Bypass patency was monitorized by photoplethismography of supraorbital artery during Javid's bypass clamping in the course of carotid endarterectomy in 12 patients. This technique allows a rapid and easy detection of partial or total bypass occlusion which is manifested by a reduction in the plethysmographic wave amplitude in the ipsilateral supraorbital artery with respect to data obtained before operation or with the plethysmographic curve recorded at the contralateral artery. Among the twelve patients only five (41.6%) showed no evidence of bypass malfunction. Two patients (16.6%) suffered one episode of bypass insufficiency, four (33.3%) patients presented three episodes and one patient (8.33%) complained four episodes of bypass dysfunction. None of bypass dysfunctions were detected by the surgical team. Bypass insufficiency was due to excessive traction that caused leaning of the vessel or to malposition of the end of the bypass. Both were promptly corrected. We conclude that besides implantation of the bypass it is worthwhile monitoring its function by recording the photoplethysmographic response of the supraorbital artery which, in turn, is a safe and easy technique.


Romanian education has changed considerably as the country has transitioned from Soviet influence, from communism, to democracy and now towards European Union standards. New leaders, reform, and a changing political face of Europe have reshaped Romania's education system into a modern entity. This paper discusses how Romanian education has evolved in recent decades with respect to ethnic minorities, foreign language, religious education, as well as the overall restructuring of higher education while still acknowledging Romania's need for further reform as it looks toward a promising future.


The use of computers has grown immensely in the last decades and the possibility to teach through them has grown as well. Various computer applications, games and forums have been created as tools of teaching and learning. This research project contains a summary of various works created within the E-learning area and their results. The virtual world Second Life is tested and some of the research in the literature review will be visited and examined. The research focuses on the feasibility to create scenarios for nursing students to practice patient care and handling, in addition to collaborative qualities that online virtual worlds offer. The conclusion taken from this research is that the possibilities far outweigh the limitations and that learning through virtual worlds should be further explored and developed.


Introduction To support young people in their transition to adulthood and transfer to adult care, a number of interventions have been developed. One particularly important intervention is the transition clinic (TC), where paediatric and adult providers collaborate. TCs are often advocated as best practices in transition care for young people with chronic conditions, but little is known about TC models and effects. The proposed study aims to gain insight into the added value of a TC compared with usual care (without a TC). Methods and analysis We propose a mixed-methods study with a retrospective controlled design consisting of semistructured interviews among healthcare professionals, observations of consultations with young people, chart reviews of young people transferred 2–4 years prior to data collection and questionnaires among the young people included in the chart reviews. Qualitative data will be analysed through thematic analysis and results will provide insights into structures and daily routines of TCs, and experienced barriers and facilitators in transitional care. Quantitatively, within-group differences on clinical outcomes and healthcare use will be studied over the four measurement moments. Subsequently, comparisons will be made between intervention and control groups on all outcomes at all measurement moments. Primary outcomes are 'no-show after transfer' (process outcome) and 'experiences and satisfaction with the transfer' (patient-reported outcome). Secondary outcomes consider clinical outcomes, healthcare usage, self-management outcomes and perceived quality of care. Ethics The Medical Ethical Committee of the Erasmus Medical Centre approved the study protocol (MEC-2014-246). Dissemination Study results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals and conferences. The study started in September 2014 and will continue until December 2016. The same study design will be used in a national study in 20 diabetes settings (2016–2018).


Most cocoa beans in Indonesia are traditionally produced by farmers using non fermented and sun drying method. The quality of cocoa beans produced by farmer in yogyakarta may be improved by the fermentation method. However, it needs optimization for best fermentation process. The aims of the study was to improve quality of cocoa bans by fermentation of sun dried cocoa beans. The characteric fermented cocoa beans was determined by maesuring changes pH, acidity and fermentation indexs of cocoa beans during fermentation. This study used preconditioned cocoa beans to resamble obtain from the farmer. Preconditioning was done in order to get 15% mouisture content of pulp at same level as moisture content of pulp from traditional process. Before fermentation, therefor sun dried cocoa beans was rehydrated to obtain a moisture content of pulp similiar to fresh beans pulp, and then fermentation was conducted for 120 hours. Changes in acidity and fermentation indexs of cocoa beans during fermentation were measured. The fermentation process used 3 level treatment i.e. control (without inoculum), mixed culture of microbies added at the begining fermentation. The result show all cocoa beans acidity increase during fermentation from 4,48% to 6,45% for control, 4,64% to 6,39% for addition of inoculum at begining of fermentation and from 4,45% to 6,59% for addition of inoculum at the begining and midle of fermentation and fermentation indexs of cocoa beans increase for all level of inoculum addition i.e. 0,31 to 0,88 for control, 0,32 to 0,99 for addition of inoculum at the beginning fermentation and 0,33 to 1,03 for addition of inoculum at the beginning and midle of fermentation. The study indicated that addition of mix culture microbies in fermetation improved the quality of cocoa beans that characterized by pH, acidity and fermentation indexs of cocoa beans.


A Salmonella enterica Serotype Montevideo is described that harbors DHA-1, a plasmid-mediated AmpC β-lactamase. The organism was isolated from blood and stool specimens of a 3-yr-old girl. The isolate was multi-drug resistant, including cefoxitin, gentamicin, piperacillin, cefuroxime, ceftazidime, and cefotaxime, and an antagonism was observed between cefoxitin and oxyiminocephalosporins. The resistance to ceftazidime and cefotaxime was transferred by conjugation to the recipient E. coli J53. To our knowledge, this is the first description of Salmonella enterica Serotype Montevideo harboring DHA-1. (received 2 January


Escherichia coli ribosomal protein S1 is composed of six repeating homologous oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide-binding fold (OB folds). In trans-translation, S1 plays a role in delivering transfer-messenger RNA (tmRNA) to stalled ribosomes. The second OB fold of S1 was found to be protected from tryptic digestion in the presence of tmRNA. Truncated S1 mutant Δ2, in which the first and second OB folds were deleted, showed significantly decreased tmRNA-binding activity. Furthermore, the E. coli S1 homolog (BS1) from Bacillus subtilis, which corresponds to the four C-terminal OB folds of E. coli S1, showed no interaction with E. coli tmRNA, as judged by the results of a gel shift assay. Surface plasmon resonance analysis revealed that mutant Δ2 and BS1 had decreased association rate constants (ka, 0.59×103 M−1·S−1; and ka, 1.89×103 M−1·S−1), while they retained the respective dissociation rate constants (kd, 0.67×10−3 S−1; and kd, 0.53×10−3 S−1), in comparison with wild-type protein S1 (ka, 3.32×103 M−1·S−1; and kd, 0.56×10−3 S−1). These results suggest that the second OB fold in protein S1 is essential for the recognition of tmRNA, while the four C-terminal OB folds play a role in stabilizing the S1–tmRNA complex.


Distribution patterns and protection status of endemic or threatened Lagomorpha, Macroscelidea, and Rodentia were analysed using museum point locality data and a geographic information system (GIS). The study area comprised the greater South Africa (including Lesotho and Swaziland). Species richness of the target species is highest in the south-western parts of the country, and hotspots of endemism coincide with those of species richness. However, Red Data Book species hotspots are confined to the north-eastern parts of the country. One species richness hotspol in the Succulent Karoo contains no existing reserves, whereas all Red Data Book species hotspots are protected. In general, all target species are well protected within existing reserves, but those found in the Succulent and Nama-Karoo, especially the Namaqua dune molerat (Bathyergus janetta), the riverine rabbit (Bunolagus monticularis), Brants whistling rat (Parotomys brantsii), and the pygmy rock mouse (Petromyscus collinus), are threatened by a paucity of reserves in these biomes. A heuristic reserve selection algorithm was used to identify a more representative reserve system for the protection of all target species. Ten representative reserves were identified, six of which already contain existing reserves. An analysis of biome specificity of all species revealed that Myomyscus verreauxii is endemic to the fynbos, Bathyergus janetta to the Succulent Karoo, Zelotomys woosnami to the arid savanna, and Steatomys parvus to the savanna woodlands. No species are endemic to the Nama-Karoo or grasslands, although several species do show strong preferences for these habitats. It is recommended that hotspots, representative reserves, and species that are currently not protected, be awarded more protection, and that existing reserves which coincide with hotspots and representative reserves be managed for their mammal fauna. It is also recommended that the Red Data Book status of tour species, and six subspecies, should be changed.


This study was designed to assess the ability to prevent glucose penetration of a bioceramic putty ready-to-use repair cement comparing to white mineral trioxide aggregate (WMTA). After root canal instrumentation, the apical 3 mm of maxillary incisors were resected and root-end cavities with depth of 3 mm were prepared with ultrasound and filled with the tested materials (15 roots per group). All roots were mounted in a double chamber system to assess glucose penetration using 15 psi pressure application. After 1 h, glucose concentrations in the lower chamber were measured following an enzymatic reaction. Four roots were used as controls. The Mann-Whitney test verified differences in glucose leakage between groups and the Tukey's test was used for multiple comparisons. Significance level was set at 5%. There was no significant difference in glucose leakage between iRoot BP Plus and White MTA groups. iRoot BP Plus had a similar ability to that of white MTA in preventing glucose leakage as a root-end filling material.


