Simulated Annealing (SA) algorithm is widely employed to achieve optimal placement solution for FPGAs. However, it attempts a notably large number of placement moves on each temperature step, thus increasing the placement runtime considerably. The work presented in this paper reduces the placement runtime by intelligently reducing the total number of placement moves attempted on each temperature step. We have proposed four alternate formulas for calculating the number of moves that must be attempted per temperature step. Empirical study shows that our proposed formulas have achieved up to 2.1 times reduction in placement runtime without compromising placement quality.


In this study, wind forecasts derived from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) and the United Kingdom Meteorological Office (UKMO) are evaluated for lead times of 1–7 days at the 10 m and multiple isobaric surfaces (500 hPa, 700 hPa, 850 hPa and 925 hPa) over North China for 2020. The straightforward multimodel ensemble mean (MME) method is utilized to improve forecasting abilities. In addition, the forecast errors are decomposed to further diagnose the error sources of wind forecasts. Results indicated that there is little difference in the performances of the four models in terms of wind direction forecasts (DIR), but obvious differences occur in the meridional wind (U), zonal wind (V) and wind speed (WS) forecasts. Among them, the ECMWF and NCEP showed the highest and lowest abilities, respectively. The MME effectively improved wind forecast abilities, and showed more evident superiorities at higher levels for longer lead times. Meanwhile, all of the models and the MME manifested consistent trends of increasing (decreasing) errors for U, V and WS (DIR) with rising height. On the other hand, the main source of errors for wind forecasts at both 10 m and isobaric surfaces was the sequence component (SEQU), which rose rapidly with increasing lead times. The deficiency of the less proficient NCEP model at the 10 m and isobaric surfaces could mainly be attributed to the bias component (BIAS) and SEQU, respectively. Furthermore, the MME tended to produce lower SEQU than the models at all layers, which was more obvious at longer lead times. However, the MME showed a slight deficiency in reducing BIAS and the distribution component of forecast errors. The results not only recognized the model forecast performances in detail, but also provided important references for the use of wind forecasts in business departments and associated scientific researches.


One of the efforts to increase the strength of agricultural products is drying. Mass is very important in studies to examine the drying characteristics of products. In this study, an automatic weighing system was built on an experimental dryer system working with hot air with 3 sample containers designed for drying trials. In order to measure the weight of the containers in the drying machines, the operator removes the containers at certain time intervals, weighs them and puts them back into their place. Drying time takes up to 72 hours depending on the product type and quantity. In this study, a weighing automation was implemented in order to solve the difficulties in measuring the mass loss of products. By using a separate load cell for each container of the dryer, the mass of the test materials was measured instantaneously at the desired time intervals. In this study, Arduino Mega, HX711 24 bit ADC board and Nextion display with user interaction components are used. Instead of S-type load cells, which are frequently used to measure tensile forces, rod-shaped platform type load cells are used. The cheaper platform type load cells were transformed into S type load cells with the prepared apparatus. In this way, S-type load cells which are more sensitive and cheaper than platform type load cells were obtained. The performance of the system has been proven by obtaining important parameters of measurement in the tests.


Two on step ahead wind speed forecasting models were compared. A univariate model was developed using a linear autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA). This method's performance is well studied for a large number of prediction problems. The other is a multivariate model developed using a nonlinear autoregressive exogenous artificial neural network (NARX). This uses the variables: barometric pressure, air temperature, wind direction and solar radiation or relative humidity, as well as delayed wind speed. Both models were developed from two databases from two sites: an hourly average measurements database from La Mata, Oaxaca, Mexico, and a ten minute average measurements database from Metepec, Hidalgo, Mexico. The main objective was to compare the impact of the various meteorological variables on the performance of the multivariate model of wind speed prediction with respect to the high performance univariate linear model. The NARX model gave better results with improvements on the ARIMA model of between 5.5% and 10. 6% for the hourly database and of between 2.3% and 12.8% for the ten minute database for mean absolute error and mean squared error, respectively.


A new design of a disk device with flat sieves for separating potatoes into fractions on the length basis. We consider the overall structure, design and layout, the principle of centrifugal disc screen. The results of the primary and theoretical calculation of practical tests.


The comparative growth habits and nutritive value of native grass species of South Africa are largely unknown despite the utility of this information in rangeland restoration efforts. This article presents a comparative characterisation of the morphology, chemical composition and in vitro ruminal fermentation of Urochloa mosambicensis, Cymbopogon pospischilii, Eragrostis superba, Fingerhuthia africana and Eragrostis bicolor when grown under controlled conditions. Species were analysed for height, number of leaves, number of tillers, stem diameter and leaf width at different growth stages, whereas chemical composition and in vitro ruminal dry matter degradability (DMD) were assessed at maturity stage. Grass species and growth stages significantly influenced morphological characteristics. Eragrostis superba and U. mosambicensis had the highest number of leaves at the reproductive stage. Urochloa mosambicensis ranked highest in terms of rangeland restoration potential when all morphological parameters were considered, followed by E. superba and C. pospischilii. With the highest crude protein, low acid-detergent lignin and higher DMD at 48 h, F. africana and C. pospischilii have the highest potential feed value. Across the three most suitable native grass species, U. mosambicensis, E. superba and C. pospischilii, there is sufficient genetic diversity that suggests that these plants may play different and complementary ecological roles in the communal rangeland ecosystem.


http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.comcom.2015.02.001 0140-3664/ 2015 Published by Elsevier B.V. Our society is facing an unprecedented massive urbanization. At the time of writing, 54% of the world's population lives in urban areas (with an 82% peak in North America), opposed to only 30% in 1950. Reports [1] predict that 66% of the world's population will be urban by 2050, i.e. a sheer increase of 2.5 billion urban citizens, owing to the absolute population growth. The obvious (but not nearly trivial!) emerging challenge is how to successfully accomplish a sustainable urbanization at such level and scale. Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are expected to play a crucial role in the sustainable development of new urban environments. The term Smart Cities has been coined to identify technology-intensive cities which provide the ability to gather, analyze, and distribute information so as to transform services offered to the citizens, improve operational efficiency, and entail better decisions at the municipal level. For instance, smart buildings exploit a multiplicity of sensors and control systems to measure their environment and control it in real time, so as to improve reliability and security, to reduce maintenance costs, improve energy efficiency, and so on. Smart metering solutions allow a utility company to match production to demand, dynamically. Smart utility solutions influence both production and demand through smart grid technology. This special issue not only builds on the evidence that networking and communication technologies will play a crucial and pervasive role in Smart Cities. It is also, and mostly, motivated by the desire to contribute to answer the following foundational question: what are the ''unique'' context characteristics, application needs and traffic/user patterns in today's and tomorrow's Smart City environments which require redesigning networking, communication technologies and systems, and call for a rethinking of their relevant modeling and dimensioning methodologies? Indeed, networks designed for Smart Cities, or adapted to fit the urban context requirements, have some unique characteristics or attributes which distinguish them from traditional ''general purpose'' networking and communication systems; key features include (but are not restricted to):


Diseases of the central retina, particularly in the macula and the visual nerve, result in impairments in the central visual field. In the case of a central scotoma, you can expect a change in the fixation associated with the fovea (the macular area) and ultimately, it is the eccentric fixation that determines the remaining visual function. Most traditional examination methods are limited to testing function in the area around the central retina where the resolution capacity and as a result acuity are the greatest. Perimetry is one of the few techniques available that enables examination of visual function outside of the macula in a manner that allows you to topographically locate the injuries to the system. Perimetry supplies an image of the degree of perceived visual field limitation in the subject and plays a vital role as a functional diagnostic examination technique. Since central scotoma, particularly in an advanced stage, results in fixation difficulties in visual field examination, it often makes the edges of the scotoma difficult to determine. The aim of the study was to test a computerized version of the Auto Plot Perimetry and investigate if the program provides reliable results that are comparable to other examination methods. In addition, different fixation indicators were used to check if and, in that case, to what degree these can assist the person suffering from central scotoma in obtaining a central fixation of the fovea during measurement.


Objective To compare clinical effect of conjunctiva covers move of combined drug therapy and drug therapy of simple fungal keratitis and explore its clinical application value.Methods 136 patients were randomly divided into observation group and control group.Patients of observation group accepted the conjunctiva covers move combined with drug treatment and patients of control group only accepted simple drug therapy.Results The total efficient,average visual acuity and average healing time of observer group were better than control group.Conclusion Conjunctiva covers move combination of drugs in the treatment of fungal keratitis can significantly reduce healing time,promote vision of regeneration.Its effect is better than single therapeutic effect of diflucan and worthy of application in clinical.


Using the equivalent electrical circuit method for the theoretical treatment of the local wind effects on the equatorial electrojet, the height structures of electric fields and currents that are generated by height-varying east-west winds in the electrojet region have been calculated for theoretical model wind sturctures and for a variety of experimentally observed wind structures. The results bring out clearly the nature and extent of the local wind effects on the height and latitude structures of the equatorial electrojet.

The more important conclusions of the present study are: (a) The vertical wind shears associated with tidal winds and gravity waves can generate significantly large electric fields and east-west currents in the equatorial electrojet (EEJ). (b) The wind-generated electric fields and currents are characterized by large height gradients, latitudinal gradients, and reversals of direction. (c) At the magnetic equator, wind-generated electric fields and currents are often small (10%–30%) in comparison with the eastward electric-field-generated polarization field and east-west currents around noon hours. (d) At geomagnetic latitudes of 3° and beyond the wind-generated currents and electric fields often exceed those caused by the eastward electric field. (e) Beyond 2° the neutral winds can drastically alter the intensity and latitudinal structure of the EEJ, depending upon the magnitude and height location of the wind shear. (f) The observed variabilities in the 'width' and latitude structure of the EEJ can arise from the effects of such east-west winds that have been observed experimentally.


