all fractions the phosphonolipid incorporates radioactivity from 14C-palmitate much less rapidly than do the other major phospholipids .The patterns of labeling suggest that new lipids are transported from a cytoplasmic site of synthesis to points of membrane fabrication throughout the cell


Author(s): Katin, William M | Advisor(s): Urdank, Albion | Abstract: "Aryanization" is the Nazi term for the cheap purchase of Jewish firms during the Third Reich with the ultimate goal of eliminating Jews from the German economy. Eleven of the largest such companies in Germany are examined in this dissertation and a noticeable pattern becomes evident. In an atmosphere of anti-Semitism, conservative non-Nazi businessmen approached Germany's three largest banks to request that they withdraw existing loans from the Hermann Tietz department store chain. Although this study focuses on the large Hermann Tietz and Leonhard Tietz retailers, it presents a new paradigm of Aryanization through analyses of the patterns of acquisition of massive publishing houses, as well as an enormous private bank, brewery, and gun manufacturer. The financial institutions participated because they earned fees, appointed bank executives to the formerly Jewish firms' Supervisory Boards and became the house bank conducting all future transactions. Courts were unwilling to intervene in the coerced acquisitions, because they shared the same conservative mindset as the businessmen and financial institutions. By focusing on the Jewish enterprises, it appears that the largest enterprises were frequently purchased in 1933-1935, whereas the tiny "Mom-and-Pop-shops" usually went out-of-business in 1938. This insight has not been noticed by the traditional model, since it does not differentiate between large and small companies. The cheap purchase of Jewish-owned companies occurred throughout the 1933 through 1938 timeframe. Saul Friedlander keenly observed a radical break in its implementation during these six pre-war years, with the pre-1936 period being a time of "relative moderation." He discerned a "new phase on the internal German scene" in 1936 in its manner of actualization, which had profound consequences. The 1936 break in the style of execution occurred due to Germany's economic growth and return to full employment as well as Goring's appointment to the Four Year Plan to prepare the nation for war. With regard to the Jewish citizens, the resulting "internal radicalization" in 1936 necessitated that in the opinion of the Reich "their assets [be] impounded for the benefit of German rearmament." Furthermore, Schacht's dismissal in 1938 also contributed to the Government replacing private opportunists as the key player in Aryanization. There were two periods of Aryanization. The 1933-1935 period, discussed in this dissertation, was characterized by an ad-hoc private initiative perpetrated by non-Nazi businessmen. In contrast, the 1936-1938 period was an organized state activity leading to the exclusion of Jewish businessmen from the German economy.Many historians have successfully elucidated the later 1936 through 1938 period of Aryanization directed from Berlin for the benefit of the state or private parties. By observing that the largest of Jewish-owned companies were taken during the earlier 1933 through 1935 period, this dissertation would like to make a contribution to scholarship. The responsibility for the 1933-1935 Aryanizations is placed firmly on the private sector, rather than on either the Nazi political party or on the central government in Berlin as has been characterized for the 1936-1938 timeframe. Another comprehensive break in the Aryanization process was the later focus on tens of thousands of mid-sized and small businesses as contrasted with the earlier conglomerates. The later timeframe additionally also concentrated on houses, apartments, acreage and even synagogues. This coincides with Friedlander's far-reaching break between the two periods of Aryanization. Although the following quotation concerns the difference between the prices paid for large versus small firms, perhaps Friedlander could accept my interpretative inclusions, which coincide with my perspective: "As noted in chapter 1 , recent research indicates that the considerable scope of [later] Aryanization at the medium- and small-business level was not indicative of the [earlier] situation at the higher level of the economy." The interpretive adaptation of Friedlander illustrates that although this dissertation is indebted to him for an Aryanization paradigm, with a thoroughgoing differentiation before and after 1936, there are some significant contributions in this research. Another such example concerns the role of Conservatives in the process of expropriating Jewish companies. Friedlander viewed Conservatives, such as Schacht, as a protection for the continuation of Jewish ownership or at least that fair market value would be offered. However, research uncovered in this dissertation indicated that in the earlier 1933-1935 period, Conservative businessmen without any capital were extended loans by Conservative bankers to coerce a sale in which Conservative judges were unwilling to ensure that justice was achieved. For the most part, one does not find documentation in the archives concerning the earlier 1933-1935 intervention by Adolf Hitler, Hermann Goering, or Rudolf Hess in the seizure of large Jewish-owned department stores, publishing houses, banks, and breweries. Instead, the key participants in the acquisition of such non-Gentile firms are non-NSDAP Party members, such as Joachim Tiburtius, Georg Karg, Max Winkler, Walther Frisch and Herbert Hoffmann. In Chapter III Section B4, this Dissertation has discovered and extrapolated on the venomous feature articles and lampoons beginning in December 1927 by Propaganda Minister Goebbels. However, my research process actually began by means of a different approach. In 2010, Business Historian Jeff Fear recommended that I begin my Aryanization research by reading microfilm on Hermann Goring's Four Year Plan. Two significant differences immediately emerged between my 1933-1935 bottom-up approach in the investigation of seizing Jewish firms and a later top-down procedure. First, I discovered that in building his financial colossus, Goring had not depended upon acquiring firms from the consumer sector as the private Aryanizers did. Goring's NSDAP-inspired technique involved acquiring control over firms in the Autobahn construction, car manufacturing and synthetic fuel and fiber replacement industries. Second, following Friedlander's observation, Goring's Four Year Plan commenced in 1936, which was after the timeframe from 1933 to 1935 in which the major Jewish companies had been "purchased." Private "purchases" of Jewish-owned businesses for personal benefit occurred years before Goring's acquisition of war-related industries for the state's benefit. The Dissertation does not seek to answer the question of whether comparatively smaller private sector Aryanizations influenced the later NSDAP's public infrastructure acquisitions. In addition, neither Friedlander nor I attempt to address the quantitative issues of what percentage of rearmament funding originated with Hjalmar Schacht's Metallurgische Forschungsgesellschaft promissory notes (also known as Mefo bills) as opposed to the requisition of Jewish assets. The hesitancy to be more quantitatively precise in both Aryanization and the funding of German rearmament is indirectly acknowledged by Friedlander's admission: "It is difficult to assess what was paid... to the tens of thousands of Jewish owners..." This dissertation merely seeks to contribute to the understanding of early Aryanization. Neither the Aryanization by the state or by private individuals in the later 1936-1938 period are addressed. Numerous other economic issues remain for future research, including other private to public transitions such as the private pre-1933 building of the Autobahn to the later Organisation Todt construction of the roads. One of the three largest financial organizations was the Dresdner Bank. Its executive Karl Rasche was made a scapegoat by his firm in the subsequent war-crimes trials at Nuremberg. In contrast, little is known about other Dresdner Bank executives, not to mention the numerous local bank managers who organized lists of local businessmen seeking a quick profit. Similarly, little is known about German businessmen, who were not Nazi Party members, but who nevertheless took advantage of the political circumstances to enrich themselves. Germans viewed post-war de-Nazification proceedings as "victor justice," and thus these post-war processes are replete with whitewashed assessments of how German businessmen acquired Jewish firms. Since the original Jewish proprietors were usually unaware of the confidential negotiations between the three banks and the new Gentile owners, the restitution trials are often unhelpful to the historian. Nevertheless the common perspective of a "perpetrator" as one carrying a weapon, is expanded to include "ordinary" non-Nazi businessmen who enriched themselves at Jewish expense.


Mixed-lineage leukemia (MLL) fusions are potent oncogenes that initiate aggressive forms of acute leukemia. As aberrant transcriptional regulators, MLL-fusion proteins alter gene expression in hematopoietic cells through interactions with the histone H3 lysine 79 (H3K79) methyltransferase DOT1L. Notably, interference with MLL-fusion cofactors like DOT1L is an emerging therapeutic strategy in this disease. Here, we identify the histone H2B E3 ubiquitin ligase ring finger protein 20 (RNF20) as an additional chromatin regulator that is necessary for MLL-fusion–mediated leukemogenesis. Suppressing the expression of Rnf20 in diverse models of MLL-rearranged leukemia leads to inhibition of cell proliferation, under tissue culture conditions as well as in vivo. Rnf20 knockdown leads to reduced expression of MLL-fusion target genes, effects resembling Dot1l inhibition. Using ChIP-seq, we found that H2B ubiquitination is enriched in the body of MLL-fusion target genes, correlating with sites of H3K79 methylation and transcription elongation. Furthermore, Rnf20 is required to maintain local levels of H3K79 methylation by Dot1l at Hoxa9 and Meis1. These findings support a model whereby cotranscriptional recruitment of Rnf20 at MLL-fusion target genes leads to amplification of Dot1l-mediated H3K79 methylation, thereby rendering leukemia cells dependent on Rnf20 to maintain their oncogenic transcriptional program.


