The object of this study is the processes of interaction of fragments of purple membranes with certain chemicals, which affect the photo-chromic properties of bacteriorhodopsin films. This paper considers the possibility of modifying the properties of bacteriorhodopsin films by changing their chemical composition, which will make it possible to use such films to protect information. For this purpose, it has been determined which optical properties of bacteriorhodopsin are most important for its use in the field of information protection; films were made using various chemicals as impurities. It was shown that the introduction of impurities does not affect the absorption spectrum of bacteriorhodopsin, which indicates that it retains its properties. It has been established that impurity substances are evenly distributed in films. By studying the dynamics of photoinduced changes in films with different concentrations of chemical components, the effect of chemical modification on the photocycle of bacteriorhodopsin and the properties of film structures based on it was studied. Based on the results of experimental studies, it was found that by changing the chemical composition of films, it is possible to change the time of storage of the information recorded on them in the range from several to hundreds of seconds continuously. The sensitometric sensitivity of film structures also depends on the chemical composition and can vary in the range from 3.9·10 –3 to 54·10 –3 m 2 /J. At the same time, chemical modification is simpler from a technological point and cheaper from a financial point of view compared to other methods that make it possible to achieve similar results. The re-ported results suggest that chemically modified films based on bacteriorhodopsin have great potential for practical application in the field of information protection and access control. The process of sodium glyceroxide obtaining by the reaction of glycerol and sodium hydroxide in the form of an aqueous solution was investigated. resources and predict the quality of the final product. as well as native corn and modified starches for the strength of cardboard and the quality of sub-grid waters, have been established. Research results show that the effect of flocculants is quite ambiguous. On the one hand, there is a clearly observed positive impact on the quality of the sub-grid waters. This is due to the reduction of their turbidity due to smaller fiber washes. Nevertheless, the positive effect on physical and mechanical parameters is minimal, and in some cases, there is a decrease in strength indicators. The greater the efficiency of keeping fine fiber on the grid when using flocculants, the lower the values of physical and mechanical indicators. In general, when using sludge in the composition of cardboard in combination with flocculants and starch, the indicators were achieved that are considered standard for waste paper container cardboard of grade The use of layered double hydroxides (LDHs) is a new direc-tion in chemistry of cement. The influence of calcium/aluminum double hydroxides (Ca-Al LDHs) and polycarboxylate ethers (PCE) on the strength development of Portland limestone cement has been investigated. It has been shown that Ca-Al LDHs form in cement slurry with the introduction of alkaline aluminate ac-celerator Na[Al(OH) 4 ]. It was determined that this contributes to a significant increase in the early strength of cement stone. However, this reduces the setting time of hardening, and there is a decrease in strength with age. At an early stage of structur-ing in cement paste with the addition of Na[Al(OH) 4 ], meta-stable high-water hydrate phases of Ca-Al LDHs of type C 4 AH 19 ([Ca 2 Al(OH) 6 ] 2 (ОН) 2 ·12H 2 O) are formed, which, due to the conversion phenomenon, transform to cubic C 3 AH 6 . Such processes are accompanied by an increase in overall porosity and decreases in the strength of cement stone. Stabilization of the Ca-Al LDH structure is achieved by introducing anions [NO 3 ] - into the interlayer space with the formation of Ca-Al-NO 3 LDHs through the use of sol-gel technology. X-ray phase analysis, IR spectroscopy, and electron microscopy proved the fact of synthesis of AF m -phases of type [Ca 2 Al(OH) 6 ] 2 (NO 3 ) 2. 6H 2 О. When modifying such hydrates with polycarboxylate ethers, a nanocomposite Ca-Al-NO 3 LDHs-РСЕ is formed. It was found that when the Ca-Al-NO 3 LDHs-РСЕ nanocomposite was introduced to СЕМ ІІ/A-LL 42,5 R, the strength over the period of 8...24 hours increases by 2.0–1.5 times, and, after 2 and 28 days, 58 and 144 % of the standard strength is achieved (R с28 =62.5 MPa). The obtained nanomodified Portland limestone cement refers to extra rapid-hardening and high-strength cement, which makes it possible to solve the task of carrying out work on the rapid restoration of reinforced concrete structures' elements. The work provides the more comprehensive development of Liquid Smoke from Rice Husks Ash (RHA). Notably, the study focuses on the interaction between the primary molecules of inhibitor and mild steel, including thermodynamic calculation and surface treatment upon addition of inhibitor. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polariza-tion (PP) characterization were utilized to evaluate the anticor-rosion of RHA. The Raman Spectroscopy pre and post-addition of RHA's inhibitor were used to compare the adsorbed functional group of inhibitors. Moreover, the thermodynamic calculation of the inhibitor's adsorption determines the types of adsorption of the inhibitor. As a result of the adsorption process, the Scanning Elec-tronic Microscope-Energy Dispersive X-Ray (SEM-EDX) aided by The Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Contact Angle Test was implemented to unveil the surface treatment and the change of elemental composition after the addition of an 80 ppm inhibitor. The PP and EIS results show a significant depression of the current and 3530 cm -1 . The LS shows a significant surface area of protection of 0.9982 and high adsorption constant ( K ads ) at 11.648. The calculated Δ G ads of ‒ 6.59 kJ/mol unveils the chemisorption in nature. At the same time, a combination of 20 and 80 ppm solution is predicted adsorbed horizontally to reduce the contact between the solution and substrate, as shown in SEM and AFM results. It also increases the contact angle and their corresponding hydrophobicity. modern society's most serious engineering problems where losses incurred due to it each year are estimated at billions of dollars. Technological options have to be exercised to protect against corrosion and an effort to combat these losses. To overcome this severe problem, several successful efforts have been made using corrosion inhibitors. Corrosion inhibitors are compounds used in low concentrations to prevent or slow down the corrosion process. The used metal (low carbon steel St-37) was coated with zinc phosphate as an initial layer, cellulose nitrate reinforced with MgO nanopowder by weight percentage (3 wt. %) as an intermediate layer, and epoxy resin reinforced with weight reinforcement percentage (2 wt. %) of particles (MgO+coke coal (1:1)) as a final layer. In addition, a cognitive scale was prepared from (hardness, adhesion strength, chemical corrosion test as well as electrochemical corrosion test. It was found the hardness increased with coated by an initial layer and the value of adhesion strength of triple coating layers was (232 Psi). Chemical and electrochemical corrosion tests have shown the efficiency of prepared coating layers in corrosion inhibiting and metal protection. The used inhibitors in the work are inexpensive materials that allow solving the problem of rational nature management by reducing corrosion and providing the transition to the use of environmentally safe efficient technologies.


Dr. Traisman assumes complete responsibility for the second edition of this book; the first edition with Dr. Newcomb as co-author was published in 1965. About 70 pages have been added because of the inclusion of a few new chapters; these deal with the pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus, transplantation of the pancreas for this disease, the psychologic aspects of diabetes, and with hypoglycemia. The latter two chapters are most welcome in this day and age when medical progress is helping to prolong the lives of juvenile diabetics.


National Key R&D Program of China, Grant/Award Number: No.2018YFF0212104, No.2017YFF0204903; China National Science and Technology Major Project, Grant/Award Number: 2017ZX03001028‐005 Abstract Millimetre wave (mmWave) has great potential in vehicle‐to‐vehicle (V2V) communication to provide wide bandwidth and low latency. However, the biggest challenge for the use of mmWave is the high propagation path loss and susceptibility to blockage among vehicles, especially in urban streets. Vehicle shadow fading is quite common in the actual V2V communication. The non‐line‐of‐sight scenarios are considered and the impacts of blocking vehicles on the characteristics of the V2V wireless channels are studied. The measurements are conducted for two scenarios. For the first scenario, a blocking truck is placed between transmitting and receiving cars. For the second scenario, a car is added as a reflector beside the truck. Based on the measurement results, a path loss model for the V2V communication is developed. In order to further verify the effects of building scattering, a simulation is setup and the results are consistent with the measured results.


COF-LZU1 with nanotube-like morphology has been synthesized with high crystallinity and pore volume in the presence of trimesic acid as a template. The as-synthesized COF nanotubes consist of a stack of plates with a diameter of about 100 nm with a hollow channel inside of about 20 nm.


A refinement is proposed to the conventional Hovmäoller diagram. The rationale is set out for the refined approach, a description provided of its design, and examples presented to illustrate its value as a diagnostic tool. It is shown that it can depict the dynamical characteristics of synoptic-scale disturbances as they evolve on a meandering tropopause-level waveguide, and in particular it can detect wave-breaking events, cut-off formation and vortex re-connection.


The invention discloses a powder metallurgy preparation method of a compressor valve plate. The compressor valve plate comprises, by weight percent, 0.2-0.6% of graphite, 0.2-0.4% of chromium, 0.4-0.6% of manganese, 0.2-0.4% of nickel, 0.2-0.4% of quartz sand powder, 0.8-1% of aluminum, 1-2% of copper, 1-1.2% of modifier and the balance of iron. By the added modifier, ultrafine powder is provided in mixed raw materials, the ultrafine powder can be filled in gaps amount large particles, and apparent density of the mixed raw materials is increased. The ultrafine powder mainly comprises nano silicon dioxide and calcium stearate. The novel modifier obtained by modifiers such as silane coupling agents further increases physical indexes such as wear resistance of products. Polyethylene vinyl acetate and liquid paraffin which serve as lubricants are added to the modifier to increase hybrid pressing effect of the modifier, pressing strength, at the same pressing pressure, of powder metallurgy components is increased greatly, particle combination forms and pore shapes of raw materials are changed, and cracks are solved fundamentally.


