The young athlete presents problems for the doctor in sports medicine that are not present in the senior high school or older athlete. Growth spurts, sexual development and altered life standards all play their part. The parents, their goals for their children, the coaches and the milieu in which the young athlete lives must influence the physician in his decisions regarding this athlete.


Many domestic and foreign psychologists have carried on the profounding comparison research about the intellective factor and the non-intellective factor to the function of studying the sport's skill and knowledge,they discover that each kind of psychological characteristics that is contained in non-intellective factor of students is extremely important to the quality of specialized gymnastics' teaching,and think that gymnastics' teaching can raising the student's non-intellective factor.Therefore,this article carries on the profounding discussion.about training the students' non-intellective factor to gymnastics teaching.


Abstract The loss of community and of traditional communal ties characteristic of modern industrial society has caused many people to search for alternative sources of social identification and solidarity. Recreational sites may afford some people opportunities for constructing communities on the basis of common interests. As part of an ongoing investigation, data have been gathered over several years to discover whether elements of community can be found in a marina's social system; evidence is being sought through examination of patterns of social interaction, the system of social ranking, and ties of affection that characterize the marina's social network. Data reveal a social organization at the marina comprising subgroups with complex interaction patterns, affective ties, and communal solidarity. It appears, therefore, that at this recreational site the structure and dynamics of an alternative form of community have been constructed by boaters.


One hundred and fifty clinical isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae were studied for beta lactamase production, Klebocin production and resistance to antibiotics and metals. 97.3 and 82.7 per cent strains produced beta-lactamase and klebocin respectively. Resistance to arsenite, antimony, tellurite, mercury and silver was observed in 91,66,6, 47.7, 44.8 and 33.3 per cent respectively and to ampicillin, tetracycline and nalidixic acid in 93.3,60, 41.3, 34.4, 28.2, and 1.3 per cent respectively. Forty eight antibiotic and metal resistant strains were then conjugated with Escherichia coli 711 F-Lac-Nxr. Transferable drug resistance, metal ion resistance, beta lactamase production, klebocin production and lactose fermentation was seen in 30, 21, 10, 11 and 5 isolates respectively.


COPD is a chronic inflammatory disease which usually resulting from gene-environment interaction and complex, heterogeneous and characterized by exacerbations. NTHi (typeable Haemophilus influenzae) is the major known cause of COPD exacerbations and express sialic acid which contain lipooligosakkarit. There are some claims that Siglec-14, which is one of the sialic acid binding from lectins, increases immune cells of the inflammatory by interacting with the NTHi and causes more frequently to the exacerbations of COPD. In our study, it was aimed to determine relationship between exacerbations and SIGLEC-14 gene polymorphism in patients with COPD. Our study is a prospective comparative case series study which includes healthy controls. 85 COPD patients and for control group 94 healthy which was evaluated by Mersin University of Medicine Faculty Hospital pulmonary clinic with diagnosis of COPD between june 2015-june 2016 where included in our study. These SIGLEC14 genotype of DNA samples from venous blood and plasma were evaluated in Siglec-14 concentration and the patients monitored for exacerbation during a year. In both groups, SIGLEC14 wild / wild polymorphism is dominant, in patients group SIGLEC14 null / null polymorphism was not observed. The patients who have SIGLEC 14 wild / wild number of exacerbations was significantly greater (p = 0.041) than the patients who have SIGLEC14 wild/null genotipe. In adition the number of exacerbations in this group of patients receiving ICS was significantly higher than patients in the SIGLEC14 wild / null genotype (p=0.012). Ultimately, SIGLEC14 wild/wild polymorphism may be a predictor of exacerbations in COPD, but the same can not be said for SIGLEC14 serum levels.


The invention discloses a mathematical modeling method for a harmonic region of a large photovoltaic power station. Factors such as a photovoltaic array, MPPT (maximum power point tracking), an inverter and a control system thereof, an output filter, a station load, a reactive power compensation device and a power transmission line are considered. Illumination, the temperature of a photovoltaic panel and the switching frequency of the inverter serve as external variables, and the output voltage of a photovoltaic power generation system and the like is equalized into a harmonic voltage source indicated by the external variables. A model built by the method can represent change of harmonic characteristics when the external variables are changed, can also represent parallel resonance of the station reactive power compensation device, distributed capacitance of the power transmission line and line impedance for harmonic current, and can further be directly applied to research of feasibility analysis and harmonic estimation of a large photovoltaic power station, design of power quality management equipment of the photovoltaic power station and the like.


The channel matrix of massive MIMO-OFDM systems is sparse in the delay domain. The channel estimation based on compressed sensing uses the sparsity of the channel matrix to improve the channel estimation accuracy and reduce the pilot overhead. A channel estimation algorithm based on block compressive sampling match pursuit (B-CoSaMP) is proposed. The proposed algorithm combines the spatial correlation of the MIMO channel caused by multi-antenna propagation with the close antenna spacing at the base station, and generates an equivalent channel impulse response based on block sparsity to improve the channel estimation performance. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm has low bit error rate and small normalized mean square error (NMSE), which is suitable for channel estimation of massive MIMO-OFDM systems.


We demonstrate that the low-frequency resistance fluctuations, or noise, in bilayer graphene are strongly connected to its band structure and display a minimum when the gap between the conduction and valence band is zero. Using double-gated bilayer graphene devices we have tuned the zero gap and charge neutrality points independently, which offers a versatile mechanism to investigate the low-energy band structure, charge localization, and screening properties of bilayer graphene.


Using the effective mass approximation within the variational approach, we have calculated the binding energy of the ground state of a hydrogenic on-center donor in a cylindrical GaAs quantum-well wire, under the action of a magnetic field applied in the axial direction. Our results are obtained as a function of the wire radii, and the magnetic field. We found that the values of the binding energy are determined by the competition between the quantum confinement and the applied magnetic field.


The migration of highly trained people out of Africa, often called brain drain or brain loss, leaves many nations short of the skills needed to meet the challenges of the twenty-fi rst century. This phenomenon is not new to Africa. It began in the 1960s following independence and has continued ever since. Every year, thousands of Africans head overseas looking for better opportunities. The numbers were small initially, but they later increased as political, economic, and social conditions in Africa deteriorated. The UN Economic Commission for Africa estimates that twenty-seven-thousand highly educated Africans migrated to the West between 1960 and 1975. In the following decade, migration soared to about forty thousand annually. It peaked at about eighty thousand in 1987 but since 1990 has leveled out to about twenty thousand a year.1 Reasons for migration follow several patterns, as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development annual report for 2001 reveals. Some Africans prefer to migrate to former colonial powers because of their familiarity with the language and culture. Other factors infl uencing destination choices are geographical proximity and having support networks in the host country to help with adjustment to the new life and with fi nding temporary employment. Thus, immigrants from Angola, Cape Verde, and Guinea-


Summary
Sixty Mangalarga mares aged two to 28 years were used as donor mares in an embryo transfer programme. They were inseminated on alternate days during oestrus with fresh extended semen collected from a fertile Mangalarga stallion. Non-surgical embryo recovery was performed on Day 7, 8 or 9 after ovulation (Day 0), using three consecutive uterine flushes of 500, 250 and 250 ml of Dulbecco's phosphate buffered saline. Embryos were transferred surgically to recipient mares between Days 4 and 9 post ovulation. The overall embryo recovery rate was 52.3 per cent (90/172). The recovery rate from seven mares under three years old was 85.0 per cent (17/20), whereas the rate from 34 mares aged three to 18 years was 64.4 per cent (58/90), and from 19 mares more than 18 years old was only 24.1 per cent (15/62). The overall pregnancy rate for the recipient mares at Day 50 was 78.9 per cent.


One of the severe accident management strategies for nuclear reactors is the melted corium retention inside the reactor pressure vessel. The work presented in this article investigates the application of in-vessel retention (IVR) severe accident management strategy in a BWR reactor. The investigations were performed assuming a scenario with the large break LOCA without injection of cooling water. A computer code RELAP/SCDAPSIM MOD 3.4 was used for the numerical simulation of the accident. Using a model of the entire reactor, a full accident sequence from the large break to core uncover and heat-up as well as corium relocation to the lower head is presented. The ex-vessel cooling was modelled in order to evaluate the applicability of RELAP/SCDAPSIM code for predicting the heat fluxes and reactor pressure vessel wall temperatures. The results of different ex-vessel heat transfer modes were compared and it was concluded that the implemented heat transfer correlations of COUPLE module in RELAP/SCDAPSIM should be applied for IVR analysis. To investigate the influence of debris separation into oxidic and metallic layers in the molten pool on the heat transfer through the wall of the lower head the analytical study was conducted. The results of this study showed that the focusing effect is significant and under some extreme conditions local heat flux from reactor vessel could exceed the critical heat flux. It was recommended that the existing RELAP/SCDAPSIM models of the processes in the debris should be updated in order to consider more complex phenomena and at least oxide and metal phase separation, allowing evaluating local distribution of the heat fluxes.


ABSTRACT We propose a novel microlens array structure in a homeotropic liquid crystal (LC) configuration. The symmetry of molecular ordering in the homeotropic alignment on a circular surface relief structure provides the polarization independent focusing characteristics of the LC microlens. The surface relief structure of poly-dimethylsiloxane (PDMS) supports an initial convex lens driving scheme of the LC microlens as well as easy modification with great aging property.


