Training neural text-to-speech (TTS) models for a new speaker typically requires several hours of high quality speech data. Prior works on voice cloning attempt to address this challenge by adapting pre-trained multi-speaker TTS models for a new voice, using a few minutes of speech data of the new speaker. However, publicly available large multi-speaker datasets are often noisy, thereby resulting in TTS models that are not suitable for use in products. We address this challenge by proposing transfer-learning guidelines for adapting high quality single-speaker TTS models for a new speaker, using only a few minutes of speech data. We conduct an extensive study using different amounts of data for a new speaker and evaluate the synthesized speech in terms of naturalness and voice/style similarity to the target speaker. We find that fine-tuning a single-speaker TTS model on just 30 minutes of data, can yield comparable performance to a model trained from scratch on more than 27 hours of data for both male and female target speakers.


Over the last two decades import tariffs have declined significantly. Governments around the world increasingly use non-tariff measures as a substitute for the tariff protection. Little is known about their importance for and effect on international trade. Literature reports a positive effect of reduction in tariffs and services liberalization on productivity of the economy through the firm productivity increase (Pavcnik, 2002; Javorcik, 2004; Amiti and Konings, 2007) and through elimination of low-productive firms and reallocation of resources towards high-productive firms (Melitz, 2003). To the best of our knowledge, no study investigates the effect of the NTMs on an individual firm. To feel this void in the literature, we study the effect of NTMs on firm-level productivity and industry dynamics, focusing on food-processing sector. Since the scope on NTMs is vast and hardly explored, at this stage we focus on the average effect of NTM on productivity of a firm. We investigate the effect on productivity through competition within the same industry (defined at NACE 3 digit level), as well as thorough backward linkages due ∗This paper is written with financial support by "Non-tariff barriers, food safety and international food trade" joint project of Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), University of Life Sciences and Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) funded by the Research Council of Norway (Contract no. 216742/O10). †Kyiv School of Economics, email@example.com ‡Kyiv School of Economics, firstname.lastname@example.com


--At Indonesia of East Java Province has great tourism potential with a development based on tourism that can provide economic growth to East Java province. In trying to maintain the existence of developing tourism and government of transportation policy through various tourist destinations and new infrastructure completeness. With the rapid development of tourism, making tourism sub-sector contributes greatly to the local income government. So, the purpose of this research is to identify the result of the analysis of tourism policy and transportation policy. In this study, The research would like to discuss how big the role of transportation in supporting tourism activities and increasing the growth of tourism in East Java along with the opportunities, supporting factors, and obstacles in increasing the growth of tourism. In the identification, it is found that transportation plays a big role in the growth of tourism that also affects the economic growth of the surrounding communities and the area so that poverty declines. The method used in this study is a descriptive statistical analysis by considering qualitative aspects as quantitative descriptors of the data obtained. Keywords---east java tourism, e-government, sustainable tourism development, transportation policy government.


This article analyzes the influence of marxism in the historiography of Costa Rica. It starts by looking at the emergence and the development of historic investigation in the country and the challenges raised by the Communist Party until 1940. Next, it explains the late upbringing of an academic marxism in Costa Rica. Finally, it examines the influence of various marxist trends in the historiographic renovation that took place after 1970 and the potentials and limitations of these historic studies.


: The frequency and severity of extreme events is expected to increase under 1 climate change. There is a need to understand the economic consequences of human 2 exposure to these extreme events, to underpin decisions on risk reduction. We undertook 3 a scoping review of economic evaluations of the adverse health effects from exposure 4 to weather-related extreme events. We searched Pubmed, Embase and Web of Science 5 databases with no restrictions to the type of evaluations. Twenty studies were included, most 6 of which were recently published. Most studies have been undertaken in the US (9 studies) 7 or Asia (7 studies), whereas we found no studies in Africa, Central and Latin America or the 8 Middle East. Extreme temperatures accounted for more than a third of the pool of studies (7 9 studies), closely followed by flooding (6 studies). No economic study was found on drought. 10 Whilst studies were heterogeneous in terms of objectives and methodology, they clearly indicate that extreme events will become a pressing public health issue with strong welfare 12 and distributional implications. information to support decisions on the allocation of scarce resources between risk reduction 14 options. In particular, the review highlights a significant lack of research attention to the 15 potential cost-effectiveness of interventions that exploit the capacity of natural ecosystems 16 to reduce our exposure to, or ameliorate the consequences of, extreme events.


In this paper, the influence of rotor pole number on the performance of a new kind of slot permanent magnet (PM) machine with complementary rotors is investigated. The major merit of this novel machine concept is the use of complementary rotors, which consist of an inner rotor and an outer rotor that are mechanically staggered by 180 electrical degrees, to provide complementary paths for the PM excitation flux. Two layers of PMs are employed, located on the inside and outside of the slots. Meanwhile, with only salient poles, the rotors are mechanically robust. The investigation is based on 12 stator pole machines with 10, 11, 13 and 14 rotor poles. Electromagnetic performance measures including flux linkage, back electromotive force (EMF), torque characteristics, loss and efficiency are comprehensively studied using the finite element method (FEM). The results show that the machine with 11 rotor poles can achieve the largest torque density and rated efficiency, as well as minimum ratio of cogging torque to rated torque.


Background: Cervical cancer is the 4th most frequent cancer in women. Aim: The present study aimed to assess self-knowledge among women with cervical cancer. Methods; Design: A descriptive research design was used. Setting: out-patient clinic in the oncology unit at Beni-Suef University Hospital. Subjects: A purposive sample of 70 women. Tools: Data was collected through a structured interviewing questionnaire sheet and a scoring system for women's knowledge about cervical cancer. Results: The results of the study revealed that there was a statistically significant difference in the women's knowledge about cervical cancer, and socio-demographic characteristics. Conclusion: The study concluded that socio-demographic characteristics of women could affect their knowledge level regarding cervical cancer. Recommendations: Implement an educational program and disseminate information that focuses on educating women about cervical cancer risks, prevention, and early detection to enhance uptake of cervical cancer.


HPV vaccination is a milestone in cancer prevention. This recent good news of a vaccine able to prevent most cervical cancers was met with clear delight by health officials and others interested in the public's health. Some conservative religious groups in the United States vocally opposed the vaccine, claiming that it would make adolescent girls sexually promiscuous. These claims shifted the policy debate to concerns over possible sexual disinhibition instead of the certainty of the deaths from cervical cancer that will continue to accrue in the absence of the vaccine.


Sol-gel processes refer to the transition of predefined compositions of inorganic alkoxides precursors from liquid sol phase to solid gel phase. The phenomenon of sol-gel was known to mankind for more than 150 years. It is because of concerted efforts of researchers from multidisciplinary fields, sol-gel science transformed to technology. Several products are already commercially available for applications in optical coatings, nanocomposites, and public healthcare. Potential applications in the areas of biosensors and environmental monitoring are expected. Newer applications with nanotechnology appear too exciting. An attempt has been made to address important applications of sol-gel technology, particularly in sensing techniques from the defence perspective.


The main tasks of the mission are: 1.Rapid assessment of the coffee value chain, with a specific focus on: a.Family farms, their constraints and operation; b.Value chain stakeholders (collectors, plantations, producer organizations, exporters, etc.); c. Business relationships/modes of coordination between the stakeholders; 2.Quick survey of coffee smallholder agroforestry management practices. Main constraints and opportunities associated with the current practices; 3.Mapping of alternative trade networks and certification systems developed in the area. 4.Assessment of the specific relationships developed by La Cumplida in Nicaragua (possible comparison with other initiatives aimed at developing AFSs); 5.Identification of adapted R&D devices to support potentially valid AFS systems.


Based on that floc structure is an important factor that influencing the coagulation effect and the post-treatment load, the effect of PAM on floc structure of typical system is analyzed and evaluated in this paper. The results show that PAM has a notable influence on floc morphological structure characteristics. For inorganic turbid system, the fractal dimension and diameter of kaolin flocs adding PAM are bigger than that formed by adding aluminum sulfate merely, and the shear-resistant ability of flocs is stronger. With regard to dissolved organic system, adding PAM under two typical pH conditions, the floc morphological characteristic has the same variation with that in inorganic turbid system. PAM could improve the floc morphological structure. However, the improving effect will be relatively weaker under slightly acidic condition, which indicates that the chemical effect of PAM is restrained under this condition. While for the coexisting system, PAM shows an obvious improvement on floc structure under two pH conditions, the floc is compact, bigger and with a higher strength. The chemical effect of PAM is not restrained under slightly acidic condition, which may owe to the interaction between PAM and inorganic suspended materials and dissolved organics in coexisting system.


Assessing artistic quality in the performing arts is very difficult, especially when it has to be done beforehand based on applications received by funding bodies. By evaluating existing literature on possible criteria for assessing quality in the performing arts, such as reviews, awards or benefits to the art form, a framework of analysis is developed. This framework is applied to documents from the Rotterdamse Raad voor Kunst en Cultuur and the municipality of Rotterdam in the analysis, to provide an insight in which criteria are used most. It becomes clear that reputation is a very important factor, as it can help members of committees to indicate the quality of upcoming projects. However, in the case of the RRKC benefits to society are taken into consideration as well, since the spending of public money on structural subsidies means the city of Rotterdam and its inhabitants must have a certain return on their investment. Furthermore the importance of the overlooked criterion of audience experience is stressed, as incorporating this criterion in an assessment beforehand can be beneficial for both performing arts organisations as well as for funding bodies.


INTRODUCTION
Bin/Amphiphysin/Rvs167 (BAR) domain superfamily proteins are considered to be able to induce membrane curvature. PICK1 is a unique protein consisting of both a PDZ and a BAR domain that has been associated with many diseases. PICK1 can force membrane curvature during receptor-mediated endocytosis. In addition to understanding how the N-BAR domain can force membrane curvature, it is also of particular interest to understand the hidden connections between structural and mechanical properties of the PICK1 BAR dimers.

