This paper analyses comparatively the development of two coalitions for the sustainable forest management of remaining portions of the Ecuadorian Chocó owned by indigenous communities. One coalition, a network of environmental NGOs, promotes the cooperative commercialisation of community timber and puts pressure on timber merchants to raise the price they pay to producers. The other comprises a large forestry and woodprocessing group which has joint ventures with a number of indigenous communities, and which is now seeking green certification for its logging operations. Both coalitions operate locally by promoting and implementing community forestry projects, and nationally by participating in the elaboration of Ecuador's new forest law. Various activities promoted by the two coalitions are compared: land titling; local-level conservation; the building of new community institutions; local-level social development; attempts to reform wood markets; and policy reform at the national level. The paper attempts to explain why both coalitions have tended to stereotype traditional Chocoan forest dwellers according to fixed ethnic categories, while overlooking their basic economic needs, values and development aspirations. Local communities have benefited from these partnerships in terms of land titling and training, but have not seen improvements in what they value most, the adequate provision of health and education services. The paper ends with a discussion of the factors contributing to the successful building of pro-poor coalitions.


ABSTRACT Tourism marketing has typically been seen as exploitative and fuelling hedonistic consumerism. Sustainability marketing can, however, use marketing skills and techniques to good purpose, by understanding market needs, designing more sustainable products and identifying more persuasive methods of communication to bring behavioural change. This article summarises the latest research on the theories, methods and results of marketing that seeks to make tourist destinations better places to live in, and better places to visit. It explores sustainability marketing's two fundamental approaches, that of market development, using market segmentation, and that of sustainable product development. It introduces a Special Issue of the Journal of Sustainable Tourism on sustainable marketing, sharing evidence on the motivations, mechanisms and barriers that businesses encounter, and on successes in changing consumer behaviour and pursuing sustainability goals. Particular attention is given to the methodologies of sustainable tourism marketing, to the subject's breadth and complexity, and to its many innovations. Further research is called for to fully understand what contextual aspects influence these pro-sustainability interventions to achieve which outcomes in other settings, in order to validate some of the exploratory studies discussed, and establish the feasibility of scaling up pilot studies for more general use.


Excised tubal segments from 42 women with uterotubal junction obstruction were studied histologically to evaluate the pathologic spectrum of disease and correlate this with clinical data. The most frequent lesion encountered was obliterative fibrosis (38.1%), confirmed by connective tissue stains, which was not associated with cornual nodularity. Other pathologic entities included salpingitis isthtmica nodosa (23.8%), intramucosal endometriosis (14.3%), and chronic tubal inflammation (21.4%). Intramucosal endometriosis was distinguishable from salpingitis isthmica nodosa by virtue of its unique stroma confirmed by connective tissue staining. Women with previous pregnancies were included in all the groups. In all instances, the obstruction was present in the transmural portion of the tube and extended a variable distance into the isthmic segment. These observations on uterotubal junction obstruction demonstrate that: 1) There are multiple distinct histologic patterns, 2) Intraabdominal findings do not predict the histology of the uterotubal junction pathology, 3) Any histologic pattern can be associated with a previous intrauterine or ectopic pregnancy, and 4) The obstruction begins within the transmural portion of the oviduct, extends a variable distance into the isthmic segment, but does not obstruct the ampullary segment. These data suggest that the initiating process originates within the uterus and that fibrosis may represent a nonspecific response to chronic injury of the transmural and isthmic segments of the oviduct.


Understanding the relative importance of top-down and bottom-up regulation of ecosystem structure is a fundamental ecological question, with implications for fisheries and water-quality management. For the Laurentian Great Lakes, where, since the early 1970s, nutrient inputs have been reduced, whereas top-predator biomass has increased, we describe trends across multiple trophic levels and explore their underlying drivers. Our analyses revealed increasing water clarity and declines in phytoplankton, native invertebrates, and prey fish since 1998 in at least three of the five lakes. Evidence for bottom-up regulation was strongest in Lake Huron, although each lake provided support in at least one pair of trophic levels. Evidence for top-down regulation was rare. Although nonindigenous dreissenid mussels probably have large impacts on nutrient cycling and phytoplankton, their effects on higher trophic levels remain uncertain. We highlight gaps for which monitoring and knowledge should improve the understanding of food-web dynamics and facilitate the implementation of ecosystem-based management.


Tamoxifen is the endocrine treatment of choice for all stages of estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer, and it is the first drug approved to reduce the incidence of breast cancer in high-risk women. Unfortunately, tamoxifen also possesses some estrogen-like effects in the uterus that cause a modest increase in the risk of endometrial cancer. GW5638 is a tamoxifen derivative with a novel carboxylic acid side chain with no uterotropic activity in the rat (Willson et al., J Med Chem, 1994, 37:1550-1552). We have compared and contrasted the actions of 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-OHT, the active metabolite of tamoxifen) with GW7604 [the presumed metabolite of GW5638 in breast (MCF-7) and endometrial (ECC-1) cell lines in vitro]. GW7604 did not cause the growth of ECC-1 cells at any concentration (10(-11)-10(-6) M), but 4-OHT was weakly estrogen-like at low concentrations (10(-11)-10(-10) M). Compounds (10(-7) M) blocked the growth promoting action of estradiol (10(-10) M) in both ECC-1 and MCF-7 cells. Western blotting was used to show that GW7604 and raloxifene did not affect ER levels significantly, compared with controls, in MCF-7 cells; whereas the pure antiestrogen ICI182,780 decreased ER levels (P < 0.05). An assay system was used that can classify compounds into tamoxifen-like, raloxifene-like, or pure antiestrogens. The assay depends on the activation of the transforming growth factor alpha (TGFalpha) gene in situ by wild-type or D351Y mutant ER stably transfected into MDA-MB-231 cells (MacGregor-Schafer et al., Cancer Res, 1999, 59:4308-4313). GW7604 inhibited both estradiol (10(-9) M) and 4-OHT (10(-8), 10(-7) M) induction of TGFalpha in a concentration related manner (10(-9)-10(-6) M). GW7604 and raloxifene stimulated TGFalpha with the D351Y ER. In contrast, ICI 182,780 (10(-6) M) did not initiate TGFalpha and blocked the induction of TGFalpha with GW7604, raloxifene, and 4-OHT in D351Y-transfected cells. Using computer-assisted molecular models of ER complexes, we found that the antiestrogenic side chain of 4-OHT weakly interacted with the surface amino acid 351 (aspartate), but the carboxylic acid of GW7604 caused a strong repulsion of aspartate 351. We propose that GW7604 is less estrogen-like than 4-OHT, because it disrupts the surface charge around aa351 required for coactivator docking in the 4-OHT:ER complex. This charge is restored in the D351Y ER, thus converting GW7604 from an antiestrogen to an estrogen-like molecule.


This article discusses the application of an improved version of the firefly algorithm for the test suite optimization problem. Software test optimization refers to optimizing test data generation and selection for structural testing criteria for white box testing. This will subsequently reduce the two most costly activities performed during testing: time and cost. Recently, various search-based approaches proved very interesting results for the software test optimization problem. Also, due to no free lunch theorem, scientists are continuously searching for more efficient and convergent methods for the optimization problem. In this paper, firefly algorithm is modified in a way that local search ability is improved. Levy flights are incorporated into the firefly algorithm. This modified algorithm is applied to the software test optimization problem. This is the first application of Levy-based firefly algorithm for software test optimization. Results are shown and compared with some existing metaheuristic approaches.


Africa's recent economic growth is at a historical high. The patterns associated with this growth appear to be quite different from the Asian experiences where rapid growth was fueled by labor intensive, exportoriented manufacturing. Because this pattern differs with our typical view of structural transformation, a heated debate has begun over the sustainability of Africa's growth. One thing is clear: the recent growth is not well understood. Against this background, we adapt Lewis's (1954) dual-economy model to the economies of Africa to better understand the role that the "in-between" sector as defined by Lewis (1979) has played in Africa's recent growth. Our framework incorporates the coexistence of a closed and an open modern economy and takes into account the diversity and heterogeneity of the activities that characterize modern African economies. We apply this framework to the economy of Rwanda to assess Rwanda's future growth prospects based on different levels of foreign capital inflows. We find that higher foreign inflows lead to significantly more growth in the closed modern economy and stagnant growth in the open modern economy, a phenomenon consistent with recently observed patterns of growth across several African countries. Xinshen Diao Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI Deputy Division Director, DSG International Food Policy Research Institute 2033 K Street NW, Washington DC email@example.com Margaret McMillan Tufts University Department of Economics 114a Braker Hall Medford, MA 02155 and International Food Policy Research Institute and also NBER email@example.com


