Border regions continually intrigue the public, given the perceived potential for threatening newcomers, entry or passage of resources including human capital from one country to another, and the opportunity to explore another way of life. For these reasons, among others, border regions have been of interest to anthropologists. Given its coast-to-coast placement in North America the United States provides access via sea routes to peoples from all areas of the world. Land routes provide access along the northern and southern borders. The most publicized is the "southwestern" border region between the United States and Mexico. Issues of concern vary among the four states (west to east: California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas) that form the border zone with northern states of Mexico (Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, Tamaulipas). For this editorial I describe events in the U.S. states, Arizona and California, where people have experienced distinctive hardships and challenges worth the attention of anthropologists. For the border region in southern Arizona, the main concerns have focused in one form or another on the southern boundary of Arizona that serves as a "corridor" for people who enter the United States without documentation. The extensive desert has resulted in numerous deaths, which have been investigated and documented [1]. Personal belongings of men and women who make the trek, which are left behind in the desert, have become the objects of analytic interest [2] and interpretation [3]. To honor individuals who cross the border and provide background material for the farm labor that these men and women often perform in the United States, Seth Holmes made the trek across the desert into the state of Arizona with a small group of Triqui men and women from southern Mexico. In the first chapter to his monograph he showcases his experience, describing the hardships of a multi-day trek and being taken into custody by the border patrol [4]. He includes photographs; fortunately his camera was not confiscated. Groups have been formed within the state of Arizona to protest militarization by the Border Patrol and Homeland Security, and the increased police presence in certain areas of the state that affect a number of peoples and communities. Mostly the issues focus on indigenous rights and sovereignty, and the rights of migrant peoples to pursue reliable livelihoods, including men and women of alternative sexualities. Native Americans living on ancestral lands experience restricted access to sacred sites; opportunities for family visitation on both sides of "the border" are limited [5]; and the potential extension of an asphalt freeway that would interfere with sacred lands and wildlife areas (recently researched by a graduate student for dissertation fieldwork). Migrants are often socio-economically excluded when they arrive in the United States. Environmental issues are added to the situation with reports of wildlife restricted from "movement-and" therefore food and safety-by the presence of a border wall. Public demonstrations have been one means of calling attention to the issues and difficulties faced by people experiencing a militarized border zone across southern Arizona. Various groups have formed around common interests and social relationships, augmented by joining together into solidarity mega-groups. Several protest events have been held [6], organized by indigenous leaders for nations situated on the border, migrant advocacy groups, and individuals of both communities who are living lives of alternative sexualities, among others. Demonstrations are held for strategic purposes in key places, for example, by occupying buildings of border patrol headquarters, building a blockade of tires tarred with broken glass across an interstate highway, blocking vehicle traffic by marchers in a commercial area of the capital city a short distance from a large shopping mall, or banging drums outside a clandestine holding center that houses migrants detained while crossing the desert. When immigrant youth were killed along the border, the mega-groups marched as a sign of solidarity. Apart from the physical act of civil disobedience by people mobilized over common concerns, blogs and handbills and new stories are circulated to gain greater support from the general public. For the border region in southern California, one issue of concern is that of increased incidence and prevalence of HIV. The most sustained effort on this issue has been generated through universities in California working in collaboration with community organizations located on both sides of the border. The dimension of significance has been the diffusion of HIV from one risk group to several susceptible groups [7]. Diffusion takes place when public health efforts have been ineffective or non-existent, and socio-economic conditions experience dramatic change within a short period of time. For the urbanized areas of San Diego (United States) and Tijuana (Mexico), these conditions were exacerbated by irregular policing that targeted certain individuals [7], deportation that left people stranded "across the border" rather than returned to home communities [8] which led to their undocumented return to the states [9], changes in drug trafficking routes [10], temporary homelessness [7], risk-taking exacerbated by alcohol [11], confiscation of syringes by police and the reluctance of some pharmacies to provide "free needles" [7], concurrent sexual relationships often exacerbated by the loss of income and/or accommodations [12,13], among other factors. Anthropologists have been a part of these efforts in both states, as professionals and students. When not directly involved, their concepts, theories and disciplinary axiom have been emphasized of involvement with people and communities on their behalf.


Purpose: Patients with bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive carcinoma in situ are treated with radical cystectomy or salvage intravesical chemotherapy. Recently, pembrolizumab was approved for bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive carcinoma in situ. Materials and Methods: We used a decision-analytic Markov model to compare pembrolizumab, salvage intravesical chemotherapy (with gemcitabine-docetaxel induction+monthly maintenance) and radical cystectomy for patients with bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive carcinoma in situ who are radical cystectomy candidates (index patient 1) or are unwilling/unable to undergo radical cystectomy (index patient 2). The model used a U.S. Medicare perspective with a 5-year time horizon. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were compared using a willingness to pay threshold of $100,000/quality-adjusted life year. Results: For index patient 1, pembrolizumab was not cost-effective relative to radical cystectomy (incremental cost-effectiveness ratios $1,403,008/quality-adjusted life year) or salvage intravesical chemotherapy (incremental cost-effectiveness ratios $2,011,923/quality-adjusted life year). One-way sensitivity analysis revealed that pembrolizumab only became cost-effective relative to radical cystectomy with a >93% price reduction. Relative to radical cystectomy, salvage intravesical chemotherapy was cost-effective for time horizons <5 years and nearly cost-effective at 5 years (incremental cost-effectiveness ratios $118,324/quality-adjusted life year). One-way sensitivity analysis revealed that salvage intravesical chemotherapy became cost-effective relative to radical cystectomy if risk of recurrence or metastasis at 2 years was less than 55% or 5.9%, respectively. For index patient 2, pembrolizumab required >90% price reduction to be cost-effective (incremental cost-effectiveness ratios $1,073,240/quality-adjusted life year). Pembrolizumab was cost-effective in 0% of 100,000 microsimulations in probabilistic sensitivity analyses for both index patients. Conclusions: At its current price, pembrolizumab is not cost-effective for bacillus Calmette-Guérin-unresponsive carcinoma in situ relative to radical cystectomy or salvage intravesical chemotherapy. Although gemcitabine-docetaxel is not cost-effective relative to radical cystectomy at 5 years, further studies may validate its cost-effectiveness if recurrence and metastasis thresholds are met.


Methods: 109 women with adnexal masses underwent transvaginal gray scale and 3D power Doppler ultrasound examination using a GE Voluson 730 Expert system. After 12–18 months the volumes were analysed twice by two independent experienced sonologists who used IOTA terms and definitions to describe the mass. The assessors also had to classify the mass as benign or malignant using pattern recognition and to suggest a likely histological diagnosis. The time between the two assessments by the same sonologist was 1 to 6 months. Results: There were 90 benign, 8 borderline and 11 malignant adnexal masses. There were no systematic differences in measurement results within or between observers. Differences in measurement results did not change with the magnitude of the measurements. Intra-observer agreement in terms of Kappa value was 0.90 (agreement 92%) for specific histological diagnosis, 0.90 (96%) for malignancy, 0.84 (88%) for type of mass, 0.79 (85%) for tumor size (categorized), 0.71 (86%) for irregular walls and 0.58 (72%) for number of papillary projections. Kappa values for inter-observer agreement were 0.78 (85%) for specific histological diagnosis, 0.81 (93%) for malignancy, 0.76 (83%) for type of mass, 0.89 (92%) for tumor size, 0.53 (80%) for irregular walls and 0.35 (60%) for number of papillary projections. Conclusions: Intraand inter-observer agreement was good with regard to size and type of mass, specific histological diagnosis, and malignancy. Inter-observer agreement was poorest for irregularity and the number of papillary projections. This study shows that repeated analyses of 3D ultrasound volumes of adnexal masses by the same or different observers may yield different results, but that the diagnosis suggested using pattern recognition will often be the same.


The most adequate way to take into account the uncertainties which affect the modelling of harmonic penetration is to express the input data by random variables and to apply probabilistic techniques of analysis. In this paper a probabilistic method is proposed for assessing harmonic distortion levels in power systems. This method transfers to the field of probabilistics a deterministic iterative procedure which is extremely useful for analysing multiconvertor systems. The proposed method, called the 'probabilistic iterative harmonic method', employs a Monte Carlo simulation technique. A numerical application to a test system is also discussed.


A population of proliferating cells in the fetal gut has previously been found to express transiently aspects of a catecholaminergic phenotype (TC cells) during development in both rats and mice. These cells appear to be noradrenergic in rats but dopaminergic in mice. In the current study, the ability of TC cells, identified by the immunocytochemical demonstration of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), to take up and become radioautographically labeled by [3H]norepinephrine ([3H]NE) was assessed. When TC cells were most numerous in the bowel of rats, no cells were labeled by [3H]NE (days E12 and E13). In rats, but not mice, labeling of larger cell bodies by [3H]NE was found on days E14 and E15. However, no cells showed TH immunoreactivity on day E15, although a few cells were doubly labeled by [3H]NE and TH immunoreactivity on day E14. Therefore, in rats TC cells contain TH immunoreactivity but do not take up [3H]NE prior to day E14, and their disappearance is followed by the appearance of a second population of larger cells that lacks TH immunoreactivity but which does take up [3H]NE. The transient appearance of some cells that express both markers on day E14 suggests, but does not prove, that TC cells change their phenotype and are the precursors of the cells found later in development that lack TH but which take up [3H]NE. The cells that take up [3H]NE are rare or absent in newborn rat gut, indicating that they may also be transient. These results indicate that genes responsible for different aspects of the noradrenergic phenotype need not necessarily be coupled in their expression. Although uptake of [3H] NE into cell bodies was not found on day E13 or later in vivo in mouse gut, it does occur in mouse bowel explanted prior to day E13 and grown for 10 to 12 days in culture. These cultures also contained TH immunoreactive cells. Thus, the potential for development of cells able to take up [3H]NE exists in mice as well as in rats, and the conditions that lead to a loss of catecholaminergic traits in vivo do not exist in vitro.


