Observations of ocean currents in the Arctic show a curious, and hitherto unexplained, vertical and temporal distribution of mesoscale activity. A marked seasonal cycle is found close to the surface: strong eddy activity during summer, observed from both satellites and moorings, is followed by very quiet winters. In contrast, subsurface eddies persist all year long within the deeper halocline and below. Informed by baroclinic instability analysis and a high resolution pan-Arctic ocean model, we explore the origin and evolution of mesoscale baroclinic eddies in the seasonally ice-covered Arctic Ocean. The surface seasonal cycle is controlled by friction with sea-ice, dissipating existing eddies and preventing the growth of new ones. Subsurface eddies are shielded from sea-ice by a strong stratification at a depth of approximately 50 m, and provide a subsurface pathway for the transport of water masses between the margins and the interior of the Arctic basin. Current climate models are not capturing of the fundamental difference in mesoscale activity between ice-covered and ice-free regions, despite its important implications for the evolution of the Arctic circulation under a changing ice cover and vertical stratification.


We report the case of a patient with an ileal tumor initially diagnosed as a lymphoma. The development of acute myeloblastic leukemia 8 months later made it clear that the initial tumor was a granulocytic sarcoma (GS). This case emphasizes the possible difficulties of histologic diagnosis and the importance of the routine use of histochemical and immunologic techniques in the diagnosis of extranodal lymphomas.


to early training is &dquo;interactional performance,&dquo; which is, in essence, to train the parents, and each day care worker to attend to child body signals proficiently. I agree that day care of infants and young children poses a significant public health problem. But what this approach lacks is consideration of the potential significance of toileting, and successful mastery of toileting, for the growth and development of the individual child's personality. This approach also unfortunately devalues the mother's role in helping her child achieve this important milestone. I agree with the authors that definitions are important. But rather than distinguishing between &dquo;interactional&dquo; and &dquo;independent performance,&dquo; I suggest we distinguish between toilet &dquo;training,&dquo; which has overtones of housebreaking a puppy, and toilet &dquo;mastery.&dquo; The word &dquo;mastery,&dquo; a term used bt R. Furman, M.D., is helpful because it emphasizes that the child, with his or her mother's help, must work hard to achieve this significant developmental milestone. Both toilet training and toilet mastery can lead to clean underpants, but only toilet mastery leads to personality growth. Success in accomplishing toilet mastery contributes immeasurably to the child's self esteem. He or she learns that if you really work hard at something long enough, you can succeed, and when you do succeed, you feel really good inside. Helping a child succeed in becoming toilet mastered is hard work, and demands a consistent caring relationship. The only right time to begin toilet mastery is when the child is ready, not when the day care is ready. It is certainly possible that infants and toddlers in day care can be kept clean and &dquo;trained&dquo; early. I am not convinced though, that the reduced risk of infectious disease will be worth the missed opportunities for personality growth. Focusing on &dquo;easy access&dquo; to the bath-


We describe a case of Hb S/β-thalassemia (thal) involving a 468 bp deletion that removes the β-globin gene promoter but leaves the coding regions intact. This is the second report of this deletion, and our family study establishes that this deletion causes β0-thal with unusually high levels of Hb A2 and Hb F. As with other genotypes involving deletions of the 5′ region of the β-globin gene, our patient had a mild form of Hb S/β-thal.


This paper proposes the extraction of structure function from power devices on-board induction motor drives. It puts forward the issues and methodology related to on-board measurement of the cooling curve and derivation of the structure function during idle times in induction motor drives for maintenance purposes. The structure function uses the thermal resistances and capacitances in the Cauer form to identify changes in the device structure. The advantage of the structure function is that it does not only reveal the value but also the location of the thermal resistance and capacitance in the heat flow path. The novelty in this work is the methodology used to achieve the measurement of the cooling curve and the derivation of the structure function despite issues related to freewheeling current due to energy stored as a result of motor inductance.


Objective To investigate the correlation between adiponectin and pulmonary function,age and gender of lung cancer patients with COPD.Methods 90 cases of COPD patients,were divided into the severe group and the stable group.45 healthy patients as the healthy group.The indexes of lung function of the 3 groups ( FEV1/FVC and FEV1%) and the content of serum adiponectin should be measured,and determine the relationship between adiponectin and pulmonary function,age and gen-der of lung cancer patients with COPD.Results The difference of adiponectin content in the 3 group were statistically significant (P<0.05),female patients was higher than in male patients,there were significant differences between the 2 groups in adiponec-tin content (P<0.05);compared with the ratio of FEV1/FVC,there were significant differences between male and female sub-jects in the 3 groups (P<0.05),compared with FEV%expected value,there were significant differences between male and fe-male subjects in the 3 groups (P<0.05),and the levels of adiponectin and FEV1/FVC in the serum of COPD patients(γmale =-0.642,γfemale =-0.657 FEV% and FEV% expected value of male(γmales =-0.819,γfemale =-0.751)showed a negative correlation;in the 3 groups,adiponectin level of healthy male patients had positive correlation with age,the other has no obvious correlation.Conclusion There has obvious relationship in serum adiponectin,pulmonary function and sex of COPD patients,and has no obvious relations with age distribution.


Due to ever increasing demand of maritime transportation in the commercial shipping world vessel sizes are getting bigger and bigger. Generally, the type of the vessels are large bulk carriers, crude oil tankers, liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and mega container vessels, that are used to fulfil the demand of cargo transportation. Majority of these vessels are propelled by large slow speed main propulsion engines, directly coupled to the propeller, hence the on-board propulsion system plays a key role in maritime transportation. However, Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB), Marine Accident Investigation Bureau (MAIB), U.K, Japan Transport Safety Board, National Transport Safety Board, U.S.A, identified that numerous accidents happened in the past due to the failure of main propulsion engine. The failure of main propulsion engine may lead to disastrous consequences, resulting in huge financial losses and crew fatality on ships. Therefore, it is required to ensure the safety and reliability of the main propulsion engine to ensure safe and reliable maritime transportation. This can be can be ensured by adopting an efficient and effective maintenance regime.
 Currently, the main propulsion engines on ships have a Planned Maintenance System (PMS), as required by the International Safety Management (ISM) code, under the directive of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). In PMS system, the maintenance is carried out on ship's machinery based on regular intervals, according to engine and component manufacturer's advice and experience of ship's Chief Engineer and/or Master. However, studies from literature review undertaken, shows that the PMS is not the best form of maintenance regime. Literature reveals the fact that sister transport industries like railways, aircraft industry, and other process industries like chemical and oil and gas, use operational components similar to those used on ships. Such industries have adopted a Condition Based Maintenance regime (CBM), where maintenance of the system components is carried out based on the condition of the equipment, which is detected by measuring various useful parameters during the operation of the engine. All sister transport industries have reaped huge benefits by employing CBM in terms of maintenance cost and at the same time ensuring high levels of reliability Hence, employing CBM on ships could result in avoidance of wasteful resources in terms of manpower, spare parts and money. Shipping industry is lagging far behind in terms of employing CBM. This has been the foundation and motivation of this study to develop a CBM model for a vessel's main propulsion engine. The main propulsion engine is dependent on several sub systems to perform a safe and reliable voyage. In this study, CBM model for the main propulsion system is developed. This model first evaluates the reliability of each subsystem and followed by evaluation of reliability of the main propulsion engine. The novelty of the CBM model developed for the vessel's Main Propulsion Engine is Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM) model, which will assist to reduce the maintenance cost.
This thesis consists of seven chapters. The first chapter is an Introduction, highlighting the general structure of the thesis. In Chapter 2, the authors have put efforts to evaluate the development of large slow speed engines over the past four decades and the changes in system design which besides improving technical efficiency and contribution to combat the environment pollution, also looked at the economic factors and how this could be correlated to reliability of the main propulsion engine. The results conclude, development of turbochargers will play a major role in complementing and improving the overall efficiency and reliability of the main propulsion engine. The details of development of a CBM model for vessels' main propulsion system and related subsystems is presented in Chapter 3. This chapter also highlighted various tools used in the determination of reliability for the main engine subsystems. The results of this chapter identified that only following a PMS regime on-board vessel could lead to a machinery failure, resulting in stoppage of a vessel at critical juncture. Thus, changing from PMS to CBM is justified in merchant shipping. Fault Tree Analysis and Reliability block diagrams are utilised as important tools in this thesis. The Chapter 4 considered the basic steps involved in determining the reliability of the lubricating oil system, which is one of the subsystem of main engine. This chapter also includes methods of determining the reliability of main engine's fuel oil system and its impact on the reliability of the main propulsion engine. The results of this chapter demonstrates that use of additional components in the lubricating oil system could provide improvement in the component reliability leading to improved reliability of the main propulsion engine. To determine the cost benefit for using the additional component in the lubricating oil system, the incremental reliability for the differential cost should be compared with the base reliability to cost ratio. Utilizing the least failure rate of the fuel oil system component, as an identical value of failure rate for all components in the fuel oil system, the overall reliability of the main engine fuel oil system could be improved considerably. In Chapter 5 the authors developed a hybrid model to determine reliability of the main engine using Markov modelling and Weibull distribution. This chapter also considered a holistic approach to reliability and safety of a main propulsion engine in a harsh working environment. In Chapter 6 the authors studied data gathered from experienced sea going marine engineers and analysed. The final chapter provides overall conclusions of this study along with some recommendation and direction for future research.


"Crop Domestication and Gender" traces the rise of permanent settlements and incipient agriculture from the Pre-pottery Neolithic to the Pottery Neolithic in the Levant, together with the iconographic changes that show a shift from the predominance of zoomorphic forms to female forms concurrent with the increasing importance of agriculture. It discusses relevant geographic features, climactic periods and changes in temperature, rainfall and glaciation while exploring the important transitional cultures and the artifacts that reveal the progress of agricultural development and plant domestication. Domestication of the founder crops of the Fertile Crescent are described, together with markers in the archaeological record that distinguish wild plants from domesticated plants. The abundance of female figurines at the Neolithic village of Sha'ar Hagolan and the presence of cryptic agricultural symbols at Hacilar and Çatalhüyük, support a close association of women, cats, and agriculture, most famously exemplified by the so-called "grain bin goddess" of Çatalhüyük.