METHOD
In this paper, steered molecular dynamics is used to investigate the mechanical properties that are associated with structural changes of the PICK1 BAR domains.

RESULT
Our results suggest that helix kinks may not only help generate curvature of BAR domains but may also provide the extra flexibility necessary to initiate the binding between BAR domains and the membrane.

CONCLUSION
Interestingly, we observe a complicated interaction network both within the BAR monomer and at the binding interface of the two BAR monomers that is key to maintain the mechanical properties of the BAR dimer. Because of such an interaction network, the PICK1 BAR dimer demonstrated different responses to external forces in opposite directions.


The osmium-tetroxide-catalysed oxidation of mandelate ion by hexacyanoferrate(111) ion has been studied kinetically. The reaction rate has been found to be independent of hexacyanoferrate(111) ion while the order with respect to both osmium tetroxide and mandelate ion comes out to be unity. The reaction rate follows first-order kinetics at low hydroxyl ion concentration and becomes zero order at higher concentrations. The course of the reaction has been considered to proceed through the formation of an activated mandelate-OsO4, complex which decomposes in alkaline medium giving reduced osmium(V1) followed by a fast oxidation by hexacyanoferrate(111) ion. The probable course of the reactions is also described with the help of its oxidation product, benzoic acid.


Encapsulation is a mechanical or physicochemical process that traps a potentially sensitive material and provide a protective barrier between it and the external conditions. The various encapsulation technique includes extrusion, spray drying, spray cooling, lyophilization, emulsion etc. Extrusion is the oldest and most common technique to produce capsule with hydrocolloids. From microbiological point of view, microencapsulation can be defined as the process of entrapment, enclosure of cells In the present investigation, sincere efforts have been made to prepare encapsulated beads of sodium alginate and acid hydrolyzed psyllium husk containing probiotic culture of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus plantarum. The results showed that bead formulation of 1.5 % (w/v) sodium alginate with 0.5 % (w/v) acid hydrolyzed psyllium husk significantly produced spherical beads with narrow size diameter of 1.75 mm and encapsulation efficiency of 99.5 % were achieved. Furthermore, addition of acid hydrolyzed psyllium husk into sodium alginate enhanced the integrity of prepared beads. The results indicated that incorporation of 0.5 % (w/v) acid hydrolyzed psyllium husk in to sodium alginate beads improved viability of the bacteria in acidic conditions as well as bile conditions. The stimulating effect of acid hydrolyzed psyllium husk on the probiotic bacteria was also observed in simulated colonic pH solution. K e y w o r d s


The objective of this thesis is to design a model for a multi global navigation satellite system using Simulink. It explains a design procedure which includes the models for transmitter and receiver for two different navigation systems. To overcome the problem, where less number of satellites are visible to determine location degrades the performance of any positioning system significantly, this research has done to make use of multi GNSS satellite signals in one navigation receiver.


Our previous studies showed that a subset of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) showed focal disruptions in their surrounding myoepithelial (ME) cell layers, and that tumor cells overlying these disruptions had a significantly higher rate of proliferation, genetic instability, and expression of tumor invasion‐related genes than adjacent cells within the same duct. Since the ME cell layer and basement membrane (BM) are intercalated structures, our current study intended to assess if these two structures would show correlated alterations. Consecutive sections from pure DCIS and DCIS with co‐existing invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) were double immunostained for collagen IV and smooth muscle actin. The frequency and locations of focal ME cell layer and BM disruptions were compared. In ducts with a non‐disrupted ME cell layer, the BM layer formed a densely packed band with uniform thickness that completely surrounded the ME cell layer. In ducts with a fragmented ME cell layer, the associated BM layer was generally thin, discontinues, or diffuse. All focal ME cell layer disruptions encountered were companied by the focal disappearance of the BM on the same site. Of these disruptions, over 80% were seen in DCIS and over 15% were seen in normal and hyperplastic ducts. The frequency and size of these disruptions were significantly higher and larger in tumors with coexisting DCIS and IDC than in pure DCIS. These findings suggest that the physical integrity of the ME cell layer may be necessary for maintaining the normal structure and functions of the BM.


Tomas Rivera's novel "... y no se lo trago la tierra" (1971) is a narrative account of the mi gration of Mexican American workers in search of farm work and day labor in the United States. Rivera documents the oppression to which the migrant workers are subjected: poverty, lack of adequate housing, sanitation, and health care, and long hours of grueling labor in the sun. He also shows us the strength of the people who survive those hardships. In fact, Rivera, a former campesino, avows that this was an important motivating factor in the writing of his novel:


Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a global public health problem, with greater burden and very high cost of care especially in developing countries like Nigeria. Hamatological profiles are commonly affected in CKD and this becomes more apparent as the disease progresses. Few literatures exist on haematological profiles of subjects with CKD in our environment. The objective is to assess the haematological profile of our subjects with CKD and compare the results with the ones found in other parts and outside Nigeria. Seventy subjects with CKD at different stages of the disease and 50 healthy adults were recruited into the study. Haemoglobin concentration, PCV, total red cell count, MCV, MCH, MCHC, total white cell count, platelet count and serum ferittin were assessed for the subjects and controls. Results were analysed using SPSS 17.0 and comparison between subjects and control was made with student's t-test. All the measured parameters for the subjects were significantly different from that of the control except MCV and MCH (t- test 0.000). Moderate anaemia was prevalent and the anaemias are predominantly normocytic normochromic. Degree of anaemia worsened with the progression of CKD. Our result is in keeping with that found in Nigerian and other countries of the world.


We construct nontrivial, non-negative quasiconvex functions denned on M2×2 with p-th order growth such that the zero sets of the functions are Lipschitz graphs of mappings from subsets of a fixed two-dimensional subspace to its orthogonal complement. We assume that the graphs do not have rank-one connections with the Lipschitz constants sufficiently small. In particular, we are able to construct quasiconvex functions which are homogeneous of degree p (p > 1) and 'conjugating' invariant.


BACKGROUND: Acrylamide, a probable human carcinogen, is formed from the amino acid asparagine and reducing sugars when potato products are processed at high temperatures. This is a two-year study on five Swedish-grown potato clones, two of which are adapted to cold storage. The clones represented a wide range of precursor concentrations: asparagine, 3.7-15.3 mg g-1; reducing sugars, 0.9-14.9 mg g-1. Crisps were prepared in laboratory-scale equipment mimicking industrial processing conditions. RESULTS: Potatoes stored at 4 °C had significantly higher levels of glucose and fructose than potatoes stored at 8 °C. Acrylamide levels were significantly higher in crisps made from potatoes stored at 4 °C. Two clones with a large difference in asparagine concentration but similar glucose and fructose concentrations gave crisps with significantly different acrylamide contents. The lowest levels of acrylamide were found in crisps made from the potato variety with the lowest asparagine concentration. CONCLUSION: The findings show that variety and storage conditions influence the levels of precursors. Acrylamide formation in crisps can be reduced by using potato varieties with low levels of both asparagine and reducing sugars. Mass transport of precursors during heating is suggested to be important for acrylamide formation in potato crisps. (Less)


Deborah Switzer, Clemson UniversityDr. Debi Switzer is a Professor of Teacher Education at Clemson University. She teacheseducational psychology courses, including learning and motivation theory, measurement, andresearch methods. She spent the first nine years of her career as a secondary mathematics andcomputer science teacher. She has been at Clemson University since 1989. In 2000 Dr. Switzerwas named a Governer's Distinguished Professor by the S.C. Commission on Higher Education,and she received the Award for Faculty Excellence from the Clemson Board of Trustees in 2001.In 2003 she received both the Outstanding Faculty Member in Teaching Award from the EugeneT. Moore School of Education, and the Prince Award for Innovation in Teaching presented by theClemson University Student Government. In 2005 she was named the Eugene T. Moore Schoolof Education Outstanding Faculty Member in Service. She has given teaching effectivenessworkshops at new faculty orientation for over a decade. Dr. Switzer is serving in her third term asa consulting editor for the Journal of Educational Research. In research projects she hascollaborated with faculty in engineering, psychology, education, recreation, counseling, publichealth, and business, supplying expertise in assessment and experimental design. In 2000, shereceived the Harold E. Mitzel Award for Meritorious Contribution to Educational PracticeThrough Research. With Chemical Engineering faculty she was funded through NSF to developassessment instruments and experimental design for research into a new model for educatingengineering students. Her interests in assessment and research design have broadened to includeelectronic portfolios used in student assessment and program evaluation. Lisa Benson, Clemson UniversityDr. Lisa Benson is the Education Director at the Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers andFilms and a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at ClemsonUniversity. Her research interests are orthopaedic biomechanics and biomaterials, inertial sensorsfor motion analysis, and physiological loading of implants and prosthetics. She has also beenactively involved in undergraduate and graduate engineering education, and outreach projectswith pre-college students and science teachers. She is a member of the American Society ofMechanical Engineers, American Society for Engineering Education, Sigma Xi, OrthopaedicResearch Society, Society for Biomaterials, and Tau Beta Pi. Her education includes a B.S. inBioengineering from the University of Vermont, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Bioengineeringfrom Clemson University.


