Based upon the analyzing of the defects existing in the traditional product packaging design solution generation system, this paper propose the new system-PSGS which contains packaging case Agent. The packaging case Agent can self-aware the packaging design requirement of the system, so as to further interact with customer based on the requirement circumstance. It can also self-selecting the most appropriate indexing method which its contains based on the known conditions. Further more, the packaging case Agent can also collaborate with decoration design Agent, structure design Agent which exceed the range of PSGS system to achieve all the tasks of the product packing design.


Speech endpoint detection is one of the key problems in the practical application of speech recognition system. In this paper, speech signal contained chirp is decomposed into several intrinsic mode function (IMF) with the method of ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD). At the same time, it eliminates the modal mix superposition phenomenon which usually comes out in processing speech signal with the algorithm of empirical mode decomposition (EMD). After that, selects IMFs contained major noise through the adaptive algorithm. Finally, the IMFs and speech signal contained chirp are input into the independent component analysis (ICA) and pure voice signal is separated out. The accuracy of speech endpoint detection can be improved in this way. The result shows that the new speech endpoint detection method proposed above is effective, and has strong anti-noises ability, especially suitable for the speech endpoint detection in low SNR.


Background and ObjectivesZZTo find out the causative factors and clinical features of bilateral vestibulopathy in the Korean population. Subjects and MethodZZThe data of 42 patients (mean age: 55.04±18.87 years) with bilateral vestibulopathy were reviewed retrospectively between 1997 and 2009. We carried out a full neurotological examination, electronystagmography, a bithermal caloric test, a rotatory chair test, cranial imaging and laboratory studies. ResultsZZNineteen patients (45.24%) were diagnosed as having secondary bilateral vestibulopathy with causative factors. The most common cause was ototoxic drug (14.29%). Other etiologic causes were labyrinthitis, temporal bone fracture, Meniere's disease, peripheral neuropathy and meningitis/encephalitis. Forty-five percent of all patients had symptoms that lasted less than 1 month, and about 43% of the patients presented with chronic progressive symptoms of over 1 year. ConclusionZZIn about 54% of all patients, we couldn't find any causative factors leading to bilateral vestibulopathy. Because a large subgroup of patients had a history of dizziness over one year, an adequate number of studies on vestibular and cerebellar function are recommended for patients of chronic dizziness to exclude bilateral vestibulopathy. Korean J Otorhinolaryngol-Head Neck Surg 2010;53:71-6 Key WordsZZVestibular neuropathy·Vestibular function test.


Background and aims: Magnesium sulfate has recently gained popularity as an adjuvant to general anesthesia. It acts as a blocker of N-methyl D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist and hence may have a potential role in the prevention of postoperative pain. The aim of the present prospective, randomized, double-blind, and placebocontrolled study was to evaluate the efficacy of injection magnesium sulfate 50 mg/kg as premedication upon postoperative pain and analgesic requirement in patients undergoing elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general anesthesia. Materials and methods: After obtaining institutional ethical committee approval, 100 patients of American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grade 1 and 2 undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general anesthesia were randomly allocated into two groups to receive either 50 mg/kg magnesium sulfate in normal saline to a total volume of 5 mL (group M, n = 50) or 5 mL of normal saline (group S, n = 50) as premedication prior to general anesthesia. The patients were continuously monitored for postoperative pain using visual analog scale (VAS) in the immediate postoperative period and subsequently at 2-hour intervals for the next 24 hours. Injection tramadol 1 mg/kg was given as the rescue analgesic (VAS ≥ 4). Results: Both the groups were comparable with respect to demographic variables. There was no statistically significant difference in the postoperative VAS scores (p = 0.489) and tramadol requirement among the groups (p = 0.38). Conclusion: Magnesium sulfate 50 mg/kg premedication is ineffective in reducing postoperative pain and analgesic requirement in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general anesthesia.


Thermoplastic polymers reinforced by lignocellulosic fibers are increasingly used to replace conventional composites based on carbon or glass fibers. These materials are generally prepared by dispersing the fibers into the polymer matrix by melt mixing in a twin-screw extrusion process. However, during the process, a significant breakage occurs, leading to a reduction in the length, and diameter of the bundles and/or individual fibers. As the mechanical properties of the composite depend, among other, on the fiber morphology, it is important to understand and control the breakage mechanisms during the compounding process. In this paper, we show how the use of a thermomechanical model of twin-screw extrusion coupled with evolution laws of the fiber dimensions makes it possible to calculate the variation in the length and the diameter of the fibers, according to the local values of the flow parameters (shear rate, residence time, temperature, etc.). It is thus possible to define the best processing conditions (screw speed, feed rate, and barrel temperature) or the best screw profile to limit fiber degradation and prepare composites with optimal properties.


Background: The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) has been increasingly employed as a clinical neuropsychological instrument. However, in India the use of WCST is still in a relatively preliminary stage. Aim: To analyse the utility of WCST in the Indian population. Methods: Fifty-three subjects in the age group of 20–50 years, comprising both men and women, were recruited for the study. The normality was established by administering the General Health Questionnaire as a screening instrument to evaluate their health status. The WCST was administered and the norms for various dimensions were established; these were compared with those of normal healthy individuals from the West as per the WCST manual. Results and conclusion: The significance of differences and the experience of administration have been described. The present study found highly significant differences between the means on almost all WCST scores among the Western and the Indian sample, except for the number of correct responses.


Spartina densiflora Brong. (Poaceae) is a species native to South America that is aggressively invading estuarine environments in SW Europe, NW Africa and SW North America. This invader shows a strong adaptability to different environmental conditions, and its populations are found from low to high topographic elevations (Bortolus 2006). S. densiflora has become the most important invasive plant in many estuaries of SW Iberian Peninsula (Gulf of Cádiz), altering the composition of plant communities and interfering in restoration projects. Research needs to be conducted on management methods that will control or eradicate this species, as has been suggested previously for other species of spartina (Hedge et al. 2003). Hellings and Gallager (1992) proposed managed flooding to control the expansion of Phragmites australis in tidal wetlands. Controlled flooding might be used to reduce the faster ramet turnover that S. densiflora shows in exposed low and middle marsh areas (Bortolus 2006), and to provide the open habitat necessary for germination and growth of other native species. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of continuous flooding, on the growth and photosynthetic apparatus (PSII photochemistry) of S. densiflora in order to assess the feasibility of using controlled flooding to eliminate or reduce the competitive nature of this invasive cordgrass. 1 Departamento de Biología Vegetal y Ecología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Sevilla, Apartado 1095, 41080 Sevilla, Spain.


SummaryBlood examination for basophile granules has been carried out in 60 subjects by the light ground and black ground microscopical methods. The subjects were either normal or diseased except for lead poisoning. It has been shown that the normal limit is much higher than generally accepted. This limit is about 500 for 1.000.000 red cells (on light ground examination) and 2.000 (on black ground). In pathological conditions the figures are higher and maxima in haemolytic jaundice.The 500 figure (l. g. ) is not to be considered as a sign of severe lead poisoning.The authors expose the reasons why black ground examination is to be, preferred.


Mitochondria are multifaceted organelles representing the "powerhouse of cells" for their function as bioenergetics and biosynthetic hubs. In addition, they play an essential role in the regulation of innate and adaptive immune responses, including host defenses against viruses, as well as in inflammatory responses 1 . This peculiar role of mitochondria is principally due to the activation of adaptor mitochondrial proteins, known as mitochondrial antiviral signaling (MAVS) proteins. MAVS sense viral RNA and trigger the activation of the transcription factor NF-kB or IFN pathways and autophagy, in order to clear the infection and avoid excessive inflammation, respectively1 .


The gridding computation is a major model in current geoscientific research due to its simplicity in organizing data resources. However, because the gridding computation equally distributes computational resources, it brings redundancy to the computational process and neglects catastrophe points in geoscientific phenomena, which might overlook the important patterns and bring more uncertainties to the research result. To overcome this weakness, this paper proposes to use the spatial point process model in geoscientific research. The spatial point process model is used to model spatial point based geoscientific phenomenon, also is applied to most of the other geoscientific processes(because they can be transformed into spatial point processes). In this regard, the spatial point process is not only a data model, but also an analysis tool for geoscientific problems. Moreover, it provided a new angle of view for observing geoscientific problems. To extract patterns from point process data,the authors propose the frame of multilevel decomposition of spatiotemporal point process. This frame is similar to the basic idea of signal decomposition. We first assume that any point data set is the overlay of an unknown number of homogeneous point processes. Then, the points are transformed into a mixture probability density function of the Kthnearest distance of each point. After that, the optimization method is used to separate clustering points from noise. Finally, the patterns are extracted using the density connectivity mechanism. The theory can be used to any type of point process data. It can be considered as the"Fourier transform"of point process data.


Citation: Asfaw LS, Enquselassie F (2018) Time to Major Adverse Reactions of Anti-Retroviral Drugs and its Predictors among Cohort of Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy in Hosanna Hospital, Hosanna, Ethiopia: Retrospective Cohort Study. Int J Virol AIDS 5:045. doi.org/10.23937/2469567X/1510045 Accepted: December 06, 2018: Published: December 08, 2018 Copyright: © 2018 Asfaw LS, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.