One of the most famous pieces of early medieval Chinese prose is the preface written by Wang Xizhi to the collection of poems composed at a gathering he hosted in 353 at the Orchid Pavilion on his estate. In recent years Wang Xizhi's authorship of a large portion of the extant version of this preface has been questioned, most notably by Guo Moruo. A closer inquiry into Wang's attitude toward religious Daoism and the motive for his apparent rejection (as well as that of other contemporaries) of Zhuangzi's view of the relativity of life and death proves that the reasons adduced to question Wang's authorship of the preface are based on a misunderstanding of his thought.


A host of existential threats currently face humankind. One important insight from the experience of COVID-19 is that there were unrealised positive externalities associated with investments in research prior to the pandemic. While it is difficult to calculate the costs of these externalities, it may be less difficult to calculate those associated with the next pandemic, if it is an existential one (that could eliminate human life as we know it). If existential, it might urgently warrant maximum investment in the Research/University sector. A virus similar to COVIDthat mutates quickly enough to evade vaccines and antiviral drugs, and which has a higher mortality rate could end human life as we know it. Whereas many insights have been derived from research into Back Swan events in finance, research on Black Swan events that require biomedical and other research readiness is yet in its infancy. This conceptual note therefore argues that research investments in the research sector should be increased substantially to improve this readiness. Before it is too late.


Summarized the review of powder charge and elementary discussion of pulverized-coal charge.The special introduction was laid on the discussion of the principle of pulverized coal charge,the experimental research of aims and plans,some effective measuring techniques of charged quality,pulverized coal sizes and distribution,electrical resistivity,dielectric constant.


Abstract In this work, a Calcium looping (CaL) system including high temperature sorbent storage is presented, allowing to reduce the size of the calciner and the associated capital-intensive equipment (ASU and CPU). Reduction of the capital costs is particularly important for power plants with low capacity factors, which is becoming increasingly frequent for fossil fuel power plants in electric energy mixes with increasing share of intermittent renewables. The process assessment is performed by: (i) defining pulverized coal power plant (PCPP) with CaL capture system with and without sorbent storage and their mass and energy balances at nominal load; (ii) defining a simple method to predict the performance of the plant at part-load; (iii) defining the economic model, including functions for the estimation of the plant equipment cost; (iv) performing yearly simulations of the systems to calculate yearly electricity production, CO2 emissions and levelized cost of electricity for different sizes of the calcination line and the storage system and (v) performing sensitivity analysis with different power production plans and carbon taxes. With this process, optimal size of the calciner and of the storage system minimizing the cost of electricity have been found. The optimal plant design was found to correspond to a solids storage system sized to manage the weekly cycling and a calciner line sized on the average weekly load. However, to avoid excessively large solids storage system, sizing the calciner on the average daily load and the storage system to manage the daily cycling appears more feasible from the logistic viewpoint and leads to minor economic penalty compared with the optimal plant design. For the selected case sized on the daily cycling, reduction of the cost of CO2 avoided between 16% and 26% have been obtained compared to the reference CaL plant without solids storage, for representative medium and low capacity factor scenarios respectively.


The legal basis for the disclosure system of officials' finance from international law and domestic law perspective is as below.Both the right to know and the privacy right are international human rights.In domestic law system,the right to know is a basic right while the privacy right is human right.Under the principle of giving priority to public interest,the right to know first is emphasized and then the finance disclosure of officials is needed,while the relationship between the both should be balanced.We,by modifying Civil Servants Act and following classification processing and due process principles,could specify the principles,subject scope,content,procedure and measures for the disclosure system of officials' finance in articles of Civil Servants Act.


analytic level." To fail in this entails the fallacy of "reductionism." Particular reductions stand or fall according to the test of evidence, and the behavioral sciences have seen many premature reductions fail. With respect for Parsons' early concerns, it is only fair to mention their persistence in the apparent differences between animate and inanimate nature and within the latter between symbolic and infra-symbolic behavior, with which any comprehensive naturalistic reduction will have to come to terms. But there is no general fallacy of reductionism. In his opposition to the reduction of norms, Parsons has consistently given an argument which, though offered as an account of the conditions necessary and sufficient if norms are to be variables in an explanatory system, is actually an argument for according them a certain ontological status-the status of the eternally independent variable. This is not required for norms to be explanatory variables. Consider norms as factor "B." If B explains C, but A explains B, then A explains C; but this hardly implies, as the opponents of reduction so often assert, that all theories of the effect of B on C are otiose, or that B becomes "epiphenomenal." The explanation of B does not cause the effect of B on C to cease; that effect becomes instead a special case of the effect of A. Sociologists already entertain a partial explanation of norms in the argument that, whatever their specific source, they have evolved in response to the requirements of viable social organization. This hypothesis, a very general one, does not immediately account for much normative variation. Some day the behavioral sciences may be able to explain this remaining variation-the conditions under which men hold to one value rather than another and under which norms respecting these values prevail in particular groups. But such explanation does not obviate accounts of the effect of particular values on social institutions. Rather, it increases the range and precision of such accounts by subsuming them under a truly more general theory.


The conventional Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) generates a virtual uniform antenna array by applying equal excitation coefficients to the moving SAR platform at all positions along its flight path. The resolution of the conventional SAR is limited by the side lobe level. In this paper, the moving SAR platform is proposed to be excited by non-uniform Dolph Chebyshev amplitude coefficients at all locations in the cross range direction. The MATLAB simulation shows that the use of the proposed SAR based virtual Dolph Chebyshev array results in the possibility of improving the resolution of the processed SAR image due to the suppression of the side lobe level.


Recently a collaborative initiative of the American College of Rheumatology and the European League against Rheumatism resulted in novel classification criteria for systemic sclerosis (SSc).1 These criteria were first selected in a derivation cohort and, next, confirmed in a validation cohort. From a laboratory perspective it is interesting that the new criteria include, besides the classical anticentromere and antitopoisomerase I antibodies, also the anti-RNA polymerase III antibodies (ARA). These ARA have been associated with diffuse cutaneous involvement and …


Climatic conditions play a significant role in the performance of road infrastructure. Models which have been developed to describe road performance can benefit from accurate knowledge of climatic trends. Without access to complete historical data, the road infrastructure/climatic interaction cannot be fully understood. As climate information is collected at weather stations located sporadically around Australia it is often an arduous and time consuming process to match pavement sections with their equivalent climates.


EDITOR, - More is known about the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis infections in women in primary care than David Taylor- Robinson mentions.1 Analysis of studies in general practice has raised several more specific problems and hence some more specific solutions. These studies have shown variations both over time and among practices in the prevalence of cervical chlamydial infections, ranging from 0.5% to 10.7%.*RF 2-5* The variations in prevalance can be attributed to the different tests used to detect C trachomatis; the site of the practice (inner city or suburban); whether the patients were symptomatic; and changes in the prevalence of the organism itself. Information on the changing prevalence of C trachomatis in primary care is not routinely available to general practitioners, although such information is available to genitourinary medicine clinics. General practitioners require this information if they are …


In order to overcome the shortage of semi-empirical design of the stirred tank of blender truck to certain extension and guide its enlargement design,the mixing process inside the stirred tank of blender truck with solid-liquid two-phase flow was numerically simulated in the unsteady state based on Fluent.The unstructured grid,standard k-epsilon turbulent model,Eulerian multiphase model,sliding mesh and SIMPLE algorithm were used to study the flow field,the mixing power,the distribution law of the solid volume in the stirred tank and the mixing time.The results show that the flow characteristics in the flow field are influenced by the upper impeller and the lower impeller.The key to increase the mixing efficiency is to reduce tangential velocity,increase axial and radial velocity.The relationships of agitation speed with torque and power correspond to the conventional characteristics of agitator blade. There are still some regions which do not have the main loop after the flow field distributes uniformly.In those regions,the volume fraction of the solid phase is lower,and the flow field can be optimized by increasing the length of baffles.By monitoring the concentrations of three typical points,the mixing time can be obtained which can predict the mixing time in the practical technology.The results are of importance to the optimization and design of stirred tank of blender truck.


[Objective]To explore the emotional reaction of parents of children with stones and the effect of implementation of psychological intervention.[Method]40 parents of children with stones received psychological intervention.The Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale(SAS),combining with talk way,was used to compare the results by setting a self control group before and after the psychological intervention so as to find their anxiety level and emotional response.[Result]92.5%of parents had varying degrees of anxiety and other emotional response such as anxiety,tension,anger,fear,panic,suspicion,distrust.The difference(P 0.01) of SAS scores between before and after the psychological intervention was statistically significant.[Conclusion] To carry on a timely psychological intervention for parents of children with stones can effectively alleviate the anxiety and dispersal their negative emotions.


• Each climate variable is stored in the original NETCDF format. Each file has 10 years of data, so there are 15 decade blocks (1951-2100). Each decade has about 450 MB (daily data). In total there are about 54GB of data for a climate scenario, for the eight climate variables. The spatial resolution is 25 km. used to provide field and farm scale evaluation of different agroforestry systems, including an assessment of the impact of future climate throughout Europe.


This conceptual study is a systematic attempt to fill a gap in the theoretical knowledge about reasoning the need of learning Human Resource Management (HRM) in Management Education (ME) in terms of having a synthesized description of reasoning and presenting a set of reasons to explain the need, and furthermore to solve an intellectual puzzle to uncover why HRM is to be taught in any qualification of Management at any level. Three research questions were formulated and they were answered by adopting a desk research strategy. 30 direct or indirect writings or explanations from 30 textbooks on HRM published by relevant authorities were examined, 13 common reasons were identified and listed, and based on the identified or derived common reasons, a content analysis was done. The study yielded findings consistent with the formulated three research questions and they are: there are at least 17 reasons for the case for teaching HRM in ME; it is possible to identify and list 13 common reasons which derive from or which are included in the writings considered for the study; and the top five reasons are (1) organizational success, (2) sustainable competitive advantage and organizational improvement, (3) every manager's vital responsibility and contribution to societal success (these two reasons got the same intensity of consideration being the top third reason), (4) enhancing professional life success, and (5) enhancing personal life success. Key Words: Human Resource Management, Management Education, Reason, Teaching


This paper summarizes some of the recent accomplishments and delineates the future challenges in life-cycle cost analysis for highways bridges. The study is intended to provide the necessary background in order to evaluate alternative bridge investment options based on life-cycle cost.