Among the many causes of the financial problems facing investor-owned electric utilities is the frequent failure of the regulatory process to result in realized rates of return that match the current cost of financial capital to utilities. One important reason for such failures is a fundamental difference in the way inflation affects the prices charged by regulated and unregulated companies. The basic problem is that the traditional rate base approaches (original cost and fair value as often practiced) lead to rate shocks for customers: changes in capital charges that greatly exceed the changes seen in competitive, unregulated industries. This guarantees repeated conflicts between current ratepayers and investors that regulators cannot resolve in a way that treats both sides fairly. When this problem is recognized, the pros and cons of the potential solutions to utilities' financial problems change and new solutions are suggested. This article assesses five potential solutions to the rate shock problem and finds that some of them seem to offer a practical way for regulated companies to live with a high and variable cost of equity capital. 8 figures, 1 table.


There is a significant relationship between nutritional status with food consumption' The study aimed to determine the effect of giving additional food (boiled eggs and green bean porridge) for school age children. This study .rr"J u quasi experiment design before and after the intervention using an external comparison group. population was the entire school-age children who recite the TPA hamlet and village Manuba Kampung Baru. The sample was selected using a purposive technique, totaling 48 children, consisting of 24 children in the control group, as well as in the treatment group. The paired t-test performed to analyze differences in the average nutritional status and nutrient intake before and after intewention in both groups, and independent -test test to analyze differences in the average nutritional status ancl intake, Uoih before and after intervention between the two group. The results, chi-square test showed no differences in nutritional status befbre and after intervention in both groups (p > 0.05). However, when analyzed using paired t-test , then there are differences in nutritional status before and after the interuention in the treatment group, but not in the control group. While the independent -test that showed there was the effects of differences in both before and after intervention in the treatment group but in the control gmp was not. Intake of protein, vitamin A, iron in the treated group were Jignificantty different between before and after the intervention. However, 81 and 86 intake lPfear nigner in tlie control group compared to the treatment group. It is recommended to provide hard-boiled eg"gs and green bean porridge to nelp improve the nutritional status of children, by placing it as a food supplement rather than substitute for a main meal' I( eyw o r d s : s up p I eme n t ary .fe e di n g, nu tr i ti onal s t atus


This study investigates the influence of Christian religious education in families and worship activities in schools on moral formation for students. Researchers have noticed that PAK teaching activities in families are a separate asset in the field of PAK. An activity that has a tremendous impact on future generations. Besides, routine worship activities in schools also need attention from all parties, namely parents, teachers, and the community. Of course not forgetting for the students themselves. Meanwhile, moral which is often equated with the formation of one's cognition, affection, and ethical behavior cannot be taken for granted. This must be formed in a time trajectory that requires energy, time thought, energy, money, and concentration to achieve an ideal moral form, especially from a Christian perspective. The method used is field research with post ex facto. From the data entered, it was found that the variable tendency was high, namely PAK Keluarga (X1) by 91%, student worship routines (X1) by 94%, and 97% for the formation of student morality (Y). Thus the proposed hypothesis has been answered through research. Therefore, religious education activities in the family and worship in schools need to be carried out regularly to obtain good morality for students. All parties should take this effort more seriously from the perspective of Christian morality formation.


The significant position of the corporation has completely established in modern society.Not only can it solve the capital issue of enterprises,but also it is a way of organization and production,relating to benefits of multi-party,such as stockholders,directors,debtees,and the third party.This paper is about the legal status of directors.The author tries to draw a reasonable conclusion about the status of directors through the analysis of the concept of directors and the theories about the status of directors through the analysis of the concept of directors and the theories about the legal status of directors.


The comprehensive application of multi-media in teaching can contribute to the improvement of teaching effect. It also offers new opportunity to probe into new teaching methods. Both colleges and teachers are faced with the challenge of multi-media teaching system. In order to achieve good teaching results, teachers should adapt themselves to the development of the times, and put the multi-media technology into teaching. The traditional teaching pattern differs greatly with multi-media teaching pattern. Therefore, how to take advantage of multi-media technology and serve college English teaching is a worthwhile subject.


Hundreds of fuel poor households in Wellingborough and across the county are set to receive support to warm their homes this winter thanks to the Warm Homes Fund.


Objective To investigate the penetration of gatifloxacin in blood-pancreatic barrier in rats. Methods Venous bolus injection of gatifloxacin(20 mg·kg~(-1) body weight) was performed through caudal vein.At the given time points,the samples were picked up.The concentrations of gatifloxacin in the serum and pancreatic tissue were measured by high performance liquid chromatography. Results The peak concentration in serum was 6.03 μg·mL~(-1) at 5 min,and that of the pancreatic tissue was 18.67(μg·g~(-1)) at 10 min.Then the concentrations decreased continously in both of them.Concentrations in pancreatic tissue was higher than those in serum at 5 min.The penetration ratio(PR) in the blood-pancreatic barrier was 1.02 at 5 min and rose to 3.69 at 10 min,then lowered down to nearly 1 at 240 min. Conclusion Due to its antimicrobial spectrum and the good penetration in the blood-pancreatic battier,gatifloxacin may be useful in preventing and treating pancreatic infection.


Abstract : The computer code ATLES is designed to compute the infrared radiance signatures of missile and aircraft exhaust plumes with allowance for attenuation by arbitrary atmospheric slant paths. The code is significantly improved over existing radiation codes through the use of newly developed band radiation formulations for nonuniform optical paths and the use of temperature-consistent band model parameters. Descriptions of the radiation formulation and some of the significant computational routines are presented. The latter include the geometry of intersection between an arbitrary line of sight through the atmosphere and a plume contained within a paraboloid control volume. Detailed instructions on the preparation of input data are presented, and use of the code is illustrated by an application to a jet-aircraft plume.


There is little doubt that digitisation has been making supply chains more efficient, agile, flexible, responsive and customer-oriented. However, supply chain management is still an incomplete strategy that has not materialised its ultimate goal: to maximise overall stakeholder economic profitability while meeting diverse customers' requirements. This is mainly due to conflicts of interest among supply chain actors, lack of trust and end-to-end visibility, failure to meet ethical standards in service and production and the increasing complexity of global transactions. A growing body of literature identifies the role of blockchain technology in supporting supply chain management. In fact, there are numerous cases of firms and IT service suppliers that are already changing the way they execute agility and flexibility in their supply chains via blockchain. In this chapter, I would like to present the contents, scope and findings on the role of blockchain for global supply chain management and cross-border trade by exploring the future of the supply chain developed by blockchain, in which the autonomous linkages in the chain become the focal point of management and, thus, the transactions conducted by IT (i.e. blockchain technology) are the main concern of successful digitisation.


