Dummy-based anonymization techniques for protecting the location privacy of mobile users have appeared in the literature. By generating dummies that move in humanlike trajectories, this approach shows that the location privacy of mobile users can be preserved. However, the trajectories of mobile users can still be exposed by monitoring the long-term movement patterns of users. We argue that, once the trajectory of a user is identified, the locations of the user are exposed. Thus, it is critical to protect the movement trajectories of mobile users in order to preserve user location privacy. We propose two schemes that generate consistent movement patterns in the long run. Guided by three parameters in a user specified privacy profile, namely, short-term disclosure, long-term disclosure and distance deviation, the proposed schemes derive movement trajectories for dummies. The experimental results show that our proposed schemes are more effective than existing works in protecting movement trajectories.


The current study investigates how different types of multi-effects guitar devices can affect users' evaluations of usability and user experience. Participants were asked to interact with three different multi-effects devices while playing an electric guitar. Typically multi-effect pedalboards are used by musicians to modify an instrument sound. These tools allow us to distort notes or to change the duration of the produced sounds. The main difference between the three devices pertains to the placement of their controllers: fixed-pedals on the ground; movable-pedals on the ground; movable and wireless pedals that can be freely placed, at the discretion of the user (e.g., on the guitar, the user's body). The second and third devices were both prototypes designed and developed by the first author. Several usability dimensions (e.g., ease of use, enjoyment, etc.) were evaluated (i.e., ad hoc questionnaire). Besides the musical experience also the attitude towards novel technologies (i.e., personal innovativeness) was collected. Overall, the two prototypes appeared as easier to use and enjoyable compared to the fixed-pedals device. Furthermore, participants with high levels of personal innovativeness perceived the devices as more controllable. The opportunity of customizing the placement of the pedals positively affected the evaluations. The study outcomes lay the foundations for the implementation of new prototypes that could be tailored based on musicians' needs. The result will be an increment in usability and a more positive user experience.


Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the development of environmental management practices by Portuguese local entities and their determining factors.Design/methodology/approach – The data were collected by sending a postal questionnaire. In order to measure the degree of development of environmental management practices, an index of environmental management practices (EMPI) was developed, which reflects the extent to which a set of 16 environmental management practices have been implemented by the entities included in the sample. In total, four variables are considered in this study as possible factors that drive the development of environmental management practices by local entities: type of entity; size; proactive environmental strategy; and Local Agenda 21.Findings – Results indicate the degree of development of environmental management practices in Portuguese local entities is low. Additionally, entity size, the adoption of proactive environmental strategies and the implementation of Loc...


Team effectiveness can be measured by both team-level outcomes and their influences on individual members. We present a multi-level model of individual informal learning as influenced by team-level...


The normalized volume scattering function and energy distributing function of bubble populations in ship wakes are calculated by Mie theory,and based on which,the forward light scattering properties of bubble populations is analyzed.The results show that the forward scattering intensity of bubble populations is far stronger than its backscattering,and the forward scattering energy is above 90% of all scattering energy;the scattering energy in the small angle of forward 1 degree expands to beyond 40% rapidly,and then increases slowly with the scattering angle;the organic film coated to bubbles can enhance the bubbles' backscattering observably,but has a little influence on its forward scattering.


The main element of aviation motor components manufacture is improving quality and degrading cost. When smelting and aluminum alloy that the founding is mutually related, a hard nut to crack that metallurgy technology is first of all encounter is adjust clean degree the rigorous demand. By means of analyses except for aluminium means mainer kind of rule and technology that in the part of the body is mingled with melt, thereby carrying on the tall aluminium of clean degree melts probing of part of the body.


To investigate the activating effect of Achyrathes bidentata polysaccharides (ABPS) on mononuclear cells in vitro. Heparinized blood was collected from adults. The monocytes were separated by the anchoring technique. Freshly isolated in 24-well flat-bottom plates, the cells were cultured with serially diluted ABPS-RPMI1640 for identical time or with the same ABPS-RPMI1650 for different periods at 37degC in 5% CO-(2).The activation of the cells was assayed by electron microscopy and flow cytometry. Monocytes culture with ABPS underwent substaintial changes in the cell ultrastructure, and the expression of HLA-DR was up-regulated in these cels in significant dose-and timedependent manner. ABPS can induce the expression of HLA-DR in the monocytes, and thereby activate them.


Nothomitra is a small genus of earth tongues consisting of three species. Historically placed within the Geoglossaceae sensu lato, the genus is currently considered incertae sedis within the Helotiales. We reviewed the morphology and analyzed the phylogenetic relationships of Nothomitra using a combined dataset of ITS, LSU and Mcm7 DNA sequences representing 22 species. The placement of Nothomitra was strongly supported within the Geoglossomycetes clade, forming part of the ancestral base of the class with Sarcoleotia globosa and Thuemenidium arenarium. The inclusion of Nothomitra within the Geoglossomycetes is confirmed.


The study aims to explore the corporate governance practices in the public sector entities in Ghana to identify weaknesses for improvement based on appointments to the boards, conflicts between CEOs and the boards, etc. The results confirm structural weaknesses in corporate governance practices in the public sector entities in Ghana and require drastic improvement to be aligned with the advanced economies. Based on the findings, the study recomments that the President desists from appointing the CEOs and allows the boards to appoint the CEO


With the recent increase for demand of surgical masks, the design and development of mask production lines has become an ever pressing issue. These production lines produce low cost high quantity products. As there are errors during the production, it is important to be able to detect invalid masks to assure that the produced masks are of consistent quality. Manual quality assurance using human operators is an error prone and a costly solution. In this article we describe an image classification method, which is using a low-cost Commercial Camera System and relies on Haar-like features combined with Maximum Relevance, Minimum Redundancy feature selection to detect the invalid masks at the end of the production process. The classification method consists of Preprocessing, Feature Selection and SVM Training. We have tested the method on a database of 150 000 images and it provides a high accuracy method which we use in the Production Line.


Objective To investigate the relationship between the expression of nerve growth factor receptor(NGFR) and tumor clinical growth index, proliferation and angiogenesis in human acoustic neuroma(AN). Methods NGFR, proliferation cell nuclear antigen(PCNA) expression and microvessel density(MVD) were detected by using immunohistochemical staining in 34 cases of human AN. Results NGFR was expressed in all the cases, while not in the normal acoustic nerves. The NGFR and PCNA expression levels were significantly higher in the macroscopically growing tumors than in slowly or non- growing tumors(χ2=5.67,t=2.65,3.83,P0.05,0.01). NGFR was closely related to MVD(t=3.33,P0.01), but not with PCNA (t=1.88,P05). Conclusion The expression of NGFR increases in the macroscopic growth of AN, and is closely related to angiogenesis of AN, which indicates that NGFR may be involved in the pathogenesis of AN.


THE well-known syndrome caused by a failure of thyroid function has been described in a variety of animals. The effects of thyroparathyroidectomy in new-born rats has been studied quite thoroughly by Salmon (1938), who has observed the usual characteristics of cretinism, i.e., retarded growth, lowered body temperature, sluggish reflexes, awkward muscular movements, persistence of infantile skull proportions, andgreatly retarded skeletal development. As an alternative method of inducing hypothyroidism, thyroid activity can be inhibited or abolished by the administration of anti-thyroid drugs without the side-effects attendant upon surgical operation (MacKenzie and MacKenzie,1943; Astwood, Sullivan, Bissell and Tyslowitz, 1943). In view of this fact, it was decided to determine the effect of the administration of one of these drugs, thiouracil, on the early development of this species. METHODS Rats of the Long-Evans strain were used. Thiouracil2 was administered daily from birth by the subcutaneous injectio...


We would like to report on AlGaN/GaN HEMTs on SiC substrate with stat-of the-art power performance at Ka-band. Power gains of 5.6, 6.3 and 6.7 dB and peak PAE of 53, 53 and 51% were measured at 35 GHz when 200-mum GaN HEMTs were biased at 10, 15 and 20 volts, respectively. At 10 GHz, 400-mum GaN HEMTs exhibited maximum PAE of 67%, power gain of 11.3 dB and power density of 5.6 W/mm when devices were biased at 30 volts. Furthermore, we have also achieved 36 to 38.7 ilBm TOI at a wide range of 10 to 26 dBm total output power for a 400-mum GaN HEMT. Very low noise figures of 1.4 dB at 26 GHz were measured on 100, 200 and 300-mum wide GaN HEMTs as well. In this work, we have demonstrated that GaN HEMTs on SiC substrate is a much superior device technology to GaAs-based pHEMT for microwave applications up through Ka-band.


Abstract : The dynamic response of a free-standing plate subjected to a blast wave is studied numerically to investigate the effects of fluid-structure interaction (FSI) in blast wave mitigation. Previous work on the FSI between a blast wave and a free-standing plate (Kambouchev, N., et al., 2006, Nonlinear Compressibility Effects in Fluid-Structure Interaction and Their Implications on the Air-Blast Loading of Structures, J. Appl. Phys., 100(6), p. 063519) has assumed a constant atmospheric pressure at the back of the plate and neglected the resistance caused by the shock wave formation due to the receding motion of the plate. This paper develops an FSI model that includes the resistance caused by the shock wave formation at the back of the plate. The numerical results show that the resistance to the plate motion is especially pronounced for a light plate, and as a result, the previous work overpredicts the mitigation effects of FSI. Therefore, the effects of the interaction between the plate and the shock wave formation at the back of the plate should be considered in blast wave mitigation.


Concrete slabs curl/warp due to environmental condition changes. These movements alter the base support on the concrete slab. The design assumptions of uniform support under concrete slabs may not be true. Instruments were installed in eight test sections to access the effect of environmental changes on concrete slabs' responses to load. The first field data collection session was completed on October, 1994. This report summarizes the data collected and initial findings.


