Conflict and competition often impose costs on both winners and losers, and conflicting parties may prefer to resolve a dispute before it occurs. The equilibrium of a conflict game with side-payments predicts that with binding offers, proposers make and responders accept side-payments, generating settlements that strongly favor proposers. When side-payments are non-binding, proposers offer nothing and conflicts always arise. Laboratory experiments confirm that binding side-payments reduce conflicts. However, 30% of responders reject binding offers, and offers are more egalitarian than predicted. Surprisingly, non-binding side-payments also improve efficiency, although less than binding. With binding side-payments, 87% of efficiency gains come from avoided conflicts. However, with non-binding side-payments, only 39% of gains come from avoided conflicts and 61% from reduced conflict expenditures.


A sketch-guided filtering scheme for assisting superspreader detection in the measurement of high-speed network traffic is proposed. The scheme comprises of an array of linear-counting sketches that rapidly eliminates flows with potentially low fan-out during a measurement interval. Based on the results of simulations obtained using real-world network traces, the filter can eliminate up to 90% of the flows of non-superspreader sources and improve the accuracy of superspreader identification. Furthermore, the proposed scheme has a smaller fan-out estimation error and consumes less memory than previously developed approaches. The hardware implementation can process network traffic at a throughput of 27 Gbit/s.


A suspensionofchloroplasts, isolated from spinach cotyledons, was found to be an oscillatory system, i.e. a system in which one parameter (or more) varies over time in a fairly regular way.The oscillations, with a period of fifteen to twenty minutes,occured spontaneously in the light as well as in the dark and were self-sustained for several hours.Catalase activity was the parameter on which the oscillations in the chi oroplastic system were first observed and was also the parameter most intensely studied. Some other parameters investigated were the amount of glutathione, oxidation-reduction potential and activities of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and NADP-1inked malate dehydrogenase.Oscillations could be induced in previously non-oscillating systems (e.g. in dialysed chloroplast extracts) by addition of ascorbate and glutathione. A mechanism is suggested, built upon a respiratory chain in which the ascorbate and glutathione redox couples are involved and which is known to occur in young plants. The mechanism involves cyclic changes in the redox state of sulphur groups (-SH^^-SS- transitions) in some enzymes, causing changes in the activities of the enzyme. The proposed feed-back mechanism thus implies covalent modification of enzymes. The enzymes involved were found to be localized mainly in the stroma space of the chloroplast.


Immune Deficiency Foundation, the national nonprofit organization devoted to research and education for the primary immune deficiency diseases, publishes other materials for physicians and healthcare professionals (eg. Physician's Primer and Guide for Nurses) and for patients (eg.Patient and Family Handbook, Our Immune System, and Newsletter). For Information about our programs, patient groups and publications, call 1-800-296-4433.


Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze overall survival (OS) of robotic-assisted lobectomy (RL), video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy (VATS), and open lobectomy (OL) performed by experienced thoracic surgeons across multiple institutions. Summary Background Data: Surgeons have increasingly adopted RL for resection of early-stage lung cancer. Comparative survival data following these approaches is largely from single-institution case series or administrative data sets. Methods: Retrospective data was collected from 21 institutions from 2013 to 2019. Consecutive cases performed for clinical stage IA–IIIA lung cancer were included. Induction therapy patients were excluded. The propensity-score method of inverse-probability of treatment weighting was used to balance baseline characteristics. OS was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard models were used to evaluate association among OS and relevant risk factors. Results: A total of 2789 RL, 2661 VATS, and 1196 OL cases were included. The unadjusted 5-year OS rate was highest for OL (84%) followed by RL (81%) and VATS (74%); P=0.008. Similar trends were also observed after inverse-probability of treatment weighting adjustment (RL 81%; VATS 73%, OL 85%, P=0.001). Multivariable Cox regression analyses revealed that OL and RL were associated with significantly higher OS compared with VATS (OL vs. VATS: hazard ratio=0.64, P<0.001 and RL vs. VATS: hazard ratio=0.79; P=0.007). Conclusions: Our finding from this large multicenter study suggests that patients undergoing RL and OL have statistically similar OS, while the VATS group was associated with shorter OS. Further studies with longer follow-up are necessary to help evaluate these observations.


Context: Mercury is used extensively in the preparation of Siddha medicines, after purification. In this study, we present 32 patients of mercury toxicity following unauthorized Siddha medicine intake who mimicked neuromyotonia clinically. We analyzed the clinical features of these patients, the role of autoimmunity in etiopathology, and compared it with acquired neuromyotonia. Subjects and Methods: This is a retrospective study to analyze inpatients in a tertiary care center, admitted with mercury toxicity following Siddha medicine intake from August 2012 to October 2016. We analyzed the clinical features, laboratory data including mercury, arsenic and lead levels in blood, and serum voltage-gated potassium channels (VGKC)-CASPR2 Ab in selected patients. Results: Thirty-two patients who had high blood mercury levels following Siddha medicine intake were included in the study. All patients (100%) had severe intractable neuropathic pain predominantly involving lower limbs. Twenty-six (81.25%) patients had fasciculations and myokymia. Fifteen patients (46.86%) had autonomic dysfunction (postural hypotension and resting tachycardia). Nine (28.12%) patients had encephalopathic features such as dullness, apathy, drowsiness, or delirium. Anti-VGKC Ab was positive in 12 patients with myokymia. All the patients in the study consumed Siddha medicines obtained from unauthorized dealers. Conclusions: Mercury toxicity following Siddha medicine intake closely mimics acquired neuromyotonia; severe intolerable neuropathic pain is the hallmark feature; Positive VGKC-CASPR2 antibody in some patients must be due to triggered autoimmunity secondary to mercury toxicity due to Siddha medicine intake. The government should establish licensing system to prevent distribution of unauthorized Siddha medicines.


INTRODUCTION R esearch in human genetics is aimed largely at the identification of genes responsible for human disease and characterization of mutations. This can provide insight into the pathophysiology of genetic disorders as well as new means of diagnosis. Molecular diagnosis involves the detection of pathogenic mutations in DNA or RNA samples. It can offer very precise diagnosis, sometimes predicting clinical course in a disorder with variable expression. It also obviates the need to biopsy clinically affected tissue, because any source of nucleated cells, such as peripheral blood or buccal lining cells, can be used as a source of DNA. In addition, prenatal diagnosis can be offered based on DNA analysis from chorionic villus biopsy tissue, amniotic fluid cells, fetal blood or single blastomeres.


Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global issue that jeopardizes the health of people worldwide. Antibiotics are overused in the community and in hospitals; there is a blind usage of antibiotics, by treating suspected bacterial infections, viral illnesses or noninfective causes of inflammation which contribute to AMR, increasing costs and is ineffective. There is a need for a rapid blood test to aid in the diagnosis of bacterial infections. The current practice is to use blood cultures, which take 72 hours to result, wasting precious time. Procalcitonin (PCT) is a 116-amino acid that is secreted primarily by the Ccells of the thyroid gland. There is an association between systemic bacterial infections and rapid release of PCT levels. PCT has a sensitivity of 89%, specificity of 94%, a negative predictive value of 90% and a positive predictive value of 94% in the diagnosis of sepsis, and is a more reliable biomarker when compared to C-reactive protein, Interleukin-6 and lactate . Purpose: The Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) scholarly project is a Quality Improvement Project (QIP) used to develop a clinical practice guideline (CPG) for the use of PCT as a guide for the initiation or cessation of antibiotic therapy in clinical practice. Methods: This QIP is a non-experimental approach used in the development of a CPG in a three phase approach through the formation of an expert panel by evaluating the CPG using the AGREE II tool (AGREE Next Step Consortium, 2009) and the Provider Feedback Survey (PFS). Phase one involved forming the expert panel of subject matter experts (SMEs), reviewing the current recommendations, appraising the evidence with the AGREE II tool and providing feedback. In phase two, the revised CPG was again evaluated by using the PFS with recommendations given by the SMEs. Phase three was composed of a second set of stakeholders who were recommended by the initial SMEs , who additionally incorporated feedback of the draft of the CPG by using the PFS. The final draft of the CPG, was then presented to the facility for approval and use in clinical practice. Results: The responses and frequency distributions of the AGREE II tool (N=4) were presented. Scope and Purpose (100%) and Clarity of Presentation (98.6%) scored the highest, with Stakeholder Involvement (58.3%) scoring the lowest. The responses and frequency distributions of the Provider Feedback Survey (N=8) were also collected and scored per percentage of agreement. Both frequency distributions were illustrated with histograms. Respondents overall feedback was favorable with 87.5% stating that they would adopt the CPG if approved, into their clinical practice. Implications: The CPG for the use of PCT as a guide for antibiotic therapy will provide clinicians with an aid in the decision making process for the initiation and cessation of antibiotic therapy for those patients with a suspected bacterial infection. This will enhance clinical practice by decreasing the inappropriate use of antibiotics, reducing unnecessary hospital admissions, decrease length of stay, minimize the treatment of antibiotic induced side effects, improve costs savings and the reallocation of resources. PROCALCITONIN AS A GUIDE FOR ANTIBIOTIC THERAPY 3


This paper presents three basic ideas which are interrelated with one another: 1) The assertion that a single subject unites all the discussions in Sefer Yezirah, from beginning to end: namely, the nature of Wisdom, upon which the world stands (or is suspended); 2) A stylistic-linguistic analysis leading to the division of Sefer Yezirah into three "accounts," around which are crystallized the style and contents of the book as a whole. The Account of the "Sealing of the Ends" is the latest of these accounts, and was written by the editor of the book, who joined his account with the other two to form a single book; 3) The assertion that the worldview reflected in Sefer Yezirah acknowledges the existence of a secondary power alongside God, that assists Him in the Creation and ongoing existence of the universe (as against doctrines claiming the existence of an additional force in conflict with God). The term I use in this context is binitarianism. In the earliest of the three accounts, that of the Covenant, this power assumes the form of an angel, while in the other two it is more abstract. This paper lays the foundations for this claim but, due to the limitations of this paper, I do not enter into discussion of its far-reaching implications. I hope to continue this discussion elsewhere, on another occasion.