WITTING, IAN THOMAS. Defect and Impurity Distributions in Traditionally Cast Multicrystalline and Cast Monocrystalline Silicon for Solar Substrates. (Under the direction of George Rozgonyi.) An examination of two types of cast silicon was performed to correlate observed electrical properties with structural defects and chemical impurities. Results show that many of the significant impurities and defects occur as the result of controllable manufacturing methods. A unique sample of traditionally cast multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) was obtained from BP Solar in April 2007. This sample was cut longitudinally and has intact the original edges of the ingot typically removed during processing. Impurity concentration profiles are compared directly with minority carrier lifetime maps to determine which impurities are most detrimental to the quality of the silicon. A minority carrier lifetime map was obtained using Microwave Photoconductance Decay (MW-PCD). Light element impurities (C, O) were profiled using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and metallic impurities were profiled by Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS). Iron contamination was found to correlate best with reduction in minority carrier lifetime. Silicon samples exposed to the environment of different furnaces used throughout the casting process were examined using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) and Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (SIMS). This examination revealed the sources of many impurities observed in the final cast ingots. SEM and EDS were also used to examine impurity precipitation on samples taken from the tops of cast ingots. Carbide, nitride, and iron were found to be the primary contaminants that segregated to the ingot top. A second unique sample of cast monocrystalline silicon, referred to as "monosquared" and written as "Mono ", was obtained from BP Solar in December 2007. This sample is cut longitudinally from the original ingot similarly to the mc-Si slice. Examination of defects and impurities in this sample was performed based upon a MW-PCD minority carrier lifetime map. Structural defects and precipitates within the sample were examined using step-wise Secco etching combined with SEM and Nomarski microscopy. FT-IR was used to profile light element impurities and DLTS was used to profile metallic impurities. As with the cast mc-Si sample, minority carrier lifetime was observed to correlate with the DLTS determined iron concentration profile. The iron concentration profile was observed to correlate well with transitions in structural defect type. The structural defects observed suggest a vacancy and interstitial incorporation dependency on crystal growth parameters, as described by Voronkov, for silicon grown using the Czochralski method. Dissolved impurity concentrations within the Mono TM ingot were found to be significantly higher than the mcSi sample, despite having very similar casting parameters. This is perhaps due to a reduction in dislocations and grain boundaries that act as gettering sites. Precipitates were observed to nucleate rows of dislocations that extended in the direction of crystal growth. These rows of dislocations were observed to merge with other rows creating more densely packed rows termed "dislocation cascades". These cascades are observed to branch and merge as crystal growth continues. Branching was observed to occur in the presence of oxide precipitation contaminated with metallic impurities. Defect and Impurity Distributions in Traditionally Cast Multicrystalline and Cast Monocrystalline Silicon for Solar Substrates by Ian Thomas Witting A thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty of North Carolina State University In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Master of Science Materials Science and Engineering Raleigh, North Carolina 2008 APPROVED BY: _______________________________ ______________________________ Carlton Osburn Gerd Duscher ________________________________ George Rozgonyi Committee Chair


We show that the spin density generalization of the AM05 density functional [R. Armiento and A. E. Mattsson, Phys. Rev. B 72, 085108 (2005)] predicts the correct ground spin state for iron, a system known to be heavily dependent on proper spin treatment. Using the fundamental assumptions in the subsystem functional scheme, we resolve an ambiguity in how to treat the separate spin densities in AM05 but also show that the other less preferred treatments give no significantly different numerical outcome of the iron body-centered-cubic and face-centered-cubic test cases. Details and formulas are given to aid in the implementation of functionals in general, and the spin-resolved AM05 exchange-correlation potentials in particular, into different types of computer codes.


BACKGROUND
End-of-life decisions (ELDs) are embedded in clinical, sociocultural, political, economic, and ethical concerns. In 2014, the Council of Europe (CoE) through its Committee on Bioethics launched the "Guide on the decision-making process regarding medical treatment in end-of-life situations," aiming at improving decision-making processes and empowering professionals in making ELDs.

OBJECTIVE
To analyze if end-of-life decision making in palliative care (PC) is consistent with this Guide and to identify if disputed/controversial issues are part of current ELDs.

DESIGN
Qualitative secondary analysis.

SETTING/SUBJECTS
Four qualitative datasets, including 44 interviews and 9 team observation field notes from previous studies with PC teams/professionals in Portugal.

MEASUREMENTS
An analysis grid based on the abovementioned guide was created considering three dimensions: ethical and legal frameworks, decision-making process, and disputed/controversial issues.

RESULTS
The majority of the professionals considered the ethical principle of autonomy paramount in end-of-life decision making. Justice and beneficence/nonmaleficence were also valued. Although not mentioned in the Guide, the professionals also considered other ethical principles when making ELDs, namely, responsibility, integrity, and dignity. Most of the interviewees and field notes referred to the collective interprofessional dimension of the decision-making process. Palliative sedation and the wish to hasten death were the most mentioned disputed/controversial issues. The nature, limitations, and benefits of qualitative secondary analysis are discussed.

CONCLUSIONS
End-of-life decision-making processes made by Portuguese PC teams seem to be consistent with the guidelines of the CoE. Further research is needed about disputed/controversial issues and the actual use, effectiveness, and impact of ethical guidelines for end-of-life decision making on professionals' empowerment and for all parties involved.


BACKGROUND
Basosquamous carcinoma (BSC) is a rare epithelial tumor with a still confusing terminology. Since 2005 a more comprehensive and broader classification has existed.

AIM
To retrospectively review our cases of BSC according to the new WHO definition and to re-evaluate their clinical and demographic characteristics and the margin involvement after traditional surgical excision. The data were compared with the same results obtained by basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs).

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Histologically confirmed carcinomas observed in our Department during a sixteen-year period (1994-2011) were studied. Surgical excision was evaluated following the international guidelines. Histopathologic subtypes of BSC were classified in accordance with accepted criteria.

RESULTS
Seventy-six patients had a BSC, 305 a SCC, 3,643 a BCC. There were significant differences among the median age of BSCs, the total BCCs and Non-Aggressive BCCs (74.7, 68.8 and 68.3 years respectively; p<0.05). BSC was more significantly located on head-neck region than Non-Aggressive BCC (p<0.04), and less on trunk than Mixed Histology BCC (p<0.01) and Non-Aggressive BCC (p<0.005). BSC has higher prevalence of positive margins after excision than total (p<0.03) and Non-Aggressive BCC (p<0.001).

CONCLUSION
Basosquamous carcinoma fits to a tumor type with a different behavior pattern from non-aggressive basal cell carcinoma and more similar to squamous cell carcinoma or aggressive variants of basal cell carcinoma. Its infiltrative growth and the stromal reaction patterns give enough evidence to support the notion of considering basosquamous carcinoma as a relatively aggressive tumor.


Purpose: This study contributes to the emerging literature on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and queer (LGBTQ) health disparities and tobacco use by examining the motivations for smoking among the New York City (NYC) LGBTQ population. Approach: We used grounded theory and blended methods from 3 grounded theorists—Strauss, Corbin, and Charmaz—for data collection, coding, and analysis. Setting: NYC has extensive legislation to prevent smoking; however, the current smoking prevalence of homosexuals is double that of heterosexuals. Participants: Study participants were leaders from 23 NYC LGBTQ organizations. Leaders were chosen to establish a relationship with community and to ensure cultural sensitivity. Eligibility criteria required holding a leadership position in an organization serving the NYC LGBTQ community. Methods: Interviews were transcribed verbatim and uploaded into Dedoose for analysis. An initial code list was developed from the interview guide. Key themes were identified as the themes with the most number of quotes. Results: Three key themes emerged from our interviews: image, socializing, and stress. Smoking was reported to be a socialization aid and a maladaptive coping technique for stress arising from interactions of conflicting identities. Conclusion: Future smoking cessation interventions among the LGBTQ community should equip smokers with healthy coping mechanisms that address the stressors that arise from the intersections of smokers' many identities.


Pressure sensors with high performance (e.g., a broad pressure sensing range, high sensitivities, rapid response/relaxation speeds, temperature-stable sensing), as well as a cost-effective and highly efficient fabrication method are highly desired for electronic skins. In this research, a high-performance pressure sensor based on microstructured carbon nanotube/polydimethylsiloxane arrays was fabricated using an ultra-violet/ozone (UV/O3) microengineering technique. The UV/O3 microengineering technique is controllable, cost-effective, and highly efficient since it is conducted at room temperature in an ambient environment. The pressure sensor offers a broad pressure sensing range (7 Pa–50 kPa), a sensitivity of ∼ −0.101 ± 0.005 kPa−1 (<1 kPa), a fast response/relaxation speed of ∼10 ms, a small dependence on temperature variation, and a good cycling stability (>5000 cycles), which is attributed to the UV/O3 engineered microstructures that amplify and transfer external applied forces and rapidly store/release the energy during the PDMS deformation. The sensors developed show the capability to detect external forces and monitor human health conditions, promising for the potential applications in electronic skin.


Introduction The incidence of Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) has risen globally by 83% since 1990, concurrently with type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Studies of maternal under-nutrition during pregnancy have highlighted that the kidney can be adversely "programmed" resulting in fewer filtration units, a factor linked to the pathogenesis of CKD, hypertension and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Despite the dramatic increase in obesity in recent years, the effect of maternal over-nutrition/obesity during pregnancy on offspring kidney structure and function remains largely unexplored. The aim of the current study was to define the effects of maternal over-nutrition on offspring kidney structure using a mouse model of maternal diet-induced obesity. Methods Female C57BL/6 mice were fed a high fat diet supplemented with sweetened condensed milk for six weeks prior to pregnancy and throughout gestation and lactation. This led to a doubling in maternal body fat. Male offspring were studied at 3 weeks of age. Kidneys were harvested, sectioned and stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin. Nephrons were counted in whole sections at even interspaces throughout the kidney to estimate the number of nephrons within a given area. Glomeruli diameters were also measured as an indicator of glomerular area. Results There was no difference in absolute kidney weight between the 2 offspring groups (p = 0.95). Offspring exposed to a maternal obesogenic diet had significantly larger combined renal cortex and medulla areas than offspring exposed to a maternal chow diet (17.4 mm2 vs 12.5 mm2 respectively [p = 0.0136]). However, the number of nephrons/mm2 within the cortex and medulla was significantly reduced in offspring of obese pregnancies when compared to controls (2.2/mm2 vs. 3.5/mm2 respectively [p = 0.0047]). The mean glomerulus diameter was also significantly larger within offspring of obese pregnancies compared with offspring of control pregnancies (53.7 um vs. 46.3 um respectively [p < 0.0001]). Conclusions These results suggest that there is compensatory individual glomerular hypertrophy due to a reduced glomeruli density in offspring exposed to maternal obesity during pregnancy and lactation, and that these individuals may therefore be more at risk of developing renal disease and associated CVD in later life. These findings highlight the importance of further studying the long-term consequences of these early morphological changes.


