Abstract. It is widely accepted that the measurement of organic and inorganic forms of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in soils should be performed on fresh extracts taken from fresh soil samples. However, this is often not possible, and it is common practice to store samples (soils and/or extracts), despite a lack of guidance on best practice. We utilised a case study on a temperate grassland soil taken from different depths to demonstrate how differences in soil and/or soil extract storage temperature (4 or −20 ∘C) and duration can influence sample integrity for the quantification of soil-dissolved organic C and N (DOC and DON), extractable inorganic nitrogen (NH4+ and NO3-) and microbial biomass C and N (MBC and MBN). The appropriateness of different storage treatments varied between topsoils and subsoils, highlighting the need to consider appropriate storage methods based on soil depth and soil properties. In general, we found that storing soils and extracts by freezing at −20 ∘C was least effective at maintaining measured values of fresh material, whilst refrigerating (4 ∘C) soils for less than a week for DOC and DON and up to a year for MBC and MBN and refrigerating soil extracts for less than a week for NH4+ and NO3- did not jeopardise sample integrity. We discuss and provide the appropriate tools to ensure researchers consider best storage practice methods when designing and organising ecological research involving assessments of soil properties related to C and N cycling. We encourage researchers to use standardised methods where possible and to report their storage treatment (i.e. temperature, duration) when publishing findings on aspects of soil and ecosystem functioning. In the absence of published storage recommendations for a given soil type, we encourage researchers to conduct a pilot study and publish their findings.


ABSTRACT A palynological study of 239 outcrop samples and their sedimentological context was undertaken on the Pliocene Productive Series in the Kirmaky and Yasamal valleys, eastern Azerbaijan. The Productive Series is primarily a representation of the palaeo-Volga and forms the main hydrocarbon-producing reservoirs in the South Caspian Basin. Most sands are interpreted as fluvial, based on sedimentary characteristics. Mudstone and siltstones often contain freshwater and brackish assemblages interpreted as 'Caspian lake' transgressions, indicative of rapid Caspian Sea level change during the Pliocene. Most samples contain rich assemblages including pollen, spores, dinoflagellate cysts, algae and fungal bodies. Common tree pollen elements include Pinus, Alnus, Betula, Carya, Juglans, Pterocarya, Quercus and Ulmus, which all occur in present-day vegetation or pollen records from the Caucasus or Urals. Herbaceous pollen includes Amaranthaceae, Asteraceae (including Artemisia), Ephedra and Poaceae, commonly found in the drier Caspian regions. The dinoflagellate cysts include 'Peri-paratethyan endemic' taxa such as Caspidinium rugosum and Spiniferites cruciformis. 'Pannonian' species such as Thalassiphora balcanica, Romanodinium areolatum and Spiniferites oblongus confirm the persistence of these taxa into the early Pliocene in Eastern Paratethys, around five million years later than their first documented presence in Central Paratethys. 'Caspian lake' influences diminish up-section, as indicated by a progression from brackish to freshwater and sub-aerial conditions. Productive Series deposition was mainly driven by the combined effects of lake level and catchment climate. The principal hydrocarbon reservoir sands were deposited as a result of increased catchment humidity, whereas drying conditions led to reduced coarse clastic input and deposition of alluvial plain mudstones. Productive Series deposition terminated with the onset of the marine-influenced Akchagyl Series, which spans the Plio-Pleistocene boundary. The lowermost sediments of the Akchagyl Series are freshwater in origin and grade up-section into marine beds containing dinoflagellate cysts of Arctic affinity.


Background: Anemia is one of major contributing factor in maternal mortality and morbidity in third world countries and according to the WHO, contributes to 40% maternal deaths. Postpartum anemia is observed in up to 27% of women.It is a common problem throughout the world. Treatment of postpartum iron deficiency anemia includes oral and parenteral iron supplmentaion as well as blood transfusion in severe cases. Methods: This was a prospective longitudinal study carried out in Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology of PRH, Loni. Total 80 women suffering from postpartum anemia of age above 18 years with haemoglobin (HB) level below 11gm/dl and above 6gm/dl were included for the study. After history taking, clinical examination and baseline Hb level, all of them were administered intravenous iron sucrose 200 mg per dose per day till the total calculated dose was administered. The post therapy evaluation was done with the estimation of Hb on day 1, day 7, day 14 and day 21. Results: 31.25% women belonged to the age group each of 19-21 years and 22-24 years. Maximum number of patients received 3 doses of IV Iron sucrose (i.e. total 600mg) followed by 2 doses (i.e. total 400mg), 4 doses (i.e. total 800mg) and 5 doses (i.e. total 1000mg) respectively. Hb level rises extremely significantly (p<0.001) after IV Iron Sucrose administration on day 1, 7, 14 & 21 as compared to corresponding values before delivery as analyzed by Friedman Test (Nonparametric Repeated Measures ANOVA) . 16 patients (20%) experienced thrombophlebitis to IV Iron Sucrose administration. About 12 (15%) patients experienced rigor followed by sweating in 10 patients (12.5%) and fever in 8 patients (10%). About 62 patients (77.5%) from total 80 reported well tolerability to IV Iron Sucrose while remaining 18 patients (22.5%) reported poor tolerability to IV Iron Sucrose Conclusion: Intravenous iron sucrose increases the haemoglobin more rapidly in first week as compared to second and third week in women with postpartum iron deficiency anemia. Hypersensitivity reaction, chest pain, dyspnoea reported with iron dextran and iron sorbitol citric acid were not observed with iron sucrose. Intravenous iron sucrose can be used safely to fill a rift between blood transfusion and oral iron in treatment of postpartum iron deficiency anemia.


Patient safety is a preeminent healthcare concern in modern medicine. In the years since To Err is Human, researchers have found that the number of preventable deaths far exceeds 98,000; more accurately, 400,000 patients die each year from preventable healthcare errors. To combat the evolving patient safety crisis, a variety of organizations from Institute of Medicine to World Health Organization have called for the development of interprofessional healthcare teams. Interprofessional healthcare teams and teamwork have been a topic of discussion for over 40 years. And while some Interprofessional healthcare teams have been shown to be beneficial in some settings the success of these teams is not universal nor achieved in all healthcare settings. In short, research has found that interprofessional healthcare teams both improve and impede patient care. Building on this contradictions of interprofessional healthcare teams and teamwork, we present a model for the conceptualization of teamwork that could be readily applied to clinical experiences. This model is informed by the interprofessional healthcare team literature and relevant theories, and we believe will enable us to examine authentic interprofessional healthcare team interactions and identify moments when team interactions were breaking down, and reasons why those breakdowns were happening.


Recent self-supervised representation learning techniques have largely closed the gap between supervised and unsupervised learning on ImageNet classification. While the particulars of pretraining on ImageNet are now relatively well understood, the field still lacks widely accepted best practices for replicating this success on other datasets. As a first step in this direction, we study contrastive self-supervised learning on four diverse large-scale datasets. By looking through the lenses of data quantity, data domain, data quality, and task granularity, we provide new insights into the necessary conditions for successful self-supervised learning. Our key findings include observations such as: (i) the benefit of additional pretraining data beyond 500k images is modest, (ii) adding pretraining images from another domain does not lead to more general representations, (iii) corrupted pretraining images have a disparate impact on supervised and self-supervised pretraining, and (iv) contrastive learning lags far behind supervised learning on finegrained visual classification tasks.


Somitogenesis is a fundamental segmentation process that forms the vertebrate body plan. A network of transcription factors is essential in establishing the spatial temporal order of this process. One such transcription factor is mesp-ba which has an important role in determining somite boundary formation. Its expression in somitogenesis is tightly regulated by the transcriptional activator Tbx6 and the repressor Ripply1 via a feedback regulatory network. Loss of foxc1a function in zebrafish leads to lack of anterior somite formation and reduced mesp-ba expression. Here we examine how foxc1a interacts with the tbx6-ripply1 network to regulate mesp-ba expression. In foxc1a morphants, anterior somites did not form at 12.5 hours post fertilization (hpf). At 22 hpf posterior somites formed, whereas anterior somites remained absent. In ripply1 morphants, no somites were observed at any time point. The expression of mesp-ba was reduced in the foxc1a morphants and expanded anteriorly in ripply1 morphants. The tbx6 expression domain was smaller and shifted anteriorly in the foxc1a morphants. Double knockdown of foxc1a and ripply1 resulted in absence of anterior somite formation while posterior somites did form, suggesting a partial rescue of the ripply1 phenotype. However, unlike the single foxc1a morphants, expression of mesp-ba was restored in the anterior PSM. Expression of tbx6 was expanded anteriorly in the double morphants. In conclusion, both foxc1a and ripply1 morphants displayed defects in somitogenesis, but their individual loss of function had opposing effects on mesp-ba expression. Loss of ripply1 appears to have rescued the mesp-ba expression in the foxc1a morphant, suggesting that intersection of these parallel regulatory mechanisms is required for normal mesp-ba expression and somite formation.