The purpose of the work is to investigate the conditions of the designers' creative work at the Lviv Art and Production Plant in the socially critical period of the late 1980s and the early 1990s, to identify the features of technological processes in design and layout in the absence of basic professional materials, raw materials and tools. The research methodology lies in studying the scientific literature on the socio-cultural environment features of the Soviet period of the second half of the twentieth century and gathering information by interviewing a former design team member. The scientific novelty of the research is the introduction of the design activity experience of the artists and designers' creative group and the cooperative "Artes" during 1988-1991 into scientific circulation; its coverage from the inside of the work process. Conclusions. The results of the study capture the unique experience of a group of Lviv designers at the art plant, who, in difficult ideological and material constraints, were able to implement a large number of projects, ranging from the development of machine housings for industrial production and ending with small printing products. An important factor is the compliance of their unique design products with world parameters from a technical and aesthetic point of view, and the use of certain methods and technologies indicates the process of comparison with world achievements in the field of design.


The utility model provides a multifunctional oil displacement physical simulation device, and relates to a device for simulating formation temperature and pressure in a high-temperature and high-pressure mode and improving the oil recovery rate. The multifunctional oil displacement physical simulation device comprises an injection system, a model system, a measurement system and a control system. The injection system comprises a constant-speed constant-pressure pump, an intermediate container and a pipe valve piece. The model system comprises an oil driving testing tool, an annular pressure automatic tracking pump and a pressure-return type displacement quantified control system. The measurement system is connected with the model system, and comprises a high-low pressure switching unit, a pressure measuring unit, a temperature measuring unit and a flow measuring unit. The control system is connected with the injection system, the model system and the measurement system. The multifunctional oil displacement physical simulation device meets the requirement for simulating high temperature and high pressure displacement in the field of oil extraction, and can achieve annular pressure automatic tracking, the pressure-return type displacement quantified controller is used for controlling pressure, and high-low pressure automatic switching can be achieved. Collection processing software is used for collecting pressure, temperature and flow data and calculating the pressure, temperature and flow data, and automation degree is high.


Superficial dermatophyte infections (SDI) are the most frequently encountered skin diseases. It is important to put early diagnosis and start treatment. SDI are also important with regard to preventive medicine. For his reason, in addition to treatment agents, factors on transmission reducing / preventing should be known. In this article, the agents of SDI, facilitating factors, clinical aspects, treatments and preventive precautions are described.


Damping of weak electromechanical modes can be improved by means of supplementary controllers placed at embedded High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) lines based on Voltage Source Converters (VSC) technology. For this purpose, some robust controllers H∞ are proposed based on local single input single output (SISO) linear models of the power system placed at the inverter station or at the rectifier station. However, when a HVDC is an embedded line, it is useful to coordinate the supplementary controllers at the inverter and rectifier stations in order to improve damping on different electromechanical modes of the AC power system. This paper proposes two strategies to achieve a system of coordinated supplementary H∞ controllers placed at each converter station (inverter and rectifier). Firstly, a MIMO H∞ mixed-sensitivity centralized control strategy of both inverters is initially proposed, then a decentralized one is proposed. In both cases, the modelling of the power system dynamic, observed at each VSC converter station, is computed by means of the identification technique N4Sid using data from simulations. The performance of these proposed controls is compared to classic control known as Power Oscillation Damping (POD). On the other hand, since each controller uses remote signals their robustness is tested taking into account signals delays.


This paper shows how the Wing Multidisciplinary Optimization Design (WingMOD) code is used to reconfigure and balance a Blended-Wing-Body (BWB) aircraft. Details are given on how a BWB optimization problem is set up in WingMOD, including how a series of optimizations is used to calibrate WingMOD to external analyses. Relative to work reported earlier, the current BWB optimization looks more carefully at cabin geometry, balance, stability and control issues. This results in a problem that considers 5 missions, 26 design conditions, and 142 design variables and 930 constraints. Current results show how optimization can reconfigure a BWB to correct balance problems while improving takeoff weight.


For the designing of cutting-dies is a complex and experience-based process, it is poorly supported by conventional 3D CAD software. Thus, the majority of design activities, including the (re)modeling of those cutting die-components that are directly responsible for performing shaping operations on a sheet-metal stamping part, traditionally still need to be carried-out repetitively, separately, and manually by the designer. To eliminate some of these drawbacks and upgrade the capabilities of conventional 3D CAD software, this paper proposes a new methodology for the development of a parametric system capable of automatically performing a (re)modeling process of compound washer dies' cutting-components. The presented methodology integrates CATIA V5 built-in modules, including Part Design, Assembly Design and Knowledge Advisor, publication mechanism, and compound cutting die-design knowledge. The system developed by this methodology represents an 'intelligent' assembly template composed of two modules GAJA1 and GAJA2, respectively. GAJA1 is responsible for the direct input of the die-design problem regarding the shape, dimensions and material of the stamping part, its extraction in the form of geometric features, and the transferring of relevant design parameters and features to the module GAJA2. GAJA2 interprets the current values for the input parameters and automatically performs the modeling process of cutting die-components, using die-design knowledge and the company's internal design and manufacturing standards. Experimental results show that this system significantly shortens the modeling-time for cutting the die-components, improves the modeling-quality, and enables the training of inexperienced designers.


The poster presents the impact of the use of Galileo observations on daily GNSS position solutions. Analysis were carried out at EUREF Permanent Network. For 34 EPN stations full calibration tables developed by IGG, Univ. Bonn and containing correction E01 and E05 are available. We prepared for them a daily solutions, independently for GPS and Galileo. In most analysis for GPS solutions, also here, L1 and L2 frequencies are used. For them phase centre corrections are available for long time. For Galileo solutions generally E1 and E5a frequencies are used. In this analysis we prepare two Galileo solutions. To correct the E5a signal we used E05 values and in the second case the G02 values (as it is done in most cases when there are no full PCO/PCV tables available). There is a clear bias in height between this two Galileo solutions. Analysis has shown also that we get more consistent GPS and Galileo solutions, when G02 values instead of E05 are used for E5a signal.


This paper deals with a geometrical solution method for the second order, nonlinear differential equation $\ddot x + g( x ) + \epsilon f( x,\dot x) = 0$. This method is based on transforming the state variable coordinates into two new variables V and $\phi $, where V is a Lyapunov function and $\phi $ is an angle which determines the position on the surface $V = {\text{const}}$. The new coordinates are chosen so that the transformed state variable equations are suitable for solving the case in which $g( x )$ is strongly nonlinear and can not be reduced to the sum of a linear term plus a small nonlinear component. A transformation of the form $x_1 = f_1 ( V,\phi )$$x_2 = f_2 ( V,\phi )$ is obtained from a procedure in which $f_1 $ is chosen by the investigator and $f_2 $ is solved from an equation dependent on $f_1 $. (The form of the transformation is, in a sense, a generalization of the Kryloff-Bogolyubov-Mitropol'skii method [1], where one necessarily deals with a $g( x )$ that is "almost" linear.) In t...


To address the need for a reliable and cost effective nanocomposite manufacturing technique, Vacuum -Assisted Resin Transform Molding (VARTM) method was used to form four carbon nanofiber (CNF) infused nanocomposite p lates with differing weight percentages of CNF in the matrix. Using Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT) piezoceramic patches as actuators and sensors, a sweep sine excitation signal was used to vibrate the plate and frequency domain response of the nanocomposit e plates were analyzed using half -band power algorithm to determine the damping ratio of the plates. The results show that as the weight percentage of CNF in the nanocomposite increased, the damping ratio of the nanocomposite plates increased and the magn itude of the vibration response decreased significantly. Between a CNF free plate and a 1.5% weight CNF plate, over a two -fold decrease in amplitude in the vibration response was observed.


An amorphous soft magnet such as CoZrNb was considered as a free layer of magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) for high-density MRAMs. The MTJs exhibited a tunnel magnetoresistance (MR) of about 7.5% as the free layer thickness ranged from 2 to 15 nm. When CoFe filtering was added in the free layer, the MR ratio reached 35%.


Multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) has emerged as a most useful tool for triaging patients with a suspicion of harbouring prostate cancer (PCa). mpMRI findings are ranked by the Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System (PI-RADS) which has been refined into the current PI-RADs 2 version, this topic having been reviewed recently by Roberts et al . in 2018 (1). mpMRI also has the ability to localise non-palpable cancer within the prostate, which if performed before a prostate biopsy will increase the diagnosis of significant PCa (2-4).


Conflict patterns in Korean society have changed from regional conflicts to generational conflicts and even gender conflicts. Among them, this paper tried to pay attention to gender conflict as a representative phenomenon leading to 'emotional conflict', and to observe the exercise, resistance, and reconstruction of ideology-instrumental violence in the process.The 20th presidential election in 2022 was an example of a new change in the topography of conflict in Korean society, and I executed a netography analysis focusing on the "Discourse on Abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family," which triggered gender conflict. Theqoo, a representative online community for young women was participated and observed for 8 months and analyzed through Victor Turner's social drama model.As a result, starting with the pledge to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, social dramas in the online community showed a four-step structure of Breach-Crisis-Redress-Reintegration or Schism over time. Among them, internal members appeared to express political opinions through fandom strategies that can reconstruct their identity, share a sense of homogeneity, and reveal their identity through the Liminality and Communitas processes.