Electrical conductances of Tetra-n-propylammonium iodide (n-Pr)4.NI in nitrobenzene, acetic anhydride, 1 -butanol, benzyl alcohol, aniline, dioxane-water mixture and chloroform at 30° have been explained by the methods of Fuoss-Onsager and Fuoss-Shedlovsky equations. The limiting equivalent conductance, A0, the single ion conductance, A^, the ionic association constant, KA and the ion size parameter, a 0 have been computed. The dependence of the limiting equivalent conductance, A0, association constant, KA and the ion size parameter, a on the dielectric constant have been examined in the light of Walden and ionic-Walden products, ion-ion and ion-solvent interactions. Introduction Tetra-n-alkylammonium salts with large anions like iodide ions were found to be associated to a greater extent than those with small anions in aqueous and many nonaqueous solvents [1-7]. Such a behaviour attributes to the formation of solventseparated ion pairs and contact ion pairs. These have been explained in the light of dielectric constant, viscosity of the medium and ion-ion and ion-solvent interactions. In continuation of our earlier work [2] the electrical conductances of tetra-n-propylammonium iodide in several solvents of varying dielectric constant values have been undertaken. Accordingly nitrobenzene (dielectric constant, D = 34), acetic anhydride (£> = 20), 1-butanol (D = 17), benzyl alcohol (D = 13), aniline (D = 7), dioxane-water mixture (D = 6) and chloroform (D = 5) were chosen as solvents. The dielectric dependence of conductance has been explained in terms of the limiting equivalent conductance, A0, the single ion conductance, AQ , the ion-size parameter, a and the ionic association constant, KA. Experimental Tetra-n-propylammonium iodide (Fluka) was used as solute while analar grade nitrobenzene (PhN02) , acetic anhydride [(Ac0)20], 1-butanol (BuOH), benzyl alcohol (PhCH2OH), aniline (PhNH2), dioxane-water [ C 4 H 8 0 2 H 2 0 (9-8%)] and chloroform (CHCI3) were used as solvents after distillation [7] and purification. The solutions were prepared by weight in an inert atmosphere of pure and dry nitrogen. Density, viscosity and conductance measurements were made in a manner similar to that reported earlier [2]. 1 Dr Npruf. Islam, Department of Chemistry, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh-202001, India. 9 Z. phys. Chemie, Bd. 262, H. 1 130 N. ISLAM et al.: Electrical Conductances of Tetra-n-Propylammonium Results and Discussion The electrical conductances of tetra-n-propylammonium iodide in the solvents under study have been found to resemble those reported earlier [2], Since the concentration range of measurement does not span more than one decade, the PARACOND programme proposed recently by Fuoss [8] for the PARAmetric analysis of CONDuctance data could not be employed in the present case. The concentration dependence of conductance was, therefore, explained by the Fuoss-Onsager equation [9] of the type A' = A0 + JC (1) WHERE A' = AOH, + SC EC LOG C (2) FOR UNASSOCIATED BEHAVIOUR WHILE THE FUOSS-SHEDLOVSKY EQUATION [10] OF THE TYPE 1 _ 1 (CAPSZ)KA A SZ A , A\ WHERE S, = 1 + SAYJAC/AL + I [SAJAC/AIY (4) for that of associated. The terms used in eq. (1)~(4) have their usual significances. Accordingly, the conductance-concentration data (Table 1) of all the systems under investigation were least-squares fitted to eq. (1) and (3) and the values of the parameters J and KA computed. The corresponding J values were then employed to calculate the ion-size parameter, a°. The values of parameters thus computed are listed in Table 2. The initial values of A0 used in such calculation were obtained in a manner reported earlier [11, 12], The Walden product, A0RJ for tetra-n-propylammonium iodide has been plotted against 1 \D (Fig. 1) and a typical variation of A0RJ with dielectric constant of the medium may be observed. The plot passes through a sharp maximum corresponding to the dielectric constant of 1-butanol. From chloroform to 1-butanol both A0 and A0T] values increase with increasing dielectric constant. Therefore, upto this range of dielectric constant, the A0 appears to be the predominating factor in the Walden product. Consequently,the viscosity of the solvent may have insignificant contribution to the/l0 values of the added solute during this dielectric constant range, viz., 4 81 (CHC13) to 171 (BuOH). The decrease in dielectric constant from BuOH to CHC13 may cause an increase in the number of complex entities. In turn, the increased ion-solvent interactions decrease the limiting equivalent conductance of Pr4NI. From BuOH to PhN02 the value of A0T) product decreases and may be attributed to the effect of solvent viscosity. Therefore, the decreasing part of the A0T] VS 1 ¡D plot appears to be governed both by dielectric constant as well as viscosity of the solvent. However, from butanol to acetic anhydride the values of A0 for Pr^NI seem to be determined mainly by the dielectric constant of the medium because A0 increases with increasing dielectric constant although there is a decrease in the solvent viscosity. N. ISLAM et al.: Electrical Conductances of Tetra-n-Propylammonium ... 131 Table 1. Conductance data of Tetra-n-propylammonium iodide in various organic solvents at 30CC c x 10* A c x 10* A c x 104 A c x 10* A Nitrobenzene Acetic anhydride 1-Butano! Benzyl alcohol 5-5236 32-0932 10-9752 82-8668 51731 35-1607 5-4895 11 2074 4-9099 32-7726 8-7802 85-0869 4-8857 36-9077 4-8795 11-9080 4-4189 32-8724 7-3168 89-3410 4-3971 38-3639 4-3916 12-2762 3-6824 33-0274 6-2715 91-6320 3-9974 39-6408 3-9924 12-4750 2-4549 33-2844 5-1648 94-1895 3-6643 40-7745 2-9277 12-7585 2-0086 33-3765 4-3901 97-2392 3-3824 41-5031 2-7447 13-1399 1-8412 33-4130 3-5121 100-9481 3-140H 42-6898 2-4398 14-2893 2-5086 104-2334 2-9314 43-5116 2-1958 14-8848 2-7482 44-2509 1-9962 14-5536 2-5865 45-9501 1-8298 15-0415 2-4428 46-5368 1-2199 15-0406 2-1985 47-5733 1-0979 15-3648 1-8321 51-8913 1-4657 54-8884 Aniline Dioxane--water Chloroform 5-5074 9-4954 4-5753 3-8205 5-5071 0-8632 3-6716 9-8230 3-8129 3-8795 4-8952 0-8902 2-5917 10-3476 3-5195 4-2029 4-4057 0-9131 2-2029 11-5797 3-0502 4-5026 4-0052 0-9325 1-7624 12-1113 2-6914 4-9272 3-6714 0-9495 1-4686 13-1887 2-2877 5-7966 3-3890 0-9956 1-2588 14-8371 1-9893 6-0418 31469 1-0385 1-1015 16-0935 1-7597 6-2442 2-9371 1-0790 1-5777 6-5893 2-7535 1-1171 1-3865 6-7659 2-5916 1-1529 1-8357 1-1870 1-6317 1-2092 Table 2. Computed parameters of eqs. ( I ) and (2) for equivalent conductance of Tetran-propylammonium iodide at 30°C Solvents A0 5 E J Aa a0 Aar¡ Nitrobenzene 35-57 74-59 149-65 2237-00 83-78 200 0-4340 Acetic 114-56 312-93 2752-7


Taking up the issue of schizophrenia as a cause for declaring a marriage null and voit, the author begins his reflections with a look at psychosis. From the point of view of marriage validity, of special significance is also the analysis of schizophrenia with very particular medical aspects. The cause of nullity of a marriage discussed here, in turn, requires a rather precise definition of schizophrenia and the factors by which it may be triggered. The last part of the author's reflections is devoted to the analysis of canon 1095 of the Code of Canon Law, especially to the definition of cases when this schizophrenia is serious enough to exclude marriage validity.


The possible combinations in the multidimensional space of high entropy alloys are extremely broad, which makes the incremental experimental research limited. As a result, establishing trends with well-known empirical parameters (lattice distortion, valence electron concentration etc.) and predicting effects of the chemical composition change are vital to guide future research in the field of materials science. In this context, we propose a strategy to rationalize the effect of chemical composition change on the hydrogen sorption properties in a series of high entropy alloys: Ti0.30V0.25Zr0.10Nb0.25 M 0.10 with M = Mg, Al, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo, Ta and ∅ (corresponding quaternary alloy). All materials are bcc alloys and absorb hydrogen at room temperature forming fcc or pseudo-fcc dihydride phases. The maximum hydrogen storage capacity at room temperature strongly depends on the valence electron concentration (VEC) of the alloys: the capacity is high (1.5–2.0 H/M) for low values of VEC (<4.9) whereas, a drastic fading is observed for VEC ≥4.9 which is the case for alloys with M being a late 3d transition metal. The structural analysis suggests that steric effects might not be responsible for this trend and electronic reasons may be invoked. Increasing the VEC by alloying with late 3d transition metals will fill the unoccupied valence states and the electrons from interstitial hydrogens can no longer be accommodated, which is unfavorable for hydrogen storage. Moreover, the onset temperature of desorption increases almost linearly with VEC for this composition series. These findings suggest that alloys with low VEC are more likely to become promising candidates for hydrogen storage.


The objective of the study was to characterize orbifloxacin concentrations in the plasma and skin of 14 clinically normal dogs and 14 dogs with pyoderma following single and multiple oral administration of orbifloxacin at a dose of 7.5 mg kg−1. Skin biopsies and whole blood samples were obtained prior to dosing and at the time of the expected peak concentration of orbifloxacin in skin (3 h post dose) on the first (day 0) and fifth (day 5 ± 1) day of dosing. Biopsies and plasma were analysed for orbifloxacin using validated high-performance liquid chromatography methods. Statistical comparisons were performed by t-test (P = 0.05). Following single and multiple dose administration at 7.5 mg kg−1, dogs with pyoderma had significantly higher mean skin concentrations of orbifloxacin (day 0: 7.80 ± 3.40 mg g−1, day 5 ± 1: 9.47 ± 6.23 mg g−1) than dogs with normal skin (day 0: 3.85 ± 1.08 mg g−1, day 5 ± 1: 5.43 ± 1.02 mg g−1). On day 0, the range of skin orbifloxacin concentrations was 3.17–15.79 mg g−1 in dogs with pyoderma, but only 1.45–5.29 mg g−1 in dogs with normal skin. By day 5 ± 1, the range of skin orbifloxacin concentrations was 0.82–25.50 mg g−1 in dogs with pyoderma, although only 3.66– 6.97 mg g−1 in dogs with normal skin. On both day 0 and day 5 ± 1, dogs with pyoderma had a significantly higher mean orbifloxacin skin/plasma ratio (1.40 and 1.44, respectively), than normal dogs (0.81 and 0.96, respectively). There were no significant differences between mean plasma orbifloxacin concentrations in clinically normal dogs and dogs with pyoderma following single or multiple daily dosing with orbifloxacin. The accumulation of orbifloxacin in diseased skin following multiple daily oral administration may contribute to the efficacy of this compound for the treatment of bacterial skin infections.