The predominant mode of deposition (turbidity current vs. hemipelagic) within entire sequences is related to the general trends in anisotropy, determined by both shrinkage and sonic velocity measurements, of fine-grained sediments cored during DSDP Leg 96 in the Mississippi Fan. Anisotropy increases in fining-upward sequences with decreasing abundances of density-current deposits upsection. In coarsening-upward sequences with increasing abundance of density-current deposits upsection, the inverse trend is found. Increasing compaction generally leads to increasing anisotropy, but the primary differences between turbidites and hemipelagic sediments are not significantly affected.


Magnetic silicene junctions are versatile structures with spin-valley polarization and magnetoresistive capabilities. Here, we investigate the temperature effects on the transport properties of single magnetic silicene junctions. We use the transfer matrix method and the Landauer–Büttiker formalism to calculate the transmittance, conductance, spin-valley polarization and tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR). We studied the case for T = 0 K, finding the specific parameters where the spin-valley polarization and the TMR reach optimized values. Regarding the temperature effects, we find that its impact is not the same on the different transport properties. In the case of the conductance, depending on the spin-valley configuration the resonant peaks disappear at different temperatures. The spin polarization persists at a considerable value up to T = 80 K, contrary to the valley polarization which is more susceptible to the temperature effects. In addition, a stepwise spin-valley polarization can be achieved at low temperature. The TMR is attenuated considerably as the temperature rises, decreasing more than two orders of magnitude after T = 20 K. These findings indicate that in order to preserve the spin-valley polarization and magnetoresistive capabilities of magnetic silicene junctions is fundamental to modulate the temperature adequately.


Oceanity and continentality strongly influence the climate of a region. Aiming at understanding these influences on the Iberian Peninsula climate, the spatial distributions of precipitation, air temperature and five climatic indices are analysed during the period 1901 and 2012 and in three sub‐periods (1901–1940, 1941–1980 and 1981–2012). This study focuses on investigating the continental and oceanic characteristics of the Iberian climate by using the Conrad–Pollak and Johansson Continentality Indices, as well as Kerner and Marsz Oceanity Indices. Gridded precipitation and air temperature data sets are used on a monthly basis. Results reveal hyper‐oceanic (maritime) characteristics in the northernmost portion of Iberia, continental in the inner region comprising Extremadura, Castile‐La Mancha and Andalusia, and maritime characteristics in between. It is worth noting that within these regions the continental (maritime) characteristics become stronger (weaker) between 1981 and 2012. Statistically significant linear trends show an increase in both temperature (2–4°C) and on continental influences in the northwestern and southeastern regions of Iberia for the entire period. Statistically significant correlations are also found between the Johansson Continentality Index and both Conrad–Pollak and Marsz Oceanity Indices at a 95% confidence level, revealing a good agreement of results among these indices.


In 1992, an expert panel from the American College of Chest Physicians and the Society of Critical Care Medicine [ 1 ] produced a consensus statement focused on the definitions for sepsis and organ failure. Indeed, the term sepsis has long been used interchangeably with bacteremia, severe sepsis, or even septic shock, causing some confusion and difficulty in comparing results from diffe rent studies [ 2 ]. This consensus document stated for the first time the definitions and criteria with the aim to distinguish between infection, bacteremia, systemic inflammation response syndrome (SIRS), sepsis, severe sepsis, septic shock, and sepsis-induced hypotension ( Table 1 ). The clinical presentation of sepsis in adults can be hardly distinguishable from other non-infective conditions, which share a systemic inflammatory response and are collectively named SIRS [ 2 , 3 ]. From a clinical point of view, it is important to note that, although SIRS and sepsis have similar clinical presentation, these two conditions can require different treatments. Indeed, sepsis always requires antibiotic therapy optimized with regard to the choice of specific agent(s); conversely, antibiotic treatment may be contraindicated for some clinical conditions related to SIRS [ 3 ]. Sepsis is still a relevant clinical problem. The prevalence of SIRS is very high, affecting one third of all in-hospital patients and > 50% of all patients on intensive care unit (ICU); in surgical ICU patients, SIRS occurs in > 80% patients [ 2 ]. In such patients, sepsis evolves to severe sepsis in > 50% of cases, whereas the evolution to severe sepsis in non-ICU patients is ~25% [ 2 ]. Severe sepsis and septic shock occur in 2% – 3% of ward patients and 10% – 15% of ICU patients, and 25% of patients with severe sepsis suffer from septic shock [ 2 ]. Sepsis is a leading cause of mortality in critically ill patients [ 3 , 4 ], with a mortality risk ranging from 40% to 70%, and septic shock is the most common cause of death in the modern ICU [ 3 ]. Considering that the delay in the diagnosis and initiation of antibiotics has been shown to increase mortality in septic patients [ 3 ], the ability to accurately distinguish between SIRS and sepsis has become one of the most important goals in medicine [ 4 ]. Unfortunately, there is no " gold standard " for the diagnosis of sepsis. As a result, it is not surprising that there is a considerable debate regarding the search of reliable biomarkers to achieve this goal. From a clinical viewpoint, a reliable biomarker for sepsis should improve the diagnosis, risk stratification, and/or therapeutic decision-making in septic patients. Then again, from a pathophysiologic viewpoint, a validated group of biomarkers promise to transform sepsis from a pathophysiologic syndrome to a group of distinct clinical disorders [ 5 ]. Unfortunately, there is a plethora of biomarkers proposed in this field, thus suggesting that a reliable biomarker for sepsis has never been found [ 4 – 8 ]. Indeed, the complex pathophysiology of sepsis involves many active substances (such as cellular mediators, neurohormones, or cytokines), which are related to coagulation, complement activation, inflammation, apoptosis, and many other cellular and tissue effects. Moreover, the systemic nature of sepsis, which involves multiple organs, can trigger the release of several tissue-specific biomarkers, even including the cardiospecific biomarkers, brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), and cardiac troponins [ 9 – 11 ]. In this issue of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine , Di Somma et al. [ 12 ] provide an overview about the potential clinical usefulness of some biomarkers of sepsis. This opinion article represents a synopsis of the lectures on biomarkers and sepsis of the Third Italian GREAT Network Congress, which was held in Rome, 15 – 19 October 2012. In ref. [ 12 ], the authors discuss not only the biomarkers already standardized and actually used in clinical practice but also some biomarkers that are still tested for experimental use. According to ref. [ 12 ], the rapid diagnosis of sepsis in emergency departments is often difficult because the symptoms are rather not specific. Among the huge number of biomarkers proposed [ 4 – 8 , 12 ], only procalcitonin (PCT) complies with most of the desirable preanalytical, analytical, and postanalytical features for an ideal laboratory biomarker ( Table 2 ). Indeed, PCT can be assayed by means of sensitive and precise immunometric methods using several automated platforms, which allow the measurement of serum PCT with a turnaround time compatible with the rapid diagnosis indispensable in the emergency department [ 13 – 15 ]. Moreover, some recent systematic review and meta-analyses, including also an economic evaluation, indicated that PCT-guided antibiotic therapy is associated with a reduction in antibiotic therapy that, under certain assumptions, may reduce the overall costs of care [ 16 – 18 ]. Another meta-analysis [ 19 ], involving 1959 neonates, evaluated the


© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Reuse permitted under CC BYNC. No commercial reuse. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. ABSTRACT Objectives We aimed to assess the level of prior SARSCoV2 infection in socially deprived neighbourhoods after the first wave of the pandemic, and to identify factors associated with seropositivity. Design A crosssectional study. Setting Three socially deprived neighbourhoods of the city of Perpignan, in the south of France, where large settled Roma communities live. Participants People aged 6 years old or over, living in the study area. 700 people were included in the study using twostage stratified sampling design. Interventions The study included a questionnaire and SARSCoV2 antibody testing by the Roche Elecsys immunoassay between 29 June and 17 July 2020. Primary and secondary outcome measures SARSCoV2 antibody seroprevalence was estimated from weighted data. Associated factors and reported symptoms were investigated using univariable and multivariable logistic regressions. Results The seroprevalence of antiSARSCoV2 antibodies was 35.4% (95% CI 30.2% to 41.0%). People aged 15–64 years old had increased odds of being seropositive than those aged 65 years or over. Obese people had higher odds of being seropositive (adjusted OR (aOR)=2.0, 95% CI 1.1 to 3.8). The odds of being seropositive were higher in households with clinical COVID19 cases (one case: aOR=2.5, 95% CI 1.3 to 5.0; several cases: aOR=6.9, 95% CI 3.1 to 15.2). In the neighbourhood with the highest measured seroprevalence, people living in a dwelling with one to two rooms had higher odds of being seropositive than those living in a fourroom house (aOR=2.8, 95% CI 1.2 to 6.3). Working during the lockdown was associated with lower odds of being seropositive (aOR=0.2, 95% CI 0.03 to 1.0). Conclusion Transmission of SARSCOV2 in this vulnerable population was very high during the COVID19 pandemic's first wave. Our results highlight the need to strengthen and adapt preventive measures taking into account all social determinants of health, especially housing conditions. INTRODUCTION With the emergence of COVID19 and the resulting pandemic, questions about social inequalities in health during the current crisis have been raised. Many health issues are involved, including inequalities in exposure to SARSCoV2, in the severity of the COVID19 disease and in access to healthcare. 4–6 These concerns are all the more important given that these health inequalities are often cumulative, leading to a marked risk of increased social deprivation in vulnerable populations. 5 8 Furthermore, lockdowns implemented in many countries have exacerbated preexisting health inequalities. 5 9 10 During the ongoing epidemic, special attention has been given to some 10 000 residents living in three of the poorest neighbourhoods (HautVernet, Nouveau Logis and SaintJacques) in France. Located in the city Strengths and limitations of this study


kinetic solvent isotope effect in methanolysis and activation parameters. The solvolysis of 1 was interpreted as the unimolecular pathway due to a predominant resonance effect from para-methoxy substituent like 4methoxybenzoyl chloride (3), while that of 2 was evaluated as the dual mechanism, with unimolecular or bimolecular reaction pathway according to the character of solvent systems (high electrophilic/nucleophilic) chosen, caused by the inductive effect by two meta-methoxy substituents, no resonance one. In the solvolyses of 1 and 2 with two –OCH3 groups, the resonance effect of para-methoxy substituent is more important to decide the mechanism than the inductive effect with other corresponding evidences.