This paper utilises two politically determined natural experiments affecting state-provided social housing to examine the impact that housing tenure status has on neighbourhood outcomes. From 1990, New Zealand's National government sold a substantial number of state houses either to existing tenants (Home Buys) or to other purchasers (vacant sales). From 1999, the Labour government ended Home Buys, reduced vacant sales and increased acquisitions. While vacant sales had no material effects on local outcomes, a higher prevalence of Home Buys led to increased local house price appreciation despite demographic trends that would otherwise have led to falling relative house prices in those communities.


Longyu No.9 is a hybrid bred by the Pratacultural Science Institute of Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences.The inbred line T056 was used as the female parent and T123 as the male parent.This early variety has high yield,strong disease resistance and adaptability.Its growth duration is 117 days in the adaptation area,it needs accumulated temperature of 2 300℃ over 10℃.It could be planted in the lower second to upper third accumulated temperature zone of Heilongjiang province.


LIKE THE SCROLL of Esther, Daniel is a "hidden transcript"1 within the Bible—a serious yet playful piece of literature that speaks from the perspective of those on the underside of harsh political, military, and cultural domination. Following in a pattern of biblical history that begins with Pharaoh and reaches its acme with Haman, the enemy of Queen Esther and the Jews, the book of Daniel shows how the empire's subjugation of this particular people turns, with remarkable ease and no clear logic, into determination to wipe them out. This book has the overt theological dimension that Esther lacks; rather than showing the mobilization of the Jews against those who seek to kill them, the book of Daniel envisions how "the Most High God" (Dan 5:18, 21; cf. 4:21, 22, 29 Heb., 4:24, 25, 32 Eng., etc.) and the heavenly powers will intervene—at some not clearly specified time in the future—on behalf of the threatened people....


Materials and methods. A total of 11 operations were made on children with tracheoesophageal fistulas (TEF) at the Children's Clinical Hospital No 13 during 2008-2011. Nine of them were referred from other clinics, 6 presented with TEF recanalization., 5 with isolated TEF. Mean age of the children at admittance was 11.7 mo (9 days to 46 mo), mean body weight 7.6 (2.5 to 15 kg). Multiple malformations were documented in 3 children (VATER-association in 2, TEF with congenital oesophageal stenosis and congenital heart disease in 1). Method of thoracoscopic isolation of tracheoesophageal fistulas. The patient is in the prone position. The extrapleural approach was used in 1 case, transpleural one in the remaining cases. Trocar diameter 3-4 mm depending on the age and body mass. Trocars were placed in the 3d, 5th and 7th intercostal spaces along the posterior axillary line. Azygos vein was cut in a single case. The fistula was separated from the surrounding tissues and adhesions before cutting. The holes in the oesophagus and trachea were closed with a single row of interrupted Prolen 5.0 or PDS II 5.0 sutures. The oesophagus was rotated to separate sutures on the oesophagus and trachea; it was fixed in such position and sutured to the trachea. Results. There were neither intraoperative complications nor conversion of the approach. Mean duration of surgery 83.6 (55 to 120) min, mean stay in the intensive car ward 12.4 (2-34) days, total duration of hospitalization 38.5 (20-65) days. Postoperative complications developed in 5 patients, incompetent oesophageal sutures occurred in 2 (18%), TEF relapse in 0%, prolapsed gastrostoma in 1 (9%), pulmonary atelectasis in 2 (18%). Five complications of the three were observed in the patients previously operated for the treatment of oesophageal atresia and one more in the patient with VATER-association admitted in very severe condition. Conclusion. Thoracoscopic approach should become the method of choice for the correction of low-lying TEF including TEF relapses after correction of fistulous oesophageal atresia.


Contents of Volume 1: Part A. Cell and Tissue Culture: Associated Techniques. Section 1. General Techniques. Section 2. Culture of Specific Cell Types: Stem Cells. Section 3. Culture of Specific Cell Types: Haemopoietic, Mesenchymal, and Epithelial. Section 4. Differentiation and Reprogramming of Somatic Cells. Section 5. Immortalisation. Section 6. Somatic Cell Hybrids. Section 7. Cell Separation Techniques. Section 8. Cell Cycle Analysis. Section 9. Cytotoxic and Cell Growth Assays. Section 10. Apoptosis. Section 11. Assays of Cell Transformation, Tumorigenesis, Invasion and Wound Healing. Section 12. Electrophysiological Methods. Section 13. Organ Cultures. Part B. Viruses. Section 14. Growth and Purification of Viruses. Part C. Antibodies. Section 15. Production and Purification of Antibodies. Part D. Immunocytochemistry. Section 16. Immunofluoresence. Part E. Appendix. Contents of Volume 2: Part A. Organelles and Cellular Structures. Section 1. Isolation: Plasma Membrane, Organelles, and Cellular Structures. Section 2. Vital Staining of Cells/Organelles. Section 3. Protein Purification. Part B. Assays. Section 4. Endocytic and Exocytic Pathways. Section 5. Membranes. Section 6. Mitochondria. Section 7. Nuclear Transport. Section 8. Chromatin Assembly. Section 9. Signal Transduction Assays. Section 10. Assays and Models of in Vitro and in Vitro Motility. Section 11. Mechanical Stress in Single Cells. Part C. Appendix. Contents of Volume 3. Part A. Imaging Techniques. Section 1. Light Microscopy. Section 2. Digital Video Microscopy. Section 3. Confocal Microscopy of Living Cells and Fixed Cells. Section 4. Fluorescent Microscopy of Living Cells. Section 5. Use of Fluorescent Dyes for Studies of Intracellular Physiological Parameters. Section 6. Digital Image Processing, Analysis, Storage, and Display. Part B. Electron Microscopy. Section 7. Specimen Preparation Techniques. Section 8. Cryotechniques. Section 9. Electron Microscopy Studies of the Cytoskeleton. Section 10. Immunoelectron Microscopy. Part C. Scanning Probe and Scanning Electron Microscopy. Section 11. Scanning Probe and Scanning Electron Microscopy. Part D. Microdissection. Section 12. Tissue and Chromosome Microdissection. Part E. Tissue Arrays. Section 13. Tissue Arrays. Part F. Cytogenetics and in Situ Hybridisation Section 14. Cytogenetics. Section 15. In Situ Hybridisation. Part G. Genomics. Section 16. Genomics. Part H. Transgenic, Knockouts, and Knockdown Methods. Section 17. Transgenic, Knockouts and knock-down methods. Contents of Volume 4. Part A. Transfer of Macromolecules. Section 1. Proteins. Section 2. Genes. Section 3. Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer. Part B. Expression Systems. Section 4. Expression Systems. Part C. Gene Expression Profiling. Section 5. Differential Gene Expression. Part D. Proteins. Section 6. Protein Determination and Analysis. Section 7. Sample Fractionation for Proteomics. Section 8. gel Electrophoresis. Section 9. Detection of Proteins in Gels. Section 10. Gel Profiling of Posttranslationally Modified Proteins. Section 11. Protein/Protein and Protein/Small Molecule Interactions. Section 12. Functional Proteomics. Section 13. Protein/DNA Interactions. Section 14. Protein Degradation. Section 15. Mass Spectrometry: Protein Identification and Interactions. Part E. Appendix.


Frequency-hopping (FH) signals are widely applied in the commercial and military fields because of good robustness to interference. However, even with the best parameter estimation of FH signals, there will be a heavy computational burden. The cycle diagram method which is widely used in the estimation of FH signals is very rough and unreliable, while they limit the estimation performance. In this paper, we present an adaptive estimation method for the sparse spectrum based on the l1-norm sparse iterative covariance-based estimation (SPICE), namely l1-SPICE. l1-SPICE is used in the parameter estimation of FH signals, the process of which is then compared with the traditional short-time Fourier transform (STFT) and the conventional SPICE. Simulation results show that the proposed method is better than STFT and SPICE as regards the aspects of frequency resolution, sparse feature and accuracy, and this which makes l1-SPICE a good choice in respect of hopping time estimation and chip period estimation in FH signals.


Aim:  Cancer and its treatments can profoundly affect a person's sexuality and self‐image. However, oncology health professionals (OHP) are often reluctant to discuss these issues with patients. Cancer Council Victoria developed a short workshop to increase OHP's discussion of sexuality issues with cancer patients. We examined the immediate and longer term effect of workshop participation on perceived barriers to these discussions, their confidence in initiating the discussions, and changes in the frequency of their discussing sexuality issues with patients.


At Akrai, in South-Eastern Sicily, the UW excavations unveiled a huge amount of small, wheel-made, beige-slipped lamps belonging to the Roman Republican Ricci type C. The most important elements witnessed by this research are both the role those lamps played – laid unused in votive deposits but also used in daily life – and their permanence way after times when they disappeared elsewhere in the Roman world. As a matter of fact, they derivate from an old form and they knew a floruit during the 3rd and 2nd century BC, while the last individuals seem to have been produced until the reign of Augustus.


1. Summary Let (ft, (B, u) be a probability measure space on which is defined a stochastic process {x,} with finite state space. In 1-3 we define a notion of fractional dimension, in terms of and {x}, for any set M c t. If t is the unit interval, if is Lebesgue measure, and if = x(o)s is, for each , the base s expansion of , the definition reduces to the classical one due to Hausdorff. In 4 and 5 we obtain, under the assumption that {x} is a Markov chain, the dimensions of certain sets defined in terms of the asymptotic relative frequencies of the various transitions i--. j. In 7 these theorems are specialized to the case in which {x.} is independent. In the classical case these results become extensions of theorems due to Eggleston [4, 5] and Volkmann [16, 17]. In 6 we use the preceding theorems to obrain a result on "generalized Lipschitz conditions" on certain measures, a result which reduces in the classical case to one of Kinney [11]. In 8 the dimensions obtained in the first part of the paper are shown to be related to entropy and certain allied concepts of information theory.