ABSTRACT A strain of Bacillus subtilis lacking two 3′-to-5′ exoribonucleases, polynucleotide phosphorylase (PNPase) and RNase R, was used to purify another 3′-to-5′ exoribonuclease, which is encoded by the yhaM gene. YhaM was active in the presence of Mn2+ (or Co2+), was inactive in the presence of Mg2+, and could also degrade single-stranded DNA. The half-life of bulk mRNA in a mutant lacking PNPase, RNase R, and YhaM was not significantly different from that of the wild type, suggesting the existence of additional activities that can participate in mRNA turnover. Sequence homologues of YhaM were found only in gram-positive organisms. The Staphylococcus aureus homologue, CBF1, which had been characterized as a double-stranded DNA binding protein involved in plasmid replication, was also shown to be an Mn2+-dependent exoribonuclease. YhaM protein has a C-terminal "HD domain," found in metal-dependent phosphohydrolases. By structure modeling, it was shown that YhaM also contains an N-terminal "OB-fold," present in many oligosaccharide- and oligonucleotide-binding proteins. The combination of these two domains is unique. Thus, YhaM and 10 related proteins from gram-positive organisms constitute a new exonuclease family.


easy to organize. That said, the fact that apparently suitably anesthetized patients move during isolated forearm test (IFT) after induction and tracheal intubation is well established and unsurprising. Long reported, with systematic review showing 31 previous papers with more than 1,300 patients studied,2 a positive response to IFT is easily reproducible by any anesthesiologist, anywhere, at any time. There is some modest interest in the now reported response rate (~5%)1 being lower than the aggregate of these previous studies (~40%),2 but it is difficult to see what else is novel about this latest report. Pryor and Veselis3 offer important advice for the direction of future research and I would like to add two suggestions based on paradoxes in the observations. By paradox I mean responses that appear difficult to reconcile, given the stimulus. During the IFT, when we observe the patient moving only to verbal command but not to the obvious, ongoing, and greater stimulus of surgery, we properly regard that as surprising enough to develop sophisticated theories of dysanesthesia,4,5 connected consciousness,1 or cognitive unbinding.6 Yet, when a patient during IFT fails to move to verbal command, but makes other spontaneous movements that appear purposeless, we dismiss these movements as reflex or light anesthesia. We do not seem equally surprised that a patient light enough to move will not also respond to command. Perhaps it is time to study also this second apparent paradox in more detail, especially if brain imaging coupled with IFT is a way forward, as Pryor and Veselis suggest.3 A much more important paradox is why the finding cannot be reproduced in the nonparalyzed (i.e., patients who have received no neuromuscular blockade). I have already reported on the impossibility of eliciting a positive IFT response to verbal command during surgery in these circumstances.7 Even when patients retain the ability to move spontaneously to stimuli, they fail to respond to verbal command if unparalyzed, even when they have received the same anesthetic doses and are at similar bispectral index levels as those reported in previous studies. Why this paradox? Why do things change when they are (save the isolated forearm) paralyzed? This distinguished and experienced team has the infrastructure now to explore this paradox more robustly than I previously reported. So, in good spirit I challenge Sanders et al.1 to harness their international collaboration and report a single case of positive IFT in an apparently suitably anesthetized but unparalyzed patient, anywhere in the world. Or, if they are unable to do so, to explain why this is impossible and how this paradox fits into existing theories of a positive IFT response.


Resolution and contrast recovery in planar nuclear images at depth with a high purity germanium (HPGe) camera has been achieved through use of a weighted back projection (WBP) method. The algorithm can be derived from Bayes' theorem using the point spread function of the camera. The variations in the formulation of WBP (one single pass and two iterative procedures) are presented with the characteristics and performance of each method. The evaluation procedure determines the behaviour of signal-to-noise ratio, contrast and texture after application of the algorithm. Both real and simulated cold lesions obtained with the HPGe camera are studied with sizes ranging from 3 mm to 17 mm and background count densities from 100 to 6400 counts cm2. Application of WBP is shown to increase spatial resolution and contrast without a concomitant reduction in signal-to-noise ratio. Images obtained with the HPGe camera and processed with WBP are presented. The algorithm has been applied to the scintillation camera, yielding significant resolution and contrast recovery despite the presence of scatter and textured noise present in the HPGe images.


PURPOSE
The experimental determination of doses at proximal distances from radioactive sources is difficult because of the steepness of the dose gradient. The goal of this study was to determine the relative radial dose distribution for a low dose rate 192Ir wire source using electron paramagnetic resonance imaging (EPRI) and to compare the results to those obtained using Gafchromic EBT film dosimetry and Monte Carlo (MC) simulations.

METHODS
Lithium formate and ammonium formate were chosen as the EPR dosimetric materials and were used to form cylindrical phantoms. The dose distribution of the stable radiation-induced free radicals in the lithium formate and ammonium formate phantoms was assessed by EPRI. EBT films were also inserted inside in ammonium formate phantoms for comparison. MC simulation was performed using the MCNP4C2 software code.

RESULTS
The radical signal in irradiated ammonium formate is contained in a single narrow EPR line, with an EPR peak-to-peak linewidth narrower than that of lithium formate (approximately 0.64 and 1.4 mT, respectively). The spatial resolution of EPR images was enhanced by a factor of 2.3 using ammonium formate compared to lithium formate because its linewidth is about 0.75 mT narrower than that of lithium formate. The EPRI results were consistent to within 1% with those of Gafchromic EBT films and MC simulations at distances from 1.0 to 2.9 mm. The radial dose values obtained by EPRI were about 4% lower at distances from 2.9 to 4.0 mm than those determined by MC simulation and EBT film dosimetry.

CONCLUSIONS
Ammonium formate is a suitable material under certain conditions for use in brachytherapy dosimetry using EPRI. In this study, the authors demonstrated that the EPRI technique allows the estimation of the relative radial dose distribution at short distances for a 192Ir wire source.


The biologic effect of human insulin (recombinant DNA) and purified pork insulin (PPI) was compared during insulin-induced hypoglycemia at two intravenous dosages 0.075 and 0.1 U/kg body wt in 12 healthy volunteers. Serum insulin concentrations and plasma glucose curves were identical. PPI induced a significantly (P < 0.05) higher output of epinephrine, growth hormone, and cortisol at both doses. Less inhibition (P < 0.05) of endogenous insulin secretion was observed for human insulin at 0.1 U/kg body wt. An elevated incidence of sweating during hypoglycemia was related to epinephrine secretion. The results indicate that homologous insulin produces in vivo effects which are different from those produced by heterologous insulin.


The increasing scarcity of water and financial resources has made the economic dimension of water an important element of irrigation sector policies. Water pricing is the means traditionally used to incorporate economic issues into irrigation sector policies. More recently, water markets have been proposed as an alternative to water pricing. From a theoretical point of view, water markets are expected to lead to an efficient allocation of water among water users, as well as to improve water use economic efficiency. However, the discrepancy between theoretical requirements and the existing characteristics of the irrigation sector is significant. Therefore, the potential for water markets in managing water resources is questioned. In Pakistan, consideration has recently been given to water markets as a means to improve the performance of irrigated agriculture. The present study investigates issues related to water markets in Pakistan using the example of the Chishtian Sub-division, an irrigation system located in the South-Punjab. Within the framework of an integrated approach that combines hydraulic, soil and economic issues, the study analyses the functioning and impact of existing surface and groundwater markets that have developed spontaneously within the tertiary units of the irrigation system. Although constraints remain on the functioning of these markets, water transactions significantly improve the flexibility in managing water resources without threatening significantly the sustainability of irrigated agriculture. This study also discusses elements related to the technical feasibility of water markets at higher spatial scales in the irrigation system, and their potential impact on agricultural production and the physical environment. The potential for reallocation of surface water in terms of increased farm gross income is the highest within and between tertiary units. Also, the impact of reallocation on farm gross income is higher when volumes of surface water are transacted independently of the time of the year, as opposed to yearly reallocations that would affect proportionally the supply of canal water received each month. Constraints related to the existing conveyance infrastructure are not seen as a major obstacle to water transactions. Changes in the operational rules required to develop water markets at higher spatial scales, however, may represent an important constraint to water market development. Also, the absence of storage facility limit the potential for temporal reallocation of surface water, thus the overall impact of potential water markets. The thesis concludes by emphasizing the importance of a combination of interventions to manage the irrigation sector, as well as to improve its performance in terms of agricultural production and sustainability. The need to analyze, compare and combine interventions, further stresses the relevance of an integrated approach that integrates disciplines, links decisional and bio-physical processes, and investigates the heterogeneity of these processes within the irrigation system.


Abstract Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), composed of Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), is an inflammatory autoimmune disease. CD99 has been reported to participate in migration of leukocytes and T cell activation. However, the roles of CD99 in IBD are obscure. Materials and methods: CD99 expression was examined in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and inflamed mucosa from IBD patients by qRT-PCR. Serum TNF-α and IL-17A levels were detected by ELISA. Correlations of CD99 expression with TNF-α, IL-17A, Crohn's disease activity index (CDAI), simple endoscopic score for CD (SES-CD), Mayo index, and Truelove grading were performed by Pearson's correlation. Results: CD99 expression was increased in PBMCs and inflamed mucosa from active CD and UC patients, and CD99 expression was also increased in the inflamed mucosa compared with unaffected control from the same patients. Serum TNF-α and IL-17A levels were increased in active CD or UC patients, and positively correlated with CD99 expression in PBMCs (CD: r = .402, p = .009; r = .350, p = .025. UC: r = .289, p = .028; r = .322, p = .014). Moreover, CD99 expression in inflamed mucosa was correlated with CDAI, SES-CD, Mayo index, and Truelove grading (r = .410, p = .012; r = .341, p = .005; r = .366, p = .002; r = .312, p = .011). Conclusion: CD99 expression is increased in patients with active IBD, and positively correlated with disease activity. Therefore, CD99 expression can be used as an index to evaluate the activity of IBD.


