OBJECTIVE
To investigate whether long-term optimal glycemic control can be achieved without medication by transient continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) and the possible mechanisms responsible for this remission.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic patients (n = 138, fasting glucose >11.1mmol/l) were hospitalized and treated with CSII for 2 weeks. Intravenous glucose tolerance tests (IVGTTs) were performed, and blood glucose, HbA(1c), lipid profiles, proinsulin, insulin, and C-peptide were measured before and after CSII. Patients were followed longitudinally on diet alone after withdrawal of insulin.

RESULTS
Optimal glycemic control was achieved within 6.3 +/- 3.9 days by CSII in 126 patients. The remission rates (percentages maintaining near euglycemia) at the third, sixth, twelfth, and twenty-fourth month were 72.6, 67.0, 47.1, and 42.3%, respectively. Patients who maintained glycemic control >12 months (remission group) had greater recovery of beta-cell function than those who did not (nonremission group) when assessed immediately after CSII. Homeostasis model assessment of beta-cell function (HOMA-B) and the area under the curve (AUC) of insulin during IVGTT were higher in the remission group (145.4 +/- 89.6 vs. 78.5 +/- 68.5, P = 0.002, and 1,423.4 +/- 523.2 vs. 1,159.5 +/- 476.8 pmol x l(-1) x min(-1), P = 0.044). Change in acute insulin response was also greater in the remission group than that in the nonremission group (621.8 +/- 430.4 vs. 387.3 +/- 428.8 pmol x l(-1) x min(-1), P = 0.033).

CONCLUSIONS
Short-term intensive insulin therapy can induce long-term glycemic control in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic patients with severe hyperglycemia. The improvement of beta-cell function, especially the restoration of first-phase insulin secretion, could be responsible for the remission.


In this paper we are concerned with the problem of local and global subextensions of (quasi-)plurisubharmonic functions from a "regular" subdomain of a compact K\"ahler manifold. We prove that a precise bound on the complex Monge-Amp\`ere mass of the given function implies the existence of a subextension to a bigger regular subdomain or to the whole compact manifold. In some cases we show that the maximal subextension has a well defined complex Monge-Amp\`ere measure and obtain precise estimates on this measure. Finally we give an example of a plurisubharmonic function with a well defined Monge-Amp\`ere measure and the right bound on its Monge-Amp\`ere mass on the unit ball in $\C^n$ for which the maximal subextension to the complex projective space $\mb P_n$ does not have a globally well defined complex Monge-Amp\`ere measure.


Most of the Chinese characters are composed of primitive components (or key tokens) with spatial relationship. If two Chinese characters contain the same primitive components with the same spatial relationship among these components, we say that they have similar appearance to each other. This paper presents a hashing-oriented scheme for retrieving Chinese characters with similar appearance from a computerized dictionary (a Chinese character database). Initially, each character in the dictionary is encoded into a set of triples (PC i , PC j , REL ij )'s, constructed from the primitive components PC i and PC j , along with their spatial relationship REL ij and keyin sequence. Associated with these triples, we can construct a set of hashing functions, each corresponding to a predefined spatial relationship. By the constructed hashing functions, one can efficiently retrieve the Chinese characters with similar appearance for to referenced one from the dictionary. The potential extension of the proposed scheme in handling the Chinese keyin processing problem is also discussed.


This paper outlines briefly certain aspects of foliage leaves that are related to the form and distinctive functions of these organs. Conclusions from earlier papers on conduction problems of leaves are noted in connection with a preliminary report on the patterns of the minor venation in dicotyledon leaves. In most of these studies on leaves it has been necessary to use serial sections cut both trans versely and in the plane of the blade. The latter, or paradermal sec tions, are favorable for the study of all tissues, seen, as if looking through the blade. They are especially helpful in the interpretation of mesophyll organization and for the measurement of vein spacing. These sections have been cut uniformly 12µ in thicl<ness; a few additional slides with sections cut somewhat thicker and lightly stained are often helpful in the study of tissue relations. de the functional adjustments to diur evergreens


File: Steward_data_140_P5T1.indd Job #: 320-30 11/3/06–JF/JR/DC Adobe Garamond Pro: Titl: 22/24; Auth: 14; Auth note: 9/10 It; Issue info: 8/10.5 osf & It (0 tr); © Info: 8/10.5 sc (+11 tr); ICap: 22; Txt: 10.5/12.25 (cd 4%); Extr: 8.5/10 This report is based on data collected by the MLA for the 2004–05 edition of the online MLA Guide to Doctoral Programs in English and Other Modern Languages, a project called for by many members and by the MLA Committee on Professional Employment. The first (pilot) edition of the Guide, based on 2000–01 data, became available online in 2004. A report on English department data from the pilot edition appeared in ADE Bulletin 137 (2005): 81–88, and data from the pilot edition for both English and foreign language departments are available online at www .mla .org/ gdp_ intro. The data for the 2004–05 edition include the responses of 333 voluntarily participating departments: 134 English departments, 158 departments of foreign languages, and 41 departments of comparative literature and other types.1 The MLA solicited departments' information through an online survey form. Except where noted, this report refers only to the data for the 2004–05 academic year. Departments were invited to verify and correct the information they submitted before the Guide became publicly accessible online at www .mla .org in fall 2005.2 Of the 333 departments 307 are in the United states; 26 are in Canada. Table 1 shows the breakdown of participating departments. Departments offer the PhD in several dozen languages, as tables 2 and 3 illustrate. Table 2 shows that reporting foreign language departments offer the PhD most commonly in French (66 depts.), followed by spanish (60 depts.); German (50 depts.); italian (21 depts.); Chinese, Japanese, and Russian (15 depts. each); and Portuguese (14 depts.). Table 4 shows that, in the 289 departments that answered the question, the lowest number of enrolled doctoral students was 3, the highest 305. On average, responding departments had an enrollment of 42.2 students, with a median enrollment of 52. in total, over 12,200 students were enrolled in the departments. When the submitted data make it possible and significant, information is broken down by department type. in other cases, the data were either too sparse to be disaggregated by department type or there was no significant difference in the data among types. similarly, when possible and significant, data are disaggregated for United states and Canadian departments. Report on Data from the 2004–05 MLA Guide to Doctoral Programs in English and Other Modern Languages


The evaluation of the optimal ratio of calcareous shell/gravel substrate in biofilters was evaluated in post-larval culture of Nile tilapia the was objective of this work. The experiment was conducted at the Laboratory of Aquaculture, UFVJM University, Brazil, from July 21 to August 3, 2011. Post-larvae of Nile tilapia at density 13.3 post-larvae/L were grown in tanks containing biofilters with 100% calcareous shell; 70% calcareous shell/30% gravel; 50% calcareous shell/50% gravel; 30% calcareous shell/70% gravel; 10% calcareous shell/90% gravel; 100% gravel; tank without biofilters and control, in completely randomized design with seven treatments and three repetitions. Calcareous shell provided better water conditions than tanks without biofilter or containing only gravel, keeping the parameters suitable for Nile tilapia farming. Although ammonia levels were close to the desired upper limit, they had no influence on morphological parameters (total length, standard length, height and weight). The rate 30% shell/70% gravel is recommended as biofilter substrate, as it provided the best nitrification rate during the experiment.