Mechanical alloying is one of the ways how to prepare nanostructured and amorphous metallic materials. In this paper we used this method to prepare Mg-Zn alloy containing 50 wt.% of zinc. Powders produced by milling in a planetary ball mill were consequently compacted by the SPS method, a very fast method which prevents grain coarsening. The prepared samples were subjected to a closer examination - microstructure, phase composition, hardness and short-term thermal stability were studied. We found out that the prepared powder consisted of Mg and Mg7Zn3 phases, which were very fine and homogeneously distributed. After the SPS compacting, the metastable Mg7Zn3 phase decomposed and new phases (Mg, MgZn, MgZn2, Mg2Zn11) formed. The compacted sample possessed relatively inhomogeneous microstructure and hardness about 260 HV5. Investigation of the short-term thermal stability was accomplished by annealing at temperatures up to 300 °C. We observed changes in hardness - it regularly decreased up to 200 °C and then it slightly increased.


Long time testing of laser cavities based on modified Sagnak interferometer (MSI) in various lasers exposed their following advantages: lasing on the main transversal mode and suppression of the higher mode lasing; the high energy stability in pulse regime (unstability less then 1%); possibility of tuning the mode-locked pulse duration (from 2 to 100 ps); exactly longitudinal and counter-running 2- beam laser pumping. Effect of higher transversal mode suppression in laser cavity with MSI was qualitatively explained in 'soft rim aperture' terms early. MSI-cavity with the off-centered lens position is one where the 'soft unstability' is appeared to together with the capability to suppress the high order transversal modes. The resulted laser field in the case is nonsteady-state and the transient time is infinite, the phase trajectory may not be described as reproducible one and Gauss beam parameters q are chaotically skipped inside some region on the complex plane. The most interesting result of the beam propagation in MSI analysis is the strong dependence of the transient time to the steady- state field distribution from the lens position relative to the optical center of MSI. The current application of MSI-cavities of the various lasers and their modes of operation are discussed.


Map of permanent seismological stations in metropolitan France (FR network only) showing for each station the evolution of the ambient seismic noise level in the 2-10Hz band between the period 09-17 March and 17-31 March 2020. The stations in grey did not have sufficient data over these periods or do not show a clear anthropogenic signature in the frequency band studied.
The implementation of the confinement on 17 March results in a median decrease of about 25% of the amplitude of this seismic background noise induced by the decrease of human activities generating vibrations. The decrease is even more important for the few stations located in cities. For example, the Resif-RLBP station installed in the basement of the Curie Pavilion of the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris (5th arrondissement / station code = FR.CURIE) recorded a ~35% decrease in the mean amplitude of ground motion in the 4-14Hz band (Figure 3). The seismic noise during weekdays (Monday to Friday) in Paris is now even slightly lower than that typically observed during weekends before the confinement. A further slight decrease can be observed at night from 26 March, when public transport was reduced in Paris.

The FR network is one of the components of the French Seismological and Geodetic Network Resif, a national research infrastructure dedicated to the observation and understanding of the Earth's internal structure and dynamics. Resif is based on high-tech observation networks composed of seismological, geodetic and gravimetric instruments deployed in a dense manner throughout France. The data collected allow the study of ground deformation, surface and deep structures, local and global seismicity and natural hazards, particularly seismic, on the French territory with a high spatio-temporal resolution. Resif is integrated into the European (EPOS - European Plate Observing System) and worldwide instruments that allow to image the Earth's interior as a whole and to study numerous natural phenomena.


One kind of signal lines touch panel display device comprising: a substrate having a first transparent conductive film; a lower substrate having a second transparent conductive film, the lower and upper substrates disposed opposite; a pair of first electrodes, forming a first transparent direction of the conductive film disposed along opposite edges of the substrate; a pair of second electrodes in a direction perpendicular to the first direction, the second transparent conductive film disposed along the opposite edge of the substrate; and at least one signal line from the first electrode and the one side portion of one of the second electrode extending to one side surface of the touch panel display device to send a signal to the external controller.


Image enhancement technique plays vital role in improving the quality of the image. Enhancement technique basically enhances the foreground information and retains the background and improve the overall contrast of an image. In some case the background of an image hides the structural information of an image. This paper proposes an algorithm which enhances the foreground image and the background part separately and stretch the contrast of an image at inter-object level and intra-object level and then combines it to an enhanced image. The results are compared with various classical methods using image quality measures.


The visual mismatch negativity is sensitive to symmetry as perceptual category Total number of words: (i) 4692 words (ii) 230 words (iii) 785 words Number of pages: 17, number of tables: 2, number of figures: 5, number of figure legends: 3. Abstract We investigated the sensitivity of visual mismatch negativity (vMMN) to an abstract and non-semantic category, the vertical mirror symmetry. Event-related potentials were recorded to random and symmetric square patterns, delivered in passive oddball paradigm (participants played a video game). In one of the conditions, symmetric patterns were frequent (standard) stimuli and the random patterns were infrequent (deviant) stimuli, in the other condition the probabilities were reversed. We compared the ERPs to symmetric stimuli as deviants and as standards, and similarly, the ERPs to the random deviants and random standards. As the difference between the ERPs to random deviant and random standard stimuli a posterior negativity emerged in two latency ranges (112–120-ms and 284– 292-ms). These negativities were considered as visual mismatch negativity (vMMN) components. We suggest the two vMMN components are organized in cascade error signals. However, there was no significant difference between the ERPs to the symmetric deviants and symmetric standards. Emergence of vMMN to the deviant random stimuli is considered as a deviation of a perceptual category (in the symmetric standard's sequence presented). Accordingly, random stimuli acquired no perceptual category, for this reason the symmetric deviant (in the random standard's sequence presented) elicited no vMMN. The results show that the memory system underlying visual mismatch negativity is capable of coding perceptual categories such as bilateral symmetry, even if the stimulus patterns are unrelated to the ongoing behavior.


The resolvent formula is used to study the asymptotic behavior (t -+ oo) of solution to integrodifferential equations which are close in some sense to equations of convolution type with integrable resolvents.


Measurements of DC and AC electric Fields at low altitudes (less than 150 km) in the Earth's ionosphere address a wide array of important scientific questions including Joule Heating, the closure of field aligned currents, and the deviation of E x B electron velocities from ion velocity vectors influenced by collisions. Double probes represent a well-proven technique for gathering high quality DC and AC electric field measurements for which the design of the boom system is of critical importance for the success of the experiment. In general, ionospheric DC electric field instruments that achieve accuracies of 0.1 mV/m or better, place sensors at large distances from the spacecraft body in order to extend well beyond the spacecraft wake and sheath and to achieve the large signal-to-noise ratios for DC and long wavelength measurements. Additional sets of sensors inboard of the primary, outermost sensors provide useful additional information, both for diagnostics of the plasma contact potentials, which particularly enhance the DC electric field measurements on non-spinning spacecraft, and for wavelength and phase velocity measurements that use the spaced receiver or "Interferometer" technique. Accurate attitude knowledge enables V x B contributions to be subtracted from the measured potentials, and permits the measured components to be rotated into meaningful geophysical reference frames. This presentation discusses the expected performance of electric field double probe experiments and their boom mechanisms on both spinning and non-spinning satellite platforms with very low perigees. Careful selection of probe surface materials, such as titanium nitride, for the low perigee environment, as well as thermal considerations are also discussed.


RATIONALE
Ivacaftor can greatly improve clinical outcomes in people with cystic fibrosis (CF) and has been shown to have in-vitro antibacterial properties, yet the long-term microbiological outcomes of treatment are unknown.

OBJECTIVES
To investigate changes in respiratory microbiology associated with long-term ivacaftor use.

METHODS
Retrospective cohort study utilising data from the United Kingdom CF Registry 2011-2016. Primary outcome was the annual prevalence ratios for key CF pathogens between ivacaftor users and their contemporaneous comparators. Multivariate log-binomial regression models were designed to adjust for confounders. Changes in Pseudomonas aeruginosa status were compared between groups using non-parametric maximum likelihood estimate for the purposes of Kaplan-Meier approximation.

RESULTS
Ivacaftor use was associated with early and sustained reduction in P. aeruginosa rates (2016 Adjusted Prevalence Ratio [95% CI] 0.68 [0.58, 0.79], p<0.001) via a combination of increased clearance in those with infection (Ivacaftor: 33/87 [37.9%] vs. Non ivacaftor: 432/1872 [22.8%], p<0.001) and reduced acquisition in those without infection (33/134 [24.6%] vs. 1157/2382 [48.6%], p=0.01). The improved prevalence of P. aeruginosa infection was independent of reduced sampling in the ivacaftor cohort. Ivacaftor was also associated with reduced prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus and Aspergillus spp. but not Burkholderia cepacia complex. Conclusion In this study, long-term ivacaftor use was associated with reduced infection with important CF pathogens including P. aeruginosa. These findings have implications for antibiotic stewardship and the need for on-going chronic antimicrobial therapy in this cohort.


The vigorous development of logistics industry has intensified the competition among enterprises. How to use innovative technology to promote their business to jump out of the Red Sea is a problem that many logistics enterprises are thinking about. The digital transformation of logistics control is also advancing from "Internet +" to "AI+", and "AI+ industry" is becoming a transformative force that cannot be ignored. Based on this, this paper discusses the design of a new logistics control chain based on artificial intelligence technology.