By editing the Monumenta Linguae Messapicae (Wiesbaden 2002), realised between 1996 and 1999 at the University of Tubingen as part of a DFG Project, a new software, developed and widely used in the archaeology field, was for the first time improved for epigraphic aims: the Bonn Archaeological Software Package (BASP). In detail, the "seriate" tool, which is included in the Package, enables the chronological ordering of inscriptions coming from defined contexts, sequencing the Units (=Inscriptions) by a principle of association of similar letter types. A chronological oriented track chart ("Streugraphic") is the result of the processing, where single epigraphic phases can be distinguished and observed: each phase can moreover be dated, if acceptable dating sources are available for some items. The new software tool can open interesting research output for Epigraphy, since it makes possible the drawing of chronological grids of inscriptions by stable coordinates. Furthermore, the insertion of new inscriptions in the chart and their relative chronological assignment can easily be obtained with the new method.


The article addresses some issues connected with the disciplinary status of lexicography. Drawing on the views of scholars such as L. Zgusta, R. Ilson, H. Wiegand, R. Gouws, H. Bergenholtz, S. Tarp, R. Lew and others, the author argues in favour of the viewpoint that lexicography is a science and that working on a dictionary is a scientific activity. The main issues tackled in the paper include understanding the complex nature of word meaning, the role of dictionaries in the description of word meaning and the development of lexical semantics. Attention is also paid to the definitional method of the study of word meaning, which is based on the analysis of dictionary definitions, components of the theory of lexicography, the relation between lexicographic theory and practice, and the teaching of lexicography as an academic discipline at universities. The author argues that the right approach to lexicography and its disciplinary status is particularly important in our era of globalisation. Only state-of-the-art lexicographic and corpus resources will secure the future of many languages, particularly lesser-used languages, and such resources will not be created until lexicography receives proper recognition as a science with "big interdisciplinary vocation" (Tarp 2017); until lexicography is turned into an academic discipline through advanced theory of lexicography, through teaching lexicography at universities, etc.


Through years of development, we have successfully demonstrated 3D light field lithography with UV continuous light. We recently combined this approach with femtosecond laser sources as two-photon femtosecond 3D light lithography. It is found that consistent results can happen under limited conditions with this direct combination. Our theoretical analysis reported last year shows that the experimental difficulty can be attributed to digital micro-mirror devices (DMD) and microlens arrays (MLA) used in the current 3D light field projection. Though they can control the propagation directions and interact at designed 3D locations, rays from such a system diverge with respect to the propagation distance. As a result, 3D voxel intensity in the 3D projection changes as a function of the separation distance with respect to the MLA in the 3D projection. To solve this problem, we replace the combination of DMD and MLA with a phase-controlled spatial light modulator. With a lab-developed algorithm, a single femtosecond laser pulse can generate up to a million sub-rays through the phase-controlled spatial light modulator. These sub-rays with a precisely controlled propagation direction can intersect at designed 3D locations as voxels for 3D virtual object constructions. Moreover, these sub-rays have minimum divergence angles to ensure that the voxel intensities are maintained consistently at each 3D location. We also demonstrated that versatile 3D patterns could be generated with two-photon femtosecond 3D light field lithography based on this innovative approach.


CIRCA Screen is a new venue dedicated to film and video.
A liminal space between gallery and cinema, Screen presents
a programme of single-screen artists' film and video, promoting dialogue around the ways in which artists work with the moving image and the screen.

The exhibition Video Show is the first time Eric Bainbridge has shown his works in this medium as stand-alone projections presented in a cinematic context. Previously, these works have been presented as objects themselves, on gallery monitors amongst other three dimensional work. Whilst his three dimensional works are internationally renowned, Bainbridge's videos remain a relatively unconsidered aspect of his extensive body of work. Bainbridge first began using video to document objects and incidents in the studio nearly twenty years ago, at a time when his entire way of working was changing dramatically.

The process of making video has played a key part in Bainbridge's thirty-five year long career, marking a turning point between his fur-clad sculptures of the 1980s, and his experimental and increasingly complex work during the 1990s.

Bainbridge's early videos use the static shot to show sculptural works in time; inviting us to look again at what a sculpture is and can be as well as thinking deeper about the act of looking.
n later videos, more incidental moments are captured with equal amounts of humour and philosophical play.
Eric Bainbridge In Conversation with Modern British Sculpture co-curator, and British Art Show 7 artist, Keith Wilson. The event is free, and takes place on the evening of 20 September.
Eric Bainbridge
— 'Two sausages' Print produced to accompany the exhibition
Archival pigment print on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308gsm.
Paper size: 360 x 432mm, Image size: 203 x 250mm, 2011.
Available in an edition of 50. Signed and numbered by the artist.


Close packing of the fine particles is one of the core technologies of preparation of reactive powder concrete. This paper introduces the concept of soil liquid limit in close packing evaluation. Theoretically, the closer of particles pack, the lower is the water demand. The mixture with a lower water demand is expected to have a lower liquid limit. Mixtures were obtained by measuring the cone penetration at different moisture content. By means of numerical fitting and linear interpolation, the liquid limits of the mixtures were obtained,where the software of Matlab was used. The close packing condition of the powders particles could be predicted according to the liquid limits. Strength test confirmed that application of liquid limit in mixing proportion design of reactive powder concrete is feasible. So, this may be a new way for the preparation of reactive powder concrete.


Component technology developments are sought for the range of flight sensors, actuators, and associated algorithms and software required to provide these improved capabilities. Technologies that apply to most spacecraft platform sizes will be considered.


The demands of job on nursing mothers and the emerging trends for the woman to be a co-breadwinner are likely factors to consider in examining the practice of exclusive breastfeeding among health care providers. This study examined the convenience for health care providers regarding exclusive breastfeeding in relation to the nature of their jobs, work environment and home support. Three hundred and thirty respondents were purposively surveyed using a validated questionnaire; they were drawn from among medical doctors, nurses and laboratory technicians in private, state and federal government hospitals in Lagos metropolis. One research question on conducive job environment was raised and two hypotheses were tested on husband and employer' supports. The study revealed that most of the amenities that should be provided in the workplace were not available; health care providers practicing exclusive breastfeeding enjoyed the support of their husbands; but employers' support was not evident. The study recommended that female health care providers and their employers should be educated on how to amicably manage the practice of breastfeeding in a way that will benefit both employers and employees. Also, caregivers, nannies and helpers handling babies feeding should be educated on proper management and procedure relating to extracted breastmilk for the baby. Keywords: Health Education, exclusive breastfeeding, complementary breastfeeding, healthcare providers, workplace, descriptive survey, Lagos Metropolis


Case study evidence suggests that exporting firms learn from their clients. But econometric evidence, mostly using exporting and TFP growth, is mixed. We use a UK panel data set with firm-level information on exporting and productivity. Our innovation is that we also have direct data on the sources of learning (in this case about new technologies). Controlling for fixed effects we have two main findings. First, we find firms who exported in the past are more likely to then report that they learnt from buyers (relative to learning from other sources). Second, firms who had learned from buyers (more than they learnt from other sources) in the past are more likely to then have productivity growth. This suggests some support for the learning-by-exporting hypothesis.


Abstract Aims: Radiofrequency-based electrophysical agents (EPAs) have been used in therapy practice over several decades (e.g. shortwave therapies). Currently, there is insufficient evidence supporting such EPAs operating below shortwave frequencies. This laboratory-based study investigated the deep physiological effects of 448 kHz capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency (CRMRF) and compared them to pulsed shortwave therapy (PSWT). Methods: In a randomized crossover study, 17 healthy volunteers initially received four treatment conditions: high, low and placebo dose conditions receiving 15-min CRMRF treatment and a control condition receiving no intervention. Fifteen participants additionally received high-dose PSWT as fifth condition, for comparison. Pre- and post-treatment measurements of deep blood flow and tissue extensibility were obtained using Doppler ultrasound and sonoelastography. Group data were compared using analysis of variance model. Statistical significance was set at p ≤ .05, 0.8 power, and 95% confidence interval. Results: Significant increases in volume and intensity of deep blood flow were obtained with CRMRF over placebo, control (p = .003) and PSWT (p < .001). No significant changes in blood flow velocity or tissue extensibility were noted for any condition. Conclusions: Deep blood flow changes with CRMRF were more pronounced than that with PSWT, placebo or control. Potential greater therapeutic benefits need to be confirmed with comparative clinical studies.