Abstract This study aimed to identify the underlying therapeutic targets of angiotensin II (AngII)-induced hypertension, and screen the related drugs. The gene expression profiles of GSE93579 and GSE75815 were used to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between AngII-induced hypertension and control samples based on meta-analysis. These DEGs were analyzed using Gene-Ontology (GO) function and pathway enrichment methods. Subsequently, the weighed gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA)-based meta-analysis was applied to determine transcriptional signature with DEGs. Additionally, the functions of the modules were analyzed based on the network, and miRNAs were identified. Finally, small molecule drugs correlation with DEGs was identified. In total, 346 upregulated DEGs (e.g., Rgs7 bp) and 360 downregulated DEGs (e.g., Ebf3) were identified between AngII and control samples. In addition, a total of 150 DEGs in the brown, red, and yellow modules with higher correlation coefficient according to WGCNA, were used to construct the coexpression network, including Rgs7 bp and Ebf3, etc. in brown modules. Besides, 3 modules were obtained after the functions of the modules analysis. Moreover, 5 miRNAs were integrated in modules, including miR-124A, miR-524, miR-493, miR-323, and miR-203. Finally, anisomycin was the highest correlation with DEGs. MiR-124a might be involved in the pathogenesis of hypertension via targeting Ebf3 and Rgs7 bp, which possibly represent a novel and effective strategy for treatment of hypertension. Anisomycin might be performed to reduce blood pressure by blocking MAPK signaling pathway.


P105

 Objective:
 Secondary brain insults (SBIs) include hypotension, hypoxia, fever, and seizures. SBIs are known to worsen outcome after head trauma and ischemic stroke, but their role in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has not been well studied.
 Methods:
 Records of patients presenting with acute ICH to San Francisco General Hospital from July 1 through December 31, 1997 were retrospectively reviewed for the occurrence of SBIs at any point during hospitalization. Episodes of hypoxia (P
 a
 O
 2
 < 60 mm Hg or an O
 2
 saturation < 90% for over 5 minutes), hypotension (systolic blood pressure (BP) < 90 mm Hg for greater than 5 minutes), fever (T > 38.5
 O
 C), or generalized seizures were noted.
 Results:
 Overall 30-day mortality was 39% (14 of 36 total patients). In-hospital seizures were uncommon as was systemic hypoxia, the latter perhaps due to early intubation in comatose patients. However, fever and hypotension were much more common in patients who died, despite the fact that most ICH patients presented acutely with elevated BP. Among patients who died, 57% had at least one episode of T > 38.5
 O
 C and 71% had at least one episode of BP < 90 mm Hg, compared to only 9% of surviving patients (
 P
 < 0.01).
 Conclusions:
 SBIs, especially hypotension and fever, are common after ICH and are associated with higher 30-day mortality. Whether this indicates worsened ICH-related brain injury, as in head trauma or ischemic stroke, or is a result of secondary complications in severely affected patients remains to be clarified.


This research was aimed at assessing the Impact of Foreign Human Resources in Tanzania. A Case of Media Industry in the Tanzanian context, where the researcher tried to single out his sources of the study by studying careful his collected materials/data. The study used most of government departments dealing in one way or another with foreign human resources as main respondents of the study.
The methodology used to collect data from respondents included tools such as questionnaires, interviews, observation and documentation. Then findings of the study were analyzed and presented differently depending on the nature of the data analysed. The researcher used tables and pie charts to present the discussed findings.
The study found out that the contributions of the foreign human resources in Tanzania's economy influences indigenous journalists to adopt the new technology brought by these foreigners and innovation as well. Moreover, the study found that these foreigners are characterised by the hardworking spirit and creativeness toward their works.
However, it is anticipated that their existence may lead to sedition and unemployment as they may have the hidden agenda on they are writing their stories. Moreover, they can cause unemployment as they take position that might be taken by qualified Tanzanians. Hence, in order to retain the required status, the study recommends that the government should put in practice a sensitive mechanism that will monitor them.
On the employment side the researcher recommends that, there is no need to employ them in areas where Tanzanians fit.


ABSTRACT Purpose To investigate the clinical outcomes of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) endophthalmitis. Methods Clinical courses were reviewed for 17 eyes (15 patients) with endogenous MRSA endophthalmitis based on positive blood and vitreous culture or clinical suspicion between 2013 to 2019 at Duke University Hospitals. Results Of 17 eyes, initial VA ranged from 20/40 to light perception. Of 15 patients, 9 had predisposing risk factors for bacteremia. All eyes received intravitreal vancomycin, 13 also received ceftazidime, and 2 also received amikacin instead of ceftazidime. Nine eyes developed retinal detachment; 6 underwent vitrectomy. Final VA ranged from 20/20 to no light perception and was ≥20/200 in 8 eyes. Eleven eyes had improved VA, 2 eyes were unchanged, and 4 were worse. Conclusions This study is the largest series on endogenous MRSA endophthalmitis to date. Patients had a higher proportion of final VA ≥20/200, similarly high rate of RD, and fewer enucleations compared to prior reports.


Encaged aggregations of live krill in good to pristine condition have been ensonified at 38 and 120 kHz. Concurrent underwater television observations of behavior resemble those made by underwater divers in naturally occurring swarms, with comparably high densities of the order of 104 animals/m3 . Mean, single‐animal target strengths have been inferred from measurements of echo energy. For aggregations with mean lengths in the range [30,39] mm, the mean single‐krill target strengths are in the range [−88,−83] dB at 38 kHz and [−81,−74] dB at 120 kHz. Collateral measurements on some of the same encaged specimens determined a density contrast of 1.0357±0.0067 and sound‐speed contrast of 1.0279±0.0024, relative to seawater. These numbers have been used with the fluid‐sphere model as stated by Greenlaw [Limnol. Oceanogr. 24, 226–242 (1979)] . Computed backscattering cross sections have been averaged over the length distributions of each measured aggregation, resulting in target strength predictions in the ran...


Enforcement of U.S. law concerning weapons exports and the disbursement of military aid are subject to highly politicized interpretations of concepts like ""legitimate self-defense"" and ""safeguarding internal security."" As illustrated by Israel9s July 2006 war in Lebanon and its 2008––2009 Operation Cast Lead in Gaza, Washington has essentially allowed Israel to define ""self-defense"" however it chooses. This overview of U.S. military aid to Israel, including weapons sales and related support of its domestic military industrial complex, examines in detail the mechanisms through which aid is funneled, the restrictions on aid that do exist, and the uses to which U.S. military aid has been put——particularly in terms of Israel9s military operations and its exports abroad.


A 3-D nanostructure particle network of TiO2, TiO, Ti3O oxide nanoparticles is synthesized by ultra-short pulsed femtosecond laser irradiation from a Grade 2 pure titanium substrate. This study investigated the properties of the resulting nanostructure and underneath phase transformed surface for biomaterial applications. Controlled tuning of surface chemistry and phases of the 3-D network were found to directly influence the cell mobility. The presented findings support a previously unrealized capacity by nano-core shell like particles and its phases for reducing cell proliferation on a biomaterial. Both osteoblast and fibroblast cells improved controllability and anisotropic migration with the developed nanostructure. The corresponding oxide phases which influenced this controllability was analysed in detail with possible potential in health care industry. The results suggest an effective means to improve biomaterial life thereby increasing implant life.


Inorganic semiconductors have properties that are notoriously difficult to control due to the deleterious impact of crystalline imperfections, and this is especially so in solar cells. In this work, it is demonstrated that materials grown using wet chemistry processes for the preparation of nanocristalline precursors can achieve the same performance as the best state of the art, namely conversion efficiencies above 11% with CuInS2. Interestingly, due to the growth process, the active material inherit a porous morphology that is shown to play a part in the performance and functionality of the active material. The new device morphology leads to a device operation closer to that of nanoscale organic interpenetrated solar cells or dye sensitized solar cells than to those of standard polycrystalline ones.


A low-degree polynomial model for a response curve is used commonly in practice. It generally incorporates a linear or quadratic function of the covariate. In this paper we suggest methods for testing the goodness of fit of a general polynomial model when there are errors in the covariates. There, the true covariates are not directly observed, and conventional bootstrap methods for testing are not applicable. We develop a new approach, in which deconvolution methods are used to estimate the distribution of the covariates under the null hypothesis, and a "wild" or moment-matching bootstrap argument is employed to estimate the distribution of the experimental errors (distinct from the distribution of the errors in covariates). Most of our attention is directed at the case where the distribution of the errors in covariates is known, although we also discuss methods for estimation and testing when the covariate error distribution is estimated. No assumptions are made about the distribution of experimental error, and, in particular, we depart substantially from conventional parametric models for errors-in-variables problems.


This paper asks whether bonanzas (surges) in net capital inflows increase the probability of banking crises and whether this is necessarily through a lending boom mechanism. A fixed effects regression analysis indicates that a baseline bonanza, identified as a surge of one standard deviation from trend, increases the odds of a banking crisis by three times, even in the absence of a lending boom. Thus, a bonanza raises the likelihood of a crisis from an unconditional probability of 4. 4 percent to 12 percent. Larger windfalls of capital (two-s. d. bonanzas) increase the odds of a crisis by eight times. The joint occurrence of a bonanza and a lending boom raises these odds even more. Decomposing flows into FDI, portfolio-equity and debt indicates that bonanzas in all flows increase the probability of crises when the windfall takes place jointly with a lending boom. Thus, windfalls in all types of flows exacerbate the deleterious effects of credit. However, surges in portfolio-equity flows seem to have an independent effect, even in the absence of a lending boom. Furthermore, emerging economies exhibit greater odds of crises after a windfall of capital.


Nanoparticles (NPs) enclosing antibiotics have provided promising therapy against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) in different mammalian models. However, the NPs were not visualized in any of these animal studies. Here, we introduce the transparent zebrafish embryo as a system for noninvasive, simultaneous imaging of fluorescent NPs and the fish tuberculosis (TB) agent Mycobacterium marinum (Mm). The study was facilitated by the use of transgenic lines of macrophages, neutrophils, and endothelial cells expressing fluorescent markers readily visible in the live vertebrate. Intravenous injection of Mm led to phagocytosis by blood macrophages. These remained within the vasculature until 3 days postinfection where they started to extravasate and form aggregates of infected cells. Correlative light/electron microscopy revealed that these granuloma-like structures had significant access to the vasculature. Injection of NPs induced rapid uptake by both infected and uninfected macrophages, the latter being actively recruited to the site of infection, thereby providing an efficient targeting into granulomas. Rifampicin-loaded NPs significantly improved embryo survival and lowered bacterial load, as shown by quantitative fluorescence analysis. Our results argue that zebrafish embryos offer a powerful system for monitoring NPs in vivo and rationalize why NP therapy was so effective against Mtb in earlier studies; bacteria and NPs share the same cellular niche.