To assess the geochemical characteristics of the water of some lakes, swamps and streams located in the northwest portion, East and Southeast Quadrangle, Minas Gerais, the tracing lithologic or anthropogenic influence of some metallic elements, and assess the relationship of these with the Dissolved organic carbon (DOC), a study was conducted geochemical environment. This study involved the analysis of physical-chemical parameters of water, among which temperature, pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, turbidity, alkalinity, chloride, and determination of major and trace metal elements, such as K, Fe, Al, Mn, Mg, Ca, Cu, Cr, Co, Ti, Ni, Pb, Zn, Mo and V. The results were compared with the values proposed by CONAMA Resolution 357/05 for the classification of waters in Classes 1, 2 and 3. Was later verified the correlations of metallic elements among themselves and with the DOC. The methodology used was the extraction of aquatic humic substances (AHS) in columns packed with XAD-8 resin type, to understand how these substances influence the accumulation and concentration of metal species. The results indicate increased concentrations of most metals after going through the extraction column (enrichment), along with DOC in the samples. The largest increases were recorded in the trace elements, Cu, Ti and Zn. Positive correlations between some of the elements detected in the analysis, such as Ca and Mg, and Ca and K, show that most of these metals in water source has George, and not anthropogenic. It was observed that the only element found with values above those permitted by CONAMA (375/05), was copper, which can be explained by the local lithology, since the waters are influenced by green schists and phyllites, in Group Nova Lima Rio das Velhas Supergroup. It was also noted that the sample ACSH 8, one can not rule out a possible anthropogenic contamination, since parameters such as electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS) and alkalinity showed very high values, which is due to the presence of high concentrations of ions such as K + and Ca +2 in these waters. Also this sample is located near urban dwellings. Besides the analysis of major and trace metal elements, experiments were made with the waters of the ACSH sampling point 7, Mountain of Caraga, which were added a few selected metals and standardized in the laboratory. To analyze the behavior of metals in relation to DOC were added to the elements Ti, Fe, Cu, Co, Ni, Cr, Mn, and the sum of all so that you can compare the samples with the addition of these elements before and after passing through extraction column. The results were surprising. It was found that not all elements have increased their concentrations after the extraction, as expected. For example, Ti and Fe, their concentrations had decreased. Only increased levels of Cu, Co, Ni, Cr and Mn in their samples. In the sample, containing the sum of all elements added (ACSH 7hh) observed that after passing through the extraction column, the concentrations of Co, Cr, Cu, Mn and Ni decreased, increasing only the amount of Ti and Fe , ie the opposite of what happened in samples where the elements were added separately.


A series of substituted styryl 3,5-dichloro-2-hydroxyphenyl ketones [1-(3,5-dichloro-2-hydroxy)-3-phenylprop-2-en-1-one] were synthesized using thionyl chloride assisted Crossed-Aldol reaction. The yields of chalcones were more than 80%. The synthesized chalcones were characterized by analytical and spectroscopic data. From the spectroscopic data the group frequencies were correlated with Hammett substituent constants, F and R parameters. From the results of statistical analysis the effect of substituents were discussed. The antibacterial activities of these chalcones have been evaluated using Bauer-Kirby method.


One of the upcoming technology is installation of hybrid energy systems, where the cost of grid connectivity is greatly reduced and cost of fuel increases drastically due to remoteness of the location. On one hand hybrid system has tremendously reduced the total cost of installing stand alone grid system, on other hand it provides a reliable supply of electricity. Due to non linear characteristics of Wind hybrid system, it becomes impractical to develop a mathematical model and to obtain simple and practical controller. Neural Networks and Artificial intelligence techniques have provided an alternative approach where in conventional mathematical model are being replaced with Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), which provides flexibility, easy to handle incomplete data & noise, are able to handle non linear characteristics, above it can be used to create a model which can predict change in load demands, wind speed, weather forecast, derive a meaningful conclusion from complicated data, which are too complex for humans to understand and extract information or pattern from it. ANN along with Fuzzy control when blended in a control algorithm provides better results than conventional mathematical controllers, in term of robustness, response time, etc. The main focus in this research proposal is to create or develop power control algorithm for smart wind turbine, which is used to control icing conditions. Keywords— HAWT, icing, Wind Turbine, ANN.


The mid-term presidential elections held in Sri Lanka on 8 January 2015, not only brought to power a new president but also the prospects of an equitable and inclusive state with the democratic and human rights of the citizens of every community restored. The media, battered during Mahinda Rajapaksa's eight-year tenure, also hope to work in a free atmosphere. Sri Lanka's foreign policy, altered to suit the former president's personal ambitions, is also expected to experience a course correction. The new dispensation's approach to the historically intractable ethnic Tamil question has been revealed and Colombo has stated that it is not averse to United Nations assistance in inquiring into alleged human rights violations during the final phase of the civil war. The immediate task before the new government, however, is to tackle a parliament in which the majority of members are beholden to Rajapaksa and his brothers.


The subprime mortgage loan crisis breaking out in August 2007 in the United States has evolved the most serious crisis since the Great Depression in the 1930s.The IMF is again burdened to save the crisis by history.However,the legitimacy of the IMF in the eyes of the general public can be tarnished by the legal defects.The crisis gave a heavy blow on the global economy,while it gives birth to the IMF an opportunity to change the law.We should establish a supervisory body to reform the internal structure,revise the quota formula to change the decision-making mechanism of the IMF,expand the functions of the IMF to improve its legal personality,reform the loan conditions to avoid the illegality and amend the IMF agreement to strengthen its legally binding force.


The basic material and optical properties of chromium‐doped nanophase‐separated yttria–alumina–silica (YAS) glass based optical preforms and fibers, fabricated through the modified chemical vapor deposition process in conjunction with solution doping technique under suitable thermal annealing conditions are reported. The size of the phase‐separated particles within the core of the annealed preform is around 20–30 nm which is significantly reduced to around 5.0 nm in the drawn fiber. The absorption spectra of fibers drawn from the annealed and non‐annealed preform samples revealed the presence of Cr4+, Cr3+, and Cr6+ specie. Numerically, extinction of absorption drops ∼3–3.5 times for the annealed sample as a result of nano‐phase restructuration during annealing process. Intense broadband emission (within 500–800 nm) in case of the annealed preform sample is observed as compared to the non‐annealed one and is associated with the presence of Cr3+ ions in nanostructured environment inside the YAS core glass. The final fibers show broadband emission ranging from 900 to 1400 nm under pumping at 1064 nm which is attributed mainly to the presence of Cr3+/Cr4+ ions. The fabricated fibers seem to be a potential candidate for the development of fiber laser sources for the visible and near‐infra ranges and for effective Q‐switching units for ∼1–1.1 μm all‐fiber ytterbium lasers.


for an Invited Paper for the APR07 Meeting of The American Physical Society Strongly coupled Quark-Gluon Plasma and its modeling via Molecular Dynamics EDWARD SHURYAK, Stony Brook University The talk starts with a brief discussion of the differences between electromagnetic and Non-Abelian plasma, which include non-constant ("rotating") color charges and magnetically charged quasiparticles monopoles and dyons. We then summarize experimental evidences for strongly coupled regime, from RHIC experiments on heavy ion collisions. Two transport observables – the diffusion constant and viscosity – will be discussed specifically. The settings of MD simulations and its first results on these transport properties be presented as a summary. If time permits, we will also compare them to the analytical results recently obtained using string theory methods, via the so called AdS/CFT correspondence.


Silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells have been increasingly attracting attention to the photovoltaic community in the last years due to their high efficiency potential and the lean production process. We report on the development of a stable baseline process for SHJ cells with focus on the optical improvement of the solar cells' front side. An amorphous silicon oxide layer (a-SiO2) was used as an antireflective coating (AR) on the front side the finished SHJ devices. Both optical simulations and experimental results demonstrate a short-circuit current density (<italic>J</italic>sc) improvement of 0.4 mA/cm2 when applying the a-SiO2 AR, yielding maximum conversion efficiencies of 23.0%. Full-size cells with 244 cm2 total area have been produced using three front contact stacks: indium tin oxide (ITO) as reference, ZnO:Al, and ZnO:Al/SiO2 showing the <italic>J</italic>sc improvement with the double AR configuration. Damp-heat tests on those samples demonstrate an enhanced stability of cells with ZnO:Al front TCO when capped with SiO2.


The utilisation of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) as a suitable substitute for natural aggregate and binder offers an energy-saving and cost-effective approach to enhance the performance of asphalt mix. Realising the potential use of RAP as a promising recycling technique, many countries are seeking to recycle RAP as part of the global effort to address the rising challenge of climate change and contribute to a sustainable environment. This study aimed to develop an integrated approach to determine the amount of RAP to be used in an asphaltic concrete wearing course with 14 mm nominal maximum aggregate size (ACW14). The RAP was incorporated with two waste materials comprising waste engine oil (WEO) as a rejuvenator and Crumb Rubber (CRM) as a binder modifier. A total of five different mixes, which include R0 (control mix), R30, R50, R70, and R100 (replacement of 30%, 50%, 70%, and 100% of RAP aggregates in the mix, respectively) were evaluated. The Marshall parameters, resilient modulus (MR), indirect tensile fatigue, moisture susceptibility, and mass loss (ML) tests were conducted to investigate the performance of each mix. Finally, an arbitrary scale was developed to optimise the RAP content. The results showed that the Marshall parameters, moisture susceptibility, and ML values of the RAP mixes met the criteria outlined in the standard. According to the MR performance, the R50, R70, and R100 mixes were more resilient than the R0. In terms of fatigue resistance, the R30, R50, and R70 mixes showed better performance than the R0. Overall, the collective performance of all RAP mixes was above the R0 and it increased with the increment of RAP content. Therefore, it was possible to design ACW14 mixes with up to 100% RAP in combination with WEO and CRM.