Given the near-ubiquity of CCTV, there is significant ongoing research effort to apply image and video analysis methods together with machine learning techniques towards autonomous analysis of such data sources. However, traditional approaches to scene understanding remain dependent on training based on human annotations that need to be provided for every camera sensor. In this thesis, we propose an unusual event detection and classification approach which is applicable to real-world visual monitoring applications. The goal is to infer the usual behaviours in the scene and to judge the normality of the scene on the basis on the model created. The first requirement for the system is that it should not demand annotated data to train the system. Annotation of the data is a laborious task, and it is not feasible in practice to annotate video data for each camera as an initial stage of event detection. Furthermore, even obtaining training examples for the unusual event class is challenging due to the rarity of such events in video data. Another requirement for the system is online generation of results. In surveillance applications, it is essential to generate real-time results to allow a swift response by a security operator to prevent harmful consequences of unusual and antisocial events. The online learning capabilities also mean that the model can be continuously updated to accommodate natural changes in the environment. The third requirement for the system is the ability to run the process indefinitely. The mentioned requirements are necessary for real-world surveillance applications and the approaches that conform to these requirements need to be investigated. This thesis investigates unusual event detection methods that conform with real-world requirements and investigates the issue through theoretical and experimental study of machine learning and computer vision algorithms.


Multiagency collaboration is widely used in contemporary service delivery systems. This article explores the interpersonal interactions within collaborative systems, among subsystems, and among organizations. Our focus is on illuminating the informal mechanisms that facilitate collaboration, joint production, coordination and integration of service delivery, and sustained effort. Such interactions generate unofficial expectations, discretionary behaviors, and provider "communities" that can ameliorate or exacerbate problems of interorganizational networks where collaboration is appropriate or desirable. We use a multiple case–study approach to explore the dynamics of informal accountability among individuals working within county-based children's service systems in three states. We find informal interpersonal dynamics nested in combinations of vertical and horizontal ties with mixed administrative authority arrangements derived from both formal and informal accountability relationships. These data reveal shared norms, facilitative behaviors, informal rewards and sanctions, and challenges that create the dynamics of informal accountability. Informal accountability is shaped by the prevalence of relationship building and champion behavior as facilitative behaviors, discernible tension between the operation of formal and informal accountability systems, a gap between the rhetoric of collaboration and the reality of collaborative service provision, differences in informal accountability dynamics across hierarchical levels within service delivery systems, and the critical roles of street-level caseworkers in informal accountability.


OBJECTIVES
Demand for medical care in Lebanon is dominated by diseases, such as diabetes. Quality of documentation of care given to these patients in a primary care centre, prior to and after introducing a diabetes initiative (DI) is reported.

METHODS
Chart audit of diabetic patients attending an inner city health centre in Beirut, during 1/6/94-30/8/96 was conducted. DI was introduced in 1/1/97, and audit repeated six months later.

RESULTS
First and second audits identified 213 and 162 patients respectively. Audit I showed poor recording for almost all parameters; example: family history (3%), smoking status (11%), hypertension (9%), dyslipidaemia (4%), BMI (nil), blood pressure (46%), foot exam (16%), HbA1c (nil), serum cholesterol and triglyceride (27%) and urine analysis (12%). Audit II revealed an improvement in the recording of most parameters, risk factors such as: smoking status, hypertension, hyperlipidaemia (98-99%), physical examination: BMI (39%), foot and peripheral circulation (91-92%), blood pressure (87%). Over half the patients had undergone a complete metabolic workup.

CONCLUSION
Over the short period of time, there appears to have been an important improvement in the documentation of medical care for these diabetic patients. Effects of this change in terms of clinical outcomes is currently being assessed.


There are contradictory reports about the association of magnesium and attention- deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Moreover, some studies reported that magnesium is effective for treating ADHD. This is the first systematic review evaluating the effectiveness of magnesium to treat patients with ADHD. The two databases of MEDLINE/ PubMedline and Google Scholar were electronically searched using the search items and considering inclusion and exclusion criteria. Out of the 37 titles, only six studies were experimental interventional studies. However, three of these studies were without any control group. The other three studies were controlled clinical trials. Nevertheless, none of the studies was a randomized double- blind controlled clinical trial. These studies supported that magnesium is effective for treating ADHD. Magnesium monotherapy studies were not found. There is no well- controlled clinical trial investigating the efficacy and safety of magnesium for treating ADHD. In addition, the safety of magnesium in ADHD is ignored. Therefore, until further strong evidences for its efficacy and safety are provided, magnesium is not recommended for treating ADHD.


Background We developed an interprofessional simulation-based training (SBT) to promote collaboration when caring for patients in mental health crisis in the Emergency Department (ED). The intervention was run both in vivo and in a purpose-built simulation suite. The primary analysis of educational outcomes has been presented elsewhere.1 Aims To compare participant learning outcomes and experiences from in vivo versus simulation suite delivered SBT. Methods A SBT was developed in which participants engaged in three scenarios of a simulated patient's journey through the ED followed by structured debriefs. One course was delivered in vivo whilst three courses, with identical content and format, were delivered in a simulation suite. Participants completed pre- and post-course questionnaires, measuring changes in knowledge, confidence and attitudes. Individual participant overall change in knowledge, confidence and attitudes were compared for both participant groups using Independent-Samples T and Mann Whitney U Tests. Post-course focus groups were conducted to gather qualitative data on participant experience. Results 12 participants engaged in in vivo training versus 25 participants in simulation suite training. The professional mix was similar for both groups. The distribution of change in knowledge and self-rated confidence scores and attitudinal shift was not significantly different for in vivo and simulation suite groups (p = 0.64; p = 00.92; p = 0.58). Views on the relative merits of in vivo versus simulation suite training were divergent. Participants from both groups recognised the tension between achieving environmental fidelity with in vivo simulation and the potential detrimental impact of managing distractions on learning. Conclusion Previous work has demonstrated that SBT effectively increases participants' self-rated confidence and leads to positive attitudinal changes when caring for patients in mental health crisis in the ED.1 Our results suggest that the effectiveness of learning does not appear to be different for in vivo versus simulation suite delivered training. Reference Humphreys RA, Piette A, Wilson C, Kowalski C, Cross S. Mental health crisis in the emergency department: outcomes from a new interprofessional simulation. Royal College of Psychiatrists International Congress, 2015


The aim of this study is to examine the relationships between supply chain quality management practices and performance. A conceptual model is developed and tested through path analysis using the cross-section data collected from the automotive industry in Iran. Using a quantitative methodology, 280 of 500 senior and executive managers in the automotive industry in Iran participated and completed the survey. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used for data reduction of the entire sample (to purify the scale) and to ascertain whether the survey questions were loaded on their respective dimensions (this was refined and confirmed later by CFA). Besides that, the structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the research hypotheses and hypothesised model. Leadership, customer focus, education and training, strategic supplier's partnership, information analysis, internal lean practices and teamwork is positively associated with organisational performance. The results of this study provide strong evidence that certain supply chain quality management practices when implemented can directly or indirectly improve innovation and performance.


Okra, Abelmoschus esculentus L . (Syn. Hibiscus esculentus) is an important vegetable crop cultivated mainly for its immature edible green fruits that are known for their high levels of vitamins A, C and some minerals. Unfortunately, insect pests are a major setback for commercial production of the crop in many countries in Africa. Among the insect pests that cause economic damage on the crop, the flea beetle, Podagrica uniformi s JAC. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) is the most serious in the recent times. The most efficacious rate of 2, 3- dihydro-2, 2-dimethyl benzofuran or carbofuran, one of the systemic pesticides, for Okra varieties. This study was conducted to determine the most efficacious rate of carbofuran 3G, one of the systemic pesticides, for Okra varieties. Treatments included carbofuran 3G rates (0.0, 0.75, 1.5, and 2.25 kg a.i. ha -1 ) and three Okra varieties (Tae-38, NHae-47 and cv 'Awgu early'). The incidences of P. uniformis were significantly affected by the carbofuran rates and Okra varieties. Carbofuran at 1.5 kg a.i. ha-1 was superior in reducing the incidence and increasing pod yield. The effect of the insecticide also decreased with increase in plant age, especially from 6 weeks after planting. All the varieties planted differed significantly in the incidence of P. uniformis . NHae-47 was the most resistant, while ''Awgu early'' had the highest beetle infestation. All the varieties had higher pod yields under higher carbofuran application than the control; with Nhae-47 producing the highest and ''Awgu early'' the least pods yield. Keywords: Carbofuran, Podagrica uniformis