Abstract: In this chapter, the focus of drug delivery systems is on bioactive materials. By manipulating the processes for producing bioactive materials, which contain bioactive elements, the release profile of bioactive molecules can be adjusted. Bioactive materials include natural biopolymer-based biomatrices, such as collagen, chitosan, and hyaluronic acid; bioceramics, such as hydroxyapatite and bioactive glass; and synthetic biodegradable polymers, such as PLA/PGA copolymers. Bioactive materials as carriers for the delivery of bioactive molecules have achieved clinical application in many fields, including oncology, orthopaedics, dental materials, cardiovascular, urology, wound care, and dermatology. The limitations for bioactive materials used in drug delivery include the difficulties in achieving a controlled release profile, owing to the structures of the materials, the complexity of the regulatory issues, the selection of the drugs, the difference between in vitro and in vivo conditions, and the assessment of device stability. Future trends in this field will focus on the improvement in design of delivery vehicles, using structurally well-defined bioactive materials in order to achieve sustained drug release, together with high efficacy.


"This article is targeted at both students engaged in full-time study and those who guide them, who, through knowledge, professionalism, and discernment, assume responsibility to build successful careers together with those whom they guide. The voice, the frail tool that links spirit and matter, requires, beside native endowment, constant and persevering practice, under the careful guidance of a teacher, who has to create stages and doses of information so that at the end of the route covered, the student becomes an artist prepared to meet an impresario. "


The recent attention on work and family issues has focused almost exclusively on dual earner couples and working married mothers while largely ignoring female headed single parent families. Given that single mothers have and will continue to have a significant presence in the work world, it is important lo consider their priority needs. However, there is minimal empirical data about the work and home lives of working single mothers and little understanding of differences that exist between their experiences and those of other working mothers. This article offers a comprehensive description of the current experiences of employed single mothers and details new insights into their concerns and issues. EAP and corporate stralegies that could reduce stress and enhance resiliency are discussed in order to maximize the role of EAPs in meeting the needs of this growing employee population.


Children of ages 5 to 17 years were given a real scene to draw from a fixed viewpoint. Their drawings were classified according to the type of drawing system used, and given a score for the number of correct representations of occlusion by overlap. Six classes of drawing system used were identified, and it was found that with increasing age children were able to use an increasingly complex type of system. This development appeared to take place in discrete stages and covered the whole age range tested. Increase in the ability to use overlap as a pictorial device appeared to be continuous; below the age of 9 few children made use of overlap, and rapid learning took place between the ages of 10 and 12. It is argued that the use of these two pictorial devices requires different abilities; and that learning to use a particular type of drawing system does not depend directly on perception or on learning culturally determined stereotypes but in its demands on creative ability closely resembles the acquisition of language.


ABSTRACT Extraction mechanisms of two bifunctional extractants which differ only by the grafting of an alkyl chain between their two functions were investigated at molecular and supramolecular scales to investigate the origin of their very different separation factors toward uranium and zirconium. Investigation of the complex structure with spectroscopic analysis (Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR), ElectroSpray Ionization Mass Spectroscopy (ESI-MS) and Extended X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS)) demonstrated that alkylation does not affect the chelation mechanism of uranium and zirconium. Stoichiometries of complexes remain identical for both extractants: UO2L2(NO3)2 and zirconium polynuclear complexes are formed after extraction into the organic phase. The origin of selectivity was therefore investigated by considering the supramolecular self-assembly of the two bifunctional molecules. Small-Angle X ray and Neutrons Scattering (SAXS and SANS) showed that the highest separation factors between U and Zr are obtained when smaller aggregates are formed. The results of this study therefore suggests that the selectivity is controlled by the supramolecular self-assembly of the two extractant molecules. Thanks to a smaller packing parameter, the non-alkylated molecule forms bigger aggregates analogous to reverse micelles that can extract additional polar species in their polar core through a solubilization effect, thus decreasing the separation factor between uranium and zirconium.


Abstract The behaviour of steel structure components within a high temperature field depends not only on the absolute temperature, but also on the temperature vs time function and on the heating rate, dT/dτ. The research objective is the determination of the heating rate impact on selected strength parameters of structural steels. Tests were performed under conditions of a linear temperature increase with different heating rates and with a constant stress value, σ/fy . After strength tests, the samples were subjected to metallography. Test results proved that the heating rate makes a significant impact on parameters that determine the steel structure bearing capacity at higher temperatures and that the heating rate should be accounted for in the strength analysis of steel structures exposed to high temperatures.


We introduce and use a new methodology for the study of logics for action and change. The methodology allows one to define a taxonomy of reasoning problems, based in particular on the properties of the actions in those worlds where the actions take place, and on the au-toepistemic assumptions that are being made. For each of a number of previously proposed logics, we have identified a corresponding class in the taxonomy, and proved that for reasoning problems within that class, the logic is guaranteed to obtain exactly the intended set of conclusions. 1 Logics of action and change: a problem of verification There has been much research in recent years on methods for reasoning about actions and change, and on finding solutions to the so-called "frame problems". New variants of nonmonotonic logics for common-sense reasoning have been proposed, only to be quickly refuted by counterexamples. Unfortunately the results that have been obtained in this fashion are notoriously unreliable. According to the standard research methodology in the area, the evidence in favor of a proposed logic should consist of intuitive plausibility arguments and a small number of scenario examples for which the logic is proven (or claimed) to give the intended conclusions and no others. Clearly there is a need for more systematic results, where a proposed logic is verified for a whole class of reasoning problems and not only for single examples. Recently, Lin and Shoham[LS9l], Lifschitz[Lif9l], and Reiter[Rei9l] have reported such correctness results for several nonmonotonic logics which are based on the situation calculus. Their approach has been to relate a non-monotonic theory over a certain set of "common-sense" axioms, to a monotonic theory over a larger set of axioms. In this paper I present another approach which differs from these previous authors in three ways. It addresses logics with explicit time, such as the integers, and not only the situation calculus. This allows one to deal with actions with extended duration, and to analyze plans where the order of the actions is indetermined. Also it is based on an underlying semantics which captures basic notions of intelligent agents. This is hoped to facilitate the use of these results for the design of practical autonomous agents. Finally, rather than starting with a fixed class of reasoning problems and analyzing whether a single, proposed logic is correct or not for that class, I start by defining a taxonomy of reasoning …


With the development of globalization in the world, would also require a recent innovation that should be implemented by the government. Included in the serve and respond to the interests of the community. In Indonesia has made an innovation in responding to public complaints online through the utilization of information technology with an application called LAPOR (Service and Complaints Online People's Aspiration). With the implementation of the LAPOR applications, of course, there's been a change of management paradigm of government in Indonesia, particularly in the context of public service. The purpose of this study was to analyze the paradigm shift that occurred in the management of government in Indonesia with the application of information technology with the application LAPOR. The data collection methods used in this research is using secondary data and literature review that will produce the results in the form of a concept analysis of changes in the management paradigm of government in Indonesia, especially in the public service in the context of serving the public complaint. Keywords: Paradigm, Government Management, Information Technology, LAPOR Applications.


OsHCl(CO)L2 (L=PBu2tMe) is transformed to OsCl(NO)(CO)L2 by p-MeC6H4SO2N(NO)Me. Chloride removal with NaBAr4′ [Ar′=3,5-(CF3)2C6H3] yields the nonplanar, unsaturated Os(0) compound [Os(NO)(CO)L2]BAr4′, which is shown to be more reactive towards oxidative addition than its Ru analog. It adds H2, and the resulting Os(H)2(NO)(CO)L2+ shows broad coalesced hydride NMR signals at 25°C but inequivalent sites (1H NMR spectra) at -32°C. This cation is deprotonated by NEt3 to give trigonal bipyramidal OsH(NO)(CO)L2. The cation Os(NO)(CO)L2+ adds CO. Reaction of Os(NO)(CO)L2+ with PhC2H gives first a 1:1 adduct, then the oxidative addition product OsH(C2Ph)(NO)(CO)L2+, then the vinylidene complex Os(CCHPh)(NO)(CO)L2+; a mixture of these cations can be deprotonated by NEt3 to give Os(CCPh)(CO)(NO)L2. Reaction of Os(NO)(CO)L2+ with Me3SiC3CSiMe3 gives Os[CC(SiMe3)2](NO)(CO)L2+, which can be doubly hydrolyzed to give Os(CCH2)(NO)(CO)L2+. HCCH forms an η2-HCCH adduct, which does not isomerize to Os(CCH2)(CO)(NO)L2+ even at 60°C.


The paper presents a methodology of holding a sitting of the interdepartmental student scientific society in internal medicine for IVth-VIth year students at a higher educational medical institution. A sitting of the scientific circle in internal medicine after the master class type allows a direct participation of a student in the cognitive process, analyzing the main points of proper medical practice, promotes in-depth understanding and effective mastering of theoretical knowledge of students. A demonstration of a thematic patient and a technology of functional methods of examination, followed by a discussion of the diagnosis after the type of a dialogue between a lecturer – the head of the master-class and a student is the most effective method of mastering practical skills necessary for future appropriate medical practice.


Bisphosphonates are increasingly prescribed for children with primary and secondary osteoporosis. Despite this, many questions remain as to the optimal agent, and the dose and duration of therapy, particularly considering the unique issues related to the growing skeleton. While much is now understood regarding their use in one of the most debilitating forms of childhood osteoporosis (osteogenesis imperfecta), their role in the treatment of secondary osteoporosis is less clearly defined. The purpose of this review is to highlight the impact of bisphosphonate use on the growing skeleton and to review the current evidence for bisphosphonate administration in primary and secondary childhood osteoporosis. In particular, we discuss the evidence for clinical benefit (including functional outcomes beyond bone mineral density) and review the issues related to known and theoretical side effects. Finally, we provide specific recommendations for the use of bisphosphonates in pediatric osteoporosis, including guidelin...