Volcán Citlaltépetl (Pico de Orizaba) with an elevation of 5,675 m is the highest volcano in North America. Its most recent catastrophic events involved the production of pyroclastic flows that erupted approximately 4,000, 8,500, and 13,000 years ago. The distribution of mapped deposits from these eruptions gives an approximate guide to the extent of products from potential future eruptions. Because the topography of this volcano is constantly changing computer simulations were made on the present topography using three computer algorithms: energy cone, FLOW2D, and FLOW3D. The Heim Coefficient (μ), used as a code parameter for frictional sliding in all our algorithms, is the ratio of the assumed drop in elevation (H) divided by the lateral extent of the mapped deposits (L). The viscosity parameter for the FLOW2D and FLOW3D codes was adjusted so that the paths of the flows mimicked those inferred from the mapped deposits. We modeled two categories of pyroclastic flows modeled for the level I and level II events. Level I pyroclastic flows correspond to small but more frequent block-and-ash flows that remain on the main cone. Level II flows correspond to more widespread flows from catastrophic eruptions with an approximate 4,000-year repose period. We developed hazard maps from simulations based on a National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) DTED-1 DEM with a 90 m grid and a vertical accuracy of ±30 m. Because realistic visualization is an important aid to understanding the risks related to volcanic hazards we present the DEM as modeled by FLOW3D. The model shows that the pyroclastic flows extend for much greater distances to the east of the volcano summit where the topographic relief is nearly 4,300 m. This study was used to plot hazard zones for pyroclastic flows in the official hazard map that was published recently.


Context: Family Health Advisory Services (FHAS) posting as well as its assessment is resource demanding but fails to enjoy priority. Study focuses on a holistic overview of the assessment process to understand need for change. Aims: The aim of this study is to identify perceived gaps in current assessment practices related to FHAS posting. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional mixed method study among all the V semester students currently undergoing assessment for the posting, past students (selected VII semester students and interns), preceptors (supervising residents – postgraduate students in department and senior resident, health assistants, medical social service officer), and involved faculty. Subject and Methods: Self-administered questionnaire, in-depth interview, focus group discussions (two) as well as observations using checklist were used for data collection and triangulation. Statistical Analysis Used: Quantitative data used in this study were statistical measures of central tendency and dispersion. Qualitative data transcript repeatedly read to identify underlying common themes, compared to draw inference. Results: There was a lack of guidelines and communication regarding assessment. Formative assessment was not performed and replaced by one time end assessment. All components of learning were not assessed. End-posting assessment was not standardized and unrelated to learning objectives. Award of scores was skewed toward right for intervention and toward left for analysis and community diagnosis. Conclusions: There is a need to focus on proper implementation of programme to strengthen formative assessment. Assessment should be relevant to learning objectives of posting. Faculty has to lead by example.


Preventive healthcare considerations have always been prioritized over treatment. With this regard, one of the most influential approaches is investment in and attention to healthcare instructions and awareness-raising in schools. Poor oral health can pose destructive effects on students' achievement both in school and life. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the interventional effect of a BASNEF model-based instruction on preventing and controlling oral health-related problems among male junior high school students. In this semi-experimental research, 80 students were selected and randomly divided into two groups of 40 (a control and an experimental group). The data gathering instrument was a questionnaire developed based on BASNEF model. The instructional intervention was conducted in 6 sessions. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 19, independent t-test, paired t-test, Wilcoxon along with descriptive tests (mean, standard deviation, frequency and percentage). Research findings revealed a significant divergence between the mean awareness scores and the underlying constructs of BASNEF model in the control and experimental groups (p<.001). According to the findings, instructional interventions based on BASNEF model which follow an appropriate and harmonized structure can not only raise students' awareness and attitude but can also produce healthy behaviors among them.


The construction process is generally divided into three major phases, the project conception, project design and project construction phase. In each of the phases
involved different tasks by different group of project participants. Sum as client, consultants, contractors and supplier who are often new to each project. 'The thesis
studies how software is integrated in today construction project management. This research covers the method of project management and influences on the application of project management software such as Primavera and Microsoft Project Management. The research area is around Kota Kinabalu, Sabah and Aring, Kelantan for the case studies :-
1. "2 '½ Stories House in Kingfisher, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah" by using KA 3753 Contract and Estimation assignment.
2. "Road Project -Simpang Pulai - Lojing - Gua Musang - Kuala Berang Package 6 (From Aring to Jambatan Pasir Pulau)" by Kumpulan Liziz Sdn. Bhd.In the research period, the efficiency of the computer aided work is discussed. Various scenarios is simulated in this thesis to discuss the problems occur on site and how is the problem rectify in order to ensure the project stay within the planning
schedule. A survey is conducted during the research period to gain more information from various project managers in order to identify what type of software and method
used in the respective project.


Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) which combines high image quality with advanced techniques to probe cardiovascular system is developing rapidly. Also, as a noninvasive imaging equipment, it has been accepted widely in clinical application. CMRI techniques produce high spatial, contrast, and temporal resolution image data for evaluation of cardiac and great vessel anatomy, coronary artery imaging, regional tissue characterization, vascular blood flow, cardiac chamber filling and contraction, and myocardial perfusion, myocardial viability. This chapter will cover the basic techniques of CMRI, practical tricks of how to perform CMRI, and clinical application in a variety of congenital heart disease, coronary artery disease, and non-ischemic heart disease, etc.


One of the most important simulation assets is the data that is collected during executions. Imagine being able to look back, analyze and reuse the data of simulations that have been run during the last decade. However, data logging has a number of challenges, not the least in today's environment where we need to train jointly and combined and mix a number of Live, Virtual and Constructive simulators, using different standards. This paper summarizes some requirements for LVC data logging as well as replay. It also describes some early experiences from developing and testing a data logger that can perform fully synchronized, simultaneous data logging of HLA, DIS, Link 16 and other data streams. Some details are given on aspects like embedding, chase play, ownership and import/export. Some challenges and limitations when mixing these different interoperability and data link standards are also covered.


During survey on entomopathogenic nematodes carried out in 2004, a new record of the genus Steinernema (S-XT) was isolated from a soil sample that collected from Xuan Trach, Quang Binh province. The morphological and molecular identification of S-XT isolate have revealed scientific name as Steinernema guangdongense Qiu, Fang & Zhou, 2004. Generally, the specimens from Vietnam are similar to the original description of S. guangdongense by having eight lines in the lateral fields at infective juveniles; the presence of a small double flapped epiptygma, a small projection on the dorsal side of the tail tips and its prominent post-anal swelling part, which is typical for S. guangdongense . In males, the spicules paired, brown color, head (manubrium) of spicules with rounded anterior end, almost continuous with shaft, except body length of females at the first generation always larger. The morphology, morphometrics and molecular characterization based on Vietnamese specimens were supplemented data for the redescription of S. guangdongense and confirmed it belonging to "glaseri" group with the body length of infective juveniles fluctuated between 1,055 µm and 1,063 µm and eight lines in lateral fields. The newly recorded species is also close to S. longicaudum , which was also recorded from Vietnam but differed from it by having another morphological structure of the spicules apparatus, present of the paired epiptigma in the female and the numbers of the lateral fields in the infective juveniles.


Objective: To determine the prevalence of major psychiatric illness in a group of young adults who suffered significant burn injury as children. Method: A total of 101 persons (58 males, 43 females), aged 21 ± 2.6 years, 14.0 ± 5.4 years postburn of 54% ± 20% total body surface area, were assessed for serious past and present mental illness by using a Structured Clinical Interview (SCID) for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM-IV) Axis I diagnoses. Results: The SCID findings demonstrated that the prevalence of any Axis I major mental illness was 45.5% for the past month (current) and 59.4% for lifetime. These rates of overall disorder and the rates for most specific disorders were significantly higher than those found in the US population of comparable age. Logistic regression was used to examine demographic and burn characteristics as predictors of current and lifetime psychiatric disorder within the burn survivor sample. The female gender was significantly associated with higher rates of any current disorder. Other demographic and burn characteristics were not significantly related to the overall prevalence of current or lifetime disorder. Only a small number of those with disorders reported any current mental health treatment. Conclusions: Significant burn injury as a child leads to an increased risk of developing a major mental illness. Young adults who suffered major burn injury as children should be screened for these illnesses to initiate appropriate treatment. TBSA = total body surface area; SCID = Structured Clinical Interview; NCS = National Comorbidity Survey; DIS = Diagnostic Interview Schedule; CIDI = Composite International Diagnostic Interview; PTSD = posttraumatic stress disorder.


A new planar micro-transformer having sandwich spiral coil structure is fabricated using MEMS micro-fabrication technique. Stack interwinding coil is designed to achieve high coupling and higher winding number at relatively small coil area. In this work, stack sandwich interwinding coil structure is fabricated by bonding the substrates of the coil at connection pads using conductive epoxy material. This method replaces the use of conventional via connections that cause the most problem of current conductance in planar structures. The inductance of fabricated coil are measured at wide range of operating frequency using cascade GSG probe. The results show that the proposed technique is an alternative way in fabricating a simple and cost effective 3-dimensional structure of stack micro-transformer.