Helicobacter pylori is a curved bacillus with spirillary shape, Gram negative, whose etiologic role in the development of active chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer, tumors of lymphoid tissue mucosa-associated and gastric adenocarcinoma, has been clearly demonstrated by epidemiological studies. In Mexico there are reports indicating up to 82.6% seroprevalence associated with low socioeconomic status, overcrowding, malnutrition, swimming in rivers or pools, food or water contaminated with soil, consumption of municipal water sources, and raw vegetables, among others. Therefore, and in order to detect DNA from Helicobacter pylori in drinking and purific water and food that is sold on street, technique Polimerase Chain Reaction (PCR), was implemented. Validated primers were selected for detection and typing of vacA and cagA gene variants of the bacteria. Amplifies demonstrated H. pylori DNA in 40% of the total samples analyzed, but not in drinking and purific water. 30.6% was detected in vegetables, 50% fresh water and 56% in beef tacos. Consumption of street foods can contribute to the incidence and persistence of H. pylori in human, especially if they are not prepared under the rules of hygiene required. Arturo Espinoza Mata / Capitulo 2. Introduccion 3


Phosphorylase kinase (PhK) is a large hexadecameric complex that catalyzes the phosphorylation and activation of glycogen phosphorylase (GP). It consists in four copies each of a catalytic subunit (γ) and three regulatory subunits (α β δ). δ corresponds to endogenous calmodulin, whereas little is known on the molecular architecture of the large α and β subunits, which probably arose from gene duplication. Here, using sensitive methods of sequence analysis, we show that the C‐terminal domain (named domain D) of these α and β subunits can be significantly related to calcineurin B‐like (CBL) proteins. CBL are members of the EF‐hand family that are involved in the regulation of plant‐specific kinases of the CIPK/PKS family, and relieve autoinhibition of their target kinases by binding to their regulatory region. The relationship highlighted here suggests that PhK α and/or β domain D may be involved in a similar regulation mechanism, a hypothesis which is supported by the experimental observation of a direct interaction between domain D of PhKα and the regulatory region of the γ subunit. This finding, together the identification of significant similarities of domain D with the preceding domain C, may help to understand the molecular mechanism by which PhK α and/or β domain D might regulate PhK activity. Proteins 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Thepickup and delivery problem with time windows is the problem of serving a number of transportation requestsusing a limited amount of vehicles. Each request involves mo ving a number of goods from a pickup location to a delivery location. Our task is to constr uc routes that visit all locations such that corresponding pickups and deliveries are placed on the same rout and such that a pickup is performed before the corresponding delivery. The routes must also sat isfy time window and capacity constraints. This paper presents a heuristic for the problem based on an ex te sion of theLarge Neighborhood Search heuristic previously suggested for solving the vehicle rou ting problem with time windows. The proposed heuristic is composed of a number of competing sub-heuristi cs which are used with a frequency corresponding to their historic performance. This general framework i s denotedAdaptive Large Neighborhood Search . The heuristic is tested on more than 350 benchmark instances with up to 500 requests. It is able to improve the best known solutions from the literature for mor e than 50% of the problems. The computational experiments indicate that it is advantag eous to use several competing sub-heuristics instead of just one. We believe that the proposed heuristic i very robust and is able to adapt to various instance characteristics.


The early-age behavior of base restrained reinforced concrete (RC) walls is analyzed using a three-dimensional finite element method in this study. After calculating the temperature and internal relative humidity variations of an RC wall, determination of stresses due to thermal gradients, differential drying shrinkage, and average drying shrinkage is followed, and the relative contribution of these three stress components to the total stress is compared. The mechanical properties of early-age concrete, determined from many experimental studies, are taken into consideration and a discrete reinforcing steel derived using the equivalent nodal force concept is also used to simulate the cracking behavior of RC walls. In advance, to predict the crack spacing and maximum crack width in a base restrained RC wall, an analytical model which can simulate the post-cracking behavior of an RC tension member is introduced on the basis of the energy equilibrium before and after cracking of concrete. Finally, a design criterion to minimize the cracking in RC walls is recommended on the basis of the obtained numerical results.


This book aims to catalyze thinking and provide relevant information on the complex ways in which the information age is shaping Africa and the implications that this will have for the continent and the world--


We may regard Imperial religion as having two main elements, the piety of public life or of the family on the one hand, the more intense piety of the small group or of the devout individual on the other. These two, though differing, are not to be regarded as opposites; they rest on the basis of common conceptual forms and of common beliefs, deepened and enlarged in the second case. In both we find μυστήρια, in both also the intimate association of the well-being of city or Empire with the ritual. Even in its individualism this religion is not consciously individualist; the possessor of religious experience may regard what has been manifested to him as a revelation of truth that all men share. Religion in either form is distinct from magic, if we mean by that term the individual's attempt to put supernatural forces in harness for his own ends. Such magic is different from religion and can be quite divorced therefrom. Nevertheless, such isolation is not characteristic of the Empire. The religious practised magic, and it could hardly be said that in their belief they were free from magical conceptions; the later Neoplatonists, in their attempt to spiritualise and revive paganism, took magic under their protection.


A novel method which takes advantage of the overflow drain to release charge from photon potential of linear CCD,is proposed to realize the time-resolving function of detection system.The designed controlling timing is simulated using RL2048 linear CCD to prove the feasibility.This method provides reference for the design and development of laser induced breakdown spectral detection system.


This paper begins with a scrutiny of the notion SUBJUNCTIVE CONDITIONAL together with an introduction to the distinction of EXTRINSIC and INTRINSIC FACTORS affecting the nature of logical operators. This is followed by a cursory overview of psychological and grammatical researches on counterfactual expressions in Mandarin Chinese. It then sets out a list of tasks to be accomplished and explicates the author's view in a recent proposal that Mandarin counterfactuals can be formally divided into EXPLICIT and IMPLICIT counterfactuals, which cross-cut the tripartite division of TRUTHIFIERS, FALSIFIERS, and COUNTERPOSSIBLES. It is suggested that this understanding can serve as a unified framework to describe Chinese counterfactuals and can also be used to accommodate some related optative expressions found in several dialects.


The purpose of this article is to review the literature on geography and mental health, report on a case example using new methods for studying this topic, and provide recommendations for future research. Over 25 years ago, Holley (1988) conducted a review of the literature on geography and mental health and astutely stated, '… it is surprising that geographic study designs … have not received greater attention as an important and viable method of assessing population mental health' (p. 535). In 1997, Parr echoed a similar statement, indicating that little has been researched on this topic and suggested this area be termed 'geography of mental health'. Decades later, these statements still hold true – researchers have given little attention to the intersection of geography and mental health. Yet, there is great potential for this research to expand in a way that may be of great benefit to those studying mental health as well as the many suffering with mental health problems. In this aricle, a case example is provided to demonstrate the possibilities of utilizing current technologies, Twitter and the ESRI GeoEvent Processor, to expand the methods for research on this topic.


The arrival of the first cultivated bananas in Africa has been a matter of speculation for over a century. While they necessarily would have come 'from the East', the centre of Musa diversity stretches from New Guinea to India (Denham et ul. 2004), the timing of their introduction and the human agents responsible have never been determined with certainty. Three competing theories have been put forward to explain the introduction of bananas to Africa. First, bananas were introduced by the Portuguese during the 16th century, second, by Arab or Persian traders around the 8th century or earlier, or third, by the Austronesian-speakmg people who settled in Madagascar early in the first millennium AD, making possible a subsequent introduction to the continent. The third theory, advanced by the late Norman Simmonds (1962), an authority on bananas, has steadily been gaining ground. Common to all theories is the belief that bananas did not reach the African continent before the Christian Era (CE), i.e. before 2000 years ago. Recently, phytoliths from refuse pits excavated in central Cameroon were identified as coming from a cultivated banana after a comparative study of the genera Musd and Ensete (Mbida et al. 2000, 2001). They were dated c. 2500 Before Present (bp). If confirmed, this would shed a different light on the early evolution of agriculture in humid tropical Africa. For example, agriculture in the rainforest would not have relied on yam, which is generally not very productive in the absence of a dry season, but could have developed around plantains, which prefer such an environment. Such an early date for banana cultivation in Africa calls for critical examination of data and the broader argument. In a note published in the 2003 issue of Amnia, Jan Vansina expresses serious reservations about this finding (Vansina 2003). He writes, for example, "one can only accept that the earliest evidence in Africa for the cultivation of edible seedless bananas in Africa dates from the later sixth century CE and perhaps even as late as the ninth century CE", and goes on to argue why bananas could not have reached West Africa by 2500 bp. His argument is based on the assumption that India is the area of origin of the AAl3 bananas, with the consequence that they must have been cultivated in the dry areas of North and East Africa before their difhsion to the humid parts of West Africa. To support his position, he refers partly to historical sources such as Pliny's Natural History, and partly to archaeobotanical evidence recovered during the excavations at the Roman port of Berenike, and notes that no trace of banana was found there, or is reported in any of the ancient historical sources. It will be shown below why the route proposed by Vansina is out of the question, making these sources irrelevant. Vansina's other arguments are based on a critical review of the reference material used to identify the Cameroonian phytoliths. We respond to these critricisms in the second part of this note.