Fermentative bacteria can potentially be utilized to detoxify corn silage contaminated by Fusarium toxins. The objective of the present study was to test a large number of these bacteria for their ability to bind and/or biotransform deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone (ZEN) and fumonisins B1 and B2 (FB1, FB2) in conditions simulating corn silage. A total of 202 strains were screened in contaminated, pH 4, corn infusion inoculated with 5 × 108 CFU ml–1. Eight Lactobacilli and three Leuconostoc biotransformed ZEN into α-zearalenol, but no biotransformation was detected for DON and fumonisins. In contrast, most strains were capable of binding Fusarium toxins. The most effective genera were Streptococcus and Enterococcus, capable of binding up to 33, 49, 24 and 62% of DON, ZEN, FB1 and FB2, respectively. The ability to bind Fusarium toxins seems to be a common property of fermentative bacteria and could help to decrease their toxicity in animals.


The purpose of this work is the analysis of the use of translation in the processes of English language teaching and learning, and especially, in relation to its use as a Primary Education teaching resource. The aim is to show that translation can be a useful instrument in the teaching of a foreign language, provided that it is regarded only as an adjunct to other tasks and activities. Consequently, it is offered a small experiment to test its effectiveness to help in the acquisition of new vocabulary.


Alligator Mound, a ca. 800‐year‐old effigy earthwork located in central Ohio, lies within a 2000 m2 area on the edge of a steeply sloping bluff. This earthwork, with a maximum local relief of approximately 1.5 m, blends into the underlying natural topography, complicating the extraction of measurements of its geometry. To overcome this limitation, a 5 cm × 5 cm gridded digital elevation model (DEM) of Alligator Mound was developed from 2,534,774 elevation points collected from 11 survey locations using a terrestrial light detection and ranging system. This subdecimeter DEM and a derivative local relief model (LRM) capture the subtle topography at this site so that the natural landscape can be objectively filtered from the earthwork. The resulting geometric data (i.e., perimeter, lengths, area, and volume) are compared with subjective historical depictions of this partially denuded earthwork. The results show the value of subdecimeter scale DEMs and LRMs for characterizing subtle features constructed on complex underlying topographies, and for monitoring and/or mitigating long‐term natural and anthropogenic earthwork degradation.


Leukemia is a type of cancer of blood or bone morrow which is characterized by abnormal increase in the number of immature white blood cells called "Blasts". Blood and bone morrow smears are usually inspected using microscope to properly identify the presence of leukemia and type of leukemia if it is located. To properly identify the disease, white blood cell should be isolated from the rest of the image and the components of white blood cell which are the nucleus and cytoplasm areas must be differentiated from each other. Our system first enhances the colors of the image sample then image segmentation is done using the proposed color segmentation method. The proposed segmentation method gives good results, the number of test samples used were 60 samples for both blood and bone


Birnbaum and others' recently published an article about adoption of guidelines for Universal Precautions (UP) and Body Substance Isolation (BSI) in Canadian acute-care hospitals. The authors pointed out that terminology was used inconsistently among the Canadian hospitals and that there was considerable confusion about the meaning of different terms. As two of the developers of the BSI system, we have been impressed that the philosophical differences among the isolation systems are also misinterpreted by many. The primary purpose of an isolation system, and why and when and it is implemented, form the bases for the philosophical differences among the different systems. Failing to understand the fundamental differences leads practitioners incorrectly to apply the methods of the system in use at their facilities and also leads to inconsistency in practice among healthcare workers. The primary purpose of BSI is to reduce risks to patients of cross-transmission of microorganisms via hands of healthcare workers. A secondary benefit of BSI is to protect the healthcare worker from microorganisms harbored by patients. The system is based on three fundamental premises.


Subtitle: India is positioned to become the world's secoond most powerful goods manufacturer -- if it can overcome infrastructure shortcomings and bureaucracy.


The purpose of this article is to explore through the reading of historical sources the previous knowledge of primary education teachers. What does it generate in the teacher to confront their knowledge with information that can question their concepts? Introspection strategies were applied to a group of fourth and sixth grade primary school teachers. The first strategy, Visualization of concepts, allowed to graphically record the initial knowledge of the teacher regarding the subject of the conquest of Mexico and the concepts a) military conquest and b) spiritual conquest. The second, La projection, consisted of the presentation of a selection of fragments on the same topic using historical sources with different historiographic versions. The exercise provoked a dialogue between the teachers, where highly significant comments were raised about reconstructing and resignifying their concepts and modifying their teaching work to favor the learning of history in children.


The thesis deals with the precision approach radar (PAR) problematics focusing on active antenna arrays with application of adaptive methods of angle of arrival estimation. First of all, the thesis introduces some possible PAR antenna arrays solutions. These solutions are then optimized to reduce the number of antenna elements and to enhance its angular resolution. The methods of angular resolution improvement are described and analysed in details. The difficulties of the adaptive methods of the angle of arrival estimation, especially of the coherent signals reception and the number of incoming signals estimation are analysed and their possible solutions are shown and experimentally verified.


healed spontaneously without scarring within five months. During the follow-up period no systemic involvement was demonstrated. We report a case of NL in a newborn, whose mother did not present any clinical manifestation of lupus. In similar cases, with a negative family history of LE, it is crucial for the diagnosis to early recognize the periorbital erythema (referred to as a "raccoon eyes"), that is a common characteristic.


A series of novel substituted 8H-pyrano-[2,3-e] benzoxazol-8-ones 5(a-e) were synthesized by condensation of the corresponding 8amino-7-hydroxy-4-methyl coumarin 4 with substituted aromatic aldehydes 2(a-e) in the presence of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [bmim] BF4 as Ionic liquid. The intermediate 8amino-7-hydroxy-4-methyl coumarin 4 has been accomplished by reduction of compound 8-nitro-7-hydroxy-4-methyl coumarin in Fe powder with NH4Cl.The chemical structures of the newly synthesized compounds were characterized by IR, NMR, mass spectral and CHN analysis. All the title compounds were subjected to in vitro antibacterial testing against two pathogenic strains and antifungal screening against two fungi. Among the tested compounds, 5b and 5c showed significant antibacterial and antifungal activities. Also the compound 5d showed significant antifungal activity against A niger.


Ditylenchus dipsaci Kuhn and Ditylenchus destructor Thorne are economically important plant-parasitic nematodes, affecting potato production. Limited information exists on the resistance/susceptibility of currently cultivated potatoes to D. dipsaci and D. destructor. The greenhouse experiments were conducted to screen 10 potato cultivars for resistance/susceptibility for D. dipsaci and D. destructor infections. Reproduction factor (Rf) and relative susceptibility (RS) were used to evaluate resistance. Based on the Rf, 8 potato cultivars were evaluated as susceptible (S) while 2 cultivars (Spunta and Innovator) were evaluated as resistant (R) to D. dipsaci. Cultivars Sante and Orfei were resistant to D. destructor based on Rf. Potato cultivar Désirée was observed to be highly susceptible to D. dipsaci and D. destructor in both experiments and was used as the standard susceptible control cultivars for the calculation of RS.


The development of science and technology is bridge and link of the transformation of scientific and technological payoffs. The article summarizes the status and achievements TCGRI of CATAS,and analyzes the difficulties and problems. Thinking and countermeasure of science and technology development were put forward relying on their own scientific and technological innovation to strengthen.


The relationship between internal structure and activity of different nano-diamond were studied based on the crystal structures and crystal chemistry theory.The results show that nano-diamond granularity and properties is a positive correlation while nano-diamond granularity and surface activity is an anti-correlation.Both the relation between diamond granularity and crystal cell number and the percentage of surface activity atomicity are strongly changed at 100nm.Nano-diamond has both minimum structural integrity and maximum activity at 160nm.


A periodic drive could alter the effective exchange interactions in magnetic materials. Here, we explore how exchange pathways affect the effective interactions of periodically driven magnetic materials. Aiming to apply Floquet engineering methods to two-dimensional magnetic materials, we consider realistic models and discuss the effect of a periodic drive on ligand-mediated exchange interactions. We show that depending on bond angles and the number of ligand ions involved in the exchange process, drive-induced changes can be very different from those calculated from direct-hopping models considered earlier. We study these effects and find that the presence of ligand ions must be taken into account, especially for TMTCs where ligand ion mediated next-neighbor interactions play a crucial role in determining the magnetic ground state of the system.


Introduction: Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration and rupture are common etiology of low back pain [1]. Nucleus pulposus (NP), the central part of IVD, is filled with fluid that changes volume depending on the load and maintains the hydrostatic pressure in the disc [2]. During disk degeneration, the NP loses fluid and hydrostatic pressure is reduced or absent [3]. Instead of uniform stress distribution across the disc, a degenerated disc stress profile shows multiple peaks in outer layers of annulus fibrosus (AF) and low stresses in NP [2, 4]. Measuring the fluid flow changes within healthy and degenerated IVD in vivo or ex vivo is a difficult task. An alternative approach is finite element (FE) analysis which provides estimate of stress and fluid flow inside IVD in normal and degenerative case. It is hypothesized that the loss of NP incompressibility and surface area decrease pore fluid pressure and fluid velocity. The study objective was to predict fluid flow changes in IVD after loss of NP incompressibility and surface area, using a nonlinear FE model. Materials and Methods: A poro-viscoelastic FE model of L3-L4 spine functional unit was previously developed (Fig. 1) and validated against cadaver range of motion data. Cortical bone (E=12GPa, v=0.3) and posterior bone (E=2.5GPa, v=0.3) were considered non-porous. Cancellous bone, cartilage endplate, NP, and AF were assigned solid and fluid bulk modulus, along with porosity and permeability values. Ligaments were modelled as hypoelastic truss elements with strain dependent stiffness. IVD degeneration was simulated by changing the surface area and Poisson's ratio (compressibility) of the NP. Healthy L3-4 model was modified to create 6 degenerated IVD cases: 1) NP Poisson's ratio, v = 0.45; 2) NP v=0.40; 3) NP v= 0.45 and ANP= 25% AIVD; 4) NP v= 0.45 and ANP= 15% AIVD; 5) NP v= 0.40 and ANP= 25% AIVD; and 6) NP v= 0.40 and ANP= 15% AIVD. L4 lower endplate was fixed in all directions. Outer ring of annulus fibrosus could exchange fluid with the environment. A compressive preload of 400N (Comp) was applied followed by 10Nm pure moment in extension (Ext), flexion (Flex), lateral bending (LB), and axial rotation (AR) motions were simulated. Pore pressure, and pore fluid velocity were estimated after simulation. Results and Discussion: Pore fluid pressure were estimated as decreasing in NP and increasing in AF with increase in NP compressibility and decrease in surface area (Fig. 2). However, loss in change in area of NP matrix cause pressure and velocity to drop more compared to increase in compressibility only. Similarly, pore fluid velocity decreased up to 80% and increased up to 20% in NP and AF, respectively. Loss of fluid flow increases the degradation of the NP over time while increase of fluid pressure leads to bulging out of AF and nerve impingement.