The main approaches to the definition of the category "social capital" in the historical context are considered. Elements of social capital (social norms, social network, trust) have been defined as well as its main functions have been identified, which were formed during the evolution of this concept. The influence of the hybrid war on the formation of social capital in the context of public trust in business structures in Ukraine is determined. The role of social networks as a source of creation, accumulation and restoration of social capital has been investigated. The importance of the existence of network links that affect the socialization of society and the expansion of its communicative borders in the conditions of the development of modern socio-economic relations has been noted.


Application of the metabolic inhibitors, abscisic acid (ABA) and phenyl mercuric acetate (PMA), and the antitranspirants Vapor Gard and Clear Spray, separately or in combination with the Maxijet irrigation significantly in creased the water use efficiency of rabbiteye blueberries (Vaccinium ashei Reade 'Tifblue'). Spraying these materials increased stomatal diffusive resistance, reduced transpiration and increased leaf temperature. At ripening stages, and with all treatments, total soluble solids, berry weight, volume and yield were increased; firmness and pH were significant ly decreased. Rabbiteye blueberries (Vaccinium ashei Reade) grow wild in the southeast region of the United States. They are less sensitive to soil acidity and more resistant to heat and drought than highbush blueberries. Interest in rabbiteye blueberry has increased significant ly in recent years due to its popularity as a "pick your own fruit", high yield, and comparatively low maintenance re quirements. Despite the fact that Alabama's climate is con sidered quite suitable for blueberry production, rabbiteye blueberry acreage is relatively small. Three major factors have limited the rabbiteye blueberry production in Ala bama: 1) Alabama receives 130-140 cm rainfall annually which is not distributed uniformly over the state or through out the year, a problem which frequently necessitates supple mental irrigation; 2) a large portion of the rainfall received annually is lost as run-off or through evapotranspiration; 3) blueberry bushes generally have shallow root systems and develop fruits during the early spring and summer. This period is considered Alabama's dry or low rain season. In recent years, the use of chemicals to reduce transpira tion has led to the moisture conservation and subsequent reduction in irrigation frequency (8, 9, 10, 17). Maxijet, low volume, is a new system of irrigation which has many advantages including increased plant growth and crop yield; uniform distribution of moisture in the root zone, and conservation of water and energy. The objectives of this research were to compare meta bolic inhibitors, film-forming antitranspirant materials and maxijet irrigation for improving quality, yield and water use efficiency of rabbiteye blueberries. Materials and Methods This study was conducted utilizing 2-yr-old rabbiteye blueberry (Vaccinium ashei Read) bushes planted in sandy iGraduate student and professor, Department of Agricultural Sciences. This investigation is part of a thesis submitted by the senior author in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the M.S. degree. The research was supported by a grant No. 14-34-0001-0510 from the Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of Interior. The authors would like to express their appreciation to the Maxijet International, Inc., Dundee, FL for the generous contribution made for this study. 348 loam soil (pH 4.5 to 5.0). A maxijet irrigation system (Maxi jet International, Inc., Dundee, FL) was installed and monitored to deliver 7.5 liters or 15 liters/day/bush. Two metabolic inhibitors, abscisic acid (ABA) and phenyl mercuric acetate (PMA) both at a concentration of 10~4M, were used as foliar sprays. Two film-forming anti transpirant materials, Vapor Gard (VG) and Clear Spray (CS), were foliarly sprayed at a concentration of 2.5% in water. Both the metabolic inhibitors and the film-forming materials were prepared fresh the day of spray and were used separately or in combination with maxijet irrigation. The experiment was a randomized complete block design with 8 replications. The experimental bushes were sprayed 2 times each growing season, during maturation (May) and ripening (July). Stomatal diffusive resistance, transpiration and leaf temperature were determined using a steady state porometer LI 1600 (LiCor, Inc., Lincoln, NE). Fruit weight and volume, total soluble solids (TSS), pH, and firmness of the fruit were measured at ripening (end of July and early August). Results and Discussion Stomatal diffusive resistance. Spraying both the meta bolic inhibitors and the film-forming antitranspirants ma terials, separately or in combination, substantially affected the stomatal diffusive resistance (Tables 1 and 2). In general, leaf transpiration was increased in bushes receiving irriga tion at 7.5 liters/day compared to those receiving 15 liters/ day. This could be due to the availability of the water and less closure of the stomata in the latter than in the former. Both ABA and PMA, when applied separately, increased the stomatal diffusive resistance of the blueberry leaves, with ABA being more effective in retaining plant moisture than PMA. The addition of antitranspirants VG and CS to either ABA or PMA significantly increased stomatal diffusive re sistance more than applying these materials separately. VG showed obvious advantages over CS. Blueberry bushes which received no irrigation water (control) gave the lowest stomatal diffusive resistance readTable 1. Effects of metabolic inhibitors, film-forming antitranspirants, and maxijet irrigation on leaf function of 'Tifblue' blueberry at maturations Treatmenty Diff. resist.


Resistance to tomato yellow leaf curl disease caused by Tomato yellow leaf curl Thailand virus (TYLCTHV-[2]) in wild tomato, Solanum habrochaites eL06112i was investigated. The eL06112i accession expressing the resistant phenotype was crossed to the TYLCV-susceptible female parent, Seedathip3, to produce F 1 hybrids. Parental polymorphism and hybrid identity were tested using 12 pairs of microsatellite markers for each chromosome. All markers were polymorphic between the parents, but only markers SSR46, SSR115, SSR117 and SSR128 gave results suitable to assess hybrid relationships. Polymorphic bands were sharp, concise and distinguishable between hybrids and selfed plants. The stem cuttings of donor and recurrent parents, their F 1 and BC 1 F 1 were inoculated with TYLCTHV-[2] using viruliferous whiteflies. Disease response of the plants was evaluated by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) at 45 days post inoculation. The donor parental line showed complete resistance to TYLCTHV-[2] while the F 1 and BC 1 F 1 expressed various ELISA readings for TYLCTHV-[2] concentration. BC 1 F 1 ; 04T105-7, 04T105-1, 04T105-10, 04T109-4 and 04T104-1 developed from this study showed the high level of resistance to TYLCV, Thailand isolate.


Abstract Objectives: Determine the unique effects of age across a variety of outcome domains following spinal cord injury (SCI). Design: Cross-sectional; 61 32 individuals with traumatic onset SCI in the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center (NSCISC) database. Outcome Measures: Functional Independence Measure (FIM) , Sat isfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) , the Craig Hand icap Assessment and Reporting Technique (CHART), and the Short Form-12 (SF-12). Results: Older age was most consistently associated with decreased self-reported outcomes across most domains assessed. More specifically, a significant linear decline with age was found for functional independence (FIM) , overall life satisfaction (SWLS) , perceived physical health (SF-12 physical health), and overall handicap (CHART-total score), particularly in the areas of physical independence, mobility, occupational functioning, and social integration (CHART subscales). However, regression analyses, controlling for numerous demographic and medical characteristics, indicated that the amount of unique variance that could be specifically attributed to age was relatively small. Age was unrelated to self-reported mental health (S F-1 2 mental health subscale) and economic functioning (CHART -economic self-sufficiency subscale). Pain interference in day-to-day activities (ie, a single item from SF-12) significantly increased with age. Spinal Cord Med. 2003;26:37-44


RESPECT is about the influence and effectiveness of EU trade policy on non-trade-policy objectives of trading partners. The present study focuses on one important non-trade-policy objective, the green pillar of sustainable development, that is, environment and climate mitigation. The case is about 25 years of EU trade and cooperation vis a vis China with respect to environment and climate mitigation, namely between 1995 and 2020. The research questions are about the convergence process between the EU and China in two ways i.e. in terms of indicators as well as in terms of policies. A considerable part of the paper consists in setting out and assessing, where possible, the numerous Dialogues, programmes, action plans, projects and other activities arranged by the EU for China, and, later, by the EU and China jointly. Policy developments in China are analysed with the help of Five Years Plans, Action programmes from Beijing, prominent laws, reports from international organisations and academic literature. The conclusion is that the EU has been exceptionally active and consistently so over 25 years, and has responded positively when China requested specific activities or direct support. The exceptional EU activism in China notwithstanding, in environment the first 15 years or so merely showed divergence with the EU, not convergence. During the last decade, trends were bent into a converging direction but gaps with the EU remain considerable despite the capabilities and upper-middle-income status of China. In climate mitigation, this initial period took even longer. Here the excessive prominence of coal has been partially compensated by rapid development of renewables and forestation. Nonetheless, for both aspects of green development the 'great green paradox' still applies: whereas at the policy level by 2020/21 convergence between the EU and China is frequently confirmed (and is also explicit via many MEAs both the EU and China are parties of, as well as partially confirmed in the CAI), this does not or at best partially show up in standard environmental and climate indicators. The EU should continue to nudge China to go still more green so as to make this paradox melt away. 1 This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 770680. The author gratefully acknowledges comments and suggestions from several colleagues in the RESPECT consortium as well as from Irina Kustova, Christian Egenhofer and Noriko Fujiwara. Of course, only the author is responsible for any errors or omissions.


A fast-axial-flow (FAF) CO2 laser is one of the promising systems for high-power sources for machinery, welding, and medicine. We have experimentally observed temporal decrease of the amplified power after discharging plasma tubes within a few minutes in the FAF CO2 laser amplifier.1 We first theoretically analyze the power decrease Δ\ transient time to have stable output tst, and the small-signal gain γ by taking account of the gas flow velocity, discharge current, input intensity, and plasma length into the gain constant. Then the theoretical estimates of ΔP, tst, and γ are compared with the experimentally obtained results in the FAF (500-W class) amplifier.