Through a systematic review and meta-analysis, in this study, we quantify the impact of preterm birth on cardiac phenotype across developmental stages from birth to young adulthood. BrightcoveDefaultPlayer10.1542/6158598857001PEDS-VA_2020-0146 Video Abstract CONTEXT: Preterm birth is associated with incident heart failure in children and young adults. OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect size of preterm birth on cardiac remodeling from birth to young adulthood. DATA SOURCES: Data sources include Medline, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane databases, and clinical trial registries (inception to March 25, 2020). STUDY SELECTION: Studies in which cardiac phenotype was compared between preterm individuals born at <37 weeks' gestation and age-matched term controls were included. DATA EXTRACTION: Random-effects models were used to calculate weighted mean differences with corresponding 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: Thirty-two observational studies were included (preterm = 1471; term = 1665). All measures of left ventricular (LV) and right ventricular (RV) systolic function were lower in preterm neonates, including LV ejection fraction (P = .01). Preterm LV ejection fraction was similar from infancy, although LV stroke volume index was lower in young adulthood. Preterm LV peak early diastolic tissue velocity was lower throughout development, although preterm diastolic function worsened with higher estimated filling pressures from infancy. RV longitudinal strain was lower in preterm-born individuals of all ages, proportional to the degree of prematurity (R2 = 0.64; P = .002). Preterm-born individuals had persistently smaller LV internal dimensions, lower indexed LV end-diastolic volume in young adulthood, and an increase in indexed LV mass, compared with controls, of 0.71 g/m2 per year from childhood (P = .007). LIMITATIONS: The influence of preterm-related complications on cardiac phenotype could not be fully explored. CONCLUSIONS: Preterm-born individuals have morphologic and functional cardiac impairments across developmental stages. These changes may make the preterm heart more vulnerable to secondary insults, potentially underlying their increased risk of early heart failure.


The television broadcasting industry is subject to an exceptionally high level of public intervention, but one of the reasons for this, the absence of competition, is fast disappearing as households become multi-channel. This paper is concerned with whether a case for public service broadcasting remains and, if so, what form it should take. There are several other potential sources of market failure, but a lack of evidence often makes judging their practical significance difficult. To help overcome this problem and provide the basis for improved public accountability, the paper proposes several measures of public service broadcasting performance. The paper also considers when the appropriate remedy for these failures might take the form of dedicated public service broadcasters like the BBC, RAI, ARD, France 2, etc. It suggests that, in general, targeted supply side interventions of this sort only make sense when they address a supply side failure and that dedicated public service broadcasters are to be preferred to alternative types of targeted intervention, like an 'Arts Council of the Air', on contractual grounds.


In this work we show the existence of special sets of inputs for which the sum of the images under SHA3 exhibits a symmetric property. We develop an analytical framework which accounts for the existence of these sets. The framework constitutes identification of a generic property of iterated SPN based functions pertaining to the round-constant addition and combining it with the notion of m −fold vectorial derivatives for differentiation over specially selected subspaces. Based on this we propose a new distinguisher called SymSum for the SHA3 family which penetrates up to 9 rounds and outperforms the ZeroSum distinguisher by a factor of four. Interestingly, the current work is the first analysis of SHA3/Keccak that relies on round-constants but is independent of their Hamming-weights.


In this paper, we investigate the application of evolutionary computation to the automatic generation of tracks for high-end racing games. The idea underlying our approach is that diversity is a major source of challenge/interest for racing tracks and, eventually, might play a key role in contributing to the player's fun. In particular, we focus on the diversity of a track in terms of its shape (i.e., the number and the assortment of turns and straights it contains), and in terms of driving experience it provides (i.e., the range of speeds achievable while driving on the track). We define two fitness functions that capture our idea of diversity as the entropy of the track's curvature and speed profiles. We apply both a single-objective and a multiobjective real-coded genetic algorithm (GA) to evolve tracks involving both a wide variety of turns and straights and also a large range of driving speeds. The results we report show that both single-objective and multiobjective approaches can successfully evolve tracks with a high degree of diversity both in terms of shape and achievable speeds.


BACKGROUND
The White House, the American Heart Association, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute have all recently acknowledged the need to disaggregate Asian American subgroups to better understand this heterogeneous racial group. This study aims to assess racial/ethnic differences in relative contribution of risk factors of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) among Asian subgroups (Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese), Hispanics, non-Hispanic blacks, and non-Hispanic whites.

METHODS
Pregnant women in 2007-2012 were identified through California state birth certificate records and linked to the electronic health records in a large mixed-payer ambulatory care organisation in Northern California (n = 24 195). Relative risk and population attributable fraction (PAF) for specific racial/ethnic groups were calculated to assess the contributions of advanced maternal age, overweight/obesity (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) standards and World Health Organization (WHO)/American Diabetes Association (ADA) body mass index cut-offs for Asians), family history of type 2 diabetes, and foreign-born status.

RESULTS
GDM was most prevalent among Asian Indians (19.3%). Relative risks were similar across all race/ethnic groups. Advanced maternal age had higher PAFs in non-Hispanic whites (22.5%) and Hispanics (22.7%). Meanwhile family history (Asian Indians 22.6%, Chinese 22.9%) and foreign-borne status (Chinese 40.2%, Filipinos 30.2%) had higher PAFs in Asian subgroups. Overweight/obesity was the most important GDM risk factor for non-Hispanic whites, Hispanics, Asian Indians, and Filipinos when the WHO/ADA cut-off points were applied. Advanced maternal age was the only risk factor studied that was modified by race/ethnicity, with non-Hispanic white and Hispanic women being more adversely affected than other racial/ethnic groups.

CONCLUSIONS
Overweight/obesity, advanced maternal age, family history of type 2 diabetes, and foreign-borne status are important risk factors for GDM. The relative contributions of these risk factors differ by race/ethnicity, mainly due to differences in population prevalence of these risk factors.


steady increase in Korean participation at SIGCHI events. In February I attended HCI Korea 2014, an annual conference that in recent years has drawn around 2,000 participants. This meeting takes three days and includes about 10 parallel tracks. Some of the sessions are in English, easily filling up rooms for more than 500 attendees. The Korean HCI Society has about 700 members. Many of them have jobs in industry, from Korea-based multinationals to Internet portals, and from large mobile-device and game companies to app companies, which are often small start-ups. Seoul, with 10 million inhabitants, has more than 50 universities. HCI is a core component in business schools, computer science, electrical engineering, communications, and various branches of design. Seoul is an interesting city to visit. You will find historic palace complexes and Buddhist temples right next door to high-tech companies and tall apartment buildings. I was amused by the interactive toilets that seem to be standard in fourand five-star hotels, as are the mobile devices that control heating, alarms, television, and the many light fixtures—providing puzzles where technology is a challenging partner. Traveling in Seoul and to the airport is easy for those who are used to North American cities: English is a standard language for cabs, as well as for all shops and hotels in the Gangnam district, and the metro map is bilingual. Consequently, next year's CHI conference in the COEX Centre in Gangnam, Seoul, will be a mixture of our flagship conference as we all know it and the local flavor of a booming new modern city where Eastern elegance is paired with advanced technology. Korean food is delicious, and dishes in Korean restaurants are designed to be looked at as much as tasted, but Western food can be found there as well. For participants with a tight budget, cheaper but decent hotels can be reached by metro, and students will find opportunities to mingle with local students and be hosted in their homes. The CHI 2015 conference chairs, Jinwoo Kim and Bo Begole, managed to build a team that is as mixed and as multicultural as ever. The conference will feature "7 Wonders," among which is "T-money," valid for real-time adjustments in choosing public transport alternatives; "K-Culture," featuring local entertainment choices; and EBS, public broadcasting dedicated to education. CHI attendees from the Western world will meet with an expected 700 East Asian colleagues, and we all will participate in crossing boundaries between views on HCI and styles of serving future users of technology. —Gerrit C. van der Veer President, ACM SIGCHI See You Next Year in Seoul


The objective of this study was to develop interactive multimedia for teaching reading to Grade VIII students of SMPN 2 Mertoyudan. This research and development study adapted the R&D model proposed by Jolly and Bolitho in Tomlinson (1998). The steps of the research were conducting needs analysis, developing course grid, developing the first draft of materials, evaluating materials and producing the final draft of materials. The instruments to collect data were needs analysis questionnaire and an expert judgment questionnaire in the form of Likert scale . The data obtained from the needs analysis and the expert judgment were analyzed quantitatively through descriptive statistics. This research developed three units of materials and then presented them in interactive media. Based on the findings from the expert judgment, the materials were appropriate. The mean score of all aspects, both of materials and media was 3.85 which was "Very Good".


OBJECTIVES
We examined public health system responses to economic shocks using longitudinal observations of public health activities implemented in US metropolitan areas from 1998 to 2012.

METHODS
The National Longitudinal Survey of Public Health Systems collected data on the implementation of 20 core public health activities in a nationally representative cohort of 280 metropolitan areas in 1998, 2006, and 2012. We used generalized estimating equations to estimate how local economic shocks relate to the scope of activities implemented in communities, the mix of organizations performing them, and perceptions of the effectiveness of activities.

RESULTS
Public health activities fell by nearly 5% in the average community between 2006 and 2012, with the bottom quintile of communities losing nearly 25% of their activities. Local public health delivery fell most sharply among communities experiencing the largest increases in unemployment and the largest reductions in governmental public health spending.

CONCLUSIONS
Federal resources and private sector contributions failed to avert reductions in local public health protections during the recession. New financing mechanisms may be necessary to ensure equitable public health protections during economic downturns.


An image processing technique is presented which automatically selects and characterises only those protrusions on the wear particle most likely to be active in the process of abrasion. The image data are not analyzed directly. Information concerning angularity is extracted from the distribution generated by the transformation of the binary edge map. The method offers an analytical definition of a corner and its apex, a quantitative estimate of angularity, robustness in the presence of missing boundary points, and the potential to run automatically. The theory supporting the methodology is outlined and illustrated using simulated examples. The results of using the technique to process real image data are also presented.