Complexes [Ru2O(O2CR)2(1-MeIm)6](ClO4)2 (1a−c), [Ru2O(O2CR)2(ImH)6](ClO4)2 (2a,b), and [Ru2O(O2CR)2(4-MeImH)6](ClO4)2 (3a,b) with a (μ-oxo)bis(μ-carboxylato)diruthenium(III) core have been prepared by reacting Ru2Cl(O2CR)4 with the corresponding imidazole base, viz. 1-methylimidazole (1-MeIm), imidazole (ImH), and 4-methylimidazole (4-MeImH) in methanol, followed by treatment with NaClO4 in water (R:  Me, a; C6H4-p-OMe, b; C6H4-p-Me, c). Diruthenium(III,IV) complexes [Ru2O(O2CR)2(1-MeIm)6](ClO4)3 (R:  Me, 4a; C6H4-p-OMe, 4b; C6H4-p-Me, 4c) have been prepared by one-electron oxidation of 1 in MeCN with K2S2O8 in water. Complexes 1a, 2a·3H2O, and 4a·1.5H2O have been structurally characterized. Crystal data for the complexes are as follows:  1a, orthorhombic, P212121, a = 7.659(3) A, b = 22.366(3) A, c = 23.688(2) A, V = 4058(2) A3, Z = 4, R = 0.0475, and Rw = 0.0467 for 2669 reflections with Fo > 2σ(Fo); 2a·3H2O, triclinic, P1, a = 13.735(3) A, b = 14.428(4) A, c = 20.515(8) A, α = 87.13(3)°, β = 87.61(3)°...


In the present investigation alumina-mullite composites with various mole ratios of Al2O3 and SiO2 were generated by interacting fly ash with bauxite. The magnitude of sintering was examined by examining the characteristic properties of the sintered product which were subsequently correlated with generated crystalline phases and microstructure. The multiplicity of possible phase relations in this particular system is complex and the associated impurities played a vital role leading to liquid phase sintering.


From July 1984 to December 1984 our institute designated special personnel to place domestically made TCu220C IUD (100 in total) in those needing one after measuring uterine cavities. After an observation period of 24 to 28 months it achieved satisfactory effect without any cases of detachment of the intrauterine device or pregnancy while carrying the device. Results: There were 2 cases of device removal due to longitudinal arm protruding outside the orifice of the uterus within one month after placement and 4 cases of removal due to excessive bleeding within one year after half a year. During one year the removal rate reached 6% due to illness lower than that of metal single ring (11.8%) and of Shanghai T-strip copper intrauterine device (9.2%) and the 6 carriers were all first time IUD users. In the follow-up survey during the next 24 to 28 months regarding 94 cases the menstrual cycles of 91 cases were prolonged compared with the four (the shortest was by 6 days and the longest was by 10 days) and menstrual volume increased; the menstrual cycles of 6 cases were shortened by 3-5 days; 3 cases had no obvious changes in the menstrual volume duration of menstruation and subjective sense of the cycle. In addition 3 cases complained of abdominal distention and discomfort in the lower abdomen during menstruation. The leucorrhoea in device-carriers increased from before especially in the first 3-4 days before menstruation. So far there have been no cases of detachment of the device or pregnancy while carrying the device. (authors)


This work describes the construction, working principle and properties of two types of ion sources made in MEMS technology, designed for spectroscopic identification of gaseous and liquid samples. The first one is formed as an electro-magnetic trap efficiently ionizing gas particles even in a high vacuum. The second one uses the principle of electro-spray ionization. The application of the same materials and consistent technology allows for their integration on a single silicon-glass chip.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the effectiveness of a porcine urinary bladder-derived extracellular matrix (UBM) for the treatment of recalcitrant, neuropathic diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs).

MATERIALS AND METHODS
This prospective, parallel, randomized, single-center study involving 17 subjects was performed in an outpatient wound care center setting. Each subject with a DFU was randomized (2:1) to receive the urinary bladder matrix (UBM) plus offloading with a total contact cast (TCC) or standard care (nonadherent dressing plus TCC). All DFUs were on the plantar surface of the foot and all were Grade I-A according to the University of Texas Wound Classification System. A traditional TCC was used in all patients and consisted of a minimally padded, well-molded, and rigid (plaster plus fiberglass) construct that maintains contact with the entire plantar surface of the foot and lower leg. The endpoints of the study were wound healing at 12 and 16 weeks and ulcer recurrence at 1 year. Wound evaluations were performed weekly and wound surface area was measured by photo-digital planimetry.

RESULTS
In the UBM group, the incidence of wound healing at 12 and 16 weeks was 90% and 100%, respectively, compared with 33% and 83.3% in the control (P = .062). The mean time to healing in the UBM-treated group was 62.4 days compared with 92.8 days in the control group (P = .031). The incidence of ulcer recurrence at 1 year was 10% (1/11) in the UBM-treated group and 50% (3/6) in the control.

CONCLUSION
Results of this interim analysis suggest treatment of DFUs with a UBM could significantly reduce the time to healing and improve the rate of recurrence.


A mercury selector switch designed for use in telemetering may be modified by using high‐frequency techniques to make a fast rise time pulse generator with high pulse repetition rates. The pulse rise times are less than 0.002 μsec at repetition rates in excess of 10 kc with peak pulse power of 50 watts.


Potassium ion batteries (PIBs) have been regarded as promising energy storage devices for large-scale energy storage owing to the abundance of potassium resources. In this work, high pyridine N-doped porous carbon synthesized at 600 °C (NPC-600) derived from metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) has been fabricated and employed as the anode material for PIBs. NPC-600 can deliver a high reversible specific capacity (587.6 mA h g−1 at 50 mA g−1), outstanding rate properties (186.2 mA h g−1 at 2 A g−1) and cycling performance (231.6 mA h g−1 at 500 mA g−1 after 2000 cycles). This excellent electrochemical performance could be attributed to the increased amounts of pyridine N and neglectable change of the interlayer space during the potassiation/depotassiation process of NPC-600, which can provide additional adsorption sites to "capture" more K ions and ensure structural stability. This simple synthesis approach and unique structure make NPCs a promising candidate for next generation rechargeable PIBs.