This essay about the changing architecture of Brahmanical shrines in Goa uses archival images to argue that the period from the mid- nineteenth century to the first decades of the twentieth was the heyday of the Goan temple, an architectural type of pronounced heterogeneity. A significant number of temples were rebuilt at this time into this form, along with the definitive establishment of a vocabulary that drew from the European Renaissance and Baroque, as well as the Deccan Sultanates and the Mughals. These developments happened against a backdrop of the rising influence of the dominant Brahmanical castes of Goa, especially the Saraswats. Not only was the control of most temples now formally in their hands, this was also a time when these castes, long the pillars of the Estado da Índia, were consolidating their forces and finding new opportunities for employment and prosperity. These were all surely connected to the propagation of a new and cosmopolitan architecture that reflected their wealth, influence, modern-ness, and also Goan-ness. But by the 1940s, Indian nationalism was in the air, especially amongst these elites, and their temples were found to fall short of the new mood. The result was to reject Europe and embrace the Indo-Saracenic, the 'local' style popular in British India. Thus began the demise of the Goan temple, which would accelerate after the Indian annexation of Goa in 1961.The cosmopolitan architecture that had once flaunted the success and worldliness of its Goan patrons had now become an embarrassment. This essay is about the changing architecture of Brahmanical shrines in Goa, and specifically about the very fleeting popularity of the Goan temple, a barely-recognised architectural type of pronounced heterogeneity. The main issue discussed here is the chronology of the rise and fall of this architectural type, specifically the fact that archival images of the temples from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries indicate that it may have originated in the nineteenth century, spread across Goa by the turn of the century, and began a decline in the 1940s from which it is yet to recover, even as Brahmanical temples proliferate at an exponential rate. This timeline challenges the prevalent idea that this temple architecture originated with the chronology new questions regarding the context and for the probable rise and undoubted popularity of this type the nineteenth century, and also for its decline soon afterwards. here both rise fall context nationalism—the first Goan Goa. garba cud tower


Summary Microbiome research has grown significantly in the last decade, highlighting manifold implications of the microbiota to the host's health. The gut microbiota is connected to the brain through several avenues that allow their interaction. Thus, recent studies have attemtpted to characterize these connections and enhance our understanding of the so called 'gut-brain-axis'. Microglia, the central nervous system resident macrophages, are crucial for the proper development and maintenance of brain functions. As immune cells, they are in the spotlight for relaying signals between the microbiota and cells of the brain. In this review, we contemplate on interactions between the gut microbiota and microglia, and their influence on brain functions in health and disease.


The authors introduced the application of HDPE L5303B in small hollow container,and compared the resin with its domestic counterpart 5300B.The results showed that the relative molecular weight of L5303B was lower than 5300B,its relative molecular weight distribution was broader than 5300B,its relative branching degree was higher than 5300B,its melt flow rate was larger than 5300B and it was easier to be produced than 5300B.The density and degree of crystallization of L5303B were lower than 5300B,so L5303B had lower tensile yield strength and high breaking elongation ratio than 5300B.Experiment of processing application showed that,L5303B can replace 5300B in the production of small hollow container through simple adjust of producing parameter.


Background: Infection complicates traditional joint reconstruction prostheses in up to 7% of cases, with even higher rates in oncologic cases.  Questions / Purposes: The authors ask if prosthetic infection in bone tumor patients is associated with any epidemiologic, treatment, or outcome variables that could influence management of these difficult conditions.  Patients and Methods: Authors retrospectively reviewed 329 consecutive bone tumor (malignant and benign) patients treated with hip or knee tumor resection and subsequent joint reconstruction, comparing infected and non-infected cases. Patients were followed for a mean of 34 months. Results: Of lower extremity tumor reconstructions, 13.1% developed periprosthetic infection, with the knee significantly more involved than the hip (20.5% vs 6.1%). The most common organism cultured was Staphylococcus aureus (33%). The diagnosis of sarcoma was associated with a higher infection rate, and infections were associated with a two-fold increase in number of total surgeries. Adjuvant radiation alone and chemotherapy alone (but not in combination) was associated with statistically increased infection rates. Debridement with fixed implant retention achieved a 70% infection remission rate, as opposed to 62% with two-staged treatment, and 100% with amputation. The implants tended to survive longer than the patients. Conclusions: Infection complicates lower extremity prosthetic joint reconstructions in tumor patients more frequently than in non-tumor arthroplasty cases, with eradication rates lower than that of non-tumor patients. Periprosthetic infection correlates with radiation and chemotherapy administration, as well as an overall increase in revision surgery. Single stage debridement procedures result in infection remission rates comparable to two-stage reconstructions. Level of Evidence Level III, Retrospective comparative study.


The effect of sputter-process-induced nano-voids on transition metal film magnetic properties has been investigated. Sputtering pressure was used as a means to control the sputtering adatom mobility. At high mobility (low pressure), saturation magnetization (M/sub s/*) of the films agrees with the transition metal bulk values, whereas at low mobility M/sub s/* deviates from the bulk values. When measuring saturation moment density (/spl sigma//sub s/), however, this value was not affected by different adatom mobility. X-ray diffraction, Auger spectroscopy and Mossbauer analysis suggest that the M/sub s/* decrease is not an intrinsic change. The discrepancy between M/sub s/* and /spl sigma//sub s/ values is interpreted as a porosity state of the transition metal films (nano-voids). Transmission electron microscopy confirmed that nano-voids had developed during the low mobility sputtering deposition and the ratio of voids to grains increased with decreasing adatom mobility.


This paper shows the procedure for prediction of rolling bearings defect in the motor-fan machinery for fresh air used in Thermo Power Plant REK Bitola, R. Macedonia, the biggest energetic institution for manufacturing the electrical power in the country. Detecting the condition of periodical measuring the vibration condition allows early detection and timely intervention renounced by replacing damaged parts and given as a contribution on this part of the predicting maintenance of the Thermo Power Plant. It will decrease the cost's for maintains the bearings, save many and avoided some possible failure of the bearings and the whole part of the fan unit for fresh air and increase the probability and efficiency of the Thermo Power Plant.


AIM: To compare the immunogenicity of DNA vaccine encoding Mycobacterium tuberculosis Ag85B and MPT64. METHODS: C57/6 mice were intramuscularly immunized with the saline (A), plasmid vector (B), pcDNA/ Ag85B( C ) and pcDNA/MPT64(D) DNA vaccine three times, at 2 weeks' intervals and sacrificed at the 4th week after the final immunization. The specific antibody levels were determined by ELISA and spleen lymphocyte proliferation and secreted levels of IFN γ in response to antigen restimulation were measured respectively by MTT and ELISA method in vaccinated mice. RESULTS: The Ag85B and MPT64 DNA vaccine induced specific antibodies against PPD were determined(1∶80,1∶60)and antigen specific lymphocyte proliferation and the increased IFN γ(Ag85B 1762 ng·L -1 ;MPT64 1523 ng·L -1 ) were justified in immunized mice. CONCLUSION: Ag85B and MPT64 DNA vaccine can induce specific cellular and humoral immunity in immunized mice.


Sarcodontia crocea is a fungus relatively rarely recorded in Central and Northern Europe, where as a parasite it grows mainly on old apple trees. The most recent data on the occurrence of this fungus in Poland are presented in this study. Seven new localities of S. crocea are reported, found in the regions of Mazowsze, Podkarpacie, Ziemia Łodzka, and Żulawy Wiślane in the years 2013–2016. The S. crocea basidiomes were recorded on 12 apple trees. The fungus occurrence on Malus pumila 'Niedzwetzkyana' was documented for the first time. Four beetle species representing four families were found in the studied S. crocea basidiomes. Their feeding on S. crocea has not been mentioned in the literature so far.


We used Common Lisp to build a complex and powerful interactive graphics simulation system called \Prism", for planning radiation therapy. Special features of Common Lisp that we used to advantage include: lexical closures, the Common Lisp Object System (CLOS), and the Common Lisp binding to the X window system (CLX). We use events, indirect invocation and mediators to achieve modularity. Some of the components of Prism are: a contoured volume editor, computed medical images, a rule based function to generate target volumes, and a radiation dose computation function. To achieve fast oating point computation in the latter, we applied both generic and vendor speci c optimizations. The result is a system that is routinely used in the University of Washington Cancer Center, by people with no programming expertise. Our experience shows that Lisp is practical, powerful and e cient for interactive graphics, complex modeling and intensive oating point computations such as radiation dose modeling. Additional work in progress includes a medical image server and an interface to an on-line anatomy atlas.


Quite a few of works about history science were translated into Chinese and then introduced to Chinese people around the year of 1902.From then on,Chinese people learn to explore"civilization"and"history"from the perspective of such fields as art,philosophy,law,religions and customs.Thus,mythology and history share the same origin.But the mythology at that time was different from the Chinese traditional one.Later,mythology split with history because of the influence of the western learning paradigms.Then mythology was rejected but accepted by man of letters and became part of folk literature.For a rethink of history and modern world,"mythology"and"history"need a second thought.Taking them as a helpful approach the local culture traditions and civilization origin,the Chinese culture is explored from its very origin till now,and critical thinking about the Chinese history narration and modern mythology is made.