Objective To construct the recombinant plasmid of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv0222 in E.coli,and to study its potential value for serodiagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis(TB).Methods The gene coding Rv0222 protein was amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) from genome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv,and then cloned into vector pMD18-T and subcloned into expression vector pET30a.Recombinant Rv0222 was expressed and purified.The antigenicity of the recombinant protein was analyzed by using Western blot.The purified recombinant Rv0222 protein was evaluated with the sera from pulmonary TB patients(n=82),the other pulmonary disease patients(n=28),and the healthy controls(n=32) by ELISA.The data were analyzed using professional medical software MedCalc 11.5.0.Results Recombinant plasmid of Rv0222 was established,and the relative molecular mass was about 27 000 by SDS-PAGE analysis.The protein purified by Ni-NTA was in a purity over 95%,which was confirmed by western blot.The results from ELISA showed that its sensitivity and specificity were 69.5%(57/82) and 90.0%(54/60),respectively.There was significant difference between TB patients and the controls(t=25.78,P0.0001).Conclusion The recombinant protein Rv0222 was successfully obtained and might be used as a potential candidate antigen for TB serodiagnosis.


Abstract The construction sector in Bangladesh is facing negative impacts on financial and environmental aspects due to excessive waste generation. The construction industry cannot function properly if its resources are being wasted abruptly. Therefore, this study aims to identify the construction waste-generating factors and develop construction waste management strategies for the construction industry of Bangladesh. This research was conducted through an extensive survey which was done by interviewing various construction professionals and reviewing existing literature rigorously. The survey was conducted on the basis of the Likert scale, and the waste-generating factors were prioritized using the Relative Importance Index (R.I.I). The factor identification revealed that 'deposited material in a public place' is the most significant waste generating factor on construction sites. In addition, improper material storage, lack of training of workers, solid waste, and the absence of proper guidelines for workers are also identified as the top reasons for construction waste. Furthermore, stakeholders' opinions on construction waste minimization have revealed a huge opportunity to manage those potential waste generation factors in a project. This investigation would be able to picture out the whole waste generation scenario and suggest important waste management strategies in the context of the Bangladeshi construction sector.


In this paper the Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equation is solved numerically by collocation method. The solution is approximated as a linear combination of septic B-spline functions. Applying the Von-Neumann stability analysis technique, we show that the method is unconditionally stable. The method is applied on some test examples, and the numerical results have been compared with the exact solutions. The global relative error and L∞ in the solutions show the efficiency of the method computationally. Keywords—Kuramoto-Sivashinsky equation; Septic B-spline; Collocation method; Finite difference.


1Linta Oommen, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Kerala. India. 2Silpa Chandran, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Kerala, India. 3Vidhya L Prathapan, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Kerala, India. 4Krishnapriya P, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Kerala, India. 5Prof. Diliya M Khan, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, LBS Institute of Technology for Women, Kerala, India. ---------------------------------------------------------------------***---------------------------------------------------------------------Abstract – Alzheimer's is a neurological disorder. According to latest reports, it is the sixth leading cause of death. There are three stages of disease: Mild Alzheimer's, Moderate Alzheimer's and Severe Alzheimer's. Although the disease is incurable, earlier detection can help provide proper treatment hence prevent further brain tissue damage. The method used for Disease Detection is basically analysing the MRI Image. This may cause misdiagnosis and is very time consuming.Deep Learning is the method deployed to achieve the desired results and the model used is MobileNet where technique of transfer learning is applied.


Introduction Regarding the treatment of animals, Buddhism is somewhat unique in that it advocates a position of total nonviolence. (2) This position is an extension of its general principle of nonviolence that is the foundation of Buddhist ethics. Buddhism advocates pacifism and completely rejects violence towards humans, animals, and sentient beings more generally. This position seems to be accepted among the vast majority of Buddhist sects and traditions. That Buddhism speaks in unison on this issue may be considered unusual given how various Buddhist creeds differ over so many issues, including such fundamental propositions as the existence or nonexistence of the self. (3) In this paper I will examine why Buddhism takes animal nonviolence so seriously. Ultimately, I will conclude that it is derived from a combination of prudence and genuine sympathy for the animal. Fear of a bad rebirth is a central reason for nonviolence towards the animal world. However, this is governed by a concern over animalkind's unhappy existence. As will become clear, these two motives are dependent such that prudence encourages genuine concern. It is helpful to contextualize these issues historically by looking at the antecedent religious and philosophical traditions. Consequently, we will need to look at the pre-Buddhist orthodox religion that has its roots in the Vedic and Brahmanical textual tradition. This tradition now significantly influences and, in fact, underpins modern Hinduism. Early Buddhism rejected the way the Vedic tradition treated animals and this strong stance influenced all subsequent Buddhist traditions. The Vedic tradition had a sense of reverence towards many animals precisely because of its propensity to engage in animal blood sacrifice. In contrast, Buddhists pitied animals instead of venerating them. Animal Welfare in Vedic India The killing of animals in the Vedic religious tradition was a complicated affair governed by rules of ritual propriety. Some animals were more sacred than others, although, in principle, most animals could be killed and eaten subject to certain ritual stipulations. One of the most important corpus of texts in the orthodox Indian tradition are the Vedas, and of particular importance is the Rgveda, a text that is foundational for modern Hinduism and the Vedic religion. At the heart of this religion is a rich culture of ritual that centers on the veneration and slaughter of animals. The Rgveda endorses the importance of animal sacrifice, especially the horse. The process and procedure by which the horse is sacrificed is described in some detail (1.162:1), but, in general, the animal is slaughtered in a ritually pure way using a method that can only be carried out by royalty (Flood 44). The horse is regarded with great respect and the hymn of the horse sacrifice is even directed specifically towards the animal to be killed: "Whatever runs off your body when it has been placed on the spit and roasted by the fire, let it not lie in the earth or on the grass, but let it be given to the gods who long for it" (1.162: 11). After the slaughter, the animal is then consumed in a great feast. In general, there is a sense that animate life has special significance in the Vedic world as evidenced by the Samaveda which describes how having an animal body is a "gift" since it provides the soul with a vehicle in which one can be mobile (15: 2, 351). This can be contrasted with the later Buddhist traditions, which are more inclined to regard existence as an animal as an affliction rather than a blessing. These early views on the treatment of animals are expanded upon in later orthodox legal texts. These legal texts are known as the Dharmasastra. Arguably one of the most important of these sastric texts is the Manusmrti (sometimes translated as The Law Code of Manu). Dumont argues that this text dates from at least the third century CE (52; Flood 56). …


Learning carried out through limited face-to-face learning during the Covid-19 pandemic has been determined according to government regulations to increase the effectiveness of student learning in physical education learning. The purpose of this study was to find out how the implementation of physical education learning during the Limited Face To Face Physical Education (PTMT) period in the Covid-19 pandemic. The method used in this research is descriptive quantitative. The instrument was used through a questionnaire distributed to the sample, namely physical education teachers at SMPN Metro Lampung, totalling 26. The sample selection of the research was purposive technique because the sample was selected from schools that had already implemented limited face to face in physical education learning. The validity of the instrument with a validity value of 0.693, then the reliability value in this study was 0.935. The study results revealed that if the teaching hours applied by limited face to face physical education have reduced teaching hours. Then for infrastructure, indicators and learning applications are included in the sufficient category, and the best learning model used in limited face to face is individual learning. The results are expected to become a reference for the application of limited face to face physical education so that the results obtained are maximal.


Ginkgo biloba extract derives from the leaves of the Ginkgo tree, grown in Korea, Japan, and France. It contains a reproduceable composition of flavonoids and terpenoids with complex effects on blood viscosity, prostanoid production, platelets, and endothelial functions. Fifty patients with proved arterial erectile impotence were treated with 240 mg of Ginkgo biloba extract by oral application for 9 months. In contrast to previous studies on oral treatment regimens for erectile failure, objective response criteria were added to subjective success parameters: All patients who had achieved sufficient erections with intracavernous drug application before treatment regained spontaneous erections after 6 months of treatment and demonstrated improved penile flow rates and rigidity. Of 30 patients who could not achieve sufficient erections with high-dose intracavernous drug applications, 19 regained pharmacologically induced erections under therapy; 11 remained impotent. All patients in this group showed improve...


A recent publication from the UK Department for Education and Employment contains guidance for schools to encourage safe practice in the science laboratory. Safety in Science Education, obtainable from HMSO Bookshops (ISBN 011 270915 X) costs £14.95 and is aimed at teachers and technicians in secondary schools and colleges in England and Wales teaching science at Key Stages 3 and 4, GNVQ or GCE A-level. The document results from the Department's commitment to promoting good health and safety measures in schools, offering useful advice to schools and Local Education Authorities on all aspects of health and safety in the science laboratory, including legal and practical advice, and bringing them up to date on the recent health and safety legislation which affects schools. Also enclosed is information on how to assess risks and introduce appropriate safety measures before involving pupils in practical activities. Initial work on the document and subsequent assistance was carried out by the Association for Science Education.


The role of garment standard in the garment occupation, and the role of garment standard in the garment college are analyzed. The relations of garment standard, education of garment standard, research of garment standard are discussed. It is pointed out that the garment (standards) takes important part in the garment college.


There were two primary objectives for the research documented in this short report. One was to evaluate the sensitivity of complex modulus measurements made using the recently improved field shear test (FST), following a new and potentially more effective testing protocol. The other objective was to evaluate the sensitivity of the indirect tension (IDT) strength test, performed at high temperatures in order to evaluate mixture cohesion and rut resistance. Both of these tests are quick and simple--especially the IDT strength test--and are thus good candidates for use as field tests for quality control of asphalt concrete mixtures. The test program used to evaluate the sensitivity of both the FST (new protocol) and IDT strength test was straight forward, and followed in all important aspects the same sensitivity test plan used during the initial evaluation of the FST performed as part of NCHRP Project 9-18. In fact, the same set of specimens was used, though their modulus was somewhat higher due to gradual hardening of the mixtures over time. Four different aggregates were used in the test program, and the composition of each of the resulting four primary mixtures was varied in a consistent way, with changes in coarse aggregate, mineral filler, and asphalt binder content. Four replicate specimens were tested for each mixture variation, ensuring adequate degrees of freedom for statistical analyses. To date, only one FST prototype exists, so the results of this study should be considered preliminary. Additional evaluations of the FST under field conditions are needed, preferably using two or three devices and a number of different operators.