This article re-evaluates the experiences of and perspectives towards religious minority communities in early modern London through a consideration of minority homes and the negotiation of private space. It considers the juxtaposition between the necessity of observing 'private religion' for those whose outward practice was restricted and the distrust of nonconforming acts which took place behind closed doors. It argues that the concern with regulating 'appropriate behaviour' in private spaces — in this instance, religious practice within the home — prompted a widespread desire to locate the streets and neighbourhoods where potentially subversive religious practices were taking place. Furthermore, the acknowledgment that certain parishes were inhabited by French, Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant Nonconformist communities — groups that were by definition dislocated from the religious and administrative functions of the parish — acted to shape the means by which public and private spaces of early modern London were experienced.


Presented the functions of enterprise information cases and the method of selection according to the properties and its structure of the course for enterprise information, and analyzed the main sections and implementation of four representative cases.


Abstract The crushing behaviour of aluminium alloy and steel cylindrical shells, when subjected to an axial impact, is examined using a numerical simulation. The influence of the material properties, shell geometry, boundary conditions and loading techniques on various shell response characteristics, such as the peak load, axial compression and energy absorption are studied. An interpretation is also made of the data usually obtained in dynamic tests.


Petrological and geochemical examination of the largest caldera-forming eruption (Kp IV) of Kutcharo volcano, eastern Hokkaido, Japan, were undertaken in order to understand the magma genesis and eruptive processes of a large silicic magma system. The eruption started with an ash and pumice fall, followed by voluminous pyroclastic flows. Juvenile materials are mainly porphyritic pumice and a small amount of heterogeneous, nearly aphyric, scoria is contained in the pyroclastic flow deposits. On the basis of mineral, whole-rock and matrix glass chemistry, two silicic magmas (rhyolitic and dacitic) and three intermediate (andesitic) magmas were identified. Temporal variations in the whole-rock and matrix glass chemistry of the juvenile materials indicate that the activity originated from a large zoned silicic magma chamber in which dacitic magma had stagnated beneath more voluminous rhyolitic magma. During the generation of pyroclastic flows, andesitic magmas were sequentially injected into the zoned chamber, resulting in the eruption of small amounts of heterogeneous products along with voluminous silicic magmas. The rhyolite-MELTS program, massbalance calculations, and Rayleigh fractionation models cannot explain the generation of two silicic magmas by fractional crystallization of coexisting andesitic magmas. In addition, the higher Sr/Sr ratio of dacitic pumice suggests that the dacitic magma was not a parent of the rhyolitic magma. Therefore, we infer that both the rhyolitic and dacitic magmas were produced by the accumulation of interstitial melts generated from crustal materials with heterogeneous Sr isotopic compositions. It may be common that large silicic magma systems that produce caldera-forming eruptions are composed of multiple silicic magmas that are produced from an extensive area of heterogeneous crust. Mg and Ti diffusion profiles in Fe–Ti oxide phenocrysts indicate that three different andesitic magmas were successively injected into the zoned chamber hours to weeks before the eruptions. Their injection may have triggered the Kp IV eruptive activities.


Results: In total, 84 (67.7%) and 40 (32.3%) of patients had final GS of 3+4 and 4+3, respectively. A final GS of 4+3 was associated with a higher pre-biopsy level of prostate-specific antigen (p<0.001) and a higher biopsy Gleason sum (p<0.001). Also, a higher pathological T stage (p=0.005), ter- tiary Gleason pattern 5 (p<0.001), seminal vesicle invasion (p=0.008), bladder neck invasion (p=0.002), angiolymphatic invasion (p=0.008), peri- neural invasion (p=0.045), positive surgical margins (p=0.038) and larger tumor volumes (p<0.001) were associated with GS of 4+3. Conclusions: Our results demonstrated that the statistically significant differences exist between GS 3+4 and 4+3 prostate cancers. Thus, GS 7 prostate cancers may be considered heterogeneous in their biological be- haviors, and GS 7 prostate cancers with a GS of 4+3 may be considered more aggressive tumors compared to those with a GS of 3+4. (Korean


Since its creation over 25 years ago, the Omar Dengo Foundation (ODF) has played a critical role in developments related to use of educational technologies in schools in Costa Rica. The integration of technology in Costa Rican public schools took off in 1987 with the creation by the Ministry of Public Education of the National Program of Educational Informatics, which became the flagship program of the newly created Omar Dengo Foundation. This paper explores the development of ODF as a key partner institution to the Costa Rican Ministry of Public Education and how changes in key legislation went hand-in-hand with ODF's growth and impact. It explores key lessons learned for policymakers looking for insights on how an external ICT/education agency can work productively in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Education and other government agencies to serve as main implementation agency for a large scale, national ICT in education initiative.


Abstract Enantioenriched α-aryl carbonyl compounds are ubiquitous in natural products and biologically active compounds. Their synthesis has been explored over the last few decades and several methods now exist that allow for the enantioselective formation of a C(sp3)-C(sp2) bond in the α-position to a carbonyl group. However, although the formation of quaternary stereocenters has been fairly well established, the enantioselective formation of tertiary stereocenters proved more challenging due to facile product post-reaction racemization. In this short review, we summarize the methods reported to date for the asymmetric α-arylation of enolates and analogues that rely on transition-metal catalysis. 1 Introduction 2 Nucleophile Pre-activation 3 Activation via Aminocatalysis 4 Formation of Constrained Stereocenters 5 Concluding Remarks


Portal service is used to integrate different information sources, and could support users with SSO functions while email service as a common facility is essentially seldom integrated with Portal. Recently emerging AJAX technology could provide quick-response interactive interface loading email columns rather than the whole portal page. Using this technology and based on the analysis of portal page response time and email security, we propose an AJAX MVC model for the implementation of portal with the reminder of incoming email title and direct SSO entry for the email page. Based on the model, a security network topology and MD5 authentication for telnet connection between portal and email servers are also analyzed.


Objective. To study the intensity of cardiovascular behavioral and other risk factors of masked arterial hypertension (MHTN) and stable arterial hypertension (SHTN) in young subjects (students of medical university). Design and methods . A full-design screening study included 423 young men and women aged 20–27, mean age 22, 59 % were women and 41 % — men. All subjects underwent clinical examination: physical examination — height, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist and hip circumferences, questionnaires to assess behavioral risk factors and history of the complaints; laboratory and instrumental screening: fasting serum creatinine, lipid profile (total cholesterol, triglycerides, high density lipoproteins, low density lipoproteins), 30‑second breath-hold test, standard 12‑lead electrocardiography (ECG); echocardiography and 24‑hour blood pressure monitoring in HTN subjects (with MHTN and SHTN). Results. MHTN was detected in 12,3 % subjects, SHTN — in 9 %; 78,7 % were normotensives. Subjects with SHTN were overweight — BMI 28,4 (27,4; 29,7) kg/m 2. In MHTN subjects, waist and circumferences tended to increase: 77,2 (65,1; 82) and 98 (93,2; 104) cm, respectively. MHTN patients demonstrated higher office systolic blood pressure as compared to normotensives: 120 (110; 130) versus 108,5 (100; 118) mm Hg. However, they had lower BP compared to subjects with SHTN — 139 (132,3; 140) mm Hg. Family history of early cardiovascular diseases was detected in all MHTN patients (100 %), as well as in 50 % SHTN individuals and in 56 % normotensives. The highest prevalence of behavioral risk factors was found in a group of subjects with MHTN, as compared to those with SHTN and normotensives. Conclusions . Subjects with MHTN and SHTN have prevalent indicators of behavioral and other risk factors for HTN, which form its phenotype. The development of MHTN and SHTN in young subjects is associated with the severity of clinical, genetic and behavioral risk factors.


The speciality of "Multimedia and Network Technology"is one of the key specialities in our college.Since the students of 3 year schooling were enrolled,this speciality has been academically strengthened,and a training program has been drawn up with the competence in network engineering and network programming as the main line and the competance in network security and management as the auxiliary one.Based on the reform practice in this speciality,the authors explore talent making from the angles of guiding principle,training objective,curriculum system,teaching methodology,and practical training.


Background: Malaria is still endemic in sub-Saharan Africa, with a high disease burden. Misconceptions about malaria contribute to poor attitudes and practices, further increasing the burden in endemic countries. Studies have examined the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) of malaria among different populations. However, there seems to be no available literature reporting on the perspectives of day and night market traders. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on malaria KAP with a focus on day and night market traders. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study involving day and night market traders in 10 selected markets within the Greater Accra Region of Ghana was carried out. Data were collected from consenting respondents using a structured questionnaire. Results: Of the 760 respondents (33.3% (n = 253) night and 66.7% (n = 507) day traders) interviewed, there was no significant difference between the day and night market traders in terms of malaria KAP. Although the market traders had an overall moderate knowledge (54.0% of the day traders and 56.5% of the night traders), misconceptions about malaria (especially that it could be caused by exposure to the sun) still existed among the traders. Moreover, the majority of the traders who demonstrated high knowledge (43.98%, n = 250) did not always take laboratory tests to confirm their suspicion, indicating poor attitude. Furthermore, the market traders' choice of drug for malaria treatment (p = 0.001) and preferred malaria treatment type (orthodox or herbal) (p = 0.005) were significantly associated with their knowledge level. Conclusions: Despite the observation that no significant difference in KAP exists between day and night market traders, appropriate health education programs and interventions still need to be directed at misconceptions, poor attitudes, and poor practices revealed by this study. This will ultimately help in the prevention and control of malaria in Ghana, and globally.