The gas pressure and heat resulting from a munition detonated within a structure often contributes significantly to the damage imparted to a target. Therefore, an accurate prediction of weapon effects under these circumstances requires modeling the pressure and thermal loads acting on structural members which will depend on the process by which gas pressure is equilibrated throughout the interior of the structure by sound waves and advection as well as conductive and radiative heat transport. Although fast-running models (FRMs) exist to treat these processes, their formulations are incomplete. A common approach involves modeling the interior structure of buildings as a network of locally equilibrated rooms or compartments connected by vents (e.g., ducts, open doorways, breach holes, etc.) through which gases can flow and pressure can eventually equilibrate globally. While this approach is computationally efficient and allows for various levels of fidelity with regards to calculating the flow rate driven by differential pressure between rooms, the assumption of instantaneous equilibration within a room or compartment can significantly undermine accuracy for a large number of scenarios of interest. Examples which are poorly handled by these approximations include breach holes which span a significant fraction of a wall as well as structures containing large rooms or hallways for which the sound crossing time can be significant. In order to address these issues, a mass, energy, and momentum conserving gas-flow model has been developed which employs a set of orthogonal planforms to represent subroom structure and provides a means to capture the finite sound and gas flow speeds that drive equilibration. The model is fast running, unconditionally stable, and employs an implicit integration scheme to handle the stiff equation set. The model can evaluate complex high explosive compositions, afterburn energy, dynamic energy release rates, dynamic breach/vent openings, dynamic increases in room volume, and room vent activation based on sound crossing time. Results are provided which demonstrate the calculational efficiency of the model as well as Distribution A: For Public Release 2 improvements in accuracy and precision over locally equilibrated models through comparisons with numerical and experimental data. Introduction Existing blast engineering tools or FRMs can be used to approximate blast loads inside of a structure. Typical blast calculations with these engineering tools require as little as a few minutes to setup and execute a problem of interest. This computational efficiency is achieved by leveraging reasonable engineering assumptions which are used to derive the formulations implemented in these FRMs. Due to the engineering assumptions that undergird these models, each of these FRMs has limitations and a parameter space that the software analyst must observe to obtain accurate results. Common tools and methods used in the blast community to estimate the gas pressure in confined structures include: the UFC manual tables (UFC 3-340-02 2008), ConWep (Defense 1998), BlastX (Britt 2001), and MBLM (Pierce and Donovan 2012). BlastX and MBLM provide an ability to define complex multi-room structures with consideration of venting at each of the room connections (i.e. doors, windows, etc.). Tools such as BlastX and MBLM typically consider conservation of mass and energy to estimate the fluid flow through a room connection or outlet but not conservation of momentum. Instead of solving the momentum equations, well known equations for nozzle flow are used to approximate the fluid flow between each room. While this approach works considerably well for scenarios where a vent is sufficiently small relative to the size of the room to be approximated as a nozzle, there are scenarios commonly encountered in weaponeering and explosive safety applications where this assumption does not hold true. For example, in many scenarios, a long hallway or an L-shaped room may require the analyst to parse the structure into two rooms which are connected by an opening of the same size as the entire cross-section of the room. Utilizing the assumption of nozzle flow for these scenarios is not appropriate but this approach is often used by analysts due to the lack of other suitable approaches in the available engineering tools. In these scenarios, an expensive computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation may be required to adequately represent the fluid-flow and venting throughout the structure. The FRM described in this paper, was designed to address such limitations and enable analysts to accurately predict the gas pressure throughout a complex target or explosive facility. The capabilities developed in this new algorithm address complex structures with large and small vents but also lend themselves to accurate load estimation for structures where entire walls or large vents are opened dynamically due to failure. This capability makes the code suitable for coupling with structural response solvers in a loosely-coupled time-stepping manner. The proposed model calculates the time-varying, quasi-steady blast environment in a confined structure, defining the thermodynamic state at each time-step. It is an unconditionally stable fast running model for solving the time-depended post-shock gas flow environment. Chemical models for the combustion of reactants consider the oxygen depletion in the room. The model also considers the travel time of the gas pressure wave propagation based on the speed of sound from Distribution A: For Public Release 3 the burst point to each of the vent openings. Lastly, the model is capable of updating the gas pressures and the venting dynamically during run-time based on changes to the control volumes and openings sizes. The model presented in this paper is currently implemented as a standalone software called GFLOW. The methodology used by GFLOW as well as practical examples are provided in this paper. Theoretical Model for Gas Pressure Calculation The proposed model is based on a control volume approach which utilizes the conservation of mass and the conservation of energy (1st law of thermodynamics) to solve a set of equations for an arbitrary number of rooms and openings. A control volume is defined as a confined volume in a space of interest for the analysis. The control volume can have any arbitrary geometry and comprised of surfaces which are referred to as control surfaces. Within a control volume, all the thermo-physical properties are evaluated. The control surface of a control volume can be fixed in space, or it can be free to move as a function of the time. That is, the control volume can change in volume, and with it, all the thermo-physical properties. A feature of the control volume approach is that mass, heat and work can cross the control surface. The exchange rate permitted by the control surface can be fixed or can be a function of time as well. The control surface can be selective, e.g. it can take the form of an impenetrable membrane if only heat can cross the interface or be completely isolating to any property. The transport of mass and energy across the control surfaces is obtained by either: 1) a set of global equations for conservation of momentum, or 2) the classical fluid-dynamic nozzle equations for isentropic flow. The coupling of these two approaches aims to expand the range of applicability of the methodology to practical scenarios. The model, according to the topology of the control surface with respect to the control volume, can infer whether to use an approach over the other, then calculates the transported properties either with the use of a global momentum conservation approach or a localized solution of the fluid-dynamics nozzle equations. Typically, each control volume represents a room within the structure. The control surfaces provide a representation of the walls and openings. Mass flow is only allowed if there is an opening between two different control volumes. To allow the mass transfer, the wall must be equipped with an opening. An opening is an entity provided with the following information: • A surface area; • Location coordinates relative to specific reference system; • The two rooms the opening connects. Each control volume can have an arbitrary number of openings which may connect to one or more neighboring control volumes. In Figure 1, the control surface of a control volume is shown as a dashed line. In this case, the control volume represents a room with three openings. The control surface can change shape and size as the control volume expands, contracts, and/or deforms due to the blast loads. For example, Distribution A: For Public Release 4 Figure 1 shows the original control volume at time tt on the left and the deformed control volume after a failed wall component is removed at a later time, tt + ∆tt. Figure 1. Expansion of a control surface. The control volume approach is suitable for changes in room volumes and changes in vent area size. As shown in Figure 1, it is also suitable for problems with large displacements of wall components. For an arbitrary control volume, jj, with an arbitrary number of inlets, LLjj, and an arbitrary number of outlets, HHjj, the conservation of mass equation for the jjth control volume can be expressed as: ddmmjj ddtt = �?̇?miiii(jj,kk) LLjj kk=1 −�?̇?moooooo(jj,kk) HHjj


Description Societal conflict leaves an evolutionary signature in wildlife Elephants have long been dragged into war. Referred to as "elephantry," military units rode into battle atop these giants over millennia. On page 483 of this issue, Campbell-Staton et al. (1) describe the evolutionary aftermath of a different type of wartime elephant use. Seeking ivory to finance a civil war in Mozambique, poachers relentlessly targeted specific African elephants (Loxodonta africana), individuals with tusks, sending the population—and the frequency of this important trait—into decline. The study reveals the consequence of this intense selective killing on the persistence of tusks and the genes associated, as well as for population dynamics. Campbell-Staton et al. also identify the simple genetic architecture underlying the presence of tusks. The findings bring new evidence to inform debates on the roles of environmental and selective forces underlying trait variation in populations subject to harvest.


Abstract The rotational structure of the 748 cm-1 c-type CH2-rocking fundamental of propane was analysed using tunable diode laser (TDL) techniques. On grounds of a low-resolution Fourier transform (FTIR) spectrum and of the known ground-state rotational and centrifugal-distortion constants, some 700 transitions were measured and assigned in several regions of the band. The upper-state constants determined in this way allow the prediction of rovibrational frequencies to within 0.003 cm-1, covering quantum states up to J = 50 and Ka = 20. The band appears unperturbed.


The writings of Diderot, even the most philosophical, are characterized by a poetic style, by the frequent use of figures of speech, especially metaphor. The metaphorical images like, the "great chain of being", the "swarm of bees" and the "sensitive harpsichord", are an expression of experimental philosophy that proceeds by "presentiments", by intuitions and not by concepts. The philosopher, from the experience of natural phenomena, forms an idea, though vague, of nature as a dynamic unity of parts, as the order in the making. Standing at the intersection of philosophy, poetics and life sciences, the metaphor suggests an image of the organic unity of nature and the human body, the continuous and gradual metamorphosis of every natural being.


Matrix factorization method is developed to describe the bound state spectra in few- and many-electron atoms, ions, and molecules. Our method is based on the matrix factorization of many-electron (or many-particle) Coulomb Hamiltonians, which are written in hyperspherical coordinates. As follows from the results of our study, the bound state spectra of many-electron (or many-particle) Coulomb Hamiltonians always have the "ladder" structure and this fundamental fact can be used to determine and investigate the bound states in various few- and many-body Coulomb systems.


This paper describes the approach developed for evaluating the SCOUT traffic management system. SCOUT is a cooperative effort funded by the Kansas and Missouri Departments of Transportation and supported by various state and local law enforcement and governments. The system integrates a traffic operations center, dynamic message signs, video surveillance, traffic detection, and computer networking and analysis. Incident-related delay was chose as the primary measure of effectiveness in evaluating SCOUT since that is where the greatest benefits of the system are expected to occur. To measure this delay, an approach was developed that uses video observation and post-processing to obtain travel times throughout the peak periods. The travel times were obtained by employing characteristic-based reidentification, aided by a custom computer application called ReID. Using ReID, temporal profiles across the peak periods can be generated of the average travel time for each corridor under study. Profiles are generated for baseline conditions and for each period during which an incident occurred on the study segment under observation. The baseline profile is subtracted from the incident profiles to obtain the delay caused by the incident. Once travel times are extracted from the video and incident-related delay is determined for individual incidents, statistical modeling will be used to extrapolate the results to characterize delay on an annual basis, and then to compare the annual delay with SCOUT to the annual delay without SCOUT.


Abstract Introduction. Being a default transradial access center we have encountered the need for alternative to the right radial artery. Determining the most frequent alternative access strategy for PCI in STEMI patientswasthe focus of our study. We sought to analyze whether the wrist access strategy impacts procedure time and success rate particularly for the STEMI interventions where time is of paramount importance. Methods. During four years, in our Center 2624 consecutive all-comers STEMI patients underwent urgent coronary intervention. TRA was used as the first-choice access strategy. We sought to assess crossover rate and safety of preferable access strategy. Crossover occurred according to the operator's decision. Primary outcomes were: access site crossover rate and In Lab time, secondary outcomes were PCI time, X-ray time, mortality and MACE at 30 days and at 6 months. Results. Overall crossover rate from default radial was 5.4% (144 out of 2624 patients). We treated 98.7% (2589) patients by wrist access and only 1.3% (35) patients with TFA. Crossover towards left radial occurred in 47.9% (69 out of 144 patients), towards ulnar 27.8% (40 patients) and towards TFA only 24.3% (35 patients). The meanIn-Lab time 40.4±17.7 minutes, PCI time was 21.4±7.4 min, X-ray time 9.2±4.7 minutes. Survival outcomes at 30 days were: MACE rate of 6.6% (174 patients), mortality rate of 5.0% (131 patients). At six months MACE rate was 8.6% and mortality rate was 5.6%. Conclusions. Default radial access is associated with alow crossover rate. Crossover towards femoral occurred less frequent than ulnar artery access.Complete wrist access strategy is safe and feasible for STEMI interventions with low mortality and MACE rate in unselected all-comers cohort.


Intrauterine hypotrophy is an important, dangerous, and increasingly common complication of pregnancy. It is also the most common factor identified in cases of stillbirth. Intrauterine growth restriction plays a significant role in shortand long-term outcome and is associated with brain damage and neurodevelopmental impairment. Perinatal asphyxia is observed in 50% of the population of growth-restricted infants, who are also more prone to early complications such as intraventricular haemorrhage, necrotising enterocolitis, persistent pulmonary hypertension, hypoglycaemia, or hypothermia. There are also long-term consequences of intrauterine growth retardation, projecting into adult life, such as increased risk of cardiovascular disease, endocrine disorders, renal dysfunction, or metabolic syndrome. These observations are consistent with Barker's hypothesis, now referred to as the "developmental origins of health and disease". This article is a review of the literature regarding early and long-term complications as well as cardiovascular risk in this group of patients.