One of the requirements in machine vision applications is that the light source and the environment are selected correctly. If the analyzed object is not properly illuminated, it is inadequate for obtaining the desired result using the captured images. A correct lighting luminaire allows to distinguish the examined object from the environment it interacts with and ensures that its attributes are obtained correctly. In this study an intelligent dynamic lighting system for illumination of a closed area has been developed. The tested luminaire has three arms. Accelerometer readings are used for positioning and orientation. Using the developed system, the positions of the armature can be estimated by bipolar sigmoid technique, according to the point the user wants to illuminate. The system measures the light level with 72 LDR, calibrated with a luxmetre.


Impurity free vacancy disordering (IFVD) is a post-growth means of cation intermixing in binary semiconductor heterostructures that can be used to produce lateral modulation of the constituent material without the need for deep etching and growth procedures, and thus has enormous potential for the integration of such features as optical waveguides and quantum confined heterostructures into planar devices. IFVD is performed by coating the semiconductor surface with SiO/sub 2/ or with SiO/sub 2/:P prior to an anneal stage, resulting in distinct intermixing-enhanced and intermixing-suppressed regions, respectively due to a difference in the associated rates of cation out-diffusion. We have performed time-resolved photoluminescence microscopy on GaAs/AlGaAs multiple quantum wells that have been processed into one dimensional gratings by spatially selective IFVD. Results indicate that a complex relationship exists between the absolute stripe widths, the stripe width ratio, and the period, in determining the optical properties of the grating.


Abstract Historically, due to a lack of measured soil physical data, the quality of Irish soils was relatively unknown. Herein, we investigate the physical quality of the national representative profiles of Co. Waterford. To do this, the soil physical quality (SPQ) S-Index, as described by Dexter (2004a,b,c) using the S-theory (which seeks the inflection point of a soil water retention curve [SWRC]), is used. This can be determined using simple (S-Indirect) or complex (S-Direct) soil physical data streams. Both are achievable using existing data for the County Waterford profiles, but until now, the suitability of this S-Index for Irish soils has never been tested. Indirect-S provides a generic characterisation of SPQ for a particular soil horizon, using simplified and modelled information (e.g. texture and SWRC derived from pedo-transfer functions), whereas Direct-S provides more complex site-specific information (e.g. texture and SWRC measured in the laboratory), which relates to properties measured for that exact soil horizon. Results showed a significant correlation between S-Indirect (Si) and S-Direct (Sd). Therefore, the S-Index can be used in Irish soils and presents opportunities for the use of Si at the national scale. Outlier horizons contained >6% organic carbon (OC) and bulk density (Bd) values <1 g/cm3 and were not suitable for Si estimation. In addition, the S-Index did not perform well on excessively drained soils. Overall correlations of Si. with Bd and of Si. with OC% for the dataset were detected. Future work should extend this approach to the national scale dataset in the Irish Soil Information System.


A model for nursing provides a framework for viewing the phenomena about which nursing is concerned: man and the ways in which nursing cares for man. Conceptual in nature, the model is drawn from reality and pertains to reality, but does not constitute reality (Johnson, 1969). As a conceptual framework, the model serves to give direction to nursing practice, research and curriculum development.
 The purpose of this paper is to present and explain the model for nursing developed by the School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia*. Designed to view man as a behavioural system, the U.B.C. Model is formed by certain assumptions about man. Supporting these assumptions is a set of beliefs about nursing and its practice. The assumptions and statements of beliefs define nursing's unique function and identity why, when and how this function is carried out.


Nanotechnology Applications in Food-Alexandru Grumezescu 2017-02-22 Nanotechnology Applications in Food: Flavor, Stability, Nutrition, and Safety is an up-todate, practical, applications-based reference that discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each application to help researchers, scientists, and bioengineers know what and what not to do to improve and facilitate the production of food ingredients and monitor food safety. The book offers a broad spectrum of topics trending in the food industry, such as pharmaceutical, biomedical, and antimicrobial approaches in food, highlighting current concerns regarding safety, regulations, and the restricted use of nanomaterials. Includes how nanobiosensors are useful for the detection of foodborne pathogens Discusses applications of nanotechnology from flavor and nutrition, to stability and safety in packaging Includes nano and microencapsulation, nanoemulsions, nanosensors, and nano delivery systems Identifies practical applications of nanoscience for use in industry today


A presentation prepared at the Launch of the Dairy Genetics East Africa Project (DGEA), ILRI Campus, Nairobi, 9 February 2011.


Hypothesis Laparoscopic liver surgery is significantly limited by the technical difficulty encountered during transection of substantial liver parenchyma, with intraoperative bleeding and bile leaks. This study tested whether the use of a bioabsorble staple line reinforcement material would improve outcome during stapled laparoscopic left lateral liver resection in a porcine model. Study design A total of 20 female pigs underwent stapled laparoscopic left lateral liver resection. In group A (n = 10), the stapling devices were buttressed with a bioabsorbable staple line reinforcement material. In group B (n = 10), standard laparoscopic staplers were used. Operative data and perioperative complications were recorded. Necropsy studies and histopathological analysis were performed at 6 weeks. Data were compared between groups with the Student's t-test or the chi-square test. Results Operating time was similar in the two groups (64 ± 11 min in group A versus 68 ± 9 min in group B, p = ns). Intraoperative blood loss was significantly higher in group B (185 ± 9 mL versus 25 ± 5 mL, p \ 0.05). There was no mortality. There was no morbidity in the 6week follow-up period; however, two animals in group B had subphrenic bilomas (20%) at necropsy. At necropsy, methylene blue injection via the main bile duct revealed leakage from the biliary tree in four animals in group B and none in group A (p \ 0.05). Histopathological examination of the resection site revealed minor abnormalities in group A while animals in group B demonstrated marked fibrotic changes and damaged vascular and biliary endothelium. Conclusion Use of a bioabsorbable staple line reinforcement material reduces intraoperative bleeding and perioperative bile leaks during stapled laparoscopic left lateral liver resection in a porcine model.


Movable railroad bridges, consisting of lift, bascule, or swing bridges have been used by American rail tracks that cross usable waterways for over a century. Although custom made, movable bridges share many common components and designs. Most of them use weight bearing towers for the movable span using electric or electro-hydraulic systems lift and/or rotate these movable spans. Automated locks hold the bridge in place as soon as the movement stops. The bridge operation, train and ship signaling systems work in synchrony for trains and waterway traffic to be granted safe passage with minimal delay. This synchrony is maintained by using custom-made control systems using Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) or Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs). Controllers located on the movable and the static parts of the bridge communicate using radio and/or wired underwater links sometimes involving marine cables.
 The primary objective of this paper is to develop a framework to analyze the safety and security of the bridge operating systems and their synchronous operations with railway and waterway systems. We do so by modeling the movable physical components and their control system with the interconnected network system and determine the faults and attacks that may affect their operations. Given the prevalence of attacks against PLCs, FPGAs and controllers, we show a generic way to determine the effect of what if scenarios that may arise due to attacks combined with failures using a case study of a swing bridge.


Abstract Forest structure and tree species composition were studied in four Atlantic seasonal forest fragments ranging from 0.7 to 220 ha, isolated for more than a century in southeastern Brazil. Four physiognomic units were recognized within these fragments: (1) low forest, (2) bamboo forest, (3) high forest, and (4) mature forest. Tree density, basal area, and species diversity (Shannon-Wiener index) increased from low forest to bamboo forest to high forest to mature forest. Liana cover was highest in low forest. Gap-opportunistic species were the dominant ecological group in low forest, bamboo forest, and high forest, while shade tolerant canopy species formed the dominant group in mature forest. These structural and compositional features formed a gradient of forest development from the least developed low and bamboo forests to the most developed mature forest. Low forest is hypothesized to be in a stage of arrested succession and high forest a stage of degraded forest. A conceptual model is suggested to explain how these physiognomic units may be related to one another. Although these fragments were covered mainly by high and low forests and thus had a degraded structure, species diversity remained high in all of them. Fragments thus may undergo degradation long after isolation, even when they have been protected from human disturbance for a considerable period. Nonetheless, they also preserve important samples of local and regional floristic diversity for a long time after isolation.


Prolonged storage ( approximately 2 years) or gentle heating (50-80 degrees C) of crystalline 2,5-dibromo-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (DBEDOT) affords a highly conducting, bromine-doped poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), as confirmed by solid-state NMR, FTIR, CV, and vis-NIR spectroscopies. The novel solid-state polymerization (SSP) does not occur for 2,5-dichloro-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (DCEDOT), and requires a much higher temperature (>130 degrees C) for 2,5-diiodo-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (DIEDOT). X-ray structural analysis of the above dihalothiophenes reveals short Hal.Hal distances between adjacent molecules in DBEDOT and DIEDOT, but not in DCEDOT. The polymerization may also occur in the melt but is significantly slower and leads to poorly conductive material. Detailed studies of the reaction were performed using ESR, DSC, microscopy, and gravimetric analyses. SSP starts on crystal defect sites; it is exothermic by 14 kcal/mol and requires activation energy of approximately 26 kcal/mol (for DBEDOT). The temperature dependence of the conductivity of SSP-PEDOT (sigma(rt) = 20-80 S/cm) reveals a slight thermal activation. It can be further increased by a factor of 2 by doping with iodine. Using this approach, thin films of PEDOT with conductivity as high as 20 S/cm were fabricated on insulating flexible plastic surfaces.