Cultures of V. cholerae produce a substance (F.F.) which causes shedding of the epithelium when pieces of guinea pig ileum are exposed to its action. F.F. can be demonstrated in culture filtrates only, and is absent in washed suspensions and autolyzates of V. cholerae. F.F. is heat-labile, inactivated by formaldehyde, exposure to 37 C and by ageing.
 Antigenically F.F. is very similar to, if not identical with the somatic antigen of V. cholerae.
 It differs from the somatic antigen in its physical characteristics.


Infrastructure, agglomeration, product and input markets, fiscal attributes, and labor markets of local communities influenced food manufacturing location decisions in the lower 48 United States, 2000-2004. Negative binomial regression and spatial clustering methods forecast food processor location patterns at the county level. Noncore counties are at a comparative disadvantage with respect to attracting most food processors, but nonmetropolitan counties adjacent to urban areas may be attractive investment sites for footloose, supply, and demand-oriented food manufacturers. Copyright (c) 2009 International Association of Agricultural Economists.


Intrinsic or acquired resistance of lung cancer (LC) to chemoor radiotherapy (CT/RT) limits the treatment effectiveness, which, in turn contributes to tumor progression and ultimately increases the mortality rate of the LC patients. Although resistance to tumor treatment is a multifactorial event for which several factors were identified, still many critical features underlying the mechanisms of resistance remain elusive. One of the main mechanisms, evasion of apoptosis, was recently shown to be modulated by miRNAs, an emerging class of important regulators of various biological processes, including apoptotic cell death that essentially contributes in CT/RT response. Thus miRNAs, as oncomiRs, might regulate anti-apoptotic protein's expression or suppress a pro-apoptotic cellular response. In the current thesis we therefore, analyzed the role of miRNAs and the core proteins involved in their biogenesis in LC cells response to CT/RT. The paramount question we addressed was to infer whether the expression of core proteins involved in miRNA biogenesis can be associated with LC resistance to RT and if so, can we sensitize resistant LC cells to RT upon silencing of these proteins. Detailed analysis of a panel of SCLC and NSCLC cell lines revealed that the major proteins of miRNA biogenesis machinery, Drosha and Dicer, were expressed at higher levels in RT resistant LC cells as compared to RT sensitive counterparts. However, knock-down of these proteins by siRNA appeared to be insufficient to sensitize for RT. Moreover, knock-down of downstream components of miRNA biogenesis pathway, Ago-2 and TSN, did not either enhance the sensitivity of NSCLC cells to ionizing radiation. These data suggest that RT resistance in LC cells cannot be reverted by modulation of a single component of the miRNA biogenesis machinery. Next, to find out whether miRNA expression can affect RT sensitivity of LC cells, a global miRNA profiling was performed using the same panel of SCLC and NSCLC cell lines with different RT sensitivity. We observed that miRNA-214 had a higher expression in radioresistant NSCLC cells as compared to their sensitive counterparts. Considering miRNA-214 as an important modifier of LC cells radioresistance capacity, expression of this miRNA was silenced in radioresistant and overexpressed in sensitive NSCLC cells, respectively. Indeed, knock-down of miRNA-214 in radioresistant NSCLC cells increased their RT sensitivity and these cells underwent senescence after irradiation. Importantly, overexpression of miRNA-214 in radiosensitive NSCLCs protected them from RT-induced apoptosis, an effect that in part was mediated by p38MAPK as downregulation of this kinase reversed the protective response of miRNA214 overexpression. Finally, to determine the key modifiers of LC CT resistance, we observed that downregulation of an evolutionally conserved multifunctional protein TSN increased the NSCLC cell death response either alone or in combination with CT drugs. A higher expression of TSN was detected in NSCLC cell lines than in normal lung fibroblast cells. Gene expression profiling upon silencing of TSN revealed that TSN likely contributes to NSCLC CT resistance by regulating expression of several tumor survival genes, such as S100A11, ATP6V1F, and MDC1, and simultaneously suppressing many of pro-apoptotic genes e.g., BNIP3, DRAM1, PDCD4, BCL2L13, and LAMP2 that eventually compromise tumor ability to undergo apoptosis. Altogether this suggests a potential contribution of high TSN expression towards LC malignancy and a CT resistant phenotype. In conclusion, in this study, we demonstrate the role of some miRNAs and the regulators of their biogenesis in LC therapy response. It is anticipated that further understanding of their functional impacts on mechanism(s) of resistance of LC cells to the current treatment modalities will generate novel therapy approaches as well as biomarkers of treatment response of this tumor malignancy. ISBN 978-91-7549-027-4.


Background: Hospitals utilize technology with the application of software used to process data, namely the Hospital Management Information System (SIMRS). The implementation of SIMRS by some hospitals in Indonesia is aimed at Service and access, Performance improvement, Efficiency, effectiveness, and professionalism. Objective: To evaluate the implementation of SIMRS in the medical records section of Panti Rini Hospital with PIECES analysis. Methods: This research is a descriptive analytic study. The data collection technique used a questionnaire instrument and interviews with respondents using the PIECES (Performance, Information, Economic, Control, Efficiency, and Service) evaluation method. The research sample consisted of 10 people including 9 medical recorders including unit coordinator and head of medical records and 1 head of IT. Result: The Performance aspect is said to be poor, in the Information aspect, system Control, economy, and Service are said to be good, which is 100% for each assessment item.Conclusion: Overall from the system assessment, it can be categorized as good, the resulting Information can be considered by the management for decision making. With the system as well, work becomes more efficient and effective in the use of resources and in Service to patients and management.


. In this work, we present preliminary results based on an LMC Bar sample (AGAPEROS) of ~ 400 variable stars combined with near-Infared photometry (DENIS). About 50% of our objects are semiregular Variables (SRVs) while 20% are regular Variables with a period range from 30 d up to 600 d . A second period is present in ~ 40% of the SRVs. We find a large fraction of regular variables with P < 100 d which could be SRVs undergoing a phase of periodic variability. The Period-Colour relation (logP versus I — J), unstudied so far on the LMC, differs from the one found in the Galactic bulge: an effect of metallicity?


In this article are introduced the technological processes and technology adjustment of the short process chute-feed card produced by Zhengzhou Textile Machine Builder. It is suggested that pressure control in conveyers and suction channels should be much more attentioned. It is important to adjust the technological processes to meet raw cotton properties based upon systematical consideration. Because chute-feed card can not be simply looked as the combination of scutcher and carder.


Epidural pneumorrhachis, or emphysema, refers to the presence of air within the spinal epidural space. It is a well-described sequela of trauma and of instrumentation. It is more rarely seen, as in our case, in association with a spontaneous pneumomediastinum. Isolated case reports describe in association spontaneous pneumomediastinum and epidural pneumorrhachis. There are no fascial barriers between the posterior mediastinum and the retropharyngeal and epidural spaces; thus, air can diffuse freely to the epidural space and produce an epidural pneumatosis. We herein report a case in a 16-year-old boy with spontaneous pneumomediastinum and epidural pneumorrachis and discuss this rare condition.


This research article represents the synthesis, structural, optical, morphological and sensing properties of graphene (G) based thin film devices. The sensor was fabricated on a substrate with pre-deposited interdigitated copper electrodes. The UV-Visible spectroscopy of the aqueous solution of graphene confirmed the formation of graphene, furthermore, the optical band gap energy value calculated from the spectrum yielded to be 2.5 eV. The fabricated thin film of graphene was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy. The humidity sensing properties of the sensor were investigated by exposing it to a wide humidity range (5%–95%RH) at 25 ºC. It was observed that the relative capacitance was increased by 700, 600, 500, 124.8 and 42.6 times at 0.1, 0.5, 1, 5 and 10 kHz, respectively. While the resistance was decreased by. 01, 0.012, 0.02, 0.08 and 0.16 times at 0.1, 0.5, 1, 5 and 10 kHz, respectively. Compared with traditional humidity sensors, the graphene sensor demonstrated an ultrahigh sensitivity and a rapid response/recovery time in wide humidity range. The hysteresis curve measurement showed that the device has a minimum power loss and high stability. The fabricated sensor was also used for the detection of different gases such as ammonia, ethanol and methanol. It was observed from the experimentally obtained result that the sensor is highly sensitive to ammonia as compared to other two gases. In addition, the temperature sensing abilities of the thin film sensor has also been evaluated. These observed results demonstrate that graphene is promising material of candidate for constructing highly stable and rapid multifunctional sensors in widespread applications.


Some recent approaches to life table analysis are described and new methods for obtaining information from such tables are outlined. The authors find that analyses of mortality differentials by sex based on traditional indexes may lead to incorrect conclusions. They propose an alternative method based on mortality correlation studies. (SUMMARY IN ENG) (ANNOTATION)


Bilophila wadsworthia, an obligately anaerobic Gram-negative bacillus, was first isolated from appendicitis specimens and human faeces. The two cases described here are the first report of the isolation of B. wadsworthia in Hungary, and include the first isolation from chronic mastoiditis complicated with a brain abscess.