Attempts have been made to relate the properties of 89 samples of malt to the total nitrogen content of the barley and the modification of this nitrogen. The significance of different concentrations of malt permanently-soluble nitrogen and wort nitrogen as yeast-feeding and potential haze-forming material is discussed. A modified extract-prediction equation involving nitrogen and 1,000-corn weight is given, as is also an alternative equation which does not involve 1,000-corn weight and which Is preferred. The opportunity is taken to stress the importance of the fine-coarse extract difference as a guide to modification. The results of hand valuation assessment of Proctor barley must be confirmed by nitrogen determinations.


STUDY QUESTION
Is it possible to find the cause of primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) in more women by extensive screening?

SUMMARY ANSWER
Adding next generation sequencing techniques including a POI-associated gene panel, extended whole exome sequencing data, as well as specific autoantibody assays to the recommended diagnostic investigations increased the determination of a potential etiological diagnosis of POI from 11% to 41%.

WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY
POI affects ∼1% of women. Clinical presentations and pathogenic mechanisms are heterogeneous and include genetic, autoimmune, and environmental factors, but the underlying etiology remains unknown in the majority of cases.

STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION
Prospective cross-sectional study of 100 women with newly diagnosed POI of unknown cause consecutively referred to Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway, January 2019 to December 2021.

PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS
In addition to standard recommended diagnostic investigations including screening for chromosomal anomalies and premutations in the fragile X mental retardation 1 gene (FMR1) we used whole exome sequencing, including targeted analysis of 103 ovarian-related genes, and assays of autoantibodies against steroid cell antigens.

MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE
We identified chromosomal aberrations in 8%, FMR1 premutations in 3%, genetic variants related to POI in 16%, and autoimmune POI in 3%. Furthermore in 11% we identified POI associated genetic Variants of unknown signifcance (VUS). A homozygous pathogenic variant in the ZSWIM7 gene (NM_001042697.2) was found in two women, corroborating this as a novel cause of monogenic POI. No associations between phenotypes and genotypes were found.

LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION
Use of candidate genetic and autoimmune markers limit the possibility to discover new markers. To further investigate the genetic variants, family studies would have been useful. We found a relatively high proportion of genetic variants in women from Africa and lack of genetic diversity in the genomic databases can impact diagnostic accuracy.

WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS
Since no specific clinical or biochemical markers predicted the underlying cause of POI discussion of which tests should be part of diagnostic screening in clinical practice remains open. New technology has altered the availability and effectiveness of genetic testing, and cost-effectiveness analyses are required to aid sustainable diagnostics.

STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S)
The study was supported by grants and fellowships from Stiftelsen Kristian Gerhard Jebsen, the Novonordisk Foundation, the Norwegian Research Council, University of Bergen, and the Regional Health Authorities of Western Norway. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER
NCT04082169.


The economic and employment outlook described in the following articles was constructed as a regular part of the Bureau's medium-term projections program. This program includes a series of closely related projections encompassing the labor force by age, sex, and race ;' gross national product projections, in total and by major demand and income components; industry output and employment ; and occupational requirements, overall and by industry . Estimates are derived through the use of an integrated econometric framework, and are updated by BLS every 2 years. The following articles are based on three alternative projections to 1990 . These scenarios cover a number of alternative assumptions yielding a reasonably broad span of employment and GNP levels for 1990 . It is likely, but of course not certain, that the actual course of economic and employment development will fall within such a wide band . Also, while alternative assumptions are used for a few of the more important variables, it was not possible to produce alternatives for all variables. This would quickly have multiplied the number of projections confronting the user, and rapidly expanded the workload entailed in their completion . The three alternatives do not conveniently fall into "high" "medium," or "low" categories . Therefore, users of the projections will find it necessary to review the underlying assumptions to determine which of the three scenarios seems most appropriate for their purposes .


In the first part we introduce what we consider the main features of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (CMCC) and its context, in terms of prejuridical issues about climate diplomacy and general considerations about this convention. In the second part, we discuss some references in order to show the synergies between the international agreements and the CMCC and some other more specific legal instruments.


We prove a connexity theorem for abelian varieties in characteristic $0$: if $X$ is an abelian variety and $V\rightarrow X$ and $W\rightarrow X$ two morphisms, then, under certain hypotheses, the fiber product of $V$ and $W$ over $X$ is connected. This theorem has several consequences: the algebraic fundamental groups of a simple abelian variety $X$ and of a normal subvariety $V$ of $X$ of dimension $> dim(X)/2$ are isomorphic. The same holds when $V$ is a finite cover of degree $\le dim(X)$ of $X$. (The only difference between this replacement and the original submission is that one of the conjectures is now proved).


The EWS reservations could add a desirable dimension to India's reservation scheme. But this would depend on whether the policy is implemented scrupulously in line with the fundamental constitutional precepts.


Purpose To evaluate normal values of macular thickness and macular volumen in children without any known retinal disease, using Spectral Domain Coherence Tomography.


To fill in the gap of Yixian farming practices in historical records,a diachronic study was made of folklore changes reflected in expressions of spring sowing in Yixian based on literature,fieldwork,lexical pragmatics and corpus.Findings show: expressions in activities for spring sowing,sowing tools and participants reveal the changes in farmers' farming faith,concept of labor and way of production;folklore lexes bear the characteristics of lexical pragmatics and reflect the corresponding folklore changes,though they do not change simultaneously;folklore lexes form in the context and in turn control their contexts,and the further changes in context will promote or restrain the varied development of these lexes.


Methanol to olefin(MTO),as a potential method instead of conventional route,has received wide attention in the past years.In this paper,recent progress in MTO technology were introduced,countermeasures for existed problems in MTO industry were put forward.


wo of the most basic concepts in chemistry are mixture and chemical compound. In some cases, howevT er, students cannot distinguish between them. Teachers often present examples such as mixing iron (Fe) and sulfur (S) to demonstrate the conservation of the magnetic property of iron in a mixhlre (Chang 1994,8--10; Moore et al. 1998, 11-17), but they can also demonstrate that this property is not conserved in the compound of iron (IT) sulfide (FeS) that is formed after the mixture is heated. As a result, sometimes students might erroneously conclude that when a mixture is heated it becomes a chemical compound and that the simple contact of two materials does not lead to the formation of a new chemical compound. I present a model in this article that shows the differences between mixtures and chemical compounds. Two different colored balls of plastic modeling clay (with a trade name of plastilina) are used to indicate two different elements. The color of each ball of clay illustrates the significant property of each element. The property helps students decide whether the combination of tbe two elements forms a mixture or a chemical compound. The model clarifies the differences between them. The procedure is relatively easy to do, and it eliminates the usual hazards of most Chemistry experiments. The students can also refer to Table 1, which lists the major differences between mixtures and chemical compounds (Atkins and Jones 1997,21-23). The activity is appropriate for seventhand eighth-grade students. Students can perform the activity in a short time, using inexpensive materials. Later in the article, I present a real-world extension to this model.


To satisfy the simultaneous requirements of future wireless communication systems on short-range high-speed data transmission and long-distance basic coverage, the coexistence of the millimeter-wave and microwave technologies becomes the inexorable trend. However, it is difficult for the existing dual-/ tri-band filter configurations to achieve a frequency ratio larger than three. In this paper, the new use of aperture coupling mechanism is proposed to combine two bandpass elements for dual-/tri-band operation with large frequency ratio but comparable sizes. For this purpose, a microwave BPF with wide stopband up to millimeter-waveband is implemented based on the complementary frequency response characteristics of the stepped-impedance resonator bandpass filter and low-pass filter. The millimeter-wave BPF can be simply designed using the air-filled substrate-integrated waveguide circular cavities, which exhibit the natural low-frequency cutoff characteristics. Based on the proposed design concept and two BPF elements, the dual-/ tri-band bandpass filters with frequency ratio up to 12.59 and 12.7 were designed, fabricated, and measured. Owing to the independence of the two elements, a diplexer with large frequency ratio can be simply implemented based on the previous dual-band filter. All the simulation and measured results are in good agreement, validating the proposed structures.


The present invention relates to a liquid phase catalytic oxidation method of purifying exhaust gas containing phosphine, the catalyst containing palladium and copper are dissolved in an acid or water, and mixed to give a mixed catalyst solution. Using phosphine-containing off-gas from bottom to top, from top to bottom mixing catalytic solution liquid into the absorption column countercurrently contacted embodiment, phosphine-containing off-gas in an absorption tower to react with the catalyst solution was mixed 4 ~ 100 ℃, from removing exhaust gases containing phosphine phosphine, the phosphine then be oxidized to achieve resource acid byproducts, both the effective removal of phosphine contamination, but also for phosphorus exhaust and closed calcium carbide furnace exhaust gas as a carbon chemical raw materials provide practical cleaning method. The catalyst has high activity, high selectivity and high stability characteristics, the catalyst may be recycled, reducing the cost of purification.


SUMMARY Magnetotelluric data from the Pontiac Subprovince of the Canadian Shield indicate that the crustal electrical conductivity structure of the region is very uniform. Because the data are distorted by near-surface electrical heterogeneities, the exact parameters of the resistivity structure may vary for different static shift corrections but the same sequence of layers is retained. An approximate one-dimensional model of the Pontiac, based on inversion of the effective impedance recorded at each site, consists of a thin conductive weathered layer, underlain by at least 12 km of resistive upper crust at 5000 Rm or more. A mid-crustal layer of 200 Qm extends to a depth of 25 km or more, below which there is evidence of an increase in the bulk resistivity in the lower crust and/or upper mantle. However, this last layer displays marked non-one-dimensional magnetotelluric responses which appear to be quite uniform along the profile. Similar responses have been seen in other parts of the Canadian Shield and the Baltic Shield. This feature in the MT data can be explained by azimuthal electrical anisotropy or by a two-dimensional conductive structure. The absence of any large vertical magnetic field responses suggests that anisotropy is the more likely cause. Modelling the anisotropy shows that a ratio of horizontal resistivities between 1 : 6 and 1 : 13 is representative of the lower crust and/or the upper mantle in the area. The higher conductivity is found €or electric fields measured in the east-west direction subparallel to the tectonic fabric of the shield in this region.