Objective: This paper describes a case-control study and a meta-analysis conducted to determine whether the TLR4 Asp299Gly (rs4986790) and Thr399Ile (rs4986791) polymorphisms are associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: In the case-control study were enrolled 1683 T2DM patients and 584 nondiabetic subjects from Brazil. A literature search was conducted in order to identify studies that investigated associations between the referred TLR4 polymorphisms and T2DM. Pooled odds ratios (OR) were calculated for allele contrast and dominant inheritance models. Results: In the case-control study, genotype and allele frequencies of the Asp299Gly and Thr399Ile polymorphisms differed between T2DM patients and nondiabetic subjects (P<0.05). Moreover, the presence of the minor alleles of these polymorphisms were significantly associated with protection for T2DM, after adjusting for ethnicity, under a dominant model [Asp299Gly: OR=0.68 (95% CI 0.49-0.94); Thr399Ile: OR=0.65 (95% CI 0.46-0.90)]. Seven studies were eligible for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Meta-analysis results showed that the Asp299Gly polymorphism was associated with T2DM protection [OR=0.68 (95% CI 0.46-1.00), allele contrast model]. Stratification by ethnicity revealed that both polymorphisms were associated with T2DM protection under allele contrast and dominant models in Brazilian population but not in Europeans. Conclusions: In our case-control study, we were able to demonstrate a possible association between the TLR4 Asp299Gly and Thr399Ile polymorphisms and protection for T2DM. In agreement, the meta-analysis results showed an association of the Asp299Gly polymorphism with T2DM protection in the whole group, and associations of the Asp299Gly and Thr399Ile polymorphisms with T2DM protection in the Brazilian group but not in European descendent. This is the largest TLR4 meta-analysis performed so far. In other ethnicities further studies with large sample size are necessary to confirm these associations in different ethnicities as well as to elucidate the roles possibly played by these polymorphisms in the pathogenesis of T2DM.


Method allows for modelling of the anticipatory results of colour laser marking experiments. The process of calculating expected results takes into consideration the construction specifics of laser system being used and displays the results in compact form of a set of parameter matrices that have their values conditionally formatted as colour maps for easy identification of complex patterns. The complete set of all the related parameter matrices, both technical and derived, as well as the specific relations between them form the mathematical model of forecasting laser marking experiment results. Because the mathematical model is implemented within spreadsheet processor, it can be instantiated multiple times for any number of experiments.


This study was aimed to analyze the metabolic activity and membrane integrity of boar spermatozoa following storage in long-term semen extenders. Boar semen was diluted with Androhep ® EnduraGuard TM (AeG), DILU-Cell (DC), SafeCell Plus TM (SCP) and Vitasem LD (VLD) extenders and stored for 10 days at 17 o C. Parameters of the analyzed sperm metabolic activity included total motility (TMOT), progressive motility (PMOT), high mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and ATP content, whereas those of the membrane integrity included plasma membrane integrity (PMI) and normal apical ridge (NAR) acrosome. Extender type was a significant (P < 0.05) source of variation in all the analyzed sperm parameters, except for ATP content. Furthermore, the storage time had a significant effect (P < 0.05) on the sperm metabolic activity and membrane integrity during semen storage. In all extenders the metabolic activity and membrane integrity of the stored spermatozoa decreased continuously over time. Among the four analyzed extenders, AeG and SCP showed the best performance in terms of TMOT and PMI on Days 5, 7 and 10 of storage. Marked differences in the proportions of spermatozoa with high MMP were observed between the extenders, particularly on Day 10 of storage. There were not any marked differences in sperm ATP content between the extenders, regardless of the storage time. Furthermore, the percentage of spermatozoa with NAR acrosomes decreased during prolonged storage, being markedly lower in DC-diluted semen compared with semen diluted with either AeG or SCP extender. The results of this study indicated that components of the long-term extenders have different effects on the sperm functionality and prolonged semen longevity by delaying the processes associated with sperm ageing during liquid storage.


Digital rock physics has seen significant advances owing to improvements in micro-computed tomography (MCT) imaging techniques and computing power. These advances allow for the visualization and accurate characterization of multiphase transport in porous media. Despite such advancements, image processing and particularly the task of denoising MCT images remains less explored. As such, selection of proper denoising method is a challenging optimization exercise of balancing the tradeoffs between minimizing noise and preserving original features. Despite its importance, there are no comparative studies in the geoscience domain that assess the performance of different denoising approaches, and their effect on image-based rock and fluid property estimates. Further, the application of machine learning and deep learning-based (DL) denoising models remains under-explored. In this research, we evaluate the performance of six commonly used denoising filters and compare them to five DL-based denoising protocols, namely, noise-to-clean (N2C), residual dense network (RDN), and cycle consistent generative adversarial network (CCGAN)—which require a clean reference (ground truth), as well as noise-to-noise (N2N) and noise-to-void (N2V)—which do not require a clean reference. We also propose hybrid or semi-supervised DL denoising models which only require a fraction of clean reference images. Using these models, we investigate the optimal number of high-exposure reference images that balances data acquisition cost and accurate petrophysical characterization. The performance of each denoising approach is evaluated using two sets of metrics: (1) standard denoising evaluation metrics, including peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and (2) the resulting image-based petrophysical properties such as porosity, saturation, pore size distribution, phase connectivity, and specific surface area (SSA). Petrophysical estimates show that most traditional filters perform well when estimating bulk properties but show large errors for pore-scale properties like phase connectivity. Meanwhile, DL-based models give mixed outcomes, where supervised methods like N2C show the best performance, and an unsupervised model like N2V shows the worst performance. N2N75, which is a newly proposed semi-supervised variation of the N2N model, where 75% of the clean reference data is used for training, shows very promising outcomes for both traditional denoising performance metrics and petrophysical properties including both bulk and pore-scale measures. Lastly, N2C is found to be the most computationally efficient, while CCGAN is found to be the least, among the DL-based models considered in this study. Overall, this investigation shows that application of sophisticated supervised and semi-supervised DL-based denoising models can significantly reduce petrophysical characterization errors introduced during the denoising step. Furthermore, with the advancement of semi-supervised DL-based models, requirement of clean reference or ground truth images for training can be reduced and deployment of fast X-ray scanning can be made possible.


[Introduction] Carbonaceous chondrites have the most primitive chemical compositions in the solar system and contain volatile components such as water and carbon. In spite of their primitive character, most carbonaceous chondrites have had experienced aqueous alteration on parent bodies, which was revealed by the occurrence of hydrous minerals. The meteoritic carbon are present mainly as organic matter, in which soluble organic matter (SOM, ~1 to ~30 wt%) consists of relatively low-molecular-weight compounds such as carboxylic acids and amino acids. The rest major carbon exists as insoluble organic matter (IOM) having high-molecular complicated structures. Therefore, the aqueous alteration must have influenced the organic-mineral interactions. In order to study the chemical evolution of organic matter in the solar system, the role(s) of minerals should be clarified. In this study, we performed simulation experiments of organic compound synthesis using ammonia (NH3), formaldehyde (HCHO), acetaldehyde (CH3CHO), propionaldehyde (C2H5CHO) and acetone (CH3COCH3), which are simple molecules found in molecular clouds, under the aqueous environment in the presence or absence of minerals. [Materials and Methods] The several aqueous mixtures with various ratios (by mol) of NH3 (1 to 10) /HCHO (0.1 to 1) /CH3CHO (0.01 to 0.1) /C2H5CHO (0.01 to 0.1)/CH3COCH3(0.01 to 0.1) were heated in the presence of powdered mineral including forsterite (San Carlos), magnetite (Utah), synthetic forsterite or amorphous silicate (Mg2 SiO4 in composition) at 60 to 80°C for 144 to 192 hours in N2-purged glass ampoules. A total of 20 runs of simulation experiments were performed. The reaction product was extracted with methylene chloride/methanol (2/1, by volume) and analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometery. [Results and Discussion] Many compounds were observed at the range of m/z 100-400 in all reaction products. Of the identified compounds, alkylpyridines (CnH2n-5N), alkylimidazoles (CnH2n-3N2) and hexamethylenetetramine (C6H12N4, HMT) were the main products for each run. The compounds that have not been identified but represented by compositional having CnH2n-1N3O in composition were also identified as a main product. Although alkylpyridines and alkylimidazoles have been detected from carbonaceous chondrites (e.g. Yamashita and Naraoka, 2014). Although HMT has been reported as a main product during interstellar analog experiment by UV irradiation at low temperature (Vinogradoff et al., 2011), HMT has not been found in meteorites. HMT is relatively abundant in the products with the absence of minerals. However, the HMT amount decreased in the presence of the amorphous silicate and forsterite (San Carlos), instead of increasing production of alkylpyridines and alkylimidazoles. The minerals could control the reaction pathways as a catalyst. In particular, as amorphous silicate is the main solid phase in the interstellar environments (F. Kemper etal., 2004), it may have important roles for the evolution of extraterrestrial organic matter. Further experiments are needed to identify the intermediate compounds as well as to observe the change in mineral phases during the reactions. PPS09-P03 JpGU-AGU Joint Meeting 2017


"In Light of India" is Paz's celebration of that country and his most personal work of prose to date. As in all of his essays, he brings poetic insight and voluminous knowledge to bear on the subject; the result is a series of fascinating discourses on India's landscape, culture, and history. "The Antipodes of Coming and Going" is a lyrical remembrance of Paz's days in India, evoking with astonishing clarity the sights, sounds, smells, and denizens of the subcontinent. "Religions, Castes, Languages" gives a survey of Indian history and its astonishing polyglot society. "A Project of Nationhood" is an examination of modern Indian politics, comparing the respective Islamic, Hindu, and Western civilizations through the course of history. "The Full and the Empty" is a brilliant exploration into what Paz calls the soul of India - its art, literature, music, and philosophy - and an uncompromising indictment of the self-centered materialism of Western society.