We propose a new architecture of parallel programs based on the master-worker model of parallel computing. In this architecture, computation is realized by rule application and rule generation. A master has a set of equivalent transformation rules (ET rules) and solves a problem by successively applying ET rules to definite clauses representing its computation state. A worker has a rule generator and makes computation by generating ET rules on demand based on run-time content of the master's computation states. A general scheme for constructing parallel programs based on rule-set generators and rule-generator generators is presented and a sufficient condition for the correctness of the scheme is established. Application of our framework to solving a constraint satisfaction problem is illustrated. Keywords-parallel computation; program correctness; rule generation; equivalent transformation


The Apicomplexan Toxoplasma gondii is a common parasite of humans and other mammals and causes severe disease in immunocompromised individuals. Apicomplexa are obligate intracellular pathogens, and their infection of host cells requires the orchestrated secretion of proteins from several highly specialized secretory organelles, the regulation of which is incompletely understood. Studies in other eukaryotic systems have established that membrane trafficking through distal stages of the secretory pathway is regulated by phosphoinositide (PIP) signaling networks and that phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) transfer proteins (PITPs) are important components of these signaling circuits. We used PIP‐specific biosensors to map phosphoinositide pools on Toxoplasma membranes, and identified at least two distinct pools of PtdIns(4)P: one on the Golgi/early secretory membranes, and one associated with Apicomplexan‐specific secretory organelles called dense granules (GRA3(+)). Studies in yeast demonstrate that PITPs potentiate the activities of PtdIns kinases (PIKs) to produce privileged PIP pools on secretory membranes, and PtdIns(4)P‐mediated pro‐secretory activities are countered by the antagonistic activities of specific members of the oxysterol binding protein (OSBP) superfamily. We have identified a Toxoplasma multi‐domain protein, the PITP membrane protein (PIMP), that couples a START‐type PITP domain, a pleckstrin homology (PH) domain, and a C‐terminal OSBP domain. PIMP is a bona fide PITP that transfers PtdIns and phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) between membranes in vitro, and potentiates PIK activity in vivo when expressed in yeast. Of the four known Toxoplasma PITP genes, it is the only one capable of doing so. The PIMP PH domain specifically binds PtdIns(4)P and PtdIns(4,5)P2 in vivo, and recognizes these pools on dense granules in intracellular parasites. Full length PIMP localizes to (GRA3+) dense granules, and this association is mediated by PH domain PIP binding. PIMP is a physical platform for integration of multiple lipid signals on specialized secretory membranes in Toxoplasma and is the first known example of a PITP coupled to an OSBP domain. As dense granules are unique to Apicomplexa and required to support intracellular proliferation of the parasites, dense granule signaling networks would make good therapeutic targets for Apicomplexan infections.


Through advances in technology, educators will be able to provide school districts with opportunities to present the latest in researcb-based inservice training at minimal costs to individual students. This article will compare factors in the literature associated with successful outcomes in distance education with our experiences providing an inservice teacher education program on attention deficit/hypeactivity (AD/HD). We present the method of a satellite and telephone-based course and the evaluation of this graduate level inservice course.


The phlebotomine sand flies Nyssomyia yuilli yuilli (Young & Porter) (Diptera: Psychodidae) and Trichopygomyia longispina (Mangabeira) (Diptera: Psychodidae) are recorded in the state of Espirito Santo, Brazil for the first time.


Why does nobody ever talk with us like you do?(respondent from Ryjewo, II group)Theoretical and Methodological FrameworkSimilarly to Bellah et al. (2007), we assume that it is possible to compare the output of classical political philosophy with the results of contemporary sociological research, particularly qualitative investigations. Partly in opposition to the Cambridge School of Intellectual History (Skinner 1969, 2002: 3-53; Tully 1988), for the sake of our investigation we consider the whole body of classical political philosophy-both in its historical as well as conceptual dimension-as one complex entity. To explore this entity, we constructed a framework of five concepts: the individual, society, property, power, and the state. Given the limited scope of this paper, we will present our findings on only three of these concepts: the individual, society, and the state. Our aim was to see how ordinary people's understanding of these three concepts compares to their meanings in classical political-legal philosophy. To achieve this aim, the classical philosophical meanings have to be reproduced before the popular ones can be recreated. Of course, this is impossible without some simplifications of the former. Searching for the classical patterns of political philosophy in the everyday language of public opinion would be almost impossible without a wide selection of representative statements. Because all the categories had to be extensively reflected in the statements, this was probably one of the most demanding and time-absorbing parts of our enquiry.1We assumed that the first of these categories, the individual, should be analyzed from three perspectives: first, from the conceptual context in which the individual is placed; second, from the source of the individual's identity; and third, from the level of the individual's determinism or autonomy. The individual may be seen either as somehow conceptually or axiologically prior to a larger entity such as the family, a social class, the nation, or the state, or as secondary to it. The former position is taken by the representatives of methodological classical individualism and most contemporary libertarians who adopt social contract theories. The latter position is characteristic of all social holists; of those who write in the tradition of Plato or Aristotle, including some conservatives and communitarians; and of some socialists and communists (especially Marxists). The sources of the individual's identity may be identified as religious (Christian thinkers); historical or traditional (most conservatives, including Edmund Burke); ideological (humanists, atheists, feminists, ecologists); or based upon particular interests, such as individuals, classes, local communities, or professional groups (for example, Thomas Hobbes, Jeremy Bentham, Karl Marx, or the Public Choice school) (Dumont 1991; Durkheim 1969; Lindsay 1930-1935; Lukes 1973; Machan 1998). The individual is understood as a rather autonomous being by almost all social individualists and as a more determined one by almost all social holists (Hayek 1948; Mandelbaum 1973; Rau 1995; Rouben 1982).As far as society is concerned, we believe that the spectrum of meanings and concepts attached to it are best presented in regard to its type of social bonds, source of social obligations or social opportunities, and the character and essence of its structure. Social bonds seen as natural and independent of any human will primarily be emphasized by those who write in the Aristotelian tradition (for instance, many communitarians). Alternatively, such bonds are regarded as being conventional and volitional by all kinds of individualists, who write in the social contract tradition. For conservatives, communitarians, and classical republicans, society constitutes a source of social obligations, while for classical liberals and libertarians it offers a platform for most social opportunities. Conservatives, communitarians, and political romantics see it as an organic whole, while liberals and libertarians understand it as a sum of individuals. …


When a disaster occurs, the delivery of alerts to the population is a key element to prevent the loss of life and property and to increase the efficiency of precautionary measures. Advanced information and communication technologies enable new channels to reach people (e.g. mobile phones, Internet connected devices, smart TVs). Satellite systems represent an unique and efficient solution for delivering one-to-many messages, but in order to reach the maximum number of people in the target area with a reliable information service, a specific technical solution is needed. This paper gives an overview of an on-going ETSI standardization activity devoted to the definition of a Multiple Alert Message Encapsulation protocol over Satellite (MAMES) for the delivery of alerts to the population in the case of a disaster. Moreover, an experimental activity (the SatAlert experiment) for testing and validating the MAMES applicability to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites is presented.


Automatic train operation is one important part of the automatic train control system. It can operate the train taking the place of driver to ensure train抯 running in efficiency and energy saving. This paper illustrates the process of analysis and design of automatic train operation by use of object-oriented method, and completes the software design of this simulation system.


Strong Signal Masking is an anti-interception technology that covers the effective signal by using known signals with strong power characteristics, which not only ensures receiving accuracy of cooperators, but also increases receiving difficulty of non-cooperators and reduces accuracy of intercepted data. In this paper, Strong Signal Masking is combined with Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) and anti-intercepting transmission scheme in physical layer is taken as the research direction. The paper focuses on bit error rate (BER) of effective signals under the cover of known signals as well as similarity of data intercepted by non-cooperators. Random data and Preamble data are used as known signals respectively for hidden transmission of effective data. In addition, preamble sequence data mirroring masking mechanism is proposed to reduce the BER of effective data. Simulation results show that BER performance of preamble sequence data mirroring masking system is greatly improved with the same similarity of data intercepted.


Abstract Thinking styles that predispose offenders to antisocial behavior have been shown to predict violence and aggression among inmates. This study explored this relationship among civil psychiatric inpatients. Medical records of N = 74 discharged patients were reviewed for inpatient incidents using the Overt Aggression Scale (OAS), occurring subsequent to the administration of several measures including the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles (PICTS), and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS). Univariate negative binomial regression models demonstrated that a higher rate of aggressive incidents was predicted by higher PICTS Denial of Harm, higher BPRS Hostile Suspiciousness scores, and lower educational attainment. Violence (i.e., physical aggression towards others) was predicted by higher BPRS Hostile Suspiciousness, lower education, and younger age in univariate analyses. In multivariate negative binomial regression models using the above independent predictors, higher BPRS-Hostile Suspiciousness scores and lower educational attainment significantly predicted both outcomes. This study's results reinforce the importance of symptom-driven hostility to predicting inpatient aggression and violence, while highlighting the relatively minor role of specific criminal thinking styles in aggressive behavior among institutionalized psychiatric patients.


Synchrotron radiation-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) has been demonstrated to be a powerful and effective characterization tool in comprehensively and deeply understanding the photoelect...


Inarecent Weekend Australian, Paul Kelly pointed out that Labor under Mark Latham is moving into new territory. Opposed to a war in which we, as a nation, are engaged; proposing the unilateral termination of commitments freely entered into as part of that voluntary decision of ours to join in the war ... there are now moves foreshadowed to downgrade the American connection, and to refocus our attention on 'Asia' and the islands.