We initiate the study of hypothesis selection under local differential privacy. Given samples from an unknown probability distribution $p$ and a set of $k$ probability distributions $\mathcal{Q}$, we aim to output, under the constraints of $\varepsilon$-local differential privacy, a distribution from $\mathcal{Q}$ whose total variation distance to $p$ is comparable to the best such distribution. This is a generalization of the classic problem of $k$-wise simple hypothesis testing, which corresponds to when $p \in \mathcal{Q}$, and we wish to identify $p$. Absent privacy constraints, this problem requires $O(\log k)$ samples from $p$, and it was recently shown that the same complexity is achievable under (central) differential privacy. However, the naive approach to this problem under local differential privacy would require $\tilde O(k^2)$ samples.
We first show that the constraint of local differential privacy incurs an exponential increase in cost: any algorithm for this problem requires at least $\Omega(k)$ samples. Second, for the special case of $k$-wise simple hypothesis testing, we provide a non-interactive algorithm which nearly matches this bound, requiring $\tilde O(k)$ samples. Finally, we provide sequentially interactive algorithms for the general case, requiring $\tilde O(k)$ samples and only $O(\log \log k)$ rounds of interactivity. Our algorithms are achieved through a reduction to maximum selection with adversarial comparators, a problem of independent interest for which we initiate study in the parallel setting. For this problem, we provide a family of algorithms for each number of allowed rounds of interaction $t$, as well as lower bounds showing that they are near-optimal for every $t$. Notably, our algorithms result in exponential improvements on the round complexity of previous methods.


OBJECTIVES
The goal of this study was to examine the mental health needs of children and youth who present to the emergency department (ED) for mental health care and to describe the type of, and satisfaction with, follow-up mental health services accessed.

METHODS
A 6-month to 1.5-year prospective cohort study was conducted in three Canadian pediatric EDs and one general ED, with a 1-month follow-up post-ED discharge. Measures included 1) clinician rating of mental health needs, 2) patient and caregiver self-reports of follow-up services, and 3) interviews regarding follow-up satisfaction. Data analysis included descriptive statistics and the Fisher's exact test to compare sites.

RESULTS
The cohort consisted of 373 children and youth (61.1% female; mean age 15.1 years, 1.5 standard deviation). The main reason for ED presentations was a mental health crisis. The three most frequent areas of need requiring action were mood (43.8%), suicide risk (37.4%), and parent-child relational problems (34.6%). During the ED visit, 21.6% of patients received medical clearance, 40.9% received a psychiatric consult, and 19.4% were admitted to inpatient psychiatric care. At the 1-month post-ED visit, 84.3% of patients/caregivers received mental health follow-up. Ratings of service recommendations were generally positive, as 60.9% of patients obtained the recommended follow-up care and 13.9% were wait-listed.

CONCLUSIONS
Children and youth and their families presenting to the ED with mental health needs had substantial clinical morbidity, were connected with services, were satisfied with their ED visit, and accessed follow-up care within 1-month with some variability.


We review the evolutionary theory relevant to the question of human cooperation and compare the results to other theoretical perspectives. Then, we summarize some of our work distilling a compound explanation that we believe gives a plausible account of human cooperation and selfishness. This account leans heavily on group selection on cultural variation but also includes lower-level forces driven by both microscale cooperation and purely selfish motives. We propose that innate aspects of human social psychology coevolved with group-selected cultural institutions to produce just the kinds of social and moral faculties originally proposed by Darwin. We call this the "tribal social instincts" hypothesis. The account is systemic in the sense that human social systems are functionally differentiated, conflicted, and diverse. A successful explanation of human cooperation has to account for these complexities. For example, a tribal-scale cultural group selection process alone cannot account for human patterns of cooperation because, on one hand, much conflict exists within tribes and, on the other, people have proven able to organize cooperation on a much larger scale than tribes. We include multilevel selection and gene–culture coevolution effects to account for some of these complexities and discuss empirical tests of the resulting hypotheses. In particular, we argue that strong support for the tribal social instincts hypothesis comes from the structure of modern social institutions. These institutions have conspicuous "work-arounds" that shed light on the underlying instincts.

http://www.des.ucdavis.edu/faculty/richerson/Dahlem 9 29 02.prn.pdf


Age estimation is particularly crucial for the conservation of the saiga antelope Saiga tatarica, but modern laboratory methods for aging have not previously been applied to this species. There is an urgent need for evaluation of the techniques that could be used for age estimation in order that long-term ecological data sets can be correctly interpreted and conservation advice given. We evaluated the repeatability, practical feasibility and comparability of three techniques for age estimation of saiga antelopes; the tooth sectioning technique (TS), the tooth eruption and wear technique (TEW), and a visual aging technique routinely used in field studies. We found that TS and TEW gave repeatable results, and agreed well. The visual method underestimated the age of males compared to laboratory methods. It assigned animals consistently to the age class of at least one year old, but less consistently to the age class less than one year old. Although studies of known-age animals are needed to evaluate precision and accuracy of these methods, we suggest that either TS or TEW would be suitable for aging saiga antelopes, with the choice being determined by practicalities such as the availability of the necessary expertise and equipment.


Objective: To assess safety and efficacy of deflazacort (DFZ) and prednisone (PRED) vs placebo in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Methods: This phase III, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, multicenter study evaluated muscle strength among 196 boys aged 5–15 years with DMD during a 52-week period. In phase 1, participants were randomly assigned to receive treatment with DFZ 0.9 mg/kg/d, DFZ 1.2 mg/kg/d, PRED 0.75 mg/kg/d, or placebo for 12 weeks. In phase 2, placebo participants were randomly assigned to 1 of the 3 active treatment groups. Participants originally assigned to an active treatment continued that treatment for an additional 40 weeks. The primary efficacy endpoint was average change in muscle strength from baseline to week 12 compared with placebo. The study was completed in 1995. Results: All treatment groups (DFZ 0.9 mg/kg/d, DFZ 1.2 mg/kg/d, and PRED 0.75 mg/kg/d) demonstrated significant improvement in muscle strength compared with placebo at 12 weeks. Participants taking PRED had significantly more weight gain than placebo or both doses of DFZ at 12 weeks; at 52 weeks, participants taking PRED had significantly more weight gain than both DFZ doses. The most frequent adverse events in all 3 active treatment arms were Cushingoid appearance, erythema, hirsutism, increased weight, headache, and nasopharyngitis. Conclusions: After 12 weeks of treatment, PRED and both doses of DFZ improved muscle strength compared with placebo. Deflazacort was associated with less weight gain than PRED. Classification of evidence: This study provides Class I evidence that for boys with DMD, daily use of either DFZ and PRED is effective in preserving muscle strength over a 12-week period.


The Quality Education Project of the Universidad Nacional, Costa Rica (UNA Educacion de Calidad) was created in 1998 as a direct response channel for students with disabilities or educational needs in their professional training. Considering the experience generated throughout the project's activity at the University in 2008 and 2010, the project team decided to evaluate the work that had been developed with the assistance of a group of students, in order to identify the results of services provided and make the appropriate changes. This process was implemented through workshops, which enabled the group to observe the performance of each participant, individually and collectively, at different times. During the workshops, group work guides were used in the discussion sessions on educational needs and assistance methods, an instrument with incomplete phrases was applied, a video on the issue being discussed was shown, and a final analysis was made on the feelings and emotions that emerged from the assistance activities. Among the main findings, this study points out a range of assistance methods developed by each student to respond to the educational needs of his/her peers, based on the personal and social conditions of each one of them; in addition to a number of spaces created for exchange and interaction. This helped both groups of students to work in the reconstruction of the traditional concept that is associated to the term of "disability" and further develop personal abilities and skills that will contribute to the students' permanence in the university, as well as to their social and labor inclusion. The study provides useful recommendations to meet the needs of the student population participating in the Project, particularly in terms of follow-up and assistance methods, a challenge to be undertaken in the everyday activity of UNA Educacion de Calidad.


This article conducts a comparative analysis of the American and European Conventions on Human Rights to review the relationship between conventionality control and constitutionality control assumed by domestic courts. First, the analysis negates the monist pyramid model by pointing out the limits of the supremacy of international law and constitution. Given the integration of conventionality control into constitutionality control in practice, this study instead presents the normative framework of the trapezium model, crowning the common values recognized by both national constitutions and international law. This research also contributes to clarifying the pro homine principle, a fitting concept to the trapezium schema, focusing on the most favourable treatment for individuals. Specifically, it proves the principle's double function to offensively pierce or defensively safeguard the boundary between international and domestic legal orders. Finally, it argues that in cases of conflicting rights between different individuals, the pro homine principle relativizes an absolute protection of certain rights to strike balance between them. In essence, conventionality control and constitutionality control should be coordinated by the open-minded, substance-oriented, pro homine principle within the pluralist trapezium, in lieu of the principle of the closed, formal supremacy of international law or constitution within the monist pyramid.


The organic-inorganic field effect transistors (OIFETs) with ZnS active layer were fabricated on the ITO/glass substrate using cross-linked PVP (poly-4-vinylphenol) as a gate insulator. ZnS semiconductor films were prepared by the atomic layer deposition method. In the case of cross-linked PVP film, the leakage current and capacitance were about 1× 10-8 A and 12 nF/cm2, showing good gate insulation property. The carrier concentration and mobility of ZnS film deposited on SiO2/Si wafer was found to be -9.4×1015 cm-3 and 49.0 cm2/ V·sec, respectively. For the OIFET devices with ITO/PVP/ZnS/Ti:Au structure, the carrier mobility was about 1.9 cm2/V·sec. From the AFM images, lower mobility in the OIFET device compared with ZnS film on SiO2/Si substrate may be attributed to a rough surface morphology of ZnS film.