Objectives To conduct the efficacy of radiological endovascular embolization of small pelvis arteries in patients with locally advanced and recurrent uterine cervix cancer (UCC) complicated with hemorrhage. Methods 81 patients were included: 68 (84%) primary patients with locally advanced UCC and 13 (16%) – with UCC recurrences, who underwent radiological endovascular occlusion of small pelvis arteries regarding bleeding from tumor. Results Distribution of primary patients according to FIGO stages: IIB stage – in 4 (6%), IIIB – in 44 (65%), IV – in 20 (29%). In the result of the procedure hemorrhage was stopped in 76 (94%) patients. After successful conduction of radiological endovascular hemostasis in 68% (46 of 68) of primary UCC patients' antineoplastic treatment was performed, according to the radical program in full – in 43% (29 of 68) of cases. Survival of 22 (32%) patients who was not treated further, and 46 (68%) patients who continued the treatment was significantly differed. 1-year adjusted survival (AS) was 15.2% (SE 8.1%) and 53.5% (SE 7.4%), respectively. No patient survived to 5 years in the first subgroup, in the second subgroup a 5-year AS was 24.0% (SE 6.8%), median AS for the first subgroup was 5.4 months, for the second – 12.8 months (p <0.001). Conclusions Arterial embolization of pelvic vessels is an effective method of arrest of hemorrhage in patients with locally advanced and recurrent UCC in 94% of cases. Conduction of this procedure in primary patients in case of complicated locally advanced UCC allows to perform special antitumor treatment in 68% of cases.


This paper studies the entry and exit of U.S. manufacturing plants over the business cycle and compares the results with those from a vintage capital model augmented to reproduce observed features of the plant life cycle. Looking at the entry and exit of plants provides new evidence supporting the hypothesis that shocks to embodied technological change are a significant source of economic fluctuations. In the U.S. economy, the entry rate covaries positively with output and total factor productivity growth, and the exit rate leads all three of these. A vintage capital model in which all technological progress is embodied in new plants reproduces these patterns. In the model economy, a persistent improvement to embodied technology induces obsolete plants to cease production, causing exit to rise. Later, as entering plants embodying the new technology become operational, both output and productivity increase. (Copyright: Elsevier)


The nature of skills – their formation and utilisation – has been one of the core issues of labour process research. Though debates continue about the exact pattern of skills, such research has been consistent in its scepticism towards generalised claims about upskilling and the tendency to rely on proxies instead of practices as measures (Warhurst and Thompson 2006). These relative certainties have, to an extent, implicitly relied on assumptions that we know what skill is and is not. When the original Braverman-inspired 'deskilling debate' took place, the template, was that skills were associated with trades, with all their implications for technical knowledge, job controls and training. Though by no means tied to craft work, Thompson's oft-quoted definition of skill as 'knowledgeable practice within elements of control' (1983, 92) reflects some those themes. As the economy has changed towards a service-based occupational structure, such certainties and templates have become progressively more open to question. One of the most contentious issues is that of 'soft skills' and whether or not such skills are actually worthy of the 'skilled' label. Unusually, the issue of whether or not these constitute skills has sharply divided researchers at this conference. This paper begins by examining some of those differences, before exploring them in the context of recent research by one of the authors (Hurrell, 2009).


Background: Lean Six Sigma [LSS] and Root Cause Analysis [RCA] are powerful quality business tools that cost-effectively improve efficiency and effectiveness of and client satisfaction in healthcare, academia and other industries. RCA, an iterative process helps in the identification of the root cause of an adverse medical incident and injuries and consequently prevents its Mini-review Article Salem et al.; JAMPS, 12(1): 1-26, 2017; Article no.JAMPS.31541 2 recurrence provided RCA recommendations are properly implemented in the healthcare industry. Objective: This narrative review aims to describe the principles and objectives of LSS and RCA tools with a special focus on their diverse roles in healthcare organizations. Methods: A computer searches of PubMed, OvidSP, and Google Scholar (2000-2016) were made using keywords such as Lean, or Six Sigma or lean six sigma or medication errors (MEs) or adverse drug events or RCA which retrieved thousands of references but only 110 articles were included in this paper. Results: Lean, Six Sigma, LSS, and RCA are powerful quality improvement tools that prevent adverse events, produce better quality services and result in enhancing patient satisfaction and safety. These quality tools also decrease costs, work performance variance, waste and increase customer satisfaction and the work performance of healthcare professionals. Conclusion: The use of the quality improvement tools produce better quality healthcare services with greater efficiency, and good outcome and also prevents adverse drug events linked with significant morbidity, mortality and financial burden on the public health around the world.


This paper investigates factors that impact marketing performance in the Canadian wheat market. Using data provided by the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB) for six crop years, results indicate that producers were not able to profitably use all marketing contracts offered by the CWB, earlier pricing tended to generate better performance, there was a negative relationship between activeness and performance (suggesting overconfidence in marketing skills), and performance was generally worse in volatile crop years. Further analysis reveals some of these findings differ when outperforming and underperforming producers are investigated separately, particularly with respect to activeness and volatility.


Apart from the fact that most information regarding the toxicology of the herbicides is as yet rather fragmentary—a situation which will be considerably improved when reports from the biological laboratories of industry become available to the public—it is important that attention not be confined to the toxicity of the original compounds. Their influence on plant metabolism might, for instance, block synthetic chains, leading to the accumulation of endogenous toxic products in vegetables. In this respect it has been shown that 2,4-D, applied in subtoxic amounts to such plants as sugar beets, increases the concentration of nitrate to twenty times the normal level. Consequently, feeding with the foliage involves a risk of poisoning (99). Attention has also been focused on the increase of cyanide in cyanogenic plants exposed to the action of herbicides (103).

As to the toxicity of metabolites of the herbicides themselves, which are formed in the soil and plants after their distribution, little is known. The problem has been touched in connection with investigations into the breakdown of herbicides by the aid of the micro-organisms in the soil. In particular, the decomposition of the chlorinated phenoxy-acids and the chlorinated aliphatic acids by soil bacteria and fungi has been submitted to extensive studies ( vide 11, 57, 58, 59, 60, 93, 121). It appears that the breakdown of these compounds is almost complete, involving dehalogenation (57-60) and hydroxylation of the side-chain (93). Therefore, a persistent deleterious effect on the microflora of the soil need not be feared after use of the great majority of these organic herbicides (38). This is probably due to the fact that in most cultivated soils the populations of bacteria and fungi are so rich that there will always be found at least a few individuals that can adapt to almost any substance presented to them. These will synthesize new specific enzyme systems using the foreign substance as substrate. The resistant strains of micro-organisms will therefore multiply excessively, until the "substrate" has been decomposed (11). In general, the biotransformation of herbicides in soil does not seem to lead to the production of more potent compounds (11, 93, 121). Certain inorganic herbicides, e.g ., chlorate, may, however, have a deleterious influence on bacterial nitrification in the soil. By reduction of chlorate, hypochlorite may be produced, which has a very strong inhibitory action on the growth of the soil bacteria (1). Pentachlorphenol may have a harmful effect, especially on the soil fungi; various emulsifying and surface-active agents in the herbicidal preparations may also interfere with the soil flora (38).

The fates of the herbicides in plants have as yet been scarcely elucidated, but intensive studies are being carried on to clarify biotransformation in plants. The explanation of selective phytotoxicity has been founded on these studies. Decisive progress was gained when it was discovered that the herbicidally inactive 4-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)butyric acid is converted by beta -oxidation to the active 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in plants where specific beta -oxidase systems are present. These plants are harmed while species not possessing the specific enzymes are resistant (109). Conversely, the triazine derivative, Simazin, in nonsensitive plants is degradated by the presence of different factors such as catalase, peroxidase, and polyphenols to substances without phytotoxicity (46a). Great difficulties in analytical procedures have to be solved before the fates of herbicides in plants are clarified (92). However, there is reason to expect that a more rational basis will eventually be available, both for the study of the metabolism of herbicides in the animal organism, and for the planning of experimental investigations of the toxicity of the original compounds as well as of their metabolites. A knowledge of persistent metabolites in crops for consumption especially will be of very great importance in the study of long-term actions, including carcinogenic effects (35).


Scholarly attention on environmental literacy has been increased in recent years since the knowledge level and interest in environmental issues are decisive to engage in environmental protection functions. The study aims to investigate the environmental literacy level believing that understanding the level of environmental literacy will lead to influence attitudinal changes and actions of undergraduates towards environment. Total number of 650 Bachelor of Commerce undergraduates in state universities of Sri Lanka were selected as the sample of the study. A self-administered structured questionnaire was administered to collect data on the environmental literacy level, the interest and the activity engagement in environmental activities of the respondents. The regression-based path analysis was performed to examine the relationships among the constructs. Based on the descriptive analysis, there was low level of environmental literacy of the selected undergraduates in this study. The overall level of interest in environmental issues and the level of engagement in environmental activities were moderate. The regression-based path analysis indicated that environmental literacy as well as the environmental interest were significant predictors for environmental engagement. Further, interest in environmental issues mediated the relationship between the environmental literacy and the actual engagement in environmental activities. The study exclusively examined the relationship between the undergraduates' knowledge level of the environment and the interest in environmental issues and also examined the factors that influence undergraduates' participation in activities that promote sustainability of the environment, which has been neglected by prior studies. The results facilitate to recommend that the degree programmes should be integrated with environmental areas where such knowledge could lead to promote the interest and the action towards the environmental activities. Keywords Bachelor of Commerce undergraduates, Comparative study, Environmental literacy, Sustainability


By investigating the relationship between acoustical technologies and twentieth-century experimental poetics, this collection, with an accompanying compact disc, aims to 'turn up the volume' on printed works and rethink the way we read, hear, and talk about literary texts composed after telephones, phonographs, radios, loudspeakers, microphones, and tape recorders became facts of everyday life. The collection's twelve essays focus on earplay in texts by James Joyce, Ezra Pound, H.D., Samuel Beckett, William Burroughs, Amiri Baraka, Bob Kaufman, Robert Duncan, and Kamau Brathwaite and in performances by John Cage, Caribbean DJ-poets, and Cecil Taylor. From the early twentieth-century soundscapes of Futurist and Dadaist 'sonosphers' to Henri Chopin's electroacoustical audio-poames, the authors argue, these states of sound make bold but wavering statements--statements held only partially in check by meaning. The accompanying CD offers soundtracks of early radio sounds, poetry readings, Dada cabaret performances, jazzoetry, audiopoems, and contemporary Caribbean DJ dub poetry. The contributors are Loretta Collins, James A. Connor, Michael Davidson, N. Katherine Hayles, Nathaniel Mackey, Steve McCaffery, Alec McHoul, Toby Miller, Adalaide Morris, Fred Moten, Marjorie Perloff, Jed Rasula, and Garrett Stewart.