Summary
A filterable agent, designated 13p2 was isolated from homogenized juvenile oyster tissue inoculated on to bluegill fry (BF-2) cell cultures. The oysters were from a hatchery on Long Island Sound, New York. Successive passages resulted in progressive cytopathic effects (c.p.e.) consisting of discrete plaques containing large syncytia seen within 2 to 3 days in cultures held at 15 °C. The agent was concentrated from supernatant fluids by ultracentrifugation. Negative stained preparations examined by electron microscopy revealed icosahedral particles with a mean diam. of 79 nm.
Virus replication in tissue culture occurred at both 15 and 23 °C. Susceptible fish cells in addition to the BF-2 included brown bullhead, Atlantic salmon, guppy embryo and walleye fry lines. Limited c.p.e. occurred in Atlantic salmon heart cells while rainbow trout gonad, rainbow trout spleen and fathead minnow cells were refractory to cytopathic changes.
Biochemical and physical characteristics suggested the 13p2 virus belonged to the family Reoviridae. The possibility that this virus is a known reovirus, present only as a contaminant, was ruled out on the basis of serological results and failure of avian or mammalian cells to support its growth. The 13p2 agent may be an undescribed virus. Further investigations concerning the identity of this virus and its capabilities as a pathogen in fish and shellfish are under way.


Abstract Corpora have revolutionized nearly all areas of linguistic research over the past four decades (McEnery, Xiao and Tono 2006; McEnery and Hardie 2012). Translation studies and contrastive linguistics are no exceptions. Indeed, the rapid development of bilingual parallel corpora as well as monolingual and multilingual comparable corpora since the early 1990s has been of particular relevance and crucial importance to translation studies and contrastive linguistics. This special issue of Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory focuses on corpus-based translation and contrastive linguistic studies involving two genetically different languages, namely English and Chinese, which we believe have formed an important interface with its unique features as a result of the mutual interaction between the two languages. This introduction will first contextualize the special issue by exploring the state of the art in using corpora in translation and contrastive linguistic studies, particularly in the context of the two languages covered, and then provide a synopsis of each article included in this volume and comment on its significance and implications for linguistic theorization.


Interest in autografting for chronic myeloid leukaemia and its clinical relevance has revived in recent years. This followed observations that with various chemotherapeutic regimens it was possible to achieve, temporarily at least, peripheral blood and bone marrow that were Philadelphia negative. Bone marrow or peripheral blood progenitor cells could then be harvested and reinfused following a high dose procedure, hopefully eliminating any residual disease, and resulting in prolonged disease free survival. This ideal has not yet been successfully achieved with current strategies. Recent results indicate that eliminating residual disease with current chemotherapy is not normally achievable. The use of more sensitive technologies such as polymerase chain reaction has revealed persistent disease in most if not all apparently Philadelphia negative cases. This is confirmed by results where disease relapse occurs following transplant in these cases. Despite this, clinically relevant remissions are obtained and further trials are indicated. In this review present treatment is discussed and future strategies, using novel techniques as an adjunct to current treatment, are proposed that might improve on present results or even lead to the elusive goal of cure. (J Clin Pathol 1998;51:92–95)


Abstract The article focuses on re-evaluating Kant's Transcendental Dialectic by initially highlighting its seemingly negative function within the Critique of Pure Reason as a mere regulative form for cognition and experience. The Dialectic, however, does not only have such a negative-regulative function but also its very own positive and founding character for cognition that even is present in the supposedly most immediate forms of intuition. In exploring this positive side of the Transcendental Dialectic it becomes clear that it manifests itself as a bridge between the so-called theoretical and practical reason inasmuch as it fills in their gap within Kant's philosophy. From the practical side, the Dialectic is manifest as an action full of purposiveness, maxims, and imperatives within cognition, from a theoretical side it assumes the form of syllogistic inference, which is the adequate and acting theoretical form of practical reason. Therefore, the unity of reason is shown in presenting its inner gap as a dialectical misunderstanding that Kant not only highlights in the Transcendental Dialectic but also tends to leave unsolved mostly. Nevertheless, the Dialectic can be shown as the a priori synthetic act of unifying reason, if investigated in the context of Kant's complete critical endeavour.


Objective: To explore the pharmacy technician workload analysis and workforce requirements at Ministry of Health Primary care center during mass gathering Hajj nine years (2006-2014) in Al-Medina Region, Saudi Arabia. Methods: It is a retrospective analysis of nine years (2006-2014) of primary care center pharmacies workload during mass gathering Hajj period. The duration of workload collection was 15-30 days. The pharmacy technician prepares medications and provides pharmaceutical for dispensing through the pharmacist to all patients either Pilgrim or not Pilgrim at Al-Medina region. The workforce requirements calculated based on MOH workforce standards per primary care centers (PCC), the workload drives as central pharmacy services, patient specific pharmacy activities, and general administration specific pharmacy activities. Results: The total number of Pilgrims (1,952,817-3,161,573) with average (2,445,208) and with an average of (210,765.91) pilgrim visited each primary care center. The mean number of primary care center prescription per day (710.58) contained (2,131.74) medications. The grand average number of pharmacy technician based on MOH standards for PCC was (13.33 FTE) while the mean number pharmacy technician needed based on workload was (591.99 FTE) for all PCC. Conclusion: The pharmacy technician workload analysis showed the massive demand of pharmacy technician during mass gathering Hajj period in Al-Medina Region. Targeting to change the MOH standards of primary care center pharmacy workforces during mass gathering Hajj time is necessary for Al-Madina region in Saudi Arabia. Keyword: Pharmacy technician, Workload, Workforces, Primary care center, Mass Gathering, Hajj, Al-Medina, Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia


Introduction: Beginning in the late 1980s studies have consistently shown that youth with non-heterosexual orientations exhibit elevated levels of suicidal behaviours relative to their heterosexual peers. Early studies in this area provided limited evidence as conclusions were based on small, non-representative convenience samples. A handful of recent studies have addressed these limitations by investigating the association using large-scale, representative samples of gay, lesbian and bisexual youth.Aim: A review of these recently published articles was conducted with the aim of understanding with greater clarity if this particular population is at an enhanced risk for engaging in suicidal behaviours.Methods: Twenty-one original research articles, focusing on suicidality amongst gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth, were reviewed. The articles were published between 1999 and 2013. Results: Recent publications yield firm evidence for an association between same-sex sexual orientations among youth and heightened levels of suicidal behaviour. Risk factors precipitating elevated suicidality among this group are primarily derived from psychosocial stressors relating to the stigmatized nature of their sexual orientation.Conclusion: There is sufficient evidence at present to argue policies and interventions are warranted to lower this group's excess risk via public health interventions, such as establishing anti-sexual orientation discrimination policies in school settings and offering counselling programs to this vulnerable group.


Immunosuppression induced by the administration of glucocorticoids will prevent normal wound contraction and normal increases in tensile strength. Vitamin A, anabolic steroids, and growth hormone will, in the presence of glucocorticoids, restore mesenchymal cell proliferation, the accumulation of collagen, and the rate of increase of wound tensile strength. They will not, however, antagonize the inhibition of wound contraction. A novel inorganic agent, the tetrachlorodecaoxygen anion complex (TCDO), known to enhance the migration and activation of macrophages, was tested in a rat model of impaired wound healing using high doses of glucocorticoids. Histology, changes in wound contraction, collagen synthesis, and tensile strength were evaluated. Animals receiving cortisone in combination with TCDO displayed markedly enhanced wound healing, including restoration of tensile strength, collagen synthesis, and wound contraction. The results indicate that TCDO could be a potential agent of wound healing in immunosuppressed patients and anergic wounds.


Following the extensive investigations of the research community throughout the last five years regarding transmission performance when roughly doubling the channel symbol rate in WDM systems from generic 32 GBaud to more than 60 GBaud, this evolution is about to appear in the field in the next twelve months. The general sense is that it will reduce the cost per transmitted gigabit per second (Gb/s), once the related faster optoelectronic interfaces become mature enough. This paper refines this consideration by quantifying the related transponders saving per Gb/s on three distinct backbone WDM networks equipped with elastic optoelectronic regenerators. It also reports how much extra network capacity stems from routing individual 64 GBaud subcarriers 75 GHz apart to serve connections, the capacities of which range from 100 Gb/s to 1 Tb/s. It eventually discusses the impact on the network performance when constraining the regenerators' placement along the light paths of the accommodated services or when simplifying the elastic regenerators by avoiding internal electrical traffic regrooming.