Accessible online at: http://BioMedNet.com/karger Dear Sir, Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) and stent deployment are practised for vascular access failure in many patients with hemodialysis [1, 2]. Vascular rupture, pseudoaneurysm, and bacteremia have been reported as complications of the PTA procedure [3]. We describe a case in which a balloon catheter was snared by a Palmaz stent placed in the arteriovenous (A-V) fistula. A 75-year-old female with chronic renal failure resulting from chronic glomerulonephritis had been on hemodialysis for 3.5 years. In the past, the patient needed PTA four times for stenosis at the same site of the A-V fistula (cephalic vein) during 20 months. In 1997, a 39-mm Palmaz stent (Johnson & Johnson Interventional System, Warren, N.J., USA) was placed across the stenosis. However, 3 and 8 months later, angiograms showed restenosis within the stent. PTA was successfully performed to dilate the respective stenoses. Thirteen months after the stent deployment, angiogram demonstrated restenoses within the stent and of the proximal site of the vein again (fig. 1). On August 20, 1998, we tried third PTA for the stenoses. First, we inserted a 0.014-inch guide wire (TGVTM, Intella, Sunnyvale, Calif., USA) and confirmed the position of the guide wire in the lumen by angiography. The stenosis within the stent was dilated with a 3.5-mm balloon catheter (New Spiral On PowergripTM, Johnson & Johnson Interventional System) in advance. The balloon catheter and guide wire were easily taken back. Second, we easily inserted a 0.018-inch guide wire (RadifocusTM, Terumo, Tokyo) across the lesion. A 6-mm ballon catheter (SymmetryTM, Boston Scientific, Boston, Mass., USA) smoothly passed through the lesion. Indentation of the balloon was observed at the proximal site when the balloon was inflated (fig. 2). The balloon was deflated completely. However, the balloon catheter was snared by the struts of the stent edge. We could not move the balloon catheter at all. We tried to insert the sheath between the balloon and struts, but could not. Next, we inserted snare catheters (Amplatz 'Goose Neck' SnareTM, Microvena, White Bear Lake, Minn., USA) from proximal and distal sites. However, we could not move the balloon catheter in any direction with the snare catheters at all (fig. 3). At last, the balloon catheter could escape from the snare of the stent by using a retrieval basket (Intravascular Retriever SetsTM, Cook, Bloomington, Ind., USA) and was taken back into the sheath (fig. 4). Fortunately, no damage to the A-V fistula or stent was observed. Again, PTA was successfully performed. In our case, after the initial dilation, a crack might have occurred inside the lumen. Struts might protrude into the lumen via the crack. The guide wire used for the initial dilation should not be exchanged during any procedures. The position of the guide wire within a stent should be examined visually or with an angiogram in different projections. If unnatural deviation of the guide wire within the stent is observed, the guide wire may cross the struts of the stent.


In order to evaluate the effect of adjuvant chemotherapy and surgical staging in early
ovarian cancer patients, the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of
Cancer - Gynecologic Cancer Group (EORTC-GCG) performed the Adjuvant ChemoTherapy
in Ovarian Neoplasm (ACTION) trial (EORTC trial 55904). The ACTION trial
was a randomized study on the role of platinum containing adjuvant chemotherapy in
early ovarian cancer patients with FIGO stages Ia and Ib (grade II-III) and stages Ic and
IIa (grade I-III) and all stages Ia-IIa clear cell carcinoma after surgery. Randomization
between platinum containing chemotherapy and no adjuvant treatment took place after
surgical staging and patients randomized to receive platinum based chemotherapy were
treated within four weeks after surgical treatment for at least four consecutive courses.
Because there still exist a lot of discussion and questions about the treatment and
prognosis of patients with early ovarian cancer, we further examined the surgical staging
categories and the different subgroups in order to get some answers on these subjects.
In chapter 2 the results of the first analysis of the ACTION trial are described between
the adjuvant chemotherapy arm and the no treatment arm (observation arm) on the
role of platinum-based chemotherapy on disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival
(OS). Furthermore, analyses were performed in optimally staged patients versus nonoptimally
staged patients.
A review of the treatment modalities and recent findings in early ovarian cancer patients
is given in chapter 3.
The clinical characteristics and response to platinum-based chemotherapy in patients
with clear cell carcinoma (CCC) versus serous adenocarcinoma (SAC) randomized in
the ACTION trial are described in chapter 4.
Early ovarian cancer patients are often incompletely staged during their initial surgery.
In chapter 5 we discuss the possible reasons for inadequately staging early ovarian cancer
patients.
The effect of lymph node sampling and taking of blind biopsies as part of the surgical
staging procedure for early ovarian cancer on DFS and OS in patients who received no
adjuvant chemotherapy are analysed in chapter 6.In chapter 7 the prognostic value of the FIGO Ic substages including capsule rupturing,
ascites containing malignant cells, surface tumor and positive peritoneal fluid in relation
to disease-free and overall survival are described.
Finally we show the long term results of the patients randomized in the ACTION trial
in chapter 8.


Modification alloy is an important part of the metallurgical process, and this also applies, of course, for aluminum alloys, particularly for Al-Si (silumins). As a modification of the material we can use the modification using the selected element or heat treatment of alloys, or a combination of both processes. One of the elements that it is possible to modify the alloy of Al-Si used is antimony (Sb). The paper examines the possible effect of the modification that element and heat treatment on the final structure of the alloy AlSi9CuMnNi. In the experiments were made three castings from the alloy AlSi9CuMnNi without modification, three castings with the modification and without heat treatment, three castings with modification and without heat treatment, and three castings with modification and heat treatment too. The described experiment and analysis are part of extensive research, focusing on a Faculty of Production Technology and Management, J. E. Purkyne University in Usti nad Labem.


Dynamic analysis of many mechanical systems is often involved with contacts among bodies. This paper presents an eencient and general contact search algorithm for rnultibody dynamics in the context of the compliance contact model. Many conventional collision detection algorithms are basecl on the absolute coordinate systern. This paper proposes to use the relative coordinate system in detecting a contact, A boundary box ofa defense surface geometry is divided into many blocks, A contact on the body of a all geometric the the yariables to the are constant, with contact the contact an


A new recording technique for the electroretinogram is used to study the distribution of pattern electroretinogram components within the central 23° of the visual field. The main focus is on the first slice of the second order binary kernel (response to pattern reversal between consecutive stimulus frames). Its topography shows great nasal/temporal asymmetry in amplitude as well as wave form within the central 15°. The asymmetry is not seen in the local luminance response and there is no known anatomical or histological correlate. A two component hypothesis provides a plausible explanation. Both components have a relatively symmetrical distribution in amplitude and wave shape. However, the second component shows increased latencies that correlate with the length of the fiber bundle to the optic nerve head. This finding suggests a signal source in the area where myelination begins. The latency shifts are attributed to propagation delays in the unmyelinated nerve fiber layer. This hypothesis finds further support in the topographies of the two components. While the first component can be attributed to nonlinearities of the luminance response in the outer retinal layers, the second component shows further enhancement of the central response due to the increase in the ganglion cell to receptor ratio.


This paper introduces the successful application of pre-cut top medium-length hole pillar method to the large and inclining ore-body in the western section of Xianglushan mining region.Key technologies such as stope structure,engineering layout and construction skills,are illustrated by explaining the technological and construction bottlenecks.Treatment measures are put forward.


Title: A review on perception-action relations in infancy. Abstract: Convergences and divergences in theories that have been a referent in the study of the relations between perception and action, like Piaget's and Gibson's, are discussed. From this traditional view, ulterior interpretations are considered, especially the ones related to the neurologi- cal basis of visual perceptual and action pathways and approaches that question the functional independence of both processes putting emphasis on the dynamic relation between both of them.


The study examined the Determinants of income diversification among Small scale Sorghum farmers in Kano State, Nigeria. The specific objectives were to describe the socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents; determine the socioeconomic factors that influences the amount of income of the respondents. Identify the income diversification strategies adopted by the sorghum farmers. Multistage sampling technique was used to select the respondents for the study. The analytical tools used for the study includes descriptive statistics, Multiple regression model. The descriptive result revealed that majority of the sorghum farmers were male and they are married, 20.8% had primary education and 15.8% had secondary education, while others had Quranic education . The regression result reveals that age, education, household size and farming experience were having influence on the farmer's income. The coping strategy adopted by the farmers in the study area includes trading which was rank the first with 62.5%, Civil service second with 43.3%, tailoring, fishing, irrigation and animal fattening 12.5%, 8.33%, 6.67% and 4.17% respectively. It was recommended that the establishment of inputs supply center in strategic places in the study area  should be strengthen with the view to make the improve sorghum seeds and other farm inputs readily accessible. Provision of a better access to credit facilities through strengthening Bank of Agriculture by policy makers to enable the farmers to better of their production and diversify.


The deformation mechanisms responsible for the strength and ductility of nanostructured Cu and Cu–Al alloys processed by high pressure torsion have been analyzed in frames of a model of elastic–plastic medium and using the available experimental data. The income of the Peierls strength, as well as solid solution hardening, dislocation hardening, twinning hardening, taking into account possible annihilation processes has been estimated. It was shown that in the Cu–5 at.% Al alloy annihilation processes contribute to the maintenance of deformation. The material is hardened by the accumulation of dislocations at the twin boundaries, postponing the moment of reaching the ultimate strength. In the Cu–16 at.% Al alloy processes of the annihilation are limited. As a result, the possibility of further deformation is limited and the degree of homogeneous deformation decreases in comparison with the case of the Cu–5 at.% Al alloy. Significantly increased concentration of deformation vacancies contributes to the destruction of the former alloy as well.