This article argues that the notion of successful technology transfer is highly dependent on a region's ability to attract and retain star personnel to locations where global mobility is relatively common. Such regions also must provide professional as well as family-centered opportunities for the spouses of star personnel, if a globally mobile couple is to remain "in place" for an extended amount of time. One such region is the burgeoning world-class biotechnology sector found in Vancouver, British Columbia. Drawing upon the work of Richard Florida and Sir Peter Hall, this article explores the importance of recruiting efforts that move beyond attention on creative individuals to include his/her family. Based on the results from semi-structured interviews with executives, senior scientists, and human-resource managers at Vancouver-based biotechnology firms, this study finds that the primary factors that lured and retained international creative-class families (ICCFs) (both expatriate Canadian and foreign families) included, in particular, the availability of spousal work visas and professional employment options, as well as traditional livability attributes such as "family friendly" workplace policies, good public schools, access to affordable public universities, well-kept parks, a general feeling of public safety, and accessibility to outdoor activities. The decision to remain in Vancouver was usually made by the internationally highly skilled, biotechnology professional's spouse, as opposed to a unilateral decision made by the highly skilled (and seemingly highly mobile) biotechnology professional.


supplementation. Good ventricular function and shunt flow per TEE. She presented with no to mild cyanosis and marked clubbing. Pregnancy routine testing: nuchal translucency and biochemical markers were unremarkable. Early anatomical scan (week 15) presented a placenta previa with multiple lacunae suggestive of placenta accreta. A repeat scan at our hospital ultrasound unit (week 18) demonstrated a severely thickened, non-homogenous placenta (5 cm) with a sub chorionic hematoma and early severe IUGR of 1% percentile. Amniocentesis was performed with an unremarkable microarray. Further sonographic examinations presented a massively thickened placenta (8cm) and an IUGR fetus with minimal weight increment (less than 1% percentile) and a progressive deterioration of flow patterns in the umbilical and middle cerebral arteries. The possibility of pregnancy termination was discussed and rejected. The patient's cardiac function was preserved. TEE was performed at 21 and 33 weeks – good myocardial, valvular and shunt function. She was hospitalised at 32 weeks. At 33+6 weeks due to severe fetal flow deterioration a 1050 gram fetus was delivered by Caesarean section. Surgery was uneventful. The newborn was discharged from NICU in good condition and is currently gaining weight and developing well. This case highlights the presence of compensatory massive placentomegaly and early severe IUGR in a patient with chronic low oxygen saturation following repair of HLHS.


Abstract The fatigue process under fretting conditions is characterized by small oscillatory movements due to vibrating or cyclic loads between two surfaces in contact. Two phenomena can arise as a consequence: the surface wear of the bodies in contact, giving rise to the so-called fretting wear. The second phenomenon concerns crack nucleation in the contact region, causing a reduction in the fatigue strength of the component subjected to cyclic loading. This process is called "fretting fatigue". In the present study, finite element models (2D-FEM) are provided to demonstrate the effect of pad radius on the contact parameters such as: contact pressure, shear traction, stresses, sliding, size of contact line and crack nucleation and its location along the contact line of aeronautical Al2024 alloy under fretting fatigue loading. Six numerical models are utilized to describe the effect of changing pad radii on contact stresses and damage of crack nucleation. The Ruiz parameter criterion should be used to predict the location of crack initiation in the contact zone. Comparison of the finite element results shows that there is a good agreement between the numerical modeling predictions with those analytical results. The stress field, relative slip, and damage parameters in fretting fatigue loading were highlighted. The pad radius substantially affects the distribution of contact parameters. Particular attention must be taken into consideration to this variable when analyzing the structure in fretting fatigue.


ABSTRACT Navas, F., Guisado-Pintado, E., and Malvárez, G., 2016. Interoperability as supporting tool for Future Forecasting on coastal and marine areas. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 957–961. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The powerful development of technology has allowed coastal sciences to advance significantly towards developing forecasting tools coupling empirical measurements with computer modelling, which proves to be of paramount importance for most decision making processes. However, coastal models and forecasting tools are data hungry and, whilst data and information availability for regional scales is more abundant than ever, the need for harmonised and compatible data-formats to integrate spatialised data continues to be an issue to feed these models. On the data and information side of development, interoperable systems appear to be somewhat limited to mapping agencies and computer scientists who focus on issues that are, to some extent, of limited relevance to coastal and marine scientists. In recent years however, this gap is being bridged by Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) in the framework of the INSPIRE Directive, which are showing to provide, via its integration with worldwide initiatives such as GEOSS and others, a source of great advances. In this paper we present two SDI designed, developed and implemented to be applied in coastal and marine management. Both platforms have taken a focused approach at spatial data manipulation favouring the use of specific viewers with circumscribed tools for making onscreen analyses and interpretations and capable of generating atlas-like products in real time dedicated to specific policies of relevance to the coastal and marine institutional framework.


The UK Government owned Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London is possibly the first conference centre in the world (certainly the first in the United Kingdom) which had security and safety as a fundamental, and large part of the original architect's brief. Spare conference capacity is marketed within the conference industry to commercial clients who are subject to the same security regime as government users. This paper briefly outlines the underlying security philosophy within the conference centre; the physical and systems approach, and how the building and systems work towards achieving security aims. The authors are particularly concerned at the impact the security systems have had on people. They touch upon the perceptions of the operators and try to analyse those of the user. Systems have had to be modifed to make them more flexible, but people's attitudes are not so malleable. How can we change our attitudes without reducing our security awareness, and how can we modify people's attitudes to our, operation?


Abstract Taking its point of departure in ten semi-structured interviews with ten members of staff in a Danish-owned, cross-border software company, Softia, this article analyzes how members of staff talk about and make sense of ways of "doing culture" in a corporate context. The article adopts a discourse analytical perspective and applies systemic functional grammar in order to identify the characteristics of three major discursive constructions which members of staff draw on interchangeably, and to a greater and lesser extent, to give expression to their intercultural practices in Softia. This text-focused, practitioneroriented, discursive approach provides valuable insights into the practitioners' understandings of intercultural practices, and, therefore, offers a welcome contribution to the ever-growing, but less text-focused, literature on intercultural business communication and cross-cultural management.


Advanced maternal age (AMA) is defined as childbearing in mothers ?35 years of age and is becoming increasingly prevalent in high income countries. AMA has been associated with increased risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, particularly stillbirth. Although AMA mothers have higher rates of chromosomal abnormalities and maternal co-morbidities, AMA remains an independent risk factor for stillbirth. Despite these findings, the etiology behind this increased risk is unknown. We hypothesise that an altered maternal environment, including increased oxidative stress and inflammation, due to ageing causes placental dysfunction which increases AMA mothers? vulnerability to stillbirth.A holistic approach was applied to investigate placental dysfunction in AMA. Firstly, a systematic review and meta-analysis comprehensively reviewed existing data on AMA and associated adverse pregnancy outcomes. Secondly, Manchester Advanced Maternal Age Study (MAMAS), a multi-centre prospective observational cohort study, was conducted to investigate risk factors for composite adverse pregnancy outcome (CAPO) in AMA. MAMAS utilised both uni- and multivariate analysis on demographic and clinical data, and measuring biomarkers of ageing and placental dysfunction by ELISA in maternal circulation during the third trimester of pregnancy. Utero-placental dysfunction was directly investigated in uncomplicated AMA pregnancies by quantifying placental morphology, placental nutrient transport capabilities and both placental and maternal uterine vascular responses. Finally, a C57BL/6J murine model of AMA was developed and characterised to further investigate maternal age on pregnancy outcome and the role of the placenta. In the meta-analysis, maternal age was linearly associated with increased risk of stillbirth and other adverse outcomes strongly associated with placental dysfunction (fetal growth restriction, preeclampsia and placental abruption). In MAMAS, smoking status and primiparity were predictive of CAPO. After adjustment, AMA mothers had an odd ratio of 2.05-3.43 of CAPO compared to 20-30 year old mothers. AMA mothers showed evidence of increased oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory bias. AMA mothers who suffered CAPO showed reduced placental endocrine capacity seen in placental dysfunction. Placentas from uneventful AMA pregnancies showed evidence of accelerated ageing and placental adaptation with increased nutrient transport, increased placental weight but reduced efficiency, and altered vascular function. AMA mice showed many similar aspects to human AMA with increased fetal loss, fetal growth restriction and increased placental size. These studies provide robust evidence for increased incidence of adverse pregnancy outcome due to placental dysfunction in pregnancies of women of AMA. This finding requires the appropriate recognition in a clinical context, with a greater focus on personalised obstetric care in an attempt to reduce stillbirth rates in this high risk population. By optimising antenatal and obstetric care for AMA mothers, we could reduce stillbirth rates by 4.7% - the population attributable risk due to AMA. These studies highlight key areas of future research that will further understanding into stillbirth risk in AMA pregnancy, test predictive models and test therapies and clinical care interventions an ultimately improve pregnancy outcome in mothers of AMA.


ABSTRACT The education of poor and disadvantaged populations has been a long-standing challenge for education systems in both developed and developing countries. Drawing on data from two randomised controlled trials involving two cohorts of grade 3 students in poor rural minority schools in China's Qinghai province, this paper explores the effects of computer-assisted learning (CAL) on student academic and non-academic outcomes for underserved student populations, and how interactions between the CAL programme and existing classroom resources affect the programme effectiveness. Results show that CAL could have significant beneficial effects on both student academic and non-academic outcomes. However, when the scope of the programme expanded to include a second subject (in this case, math – which was added on top of the Mandarin subject matter that was the focus of the first phase of the programme), some schools had to use regular school hours for CAL sessions. As a result, the phase II programme did not generate any (statistically) significant improvement over the first phase.


Application Quests are case-based learning activities that emphasize issues in professional practice and are given as part of the classroom learning process. This qualitative investigation examined students' views regarding the perceived impacts that Application Quests had on their learning. A phenomenological analysis of written assignments from 44 undergraduate students revealed six prevalent themes. The Application Quests were described as being unlike previous experiences, difficult and time consuming, and an emotive process. They were further identified as helpful for learning and integrating course material, improving learning across courses, and increasing readiness for professional practice. These themes are discussed in relation to Astin's input-environment-outcome model of student development during college and potential improvements to future Application Quests.