An exact analytical expression is given for the stress distribution in the matrix for a case of longitudinal shear deformation of an uni directional fiber reinforced composite. The expression takes into account non-uniform spacing between fibers, which can have dif ferent radii, and possible variations in shear modulus from fiber to fiber. For the case of a regular array of equal fibers, the expression simplifies considerably. Detailed results are presented for rectangular and diamond arrays of fibers.


Summary1. An attempt was made to determine the source of excess 14C -labelled glycine and phenylalanine observed in 'free' metabolic pools of rats loaded with glycine-2-14C and phenylalanine-3-14C before irradiation.2. Tissues from various organs of irradiated and non-irradiated rats were fractionated into three protein fractions. Glycine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, serine and alanine were isolated from these fractions, and the respective specific activities were determined.3. Differences in specific activities were : decreased activity in muscle collagen and soluble-protein fractions of thymus and spleen; increased activity in soluble-protein fractions of liver and muscle; and variable changes in the activity of certain amino acids of the soluble-protein fraction of kidney.4. The significance of these changes is discussed in terms of known biological effects of radiation on cells and cellular metabolism.5. Muscle collagen seems radio-sensitive and its increased catabolism in irradiated rats could explain m...


The invention relates to a Vorrichtung mit Transflektiv-Farbfilter. Embodiments of the present invention include an apparatus, method and system for an illumination arrangement including a color recycling subsystem.


Vector borne diseases are among the major causes of illness and death in many developing countries affecting substantial portion of the productive force. Medicinal plants with larvicidal properties have paramount importance for the local control of mosquito. This study was therefore focused on the phytochemical screening and laboratory investigation of the larvicidal properties of the aqueous extracts of 33 medicinal plants belonging to 27 families. The effects of aqueous extracts of 33 plants on laboratory reared Aedes agypti, Aedes africanus and Culex quinquefasciatus were evaluated using the standard WHO protocol. Portions of the same extracts were used for the identification of the major classes of secondary metabolites. Determination of the LD50 of the most active plants extracts was also carried out on mice. Out of the tested 33 plant extracts, five plants, viz., Albizia gummifera (seeds), Balanites aegyptica (fruits), Hedera helix (leaves and fruits), Millettia ferruginea (seeds) and Warburgia ugandensis (leaves) exhibited promising larvicidal activities against Aedes agypti, Aedes africanus, and Culex quinquefasciatus, respectively. Acute toxicity studies of these plants on mice showed medium lethal dose (LD50) values ranges from 150 mg per Kg to 450 mg per Kg when the aqueous extracts were administered intraperitonealy. Phytochemical investigation of the aqueous extracts used for the test revealed the presence of saponins, polyphenols, alkaloids and glycosides as major classes of compounds in most of the plants. The crude extracts of these plants demonstrating stronger larvicidal effect and safety on non-target organism stresses the need for extended laboratory and field evaluation, which could then be employed to play an important role in the control of the larvae of the vectors at their breeding site.


Recently, syntheticpolymer hydrogels have emerged as a promising biomaterial for biomedical applications because of their biocompatibility, water absorption capability, degradability and better mechanical properties than natural polymer hydrogels. Therefore,the current study was undertaken with the main objective of developing modified poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)  hydrogel films  with poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA), poly(ethylene glycol) dicarboxcylate (PEGDC), poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (PEGDMA) and hyperbranchpolyglycidol (HPG) with enhancedproperties using electron beam (E-Beam) for three major applications namely wound dressing, anti-adhesion barrier and tissue engineering scaffold.  Cross-linked PEGDA/PEO hydrogel was developed for wound dressing application. Thecross-linked PEGDC/PEO and PEGDMA/PEO hydrogels were developed for an anti-adhesion barrier application.And a microporous hydrogel scaffold was developed from HPGand PEO using e-beam induced cross-linking for tissue engineering applications.This study shows the potential ofmodified PEO hydrogel films in biomedical applications especially as wound dressing, anti-adhesion barrier and tissue engineering scaffold. Keywords: crosslinkedhydrogel,e-beam, poly ( ethylene ) oxide , electron beam,biomedical applications.


Abstract 1,1′-Bis(2-mercapto-propylthio)ferrocene (1) was synthesized and converted into a polymer (2) by reaction with divinyl sulfone in a 1:1 ratio. As a result of the anti-Markovnikov thiol-addition onto the vinyl groups, the polymer has a regular alternating structure. It is soluble in chloroform and tetrahydrofuran and was characterized by common methods.


-55 "C to 125 "C I 2299 Abstract The viscoplastic constitutive properties and EnergyPartitioning model of Sn3.9Ag0.6Cu lead-free alloy are presented and compared with baselme data from eutectic Sn63Pb37 solder. One-dimensional incremental model of the test setup is developed to simulate constant-load creep, monotonic, and isothermal cyclic mechanical tests performed over various temperatures, strain rates and stresses using a therm~mechanical-microstruchlral (TMM) test system, developed by the authors. By fitting simulatioo results to constant-load creep and monotonic testing data, the primary creep, secondary creep and plastic models are achieved for both So3.9Ag0.6Cu and Sn37Pb solders. Using the viscoplastic constitutive properties of solders to simulate isothermal cyclic mechanical tests, the creep energy and plastic work can be partitioned for all testing conditions. Consequently, Energy-Partitioning model constants for creep and plasticity are obtained from correlating partitioned creep energy and plastic work to mechanical cyclic testing results. Viscoplastic constitutive and Energy-Partitioning models of Sn3.9Ag0.6Cu lead-free alloy can be used in commercial FEM software.


One of the worst train crashes on record occurred in Amagasaki near Osaka, about 500 km west of Tokyo, Japan, on 25th April 2005. A seven-car EMU rake, part of the morning rapid commuter service to the centre of Osaka, derailed in a tight curve with a radius of about 300 m. The two leading coaches overturned and hit a building that was beside the track. The side of the second coach hit a corner of the concrete building and its body structure were severely damaged. At RTRI, estimations were made of the fundamental structural characteristics of existing typical light-weight stainless-steel body structures in order to investigate their current vulnerability against side impacts and to identify paths towards improvement in crashworthiness under such impacts. Most recently built Japanese EMUs for commuter and suburban services consist of light-weight car bodies made from stainless steel or aluminium [1]. The cars involved in the accident were made from stainless steel. Therefore, the stainless-steel car bodies were made a first priority.


The purpose of this study was to investigate the role expectation of Clinical Nurse Specialist(CNS) in A tertiary-affiliated hospital in Seoul. Data were surveyed from Jul. 8, to Jul. 20, 1996. 74 medical doctors and 119 nurses participated in this survey. For data analysis, SPSS/PC+ program was use...


The contrast between the predictability of presidential elections and the variability of early polls has come to be viewed as evidence that campaigns provide crucial information to voters. We argue that unmotivated survey respondents offering minimally acceptable answers (i.e., satisficing) offers an additional explanation for the classic conundrum of why the polls vary when the election outcome is predictable. The analysis relies on data from the National Annenberg Election Survey, a natural experiment that results from California's election laws, and the 2000 ANES survey mode experiment. The results support the claim that respondents' motivation to engage the survey question, not the information provided by the campaign, is the most important determinant of whether vote intentions reflect the "correctly" weighted fundamentals. We conclude by discussing the implications of this finding for both survey-based and experimental studies of campaign effects.


Scientific literature regarding the relationship between climate, sustainability and poverty suggests that the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 1 (SDG1), End poverty in all its forms everywhere, need to be at the center of all other targets. This goal is directly and indirectly related to all other SDGs.

Homelessness is an extreme form of poverty and a fact of life in all countries of the world, regardless of the level of development of their economic or governance systems. Libraries are an important part of the organization network that can empower people experiencing homelessness and provide them equal access to information, skills, and knowledge. Librarians who work with people who are homeless need extra education and support.

Therefore, IFLA Section for Library Services to People with Special Needs is developing the Guidelines for Library Services to People who are Experiencing Homelessness. The Guidelines will help libraries plan and organize quality and adequate services for this vulnerable social group.

An important step in developing the Guidelines is collecting examples of library services to people who are experiencing homelessness worldwide. In this paper, a few representative examples of best practices from around the world will be presented.


Low average δ18O values and large seasonal variations in δ18O in snow accumulating on the tropical Quelccaya ice cap in Peru can be quantitatively explained by a balance calculation of water vapor mass and isotopes. Important factors are (1) variations in air mass stability over the Amazon Basin, (2) the surface elevation of Quelccaya, and (3) seasonal changes over Quelccaya. Seasonal changes in evaporation of snow on the surface of the ice cap amplify the seasonal δ18O cycle. Air circulation and air mass stability, rather than temperature, determine the seasonal δ18O cycle at Quelccaya and, probably, at other low-latitude sites.


market made, among other things, the maintenance of the Raj an extremely significant issue. The disarray of government finances following the war led to an increasing dependence of the Indian government for revenues on the custom and excise duties, and resulted in the Fiscal Autonomy Convention of 1919. It provided a framework for the shift in fiscal policy from "discriminating laissezfaire to discriminating protection." Increased duties on cotton textile imports into India in 1921 were not meant to protect the Indian industry, but to raise more revenues that the government needed in the wake of budget deficit, as well as to reduce competition from the Japanese, Chinese, and the Germans in the Indian market. In fact, it was accompanied by a proposal for an increased excise tax on Indian cotton goods. However, the rising nationalist movement in India, calling for total boycott of British goods and reliance on Swadeshi (in this case, home-spun cotton), and the increased agitation of a large working class threatening to go on strike prompted the government to abolish the excise duty in 1925. The author concludes that "India might have gained" by the subsequent Indo-British trade agreement of 1939, "but Britain certainly had not lost . . . Lancashire had got most of her pound of flesh . . . it had managed to manipulate the imperial connection, in the face of strong nationalist opposition, to gain a favoured position in the Indian market" (p. 458).


In this interview we discuss lung cancer prevention, the recent low-dose CT screening recommendations from the USPSTF, hurdles in preventing the disease, and more.