As in other parts of the world, 1,2 we, in Israel, have been impressed by an apparent increase in the incidence of leukemia in recent years. The immigrant population of Israel, which came in well-defined waves from many different countries mainly after 1948, provides material for the study of the incidence of leukemia in different ethnic groups. Furthermore, the differences in medical sophistication of their countries of origin and the mass-treatment programs linked to specific groups of immigrants make it possible to investigate some of the etiologic factors involved in this disease. This communication presents observations based on a study of leukemia mortality in Israel during the years 1950-1958 and of 150 consecutive leukemia patients seen at a large central hospital. Material Information was obtained from the following 2 sources: All the certificates of the 718 registered leukemic deaths reported to the Central Bureau of Statistics * during the years


Silicon oxide (SiOx) were deposited on many substrates such as silicon, glass, and poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and widely used in industry due to their excellent impressive barrier, electrical, optical and eco-friendly properties. However, few publications that focus on paper as substrate in sputtering have been found. SiOx films were deposited on papers by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The influences of process parameters, RF power density and deposition time on deposition rate, surface roughness, mechanical properties and humidity barrier of the films were investigated. The result from atomic force microscopy (AFM) applied to investigate the surface morphologies showed that papers being deposited SiOx (SiOx/Paper) films with the average roughness were much more homogenous and smoother than raw papers. Horizontal, vertical elastic modulus and yield strength of SiOx/Pap clearly increased. The water vapor transmission rate of SiOx/Paper films, which prepared at RF density of 2.78 W/cm2, argon (Ar) flux of 40 sccm and deposition time of 36 min decreased 15times, and the oxygen transmission rate did 10 times. Additional investigations regarding printability focusing on the color reproduction properties were also carried out.


Molecularly imprinted polymer-coated bacterial cellulose nanofibers have been prepared by immersing solvent treated-bacterial cellulose into a dilute pre-polymerization mixture solution prior to the polymerization process. The quercetin-imprinted polymer coating bacterial cellulose (QIP-BC) nanofibers show discrete nanoparticles encapsulated along the BC nanofibers. The binding capacity of dried QIP-BC was approximately 3 mg per gram of the polymer. The obtained results indicated that QIP-BC nanofibers provided a three fold higher recognition ability for quercetin than quercetin-imprinted nanospheres. This technique can be easily used to combine two fascinating materials like BC nanofibers and molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) to afford promising polymer composites that are useful in various innovative applications in biomedical, pharmaceutical, and industrial sectors.


Biographies. Acknowledgements. Introduction. The Early Phase. "Anna O: the First Case, Revisited and Revised."(Studies on Hysteria - Josef Breuer and Sigmund Freud, 1893-1895.). The Second Phase: The birth of psychoanalysis. "Dora. Fragment of an analysis of Hysteria" (Fragment of an Analysis of a Case of Hysteria 1905[1901]. "The Analysis of a Phobia in a Five Year Old Boy" (Analysis of a Phobia in a Five-Year-Old Boy - 1909). "On Narcissism"(On Narcissism: An Introduction,1914). Metapsychology. Clinical Observation, Theoretical Construction, Metapsychological Thought (Metapsychology papers (1915)). The Unconsciosu (The Unconscious, 1915). "The Wound, the Bow and the Shadow of the Object - Notes on Freud's Mourning and Melancholia" Mourning and Melancholia - Sigmund Freud, 1917[1915] . "Beyond the Pleasure Principle" (Beyond the Pleasure Principle - 1920). The Structural Model of the Mind. Towards the Structural Model of the Mind (The Ego and the Id - 1923). Some further clinical cases. "Notes upon a Case of Obsessional Neurosis" (Notes Upon a Case of Obsessional Neurosis - 1909. Gaze, Dominance, and Humiliation in the Schreber Case. (Psycho-Analytic Notes on an Autobiographical Account of a Case of Paranoia Dementia Paranoides,1911). Unconscious Phantasy and Apres-Coup: From the History of an Infantile Neurosis (The Wolf Man) (From the History of an Infantile Neurosis -1918[1914]). Clinical and metapsychological reflections on "A Child is Being Beaten" ('A Child is Being Beaten': - A Contribution to the Study of the Origin of Sexual Perversions - 1919). "The Psychogenesis of a Case of Homosexuality in a Woman."(The Psychogenesis of a Case of Homosexuality in a Woman, 1920). Later Papers. "Negation" (Negation, 1925). "Freud's Splitting of the Ego in the Process of Defence" (Splitting of the Ego in the Process of Defence - 1940[1938])


Rooney and his associates (Can Med Assoc J 1985; 132: 617) have raised several issues about my letter to the editor (131: 1012-1013) and the article by Tomasson and colleagues, of which I was a coauthor (130: 275-278). In regard to the letter, it is unfortunate that they ignored the qualifying phrase that "this case provides reason to suspect" that reactivation of renal tuberculosis should now be considered a probable adverse effect of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). While I agree that the association between any drug and an adverse effect is difficult to establish, I find it even more difficult to accept Rooney and colleagues' theoretical argument that NSAIDs reduce the likelihood of tuberculosis. In regard to the article, I cannot accept their assertion that our excluding 65 of 103 potential cases invalidates our results. While the 38 patients we studied were not representative of all patients with tuberculosis, they were matched to controls with the same risk factors: age, sex, attending physician and amount of time under that physician's care. In the face of this close matching, the fourfold greater risk of exposure to NSAIDs is striking.' I also have trouble seeing the relevance of the comment concerning "the risks of referencing only an author's own published work" since only 2 of the 27 references in the article were to my previous work. I agree that further study is needed, and indeed we so stated in our article, but the proposed "multicentre prospective controlled trial" would raise ethical problems. Finally I can only assume that the suggestion that CMAJ sponsor such a trial is facetious.


This research aimed to know the partnership pattern of contract farming between cluster farmers and PT Mitratani Agro Unggul and the partnership benefits for the farmers.  This research was conducted in South Lampung Regency in October 2012, in which 12 farmers joined this partnership program as respondents.  The data was analyzed by descriptive and farming income analysis.  The results showed that the related partners to contract farming partnership covered: capital assistance, marketing, and knowledge transfer support or trainings.  The contract farming was an official partnership containing the rules in the written contracts of agreement.  The partnership of contract farming had not economically given benefit to the cluster of pepper farmers, because of the low of farmers' productivities. These low productivities were caused by several problems, such as climate, cultivation technic, bug's infections, and also lending taradinnes.  The highest R/C was 1.25 and the lowest R/C was 1.01.  Farmers also got non-economically benefits; one of those was the existence of legal law microfinance institution and improvement of the derivative products of chili pepper. Keywords: cluster, chili pepper, contract farming, partnership


This document only contains the "Nova Scotia Macrolichen Checklist." For more information, please refer to Curatorial Report #101. This comprehensive spreadsheet includes 341 macrolichen species arranged alphabetically by genus and species, species authorities, counties arranged alphabetically and a reference specimen for each species which is cited in the last column. Herbarium numbers ending with P are from the Nova Scotia Museum. Other institutional herbarium codes appear in parentheses. Reference specimens from personal collections have no parentheses. Details on numbers of specimens recorded per county or the herbaria/collections where specimens are located are available from the author at firstname.lastname@example.com. Those details are not included for simplicity of viewing and because in many cases, specimen packets contained other species for which there were no county records, but also no listing on the packet. Those specimens might not appear in herbarium databases.


The roles and commitment of employees within global strategic partnerships are imperative to their success. Whilst previous studies have addressed certain individual-level microfoundations and social change in an interpretivist manner, this study first proposes a theoretical framework consists of individual-level microfoundations, social change and affective organizational commitment—interlinked with social identity theory. We then validate the 16-item scale for individual-level microfoundations and the 24-item scale for social change based on data collected from global strategic partnerships. For testing of our conceptualization, path modeling finally confirms significant relationships between the constructs. Our findings further present the partial mediating role of social change between individual-level microfoundations and affective organizational commitment. Therefore, the study provides a new pathway in advancing our understanding of global strategic partnerships. It also validates two new constructs directly relevant to managing global strategic partnerships. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of these linkages and contributions, and conclude by providing suggestions for future research.


We investigate how Multilingual BERT (mBERT) encodes grammar by examining how the high-order grammatical feature of morphosyntactic alignment (how different languages define what counts as a "subject") is manifested across the embedding spaces of different languages. To understand if and how morphosyntactic alignment affects contextual embedding spaces, we train classifiers to recover the subjecthood of mBERT embeddings in transitive sentences (which do not contain overt information about morphosyntactic alignment) and then evaluate them zero-shot on intransitive sentences (where subjecthood classification depends on alignment), within and across languages. We find that the resulting classifier distributions reflect the morphosyntactic alignment of their training languages. Our results demonstrate that mBERT representations are influenced by high-level grammatical features that are not manifested in any one input sentence, and that this is robust across languages. Further examining the characteristics that our classifiers rely on, we find that features such as passive voice, animacy and case strongly correlate with classification decisions, suggesting that mBERT does not encode subjecthood purely syntactically, but that subjecthood embedding is continuous and dependent on semantic and discourse factors, as is proposed in much of the functional linguistics literature. Together, these results provide insight into how grammatical features manifest in contextual embedding spaces, at a level of abstraction not covered by previous work.