The effects of nematodes on root morphology and the association of root characteristics with resistance to nematodes of seven banana varieties were investigated in two experiments. Banana plants were grown in controlled conditions within polytunnels and harvested on three occasions for the measurement of root morphology and biomass. Varieties differed in their resistance to nematodes, from resistant (Yg Km5, FHIA 17, FHIA 03) and partly resistant (FHIA 01, FHIA 25) to not resistant ((FHIA 23, Williams). Nematodes reduced the root dry weight of FHIA 01, FHIA 17 and FHIA 23 at some harvests. Primary root number was on average 9.5% lower in nematode-infected plants than controls, with no differences among the varieties. Thus, there was no simple association between the resistance of these varieties and their tolerance to nematodes. Varieties differed in root morphology. Root dry weight was greatest for resistant varieties Yg Km5 and FHIA 03, and least for non-resistant varieties FHIA 23 and Williams. Thus, resistance to nematodes was associated with varieties with greater root mass and more and larger primary roots.


THE STUDY The City of Peterborough (the City) has initiated a Detailed Sanitary Sewer Class Environmental Assessment (Class EA) process for the Mitigation and Management of Extraneous Flows into the Sanitary Sewer System. Peterborough is located approximately 150 km northeast of Toronto on the Trent-Severn Waterway in the Kawartha Region and has a population of approximately 75,000. The purpose of the Class EA is to identify and evaluate alternative solutions for the reduction of inflow and infiltration ("I and I") into the City's sanitary sewer system. The study area consists of the sanitary sewer collection system catchment area within the City, which is tributary to the Peterborough Sewage Treatment Plant.


Transport networks are vulnerable to disasters which disrupts their normal function. Collapse of I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis and closure of I-65 in Kentucky due to a freight train derailment in 2007 are two recent examples which underline a need to invest on reliability of network elements. This paper discusses a network perspective for optimizing resource allocation based on reliability of transport infrastructure. For this purpose, an optimization framework is developed to efficiently assign the resources to maximize the network reliability. Two measures are identified for each link. Each link may have several states of degradation. The effect of degradation in a link on the network is also considered. As the decision variables are integer, this optimization problem is tackled by implementing an Integer Programming (IP) technique. The proposed framework is applied to an example network and numerical results are presented. The proposed methodology could successfully allocate resources for network reliability improvement.


In a specifi c way of lecturing, using discourse that bears all thecharacteristics of erudition, philosophical profundity and the charm of a greatuniversity, intellectual and humanistic career, the author once again examines theessence of the speculative abstract position of the philosophy of German idealismfrom the ground up. Light is shed on the essence of that position in this text fromthe problematization of Kant's philosophy and the construction the speculativestandpoint in Hegel's early text On Diff erences. Th is problematization allows theauthor to, once again sharpen his own understanding, to radical abstract consequences,of the possibilities of the confrontation of philosophy and speculation.


Visitors to Chicago will have little trouble finding a good place to
eat. In fact, AUA meeting attendees may face a problem choosing from so
many excellent options. Home to thousands of restaurants, Chicago boasts
many award-winning dining spots offering the talents of world-renowned chefs
and a range of cuisines to fit every ethnic taste.


In previous studies we described the isolation and characterization of a highly leukemogenic virus, DMBA-LV, isolated from a transplanted, chemical carcinogen-induced thymic lymphoma. The virus is composed of a mixture of two unrelated retroviral genomes, one highly related to type B milk-borne mouse mammary tumor virus isolates and the other partially related to type C viral genomes. In the present study, primary thymic lymphomas induced by DMBA-LV in CFW/D, NIH Swiss, C3H/Bi/Ka, and C57BL/Ka mice were assessed for the presence of newly integrated type B retroviral DNA. All 46 primary thymic lymphomas examined contained one to four newly acquired murine mammary tumor virus proviruses. Based on the sizes of provirus-cell DNA junction fragments, the integration of newly acquired murine mammary tumor virus proviruses did not appear to be random.


Even 40 years after the success in tropical Asia and Latin America, the green revolution is yet to be realized in Sub Sahara Africa (SSA). The materialization of rice green revolution is the major target of the millennium development goals of the United Nations. Although the breeding of high yielding varieties (HYV) by biotechnology was the core technology in Asian and Latin American green revolution and which the African Rice Center, WARDA, has innovated in NERICA technologies, the successful path to the green revolution in SSA is still unclear. The paper discussed the Sawah hypothesis (I) and (II). The first Sawah hypothesis (I) explains that the central to the realization of the rice green revolution in SSA is eco-technologies, which can improve farmers rice growing environment, such as lowland sawah eco-technologies. The second Sawah hypothesis (II) explains that sustainable rice productivity of lowland sawah is more than 10times than that of upland rice fields, if appropriate lowlands are selected, developed and managed. Contrary to Asian farmers' fields, the majority of farmers' rice fields in SSA are not ready to accept the three basic components of the green revolution technologies, i.e., (1) irrigation for water supply, (2) fertilizer for soil nutrient supply, and (3) high yielding varieties (HYV). Although researchers have worked seriously on the effect of irrigation, fertilizers and HYV for the last forty years, the researchers have not touched on whether the prerequisite conditions which can accommodate the three basic components of the green revolution are exist or not in SSA. The concept and technologies of Sawah is such an example. The term sawah refers to leveled, bunded, and puddled rice field with water inlet and outlet to control water and manage soil fertility, which may be connecting irrigation and drainage facilities including sawah to sawah irrigation and drainage. The term originates from Malayo-Indonesian. The English and French terms, Paddy or Paddi, also originated from the MalyoIndonesian term, Padi, which means rice plant. In order to avoid confusion between upland paddy fields and man-made leveled, bunded and puddled rice fields, i.e., typically irrigated rice ecology, which is un-appropriately used as lowland paddy fields, the authors propose to use the term "Sawah" in SSA. Simply speaking the basic infrastructures for the green revolution are * This is a concept paper of the MEXT supported grain-in aid specially promoted research. The manuscript was submitted to African Crops Science Journal on March 08 ** (1) Faculty of Agriculture, Kinki University, Nara 631-8505, JAPAN, email@example.com (2) Soil Research Institute, Kumasi, GHANA, email@example.com, (3) Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, University of Ibadan, NIGERIA, firstname.lastname@example.com


A survey of diagnostic ultrasound techniques as used in cardiology is presented. 2D is used in many places. 3D is gaining importance.Present 3D developments include electronic and fast rotating phased array methods for 3D imaging of the heart. Surgical views will be illustrated. Another hot item is ultrasound echo contrast, with emphasis on non -linear effects. A novel broadband transducer, combining two ceramics, will be presented. The latest Transesophogeal (TEE) ultrasound development includes high frequency pediatric multiplane probes for application in baby's. The 48 element probe can be used in infants of 2.9 kg. to 19 kg. In IntraVascular UltraSound (IVUS) plaque geometry and stent deployment can be studied. Also mechanical properties of the arterial wall through elastography may be obtained.


708 unselected adolescents 15–17 years old were studied. They were physically examined, interviewed and skin prick tested with 12 common allergens. Questionnaires were distributed to the adolescents and their parents to investigate past and present symptoms and environmental influences. Emphasis was on the first year of life. Exposition to allergens (pollens and cat epithelium) during the first 6 months of life, eczema during the First year of life, and atopic heredity were found to be major risk factors in die development of positive skin tests and respiratory allergy apparent in the teenage period. Infections and wheezing during the first year of life were also risk factors, but less important.


The main aim of this paper has been to examine if Swedish students at upper secondary school were able to use the morphemes The progressive –ing, The irregular past and The irregular third person. ...


We obtain an effective spin Hamiltonian for a system of impurity spins embedded in an itinerant electron antiferromagnetic matrix. Each spin couples to the polarization field of the spin density wave via an s‐d exchange interaction with the conduction electrons. The impurity spins also interact among themselves via modulation of the existing spin polarization. The result is a generalized RKKY interaction whose long range oscillations reflect the Fermi wavenumber as well as the spin density wave periodicity.


The assay and determination method for the 12 trace elements of the white spirit is fixed by making use of the ICP-AES, of which, the optimum analysis conditions are comprehensively determined by way of the research of the factors such as the digestion way of the white spirit, the analysis parameters of the apparatus, the deduction of the interference among the elements, the background correction and the selection of the element spectral lines etc.. The proposed method shows that the recovery for the 12 elements is in the range between 93% to 109%.


An improved interpolation scheme is presented for 2.5‐dimensional marine controlled‐source electromagnetic forward modelling. For the marine controlled‐source electromagnetic method, due to the resistivity contrast between the seawater and seafloor sedimentary layers, it is difficult to compute the electromagnetic fields accurately at receivers, which are usually located at the seafloor. In this study, the 2.5‐dimensional controlled‐source electromagnetic responses are simulated by the staggered finite‐difference method. The secondary‐field approach is used to avoid the source singularities, and the one‐dimensional layered background model is used for calculating the primary fields excited by the source quasi‐analytically. The interpolation of electromagnetic fields at the cell nodes for the whole computational domain to the receiver locations is discussed in detail. Numerical tests indicate that the improved interpolation developed is more accurate for simulating the electromagnetic responses at receivers located at the seafloor, compared with the linear or rigorous interpolation.


Router is the basic building block of the interconnection network. In this paper, new router architecture with elastic buffer is proposed which is reliable and also has less area and power consumption. The proposed router architecture is based on new error detection mechanisms appropriate for dynamic NoC architectures. It considers data packet error detection, correction and also routing errors. The uniqueness of the reliable router architecture is to focus on finding error sources accurately. This technique differentiates permanent and transient errors and also protects diagonal availabilities. Input and output buffers in router architectures are replaced by elastic buffers. Routers spend considerable area and power for router buffer. In this paper the proposed router architecture replaces FIFO buffers with the elastic buffers in order to reduce area, and power consumption and also to have better performance.


We discuss present and near-term uses for highpower fiber lasers and amplifiers for NASA-specific applications including planetary topography and atmospheric spectroscopy. Fiber lasers and amplifiers offer numerous advantages for both near-term and future deployment of instruments on exploration and science remote sensing orbiting satellites. Ground-based and airborne systems provide an evolutionary path to space and a means for calibration and verification of space-borne systems. We present experimental progress on both the fiber transmitters and instrument prototypes for ongoing development efforts. These near-infrared instruments are laser sounders and lidars for measuring atmospheric carbon dioxide, oxygen, water vapor and methane and a pulsed or pseudo-noise (PN) code laser ranging system. The associated fiber transmitters include highpower erbium, ytterbium, and neodymium systems and a fiber laser pumped optical parametric oscillator.