Drivers of euphausiid distribution and abundance in the Northeast U.S. Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem Michael R. Lowe*, Gareth L. Lawson, and Michael J. Fogarty Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 266 Woods Hole Rd, Mail Stop #34, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA Ecosystem Assessment Program, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries Center, 166 Water Street, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA


A technical platform (1) and at least one terminal (2) security broadcasting method of a digital data flow between, - transmitting at least one of scrambling and multiplexing digital data stream that has the message (ECM) comprising the control keys (CW) encrypted with a key channel (CC), and; - the scrambled digital data stream from the terminal (2) includes the step of descrambling in a secure memory area, and of the control key (CW) is: In the technical platform (1) and sends a request that includes an identifier (IUi) of the terminal (2); The channel secret key (CSk) from the encryption mechanism (A) using the identifier (IUi) of its own ciphering key (BSKn) and the terminal (2) to ciphering key (CC) to obtain a message (eCCk) and generate; To obtain the channel key (CC) and decrypt the message (eCCk) received by the terminal (2) from an initial stored the key (CSk) to the terminal (2), and A method and system characterized in that the obtained according to the steps of the dependent from the key channel (CC) obtaining the control key (CW) resulting from the decryption of the message (ECM).


Outlining tumors in ultrasound B-mode images is an important process in many diagnostic procedures, but manual tumor segmentation is usually a time-consuming and challenging task. This paper presents a custom-made active contour model that is specifically designed for segmenting tumors in ultrasound images. The algorithm starts by drawing a circular contour around a manually selected point inside the tumor. The vertices of the circular contour are iteratively moved from the interior of the tumor to the tumor boundary. The motion of the vertices is controlled using an ultrasound-based statistical parameter, called the envelope signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), that is sensitive to variations in tissue anatomy. The proposed algorithm has been used to outline breast tumors in 10 ultrasound B-mode images. When compared to tumor outlines delineated by a human expert, the outlines obtained using the proposed algorithm achieved sensitivity values as high as 96.98%. The proposed algorithm provides a simple and accurate method for tumor segmentation in ultrasound images.


Luffa (Luffa acufangula (L.) Roxb.) is a sub-tropical plant, which produces fruit containing fibrous vascular system. It is a summer season vegetable but it has been as a winter crop in Sanya, China. The main commercial production countries are China, Korea, India, Japan and Central America. To solve the shorting comings of open shelving, we introduced a new Luffa vine-putting cultivation techniques to decreased the deformity loofah and make they more suit the market discipline.


An object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a laminate unit for multilayer ceramic electronic components which can surely be prevented from short-circuit defects occurring in the multilayer ceramic electronic component. According to the present invention, the layered laminate unit for a ceramic electronic component, including on a ceramic green sheet comprising an acrylic resin, a butyral resin as a binder, as a binder, and dihydro-Terminus sulfinyl oxy ethanol, Terre sulfinyl oxy ethanol, d- di hydrocarbyl beol, a sheet nelrol I-, I- page rilril alcohol and acetoxy-predetermined conductor paste containing at least one kind of solvent selected from the group consisting of cyclohexanol acetate-methoxyethoxy printing the pattern is produced by forming an electrode layer. The multilayer ceramic electronic component of, short-circuit defects, the laminate unit, a binder, an acrylic resin, green sheets, butyral resin, conductive paste, and printing.


The response of a series of plates having the same mass, but differing areas and damping, was measured. The excitation was with an impact hammer applied at a series of locations on the plate(s). The purpose of the experiment was first, to determine the accuracy of a simple energy balance (SEA) prediction of response, and second, to give guidance in a general problem of foundation design. That problem is whether to make a foundation flexible, and therefore allow vibrational energy to be damped, or to make the structure as rigid as possible.


We demonstrate that the characteristic reconstructed surface of α-alumina (Al2O3) acts as a nanotemplate for the growth of well-ordered monodisperse arrays of Ni nanoclusters. Due to the insulating nature of the substrate we use dynamic scanning force microscopy operated in the non-contact mode (NC-AFM) to characterize the nanotemplate, to examine the size and distribution of metallic clusters on the surface and to investigate their position with respect to the surface atomic structure. The present NC-AFM results for the interaction of Ni with α-Al2O3 are supported by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The ability of α-Al2O3(0001) to act as a nanotemplate is attributed to a spatially modulated affinity towards the accommodation of Ni into the top layer by substituting the surface Al atoms at certain sites on the reconstructed surface formed by high-temperature annealing. The insulating template, demonstrated for Al2O3, may be a generally attractive system for the study of nanostructures which need to be isolated from a conducting bulk.


The modulation of whistler waves in nonthermal plasmas is investigated. The dynamics of the magnetized plasma is described by the fluid equations and the electron velocity distribution function is modeled via a nonthermal κ distribution. A multiscale perturbation analysis based on the Krylov–Bogoliubov–Mitropolsky method is carried out and the nonlinear Schrodinger equation governing the modulation of the high-frequency whistler is obtained. The effect of the superthermal electrons on the stability of the wave envelope and soliton formation is discussed and a comparison with previous results is presented.


When the last of the famous series of surveys on chemi cal carcinogenesis by Cook and Kennaway appeared in the American Journal of Cancer in 1940 (18), it brought to an end the first chapter of research in that domain, which had seen the discovery of the first families of chemical carcinogens and had brought to light the first relationships between chemical structure and oncogenic activity. Since then, a considerable acceleration of progress in our knowl edge of chemical carcinogenesis has occurred, with the discovery of many prolific new families of carcinogens as well as a wider knowledge of those already known, the acquisition of the first clues as to the mode of biochemical interaction between carcinogens and cells, and, finally, the first practical applications of the science of chemical car cinogenesis to the field of cancer chemotherapy and chemoprophylaxis. Because of the scope of the progress made and the pro gressive specialization of the investigators, a review on chemical carcinogenesis along the lines of Cook and Ken naway's comprehensive papers seems less and less feasible


This paper presents comparison image classification method of co-firing biomass and pulverized coal. Defined two class of combustion: stable and unstable for three variants with different power value parameters and fixed amount biomass. Used Principal component analysis for determine the most important features that affect the state of the combustion process.


At present,the practice of our social sports develops quichly,but the law condition of social sports develops slowly,this contrdiction will refrain social sports' further development,this essay draws in the excellent fruit of developed mass sports of foreign countries,and combines with our practice,making some suggestions in order to promote our social sports' development.


Solar irrigation is a climate mitigation technology to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in agricultural production. Despite its potential, small-scale farmers are unable to afford photovoltaic (PV) systems and resort to using the traditional diesel-powered pumps for irrigation. This study aims to analyze the social, economic, and environmental aspects of introducing solar irrigation systems from the perspective of small-scale farmers in developing countries. Applying socio-economic and environmental analyses to the case of the Philippines, the study found the environmental benefits of solar irrigation in terms of the reduction in GHG emissions of up to 26.5 tons CO2eq/ha/year and the avoidance of emissions of air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, and particulate matter. The energy savings between 11.36 and 378.54 L/ha of diesel per year resulted in a range of −USD 1255/ha to USD 68,582/ha net present value, 30% to 2958% with an average of 315% returns on investment, and 0.3 to 30 years payback period with an average of 2.88 years. Regardless of the low awareness of environmental sustainability, most farmers were interested to invest in solar irrigation systems with 69% social acceptance, while the 26% were not interested as they consume a minimal amount of fuel and cannot recover the high investment from the cost savings. This study provided policy recommendations to make solar irrigation accessible to small-scale farmers as well as broader implications to make the agricultural sector more sustainable.


Authors: Isabel Altamirano – Engineering and Chemistry Librarian, Georgia Tech, Georgia Tech Library, 266 4th St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30332-0900 Marlee Givens – Librarian for Modern Languages and Library Learning Consultant, Georgia Tech Library, 266 4th St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30332-0900 Liz Holdsworth – STEM Librarian, Georgia Tech, Georgia Tech Library, 266 4th St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30332-0900 Ximin Mi – Data Visualization Librarian, Georgia Tech, Georgia Tech Library, 266 4th St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30332-0900


There are many incidents involving electricity every year. Some of these incidents lead to personal injury and even death. Information about how this occurs, which could help to prevent such incidents, is available through reports and statistics. There are shortcomings in the reporting systems and analysis, but these reports still offer a powerful tool in our quest for improved electrical systems and safety. Some statistics are given on electrical incidents in the workplace.


The Gemini twins were the first large modern telescopes to receive protected silver coatings on their mirrors in 2004. The low emissivity requirement is fundamental for the IR optimization. In the mid-IR a factor of two reduction in telescope emissivity is equivalent to increasing the collecting area by the same factor. Our emissivity maintenance requirement is very stringent: 0.5% maximum degradation during operations, at any single wavelength beyond 2.2 μm. We developed a very rigorous standard to wash the primary mirrors in the telescope without science down time. The in-situ washes are made regularly, and the reflectivity and emissivity gains are significant. The coating lifetime has been extended far more than our original expectations. In this report we describe the in-situ process and hardware, explain our maintenance plan, and show results of the coating performance over time.