The objective of this article is to develop a model to measure employee engagement. In doing so, the article firstly develops a theoretical model by identifying employee engagement constructs from the literature. Secondly, identifying measuring criteria of these constructs from the literature, and thirdly, to validate the theoretical model to measure employee engagement in South Africa. The theoretical model consists of 11 employee engagement constructs, measured by a total of 94 measuring criteria. The empirical process of validation employed data collected from 260 respondents who study towards an MBA degree at two private business schools in KwaZulu-Natal. The validation process aimed to validate the variables that measure each of the constructs by determining statistically that the sample employed is adequate, use the Bartlett test to ensure the applicability of the data for multivariate statistical analysis; to validate the measuring criteria as relevant to employee engagement, and to determine the reliability of each of the employee engagement constructs in the model. All these objectives were met. This culminated in the final result, namely an adapted empirical model to measure employee engagement in SA. The model tested statistically to be a valid and reliable model. The research is of value to management in the private and public sector, academics and researchers.


The RF64 file format is designed to meet the requirements for multichannel sound in broadcasting and audio archiving. It is based on the Microsoft RIFF/WAVE format and Wave Format Extensible for multichannel parameters. Additions are made to the basic specification to allow for more than 4 Gigabyte file sizes when needed. A maximum of 18 surround channels, a stereo downmix channel and also bitstream signals with non-PCM coded data can be stored in the file. All existing supplements and chunks of the BWF and WAVE formats can be passed along with the new format. Early applications have been developed.


Twenty-four patients with dissecting aortic aneurysms have been examined by CT and possible causes of mistaken diagnosis are discussed. Failure to diagnose a dissection by CT may be due to atypical localisation and thrombosis of the aortic dissection; dissections of small volume, particularly in the ascending aorta; failure to demonstrate an intimal flap and inadequate contrast enhancement. A false positive diagnosis may be due to fibrotic, inflammatory or neoplastic periaortic changes, aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva, or artifacts.


In recent years, many so-called developed countries had to change their competitive strategies, due to the emergence on the international scenario of countries based on low labour costs. A growing number of studies signals the need for the advance countries to increase the technological content of their products, while at the same time dealing with increasingly fragmented and integrated production systems and more and more complex innovation processes. This implies the necessity to look for external knowledge sources and growing interactions between firms and university, in an increasing process of technology transfer. Technology transfer can take place in different ways and different modalities. Among the most studied we find spin offs, i.e. firms created by academicians or students in order to develop the results of their research. Much has been written on their origin, development and performances. However, very rarely these firms arise spontaneously. More often they are the result of a complex decision process related to the personal evaluation of the founder on a wide variety of elements. Therefore, it seems reasonable to assume that support to spin offs does not only mean financial subsidies or firm incubators, but also stimulation of the propensity of academicians towards entrepreneurship. Starting from the Theory of Planned Behavior introduced by Icek Ajzen in 1991, the present work is aimed at identifying the main determinants of the decision of academics of becoming entrepreneurs, testing then the identified determinants by means of a case study carried out among scholars of three Californian universities: ucla, University of California San Diego and Stanford University. The final aim is to identify policy suggestions based on the most "sensitive" determinants of the intention of academics to establish a firm.


Economic and racial integration in housing remains elusive more than forty years after the passage of the Fair Housing Act. Recalcitrant municipal governments and exclusionary zoning ordinances have played a large role in maintaining and exacerbating segregated housing patterns. After discussing some of the persistent causes of segregated housing patterns, this Note presents a novel approach to enforcing the Fair Housing Act and the "affirmatively furthering fair housing" requirement on recipients of federal housing grants. This Note presents a citizen suit that emerged from the Southern District of New York in Anti-Discrimination Center v. Westchester County, where a private plaintiff successfully used the False Claims Act to enforce the Westchester County's obligations to overcome impediments to racial integration. This Note concludes by arguing for specific reforms, regional coordination, and inclusionary zoning policies that recipients of federal funds should adopt as part of a truly integrated fair housing policy.


In this book, Anca Pusca seeks to extend the aesthetic and cultural turn in international relations to an analysis of post-communist transitions in Central and Eastern Europe. Building on the philosophy of Walter Benjamin and Jacques Ranciere, the work investigates how post-communist film, photography, theatre, art, museumization and architecture have creatively re-engaged with ideas of revolution, communism, capitalism and ethnic violence, and how this in turn has helped people survive and reinvent themselves amongst the material and ideological ruins of communism. The work illustrates how popular culture has effectively targeted and re-interpreted the classical representations of the transition in order to question:

• The origin - focusing on practices of re-staging, memorializing and questioning the 1989 revolutions

• The unfolding - focusing on the human and material consequences of significant changes in processes of production and consumption

• The potential end - focusing on the illusions and disillusions surrounding the 'transition' process.

A unique take on the influence that popular culture has had and continues to have on how we understand the post-communist transitions, this work will be of great interest to students and scholars of cultural and visual studies, eastern European politics and international relations.


We analyze theoretically and investigate experimentally the transfer of phase to intensity power spectra of spatial frequencies through free-space Fresnel diffraction. Depending on lambda z (where lambda is the wavelength and z is the free-space propagation distance) and the phase-modulation strength S, we demonstrate that for multiscale and broad phase spectra critical behavior transmutes a quasilinear to a nonlinear diffractogram except for low frequencies. On the contrary, a single-scale and broad phase spectrum induces a critical transition in the diffractogram at low frequencies. In both cases, identifying critical behavior encoded in the intensity power spectra is of fundamental interest because it exhibits the limits of perturbative power counting but also guides resolution and contrast optimization in propagation-based, single-distance, phase-contrast imaging, given certain dose and coherence constraints.


Abstract. In the past years X-ray computed tomography (CT) has became more and more common for geoscientific applications and is used from the µm-scale (e.g. for investigations of microfossils or pore-scale structures) up to the dm-scale (full drill cores or soil columns). In this paper we present results from CT imaging and mineralogical investigations of an Opalinus Clay core on different scales and different regions of interest, emphasizing especially the 3-D evaluation and distribution of cracks and their impact on mechanical testing of such material. Enhanced knowledge of the testing behaviour of the Opalinus Clay is of great interest, especially since this material is considered for a long-term radioactive waste disposal and storage facility in Switzerland. Hence, results are compared regarding the mineral (i.e. phase) contrast resolution, the spatial resolution, and the overall scanning speed. With this extensive interdisciplinary scale-down approach it has been possible to characterize the general fracture propagation in comparison to mineralogical and textural features of the Opalinus Clay. Additionally, and as far as we know, a so-called mylonitic zone, located at an intersect of two main fractures, has been observed for the first time for an experimentally deformed Opalinus sample. The multi-scale results are in good accordance to data from naturally deformed Opalinus Clay samples, which enables us to perform systematical research under controlled laboratory conditions. Accompanying 3-D imaging greatly enhances the capability of data interpretation and assessment of such a material.


The importance of the sympathetic nervous system in short-term regulation of arterial pressure is well accepted. However, the question of whether neural systems participate in long-term control of pressure has been debated for decades and remains unresolved. The principal argument against such a control system is that arterial baroreceptors adapt to sustained changes in arterial pressure. In addition, denervation of baroreceptors has minimal to no effect on basal levels of arterial pressure chronically. This argument assumes, however, that baroreceptors provide the primary chronic feedback signal to the central nervous system. An alternate model is proposed in which circulating hormones, primarily arginine vasopressin and angiotensin II, provide a long-term afferent signal to the central nervous system via binding to specific receptors in central sites lacking a blood-brain barrier (circumventricular organs). Studies suggest that the release of the hormones and the sympathetic response to alterations in their plasma concentrations are nonadaptive but may be gated by baroreceptor input. Evidence that this "hormonal-sympathetic reflex" model may explain the long-term alterations in sympathetic activity in response to chronic salt depletion and salt loading as well as congestive heart failure is presented. Finally, the role of an impaired hormonal sympathetic reflex in hypertension, specifically salt-dependent hypertension, is discussed.


This is a retrospective study of 21 surgically treated patients with temporal lobe tumors and epilepsy. Evaluation included clinical data, EEG findings, structural scans, pathological diagnosis and post- surgical follow-up. There were 9 cases of ganglioglioma, 5 pilocytic astrocytoma, 3 ganglioneuroma, 2 dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor, 1 pleomorphic xantoastrocytoma, and 1 meningioangiomatosis. Mean follow-up time was 22 months and outcome was evaluated according to Engel's classification; 76.2% were classified in class I and 23.8% in II and III. All patients classes II and III had been submitted to mesial and neocortical resections. There were no differences related to clinical characteristics, pathological diagnosis or duration of follow-up in patients seizure-free or not. All patients had abnormal MRI and ten of these had normal CT; the MRI characteristics were compared to pathological diagnosis and specific histological characteristics of the tumors were not discernible by MRI. We concluded that MRI was essential for the diagnosis and precise location of TL tumors. Ganglioglioma was the most frequent tumor and lesionectomy associated to mesial resection doesn't guarantee a better prognosis.


based more on commonsense, human weakness, greed and selfishness than on committed belief in principles. The point is well made and serves as a nice counter to the facile acceptance of stern men like Chu Hsi as being typical of the upper-class of Sung society. There is not enough material in the Precepts to give more than a glimpse beyond the heavilyguarded double walls of the wealthy and privileged home, but with this work Ebrey has opened a little further the window onto the everyday Sung world. In the process she demonstrates an ability to be occasionally as trite and didactic as Yuan himself, but the considerable erudition and wide-ranging research which have informed her work are more than sufficient compensation for any slight reader-irritation.