Opacity and attack detectability are important properties for any system as they allow the states to remain private and malicious attacks to be detected, respectively. In this paper, we show that a fundamental trade-off exists between these properties for a linear dynamical system, in the sense that one cannot have an opaque system without making it vulnerable to undetectable attacks. We first characterize the opacity conditions for the system in terms of its weakly unobservable subspace (WUS) and show that the number of opaque states is proportional to the size of the WUS. Further, we establish conditions under which increasing the opaque sets also increases the set of undetectable attacks. This highlights a fundamental trade-off between security and privacy. We demonstrate our results on a team of delivery UAVs.


objective To evaluate the anatomic classification of the internal ring in children with indirect inguinal hernia by laparoscopy and to select the proper operation according to the classification.Methods There were consecutive 374 patients undergoing laparoscopic herniorrhaphy in our hospital from July 2005 to December 2006 and their clinical date was reviewed retrospectively.Results 374 cases (486 inguinal henia) were classified as follows:type 1,a huge open internal ring;type 2,a normal internal ring;type 3,a concealed internal ring.The number of type 1,2 and 3 was 60,320 and 106.Postoperative follow-up from 6 months to 24 months,1(1/4{14,0.23%) case in type 3 had recurred,1 case was missed on the contralateral hernia.Conclusions The internal ring in children with indirect inguinal hernia could be classified into different types according to their laparoscopic features.The classification system is advantageous to select the suitable Iaparoscopic procedure and reduce the recurrence incidence.


The postcollisional potassic and ultrapotassic rocks have been found recently in southern Tibetan plateau,which are important clues in studying the deep processes since India collided with Asia.The volcanic rocks located in the east bank of Zabuye salt lake in western Lhasa terrane were dated to be ~16 Ma,with an area of ~ 400 km2.The volcano erupted in ~0.45 Ma with an eruption rate of 0.26×10-3km3/year.Three types of rock were found in the Zabuye volcanics.Type one(~16 Ma) are ultrapotassic trachyan-desite,with lower SiO2(55%-58%),high Fe2O3,MgO,and TiO2.Type two(~27 Ma) are shoshonitic phonolite and trachyte.Typethree are shoshonitic and ultrapotassic trachyte(SiO2=59%-64%) and rhyolites(SiO2=69%),with high Sr lower Y adakite-affinity.The rocks,as a whole,show enrichment of light rare earth elements(REEs) and large ion lithosphile elements(LILE),and are low in some high field strength elements(HFSEs).The Sr-Nd-Pb-O isotopic composition of the Zabuye rocks differed from the typical ultrapotassic rocks in southern Tibet.Instead,they show similar nature to the rocks from the northern Tibet geochemical province.The Zabuye rocks imply that,they originated from partial melting of different depth of the lithospheric mantle and thickened lower crust that caused by the thinning process in southern Tibet.


India is contesting elections for the non-permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for a two-year term, 2011–12. If elected, it will return to the Security Council after a gap of 18 years. During this long hiatus, the geopolitical environment in the world has changed dramatically. As a member of the UNSC, India will be called upon to deliberate over a host of new issues and threats to international security. This in itself will be a challenge for the diplomats as Indian foreign policy pronouncements usually eschew expressing opinion on issues not directly related to India's concerns. India is regarded as an emerging power thanks to its high growth rate of over eight per cent in the last few years and the opening of its market. The tag of an emerging and rising power also brings with it a host of new challenges in the foreign policy arena. The primary global challenge, including for India, is to avoid an economic recession. The prospect of a double dip economic slowdown is staring at the world. In a disturbing development, Mozambique has witnessed food riots due to rising global food prices. India will need to ensure that its economic policies are prudent and sustainable in the long run. Another round of global economic woes will affect India adversely. The most dramatic geopolitical change in recent times has been the emergence of China as the second largest economy in the world, overtaking Japan. Its economic rise has been accompanied by acceleration in its military modernisation and greater assertiveness in its foreign policy. Its presence and influence is becoming noticeable in far flung areas, in the Indian Ocean, in Africa, in Latin America and even in the Arctic. There are fresh question marks on the peaceful nature of its rise. China is India's largest neighbour and the latter is, therefore, naturally concerned about the intentions of a rising China. As China rises, the US, Europe and Japan, India's most important economic partners, are economically stagnating. The western countries are facing the challenge of dealing with an ever assertive China and also of stimulating their own stagnating economies. The crippling debt crisis in Greece has raised questions about the financial stability of many members of the Euro zone area. Economic decline of the West will have an adverse impact on India's trade and economic growth, even though India has tried to diversify its relations in recent years. India has to craft its foreign policy for the coming years in an uncertain international environment, which is making an uneasy transition to a multipolar world. The


The energetics of the key reactions in the thermal decomposition of the azaaromatic molecules pyridine, pyrimidine, pyrazine and pyridazine have been investigated using ab initio quantum-chemical techniques. Two distinct mechanisms are considered: (a) intramolecular rearrangement where a bicyclic, Dewar isomer is formed as an intermediate, followed by its fission, producing acetylene and hydrogen cyanide, and (b) the formation of azyl radicals in a CH bond fission initiation reaction followed by decomposition as well as hydrogen abstraction reactions. The calculated energetics of the free radical mechanism are found to be consistent with the results of earlier experimental studies. The estimates of the critical energies associated with the intramolecular Dewar mechanism are, however, such as to rule it out as a viable alternative. A detailed ab initio study of the benzene → Dewar benzene rearrangement is also reported.


This paper deals with the existence and uniqueness of solutions for a new class of coupled systems of Hilfer fractional pantograph differential equations with nonlocal integral boundary conditions. First of all, we are going to give some definitions that are necessary for the understanding of the manuscript; second of all, we are going to prove our main results using the fixed point theorems, namely, Banach's contraction principle and Krasnoselskii's fixed point theorem; in the end, we are giving two examples to illustrate our results.


The proliferation and success of popular factual formats, the process of digitalization, and the emergence of interactive technologies have transformed the global television landscape. Content is now being produced, delivered, and consumed in new ways. Capitalizing on these changes are a set of complex multi-platform media events that deliver a range of content across various platforms, utilizing television, the Internet, mobile phones, and digital and interactive screen services. This paper will explore the ways in which these examples have changed the way we think about television, live broadcasting, the relationship between various technologies and platforms, and, most importantly, about the way we conceptualize audiences.


A N 11-YEAR-OLD white girl was brought to the emergency department by her parents with the complaint of swelling in her neck, which she had noticed while dressing that morning. She otherwise felt perfectly well and denied chills or fever and had no weight loss, symptoms of upper respiratory infection, breathing complaints, or neck pain. Her pediatrician had seen her about 3 weeks earlier for symptoms of upper respiratory infection, which had been treated with antibiotics and had resolved. Her medical history was otherwise unremarkable. She had no history of travel or tobacco use. She did have 2 grown cats but denied scratches. Her family history was remarkable for a maternal aunt with Hodgkin lymphoma. In the emergency department, she was comfortably supine on the gurney and in no evidence of distress. Her physical examination revealed no abnormalities other than a large mass in the left lower border of the sternocleidomastoid muscle, spanning levels 3 and 4. The inferior border of the mass could not be palpated owing to extension below the clavicle. A chest x-ray film revealed right tracheal deviation (Figure 1), and a computed tomogram of the neck and chest showed a large heterogeneous mass extending into the mediastinum, with marked compression of the trachea (Figure 2). Incisional biopsy of the cervical component of the mass was performed, and the histologic features are shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4). What is your diagnosis?


Abstract In a group of 24 related calcareous soils, derived from Jurassic oolitic limestone, there was marked variability (13‐fold) in phosphate buffering when expressed as the maximum buffer capacity. This variability was most closely related to the iron content and pH of the soils, and these together accounted for 72% of the variance. This percentage was not increased by including CaC03 content or organic matter, which were also correlated with the maximum buffer capacity. A high correlation with specific surface area of CaCO3 was probably an indirect effect due to the high correlation between this variable and the Fe and pH of the soils. The equilibrium buffer capacity, which is the traditional measure of phosphate buffering, was less variable but quite unrelated to all the soil properties measured except the soil surface area. However the maximum buffer capacity and quantity of adsorbed P together accounted for 63% of the variance in this parameter.


Electrochemical capacitive performance of commercial activated carbon fiber felt(ACFC) used directly as electrode for supercapacitor in 6 mol/L KOH electrolyte was studied.The BET specific surface area of ACFC was 2 066 m2/g with a nitrogen content of 1.48%.The effect of electric double layer capacitance produced by its high specific surface area and the pseudo-capacitance by the nitrogen atom made the specific capacitance of ACFC reach to 194 F/g at the current of 50 mA/g.The high current performance of ACFC was fine due to the open pore structure of fiber and no binder adding in the felt electrode.As the current increased to 20 A/g,the specific capacitance remained 118 F/g.


The paper introduces the necessary of adapting data warehousing and self-editing programming dimension conversion in Guangdong Telecom public IC payphone dynamic traffic analysis system and design contents of data warehousing including the improvement has been made in data warehousing model, model design, products selection, data generation and mining et al.


In order to analyze the effects of a widespread use of nonlinear appliances harmonic measurements are done on specific examples like compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) and photovoltaic (PV) inverters. The results of the investigation determine requirements on nonlinear models, which are necessary to consider the impact of mass implementation. Particularly, the voltage and operating point dependency of the harmonic currents are taken into account. Furthermore, this paper provides an overview of existing nonlinear models and emphasizes their advantages and disadvantages. Thereby, the main focus is on models, which uses a measurement based approach.