For teacher education, this is perhaps the best of times and the worst of times. It may be the best of times because so much hard work has been done by many teacher educators over the past two decades to develop more successful program models and because voters have just elected a president of the United States who has a strong commitment to the improvement of teaching. It may be the worst of times because there are so many forces in the environment that conspire to undermine these efforts. In this article, the author discusses the U.S. context for teacher education, the power of teacher preparation for transforming teaching and learning, and the current challenges for this enterprise in the United States.


In this paper the application of the Extended Finite Element Method (XFEM) to anticipate change of the behaviour of composite with complex internal structure after use of the admixtures was presented. The response to mechanical loadings of bent beams made of hydraulically bonded mixture with rubber admixture was considered. The impact of the rubber granulate on the value of fracture energy was analysed. Moreover, the influence of an interfacial transmission zone quality on the achieved effect was assessed. Calculations were conducted by means of the muli-scale numerical model which was built in ABAQUS finite element method environment. The results derived indicate beneficial effect of rubber granulate on fracture energy of hydraulically bonded mixture.


T2 Weighted Image Fast Spin Echo (T2WI FSE) is standard sequence used in lumbar MRI examination to determine the anatomy and abnormalities in lumbar region, especially in cases of Hernia Nucleus Pulposus (HNP). Fat signals on T2WI FSE appear hyperintense, to increase image information used fat suppression technique. Types of fat suppression techniques among others STIR and Dixon. The purpose of this research is to know differences image information using T2WI FSE STIR and T2WI FSE Dixon sequences and to know fat suppression techniques better in MRI lumbar sagittal in cases Hernia Nucleus Pulposus (HNP).
This type of research is quantitative experimental. The samples used in this research is 10 patients with HNP cases and two Radiology Specialists as respondents. It is an assessment of the anatomical criteria of the vertebral body, intervertebral disc, spinal cord and ligamentum flavum. The results of the respondents analyzed using the Wilcoxon statistical test.
This research that there were significant difference in images information on MRI lumbar sagittal plane sequences T2WI FSE STIR and T2WI FSE Dixon of HNP cases with a significance value = 0.007 (p


Objective: Cesarean section is one of the most performed surgical procedures in the world and it carries high morbidity and mortality in comparison to vaginal delivery. The present study was conducted for evaluating the maternal and neonatal outcomes and complications in pregnant women who underwent elective versus emergency cesarean section so that appropriate measures can be taken to decrease morbidity and mortality soon.
 Methods: Cross-sectional comparative hospital-based study carried out at Zanana Hospital Jaipur from January 2022 to December 2022. There were 400 patients enrolled in the study 200 in elective and 200 in emergency cesareans selected randomly. Ethical approval was obtained from the ethical committee and informed consent was taken from the patients
 Results: The emergency cesarean section was significantly more as compared to an elective cesarean section in women in the age group 19–25 years and >35 years. Most of the cesarean sections in multipara were elective as compared to the relatively more emergency cesarean sections in nullipara. It was observed that 26.5% (52/200) of women had fetal complications. Out of them, 92.4% of underwent emergency cesarean section. About 65.5% (131/200) of participants had intra-operative complications. Out of these 62.5% (82/131) had adhesions, 17.5% (23/131) had difficult extraction, and 18.3% (24/131) had postpartum hemorrhage. Out of them, 83.3%% (20/24) occurred during emergency cesarean as compared to 16.7% (4/24) in elective cesarean.
 Conclusions: Maternal and fetal complications were significantly higher in the emergency cesarean section as compared to the elective cesarean section group.


A key step in the metabolic degradation of biphenyl xenobiotics is catechol formation upon dehydrogenation of cis‐ and trans‐dihydrodiols in prokaryotic and eukaryotic pathways, respectively. Structure and thermodynamics of stereoisomers of cis‐, trans‐2,3‐biphenyl‐dihydrodiols (I) and their dehydrogenation products (hydroxyketones, II), as well as final catechol (2,3‐biphenyldiol, III) are studied by means of ab initio MP2/6‐311++G(2df,2p)//MP2/6‐311G(d,p) calculations. Formation of stereoisomers I and II is exothermic and endergonic, whereas III is enthalpically and entropically driven. Dehydrogenations are endothermic (ΔH  R0 ∼ 1.5–4 kcal mol−1) and exergonic (ΔG  R0 ∼ −5 to −7.5 kcal mol−1) without noticeable differences between cis and trans pathways, although the same keto stereoisomer II‐(2S) is found to be the more favored product from both cis‐ and trans‐I. The final II → III tautomerization is thermodynamically enhanced (ΔH  R0 ∼ −27, ΔG  R0 ∼ −28 kcal mol−1) but the process is shown to have a large activation energy if it had to occur via unimolecular path. Although this tautomerization is generally assumed to be a nonenzymatic process as it involves rearomatization of an oxygenated ring, proton transfer with an anionic intermediate might be a more probable process. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2009


*Special Relativity places severe constraints on any possibility for faster-than-light (FTL) phenomenon. There are four hopes for FTL; warp drive via General Relativity Theory (GRT), wormholes via GRT, tachyons, and quantum mechanics. This talk focuses on why quantum mechanics makes the list. The nonlocal nature of matter demonstrates correlations between distant events that cannot be explained by current concepts of causality. For two classical events to be correlated, either one causes the other, or both possess a common cause in their past light cones. Neither kind of causality can explain the correlations observed in entangled quantum systems. Reality seems to support a third mysterious type of causality, with an essential spacelike nature, but direct spacelike causality should be impossible as it would lead to temporal paradox. The two concepts of classical causality, timelike causes and common cause, are presented along with a review of the EPR experiment showing that something like spacelike causality exists between the distant parts of an entangled quantum system. Bell's Inequality shows that the EPR correlations cannot be attributed to common causes. Gisin's EPR-Relativity experiment shows that timelike causes cannot explain the EPR correlations either. The metaphor of Quantum Tic-Tac-Toe is used to show a third type of causality applicable only to quantum situations. This third type of causality is an indirect spacelike cause acting through multiple classical realities, permitting FTL but prohibiting temporal paradox. I. Introduction HIS paper considers the issue of causality in entangled quantum systems. The Background section reviews the two classical notions of causality, EPR type entanglements, and Special Relativity. The Common Cause section reviews Bell's Inequality theorem and shows how this type of causality cannot explain the correlations seen in entangled systems. The Einsteinian Causality section reviews Gisin's experiment demonstrating that time-like causality cannot explain these correlations either. Gisin's conclusion is that quantum systems support a new mysterious 3 rd type of causality. The Quantum Causality section introduces a situation in Quantum Tic-Tac-Toe that exhibits this same kind of causality


Over the past decade approximately one-half of all institutions offering the Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering in the U.S. and Canada have dropped the mandatory requirement for translation skills. This correspondence attempts to reveal the nature and extent of this trend.


Preface Introduction PART I 1. A Stalinist Life PART II 2. Forces of Destruction 3. Patterns of Chaos 4. Family Chronicles 5. Limping Behemoth 6. Utopia, Apocalypse, and the Weather 7. 'Thank You, Comrade Stalin!' 8. Economy of Scarcity, Economy of Favors PART III 9. Politics of History Select Bibliography Index


Aim of this work was the development of mixed matrix membranes as potential devices for transdermal controlled release of gemfibrozil (2,2-dimethyl-5-(2,5-dimethylphenoxy) pentanoic acid). The effect of the hydrophilic NaX zeolite and of drug loading on the release kinetics of the drug was investigated. The material used as membrane matrix was polydimethylsiloxane. Scanning electron microscopy analysis showed as zeolite crystals were well embedded into the polymeric matrix. Membrane characterizations by means of swelling ratio, moisture uptake, and erosion degree determination indicated low swelling degree and moisture uptake, and the absence of erosion. This results confirmed as these membranes did not promote bacterial growth and skin irritation. The performance of the membranes was evaluated by performing in vitro release studies and percutaneous tests through the stratum corneum taken from the skin of rabbit ear. In vitro experiments indicated as the best system was the membrane containing 12 wt % of zeolite and 2.6 wt % of gemfibrozil (PDMS-2.6GEM-12NaX) and so it was used in the percutaneous tests. In this case, the permeation rate was lower owing to the presence of an additional resistance applied by rabbit skin. An interesting result was the linear behavior indicating that the permeation of the drug thorough the device occurred with zero-order kinetic which is the feature of the transdermal controlled delivery systems. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 41698.


Objective To study the effect of the commonly used anesthetic,chloral hydrate,on the cerebral blood flow in Wistar rats,and to discuss the relevant factors that affect cerebral blood flow in experimental animals.Methods Thirty Wistar rats were divided into three groups,the normal group,the sham group,and the model group.After anesthesia in three different time periods(10,30,and 50 minutes),the cerebral blood flow was tested.Results The cerebral blood flow of experimental groups after anesthesia in 10,30,and 50 minutes was increased conspicuously,and there was highly significant difference between the two experimental groups at the same time(P0.01).Conclusion The cerebral blood flow was significantly affected by anesthesia in different periods.After anesthesia,it is essential to monitor the cerebral blood flow in experimental animals simultaneously.


It is the common situation that the shield machine should cross the completed station by using the shield construction method.The time and safety for crossing the station affect the whole construction directly.Based on the real construction examples for Guangzhou Municipal Railway Transit Line 4 University Special Line(Luntou~University Station) section civil work,this paper introduces the quick construction techniques of the shield machine(EPB-Φ6280) crossing the Guanzhou Station,including the arrival,the shield with the weight of 320t moving in the horizontal and longitudinal direction pushed by the jack in the station,back up gantries with the length of 71.5m moving in the longitudinal direction and emplacement in the starting end.This construction technique provides some references for the similar construction work.