I am a strong advocate for women's rights and proud to be involved in the anti-rape movement. (The fact that there even needs to be a movement against rape is pretty shocking when you think about it.) To be honest it's not like there is a pro-rape party out there, rather to me, the anti-rape movement is more about raising awareness of a pernicious suite of ideas and cultural norms which propagate permissive or enabling attitudes towards rape. So rather than having a group advocating for rape which we oppose, we stand against actions which facilitate sexual violence. I am, however, largely a newcomer to this field and my thoughts are evolving. I've learned a lot from great people on twitter. One of them is Christa Desir, a young adult writer and a person who spends an enormous amount of time helping those who are victims of sexual assault. Christ wrote that amazingly powerful book Fault Line, which comes out this autumn and I hope you get it so we can discuss. One way she is helping to expand the conversation about who can, and should, participate in combating sexual assault is by running a week long series of blog posts by "men in the movement". For this blog carnival she asked several men who were active combating sexual assault to answer a series of questions. She recorded the answers anonymously, but I've never been one to be shy, so I'm going to link to each week's post here and out myself as to which answer is mine. I hope you take time to read this and think about what you can do to help those who have survived – and to try to change the culture that allows such actions to exist. Q1 "Do you think men belong in the anti-sexual violence movement and why? Is there a part of this movement you don't feel men should be involved with?" My answer is listed as A5. Q2 "Did you become invested in this for personal reasons or political/social reasons (or some of both)? And, did you have a turning point moment when this issue became part of your world?" My answer here (again A5) Q3 " What do you believe the future for men in the anti-rape movement looks like? Is there something that more male voices might do to change the culture? My answer (as A3) Q4 "What would you like to say to people who don't understand your interest in this issue?" My answer (now as A2) Q5 "Is there part of the anti-sexual violence movement that you think keeps men from engaging in it?" My answer (as A4)


Wind power ramps are the abrupt yet significant change in wind power productions. The information on the ordinal levels of impending wind power ramp could help power system operator to arm operation or ramping reserves in a timely manner. This paper presents novel approaches for regional wind power ramp level forecasting using real-time meso-scale wind speed measurements. Motivated by the correlation of the meso-scale wind speed measurements with the regional wind power data, the proposed approach utilizes multinomial logistic regression for wind power ramp forecasting. An approach that combines the probabilistic output of individual regressive models in a weighted manner is proposed, with the weights calculated by minimizing the Brier skill score of the combined model. The proposed methods are tested by using real-world data, and is compared with benchmark methods. The results reveal the effectiveness of the proposed approaches.


Different configurations for energetic production (only electric and cogenerative) assume a different significance in connection with the different considered criteria. From an economic point of view, in many instances (in particular in the case of the use of a renewable source as fuel), only the electric configuration results are more convenient. From an environmental point of view, a more convenient situation can be obtained with cogenerative configuration. In this paper, the significance of the two different configurations for energetic production has been examined. The production of electric energy only and the combined production of electric and thermal energy have been evaluated from an environmental point of view. In order to verify the environmental compatibility of the producing plant, three different tools can be used: the environmental balance, the implementation of the pollutant dispersion model and the tool of the externalities evaluation. More in detail, with the tool of the environmental balance it is possible to perform an evaluation of the flux modification at the stack. Anyway, the results of the environmental balance are not a real index of the effective air quality modification: in order to have an idea of this aspect the implementation of a pollutant dispersion model is required. Finally, the evaluation of externalities is a useful tool in order to have an idea of the social weight of the producing plant. In this work, after a description of the procedure that can be adopted in order to verify the environmental compatibility of the energy producing plant, we report on two examples of application of this procedure.


In order to study the Gamow–Teller (GT) transitions in the fp-shell nucleus 64Cu, the 64Ni(3He, t)64Cu charge-exchange reaction was investigated at MeV/nucleon [1]. The outgoing tritons were momentum analysed by the Grand Raiden spectrometer at 0°. The very high energy resolution of 35 keV (FWHM) allowed the separation of individual levels in the excitation energy region from 0 to 3.5 MeV. An angular distribution analysis was performed for the observed transitions to these states. In addition to the ground state (g.s.), known to be a Jπ = 1+ GT state, several excited states showed L = 0 nature, making them candidates of GT states. At higher excitation energies, the level density becomes very high and a bump-like structure, the so-called GT Giant Resonance, dominates the spectrum.


Grassland bird habitat has declined substantially in the United States. Remaining grasslands are increasingly fragmented, mostly privately owned, and vary greatly in terms of habitat quality and protection status. A coordinated strategic response for grassland bird conservation is difficult, largely due to the scope and complexity of the problem, further compounded by biological, sociological, and economic uncertainties. We describe the results from a collaborative Structured Decision Making (SDM) workshop focused on linking social and economic drivers of landscape change to grassland bird population outcomes. We identified and evaluated alternative strategies for grassland bird conservation using a series of rapid prototype models. We modeled change in grassland and agriculture cover in hypothetical landscapes resulting from different landowner decisions in response to alternative socio-economic conservation policy decisions. Resulting changes in land cover at all three stages of the annual cycle (breeding, wintering, and migration) were used to estimate changes in grassland bird populations. Our results suggest that successful grassland bird conservation may depend upon linkages with ecosystem services on working agricultural lands and grassland-based marketing campaigns to engage the public. With further development, spatial models that link landowner decisions with biological outcomes can be essential tools for making conservation policy decisions. A coordinated non-traditional partnership will likely be necessary to clearly understand and systematically respond to the many conservation challenges facing grassland birds.


Abstract Screening of natural biodiversity for the variation in quality traits is of prime importance for quality-breeding programmes. The objective of this investigation was to select candidate accession of hot pepper having high concentrations of ascorbic acid, capsaicin, β-carotene, and total phenols for use as parents in breeding for these compounds. Forty-two accessions of pepper (Capsicum annuum) were field grown and their mature fruits were analysed for their functional and nutritional composition. Wide variations were observed in most of the measurements, e.g. ascorbic acid (25–217mg per 100g), total phenolics (38.4–188.1mg per 100g catechol eq.), and capsaicin (0.08–0.67%), suggesting that there are considerable levels of genetic diversity. Across all accessions the concentration of ascorbic acid was negatively correlated with that of β-carotene (r=−0.33, p <0.05). Concentrations of L-ascorbic acid were significantly greater in VLC 22-I-2-1, VLC-29-II-1-1, VLC-30-I-1, and Janjeera Mirch compared with other accessions analysed. Total capsaicin concentrations were greatest (0.67%) in VLC-30-II-1 and lowest (0.08%) in VLC-32-3. Four factors were computed by principal-component analysis to explain 67% of the variation in the traits. The great variability for these phytochemicals suggests that these selected accessions may be useful as parents in breeding programmes to produce fruits with value-added traits.


The angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor is a valuable pharmacological tool for studying the role of intrarenal humoral factors such as the renin-angiotensin and kallikrenin-kinin systems and prostaglandins as related to the regulation of renal function and the interrelation among them. An intrarenal infusion of such an inhibitor, YS-980 (thiazolidine carboxylic acid derivative), at a rate of 0.1 mg/min resulted in a significant fall in systemic arterial blood pressure and a significant increase in renal blood flow, urine flow, urinary excretion of sodium and renin release in anesthetized dogs. These renal effects evoked by YS-980 were abolished after the inhibition of kallikrein as induced by aprotinin (900 kallikrein inhibitory units per min). In addition, YS-980 given after the administration of indomethacin (5 mg/kg i.v.) had no effect on the renal hemodynamics and renin release except for the urinary excretion of sodium. These findings suggest that both the kallikrein-kinin system and prostaglandins contribute to the renal action and the vasodepressor effect of YS-980. It would appear that the intrarenal administration of this angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor induced marked renal effects through activation of kinin and prostaglandins and that the relative contribution of the renin-angiotensin system is negligible in anesthetized dogs.


The present study examined the circumstances pertaining to threat and aggression during soccer matches as experienced by 107 provincial Soccer Association referees. Three sources of aggression were identified-soccer players, coaches/trainers, and spectators-and the main measures included threat and physical and verbal aggression. Several outcomes, including prematch worry and effects on concentration, performance, and motivation, were affected by the incidence of threat and aggression, and these outcomes were found to be affected by the age, degree of experience, and life orientation of the referees. Younger referees were shown to be the most prone to threat and aggression. Referees with a generally pessimistic orientation experienced less motivation, worse performance, and greater problems coping with aggressive behavior from the spectators compared with referees with a generally optimistic orientation.


ABSTRACT Geriatric medicine fellowship programs provide comprehensive training to one-year clinical fellows and must demonstrate successful progression of competence among fellows by reporting on 23 milestones to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). The Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) is a model of care located throughout the United States and can serve as a training venue for fellows. We surveyed 113 fellowship program directors with a response rate of 42% (n = 48). The purpose of the survey was to assess: (1) familiarity and access to PACE and (2) perceived value of PACE to the fellowship program with regard to training and ability to achieve success in the 23 reporting milestones. Milestones involving communication and team management skills were most consistently identified as very valuable with a PACE clinical rotation. We then convened a focus group of four PACE medical directors who developed a fellowship curriculum for use in training fellows at PACE. We discuss the limitations of our design as well as the opportunities to build on the strengths of that model as a training site for fellows.