Reservoirs typically exhibit a gradient along their longitudinal axis in turbidity, nutrient flux, and algal biomass. We utilized these characteristics to examine factors influencing temporal and spatial patterns in abundance, biomass, composition, and production of epilimnetic autotrophic picoplankton (APP) in Sardis Reservoir, Mississippi, USA. Over a 18-month period, APP abundance varied between about 15,000 and 700,000 cells ml -1 . Both APP abundance and APP biomass were closely linked to APP production and temperature. On an annual basis, the contribution of APP to total algal biomass and light-standardized production ranged between 15-47%, and 5-40%, respectively. Prokaryotes comprised more than 95 % of all APP in summer, but eukaryotes dominated the APP community in winter. During the nutrient-depleted summer period, APP decreased in number but tended to increase in the percentage of total algal biomass and production, from the uplake riverine zone to the downlake lacustrine zone. Only in the second year of the study, when reservoir water residence time was more than four times greater than in the first year, were there significant differences in biomass and productivity of APP between the uplake and downlake regional We suggest that, particularly in years or at times of the year when water-flow through the reservoir is slow, the importance of APP in Sardis Reservoir reflects a spatial and temporal gradient in nutrient availability.


A research is made of the mix of APP and EPDM,and the mix's tensile strength,pull-apart extension rate,hardness,and back-bouncing rate are analyzed.The result shows that the mix of APP and EPDM can improve the craftsmanship of EPDM,lower the cost,and help to produce several rubber products.


With the increasing application of steel materials, the metallographic analysis of steel has gained importance. At present, grain size analysis remains the task of experts who must manually evaluate photos of the structure. Given the software currently available for this task, it is impossible to effectively determine the grain size because of the limitations of traditional algorithms. Artificial intelligence is now being applied in many fields. This paper uses the concept of deep learning to propose a fast image classifier (FIC) to classify grain size. We establish a classification model based on the grain size of steel in metallography. This model boasts high performance, fast operation, and low computational costs. In addition, we use a real metallographic dataset to compare FIC with other deep learning network architectures. The experimental results show that the proposed method yields a classification accuracy of 99.7%, which is higher than existing methods, and boasts computational demands, which are far lower than with other network architectures. We propose a novel system for automatic grain size determination as an application for metallographic analysis.


losum. But in other respects the gametophyte and embryo of B. virginianum agrees with what is known of other Ophioglossaceax. The author points out a similarity in form between the prothalli of B. virginianum and Hycopodium annotinum, while a likeness is also found in the same organs of Ophioglossumn pedunculosum and I. cernuuem and L. inundatum, showing two types of the gametophyte in the Ophioglossacexe as in the Lycopodineae. H. M. R.


The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters for days on feed (DOF), age at slaughter (AAS), and their relationships with carcass traits, including: marbling score (MARB), adjusted fat thickness (AFT), hot carcass weight (HCW), ribeye area (REA), and final live weight (FW). Data were from steers and heifers (n = 7,747) from the Germplasm Evaluation Program at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center. All traits were analyzed with univariate and bivariate animal models using ASReml. Fixed effects fitted for all models included contemporary group (concatenation of birth year and season, sex, and experimental treatment group), breed fractions, and direct heterosis. Different endpoints were also investigated by fitting fixed linear covariates of AFT, HCW, REA, MARB, FW, and age (except AAS and DOF). For a given bivariate analyses, both traits were adjusted to the same endpoint. Univariate heritability estimates for AFT, AAS, DOF, FW, HCW, MARB, and REA ranged from 0.45–0.52, 0.52–0.59, 0.33–0.39, 0.34–0.55, 0.34–0.55, 0.54–0.55, and 0.50–0.56, respectively. Covariates of MARB and AFT led to the highest and lowest, respectively, heritability estimates for AAS and DOF. Depending on the endpoint, genetic correlations between AAS and AFT, FW, HCW, MARB, and REA ranged from 0.16 to 0.32, -0.08 to 0.33, 0.19 to 0.36, 0.14 to 0.20, and -0.06 to 0.13 (Table 1). Genetic correlations between DOF and AFT, MARB, and REA were negligible. Genetic correlations between DOF, FW, and HCW ranged from -0.10 to 0.29 and -0.37 to -0.17. Standard errors were less than 0.07 for all estimates. Phenotypic variability in DOF was low, and increased variability in AAS was due to differences in date of birth and thus weaning age. Results indicate DOF and AAS are moderately to highly heritable and generally lowly correlated with routine carcass traits. The USDA is an equal opportunity employer.


Mechanical properties of salt are important to the geologist because they determine the behavior of salt in large quantities. The ability of salt to flow or creep slowly under sufficient differential pressure is of particular importance in explaining the formation and shape of salt structures. The time-dependent strain or creep of salt and other nonmetallic substances is not well understood, but available data show that, under suitable conditions of pressure, temperature, and environment, salt and other nonmetallic materials show a behavior similar to that of metals. Data concerning creep of salt obtained in the laboratory and in situ have been studied. From these data it is possible to derive, for the given conditions of stress, temperature, and environment, an quivalent viscosity for the salt. The values obtained show a variation of many orders of magnitude.


Objective:To investigate the association between four missense mutation in E-selectin gene including rs3917408 G/T,rs5361 A/C,rs3917429 C/T and rs5355 C/T and essential hypertension in Hani minority.Methods:E-selectin genotyped by sequence was performed in 133 normotensive subjects and 172 essential hypertensive subjects.Results:The allele frequency of the four studied polymorphism in normotensive controls and essential hypertensive cohort in Hani population were rs3917408 T:0.004vs.0.020;rs5361 C:0.049 vs 0.070;rs5368 T:0.218 vs.0.288;rs3917429 T:0.011 vs.0.061,respectively.The frequency of rs3917429 T allele in the essential hypertensive group was significantly higher than that in the normotensive controls(P0.01).No significant difference was found between the two groups in the other loci.Conclusion:The rs3917429 T allele of the E-selectin gene may play a role in genetic predisposition to developing essential hypertension in Hani minorities.


Objective To analyze the anatomical relationship between the offending vessels and the facial nerve in hemifacial spasm(HFS) and to provide anatomical basis for microvascular decompression(MVD) in patients with HFS.Methods The clinical data of 78 patients with HFS treated with MVD were analyzed retrospectively to find out whether the offending vessels existed or not and their origin and running course,and to summarize the efficacy of microvascular decompression on hemifacial spasm.Results There were offending vessels in 77 patients(98.72%)out of the 78 patients with HFS,including 39 cases(50.00%) of anterior inferior cerebellar artery(AICA),21 cases(26.93%) of posterior inferior cerebellar artery(PICA),10 cases(12.82%) of AICA and PICA,3 cases(3.85%) of PICA and vertebral artery(VA),2 cases(2.56%) of AICA and VA,and 2 cases(2.56%) of AICA,PICA and VA.1 case(1.28%) had no offending vessels.The spasm disappeared immediately after the operation in 72 patients,and the symptoms of spam improved significantly in 5 patients,who were cured in three to six months.Conclusion Vascular compression may be the main cause of HFS,and the operation of MVD for HFS could achieve satisfactory efficacy.Exposing REZ during operation,accurately identifying the offending vessels,fully decompressing of REZ,the size of graft and the location of graft are important factors influencing surgical efficacy.


In this study, the design of fuzzy logic control (FLC) systems for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) maximum power point tracking (MPPT) is improved. The improvement is made possible by using a gradient-based optimizer (GBO), which maximizes the FLC systems' freedom and flexibility while enabling accurate and speedy tracking. During optimization, the parameters of the FLC membership functions are considered choice variables, and the error integral is assigned to be the objective function. The proposed GBO-FLC method's results are contrasted with those of other computational methods. The results demonstrated that the proposed GBO-FLC beats the other strategies regarding mean, median, variance, and standard deviation. A thorough comparison between the regular FLC and the upgraded FLC was conducted using a variety of scenarios with varied temperatures and water content. The results demonstrate that the suggested FLC-based GBO design provides a dependable MPPT solution in PEMFCs. The advancement of FLC systems through optimizing power generation in fuel cells is made possible by this work, opening the door for more effective and reliable alternative energy sources.


A simple means of pumping small leak rates of methane is frequently required in long‐term sealed‐off devices such as evacuated solar absorbers. In this paper we examine, in this context, a chemisorption or catalytic pump the SAES getter St707. After suitable activation in an ultrahigh vacuum system a small sample of St707 (2.7×3 cm), with heater external to the vacuum system, was exposed to a methane leak as the sample temperature was raised in steps from room temperature to 400 °C, the highest temperature used. Pumping was first detected at 100 °C and at 400 °C the pumping speed was 2×10−3 l s−1 cm−2 (pumping area assumed 8 cm2), after 0.34 Torr l of methane had been pumped. Care was taken to distinguish these small pumping speeds from ionic pumping by the gages. The conclusion is that the St707 getter is suitable as a methane pump of low speed at low temperatures and pressures.


Research on the adsorption of iron(III) ion using an adsorbent from duck feather-polyethylene composite has been studied. This study aimed to determine the optimum pH conditions and the optimum contact time required in the iron(III) ion adsorption process. Optimum pH and contact time are then measured using AAS to determine the amount of iron(III) ion adsorbed with the duck feather-polyethylene composite adsorbent. The determination of the optimum pH was carried out with pH variations which are 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, while determination of the optimum contact time was carried out with contact time variations which are 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, 140, and 160 minutes. The result of this research showed that optimum conditions for iron(III) ion adsorption at pH 6 and contact time at 80 minutes, which each adsorption capacity are 68.33% and 79.78%.


Recently there has been increased activity in the microelectronic industry associated with wireless products. Much of this involves high frequency circuitry in a variety of products including pagers, cellular telephones, wireless modems, base station equipment, etc. The demanding requirements of small size, fragile GaAs IC's, high frequency, low power consumption and low cost challenge traditional solutions leading many to search for new materials and processes. Component size reduction has relieved some of the real estate requirements, but this has led designers to intense experimentation with a variety of new high density interconnect (HDI) substrates. Among these are BT resin laminates and direct plated copper (DPC). This report compares DPC and BT with traditional thick film (TF) substrates. Electrical performance, volume, thermal dissipation, and cost characteristics will be discussed. DPC is formed by sputtering a thin layer of Ti (∼0.3 um) and Cu (∼ 0.4 um) onto alumina (Al 2 O 3 ). Additional layers are plated upon the base layers to form a solid layer of Cu for circuitry. Photolithographic methods are used to transfer the circuit pattern and it is etched onto the substrate; Ni and Au finish layers can also be added. The resultant HDI substrate is excellent for use in high power or high current applications with significantly lower voltage drop than traditional TF and excellent solder leaching resistance. Increased reliability and low sheet resistance also result. Few limitations or drawbacks exist for using this material process; several wireless product applications are moving into high volume production using DPC.