This paper outlines the development and adaptation of a coupling strategy for transient temperature analysis in a solid via a conjugate heat transfer method. This study proposes a quasi‐dynamic coupling procedure to bridge the temporal disparities between the fluid and the solid. In this approach, dynamic thermal modeling in the solid is coupled with a sequence of steady states in the fluid. This quasi‐dynamic algorithm has been applied to the problem of convective heat transfer over, and transient conduction heat transfer within, a flat plate using the severe thermal conditions of a solid propellant rocket. Two different coupled thermal computations have been performed. In the first one—referred to as the reference computation—the coupling period is equal to the smallest solid time constant. In the second one, a very large coupling period is used. The results show that the procedure can predict accurate transient temperature fields at a reasonable computational cost. The simulation CPU time is approximately reduced by up to 90%, while maintaining a very good accuracy. All the details of the numerical test case are given in the paper. This application illustrates the capabilities and the overall efficiency of this coupled approach in a solid transient problem using long term simulations of time dependent flows. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The impact of media images on adolescents' body image and thin ideal endorsement has been consistently asserted in the body image literature, yet has remained inadequately tested. I used social comparison theory and critical viewing with a sample of 214 high school girls to predict adolescents' body-image disturbance and thin ideal endorsement. Media variables accounted fr 15% of the variance for drive for thinness, 17% for body dissatisfaction, 16% for bulimic behaviors, and 33% for thin ideal endorsement. Results suggest that body image processing is the boy to understanding how television images affect adolescent girls' body-image attitudes and behaviors.


DNA polymerase κ mediates drug resistance in tumor cells through a mechanism that could be independent of mutagenesis. Polκ manages stress DNA polymerase κ (Polκ) is a traditionally error-prone polymerase that is overexpressed in some tumors. Temprine et al. found that Polκ facilitates tumor cell survival in response to oncogenic mutations (such as those in the kinases BRAF or EGFR), targeted kinase inhibition, oxidative stress, or starvation. These cellular stresses shifted Polκ from its largely cytoplasmic distribution to a nuclear localization in various tumor cell types, but without increasing mutagenesis. Knocking down Polκ decreased, whereas blocking its nuclear exit increased, the resistance of melanoma cells to the BRAF-targeted inhibitor vemurafenib, suggesting that targeting Polκ may reduce drug resistance in cancer patients. The DNA polymerase Polκ plays a key role in translesion synthesis, an error-prone replication mechanism. Polκ is overexpressed in various tumor types. Here, we found that melanoma and lung and breast cancer cells experiencing stress from oncogene inhibition up-regulated the expression of Polκ and shifted its localization from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. This effect was phenocopied by inhibition of the kinase mTOR, by induction of ER stress, or by glucose deprivation. In unstressed cells, Polκ is continually transported out of the nucleus by exportin-1. Inhibiting exportin-1 or overexpressing Polκ increased the abundance of nuclear-localized Polκ, particularly in response to the BRAFV600E-targeted inhibitor vemurafenib, which decreased the cytotoxicity of the drug in BRAFV600E melanoma cells. These observations were analogous to how Escherichia coli encountering cell stress and nutrient deprivation can up-regulate and activate DinB/pol IV, the bacterial ortholog of Polκ, to induce mutagenesis that enables stress tolerance or escape. However, we found that the increased expression of Polκ was not excessively mutagenic, indicating that noncatalytic or other functions of Polκ could mediate its role in stress responses in mammalian cells. Repressing the expression or nuclear localization of Polκ might prevent drug resistance in some cancer cells.


A septic arthritis due to an indolent infection is a challenge for timely diagnosis. In recent years septic arthritides due to Staphylococcus Warneri are increasingly reported, mostly as a complication in patients with prosthetic devices. We report on a case of a 38 year old immunocompetent male with an indolent infection with this commensal of the skin after a stay at an intensive care unit and review the available literature. Tissue cultures obtained by arthroscopy might be helpful in obtaining a correct diagnosis.


Following the radical reorientation of agricultural policy during the SAP years, beginning in the mid-1980's, cassava emerged as an important crop in the national effort to replace imported foods with domestic production. The policy direction of the Nigerian government has encouraged cassava development leading to a new orientation in research-extension-farmers linkage, especially in the IFAD-assisted Cassava Multiplication Programme (CMP). This study evaluated farm management dividends in a friendly policy environment: the case of cassava industry in Nigeria. Data were collected from randomly sampled 360 cassava farmers in Benue State, Nigeria using a structured questionnaire. The data were analyzed using the stochastic frontier production function. The findings of the study indicated that the elasticity of mean value of cassava output with respect to farm size (1.39) was of increasing function while labour cost (0.19), family labour (0.90), cassava stems (0.95) and fertilized (0.01) were of decreasing function. Moreover, the coefficients on the variables: labour cost, X1(-0.19), farm size, X3 (1.39), cassava stems, X4 (0.95) and fertilizer, X5 (0.01) were statistically significant at the 1% level while family labour,X2 (-0.09) was not significant. The sum of the coefficients on the significant variables of the stochastic frontier production model (2.63) was higher than unity. The estimated coefficient of cassava variety planted (-0.18) and the estimated coefficient of processing technology available (-0.1) were negative and significant at 1% level, suggesting that technical inefficiency effects declined with the planting of improved cassava varieties and the use of improved cassava processing technology. The estimated sigma squared, a2 (0.16), was significantly different from zero at 1% level. This indicates a good fit and the correctness of the specified distributional assumption of the composite error term. In addition the magnitude of the variance ratio, was estimated to be high at 0.96, suggesting that the systematic influences that are unexplained by the production function are the dominant sources of errors. Thus, given the specifications of the Cobb-Douglas frontier production function, the Cobb-Douglas frontier is an adequate representation of the model for the farm data collected on the cassava farmers in Benue State of Nigeria. Majority of the respondents (63.61%) operated closer to their frontier production function while predicted technical efficiencies varied widely among farms, ranging between 31% and 100%, and a mean technical efficiency of 89%. It is recommended that adequate financial assistance and credit facilities should be made available to the farmers to enable them increase their production. Since there are potentials for cassava growth in the study area, the cassava farmers in Benue State should expand their production because they would obtain more output in the long run. Technical efficiency in cassava production in Benue State could be increased through better use of available resources via improved farm-specific factors, which include access to improved cassava planting material, access to improved cassava processing technology, access to available cassava markets and access to improved extension services.


We give a brief overview of some new results in Helmholtz soliton theory. Firstly, fundamental considerations are made in terms of new contexts for Helmholtz solitons that arise directly from Maxwells equations. We then detail applications of Helmholtz solitons in material interface geometries: generalising Snells law to nonlinear beams and reporting new qualitative phenomena. Novel families of bistable soliton solutions to a cubic-quintic Helmholtz equation are also presented. Finally, an analysis of counterpropagating beams that includes new bidirectional solitons is summarized. This paper is dedicated to the late Dr. Valery E. Grikurov.


At present time, when the rate of risk is increasing, achieving higher quality of investment decision-making by integrating risk and uncertainty factors could positively affect economical results and firm's prosperity. Firstly this article characterizes shortcomings of investment decision making connected with over optimism of people, preparing and evaluating investment projects. Important tool, which could contribute to removing, or at least weakening of these shortcomings, represents Monte Carlo simulation. To description of content Monte Carlo simulation in framework of risk analysis, its problem aspects, advantages and disadvantages is devoted main part of the article. The practical illustration of solving real investment problem from the field of oil industry through Monte Carlo simulation is also involved.


Multilingual neural machine translation can translate unseen language pairs during training, i.e. zero-shot translation. However, the zero-shot translation is always unstable. Although prior works attributed the instability to the domination of central language, e.g. English, we supplement this viewpoint with the strict dependence of non-centered languages. In this work, we propose a simple, lightweight yet effective language-specific modeling method by adapting to non-centered languages and combining the shared information and the language-specific information to counteract the instability of zero-shot translation. Experiments with Transformer on IWSLT17, Europarl, TED talks, and OPUS-100 datasets show that our method not only performs better than strong baselines in centered data conditions but also can easily fit non-centered data conditions. By further investigating the layer attribution, we show that our proposed method can disentangle the coupled representation in the correct direction.


The FDTL Phase 4 project, Making Practice Based Learning Work, aims to make practitioners more effective at supporting & supervising students in the workplace across a range of healthcare disciplines. So far the project has: Identified and documented good practice on preparing health care practitioners for their educational role. Developed learning materials for practitioners. Current project activity involves:Evaluate learning materials for practitioners. Disseminate learning materials across health and social care communities. The workshop includes an overview of the project's current processes and outcomes before focussing on a participatory exploration of: Effective ways to disseminate information about developed learning materials. ? Strategies to embed developed learning materials into work based learning contexts. The workshop will utilise participants' experiences in enhancing student learning within workbased environments to inform the discussion. Outcomes for the session are: a. Gain insight into potential ways of making work based supervisors more effective in their role. b. Share good practice in disseminating learning materials to work based educators. c. Develop greater awareness of factors influencing use of learning materials.