Objectives For electronic health record (EHR) systems to have a positive impact on patient safety, clinicians must be able to use these systems effectively after they are made available. This study's objective is to identify and describe facilitators and barriers to physicians' use of EHR systems. Methods Twenty research interviews were conducted with attending physicians who were using EHR at 1 of 2 Midwest community hospitals and/or at their respective outpatient clinics. Results Analyses yielded more than 200 perceived facilitators and barriers, comprising 19 distinct categories. Categories of facilitators/barriers related to user attribute included learning, typing proficiency, understanding the EHR system, motivation/initiative, and strategies/workarounds. Categories related to system attributes were supporting hardware/software and system speed, functionality, and usability. Categories related to support from others were formal technical support, formal training, and informal support from colleagues. Categories of organizational facilitators/barriers were time allowance and interinstitutional integration. Categories of environmental facilitators/barriers were physical space, electricity, wireless connectivity, and the social environment. Conclusions Together, the broad set of discovered facilitators and barriers confirms and expands prior research on the facilitators and barriers to health information technology use. The depth of reported information on each facilitator and barrier made possible by qualitative interview methods contributes to the theoretical understanding of facilitators and barriers to EHR use. Equally as important, this study provides an information base from which relevant policy and design interventions can be launched to improve the use of EHR systems and, thus, patient safety.


Recent deep learning based approaches have shown promising results for the challenging task of inpainting large missing regions in an image. These methods can generate visually plausible image structures and textures, but often create distorted structures or blurry textures inconsistent with surrounding areas. This is mainly due to ineffectiveness of convolutional neural networks in explicitly borrowing or copying information from distant spatial locations. On the other hand, traditional texture and patch synthesis approaches are particularly suitable when it needs to borrow textures from the surrounding regions. Motivated by these observations, we propose a new deep generative model-based approach which can not only synthesize novel image structures but also explicitly utilize surrounding image features as references during network training to make better predictions. The model is a feedforward, fully convolutional neural network which can process images with multiple holes at arbitrary locations and with variable sizes during the test time. Experiments on multiple datasets including faces (CelebA, CelebA-HQ), textures (DTD) and natural images (ImageNet, Places2) demonstrate that our proposed approach generates higher-quality inpainting results than existing ones. Code, demo and models are available at: https://github.com/JiahuiYu/generative_inpainting.


This article describes a perceptual testing battery useful in the evaluation of the traumatic-brain-injury patient. Areas of visual perceptual deficits significant in this population are discussed. Key tests, familiar to optometrists, are indicated for the evaluation of these areas. A differential diagnosis based on the results of these tests can be made. This allows for an effective visual rehabilitation program to be developed for these patients.


Abstract Fluctuations in stride interval series show complex dynamical behavior in healthy young adults. Hypothesizing that these stride interval complexity changes would be altered by changes in neurological function associated with aging and certain disease states, we aimed to develop a tool to facilitate clinical judgments to assess the complex dynamical behavior in the stride series in discerning young, elderly, and Parkinson's disease (PD) classes. This novel approach, which employs a new variant of coarse-graining in conjunction with Lempel–Ziv complexity measure, yields useful, reliable, and predictive results. We also show the presence of nonlinear deterministic structures in the stride time series and appropriateness of the application of our nonlinear approach through surrogate data analysis. The findings show that the fluctuations are more complex/random in elderly and PD classes than those in young class. These findings may add to the growing body of literature supporting the clinical utility of this new approach to stride time series.


Purpose. To examine whether custom wavefront-guided soft contact lenses provide visual and optical performance equivalent to habitual gas permeable (GP) corrections in three keratoconus subjects. Methods. Custom wavefront-guided soft contact lenses were produced and evaluated at the Visual Optics Institute, College of Optometry, University of Houston for three habitual GP-wearing keratoconus subjects. Photopic high and mesopic low contrast logarithm of minimum angle of resolution visual acuity (logMAR VA) and residual second to tenth order optical aberrations experienced with these custom soft lenses were recorded and compared with the subjects' habitual GP correction. Results. All three subjects wearing custom soft lenses reached the established exit criterion of photopic high contrast (HC) logMAR VA equal to or better than values recorded with their habitual GP lens. HC logMAR VA for GP and custom soft lens correction was 0.01 ± 0.05 and 0.00 ± 0.02 for KC1, 0.20 ± 0.02 and 0.14 ± 0.02 for KC2, and 0.04 ± 0.09 and −0.05 ± 0.05 for KC3, respectively. In addition, KC2 reached the exit criterion of high-order aberration levels equal to or less than values with their habitual GP lens (GP lens: 0.394 ± 0.024 &mgr;m, custom lens: 0.381 ± 0.074 &mgr;m). Conclusions. Custom wavefront-guided soft contact lenses have been demonstrated to provide equivalent photopic HC logMAR VA to that achieved with habitual GP correction in three keratoconus subjects. Future emphasis will be placed on surpassing habitual GP performance and reaching a normal age-matched criterion for both VA and aberration measures. Achieving these goals may require a more thorough understanding of the relationship between visual performance and residual aberration experienced during custom lens wear through the use of image quality metrics predictive of visual performance.


In the 1848 Manifesto of the Communist Party, Marx mentions the commercial crises that by their periodical return put on trial, each time more threateningly, the existence of the entire bourgeois society. ... In these crises there breaks out an epidemic that, in all earlier epochs, would have seemed an absurdity - the epidemic of over-production __ And how does the bourgeoisie get over these crises? On the one hand by enforced destruction of a mass of productive forces; on the other, by the conquest of new markets, and by the more thorough exploitation of the old ones. That is to say, by paving the way for more extensive and more destructive crises, and by diminishing the means whereby crises are prevented.1 Though Marx will develop his crisis theory at length in other, later works, and particularly in Capital, the essential moments of his argument are already present here.2 These moments are: ( 1 ) empirical observation of a single commercial crisis; (2) overcoming singular or idiosyncratic aspects of this crisis in order to link it to a series of cyclical crises; (3) charting a causal path between features internal to capitalism and these recurrent crises, thereby refuting the objection that crisis results from accident, from features external to capitalism, or that it can be controlled while remaining within the capitalist mode of production; and, finally, (4) suggesting that commercial crises will worsen as the mode of production known as capitalism develops. Following this argument, economists influenced by Marx's crisis theory meet the advent of a new, empirical commercial crisis with an utter lack of surprise and rapidly begin the theoretical work of linking it to other economic crises. Some even attempt to predict when a crisis will again occur.3 From Marx's perspective, crises are simply inevitable, given the causal and structural features of the capitalist mode of production. The questions are: when will they happen, what will be their worsening features, and how can capitalism be eliminated? History has a way of asserting itself definitively, but only briefly. Our memories are not strong, particularly when the patterns to be charted exceed the imaginative threshold of a single human lifetime. In addition, the static modeling features of mainstream economics, combined with a positivist methodology inherently opposed to conceptual scrutiny, jointly militate against the kind of longitudinal and structural analysis that Marxist crisis theory mandates.4 Insofar as we react with naive surprise in acknowledging any given economic crisis, we will only ever discover solutions to crisis that, in the words of Marx, "pave the way for more extensive and destructive crises." However, to understand the inner logic of the mode of production known as capitalism, we will have to detour through the history of a discipline that has been lost, particularly in North America: political economy. The essay therefore proceeds in five sections: I. A brief history of this lost discipline and Marx's place in it. II. A discussion of periodic economic crises, such as the Great Depression of the 1 930s and the Great Stagflation of the 1 970s, along with a documentation of the resurgences in crisis theory that have accompanied these historical events. III. An argument that recurrent economic crises have a common source in a feature that, according to Marx, is structurally endemic to capital: the fall in the rate of profit. IV. A consideration of the 2008 economic crisis in light of these reflections; and, in conclusion: V. A broader treatment of the notion of crisis outside of the confines of commerce. I. Political Economy Though the term "political economy" derives from a cluster of French thinkers associated with physiocracy, perhaps the most important figure in the early years of the discipline was Adam Smith. Smith wrote two very famous works: A Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759), a work of moral theory, and An Inquiry into the Nature and the Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776), the classic foundational work of political economy. …


We investigate the security of smart contracts within a blockchain that can fork (as Bitcoin and Ethereum). In particular, we focus on multi-party computation (MPC) protocols run on-chain with the aid of smart contracts, and observe that honest players face the following dilemma: Should I rush sending protocol's messages based on the current view of the blockchain, or rather wait that a message is confirmed on the chain before sending the next one? To the best of our knowledge, the (implicit) default option used in previous work is the second one and thus known on-chain MPC protocols take long time to be executed on those blockchains with a long confirmation time (e.g., 1 hour per transaction in Bitcoin). While the first option would clearly be preferable for efficiency, we show that this is not necessarily the case for security, as there are natural examples of on-chain MPC protocols that simply become insecure in presence of rushing players. Our contributions are twofold: ˆ For the concrete case of fairly tossing multiple coins with penalties, we show that the lottery protocol of Andrychowicz et al. (S&P '14) becomes insecure in the presence of rushing players. In addition, we present a new protocol that instead retains security even if the players are rushing. ˆ We design a compiler that takes any on-chain MPC protocol and transforms it into another one (for the same task) that remains secure even in the presence of rushing players. The only (unavoidable) requirement is that honest players start to be rushing after the first round of the protocol (by all players) has been confirmed on the blockchain. Our techniques are inspired by ideas on resettably secure computation (Goyal and Sahai, EUROCRYPT '09). We also provide a prototype implementation of our coin tossing protocol using Ethereum smart contracts, and instantiate our generic compiler in a concrete setting, showing that both our constructions yield considerable improvements in terms of efficiency.