[Objective] To construct the recombinant adenovirus mediated shRNA to hTERT, and investigate the in- hibitory effects of the vector on the MCF-7 cells, so as to provide a new approach for the gene therapy for breast cancer which aim at inhibiting the telomerase activity. [Methods] An interference target sequence GGAAGAGUGUCUGGAGCAAGU which aimed at hTERT gene was designed and the shRNA expression recombinant adenovirus vector rAd-shRNA-hTERT was pack-aged in HEK293 cells. The rAd-shRNA-HK and rAd-EGFP were constructed by the same method to be control. After trans-fecting MCF-7 cells for 48h, FQ-PCR and Western-blotting test were performed to detect the the expression of hTERT in MCF-7 cells. The apoptosis status was detected by flow cytometer. [Results] The results of restrictive endonuclease analysis and the sequencing identification confirmed that the target sequence was inserted into the predicted site precisely and the recom- bining adenovirus vectors were successfully constructed.The results of FQ-PCR and Western-blooting showed that the expression of hTERT in rAd-shRNA-hTERT group was obviously decreased at 48 hours after transfection. the cell growth was choked back and induced cell apoptosis. [ Conclusion] Adenovirus-mediated RNA interference of hTERT can inhibit the expression of hTERT of MCF-7 cells.It may open a new approach to the use of RNAi as a new tool to study gene function in cancer cell lines, and may be developed to be a new gene therapitic agent for cancer.


The present invention proposes a method and apparatus for generating a page in the search engine extensions digest, comprising: a retrieval and returns the associated page table having a table associated with the query keyword; obtaining parsing the associated page table form As a result, based on the extracted analysis result column names and category instance; OK OK examples of keywords associated with the query; generating a tabular summary page in accordance with the row and column names related examples. Embodiment the present invention may generate a summary page table formats.


Over 3000 corneal transplant operations are performed each year in Britain, making this the commonest type of allografting. In most procedures a full thickness corneal button, about 8 mm in diameter, is removed and replaced. The change from using fresh tissue (within 24 hours of death) to stored tissue during the 1980s converted keratoplasty from an out of hours procedure to a mainly planned, routine operation. Cold storage (for up to 8 days at 4°C) and organ culture (for up to 30 days at 34°C) both allow for planned surgery. Organ culture allows a reserve of tissue for genuine emergencies and affords ample time for the required routine screening of donors for hepatitis B and C viruses and HIV. Extra advantages may follow the more widespread matching for HLA types.

After initiatives in the United States, Denmark, and the Netherlands, Britain's Corneal Transplant Service, based on banks in Bristol and Manchester, began in 1986. It now offers to accept, …


'Transience' is an important category which proposed by Lessing in his Classic Laocoon. It is an important gateway for the blending between poets and paintings. The thesis, taking as its center of the category, points out transience is the universal principle for the expression of all arts forms and then researches for the expression of achieving transience in poems.


Wide-angle, 2D imaging of Doppler-shifted, Balmer alpha (Dα) emission from high energy injected neutrals, charge exchange recombination (CER) emission from neutral beam interaction with thermal ions and fully stripped impurity ions and visible bremsstrahlung (VB) from the core of DIII-D plasmas has been carried out. Narrowband interference filters were used to isolate the specific wavelength ranges of visible radiation for detection by a tangentially viewing, fast-framing camera. Measurements of the Dα emission from fast neutrals injected into the plasma from the low field side reveal the vertical distribution of the beam, its divergence and the variation in its radial penetration with density. Modeling of this emission using both a full Monte Carlo collisional radiative code as well as a simple beam attenuation code coupled to Atomic Data and Analysis Structure emissivity lookup tables yields qualitative agreement, however the absolute magnitudes of the emissivities in the predicted distribution are larger than those measured. Active measurements of carbon CER brightness are in agreement with those made independently along the beam midplane using DIII-D's multichordal, CER spectrometer system, confirming the potential of this technique for obtaining 2D profiles of impurity density. Passive imaging of VB, which can be inverted to obtain local emissivity profiles, is compared with measurements from both a calibrated filter/photomultiplier array and the standard multichordal CER spectrometer system.


consultee statements is one way to assess appropriateness of consultation responses. Although this method may be useful in experimental studies, it probably has limited usefulness in many classroom situations in which consultation skills are taught. Administration and rating of the videotaped segments are cumbersome, time-consuming, and expensive. The above limitations resulted in the decision by this writer and associates to begin development of paper and pencil measures that might be used instead of videotaped and audiotaped samples of behavior. The first instrument developed was the Consultation Situations Inventory (CSI) (Magee, Rectanus, & Randolph, 1982). This instrument was designed to measure recognition of critical elements in consultation situations. Each of the 35 items included in this instrument consists of either: (a) a brief consultant statement, followed by a brief consultee statement or (b) a brief consultee statement, followed by a brief consultant statement. Each item is followed by five multiple-choice answer possibilities that might describe critical elements in the consultantconsultee interaction situation. Only one answer is considered to be correct. Content validity for each item was established via three doctoral level judges. The test-retest reliability coefficient obtained for 25 graduate students untrained in consultation skills was .80. In a comparison of 25 graduate students untrained in consultation with 35 graduate students trained in consultation, mean Consultation Situation Inventory (CSI) scores were significantly higher for those trained (p<.001). The high degree of discrimination between the two groups provides some support for validity of the CSI. The chief limitation of the CSI is that it is designed to measure only recognition of critical elements in a consultation situation. It does not measure clinical judgment. Thus the first author has begun development of an instrument to measure both ability to recognize critical elements in a consultation situation and ability to make a clinical judqrnent as to what action should be taken by the consultant. This instrument, the Consultation Judgment Inventory (CJI) (Randolph, 1983) consists of 35 items in a five-item multiplechoice format. Items are similar to those on the CSI, except that the answer choices represent courses of action that might be taken by the consultant. It is presumed that clinical judgment, operationally defined in terms of courses of action to be taken by the consultant, involves a higher level of cognitive activity than mere recognition of critical elements in a consultation situation. Thus one might expect that the CJI would have a higher difficulty level than the CSI; specifically, subjects should score higher on the CSI than the CJI. In a recent study involving 26 graduate student subjects, subjects scored significantly higher on the CSI than the CJI (p<.05). Thus it appears that the CJI does have a higher difficulty level than the CSI. Further development of the CJI has been temporarily hampered by the lack of availability of a sufficient number of graduate student subjects. Although undergraduate psychology students are frequently utilized as subjects in instrument development studies, they would not be appropriate subjects in this instance because the CJI is designed as an instrument for use in graduate level consultation courses. Consequently, we are willing to furnish a copy of the CJI to


SALBP is an NP-hard problem. There are some measures proposed to grasp the difficulty of SALBP. Order Strength, Flexibility Ratio and West Ratio all of which are based on SALBP precedence networks are among them. This study investigates the sensitivity of difficulty of SALBP type 2 to the three measures. A SALBP solver is created in Python programming language. Computational experiments are conducted.


Although thin film coatings have been used for many years in optical investigations of biological systems (especially as narrow band light filters), more recent applications of such films in two types of spectroscopic devices, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and optical waveguides, have provided new biophysical tools for the study of protein-protein and protein-lipid membrane interactions [1]. Although both of these techniques are based on different physical phenomena, the thin film coatings have the same function, i.e. coupling devices in which incident light, under the appropriate optical conditions, can generate an evanescent surface-bound electromagnetic field, which propagates along the interface between the thin film and the emergent dielectric medium in a manner which depends on the interface characteristics. The resulting electric field intensity is concentrated at the outer surface of the film, and diminishes exponentially on both sides of the interface. As a consequence of these properties, it is possible to use SPR and waveguide spectroscopy to probe a few nanometers from the coated surface, a distance well below the wavelength of the light used to generate the evanescent waves, and hence these phenomena have been utilized extensively in studies of surfaces and thin films [for references see 1,2]. Although numerous other optical techniques have also been applied to such systems (e.g. ellipsometry, interferometry, spectrophotometry, and various forms of microscopy), the SPR method has very recently regained its popularity, mainly because of its superior sensitivity, as well as some additional very important advantages over these other methodologies [1,2]. These latter advantages include the following. First, the complete system of measurement is located on the side of the apparatus which is remote from the sample, and thus there is no optical interference from the bulk medium. Second, the outer surface of the sample needs no treatment to increase reflectance, because the necessary high reflectivity is achieved by using total internal reflectance. Third, there are three principal parameters of the resonance that can readily be measured, thereby yielding much more information about the sample and changes within it than the simple interferometric step height used in other sensitive optical techniques.


This paper proposes a full-text search engine design scheme based on Java. The scheme includes three parts:A web spider based on HTML Parser, an indexer and a searcher based on Lucene. The web spider uses tag crawling strategy and breadth-first traversal algorithm, realizes the traversal of web pages; the indexer create index for the page which is scraped by the web spider to build the index database; the searchers search on the index database according to the keyword entered by the user and return the search results back to the user. Retrieval experiments show that the search engine is a more efficient retrieval tools.


We are dealing with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), using a new methodology based on Passive Time Delay Technique (PTDT). Lung sounds were recorded using a multichannel stethoscope on 28 healthy subjects and 20 COPD patients. The sensors were distributed on the posterior and anterior chest wall. During recordings, all participants were breathing at matching airflow rates. Calculated time delay (TD) was identified for inspiration phase and an average TD value was provided after three repetitive measurements for each inspiration phase. TD computed in COPD patients: 440 ± 87 % (P < 0.05) was remarkably greater than time delay computed with normal subjects: 160 ± 10 % (P < 0.05). Results were presented as mean ± SD, standard deviation of time delay in ms. Significant P values (P < 0.05) were indicated using Wilcoxon test. Preliminary results are very encouraging to develop this technique and enhance COPD monitoring.