ABSTRACT This article seeks to contribute to the current and on-going debate, at both national and international levels, about how students, providers of post-compulsory education and higher education institutions seek effectively to manage the transition between school or further education and higher education studies. The particular focus of this study is the discipline of English Literature within the English education system. It is intended, however, that in pursuing subject-specific issues, matters of a more generic significance will also emerge, of relevance to other disciplines and national communities. It focuses particularly on the pedagogic approaches adopted at both post-compulsory and higher education levels and considers students' perceptions of these as tools for learning. It also examines core assumptions pertaining at both levels, considering how these diverge into dichotomous paradigms and the impact of this on students' experience of transition.


Abstract 3103 Despite improvement in medical management, sickle cell disease (SCD) is still associated with high risk of morbidity, chronic disability and early death. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) remains the only curative approach. Since November 1988, 45 patients (median age: 8.3 years; range: 1.7–15.3 years) with severe SCD underwent related HSCT in our unit. Thirty-five received bone marrow transplant, 3 cord blood, 6 bone marrow and cord blood and 1 peripheral blood stem cells. Two donors result from preimplantation genetic diagnosis with HLA selection. All were HLA-identical sibling except one who had one class II mismatch. All had one or more severe manifestations: 24 patients presented more than 2 vaso-occlusive crises per year, 11 recurrent acute chest syndrome, 19 cerebral vasculopathy and 4 erythroid alloimmunisation. Conditioning regimen consisted of the standard combination of busulfan, cyclophosphamide and from November 1991 antithymocyte globulins (ATG) were added: ATG Fresenius first and from July 2000 ATG Merieux. Since 1995 all patients were treated with hydroxyurea (HU) prior to transplantation for a median duration of 2.7 years (range: 0.8–10.7 years). Acute graft versus host disease (GVHD) was observed in 11 patients (3 grade III and 2 grade IV). Ten patients were treated for CMV reactivation and 4 for EBV reactivation. Only one patient had presented a probable invasive fungal disease. After median follow-up of 6.5 years, 10 patients had presented chronic GVHD, none was extensive. Only one required therapy beyond 2 years from transplant. Engraftment was successful in 42/45. One rejection occurred 15 months after transplantation. Since HU introduction before transplant (1995), no graft failure occurred. Important mixed chimerism is present in 2 patients (AA donor) who remain free of any sickle cell disease symptoms. Two deaths occurred: 1 unexplained death 6 years after HSCT in a child free of any treatment and 1 cerebral hemorrhage 18 days after transplant in a child with severe cerebral vasculopathy. Growth was normal after transplant. As expected, gonadal function was impaired in the majority of girls. However 3 girls had spontaneous normal puberty and one had two spontaneous pregnancies with normal outcome. Our results are very encouraging showing excellent outcomes. Both the overall survival (OS: 95.6%) and the event-free survival (EFS: 86.7%) are comparable to the other published studies, ranging from 93 to 97%, and 82 to 86 % respectively. Since 1995, all the 33 patients engrafted successfully. Previous treatment with HU may have contributed to successful engraftment. After 5.3 years of follow-up, their OS and EFS are both at 96.9%. The difference in outcome before and after 1995 is strongly significant for EFS (58.3% vs 96.9%, p=0.003). Severe cerebral vasculopathy with its risk of CNS hemorrhage remains a true challenge. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


The scutella from seedlings of Zea mays L. germinated at 28-30° C increase in respiration rate to the third day, followed by a decline which is quite noticeable by the fifth day. A search has been made for factors responsible for the respiratory decline. The electronmicroscope shows the five-day mitochondria to be normal in appearance. Very active preparations are obtained by isolating the mitochon dria at pH 7 6 with inclusions of bovine serum albumin and ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid. A soluble ribonuclease (RNase A) which increases rapidly with age impairs both oxidation and phosphorylation. The largely particle-bound ribonuclease (RNase B) is not inhibitory. Plant ribonuclease is resistant to the proteolysis occurring during senescence. It is suggested that the soluble ribo nuclease contributes to the respiratory decline, but that other factors may also be involved.


The control system of the fuel temperature at the inlet of the aero-engine fuel pump test stand is a nonlinear,time-varying and time-delay system.Combining the fuzzy control and neural network control with PID control,intelligent PID control algorithms were designed to realize online self-adaptive adjustment of the three PID parameters.Simulation results show that intelligent PID control algorithms have better performances than the conventional PID control algorithms.And the fuzzy self-tuning PID control algorithm is relatively feasible for the control of the fuel temperature at the inlet of the aero-engine fuel pump test stand.


Opening as a trading port,Shanghai attracts a lot of emigrants.Including of them,center on Subei people as underprivileged group mainly took shabby sheds as home,and formed a shanty town in Shanghai.This shanty town was called "black spot in flourishing shanghai",so it became the actively suppression target by the concession authorities and municipal authorities.Before the War of Resistance,Shanghai municipal government had hoped to use the method of building civilian residence to replace the huts,but it was interrupted in the wake of war.After the victory over Japan,the shanty town increased so much while the municipal government was caught between two fires,from within and without,its governmenance was low,it was fundamentally no ability to stop the trend that the shanty town extended to the whole city.


Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a constellation of anomalies caused by fetal alcohol exposure. When the anomalies are to a lesser extent, the disorder is called fetal alcohol effect (FAE). Whether it is FAS or FAE, the prevalence is worldwide, though the syndrome is often failed to be recognized by the physicians and/or medical personels. In Taiwan, several cases of FAS have been found including one family with more than one child affected, and one family of aborigines. The etiology and pathophysiology of FAS remain unknown. In general, the more the alcohol exposure, the severer the clinical conditions. There is, however, no amount of alcohol that has been proven to be safe. The clincal features are variable, with prenatal and postnatal growth deficiencies, neurological dysfunctions, characteristic face, and various anatomical defects of multiple organs. The treatment is, unfortunately, less than satisfactory. Thus, prevention is still of prime importance.


As it is always the case that polyploidy animals are bigger in size than common ones,we are now doing some research for the method to double Macrobrachium nipponens s secondary oocytes chromosomes.In this experiment,we inject COM nearby Macrobrachium nipponens s ovary,intending to get the diploid of Macrobrachium nipponens s secondary oocytes.The technique of chopping method is found for the making of the chromosome specimen,using the chopping method with the height of1.5cm.The study shows that we all can get the polyploidy secondary oocytes with the COM strength0.08~0.40mg/L and affecting time6~24h,but the highest mutation rate(32.58%)is under the6hours COM affecting with the strength of0.32mg/mL.During this experiments,we also get the number of chromosomes both before and after COM s effect as52and102.Concerning the reality of this method,we test ATPase s activity of Macrobrachium nipponens s livers under COM s effect(0.32mg/mL,6h),comparing with the ones'under the effect of physiological saline(0.65% NaCl,6h).The results are as different as0.897U/mgprot and4.609U/mgprot.According to statistical inference,we get the surviving rates under different concentrations of COM and different affecting time.The surviving rates are around50%.In this way,although Macrobrachium nipponens s metabolism will be disturbed in a certain level,the surviving rats are relatively high.So that this method is somewhat practicable. But if we use the COM affected female Macrobrachium nipponens to mate with common male ones and produce triploid prawns,the results may be disappointed,as a result of the DNA trauma caused by COM.So we can try the way of artificial insemination,using the affected secondary oocytes and common sperms instead.


Stefan EKLÖF. Power and Political Culture in Suharto's Indonesia: The Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and Decline of the New Order (1986–98). Copenhagen: NIAS Press, 2003 (paperback edition 2004), 340 pages. J. Soedradjad DJIWANDONO. Bank Indonesia and the Crisis: An Insider's View. Singapore: ISEAS, 2005, 282 pages. Steven ROSEFIELDE. Russia in the 21st Century: The Prodigal Superpower. Cambridge‐Cambridge University Press, 2005, 244 pages.


The purpose of the study is the reconstruction of one, although definitely not primary, factor in the ideologization of the national movement of the Western Slavs (we are talking about Ukrainian relations with the Western Slavs), which allows for a more accurate understanding of both the circumstances of the Slavic revival and the ideological syncretism of the revivalists. Accordingly, Slavic interethnic relations and spiritual receptions were "sanctified" for many years by the idea of "Slavic reciprocity," a cultural or linguistic-literary community. In the absence of their own statehood, romantic national idealism was not only a component of the ideology of ethnocultural preservation, for example, among the Lusatians, but also became an additional factor in the national movement of the Ukrainian, Czech, and Slovak peoples for their national liberation. We will focus on only some aspects of Ukrainian-Slavic relations. Accordingly, it would certainly be an exaggeration to attribute to the connections of the Western Slavs with the Ukrainians, as well as with the Russian environment, the significance of the exclusive catalyst of national movements. But the information about connections and exchanges that have reached us testify to the establishment of mostly direct contacts between active representatives of the Slavic peoples, which, of course, expanded the worldview of national leaders and strengthened the feeling of the all-Slavic community. In our opinion, external Slavic factors, including Ukrainian ones, supplemented the ideology of the Slavs not so much with a national content but mainly emphasized that ethnic revival is not a local or regional phenomenon but a process that is genetically connected with the generality of similar phenomena. It is significant that at the activation stage in the 1930s and 1940s, cultural and national aspirations of Ukrainians and Western Slavic peoples, the European policy of the Russian Empire was one of the reasons for the politicization of national ideologies. However, the study of international communication is impossible without clarifying the content of typology and patterns of the appearance of inter-imperial contradictions and interests as fairly typical phenomena in the context of the formation and development of national ideologies in Central and Central-Eastern Europe in the first half of the 19th century.


In recent years OPCPA and NOPCPA laser systems have shown the potential to supersede Ti: Sapphire plus nonlinear post-compression based laser systems to drive next generation attosecond light sources via direct amplification of few-cycle pulses to high pulse energies at high repetition rates. With the advent of these laser systems comes a need for improved pulse characterization technology. Due to the non-collinear interaction in NOPA based laser systems the amplified few-cycle pulses can suffer from spatio-temporal couplings. Most spatio-temporal pulse characterization techniques are based on separating spatial and temporal measurements in a test-plus reference-pulse scheme. Here we review two self-referencing techniques that are able to perform spatio-temporal pulse characterization of few-cycle pulses.