This study describes the kinetics of induction and growth as well as the property of persistence of 7-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT)-stained cell populations (GGT-positive foci) induced in hamster buccal pouch epithelium by a 5-week regimen of bi weekly topical applications of 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA). During such treatment, and at various times thereafter, GGT-positive foci were detected and quantitated in whole mounts of pouch epithelium stained histochemically for GGT activity. A comparison of GGT-positive foci at the completion of the DMBA regimen and at 10 weeks thereafter revealed no significant decrease in either the number or the size of the foci. During the same 10-week posttreatment period, several dysplastic and occasional neoplastic lesions, some of which dis played patchy GGT activity, developed in the pouch epithelium of DMBA-treated animals. Twenty-two hamsters were sacrificed between the 15th and 34th weeks of the experiment for histological and histochemical study. Fifteen of these animals had grossly visible epithelial neoplasms, and the 11 which could be evaluated using the whole-mount technique had a few residual GGT-positive foci. None of the 33 control animals evaluated at various times during the experiment developed any gross, micro scopic, or GGT-positive lesions. These data indicate that, following a 5-week regimen of DMBA applications, an appreciable number of GGT-positive foci persist throughout the latent period, during which dysplastic and neo plastic buccal pouch lesions develop. The expression of GGT activity in early hyperplastic and dysplastic lesions and its per sistence in several animals provide additional support for the hypothesis that GGT-positive foci may represent sites of sub sequent neoplastic development.


Background Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) can influence the immune system, possibly increasing the risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In addition, as metabolic change due to obesity has been proposed as one mechanism of osteoarthritis (OA), POPs stored in adipose tissue may be also associated with OA. Objective Our goal in this study was to examine associations of background exposure to POPs with arthritis among the general population. Design We investigated cross-sectional associations of serum POPs concentrations with the prevalence of self-reported arthritis in 1,721 adults ≥ 20 years of age in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999–2002. Results Among several POPs, dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) or nondioxin-like PCBs were positively associated with arthritis in women. After adjusting for possible confounders, odds ratios (ORs) were 1.0, 2.1, 3.5, and 2.9 across quartiles of dioxin-like PCBs (p for trend = 0.02). Corresponding figures for nondioxin-like PCBs were 1.0, 1.6, 2.6, and 2.5 (p for trend = 0.02). Organochlorine (OC) pesticides were also weakly associated with arthritis in women. For subtypes of arthritis, respectively, RA was more strongly associated with PCBs than was OA. The adjusted ORs for RA were 1.0, 7.6, 6.1, and 8.5 for dioxin-like PCBs (p for trend = 0.05), 1.0, 2.2, 4.4, and 5.4 for nondioxin-like PCBs (p for trend < 0.01), and 1.0, 2.8, 2.7, and 3.5 for OC pesticides (p for trend = 0.15). POPs in men did not show any clear relation with arthritis. Conclusions The possibility that background exposure to PCBs may be involved in pathogenesis of arthritis, especially RA, in women should be investigated in prospective studies.


The integrity of the cerebral microvasculature depends on the interaction between its component cells and the extracellular matrix, as well as reorganized cell–cell interactions. In the central nervous system, matrix adhesion receptors are expressed in the microvasculature and by neurons and their supporting glial cells. Cells within cerebral microvessels express both the integrin and dystroglycan families of matrix adhesion receptors. However, the functional significance of these receptors is only now being explored. Endothelial cells and astrocytes within cerebral capillaries co-operate to generate and maintain the basal lamina and the unique barrier functions of the endothelium. Integrins and the dystroglycan complex are found on the matrix-proximate faces of both endothelial cells and astrocyte end-feet. Pericytes rest against the basal lamina. In the extravascular compartment, select integrins are expressed on neurons, microglial cells and oligodendroglia. Significant alterations in both cellular adhesion receptors and their matrix ligands occur during focal cerebral ischaemia, which support their functional significance in the normal state. We propose that matrix adhesion receptors are essential for the maintenance of the integrity of the blood–brain permeability barrier and that modulation of these receptors contributes to alterations in the barrier during brain injury.


Abstract Co-evolution accounts have generally been used to describe how problems and solutions both change during the design process. More generally, problems and solutions can be considered as analytic categories, where change is seen to occur within categories or across categories. There are more categories of interest than just problems and solutions, for example, the participants in a design process (such as members of a design team or different design teams) and categories defined by design ontologies (such as function-behaviour-structure or concept-knowledge). In this paper, we consider the co-evolution of different analytic categories (not just problems and solutions), by focussing on how changes to a category originate either from inside or outside that category. We then illustrate this approach by applying it to data from a single design session using three different systems of categorisation (problems and solutions, different designers and function, behaviour and structure). This allows us to represent the reciprocal influence of change within and between these different categories, while using a common notation and common approach to graphing quantitative data. Our approach demonstrates how research traditions that are currently distinct from each other (such as co-evolution, collaboration and function-behaviour-structure) can be connected by a single analytic approach.


These investigations have established the existence of a novel type of non-nutritional mutant (ai) which is inhibited in the presence of two naturally occurring cellular compounds. The inhibition is complete at an extracellular concentration at least as low as 0.05 mumole/ml of either adenosylhomocysteine or adenosylmethionine. It is suggested that adenosylhomocysteine is the true inhibitor. The ai mutants are phenotypically indistinguishable from the wild type in the absence of inhibitors. The results have shown that, if any direct effect on the methionine biosynthetic pathway exists, it is a secondary rather than the primary effect of the inhibitors. The ai mutation does not involve the loss of the adenosylmethionine (or methylmethionine): homocysteine methyltransferase. In addition, the ai mutants accumulate, maintain, and utilize adenosylmethionine and methionine in a manner similar to the parental strain. No genetic relationship could be detected between the ai-1 mutation and several different markers affecting methionine biosynthesis. The ai-1 mutation was also shown to be genetically recessive. Methionine partially reverses the inhibition caused by adenosylmethionine or adenosylhomocysteine. Neither methylmethionine nor homocysteine reversed the inhibition, which showed that the homocysteine methyltransferase cannot catalyze the synthesis of sufficient methionine under these conditions to simulate the effects of extracellularly supplied methionine. If adenine is present, methionine does not cause reversal of inhibition due to adenosylmethionine or adenosylhomocysteine. From the data presented, it is clear that the ai mutation involves some metabolic control mechanism, though the alteration does not appear to be associated primarily with the biosynthesis of methionine.


We study a concept of weak external hyperconvexity in quasimetric setting. In this article, we generalize further well-known results about weak external hyperconvexity from metric to quasi-metric point of view. In particular, we show the necessary condition of a subset of q-hyperconvex T0quasi-metric space to be weakly externally q-hypeconvex.


Over the last thirty years, capital has abstracted upwards, from production to finance; its sphere of operations has expanded outwards, to every nook and cranny of the globe; the speed of its movement has increased, to milliseconds; and its control has extended to include "everything." We now live in the era of global finance capitalism.… Financialization has involved increasingly exotic forms of financial instruments and the growth of a shadow-banking system, off the balance sheets of the banks. The repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in 1999 symbolized the almost complete deregulation of a financial sector that has become complex, opaque, and ungovernable.… Although these are useful ideas, they only begin a full analysis of finance capitalism. Where did finance capitalism come from? Did neoliberal policy create finance capitalism? Does finance capital exploit differently from industrial capital? And, most importantly, what are the central contradictions that generate crises in finance capitalism?This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website, where most recent articles are published in full.Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.


This paper describes an experimental platform for the study of stretch and compression of the human fingerpad skin during tactile exploration. A digital camera records the sequence of patterns created by a fingertip as it slides over a transparent surface with simple geometrical features. Skin deformation is measured with high temporal and spatial resolution by tracking anatomical landmarks on the fingertip. Techniques adapted from the field of online fingerprintig are used to acquire high contrast fingerprint images and extract salient features (pores, valley endings and valley bifurcations). The results of experiments performed with surfaces with a bump or hole and flat surfaces are presented. This work is motivated by the need to provide meaningful "tactile movies" for a tactile display that uses lateral skin stretch.