The geotextile can be used to treat a subgrade collapse in karst areas. The subsidence width is an important factor affecting the geotextile to treat subgrade collapses. However, the available studies on the influence of the subsidence width on geotextile treatment settlement are limited. To study the effect of the subsidence width on the geotextile control of subgrade collapses, the half-symmetric model test had been established. To make up for the deficiencies of the model test, the optimized subsidence width was probed through a numerical calculation under ten different situations conducted by the finite element analyses. Previous full-section model test results were used to verify the rationality of the half-symmetric model and calibrate the input parameters of the numerical models. The influence of the subsidence width on soil pressure, tensile force and deformation of the geotextile, and soil settlement was analyzed. With the increase of the subsidence width, more loads of the subsidence area were transferred to a stable area via the geotextile, the vertical normal stress at the edge increased rapidly, the tensile force of the geotextile and vertical soil displacement in the subsidence area increased noticeably. When the anchorage ratio of L ≤ 2.0B, the geotextile fracture or soil failure occurred during the model test which indicated the geotextile treatment of the subgrade collapse was not suitable for projects with an anchorage ratio of L ≤ 2.0B. The geotextile might be reaching the limit of its tensile stiffness when the anchorage ratio of L = 2.22B. This is providing an insight into the treatment of a subgrade collapse in karst areas using geotextile.


TAMPERE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY International Master Degree Programme in Science and Bioengineering PHILIPS, ANJU KARINGADAMPALLIL: Exome Sequencing in X-Linked Intellectual Disability: A Novel Mutation in the CUL4B gene underlying Cabezas syndrome. Master of Science Thesis, 66 pages February 2012 Major subject: Biotechnology Examiner(s): Docent Irma Järvelä and Professor Matti Karp


If A is a commutative unital Banach algebra and G C A is a collection of nontopological zero divisors, the question arises whether we can find an extension A' of A in which every element of G has an inverse. Shilov [1] proved that this was the case if G consisted of a single element, and Arena [2] conjectures that it might be true for any set G. In [3], Bollobás proved that this is not the case, and gave an example of an uncountable set G for which no extension A' can contain inverses for more than countably many elements of G. Bollobás proved that it was possible to find inverses for any countable G, and gave best possible bounds for the norms of the inverses in [4]. In this paper, it is proved that inverses can always be found if the elements of G differ only by multiples of the unit; that is, we can eliminate the residual spectrum of one element of A. This answers the question posed by Bollobás in [5]. 1. Preliminary definitions and statement of the main result. Throughout this paper, a Banach algebra is assumed to be commutative and to possess a unit. If A is a Banach algebra, x E A, then the essential spectrum of x in A is the set <7e(x) = {X E C: A • 1a x is a topological zero divisor}, and the residual spectrum of x in A is the set <7r(x) = {A G C: X • 1a — x is not invertible, but is not a topological zero divisor}. Thus our main theorem may be stated as follows. THEOREM 1. Let A be a commutative Banach algebra, x E A. Then there is an extension A' of A in which the spectrum of x is precisely the essential spectrum of x in A. Before proving Theorem 1, we prove the weaker result stated here as Theorem 2. THEOREM 2. Let A be a Banach algebra, x E A, and let K be a compact set in the residual spectrum of x in A. Then there is an extension A' of A, such that the spectrum of x in A' does not intersect K. The method used to prove Theorem 2 is to take an open neighbourhood U of the essential spectrum of x in A, whose closure does not intersect K. (Such a Received by the editors November 24, 1981 and, in revised form, November 15, 1983. 1980 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary 46J20; Secondary 47D30, 32D15. ©1984 American Mathematical Society 0002-9947/84 S 1 00 + S.25 per page 715 License or copyright restrictions may apply to redistribution; see http://www.ams.org/journal-terms-of-use


Author(s): Wang, Kairong | Advisor(s): Xu, Hongquan | Abstract: Students' rating of a professor's teaching effectiveness is widely endorsed by many schools to evaluate teacher's teaching quality. The purpose of applying this evaluation is to measure teaching effectiveness on a validated tool across teachers and subjects in the same school. It was expected that the ratings can help teachers on their continuous improvement in teaching and instructional decisions. However, do teachers become more effectively with experience growth? Previous studies found a relatively stable trend across time. The current research studies teaching effectiveness growth trajectory when teaching, to some extent, was related to teachers' performance review. Using five year's continuous data from 6383 courses taught by 1201 teachers from 25 departments in a university in China, this study fits a set of multivariate longitudinal models to examine trends and identify important predictors. Results find that across ten semesters in five years, there is an average increase rate of 0.029 points on a 5 points scale for each semester when all other factors are treated equally. Teachers' teaching experiences, academic ranking, and the class sizes they taught are all valid predictors to predict their teaching effectiveness. Besides, teachers are not growing in the same rate: those who have taught longer appear to have lower growth rate than those who have taught in short of period time. Teachers with higher academic ranks tend to have lower growth rate than those who have lower academic ranks.


The aggregates for two types of fumed silica are compared with each other and with colloidal silica similar to one used as a spacer additive for toner. These examples of fumed silica differ in that one is made up of very large (sub-micron) sized primary particles with a low degree of aggregation while the second fumed silica example has a much higher, balanced, degree of aggregation. The aggregates of both forms of fumed silica disperse on a toner surface to result in effective particle diameters larger than the colloidal silica particle. Also, because of their fractal morphology, these dispersed aggregates are more likely to remain fixed on the toner surface as compared to the colloidal-


A prevalent assumption in the literature is that trust and risk are always relevant in online marketplaces, and that there is always a need to build trust and reduce risk irrespective of context. Challenging this assumption, this study seeks to identify the boundaries of the effects of trust and risk on transaction activity in the context of institutional structures in online marketplaces. The perceived effectiveness of institutional structures (PEIS), defined as the extent buyers believe that appropriate conditions are in place to facilitate transactions with sellers, sets the boundaries of trust and risk by moderating their effects on transaction activity in a quadratic (inverted-U) fashion. Specifically, at the lower boundary condition of PEIS (among buyers who believe institutional structures are ineffective), the high situational uncertainty they perceive should make these buyers unwilling to become vulnerable to sellers, thus rendering trust and risk immaterial to their decision making. Trust and risk should also be immaterial at the higher boundary condition of PEIS (among buyers who believe institutional structures are very effective), because the insufficient situational uncertainty makes trust and risk irrelevant to these buyers' decision making because of a lack of vulnerability. Only between these two boundary conditions (among buyers who perceive moderate levels of PEIS), and thus a moderate degree of situational uncertainty and vulnerability in the marketplace, should trust and risk have a significant effect on transaction activity. Data from 398 buyers on eBay's and Amazon's online marketplaces support the quadratic moderating role of PEIS on the effect of risk on transaction activity, but not on the effect of trust. Theoretical and practical implications on specifying the boundaries of the effects of trust and risk and understanding the direct and moderating role of institutional structures are discussed.


A SAR regional object detection approach is presented in this paper. There are two key issues in it:extraction of the regions of interest(ROI) and object modeling. In extraction of the ROI,a new edge detector and a grouping segmentation method based on multi-scale gradient features are developed. In object modeling, semantic knowledge is integrated as the object model. The new approach is applied to real SAR images, and the expected results are obtained. It shows that the approach based on multi-scale gradient features has better performance, and regional objects such as residential areas can be detected.


The eikonal equation as derived by Sommerfeld and Runge has been extended to include the case of moving media under the condition where (v/c) ≪ 1 (v is the velocity of the medium, c is the speed of light in vacuum). Using the Hamilton Jacobi formalism, the equivalent system of linear equations was determined which can be used for ray tracing. An exmple of a moving medium where the index of refraction is a function of one of the coordinates has been considered.


We present a sampling-based path planning and replanning algorithm that produces anytime solutions. Our algorithm tunes the quality of its result based on available search time by generating a series of solutions, each guaranteed to be better than the previous ones by a user-defined improvement bound. When updated information regarding the underlying search space is received, the algorithm efficiently repairs its previous solution. The result is an approach that provides low-cost solutions to high-dimensional search problems involving partially-known or dynamic environments. We discuss theoretical properties of the algorithm, provide experimental results on a simulated multirobot planning scenario, and present an implementation on a team of outdoor mobile robots


Polarized high-energy photons are excellent probes of protons, neutrons, and nuclei. Nowadays they are readily made by shining laser light at a high-energy electron beam.


To address the issue of regulation of online consultancy contracts, incorporated into the field of Labor Law, we must first refer to the doctrinal elements characteristic of this branch that constitutes the main part of our study. The final purpose is to relate the type of work that is deployed, under the label of Online Consultancy Contract, with the legal nature of Labor Law, which is a part of Private Law, composed of rules of public order


This paper makes its own proposals on the necessity, orientation and phase measures for Xinjiang to be built into an international commerce and trade center in Western China.


The determination of trace lead in mushroom after separating and enriching with sulphydryl cotton by FAAS is described in this paper.The enriching and eluting conditions were studied.The recovery of lead is 95.0%~99.0%,RSD is less than 4%.Sulphydryl cotton is effective in eliminating the interference for common existing elements.The method is fast,simple and convenient.