Background The World Health Organization Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX®) algorithm can be used to estimate 10-year probabilities of hip and major osteoporotic fractures. This tool has not yet been validated in Japanese patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Previously, we [1,2] and others have reported a significant association between the Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI) and clinical fracture risk in patients with RA. This has generated interest in the possible role the HAQ-DI could play in improving fracture risk assessment for patients with RA [3]. Objectives The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic accuracy of the Japanese version of FRAX to predict the 10-year probability of hip and major osteoporotic fractures in Japanese patients with RA, and investigate whether the HAQ-DI can further improve the prediction of hip and major osteoporotic fractures. Methods We analyzed the database of the Institute of Rheumatology Rheumatoid Arthritis (IORRA) study, our large prospective observational cohort study in Japanese patients with RA. IORRA study subjects included 3,095 women and 703 men with RA ranging in age from 40 to 90 years. The mean (± standard deviation) age was 60.6±9.6 years. Self-reported major osteoporotic fractures of the hip, vertebrae, humerus, and wrist were verified using patient medical records. The association of FRAX with fractures was evaluated by the Cox model, and C-statistics [4] were used in the risk prediction model to account for censored survival data. The Japanese version of HAQ-DI (J-HAQ-DI) was used in the assessment in conjunction with FRAX, without considering bone mineral density (BMD) values, and C-statistics were used for the 10-year risk calculated by the Cox model. Results A total of 3,798 Japanese patients with RA were followed for an average of 5.8 years. Using FRAX without BMD, the mean 10-year predicted fracture probability for hip and major osteoporotic fractures was 5.3% and 14.5%, respectively. Among the patients, 52 (1.4%) and 216 (5.7%) presented with hip and major osteoporotic fractures (including n=85 vertebral, n=41 humeral, n=38 distal radial, and n=52 hip fractures), respectively. For hip fractures, the C-statistic was 0.735 (95% CI: 0.665, 0.804) for the statistical model prediction based on both J-HAQ-DI and FRAX, and it was 0.688 (95% CI: 0.613, 0.762) for FRAX alone. For major osteoporotic fractures, the C-statistic was 0.678 (95% CI: 0.636, 0.719) for both J-HAQ-DI and FRAX, and 0.664 (95% CI: 0.624, 0.704) for FRAX alone. Conclusions We evaluated the performance of FRAX in Japanese patients with RA using our prospective observational cohort study data. Our results were similar to those in other previously reported longitudinal studies evaluating FRAX. The HAQ-DI appears to improve hip fracture risk assessment when used in conjunction with this conventional risk assessment tool in patients with RA. References Furuya T, et al. J Rheumatol. 2007; 34(2):303-10. Furuya T, et al. Osteoporos Int. 2013; 24(4):1257-65. Broy SB, et al. J Clin Densitom. 2011; 14(3):184-9. Uno H, et al. Stat Med. 2011; 30(10):1105-17. Acknowledgements We thank all members of the Institute of Rheumatology, Tokyo Women's Medical University for the successful management of the IORRA cohort. This work was supported in part by grants-in-aid for scientific research from the Japan Osteoporosis Foundation to TF. Disclosure of Interest T. Furuya: None declared, E. Inoue: None declared, K. Ochi: None declared, O. Ishida: None declared, A. Taniguchi: None declared, S. Momohara: None declared, H. Yamanaka Grant/research support: Abbott, AbbVie, Asahikasei, Astellas, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squib, Chugai, Daiichi Sankyo, Eisai, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Mitsubishi Tanabe, MSD, Nippon Kayaku, Pfizer, Santen, Taishotoyama, Takeda, Teijin, Consultant for: Abbott, AbbVie, Astellas, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squib, Chugai, Daiichi Sankyo, Eisai, Mitsubishi Tanabe, Nippon Kayaku, Pfizer, Takeda, Teijin, Speakers bureau: Abbott, AbbVie, Astellas, Bristol-Myers Squib, Chugai, Eisai, Mitsubishi Tanabe, Pfizer, Takeda, Teijin DOI 10.1136/annrheumdis-2014-eular.1579


Objective The aim of this study was to describe the most common causes of admission of Egyptian patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and the outcomes of these hospitalizations. Background SLE is a prototypic multisystem autoimmune disorder with a broad spectrum of clinical presentations. Studying the causes and outcomes of SLE patients will guide rheumatologists in better management of cases to improve outcomes. Patients and methods The charts of patients with SLE who were hospitalized at our Department of Internal Medicine during a 10-month period from August 2015 to June 2016 were reviewed in a retrospective manner, and their demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were collected. Results There were 85 admissions of 40 patients with SLE. Seventeen (42.5%) patients were admitted twice or more. The mean length of stay for all admissions was 8 days (2–30). The most common cause of admission was active SLE (62 events, 72.9%). SLE was initially diagnosed in 11 (27.5%) patients in our department of internal medicine. Other causes of hospitalization were infections (9.4%), drug complications (2.4%), thromboembolic events (3.5%), and assessment of the disease (10.6%). Three (3.5%) hospitalizations resulted in death. Conclusion Our study of this Egyptian SLE population confirms the findings of previous studies suggesting that active SLE and infection remain the most common causes of hospitalization of patients with SLE.


Despite the efforts to enhance adoption of innovative technologies (IT) by the Tunisian Government through national and/or international development projects, the potential rate of adoption of these technologies has remained low among farmers. This study aims at shedding some light on the potential factors that influence IT adoption in the Tunisian arid areas. Technological, economic, institutional factors and human specific factors (social) are selected to be the determinants of agricultural technology adoption. A quantitative approach employing a cross-sectional design was used to gather data. Stratified random sampling was employed and a total of 200 small-scale farmers (100 adopters and 100 non-adopters) were sampled. Data analysis and assessment was done through descriptive and statistical inferential analysis, and econometric modeling using the binary logistic regression model.

Empirical findings show that economic and socio-demographic factors such as farmer education, size of cattle flocks and off-farm income were statistically significant and had positive influence on technology adoption while age and farmer experience had significant and negative effects on IT adoption. The findings confirm the important role of institutional factors (being a member of an association, benefiting from extension services and source of technology knowledge) in the adoption decision of IT, particularly when such variables were found to be significant and positives. In contrast, labor and credit services do not significantly influence adoption of IT. Based on these results, Government should focus on educating young farmers with large cattle flock size and off-farm income to enhance the adoption of IT for livestock holders. It should also intensify training programs for farmers and for extension agents with the collaboration of the project managers and the involvement of the profession and the private sector. Finally, the open innovation strategy including all stakeholders during idea generation could be considered as a better way to decrease technology development costs and improve IT adoption.


François de Billon's Fort inexpugnable de l'honneur du sexe feminin (1555) was among the most extensive contributions to the sixteenth-century polemic on the nature of women known as the querelle des femmes. In keeping with the military connotations of its title, Billon's 'impregnable fortress' is an exercise in bellicose rhetoric; his sallies are illustrated with woodcuts of roaring lions and fire-spitting cannons to heighten the effect of bravado. In the section on women's musical gifts, he vaunts the 'angelic sweetness' of the female singing voice, and claims that although male musicians more often win fame, women have always been better singers: In [singing] nevertheless women have always been the very best. Whatever may be said by Sandrin, Arcadelt or Janequin, the most renowned musicians of Europe in our time, whom I would willingly ask, 'Where is it that one can find sweetness of vocal harmony, in general, if not in the musical throat of Woman, even if she puts forth only a little warbling?' And if they answered that in some men one finds more, could I not rightly reply, 'What is the reason, my friends, that so few men of your profession are married and that you all flee marriage, if not that through propriety [honnesteté] you would be forced to bring your wives (instead of choirboys) into princely chambers to sing with you, or without you, which would be found so much sweeter than any childish voice? O what harmony, if you were all married in the normal fashion to beautiful women; if they were well instructed by you in the rules of music; and if in the aforementioned manner, you tuned yourselves well with them. The pleasure of listening to you would be double, the advantage triple, and thus, frequently nothing would be sung except in duo'.


Heparin is the most commonly used anticoagulant in the treatment of cardiac surgery patients. It is a preferred anticoagulant because of its ease of control by tracking patient-thromboplastin time and the presence of an antidote, Protamine. In addition to the increased risk of bleeding, the use of heparin can lead to a potentially life-threatening condition heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT). HIT is of two main types type I HIT of non-immune genesis (also known as heparin-associated thrombocytopenia (HAT)) and type II HIT (a condition of immune genesis, whereby HIT is caused by antibodies that recognize platelet factor 4 (PF4) complexes. and heparin). HIT leads to a state of hypercoagulation, high risk of arterial and venous thrombosis and death. HIT is associated with increased morbidity and mortality rates, higher costs and significantly prolongs hospital stay. Cardiac surgery and resuscitation patients are a risk group for the development of HIT. The diagnosis of HIT in most cases is difficult, but once made, leads to a significant change in the patient's diagnostic and treatment plan and the forthcoming surgical interventions.


Double-differential cross sections for light charged particle production (up to A=4) were measured in 96 MeV neutron-induced reactions, at the TSL Laboratory Cyclotron in Uppsala (Sweden). Measurements for three targets, Fe, Pb, and U, were performed using two independent devices, SCANDAL and MEDLEY. The data were recorded with low-energy thresholds and for a wide angular range (20 deg. -160 deg. ). The normalization procedure used to extract the cross sections is based on the np elastic scattering reaction that we measured and for which we present experimental results. A good control of the systematic uncertainties affecting the results is achieved. Calculations using the exciton model are reported. Two different theoretical approaches proposed to improve its predictive power regarding the complex particle emission are tested. The capabilities of each approach is illustrated by comparison with the 96 MeV data that we measured, and with other experimental results available in the literature.


In this study, an efficient methodology is proposed for robust design optimization by using preference function and fuzzy logic concepts. In this method, the experience of experts is used as an important source of information during the design optimization process. The case study in this research is wing design optimization of Boeing 747. Optimization problem has two objective functions (wing weight and wing drag) so that they are transformed into new forms of objective functions based on fuzzy preference functions. Design constraints include transformation of fuel tank volume and lift coefficient into new constraints based on fuzzy preference function. The considered uncertainties are cruise velocity and altitude, which Monte Carlo simulation method is used for modeling them. The non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm is used as the optimization algorithm that can generate set of solutions as Pareto frontier. Ultimate distance concept is used for selecting the best solution among Pareto frontier. The results of the probabilistic analysis show that the obtained configuration is less sensitive to uncertainties.


This solid-state communications transmitter/modulator has been developed for the Westinghouse interrogator to be used on the Mode Select (Mode S) Airport Beacon System Sensor. These all solid state Air Traffic Control Systems will be installed in 137 airports in the United States to update and improve present airport/plane communications. They are also compatible with the present air traffic commumcation system that they will replace, the Air Traffic Control Radar Beacon System (ATCRBS); this feature will accommodate any planes that wiII not yet have the updated Mode S equipment.