• This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: BAKER, L. ...et al., 2018. Resolvin E1 (RvE1) attenuates LPS induced inflammation and subsequent atrophy in C2C12 myotubes. Journal of Cellular Biochemistry, 119 (7), pp.6094-6103, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/jcb.26807. This article may be used for noncommercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.


Circular sawing with diamond-impregnated tools has been extensively used in stone processing plants and prediction of rock sawability is important in the cost estimation and the planning of the plants. Rock sawability depends on machine characteristics, type and diameter of diamond saw, depth of cut, rate of sawing and tool wear, and rock properties. Some researchers have investigated the relation between sawability and rock properties. Norling [1] correlated sawability with petrographic properties and concluded that grain size was more relevant to sawability than the quartz content. Burgess [2] proposed a regression model for sawability, which was based on mineralogical composition, hardness, grain size and abrasion resistance. Wright and Cassapi [3] tried to correlate the pertographic analysis and physical properties with actual sawing results. The research indicated cutting forces to have the closest correlation. Hausberger [4] concluded, by studying the work by other authors, that the higher the proportion of minerals with well-defined cleavage planes, the easier the stone is to cut. Unver [5] developed predictive equations for the estimation of specific wear and cutting force in rock sawing. Clausen et al. [6] carried out a study of the acoustic emission during single diamond scratching of


WORK OF SPONTANEOUS BREATHING IN CATS WITH NORMAL AND XANTHINEOXIDASE INJURED LUNGS. 179 Anders Jonzon', Andreas Schulze2, Peter Schaller', Gunnar Sedinl. Dept. of Pediatrics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden (1) and Dept. of Biomed. Eng. & Pedi.itrics, Dresden Medical Academy, Germany (2). A ventilator with an adjuslable internal compliance (c) has been constructed (Schaller et al 1991). In addition to a baseline "CPAP" it generates a pressure at the endotracheal tube (ETT) proportional to the instantaneous inspired volume. Thus, a decreased compliance of the patient's lung (CJ can theoretically be compensated during spontaneous breathing by adjusting C, to a negative value. To test this hypothesis we assessed how stepwise changes in C. influenced the compliance of the combined ventilator-En-lung system (a and integrated inspiratory phrenic nerve activity in 13 cliloralose anesthetized cats. C, improved according to the relation lIC, = lICl+ IIC,. With a time lag of no more than 2 or 3 breathing cycles phrenic nerve activity decreased with elastic unloading to a new level. It decreased in a hyperbolic relation to the pcrcentudly scaled improvement in C, both before (r=0.85) and after (r=0.69) lung injury. We conclude that elastic unloading effectively decreases inspiratory activity and work of breathing for a given alveolar ventilation i stiff lungs. Lang term pllmmary h c t i o n a l a l t c m of brafihoplhrcnary Qsplasia (BI'D) and of pre~turr birth (Pa). S. PARAT, C. MXIETIE, M.F. D3ARXl1E, A. W E A N , P. fS33WQJ. J.P. RELIm, C. CWLTIW. Service de Mecine Nknatale de Port-Rayal


The systematic structure of micro-cipher-lock and the characters of L6324 chip as its driver are introduced, then, a study is performed on the differences between L6234 and other common driver circuit on the aspects of control of driver circuit, motor protection and output current.The availability of l6234 in micro-cipher-lock is proved.


Nanoparticles (NPs) can be transported to the brain, especially through nerves, because of their small size and high biological activity. Previous studies confirmed that zinc oxide (ZnO) NPs can enter the brain through the tongue−brain pathway, but it is unclear whether they will further affect synaptic transmission and brain perception. In this study, it is found that tongue−brain‐transported ZnO NPs can cause a decrease in taste sensitivity and taste aversion learning ability, indicating abnormal taste perception. Moreover, the release of miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents, the frequency of action potential release, and the expression of c‐fos are decreased, suggesting that the synaptic transmission is reduced. To further explore the mechanism, protein chip detection of inflammatory factors is carried out and it is found that neuroinflammation occurs. Importantly, it is found that neuroinflammation originated from neurons. The JAK‐STAT signaling pathway is activated, which inhibits the Neurexin1‐PSD95‐Neurologigin1 pathway and c‐fos expression. Blocking the activation of the JAK‐STAT pathway prevents neuroinflammation and the reduction in Neurexin1‐PSD95‐Neurologigin1. These results indicate that ZnO NPs can be transported by the tongue−brain pathway and lead to abnormal taste perception by neuroinflammation‐induced deficits in synaptic transmission. The study reveals the influence of ZnO NPs on neuronal function and provides a novel mechanism.


The performance of a D-Wave Vesuvius quantum annealer was recently compared to a suite of classical algorithms on a class of constraint satisfaction instances based on frustrated loops. However, the construction of these instances leads the maximum coupling strength to increase with problem size. As a result, larger instances are subject to amplified analog control error, and are effectively annealed at higher temperatures in both hardware and software. We generate similar constraint satisfaction instances with limited range of coupling strength and perform a similar comparison to classical algorithms. On these instances the D-Wave Vesuvius processor, run with a fixed 20$\mu$s anneal time, shows a scaling advantage over the software solvers for the hardest regime studied. This scaling advantage opens the possibility of quantum speedup on these problems. Our results support the hypothesis that performance of D-Wave Vesuvius processors is heavily influenced by analog control error, which can be reduced and mitigated as the technology matures.


A suitable cut transversely on the back yard of the circular deflector has been developed to improve its performance.The numerical simulation of 3-D flow and the single/multi-objective aerodynamic optimization of a van with this kind of wind deflector are completed by CFD method.During the process,the speed of the van is fixed as the precondition,and the drag is set to be the objective of the optimization to find out the best configuration for the approach.Moreover,the multi-objective optimization is arranged by Hybrid Genetic Algorithm(HGA),including drag and aerodynamic acoustics.This research indicates that a slot on the backyard of the deflector can improve the local flow status,and provide a better characteristic in reducing drag and acoustics,which is valuable both in academic and practical fields.


Based on FDTD method,a two dimensional model for metamaterial volume with regular triangle,quadrangle and hexagon structure under light irradiation was presented.The focus characters of the model were analyzed and its validity was tested.The simulation results show that when light wave propagates along the angular bisector of corner angle in metamaterial volume,the electromagnetic focus effect will not exist in the metamaterial volume,although the permittivity and permeability of metamaterial are very small.


Group digital management platform(Quick platform) and its Quick series software are developed to adapt the software product to enterprise management pattern.Based on the platform function and architecture,it is pointed out that Quick platform is suitable for quick development and construction of enterprise information systems(EISs),and the key technologies in the implementation are presented.The co-operation process between Quick platform and its EIS is expatiated,the Quick-platform-based process to construct EIS is presented,and some EISs constructed with Quick platform are shown.Quick platform can implement the development mode that combines EIS software customization and software production.


Although online education has become mainstream, many critics still fear it is an unequal form of education primarily because cheating techniques are outstripping our means of monitoring students. Cheating does pose a serious problem to online education, but new technologies are capable of limiting the threat. In combination with a proactive teaching style, anti-cheating tech can clamp down on unethical behavior and create a school environment that is as honest as any in-class setting.


Third-order optical nonlinearity of the co-doped CdS nanoparticles embedded in polymer thin films is studied with the Z-scan technique with 632.8 nm excitation using a cw laser. The results show that the co-doped CdS nanocomposite film exhibits enhanced negative nonlinear refractive index in the order of n2 ≈ 10-5 cm2/W, as compared to the undoped CdS nanoparticles. Nonlinear refractive index of co-doped CdS-PVP thin film are found maximum for the sample doped with 5 wt% of Nd3+-Li+ concentration. The underlying mechanism is discussed.


98 ABSTRACT: We tackle stability problems within a cloud data-base frame that uses the Database as a Service display. In this a version, a data proprietor transactions its advice to a cloud data-base pro company. To offer advice stability, fragile data is authenticated from the Data-Owner until it's moved into the Service Provider. Existing security ideas, whatever the situation, are simply largely homomorphic as in all those had been designed to empower one definite type of calculation to be achieved on encrypted data. These recent plans cannot be integrated to respond real usable questions which have surgeries of varied kinds. We advocate and dissect a secure question dealing with frame (VRS-DB) on societal tables along with also an arrangement of basic directors on encoded data that enable information inter-operability, allowing a broad selection of SQL queries to become ready from the Service-Provider on data that is authenticated. We show that our security conspire is protected from 2 forms of threats also that it's basically proficient.