The blue light, whose wave length is 400-500nm with high energy, is highly sensitive to human retina and have the strongest penetration among the different color lights with different wave length. Therefore, it has been controversial that the blue light have caused the photochemical damage in the academic field. So it has been widely concerned and studied in the industry that the blue light LCD in the backlight of LCD screen , which has a very high content of blue light [1], leads to various problems after longterm watching the LCD display screen.


Data mining involves the use of sophisticated data analysis tools which discovers previously unknown, valid patterns and relationships in large data sets. Educational Data Mining is concerned with developing methods for exploring the unique types of data that comes from educational scenario and using those methods to better understand students and the settings in which they learn. These days stress and depression are found to be common among students. Programming is considered to be the most essential skill for IT students in order to flourish in life. The objective of this paper is to find out the way in which stress and depression experienced by the students have impact on their programming performance. The level of stress and depression are measured by the use of questionnaires. The mark obtained by the students in the programming language is considered as a measure of programming performance. Frequent –pattern growth algorithm has been used to discover the various patterns available. Association Rule Mining has then been applied to find out the association.


The invention discloses a vehicle-mounted bituminous road surface milling device suitable to be mounted on a road maintenance vehicle. The milling device comprises a milling device body, a driving motor, a mounting frame, a vertical lifting oil cylinder, a transverse sliding framework, a transverse sliding guide frame and a transverse sliding oil cylinder. The vehicle-mounted milling device is connected to the longitudinal beam of the rear hung frame of the road maintenance vehicle via the transverse sliding guide frame; the mounting frame, the vertical lifting oil cylinder and the transverse sliding frame form the vertical moving mechanism of the milling device; and the transverse sliding frame, the transverse sliding oil cylinder and the transverse sliding guide frame form the horizontal moving mechanism of the milling device. The milling device is equipped by a host vehicle, can excavate the damaged road surface of small-sized zone at any time by utilizing host vehicle power, and is convenient, flexible, efficient, low in construction cost and high in construction precision.


Background & objectives: The frequently encountered co-morbidity of alcohol dependence (AD) with nicotine dependence (ND) increases the risk for various diseases. Ankyrin repeats and kinase domain containing 1 (ANKK1) gene polymorphism is reported to be associated with both ND and AD. This study was undertaken to investigate the possible association of alcohol and tobacco use variables with ANKK1 polymorphism in co-morbid alcohol- and nicotine-dependent treatment seekers visiting a tertiary care centre in north India. Methods: Seventy nine male participants (18-65 yr old) fulfilling diagnostic criteria for ND and AD were included in the study. The socio-demographic data, along with alcohol and tobacco use profile, was recorded and ANKK1 profiling was carried out. Both the allele groups, A1 and A2, were compared with respect to demographic and substance dependence profile. Univariate binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the risk of high nicotine and alcohol consumption with genotype. Results: The A1 carrier group (n=33) reported a significantly higher amount of alcohol and tobacco consumed per day. The scores on parameters of ND were found to be significantly higher in this group. The logistic regression analysis revealed that participants with A1 genotype were 2.5 times more likely to report higher amount of alcohol and nicotine consumption than A2 carriers. Interpretation & conclusions: The study provides an indication for the association of ANKK1 polymorphism in the form of higher substance consumption among alcohol dependent smokers, who are A1 carriers and thus may require higher attention of the treatment provider.


Proteins separated by two‐dimensional (2‐D) gel electrophoresis can be visualized using various protein staining methods. This is followed by downstream procedures, such as image analysis, gel spot cutting, protein digestion, and mass spectrometry (MS), to characterize protein expression profiles within cells, tissues, organisms, or body fluids. Characterizing specific post‐translational modifications on proteins using MS of peptide fragments is difficult and labor‐intensive. Recently, specific staining methods have been developed and merged into the 2‐D gel platform so that not only general protein patterns but also patterns of phosphorylated and glycosylated proteins can be obtained. We used the new Pro‐Q™ Diamond phosphoprotein dye technology for the fluorescent detection of phosphoproteins directly in 2‐D gels of mouse leukocyte proteins, and Pro‐Q™ Emerald 488 glycoprotein dye to detect glycoproteins. These two fluorescent stains are compatible with general protein stains, such as SYPRO Ruby stain. We devised a sequential procedure using Pro‐Q™ Diamond (phosphoprotein), followed by Pro‐Q™ Emerald 488 (glycoprotein), followed by SYPRO Ruby stain (general protein stain), and finally silver stain for total protein profile. This multiple staining of the proteins in a single gel provided parallel determination of protein expression and preliminary characterization of post‐translational modifications of proteins in individual spots on 2‐D gels. Although this method does not provide the same degree of certainty as traditional MS methods of characterizing post‐translational modifications, it is much simpler, faster, and does not require sophisticated equipment and expertise in MS.


The recession in the oil market since 1981 has drastically reduced the foreign exchange earnings of Nigeria. As a result, the country has faced a severe problem of adjustment to reduced export earnings at a time when payments on its $20 billion external debt have increased. In designing a policy to restore balance of payments equilibrium, Nigeria, like many other less developed countries in its position, faces two important questions: first, to what extent the rate of growth of the economy would have to be lowered in order to bring equilibrium to the balance of payments, and, second, to what extent real devaluation is likely to help in the process. Since Nigeria faces a given price for its exports (95% of which is oil) and production of oil does not use many domestic resources, export revenues in terms of foreign currency are in effect exogenous and therefore the weight of adjustment must fall on imports. The search for answers to the above questions thus leads directly to the investigation of the size of income and price elasticities of demand for imports. This article presents estimates of an import demand function for Nigeria based on annual data for 1963-82. The main finding of the article is that demand for imports is elastic with respect to price but inelastic with respect to income. This implies that, contrary to expectations, the phenomenal rise in Nigerian imports in the 1970s may have been a result of real appreciation rather than increase in oil revenues. Between 1972 and 1981 Nigerian imports in constant dollars increased by a factor of five, an average annual increase of 33%. But during the same period, non-oil GDP in constant prices increased by only 5.7% per year, and gross domestic income (GDY = total GDP adjusted for improvements in the terms of trade) increased by 8.7% per year. As a result, the ratio of imports to GDY increased from 6% in 1972 to 18% in 1981. In contrast, the decline in


Along with rapid industrialization and urbanization, socio-economic development in China increasingly faces severe energy, resources and environment constraints. How to guide rational allocation of different types of energy resources among provinces and guarantee a regional sustainable supply of energy in China has become a prerequisite for sustainable development across the country. Functional zoning of energy resources has aroused great interest among researchers because of limited empirical studies on their bases, flow and functional zoning of coal, oil, natural gas, hydro, solar, wind and biomass energy resources. To fill this gap and meet the needs of sustainable of energy supply, here we quantify energy resources, discuss energy flow among different provinces and explore functional zoning of energy resources in China. From our analysis we found that the shares of the top five provinces (including autonomous regions and municipalities) of total quantity of coal, oil, natural gas, hydro, solar, wind and biomass resources are 72%, 71%, 86%, 74%, 60%, 73% and 39%, respectively. In terms of the flow of energy resources in China, large-scale transportation over long distances of coal and oil from the north to the south, and transmission of natural gas from the west to the east dominates. Coal resources can be divided into the national coal production base, regional coal production base and gathering place; crude oil can be divided into the main producing areas, replacement area and pool area; natural gas resources can be divided into the national production base, regional production base and gathering place; hydropower resource can be divided into national hydropower base, regional hydropower base and hydropower input area; solar energy resources can be divided into national solar power base, regional solar power base, and unsuitable for development area; wind power can be divided into the national wind power base, the regional wind power base and not suitable for development zones; biomass energy can be divided into large-scale development zones, development zones of small and medium-sized, not suitable for development zones.


In the 16th–17th centuries, West European navigators made numerous but mostly unsuccessful efforts to open a new way, i.e. the North-East Passage, to China and India. Among three possible routes of that time the basic one ran through straits of the Vaigach Island but it was almost impassable due to heavy ice situation. At the same time Russian merchants regularly went on their ships from Pomorie to Siberian river mouths, and in the opposite direction, though they did also meet complicated ice situations. Russian navigator and geographer F.P. Litke (1797–1882) noticed that the ice situation in one or another region of the Barents Sea seriously changed from year to year. Russian navigation started in the Russian Pomorie (littoral region of the Russian Arctic) not earlier than at end of June – beginning of July but Europeans knew nothing about this. Because of this, their ships came to the Vaigach region either earlier or later of the time when it was possible to go through the straits. Most often, they came here in the first half- and mid-August. Thus, western sailors could not get this quite narrow navigation «window» of pomors (Russian navigators). And if sometimes (rather rarely) they could catch the right time and go through the strait Yugorski Shar they met extremely heavy ice situation in the Kara Sea. Perhaps for this reason, almost all European expeditions of that time failed.


Evidence-based medicine calls for the integration of our clinical expertise and our patients' values with the best available external evidence (1). To accomplish this, we must translate our information needs into answerable questions and then seek the best information with which to answer them (2). Critics of evidencebased medicine have appropriately suggested that its practice may require time and resources unavailable to busy clinicians (3). Davidoff and colleagues suggested that a general physician would need to read 17 articles each day to keep up with the current medical literature (4). Clinicians have little time to set aside for keeping up-to-date or for reading in between seeing patients, and self-reported weekly reading times reflect this: Consultants repoit reading from 30 to 45 minutes each week, while house officers report from 0 to 20 minutes (5). Further, some clinicians don't have quick access to the evidence and may have to travel several floors, blocks, or even miles to visit their local library to find it.


Over the last three years 23 children, who were managed by CAPD at the Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto received a renal transplant. Their actuarial graft survival was similar to those of children on hemodialysis and to patients not dialyzed before transplantation. In addition, we analyzed the actuarial graft survival of 130 children treated before transplantation with peritoneal dialysis (IPD and CAPD), hemodialysis or no dialysis to determine the long-term effects of peritoneal dialysis. Again, we found no significant differences among the various groups. Posttransplantation complications in the CAPD patients included fungal peritonitis in one and ascites in seven.