Title of Dissertation: ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION AND STUDENT COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS: AN EXAMINATION OF ONE URBAN SCHOOL SYSTEM Mark E. Fossett, Doctor of Education, 2018 Dissertation directed by: Margaret J. McLaughlin, Ph.D. A quantitative causal-comparative study was conducted in one large urban school system, in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States to examine the efficacy of alternative high schools for students at high-risk of academic failure as compared to students at high-risk of academic failure in comprehensive high schools. The investigation revealed that there is a significant difference in the academic and sociocultural variables related to college readiness and successful learning outcomes for high-risk students enrolled in alternative schools versus high-risk students enrolled in comprehensive schools. The research was conducted in one large urban school system, and will be referred to as DeKota County Public School System(DKCPS). DKCPS opened their alternative school program in 2003. Through a casual-comparative longitudinal analysis of one graduation cohort's four-year journey through high school, we will examine the differences in academic and sociocultural variables related to college readiness and successful learning outcomes. Severn variables emerged as being relevant and four of those variables emerged as being significant. They were four different types of quantitative analysis done to validate the variables and the strength of their inclusion in the analysis and outcomes. The data collected provided an opportunity to make recommendations to DKCPS on the benefits that alternative schools have on high-risk alternative school students in their system. Additional research was also recommended to expand this research to multiple school districts to further identify the significant variables that are explanatory of college readiness and successful learning outcomes for high-risk students enrolled in alternative high schools versus high-risk students in comprehensive high schools. ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION AND STUDENT COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS: AN EXAMINATION OF ONE URBAN SCHOOL SYSTEM


The peculiarity of migrant labour the dynamics of international labour migration women migrants and the women left behind enclaves and labour markets effects of return migration and remittances migration and social structure refugees and displaced persons the "brain drain" migration in Asia the state system and migration.


Lunn A, Holden S, Boswell T, et al. Automated microscopy, dipsticks and the diagnosis of urinary tract infection. Arch Dis Child 2010;95:193–197. The authors have spotted an inaccuracy Table 2 of their paper. The negative likelihood ratio has been wrongly calculated and should be LR= negative likelihood ratio = 1Sensitivity/Specifi city. Their negative ratios in Table 2 should therefore have been 0.12, 0.07 and 0.37. The LRshould read 0.12 for the fl ow cytometry (abstract and page 194), LRshould read 0.07 for urine dipstick (abstract and page 195), LRratios should be 0 throughout Subgroup Testing (pages 195-196). Negative likelihood ratios should also be corrected in the fi rst paragraph of the Discussion on page 196. The authors apologise for these errors but point out that it strengthens their conclusions as it identifi es that fl ow cytometry and dipstick are both more accurate in ruling out infection if negative.


This bachelor's degree paper assesses the treatment given by the El Espectador and El Tiempo media to the information regarding four terrorism cases in 2015, to determine both the quality of the published articles and, by means of an interview with the editor of the international section for both media, the journalism practices employed in said work.


Objective To investigate the chemical constituents in the shells of Juglans sigillata.Methods The chemical constituents were isolated by silica gel,RP18,Sephadex LH-20,and MCI column chromatography and semi-preparative HPLC and so on.The structures were identified on the basis of spectroscopic analysis and chemical evidence.Results Fifteen compounds were isolated and identified in the 70% ethanol extract from the shells of J.sigillata including seven phenolic glycosides: tachioside(1),mudanoside A(2),4-O-β-D-glucopyranosylvanillc acid(3),breynioside A(4),1-O-vanilloyl-β-D-glucose(5),6′-O-vanilloyltachioside(6),and 6′-O-vanilloylisotachioside(7);three phenylpropanoide acid glycosides: 6-O-feruloyl-D-glucopyranose(8),methyl-4-Ocoumaroylquinate(9),and 5-p-cis-coumaroylquinic acid(10);two tetralone glycosides: juglanin A(11) and juglanin E(12);one norsesquiterpenes glycoside: roseoside(13);one flavone: toxifolin(14);and one glucosylated abscisic acid derivate:(1′R,3′R,5′R,8′S)-epi-dihydrophaseic acid β-D-glucoside(15).Conclusion Except compound 14,the other compounds are isolated from the shells of J.sigillata for the first time.And compounds 1—4,13,and 15 are reported for the first time from the plants in genus of Juglans L.


The content‐based classification and retrieval of real‐world audio clips is one of the challenging tasks in multimedia information retrieval. Although the problem has been well studied in the last two decades, most of the current retrieval systems cannot provide flexible querying of audio clips due to the mixed‐type form (e.g., speech over music and speech over environmental sound) of audio information in real world. We present here a complete, scalable, and extensible content‐based classification and retrieval system for mixed‐type audio clips. The system gives users an opportunity for flexible querying of audio data semantically by providing four alternative ways, namely, querying by mixed‐type audio classes, querying by domain‐based fuzzy classes, querying by temporal information and temporal relationships, and querying by example (QBE). In order to reduce the retrieval time, a hash‐based indexing technique is introduced. Two kinds of experiments were conducted on the audio tracks of the TRECVID news broadcasts to evaluate the performance of the proposed system. The results obtained from our experiments demonstrate that the Audio Spectrum Flatness feature in MPEG‐7 standard performs better in music audio samples compared to other kinds of audio samples and the system is robust under different conditions. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


T he study by Guo et al examines the in vitro protective effect of culture supernatants from 2 probiotic bacteria, Bifidobacterium infantis and Lactobacillus acidophilus, on intestinal epithelial barrier function. Using an epithelial colorectal adenocarcinoma cell line (Caco-2) assay, the authors demonstrate that preincubation with sterile, cell-free culture supernatants (CFS) from either of these 2 bacterial strains prevented interleukin-1b-induced intestinal barrier permeability as measured by transepithelial electrical resistance and fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled dextran flux. Protection was mediated by preventing both interleukin-1b-induced increases in tight junction protein claudin-1 expression and nuclear factor-kB activation. These observations add to a growing body of evidence that probiotic bacteria and, more specifically, their cell-associated and secreted products promote integrity of epithelial barrier function and maintenance of intestinal homeostasis (1–4). pH is a key determinant of bioactivity; L acidophilus and B infantis used in this study produce lactate that acidifies the conditioned culture medium and likely influences the bioactivity of associated microbial-derived products. In the described study, the authors adjust the cell-free supernatant to pH 7.4. Luminal pH in the healthy lower gastrointestinal tract is, however, site-specific and ranges from 5.5 to 7.5 (though patients with gastrointestinal disease frequently exhibit deviations from these mean values (5)). This raises the possibility that the bioactivity of the CFS in vitro may be distinct from in vivo conditions in the gastrointestinal tract and supports screening the bioactivity of these conditioned culture media across the range of pH conditions found in the lower gut. Questions also naturally arise as to whether this beneficial effect of probiotic strain-derived CFS is exclusive to these probiotic species, or if CFS from other bacteria, including those typically considered pathogenic, may also derive a similar effect under the epithelial culture conditions examined. Although it is critical to understand the efficacy of single species and the mechanisms by which they promote barrier function, the complex microbial communities found in the gastrointestinal tract (human microbiome), even in the earliest phases of life, may influence bioavailability of consumed or orally administered bioactives. Microbial members within the human gastrointestinal microbiome compete with each other and the host for resources. To date, the microbial-derived products that promote barrier function include short-chain fatty acids such as acetate produced by Bifidobacteria, which prevent epithelial barrier disruption through tumor necrosis factor-a induction (1). Such products, however, represent attractive carbon sources for a broad range of gastrointestinal organisms (6–8). Hence, whether oral supplementation with probiotic-derived products would lead to effective epithelial bioavailbility in the distal gastrointestinal tract in humans remains to be determined. Ideally, a single microbial-derived product within the conditioned media of these species promotes epithelial integrity. There are, however, multiple candidate mechanisms and likely as many microbial-derived and associated products that may promote barrier function. These may include pH modification via production of lactic acid or other short-chain fatty acids (7), lipid-derived induction of anti-inflammatory innate and adaptive immune responses (9), and/or triggering of toll-like receptor signaling pathways (4,10), which may act synergistically to promote epithelial integrity. Moreover, the gastrointestinal tract is overtly colonized from early life, so while promoting barrier function may reduce proinflammatory responses it is unlikely to correct associated gut microbial dysbioses. As such, the efficacy of such a therapeutic strategy may be enhanced by preconditioning the gastrointestinal tract with microbial-derived products to promote barrier integrity and reduce proinflammatory responses, followed by oral supplementation with a relatively simple and defined inoculum of microbial species to promote appropriate microbiome (re)development. Probiotics have gained enormous interest in recent years as a means to promote intestinal homeostasis; however, much more work is needed to fully elucidate their mechanism(s) of action. The observations reported in this study are important because they provide initial evidence for promotion of barrier function via probiotic-derived products. Understanding the mechanism(s) by which microbes and their products beneficially alter host physiology holds much promise for a broad range of conditions, not least as a precursor treatment for highly vulnerable populations such as premature neonates at high risk of necrotizing enterocoilitis.


Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, with respect to sugars, syrups, and molasses (excluding cane or beet sugar) that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, during any fiscal year under certain quantitative import restrictions (tariff-rate quotas), to establish a duty on such articles and other articles if they are subsequently used for the commercial extraction or production of sugar for human consumption, or such articles are used in any manner that circumvents any quota imposed under the Schedule.Prohibits the imposition of a tariff-rate quota on molasses used for animal consumption or for the production of rum in the United States.


In human adipocytes exposed to high glucose and insulin levels, IRS-1 displays altered phosphorylation and may be targeted for degradation


Uranium samples are elecroplated on degassed zone-refined rhenium filaments and overplated with rhenium to permit accurate isotopic analyses at nanogram levels. The method provides an ionization efficiency of 1.5 X 10/sup -4/ for 10 ng at a temperature of 1620 +/- 10 /sup 0/C. Isobaric interferences are less than or equal to dark current of the measuring system, 0.05 counts/s. Accuracies achieved on 10 ng of NBS U-500, a 1/1 235/238 uranium isotopic standard, are 0.05% tsigma at the 95% confidence level. The effects of counting system dead time and chemical bank are discussed.