Analysis of the mechanisms of formation of negative hydrogen ions in the plasma source, operating at the electron cyclotron resonance, leads to the conclusion about the fundamentally important role played in this process by low-temperature electrons. In the source the negative ion production is realized in two stages. First, hydrogen molecules colliding in a plasma with energetic electrons, are exited to high-laying Rydberg electron states and to high vibration levels in the plasma volume. Further, pulling the low-energy electrons, excited molecules acquire a negative charge. Negative atomic ions result from dissociation of excited negatively charged hydrogen molecules. Necessary for this process, the electrons of low energies are the result of collisions of fast plasma electrons with plasma electrodes. In the presented experiments to further increase the number of low-energy electrons were used electrons, emitted from the heated tungsten filaments and ceramic electrodes LaB 6 placed in the chamber of the source. The experiments found that emission of electrons from tungsten heaters have improved stability of the discharge and expanded the range of pressure under which there was a discharge, without changing substantially the magnitude of current of negative ions. The emission of electrons from the LaB 6 electrodes increased the current of negative ions from a source more than 3 times.


Natural ingredients have been used from ancient times for skincare purposes. Nowadays, they are becoming more common in formulations, due to consumers concerns about synthetic ingredients or chemical substances. The use of bioactive extracts from a variety of plant in cosmetics are for two purposes such as body care and also influence the biological functions of the skin, providing the nutrients for the healthy skin. Generally, plant extracts are a rich source of vitamins, antioxidants, essential oils, hydrocolloids, proteins, terpenoid, and other bioactive compounds. According to their composition, these extracts can provide different properties. Nigella sativa also called black cumin and kalonji is an annual flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae. It contains many bioactive like thymoquinone, thymohydroquinone, dithymoquinone, thymol, etc. Along with pharmacological activities it also provides cosmetic activities like sun protection; anti-skin pigmentation, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial etc. Thymoquinone is the main constituent of N.Sativa seed responsible for antioxidant, anti-inflammatory properties. It can improve skin complexion, boost the production of melanin, help to decline in skin hyperpigmentation, and cure pimple by antibacterial property. N.sativa extract helps to brightening the skin. The current review highlights the potential use and benefits of Nigella sativa in cosmetic formulation. KeywordsBioactives, antibacterial, antimicrobial, hyperpigmentation, Nigella sativa, thymoquinone, skincare,


Enveloped in artificial light, many urban dwellers have never experienced real darkness. Seeing this as a loss, scholars and organizations have initiated discussions on light and darkness and advocated the preservation of the dark skies. This article aims to further this study by emphasizing the importance of the stars. Instead of studying lights, stars, and darkness ethnographically, the article examines the ideas of stars and darkness in Thierry Cohen's photographs and two of Vincent van Gogh's paintings. This article will suggest that the dark, star-filled skies represented in van Gogh's paintings provide a visual blueprint of what the article calls the "star-lit cities," which goes beyond a simple preservation of darkness, and may be significant in driving vital changes in combating the current environmental crises.


Objective To investigate effect of dendritic cells pulsed with tumor antigens which are used to treat with intracranial glioma.Methods dendritic cells were isolated from rat bone marrow precursors stimulated in vitro with granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM CSF) and interleukin 4 (IL 4).Then mature DCs were analyzed; Produce lysates and dendritic cells vaccinum; then we established animal model treated with dendritic cells vaccinum. The rat brains were then removed and examined histologically,and spleens were harvested for cell mediated cytotoxicity assays.Results Mature dendritic cells with typical cloved leaf shaped nucleus and long cytoplasmic dendrites, immunocytochemisty showed expressions of OX 6 and OX 62 were positive, cell mediated cytotoxicity assays showed that there were statistically significant compared with control cells. At necropsy, the size of neoplasm is larger in tumor than control group ( P 0.01 ). Conclusion A method to generate large number of dendritic cells from rat bone marrow in vitro and manufacture dendritic cells vaccinum is established, and dendritic cells pulsed with lysate could inhibit significantly the growth of tumor; which may contribute to further study on the role of them in the immuntherapy of brain glioma.


Automated peritoneal dialysis (APD) has become a preferred method of dialyzing small children with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) prior to successful renal transplantation (1). Protein malnutrition is common in adults treated with peritoneal dialysis (PD) because of protein loss through the peritoneum, and significant glucose absorption from the dialysate that results in early satiety and decreased protein intake (2). Amino acids can be added to dialysate to provide osmotic pressure (3), thus maintaining ultrafiltration. The effects of this therapy on nutritional status in adults has been variable ( 4-6). There are no studies describing the long-term effects of amino acidcontaining dialysate in infants (7,8), and one study of a child aged 11 months (9). All previous studies examined the use of amino acid-containing dialysate with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD), and no studies have investigated APD. The purpose of this report is to describe the use of amino acid-containing dialysate with nightly APD in an infant with ESRD secondary to Denys Drash syndrome, who developed obesity and suspected hepatic steatosis.


A method for purifying ApoA-I(apolipoprotein A-I) is provided to mass-purify economically the ApoA-I with high purity. A method for producing reconstituted high density lipoprotein(rHDL) using the purified ApoA-I is provided to mass-produce the rHDL with high purity and excellent virus stability, thereby the produced rHDL being usefully used as a composition for preventing or treating cardiovascular diseases, sepsis or anti-inflammation. A method for purifying ApoA-I comprises the steps of: (a) extracting proteins including the ApoA-I from a material including the ApoA-I; (b) treating the proteins with a precipitating agent to remove protein impurities with high molecular weight therefrom; (c) treating a solution obtained from the step(b) with a precipitating agent to precipitate the proteins including the ApoA-I; (d) after dissolving the precipitated proteins in a buffer solution, treating it with ethanol to remove protein impurities with high molecular weight therefrom; (e) adjusting a pH of an ethanol-treated supernatant to collect the precipitated material; (f) after dissolving the precipitated material in a buffer solution or a chaotropic solution, heat-treating it to inactivate virus; (g) subjecting a product obtained from the step(f) to chromatography to isolate the ApoA-I therefrom; and (h) nano-filtering the isolated ApoA-I to remove virus therefrom. A method for producing rHDL comprises the steps of: (a) adding a lipid and a surfactant to the ApoA-I solution purified by the method above and agitating it enough at low temperature; ad (b) dialyzing a product obtained from the step(a) using an ultrafiltration membrane. Further, a concentration of the ApoA-I is 1 to 10 mg/ml, and a molar ratio of the ApoA-I, the lipid and the surfactant is 1:100~200:150~250.


In order to improve the injection power of the laser and guarantee the normal operation of the RF-excited Fast Axial Flow CO2 Laser, A kind of neural network control technology is proposed in a 2MHz laser RF power supply, which consists of two single-phase half-bridge MOSFET inverter modules. By using the SLPS Interface (SLPS), the RF power supply system with neural network controller is built and simulated. The result shows that the output power from the laser power supply can be up to 2000W, and a little of distortion (THD is 0.013%) is obtained. Moreover, it suggests that the neural network controller possesses better adaptivity than the PI controller to nonlinear, time-varying uncertain impedance characteristics of the load. So, the analysis of this paper shows that this kind of control algorithm scheme is fully applicable to the control design requirements of the laser.