Tilapia meat pastes were subjected to pretreatments of hydrostatic pressure (50 to 300 MPa/4 degrees C/60 min) followed by setting (50 degrees C/60 min) with or without subsequent cooking (90 degrees C/20 min) to investigate the changes of rheological properties, gel-forming ability, whiteness, and protein solubility of gels. The gel by setting only as the control was elastic, rigid, and mainly constituted by covalent bonds. The gel by pretreatments of 50 MPa was similar to the control. A 100-MPa pretreatment induced a viscous and soft gel with mainly noncovalent bonds. The 200-MPa pretreatment produced a gel with strongest breaking force and strain compared with all the treatments in this study; moreover, the gel was mainly constituted by hydrogen bonds. A gel induced by a 300-MPa pretreatment was the most viscous. Via subsequent cooking (90 degrees C/20 min), all the gels became more rigid and elastic except that induced by a 100-MPa pretreatment.


At the end of the 20th century nearly all developed nations have become countries of immigration, absorbing growing numbers of immigrants not only from developed regions, but increasingly from developing nations of the Third World. Although international migration has come to play a central role in the social, economic, and demographic dynamics of both immigrant-sending and immigrant-receiving countries, social scientists have been slow to construct a comprehensive theory to explain it. Efforts at theoretical explanation have been fragmented by disciplinary, geographic, and methodological boundaries. Worlds in Motion seeks to overcome these schisms to create a comprehensive theory of international migration for the next century. After explicating the various propositions and hypotheses of current theories, and identifying area of complementarity and conflict, the authors review empirical research emanating from each of the world's principal international migration systems: North America, Western Europe, the Gulf, Asia and the Pacific, and the Southern Cone of South America. Using data from the 1980s, levels and patterns of migration within each system are described to define their structure and organization. Specific studies are then comprehensively surveyed to evaluate the fundamental propositions of neoclassical economics, the new economics of labour migration, segmented labour market theory, world systems theory, social capital theory, and the theory of cumulative causation. The various theories are also tested by applying them to the relationship between international migration and economic development. Although certain theories seem to function more effectively in certain systems, all contain elements of truth supported by empirical research. The task of the theorist is thus to identify which theories are most effective in accounting for international migration in the world today, and what regional and national circumstances lead to a predominance of one theoretical mechanism over another. The book concludes by offering an empirically-grounded theoretical synthesis to serve as a guide for researchers and policy-makers in the 21st century. Contributors to this volume - Douglas Massey, Princeton University Joaquin Arango, Complutense University of Madrid Graeme Hugo, University of Adelaide Ali Kouaouci, University of Montreal Adela Pellegrino, University of the Republic, Uruguay Edward J. Taylor, University of California, Davis


Transient analysis of large-scale power delivery network (PDN) is a critical task to ensure the functional correctness and desired performance of today's integrated circuits (ICs), especially if significant transient noises are induced by clock and/or power gating due to the utilization of extensive power management. In this paper, we propose an efficient algorithm for PDN transient analysis based on sparse approximation. The key idea is to exploit the fact that the transient response caused by clock/power gating is often localized and the voltages at many other "inactive" nodes are almost unchanged, thereby rendering a unique sparse structure. By taking advantage of the underlying sparsity of the solution structure, a modified conjugate gradient algorithm is developed and tuned to efficiently solve the PDN analysis problem with low computational cost. Our numerical experiments based on standard benchmarks demonstrate that the proposed transient analysis with sparse approximation offers up to 2.2× runtime speedup over other traditional methods, while simultaneously achieving similar accuracy.


We developed and evaluated seven interfaces for integrating semantic category information with Web search results. List interfaces were based on the familiar ranked-listing of search results, sometimes augmented with a category name for each result. Category interfaces also showed page titles and/or category names, but re-organized the search results so that items in the same category were grouped together visually. Our user studies show that all Category interfaces were more effective than List interfaces even when lists were augmented with category names for each result. The best category performance was obtained when both category names and individual page titles were presented. Either alone is better than a list presentation, but both together provide the most effective means for allowing users to quickly examining search results. These results provide a better understanding of the perceptual and cognitive factors underlying the advantage of category groupings and provide some practical guidance to Web search interface designers.


The effects of carbon fiber amount and length were studied on the flame retardant, thermal, and mechanical properties of the intumescent polypropylene composites. The flame retardant properties of the intumescent polypropylene-based composites were investigated using limiting oxygen index, vertical burning test (UL-94), and mass loss calorimeter. The mechanical properties of the composites were studied using tensile test and dynamic mechanical analysis. According to the flammability tests results, the antagonistic interaction was observed between carbon fiber and ammonium polyphosphate. The limiting oxygen index value reduced steadily as the added amount of carbon fiber increased. Mechanical test results revealed that the addition of carbon fiber increased the tensile strength and the elastic modulus as the added amount increased. No effect of carbon fiber length was observed on the flammability, fire performance, and tensile properties of composites, whereas the elastic modulus increased as the carbon fiber initial length increased.


Most real-life problems involve the simultaneous optimisation of two or more, usually conflicting, objectives. Researchers have put a continuous effort into solving these problems in many different areas, such as engineering, finance and computer science. Over time, thanks to the increase in processing power, researchers have created methods which have become increasingly sophisticated. Most of these methods have been based on the notion of Pareto dominance, which assumes, sometimes erroneously, that the objectives have no known ranking of importance. The Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (VRPTW) is a logistics problem which in real-life applications appears to be multi-objective. This problem consists of designing the optimal set of routes to serve a number of customers within certain time slots. Despite this problem's high applicability to real-life domains (e.g. waste collection, fast-food delivery), most research in this area has been conducted with hand-made datasets. These datasets sometimes have a number of unrealistic features (e.g. the assumption that one unit of travel time corresponds to one unit of travel distance) and are therefore not adequate for the assessment of optimisers. Furthermore, very few studies have focused on the multi-objective nature of the VRPTW. That is, very few have studied how the optimisation of one objective affects the others. This thesis proposes a number of novel tools (methods + dataset) to address the abovementioned challenges: 1) an agent-based framework for cooperative search, 2) a novel multi-objective ranking approach, 3) a new dataset for the VRPTW, 4) a study of the pair-wise relationships between five common objectives in VRPTW, and 5) a simplified Multi-objective Discrete Particle Swarm Optimisation for the VRPTW.


The time dependence of lightly loaded shortening velocity, myosin phosphorylation, and changes in myoplasmic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) were measured during tonic and phasic contractions of circular smooth muscle from the proximal colon of the dog. Shortening velocity was measured by quick release to a 10% afterload. Myosin phosphorylation was measured by an immunoblot method, and changes in [Ca2+]i were estimated by measuring fluorescence intensity at 550 nm in muscle strips loaded with fluo-3. During tonic contractions induced by 60 mM K+, phosphorylation increased monotonically from 0.11 +/- 0.011 to 0.29 +/- 0.015 mol Pi/mol light chain at 10 min. In contrast, lightly loaded shortening velocity increased rapidly within 10 s to 0.042 +/- 0.003 lengths/s and decreased exponentially to 0.013 +/- 0.001 lengths/s at 15 min. During transient contractions induced by 100 microM acetylcholine, phosphorylation increased from 0.16 +/- 0.03 to 0.30 +/- 0.06 mol Pi/mol light chain at 19 s. In contrast, shortening velocity increased to 0.068 +/- 0.015 lengths/s within 2.4 s and decreased significantly to 0.027 +/- 0.009 lengths/s at 22 s. Fluo-3 fluorescence increased in parallel with force during both tonic and transient contractions. In a smooth muscle that is able to contract both tonically and phasically we observed transient increases in shortening velocity without concurrent phosphorylation or [Ca2+]i transients. Therefore, there are factors in addition to myosin phosphorylation or changes in [Ca2+]i that regulate cross-bridge cycling rates in both tonic and phasic contractions.


Dehydrins are intrinsically disordered proteins, generally expressed in plants as a response to embryogenesis and water-related stress. Their suggested functions are in membrane stabilization and cell protection. All dehydrins contain at least one copy of the highly conserved K-segment, proposed to be a membrane-binding motif. The dehydrin Lti30 (Arabidopsis thaliana) is up-regulated during cold and drought stress conditions and comprises six K-segments, each with two adjacent histidines. Lti30 interacts with the membrane electrostatically via pH-dependent protonation of the histidines. In this work, we seek a molecular understanding of the membrane interaction mechanism of Lti30 by determining the diffusion and molecular organization of Lti30 on model membrane systems by imaging total internal reflection– fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (ITIR-FCS) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The dependence of the diffusion coefficient explored by ITIR-FCS together with MD simulations yields insights into Lti30 binding, domain partitioning, and aggregation. The effect of Lti30 on membrane lipid diffusion was studied on fluorescently labeled supported lipid bilayers of different lipid compositions at mechanistically important pH conditions. In parallel, we compared the mode of diffusion for short individual K-segment peptides. The results indicate that Lti30 binds the lipid bilayer via electrostatics, which restricts the mobility of lipids and bound protein molecules. At low pH, Lti30 binding induced lipid microdomain formation as well as protein aggregation, which could be correlated with one another. Moreover, at physiological pH, Lti30 forms nanoscale aggregates when proximal to the membrane suggesting that Lti30 may protect the cell by "cross-linking" the membrane lipids.


: After a decade of class action lawsuits, brought about by inadequate treatment and the assumption that psychiatric patients have no rights, the care and treatment of the mentally ill has improved, and their rights have been well defined.