List of Illustrations Preface Introduction1 1. Cultural Topography and Spearfishing 2. Anishinaabe Culture 3. Hunting, Fishing, and Violating 4. The War Begins 5. The War Within 6. Spearing in the Four Directions 7. Anishinaabe Summer 8. The Referendum Conclusion Epilogue Notes Bibliography Index


The invention relates to a device, a glass pan or -rinne with such and a method for peeling a surface glass layer of a glass flow in a glass tank or -rinne (10, 50, 90, 110, 120) immersed with a in the glass stream, across the flow direction arranged guide member (22, 54, 76, 96, 100, 124) for deflecting the surface glass layer, which has a longitudinal direction and at least a mouth portion (24) at one end in the longitudinal direction, and a glass outlet (26, 52, 72, 74, 92 , 94, 116, 128) (in the mouth portion 24) of the guide body (22, 54, 76, 96, 100, 124). The glass spout (26, 52, 72, 74, 92, 94, 116, 128) includes means for controlling the volume flow of the withdrawn surface layer of glass.


Identification of appropriate sites for rainwater harvesting (RWH) technologies on a large scale present great challenge, since the necessary hydrological, soil data and the infrastructure are often Lacking. Remote sensing (RS) and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) can assist to faciLitate this task for large areas and permit rapid and cost effective site survey. The overall objective of the study was to assess and identification of potential sites for RWH technologies in the Makanya river catchment, Same District, Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Relevant criteria and specific suitability levels per parameter for identifying potential sites for RWH technologies were defined through both Literature review and the analysis of existing RWH technology locations. Factor maps were generated and used as input into the Arc View GIS' Model Builder and suitability maps for location of RWH technologies were produced. Six factors (rainfall, slope, soil texture, soil depth, drainage and land use/cover) were identified as determinants of the RWH technologies with each one having different implication on adoption of a given RWH technology. Drainage followed by slope was the most determinant factors for adopting ndiva technology while rainfall followed by slope were the most determinant factors for stone terraces, bench terraces and borders. The results reflect specific suitability levels of parameters and weight of factors, for example, distance ranging from 0 - 125 m from streams (drainage) with < 30˚ slopes are most potential sites for ndiva whereas slopes with range 18˚ - 30˚ with unstable soils are most potential sites for stone terraces. Slopes of 18˚ - 30˚ with clay textural class are most potential sites for bench terraces. Integration of RS and GIS techniques with Limited field survey could replace extensive field surveys in identifying potential areas for rainwater harvesting technologies. To increase the usefulness of the RS and GIS techniques socio- economic factors have to be given due consideration.


The current problems in bidding are mainly revealed in the unreasonableness of base bid price and the non-standardization of tender offer. Therefore, bid enterprises should take corresponding bid strategies and techniques.


MANETs are an ideal technology to deploy spontaneous wireless infrastructure-less networks, either for military or civilian applications. The absence of centralized administration and infrastructure-less nature gives rise to authentication and key management problems in the MANETs. Though there are a number of authentication mechanisms available for wired and infrastructure based wireless networks, none of them better suite the MANET environment. This paper proposes a stable certificate chain based Hybrid Key Management scheme for a military type MANET that provides the required level of authentication. The Hybrid Key Management is a combination of offline Trusted Third Party and Certificate Chain key management scheme. Unstable topology and link failures pose a great challenge to certificate chain mechanism. To overcome this, a proposal has been made to enhance the stability of certificate chain. Here every node calculates the link expiry time of its entire links and while establishing multi hop authentication, the links which has the highest link expiry time is chosen. This enhances the stability of the certificate chain which in turn provides enhanced security. It has been found that the proposed method decreases the number of path changes and the time taken for authentication. Simulations done in NS2 (Network Simulator tool) gives better performance in terms of standardized parameters such as Routing Overhead, Packet Delivery Ratio, End-to-End delay and Time Taken for Authentication in comparison with the existing certificate chain key management scheme.


This chapter highlights the product (goods or services) that the organization provides to their customers to generate money by satisfying their needs. Product characteristics can be configured or manipulated to meet the needs of various target customer groups. The concept of the product lifecycle helps marketers to decide how and when to market various products to different target groups, and to decide when the offer needs to be refreshed or repositioned in the marketplace. The chapter then explores new product development (NPD), which is how and when existing products are replaced with an improved offer. It also considers the product portfolio or product mix; market/product growth strategies; and service marketing.


Tungsten oxide nanobrushes were synthesized using a solvothermal approach that lead to self-branching in the presence of citric acid and hexadecylamine as surfactants. Our synthetic approach yielded branched nanorods of tungsten oxide in a single synthetic step. Based on our results, we propose a phenomenological pathway for the formation, branching, and assembly of these tungsten oxide brushes. The formation of tungsten oxide brushes proceeds by thermal decomposition of ammonium tungstate in the presence of citric acid and hexadecylamine. The pale blue powder obtained after solvothermal reaction was analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The field emission (FE) properties of the tungsten oxide nanostructures which can be tailored by their aspect ratio and the hierarchical nanostructures follow a Fowler–Nordheim behavior.


This research was carried out in Lenin neighborhood, Holguin municipality with the purpose of favoring patients´ rehabilitation from femoral bone fracture. Theoretical and empirical methods were applied during the research. Awong a group of five patients suffering from this pathology whose ages range between 70 and 75 years old, a female patient was selected. In selecting her it was taken in to consideration her physical status, sex, the risk of nom walking and the phycision criterion. A series of therapeutic exercises was applied to rehabilitate her and it allowed the patient to recover herself in a short period of time. During the rehabilitation period it was not necessary to prescribe her any kind of drug. Key words. Rehabilitation, Femoral bone Fracture.


Water presence is fundamental for the all life on the planet, because it is nutrient source and the place where chemical reactions are accomplished .Water, being dipolar, can be partly aligned by a magnetic field. The change of the structure of water when exposed to a magnetic field is important in various applications. This article examines the effect of a magnetic field on Physical and chemical propertiesof water. An alternative magnetic field of 110 mT was used for magnetization of water. IR, FT-IR adsorption spectrum and Raman spectrum, as well astotal hardness of water before and after magnetization were achieved. The results showed that total hardness of the magnetized water decreased by8.3 %, compared with that of the control.Change of Raman spectrum of the magnetized water suggestedchanges in the distribution and polarization of water molecules but not in constitution of it. This was deduced from an increase in some of the peaks strength, shift in their frequencies, as well as appearance of some additional peaks. Changes in polarization of water molecules and reduction of its hardness open new approaches for a sustainable development in future agricultural management.


The article discusses technological and economic aspects of small-scale production of gas MOX sensors. The main technical factors affecting the use of sensors in various applications are described. The perspective laser micro-milling technology for ceramic MEMS producing of microhotplate and SMD package for the MOX sensor is discussed.


Neutrophils are known to contribute to rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pathogenesis via protease release and toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, as well as by generation of a number of cytokines and chemokines. On the other hand, antagonists of pro-inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor - alpha (TNF-?), a new class of drugs already used to treat RA, have shown beneficial therapeutic results. Although several studies reported participation of neutrophils in anti-inflammatory action of anti-TNF-? agents, precise explanation of their role is still studied and discussed. We evaluated the effect of anti-TNF-? therapy on the activity of peripheral blood neutrophils and on relative levels of selected cytokines and chemokines in plasma obtained from patients suffering from RA. Blood samples were obtained from control subjects (n=13) and from patients (n=3) with active RA, as defined by the Disease Activity Score (DAS 28 >5.1), before and 4 months after onset of anti-TNF-? therapy. As the parameter of activity, generation of ROS was evaluated in whole blood by luminol amplified chemiluminescence. The relative levels of selected cytokines and chemokines in plasma were determined by Proteome ProfilerTM, Human Cytokine Array Panel A. In comparison with control subjects, RA patients exibited increase of i) neutrophils number and ROS production in peripheral blood unstimulated and stimulated with receptor dependent stimuli (N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenyl-alanine, opsonized zymosan) and receptor independent stimuli (phorbol 12-myristate-13-acetate, Ca ionophore A23187), and ii) of relative levels of selected cytokines and chemokines (G-CSF, CXCL1, CCL1, IL-1ra, IL-13, IL-16, IL-17E) in plasma. Despite the restricted number of patients with active RA the results showed both that antagonists of TNF-? decreased spontaneous and stimulated neutrophils activity (manifesteted by decrease of neutrophil numer and ROS production), as compared to values before therapy, and they were more effective after receptor dependent stimulation of neutrophils. The levels of selected cytokines and chemokines, important for driving inflammatory responses, were also attenuated by antagonists of TNF-?. .