: Full satisfaction of the development needs of the country's economy by road transport is an important task in the field of transport. This task in road transport is achieved through an extensive quantitative increase in the country's car fleet, as well as through intensive and high-quality improvement of the produced vehicles, improving the fleet structure, by increasing the technical readiness of vehicles. The article deals with the analysis of parking lots of vehicles with the aim of solving the problems of the production and technical base of road transport, which are now becoming increasingly important.


Abstract A yellowish copper vanadate mineral has been found in Swedish mural paintings from the fifteenth century. Small patches occur in malachite-green paint. Thirteen samples from five churches have been analyzed by optical and scanning electron microscopy with energy–dispersive X-ray spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, and polarized light microscopy. The substance is evidently the rather uncommon mineral volborthite, with the chemical formula Cu3V2O7(OH)2.2H2O. Very small quantities have also been noted for another mineral, presumably calcio-volborthite, CaCu(VO4)(OH), also named tangeite. The results show that the conservator should always be observant for pigments not earlier noticed or reported. There are some old mines in Central Europe, e.g. in Germany, which contain malachite as well as copper vanadate minerals, and this is probably the origin of the yellow patches in the paintings.


In 1990, approximately 101 million tons of freight were hauled by railroads in North Carolina. Because rail service is required by many ofthe state's basic industries, there is a need to support an adequate and efficient railroad system. Although railroads are crucial to the transportation requirements of many of North Carolina's industries, the state's rail system miles have been shrinking at an alarming rate. Many factors have contributed to the poor financial health of the railroad industry. These factors include poor labor pro-


Protein FAM3C (227 aa, ~25 kDa) is encoded by the human FAM3C gene. This protein is involved in the regulation of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition.


The article touches upon the history of the Anglo-French rivalry in the Western Africa in the 1880s. Among the issues studied are the process of colonization the Nigerian issue, discussed at the Berlin conferences of 1884-85 the main stages of competition between Great Britain and France for these territories, and the process of partition of the latter into the spheres of influence, which resulted in the agreement of 1890.


This review summarizes the up-to-date data on the consumption pattern of trans fatty acids in different countries including Poland, as well as the metabolism and metabolic effects of trans fatty acids in human organism. The health hazards linked with the consumption of trans fatty acids are also discussed.


The author presents his views on the definition of the concept of «crime» in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation because this concept is of primary importance to the whole structure of criminal law and the practice of crime counteraction. He provides a consistent analysis of the socio-legal nature and the feasibility of each constituent element included in the definition of crime: 1) action; 2) public danger; 3) guilt; 4) unlawfulness (criminal); 5) threat of punishability. When defining the concept of «crime», the author starts from the premise that, according to the methodology of formulating fundamental law concepts, their definitions should include only the most important, constant and universal characteristics (attributes) that are not disputable and that support the ontological essence of the concept and never, under any circumstances, refute it. The author concludes that the action and its prohibition in the criminal law are independent and constant elements of crime. Guilt and threat are not always such elements. The indication of guilt is included in the necessity of establishing the constituent elements of a crime to prosecute a person. Public danger, according to contemporary research, is an element of all offenses, besides, it is inherent to criminal unlawfulness. That is why the definition of the formal concept of «crime» should be presented as following: «A crime is an action prohibited in the present Code». This definition, according to the author, fully corresponds to the language of law, is laconic and substantial, excludes contradictory interpretations and fully agrees with the principle of inevitability of criminal punishment, which is of great importance for the effective implementation of criminal law measures of crime counteraction.


A new mechanism is proposed for the hydrolytic lactam polymerization. During reversible lactam addition to groups a considerable amount of amidines (ω-amidinocarboxylic acids) is formed in addition to the polymeric homologous series. The amount of these ω-amidinocarboxylic acids, can be determined quantitatively. They can participate in different reactions during the lactam polymerization leading to disproportionation of the amidino and carboxyl groups at a high rate, and to initiation. The proposed mechanism is valid for e-caprolactam and octanelactam.


Sueoka and Kano-Sueokal have shown that of 17 Escherichia coli aminoacyl-tRNA's examined before and after infection with bacteriophage T2, only leucyl-tRNA showed significant differences as determined by methylated albumin-kiesel-guhr (MAK) chromatography. leucyl-tRNA with peak I predominating.


The paper aims to provide an integrative analysis of consumers' shopping motives, activities, and shopping duration and repatronage intention, centering on brick-and-mortar fashion store. Perceptual shopping experience of clothing purchase was newly considered in the research, which was relatively researched less by previous researchers. Relative perceptual factors were considered into the research and hypothesis model of all factors' relationship was given in this research. A structured questionnaire was generated and copies were distributed to consumers in three prosperous cities of China. Internal relations of each factor were examined according to feedbacks, and managerial implications were given to fashion retail managers at the end.


Positive psychology seeks to establish a classification of character strengths and virtues based on objective measures, and so to provide guidance on how good character might be developed. However, it offers no substantive theory of the good life. A short critique of this approach is offered, and an alternative mode of empirical enquiry is explored following Alasdair MacIntyre's philosophy. The virtues of constancy and integrity as they appear in the career narratives of leaders in Scottish banking illustrate this mode of enquiry. Empirical enquiry into these virtues reveals a process of interpretation, which is dependent on an understanding of structures in virtue ethics and an understanding of the way that particular agents pursue their own ideas of human flourishing in some particular social milieu. One consequence of this is that, while behavioural tendencies or dispositions might be measurable through statistical method, virtues are not.


Biomonitoring of workers was carried out in three working areas--an artificial target factory, an aluminum plant, and an electrometallurgy plant--to assess exposure to PAHs. All the 48 hr-voided urine samples of the exposed workers were collected and the 3-hydroxybenzo[ a ]pyrene (3-OHB a P) and 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHPy) analyzed according to procedures using automated column-switching high-performance liquid chromatography. The exposure profiles indicate an important lag between the excretion of the two metabolites: the maximum of 3-OHB a P urinary excretion is observed 10 to 17 hr after the 1-OHPy maximum, with a much closer correlation ( r = 0.81) than that obtained with both metabolites in real time ( r = 0.21). This delayed excretion agrees with data from animal intoxication studies (intravenous administration or inhalation). Mean ratios of 1-OHPy to 3-OHB a P were studied without lag (varying from 2,230 to 15,330) and with a lag of 16 hr (varying from 940 to 8,390).


Taking Huanglonggou hydropower station project in Shaanxi Province as an example, this paper discusses calculation method for annual inflow to the dam-type hydropower station and its distribution for each month within the year on the basis of referential evidence method with emphasis on designed frequency,selection of referential station as well as the validity,effectiveness and reliability of the correction coefficient.Based on the theory of environmental security and eco-health of the drainage basin,this paper discusses water demand needed to be guaranteed for production and life,ecology,as well as landscape.Reasonable water withdrawal is settled by calculating accessible water resource and key technology as well as relevant measures in demonstration of water resource quantity of dam-type power plant in mountain area is put forward.