Implantable brain computer interfaces (BCIs) promise to re-establish communication for severely paralyzed people. This thesis argues that decoding the acts of language production is a promising strategy for BCI control. Using high-field functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and high-density electrocorticography (ECoG) we studied the topographic representation of different acts of language production and the robustness of their activity patterns, to test the hypothesis of fine-grained topography. Given that the brain surface is covered with blood vessels, we first investigated the importance of positioning ECoG electrodes on brain tissue, by evaluating effects of bloodvessels on signal quality. We showed that the signal recorded by electrodes on top of blood vessels has a different frequency content compared to the signal recorded by electrodes that are in direct contact with the cortical surface. This is primarily the case for higher frequencies, which are most informative for BCI control. The absolute differences in power are only small; however, this becomes important in the context of implantable BCI systems where the absolute signal strength is a relevant factor, for example for the necessary pre-amplification of the signal before it can be transmitted. We subsequently tested the hypothesis that hand gestures from sign language can be discriminated based on their representation on the sensorimotor cortex on a single trial basis, by using fMRI and a 7 Tesla MRI scanner. Four complex hand gestures could be classified with an accuracy of 63% (range 35- 95%; chance level 25%). A small patch of cortex, around the hand knob area, was sufficient to make this discrimination. The classification accuracy varied considerably between participants, and appeared to be related to the consistency with which the gestures were executed. We tested the same hypothesis with implanted electrode grids in five epilepsy patients (implanted for diagnostic reasons). High-density electrode grids were implanted on the sensorimotor cortex. From the five patients, two had adequate hand-knob coverage for analysis. We showed that hand gestures could also be discriminated using ECoG signals. Four different hand gestures were classified with 97% in one participant and with 73% in the second participant. In the final phase we tested whether we could decode speech articulators, and showed that articulator movements can be discriminated based on their representation on the sensorimotor cortex on a single trial basis using 7 Tesla fMRI with an accuracy of 89%. A small patch of cortex, the ventral half of the lateral sensorimotor cortex, was sufficient to make these discriminations, indicating that the articulator movements could also be distinguished using surface electrodes. This research shows that language related movements can be decoded based on the brain activity of a small patch of cortex. Further testing in paralyzed people is required to investigate potential applications of this work in BCIs.


On August 15, 2019, Time Warner filed a petition with the United States Supreme Court seeking to vacate a $139.8 million damages verdict. That amount represents approximately 5% of Time Warner's monthly subscriber revenue ($1.37 per subscriber per month). Time Warner argues that this award is too much given the contribution the patented feature made to its infringing service. At its core, the damages portion of the petition is asking the Supreme Court to provide guidance that will ensure that damages verdicts rely on apportionment principles and provide clarity in how they achieve this.

For years, the Federal Circuit has required apportionment in calculating royalties for complex products because modern technology products (e.g. smart phones and semiconductors) have countless features, most of them unrelated to any given patent at issue. The patentee is entitled to capture value added by the infringing feature, but cannot recover value attributable to everything else.

As with many issues in patent law, this is easier said than done. How do courts ensure that a patentee's expert opinion on the ultimate damages figure is based on apportionment principles? How do we know if the jury verdict reflects those same principles? This essay uses Time Warner's petition to describe the challenge of implementing apportionment and set forths some potential ideas for future study.


Abstract From Operation Warp Speed to the lipid mRNA vaccine, the COVID-19 pandemic has been a watershed moment for technological development, production, and implementation. The scale and pace of innovation and global collaboration has likely not been experienced since World War II. This article highlights some of the engineering accomplishments that occurred during the pandemic. We provide a broad overview of the technological achievements in vaccine design, antibody engineering, drug repurposing, and rapid diagnostic testing. We also discuss what the future of these technologies and the future of large-scale collaborations might look like moving forward. Graphic abstract


Intracerebral hemorrhage accounts for about 10% of all strokes. The diagnosis of this stroke subtype has been revolutionized by the use the computed tomography scanner. Therapeutic intervention in the form of medical and surgical management is reviewed. The critical management issues center on identifying the etiology of hemorrhage, controlling blood pressure, and controlling intracranial pressure.


The increasing number of enlistees claiming their right to enroll in the programs of African Universities and the limited number of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) were the prime reasons of students overcrowding in classes. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) showed a potential to help limiting the challenges of massification in open access HEIs. As the literature review of the MOOC situation in Africa is still nascent, we will qualitatively share the experience of Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech, Morocco (UCA) in launching a MOOC for its learners as a case study. Created in 2013, this MOOC was entitled UC@MOOC and appeared to respond to the challenges of massification in open access HEIs and the language difficulties faced by students. We will also present an overview of this project, its achievements and the quantity of knowledge delivery it accomplished. This MOOC experience attracted learners from other countries. And we have found that a shortage of MOOCs in Africa drove learners from other African francophone countries to learn from UC@MOOC. Yet a low-cost MOOC with certain limitations such as the weak ICT infrastructure available to the African public will thrive if operated using a MOOC platform and boosted its financial means.


Introduction: Idiopathic club foot is primarily treated by Ponseti technique of serial manipulation and casting. Ponseti recommended evaluation of club foot by palpation, but it is subjective, dependent on clinical experience and limited by inter-observer variability.
Aim: To assess the deformities and amount of correction achieved after the treatment using radiographs obtained before and after treatment.
Materials and Methods: A non-randomized, interventional study was done among patients with idiopathic club foot treated by Ponseti method. Radiographs including the anteroposterior and lateral projections in maximum dorsiflexion of foot were taken at presentation and after completion of treatment. Five parameters, i.e., the Anteroposterior (TCA-AP) and Lateral Talo-Calcaneal Angle (TCA-LT), Anteroposterior Talo-First Metatarsal Angle (TMT-AP), Lateral Tibio-Calcaneal Angle (TiC-LT) and Talo-Calcaneal Index (TCI) were measured and analysed. The Student's paired t-test was used to compare the variables before and after treatment and a p-value of less than 0.05 was considered significant.
R
esults: There was a statistically significant improvement in the mean values of the five parameters after treatment when compared with the values on presentation.The Anteroposterior Talo-Calcaneal Angle (TCA-AP) before treatment had a mean value of 21.4 and after treatment had a mean value of 33.82° (p-value <0.05). The TMT-AP had a mean value of 29.07° & 2.14° following treatment (p-value <0.05). The TCA-LT had a mean of 18.05° prior to treatment & 34° after correction (p-value <0.05). The TCI had a mean of 39.41° before treatment & 67.82° after treatment (p-value<0.05). The TiC-LT at presentation had a mean value of 102.95° & 64.31 after treatment (p-value <0.05).
Conclusion: Analytical radiology of club foot is a reliable method of evaluation of the treatment and tends to be more objective and critical when multiple parameters are considered.


ABSTRACT Background Global climate change (GCC) has become one of the most debated socio-scientific issues after an increase in media attention. Recently, there have also been several studies describing students' and teachers' alternative conceptions about GCC. Therefore, designing learning environments at the college level that focus on accurate conceptions of GCC has become important in order for pre-service teachers to correct their alternative conceptions. There are, however, a limited number of studies that aim to both increase pre-service teachers' knowledge about these issues and explore their perceptions of teaching this subject. Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of inquiry-based activities on pre-service teachers' knowledge about GCC and their perceptions of teaching this subject. Sample The participants were 102 pre-service middle school mathematics and science teachers who were enrolled in an environmental education course. Design and methods A one group pre-test–post-test design was employed to identify changes after pre-service teachers engaged in a learning unit on GCC. The inquiry-based GCC unit was implemented during the spring semester at a public university in northeastern Turkey. The unit was implemented over seven sessions. Data were collected through two questionnaires: the 'GCC content questionnaire' and the 'perceptions of teaching GCC questionnaire'. Each questionnaire was administered both before and after implementation of the unit. Content questionnaire responses were analyzed using a paired-samples t-test. Responses to the perceptions of teaching questionnaire were analyzed using inductive open coding. Results Results indicated that after the implementation the pre-service teachers significantly improved their understanding of GCC across all items in the content questionnaire, saw several benefits of and challenges about teaching GCC, and perceived themselves as better prepared to teach about GCC in their future classrooms. Conclusions Teacher education programs should integrate inquiry-based GCC instruction to increase pre-service teachers' knowledge as well as their preparedness to teach about this important planetary issue.


To determine whether glucose and insulin responses to a mixed meal are influenced by time of day irrespective of duration of prior fast, eight normal subjects (4 males, 4 females) were studied on two separate occasions, involving ingestion of identical meals at either 6- or 12-h intervals. The 24-h profiles of plasma glucose, serum insulin, and plasma C-peptide were obtained at 20-min intervals. Plasma cortisol levels were measured on each sample to evaluate possible relationship between diurnal variations in metabolic responses and circadian rhythm of cortisol. Rates of secretion of insulin and cortisol were mathematically derived from peripheral concentrations by deconvolution using two-compartment models for clearance kinetics. Postmeal responses of glucose, insulin, and insulin secretion rate were evaluated by calculating maximum postmeal increment, total area under curve, area under curve for 2 h after meal ingestion, and total duration of response. Postmeal cortisol responses were quantified by increment in plasma level and amount secreted in postmeal pulse. For glucose responses, irrespective of duration of prior fast, all four parameters characterizing the response were significantly greater in the evening than in the morning, with total area under curve and 2-h area under curve being approximately twofold larger in the evening than in the morning. Time of day did not significantly influence maximum postmeal increment in insulin secretion rate or duration of insulin secretory response, but total and 2-h areas under curve were 25-50% greater in the evening than in the morning. Meal ingestion was followed by a significant pulse of cortisol secretion in 37 of 40 cases.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The purpose of this study was to show that the thermal properties of foam neoprene under hydrostatic pressure cannot be predicted by theoretical means, and that uni-axial pressure cannot simulate hydrostatic compression. The thermal conductivity and compressive strain of foam neoprene were measured under hydrostatic pressure. In parallel, uni-axial compressive strain data were collected. The experimental set-up and data were put into perspective with past published studies. It was shown that uni-axial compression yielded strains 20–25% greater than did hydrostatic compression. This suggests the need for direct hydrostatic pressure measurement. For comparison to hydrostatic experimental data, a series of thermal conductivity theories of two phase composites based on particulate phase geometry were utilized. Due to their dependence on the porosity and constituent thermal conductivities, a model to predict porosity under hydrostatic pressure was used and an empirical correlation was derived to calculate the thermal conductivity of pure neoprene rubber from experimental data. It was shown that, although some agreement between experimental data and thermal conductivity theories was present, no particular theory can be used because they all fail to model the complex structure of the pores. It was therefore concluded that an experimental programme, such as reported here, is necessary for direct measurement.