Solute transport in porous media concerns advection, dispersion, sorption, and reaction. Since porous media is commonly heterogeneous, the properties of porous media are spatially and temporally variable. In this paper, one dimensional unsteady solute transport in semi-infinite heterogeneous porous media is investigated. Both linear and nonlinear decay is considered. Analytical solution is obtained for linear decay with spatially and temporally diffusion coefficient and velocity by using generalized integral transform technique. The inverse integral transforms are developed for the problems in semi-infinite space based on some weighted functions. Some examples are given to show the application of the method and analytical solutions.


The in ovo feeding of supplemental nutrients, electrolytes and stimulants during late embryogenesis has the potential of benefitting subsequent broiler performance. Therefore, the effects of the automated in ovo injection of 200 μL of a 1:400 carbohydrate/electrolyte nutrient solution, 5.0 mM tripotassium citrate, or 1.0 mM creatine in combination with 5.5 mM potassium chloride and 1.0 mM theophylline solution on hatchability and post-hatch performance of Ross x Ross 308 broilers were investigated. Non-injected and 117 mM saline-injected controls were included. All 5 treatment groups, each containing 20 eggs, were equally represented on each of 4 replicate tray levels in a single incubator. All eggs were incubated under standard incubation conditions with incubator dry and wet bulb temperature set at 37.6 and 29.0°C, respectively. Treatment solutions were injected into the amnion of embryos on d 18 of incubation. After hatch, chicks were brooded under standard commercial grow-out conditions. Hatchability; BW on d 0 (d of hatch), 3 and 10 post-hatch; d 3 yolk sac weight and yolk sac moisture concentration and post-hatch mortality were not affected by any injection treatments. Plasma refractive index decreased and liver moisture concentration of broiler progeny increased between d 3 and 10 post-hatch; however, no treatment effects on either parameter were observed. The current study indicated that the tested stimulant solutions had no detrimental effects on broiler hatchability or post-hatch performance, suggesting their potential use alone or in combination in the commercial injection of broiler hatching eggs to improve growth and post-hatch broiler performance.


Guadalajara is the second city of Mexico, with more than 4.5 million people. Every year, floods cause over 30 million euro of damage, pollution, health problems, structural damages and sometimes even loss of human lives. To solve all these problem, additional knowledge on the bottlenecks in the hydrologic system and possible solutions is needed. To generate this knowledge, IITAAC has built a hydrologic model of a part of the San Juan de Dios subbasin, a river basin in the centre of the city. This model consist of two situations: the actual, current situation and a scenario with proposed measures to decrease the problems.
The objective of the research was to improve the existing hydrological model of Guadalajara, migrate it from EPA SWMM to PCSWMM and use it to propose new solutions for storm water management in Guadalajara. The validation process used to improve the model started with a sensitivity analysis. After this, Sargent's framework of the modelling process was used for validating and improving the model. This means that the modelling process was divided into the internal quality, data quality and output quality.
The first step of the validation was a sensitivity analysis. This showed that the results are especially sensitive to junction depth, conduit depth and outfall elevation. These are aspects where checking the data is important. However, it is difficult to obtain more data, which makes conclusions less reliable.
Checking the internal validity resulted in several changes to the model. Storage units have been lowered to enable them to fill up and the initial volume of El Dean has been lowered. The size of conduits has been changed at some points, most importantly between El Dean and its outfall. Junctions have received a pondable area to make sure that when they flood, no water is lost from the system. And corrections to their elevation have resulted in the elimination of bottlenecks.
Validation of the output is difficult due to a lack of data for the real situation. However, some remarks can be made. The model seems to underestimate flooding around El Dean and the Canal del Sur. Without modelling the current situation correctly, it is unlikely that the exact effects of measures can be calculated correctly. The consequence is that the model should mainly be used for comparing the effectiveness of measures. Designing measures and assessing their results on an absolute scale would require a more exact model.
For the actual situation, improving the model did not significantly change the maximum volume of flooding, it decreased flooding after 24 hours from 70 percent to 35 percent of the total rain volume, it made storage units function better and increased outflow. For the situation with proposed measures, mistakes with the surface storage and an unrealistic low outfall dominated the results. The measures seemed to result in a 25 percent decrease of runoff and a total absence of floods. Correcting this lead to a more natural situation with outflow, floods, storage and infiltration.
Concerning the impact of the measures, the proposals decrease the total occurring flood volume from 75 percent to 45 percent of the rain. Even more impressively, flooding after 24 hours decreases from 30 percent to less than 5 percent of the total rain volume. However, as upstream flooding is decreased, more water flows to the downstream part of the subbasin. This causes El Dean to flood more. Furthermore, the decrease and flooding and increase in outflow is good for this subbasin, but it can cause problems in downstream areas.


Abstract. Wake steering is a wind farm control strategy in which upstream wind turbines are misaligned with the wind to redirect their wakes away from downstream turbines, thereby increasing the net wind plant power production and reducing fatigue loads generated by wake turbulence. In this paper, we present results from a wake steering experiment at a commercial wind plant involving two wind turbines spaced 3.7 rotor diameters apart. During the three-month experiment period, we estimate that wake steering reduced wake losses by 5.7 % for the wind direction sector investigated. After applying a long-term correction based on the site wind rose, the reduction in wake losses increases to 9.8 %. As a function of wind speed, we find large energy improvements near cut-in wind speed, where wake steering can prevent the downstream wind turbine from shutting down. Yet for wind speeds between 6–8 m/s, we observe little change in performance with wake steering. However, wake steering was found to improve energy production significantly for below-rated wind speeds from 8–12 m/s. By measuring the relationship between yaw misalignment and power production using a nacelle lidar, we attribute much of the improvement in wake steering performance at higher wind speeds to a significant reduction in the power loss of the upstream turbine as wind speed increases. Additionally, we find higher wind direction variability at lower wind speeds, which contributes to poor performance in the 6–8 m/s wind speed bin because of slow yaw controller dynamics. Further, we compare the measured performance of wake steering to predictions using the FLORIS (FLOw Redirection and Induction in Steady State) wind farm control tool coupled with a wind direction variability model. Although the achieved yaw offsets at the upstream wind turbine fall short of the intended yaw offsets, we find that they are predicted well by the wind direction variability model. When incorporating the predicted achieved yaw offsets, estimates of the energy improvement from wake steering using FLORIS closely match the experimental results.


Abstract This paper deals with the problem of aerosol optical thickness (τA) retrieval using sun-photometer measurements. The results of the theoretical analysis and computer processing of the dataset collected during the 40th cruise of the R/V Akademik Vernadsky are presented. Accuracy of retrieved τA is investigated in detail. It is concluded that 1) the τA measurements from the three shortest wavelength channels are sufficiently accurate (0.02–0.03) for evaluation of the NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer aerosol optical thickness operational product; 2) serious discrepancies exist between observation and theory for the two longest wavelength channels, which preclude their use in aerosol optical property studies. Further investigations are required, with emphasis on the computation of atmospheric gaseous absorption, before these channels can be used. Shipboard τA will be compared with satellite data from the NOAA/National Environment Satellite Data and Information Service in a subsequent paper.


In this study, we investigated in rats if hydroxycitric acid (HCA) reduces the postprandial glucose response by affecting gastric emptying or intestinal glucose absorption. We compared the effect of regulator HCA (310 mg/kg) and vehicle (control) on the glucose response after an intragastric or intraduodenal glucose load to investigate the role of altered gastric emptying. Steele's one-compartment model was used to investigate the effect of HCA on systemic glucose appearance after an intraduodenal glucose load, using [U-(13)C]-labeled glucose and d-[6,6-(2)H(2)]-labeled glucose. Because an effect on postabsorptive glucose clearance could not be excluded, the effect of HCA on the appearance of enterally administered glucose in small intestinal tissue, liver, and portal and systemic circulation was determined by [U-(14)C]glucose infusion. Data show that HCA treatment delays the intestinal absorption of enterally administered glucose at the level of the small intestinal mucosa in rats. HCA strongly attenuated postprandial blood glucose levels after both intragastric (P < 0.01) and intraduodenal (P < 0.001) glucose administration, excluding a major effect of HCA on gastric emptying. HCA delayed the systemic appearance of exogenous glucose but did not affect the total fraction of glucose absorbed over the study period of 150 min. HCA treatment decreased concentrations of [U-(14)C]glucose in small intestinal tissue at 15 min after [U-(14)C]glucose administration (P < 0.05), in accordance with the concept that HCA delays the enteral absorption of glucose. These data support a possible role for HCA as food supplement in lowering postprandial glucose profiles.


The study aimed at finding out the effect of students' self-regulated learning on their academic achievement in the subject of English. The study was conducted at the secondary level in the province of Punjab. It was quantitative in nature and employed a true experimental design (pre-test post-test control group). It was significant for teachers, curriculum stakeholders, training bodies, and policymakers. For the study sampling, a simple random sampling technique was used. Students' achievement test was developed for pre-test and post-test. The study sample consisted of sixty students of grade IX and they were divided into two groups; experimental and control. A pre-test was conducted on both groups to measure their current status of academic achievement. After the pre-test, the subject of English was taught to the experimental group by using self-regulated learning strategies while the traditional method (dominantly lecture method) was adopted to teach the control group. A post-test was conducted after an intervention of 16 weeks. The results of the test were compared by using a t-test. For data analysis, SPSS was used and results were interpreted accordingly. The study results revealed a significant difference between the test score results of the students. The study recommended appropriate teachers' training to use self-regulated learning strategies effectively at the secondary level. Textbook contents were also recommended to be devised supportive to gauge self-regulated learning.