OBJECTIVE. Our goal is to describe the methods used in the Infant Feeding Practices Study II (IFPS II), a study of infant feeding and care practices throughout the first year of life. Survey topics included breastfeeding, formula and complementary feeding, infant health, breast-pump use, food allergies, sleeping arrangements, mother's employment, and child care arrangements. In addition, mothers' dietary intake was measured prenatally and postnatally. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS. The IFPS II sample was drawn from a nationally distributed consumer opinion panel of 500000 households. All questionnaires were administered by mail, 1 prenatally and 10 postpartum. Qualifying criteria were used to achieve the sample goals of mothers of healthy term and late preterm singleton infants. In addition to the questionnaires about the infants, women were sent a diet-assessment questionnaire prenatally and at ∼4 months after delivery; this questionnaire was also sent to members of a comparison group who were neither pregnant nor postpartum. RESULTS. A sample of 4902 pregnant women began the study, and ∼2000 continued through their infant's first year. Response rates ranged from 63% to 87% for the different questionnaires. Compared with adult mothers of singletons from the nationally representative sample of the National Survey of Family Growth, IFPS II participants had a higher mean education level; were older; were more likely to be middle income, white, and employed; were less likely to smoke; and had fewer other children. Compared with women who participated in the National Immunization Survey who gave birth in 2004, IFPS II mothers were more likely to breastfeed and to breastfeed longer. CONCLUSIONS. The IFPS II provides a valuable database because of its large sample size, the frequency of its questionnaires, and its wide coverage of issues salient to infant feeding.


Glutaryl-coenzyme A (CoA) dehydrogenase and the electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF) of Paracoccus denitrificans were purified to homogeneity from cells grown with glutaric acid as the carbon source. Glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase had a molecular weight of 180,000 and was made up of four identical subunits with molecular weights of about 43,000 each of which contained one flavin adenine dinucleotide molecule. The enzyme catalyzed an oxidative decarboxylation of glutaryl-CoA to crotonyl-CoA, was maximally stable at pH 5.0, and lost activity readily at pH values above 7.0. The enzyme had a pH optimum in the range of 8.0 to 8.5, a catalytic center activity of about 960 min-1, and apparent Michaelis constants for glutaryl-CoA and pig liver ETF of about 1.2 and 2.5 microM, respectively. P. denitrificans ETF had a visible spectrum identical to that of pig liver ETF and was made up of two subunits, only one of which contained a flavin adenine dinucleotide molecule. The isoelectric point of P. denitrificans ETF was 4.45 compared with 6.8 for pig liver ETF. P. denitrificans ETF accepted electrons not only from P. denitrificans glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase, but also from the pig liver butyryl-CoA and octanoyl-CoA dehydrogenases. The apparent Vmax was of similar magnitude with either pig liver or P. denitrificans ETF as an electron acceptor for these dehydrogenases. P. denitrificans glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase and ETF were used to assay for the reduction of ubiquinone 1 by ETF-Q oxidoreductase in cholate extracts of P. denitrificans membranes. The ETF-Q oxidoreductase from P. denitrificans could accept electrons from either the bacterial or the pig liver ETF. In either case, the apparent Km for ETF was infinitely high. P. denitrificans ETF-Q oxidoreductase was purified from contaminating paramagnets, and the resultant preparation had electron paramagnetic resonance signals at 2.081, 1.938, and 1.879 G, similar to those of the mitochondrial enzyme.


One of the most restricting aspects of the biaxial tensile test for sheet metal is the design of the cruciform specimen. Although specimens of the cruciform type have previoussly been investigated quite extensively, no standard geometry for the cruciform specimen exists. Using a specifically designed pantograph apparatus for operation in a standard tensile testing machine, various cruciform specimens were analysed experimentally. Finite element modelling of the specimens was also conducted to establish optimum specimen geometry. Through a process of optimisation, a standard cruciform specimen was designed which can be used to accurately predict the mechanical behaviour of cold rolled low-carbon steel when formed in multiple directions simultaneously.


Chanfuta (Afzelia quanzensis Welw.), Jambire (Millettia stuhlmannii Taub.) and Umbila (Pterocarpus angolensis D.C.) are, among others, three of the main tropical tree species producing commercial timber in Mozambique. The present study employed destructive biomass estimation methods at three localities in Mozambique (Inhaminga, Mavume, and Tome) to acquire data on the mean diameter at breast height (DBH), and height of trees sampled in 21 stands each of Chanfuta and Jambire, and 15 stands of Umbila. Mean diameter at breast height (DBH) (ob) for Chanfuta, Jambire, and Umbila was: 33.8 ± 12.6 (range 13.5–61.1), 33.4 ± 7.4 (range 21.0–52.2), and 27.0 ± 9.5 (range 14.0–46.5) cm. The mean total values for biomass (kg) of trees of Chanfuta, Jambire, and Umbila trees were 864, 1016, and 321 respectively. The mean percentages of total tree biomass as stem, branch and leaf respectively were 54, 43, and 3 for Chanfuta; 77, 22, and 1 for Jambire; and 46, 51, and 3 for Umbila. The best fit species-specific equation for estimating total above ground biomass (AGB) was the power equation with only DBH considered as independent variable yielding coefficient of determination (R2) ranging from 0.89 to 0.97. At stand level, a total mean of 27.3 tons ha−1 biomass was determined of which studied species represented 94.6%. At plot level, total mean biomass for Jambire was 11.8 tons ha−1, Chanfuta and Umbila 9.9 and 4.1 tons ha−1 respectively. The developed power equation fitted total and stem biomass data well and could be used for biomass prediction of the studied species in Mozambique.


One important problem in a network $G$ is to locate an (invisible) moving entity by using distance-detectors placed at strategical locations in $G$. For instance, the famous metric dimension of a graph $G$ is the minimum number $k$ of detectors placed in some vertices $\{v_1,\cdots,v_k\}$ such that the vector $(d_1,\cdots,d_k)$ of the distances $d(v_i,r)$ between the detectors and the entity's location $r$ allows to uniquely determine $r$ for every $r \in V(G)$. In a more realistic setting, each device does not get the exact distance to the entity's location. Rather, given locating devices placed in $\{v_1,\cdots,v_k\}$, we get only relative distances between the moving entity's location $r$ and the devices (roughly, for every $1\leq i,j\leq k$, it is provided whether $d(v_i,r) >$, $<$, or $=$ to $d(v_j,r)$). The centroidal dimension of a graph $G$ is the minimum number of devices required to locate the entity, in one step, in this setting.In this paper, we consider the natural generalization of the latter problem, where vertices may be probed sequentially (i.e., in several steps) until the moving entity is located. Roughly, at every turn, a set $\{v_1,\cdots,v_k\}$ of vertices are probed and then the relative order of the distances between the vertices $v_i$ and the current location $r$ of the moving entity is given. If it not located, the moving entity may move along one edge. Let $\zeta^* (G)$ be the minimum $k$ such that the entity is eventually located, whatever it does, in the graph $G$. We first prove that $\zeta^* (T)\leq 2$ for every tree $T$ and give an upper bound on $\zeta^*(G\square H)$ for the cartesian product of graphs $G$ and $H$. Our main result is that $\zeta^* (G)\leq 3$ for any outerplanar graph $G$. We then prove that $\zeta^* (G)$ is bounded by the pathwidth of $G$ plus 1 and that the optimization problem of determining $\zeta^* (G)$ is NP-hard in general graphs. Finally, we show that approximating (up to a small constant distance) the location of the robber in the Euclidean plane requires at most two vertices per turn.


Chlorophyll-a specific light volume scattering functions (VSFs) by cultured phytoplankton in visible spectrum range is presented. Chlorophyll-a specific VSFs were determined based on the linear least squares method using a measured VSFs with different chlorophyll-a concentrations. We found obvious variability of it in terms of spectral and angular shapes of VSF between cultures. It was also presented that chlorophyll-a specific scattering significantly affected on spectral variation of the remote sensing reflectance, depending on spectral shape of b. This result is useful for developing an advance algorithm of ocean color remote sensing and for deep understanding of light in the sea.


Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an important signaling molecule that exerts action on various bioinorganic targets. Despite this importance, few studies have investigated the differential reactivity of the physiologically relevant H2S and HS– protonation states with metal complexes. Here we report the distinct reactivity of H2S and HS– with zinc(II) and cobalt(II) phthalocyanine (Pc) complexes and highlight the chemical reversibility and cyclability of each metal. ZnPc reacts with HS–, but not H2S, to generate [ZnPc-SH]−, which can be converted back to ZnPc by protonation. CoPc reacts with HS–, but not H2S, to form [CoIPc]−, which can be reoxidized to CoPc by air. Taken together, these results demonstrate the chemically reversible reaction of HS– with metal phthalocyanine complexes and highlight the importance of H2S protonation state in understanding the reactivity profile of H2S with biologically relevant metal scaffolds.