Gray equals 100 rads. One may argue that the writers should have been talking in rems when referring to biological effects of different radiations, but even then the unit would have been wrong: one Sievert (Sv) equals 100 rems. The editor should insist that his own staff follow the "Instructions to Authors" (p 892 of that issue) and the rest of us in clinical medicine who are obliged to make the change. The other error is in the mathematical expression of the law of exponential radiation decay: one suspects that the writers were being too clever by t12 D TONG


SuperCritical Water-cooled nuclear Reactor (SCWR) designs are one of six nuclear-reactor concepts being developed under the Generation IV International Forum (GIF) initiative. A generic pressure-tube SCWR consists of distributed fuel channels with coolant inlet and outlet temperatures of 350 and 625°C at 25 MPa, respectively. Such reactor coolant outlet conditions allow for high thermal efficiencies of SCW Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) of about 45–50%. In addition to high thermal efficiencies, SCWR designs provide the means for co-generation of hydrogen through thermochemical processes such as the Cu–Cl cycle.The main objective of this paper is to determine the power distribution inside the core of an SCWR by using a lattice code - DRAGON and a diffusion code - DONJON. As a result of these calculations, heat-flux profiles in all fuel channels were determined. Consequently, the heat-flux profile in a channel with the maximum thermal power was used as an input into a thermal-hydraulic code, which was developed in MATLAB in order to calculate a fuel centerline temperature for UO2 and UC nuclear fuels. Results of an analysis showed that the fuel centerline temperature of UC was significantly lower than that of UO2. This paper also studies effects of energy groups on multi-group diffusion calculations and proposes nine energy groups for further neutronic studies related to SCWRs.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


Why do many animals live well beyond their reproductive period? This seems counter to the theory that the fraction of life spent reproducing should be maximized in order to maximize the number of offspring produced in each generation. To resolve this paradox, hypotheses have been developed that evoke parental or grandparental care as reasons for post-reproductive life (e.g., the Mother and Grandmother Hypotheses). However, these hypotheses fail to explain the presence of post-reproductive life in organisms that do not care for their young, such as Caenorhabditis elegans. Here we show that a candidate proxy of the stress of childbirth explains a large portion of the variance in post-reproductive lifespans across many species. A remarkably simple metric, the "offspring ratio" (ratio of the size or weight of offspring to that of the mother) explained 77% of the variance of the post-reproductive lifespan in a sample drawn from widely dispersed taxa. Our results suggest that the stress of childbirth is an important and conserved determinant of post-reproductive lifespan. Thus, long post-reproductive lifespan may simply be a byproduct of the somatic health required for reproduction of large progeny, regardless of parental care.


The original Ramayana was written three thousand years ago. Now, with breathtaking imagination and brilliant storytelling, Indian writer Ashok K. Banker has recreated this epic tale for modern readers everywhere. For thirteen long years, Rama and his companions in exile have defended themselves against the brutal incursions of the rakshasas of the wilderness. Finally, in the bitter battle of Janasthana, he achieves the long-sought victory, and retires to the sun-dappled glades of Panchvati to wait out the last months of his exile. But unknown to Rama, the demoness Supanakha has survived and escaped - back to the hellish island-kingdom of Lanka. There, she provides the key to resurrect her stricken cousin Ravana, lord of the rakshasas. And the resurrected Ravana seeks only one thing: vengeance against Rama ...


Sabah Tea Plantation is the largest organic tea plantation in the state of Sabah. It is situated in the elevation of 1200m as the highest and produces one of the finest tea grade around the world. The optimal yield production is hindered by the presence of root disease, with the most common one being the red root disease. The causal agent of this red root disease is believed to be Poria hypolateritia of the class Basidiomycetes. In identifying the causal pathogen of the root disease, three samples of roots were taken from each of five infected root tea bushes at Sabah Tea. The fifteen root samples were placed in sterilized blue capped bottles and were brought back to Plant Technology laboratory of UMS for culture and identification using two different methods. The methods include root tissues culturing which is of obtaining pure cultures and root sample segmentation method as direct visualization of microbial infection. The presence of characteristics such as the spores, fruiting bodies, hyphae attachments, the presence or absence of hyphal septa and clamp connections. The microscopic examination resulted the confirmed group of pathogen where there is clamp connections does show that Poria hypolateritia is the causal pathogen. Future research can be carried out as pathogenicity tests conducted on Poria spp. thus leave room for control or prevention methods.


Aim: Homocysteine is known to inhibit endothelial cell proliferation, which is a key event in angiogenesis. Factors responsible for the presence or absence of coronary collateral circulation are poorly understood. Therefore, in this study we investigated the effect of plasma homocysteine level on the early formation of angiographically visible collaterals after acute myocardial infarction. Materials and Methods: The study included 60 patients that had ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). All the patients underwent coronary angiography 1-4 days after admission (mean: 2.3 ± 1.2 days). Patients were graded according to Rentrop classification. Patients with grade 0 or 1 collateral vessels were classified as poor collaterals; patients with grade 2 or 3 collateral vessels were classified as good collaterals. Results: In all, 35 (58.3%) patients had poor collateral vessel filling and the remaining 25 (41.7%) patients had good collateral filling. Plasma homocysteine concentration in patients with poor and good collateral formation was 18.2 ± 8.6 µmol/l and 12.7 ± 2.4 µmol/l, respectively (P = 0.008). There was a negative linear correlation between Rentrop subclasses and plasma homocysteine concentration (r = –0.391, P = 0.002). We assessed the effect of demographic variables, such as age, gender, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoking, lipid parameters, and plasma homocysteine concentration, on the development of collaterals. The only independent variable that affected the development of collaterals was homocysteine level (OR: 0.71; 95% CI = 0.57-0.89, P = 0.003). Conclusions: This study demonstrates for the first time that there is an inverse relationship between the early development of collateral circulation after acute myocardial infarction and plasma homocysteine concentration.


This paper describes the architecture and technical implementation issues of the ultra fast optical packet switching ring network. The technical features of the proposed network are the use of ultrafast optical packets generated by packet compression, ring topology, and out-of-band transmission of the packet control signals. Using present techniques, it is possible to construct a network that is capable of transporting ultrafast optical packets with low delay and guaranteed bandwidth to some packets. Network performance attributes such as scalability, packet delay, and required buffer size are calculated, and implementation issues for realizing optical packet transmission hardware are discussed. Attention is paid to the synchronization in bit/packet phase between packets traversing a ring fiber. A bit/packet phase synchronous system is successfully shown to offer 40 Gb/s, 4000 bit optical packet switching through the use of 2/spl times/2 high-speed electrooptic switches.


The biosorption by cork powder is considered as a new method for heavy metal removal from industrial waste waters such as chromium tanning factories. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficiency extent of this method using a cork powder as biosorbent for hexavalent chromium Cr(VI). The Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis permits to distinguish the type of functional groups likely to participate in metal binding. A linear form of BET isotherms for all the three used temperatures (25, 35 and 45°C) and a pseudo-second-order Lagergren equation of adsorption kinetics are obtained. Other experimental results highlight the meaningful influence of parameters such as contact time, pH and concentrations of the solution, on chromium adsorption rate that reach a 97% value under definite conditions particularly a pH of 2-3 values.


A study was undertaken during January, 2013 to December, 2013 to identify the constraints perceived by the broiler farmers in Sivasagar district of Assam. For the study, altogether 135 numbers of broiler farmers were selected randomly and purposively from nine development blocks of this district, who possessed a minimum of 100 numbers of birds in their farms. The data were collected by personal interview with the help of pre-tested interview schedule containing a list of constraints and the farmers were asked to rank them. The data so collected were tabulated and analyzed statistically by using Garretts' ranking technique. Among the constraints identified, lack of organized marketing facility was the main constraint and was ranked the first followed by higher cost of feeds and medicines, lack of availability of quality chicks, higher cost of chicks, higher mortality of broiler birds, lack of veterinary facilities, introduction of contract farming, labour problem, lack of bank loan facility and lack of knowledge on scientific broiler farming.


The purpose of this master's thesis is the study of the solar potential of the roofs in existing buildings in Europe and the determination of the main factors that affect the use of solar systems together with their environmental impact and financial analysis. In order to carry out this goal, three variables that can affect the implementation of solar photovoltaic (PV) and thermal systems are included in the analysis. They are latitude, type of building and subsidy or support received from the government. Barcelona, Berlin and Gothenburg are the three cities chosen. These cities are located in south, central and north part of Europe respectively and the type of support system differs from each other. Four types of buildings are included in the analysis and they are divided into the ones for domestic use (single-family houses and block of flats or multi-family buildings) and non-domestic use (commercial centers and industrial buildings). The methodology followed is divided in two parts: first, the analysis process to study the power installed on the roofs of the buildings and second and using the results of the previous phase, the evaluation of the environmental benefits in terms of CO2-eq emissions savings and, the economical feasibility of the systems. In the first stage, it has been determined flat roofs have better solar roof quality and systems performance is better in southern latitudes. Concerning the environmental analysis, solar systems reduce CO2 emissions. This contribution is more notable when larger are the cities and when more fossil fuel dependant is the energy mix of the country. In the case of Berlin with more than 20 million tons CO2-eq of savings, results are significantly better than in the other two cases. Studying the economics of the system, investment subsidies have a positive effect when the electricity generated by PV systems is for self-consumption. Contrary, FIT policies gives better results when the electricity is sold in to the grid but they are not decisive for the implementation of solar PV systems. Solar thermal option is not competitive at all compared to the heat produced by gas or district heating (DH). However, results are much better than for photovoltaic even without considering subsidies, when they substitute electricity. In general terms, results are more attractive when solar thermal systems are used in domestic buildings.