Several standard plastic track-and-field grounds have been built in Guizhou.However,due to numerous mountains and high relief amplitude in this region and for lack of corresponding national construction code,it is hard to implement construction and control construction quality.To build standard plastic track-and-field ground in this region,the construction for ground foundation,subbase,base course and surface course shall be well controlled.


The Product Design and Development and Mechanical Engineering degree programmes in the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Queen's University Belfast (QUB) include major group Design Build and Test (DBT) projects in their 3 and 4 years of study. These are advanced team projects which combine the technical and commercial elements typically found in industry. The students start with the identification of a problem and then develop a product through concept, product design specification, detailed design, prototyping and testing stages to finally produce plans for manufacture and commercial launch. These yearlong projects seek to develop the students' skills and abilities across all phases of a product lifestyle and as such have a wide range of learning outcomes. Many of the learning outcomes are capable of being assessed through traditional means, such as written reports, but other "softer skills" such as time management and team working skills are less easily assessed in this way. Academic staff acting as supervisors of such projects cannot be with the students all of the time, particularly since they are often required to simultaneously supervise multiple projects as well as carry out research and perform other teaching and administrative roles. The potential to observe the operation of project groups over a long period of time and hence assess these "softer skills" is therefore reduced. This paper will detail some of the methods used at Queen's to assist in the assessment of "softer skills" learning outcomes and evaluate their effectiveness in terms of time efficiency, accuracy and reliability Keywords; personal and professional skills, "softer skills", group projects, assessment *Correspondence to: JP Hermon, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Queen's University Belfast, email@example.com


Introduction. The application of blockchain technology has a significant potential to increase the efficiency of accounting compared to the traditional system and will ensure the digital transformation of the accounting process. Problem Statement. The introduction of blockchain technology into the accounting system is at an initial stage and requires significant refinement due to existing limitations. Purpose. To carry out a comparative analysis of the advantages and limitations of using blockchain technology in accounting in comparison with traditional accounting. Methods. The main research methods were general and special scientific approaches to theoretical generalization and grouping, systematization, comparative analysis, logical generalization. Results. Substantiated that the relationship and functionality of the blockchain are perfectly combined with the basic logic of accounting systems. The immutability of the transactions recorded in the blockchain process, the strong ongoing control of the procedures and compliance guaranteed in each phase meet the cardinal principles of accounting summarized in terms of informative data reliability and transparency. Conducted a comparison between pre- and postblockchain accounting characteristics. This established the advantages of blockchaintechnology compared to traditional accounting. The study defines confidentiality issues, scalability and interoperability as important significant constraints for adoption and deployment of blockchain based accounting. Procedural automation of blockchain technology always requires support and monitoring of the correctness of the interpretation of accounting phenomena that require professional judgment. Identified groups of asset transactions that reflect a high probability of outcome uncertainty and measurement uncertainty. Conclusions. Blockchain integration in accounting at enterprises supports consistent with Ukraine's digital transformation strategy. Accounting from this technology perspective would significantly reduce the amount of time and effort used by accountants for traditional and repetitive daily accounting records and constant control over their reliability. The introduction of blockchain in accounting requires overcoming limitations, the main one is the need to make changes to transactions, which require adjustments due to uncertainty and require accounting judgment.


Because of a large competition in the international market all the industries are looking for the quality assurance of your products with a minimum possible expense and because of this there is an increasing diffusion of the metrology concepts for satisfaction of these requirements above mentioned. With the purpose of adquiring satisfying needs, certified QS 9000 and ISO/TS 16949 companies need to implant statistical tools of qualification of Measurement Systems that assist in the reliability of the metrology employed. This report presents the most used tools in the industrial and laboratorial scope, also including procedures, later passing through the creation of an application systematic in all the stages of use of a Measurement System, since the selection until the control. Finishing with examples of the application in a certified ISO/TS 16949, that works with automobile products.


One-volume illustrated reference book on the history of Christianity is now available in a paperback edition. Written by more than sixty specialist from ten countries that tells the story of Christianity's 2000-year history.


The mathematical model of calculation the turbulence characteristics of rotating plasma arc current in the channel of plasmatron with ring output electrodes taking into account influence of plasma non-equilibrium at plotting the protective and strengthening coverings on the given surface is considered.


The aim of the study was to assess the impact of the use of by-products ethanol factory (DDGS) in the feed of broilers on carcass traits. In the trial there were three groups of one day broilers (3x20) grouped according to gender (50% : 50% ) type Cobb 500, which is in the feed added different levels of DDGS (0, 15 and 25%), from the beginning to the end of trial. There was significant (P <0.05) differences between control and experimental groups in the final body weight. Carcass weight was significantly (P <0.05) higher in the control group compared to the group P2. As for the yield control group had a statistically highly significant (P <0.01) higher value from the P1 experimental group. The values of the relative share of leg quarters in carcass weight did not show statistically significant differences. Chest values was significantly (P <0.05) higher in the control group compared to the experimental group P1. Statistically highly significant (P <0.01) higher value had the P2 group compared to P1 experimental group. Statistical significant differences in pH1 and pH2 values between the groups was not shown.


One of the significant stages in computer vision is image segmentation which is fundamental for different applications, for example, robot control and military target recognition, as well as image analysis of remote sensing applications. Studies have dealt with the process of improving the classification of all types of data, whether text or audio or images, one of the latest studies in which researchers have worked to build a simple, effective, and high-accuracy model capable of classifying emotions from speech data, while several studies dealt with improving textual grouping. In this study, we seek to improve the classification of image division using a novel approach depending on two methods used to segment the images. The first method used the minimum distance, and the second method used the clustering algorithm called DBSCAN. Both methods were tested with and without reclustering using the self-organizing map (SOM). The result from comparing the images after segmenting them and comparing the time taken to implement the segmentation process shows the effectiveness of these methods when used with SOM.


The growing development of mobile devices has promoted the increasing popularity of location services. However, the preservation of the users' privacy, especially the location data, has been questioned. This short-course describes the problem of the violation of the privacy of individuals' location and presents an in-depth analysis of the main techniques for their preservation, including differentially private mechanisms. Initially, fundamental concepts of data privacy will be presented, as well as vulnerabilities and threats to the privacy of individuals when exposing their location data when using applications on mobile devices. Then the state of the art in preserving location data privacy will be presented and discussed. Finally, we will point out research opportunities in the area and present relevant conclusions on the topic.


The border compression zone of reinforced concrete block shearwall was studied.Experimental research on its seismic behavior affected by the confined stirrups was done.In total,24 tests were conducted for 8 kinds of pattern under axial compression.Failure mode,bearing capacity and deformation characteristic of confined grouted concrete block masonry were achieved.The influence of the different confined patterns on its strength and deformation was discussed.From uhe analysis results,it can be seen that the compressive capacity of confined block masonry can be improved by the appropriate pattern.