Cantor describes the evolution of the countryside during the years which witnessed the disappearance of the medieval landscape and which led to the radical changes of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.


The paper discusses the necessity and urgency of establishing the theoretical frame of the Chinese management philosophy.The author maintains that the inevitable path for establishing the Chinese management philosophy lies in"comprehensive innovation".To support this idea the author presents a thorough explanation of the rich resources of the Chinese philosophy from the perspective of integrating theories and practice.On the basis of in-depth research,innovative and academic suggestions for establishing a fundamental model of management characterized by the Chinese management philosophy of are proposed.


Mode-locking of a praseodymium based solid-state laser by a nonlinear mirror is reported, for the first time to the best of our knowledge. Pr:YAlO3 crystal having 0.6 at.% of Pr3+ ions was used as an active medium. For mode-locking, a nonlinear BBO crystal together with a properly designed dichroic mirror were employed to form an output coupler with intensity dependent reflection. A continuous-wave mode-locked laser operation with a mean output power of 100 mW was achieved under 3.5 W InGaN laser diode pumping. The laser emitted 250 ps pulses with a repetition rate of 105 MHz at a center oscillation wavelength of 747 nm.


: Catla catla. Fish is one of the major inland fish produced across the country. West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh was selected for the study.98 respondents from 4 villages were selected based on the population of the villages. The present study was conducted in the year 2019-2020years.This paper examines the constraints faced by the fish farmers while producing and marketing of the inland fish (Catla catla) which reveals that high cost of seed in production and lack of government support price in marketing are the major constraints expressed by the farmers.


PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the oxide layer removal process in the Co-Cr-Mo (CCM) abutment after casting procedure on the prosthesis settlement and screw stability. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CCM abutments of four different interface conditions (CCM-M; machined, CCM-O; oxide layer formed, CCM-B; blasted, CCM-P; polished after blasted) and gold abutment (Gold-C; Cast with type III Gold alloy) were used. The initial settling values of abutments were evaluated according to the difference of implant-abutment length when the tightening torques were applied at 5 Ncm and 30 Ncm, and the settling values of abutments caused by loading were evaluated according to the difference of implantabutment length before and after loading with 250 N, 100000 cycle. The loss ratios of removal torque for abutment screws were evaluated according to the difference in value of removal torques under 30 Ncm tightening torque applied before and after cyclic loading. RESULTS: The CCM-P and CCM-B group showed a higher initial settling value compared with the Gold-C group (P .05). The loss ratio of removal torque values for the CCM-B, CCM-P groups did not differ significantly from that of the Gold-C group (P>.05). CONCLUSION: Even though the oxide layer was removed by different methods, CCM abutment with internal conical connection structure showed lower abutment settling and similar screw loosening after cyclic loading compared with gold abutment.


The litter mass in Cryptocarya concinna, Lindera chunii community belonging to monsoon evergreen broad-leaf forest in the Dinghushan Biosphere Reserve was 12.16 and 6.58t·ha~(-1)yr~(-1), investigated from February 1989 to January 1990 anf from June 1990 to May 1991. The litter mass not only varied in different months and years, but also varied in the same month of different years due to the influence of climatic fluctuations. The rate of litter decomposition was determined by natural decomposition method I and II. There was no significant difference by t-test. The rate of litter decomposition determined by using the nylon bay method was 64.9%, which was lower than that by natural decomposition methods because nylon networks prevented some animals from entering the nylon bags. The mass and nitrogen content in the litter layer at the beginning of experiment were 2.87t·ha~(-1) and 36.63kg·ha~(-1), respectively. On the other hand, the amount of yearly nitrogen input to the litter layer by litterfall during the experimental period was 172.19kg·ha~(-1). However, there were only 4.3t·ha~(-1) of litter mass and 55.2kg of nitrogen in litter layer at the end of..


In some profile monitoring applications, the independency assumption of consecutive binary response values within each profile is violated. To the best of our knowledge, estimating the time of a change in the parameters of an autocorrelated binary profile is neglected in the literature. In this paper, two maximum likelihood estimators are proposed to estimate the real time of step changes and drift in Phase II monitoring of binary profiles in the case of within-profile autocorrelation, respectively. Our proposed estimators, not only identify the change point in the autocorrelated logistic regression parameters, but also in autocorrelation coefficient. The performance of the proposed estimators to identify the time of change points either in regression parameters or autocorrelation coefficient is evaluated through simulation studies. The results in terms of the accuracy and precision criteria show the satisfactory performance of the proposed estimators under both step changes and drift. Moreover, a numerical example is given to illustrate the application of the proposed estimators.


In this paper, we investigate in various ways the representation of a large natural number as a sum of a fixed power of Piatetski-Shapiro numbers, thereby establishing a variant of the Hilbert–Waring problem with numbers from a sparse sequence. §


Virtual satellite network attachment point approach is explored to hide the mobility of satellites from the mobile endpoints in the highly dynamic NGEO satellite network. In this work, a mathematical model for the satellite-fixed footprint technique and a new evaluation criterion are introduced to analyze the availability of a virtual attachment point. Analyzing the quantitative evaluation results, we conclude with the benefits and some drawbacks of constructing a satellite-fixed footprint based virtual attachment point.


Today, innovating with a user community seems an effective strategy for developing a firm's innovation capacity. However, short‐term benefits from this collaboration are no longer sufficient, and firms are now looking to develop a sustainable relationship with users, to maintain sustainable innovation. This study furthers our understanding of the way in which a user toolkit connected to a community serves to manage innovation of an existing product or service. The literature provides a limited understanding of the role of a user toolkit in the management of a sustainable innovation approach in firms. The research is based on a longitudinal case study of the video game Trackmania, which has an integrated toolkit connected to a large and active user community. Results confirm the crucial role of the toolkit in the construction, control and maintenance of a sustainable innovative approach with a user community. From the innovation perspective, the toolkit can be considered as a means of managing the boundary between the firm and the user community, because it enables the community to structure itself as a multi‐sided platform, where all categories of users participate in value creation. Finally, we identify four modalities for managing sustainable innovation with a user community toolkit.


ABSTRACT The study aims to reveal the impacts of land ownership on rural Bangladeshi women's household incomes and decision-making capacity. Data were collected by using the Simple Random Sampling technique from the selected participants in Tangail district. The Propensity Score Matching (PSM) results demonstrate that land ownership had no significant impact on enhancing woman's own income. The existing patriarchal norms restraint women from controlling their land; even their decision-making capacity regarding large purchase, crop cultivation, children's well-being, and mobility remains very limited. Legislation concerning gender equal inheritance rights and longer action-plan for gender transformation are required for a change.


Cephalopina titillator infestation cause great economic losses where the infested camels show different clinical signs which varied from loss of appetite, decrease in body weights, and milk production to impaired breathing. In the current study, the prevalence of C. titillator was recorded by PM examination and indir ect ELISA in serum and mucus samples as 26.27%, 83.33%, and 51.67%, respectively. Also, the study showed a highly significant relation between the sample sources (serum/mucus) and the antigen types (Excretory Secretory Products ESP, Organ 's content Co, Crude Cr & Somatic So Ags) depending upon the obtained res u lts b y indirect ELISA. The usage of different antigens showed a significant variation in the obtained results by ELISA test, where Co Ag recorded the highest values followed by ESP and finally, So Ag showed the lowest values. The recorded results for indirect ELISA showed that the use of Co Ag for antibody detection in s eru m samples showed the highest significant values in comparison with other used Ags . Area under Curve (AUC) referred to a good diagnostic accuracy of ELISA test where it reached 0.73 for Co Ag and ESP. The obtained results illustrated moderate to high significant agreement between PM examination and ELISA test. The stu d y concluded that using an indirect ELISA against different third instar antigens o f C. titillator reported higher values in serum than mucus. The strength of antigen immunogenicity was arranged as: Co > Cr > ESP > So in serum, and it was ESP > Cr > Co & So in mucus. Also, the use of Co Ag for the serum samples in ELISA considered the most immunogenic one which enhance IgG production and recommends its use for early and accurate serodiagnosis of C. titillator infestatio n in naturally infected camels.


A study of Silicon Carbide Schottky diodes forward electrical behavior with temperature and under a low applied magnetic field was undertaken. Investigations involved four samples, two CSD01060 power diodes and two CD01060 medium power diodes. Silicon carbide is a promising material that has been recently used to manufacture electronic components operating at high power, high voltage, high frequency and high temperature. Among components made from silicon carbide, Schottky diodes are very important. They can withstand reverse voltages higher than 1200V and currents of 20A or more. Through forward I-V characteristics with and without applied magnetic field in temperature range from 100K to 300K with 50K steps, values of threshold voltage, ideality factor n and saturation current of four samples were determined. Temperature evolution of determined parameters is in relation with established theory while magnetic field effect appears only at low thermionic injection. Values of ideality factor are very close to 1 showing that current transport is diffusion dominated and there is no oxide layer at metal semiconductor interface. At low voltage, I-V characteristics indicate the presence of active deep defects in semiconductor band structure. High injection measurements at high temperatures confirmed results found at low injection and for low temperatures. Calculated series resistance shows good quality of devices and consistency of our results with literature.


We study large population stochastic dynamic games with agent specific cost coupling where each agent assigns nonuniform weights to other agents to indicate locality related interactions. The nash certainty equivalence (mean field) methodology is generalized to this framework to give decentralized individual strategies. The key step is the specification of a family of consistent individual controls which depend upon each agent¿s state and upon the aggregate effect of the other agents as locally received by that agent. This methodology has close connections with the mean field models studied by lasry and lions (2006, 2007) and the notion of oblivious equilibrium proposed by Weintraub, Benkard, and Van Roy (2005, 2007) via a mean field approximation.