: Purpose: The article aims to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the safety level of the Polish-listed banks. The safety level will be determined using a classic measure: the capital adequacy ratio (solvency ratio). The objective of the empirical study is to measure the safety level of 12 Polish-listed banks in 2015-2020 and classify them according to their level of safety. Design/Methodology/Approach: In the empirical part, an attempt was made to measure the safety level of Polish-listed banks in the 2015-2020 years by using statistical data from the Bank Focus database and financial statements. The sample consisted of 12 Polish-listed banks. The empirical part used descriptive statistics, ratio analysis, and correlation analysis between the variables. Findings: The analyzed banks were differentiated according to their safety level. Furthermore, the most and the minor safe banks were be identified, as well as banks that do not meet the minimum regulatory requirements. Practical Implications: The results of the conducted research can be used in the practical activities of banks in terms of adjusting their operation to regulatory requirements and the development of the COVID-19 pandemic. Research results can also be used as a benchmark for decisions and actions taken by regulatory and supervisory authorities. As well the research results can increase the trust the stakeholders have in the banking sector. Originality/value: An assessment of the safety level of the Polish-listed banks and consequences and threats caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will be of significant cognitive importance.


As fire behaviour in manned spacecraft still remains poorly understood, an international topical team has been created to design a validation experiment that has an unprecedented large scale for a microgravity flammability experiment. While the validation experiment is being designed for a re- supply vehicle like the ATV or Orbital's Cygnus, a series of supporting experiments are being planned and conducted by the team members. In order to answer the appropriate scientific and engineering problems relevant for spacecraft fire safety, a canonical scenario that can improve the understanding of flame spread, and thus also the modeling thereof, in realistic conditions is described. Some of the parameters governing the flame spread are also identified and their scaling against the dimensions of the test specimen is briefly questioned. Then several of the current and scheduled efforts are presented in terms of their relevance for the flame spread problem. Further, it is explained how the results can be combined to enhance the understanding of fire spread in the real scale configuration and thus improve the fire safety onboard spacecrafts. The results and particularly the ones from the large scale validation experiment arc crucial to the ultimate goal of the project, which is the development of predictive tools that should be capable of selecting an adaptive response to fire spread in any manned spacecraft.


Under the oxidative roasting process, pyrite, as a major mineral in sulfidic mine tailings, can transform to iron oxides. Generated iron oxides, if exhibiting enough magnetic properties, can be recovered via magnetic separation resulting in partial mine tailings valorization. However, due to the presence of various minerals and sintering possibility, it is advantageous to remove impurities and increase the pyrite content of mine tailings prior to the roasting procedure. In this case, hydrofluoric acid that has no influence on pyrite can be used to leach most inorganic minerals, including aluminosilicates. Therefore, this study investigated and compared the influence of the roasting process with and without hydrofluoric acid leaching pretreatment on mineralogical phase transformation of pyrite and magnetic properties of thermally generated minerals. Several tests and analyses were performed to study mineralogical phase transformation, morphology, elemental composition, surface characterization, and magnetic properties. Results of this study indicated that without acid leaching pretreatment, pyrite was mainly transformed to hematite. However, via acid leaching, fluorine, as a more electronegative element over oxygen, entered the compound and neglected the role of oxygen in thermal oxidation, instead reducing sulfur content of pyrite to only form pyrrhotite.


Dr A J MORTIMORE (Juba, southern Sudan) writes: I am sure that many will have been interested by Matthew Dryden's account of his elective in southern Sudan (11 June, p 1883), but certain impressions that were conveyed could easily cause offence to the people among whom I am living and working. I was sorry that Mr Dryden did not take the opportunity to contradict the assertion of his fellow passenger that the Dinka love their cattle more than their children. They are immersed in a traditional cattle culture, true, but at the same time place the highest value on their children and show deep love and concern for them. The Dinka concept of immortality is tied up with a man's children and the continuation of his name. I would wish to correct two other errors in Mr Dryden's account. During his short and unexpected visit to us in Tonj he did visit the district hospital. This visit seems to have slipped his memory, and he suggests that our clinic in Thiet is the only medical facility for a quarter of a million people. This is not true, and through adopting the primary healthcare approach southern Sudan is making a brave attempt to extend health services to all its rural people. Although there is still a long way to go, the picture is not as bleak as the article suggests.


Abstract Ergot, caused by the ascomycete fungus Claviceps purpurea (Fr.) Tul., has been described to occur since the Middle Ages, but more recently has become a significant issue on the Canadian prairies. In 1999, there was an outbreak of ergot where 12% of all Canadian Western Red Spring (CWRS) and 4% of Canadian Western Amber Durum (CWAD) wheat samples delivered to elevators were infested with ergot sclerotia. A similar outbreak occurred in Manitoba in 2005, followed by outbreaks in 2008 and 2011 in all three Prairie provinces. In 2008, 12–15% of all CWRS samples were infested with ergot, while in 2011, these levels rose to 15–29% of all CWRS samples. In CWAD wheat, 15% of samples were infested in Saskatchewan in 2008 and 14% in 2011. Management practices that may influence ergot severity include crop rotation, management and nutrition, seeding practices, pesticide applications, nature of the crop (i.e. autumn vs. spring crop and self-pollinated vs. cross-pollinated host species), and harvest and postharvest management. Recently, research has been conducted on host resistance and avoidance of infection, although problems in assessing host resistance and variability among pathogen strains have been encountered. Unfortunately, none of these control measures has been found to be entirely successful in controlling ergot on their own. As a consequence, producers should always approach ergot management as an integrated process with strategies that target all components of the disease triangle. Although ergot outbreaks can be sporadic in nature, sustained research funding is necessary to support research that leads to the development of more effective strategies for ergot management.


Gas turbines, in simple and combined cycle, are common and economically profitable on the power generating market today. Several new cycles have been proposed as future competing technologies, but all studies about these cycles have, so far, been paperwork. The requirements for these new cycles are better efficiency than those of today, provide better flexibility, offer short start up times, less harmful to the environment, offer lower specific investment costs, the operation can be fully automised, offer lower operating and maintenance costs and the technology can be applicable to a gas turbine of any size. One of these cycles is known as the evaporative gas turbine cycle, which is intercooled, aftercooled, recuperated and the air is humidified. This cycle has been proposed as one of the candidates, that matches most of the previously mentioned requirements. In this work; a theoretical model has been established in order to evaluate the thermodynamic performance of the evaporative gas turbine cycle; a 600 kWe pilot plant, based upon the evaporative gas turbine technology, has been built for the first time ever; the developed theoretical model has been validated with measurements from the evaporative gas turbine pilot plant; the validated theoretical model has been applied in a comparative study, where the performance of the evaporative gas turbine cycle is compared with competing technologies; the capability of the evaporative gas turbine technology to meet the demand of the market in terms of performance, operation and maintenance, emissions, space requirements and economy has been analysed and discussed. It has been shown that the thermodynamic and component sizing models predict the performance and size of the evaporative gas turbine cycle well. The pilot plant can be started, shut down, deliver full power output and can follow load-changes almost as fast as the simple cycle. The part-load performance is better than for the combined cycle. It has been shown that the emissions from combustion with humid air in a diffusion flame combustor are very low. It has been shown that the evaporative gas turbine cycle can be self-sufficient of make up water, if the flue gases are chilled in a flue gas condenser. The quality of the condensed water is very good, and can easily be treated with a CO2 stripper and a mixed-bed ion exchanger to be reused as demineralised make up water. It has been shown that the efficiency of a mid-size evaporative gas turbine cycle is slightly better than the combined cycle and much better than the steam injected gas turbine cycle. It has been shown that trigeneration and inlet compressor air humidification can increase the fuel utilisation, even well above 100\%, when applied to gas turbine based cycles with humidification. It has been shown that external low level heat from any source can be utilized to enhance the performance of the combined cycle and evaporative gas turbine cycles by means of air humidification. In a preliminary study, it has been shown that the footprint of a evaporative gas turbine cycle is smaller than for a corresponding combined cycle. The humidification tower is less than 10 m high, and all heat exchangers, intercooler, aftercooler and recuperator, can be made of welded plate heat exchanger technology, which are associated with low pressure drops, high thermal performance and are inexpensive. (Less)


Based on traditional idea of molecular coupling effect, surface modifiers were helpful to improve the performances of inorganic/organic composites. However, it was also widely accepted that the content of surface modifier should be controlled in a suitable range, and more or less modifiers could not reach to optimal properties. The intrinsic reason for this phenomenon was not clear until now. In this article, the influences of the content of surface modifier: silane coupling agent KH-560, on the final performances of linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE)/magnesium hydroxide (MH) composites, have been studied. The performance tests of LLDPE/MH composites, including mechanical properties measurements, thermal oxidative stability analysis, and surface morphology observation, all confirmed that there was an optimal content range of surface modifier. However, further morphology investigation of the modified MH by particle size and particle size distribution analyzer showed that, the particle size and particle size distribution of MH both increased as the content of KH-560 increased. ATR-FTIR analysis proved that silane grafting was achieved on the MH particle surface, which not only improved the compatibility between MH and LLDPE for molecular coupling effect, but also caused bigger particle size and wider particle size distribution, which were disadvantageous to improve the performances of the composites. The two opposite effects of the surface modifiers mentioned above affected the final performances of the composites. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010


A general model based on Ono-Kondo lattice theory for hydrogen adsorption, nearest neighbor interaction energy among adsorbate molecules were derived according to thermodynamic principle. A linear form of the above general model was applied to determine the interaction energies among hydrogen molecules inside adsorption layer from the previous experimental data of hydrogen adsorption on A- and X-type zeolites. The results show that the energies of hydrogen-hydrogen interactions inside the adsorption layer are negative values, indicating that the attractions among the adsorbed hydrogen molecules are prominent in the present work. And the influence of hydrogen molecules outside adsorption layer on the adsorbed hydrogen molecule is not important.