Means for connecting the telephone system or weak solderless contact pin insulated connector comprises a plurality of switching connection means, can be pressed at least in the seat of the contact pin of the connector cover switch, the contact beam 4 from the side of the cover switch extending downwardly, pressing the lid when the rotary body seat, the seat body is fitted into the beam duct 4, and the contact pin is pressed into the insert wire insulating switch holder. Fitted with a transverse groove in the stopper vertically arranged, at least a stopper is located close to the wire insertion portion, so that the wire insert is positioned, and at least one other stopper portion located adjacent insulating switch deck, pressed into a solid insulating switch wire card holder. Inserted or pressed into the wire, does not close the lid does not turn off.


This paper is focused on the transient stability constrained optimal power flow (TSC-OPF) problem and its application for determining the optimal dispatch of active and reactive powers of distributed synchronous generators. In order to deal with uncertainties related to the actual active and reactive load values and the network topology configuration, this paper proposes a TSC- OPF formulation that incorporates a set of mathematical constraints based on the trajectory sensitivity analysis (TSA) that represents the impact of different load scenarios and network topologies on the transient stability of the system. The TSC-OPF is solved by an iterative algorithm based on the primal-dual interior point method and the concept of rotor angle first swing (FS) stability. The proposed TSC-OPF is applied for a distribution network constituted by nine buses and two distributed synchronous generators.


Skin changes occur as a consequence of ageing and those skin changes increase the susceptibility of the skin to damage. With an increasing ageing population, there is a constant challenge to maintain the integrity of the skin. Best practice statements (BPSs) have been developed in an attempt to provide practitioners with evidence-based guidance on the most appropriate delivery of skin care to this vulnerable group. The aim of this article is to briefly review the content of the revised, second edition of the BPS, Care of the Older Person's Skin, which was launched at the Wounds UK conference in Harrogate in November—and also to highlight its relevance in clinical practice.


In this paper, we treat the pricing of the cloud resources as an option pricing problem. The pricing of the Reserved scheme can be solved as a European option problem and the pricing of the On-Demand Scheme can be solved as an American option problem. We adopt the method of Trinomial tree to resolve the European option problem and the American option problem. The model we proposed can calculate the pricing of those two schemes according to the investment and contract time and the prices can satisfy the interests of both resource providers and users.


By adopting methods of documentation, questionnaires and statistics, this investigation is intended to study and analyze the status quo of college student's after-school sports activities, finds out what problems existing that prevent students from further engaging in after-school sports activities, and what differences lie between female and male's attitude towards sports, and propose suggestions for improving students sports participation rate and therefore improving their physical conditions.


Two of the main difficulties of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners are their lack of mastery over vocabulary and reading comprehension in the Target language they are developing. The present study was an attempt to investigate the effect of adult peer teaching on EFL learners' vocabulary and reading achievement. To do so, a thorough review of the related literature was done and a quasi-experimental study was designed in which the participants were 60 EFL female language learners at the intermediate level who were chosen out of 90 participants through a piloted version of NELSON Danny Test as the homogeneity test. The selected participants were divided into two groups: One experimental group and one control group with 30 students in each class. The participants went through the procedure of pretest, treatment, and posttest and the data for the present study was collected by means of three tests: a NELSON test, a pretest and a post test of vocabulary and reading comprehension. Both measures of independent and paired-samples t-test were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that peer teaching significantly affected EFL learners' vocabulary and target language reading achievement, both. The study findings also revealed that this method had affected reading comprehension of the EFL learners more than their second language vocabulary. The findings could be employed by English teachers, EFL learners, and materials developers in the field of ELT in the Iranian context to pave the way for the improvement of ELT status in the EFL classes.


Three tests were conducted in Montgomery Co, VA, in Jul, Aug, and Sep with insecticides in dust bags applied to mixed breed beef cattle to measure control of face and horn flies. In Test A 2 dust bags containing 12 lb each of 1% Co-Ral (Coumaphos) were suspended 30 in above the ground at 2 entrances to a mineral box on Jul 24. Thirty mixed breed heifers were in the treated herd.


It was noted that at the manufacturing thin strip at the wide-strip hot-rolling mill stricter requirements to the gauge deviations (uneven gauge) along the strip length are applied. Using the 2,500 mm mill of OJSC Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (OAO MMK) as an example it has been proved that rolling is performed with tensions which exceed several times the accepted values. The main cause is incoordination of speeds of the continuous train electric drives. The developments carried out aim to improve accuracy of setting and controlling loop height in the inter-stand gap. The paper provides the structural diagram of the system of the cascading correction of the stand electric drive speeds. Its distinctive feature is the transmission of the correction signals against the rolling direction. The paper considers the developed system of the strip loop size control effecting speed adjustment for the previous stand of the interstand gap. It substantiates dependencies for calculation of the setting and correction signals. It provides results of the experimental studies of the dynamic modes at the control and disturbance actions. Based on the long-term operation of the developed system at the 2,500 mm mill, its advantages in comparison with the pervious system have been verified. Technical efficiency involves improving accuracy of supporting the set tension and gauge of the rolled strip.


As described in detail in a companion article, 1 a major effort has been undertaken to help the development of communications skills teaching in veterinary schools in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Two particular consequences have been the establishment of National Unit for the Advancement of Veterinary Communication Skills (NUVACS) and the appointment of a NUVACS lecturer whose responsibility is to facilitate the growth of communications skills in all of the veterinary schools. These efforts have been funded by the Veterinary Defence Society. It is this society's observation that more than 80% of complaints brought against veterinarians revolve around problems of poor communication. One key element of the NUVACS activities has been training the facilitators who will provide student communication skills training. These endeavors are described in this report.


Current supply chain systems are structurally and behaviourally complex. The aim of this paper is to investigate the consequences of a supply chain in the case of disruption risk by exploiting the ...


An efficient series solution for coaxially fed monopoles in a shorted parallel‐plate waveguide is presented. The analysis is based on mode‐matching and image method. A coaxially fed monopole in a shorted rectangular waveguide is considered as a special case. Computations are performed to verify the validity of solution. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 49: 3145–3148, 2007; Published online in Wiley Inter‐Science (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.22959


This dissertation presents experimental and theoretical studies of transient degenerate four wave mixing (DFWM) in organic dyes. Chapter 1 is an introduction to DFWM. Chapter 2 describes DFWM experiments that were performed in the gain medium of a dye laser. Chapter 3 presents the theory of DFWM of short pulses in three level saturable media. Chapter 4 presents DFWM experiments of femtosecond pulses in the saturable absorber of a passively modelocked ring dye laser. Chapter 5 presents the theory of DFWM of ultrashort pulses in resonant media.


Radial and rotational velocities, chromospheric activity and lithium abundances are presented for an X-ray-selected sample of stars in the young (220 Myr) open cluster NGC 6475. Low-mass members of the cluster have been identified on the basis of photometric and spectroscopic criteria. The observations show that the rapid spindown seen amongst solar-type stars in the Pleiades is incomplete at 220 Myr, as there are F, G and K stars in NGC 6475 with v sin i > 10 kIn S-1. Peak rotation rates for G stars are 12-14 kIn S-1 and are robust to uncertain inclination angles, because the magnetic activity of these stars is less than the saturation value observed for fast rotators (v sin i > 15 kIn S-1) in the Pleiades. Two mid-K stars are found with v sin i ",25 kIn S-1 and with saturated magnetic activity levels, indicating that spindown time-scales are mass dependent, increasing from '" 20 Myr for early-G stars to > 75 Myr for mid-K stars. We have compared our rotation data, for the most rapidly rotating G and K stars in NGC 6475 and in young open clusters, with published rotational evolution models incorporating magnetic dynamo saturation at high rotation rates (> !lsat). Models with interior angular momentum transport are unable to simultaneously fit the rapidly rotating stars of the r:x Per, Pleiades and NGC 6475 clusters. Likely solutions are a plausible increase in the age of the Pleiades to 100 Myr, the incorporation of centrifugal wind driving in the angular momentum loss treatment, or ad hoc differences in initial conditions. If an increase in the age of the Pleiades is assumed, we find that a mass dependent !lsat is required, such that dynamo saturation occurs for G and K stars at a Rossby number of '" 0.4. This value is incompatible with the faster saturation thresholds inferred from coronal X-rays, but !lsat can be increased if solid body rotation is enforced or centrifugal wind driving is included. Comparisons with such models are favourable for G stars but less so for K stars. This may result from neglecting the evolving moment of inertia at early ages. All the cool stars exhibit LiI 6708-A absorption features. When compared to Li in the Pleiades and Hyades, it is evident that the G and K stars in the Hyades have experienced substantial Li depletion whilst on the main sequence, between 220 and 600 Myr, and probably at earlier times on the main sequence as well. There is marginal scatter of about 0.1 dex in the Li abundances of G and early K stars, possibly increasing to 1.0 dex in a few cooler objects. The data are insufficient to allow us to decide whether there is a mechanism by which to eliminate the scatter in Li abundances of the Pleiades K stars before they reach the Hyades age, or whether the difference reflects different cluster initial conditions. Interpretation is complicated by the X-ray selection bias, favouring the observation of the more rapidly rotating, Li-rich stars. Metallicity may also play a role, but our spectral *E-mai1: email@example.com(DJJ);firstname.lastname@example.com (RDJ) tPresent address: School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, North Haugh, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS.


Welcome to the libguide on Sign Language! This libguide will provide informational resources on the subject of Sign Language for students attending the El Paso Community College.


A kind of automatic control system for greenhouse irrigation is developed and designed through the virtual instrument developmental platform-Labview software.Because this system uses modular design,it has the characteristics of compact structure and simple to use.Moreover,with the characteristics of Labview that intuitive and friendly interface,the system can be more beneficial to extend.