Abstract Countercurrent chromatography (CCC) was chosen for study as an isolation technique for pesticides and the impurities found with them, because its high capacity makes possible comparatively large batches of purified materials and because its mild operating conditions minimize the danger of degradation during the separation. Technical grade fenthion, an organophosphorus insecticide, showed traces of six impurities. The principal one found in an analytical standard fenthion was identified as 3-methyl-4-(methylthio)anisole, well separated from the fenthion. The n-octyl ester of the herbicide 2,4,5-T was easily separated from the methyl ester impurity.


Improving charge-discharge cycle characteristics of the lithium secondary battery negative electrode carbon material. Lithium secondary battery negative electrode carbon material according to the present invention surrounds absorbing and release available carbon or metal or semi-metal or an alloy of these lithium ion, oxide, and particles comprising a nitride or a carbide, the particles a resin carbon material, bonded to the surface of the particles, and comprises a net-like structure consisting of carbon nanofibers and / or carbon nanotubes surrounding the particles.


Given a binaural subjective tone (the Huggins phenomenon, heard when noises interaurally bear certain phase relationships) as challenge stimulus, listeners matched it for pitch and loudness by adjusting the frequency and level of a sinusoid in comparable noise. Challenge variables were polarity (monaural‐signal inversion to put the phase‐shift band center frequency, designated the target frequency, interaurally in either 180° or 0° phase) and rate of change of phase shift with frequency (90° shift with respect to the target accomplished in either 5 or 50 cps). In both the challenge and matching channels, the noise spectrum was flat, 1500‐cps low pass. and over‐all level was 60 dB re 0.0002 dyn/cm2. The target frequency was 500 cps. Results indicate that, despite some consistent listener deviations, on the average the target is matched in all but the 50‐cps 180° condition, where it is heard as 520 cps. Loudness is slightly greater with narrower bandwidth; the 50‐cps 0° tone is louder than the 50‐cps 180° t...


In this paper the author addresses the process of creation, landscaping as well as the present state of the Warriors' section of Varaždin City Cemetery. As the 100th anniversary of the end of the Great War is to be marked, the author gives basic information on the total number of buried soldiers, special attention being paid to the soldiers of Austrian nationality.


Vision of a Good School. System Thinking. Building a Systemic Model. Systemic Alignment and Balance. Stakeholders Part I: Community, Community Members, Stakeholders Part II: Parents, Students,and State and National Government. The Closed Culture. Leadership. Complete, Incomplete, and Thwarted Planning. The Structure, Perception or Reality. Thoughts on School Management. Boundaries. Index.


In this study the chemistry of chalcones has generated intensive scientific interest due to their biological and industrial applications. Chalcones are natural biocides and are well known intermediates in the synthesis of heterocyclic compounds exhibiting various biological activities. Chalcones and their derivatives possess some interesting biological properties such as antibacterial, antifungal, insecticidal, anesthetic, antiinflammatory, analgesic etc. Different methods are available for the preparation of chalcones. The most convenient method is the Claisen-Schimdt condensation of equimolar quantities of arylmethylketone with aryl aldehyde in the presence of alcoholic alkali, In the Claisen-Schmidt reaction, the concentration of alkali used, usually ranges between 10 and 60 %. The reaction is carried out at about 50 C for 12-15 hours or at room temperature for one week.


The article substantiates the methodological approaches used to assess the ecological state of one of the most vulnerable natural objects under intensive economic activity - the soil, which is constantly under physical and chemical (technogenic) loads and unbalanced farming systems. An analysis of the state of the problem showed that a few decades ago, the average content of humus in soils was 4,2%, today it is only 3,2%. The main reasons for the loss of humus are its mineralization, the lack of organic matter entering the soil, and water and wind erosion. The physical and mechanical properties of the soil significantly worsened, and with them the water-air and thermal properties worsened too. Based on the fact that the main task of modern agriculture is to increase soil fertility, thanks to the introduction of energy and resource-saving technologies, it is shown that the main component of the methodological basis for assessing the ecological state of the soil is a system of control indicators, the choice of which is due to the need to adequately characterize the main functions of the soil, soil-forming or soil-destroying processes. The basic requirements for indicators of soil biological activity are formulated. Accoding to the results of studies based on the analysis of methods for assessing the ecological state of soils, agroecological monitoring, which involves the study and generalization of statistical materials for the conditions of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, it has been established that promising directions for assessing the ecological state of soils are: taking into account the influence of pollution of various nature on it; combination in the ways of different methods; application of functional-ecological approach; adaptation of methods to certain soil and climatic conditions of territories and specific types of soil; development of methods that have an environmental and economic effect.


A wide variety of coated and non-coated materials are used in the manufacture of large numbers of parts for vehicle body assembly. Automobile manufacturers, due to continuous demand for competitiveness, are keen to decrease the weight of parts, reduce and/or recover scrap and decrease the number of parts and expensive tools. One way to achieve the objective is to design larger parts, the blanks for which are fabricated by welding, and subsequently form the part in one operation instead of producing a number of smaller parts in a large number of operations. The paper will discuss the various approaches to blank assembly techniques to reduce material wastage and decrease both the number of parts and the forming operations. The application of high speed C02 laser welding will be highlighted. A practical example of a prototype door panel fabricated by welding and subsequent forming will also be discussed with regard to the associated advantages and limitations. The results show that innovative part designs can significantly reduce material usage and production costs while giving improved vehicle body quality when modern welding technology is incorporated.


The intensive constructing of fortified settlements has turned the Dnieper-Don forest-steppe into a huge building site since the second half of the 6th century BCE. Mass development of fortifications has begun. Despite the local features related with topography and the availability of building materials, it is possible to distinguish some common vectors.
The hillforts are traditionally perceived by researchers as static structures that have «frozen» in their original forms. Recent archaeological researches on the Tsyrkuny, Bilsk and Mokhnach hillforts in the Forest-Steppe, confirmed by the series of planographic observations on the other sites, allow us to classify some features of the development of fortified settlements.
On the one hand, hillforts are formed on the basis of the unfortified settlements. Another part was initially built as fortification. Simple forms of defensive structures and poorly saturated cultural layer are the characteristic features of the fortifications of so-called «shelter-fortresses». The review of the sources allowed us to say that these sites are hillforts which, for some unknown reasons, were not settled down, capturing the first stage of the existence of fortifications, and their specific cultural layer cannot be the evidence of their belonging to certain cultural and economic type.
The series of cross-sections of fortifications indicated the traces of restructuring and repairing of individual defensive lines throughout the entire period of their use. There are examples of expanding the area of the hillfort due to constructing of the new defensive structure as an extension of the main line or the creation of the fortification on the next cape that could be united by the common rampart. Also are known the examples of the special reduction of the area of hillfort. Similar situation is observed at the last stage of the Bilsk archaeological complex.
In the Late Scythian period, a new type of monuments appeared on the territory of the Dnieper-Don Forest-Steppe, fortifications consisting of the acropolis (central fortified part) and large household yard.
The current research allows to critically evaluate the popular models of classifications and the validity of their application for historical reconstructions.


The correlation between spore generation and temperature,and correlations between amino nitrogen content and browning degree,laccase activity were analyzed by determining laccase activity of bacteria strains isolated and preserved by microbiological laboratory of Guizhou university to explore methyl catechol browning oxidized by laccase and browning path of L-tyrosine oxidation under ABTS condition for study the effect of laccase in bacillus on browning of fermented soybean.The results showed that:1)Spore content and browning degree of the simulation fermented soybean increase with temperature increment during the browning process of the simulation fermented soybean fermented by bacillus strains;2)Laccase activity of bacillus strains is up to maximum at 60℃,which is consistent with accumulation temperature of high temperature Daqu with Maotai-flavor;3)Pearson's correlation coefficients with significant correlation between browning of the fermented soybean and laccase activity,amino nitrogen content of fermentation products are 0.617 and 0.766;4)Brownness substance can be produced from methyl catechol oxidized by laccase of bacillus strains,and brownness substance can be produced by oxidizing L-tyrosine by laccase of bacillus strains under ABTS condition also.In conclusion,browning caused by laccase of bacillus strains has the certain effect on browning of Daqu with Maotai-flavor during the fermentation process.


Gender indentify makes (axerts) an essential impact (influence) on the persons selt-determination process. Taking into account gender features (peculiarities) scientists investigated the formation of personal maturity among teenagers (at the age 14–15 years). On the basis of shidyng and material ordering was made the following ( next) conclusion: girls at the age of 14–15 y. 14–15 years ad girls outstrip young men of the same age group in their psychological development. If is shown in selt-realization, selt-determination and selt-affirmation processes.


Evolution of desert is one of important aspect of Quaternary paleoclimate and paleoenvironment research.The method applying deposition age of loess and change of loess grain-size 63 μm percent to reconstruct the formation of desert is available.In this paper,the result of deposition age and change of grain-size 63 μm percent of loess lies on the highest terrace of river in northern margin of Tianshan Mt.shows that Gurbantunggut desert at least has developed as early as 0.8 Ma.Since then,the desert experienced three phases;they are roughly stable(0.8~0.4 Ma),abrupt fluctuation(0.4~0.13 Ma) and contractive stable(0.13~0 Ma).Kunlun-Huanghe tectonic leads to changes of atmospheric cycle in eastern Asia and decrease of precipitation in the North-western Chinese region such as Junggar and Tarim basin,causing distinctly dry climate and winter monsoon strengthening,shrinking and disappearance of lakes in the basins,bareness of large quantities of loosening substance.The process provides favorable conditions of formation and abroad development of deserts,then the main part of the Gurbantunggut desert development.