This essay discusses the novel Just above My Head (1979) by the African American writer James Baldwin. Despite its complexity and multidimensionality, this novel still remains understudied when compared to many of Baldwin's earlier works. I argue that a conception of transcultural spatiality emerges in the text, particularly in a lengthy passage that depicts encounters between people of different national and racial backgrounds in the contact zone of Paris. These encounters occur in heterotopic spaces in which the boundaries of conventional identity categories, such as race, sexuality, and nationality, can be challenged and provisionally transcended. As a result, these real, mundane spaces are transformed into utopian enclaves where new configurations of transcultural coexistence and amity can be experienced and experimented on. This becomes manifest first in the transgressive interracial same-sex relationship between the African American protagonist, Arthur, and a white Frenchman and second in the transcultural experience in a jazz club, where Arthur performs in front of a multicultural audience. The text counters the asymmetrical power relations inherited from European colonial history and provides a fleeting vision of an alternative future through the transient moments of mutual transcultural understanding that occur in these utopian spaces.


In last one and a half years,we have investigated plants in Qingyuan Campus of Anhui University and identified 231 species of plants,which belong to 84 families and 185 genera.Among them,122 species are herbs and vines,61 species are arbor,and 48 species are shrub,The data demonstrated that the proportion of herb and vine are the largest,which accounts for 52.81%.And according to analysis of the flora composition and distribution,it was found that in the campus four families which include Gramineae,Compositae,Rosaceae,and Leguminosae,are the dominant populations and account for 35.06% of the total species.Then 5487 trees in the areas of dormitory,teaching buildings,and office buildings were specifically analyzed.Simpson index was 0.907,which indicates the species diversity of the arbor are rich.Based on this study,several advices for campus plants planning and utilization were put forward.


Attendance rates at a diarrhea clinic were monitored in a defined population in rural Bangladesh. Communities within 7 miles of the clinic were followed. Within the 1st 1 mile radius 90% of diarrheal cases came to the clinic for treatment. At 3 miles the attendance fell to 70% for males and 40% for females. On an average the greater the distance to the clinic more severe was the degree of dehydration on presentation. Mortality secondary to diarrhea was significantly reduced within 4 mile radius of the clinic. (Authors)


Since an individual's phenotype can be directly scored, the phenotypic variance VP can be estimated from measurements made directly on the random breeding population. In contrast, an individual's breeding value cannot be observed directly, but rather must be inferred from the mean value of its offspring (or more generally using the phenotypic values of other known relatives). Thus estimates of VA require known collections of relatives. One of the most common situations are comparisons between parents and their offspring or comparisons among sibs. We can classify relatives as either ancestral (when we have measurements on one or both parents and k offspring) or collateral (when we have measurements on k offspring in each family but not the parents), and initially we focus here on designs with just one type of relative. In a more general pedigree, information from both kinds of relatives is present.


Three hundred and twelve male patients undergoing testicular biopsy. Following biopsy the samples was sent to the Qaem pathology laboratory, then the samples was fixing in formalin and dehydrated by alcohol and clearing with xylol and paraffin blocks then prepared. After preparing the sections with microtome, samples were stained by hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and studied by light microscopy. Histopathological results indicated that the most frequent histopathologic patterns of samples were Germ Cell Aplasia or Sertoli Cell Only Syndrome. Histopathological patterns of testicular biopsy are different from one part of the world to another, and related to many factors.


Objectives: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a state of mildly impaired cognitive functioning but with an intact capability of performing basic daily activities. Few studies have targeted personal narratives from persons living with MCI, the major focus in this study is directed to methods for better predictions of the likelihood for conversion to dementia. This study directly explores experiences among individuals who have lived with MCI over seven years without converting to dementia. Methods: Seventeen individuals, who had been diagnosed with MCI across four occasions over a seven-year period at a memory clinic, were interviewed at a single occasion about their experiences of living with MCI, life events, stress, coping, psychosocial resources, and lifestyle behaviors. Results: Thematic analysis of the transcripts of the interviews resulted in themes revolving around the life situation and events related to the first visit at the memory clinic, coping with lower cognitive capacity with the aim of enhancing quality of life, and worries about dementia and further cognitive deteriorations. Conclusion: The participants' experiences of living with MCI indicate that issues and changes in life situations such as long-term stress, retirement, loss of relatives, perceived heritability of dementia, needs to be understood in the context of the individual's understanding and interpretation of their everyday cognitive functioning. Also, supportive long-term contacts with the specialist care unit were vital for creating a personal understanding of MCI. Addressing the intra-personal dynamics of cognitive functioning in the boundary between normal and pathological cognitive aging can also improve diagnostic accuracy.


According to the recommendation of regulation,the volt-time characteristic curve and definition acquired by standard wave experiment is applied to judge the flashover of lightning over-voltage at both ends of insulators.The result of lightning protection calculation on the basis of this method differs a lot from that of the actual operation.This paper introduces the criterion of insulation flashover based on antecedent development method,and lists three different functions of streamer development and antecedent development.The difference is compared according to calculation data and experiment result in order to select the most appropriate function for the criterion of insulation flashover and to study deeply its application in insulation flashover.


This study aimed to measure technical efficiency of 88 private clinics under Universal Coverage Scheme (UC) in Bangkok in fiscal year 2017 and to identify the factors affecting their technical efficiency. The study was divided to two parts. The first part was measuring of technical efficiency with data envelopment analysis (DEA) and the second part was identifying the factors affecting efficiency with regression analysis using Tobit model. The result of DEA under a variable return to scale assumption showed that 84 private clinics under UC (95.45 percent of the target of study) were operating on pure technical efficiency frontier (VRSTE), the mean pure technical efficiency score was equal to 0.98. Furthermore, the results of regression analysis revealed that only health supporting staff ratio was significantly affecting on pure technical efficiency (TEVRS) of private clinics under Universal Coverage Scheme (UC) while other explanatory variables such as family medical physician ratio, nurse practitioner ratio, health promotion and disease prevention service ratio, the number of Universal Coverage Scheme (UC) members, type of clinics and location were insignificant. As a result of DEA; patterns of scale inefficiencies showed that in order to achieve appropriate scale of operation, private clinics under UC which operated increasing return to scale (IRS) should expand their scale of operation while private clinics under UC which operated decreasing return to scale (DRS) should reduce their scale of operation. Moreover, as a result of regression analysis, in order to increase in efficiency, it should increase in health supporting staff ratio.


In recent decades, extant studies have focused on dominance of Information Technologies (IT) using different perspectives. While some of these studies utilized domains of IT management, remaining scholarly works dealt with issues of employee perceptions regarding IT usage and how IT usage affects employee outcomes such as job satisfaction. Accordingly, aim of this study is to explore and measure how IT related perceptions of employees determine the use and sharing of information they derive out of using the system effectively. We conceptualized the perceptions in terms of perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived self-efficacy and perceived information strenght loss. Employee satisfaction will be evaluated as a mediating variable between IT perceptions and information sharing resulting from these employee perceptions. We will test our model using a 114sample unit size of employees from 3 different universities. The obtained data are analyzed through SPSS. Relaibility, normality, factor and regression analysis was conducted in order to test the hypothesis. Whether we could not find any mediation effect of the satisfaction in the model; the results revealed that both the perceived usefulness and ease of use effect knowledge sharing through IT, however satisfaction is only effected by perceived usefulness.


A porous titania film was prepared on a glass substrate by a spin-coating technique from the precursor solution containing titanium tetraisopropoxide and stearic acid. Stearic acid formed a 2:2 complex with titanium in the dried film, and the complex melted before decomposition. Before the coating of the precursor solution, methylsilane precoating on the hydrophilic glass surface was effective in preparing a uniform film because of hydrophobicity of the complex melt. The resultant film was transparent and composed of anatase after heating at 500°C. Micrometer-scale rough surface with aggregates of secondary particles composed of primary crystallites was observed in the film, and mesopores seem to be located at the inter-crystallites. It is probable that decomposition of stearic acid and aggregation of anatase crystallites occur simultaneously to provide the porous structure during heating.


Projectile penetrating into concrete thick sheet is a very complicated question.It is applicable to use scale model in the experiment in such research. The similitude rules of projectile penetrating into concrete thick sheet have been studied using dimension analysis method and similitude theory.The conclusion is coincided with theory analysis and experimental test.


Refactoring is extensively recognized for enhancing the internal structure of object‐oriented software while preserving its external behavior. However, determining refactoring opportunities is challenging for designers and researchers alike. In recent years, machine learning algorithms have shown a great possibility of resolving this issue. This study proposes a deep neural network‐based fitness function (DNNFF) to resolve the software refactoring issue. This study suggests an effective learning technique that automatically featured extracted from the trained models and predicted code clones to recommend which category to refactor. The software engineers automatically assess the recommended refactoring solutions using Genetic Algorithms (GA) for minimum iterations. A Deep Neural Networks (DNN) utilizes these training instances to assess the refactoring solutions for the residual iterations. The refactoring process primarily depends on software designers' skills and perceptions. The simulation findings demonstrate that the suggested DNNFF model enhances the code change score of 98.7%, automatic refactoring score of 97.3%, defect correlation ratio of 96.9%, refactoring precision ratio of 95.9%, flaw detection ratio of 94.4%, and reduces the execution time of 10.2% compared to other existing methods.


This is a spotlight on research story. Researchers have recently discovered that certain genes are highly expressed in the skin lesions of patients with acne.