Objectives: The effective detection system can help to detect breast cancer in the early stage. Focus of this paper is to improve Ultra Wideband (UWB) based early breast cancer detection efficiency. Methods/Statistical Analysis: Hence, a set of 125 data samples was created through forward scattering by placing two home-made UWB antennas between breast phantoms with and without tumor. Samples were divided into 5 groups with 25 samples each. K-fold cross validation method was used to train, test and validate the data set based on Feed Forward Back Propagation Neural Network (FFBPNN). Findings: The developed system detect breast tumor with average accuracy of (1) 100%, 78.17%, 70.66%, 92.46% and 86.86% and (2) 100%, 85.17%, 87.89%, 94.11% and 83,86 for existence, x, y, z and size respectively for (1) FFBPNN and (2) k-fold cross validation based FFBPNN. K-fold cross validation based FFBPNN showed in average 90.23% detection efficiency in terms of tumor existence, location (x, y and z) and size) which is nearly 5% improved compared to conventional FFBPNN (85.43%). The detected tumor is visualized in 2D and 3D environment. Application/Improvements: Hence, K-fold cross validation FFBPNN can be a future candidate as better and faster breast cancer detection system and saves precious lives.


The major challenge in fault-tolerant replicated transactional databases is providing efficient distributed concurrency control that allows non-conflicting transactions to execute concurrently. A common approach is to partition the data according to the data access patterns of the workload, assuming that this will allow operations in each partition to be scheduled independently and run in parallel. The effectiveness of this approach hinges on the characteristics of the workload: (i) the ability to identify such partitions and (ii) the actual number of such partitions that arises. Performance results that have been presented to support such proposals are thus tightly linked to the simplistic synthetic benchmarks that have been used. This is worrisome, since these benchmarks have not been conceived for this purpose and the resulting definition of partitions might not be representative of real applications. In this paper we contrast a more complex synthetic benchmark (TPC-E) with a real application in the same area (financial brokerage), concluding that the real setting makes it much harder to determine a correct partition of the data and that sub-optimal partitioning severely constrains the performance of replication.


This paper examines the potential causal link between press freedom and the quality of whistleblower-protection, namely the quality of the legislation designed to protect whistleblowers, and it does this with an intensive case study of Botswana and South Africa. In order to isolate the causal chain the paper controls for democracy, economic development, dependence on aid, Internet access, natural resources and state transparency. The results show that there is a correlation between press freedom and protection of whistleblowers, however the causal link could not be isolated thus inviting for further research into the relationship. The paper contributes to the field of political science by providing insights into the largely under-researched relationship between press freedom and protection of whistleblowers.


Recently, domestic construction companies have been moving towards overseas markets due to decreasing orders and an increase in competitiveness within the domestic market. However, there is a higher risk involved in the overseas construction industry than in the domestic construction industry. Especially, because domestic construction companies lack development's experience, such a companies have a weakness of hidden risk factors. For Overseas New Town development project's success of domestic construction companies, preferentially, It is necessary to deduce and analysis of risk factors in real estate development phases. This study would possibly be able to provide the preliminary data for Overseas New Town development projects in the future.


This study examines changes over a 10-year period in consumer reports of communication with health care providers about direct-to-consumer advertised (DTCA) medications. Two rounds of survey data were collected in 2003 and 2012 using repeated cross-sectional procedures to examine consumer willingness to discuss DTCA medications, content and tone of those conversations, and attitudes about the advertisements. In total, 472 surveys were analyzed. Generally, we found physician–patient conversations, attitudes, and behaviors regarding DTCA have changed. Consumers in 2012 reported talking significantly less about the names of the advertised drug, comparing the advertised drug with their current medication, and sharing general information than consumers in 2003. Attitudes toward the advertisements were significantly more negative in 2012 compared to 2003. Of those who specifically asked for a prescription, the proportion of patients who received the prescription was significantly lower in 2012, despite research suggesting increased rates of prescriptions. These results are interpreted in light of previous research about the lack of research examining the actual communication between physicians and patients on this topic. Limitations of the study are provided along with directions for future research about DTCA and physician–patient communication.


-Smart" sensors with embedded microprocessors and wireless communication links have the potential tofundamentally change the way civil infrastructure systems are monitored, controlled, and maintained. Indeed, a 2002 National Research Council Report noted that the use of networked systems ofembedded computers and sensors throughout society could well dwarf all previous milestones in theinformation revolution. However, a framework does not yet exist that can allow the distributed computingparadigm offered by smart sensors to be employed for structural health monitoring and control systems,current algorithms assume that all data is centrally collected and processed. Such an approach does notscale to systems with densely instrumented arrays of sensors that will be required for the next generationof structural health monitoring and control systems. This paper provides a brief introduction to smart sensing technology and identifies some of the opportunities and associated challenges.


This paper engages critically with Dimitri Gutas' recent characterization of post-classical Islamic philosophy and theology as a form of paraphilosophy or intellectual activity that merely simulates philosophy. I argue that this view arises from a misguided understanding of the concept of philosophy that should provide the standard for its historiography. In order to avoid a number of problematic consequences, such as gaps in historical continuity or a disconnection from what we understand by philosophy today, we must take our cue from a sufficiently uncontroversial contemporary concept of philosophy instead of any particular historical concept, such as the Peripatetic amalgam of metaphysics, theory of science, and the empirical sciences. Such a strategy provides a sound basis for the inclusion of post-classical thinkers, as well as many classical thinkers who are not falāsifa, in the history of Islamic philosophy without vicious circularity or loss of a normative concept of philosophy


The hydrated character of cement paste with fly ash was studied, through the methods of compressive strength, non-evaporable water content, reaction degree of fly ash and micro-analysis. The results indicated that the chemical activity of fly ash was an accumulative change process under this test condition. The starting point of chemical reaction of fly ash was nearby 28 days. In front of 28 days, the chemical activation of fly ash was not wakened, and the compressive strength of cement pastes with fly ash at this age was mainly from multiplex effects of cement hydration and the micro-aggregate effect, granule morphology effect and pozzolanic effect of fly ash.


Cooperative vehicle infrastructure systems offer significant potential for improved traffic safety, throughput and improved energy efficiency. Infrastructure sensors along the road can substitute vehicular sensor-sets, providing improved robustness and performance through different mounting positions and orientations, reducing occlusions, stationary locations, facilitating system-wide calibration, optimization for the specific traffic area in view, and vastly increase perception range by combining multiple measurement points. Communication via fifth Generation (5G) networks offers solutions to the corresponding substantial requirements for high bandwidth, low latency and high reliability for data and information communication. We propose a concept, which aims to provide a far-reaching view to (self-driving) vehicles and drivers with infrastructure sensors and 5G communication, as a cognitive system. The system detects and localizes traffic objects and predicts their future movements.
The resulting information will be provided to traffic participants allowing for safer, more proactive and comfortable driving.


Further Reading Links (large) The Encyclopedia of the Atmospheric Environment has been written by the Atmosphere, Climate & Environment Information Progamme, and is supported by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The Encyclopedia is a one-stop source of information, for younger and older users alike, on a range of atmospheric issues, including air quality, acid rain, global warming and ozone depletion.


Green open space is an important part of a structure forming the city. Green open space has the main function as ecological supporting the city also used as open space adder and supporters of the value of the quality of the environment and culture of an area . As an effort to save the function of government land depok city doing the green open space gurame valley become a city park that serves as green open space the public . In this research approach done is through a qualitative approach .The data collected is the data derived derived from a manuscript interview , field notes , personal documents , and other official documents . The preliminary study in doing in the location of the object of research that is on Jalan Gurame Perumnas Depok I, Kecamatan Beji, Kota Depok. On the activities of these things implemented is observing visually about the situation and the condition of the object of study and conduct observation field .To support Processing and analysis of data to support it is also searching and collecting the study of literature. Based on the observation in the field, and an interview and the analysis made by the general a conclusion that Lembah Gurame City Park has not been optimal and effective, it is caused of elements existing facilities and the implementation of the development is not in accordance with planning so users of city parks not be able to use in accordance with its function of the existence of elements and facilities of the garden of the city. Keywords : effectiveness, the utilization, lembah gurame.