Tri(1-cyclohepta-2, 4, 6-trienyl)phosphane, P(C7H7)3 (1) ([P] when coordinated to a metal) stabilizes platinum(II) (2) and palladium(II) dihalides (3) as [P]MX2 with X = Cl (a), Br (b) and I (c). The phosphane coordinates to the metal as a chelate ligand via both phosphorus and the central η2-C=C bond of one of the cyclohepta-2, 4, 6-trienyl rings. The complexes were prepared by various routes, mainly by the reaction of (cod)MCl2 (cod = cycloocta-1, 5-diene) with 1 to give the chlorides 2a and 3a, which then could be converted into the bromides 2b, 3b or the iodides 2c, 3c by reaction with NaBr or NaI, respectively. The molecular structure of 2c was determined by X-ray analysis. Treatment of 2a and 3a with sodium or potassium salts of several pseudohalides afforded the complexes [P]MX22d (NCO/NCO), 2e1 (NCS/SCN), 2e1'(SCN/NCS), 2f2 (SeCN/SeCN), 3f1(NCSe/SeCN), 2g and 3g (X = N3). Attempts failed to synthesize the cyanides 2h and 3h by the same route. By using an excess of trimethylsilyl cyanide in the reaction with 2a in THF solution, the complex trans-{[(C7H7)3P]2Pt(CN)2} (4h) was obtained instead of 2h. The analogous complexes trans-{[(C7H7)3P]2MX2} with M = Pt (4) and Pd (5) for X = Cl (a), Br (b), I (c) could be prepared from the reaction of the corresponding tetrahalogenometallates and 1 (in the case of 5c from PdI2 and 1). In contrast to 4h, the complexes 4a-c and 5a-c were found to be labile in solution with respect to partial loss of the phosphane 1 and rearrangement into 2a-c and 3a-c, respectively. All compounds were characterized by IR spectroscopy and by multinuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H, 13C, 31P, 77Se and 195Pt NMR). The ligand [P] in 2 and 3 is fluxional with regard to coordination of the C7H7 rings to the metal.


Traditional Japanese wooden buildings are designed on the basis of a systematised building system. A typical systematised method called "kiwari" sets parametric/algorithmic rules that determine the dimensions and positions of components. These methods, which facilitate traditional wooden architecture, have cultural value. In this work, the authors report a representation method that is aimed at creating a three-dimensional model and a network-based representation of the traditional Japanese wooden building system. A systematised method that enables the construction of a quadruped gate using the traditional Japanese wooden building system is analysed through algorithm creation and visualisation of relations from the variables of the instances by the proposed system.


Sanitary and Phytosanitary(SPS)measures are those technical measures which closely linked with risk.Since the implementation of SPS Agreement from 1995,SPS measures or barriers have become the main obstacle of Chinese poultry export.This paper analyzes the theatrical effects of SPS measures on Chinese poultry export by adopting economical partial equilibrium.It concludes that the effect of SPS in short time is quantity control effect,whereas in long term are trade limitation(ban)and trade transfer.Then this paper uses cases to test the effect of SPS measures.To combat the negative effects,it states that it strength the constructing of non-disease zone,strictly control veterinary use and residual monitor and adopt the HACCP system to promote China's SPS level to get higher benefit exchanged by high compliance cost.


Physiological and biochemical changes of Scylla serrata under low temperature condition play an important role in understanding the process of low temperature adaptation.In this study,Superoxi de dismutase(SOD),Catalase(CAT) and Glutathione peroxidase(GPX) activity,malondialdehyde(MDA) content,4 ATPase(Na~(+),K~(+)-ATPase,Mg~(2+)-ATPase,Ca~(2+)-ATPase and Ca~(2+),Mg~(2+)-ATPase) activity,as well as fatty acid composition of cell membrane in gill of S.serrata under low temperature acclimation,were determined by biochemistry methods.The results showed that,for three acclimation temperatures,the activity of antioxidant enzymes(SOD,CAT and GPX) increased gradually with decrease of acclimation temperature.Compared with the control group(27℃),SOD activity increased significantly at 5℃ and 10℃(p0.01);CAT activity was higher significantly than that at any of acclimation temperature(p0.01 or p0.05);GPX activity only increased significantly at 5℃(p0.01).MDA content increased at low temperature,but increased significantly only at 5℃(p0.01).4 ATPase activities in gill also increased gradually with the decrease of the acclimation temperature,and enzyme activity was higher significantly at 5℃and 10℃ than that at 27℃.For the content of fatty acids C18:0,C18:1,C18:2,C18:3,C20:5 and C22:6 in gill cell membrane under low temperature acclimation,there was the significant difference(p0.01 or p0.05) between the acclimation group and the control.Saturation index ∑SFA/∑UFA in gill under low temperature acclimation significantly decreased(p0.01,or p0.05).The increase of enzyme activity under low temperature indicated that there were obvious compensation effects on temperature in gills of S.serrata,which were the positive responds to adapt to the low temperature.The increment of MDA was caused by oxidant stress resulted from the accumulation of reactive oxygen species.The decrease of fatty acid saturation index was necessary for gill cell membrane to maintain and perform normal physiological function.


The simplest definition of migration is living things and people moving or relocating from one place to another. If migration takes place within the borders of a country, then it is called internal migration; if it crosses a country's border, it is called external or international migration. Migration can occur owing to social, economic, political, cultural, and ethnic reasons. Internal migration began with modernization in agriculture and industrialization activities after the Second World War in Turkey. Migration first occured from village to city, then from smalland medium-sized cities to large cities. In the 1990s, the shape of a new migration emerged: from cities to villages. Internal migration has caused social changes in both city and village settlements. Along with these changes, a number of problems emerged, especially in those of cities, and these problems exist


Equilibration and postural stability must be taken into account in view of shooting accuracy. Considering the distribution of masses and weight (rifle in relation to the athlete) biathletes must therefore try to compensate and adapt their posture to the weight of the rifle. This postural accomodation generates an important muscular constraint which can perturb the stability of the shooter. The aim of the study was to conceive and realise a new lighter structure of barrel. The barrel must preserve some mechanical properties equivalent to the structure which is made of steel. The substitution of part of the steel with a draping of carbon-carbon has anabled us to lighten the barrel, to bring the centre of mass of the rifle nearer the centre of gravity of the biathlete and to procure a better stability while standing shooting.


A NEW TWIST ON REMEDIES: JUDICIAL ASSIGNMENT OF BAD FAITH CLAIMS

Legal remedy is the means by which a court of law enforces a right. The theory of legal remedies can take many different forms in order to ensure that the right has value. When a party obtains a judgment, that party should be entitled to pursue a method to collect that judgment. The right to satisfaction through assignment is a long held legal concept. Judicial involuntary assignment of bad faith claims provides a needed remedy to the aggrieved third party who has suffered first at the hands of the tortfeasor, and second, by enduring a trial and obtaining a judgment that is uncollectable against the first party defendant. Permitting the third party plaintiff to seek satisfaction of a judgment through assignment does not offend principles of equity and justice. Rather, allowing such an action furthers these goals. There are several steps along the way for a third party to pursue a judicial assignment however. This article discusses bad faith claims generally, the concept of assignment, and idea of permitting judicial assignment of claims pursuant to various states' debtor/creditor statutes, and concluding that involuntary judicial assignment of bad faith claims is an important tool available to injured third parties in civil litigation.


Melatonin is an antioxidant that is widely distributed in plants and animals. It is a conservative molecule. In early studies, scientists often used isolation and identification techniques to observe whether the endogenous melatonin cycle in plants was related to the external photoperiod, plant growth, and development cycles, including seed germination, plant rooting, and floral induction. With the development of isolation and identification technology, there is ample evidence that plants possess a variety of melatonin-synthesis pathways. The comprehensive application of molecular biology, genomics, and computational biology has also led to a comprehensive understanding of the physiological functions of plant melatonin. In this paper, we not only highlight the candidate genes from Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa that might be contributing to increasing plant endogenous melatonin but also elucidate and characterize the role of melatonin in plant growth and development in response to biotic and abiotic stresses.


Results are presented of perception of the people living with HIV and AIDS regarding home based care in Malawi. The study was conducted in Lilongwe from April to May, 2009. The participants were people living with HIV and AIDS and were drawn from 3 organizations that deal with people living with HIV and AIDS. These organizations were: Light House, National Association for People Living with HIV and AIDS in Malawi and Lilongwe Diocese. Purposive sampling technique was used to choose people living with HIV and AIDS who had rich experience on home based care. Data was collected through in-depth interviews with the participants using an open ended interview guide. Data saturation was reached when in-depth interviews were conducted with 15 people that were living with HIV and AIDS. Qualitative data was analyzed using ATLAS ti5.0. The participants reported that most of the home based care was rendered by close relatives who were mostly immediate family members such as spouses, daughters, mothers, sisters and brothers. The perception of the participants was that health care workers and volunteers only complemented the care provided by the close family members weekly or fortnightly. They also complained that the biggest challenge with home based care was stigma and discrimination by other community members and distant relatives. They further complained that most care providers lacked knowledge and resources for home based care. It is therefore recommended that the various stakeholders in Malawi such as government, community volunteers and non-governmental organizations support and train the home based care givers


An important component of current models for interstellar and circumstellar evolution is the infrared (IR)spectral data collected from stellar outflows around oxygen-rich stars and from the general interstellar medium [1]. IR spectra from these celestial bodies are usually interpreted as showing the general properties of sub-micron sized silicate grains [2]. Two major features at 10 and 20 microns are reasonably attributed to amorphous olivine or pyroxene (e.g. Mg2Si04 or MgSi03) on the basis of comparisons with natural standards and vapor condensed silicates [3-6]. In an attempt to define crystallisation rates for spectrally amorphous condensates, Nuth and Donn [5] annealed experimentally produced amorphous magnesium silicate smokes at 1000K. On analysing these smokes at various annealing times, Nuth and Donn [5] showed that changes in crystallinity measured by bulk X-ray diffraction occured at longer annealing times (days) than changes measured by IR spectra (a few hours). To better define the onset of crystallinity in these magnesium silicates, we have examined each annealed product using a JEOL 1OOCX analytical electron microscope (AEM). In addition, the development of chemical diversity with annealing has been monitored using energy dispersive spectroscopy of individual grains from areas <20nm in diameter. Furthermore, the crystallisation kinetics of these smokes under ambient, room temperature conditions have been examined using bulk and fourier transform infrared (FTIR)spectra.