Title: Multifunctional Radical Quenchers for the Treatment of Mitochondrial DysfunctionPatent/Patent Application Number: WO 2012138713 A2 Publication Date: October 11, 2012Priority Application: US 2011-471346P Priority Date: April, 4, 2011Inventors: Hecht, S.; Khdour, O.; Chowdhury, S. R.; Talukder, P.Assignee Company: Arizona State University, United StatesDisease Area: Mitochondrial disorders,neurodegenerative diseaseMechanism of Action: Quench reactive oxygenspecies (ROS), augmentATP productionSummary: This invention provides a series of compounds as multifunctional radical quenchers. This class of compounds isuseful for the treatment or suppression of diseases associated with decreased mitochondrial function resultingin ATP production and/or oxidative stress. In addition, such compounds may mitigate the effect of aging.Important Compound Classes:Key Structures:Recent Review Articles: 1. Davis, R. E.; Williams, M. Mitochondrial function and dysfunction: an update. J. Pharm. Exp. Ther. 2012, 342(3), 598−607.2. Soustiel, J. F.; Zaaroor, M. Mitochondrial targeting for development of novel drug strategies in brain injury.Cent. Nerv. Syst. Agents Med. Chem. 2012, 12 (2), 131−145.Patent Highlightpubs.acs.org/acsmedchemlett


In this paper we give a new method, in terms of one-parameter subgroups, to study semi-invariants for algebraic tori. In some cases we obtain extensions to results in [7]. In other cases we obtain different proofs


Puttaparthi is a birthplace of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba and is a small town situated in the district of Anantapur, in Andhra Pradesh. Chitravathi River is the main water-body in Puttaparthi. The river remained dry for many years. Only in the recent years, rainfall events fed water to the river. Last year in 2019 a check-dam was also constructed in Puttaparthi due to which the river water has been stagnant. This review paper aims to assess the surface water quality of the Chitravati River in Puttaparthi after the establishment of the check-dam. In this regard, literature reviews were performed and the paragraphs in the literature reviews were arranged as per three major themes, which are: 1. check-dams, 2. water-quality assessment and monitoring, and 3. non-perennial river systems. By examining these three themes through the literature reviews, key inferences were made. For instance, it can be understood that the check-dam in Puttaparthi is an important water-storage structure, which is likely to have both positive and negative impacts upon the nearby region. Secondly, in order to examine water-bodies like the Chitravati River in Puttaparthi, we have to perform water quality assessment and monitoring. To perform water quality assessment and monitoring for the Chitravati River in Puttaparthi; we have to use important tools like the Water Quality Index (WQI), Water Pollution Index (WPI), and Water Poverty Index (WPI). Thirdly, non-perennial river systems such as intermittent rivers, ephemeral rivers and their key features have been stressed upon by several readings. These are river systems where a river ceases to flow for some months or for several yearas. The Chitravati River in Puttaparthi can be appropriately classified as a non-perennial river system and as an intermittent river. Finally, this review paper concludes through a personal reflection, which stresses upon studying the Chitravati River in Puttaparthi and how the literature reviews will help in this regard.


Present study focuses on the hypoglycemic activity of poly herbal formulation (PF) with and without piperine in STZ induced diabetic rat model. Poly herbal formulation contain the dried 70% aqueous ethanolic extract of herbs Pterocarpus marsupium, Gymnema sylvestre, Trigonella foenumgrecum, Momordica charantia and piperine from Piper nigrum as bioenhancer. Diabetes was induced by streptozotocin (60 mg/kg, i.p.) and poly herbal formulation was given with and without piperine (250 and 500 mg/kg) for 14 days in the separated groups. The effect of the polyherbal formulation on blood glucose levels was studied at regular intervals. At the end of the study, the blood samples were collected from all the animals for biochemical estimation. Result of the study suggested that there was significant decrease in the blood glucose level in STZ+PF (250 and 500 mg/kg) with piperine than negative control group and STZ+PF (250 and 500 mg/kg) without piperine. Moreover treatment with PF with piperine significantly decreases BUN, creatinine and triglyceride level than negative control group. Present study concludes that polyherbal formulation developed with bienhancer (piperine) showed more potent antidiabetic activity in same dose compare to without piperine formulation.


The paper focuses on the design of a new dual field divider that can achieve performance of 1/m throughput. This dual field division unit can operate at 118 MHz with a latency of 7m-2 cycles and has an area requirement 15 XOR2, 40 AND2, 29 MUX2, and 7 INV gates per processing element with a total of 2m processing elements. It is intended to be used in an elliptic curve crypto-accelerator for GF(2/sup m/) and GF(p). The actual performance for scalar point multiplication in GF(2/sup 571/) running at 100 MHz would be 20.4 kP/s. The actual performance for scalar point multiplication in GF(p) with |p| = 521 running at 100 MHz would be 24.4 kP/s.


This study aims to investigate the causes of catheter fracture and handling measures for implantable vascular access devices to prevent catheter fracture. We retrospectively examined 3088 adult patients with catheter fracture/disruption caused by totally implantable vascular access devices (TIVDs). In the 3088 cases, implantation was via the internal jugular vein in 2909 cases and the subclavian vein in 179 cases. Catheter fracture/disruption occurred in 13 patients (0.42%). In 7 cases in which implantation was via the internal jugular vein (left side, n = 4 and right side, n = 3), the incidence of catheter fracture/disruption was 0.24% (7/2909). Four patients had catheter fracture, and 3 patients had catheter disruption. Among those with subclavian venipuncture, 6 patients had catheter fracture/disruption, with an incidence rate of 3.35% (6/179), including 4 cases of implantation via the left side and 2 cases of implantation via the right side. The incidence of catheter fracture/disruption in the internal jugular venipuncture was significantly lower than that in the subclavian venipuncture (χ2 = 38.938, P = 0.000). All of the cases of catheter fracture/rupture were treated safely, without any deaths in all the patient groups. Acutenes activity, body shape, improper operation, catheter material, and special anatomical structure are the causes of catheter fracture/disruption. Performing the appropriate surgical method and informing patients to avoid strenuous activities could reduce the incidence of catheter fracture/disruption.


The four species included by Wood and Bright (1992) in the Palaeotropical scolytine genus Phloeosinopsioides Schedl are reviewed. The following new synonymy is proposed: Phloeosinopsioides formosanus (Schedl) (=Phloeosinopsis triseriata Schedl). A diagnosis of the genus and a key to the three species now included in the genus are provided. The taxonomy, distribution and biology of the species are briefly reviewed and some new records included.


In this article, the efficiency of time adaptive Rosenbrock and ESDIRK methods is compared for finite volume discretizations for compressible unsteady viscous flows. To make the comparison fair, first an efficient solver for both classes in the JFNK context is identified, where the tolerance TOL that steers time adaptivity is the main input parameter. To specify the tolerances in the sub solver, we suggest a simple strategy for the Rosenbrock methods of using TOL/100 that is a good compromise between stability and computational effort. It turns out that the Rosenbrock methods, in particular RODASP, outperform the ESDIRK methods.


Preface ix Introduction 1 Chapter 1 Roger W. Babson: The Rule of Past Patterns 12 "The fundamental law of 'action reaction' " Chapter 2 Irving Fisher: The Economy as a Mathematical Model 51 "The velocity of money" Chapter 3 John Moody: The Bright Light of Transparency 86 "An aggregation of over 440 large industrial, franchise and transportation Trusts" Gallery of Business and Forecasting Charts Chapter 4 C. J. Bullock and Warren Persons: The Harvard ABC Chart 128 "The statistician ... attempts to find a specific analogy existing in an orderly universe" Chapter 5 Wesley Mitchell and Herbert Hoover: Forecasting as Policy 166 "If we could foresee the business cycle, there would be none" Chapter 6 Visions of the Future 194 Postscript 209 Acknowledgments 213 Notes 217 Index 261


We present a systematic study of spin transfer switching in magnetic tunneling junctions (MTJs). Several ways to decrease the switching current density through material and stack engineering and MTJ element shape optimization are explained in detail. The data are presented for switching on MgO-based MTJ with high tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) of 150% and low intrinsic switching current density Jc0 of (2–3)×106 A/cm2. Micromagnetic modeling is used to study the spin transfer switching mechanism in nanosecond regime for spin transfer torque random access memory (STT-RAM) pillar. The importance of current-induced Oersted field on the initial onset of precession is discussed.


One of the main limitations of the classic control of the syncronverter is that there are not enough degrees of freedom to allow the designer to set the desired dynamics of the injected active and reactive powers (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$</tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$q$</tex-math></inline-formula>, respectively). Moreover, the classic control also results in great coupling between <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$</tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$q$</tex-math></inline-formula>. To solve these issues, a controller based on the feedback linearization technique is presented in this article. The proposed strategy allows the designer to set the dynamics of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$</tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$q$</tex-math></inline-formula>, and also reduces the coupling between them to negligible levels. This controller also reproduces the behavior of the classic controller in steady state, modifying both <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$</tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$q$</tex-math></inline-formula> to changes in the grid frequency and point of common coupling voltage, respectively.


We study conditional expectiles, defined as a natural generalisation of conditional expectations by means of the minimisation of an asymmetric quadratic loss function. We show that conditional expectiles can be equivalently characterised by a conditional first order condition and we derive their main properties. For possible applications as dynamic risk measures, we discuss their time consistency properties.


A new coordination complexes of cobalt and nickel are synthesized using Gabapentin, [1-(amino methyl)-1-cyclohexane acetic acid] as a ligand. Complexes have been characterized by XRD. single crystal x-ray diffraction studies reveal that the cobalt complex (1) is coordinated with four gabapentin molecules and nickel complex (2) is with one gabapentin. Further, the ligand is in the neutral form in the complex (1) and in zwitter ion form in complex (2). Molecular docking study of complex (1) reveals that this complex may have better activity than gabapentin.


One of the most popular techniques for identifying knowledge in organizations is knowledge mapping. It can help decision makers to better understand the knowledge flow within the organizations. Mapping organizations knowledge, especially in research institutes, has attracted much attention from senior managements in recent years. Libraries, among the most important parts of research institutes, have a significant role in scientific advances. Due to this important role, many knowledge operations take place in collaboration with libraries. All of library transactions including users borrowing and returning logs and also books metadata are recorded in library information systems. Users' transaction logs are rich resources to extract information about knowledge operations in an organization. In this paper we propose a new methodology for drawing knowledge map, based on library information system logs. Our proposed looks particularly at the importance of knowledge management for 21st century information professionals; tried to explore the relation of real and virtual world environment which is more reliable for the Knowledge mapping by the help of Social Medias and web tools along with the existed sources.


Based on the 32-bits embedded processor and μC / OS-Ⅱ embedded OS,a new vehicle travel-record instrument is designed by using S3C44B0X(16 / 32 bits RISC processor)and ARM7TDMI.The software system for the instrument is described in detail.Experiment shows that the system is more integrated,accurate and multiplex,compared with congener products.It is helpful for designing a recorder for commerce.