Objectives: An important component of assessment-based physiotherapy management of patients with headache is a thorough physical examination to identify musculoskeletal dysfunctions. A recently published international consensus study identified 11 clinically useful headache assessment tests (HATs). Test properties are not yet documented for all HATs. Different rating methods include absolute values and a 0-100 visual analog scale (VAS) to indicate the clinical relevance of a test.
Methods: To evaluate the inter-rater reliability of different scales, two manual therapists, blinded towards the diagnosis, examined 25 patients with headache and 25 headache-free controls. Inter-rater reliability was evaluated using the intraclass correlation coefficient and Bland-Altman plots for interval data; Cohen's kappa and Gwet´s AC for categorical data.
Results: Substantial to excellent reliability (Gwet´s AC or ICC > 0.7) was observed for flexion-rotation test, muscle strength, upper cervical quadrant, the examination of active range of motion and reproduction and resolution of symptoms. Forward-head posture, cranio-cervical flexion test, passive accessory intervertebral movements and the observation of latent trigger points, showed moderate levels of interrater agreement (Gwet´s AC or ICC> 0.5), all other tests showed only low levels of agreement.
Discussion: We recommend a 0-100 scale to indicate the clinical relevance of a test result. Substantial to excellent reliability (ICC > 0.7) was observed for active range of motion, trigger point palpation and upper cervical quadrant. Reliability was higher in the headache group. VAS can be handled as interval data; for clinical purposes it can be dichotomised at a cut-off point at 20 mm to indicate a positive or negative test result.


In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of research papers on plasma and its use in active flow control applications. The main objective of this study is to assess the plasma actuator's position on a NACA0015 airfoil in terms of aerodynamic forces. In addition, optimization of the plasma actuator's position and its configuration are studied in order to identify the optimum configuration for improvement in lift coefficient. The experiments are conducted in an open‐suction‐type wind tunnel at Reynolds numbers of 48,000, 75,000, and 100,000. The plasma actuators are mounted on various positions (x/C) starting from the leading edge to trailing edge of the airfoil. The experimental results on aerodynamic force measurement are presented to illustrate the increasing lift effect of the generated plasma. It is also shown that the plasma actuators used as an active flow control device appears to shift the stall angle of the airfoil. The results of the experimental study suggest that the energy efficiency of airborne systems can be improved with the use of plasma actuators due to its increasing lift coefficient effect. This result becomes a vital finding considering that the same flight can be achieved with less fuel and less amount of environmental pollution for the same distance of journey. It is also worth mentioning that increasing lift effect would mean taking off from a shorter runway or allowing the airborne vehicle with the ability to fly with additional payload.


This thesis reports research into youth exchange visits to 'Third World' countries in the context of development education. The study will be used to: 1) Look at changes in the attitudes of participants as regards 'Third World' countries and black people. 2) Evaluate their effectiveness relating to criticisms levelled at visits as a whole to 'Third World' countries. 3) Explore ways in which projects with an international focus can be improved to meet these criticisms. Definitions and descriptions of development education and its related fields are given in the literature review. The methods of evaluation are described and a rationale for adopting an adjustment of the illuminative evaluation approach is given. Interviews, questionnaires, participant observation and participants diaries are the main source of data. The study was in two stages; the first focused on an outward visit of a youth group to India on which I was a leader and participant observer; the second on five groups, three visiting India, one Zimbabwe and the other Nigeria. The findings from the First Stage, which was piloted and analysed, provided the basis for the inquiries into the Second Stage. The initial focus on development education naturally broadens to include antiracism and environmental education. The intrinsic nature of other relevant areas of education is highlighted and an holistic approach to development education is recommended. The findings also point to the need for an ongoing supportive framework for participants both before and after the exchange visit. So too is the need to relate to wider community groups with similar concerns. Through these approaches criticisms levelled at exchange visits are met.


Magnetic nanocomposites prepared using a polyacrylamide gel method have been widely investigated recently for applications including high temperature superconductors and solid oxide fuel cells. The polyacrylamide gel method is an effective way to prepare diverse microstructures such as nanoparticles, nanorods and porous monolithic structures, etc. using organic monomers including acrylamide and bis-acrylamide etc. and the appropriate chelating agents. This paper reviews recent development of the polyacrylamide gel technology for synthesis of magnetic nanocomposites, focusing on the following nanostructures: (1) 0D nanoparticles (NPs) dispersed in a hollow spheres matrix; (2) core/shell structure; (3) 2D nanosheets dispersed in a bulk matrix; and (4) 0D nanoparticles (NPs) dispersed in a porous matrix. By appropriately selecting chelating agents/initiators and controlling the unique physicochemical properties of the magnetic nanocomposites, various types of nanocomposites based on nanoparticle, nanorods, nanowires and nanowhiskers can be assembled and synthesized, which are promising for new intriguing applications such as magneto-optic and magneto-electronic applications.


Production of the chlorosis-inducing phytotoxin coronatine in the Pseudomonas syringae pathovars atropurpurea, glycinea, maculicola, morsprunorum, and tomato has been previously reported. DNA hybridization studies previously indicated that the coronatine biosynthetic gene cluster is highly conserved among P. syringae strains which produce the toxin. In the present study, two 17-bp oligonucleotide primers derived from the coronatine biosynthetic gene cluster of P. syringae pv. glycinea PG4180 were investigated for their ability to detect coronatine-producing P. syringae strains by PCR analysis. The primer set amplified diagnostic 0.65-kb PCR products from genomic DNAs of five different coronatine-producing pathovars of P. syringae. The 0.65-kb products were not detected when PCR experiments utilized nucleic acids of nonproducers of coronatine or those of bacteria not previously investigated for coronatine production. When the 0.65-kb PCR products were digested with ClaI, PstI, and SmaI, fragments of identical size were obtained for the five different pathovars of P. syringae. A restriction fragment length polymorphism was detected in the amplified region of P. syringae pv. atropurpurea, since this pathovar lacked a conserved PvuI site which was detected in the PCR products of the other four pathovars. The 0.65-kb PCR products from six strains comprising five different pathovars of P. syringae were cloned and sequenced. The PCR products from two different P. syringae pv. glycinea strains contained identical DNA sequences, and these showed relatedness to the sequence obtained for the pathovar morsprunorum. The PCR products obtained from the pathovars maculicola and tomato were the most similar to each other, which supports the hypothesis that these two pathovars are closely related.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


With the continually increasing operating frequencies, complex high-speed interconnect and package modules require characterization based on measured/simulated data. Several algorithms were recently suggested for macromodeling such types of data to enable unified transient analysis in the presence of external network elements. One of the critical issues involved here is the passivity violations associated with the computed macromodel. To address this issue, a new passivity enforcement algorithm is presented in this paper. The proposed method adopts a global approach for passivity enforcement by ensuring that the passivity correction at a certain region does not introduce new passivity violations at other parts of the frequency spectrum. It also provides an error estimate for the response of the passivity corrected macromodel.


Just a few days after the Brexit referendum, the EU heads of state and government welcomed the "Global Strategy for the European Union's Foreign and Security Policy". The document, which CFSP High Representative Federica Mogherini spent a year preparing, reads as yet another declaration of intent, calling for greater unity in the CFSP. It argues for what is at first glance an astonishingly defensive foreign policy orientation revolving around the concept of resilience. The upshot is a boost to transatlantic security relations, especially between the EU and NATO.


As Egypt and Tunisia begin difficult democratic transitions, comparative political scientists have pointed to the world's largest Muslim nation, Indonesia, as a role model. Seen as a stand-out exception from the global recession of democracy in the pre-2011 period, Indonesia has been praised as an example of a stable post-authoritarian polity. But a closer look at Indonesia's record in recent years reveals that its democratization is stagnating. As this article demonstrates, there have been several attempts to roll back reforms introduced in the late 1990s and early 2000s. While not all of these attempts have been successful, Indonesia's democratic consolidation is now frozen at 2005–2006 levels. However, the reason for this democratic stasis, the article argues, is not related to Diamond's notion of societal dissatisfaction with bad post-authoritarian governance. Opinion polls clearly show continued support for democracy despite citizen disgruntlement over the effectiveness of governance. Instead, I contend that anti-reformist elites are the main forces behind the attempted roll back, with civil society emerging as democracy's most important defender. This insight, in turn, questions the wisdom of the decision by foreign development agencies – in Indonesia, but other countries as well – to reduce their support for non-governmental organizations and instead intensify their cooperation with government.


The greatest asset that any organisation has are its people, but they may also be the greatest threat. Those who are within the organisation may have authorised access to vast amounts of sensitive company records that are essential for maintaining competitiveness and market position, and knowledge of information services and procedures that are crucial for daily operations. In many cases, those who have such access do indeed require it in order to conduct their expected workload. However, should an individual choose to act against the organisation, then with their privileged access and their extensive knowledge, they are well positioned to cause serious damage. Insider threat is becoming a serious and increasing concern for many organisations, with those who have fallen victim to such attacks suffering significant damages including financial and reputational. It is clear then, that there is a desperate need for more effective tools for detecting the presence of insider threats and analyzing the potential of threats before they escalate. We propose Corporate Insider Threat Detection (CITD), an anomaly detection system that is the result of a multi-disciplinary research project that incorporates technical and behavioural activities to assess the threat posed by individuals. The system identifies user and role-based profiles, and measures how users deviate from their observed behaviours to assess the potential threat that a series of activities may pose. In this paper, we present an overview of the system and describe the concept of operations and practicalities of deploying the system. We show how the system can be utilised for unsupervised detection, and also how the human analyst can engage to provide an active learning feedback loop. By adopting an accept or reject scheme, the analyst is capable of refining the underlying detection model to better support their decisionmaking process and significant reduce the false positive rate.