Background: Waist circumference (WC) measurement has been shown to perform as well as or better than body mass index (BMI) in identifying women at risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD). The goal of this study was to determine the relationship between WC and the classic biomarkers of risk in healthy women. Methods: Nondiabetic, non-obese, middle-aged women were categorized by WC quartiles. The correlation of WC to fasting plasma glucose (FPG), A1c, lipid profile, C-reactive protein (CRP) and white blood cell count (WBC) was examined. Results: Waist circumference correlated with triglycerides, CRP, cholesterol/HDL, non-HDL, LDL, and glucose, and inversely with HDL (r = 0.465, 0.414, 0.321, 0.299, 0.267, 0.279, 0.266, respectively; P = 0.000 for all), but not A1c or WBC. There was a trend of increasing glucose, LDL, and CRP with increasing WC. Quartile 4 showed the highest glucose, CRP, LDL, triglycerides, cholesterol/HDL ratio, and non-HDL. Conclusion: Increasing WC correlates with several biomarkers of risk for diabetes and CVD in healthy women.


. We give some remarks on the recent paper [ J. Math. Inequal. 13 (4) (2019), 1235– 1244]. Some misleading conclusions of their stability results are carefully discussed and corrected. Moreover, we reestablish their results with a more general assumption and a stronger conclusion. Mathematics


The choroid is a vascular plexus located between the retina and the sclera, providing oxygen and nourishment to the outer layers of the retina. Thickness changes in the choroid are of importance in the pathophysiology of various ocular diseases such as glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and others. Our previous choroidal layer segmentation method of 3D macular optical coherence tomography (OCT) scans using choroidal vessel segmentation tended to segment thinner choroidal layers than ground truths, requiring long running time and much memory. To overcome these drawbacks, we introduce a new, fast, and memory-efficient multiresolution LOGISMOS (layered optimal graph image segmentation for multiple objects and surfaces) method. The key idea of the method is to consequently segment the choroidal layer in the higher resolution sub-OCT image volume constrained by the layer segmented in the lower resolution OCT image volume to reduce the size of columns for graph search. Generally, it outperformed our previous method and showed a similar performance to the inter-observer variability between 2 experts.


Pattern mining is a popular issue in biological sequence analysis. In this paper, we propose new definitions related to the pattern frequency, where gaps are mined instead of specified. We develop algorithm with polynomial complexities. Patterns can grow from both sides, and Apriori property holds. Some interesting biological patterns are mined by our algorithm.


Abstract : Data on the plutonium and uranium content of biological and physical samples, collected and isolated from non-nuclear detonations of plutonium bearing weapons under various storage situations, are presented. A precision tracer (Pu-236) procedure was developed for the rapid analysis of the plutonium, which was nonuniformly distributed in these samples. A fluorimetric procedure was developed for the rapid analysis of uranium. (Author)


Classes, as a critical teaching-learning process in the school culture, remain, essentially and for the most part, without fundamental changes, following the sequence: presentation of the contents by the teacher, and implementation of these contents in a very theoretical way (highly based on the resolution of exercises, either through worksheets and manuals or through the preparation of written assignments, with or without their oral presentation). This position paper offers another teaching model that reverses this sequence, starting from the student's autonomous work and concluding in the materialisation of the knowledge and skills attained, always with the teacher's support – the flipped teaching method. Through a collection and selection of articles on this topic, concurrently with the authors' experience in training in higher education, and also in the monitoring of students' pedagogical internships, the authors describe and analyse flipped teaching, as well as its limitations and challenges. The results of this analysis suggested that flipped teaching has a high potential in student learning regarding the development and attainment, by them, of specific and transversal competences necessary for the 21st century, in terms of their employability, entrepreneurship, innovation, literacy and contribution to sustainable development.


In this paper we propose an image enhancement technique based on histogram specification method over local overlapping regions referred as Local Histogram Specification. First, both reference and original images are splitted into local regions that each overlaps half of its adjacent regions and general histogram specification method is used between corresponding local regions of reference and original image. However it produces noticeable boundary effects. Linear weighted image blending method is used to reduce this effect in order to make seamless image and we also proposed new technique dealing with over-enhanced contrast areas. We satisfied with our experimental results that showed better enhancement accuracy and less noise amplifications compared to other well-known image enhancement methods. We conclude that the proposed method is well suited for motion detection systems as a responsible part to overcome sudden illumination changes.


In this article, a 3-bit Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) based metasurface is implemented for 3.5 GHz sub-6 GHz applications. The unitcell consists of a modified square loop Frequency Selective Surface (FSS) printed on top of a 1 mm thin low-loss grounded dielectric substrate. Two vias are introduced at the centre of the square patch for the reflection phase optimization and HF tunable varactor diodes whose junction capacitance strongly influences the applied voltage. A total of eight different phase states were shown from -180° to 135° insteps of 45°, and the process behind the information encoding for 5G wireless applications is detailed. The angular stability of the reflection phase is investigated for different oblique incidences, and a considerably stable response is observed. Simulated surface current patterns are visualized at resonant frequency for understanding reflection phenomena. The design is compact with a periodicity of 0.058λL×0.058λLand possesses a low-profile thickness of 0.012λL. Authors believe this design has many beneficial features like 3-bit information encoding, angular stability, and compact architecture that play key roles in the RIS design in real-time 5G wireless applications.


Two new combinations, Maylenus rothiana (Lawson) Bennet & Sahni and M. wallichii (G. Don). Bennet & Sahni, have been proposed here for the plants commonly known by the names Gymnosporia rothiana Lawson and G. wallichiana Lawson in India Floras. Also a new name, Maytenus kurzii Bennet & Sahni,is proposed for Moytenus thomsonii (Kurz) Raju & Babu because of the earlier name M. thompsonii Fosberg.


216 Background: The University of Miami's Phase I Program is South Florida's only academic Phase I center dedicated to drug development for cancer patients. On April 2018, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center opened the Phase I/Experimental Therapeutics (ET) Clinic dedicated to research patients enrolled in Phase I clinical trials and established a multi-disciplinary care team. As Phase I clinical trials are evolving, it is necessary to improve on the patient experience as it pertains to research care. Methods: Using a Likert-type scale, dual language survey (English and Spanish), patients were asked 11 questions about the Phase I/ET Clinic visit ranging from the beginning of their Phase I clinical trial enrollment all the way to provider care during the visit. The survey was conducted from January 2019-April 2019 through a secure, HIPAA compliant online Research Electronic Data Capture software (REDCap). Results: Of the 30 patients that were approached, 26 responded (Renal 26.9%, Myelofibrosis 19.2%, Bladder 15.4%, Head and Neck 7.7%, Acute Myeloid Leukemia 15.4%, Myelodysplastic Syndrome 7.7%, and Other 7.7%). Our results found that 100% of research patients would recommend a Phase I clinical trial to another participant. In addition, 96.2% of patients felt there was continuation of their care through their clinical trial process. As a note, 19.2% of patients positively recognized a Phase I provider including Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and physicians. Of these 19.2% of patients, 50% praised an NP in the free text area of the survey. Lastly, 42.3% of patients positively mentioned the team support received in the Phase I Clinic in the free text area of the survey. Conclusions: Our conclusion based on survey results show that having committed providers and clinic space for research patients on a Phase I clinical trial provided an overall positive and personalized experience. Additionally, the survey reflects on how patients are more inclined to refer to a clinical trial due to a good experience. Future directions should look at developing a similar clinic for all phases of research considering the exceptional patient feedback emphasizing on provider care.


Introduction: Female genital mutilation (FGM) refers to removing female genitalia for no medical reason. FGM is still prevalent and practiced in traditional societies like the Kurdistan region of Iraq. It is associated with numerous negative psychological and physical consequences. The present study was an investigation into the lived experiences of Kurdish women and girls who have undergone FGM to figure out their sexual disorders. Methods: Using Van Manen's (1990) hermeneutic phenomenological method, a qualitative study was conducted on 20 Iraqi-Kurdish circumcised women in Mala Afandi Health center in Erbil city from July 2021 to November 2021. Required data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with the women. Data analysis was conducted through the six methodological activities proposed by Van Manen, and relevant themes were extracted. Based on the analysis of the transcriptions of the interviews, the women stated that they were circumcised because of tradition and religion. This theme was labelled as "victims of tradition and religion". They also revealed their failure to enjoy their sexual intercourses with their husbands, which was labelled as "sexual dysfunction and disinterest". Finally, they referred about the pain and the mental and emotional effects of FGM, which was labelled as "physical and psychological trauma".