Microbial molecular genetics is gaining popularity in recent times as an essential tool in the classification of the microbes. Numerical taxonomy of bacteria, unless supported by molecular taxonomy is not acceptable in the modem times. Proper understanding o f the DNA and protein profiles o f bacteria can be used as an efficient and sensitive tool for rapid identification o f bacteria whereas, the conventional methods are tiresome, time consuming and not fit for mass scale screening o f bacteria.


The article presents a stage change landscape and geographical study of the Over-Ural forest-steppe. Analyzed the accumulation of spatial knowledge, which is re- flected in the models of the study area.


This book deals with some function spaces and classes of analytic and hyperbolic-type. We study two kinds of complex-valued function spaces as follows: First, we study general classes of functions the so called Q_{k,w}(p; q)- type classes. For these classes, we obtain: Characterizations in terms of Carleson measures. Characterizations by the help of Hadamard gap class. Some important inequalities related to these classes with some other classes of analytic functions. Moreover for these classes: We study Hadamard products defined by integral norms acting between functions belonging to these classes. Secondly, we apply some certain operators on function spaces and classes of hyperbolic-type. Further, we introduce some new weighted hyperbolic classes of functions. These classes are shown to be complete quasi-metric spaces with respect to the corresponding metrics. Moreover, necessary and sufficient conditions are given for the composition and superposition operator to be bounded and compact


We demonstrate the spatially distributed aggregation of four 31.1-GBd PDM-32QAM sub-carriers into a 1-Tb/s net data rate superchannel occupying only 125-GHz optical bandwidth, and its subsequent transmission over 160-km SSMF with broadband reception in a single coherent receiver.


The vortex dominated aerodynamic characteristics of a generic 65 degree cropped delta wing model were studied in a wind tunnel at subsonic through supersonic speeds. The lee-side flow fields over the wing-alone configuration and the wing with leading edge extension (LEX) added were observed at M (infinity) equals 0.40 to 1.60 using a laser vapor screen technique. These results were correlated with surface streamline patterns, upper surface static pressure distributions, and six-component forces and moments. The wing-alone exhibited vortex breakdown and asymmetry of the breakdown location at the subsonic and transonic speeds. An earlier onset of vortex breakdown over the wing occurred at transonic speeds due to the interaction of the leading edge vortex with the normal shock wave. The development of a shock wave between the vortex and wing surface caused an early separation of the secondary boundary layer. With the LEX installed, wing vortex breakdown asymmetry did not occur up to the maximum angle of attack in the present test of 24 degrees. The favorable interaction of the LEX vortex with the wing flow field reduced the effects of shock waves on the wing primary and secondary vortical flows. The direct interaction of the wing and LEX vortex cores diminished with increasing Mach number. The maximum attainable vortex-induced pressure signatures were constrained by the vacuum pressure limit at the transonic and supersonic speeds.


We are exposed to noise on a daily basis, and noise pollution is increasingly becoming more intense, especially with more people living in the urban areas. Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of mortality worldwide and of global public health concern. Preventing and treating CVDs requires a better understanding of the associated risk factors. There is emerging evidence that noise pollution, especially related to the various forms of transport, is likely a contributor to the pathogenesis and aggravation of CVDs. We review key epidemiological data that address the link between excessive noise exposure and CVDs in humans and present proposed pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this association.


A U.S. Department of Justice insider's biography reveals new details about Josef Mengele Drawing from new sources and scholarship, historian David Marwell has written a compelling work that dispels many of the myths obscuring the identity of the infamous physician, Josef Mengele. Mengele: Unmasking the "Angel of Death" is at once a compact biography of the notorious war criminal, a detailed account of Mengele's flight to South America, and an absorbing narrative of the quest to bring him to justice.


ZnSe and neodymium doped ZnSe (Zn1-xNdxSe) with x=0, 0.05, 0.07 and 0.10 precipitated nanoparticles at pH 5 were synthesized through wet chemical route. XRD studies reveal the prepared nanoparticles have cubic zinc blende structure and the particle size is in the range of 5-30 nm. The SEM micrograph analysis the surface of the sample, it visibly reveals nanophase formation and no trace of the oxide and purity of the synthesized samples is confirmed by EDAX analysis. Strong absorption in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum is examined by UV-Vis spectrum and optical band gap decrease with dopant concentration. The magnetic hysteresis study was carried out using VSM and it shows soft magnetic nature. The antibacterial properties of the nanoparticles against gram positive and gram negative bacterial strain were determined using disc diffusion method.


The benefits of learning managements systems have been documented for more than thirty years. Coupled with the astounding potential of the internet they provided a compelling opportunity for "olde" mainframe and LAN developers to "have another go". This paper describes how a small group of enthusiasts within The University of Auckland Business School built a computer supported learning system (CSL aka Cecil) that became, perhaps, the first of a new genre of web-based learning managements systems. Cecil has been independently compared with the market leaders, found superior, and is The University of Auckland's sole LMS platform. Its features, functions and current performance will be described, followed by our "vision" for the future.


Exchange of letters constituting an agreement concerning the regional meeting on national security and building of confidence among nations in the Asia-Pacific region, to be held in Kathmandu from 1 to 3 February 1993. New York, 11 and 13 January 1993


CsI activated with thallium is one of the most important scintillators in the radiation detection field. With one of the highest conversion efficiencies (60 000 photons/MeV) of all scintillators in current use, along with its high density and effective atomic number, excellent light transport properties, broad commercial availability, and low cost, it has become the detector of choice for a wide variety of applications, especially medical diagnostics. Now, it has become particularly attractive for radiographic scanning and active interrogation of cargo in transit as well. It does have one drawback, however, in its relatively long-lived afterglow, which restricts its use in high-count-rate applications, causing reconstruction artifacts in CT and reduced contrast and image blurring in high-speed radiographic scanning and imaging. In previous work, we have already demonstrated that this afterglow can be substantially suppressed at low energies (<500 keV); here, we have extended our development to demonstrate afterglow suppression at higher energies as well. Our approach, which involves codoping of the material with small amounts of Sm2+ or Eu2+, has been found to be effective at energies as high as the 7 MeV relevant for typical cargo inspection systems. The improved CsI:Tl scintillator is a straightforward replacement of the standard material, increasing contrast and steel penetration while allowing dual-energy performance, thus enabling reduced scan times and increased speeds for the same performance level. This in turn leads to greater throughput efficiency at ports and borders (where such imaging often creates choke points in traffic flow), as well as more efficient detection of contraband such as explosives, drugs, weapons, and special nuclear materials. We have also produced CsI:Tl,Sm in the form of microcolumnar films, where it exhibits the same afterglow reduction as in the single crystal form. We currently have the capability to produce such films up to 800  $\mu \text{m}$  thick and up to  $45 \times 45$  cm2 in area, and expect yet further development in the future. This provides a combination of high-resolution, high-frame-rate, and large-area capabilities not hitherto available for imaging applications.