Degradation process directly impacts the system operational state. It is necessary to consider this effect on system failure for developing a precise model for system condition determination. Reliability prediction based on degradation modeling is an efficient method to determine life duration for some highly reliable components or systems under rare failure event occurrences. Sensors, (potentially high reliable components) are exposed to different environmental conditions accelerating their degradation rate. This study is aimed to evaluate the sensor reliability affecting the monitoring process. First, a sensor characteristic is selected through which the degradation process is affected. Then a degradation model is developed to calculate the sensor time to failure. For studying the sensor reliability effect on monitoring process, sensors are considered as system components. It is assumed that the failure of component will occur only when both the component and related sensor fail together. Considering this phenomena, sensors are added to the system in parallel form. Then, functional model of each scenario is developed. Cutsets of each scenario is extracted and the probability of top event is calculated. The scenario with less top event probability is selected as the optimal one.Copyright © 2015 by ASME


PURPOSE
To report three cases of focal foveal detachment evident by optical coherence tomography (OCT) in idiopathic epiretinal membrane (ERM).

METHODS
A retrospective case series of three patients who had focal foveal detachment shown by OCT and recent visual deterioration and metamorphopsia due to idiopathic ERM.

RESULTS
Three patients with idiopathic ERM had recent visual deterioration and metamorphopsia. Although fundus examination, fluorescein angiography, and central macular thickness findings were stable, focal foveal detachment was identified by OCT in all patients.

CONCLUSION
Our findings suggest a sequence of events to explain the OCT findings for and visual changes in these three patients. It is probable that contraction of the ERM on the surface of the retina may have led to dragging of the outer structure in the retina, resulting in focal detachment of the fovea.


Ports are one of the most commonly used places to perform the exterior storage of powdery products and as a consequence their surrounding areas usually face important problems of pollution. The Avilés Port, located in Asturias at the centre of the northern coast of Spain, asked for a fluid-dynamic study of their docks under the hypothesis of maximum capacity of powdery products, considering different piles of carbon, clinker, zinc concentrate and phosphates, in order to analyse: (a) the environmental impact under the two predominant winds in the port, east and north-east at the maximum wind speed, (b) different options of wind fences (location, gap to the piles, height and porosity) as a remedial measure, (c) the environmental impact of placing the proper wind fences along all the docks. The analyses were carried out by means of numerical simulation using the software ANSYS-CFX® and according to EPA "AP-42. Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors" showed a pollutant emission reduction of 50% using the final strategy of wind fences decided by the Avilés Port Authority.


The area at the middle to lower reaches of the Shinano River is a well-known major Neogene thrust and fold belt in Japan. Deformed fluvial terraces, such as anticlinal ridges, synclinal valleys, and fault scarps along the Shinano River, provide a good record of recent tectonic activity in this belt. A large exposure (ca. 150 m long, and up to 10 m deep) was excavated by construction work on the eastern limb of the Tokimizu anticline, giving us an opportunity to observe various types of fault geometry. Four faults—F1, F2, F3, and F4—cut terrace deposits of ca. 130-150 ka (Koshijippara terrace) and underlying early Pleistocene Uonuma Formation. The westernmost fault, F1 is represented as a remarkable flexure dipping westward, suggesting the presence of a low angle thrust underneath. We found a very low angle fault dipping eastward from an additional 2 m deep excavation. The vertical slip at F1, judged from the height difference with the top of the gravel bed (Bed V), is 12 m. In contrast, faults F2 and F3 to the east of F1 follow the bedding plane of the steeply dipping Uonuma Formation, and are high angle reverse faults with the upthrown side to the east. The vertical slip is 3-4 m for F2 and 7.5 m for F3. Profiling across these faults shows that F1 is clearly expressed as a deformed terrace, but the topographical expression of F2 and F3 is not necessarily obvious. Similar faults to F2 are recognized in the study area from observations of the other three large exposures. We classify the faults in the study area into three types: Type 1 is a blind fault assumed at the base of the eastern limb of the Tokimizu anticline. This fault might be the most important contributor to the formation of the major tectonic relief in the study area, although we have no data to prove the nature of the fault plane itself from this study. F1 fault, demonstrated by Type 2, was found for the first time in this study, and is a low angle reverse fault truncating the structure of the Uonuma Formation with a vertical slip rate of 0.1 m/ka. The Type 3 fault is represented by F2, F3, and F4, and these are interpreted to be flexural slip faults along the bedding plane of the Uonuma Formation. Repeated faulting is confirmed from the progressive deformation of different beds not only for the F1 fault (Type 2) but also for the fold-related secondary faults, F2 and F3. No faulting has occurred since ca. 7,500 years BP, however.


Insulin added to Plasmodium falciparum cultures (0.2 IU/ml) reduced the requirement for human serum from ten to five percent. This represents an obvious advantage by its serum-sparing effect and by reducing the chances of using contaminated serum in cultures. The growth-promoting ability of insulin was observed eitherin culture- adapted P. falciparum or in newly-isolated samples.


The Connecticut River historically represented the southernmost extent of the North American range of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), but the native population was extirpated 200 years ago by dam construction. An extensive restoration effort has relied upon stock transfers from more northerly rivers, especially the Penobscot River (Maine). Recent work has shown differences in age structure between donor and derivative populations. Here we focus on a related life-history trait, the timing of the adult migration. We examined 23 years of migration timing data collected at two capture locations in the Connecticut River drainage. We found that both dates of first capture and median capture dates have shifted significantly earlier by about 0.5 days·year–1. To conclude whether this is a consequence of local adaptation or a coast-wide effect, we also quantified changes in migration timing of more northerly stocks (in Maine and Canada). We found that the changes in migration timing were not unique to the Connecticu...


Distributed file system is simply a classical model of a file system used as the key building blocks for cloud computing applications. In such file systems a file is partitioned into a number of chunks allocated in distinct nodes. Files can be dynamically created, deleted, and appended. This results in load imbalance in a distributed file system; that is, the file chunks are not distributed as uniformly as possible among the nodes. Emerging distributed file systems in production systems strongly depend on a central node for chunk reallocation. In this survey paper, a fully distributed load rebalancing algorithm is presented to overcome the above load imbalance problem. To eliminate the dependence on storage nodes each node performs the load rebalancing algorithm independently without acquiring global knowledge. KeywordsLoad balance; distributed file systems; clouds


In this paper a new large distance, 6.78 MHz, fixed frequency, 50 W output, wireless power transfer system design methodology for telemetries has been proposed. Receiver side tuning topology is selected in the first step of the design methodology. Then, a nominal coupling coefficient between the transmitter and the receiver coil has been calculated using given distance and coil diameters. Feasible ranges of the transmitter and the receiver coil inductances are identified in the following step of the design methodology that satisfy given voltage and current limits. In the feasible design space concept, multiple transmitter and receiver coil geometries are found that result in maximum power transfer efficiency. Then, the control stability, copper weight, volt-amp ratings of the coils are calculated and their contour plots are plotted using the coil geometries. The contour plots shows the trade-offs between the system performance and the coil geometry selection. A new variable K is defined in order to find an optimal coil geometry. Using the variable K, the geometries of the transmitter and the receiver are able to be determined. The proposed design methodology is evaluated using an example wireless power transfer system design for an on-line condition monitoring system for a catenary. The efficiency and loss distribution of the designed wireless power system is evaluated by comparison of the theoretical, FEA, and circuit simulation results.


Abstract A high school English teacher and a university teacher who met through inservice activities converse via e-mail concerning their cooperative project in electronic literacy. Threads of the conversation include the frustrations of system crashes, the successes and failures of students, and the beginning of the high school teacher's own dissertation. References to technology include experiences with e-mail, an LCD panel, a LAN-equipped writing center, and closed circuit television.


This paper mainly proposes a reconfigurable switched notchband UWB antenna, which is designed and modified on the basis of the traditional microstrip patch antenna. By cutting the radiation patch of the circular monopole without changing the radiation performance of the antenna, two circular branches are added above the radiation patch, and the circular branches are connected with the radiation patch through diodes, By controlling the conduction and disconnection of the diode, it can control whether the current flows to the circular branch, and then control the presence or absence of notchband. The antenna is fed through the microstrip line, and the input impedance at the bottom of the microstrip line is 50 ohms, which is well matched with the SMA connector. The radiation patch and microstrip line are located above the dielectric substrate, which is made of F4B material with a dielectric constant of 2.94. On the other hand, the bottom of the substrate is the ground. Circular corner cutting at the two corners of the top of the ground and rectangular slotting in the middle of the rectangular metal ground can improve the impedance matching of the antenna and improve the radiation performance of the antenna. The bandwidth of the antenna is 1.27 GHz - 10.6 GHz. When the switch is on, a notchband can be generated at the frequency from 2.18 GHz – 2.56GHz, and when the switch is off, the notchband disappears to form an UWB antenna. The antenna proposed in this paper can be used in many fields, such as wireless communication system, Internet of things and so on.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how voluntary citizenship behaviour towards an individual (VCB-I) is linked with vicious knowledge hiding (VKH), and why members, within a mastery climate, tend to participate in less VKH after their engaging in VCB-I. The authors, according to the moral licensing theory, propose that moral licensing mediates the relationship between VCB-I and VKH, and that a mastery climate weakens the hypothesised link via moral licensing.

Design/methodology/approach
This study surveys 455 valid matching samples of subordinates and supervisors from 77 working teams in China at two time points and explores the relationship between VCB and VKH, as well as the underlying mechanism. A confirmatory factor analysis, bootstrapping method and hierarchical linear model were used to validate the research hypotheses.

Findings
The results show that VCB-I has a significant positive effect on VKH; moral credentials play a mediating role in the relationship between VCB-I and VKH; and the mastery climate moderates the positive effect of moral credentials on VKH and the mediating effect of moral credentials. In a high-mastery climate, the direct effect of moral credentials on VKH and the indirect influence of VCB-I on VKH through moral credentials are both weakened, and conversely, both effects are enhanced in a low-mastery climate. However, contrary to the expected hypothesis, moral credits do not mediate the relationship between VCB-I and VKH, which may be due to the differences in the mechanisms between the two moral licensing models.