Supplemental digital content is available in the text. Objective Dry needling is a commonly used treatment technique for myofascial pain syndromes, such as trapezius myalgia. Despite the shown positive clinical effects on pain, the underlying mechanisms of action, such as the effect on muscle electrophysiology, remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of dry needling, compared with sham needling, in the upper trapezius muscle on surface electromyography activity and the relation with pain in office workers with trapezius myalgia. Design For this experimental randomized controlled trial, 43 office workers with work-related trapezius myalgia were included. Surface electromyography activity was measured before and after a pain-provoking computer task and immediately after, 15, and 30 mins after treatment with dry or sham needling. Pain scores were evaluated at the same time points as well as 1, 2, and 7 days after treatment. Results No significant differences in surface electromyography activity between dry needling and sham needling were found. Significant positive low to moderate Spearman correlations were found between surface electromyography activity and pain levels after dry needling treatment. Conclusions This study shows no immediate effects of dry needling on the electrophysiology of the upper trapezius muscle, compared with sham needling.


Schools have been identified as environments of choice for physical activity promotion. This study examines factors associated with compliance with objectively assessed physical activity recommendations for early adolescents taking part in "Sigue la Huella", a school-based intervention guided by a social ecological framework and Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2002). Methods: A total of 200 students (108 boys) aged 12-13 years (M = 12.16; SD = ± 0.51), wore accelerometers during a 7-day period and completed a questionnaire. Participants were considered compliant to the recommendations if their moderate to vigorous physical activity, averaged over 7 days, was ≥60 minutes a day. Results: 57.4% of boys and 9.9% of girls met recommendations. In a mixed logistic regression model, compliance was higher among boys and students attending private schools, and lower for obese students. Compliance was also associated with higher perceptions of physical competence, higher perceptions of autonomy in physical education, greater importance attached to physical education and less sedentary behavior. Conclusions: Assessed objectively, gender differences in compliance with physical activity recommendations were greater than expected. Self-Determination Theory emerged as a useful framework to identify motivational factors that can be addressed in school-based physical activity interventions and programs for early adolescents.


We propose a new fast handoff mechanism, NeighborCasting, for use in wireless IP networks that utilizes neighboring Foreign Agent information. NeighborCasting is based on the policy of utilizing, or perhaps even wasting, wired bandwidth between Foreign Agents, while minimizing rf (radio frequency) bandwidth exchanges, in order that handoff latency is minimized. We minimize the handoff latency by initiating data forwarding to the possible new foreign agent candidates (i.e., the neighbor foreign agents) at the time that the mobile node initiates the linklayer handoff procedure. This proposal builds upon the Mobile IP handoff procedure by adding a small number of additional message types. The handoff mechanism is a unified procedure for inter-, intra-domain and inter-technology (eg, LAN/WAN or TDMA to CDMA) handoffs and provides flexible choices to the network while maintaining transparency to the mobile node. The neighbor FA discovery process is a distributed and dynamic mechanism, and the fast handoff schemes are scalable and reliable.


: A variation of the conditional discrimination procedure defines relations between stimuli (for example, gestural signs and their referents), and it has been used to study language comprehension in California sea lions. The animals followed instructions given by a trainer's gestures designating properties of size, brightness, and location (adjectives), types of objects (nouns), and actions (verbs). The signs can be combined and recombined according to a conditional sequence or syntax. In this study, we sought to determine whether adjectives for size had an absolute meaning, that is, small and large, as well as a comparative meaning, that is, smaller and larger. A sea lion, Rocky, was given experience with signs designating standard small and large spheres in commands like LARGE BALL MOUTH. On transposition tests, the small ball was removed and the previously designated large ball was paired with an even larger one. The results showed that the adjectives had both an absolute and a relative meaning. Object choices and searching behavior revealed that the sea lion processed information about the relation of size as well as about the specific characteristics of the sizes of spheres that instantiated the relations.


Service Oriented Architecture SOA is an architectural paradigm that enables dynamic composition of heterogeneous, independent, multi-vendor business services. A prerequisite for such inter-organizational workflows is the establishment of trustworthiness, which is mostly achieved through non-technical measures, such as legislation, and/or social consent that businesses or organizations pledge themselves to adhere. A business process can only be trustworthy if the behavior of all services in it is trustworthy. Trusted Computing Group TCG has defined an open set of specifications for the establishment of trustworthiness through a hardware root-of-trust. This paper has three objectives: firstly, the behavior of individual services in a business process is formally specified. Secondly, to overcome the inherent weaknesses of trust management through software alone, a hardware root of-trust devised by the TCG, is used for the measurement of the behavior of individual services in a business process. Finally, a verification mechanism is detailed through which the trustworthiness of a business process can be verified.


The increased deployment of low carbon technologies in power distribution networks, particularly at the distribution level, is expected to cause significant problems to network operation unless existing networks are appropriately adapted and actively controlled as part of a smart grid. This paper describes the development of a modelling tool to examine Smart Grid solutions to a number of issues affecting low voltage power distribution networks. Use of the tool in the context of transformer overload, line overvoltage, active load control, Grid storage and Black Start analysis is examined.


Nearly everything relies on the electromagnetic (EM) force to be in its current form. Therefore, light-matter interaction is both a fundamental and a practical subject in physics. Focusing on the electromagnetic field, the matter degrees of freedom can be encoded into its response to the EM field in the form of charge density and urrent. Reshaped by the EM response, the photons in condensed matter systems appear as various collective modes. In this doctoral dissertation, I present our investigation of the linear and nonlinear EM response theory especially in the hydrodynamic regime of electron systems. Electrons in pristine solids behave as a hydrodynamic fluid in a certain range of temperatures and frequencies. We show that the response of such a fluid to electromagnetic field is different from what is predicted by the usual kinetic theory. Certain aspects of this response are universal, for example, a direct relation between the linear and second-order nonlinear optical conductivities. Discovery of this relation enriches our understanding of the light-matter interaction in diverse electron systems and new materials such as graphene. Subsequently, I study the properties of the charged collective modes, the plasmons and demons in 2D Dirac fluids, e.g., the electron-hole system in graphene. Under non-equilibrium situation, the amplitudes of these collective modes could possibly grow due to an effect of adiabatic amplification. I also present our study of the hyperbolic polaritons, the EM modes in hyperbolic materials. When confined in cavities, they develop isolated eigen modes which could be efficiently predicted by applying semi-classical quantization rules to fictitious particles. We demonstrate this Hamiltonian Optics analytically for cavities of spheroidal shapes, and predict novel geometric patterns of the electric field distribution due to classical periodicorbits.


Dome A, Antarctica, has been thought to be one of the best astronomical sites on the Earth for decades. Since it was first visited by astronomers in 2008, dozens of facilities for astronomical observation and site testing were deployed. Due to its special geographical location, the data and message exchange between Dome A and the domestic control center could only depend on Iridium. Because the link bandwidth of Iridium is extremely limited, the network traffic cost is quite expensive and the network is rather unstable, the commonly used data transfer tools, such as rsync and scp, are not suitable in this case. In this paper, we design and implement a data transfer tool called NBFTP (narrow bandwidth file transfer protocol) for the astronomical observation of Dome A. NBFTP uses a uniform interface to arrange all types of data and matches specific transmission schemes for different data types according to rules. Break-point resuming and extensibility functions are also implemented. Our experimental results show that NBFTP consumes 60% less network traffic than rsync when detecting the data pending to be transferred. When transferring small files of 1KB, the network traffic consumption of NBFTP is 40% less than rsync. However, as the file size increases, the network traffic consumption of NBFTP tends to approach rsync, but it is still smaller than rsync.


Moral dilemmas involving a choice between saving the lives of 1 versus 5 have long been debated
through utilitarian (e.g., Bentham, 1789) and deontological theories of moral choice (Kant, 1965). According to Greene et al.'s (2001) dual process moral utilitarian theory, moral
involvement predicts utilitarian rationality in decision-making. Accordingly, Greene et al. proposed that emotional activations interfere with cognitive (rational) decision mechanisms. For
example, personal involvement in moral scenarios (push a stranger) induces irrationality and decision time in choice. However, more psychological factors (e.g., utility ratios)
have been found to predict rationality in personal dilemmas (Nakamura, 2012). Furthermore, theorists (Kusev et al. 2016) argued that elimination of moral uncertainty also predicts utilitarian responses. In one experiment we aimed to explore
how (and whether) utility ratios, uncertainty, type of dilemma and involvement predict moral utilitarian choice. The results revealed that eliminated uncertainty and high utility ratios
induced utilitarian (rational) decision preferences


Abstract Large-scale, nationally representative surveys serve many vital functions, but these surveys can be long and burdensome for respondents. Cutting survey length can help to reduce respondent burden and may improve data quality but removing items from these surveys is not a trivial matter. We propose a method to empirically assess item importance and associated burden in national surveys and guide this decision-making process using different research products produced from such surveys. This method is demonstrated using the Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR), a biennial survey administered to individuals with a science, engineering, and health doctorate. We used three main sources of information on the SDR variables: a bibliography of documents using the SDR data as a measure of item use and importance, SDR data table download statistics from the Scientists and Engineers Statistical Data System as an additional measure of item use, and web timing paradata and break-off rates as a measure of burden. Putting this information together, we identified 35 unused items (17% of the survey) and found that the most burdensome items are highly important. We conclude with general recommendations for those hoping to employ similar methodologies in the future.