Most students don't like reading in a foreign language. They find it a difficult task, mainly due to the high number of unknown words they encounter when reading a text. They consider reading classes boring and uninteresting and as a result our students are poor readers. Concerned with this situation, we conducted a study on the impact of a learning environment based on the WebQuest, a ReadingQuest, and on student engagement in an extensive reading task. The results show that the ReadingQuest is a valuable environment for teaching extensive reading, in contrast to traditional reading classes, as it can enhance motivation and promote constructivist learning.


OBJECTIVE
To find what health care is received and the family, school and work integration of people with Down's syndrome (DS).

DESIGN
Descriptive study.

SETTING
Primary health care. Community framework. PATIENT AND OTHER PARTICIPANTS: DS (1 to 25) in Albacete capital. 42 out of 49 were interviewed.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS
A census and a questionnaire to the parents. Investigations carried out: hearing two or three times: 18 (42.8%); visual acuteness (> 5 years old) three or more times: 22 (61.1%); thyroid function and spinal column: 5 (11.9%); of those over 5, 9 (25%) were obese and 26 (72.2%) brushed their teeth daily; 14 parents (38.8%) had a fortnightly interview with the teachers; 12 (75%) received training in workshops and 5 worked.

CONCLUSIONS
It is considered advisable to run the checks in the programme of the Spanish Foundation for DS Institutions (especially thyroid and neck) and to improve mouth-dental hygiene and weight control. Greater coordination between work and work training is needed.


Recent advances in deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have motivated researchers to adapt CNNs to directly model points in 3D point clouds. Modeling local structure has been proven to be important for the success of convolutional architectures, and researchers exploited the modeling of local point sets in the feature extraction hierarchy. However, limited attention has been paid to explicitly model the geometric structure amongst points in a local region. To address this problem, we propose Geo-CNN, which applies a generic convolution-like operation dubbed as GeoConv to each point and its local neighborhood. Local geometric relationships among points are captured when extracting edge features between the center and its neighboring points. We first decompose the edge feature extraction process onto three orthogonal bases, and then aggregate the extracted features based on the angles between the edge vector and the bases. This encourages the network to preserve the geometric structure in Euclidean space throughout the feature extraction hierarchy. GeoConv is a generic and efficient operation that can be easily integrated into 3D point cloud analysis pipelines for multiple applications. We evaluate Geo-CNN on ModelNet40 and KITTI and achieve state-of-the-art performance.


OBJECTIVE
Subjects with decreased erythrocyte survival have an unusually low GHb percentage. The goal of this study was to determine whether hyperglycemia, as reflected by GHb percentage, is associated with decreased erythrocyte survival.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Erythrocyte survival was quantitated in 23 subjects with type 2 diabetes, and these values were correlated with the subjects' GHb percentage. Erythrocyte survival was determined from the difference between the subjects' alveolar carbon monoxide (CO) concentration and atmospheric CO concentration. Reticulocyte counts were obtained in 16 subjects.

RESULTS
Although the vast majority of the subjects had erythrocyte life spans that fell within the normal range (123 +/- 23 days), there was a highly significant inverse correlation (r = -0.66, P < 0.01) between life span and GHb percentage, with an average decline in life span of 6.9 days for each 1% rise in GHb. The reticulocyte count inversely correlated with erythrocyte life span (r = -0.77, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS
Hyperglycemia, as evidenced by high GHb percentage, is associated with an appreciable decrease in erythrocyte life span. Because GHb appears to be formed over the lifetime of the erythrocyte, this decreased erythrocyte survival suggests that high GHb percentages may systematically underestimate the true degree of hyperglycemia.


We study aggregate lapsation risk in the life insurance sector. We construct two lapsation risk factors that explain a large fraction of the common variation in lapse rates of the 30 largest life insurance companies. The first is a cyclical factor that is positively correlated with credit spreads and unemployment, while the second factor is a trend factor that correlates with the level of interest rates. Using a novel policy-level database from a large life insurer, we examine the heterogeneity in risk factor exposures based on policy and policyholder characteristics. Young policyholders with higher health risk in low-income areas are more likely to lapse their policies during economic downturns. We explore the implications for hedging and valuation of life insurance contracts. Ignoring aggregate lapsation risk results in mispricing of life insurance policies. The calibrated model points to overpricing on average. In the cross-section, young, low-income, and high-health risk households face higher effective mark-ups than the old, high-income, and healthy.


Cross-Technology Interference affects the operation of low-power ZigBee networks, especially under severe WiFi interference. Accurate corruption estimation is very important to improve the resilience of ZigBee transmissions. However, there are many limitations in existing approaches such as low accuracy, high overhead, and requiring hardware modification. In this paper, we propose an accurate corruption estimation approach, AccuEst, which utilizes per-byte SINR (Signal-to-Interferenceand-Noise Ratio) to detect corruption. We combine the use of pilot symbols with per-byte SINR to improve corruption detection accuracy, especially in highly noisy environments (i.e., noise and interference are at the same level). In addition, we design an adaptive pilot instrumentation scheme to strike a good balance between accuracy and overhead. We implement AccuEst on the TinyOS 2.1.1/TelosB platform and evaluate its performance through extensive experiments. Results show that AccuEst improves corruption detection accuracy by 78.6% on average compared with state-of-the-art approach (i.e., CARE) in highly noisy environments. In addition, AccuEst reduces pilot overhead by 53.7% on average compared to the traditional pilot-based approach. We implement AccuEst in a coding-based transmission protocol, and results show that with AccuEst, the packet delivery ratio is improved by 20.3% on average.


OBJECTIVE
Review and synthesise the literature identifying the stresses experienced by remote area nurses (RANs). Identify interventions implemented to address identified stresses. Explore the use of the job demands-resources (JD-R) model.

METHODS
A comprehensive literature review was conducted using the meta-databases Ovid and Informit.

SETTING
Remote Australian primary health care centres.

RESULTS
The reported demands experienced by RANs can be grouped into four themes: (i) the remote context; (ii) workload and extended scope of practice; (iii) poor management; and (iv) violence in the workplace and community. In this high-demand, low-resource context, the JD-R model of occupational stress is particularly pertinent to examining occupational stress among RANs. The demands on RANs, such as the isolated geographical context, are immutable. However, there are key areas where resources can be enhanced to better meet the high level of need. These are: (i) adequate and appropriate education, training and orientation; (ii) appropriate funding of remote health services; and (iii) improved management practices and systems.

CONCLUSION
There is a lack of empirical evidence relating to stresses experienced by RANs. The literature identifies some of the stresses experienced by RANs as unique to the remote context, while some are related to high demands coupled with a deficit of appropriate resources. Use of models, such as the JD-R model of occupational stress, might assist in identifying key areas where resources can be enhanced to better meet the high level of need and reduce RANs' levels of stress.


Sodium chloride has been utilised for decades to maintain road safety in winter and some of its detrimental impacts have been well-documented. However, research on the organic fraction of roadside soils has concentrated upon short-term salt-effects. We hypothesise that decades of past leaching and enhanced mineralisation of organic matter have reduced the concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) flushes currently occurring. We have examined the effects of salt concentration on organic matter mobilisation in soils that have already experienced varying degrees of exposure to road salting in the field over decades. Applications of salt at concentrations experienced in the field have been simulated to quantify the extent that DOC and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) are still being mobilised for three prior salt-impact scenarios. A balance occurs between the effects on organic matter of long-term soil pH increase (due to continued cation exchange during salt exposure) which enhances its solubility and organic matter mineralisation, short-term pH suppression (due to the mobile anion effect in soil solution) which reduces its solubility, and short- and long-term sodium-induced dispersion. This now determines the influence of road salt on organic matter leaching from roadside soils and into associated drainage waters.


In the way towards a ubiquitous and device independent Web it is necessary to make a complete characterization of the delivery context, including the capabilities of the device. The current frameworks (CC/PP, UAProf 2.0) provide good tools to approach a device independent Web, but they present certain deficiencies both in their specification and current implementations. Likewise many devices do not implement any tool to express their capacities.

In order to overcome these problems, until terminals properly express their characteristics, this paper presents an implementation of a proxy-based solution to make an accurate contextualization of the device of the user. This platform enables to set up a database accessible from Internet that stores a complete and consistent profile of the different user devices. This profile is expressed using UAProf and is compatible with available parsers. This way we obtain a single profiling platform for different types of devices with a single profile vocabulary that can be used in multiple independent applications.


Consider the problem of improving the estimation of conditional average treatment effects (CATE) for a target domain of interest by leveraging related information from a source domain with a different feature space. This heterogeneous transfer learning problem for CATE estimation is ubiquitous in areas such as healthcare where we may wish to evaluate the effectiveness of a treatment for a new patient population for which different clinical covariates and limited data are available. In this paper, we address this problem by introducing several building blocks that use representation learning to handle the heterogeneous feature spaces and a flexible multi-task architecture with shared and private layers to transfer information between potential outcome functions across domains. Then, we show how these building blocks can be used to recover transfer learning equivalents of the standard CATE learners. On a new semi-synthetic data simulation benchmark for heterogeneous transfer learning we not only demonstrate performance improvements of our heterogeneous transfer causal effect learners across datasets, but also provide insights into the differences between these learners from a transfer perspective.