Orientation: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has grown exponentially in South African organisations, making leadership in CSR crucial. This article describes the first phase towards the development of a CSR leadership questionnaire (CSR-LQ), based on the Leadership Behaviour Inventory version 2 (LBI-2). Research purpose: To develop a CSR leadership questionnaire (the CSR-LQ) that would serve as a basis for developing a CSR leadership competency model in future. Motivation for the study: Effective leadership in companies' CSR undertakings is imperative. The development of a leadership measure is the first step toward the development of a CSR leadership competency framework. Research approach, design and method: A three-phase mixed-method ex post facto research approach (qualitative and quantitative) was applied. Purposive sampling included CSR leaders in Phase 1 (n = 5) and Phase 2 (n = 13) to develop the CSR-LQ prior to empirical testing. Main findings: The CSR-LQ was developed based on the LBI-2. The final version of the CSR-LQ consists of 123 items measuring the leadership competencies in three stages. Stage 1 is creating a CSR vision and strategy (analysing and interpreting the CSR environment; formulating the CSR vision and strategy); Stage 2 is preparing the organisation for implementing the CSR vision and strategy (preparing the leader and organisation members; preparing the organisation) and Stage 3 is implementing the CSR vision and strategy (sharing the CSR vision and inspiring organisation members; leading with integrity and courage; leading with compassion; Leading across boundaries; reviewing and rewarding CSR performance). Practical/managerial implications: The CSR-LQ could be used to obtain assessment and development of CSR leadership competencies after empirical testing. Contribution/value-add: This study is the first step towards developing a South African CSR leadership measure that could be used to obtain 360° assessments of the CSR leadership competencies and form the basis of the development of a comprehensive CSR leadership competency framework.


The use of objective outcome measures that assess airway inflammation in pediatric asthma can provide a good evaluation of asthma severity and treatment response. In this double-blind and randomized study the effects of 200 micro g of budesonide and 800 micro g of budesonide on markers of inflammation (exhaled nitric oxide (eNO), eosinophil protein X (EPX) excretion in urine) and on lung function (FEV (1)) were prospectively investigated in 24 ICS-naive children with mild persistent to moderate persistent asthma over a period of eight weeks. After eight weeks of treatment 200 micro g and 800 micro g of budesonide led to a significant decrease (p < 0.025) in eNO [median (90 % interval): 200 micro g: - 17.2 ppb (- 54.6 to 0.9); 800 micro g: - 13.2 ppb (- 44.6 to - 1.7)]. A significant change in urinary EPX excretion was only observed in the high dose group [200 micro g: - 10.3 micro g/mmol creatinine (- 116.2 to 50.5), p = 0.9; 800 micro g: - 49.2 micro g/mmol creatinine (- 231.0 to 48.7), p = 0.02]. However, a significant difference between the change from baseline after 8 weeks of either group was found neither for eNO (p = 0.66) nor for EPX excretion (p = 0.04). In conclusion, our data demonstrate that 800 micro g budesonide per day did not show any advantage in reduction of airway inflammation, measured by eNO and urinary EPX excretion, in children with mild persistent to moderate persistent asthma.


A method to analyze the sound environment and its relation with typical professional tasks is described in which structured non participative observations are combined with audio recordings. First results of a field study are reported, directed towards the day shift of hospital nurses, working at a surgical ward.
With this method we want to contribute context specific outcomes which we consider a prerequisite for the design of dedicated laboratory experiments which can reveal insights transferrable to natural work settings. In our reading of the literature we see many studies on task-sound interaction with one or more of the following shortcomings:
1. The sound conditions used in the experiment are not representative for the dedicated environment.
2. The experimental task is not representative for tasks performed in the dedicated environment.
3. The task-sound interaction is such that subjects are instructed to ignore environmental sounds while in real life they first need to attach meaning to each sound in order to decide whether it is (ir)relevant.
It is our expectation that the proposed method helps design experiments that overcome these shortcomings.


In light of recent progress in ghost-free theories of massive gravity and multi-gravity, we reconsider the problem of constructing a ghost-free theory of an interacting spin-2 field charged under a U(1) gauge symmetry. Our starting point is the theory originally proposed by Federbush, which is essentially Fierz-Pauli generalized to include a minimal coupling to a U(1) gauge field. We show the Federbush theory with a dynamical U(1) field is in fact ghost-free and can be treated as a healthy effective field theory to describe a massive charged spin-2 particle. It can even potentially have healthy dynamics above its strong-coupling scale. We then construct candidate gravitational extensions to the Federbush theory both by using Dimensional Deconstruction, and by constructing a general non-linear completion. However, we find that the U(1) symmetry forces us to modify the form of the Einstein-Hilbert kinetic term. By performing a constraint analysis directly in the first-order form, we show that these modified kinetic terms inevitably reintroduce the Boulware-Deser ghost. As a by-product of our analysis, we present a new proof for ghost-freedom of bi-gravity in 2+1 dimensions (also known as Zwei-Dreibein gravity). We also give a complementary algebraic argument that the Einstein-Hilbert kinetic term is incompatible with a U(1) symmetry, for a finite number of gravitons.


The Iranian collection of Medicago sativa (alfalfa, 502 accessions) was evaluated under field conditions to identify variation in resistance to the alfalfa weevil (Hypera postica Gyllenhal) between accessions over 4 years. Twenty-one accessions were identified as resistant (score 3) to semi-resistant (score 5) based on K-means cluster analysis. These materials were grouped into 10 groups by means of Duncan's Multiple Range Test. Susceptibility to alfalfa weevil was significantly correlated with some of the agro-morphological traits such as plant height (r = 0.314, P<0.01), regrowth rate (r = 0.435, P<0.01) and fall dormancy score (r = 0.284, P<0.01). In general, the resistant germplasm originated from elevated regions at high latitudes, where a co-evolution between the plant and the pest may have taken place. Multiple regression analysis showed a positive linear relationship between susceptibility to the alfalfa weevil and traits such as growth habit, plant height, length and width of the central leaflet and regrowth rate. The resulting bi-plot based on factor analysis ranked accessions for susceptibility to the pest. The identified germplasm should prove useful in alfalfa breeding programs to develop accessions resistant to the alfalfa weevil.


Creativity has been identified as an increasingly important graduate attribute for employment in the 21st century. As sites of significant development of disciplinary specialization, universities seem to be the natural place for creativity to be fostered. However, there remain contestations and ambiguities in the ways creativity is theorized, and this translates to difficulties in operationalization, particularly in the higher education context, which attracts significantly less research than the school setting. Here, we report on interviews with physicists, historians, and poets, as both educators and producers of knowledge that progresses their disciplines, to provide elaborations on the nature of creativity. We draw on sociological theory to elucidate the characteristics of creativity as expressed by experts in particular disciplinary fields. We find that whilst perceptions appear common across the disciplines, on further analysis, they tend instead to encapsulate discrete attributes. Further, there are some qualities of creativity that are uniquely emphasized by participants in specific disciplinary fields. We argue that theorizing both the discipline and the nature of creativity together is important in order to understand how creativity might more fruitfully be discussed and fostered in higher education.


Panax notoginseng is the root of the Chinese traditional herb, Panax notoginseng (Burk) F.H. Chen. This study was aimed to investigate the inhibitory effect of Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) on the leukocyte adhesion and the expression of adhesion molecules in rat mesentery venules. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were anesthetized with urethane. These were divided into control, LPS (perfused with lipopolysaccharide), and PNS group (perfused with PNS). The mesenteric microcirculation was observed under a videomicroscope. The number of adherent leukocytes, which attached to the vascular wall during more than 10 seconds, was counted along single venules (30-50 microm in diameter, 200 microm in length). The expression of adhesion molecules was examined using flow-cytometry in blood which was taken from the abdominal aorta and incubated with FITC-labeled CD11b (or CD18) antibodies. The results showed that different changes in the leukocyte adhesion and the expression of adhesion molecules among three groups. In LPS group, the leukocyte adhesion increased significantly after 20 minutes during the observation time, while it was reduced markedly in PNS group. The expression of CD11b and CD18 on the neutrophils was induced in LPS group, while it was reduced significantly in PNS group. It was suggested that PNS could reduce leukocyte adhesion in venules under the inhibitory effect on the expression of adhesion molecules (CD11b and CD18) on neutrophils.


Herein, we report on chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of partially oxidized graphene (POG) films on electropolished polycrystalline copper foils at relatively low temperature under near-atmospheric pressure. The structural, chemical, and electronic properties of the films are studied in detail using several spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. The content of carbon and oxygen in the films is identified by chemical mapping at near-atomic scale. Electron diffraction patterns of the films possess clear diffraction spots with a six-fold pattern that is consistent with the hexagonal lattice. The fine structure of the carbon K-edge signal in STEM-EELS spectra of the films is distinguishable from that of graphene and graphite. The presence of oxygen in the films is further supported by a clear oxygen Kedge. Raman spectroscopy and XPS results provide direct evidence for a lower degree of oxidation. The work function of the films is found to be much higher than that of graphene, using UPS measurements.