Tissue response to metallic contact and injury remains poorly understood at the level of proteins and lipid changes. We used corneas as a model system (bovine, porcine [n = 300 each], and human corneas [n = 6]) to characterize proteomic and lipidomic reactions to metallic exposure (impaction with iron). We also made a limited investigation into protein extractability and profile changes due to copper, and lead exposure as well. We identified selected proteins after trypsin digestion using an LCQ Deca XP and lipids using a TSQ Quantum Access Max mass spectrometer, respectively. Our findings indicate that iron impaction to corneal tissue results in cleavage of 1‐phosphatidylinositol‐4,5‐bisphosphate phosphodiesterase beta‐2 variant (PLCB2; 134 kDa) into a 36 kDa species and presence of the epithelial layer is necessary for this cleavage. Penetration of the cornea with other metals (copper and lead) resulted in lower protein extractability from corneal tissue compared with controls but not distinct changes in PLCB2. The changes in protein profiles were unique to the type of metal used for impaction. The depth of injury negatively affected protein extractability and profile compared with controls. These changes were also dependent on several other factors in a complex manner. Iron impaction of corneal tissue for 24 hours results in cleavage of PLCB2 commensurate with significant changes in phosphatidylinositols but not phosphatidylcholines or other phospholipids.


A lot of IP address lookup algorithms have been widely studied. Among them we have thorough investigated the caching based algorithms. It is based on the locality assumption of Intenet traffic which is questionable especially in high speed backbone. There is enough locality if routing prefixes are cached instead of individual IP addresses. However the previous prefix caching scheme need to do complete or partial prefix expansion to cache corresponding prefix which will lead to prefix table explosion and make incremental updates difficult. A new active prefix caching algorithm based on prefixes covering relationship is proposed in this paper. Incremental updates are supported without prefix expansion. Perfermance evalulation shows our proposed scheme has higher cache hit rate, less memory space than previous schemes.


Subband adaptive filters have been proposed to avoid the drawbacks of slow convergence and high computational complexity associated with time domain adaptive filters. Subband processing introduces transmission delays and signal degradations due to aliasing effects. In order to overcome the delays, delayless adaptive filtering has been introduced where the adaptive algorithm is working in subbands while the signal filtering is performed in fullband. A design method for filter banks with any oversampling factor is utilized, where the total filter bank group delay may be specified, and where the aliasing and magnitude/phase distortions are minimized. This paper investigates the performance of the filter banks in delayless adaptive filtering applied in an acoustic echo cancellation scenario for telephony conferencing.


This article examines the explosion of violent ethno-religious and communal conflicts in Nigeria, contrary to the widespread expectation that the inauguration of the civilian administration would usher in democratic stability. The nature of the politics of the transition programme and the reluctance of the post-military regime to address the national question have led to the resurgence of social groups that make demands for incorporation and empowerment. The central argument is that unbridled competition for power, and the failure of government to deliver democratic dividends, have resulted in violent conflicts, especially between ethnic and religious groups, endangering the country's nascent democracy. Good governance, especially accountability, transparency and equity, would restore governmental legitimacy, inter-ethnic and religious harmony and promote democratic consolidation.


Day-to-day contact between care professionals and care recipients as a finding place for good MID care The idea of good care for young people with a mild mental disability, who are often categorized as "difficult" (Teeuwen, 2012), is subject to dominant ethics from "outside". The vision and mission of organizations, the current social paradigm, scientific insights, methodologies, protocols and quality systems are all normatively loaded (Baart & Vosman, 2015) and bring with them notions of "desired effects". In this research, we take a radically different perspective. We show how we can find what works well in the everyday routine. Our approach is so different from the usual approach taken, that different theories and methodology are required to demonstrate what we mean. First of all, we consider concern ethics as a perspective (Gilligan, 1982, Noddings, 1984; Tronto, 1993, 2013; Barnes, 2012; Laugier, 2014, 2016), and we follow Baart and Timmerman (2016) in the empirically grounded care ethics that we use. We argue for a variant of grounded theory, in which theory is used not as "an a priori or a posteriori explanation", but in a heuristic manner (Vosman, Den Bakker & Weenink, 2016). When choosing theoretical concepts, it is important that the concepts chosen reveal where moral orientation arises in day-to-day contact within institutional contexts, such as "everyday life" (Dorfman, 2014), "concern" (Sayer, 2011), "emergent goods" (Laugier, 2014, 2016), and "forms of life" (Jaeggi, 2014). We have already discussed these concepts in a previous contribution to JSI (Kolen, Vosman & Timmerman, 2016b). This article reports on our empirical research. In addition to empirically grounded care ethics, we used institutional ethnography (DeVault, 2013; Prodinger & Turner, 2013; Smith, 2006) in our attempt to identify institutional influences and in doing so, we have developed an "underwater screen" that is able to identify such influences in observation reports (Kolen, Timmerman & Vosman, 2015, 2016). Between September 2011 and December 2012, we followed 19 young people with a mild intellectual disability (IQ 50 – 85) in their day-to-day contact with care professionals in the context of three different care organizations. Each of these young people was followed for the duration of one day. The observation reports were open-coded using tools such as the "underwater screen". This gave us an initial impression of what is at stake for young people and for care givers in their day-to-day contact, and which institutional influences on everyday contact can be identified. We then developed a coding system. This was the first step towards understanding the dynamic that is present in day-to-day contact. In doing this, we viewed the actions of care givers, residents, and the institutional context in a praxeological manner, as doing, leaving, and undergoing (Nicolini, 2012; Schmidt, 2012; Schatzki, 2002; Schafer, 2016; Vosman et al., 2016). The results of the coding system were processed in an extended data matrix (Miles, Huberman & Saldana, 2013) in which the day-to-day contact between the three actors was described on the basis of scenes (Woo, Rennie & Poyntz, 2015) from the empirical material. We subsequently developed a "densified matrix" in order to identify characteristics that would make it possible to compare the scenes with each other. This resulted in three main characteristics: the actions of the resident, the actions of the care giver, and the actions of the institutional context. These three characteristics of scenes are the three dimensions of the "characteristics space" (Lazarsfeld, 1937), in which we searched for a moral orientation that manifests itself in everyday contact. We did this by analysing a series of scenes, leading us to the concept of "attending to" (Kolen, Vosman & Timmerman, 2016b). This concept is based on Hannah Arendt's concept of power. She sees power as a space between actors in day-to-day contact, in which scope can be created to speak meaningfully and to let others speak meaningfully. In order to bring the empirical insights and theoretical notions together and to lift them to a higher level, we used the metaphor (Semino & Demjen, 2017) of a football training session in which participants are taught to "play together". We use "game" to mean everyday contact, which is determined by the three players: the care giver, the resident, and the institutional context. "The playing field" is ordinariness itself. "The ball" stands for the issue, under which lies the concealed matter at stake. "Possession of the ball" means that the player who is in possession contributes to determining the moral orientation (the direction) of the game. Using this metaphor of a football training session, we ultimately arrive at the description of a typology of day-to-day contact in which we distinguish three types. In the first type, which we call "broken game", the actors initiate moves primarily on the basis of their own intentions, but do not anticipate the moves of the other actors. The second type of day-to-day contact we call "regular game". In this variant, the game of everyday contact is played in accordance with the rules (the institutional context regards this as good care). We call the third type of day-to-day contact "new game". In all three variants of everyday contact, the three actors are attending to what is at stake for them. Finally, we also ask how we can determine whether day-to-day contact in question is good. To answer this question, we take the German philosopher Rahel Jaeggi's (2014) theory of forms of life. Jaeggi does not start with external ideological norms or work on the basis of professional ethics, but takes the problem-solving capacity of day-to-day contact as her guiding principle. It is this dynamic of solution, the capacity to create a space in which problems do not disappear but where opportunities for dealing with these problems arise, that constitutes the assessment criterion. SAMENVATTING Alledaagse omgang tussen zorgprofessionals en zorgontvangers als vindplaats voor goede (LVB) zorg In een zorgethisch georienteerd, conceptueel en kwalitatief empirisch onderzoek naar de zorgpraktijk van professionals en jongeren met een licht verstandelijke beperking (lvb-jongeren) zijn we nagegaan hoe de alledaagse omgang tussen hen verloopt en welke morele orientaties daarbinnen werkzaam zijn. Die alledaagse omgang is geen "tussentijd", tijd tussen de momenten van echte zorg, therapie, behandeling, maar is juist vindplaats van goede zorg. We tonen aan hoe die alledaagse omgang doordrongen wordt van "institutioneel gewenste effecten" die van buiten komen. Ons punt is dat de omgang ook van binnenuit morele mogelijkheden in zich draagt te ontdekken wat de jongere goed blijkt te doen. Om goed te kunnen waarnemen wat er aan de orde is, introduceren we een aantal theoretische concepten die daarbij helpen. Het blijkt dat de jongeren en hun begeleiders in de alledaagse omgang ruimte creeren, met elkaar een welbepaalde dynamiek aangaan en daarin ontdekken wat het goede is dat gedaan moet worden. De resultaten van ons onderzoek presenteren we in een typologie. Zo leggen we de alledaagse omgang in moreel opzicht open. De mogelijkheden worden zichtbaar die alledaagse omgang voor goede zorg biedt. Het zijn mogelijkheden die momenteel in de zorg nauwelijks worden onderkend. De morele orientaties blijken niet perse van buitenaf geimporteerd te hoeven worden.


This research evaluated how to minimize calcium (Ca) loading onto granular activated carbon (GAC) by adjusting pH and/or adding coagulants. Batch tests used raw water samples from New Castle, Pa. Total organic carbon (TOC) ranged from 4.0 to 5.3 mg/L. Variations in Ca loading reflected variability in natural organic matter composition between samples. For most samples, 5 mg/L of iron coagulant (as Fe) diminished Ca loading by 200–600 mg Ca/kg GAC—an 18–75% drop. In batch tests at constant pH with no coagulant and variable GAC doses, Ca loading increased linearly with TOC loading indicating that Ca and TOC adsorbed into GAC together. The ratio of Ca to TOC loaded onto GAC decreased with decreasing pH or increasing Fe. This showed that H+ or Fe(III) could displace the Ca that loaded with TOC and that utilities could diminish Ca loading by slightly depressing pH and/or by using moderate coagulant dosages.


The Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) published two reports on the application and practice in Japan of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 1991 and 1993, respectively. The 1993 report incorporates the 1991 version and consists of three parts, treating criminal process (Part One), the rights of foreigners, women, the handicapped, children, and legal aid (Part Two), and supplementary descriptions (Part Three). Part Three was prepared mainly for the purpose of providing opinions that counter the Japanese government's periodic national report of December 1991 and supplementing the 1991 JFBA report (Part One). The following is a summary of the 1993 report. The 271-page main report and this summary were translated into English from the original Japanese by Professor Makitaro Hotta of the Faculty of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University. Part One 1. Introduction 1. Organization and Activities of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations One of the main activities of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) and its local bar associations (52 in all) lies in the protection of human rights. That purpose is specifically provided for in the Lawyers Act. In the JFBA, committees such as the Human Rights Committee and Criminal Defense Center were established for the protection of human rights. Recently, the JFBA has engaged in activities such as submitting its opinions to international organizations, promoting ratification of United Nations treaties, and introducing and disseminating international standards of human rights. This report, drafted as part of JFBA's activities, constitutes a contrasting viewpoint to that contained in the Japanese government's report, which was submitted on December 16, 1991, to the Secretary General of the United Nations according to Article 40 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). 2. Practice and Application of the Covenant in Japan The Japanese government has ratified the Covenant and stated to the Human Right Committee that the treaty would take priority over domestic legislation. It also stated that Japanese courts would render judgments applying the treaty directly to cases. However, the government has in fact taken the contrary position in court cases when the government has been sued as the defendant. There has been no case in which a Japanese court has given a judgment based on the Covenant i n favor of an individual plaintiff, even in cases where the Covenant was clearly violated. Section 2: Realities of the Criminal Process 1. Incorrect Verdicts and Torture in Postwar Japan After World War II, Japan substantially reformed its criminal procedure under the new Constitution and established rules of criminal evidence such as the absolute prohibition of torture and the inadmissibility of confessions that were illegally obtained by torture. However, there have been many cases where false criminal charges were involved, pursuant to which many death penalties were imposed. In a series of retrials, four prisoners who had been sentenced to death were acquitted. In these cases, confessions obtained through torture and other maltreatment at the hands of the police led to erroneous indictments and incorrect verdicts. Coerced confessions, false confessions, and baseless prosecutions and trials are still seen today. The following descriptions probe into these criminal practices in Japan, which violate international standards, such as those provided by the ICCPR. 2. The Death Penalty and Reopened Cases (Articles 6, 7, and 10) Four prisoners sentenced to death were acquitted in a series of reopened cases: Mr. Sakae Menda in the Menda case, Mr. Sigeyoshi Taniguchi in the Saitagawa case, Mr. Yukio Saitoh in the Matsuyama case, and Mr. Masao Akabori in the Shimada case. They had been under sentence of death in their respective confinements for periods ranging from 10,400 to 12,600 days. …


Development and organisational implementation of corporate information systems are still afflicted with severe economic problems. They are partially due to the fact that advanced software engineering methodologies are rarely applied. Moreover requirements analysis often does not produce satisfactory results. While user participation is widely agreed to be a prerequisite of successful system design it is often hard to accomplish. System analysts and the various users have different views of an organisation which makes it difficult to communicate efficiently. Object-oriented enterprise modelling can contribute to improve this situation. It encourages conceptual design using semantically rich domain level concepts. This is not only a prerequisite for implementing highly integrated information systems. Enterprise models are also suited to establish a common universe of discourse for both system developers and users by providing illustrative representations of organisations which are based on a solid software architecture. The paper introduces a conceptual framework for the design of multi-perspective enterprise models which does not only incorporate advanced object-oriented methodologies but also takes into account epistemological, organisational and economic aspects. A computer based integrated design environment is presented that is based on this framework. It supports the interactive development of object-oriented conceptual models. For this purpose it provides graphical representations of static as well as dynamic aspects of organisations and allows for analysing the effectiveness of office procedures.


Abstract:Many stakeholders make up the open educational resources (OER) landscape and include faculty, students, administrators, librarians, bookstore managers, traditional publishers, OER authors/publishers/aggregators, and advocacy and support organizations. Each group operates from a unique perspective, and interest in OER is motivated by different factors. Moving forward, can all stakeholder groups be successful and work together? This article examines conditions facing each group while also noting barriers preventing movement toward OER. To further analyze interrelationships and interdependencies among groups, we present five specific types of power to describe how each group can exert power over and influence the other stakeholder groups, as well as be subjected to the power of others. A more complete understanding of the power dynamics at play in the OER movement will benefit those seeking to further their own interests, whether in favor of OER, opposed to OER, or undecided.


An uncommon presentation of retinoblastoma in an eleven-year-old boy is discussed. There was no family history of retinoblastoma and the child had never complained of a sore eye. He was not aware that he could not see out of his right eye.


PURPOSE
We determined the ocular biometric and demographic factors associated with iris parameters in Singaporean Chinese persons from a population-based sample.

METHODS
Subjects were participants in the Singapore Chinese Eye Study, a population-based cross-sectional study of eye disease. Anterior segment optical coherence tomography images were analyzed using customized software to measure iris thickness at 750 μm from the scleral spur (IT750), iris area (I-Area), and iris curvature (I-Curv). Regression analyses were performed to assess the association between iris measurements with a range of demographic and ocular variables. The contribution of each independent variable to the iris parameter of interest was determined sequentially using a stepwise selection algorithm.

RESULTS
We included 1473 participants with a mean age of 57.7 + 8.68 years, and 50.6% were men. The mean IT750, I-Area, and I-Curv were 0.46 ± 0.10 mm, 1.49 ± 0.24 mm(2), and 0.25 ± 0.13 mm, respectively. Statistical regression models, including a range of demographic and ocular parameters, explained 59.3%, 41.9%, and 34.3% of the variability in I-Curv, IT750, and I-Area, respectively. Angle opening distance at 750 μm from the scleral spur (AOD750) was the single factor associated most strongly with I-Curv, and explained 46.6% of its variation.

CONCLUSIONS
A significant proportion of the variation in iris area, curvature, and thickness was not explained by other ocular and demographic parameters. Iris curvature was associated strongly with angle width, and of all parameters investigated, AOD750 was most highly correlated with iris curvature.


In the years when the Vocational Schools started to accept students without examination, it has been felt that the success levels of the students dropped. This failure of the students has been determined through many scientific surveys and through giving up this method, it has been recommended to accept the students to the schools in question after subjecting to examination. This survey has been conducted on the students at Kocaeli University Kocaeli Vocational School by regards of the terms between years 1996-2009. When the grade averages of the students placed by examination during terms 1996-2002 and the grade averages of the students accepted without exam (open admission) during terms 2002-2009 are compared, it has been seen that the students placed by examination were much successful. According to the findings of the survey, the acceptance of students without exam (open admission) to the Vocational Schools should be stopped and acceptance by examination should be started.


We have solved the x-ray crystal structures of the RabGAP domains of human TBC1D1 and human TBC1D4 (AS160), at 2.2 and 3.5 Å resolution, respectively. Like the yeast Gyp1p RabGAPdomain,whose structurewas solvedpreviously in complex with mouse Rab33B, the human TBC1D1 and TBC1D4 domains both have 16 -helices and no -sheet elements. We expected the yeast Gyp1p RabGAP/mouse Rab33B structure to predict the corresponding interfaces between cognate mammalian RabGAPs and Rabs, but found that residues were poorly conserved.We further tested the relevance of thismodel byAlascanning mutagenesis, but only one of five substitutions within the inferred binding site of the TBC1D1 RabGAP significantly perturbed catalytic efficiency. In addition, substitution of TBC1D1 residues with corresponding residues from Gyp1p did not enhance catalytic efficiency. We hypothesized that biologically relevant RabGAP/Rab partners utilize additional contacts not described in the yeast Gyp1p/mouse Rab33B structure, which we predicted using our two new human TBC1D1 and TBC1D4 structures. Ala substitution of TBC1D1Met930, corresponding to a residue outside of the Gyp1p/Rab33B contact, substantially reduced catalytic activity. GLUT4 translocation assays confirmed the biological relevance of our findings. Substitutions with lowest RabGAP activity, including catalytically dead RK andMet930 and Leu1019 predicted to perturb Rab binding, confirmed that biological activity requires contacts between cognate RabGAPs and Rabs beyond those in the yeast Gyp1p RabGAP/mouse Rab33B structure.


Effects of an ultra-strong magnetic field on electron capture rates for 55Co are analyzed in the nuclear shell model and under the Landau energy levels quantized approximation in the ultra-strong magnetic field, and the electron capture rates on 10 abundant iron group nuclei at the surface of a magnetar are given. The results show that electron capture rates on 55Co are increased greatly in the ultra-strong magnetic field, by about 3 orders of magnitude generally. These conclusions play an important role in future study of the evolution of magnetars.


A photorefractive nonlinear joint-transform correlator based on the incoherent-to-coherent conversion is presented and analyzed. The nonlinearity of this incoherent-erasure joint-transform correlator (IEJTC) is tunable from the classical-matched to the phase-extraction limit. Correlation peak intensity, sharpness, and discrimination ability increase with the incoherent beam intensity. At easily achievable incoherent-to-coherent beam intensity ratios the IEJTC has its optimal performance, at which the IEJTC approaches the performance of the inverse filter for clean inputs and surpasses the inverse filter performance for noisy inputs. We examine this nonlinearity by using the transform method of analysis and computer simulations. Our study focuses on the effect of saturation on the correlation ability. Our results provide an explanation of why extending the severity of saturation by increasing the incoherent-to-coherent intensity ratio beyond a turning point results in lower optical efficiency, degraded correlation peak, and increased higher-order harmonics.