BaTiO3 ceramics doped with 1, 2, 3 and 4 mol% La were prepared by sol-gel method. The effects of La doping on structure and dielectric characteristics of Ba1−xLaxTiO3 were investigated. The results show that: All the powders calcined at 800°C were found to be perovskite structure with cubic phase. Ba1−xLaxTiO3 were sintered at 1300°C, phase transition behavior appeared from tetragonal phase to cubic phase with increasing La-doping level. As the doping concentration increases, the grain growth of the Ba1−xLaxTiO3 ceramics was controlled efficiently and Curie point shifted to lower temperature. The grain size decreased from 20μm with 0 mol% La doped to 0.5μm with 4 mol% La doped. The Curie point shift rate was 22 °C/ mol% with increasing La content. The dielectric constant of La doped Ba1−xLaxTiO3 ceramics increased with increasing La content and a maximum value of 8900 was attained with 4 mol% La doped.


This work focuses on higgledy-piggledy sets of $k$-subspaces in $\text{PG}(N,q)$, i.e. sets of projective subspaces that are 'well-spread-out'. More precisely, the set of intersection points of these $k$-subspaces with any $(N-k)$ subspace $\kappa$ of $\text{PG}(N,q)$ spans $\kappa$ itself.
We highlight three methods to construct small higgledy-piggledy sets of $k$-subspaces and discuss, for $k\in\{1,N-2\}$, 'optimal' sets that cover the smallest possible number of points.
Furthermore, we investigate small non-trivial higgledy-piggledy sets in $\text{PG}(N,q)$, $N\leqslant5$. Our main result is the existence of six lines of $\text{PG}(4,q)$ in higgledy-piggledy arrangement, two of which intersect. Exploiting the construction methods mentioned above, we also show the existence of six planes of $\text{PG}(4,q)$ in higgledy-piggledy arrangement, two of which maximally intersect, as well as the existence of two higgledy-piggledy sets in $\text{PG}(5,q)$ consisting of eight planes and seven solids, respectively. Finally, we translate these geometrical results to a coding- and graph-theoretical context.


This paper introduces a new method to calculate the extent to which individuals are willing to trade money for improvements in their health status. An individual welfare function of income (WFI) is applied to calculate the compensating income variation of health impairments. We believe that this approach avoids various drawbacks of alternative willingness-to-pay methods. The WFI is used to calculate the compensating variation of cardiovascular diseases. It is found that for a 25-year old male the compensating variation of a heart disease ranges from 160,000 Euro to 430,000 Euro depending on the welfare level. This is about 8,000 to 32,000 Euro for an additional life year, depending on the quality of life. The compensating variation declines with age and is lower for women than for men. The estimates further vary by the discount rate chosen. The estimates of the compensating variation are generally higher than the money spent on heart related medical interventions per QALY.


Two-color, single-shot time-of-flight electron spectroscopy of atomic neon was employed at the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) to measure laser-assisted Auger decay in the x-ray regime. This x-ray-optical cross-correlation technique provides a straightforward, non-invasive and on-line means of determining the duration of femtosecond (>40 fs) x-ray pulses. In combination with a theoretical model of the process based on the soft-photon approximation, we were able to obtain the LCLS pulse duration and to extract a mean value of the temporal jitter between the optical pulses from a synchronized Ti-sapphire laser and x-ray pulses from the LCLS. We find that the experimentally determined values are systematically smaller than the length of the electron bunches. Nominal electron pulse durations of 175 and 75 fs, as provided by the LCLS control system, yield x-ray pulse shapes of 120±20 fs full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) and an upper limit of 40±20 fs FWHM, respectively. Simulations of the free-electron laser agree well with the experimental results.


The synthesis and biological properties of a series of 7V63-carboxamides of 15-7V-alkylated derivatives of teicoplanin A2 (CTA) and its aglycone (TD) are described. Amongthe compounds, those carrying hydrophilic groups or ionizable amino functions on the 7V15-alkyl chain are more soluble in water than parent N15-methylated or unmodified amides. Selected compoundswere more active in vitro than CTAor TD, and a few of them were also slightly more efficacious in vivo than the parent antibiotics in streptococcal septicemia in the mouse. Their degree of activity varied with the structure and length of the TV15-alkyl chains.


As recently pointed out by the Institute of Medicine, the existing pandemic mitigation models lack the dynamic decision support capability. We develop a large-scale simulation-driven optimization model for generating dynamic predictive distribution of vaccines and antivirals over a network of regional pandemic outbreaks. The model incorporates measures of morbidity, mortality, and social distancing, translated into the cost of lost productivity and medical expenses. The performance of the strategy is compared to that of the reactive myopic policy, using a sample outbreak in Fla, USA, with an affected population of over four millions. The comparison is implemented at different levels of vaccine and antiviral availability and administration capacity. Sensitivity analysis is performed to assess the impact of variability of some critical factors on policy performance. The model is intended to support public health policy making for effective distribution of limited mitigation resources.


Experimental and theoretical research on elastic and magneto-elastic behavior of nanoscale magnetic multilayers is reviewed. The discovery of the "supermodulus effect" and the softening of the elastic constants as well as the experimental evidence for the existence of the intrinsic "surface magnetostriction" are discussed in detail. It has been shown that the commonly observed lattice expansion perpendicular to the film plane is not a bulk effect, but is localized at the interface between the contacting metals. A similar situation is observed in the ease of magnetoelastic strains. It is shown that the most effective technique used to study magnetostriction is the Strain Modulated Ferromagnetic Resonance (SMFMR). In addition to obtaining information on the magnetostriction constants, the SMFMR method offers the opportunity to study the interface effects, particularly it can be used to separate the intrinsic surface magnetostriction from the interface induced effects. The origin of the surface magnetostriction will be discussed and qualitatively attributed to many different mechanisms. Quantitatively the surface magnetostriction will be analyzed in terms of magnetic dipole-dipole interactions. >


Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease worldwide that mainly affects motor system. Treatment given to PD patients may have further complications effect such as dyskinesias. People with PD receiving medication often experience complications. It is interest to identify factors associated with the complications. Data on 215people with PD obtained from the Parkinson's Progression Markers Initiative (PPMI) database were analysed. Total scores for the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) Part 1, 2, and 3 were used as the explanatory variables. We proposed Zero-Inflated Poisson (ZIP) to model the frequency of motor complications in people with PD. Therefore, the parameters in ZIP regression were estimated using Bayesian approach. Sampling from the posterior distribution of the parameters is conducted using Monte Carlo Markov Chain-Gibbs Sampling (MCMC-GS). The result shows that total score of MDS-UPDRS Part 1 and 2 are negatively associated with people for no need medication while the opposite is observed for total score of Part 3. Furthermore, in the second stage of the model, total score of Part 3is negatively associated with frequency of complications, while the opposite trend is observed for total score of Part 1 and 2.


We recently discovered that transformation of the neonicotinoid insecticidal pharmacophore alters sorption propensity to activated carbon, with products adsorbing less than parent compounds. To assess the environmental fate of novel transformation products that lack commercially available standards, researchers must rely on predictive approaches. In this study, we combined computationally derived quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSAR) parameters for neonicotinoids and neonicotinoid transformation products with experimentally determined Freundlich partition constants (log KF for sorption to carbon nanotubes [CNTs] and granular activated carbon [GAC]) to model neonicotinoid and transformation product sorption. QSAR models based on neonicotinoid sorption to functionalized/nonfunctionalized CNTs (used to generalize/simplify neonicotinoid-GAC interactions) were iteratively generated to obtain a multiple linear regression that could accurately predict neonicotinoid sorption to CNTs using internal and external validation (within 0.5 log units of the experimentally determined value). The log KF,CNT values were subsequently related to log KF,GAC where neonicotinoid sorption to GAC was predicted within 0.3 log-units of experimentally determined values. We applied our neonicotinoid-specific model to predict log KF,GAC for a suite of novel neonicotinoid transformation products (i.e., formed via hydrolysis, biotransformation, and chlorination) that do not have commercially available standards. We present this modeling approach as an innovative yet relatively simple technique to predict fate of highly specialized/unique polar emerging contaminants and/or transformation products that cannot be accurately predicted via traditional methods (e.g., pp-LFER), and highlights molecular properties that drive interactions of emerging contaminants.