Liver fibrosis is a common pathological process of varied chronic liver diseases including alcoholic hepatitis, virus hepatitis, and so on. Accurate evaluation of liver fibrosis is necessary for effective therapy and a five-stage grading system was developed. Currently, experienced pathologists use stained liver biopsies to assess the degree of liver fibrosis. But it is difficult to obtain highly reproducible results because of huge discrepancy among different observers. Polarization imaging technique has the potential of scoring liver fibrosis since it is capable of probing the structural and optical properties of samples. Considering that the Mueller matrix measurement can provide comprehensive microstructural information of the tissues, in this paper, we apply the Mueller matrix microscope to human liver fibrosis slices in different fibrosis stages. We extract the valid regions and adopt the Mueller matrix polar decomposition (MMPD) and Mueller matrix transformation (MMT) parameters for quantitative analysis. We also use the Monte Carlo simulation to analyze the relationship between the microscopic Mueller matrix parameters and the characteristic structural changes during the fibrosis process. The experimental and Monte Carlo simulated results show good consistency. We get a positive correlation between the parameters and the stage of liver fibrosis. The results presented in this paper indicate that the Mueller matrix microscope can provide additional information for the detections and fibrosis scorings of liver tissues and has great potential in liver fibrosis diagnosis.


The tropical cyclone surge disasters have heavy influence on the littoral of Guangdong,especially on east Guangdong.Because of the particular coastal landform,the tropical cyclone surge disasters occur frequently and have brought on huge loss in life and property there.Based on the analyses of the statistics from 1979-2006 of the surge of tropical cyclone and storm tide,this paper analyses and researches the relation between the surge at east Guangdong and the relevant factors leading to the tropical cyclone such as the landing location,path,intensity,tide etc.Finally,this paper gives an introduction to the forecast of the surge in east Guangdong.


INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE:Overactive bladder (OAB) may be associated with unpleasent effect on female sexual function. Mirabegron, a β3 receptor agonist, improves OAB symptoms, but there is limite...


In this paper, a new finite element Gaussian belief propagation (FGaBP) method is presented for time-domain applications. The unconditionally stable Newmark time-stepping scheme is combined with FGaBP for this purpose. As shown empirically, the method converges for increasing time step sizes without losing stability. The combined FGaBP-time stepping is able to retain the parallel scalability from FGaBP as in previous work. In addition, this paper also shows that lossy material properties can be easily supported by the method with minimal changes to its formulation.


Nowadays, due to the increasing demand for energy and the problems of non-renewable energies, renewable energies are growing. In a country like Iran with a radiation potential higher than the global average, utilizing solar energy is a priority among other renewable energy sources. In areas affected by the dust phenomenon, one of the main challenges is the performance reduction of photovoltaic solar panels due to dust accumulation. By conducting a comprehensive review of related studies, the present study categorized the properties of dust and how they affect the performance of photovoltaic solar panels. Also, the dust origins in Iran and the frequency of dust phenomena in the country were studied. It was shown that the different physical properties and chemical composition lead to different effects on the performance of photovoltaic solar panels. Therefore, the effect of physical properties (color, temperature, dust accumulation rate, adhesion, concentration, moisture content, specific gravity, and plastic index) and chemical composition (size, charge, shape, material, and distribution of particles) of dust on the performance of photovoltaic solar panels were studied and classified. The present study can be used as a general reference for additional research in this field according to the dominant dust type in the target region.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The main purpose of training is conveying knowledge from one generation to next one. This may lead to appropriate changes in human behavior. Students undergoing regular consults by their professor advisors can assist to their educational development and this process can improve their quality of life in the future. This study aimed to evaluate the rate of satisfaction in paramedical students about the activities of their professor advisors. METHODS: This study was performed on all students at Paramedical Faculty in Babol university of Medical Sciences, during the first semester of academic year, 2011. In addition to demographic data, participants were interviewed on different aspects of professor advisors activities via a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using the SPSS software version 18. FINDINGS: In overall, 424 students participated in the current study. The mean of age was 21±2.7 years. 212 out of 424 (50%) students were alert about the various activities of their professor advisors. The most reasons for referring the students were to get scientific and educational resources and academic problems with 49.3% and 47.6% satisfaction rates, respectively, also, 32.2% of participants were very satisfied from their professor advisors activities and 70.2% of them believed that professor advisors program is a necessity. CONCLUSION: Although about 1/3 of students were very satisfied from their professor advisors activities but there is a major gap to desired goals of the professor advisors program. This study suggested that workshops on "different aspects of advisors activities" should be planned for professor advisors and students, also, furher studies on this field should be performed to provide better consulting services.


Knowledge acquisition has always been the bottleneck of artificial intelligence. It is the critical point in product family design. Here a knowledge acquisition method was introduced based on scenario model and repository grid and attribute ordering table technology. This method acquired knowledge through providing product design cases to expert, and recording the means and knowledge used by the expert to describe and resolve problems. It used object to express design entity, used scenario to describe the design process, used Event-Condition-Action(ECA) rule to drive design process, and with the help of repository grid and attribute ordering table technology to acquire design knowledge. It's a good way to capture explicit and implicit knowledge. And its validity is proved with respective examples.


Efficacy of olfactory attractants incorporated in biconical traps to enhance the catch size of Glossina pallidipes Austen was investigated. Preliminary studies considered the effectiveness of a mixture of waste products from buffalo (Syncerus caffer) and that of warthog (Phacochoerus aethiopicus.) The results were compared with the known tsetse olfactory attractants, carbon dioxide and acetone. When the waste product components from buffalo were used in the traps separately, buffalo urine was found to be by far the most effective. This component, used in its natural state inside the trap, increased G. pallidipes catches almost 10-fold when compared with the control catch.


There is provided a method of operating a mobile device in a heterogeneous communications network, the heterogeneous communications network comprising first and second base stations, the first base station having a lower transmission power than the second base station and being within the coverage area of the second base station, the method comprising obtaining measurements of the quality of signals transmitted between the first base station and the mobile device and/or the second base station and the mobile device; and analysing the measurements of the quality to determine whether the mobile device is located in an imbalanced region or part of an imbalanced region between the first and second base stations.


The paper studies the path following of a ship sailing in restricted waters based on an output feedback control, which consists of a state feedback control law and an extended updated-gain high-gain observer. According to the separation principle, the state feedback control and the extended updated-gain high-gain observer are designed separately. The state feedback control law is designed based on a robust guaranteed cost control method assuming that system states are measurable. Sufficient conditions are given for the control based on a linear uncertain system. The extended updated-gain high-gain observer, whose gains are updated according to the nonlinear functions of available evaluation errors, is used to reconstruct system states. Then the output feedback control is obtained by replacing states value in the state feedback control law with its estimation yielded by the state observer. Numerical simulations confirm the effectiveness of the proposed control method for the path following of a ship sailing in restricted waters.


Abstract : Numerous newspaper articles and other reports echoing toe issue highlighted by the preceding quote, coupled with other documents such as the Marine Corps' semi-annual review of its Government-wide Commercial Purchase Card (GCPC) Program for the first half of fiscal year (FY) 2003, led the author of this article to review GCPC usage in the Marine Corps as the basis for a Naval Postgraduate School Master of Business Administration thesis. The following paragraphs are a summation of the analysis made in that thesis by the author and Lieutenant Colonel Robert J. Darling, USMC. Although the GCPC program has proven to be of tremendous value to the Department of Defense (DoD), it has also experienced high levels of fraud, waste, and abuse. Many of the difficulties DoD bas experienced with the GCPC program are results of weaknesses in the program's internal control environment. The recommendations in this article are offered as a means to improve that environment.


An IBM-360 cross-assembler for a SDS-910 computer system was broken down into two major programs. The first program assembles SDS-910 Assembly Language code, and the second program uses information supplied by the first to produce a reference list of all identifiers used in the source SDS-910 Assembly Language program. Listings, documentation, and sample results are given for the two programs. (auth)


In this paper we propose a particle model for the Higgs' condensate: we propose that this condensate is the set of (infinite velocity) non-local tachyons. We show that then there exists the anomalous geometrical diffraction (which contradicts to quantum mechanics). We show that there exists a universal time constant which defines the limits of the validity of quantum mechanics. We propose an experiment testing the existence of the anomalous geometrical diffraction. We proposed the dark energy conjecture which enables to make an estimate of the time constant. We assume certain ("Feynman") interaction between standard particle and the non-local tachyon. All this is related to the new (finite) form of the Feynman integral.


Abstract Faced with declining budgets, university administrators have reduced expenditures on faculty-development programs and other "basic tools" of faculty development, such as professional conferences, academic journals, and textbooks. In this exploratory study, a mail survey of 100 faculty from the colleges of business at three universities measured the extent to which these basic tools are used as well as the faculty's perceived usefulness of the tools. The findings show that all three tools are used extensively, and all three are perceived to provide significant benefits, though the benefits vary in terms of each tool's usefulness for teaching, research, or consulting. The findings, though exploratory, have implications for future budgetary decisions.


In this paper, an effort is exerted to the problem of short-term forecasting of domestic demand for mineral water. The seasonal ARIMA models are considered in model building and in making the forecast. As it turned out, the model fits well into the given time-series data in so far as modeling procedures are relevant. A modeling procedure as well as a few fitted models is presented in some detail in order to discuss on the modeling procedure itself.


The benefits of thrombolytic therapy in the management of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) are well established. Post-AMI outcome is dependent upon fast thrombus dissolution, rapid reperfusion of coronary vessels and prevention of further thrombus formation. Although thrombolytic therapy reduces mortality, it is still associated with a 5-10% death rate, is not suitable for all patients and has thrombogenic activity that may limit its success rate. Patient outcome is improved using a combination of thrombolytic and antiplatelet agents. The latter block the platelet adhesion/ aggregation pathway at various stages, preventing clot formation. The combination of aspirin, a cyclo-oxygenase inhibitor, with thrombolytic therapy reduces the risk of mortality more than either treatment alone. This additive effect is attributed to the action of aspirin in preventing post-AMI clot formation and re-occlusion of vessels. However, aspirin is a relatively weak antiplatelet agent. Other drugs which interact at different stages of platelet aggregation/adhesion (e.g. GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors) are being tested in clinical trials, and interim results appear promising. Optimal thrombolytic and antithrombotic treatment should result in: (1) a rapid restoration of forward coronary blood flow, (2) prevention of re-occlusion, and (3) an absence of severe bleeding complications.