When observing the Earth from above at night,it is clear that the human settlement and major economic regions emit glorious light.At cloud-free nights,some remote sensing satellites can record visible radiance source,including city light,fishing boat light and fire,and these nighttime cloud-free images are remotely sensed nighttime light images.Different from daytime remote sensing,nighttime light remote sensing provides a unique perspective on human social activities,thus it has been widely used for spatial data mining of socioeconomic domains.Historically,researches on nighttime light remote sensing mostly focus on urban land cover and urban expansion mapping using DMSP/OLS imagery,but the nighttime light images are not the unique remote sensing source to do these works.Through decades of development of nighttime light product,the nighttime light remote sensing application has been extended to numerous interesting and scientific study domains such as econometrics,poverty estimation,light pollution,fishery and armed conflict.Among the application cases,it is surprising to see the Gross Domestic Production(GDP)data can be corrected using the nighttime light data,and it is interesting to see mechanism of several diseases can be revealed by nighttime light images,while nighttime light are the unique remote sensing source to do the above works.As the nighttime light remote sensing has numerous applications,it is important to summarize the application of nighttime light remote sensing and its data mining fields.This paper introduced major satellite platform and sensors for observing nighttime light at first.Consequently,the paper summarized the progress of nighttime light remote sensing data mining in socioeconomic parameter estimation,urbanization monitoring,important event evaluation,environmental and healthy effects,fishery dynamic mapping,epidemiological research and natural gas flaring monitoring.Finally,future trends of nighttime light remote sensing and its data mining have been proposed from four aspects including new data source,knowledge discovery,in-situ observation,and national/global geographic conditions monitoring.


Water scarcity is a persistent problem in diverse regions of the world. This study focuses on the extreme scarcity of water affecting La Paz, a municipality in the west of Bolivia. The intense drought of the last few decades and the inadequate management of water utilities have impacted several factors. Within this context, this study identified that establishing efficient water resource management is essential to guarantee social welfare. The researchers analyzed the scarcity of water in La Paz by using the Strategic Choice Approach, which is a problem structuring method based on a strategic process that takes different types of uncertainty into account. The results of this study revealed decision actions and uncertainties in two categories: the present and the future. The outputs enabled a strategic plan to be drawn up that tackles the scarcity of water responsibly and equitably. Innovation and investment in ways to reuse water are fundamental to developing a responsible solution.


The purpose of this study is to investigate the change in the positive psychology movement of capital represented by the performance of physical disabilities to participate in swimming classes for 10 weeks. The study was conducted with 30 to 40-men group participation handicapped total of 21 patients (10 patients) and non-participation group (11 patients), the duration of the experiment was performed three times a week for 10 weeks, 50 minutes. Data processing is a dictionary, post-test data was calculated the mean and standard deviation, experimental design group two won repeated measures analysis of variance for (swimming participating groups, miserable Lady) and time (before and after) using the SPSS 21.0 statistical program It was performed (2-way [2] RM ANOVA), all the statistical significance level was set at .05. Study, classroom participation of the handicapped swimmer can see that has had a positive effect positive psychological capital. •


This paper outlines the innovative engagement process used to develop a Guide to Online Participation for New Zealand government agencies. The Guide was intended to improve opportunities for New Zealanders to engage in policy development and service design and delivery through ICT applications, within the context of the long term Development Goals for the New Zealand State Services. In an interesting process of self-reflection the development of the Guide itself forms the basis for one of three case studies of online participation in NZ agencies where the principles outlined in the Guide have been applied and tested. The case study concludes with some evaluative frameworks that have been developed as part of the ParticipatioNZ wiki, the online forum used to develop the Guide, and uses these to assess the effectiveness of the three online participation projects.


The main objective of this study is to provide an effective algorithm of the transmitted solar radiation calculation through window glazing on a clear day. This algorithm would be used in developing a computer program for fenestration system analysis and shading device design. Various simulation methods have been evaluated to figure out the most accurate and effective procedure in estimation of transmitted solar radiation on a tilted surface on a clear day. Characteristics of simulated results of each step have been scrutinized by comparing them with measured results of the site as well as results from other simulation programs. Generally, the Duffie & Beckman's solar calculation method introducing the HDKR anisotropic model provided the most reliable simulation results. The DOE-2 program usually provided over-estimated simulation results. The estimation of extraterrestrial solar radiation and beam normal radiation were conducted pretty accurately. However, the solar radiation either on horizontal surface or on tilted surface involves complicated factors in estimation. Even though the estimation results were close to the real measured data during summer when solar intensity is getting higher, the estimation provided more error when solar intensities were getting weaker. The convex polygon clipping algorithm with homogeneous coordinates was fastest model in calculation of sunlight to shaded area ratio. It could not be applied because of its shape limitation.


The purpose of the article is to analyze the current state of foreign trade in the industrial blockchain of the steel industry, the existing digital platform has gradually formed a large-scale heterogeneous distributed environment. The problems of further development of the metallurgical complex of Ukraine in the world electronic system of international cooperation are determined. Methodology. The survey is based on a blockchain technology is an interlinked systematic chain of blocks that contains transaction history and other user data. It works under the principle of decentralized distributed digital ledger. Results. Experimental tests prove that production companies, logistics, international payments and consumers can participate in the information certification of steel products via the modern information system. Consumers can understand the real product manufacturing process, effectively avoiding of the incomplete information and low transparency in the traditional information traceability process, and effectively trace the quality of steel products. The system provides an effective payments scheme for promoting the transformation and upgrading of the modern technology steel industry. Practical implications. In view of the low transparency of information traceability of current steel products and the defects of information islands, in this article the blockchain-based steel smart contract payment technology quality traceability system is developed and adopted the alliance chain mode and the new digital blockchain platform. The article describes the use of smart payment technology in a full-fledged financial transaction as a transfer funds in cryptocurrency to electronic bank accounts, as well as the transfer of commercial information, including contracts. To do this, the assets and terms of the contract are encoded and placed in the block chain, then the contract is distributed is saved on a set of network nodes and is executed after the condition is triggered. The fulfillment of the obligations of the parties is checked automatically. It is worth noting that the fact that smart contracts only react to transactions. If the asset or the currency is transferred to the program, it starts monitor compliance with the terms of the contract. How as soon as they are fulfilled, the seller receives money, and the buyer is a shipment goods. Value/originality. Blockchain technologies enable the use of business information systems that are highly resistant to technical failures and malicious attacks. Costs and time of carrying out business operations are significant.


Abstract : The limit equilibrium of an infinite homogeneous isotropic solid with an internal lentil-shaped crack of diameter 2a is discussed. Monotonically increasing, mutually orthogonal, uniformly distributed stresses (tension or compression) p and q are applied at infinity parallel to the xOz plane at angle to the xOy plane; there are no external forces on the crack surface. The problem is to determine the limit values p and q at which the crack starts to propagate, i.e., when a local failure occurs in the solid. The following premises are made. The state of stress in the neighborhood of the crack's contour is considered as a sum of two states: (a) stresses in a three-dimensional elastic solid without a crack subjected to stresses p and q applied at infinity; and (b) stresses in this solid with a lentil-shaped crack. The broken line bounds the domain of values for p and q, which do not endanger the strength of a brittle solid with cracks of the type discussed. (Author)


INTRODUCTION: Numerous studies have shown the adverse effects and morbidity associated with anal sphincter injuries, most notably maternal pain, flatal and fecal incontinence, embarrassment, and impaired sexual function. Lowering the cesarean delivery rate would likely increase the occurrence of this type of injury. More information about potential modifiable risk factors is needed to guide the clinician and decrease morbidity. In this study, we evaluated the effect of different factors in the development of anal sphincter injury. METHODS: A retrospective case–control study was performed in patients who delivered at our institution. Two hundred ninety-four patients with a third- or fourth-degree laceration (cases) and 7,825 patients without a third- or fourth-degree laceration (controls) were identified. Parity, stretch marks, age, body mass index, tobacco use, fetal weight, operative delivery, and second-stage duration were compared between groups. Multivariate direct logistic regression was conducted for all variables. RESULTS: Duration of second stage between 1 and 2 hours (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 1.79), duration of second stage greater than 2 hours (adjusted OR 3.1), midline episiotomy (adjusted OR 4.01), mediolateral episiotomy (adjusted OR 4.41), vacuum operative delivery (adjusted OR 3.36), forceps operative delivery (adjusted OR 7.37), and fetal weight greater than 4,000 g (adjusted OR 2.07) were significant independent risk factors for high-risk lacerations (P<.001). Interestingly, this study did not find a statistically significant association between parity and anal sphincter lacerations. CONCLUSION: Duration of second stage, episiotomy, and operative delivery are potentially modifiable aspects of obstetric care that could affect long-term maternal morbidity.


: Problem-Solving refers to the process of finding a solution to a problem or challenge. It involves identifying the problem, analysing the situation, and generating potential solutions or strategies to resolve the issue. Problem-solving may involve critical thinking, creativity, and decision-making skills. Problem-solving is a crucial skill in many areas of life, including work, education, and personal relationships. By developing effective problem-solving skills, individuals can improve their ability to overcome challenges and achieve their goals. The study revealed that Out of 201CADC Secondary School Students, 62.19% of the students fell under Extremely Low Problem Solving Ability.29.35% of CADC Secondary School Students scored Low Problem Solving Ability, 6.97% of CADC Secondary School Students were having Below Average Problem Solving Ability. Only 1.49% of CADC Secondary School Students had an Average Problem Solving Ability.