AIM:To evaluate the possible effects of phacoemulsification cataract surgery on ocular hemodynamics.·METHODS:In this prospective study,intraocular pressure(IOP),pulsatile ocular blood flow(POBF),and ocular pulse amplitude(OPA) were measured pre-operatively(baseline) and at 1 week and 3 weeks postoperation in 52 eyes of 26 patients(mean age 63.15±10.25 years) scheduled for unilateral phacoemulsification cataract surgery with intraocular lens implantation.In all of the eyes,a blood flow analyzer(Paradigm DICON;Paradigm Medical Industries Inc.;USA) was used to obtain measurements of IOP,POBF,and OPA.The data obtained from operated eyes were compared statistically to untreated fellow phakic eyes of the patients.·RESULTS:For operated eyes,the mean baseline IOP,POBF,and OPA values were 15.9±4.64mmHg,17.41±4.84μL/s,and 2.91 ±1.12mmHg,respectively.The IOP,POBF,and OPA values were 17.19 ±4.34mmHg,17.56 ±6.46μL/s,and3.12 ±1.1mmHg,respectively,in the nonoperated control eyes.Statistically significant differences from baseline measurements were not observed 1 week and 3 weeks postoperation for the operated or nonoperated eyes.There were also no statistically significant differences in any measurements between the operated and nonoperated eyes in all the examination periods(P >0.05for all).·CONCLUSION:Uncomplicated phacoemulsification surgery does not affect ocular hemodynamics in normotensive eyes with cataracts.


Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare dementia awareness among physiotherapists and occupational therapists who treat dementia patients and provide opportunities to increase dementia awareness as medical technicians, expand the scope of treatment, and enhance professionalism. Methods: An online survey was conducted from January 8th to 19th, 2021 for physical therapists who are members of the Korean Physical Therapist Association and Occupational therapists who are members of the Korean Occupational Therapists Association. The collected data were analyzed using the SPSS 21.0 program. To verify the difference in the awareness of dementia among medical technicians, a ttest was performed, and the chi-square test was used to analyze the difference in the responses for each question. Results: In this study, occupational therapists had a significantly higher average and standard deviation than physical therapists. Occupational therapists also had a significantly higher level of dementia awareness, including dementia symptom-related, dementia diseaserelated, and dementia therapy knowledge. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that various educational initiatives and systems should be developed to help medical professionals increase their awareness and interest on dementia as a community, which can enable them to move in the same treatment direction with a common goal.


Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a bacterially produced thermoplastic. Melt-cast PHB sheets are usually quite brittle. We show that this brittleness is due to cracks within the spherulites. These cracks, which may be either radial or circumferential within the spherulites, depending on the crystallization temperature, form under conditions of no externally applied stress. When the material is strained the cracks grow and join together, leading to brittle failure. It is possible to produce ductile PHB sheets in two ways: first, the cracks may be "healed" by a cold rolling process; second, special crystallization conditions can be used to produce ductile sheets consisting entirely of crack-free spherulites. The relevance of this work to the ductility of crystalline thermoplastic in general is discussed.


We investigate the $\mathcal{O}({\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{s}{v}^{2})$ correction to the ${e}^{+}{e}^{\ensuremath{-}}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}J/\ensuremath{\psi}+{\ensuremath{\eta}}_{c}$ process in the nonrelativistic QCD (NRQCD) factorization approach. Within some reasonable choices of the relative order-${v}^{2}$ NRQCD matrix elements, we find that including this new ingredient of correction only mildly enhances the existing NRQCD predictions. We have also deduced the asymptotic expressions for the $\mathcal{O}({\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{s}{v}^{2})$ short-distance coefficients, and reconfirm the early speculation that at next-to-leading order in ${\ensuremath{\alpha}}_{s}$, the double logarithm of type ${ln}^{2}(s/{m}_{c}^{2})$ appearing in various NRQCD short-distance coefficients is always associated with the helicity-suppressed channels.


Bone modeling and remodeling were subjects of extensive studies in many fields of research. The process of adaptive bone remodeling can be described mathematically and simulated in a computer model, integrated with the finite element method (FEM). FEM can find out the long-term behavior of bone and the impact on bone biomechanics produced by any prosthetic models. As whole bone simulation is time consuming, the aim of this work is to accelerate the simulation of the process of bone remodelling. We combined FE simulation with numerical extrapolation techniques to accelerate the bone remodeling simulations. The two vector extrapolation methods, reduce ranked extrapolation (RRE) and minimal polynomial extrapolation (MPE), were used to reduce the simulation time. These extrapolation techniques are illustrated by the numerical example of the 2-D model based on a strain-adaptive bone remodeling model.


Therapeutic communication basically aims to develop oneself (patient) and state of mind in order to lead to be more positive. This article is a qualitative research report that examines the role of narrative interaction and goodly model of parents as a form of therapeutic communication within Muslim families. The results have showed that storytelling and exemplary techniques in the sense of pleasant interpersonal communication can be used to foster the healing process and create a healthy lifestyle in the family. These techniques can keep children in a more positive state of mind, including through giving suggestions and strengthening Islamic spiritual values. This can be conducted by a clear understanding regarding the character of the child's communication, followed by seting the narrative technique and goodly model that parents must take.


Mobile apps have come in dramatically in various fields and have changed people's lives. Developing effective mobile applications has become a significant problem for companies today to expand services or generate, and build a direct relationship with customers. Developing a mobile app requires challenging and testing various aspects. To deepen the knowledge of mobile apps requires a literature review. This paper provides basic knowledge about mobile applications and then continued evolution of mobile applications and mobile application challenges continued testing strategies and tools and frameworks for automation of android testing


To study the soils of Southern Highland Zone of Tanzania, four representative pedons of some landscapes were characterized. Their names and identifiers are Seatondale, Mbimba, Inyala, and Uyole, respectively TzSea 01, TzMb 02, TzIny 03, and TzUy04. The pedons were formed from the weathering of among other materials, colluvial igneous rocks, alluvium, eluvial soils, laterite, lacustrine sands and silts, andesite, pumice, aeolian deposits, and metamorphic rocks including coarse grained and strongly foliated biotite gneisses. Twenty soil samples were taken for laboratory characterization. In addition to classical horizon by horizon descriptions and laboratory analyses, 12 core samples were taken for soil-water retention characterization. The available water holding capacity was rated as very low to low. Pedon descriptions and particle size analysis showed clay eluviation-illuviation was the predominant pedogenic process in all pedons. Soil pH was rated slightly acidic to slightly alkaline. Available P ranged from 0.71 mg/kg at Mbimba to 10.67 mg/kg at Seatondale. Exchangeable bases were variable across and within the profiles; at Uyole and Inyala they were high, while at Seatondale and Mbimba they were low and medium. Values of exchangeable bases showed decreasing trends with profile depths in all sites. C/N ratios ranged between 6 and 18, total nitrogen was rated very low to low in both A and B horizons. CECsoil ranged between 17.2 and 36.4 cmol (+)/kg. Organic carbon ranged from very low to high. The soils apparently developed from extreme and moderate weathering of parent materials. According to the USDA Soil Taxonomy, the pedons classified as Fine, Illitic, Active, Isothermic Typic Hapludult; Fine, Illitic, Active, Isothermic Andic Paleudalf; Fine, Illitic, Active, Isothermic, Mollic Paleudalf; Pumiceous, Mixed, Superactive, Isothermic, Typic Hapludand for Seatondale, Mbimba, Inyala, and Uyole, respectively. The soil depths were deep and very deep. Moisture stress and low levels of some macro-elements highly limited the productivity of the soils.


This article contributes to the history of Cuban and Colombian literary criticism at the end of the 19th century. It analyzes Rafael María Merchán's Estudios críticos (1886), written and published during the author's exile in Colombia, and suggests that this kind of transnational Cuban-Colombian-Spanish American corpus is positioned within, and is the result of, the negotiations between coloniality and post-coloniality in the late 19th century. Its findings show that the important critical legacy of Merchan – trapped between the tangles of Cuba's colonial situation and a post-colonial, post-independent Colombia – constitutes an unclaimed inheritance in the history of Spanish American (and especially Cuban and Colombian) literature.


A novel design for a ballistic DC breaker is described. The key feature of this design is that the resistance of the breaker increases by small steps as a specially designed shuttle is fired at high speed between sliding electrical contacts. The DC current is snuffed out slowly enough to absorb inductively stored energy as resistive heating of the moving shuttle. The design trade-offs are elucidated, and the switching speed for various designs is calculated.


Fact checking in product-related community question answering is the task of verifying the truthfulness of an answer towards a given question, where the study has just begun. Most existing related work has focused on tailoring solutions to shallow feature fusion for the single-text claim involved with fact-checked evidence, limiting their success and generality in such answer truthfulness prediction task on E-commerce platforms. In this study, we propose an attention-based hybrid framework for multi-feature interaction fusion to determine the truthfulness of the answer towards a product-related question in E-commerce, which could not only support fine-grained semantic calibration between question-answer pairs for better understanding of the target answers, but also substantially cross-check all retrieved evidence to mine coherent opinions towards the pair. In addition, our framework further integrates non-textual features from metadata for improving performance. Extensive experiments conducted on real-world representative benchmark data show that our proposed model achieves superior performance on the task of answer veracity prediction.


The image process and corner detection of V groove seam based on structure light vision sensing has been studied.The image taken by CCD camera and processed by threshold transform,median filtering,Laplace sharpening,thinning can distill the stripe of welding line exactly,then detect the seam position by Euclid space vector angle method.According to the calculation method of V groove's offset,width and height to acquire information and realize seam tracking.


Abstract. Live body weight, shank length, keel length and carcass dissection data taken at 6 weeks of age were available on 103 quails from 33 sires. In a principal factor analysis, the first varimax rotated factor explaining 46.1% of the total Variation, revealed that body weight had negative loading and all bone percentages positive. The implied contrast was confirmed by the finding that body weight (h,sup>2 = 0.61) was genetically correlated negatively with weight of total bone relative to body weight (−0.23) and to carcass weight (−0.58). Noticeably, shank length (SL) had large positive genetic correlation with body weight (0.90) and practically independent relationship with body bone percentage (−0.04). Selection indexes for meat production capacity were construeted. The breeding goal was defined as body weight (BW) and body bone percentage (BBP). The descending order ofthe unrestricted indexes with respect to the correlation between the index and genetic worth was: the full index utilising body weight, shank length and keel length (0.95), indexes based on body weight and one length measurement (0.86), body weight alone (0.78). The accuracy was reduced by 17–35% upon restraining changes in BBP to zero. This study indicated that an index of considerable accuracy and remarkable usefulness would be I3 = 4.56 BW + 244.87 SL. Use of this index should result in developing birds with higher body weight and more advantageous carcass attributes than selecting for body weight alone (L) or on the restricted full index (II(BBP)). Such three indexes were most efficient in limiting reduction in BBP.