The epigraphical study of the inscribed walls in the Theban burial chamber commissioned by Nakht min (TT 87), undertaken between 2020 and 2022, has established the steps of the decorative process of the chamber and identified three scribal hands. The chaîne opératoire behind the decoration was elucida ted by the cooperation of epigraphists and restorers through the careful observation of all the physical marks left on the surfaces both in situ (using normal and raking lights, as well as magnifying glasses) and with high resolution photographs. The identification of the hands is based on the analysis of an array of features related to the mise en page, the morphology and technology of signs, and scribal practices. This research, undertaken from the perspective of material philology, sheds light on New Kingdom craftsmen and scribes, considering both their collective work and in dividual traits.


Recently, Bidding algorithms on the generation side have become a research hot point of the electricity spot market area and attracting by this, researchers proposed reinforcement learning, StackeIberg and other game theory algorithms to solve this issue. However, grid constraints with regard to clearing algorithms on bidding strategy are not given enough consideration, therefore security check is hard to pass and bidding result effectiveness is affected. We present a bidding strategy, use DDQN to simulate the generation side bidding, and study whether the power generation side can converge to an equilibrium state. In this strategy, DDQN reinforcement learning algorithm selects the quotation strategy that a node model considers optimal, and brings the quotation strategy of all power generators into the SCUC algorithm. The power generation and revenue of each power generator are calculated to realize the goal of maximizing the revenue. Then the revenue results are fed back to the DDQN algorithm for training. After training, the optimal strategy of each power generator can be obtained. We adopt the system marginal price SMP (system marginal price) as the settlement mechanism. Meanwhile, the system constraints, unit constraints and safety constraints in the unit combination UC (unit commitment) are considered during clearing process. Yalmip and Cplex toolkits in Matlab are called in our simulation. The results show that the Nash equilibrium state is able to be reached while meeting all constraints.


This study is aimed to analyze the female characters in Gossip Girl novel using the women empowerment concept by Susan Faludi in order to become subject and get the equality in lives within some aspects. In this study, it explores the women empowerment that happens in three life aspects, they are: career, lifestyle, and relationship. Analysis in these three aspects reveals individually women empowerment in their daily life comprehensively and how these aspects participate in creating an equality and subject recognition. In the end of the analysis, it is found that the women empowerment which has been captured by female characters in Gossip Girl novel present some impacts in their lives. Those are some matters that cause the female characters in the novel to become equal and recognized as subjects.

Keyword: women empowerment, equality, subject, career, lifestyle, relationship.


These days it is increasingly commonplace and publicly acceptable for applications to make memory demands that only a couple of years ago seemed outrageous. The prices of fast, powerful personal computers capable of running such applications are plummeting. It is therefore becoming reasonable to wonder how pre-college education might benefit from the use of software that until very recently was excluded even from the fantasies of educational visionaries because of cost considerations and the inaccessibility of suitable hardware. Among the topics that may now realistically be considered for inclusion in the pre-college curriculum is the important subject of solid modeling.


The question of the political efficacy of images has resurged in recent years in the wake of footage from the World Trade Center attacks, as well as images from Abu Ghraib and more recently, the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris. French philosopher and art historian Georges Didi-Huberman has claimed it is necessary for images to take a position. This essay will examine the historical context of Didi-Huberman's claim and its contemporary relevancy. Consideration will be given to British artist Steve McQueen's Queen and Country (2007-2009).


Purpose: Low molecular weight(LMW)heparin shows stronger antifactor Xa(F-Xa) and weaker anti-thrombin(TH) activities compared with unfractionated(UF) heparin, and shows less bleeding tendency in the cases of clinical use. These characteristics were surmised to be depend on antithrombin III(AT-III) affinity of the heparin. Materials and methods: LMW heparin(Kabi and Pharmuka), UF heparin (Novo) and heparin cofactor II(HC-II) purified by our method were used. AT-III affinity column chromatography with 0.1 M Tris-buffer (pH 7.4)-NaCl 0.02 to 2.5 M linear gradient was performed. From the point of AT-III affinity strength, non-affinity(Na), low affinity (La) and high affinity(Ha) were separated, and aPTT, anti-F-Xa and anti-TH activities were assayed on each fractions. HC-II was assayed by biological activity. Results: (1) Kabi-LMW heparin; Na 34.5%, La 39.3%, Ha 26.2%, Pharmuka-LMW heparin; Na 58.0%, La 24.1%, Ha 17.3%. Novo; Na 0%, La 50%, Ha 50%. (2) APTT; Na showed no effect, but Ha showed the strongest prolonging effects on aPTTs even having less amount of uronic acid, and more prominent effects were observed in UF(Novo)-heparin than LMW heparins. (3) La showed higher activity of anti-F-Xa and anti-TH activities than Ha. (4) Anti-TH activity of AT-III was observed in both fractions of La and Ha, but that of HC-II was observed in each fractions including Na. Conclusion: It was surmised that the differences of the characteristics between LMW heparin and UF heparin were depend on to the strength of AT-III. The different characteristics of HC-II from AT-III to anti-TH were observed and surmised to be depend on the binding ability to the fractions.


There is an ever-increasing tendency towards standardising principles, policies and practices worldwide. As far as the definition of a traffic accident fatality is concerned, however, there is still a large range of definitions currently in use by different countries. Some of the more common definitions include: immediate death and death within 24 hours of a traffic accident (Portugal), or death 3 days (Republic of Korea), 7 days (Italy), 30 days (most European countries) or 1 year (USA) after a traffic accident. Attempts have also been made to develop (universal) correction factors to allow for comparison amongst countries with different fatality definitions. However, applying such correction factors is problematic. The longer the period in which a traffic accident casualty dies after an accident, the greater the chance the cause of this death is not registered as being from a road traffic accident but rather from complications, which arose from the accident (e.g. pneumonia after fractured ribs sustained by a vehicle driver during an accident). The accuracy of fatality statistics is therefore diminished by longer-period definitions of traffic accident fatalities. In the light of the above-mentioned problems, this paper investigates the consequences of using the 6-day definition in South Africa, the merits of changing this definition to a 30-day definition, as well as the possible implications this is likely to have in terms of procedure and processes. For the covering abstract and the URL of the conference see ITRD E205670. (A)


This work presents an image pattern recognition system invariant to translation, scale and rotation. The system uses the Fourier transform to achieve the invariance to translation and the analytical Forier-Mellin transform for the invariance to scale and rotation. According with the statistical theory of box-plots, the pattern recognition system has a confidence level at least of 95.4%.


Australoecia atlantica Maddocks, n. sp., is described and illustrated. The soft-part anatomy demonstrates that Australoecia McKenzie is correctly classified in the family Pontocyprididae. Abyssocypris van den Bold is a synonym; suggested resemblances to Cardobairdia (van den Bold) are superficial and due to convergence. Australoecia abyssophilia Maddocks is reillustrated. Anatomy of Australoecia (Pontocyprididae, Ostracoda)


The utility model discloses a novel slingshot toy which comprises rubber bands, a shot wrapping piece, a laser emission device, a grip and an arched frame, wherein the arched frame is arranged on the grip. The shot wrapping piece is connected to two upper ends of the arched frame through the rubber bands, a projector is arranged on the front of the top of the grip, an assembly clamp groove is formed in the bottom of the arched frame, a clamp hook is arranged on the laser emission device, and the laser emission device is arranged on the arched frame by matching the clamp hook with the assembly clamp groove. The novel slingshot toy is ingenious and reasonable in structural design, high in entertainment and interactivity, simple and compact in integral structure, simpler and more convenient to assemble, easy to implement and low in production cost, has a projecting function and a laser aiming function, provides more fun for players, can project various patterns by replacing slides and is provided with fewer parts, interestingness and playability are further improved and greatly enhanced, and the players cannot feel boring.


The production of native corn at regional level is greatly limited by the seasonality of rainfall, availability of adequate lands, poor fertility status of the soil, high input costs and constraints of resources of the local corn growers and/or producers. The challenges of reduced cultivable area give very little opportunity for increasing production area in a sustainable manner; it is important to note that the soil recover their fertility status through crop rotation and prolonged rest period (> 25 years) known as sequential agroforestry system or "milpa". During 2015, corn collections were performed in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico that included five races from the Yucatan (in localities of Nohacal and Peto) and Campeche (Calakmul, Suc-Tuc, Sakabchen, I Chek) states. The races identified were: 1) Nal-Tel (gallito), 2) Dzit Bacal, 3) Xnu'uc Naal (Tuxpeño), 4) Palomero and, 5) Tabloncillo. The local varieties, Pix Cristo (Knees of Christ), Eh Hu (Purple maize) and Chac Chu'ub (Chac ́s Blood or Red maize), are included within the Tuxpeño (Xnu ́uk Naal) race. The land race of corn that is in imminent danger of extinction is Nal-Tel, characterized by its precocity and ability to escape periods of low rainfall; is important to rescue it for adoption to the practices of local and regional production. The adaptation of this race as a germplasm is important due to its resilience to climate change itself. Palomero, Tabloncillo, Pix Cristo, Chac Chu ́ub and Eh Hu can thus be used in traditional food industry, to preserve the traditional knowledge and to provide opportunities for additional income for the local, rural communities. Yellow Palomero and Tabloncillo races are new records of germplasm for the region; and hence essential is exchanging their seeds among local producers and growers.