Originality/value
Prior research has mainly focused on the "victim-centric" perspective to examine the impacts of others' behaviour on employees' knowledge hiding. Few works have used the "actor-centric" perspective to analyse the relationship between employees' prior workplace behaviour and their subsequent knowledge hiding intention. In addition, this study enriches the field research on the voluntary aspects of organisational citizenship behaviour, which differs from its involuntary ones.


This paper deals with the level control of a prototyped Split Range Plant Process. The conventional PID Controller is initially applied to the process and the results are obtained. As the system takes a large settling time the following two controllers are also implemented. Apart from lowering the settling time, to increase the robustness of the system Sliding Mode Control (SMC) and Dynamic Sliding Mode Control (DSMC) are applied to the same system and the results are compared. To make the system more user friendly the whole programming is done in LabVIEW (Laboratory Virtual Instrument Workbench) software. This software is based on graphical programming technique. The objective of this paper is to present the response of all the three controllers on the prototype split range plant.


Abstract Visitations as Instruments for Quality Development by the Regional Church. The current practice as well as the history of visitations in the protestant church right from the beginning shows a certain ambivalence: on the one hand elements of surveillance, on the other hand such of brotherly consultation. The author suggests separating the elements of controlling from visitation, as controlling can be organized through continual reports on major financial developments and other indicators. Then, visitation as a form of consultation needs not and should not only be pursued by the members of the regional church council, but by schooled groups including "lay" members of other congregations of the region. The task is to discuss the congregational decisions and to document the results. As there may be several visitation groups working in the region it is also possible to shorten the intervals between visitations.


Objective
To investigate the significance of cone protein-like protein-1 (VILIP-1) for the evaluations of craniocerebral trauma and hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy.

Methods
Two hundred and ninety-six Wistar rats were randomly divided into the sham surgery group (n=70), the mild-to-moderate trauma group (n=70), the moderate-to-severe trauma group (n=91), and the moderate-to-severe post-trauma + HBO group or simply the HBO group (n=65). Twenty-four hours after traumatic injury, the rats in the HBO group underwent HBO treatment.The seriousness of craniocerebral injury was assessed by Zea-Longa scores 6 hours after injury. Samples of blood and brain tissues in the sham surgery group, the mild-to-moderate trauma group and the moderate-to-severe trauma group were taken respectively at 6 h and 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 14 d after injury, and the same samples in the HBO group were collected at 3, 5, 7, 9 and 14 d after injury. The expression of plasma VILIP-1 was detected by ELISA, and the expression of brain VILIP-1 was detected by immunohistochemistry.

Results
Compared with those of the sham injury group, VILIP-1 levels in various other groups significantly increased at hour 6 after trauma (P 0.05), and those in the moderate to severe trauma group failed to recover until 14 days (P 0.05). The serum VILIP-1 expression level was positively correlated with the brain VILIP-1 expression level(r=0.926, P<0.05), and the VILIP-1 expression level was positively correlated with Zea-Longa grade scores(r=0.879, P<0.05).

Conclusion
The novel biomarker VILIP-1 could be used as the evaluation standards for the evaluation of the seriousness of traumatic brain injury, and its serum expression level is positively proportional to the seriousness of trauma.

Key words:
Hyperbaric oxygen; Visinin-like protein-1; Craniocerebral injury; Seriousness of damage


— In this paper we intend to incorporate, a method into a real time system that includes embeddedSoC hardware supported with CPU, GPU, and CMOS Image sensor, to acquire real time image. Theultimate aim of this paper is to achieve enhanced image segmentation by identifying a different object, andtrack a particular identified object out of multiple objects from the acquired real time image. In this system,a combination of Adaptive Tri-class Otsu's Method threshold selection and Haar classifier methods havebeen applied to enhance the real time images with de-noising effect based on a threshold value andtransforming a grayscale image into a different grayscale image. In addition identifying the particular objectout of the multiple objects from the enhanced real time image under various dynamic environments has alsobeen done. The identification and tracking of the particular object has here been based on a multi-scalevalues. The combination of methods implemented on the SoC results an accurate customized identificationand tracking of the particular identified object


In the vibration analyses for the elevator systems, especially in high-rise buildings, the elevator rope is assumed as an elastic model. There are two types of vibrations in the rope. One is the longitudinal vibration, and the other is the lateral one. Accordingly it is desirable to consider longitudinal and lateral vibrations at the same time. However many conventional works have been carried out with the longitudinal and lateral vibrations separately. This paper proposes a wave transmission model for the behavior of the lateral vibration of rope coupled with the longitudinal vibration. We explain the process of constitution for the analytical model. Furthermore, the validity of proposed model will be shown through some experimental results.


We have demonstrated efficient coupling of 0.35 $\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ laser light for radiation production in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) cavity targets. Temperatures of 270 eV are measured in cavities used for implosions and 300 eV in smaller cavities, significantly extending the temperature range attained in the laboratory to those required for high-gain indirect drive ICF. High-contrast, shaped drive pulses required for implosion experiments have also been demonstrated for the first time. Low levels of scattered light and fast electrons are observed, indicating that plasma instability production is not significant.


Malnutrition is a state linked to worse postoperative outcomes, and cancer patients are particularly vulnerable due to cachexia. We aimed to explore the effect of malnutrition on 30-day mortality following gastric and colorectal cancer surgery.

 GlobalSurg3 was multicentre international cohort study which collected data from consecutive patients undergoing emergency or elective surgery for gastric and colorectal cancer. Malnutrition was defined using the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria. Multilevel variable regression approaches determined the relationship between malnutrition and early postoperative outcomes.

 6438 patients were included in the final analysis (1184 gastric cancer; 5254 colorectal cancer). Severe malnutrition was common across all income-strata, affecting 1 in 4 patients overall, with a higher burden in low and lower-middle income countries (64%). In patients undergoing elective surgery (n = 5709), severe malnutrition was independently associated with increased mortality (aOR = 1.62 (1.07-2.48, P = 0.024) after accounting for patient factors, disease stage and country effects.

 Severe malnutrition represents a high global burden in cancer surgery, particularly within lower income settings. Malnutrition is an independent risk-factor for 30-day mortality following elective surgery for gastric and colorectal cancer, suggesting perioperative nutritional interventions may improve outcomes after cancer surgery.


In this paper, the analysis of a four-port narrow wall directional coupler has been has been presented using multiple cavity modeling technique. The field propagation between the ports of the network has been described in terms of aperture field distributions. The analysis has been verified by comparing the simulated scattering parameter data with the measured data available in literature.


Behaviors learned at school-age are more likely to be sustainable over time. As school-age children age, they change their sleeping patterns. As they experience these changes, the probabilities of developing less healthy behavior increase. Less healthy behavior has been associated to the development of chronic diseases and incidence of riskier behavior. The problem of sleeping behavior in childhood and adolescence has been the subject of continuous scrutiny since the beginning of the study on behavioral issues. Most researchers in this field use statistical models to describe and analyze the effects of environmental, biological, and behavioral factors on sleeping patterns. This paper provides an overview of most relevant studies and methodologies used by researchers working in this specific area. The initial search identifies a large number of references which were reduced to about 38 articles based on contents and quality. The descriptive analysis of the literature reveals heterogeneity among the scientific approaches due to the different statistical models, techniques, and methods used for analyzing the sleeping behavior problem. The authors found that application of modeling and simulation (M&S) is absent from the analysis of development of healthy sleeping behavior.


The present progress in the growth and fabrication of nano-structures, including photonic crystals (PCs) and quantum dots (QDs) [1], is spurring novel all-optical devices with ultrafast and ultralow-energy operation in compact photonic integrated circuits. PC waveguides have high optical confinement and slow light effect which can enhance the optical nonlinearity of QDs (low saturation energy due to high density of the states). The saturation of the QD absorption induced by a strong pump pulse produces a corresponding change in refractive index for any signal detuned from the pump (through Kramers-Kronig relations), resulting in a phase shift. This phase shift can be employed in interferometric configurations acting as intensity modulators or optical switches. Recently, switching operation has been demonstrated in a 2D symmetric Mach-Zehnder interferometer consisting of PC waveguides with embedded QDs [2]. This year, we have started building up a sub-picosecond two-color heterodyne pump-and-probe setup for characterizing those PC/QD waveguides. Fig. 1 contains the schematic view of the proposed setup. An optical parametric oscillator (OPO) delivers 150fs pulses centered anywhere between 1.3 and 1.6μm. The OPO signal is split into two beams in a polarizing beam splitter (PBS). The first beam, i.e. the pump beam, is sent to a delay stage and then injected into the PC/QD waveguide. The second beam is spectrally broadened in a single-mode fiber (SMF, zero dispersion at 1.3μm) through self phase modulation. A band pass filter (BPF) slices the generated super-continuum to obtain sub-ps pulses with a different color than the pump pulses. After the BPF, a beam splitter (BS) separates the probe and reference beams. The probe frequency is modulated by an acoustic optical modulator (AOM) and then injected collinearly with the pump pulses (both TE polarization) into the PC/QD waveguides. The reference frequency is shifted by another AOM. After crossing the PC/QD waveguide, the modulated probe and the reference are mixed in the BS. A PIN photodiode and a lock-in amplifier detect the resulting beat signal.


The meeting "Polarization of Planetary Systems", sponsored by the EU-COST Ac- tion, brought together experts in the study of polarization from the celestial bodies of our solar system and extra-solar planets. Among the main themes under discussion, particular emphasis was given to the diagnostic power offered by the study of the atmospheric properties of planetary systems in the search for life features.