A handful of companies dominate the world's shipping industry. These firms have gained political leverage over the global governance of container shipping in particular. Intriguingly, in recent years the Danish conglomerate Maersk—the world's biggest container and shipping vessel company since the mid-1990s—has been using its influence to push for higher environmental standards for the industry as a whole. To some extent these initiatives are helping to promote environmental efficiencies, cleaner fuels, and greener technology. But they are also raising costs for small and midsized companies with extremely low profit margins, further enhancing the competitiveness of the biggest shipping conglomerates in an increasingly oligopolistic market. While voluntary self-governance by companies such as Maersk is incrementally improving the environmental management of global shipping, it is also further concentrating governance power within a few transnational corporations, potentially taking more ambitious regulation off the agenda.


The diagnosis of gout is usually based on clinical presentation and laboratory findings. Imaging plays a role in the assessment and grading of articular damage related to chronic, long-standing disease, which is characterized by granulomatous synovitis, tophi, and erosions. Multimodality imaging of chronic tophaceous gout may be useful in clinical practice for a variety of purposes, including assessment of disease-related anatomical changes and monitoring of articular and soft-tissue lesions over time, especially in response to urate-lowering therapy. Radiography remains the primary imaging technique. Ultrasonography may detect monosodium urate crystals on cartilage, is helpful to assess small joint effusion, to guide to joint aspiration, and to evaluate the volume of tophi. Computed tomography is considered to be more sensitive than plain radiography in the detection and evaluation of cortical bone erosions associated with tophi. MRI represents the only imaging modality which provides visualization of bone marrow oedema associated with erosions and may be useful to characterize and distinguish tophi from other soft tissue nodules.


As concrete reaches the end of its service life, it is demolished and placed in landfills, which is not sustainable as this consumes land space. Many demolished structures are crushed into recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) and used in new construction work to reduce concrete waste. To be used in concrete, the effects of RCA on the new structures should be carefully examined. The RCA studied in this research is an alkali-silica reactive gravel from Sudbury, Ontario. The RCA was obtained from different elements of a 20-year old bridge that suffered different levels of deterioration. It was determined that the level of deterioration that affected the previous structure does not significantly affect the expansion that will occur in the new structure. It was also determined that the expansion could be mitigated through the use of supplementary cementing materials although higher levels are required compared those required for the virgin aggregate.


We present an update on recently developed methodology and functionality in the computer program LOBSTER (Local Orbital Basis Suite Towards Electronic-Structure Reconstruction) for chemical-bonding analysis in periodic systems. LOBSTER is based on an analytic projection from projector-augmented wave (PAW) densityfunctional theory (DFT) computations [J. Comput. Chem. 2013, 34, 2557], reconstructing chemical information in terms of local, auxiliary atomic orbitals and thereby opening the output of PAW-based DFT codes to chemical interpretation. We demonstrate how LOBSTER has been improved by taking into account time reversal symmetry, thereby speeding up the DFT and LOBSTER calculations by a factor of 2. Over the recent years, the functionalities have also been continually expanded, including accurate projected densities of states (DOS), crystal orbital Hamilton population (COHP) analysis, atomic and orbital charges, gross populations, and the recently introduced 𝒌-dependent COHP. The software is offered free-of-charge for non-commercial research.


I investigate how teamwork may reduce moral hazard by joint monitoring and management. I study two organizational systems differing in the extent to which physicians may mutually manage work: Physicians are assigned patients in a "nurse-managed" system but divide patients between themselves in a "self-managed" system. The self-managed system increases throughput productivity by reducing a "foot-dragging" moral hazard, in which physicians prolong patient stays as expected future work increases. I find evidence that physicians in the same location have better information about each other and that, in the self-managed system, they use this information to assign patients.


TPHA Journal Volume 66, Issue 4 ABSTRACT The State of Texas is not smoke-free, leaving Texas municipalities and worksites to decide their smoke-free ordinances and policies. The majority of worksites in McLennan County are not regulated by comprehensive municipal smoke-free ordinances. Large employers (N=118) in McLennan County were sent a survey electronically, by mail, and/or by phone interview to assess worksite policies and measures to protect against smoke and smokeless tobacco exposures. The survey was distributed and the resulting data was analyzed and reported. A response rate of 64% (n=75) was achieved across worksites. Fifty-eight (77.3%) worksites reported having a tobacco use policy with 14 (24.1%) reporting a comprehensive tobacco-free campus policy. Among industries with more than 4 worksites surveyed, education (84.6%), healthcare (87.5%) and non-profi t (85.7%) had the highest percentage of existing tobacco-free policy. A minority, 13 (22.4%) worksites, reported that their tobacco-free policy is not enforced. A total of 56 (74.6%) worksites reported not offering tobacco cessation support to their employees. This survey led to a better understanding of the tobacco and secondhand smoke protection among large employers in McLennan County. Ultimately, with a 100% tobacco-free campus being the highest level of protection, 61 (81.3%) of large employers surveyed in McLennan County have the ability to reduce the risk of exposure to tobacco and secondhand smoke through complete tobacco protection policy integration.


Although many studies have been conducted to determine factors that influence Internet adoption and use by older adults, the focus has tended to be on investigating the consumers' intention to adopt the Internet. Although the factors that influence intention to adopt lead to nonusers' initial Internet adoption, they do not guarantee continued and frequent Internet use thereafter. Therefore, our aims in this study were to identify the factors that facilitate and impede the process of Internet adoption by people aged 40 years and over. We conducted surveys with 410 consumers aged between 40 and 70 years and found that there are influential factors that are different and some that are identical at different stages of the Internet adoption process. Based on these findings, we discuss implications and suggest effective strategies to encourage consumers aged between 40 and 70 years to adopt and continue to use the Internet.


Anaphylaxis/anaphylactoid reaction is a medical emergency. In rare cases, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) can complicate this disorder. This is a case report of an anaphylactoid reaction complicated with ARDS that was successfully treated using extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). A 52-year-old female patient developed sudden dyspnea immediately after she received gadolinium contrast injection and 80 mg of oral propranolol. She progressed rapidly to a state of shock and her chest radiograph showed pulmonary edema. The shock and pulmonary edema did not respond to epinephrine or steroid injection. On the next day, the permeability edema worsened and laboratory test revealed extreme hemoconcentration. The oxygenation goal was not achieved with mechanical ventilation alone, thus ECMO was applied as well. The patient showed clinical improvements on the 3 rd day and was weaned from ECMO on the 4 th day. She was completely recovered from shock and respiratory distress by day 5. The patient was discharged from hospital without further complications.


A model for the economy of the State of Oregon viewed as a small open entity in the larger U.S. economy is proposed here with both production and capital formation simulated by continuous, dynamic submodels. Economic activity is modeled on a sectoral (industry) basis, and an inventory concept is used to both separate the transient behavior of supply and demand and to generate price levels. Wage rates and natural resource prices are generated internally, while export demands are supplied exogenously. The capital formation is achieved using an adaptation of models by Phillips [11] and Bergstrom [12].


Investigations of the current from an earth-connected point 0.002 cm in diameter, supported by masts at heights of 20m, 27m end 34m are described. Simultaneous measurements of the potential gradient at the ground to windward of the point, and wind speed at the point, indicate that the current can be represented by the equation I = K(W + C) (F - M) where I is the point discharge current in mioroamps W the wind speed in metres per second F the potential gradient in volts per metre M the onset value of the potential gradient (200 v/m at 20m, 135 v/m at 27m, l00 v/m at 34m) C and K are constants (C = 4 m/s and K = 2.56 x 10(^-4)µa per v/m per m/s at 27m) The general equation still holds when the potential gradient is measured 7m below the 34m mast but at 2m below the 20m point the equation is I = A(W + D) (F - M)(^n) where A and D are constants is dependent on wind speed. Measurements of point discharge currents down the trunk of a tree indicate that these are somewhat lower than those through a single point of corresponding height in similar conditions. The results are compared with those of previous workers and discrepancies are attributed to wind speed and wind direction effects, whilst good agreement is found between the present findings and the theoretical work of Chalmers and Mapleson (1955) and Chapman (1956). A reassessment of the Alti-Electrograph results of Simpson and scrase (1937) is made and suggests that the potential gradients measured by this means immediately below thunderclouds are of the earns order of magnitude as those measured by observers in aircraft (Gunnl953).


Background:  Helicobacter pylori eradication was recommended for the prevention of atrophic gastritis in gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) patients on long‐term omeprazole treatment. It has been also shown that the treatment with proton pump inhibitors produces lower intragastric pH after H. pylori eradication in subjects with peptic ulcer and healthy individuals. The aim of the present study was to test the hypothesis of whether the efficacy of lansoprazole is reduced after the eradication of H. pylori in GERD patients with peptic esophagitis.