Summarizes the results of a risk analysis study conducted in Bellcore to assess the reliability of potential AIN architectures for deployment. The risk analysis tool is considered within the design and planning phase.


Acknowledgments Introduction Studying Jefferson Through the Lens of Education Section One A World In Transition: From Religion to Reason Section Two Jefferson's Curriculum and the Creation of Citizens Section Three Educating Citizens, Sustaining Democracy Section Four Jefferson's Vision of Democratic Society Conclusion Jefferson Then and Now Bibliography 8


We demonstrate the feasibility of rotational CARS measurements for evaluation of gas pressure using asymmetrically shaped pulses. It enables us to remove nonresonant background and to obtain the relaxation time of CARS signals under high-pressure. © 2020 The Author(s)


Background: The current study
was undertaken to assess the cytotoxicity of the leaves of Libyan Juniperus phoenicea (Cupressaceae) against human cancer cell lines.
Methods: The cytotoxicity
of the n-hexane, dichloromethane
(DCM) and methanol (MeOH) extracts of the leaves of J. phoenicea (JP), obtained from sequential Soxhlet extractions,
was
assessed against four human cancer cell lines: EJ138 (human bladder carcinoma),
HepG2 (human liver hepatocellular carcinoma), A549 (human lung carcinoma) and
MCF7 (human breast adenocarcinoma) using the MTT assay.
Results: The cell line A549 was the most sensitive to the JP extracts, with the highest level of cytotoxicity with the IC50 values
of 16, 13 and 100 µg/mL for the DCM, n-hexane
and MeOH extracts, respectively.
However, generally the most potent cytotoxic extract across the other
cells tested was the n-hexane
extract, followed by the DCM extract, whilst the MeOH extracts showed little or
no cytotoxicity. The percentage of
viability of cells decreased as the concentration of test compounds increased.
The cytotoxicity of various chromatographic fractions from the extracts was also studied against the A459 cells. For the n-hexane fractions, the
IC50 values were 160, 62, 90, 30, 9.5 and 40 µg/mL for fractions 1
to 5 and 7, respectively. Fractions 4 and 5 showed the greatest effect. DCM
fractions 2, 3 and 4 had the IC50 values of 60, 92 and 19 µg/mL,
respectively, and DCM fractions 5 to 8 were non-cytotoxic. Fractions 1 and 2 of
the MeOH extract were non-cytotoxic, whereas cytotoxicity was observed for
fractions 3 and 4 with IC50 values of 50 and 85 µg/mL, respectively.
Conclusion: The outcome of
the present study suggested that the JP
leaves possess cytotoxic activities. The high level of cytotoxicity
of the n-hexane and DCM extracts
suggested that lipophilicity might affect the cytotoxicity of JP, where the less polar compounds had the strongest cytotoxicity.


The workload of biometric identification in large fingerprint databases poses a challenging problem. Efficient schemes for biometric workload reduction are a topic of ongoing research. Some of the state-of-the-art approaches rely on triangles of minutia points generated by Delaunay triangulation, which are then used for indexing. In this paper, we investigate how quality estimation at the minutia level can improve the performance of such algorithms and hence the system workload. In order to reduce the number of spurious and missing minutiae, we analyse the impact of selecting minutiae points based on their qualities. This, in turn, can significantly distort the triangulation. In addition, we consider the usefulness of the average minutia quality as an additional criteria of the minutia triangles for indexing. Our results show that both strategies lead to a significant reduction in biometric workload compared to a baseline solution (i.e. exhaustive search) – down to 36% on average.


This paper addresses the problem of enhancing the longevity of an aircraft gas turbine engine by using control strategies. Among the various component failure modes, thermal fatigue is one of major causes of damage. The approach undertaken in this paper is to reduce gas turbine inlet temperature (GTIT) of the engine. The paper considers a twin-spool turboshaft gas turbine engine to illustrate the techniques. Compressor variable geometry (CVG) setting is used as a means to meet the goal of steady state GTIT reduction. A preliminary analysis shows that it is possible to make use of CVG reset angle for reducing the steady state value of GTIT. "Linear Quadratic Gaussian with Loop Transfer Recovery" (LQG/LTR) design procedure is used to design a dynamic controller for robust stability and reducing overshoots in GTIT.


The recombinant antibodies AI842, AI843, AI844 and AI177 failed to detect by immunofluorescence a C-terminally FLAG-tagged LmpA fusion protein expressed in Dictyostelium discoideum.


User's expectations that the display screens used in online documentation will be understandable, transparent as to mechanics, intelligent in dynamic interaction, animated, and capable of being read at an acceptable speed are discussed. Ways of meeting these expectations are presented, and areas of future research are suggested.


The complex links between heritage and tourism, and the ways in which attitudes towards historical built environments vary over time and place, are demonstrated in a study of Levuka, on the small island of Ovalau, Fiji. The town was founded by traders of European origin, and for a few years was Fiji's first colonial capital. Since the late 1800s, however, it has remained undeveloped, despite periodic efforts by tourism interests, resident expatriates and some government departments, to raise its profile and conserve its buildings and ambience through the development of tourism. Over the past decade, these attempts have crystallised in moves to nominate the municipality for listing as a UNESCO World Heritage site. This paper describes Levuka's origins and its continued association with the colonial past, discusses the impetus within Fiji to nominate it, analyses UNESCO's role in supporting Levuka's case, and indicates the variety of perceptions to 'heritage' in the town, across Ovalau, and more widely in the Fiji Islands.


ON APRIL 8-14, THE CONSTRUCTION VEHICLE WORLD WILL DESCEND ON MUNICH FOR THE WORLD'S LARGEST CONSTRUCTION TRADE FAIR - BAUMA. THIS YEAR ORGANIZERS ARE CONFIDENTLY PREDICTING VISITOR NUMBERS WILL EXCEED 600,000 FOR THE FIRST TIME. BUT HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY MAKE SENSE OF IT ALL? THE ANSWER LIES OVER THE NEXT 75 PAGES, WHICH WILL GUIDE YOU TO THE VERY BEST NEW VEHICLES AND COMPONENTS ON DISPLAY. SEE YOU IN GERMANY! IN THE RUN-UP TO THE MAIN EVENT, EXHIBITION DIRECTOR MAREILE KÄSTNER EXPLAINS HOW THE CONSTRUCTION TRADE FAIR WILL HELP TO ADDRESS TOPICAL ISSUES SUCH AS DIGITIZATION AND THE SKILLS SHORTAGE - AND WHY ALL ATTENDEES SHOULD VISIT THE SELFIE TOWER!


Education as a tool of peace In the early nineties, education is identified as a factor of social and economic development, supportive to peace. In this way, education in post-conflict and reconstruction time have to play a role in conflict prevention and peace building process. Education is a main approach to disseminate and acquire values, attitudes, knowledge and behaviours that lead to a sustainable living together. Among the school teachings, history and civics are identified as the main teaching contents to let children develop such skills.


Central pairwise empirical interatomic potential functions have been extensively used to calculate mechanical properties of metallic solids. Although enough useful information could be gathered from these calculations, they were unable to highlight the true mechanical behaviour of a metal. In this work we have computed binding energy using a first principle quantum mechanical interaction model under Ashcroft local pseudopotential formalism. The binding energy contains non-central terms, and stability conditions have been worked out accordingly. Perfect lattices of five metals, subjected to tensile and compressive stresses in the [100] direction, have been investigated for mechanical stability under the above model. Ideal mechanical strength has been determined. The results are comparable to experimental observations.


Objective To observe the effects of early rehabilitation training on sensory restoration after the median nerve injuries. Methods Seventy patients with median nerve injuries were randomly divided into two groups: the rehabilitation group ( n =32), in which the patients received sensory reeducation two weeks after surgical treatment; and the control group ( n =38),in which the patients only received surgical treatment. After 6 8 weeks of treatment, reassessment were performed and the results were compared between the two groups. Results The excellent and effective rates of functional recovery in sensation in the rehabilitation group were 88% and 97%, respectively. A comparison showed that there was significant difference between the two groups. Conclusion Sensory reeducation could accelerate the restoration of sensation in patients with median nerve injury.


At the present time it is the prevailing opinion among leading hematologists that the erythrocytes found in the circulating blood of adults are derived from the normablastic cells which proliferate in the capillaries and veins of the red marrow. It is supposed that on losing their nuclei these erythroblasts are transformed into normal erythrocytes such as occur in the peripheral blood. There has been a deal of controversy regarding the manner in which the normablast loses its nucleus in the process of transformation (Note No. i). Two theories are typical and worthy of note. These are (i ) that the nucleus is extruded bodily, and (2) that it undergoes intracellular degeneration, or destruction. Rindfleish, among the Germans, was a valiant champion of the former hypothesis. He held the opinion that the nucleus was bodily extruded and that when thus freed it forthwith gathered material from the plasma for a second erythrocyte. We were not informed how often the diligent nucleus was able to perform this useful feat, but, at any rate, the hypothesis was a plausible and an accommodating one, and it is almost to be regretted that a lack of evidence prevented its general acceptation. Among those who indorse the supposition that the nucleus undergoes intracellular degeneration, or destruction, may be mentioned Neuman, Pappenheim, Kolliker, and Israel. While the available evidence, including that offered in the present contribution, favors the hypothesis that the nuclei usually undergo an intracellular and physiological process of degeneration, yet it should not be forgotten that the observations of Ehrlich alone are quite sufficient to establish the fact that the nuclei of the normablasts are occasionally, if not frequently, bodily extruded.