A 20vol.%SiCw/ZK51A Mg-based composite was fabricated by the process of semi-solid extrusion directly following liquid infiltration. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the composite were investigated in comparison with its squeeze cast and hot extruded counterpart. The results showed that, by semi-solid extrusion, the SiC whiskers were well aligned and microstructure defects associated with the casting technology were eliminated. In addition, as compared with the conventional hot extrusion, the damage to the SiC whiskers during semi-solid extrusion was reduced significantly. Consequently, the composite fabricated by the semi-solid extrusion presented the best whisker reinforcing effect, with its elastic modulus, 0.2% offset yield strength, and ultimate tensile strength achieving 82.5GPa, 383.6MPa, and 431.8MPa respectively.


There is an increasing recognition that emotion influences cognition. This is
particularly clear in the domain of social cognition where the perception of social cues is
most often a potent source of emotional arousal. One process likely to be influenced by
emotion is the forming of face evaluations. Judgements of trustworthiness are particularly
important due to the potential costs and benefits of the decision to rely upon another person.
Face trustworthiness is modulated by one particular social cue, eye-gaze. In reaction time
tasks, when faces gaze away from target objects, incongruently, responses are slower than
when faces gaze towards target objects, congruently. Faces that consistently gaze
incongruently are also judged less trustworthy than faces that consistently gaze congruently.!
In six experiments, we investigated the role of emotion in the learning of
trustworthiness from identity-contingent gaze-cues using event-related potentials (ERP) and
facial electromyography (EMG), which are sensitive electrophysiological measures of
emotion. We found that the learning of trust was paralleled by an increase in the emotionrelated
late positive potential (LPP) to incongruent faces across blocks. These findings were
further supported by EMG measurements, which showed that corrugator muscle activity
related to negative embodied emotional states, was greater to incongruent faces in those
participants who showed expected changes in trust ratings. Although effects of gaze-cues on
trust were consistent, they were not modulated by extremes in initial trust or priming of
emotions elicited by social exclusion. Effects appeared to be due to a special relationship
between faces, gaze, emotion and trust as the effects of validity on liking ratings were much
weaker or non-existent compared to trust despite evidence of similar emotion-related LPP
ERP and EMG activity. The effects also did not generalise to non-social arrow cues. In sum,
we conclude that emotion mediates the learning of trust from identity-contingent gaze-cues.


IntroductionMain condition coding definitions in the International Classification of Disease (ICD) 10th and 11th versions are broadly defined in the current and upcoming versions of ICD, and coding health data can involve subjective coding specialist interpretation. Inconsistent coding can lead to inaccurate reporting, and lower quality data for research use.
Objectives and ApproachMain condition coding agreement was compared between ICD-10 and ICD-11. 730 hospital charts were randomly selected from Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, Alberta. These charts were previously coded using ICD-10, and six professional coding specialists recoded them using ICD-11. To compare frequencies of ICD-10 to ICD-11, we used current WHO crosswalk tables to match codes. For any missing codes, manual comparison by done by a qualified reviewer. In Canada, the "main condition" is the clinically significant reason for the hospital visit. If multiple problems were present, the diagnosis using the greatest amount of resources is coded, "main resource use".
ResultsOverall, 730 ICD-10 coded charts were analyzed. Of these charts, 79% (577) had matching resource coding between ICD-10 and ICD-11, and 21% (153) had mismatching coding. Matching coding was either considered an exact match between definitions (23.2%, 134), or similar but not identical (often one code has greater detail, 76.8%, 443). Mismatching codes were either due to different codes for similar conditions (13.1%, 20), different codes for not similar but related conditions (43.8%, 67), or completely different codes for unrelated conditions (43.1%, 66).
Conclusion/ImplicationsICD-10 and ICD-11 main resource codes had a high match frequency indicating consistency between coding practices and ICD definitions (577/730, 79%). Future research will aim to understand underlying causes of mismatched main resource use codes. This research will help us understand issues in coding and contribute to future ICD-11 revisions.


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: At times, there is a clinical need for using routine brain MR imaging performed close to the time of onset of patients' visual symptoms to firmly establish the diagnosis of optic neuritis. Our aim was to assess the diagnostic performance of radiologists in detecting optic neuritis on routine brain MR images and whether this performance could be enhanced using a postprocessing algorithm. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this retrospective case-control study of 60 patients (37 women, 23 men; mean age, 47.2 [SD, 17.9] years), 2 blinded neuroradiologists evaluated T2-weighted FLAIR and contrast-enhanced T1WI from brain MR imaging for the presence of imaging evidence of optic neuritis. Images were processed using an image-processing algorithm that aimed to selectively accentuate the signal intensity of diseased optic nerves. We assessed the effect of image processing on the contrast-to-noise ratio between the optic nerves and normal-appearing white matter and on the diagnostic performance of the neuroradiologists, including the interobserver reliability. RESULTS: The average sensitivity of readers was 55%, 56.5%, and 30.0% on FLAIR, coronal contrast-enhanced T1WI, and axial contrast-enhanced T1WI, respectively. Sensitivities were lower in the absence of fat saturation on FLAIR (P = .001) and coronal contrast-enhanced T1WI (P = .04). Processing increased the contrast-to-noise ratio of diseased (P value range = .03 to <.001) but not of control optic nerves. Processing did not improve the sensitivity but improved the specificity and positive predictive value. Interobserver agreement improved from slight to good. CONCLUSIONS: Detection of optic neuritis on routine brain MR imaging is challenging. Specificity, positive predictive value, and interobserver agreement can be improved by postprocessing of MR images.


It is widely believed that the pyramidal cells and interneurons of the cerebral cortex are distinct in their origin, lineage and genetic make up. In view of these findings, the current thesis is that the phenotype determination of cortical neurons is primarily directed by genetic mechanisms. Using in vitro assays, the present study demonstrates that secreted factors from ganglionic eminence (GE) of the ventral telencephalon have the potency to induce the differentiation of a subset of cortical neurons towards γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic lineage. Characterization of cortical cultures that were exposed to medium derived from GE illustrated a significant increase in the number of GABA‐, calretinin‐ and calbindin‐positive neurons. Calcium imaging together with pharmacological studies showed that the application of exogenous medium significantly elevated the intracellular calcium transients in cortical neurons through the activation of ionotropic glutamate receptors. The increase in GABA+ neurons appeared to be associated with the elevated calcium activity; treatment with blockers specific for glutamate receptors abolished both the synchronized transients and reduced the differentiation of GABAergic neurons. Such studies demonstrate that although intrinsic mechanisms determine the fate of cortical interneurons, extrinsic factors have the potency to influence their neurochemical differentiation and contribute towards their molecular diversity.


An agent that is capable of predicting what happens next can perform a variety of tasks through planning with no additional training. Furthermore, such an agent can internally represent the complex dynamics of the real-world and therefore can acquire a representation useful for a variety of visual perception tasks. This makes predicting the future frames of a video, conditioned on the observed past and potentially future actions, an interesting task which remains exceptionally challenging despite many recent advances. Existing video prediction models have shown promising results on simple narrow benchmarks but they generate low quality predictions on real-life datasets with more complicated dynamics or broader domain. There is a growing body of evidence that underfitting on the training data is one of the primary causes for the low quality predictions. In this paper, we argue that the inefficient use of parameters in the current video models is the main reason for underfitting. Therefore, we introduce a new architecture, named FitVid, which is capable of severe overfitting on the common benchmarks while having similar parameter count as the current state-of-the-art models. We analyze the consequences of overfitting, illustrating how it can produce unexpected outcomes such as generating high quality output by repeating the training data, and how it can be mitigated using existing image augmentation techniques. As a result, FitVid outperforms the current state-of-the-art models across four different video prediction benchmarks on four different metrics.


We study the problem of designing a dictionary data structure that is resilient to memory corruptions. Our error model is a variation of the faulty RAM model in which, except for constant amount of definitely reliable memory, each memory word is randomly unreliable with a probability p < 1/2, and the locations of the unreliable words are unknown to the algorithm. An adversary observes the whole memory and can, at any time, arbitrarily corrupt (i.e., modify) the contents of one or more unreliable words.
Our dictionary has capacity n, stores N<n keys in the optimal O(N) amount of space, supports insertions and deletions in O(log n) amortized time, and allows to search for a key in O(log n) worst-case time. With a global probability of at least 1-1/n, all possible search operations are guaranteed to return the correct answer w.r.t. the set of uncorrupted keys.
The closest related results are the ones of Finocchi et al. [Irene Finocchi et al., 2009] and Brodal et al. [Brodal et al., 2007] on the faulty RAM model, in which all but O(1) memory is unreliable. There, if an upper bound delta on the number of corruptions is known in advance, all dictionary operations can be implemented in Theta(log n + delta) amortized time, thus trading resiliency for speed as soon as delta = omega(log n).
Our construction does not need to know the value of delta in advance and remains fast and effective even when up to a constant fraction of the available memory is corrupted. Our techniques can be immediately extended to implement other data types (e.g., associative containers and priority queues), which can then be used as a building block in the design of other resilient algorithms. For example, we are able to solve the resilient sorting problem in our model using O(n log n) time.


The postoperative hypoparathyroidism was studied in 176 patients that underwent a total o a wide subtotal thyroidectomy. The rate of this complication was compared between patients receiving a parathyroid autotransplantation (75 cases) and patients that did not. A 2.9% of non-transplanted patients developed a permanent hypoparathyroidism, that was observed in a 1.3% of non-transplanted patient. At variance, a transient hypoparathyroidism was twice more frequently observed in the transplanted group.