Abstract Jarosite and related subgroup minerals are of high importance in mineral processing, as sources and sinks for metals and acidity in the environment, and they have the potential to preserve elemental and isotopic biomarkers relevant to the search for life in the solar system. The crystal structures and chemistry of jarosite minerals affect their stability and reactivity and thus the roles they play in natural and engineered systems. Rhombohedral symmetry has been documented in natural and synthetic jarosites, whereas monoclinic symmetry has only been documented in synthetic jarosites. This research reports the occurrence of monoclinic symmetry in a natural natrojarosite sample investigated using synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Splitting of several rhombohedral PXRD peaks (e.g., 012, 027, and 033) into pairs of peaks was observed, with the magnitude of the splitting and the relative intensities of the pairs of peaks being almost identical to those reported for synthetic monoclinic jarosite. Rietveld refinement with room-temperature PXRD data shows an ordering of iron-site vacancies on the Fe1 site consistent with monoclinic symmetry, space group C2/m. Conversion of monoclinic unit-cell parameters into pseudo-hexagonal unit-cell parameters, specifically β′, also supports the use of a monoclinic model to describe the natrojarosite structure. Structural analysis with increasing temperature is supportive of the thermal evolution previously described for synthetic monoclinic jarosite samples, with some indications of subtle differences between synthetic and natural materials including slower rates of thermal expansion and absence of FeOHSO4 peaks for natural monoclinic jarosite. EBSD provides insight into the spatial–structural variation within the hand specimen from which the natrojarosite was sampled, demonstrating that there are areas of unambiguous monoclinic symmetry, but others where both monoclinic and rhombohedral natrojarosite coexist. The results of this study suggest that monoclinic symmetry in natural jarosites may be more prevalent than previous studies suggest. Monoclinic symmetry in jarosites is identifiable by an ordering of iron-site vacancies on the Fe1 site, splitting of specific rhombohedral XRD peaks into pairs of peaks, and an increase in jarosite symmetry (i.e., from monoclinic to rhombohedral) during heating. The splitting of peaks in monoclinic jarosites can be subtle so it is recommended that high-resolution XRD data are collected when studying the crystal structure of jarosites.


OBJECTIVE: To estimate the clinical efficacy of topical sinecatechins, a defined green tea extract, in the treatment of external genital and perianal warts. METHODS: This was a randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled trial involving 502 male and female patients aged 18 years and older, with 2–30 anogenital warts ranging from 12 to 600 mm2 total wart area. Patients applied sinecatechins ointment 15% or 10% or vehicle (placebo) three times daily for a maximum of 16 weeks or until complete clearance of all warts, followed by a 12-week treatment-free follow-up to assess recurrence. RESULTS: Complete clearance of all baseline and newly occurring warts was obtained in 57.2% and 56.3% of patients treated with sinecatechins ointment 15% and 10%, respectively, compared with 33.7% for vehicle (both P<.001). Significance was observed at weeks 4 and 6 and all subsequent visits. Numbers needed to treat were 4.3 and 4.4. Partial clearance rates of at least 50% were reported for 78.4% and 74.0% of patients in the sinecatechins ointment 15% and 10% groups compared with 51.5% of vehicle patients. During follow-up, recurrence of any wart was observed in 6.5%, 8.3%, and 8.8% in the sinecatechins ointment 15% group, sinecatechins ointment 10% group, and vehicle patients, respectively. A total of 3.7%, 8.3%, and 0.0% developed new warts, respectively. A total of 87.7% and 87.3% of patients in the sinecatechins ointment 15% and 10% groups, and 72.1% of vehicle patients experienced application site reactions; 49.2%, 46.2%, and 65.4% of those, respectively, were mild or moderate. CONCLUSION: Topical sinecatechins ointments 15% and 10% are effective and well-tolerated in the treatment of anogenital warts. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, www.clinicaltrials.gov, NCT00449982 LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: I


The game is an activity that encountered at every level of human life. At the age of the children, the game has an important role to meet their physical and psychological development, but different from that experienced by street children. Their play time consumed by the job because of the limited economic status. So the game of street children tend to adjust their time and circumstances, this raises the selection of street children different types of games with other children in general. This type of qualitative research and aims to determine the perception of street children on the play, the times used by street children to play, and the types of games played by street children. The population in this study are street children residing in the city of Malang, while the samples from this study amounted to 5 people. Data collection methods used were interviews and observation, while
the validity of the data using triangulation, the source and the means to compare and check behind the degree of confidence any information acquired through time and different tools to accomplish that by comparing the observed data with data from interviews. Results showed that street children do not understand the meaning of the play activities they do. According to them play is to do fun activities, so that kind of game that they do simply for pleasure. While these times can be used by them to play not necessarily depend on the opportunity and time to spare. For street children aged preschool to do more exercise games like: hairpins play, play scarves, play bowls and other plastic and conducting role-play games such as: market-market play, play toy cars and other other. While street children are old school game a lot to choose roles, such as: play cars, play a rocking horse, playing sell-selling and others.


Within the context of the devolution process in England, Cornwall and the North-East stand out in contrasting comparison. The North-East was given the opportunity to vote for a regional assembly, which it rejected in 2004, while the strong popular movement for an assembly in Cornwall was ignored by central government. This is reflected in the literature on the English question and regionalism in the UK, which focuses on the example of the North-East, and largely overlooks the grassroots support in Cornwall and the opportunities for understanding regionalism that this could provide. In this article, we explore why this might be the case, developing a comparison between the two areas in the context of the campaigns for setting up directly elected assemblies. We look at the territorial status of the two areas, how the respective campaigns were organised, the types of group involved, the motives that were driving activists, and each region's political significance to Labour. We find central control of the political agenda to be a key issue behind the failure of English regionalism.


BACKGROUND
Immunoglobulin G (IgG) anticardiolipin (aCL) antibodies are associated with valvulopathy and endocarditis in patients with lupus and other diseases. During acute Q fever, high IgG aCL prevalence has been reported, but the clinical significance remains unknown.

METHODS
To test if increased IgG aCL at acute Q fever diagnosis is associated with an increased risk of progression to endocarditis, all patients diagnosed in the French National Referral Center for Q fever from January 2007 to December 2011 were included and followed regularly until January 2013 in a 5-year prospective cohort study. Q fever endocarditis was defined according to recently updated criteria.

RESULTS
Seventy-two patients were followed for a median time of 31 months (interquartile range, 18-47 months). Of these, 13 patients with valvulopathy without antibiotic prophylaxis progressed to endocarditis. IgG aCL levels were highly prevalent (57%) and significantly higher in the presence of a valvulopathy (P = .005). Using Cox regression analysis, highly increased levels of IgG aCL (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR], 12.95; 95% confidence interval, 2.85-58.95; P = .001) and high levels of phase II immunoglobulin M (IgM; AHR, 6.59; 95% CI, 1.37-31.62; P = .018) were the only independent predictors of progression to endocarditis.

CONCLUSIONS
Rapid progression from acute Q fever to endocarditis is associated with high levels of IgG aCL and high levels of phase II IgM, findings that should be critical in the prevention of endocarditis.


While most digital collections have limited forms of change--primarily creation and deletion of additional resources--there exists a class of digital collections that undergoes additional kinds of change. These collections are made up of resources that are distributed across the Internet and brought together into a collection via hyperlinking. Resources in these collections can be expected to change as time goes on. Part of the difficulty in maintaining these collections is determining if a changed page is still a valid member of the collection. Others have tried to address this problem by measuring change and defining a maximum allowed threshold of change, however, these methods treat all change as a potential problem and treat web content as a static document despite its intrinsically dynamic nature. Instead, we approach the significance of change on the web as a normal part of a web document's life-cycle and determine the difference between what a maintainer expects a page to do and what it actually does. In this work we evaluate the different options for extractors and analyzers in order to determine the best options from a suite of techniques. The evaluation used a human-generated ground-truth set of blog changes. The results of this work showed a statistically significant improvement over a range of traditional threshold techniques when applied to our collection of tagged blog changes.


As one of the most natural user behaviors, walking has been widely focused on developing personal identification systems due to its unique biometric authentication features. Popular visual solutions are usually affected by various environmental conditions, and their redundant user information (e.g., body type and appearance) makes it more challenging for users to maintain privacy and security. This article proposes a distance sensor-based gait identification system that uses only 1-D data with a simple system structure. Specifically, a time-of-flight (ToF) sensor was placed in front of a walking person, and a time series of distances was acquired. We extracted gait features from the data by calculating the velocity and acceleration curves and identifying individuals using a random forest (RF) classifier. We evaluated our system on ten users using leave-one-out cross validation. The average identification accuracy was 91.05% for ten users. This study shows that gait recognition is possible using only 1-D time-series data with a noncontact sensor. It can be used as a contactless identification, reducing the computational resources required for low-cost and low-power-consumption edge computing.