Grid connected wind energy conversion systems (WECS) present interesting control demands, due to the intrinsic nonlinear characteristics of windmills and electric generators. In this paper a predictive control strategy for doubly fed induction machine is proposed. The doubly fed induction machine is used in generating mode for large-scale grid-connected variable speed wind turbines. In order to control the active and reactive power exchanged between the stator and the grid, the rotor is fed by a bi-directional power converter. In suggested controller, maximizing power including speed and torque control is considered. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed methods.


[1] The biogenic organic precursors which are of relevance in secondary organic aerosol formation are primarily isoprene, monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes (SQTs) and their derivatives. Atmospheric volatile organic compound inventories consider plant emissions as the exclusive sources of natural secondary organic aerosol precursors. Very recently we have shown in pure culture experiments that abundant soil fungal strains are capable of producing significant emission fluxes of SQTs and have implied that soils might be globally important SQT emission sources. In the present follow-up study we determined sesquiterpene emission fluxes in the laboratory directly from unperturbed soil samples and from selected soil samples with the top litter layer removed. We also characterized basic soil parameters and native fungal strains in the samples, and quantified ergosterol as a proxy of bulk fungal biomass. The measured SQT emission fluxes (6–1980 ng m−2 h−1; median 109 ng m−2 h−1) were of the same magnitude as inferred from culture experiments confirming that soil biota can be an important sesquiterpene emission source that has to be included in future VOC inventories.


This study is about optimal design of shell and tube heat exchangers using state of the art evolutionary algorithms. The research introduces a novel hybrid objective function which its optimisation leads to new design solutions not previously found by traditional techniques.


In modern India where people talk about smart cities and India as a digitizing nation, it is very important that we start with necessities of citizens. Grocery shopping is one such necessity that requires modernization. There has always been a long queue at the billing counters in shopping malls. This activity many times consumes lot of time which results in frustration amongst customers. This problem is faced by everyone. Especially in India where there is a lot of population and not enough billing counters. There are online grocery stores available, but they have their own disadvantages like minimum bill value etc. To overcome this problem an idea has been developed which can be implemented in all the shopping malls to save customer's precious time and simplify the billing process. In a country like India where cost is an important parameter, it is important to keep in mind the manufacturing cost of the product. If the cost is low without compromising the functioning, the model can be implemented on a larger scale. Considering this the model has been built with the most commonly available and efficient hardware. This paper describes the idea of smart shopping basket and how it can be built using basic cost-efficient hardware. In the proposed model, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) has been used to detect grocery items. Every product will have a RFID tag and every cart will have a reader. A RFID reader is used to decode the tag and display the information on a small Liquid Crystal Display (LCD). Technical working of the circuit with hardware specifications has been discussed and ways of optimization have been suggested. Different variants of this idea have been studied from research papers and a simplified and effective model with working has been proposed in this paper. Keywords— Automatic Billing, Smart Shopping, Bill, Liquid Crystal Display, Radio Frequency Identification, Customers.


Environment is severely polluted with toxic heavy metal mercury.If mercuric industrial effluents were released in the biosphere,it can be amplified by food chain and have an effect on the people's health.Bioremediation is a kind of good method especially suitable to China.It was found that some of mercury-resistant bacteria detoxify chiefly by two induciable enzymes such as organomercurial lyase and mercuric reductase,acting respectively to cleave the carbon-mercury bond of certain organomercurial compounds and to reduce Hg to metallic mercury.The research on plasmid of the Pseudomonas cepacia strain especially on its plasmid gene by the method of polymerase chain reaction was done to facilitate the capacity of detoxification of mercury.


There has been growing evidence that the lack of academic writing skills among university students who learn English as a Second Language (ESL) affects their overall academic performance. Higher education ESL students often find writing academic essays a complex process and hence struggle with academic writing convention issues. However, in order to encourage these students' to be autonomous in their English academic writing, explicit and supportive instruction is necessary on the teacher's part. This study aims to investigate thirty Foundation students' revision activities pre- and post-intervention and whether there are any changes in their reviewing activities after being exposed to the intervention for twelve weeks. The reviewing activities were categories and analysed for inter-correlations. It is found that the students' revision activities at first seem to concentrate mostly on Surface Changes-Meaning Preserving Changes activities. However, this changes in the second half of the intervention period where they seem to perform more Meaning Changes-Microstructure Changes and the least is Surface Changes-Formal Changes.


Two additional species of Lessingianthus, L. bakerianus and L. lanuginosus, from the campo cerrado vegetation of central Brazil, are described and illustrated. The first species is characterized by the presence of capitula arranged in groups, nine to 12 florets per head, leaves sessile, oblong to ovate leaf blades with the lower surface densely lanate, sparsely villous on the main veins. It has certain resemblance to L. syncephalus (Sch. Bip. ex Baker) H. Rob. and L. brevipetiolatus (Sch. Bip. ex Baker) H. Rob., which present petiolate leaves and leaf blades lanceolate, cuneate or attenuate at the base. L. lanuginosus is superficially similar to L. buddleiifolius (Mart. ex DC.) H. Rob., but differs in having smooth stems, woolly indumentum, smaller heads and the largest leaves disposed at the middle of the stem. © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2006, 150, 487–493.


The link travel time corresponding to time-varied inflows, which has an exponential function relation with the link traffic flow, is disscussed. Because analytic solution of link travel time can not be found directly, the analysis of the 1-order series expansion of exponential function is used to get the solution. The relationship between outflows and inflows is given out. The numerical simulation demonstrates that the conclusion is satisfied.


Uvular necrosis after endotracheal intubation or upper endoscopy is rare. We report here on a case of uvular necrosis and ulceration after endoscopy. The combination of ulceration and necrosis suggests uvular ischemia during endoscopy. The uvula may have been sandwiched between the shaft of the endoscope and the gum or hard palate, or may have been pressed against the posterior pharynx, leading to prolonged ischemia and resultant ulceration and necrosis. Uvular trauma can also be caused by oral pharyngeal suction. We recommend that post-endoscopy uvular necrosis should be managed conservatively based on the patient's symptoms. In all reported cases, and in the present case as well, the uvula healed and the symptoms resolved within 2 weeks (5 - 14 days) after the procedure. The uvula regained its normal appearance. Overall, these patients should have a good clinical outcome.


By the Abstract of paving-compaction process,the location of the rollers is described at any time and combined with the linear cooling the mixture temperature expressions,the mathematical model of arbitrary position compaction temperature of segmentation compaction and following compaction is set up.The compaction temperature probability distribution characteristics and the impact of the law is obtained by model analysis.Analysis of three kinds of compaction compaction temperature history prove that the ratio of paving speed and compaction speed can result in the compaction segregation,and the reasonable value of the ratio scope.Based on gyratory compaction curve fitting functions,the mixture density formula of different compaction temperature course are established.