We studied the relationship between smoking and exercise among physical education teachers in Turkey. An online questionnaire was used to collect data. The responses of 1,995 teachers who completed the questionnaire were evaluated. The mean age of the participants was 31.0 +/- 4.7 years; 67.4% of the participants were male. The smoking rate was 65.2%. The mean age of onset of smoking was 16.6 +/- 2.6 years. The age of starting smoking increased with higher parental education level. There were no differences between smokers and nonsmokers with respect to gender. Of smokers, 51.2% were married; 52.4% were in the 30-39 year old age group. The most common reasons for starting smoking were the influence of friends and emulation. The most common reason for trying to quit smoking among men was future health concerns and among women was current health concerns. We found smoking was less common among participants who exercised regularly. The level of nicotine dependence was significantly lower among participants who exercised regularly compared to those who did not. This study suggests physical education teachers, who are role models for their students, have a high smoking rate. We believe urgent action is needed to reduce the smoking rate and increase the quit rate among physical education teachers.


Education is a key theme in a number of Hermann Hesse's novels and short stories. This paper focuses on Hesse's last and longest fictional work, The Glass Bead Game, and analyses the transformation of Joseph Knecht, the central character, in the light of Paulo Freire's theory of education. It is argued that over time Knecht develops a critical consciousness, becoming less certain of his certainties, more aware of his own incompleteness, and increasingly convinced of the importance of teaching. Dialogue plays a pivotal role in the development of Knecht's critical awakening and his understanding of himself and his vocation as a human being. The paper discusses the relationship between conscientisation and contemplation, considers the significance of death as a theme in the novel, and reflects on some of the educational implications arising from Hesse's work.


The problem presented concerned the dynamics of a roll press nip, a crucial component in a paper-making machine. Modern commercial paper-making machines are huge items of equipment. They may be as long as a football field and cost many millions of dollars each. Integrity of the process is extremely important; the paper in such a machine travels so fast (up to 20 km/sec) that a break is viewed as a major calamity and may take many man-hours and dollars to recover from. The size and speed of the machines means that it is not easy to make measurements as the paper passes through. The hostility of the environment therefore dictates that a thorough theoretical understanding of the important parts of the process is crucial if the processes involved are to be optimized.

In this study we do not seek to answer anyone specific question, but rather wish to propose a general framework for modeling the flow and deformation under a roll press nip. Because of the difficulty of making measurements in the nip region and the need to closely control the process, the distributions of pressure, velocity and felt porosity within the nip have traditionally been subjects of great debate.

Previous treatments have included lubrication theory models and "Bernoulli" based models. Although some progress may be made using thin layer theory, we shall show the required modeling does not take the form of standard lubrication theory. As far as models based on Bernoulli's equation are concerned, we simply note that the discussion below shows that the drag force exerted by the felt on the liquid is a key physical component of the flow process. Clearly, a full three-phase flow treatment is required. In this study we will thus address the following questions:

(i) Is it possible to propose a general theoretical treatment of the roll press nip?
(ii) What determines the physics of the water movement within the paper and felt in the roll press nip and how is this connected to the details of the air movement and the deformation of the felt?
(iii) When a general model has been proposed, is it possible exploit the geometry within the nip to generate some simple exact solutions?
(iv) What are the key non-dimensional parameters in the problem and how large are they likely to be for realistic paper-making machines?

A further matter of interest concerns the influence that the size, shape and separation of the rollers have on the whole process. We approach the modeling from a rather general point of view, beginning by including all effects that might be important and then making clearly defined assumptions to simplify the equations. In this way it is possible to make changes to the model if circumstances change.


JAMES MCCLURE: Microscale Modeling of Fluid Flow in Porous Medium Systems. (Under the direction of Cass T. Miller.) Proper mathematical description of macroscopic porous medium flows is essential for the study of a wide range of subsurface contamination scenarios. Existing mathematical formulations, however, demonstrate inadequacies that preclude the accurate description of many systems. Multi-scale models developed using thermodynamically constrained averaging theory (TCAT) rigorously define macroscopic variables in terms of more well-understood microscopic counterparts, permitting detailed analysis of macroscopic model forms based on microscale simulation and experiment. Within this framework, the primary objectives of microscale modeling are to elucidate important physical mechanisms and to inform both the form of macroscale closure relations as well as associated parameter values. In order to meet these goals, numerical tools must include: (1) simulations that provide accurate microscopic solutions for physical phenomena in large, complex domains; (2) morphological analysis tools that can be used to upscale simulation results to larger scales as dictated by the associated theoretical framework. Development of a numerical toolbox for microscale porous medium studies is considered in line with these objectives, including both implementation and optimization strategies. High-performance implementations of the lattice Boltzmann method are developed to simulate oneand two-phase flows using several computing platforms. A modified marching cubes algorithm is developed to explicitly construct all entities in a two-phase system, including all interfaces between the fluid and solid phases in addition to the three phase contact curve. These entities serve as a numerical skeleton for upscaling multiphase porous medium simulation results to the macroscale. Based on these tools, development of macroscopic constitutive laws is illustrated for a special case of anisotropic flow in porous media. In this example, microscale simulation is used to demonstrate a limitation of existing macroscopic forms for cases in which the momentum resistance depends on the flow direction in addition to the orientation. A modified macroscopic form is proposed in order to properly account for this phenomenon.


Information Extraction (IE) for document images is often approached as a BIO tagging problem, where the model sequentially goes through and classifies each recognized input token into one of the information categories. However, such problem setup has two inherent limitations that (1) it can only extract a flat list of information and (2) it assumes that the input data is serialized, often by a simple rule-based script. Nevertheless, real-world documents often contain hierarchical information in the form of two-dimensional language data in which the serialization can be highly non-trivial. To tackle these issues, we propose SPADE$\spadesuit$ (SPatial DEpendency parser), an end-to-end spatial dependency parser that is serializer-free and capable of modeling an arbitrary number of information layers, making it suitable for parsing structure-rich documents such as receipts and multimodal documents such as name cards. We show that SPADE$\spadesuit$ outperforms the previous BIO tagging-based approach on name card parsing task and achieves comparable performance on receipt parsing task. Especially, when the receipt images have non-flat manifold representing physical distortion of receipt paper in real-world, SPADE$\spadesuit$ outperforms the tagging-based method by a large margin of 25.8% highlighting the strong performance of SPADE$\spadesuit$ over spatially complex document.


There has long been consensus among scholars that the altarpiece in Hedalen Stave church in Valdres once was a medieval tabernacle, housing a wooden sculpture of the Virgin Mary. The over-painted altarpiece is today composed of the tabernacle corpus and wings, plus a crucifix. The later paint is from the second half of the 18th century. The tabernacle is dated to the mid 13th century. In connection with the preservation at the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU), incised drawings were found in the niches of the wings, showing that they once contained small reliefs. In the followingA'  I will interpret these drawings, based on comparison with other Nordic and European Madonna tabernacles from the same period, and attempt to verify the earlier theories that this was a Madonna tabernacle.


This research revisits the classic Turing test and compares recent large language models such as ChatGPT for their abilities to reproduce human-level comprehension and compelling text generation. Two task challenges- summary and question answering- prompt ChatGPT to produce original content (98-99%) from a single text entry and sequential questions initially posed by Turing in 1950. We score the original and generated content against the OpenAI GPT2 Output Detector from 2019, and establish multiple cases where the generated content proves original and undetectable (98%). The question of a machine fooling a human judge recedes in this work relative to the question of "how would one prove it?" The original contribution of the work presents a metric and simple grammatical set for understanding the writing mechanics of chatbots in evaluating their readability and statistical clarity, engagement, delivery, overall quality, and plagiarism risks. While Turing's original prose scores at least 14% below the machine-generated output, whether an algorithm displays hints of Turing's true initial thoughts (the "Lovelace 2.0" test) remains unanswerable.


The concept of shoreface profile of equilibrium is the basis for most models used to quantitatively describe and predict profile response on beaches. We question the validity of the concept as used in coastal engineering. The equilibrium shoreface profile concept is based on the following assumptions: (1) underfying geology does not play a role in determining the profile shape; (2) shoreface sediment is moved only by the interaction of wave orbitals with the sea floor, unidirectional current flow is not accounted for; (3) there is no significant net movement of sediment seaward of a so called "closure depth." The equilibrium shoreface profile equation implies: (1) offshore bars do not play an important role in shoreface sediment transport; (2) grain size is the only variable determining shoreface profile shape variability; (3) the shoreface transport system is two-dimentional; and (4) all shorefaces in the world can be described by a single equation with sediment grain size as the only variable. To varying degrees, all of these assumptions fail to be met in real world situations in light of well documented oceanographic and geologic phenomena. A fundamental reexamination of the engineering methods of determining nearshore shoreface evolution is needed. As currently practiced such methods are based on poor oceanographic assumptions.


3-Bromopyruvic acid (3-BP) is a well-known inhibitor of energy metabolism. It has been proposed as an anticancer agent as well as a chemosensitizer for use in combination with anticancer drugs. 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is the first-line chemotherapeutic agent for colorectal cancer; however, most patients develop resistance to 5-FU through various mechanisms. The aim of this study was to investigate whether 3-BP has a synergistic antitumor effect with 5-FU on human colorectal cancer cells. In our study, combined 3-BP and 5-FU treatment upregulated p53 and p21, whereas cyclin-dependent kinase CDK4 and CDK2 were downregulated, which led to G0/G1 phase arrest. Furthermore, there was an increase in reactive oxygen species levels and a decrease in adenosine triphosphate levels. It was also observed that Bax expression increased, whereas Bcl-2 expression reduced, which were indicative of mitochondria-dependent apoptosis. In addition, the combination of 3-BP and 5-FU significantly suppressed tumor growth in the BALB/c mice in vivo. Therefore, 3-BP inhibits tumor proliferation and induces S and G2/M phase arrest. It also exerts a synergistic antitumor effect with 5-FU on SW480 cells.