The evaluation problem in educational environments has been a constant, even today due to the current contingency generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, education has had to migrate to the virtual environment and the difficulty of evaluation persists. The purpose of this work is present comprehensively the efforts made in the construction of an intelligent system for the customization of evaluation activities implemented in virtual learning environments. The system architecture consists of three modules. In previous works, an architecture of a strategic learning meta-model has been designed that is divided into three layers, the intelligent layer where an ontological model was designed, the infrastructure layer has been designed with a cloud computing solution and the reactive layer that contains the architecture of the regulation model. Each of these layers corresponds to a module of the system. This work presents the results of three stages of experiments and shows a continuous increase in the approval rate trend.


At EU-level, the use of substantive criminal law as a response to illegal migration is materialised by both the EU legislator and the Member States individually. EU involvement in criminalizing illegal migration takes place in a twofold manner: directly, through harmonization of national legislations, and indirectly, through the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). An example of the latter is the case law of the CJEU regarding criminal law sanctions for breaching an entry ban. In 2008 the EU adopted the Return Directive. This directive aims at establishing common standards and procedures to be applied in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals. To actually effectuate their return, the Return Directive provides for several instruments,  inter alia , entry bans. In this article, we will analyse six judgments of the CJEU in the light of  crimmigration law  and make a distinction between the Member States' power to classify a breach of an entry ban as an offence and to lay down criminal law sanctions in national legislation, and their power to impose such sanctions. Key notes: Return Directive, entry ban, illegal migrant, criminal law sanctions, crimmigration, expulsion


This paper presents a general motion planning framework for body shape control of snake robots. We demonstrate the applicability of the framework for straight line path following control, and for implementing body shape compliance in environments with obstacles. Compliance is achieved by assigning mass-spring-damper dynamics to the shape curve defining the motion of the robot. The performance of the control strategies is illustrated with simulation results.


One of the central research questions on the etiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the elucidation of the molecular signatures triggered by the amyloid cascade of pathological events. Next-generation sequencing allows the identification of genes involved in disease processes in an unbiased manner. We have combined this technique with the analysis of two AD mouse models: (1) The 5XFAD model develops early plaque formation, intraneuronal Aβ aggregation, neuron loss, and behavioral deficits. (2) The Tg4–42 model expresses N-truncated Aβ4–42 and develops neuron loss and behavioral deficits albeit without plaque formation. Our results show that learning and memory deficits in the Morris water maze and fear conditioning tasks in Tg4–42 mice at 12 months of age are similar to the deficits in 5XFAD animals. This suggested that comparative gene expression analysis between the models would allow the dissection of plaque-related and -unrelated disease relevant factors. Using deep sequencing differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and subsequently verified by quantitative PCR. Nineteen DEGs were identified in pre-symptomatic young 5XFAD mice, and none in young Tg4–42 mice. In the aged cohort, 131 DEGs were found in 5XFAD and 56 DEGs in Tg4–42 mice. Many of the DEGs specific to the 5XFAD model belong to neuroinflammatory processes typically associated with plaques. Interestingly, 36 DEGs were identified in both mouse models indicating common disease pathways associated with behavioral deficits and neuron loss.


Anecdotes are often quite suggestive. A graduate student in economics who was serving as a teaching assistant once reported that his major professor came into his office and told him that he was spending too much of his time helping his undergraduate students and not enough time on his research. Was the professor expressing a preference for time spent on teaching over research? Or was the professor suggesting to the student that the academic market rewards research more than teaching? Regardless, the underlying message that gets transferred from such an experience, as early as graduate education and perhaps throughout a career, is that teaching is not as important or valuable as research. Such strong conclusions, however, should not be based on anecdotal evidence. Whether economics professors are less interested in teaching and more interested in research is an empirical question worthy of study. Although teaching and research choices made by economics faculty members reflect both preferences and choice sets, in this study we focus on preferences and use a national survey to compare the teaching and research views of economists with faculty members in other major disciplines.


For the past sixteen years, it has been my privilege to serve on the Appellate Division, Third Department under the exemplary leadership of Presiding Justice Anthony Cardona. During that time, I have personally witnessed his tireless commitment to improving the quality of our Court's work and his compassion for the parties that appear before us. Our "PJ" is--without fail--a steady leader, warm colleague and caring friend. He is also keenly aware of the human consequences of the cases that come before our Court, displaying tremendous sensitivity, wisdom, and decency in considering the impact of our decisions. First and foremost, the PJ keeps his focus on the fact that there are real human beings whose lives are impacted both by the decisions that the court makes and the manner in which the court functions. He never forgets that with each case and administrative question, real people are at the end of every decision he makes. And so, he is painstaking in both his jurisprudence and his constant efforts to improve the process of our court in ways that promote confidence in our judicial system and reflect the philosophy taught to him by his father, Victor: "Work hard, treat people fairly, and the rest will take care of itself." The PJ truly lives by that philosophy. It animates every aspect of his work, as well--not the least of which includes his decisionmaking. As Judge Benjamin Cardozo once described the work of deciding cases: [E]very one of us has in truth an underlying philosophy of life ... which gives coherence and direction to thought and action. Judges cannot escape that current any more than other mortals. All their lives, forces ... have been tugging at them--inherited instincts, traditional beliefs, acquired convictions; and the resultant is an outlook on life, a conception of social needs ... which, when reasons are nicely balanced, must determine where choice shall fall. (1) The forces that have made the PJ who he is are reflected in his background. Tony was born and raised in Albany. His father Victor immigrated to the United States in the early twentieth century. In 1927, Victor opened an Italian grocery store on Grand Street in Albany, and he operated the store with Tony's mother Dora until they retired in 1980. Tony has said that it was through his parents' example, observed through their actions in operating their store, that he came to deeply appreciate his father's philosophy of life. Tony's experiences as a child taught him to value family, fairness, respect for others, courtesy, and a strong sense of right and wrong. In fact, he was so greatly influenced by his father's philosophy that it was only fitting that Tony's father raised his hand along with him as Tony was sworn in as a new Supreme Court Justice in 1990. By remaining true to that philosophy of hard work and respect for others, Tony has become the remarkable jurist that he is, dedicated to the pursuit of excellence, service, fairness and justice. The PJ's core values find illustration in his decisions, and a review of those decisions could fill the pages of this issue. I elected, therefore, to focus on his dissents. After all, the Third Department has a reputation for unanimity--my informal review shows that, of the 1,838 appeals decided by it in 2008, only 26 included a dissent. (2) Indeed, our court has been described as the "most agreeable" of the appellate divisions. (3) This "agreeability" is due in no small part to the courteous tone set by the PJ himself. Collegiality, or "making sauce" as he would put it, is the hallmark of the PJ. So, on the rare occasions where the PJ's disagreement with a decision leads him to dissent, we should expect to, and do, see his core values on display. The PJ has not forgotten where he came from and firmly acts to protect the "little guy" who finds him- or herself navigating the turbulent waters of the court system. …


We introduce a new high-speed ATM switch using random access input buffers (RAIB) and multi-cell-time arbitration (MCTA), and evaluate its performance for uniform traffic by a numerical method and by computer simulations. The switch has N same input modules each of which is similar to the common shared buffer switch. N address buffers (ABs) in the input module are used for the N output, and the ABs for a certain output in different input modules are controlled by an external arbitrator. The MCTA arbitration is employed in order to reduce the required arbitration rate as well as to provide the guard time when the switch is operated at a very high-speed. In MCTA arbitration, the service order of two or more cells destined for the same output is determined by one arbitration, but the cells are transmitted one by one in each time slot.


Presented during Session 21: Low volume and Unsealed Roads, moderated by Stephen Gaj, at the 9th International Conference on Managing Pavement Assets (ICMPA9) in Alexandria, VA


OBJECTIVE--To determine the rate of pregnancy and outcome in teenagers in areas of different socioeconomic conditions, and to assess the implication for achievement of government and local targets in reducing unwanted pregnancies in teenagers. DESIGN--Records of pregnancies were obtained from hospital discharge files and rates of live and still births and abortions calculated for each postcode sector. Postcodes were grouped by categories of deprivation and by local government district. SETTING--Tayside, Scotland. SUBJECTS--Teenage girls admitted to National Health Service hospitals for delivery or abortion in 1980-90. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Conception in girls aged under 16 by area of residence and relative proportion leading to live births or terminations. Rate of different outcomes in girls under the age of 20 by area of residence. RESULTS--The pregnancy rate in girls aged under 16 was three times as high, and in all girls under 20 six times as high in the most deprived areas as in the most affluent areas. The proportion of teenage pregnancies ending in abortions was higher in the affluent areas, where two out of three ended in abortion compared with one out of four in the deprived areas. CONCLUSIONS--Although there was a higher pregnancy rate in teenagers in more deprived areas, the proportion ending in abortion was greater in more affluent areas, possibly due to social and parental pressure. The wide geographical variation in patterns of teenage pregnancy indicates the need for a small area rather than a regional approach to setting targets and devising measures of achieving them.


Thermosetting resin is gaining more acceptances in Plug and Abandonment due to its excellent mechanical properties after set and ability for placement in locations cement cannot reach. A thorough understanding of its curing behavior such as gel time is essential to ensure safe placement and a good seal. This paper investigates the pressure-sensitive gelation behavior of polymer resin under in-situ conditions, and the pressure effect on the gel time of thermosetting resin was evaluated.
 An innovative assessment methodology named CAPT (Consistency under Applied Pressure Test) was created to assess the curing process of thermoset resins in a pressurized consistometer. A series of resin samples were tested at temperatures ranging from ambient to 120°C with applied pressures up to 10,000 psi. The consistency was initially used to indicate the gel structure development of the resin while it was gelling. Based on the consistency data, the relationship between applied pressure and gel time of resins was studied and a new approach of modeling the curing process with the influence factor of pressure was proposed.
 The primary observation was the confirmation that the gelation process of thermosetting resin under applied pressure was faster than that under atmospheric pressure. However, the gel time had big variations. The pressure sensitivity mainly depended on the initiators and it was only partly dependent on the temperature. There was a threshold value for the pressure effect on the gel time. Below the threshold, the gel time only decreased by around 5%. Above the threshold, the pressure effect was much larger where the gel time decreased by 20% - 30%. This could be mainly attributed to the thermodynamic effect caused by pressure accelerating the polymerization process, resulting in a shorter gel time. Meanwhile, these results help explain why the curing behavior of thermosetting resin placed underground where high pressure is encountered often differs from the laboratory-predicted performance. Besides indicating the relative strength development, consistency analysis could also be used to assess the pressure effect on the gelation process of a resin sample in down-hole operations with applied pressures. Thus, CAPT would be more suitable than a conventional reactivity test to propose a new approach of modeling the gel time of thermosetting resin systems with the influence factor of pressure.
 CAPT is a novel method to accurately evaluate the curing process of thermosetting resin and indicate its relative strength development. This helps engineers reach a good balance between designing proper operations and preserving mechanical properties in the plug and abandonment process.