Five populations of root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne javanica collected from Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, were identified and characterised morphologically. In general, the body sue of the females and larvae was maximum in Rajasthan-population and minimum in Delhi-population. But, the neck size was minimum in the former and maximum in the latter. The females with longer necks tend to have bigger median bulb and its valve and its more posterior location from the head. Like wise in juveniles, the sue and location of median bulb, tail length and anal body width exhibited direct correlation with the body length. Inter-population differences were also evident in morphometrics of perineal patterns, stylet and oesophagous of females and second stage juveniles and tail of second stage juveniles. Among the various taxonomic characters, the perineal pattern, head and stylet morphology of mature females were the most reliable for precise identification of this species. Evaluation of morphometric characters indicated that stylet length, distance from head to stylet base, length and width of median valve, position of dorsal oesophageal gland orifice of females, length, width and ratio a of eggs were the least variable characters; length and width of median bulb and ratio a of females were moderately variable; while length and width of female body and its neck, distance from head to median bulb and ratio a of neck were highly variable characters. In second stage juveniles (J2), body length, width, stylet length, width of median bulb, distance from head to stylet base, median bulb, median valve, excretory pore and oesophageo-intestinal junction, tail length, anal body width, ratios a, b, c' and b1 were stable characters; distance from head to oesophageal gland base, length of median bulb and b' were moderately variable while position of dorsal gland orifice, 0%, hyaline part of tail and ratio were highy variable characters. Most of these characters were in conformity with the type description of M. javanica except for some variations, which have been discussed.


Located within Glenorchy, MONA is in one of the most disadvantaged municipalities in Tasmania. Entry to this must-see tourism destination is free for locals (everyone else pays). Entertainment and novelty abound, with the building, exhibits and festivals entangling the weird and wonderful. But Greater Hobart (in which Glenorchy sits) is a divided city. Most of the region's arts and cultural activity occurs to the south of Glenorchy, in the more middle class and privileged Hobart municipality. The boundary between Hobart and Glenorchy is colloquially known as the flannelette curtain. (Before their appropriation by hipsters, "flannies" were worn by working class men.)


A novel technique of periodically poling in femtosecond laser treated LiNbO_3(LN) crystal is reported.Because of the precision of the femtosecond laser machine,the width and depth of snicks can be controlled exactly.Then the high voltage electric field was operated on +Z side of the LiNbO_3 crystal.The visible poling pattern was observed by microscope.The machining parameter influence on the electric-field poling distributing in the crystal was investigated.Comparing with nanosecond laser carving,using femtosecond laser pulses the structure can be made more precisely with a larger deep-width ratio.The new technique does not need expensive and complicated mask and lithography,and periods of periodically poled lithium niobate(PPLN) can be adjusted flexibly.Although the mechanism of core formation is not clear yet,it would be a very useful technique in developing new type of periodically poled devices.


"Thought" is an important subject in Heidegger's late works. He believed both metaphysics and science hadn't thought and modern human had fallen into dilemma in the spirit To help people to be rid of this spiritual homeless state, he tried to explore a new way to save people in technological age through studying the subject of "thought" which opposes logic and value.


As the number of application in wireless sensor networks are increasing because of ongoing miniaturization of electro-mechanical parts, its subsidiary elements and drastic decrease in the cost. The communication among sensor nodes consumes more energy than the actual computation of information. The consumption not only takes place in transmission state, but also relatively high in idle state. The focus of this paper is to identify the main source of energy dissipation, as well as counter measure to ensure prolonged network lifetime. In addition to these, different types of protocols for routing, medium access control and transport protocols are presented and clarified by the means of examples. Wireless sensor network's is growing tremendously because of ongoing miniaturization of electro-mechanical parts and decrease in their cost for manufacturing. The sensing device and the methods opted for measuring various phenomenons. Due to the lack of (energy) resource of the sensor nodes, the targeted approaches are required to make the demands for long running networks. Usually most of the energy is consumed at the source end, data processing and communication. The basis for identifying and exploiting the energy saving protocols are presented. Typically a large number of sensor nodes is randomly deployed within a geographic area. The basic functionality of those sensor nodes is data sensing, data processing and communication with other nodes or base stations. To perform these operations the sensor nodes need to have a power supply - usually a battery, it serves as a one-way product and cannot be changed. As sensor nodes are both data originator and data router (17), hence they collaborate to deliver data from source to sink. (15) Distinguishes between terminal nodes which only collect data and the in addition to this data forwarding intermediate nodes. Furthermore the sensor nodes can be consolidated in distinct clusters with a certain cluster head where the sensed data of direct neighbours, which is most likely to have some consonances, is brought together prior to the transmission. All sensing information from the actual sensor nodes is gathered at base stations, whose energy resources are not as limited as the node's energy storage, since they are commonly equipped with a permanent connection to a continual power supply.


Sexual harassment is unwanted sex-related approaches, including requests for sex, and other behavior that verbally or physically refers to sex. Sexual violence is an important topic that needs to be solved, given the high rate of sexual violence from year to year. The Law on the Elimination of Sexual Violence is a way that is expected by the Indonesian people as an umbrella of law and rule of law to take action against all forms of sexual crimes that plague Indonesian citizens. in this study tries to analyze the urgency and relevance of these rules for the development of law in Indonesia. reviewing regulations from the prophetic aspects of Islamic law and the reconstruction of Islamic law, as well as the spirit of legal moderation and responding to current issues related to forms of violence that befall society, especially children and women.


Instant ramen, one of the unique noodle, is often produced by deep-frying with lard to give characteristic flavor. Since the quality of the fried products is apt to be affected by the oxidation of the lard, synthetic antioxidants such as BHA and BHT have been widely employed for the lard. In this investigation natural vitamin E of various concentration were tested as antioxidant with the comparison of synthetic antioxidants. Natural vitamin E of 0.01-0.05% level gave satisfactory result for the lard to prevent from oxidation. The lard containing 0.03% of natural vitamin E as well as instant ramen fried with lard gave the better results in AOM test and storage test in the comparison with the lard containing synthetic antioxidant as well as instant ramen fried with the latter lard.


According to the research of IACS URS11 rules and latest recommendation,an improved scheme is presented to reduce the design value of maximum hogging still water bending moment of hull based on current VLCC ballast water tank arrangement.


This study tested our hypothesis that inhibin/activin (I/A) betaB subunit and not follistatin (FS) gene expression relates positively to plasma FSH concentrations in the anterior pituitary gland of boars. Mature crossbred boars (n = 12) were selected for divergence in plasma FSH concentrations, and their anterior pituitary glands were evaluated for expression of the FSHbeta, I/A ssB, FS, calmodulin, and GnRH receptor (GnRH-R) genes by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and/or RNase protection assays (RPAs). Expression of I/A ssB was greater (p 0.10), GnRH-R (p > 0. 08), and calmodulin (p > 0.10) genes was similar in the two groups of boars. Additionally, expression of the FSHbeta gene was correlated positively with pituitary and plasma FSH concentrations (r = 0.69 and 0.88, respectively; p < 0.05). These results support the hypothesis that activin B is partially responsible for elevated FSH concentrations in boars. Furthermore, the expression difference of the calmodulin gene observed previously between Meishan and White Composite boars represents a breed difference unrelated to FSH.


The Solar System motivates students to interest themselves in sciences, as a large number of concepts may be easily introduced through the observation and understanding of planet's motion. Using a large representation of the Solar System at a human scale ("a human Orrery"), we intend to show how cognitive activities about kinematics and dynamics are activated and linked to the sensori-motors activities. In the last three years, we have conducted different activities with 10 to 16 years old children. In this contribution, we discuss the different scientific concepts covered by the Human Orrery, and the enaction theory that provides a theoretical background to those activities. We detail the enaction of velocity with a description of the gestures in relation with the abstract concepts involved in kinematics.


For inventory finance in Supply chain finances (SCF) is carried out based on collateral, the risk assessment to the liquidity capacity and turnover ability is necessary. The solution of risk evaluation only based on digital data is unable to predict the risk influence accurately. Traditional SCF is difficult to realize practical business market because of lack of physical things self-tracked capability intelligently. The proposed IoT-based risk management performance big data analysis is capable of predicting different risk states by tracking transaction status changes to control risk management in SCF. The proposed approach is proved success solution for SCF according to the performance index evaluation. Moreover, heuristic fuzzy QFD algorithms are provided to explore the risk management performance big data analysis. Successful case study with simulations demonstrated the performance of the proposed approach.


I compared the ecology of gray foxes (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) between a rural residential area and an undeveloped area of similar natural habitat. Scat collected in the residential area contained higher frequencies of mammal remains (P = 0.02) and lower frequencies of plant remains (P 128 residences/km 2 ).


Source Citation van Schayck CP, Dompeling E, van Herwaarden CL, et al. Bronchodilator treatment in moderate asthma or chronic bronchitis: continuous or on demand?: A randomised controlled study. BM...


Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a theoretical framework of how knowledge management (KM) systems can facilitate the incorporation of big data into strategic decisions. Advanced analytics are becoming increasingly critical in making strategic decisions in any organization from the private to public sectors and from for-profit companies to not-for-profit organizations. Despite the growing importance of capturing, sharing and implementing people's knowledge in organizations, it is still unclear how big data and the need for advanced analytics can inform and, if necessary, reform the design and implementation of KM systems.

Design/methodology/approach

To address this gap, a combined approach has been applied. The KM and data analysis systems implemented by companies were analyzed, and the analysis was complemented by a review of the extant literature.

Findings

Four types of data-based decisions and a set of ground rules are identified toward enabling KM systems to handle big data and advanced analytics.

Practical implications

The paper proposes a practical framework that takes into account the diverse combinations of data-based decisions. Suggestions are provided about how KM systems can be reformed to facilitate the incorporation of big data and advanced analytics into organizations' strategic decision-making.

Originality/value

This is the first typology of data-based decision-making considering advanced analytics.