Online crowdfunding markets facilitate the unbundling of resources, expertise, and signals – the three important components of a transactions. This study examines whether an early investor's expertise per se, serves as a credible signal of quality for the other investors in the crowd and if so under what conditions. Using a data set on individual investments in a crowdfunding market for mobile applications, we find that early investors with expertise – particularly, investors with app development expertise and investors with investment expertise - have a disproportionate influence on later investors in the crowd. Investors with app development expertise who are likely to have a better knowledge of the product are found to be more influential for "concept apps" (apps in the pre-release stage), while investors with investment expertise with a better knowledge of market performance are found to be more influential for "live apps" (apps that are already being sold in the market). Our findings show that the majority of investors in this market – the crowd – although inexperienced, are rather sophisticated in their ability to identify and exploit nuanced differences in the underlying expertise of the early investors – informational signals that align well with the specific nature of uncertainty they face. In examining the ex-post performance of apps, we find that apps with "expert" investors are positively associated with ex-post app sales. We also find that these "experts" have the ability to select better apps to invest in, making their investment choices credible signals of quality for the crowd. Contrary to popular perceptions of crowdfunding markets as means for democratizing expertise and as substitutes for traditional expert-dominated mechanisms, our findings indicate that the participation by individuals with expertise can be beneficial to these markets.


Protection challenges around the globe require innovative legal, policy and practical responses. Drawing primarily from a new generation of researchers in the field of refugee law, this volume explores the 'boundaries' of refugee law. On the one hand, it ascertains the scope of the legal provisions by highlighting new trends in State practice and analysing the jurisprudence of international human rights bodies, as well as national and international Courts. On the other hand, it marks the boundaries of refugee law as 'legal frontiers' whilst exploring new approaches and new frameworks that are necessary in order to address the emerging protection challenges.


Herein, we report the origin of excellent dye adsorption behaviour of CoFe2O4 nano-hollow spheres (NHSs) which are synthesised by a facile template free solvothermal technique and we investigate the influence of different anionic functional groups of the dyes on their adsorption rate. It is found that CoFe2O4 NHSs of diameter 250 nm adsorb a total 95% of fluorescein, 32% of bromophenol blue, and 15% of bromocresol green dyes within only 2 min and reach equilibrium in about 4, 6, and 10 min, respectively. Detailed study through UV-visible and Fourier transformed infra-red spectroscopies reveals that these magnetic adsorbents show highly efficient adsorption performance due to their high surface area, porous nature, and surface complexation with the dyes through strong electrostatic and hydrogen bonding. The variation in adsorption rate of CoFe2O4 NHSs for three different dyes indicates that the electron density of the anionic functional group and the steric effect of the dye molecule play a key role in determining the adsorption rate. The adsorption kinetics and isotherms of the adsorbents are found to follow pseudo 1st order kinetics and the Freundlich isotherm, respectively, implying heterogeneous physisorption of the dyes over the NHS surface. Moreover, the amount of dye adsorbed on the surface of NHSs is found to increase with increasing size of the NHSs and initial dye concentration. Finally, CoFe2O4 NHSs can be regenerated through desorption of dyes at higher pH and still exhibit high adsorption capacity even for 5 cycles of desorption–adsorption.


The relationship between British policy approaches to multiculturalism and 'White' identity has been a complex and under-discussed one. Too often, 'White' identity in Britain has been portrayed as a homogenous norm needing no theorisation or exploration, yet at the same time media and political discourses around the racialised fears and concerns of White people, especially the 'White working class', have been influential on shifts in the content and priorities of state approaches to 'race relations'. This can be seen most clearly in the post-2001 shift towards cohesion and integration, a re-naming and re-balancing of multiculturalism to reflect White concerns, yet post-2001 policy enactment around cohesion/integration and 'Prevent' continues to ignore engagement with the identifications and concerns of many White communities. This paper explores this relationship between 'White' identity and British multiculturalism, arguing that the inexorable growth of 'Englishness', possibly to be hastened by a Scottish Independence vote in 2014, makes it all the more urgent that multiculturalist policy and practice engages directly with White English identifications and perceptions.


Patrick Henry, working with more than one thousand unpublished autobiographical pages written by key rescuers and with documents, letters, and interviews never before available, reconsiders the Holocaust rescue of Jews on the plateau of Vivarais-Lignon between the years 1939 and 1944. Henry carefully examines the general research of the last quarter century on rescue in that area of France, illuminating in detail the strengths and weaknesses of Philip Hallie's groundbreaking study "Lest Innocent Blood Be Shed" (1979) as they appear sixty years after the end of World War II. In highlighting the involvement of Catholics, Protestants, and Jews in the rescue mission, the book looks closely at the lives and work of two rescuers on the plateau: a young Protestant man, Daniel Trocme, and a Jewish mother of three, Madeleine Dreyfus, both of whom were arrested and deported. Daniel died in the gas chamber at Maidanek; Madeleine survived Bergen-Belsen. Madeleine provides an example of a Jewish rescuer of Jews and raises the issues of so-called Jewish passivity during the Holocaust. Also analyzed is Albert Camus' chronicle, "La Peste", written in large part during the fifteen months he spent in a hamlet just outside the village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon from August 1942 until late 1943. As an allegorical mirror, the text reflects both the violent and non-violent resistance taking place when and where Camus composed his narrative. Finally, Henry brings together his own findings and those of others who have studied the rescuers throughout Europe in order to understand rescuer motivation and to show incontrovertibly why it is important not only to know about the victims and perpetrators of the Nazi genocide but to study and teach more widely about the rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust.


This thesis is the final outcome of a project carried out for the UK's Department for Education and Skills (DfES). They were interested in finding a fast algorithm for solving a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model to compare the relative efficiency of 13216 primary schools in England based on 9 input-output factors. The standard approach for solving a DEA model comparing n units (such as primary schools) based on m factors, requires solving 2n linear programming (LP) problems, each with m constraints and at least n variables. At m = 9 and n = 13216, it was proving to be difficult. The research reported in this thesis describes both theoretical and practical contributions to achieving faster computational performance. First we establish that in analysing any unit t only against some critically important units - we call them generators - we can either (a) complete its efficiency analysis, or (b) find a new generator. This is an important contribution to the theory of solution procedures of DEA. It leads to our new Generator Based Algorithm (GBA) which solves only n LPs of maximum size (m x k), where k is the number of generators. As k is a small percentage of n, GBA significantly improves computational performance in large datasets. Further, GBA is capable of solving all the commonly used DEA models including important extensions of the basic models such as weight restricted models. In broad outline, the thesis describes four themes. First, it provides a comprehensive critical review of the extant literature on the computational aspects of DEA. Second, the thesis introduces the new computationally efficient algorithm GBA. It solves the practical problem in 105 seconds. The commercial software used by the DfES, at best, took more than an hour and often took 3 to 5 hours making it impractical for model development work. Third, the thesis presents results of comprehensive computational tests involving GBA, Jose Dula's BuildHull - the best available DEA algorithm in the literature - and the standard approach. Dula's published result showing that BuildHull consistently outperforms the standard approach is confirmed by our experiments. It is also shown that GBA is consistently better than BuildHull and is a viable tool for solving large scale DBA problems. An interesting by-product of this work is a new closed-form solution to the important practical problem of finding strictly positive factor weights without explicit weight restrictions for what are known in the DEA literature as "extreme-efficient units". To date, the only other methods for achieving this require solving additional LPs or a pair of Mixed Integer Linear Programs.


Acupuncture as a vital component of traditional medical systems of the Far East has been used to restore and maintain health for over three millennia. However, the neurobiological correlates of this therapy remain largely unknown. The purpose of this study was therefore to determine the effect of enpishin acupuncture (press tack needles (PTN)) on autonomic function, WBC count, and oxidative stress between subjects that received either verum or placebo PTN treatment. Twenty men (mean(SD) age: 36.7(5.1) years) who provided oral consent were randomized to receive either verum PTN (n = 9) or placebo PTN (n = 11). Bi-Digital O-Ring Test (BDORT) was used to select the acupoints for each participant. Autonomic function and oxidative stress level were analyzed before and after the treatment via heart rate variability (HRV) and free radical analysis system (FRAS4), respectively. Pre- and post-treatment WBC count was also evaluated. Verum PTN group had a statistically significant increase (p = 0.008) in Ln TP, an index of overall autonomic activity. Subjects in this group also had a significantly greater (p = 0.006) variation in Ln TP than the placebo PTN group in response to the treatment. Similarly, Ln HF of subjects receiving verum PTN showed a marked increase (p = 0.0026) after the treatment. Moreover, a significantly greater (p < 0.001) variation in mean Ln HF before and after the treatment was noted in the verum group than the placebo group, reflecting a greater parasympathetic activation in the former. In contrast, sympathetic activity was not significantly influenced by verum PTN based on the lack of observed changes in LF/HF ratio. In addition, both groups failed to demonstrate significant variations in pre- and post-treatment mean Ln LF/HF ratio. Further, no significant intergroup difference was found with regard to mean variation in Ln LF/HF ratio. Verum PTN did not induce significant changes in WBC count and markers of oxidative stress, namely reactive oxygen species (ROM) and biological antioxidant potential (BAP). However, a comparison of variations in pre- and post-treatment mean WBC count showed a significant difference (p = 0.020) between the two treatment modes: verum group showed a slight increase (225 ± 384.5), while placebo group showed a minimal decrease (–190 ± 272.6). Our findings suggest that PTN increases overall autonomic activity, particularly the parasympathetic function.