The present work examines in a systematic way the development of microdamage in several laminates of graphite/epoxy material subjected to both quasi-static tensile loading and tension-tension fatigue. Emphasis is placed upon discriminating and quantifying matrix and fiber microdamage. Penetrant-enhanced standard- and stereo X-ray radiography were used along with edge replication to follow the progression of matrix damage. The recently developed technique of laminate deply was used to map the development of fiber fracture. The most significant result, confirmed in both the quasi-static and fatigue tests, was the dominant role played by off-axis ply cracks in the fracture of fibers in adjacent load-bearing plies. By direct observation of fiber fractures in situ, it was established in both cases that fiber fractures do not occur in a random pattern at elevated loads/cycles, but instead occur in narrow bands adjacent to off-axis ply cracks. It is the action of these crack tips upon adjacent fibers which may govern the wearout or overload of laminates under these conditions. By direct accounting of fiber fractures in deplied laminae taken from damaged but unfailed laminates, the relationship between the density of fiber fractures and the number of cycles at one cyclic stress level is reported. The relationship between fiber fracture density and quasi-static stress level is reported as well. For the quasi-statically loaded specimens, efforts to characterize and discriminate between fiber fracture and transverse ply cracking on the basis of acoustic emission (AE) amplitude distribution are described. Correlations between attributes of the AE amplitude distribution and the established damage extent and chronology are reported. Common assumptions regarding the contributions of these distinct damage modes to acoustic emission from laminates under tensile loading are discussed in terms of the present evidence. Finally, in comparing damage resulting from quasi-static tension loading of cross-ply laminates with that observed in tension-tension cyclic loading of laminates of similar graphite/epoxy material, microdamage modes unique to fatigue are identified and discussed.


ABSTRACT:In the past decade, people associated with what is known as the alt-right have employed a strategy similar to that of progressive, antiracist satirists to advance a decidedly white supremacist, anti-Semitic, misogynist, and deadly serious agenda. As this article documents, the alt-right weaponizes irony to attract and radicalize potential supporters, challenge progressive ideologies and institutions, redpill normies, and create a toxic counterpublic. Discussing examples of satiric irony generated by the extreme right alongside those produced by the (often mainstream) left, this article pairs two satirical memes, two activists' use of irony, two ambiguously satirical tweets, and two recent controversies pertaining to racism and satire so as to illustrate how people with very different political commitments employ a similar style with potent effects. Of particular significance are reverse racism discourses, including "white genocide," and the increasingly complicated relationship between intentions, extremism, and satire.


Geopolymer concrete with designed strength of 40 Mpa has been mixed from coarse aggregates, sands and geopolymer pastes. Two kinds of pastes are synthesized from different precursors, i.e. fly ash and dehydroxylated kaolin, using sodium silicate solution as the activator. Compression test pieces of 15x15x15 cm3 of both geopolymer and ordinary Portland cement (OPC) concretes (ASTM C39) have been cast and cured. Curing was done at room temperature for 1 day while Portland cement concretes were immersed in water for 28 days to provide complete hydration. After curing, the samples were immersed in ASTM seawater (ASTM D1141-90) for 7, 28, 56 and 90 days. It is found that geopolymer concretes were in general more durable upon seawater immersion than OPC concrete, This is indicated by the compressive strength retained after immersion. Dehydroxylated kaolin geopolymers show the best performance whose strength did not decrease with time of immersion. The strength of fly ash geopolymers decreased by about 20% during 56-day immersion but did not decrease further. Calcium content is suspected to cause the decrease in strength upon immersion. Kaolin geopolymers containing no calcium showed the best performance, while OPC which consist mostly of calcium silicate hydrates as the strength contributor, showed consistent decrease in strength. It is also found from the experiment that room temperature curing of fly ash geopolymer was slow but continued to progress until 28 days both under dry condition (not immersed) and immersed in water.


Background: We have empirically noted that many physicians routinely request anti-phospholipid antibodies (aPL) without a correct clinical indication. The aim of this study was to evaluate retrospectively whether aPL testing at our Thrombosis Centre was justified. Methods: Medical records from 520 subjects for aPL screening tests for various clinical conditions were reviewed. The aPL screening tests were: lupus anticoagulant (LA), anti-cardiolipin antibodies (aCL) and anti-b2 glycoptotein I (ab2 GPI). Requests for aPL screening were divided into justified, potentially justified or not adequately justified. Results: aPL testing requests were considered justified in 358 (69%) patients, potentially justified in 66 (12.6%) and not adequately justified in 96 (18.4%). LA was positive in 65 (18%) of justified requests and in only one (1%) of the 96 potentially justified requests. None of the 66 not adequately justified for aPL testing was positive for LA. ab2 GPI was positive in 63 (17.6%) of the 358 justified, in four (6%) of the 66 potentially justified and in five (5.2%) of the 96 not adequately justified requests; aCL IgG were positive in 59 (16.4%) of the 358 justified and in five (7.5%) and six (6.2%) of the potentially justified and not adequately justified requests, respectively. The presence of the triple aPL positivity was found exclusively in the justified requests. Conclusions: This study suggests that requests for aPL tests should be addressed more adequately. This work could be an example of how to focus attention on requests for laboratory tests especially on the basis of valid clinical criteria before the analyte is measured.


Abstract The stillbirth rate in twins is a more sensitive indicator of environmental hazards than the stillbirth rate in singletons. Medical care or other socioeconomic factors may be more influential for perinatal survival in twin than in single deliveries. Studies have indicated that stillbirths among children in a set of multiple maternities are not independent. Models were considered assuming independent outcomes within a set of multiple maternities. Analyses of the stillbirth rates confirm that the risk of stillbirth among males is almost constantly higher than among females. Any model introduced should assume different stillbirth rates for males and females. The models were tested with both maximum likelihood and minimum χ2 methods. Data was analyzed from Sweden, the Åland Islands, Saxony, England and Wales, and significant discrepancies obtained from the independence models. The same-sexed twin data contain both monozygotic and dizygotic twin sets with apparently different stillbirth rates. Consequently, for same-sexed twins the proposed model could be considered too simple. After improvement by splitting the same-sexed data into monozygotic and dizygotic twin sets, the dependence still remains. The proportion of both same-sexed and opposite-sexed twin pairs that contain two stillborn is greater than what the stillbirth rates and the independence should indicate. Consequently, stillbirth rate estimates based on the relative frequency of twin sets with two stillborn children have a positive bias. When the stillbirth rate decreases, the number of sets with two stillborn children decreases more slowly than would be indicated by independence.


Seven zinc-containing dietary supplements were analyzed for zinc (Zn) and cadmium (Cd) by inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry (ICP/MS). Cadmium was detected in all samples; however, the amount of Cd per 15 mg Zn (the daily US Recommended Dietary Allowance) varied by over 37-fold (0.039 to 1.46 micrograms Cd/15 mg Zn). Supplements with Zn in the form of a gluconate consistently contained the lowest amounts of Cd. Because Cd is a non-essential potentially toxic element for humans, its concentration in nutritional supplements should be minimized and possibly regulated by government-established standards.


We present an adaptive, data driven Mission Management Layer (MML) to manage the phases (surveillance, track prosecution and target reacquisition) of the mission of AUVs operating as receiver nodes in a multistatic network for littoral surveillance. Among the tracks produced by the on board tracker, the MML selects those which are likely originated by a target. The MML then issues commands to the vehicle Control Layer to trigger data-driven optimization behaviours to prosecute these candidate tracks. Selecting few candidate tracks is indeed crucial since the addressed scenario usually presents many tracks hence resulting challenging from the tracking point of view. To select the candidate tracks, a metric is introduced to quantify their quality. It is based on the kinematic features of the target, on an acoustic model and on the quality of measurement-to-track associations. By selecting a limited subset of produced tracks, the MML can improve the benefits of using data-driven behaviours activating them only on interesting cues and reducing the time wasted to optimize tracks not related to a target. This aims at achieving a balance between the surveillance of the area of interest and exploitation of target cues (tracks). These features are essential for improving the overall mission performance and for an effective AUV decision making in realistic conditions. We present results from sea trials demonstrating the effectiveness of our approach and how the proposed MML can represent a step forward towards the full autonomy of our system. These results represent one of the first examples of AUVs autonomously taking decisions in a realistic and complex littoral surveillance scenario.


Emotional competence refers to individual differences in the ability to appropriately identity, understand, express, regulate, and utilize one's own emotions and those of others. This study developed a Japanese version of a short form of the Profile of Emotional Competence, a measure that allows the comprehensive assessment of intra- and interpersonal emotional competence with shorter items, and investigated its reliability and validity. In Study 1, we selected items for a short version and compared it with the full scale in terms of scores, internal consistency, and validity. In Study 2, we examined the short form's test-retest reliability. Results supported the original two-factor model and the measure had adequate reliability and validity. We discuss the construct validity and practical applicability of the short form of the Profile of Emotional Competence.