Purpose: To assess the safety of intracameral injection of moxifloxacin (MFLX) using the total replacement technique [bag and chamber (BC) flushing]. Methods: The anterior chamber including the area behind the intraocular lens was irrigated and replaced using BC flushing. In Group A, 36 patients received balanced salt solution irrigation in the right eye and intracameral MFLX (150mg/mL: 33-fold dilution of 0.5% eye drops) in the left eye. In Group B, 33 patients received intracameral MFLX in the right (500mg/mL: 10-fold dilution) and left eyes (150mg/mL: 33-fold dilution). Visual acuity, intraocular pressure, corneal endothelial cell density, corneal thickness, and foveal thickness were recorded before and up to 3 months after surgery. Results: In either group, there were no statistically significant differences between the right and left eyes with respect to visual acuity, intraocular pressure, corneal endothelial cell count, and foveal thickness before and at 3 months after surgery. There was no difference in corneal thickness before and at 3 months after surgery. In patients who received 500mg/mL MFLX during surgery, central corneal thickness at 1 week after surgery was significantly reduced. Conclusions: In the present study, there was no adverse effect associated with intracameral injection of 150– 500mg/mL MFLX. Moreover, our results supported the safety of BC flushing. Thus, BC flushing, which can irrigate the inside of the capsular bag and attain stable antibiotic concentrations, appears to be a favorable technique for intracameral injection of MFLX.


Boeing's Test Data Retrieval System not only acts as an interface between the Airborne Data Acquisition System and a mainframe computer but also does batch mode processing of data at faster than real time. Analysis engineers request time intervals and measurements of interest. Time intervals and measurements requested are acquired from the flight tape, converted to first order engineering units, and output to 3480 data cartridge tape for post processing. This allows all test data to be stored and only the data of interest to be processed at any given time.


Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is one of the key molecules in cell growth and multiplication and plays an important role in some malignant processes. L2 domain of extra-cellular part of this receptor involved in ligand binding and its inhibition can prevent activation of related signaling pathways. The aim of the present study was cloning and expressing the fragment coding for L2 region of human EGFR for the production of recombinant L2 protein. The total RNA from A431 cells line was extracted and used for amplification of the sequence coding for L2 domain of EGFR by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique. The product was cloned into the PGEM-T vector and used for sequencing. In the next step, the insert was removed from the PGEM-T vector and subcloned into the PET22 expression vector. The expression construct was transformed into the Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) and recombinant protein expression was analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Analyzing the expression of produced recombinant protein showed that the recombinant L2 can be highly expressed by this expression system. This recombinant protein can be used for the production of specific mAb, screening for specific ligands and competitive inhibition of the EGFR. Keywords: Human epidermal growth factor receptor, domain L2, recombinant expression African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 9(33), pp. 5292-5296, 16 August, 2010


Abstract : Twenty-one reed gages were installed for radial (horizontal) and vertical displacement shock spectrum measurements on the Hard Hat event. Thirteen gages were installed in the tunnel liner structures of Project 3.1. Seven gages were installed in the unlined access tunnel floor. One gage was installed on the surface at a radial distance of 1,340 feet from Hard Hat zero point. Damage in the drift nearest the detonation, although expected to be large, was so severe that the drift was not opened and gage recovery at that range was therefore impossible. Fifteen of the 21 gages installed were recovered and of these, 12 yielded usable records. The three gages which yielded no information were damaged by collapse or partial collapse of the tunnel and structures in which they were placed. (Author)


Abstract This paper attempts to examine the changing dynamics of the interface between diplomacy and news media with emphasis on the Indian context. American examples, opinions and trends have been taken into consideration to impart a comparative perspective to the paper. It has been carried out in the light of the brief history of diplomatic reporting in India, the linkages and issues involved in the relationship between the Indian Foreign Office and media as well as the role and limitations of television in the formulation and conduct of foreign policy. The dominant theme of the paper is that, despite the emerging role of media in diplomacy, the media‐diplomacy relationship has been quite uncomfortable over the years.


The correlation between PAK5 (P21-activated kinase 5) and Ezrin gene expression and chemotherapy resistance of osteosarcoma patients was investigated. The cisplatin (CDDP)-resistance model of osteosarcoma cells SOSP-9607/CDDP was established to detect the cell growth curve. Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay was used to detect the drug resistance of cells to chemotherapy drugs. Transwell assay was used to detect the invasive capacity of cells. Semi-quantitative PCR (qPCR) was used to detect the mRNA expression levels in the drug resistance-related genes PAK5 and Ezrin. Western blot analysis was used to detect the protein expression levels in PAK5 and Ezrin. Tumor tissues were taken from the osteosarcoma patients with chemotherapy resistance to detect the expression levels of PAK5 and Ezrin via immunohistochemical detection, and the correlation between PAK5 and Ezrin expressions was studied. The results of MTT assay showed that the growth rate of SOSP-9607 was similar to that of SOSP-9607/CDDP, and the difference was not statistically significant (P>0.05). The sensitivity of SOSP-9607 to CDDP was significantly higher than that of SOSP-9607/CDDP, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). Transwell assay showed that the migration capacity of SOSP-9607/CDDP was significantly better than that of SOSP-9607 (P<0.01), indicating that the drug resistance cell lines of osteosarcoma were constructed successfully. Semi-qPCR and western blot analysis showed that the protein expression levels in PAK5 and Ezrin in SOSP-9607/CDDP were significantly higher than those in SOSP-9607 (P<0.01). The results of immunohistochemistry showed that the expression quantities of PAK5 and Ezrin in osteosarcoma tissues were significantly higher than those in para-tumor tissues (P<0.01). Pearson's correlation analysis showed that expression of PAK5 and Ezrin was positively correlated (r=0.197, P=0.023). The osteosarcoma resistance is closely related to the expression levels of PAK5 and Ezrin genes. Thus, PAK5 and Ezrin genes may affect the tolerance of osteosarcoma patients to chemotherapy drugs during treatment via the synergistic effect.


A synthetic diagnostic model for the simulation of energy and pitch angle resolved measurements of fast ion losses obtained by 2D scintillation-type detectors is presented and subsequently tested on a JET discharge with fishbones (previously documented in Perez von Thun et al 2010 Nucl. Fusion 50 084009). The simulated energy and pitch angle distributions at the detector are found to be in excellent agreement with the measurements. The simulations further suggest that nearly all the fast ion losses take place in the early growth phase of the fishbone cycle, and reach their maximum well ahead of the magnetic perturbation peak.


Abstract Having been defined as an 'incomplete man' or an 'incidental being' that lacks certain qualities, women have gradually internalized the patriarchal ideology, claiming that they are essentially insufficient. Considering themselves as the insignificant 'Other' in relation to men, women are full of self-loathing and shame over their bodies. Thus, always seeking men's approval, women drown out the inner voice of their bodies and resort to being 'the body for others'. However, for Woolf, it is a self- destruction not a salvation. She claims women have to get rid of those docile bodies and disembodied minds to be able to take control of their own lives cleared from all the social constraints, society constructed gender roles and patriarchal demands. For Woolf, this is only possible when women assert themselves through their bodies, thereby realizing a new sense of being inside themselves that is powerful and autonomous ready to actualize its potential. Therefore, basing its argument on those assertions of Virginia Woolf and one of her most influential novels, To the Lighthouse, this study puts forward women's body image largely influenced by phallocentric world and its typical patriarchal system can be challenged and subverted through the 'visionary body' that enables women to achieve the unique process of self-discovery and wholeness.


Diabetes mellitus (DM) has a growing incidence and prevalence in modern societies, pushed by the aging and change of life styles. Despite the huge resources dedicated to improve their quality of life, mortality and morbidity rates, these are still very poor. In this work, DM pathology is revised from clinical and metabolic points of view, as well as mathematical models related to DM, with the aim of justifying an evolution of DM therapies towards the correction of the physiological metabolic loops involved. We analyze the reliability of mathematical models, under the perspective of virtual physiological human (VPH) initiatives, for generating and integrating customized knowledge about patients, which is needed for that evolution. Wearable smart sensors play a key role in this frame, as they provide patient's information to the models. A telehealthcare computational architecture based on distributed smart sensors (first processing layer) and personalized physiological mathematical models integrated in Human Physiological Images (HPI) computational components (second processing layer), is presented. This technology was designed for a renal disease telehealthcare in earlier works and promotes crossroads between smart sensors and the VPH initiative. We suggest that it is able to support a truly personalized, preventive, and predictive healthcare model for the delivery of evolved DM therapies.


This paper documents our progress developing an ultrasound phased array system in combination with a model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) algorithm to inspect the health of and characterize the composition of the near-wellbore region for geothermal reservoirs. The main goal for this system is to provide a near-wellbore in-situ characterization capability that will significantly improve wellbore integrity evaluation and near well-bore fracture network mapping. A more detailed image of the fracture network near the wellbore in particular will enable the selection of optimal locations for stimulation along the wellbore, provide critical data that can be used to improve stimulation design, and provide a means for measuring evolution of the fracture network to support long term management of reservoir operations. Development of such a measurement capability supports current hydrothermal operations as well as the successful demonstration of Engineered Geothermal Systems (EGS). The paper will include the design of the phased array system, the performance specifications, and characterization methodology. In addition, we will describe the MBIR forward model derived for the phased array system and the propagation of compressional waves through a pseudo-homogenous medium.