The paper considers the evolution of the bill of credit institution and changes of its functions. It is emphasized that bill of credit acquires the features of a formal abstract agreement and a turnaround document. It is shown that bill-of-credit-like institutions have a complicated path of development that includes important transformations. The latter facilitate the rise of these institutions' functionality, the change in the composition of their functions, adaptation to the needs of economic agents. The transformation of bill of credit has led to lowering transaction costs of market interactions.


Energy minimization and conformational studies of molecular ions generated by ESI (electrospray ionization) tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) can be used for the discrimination of stereoisomeric permethylated and sodium cationized trisaccharides. Sets of fucose-containing trisaccharides having different internal and terminal linkages have been synthesized to analyze the reducing terminal linkage positions using BT and IT fusion approaches. A detailed investigation has been undertaken on the conformational behaviors of four trisaccharide fragments from human milk and blood group determinants of Type 1 and Type 2, namely Fuc(α13)Gal(β1-3)GalNAc and Fuc(α1-3)Gal(β1-X)GlcNAc where X = 3, 4 and 6 using molecular modeling methods. Three dimensional rigid and adiabatic phi-psi-energy maps (Surfer program) describing the energy as a function of rotation around corresponding glycosidic linkages were calculated by SYBYL molecular modeling and MM4 force field programs conjunction with cleavage energies of ESI MS/MS for the side group orientations. This approach predicted conformational behaviors exhibited by isomer saccharides for future applications on biologically active glycoconjugates and to exploit a faster method of synthesizing a series of structural isomeric oligosaccharides.


ESL and EFL differ from each other in the aspects of underlying theory,linguistic environment and affective factor.According to these differences,this paper proposed several ways on how to improve our teaching method,hoping that we may find the most suitable teaching strategy to better the foreign language level of China on the whole.


Extraction of information from the large repositories offers new research opportunities and challenges and the best-known tool, which is used to extract knowledge, is text mining. Text mining is an innovation that can be applied to different tasks in biology and to solve the medical problems, biomedical literature mining is used more and more. The main aim of text mining is used to identify biological entities such as protein and gene names in the biomedical texts and it reduces the effort to extract relationships between biological entities abstracts. The number of studies associated with genes have been conducted to identify the genes involved in proteins. However, this research area remains the lot of scope and open challenges for biomedical text mining researchers. This paper developed a framework to identify gene and its related proteins from PubMed abstracts for Breast cancer. The framework includes two phases such as identify and extract the gene and its protein relations and constructs gene network from the identified relations using cytoscape network visualizer. It identifies the significant number of gene-protein relationships related to breast cancer disease. The identified relations are verified and validated with the benchmarking database and the network analysis results revealed that PFKP, EGFR, BMP9, RhoA, TRIM33, CDK5 and STAT3 are top genes that were found and the relations for the PFKP and EGFR genes are high when compared to the other top genes. Overall, the proposed framework produces 75% accuracy results.


Our investigations reveal that the bonding of the transition-metal atoms on a single-wall carbon nanotube (SWCN) depends on the detailed contact conditions. On the basis of our results, we suggest that the early 3-d elements (Sc, Ti, and V) can be expected to be good candidates for making metal–SWCN contacts of low resistance, while contacts employing the late 3-d elements (Fe, Co, and Ni) and Cu are expected to exhibit large contact resistance.


The present paper reports on the mechanical treatment of fly ash for improving the delayed reactivity of fly ash with the hydration product of cement. Grinding of fly ash was carried out in a ball mill for different time durations and processing time was optimized for maximum fineness. Concrete mixes were prepared using various proportions of processed and unprocessed fly ash replacement in cement (25% and 50%). The influence of steel fiber addition on the mechanical properties of the concrete was studied for different curing periods. The test results on pozzolanic activity and lime reactivity indicate that the processed fly ash exhibited a higher strength gain than the unprocessed fly ash, with a maximum increase in compressive strength of up to 12%. Improved pozzolanic properties were noticed due to the increase in fineness of the fly ash particles.


The invention relates to the field of high-voltage circuit breakers, in particular to a self-powered circuit breaker and an air cylinder assembly thereof. The self-powered circuit breaker comprises an air cylinder assembly, wherein the air cylinder assembly comprises an air compression chamber air cylinder and an expansion chamber air cylinder; one end of the air compression chamber air cylinder is closed by a valve base, and the other end of the air compression chamber air cylinder has an open structure; the expansion chamber air cylinder is spliced into the open end of the air compression chamber air cylinder; one end, which is inserted into the air compression chamber air cylinder, of the expansion chamber air cylinder is further provided with a cylindrical extension segment; the valve base is provided with a convex compensating structure for being inserted into the expansion chamber air cylinder; and the size of the compensating structure is equal to the volume of the extension segment. In the self-powered circuit breaker, a plurality of contact fingers can be arranged correspondingly between the expansion chamber air cylinder and the air compression chamber air cylinder according to requirements, so that the resistance of a main loop is reduced, and the temperature rise of the circuit breaker is further reduced; and the size of the expansion chamber air cylinder does not change, so that the original short-circuit breaking performance of the circuit breaker is ensured.


We live in the midst of a major structural crisis. This crisis is multidimensional, cultural, and political, as well as economic. Spatial forms and urban issues are simultaneously being reshaped by this crisis and becoming powerful instruments for the policies aimed at managing the crisis from different viewpoints according to the pattern of contradictory social interests. The first part of the paper tries to outline the main effects of the crisis on the urban realm, focusing particularly on the spatial consequences of the new technologies, that could be devastating if they were used to harden the dominant tendencies of corporate capitalism and authoritarian statism. The second part of the paper attempts to foresee some potential alternatives to managing the crisis, on the basis of the projects of defending collective consumption, affirming cultural identity, and enhancing political self-management, that are being fostered by grass-roots groups and progressive local governments all over the world. Relying on some recent experiences of local government in Europe and the USA, the paper ends by outlining some alternative urban policies that could also be socially feasible, technically efficient, and politically progressive. Between defensive struggles and shortsighted reformism, this paper tries to explore the field of the new paths of urban social change in our time and in our societies.


The condensation of pyrrolyl-2-aldehyde or 1-methyl-pyrrolyl-2-aldehyde with dimethyl succinate, using sodium hydride as condensing agent, gave predominantly the halfesters 1a and 1c respectively. Their structure and (E)-configuration1 were confirmed by their cyclisation to the corresponding indole derivatives 2a–h.


The morphology, locomotion and contact inhibition of locomotion of normal and neoplastic rat cells were studied in relation to oncogenicity. Embryonic fibroblasts (LWF) and a spontaneously neoplastic variant (LW13) were both fibroblastic in appearance, with a monolayered arrangement of cells at moderate densities. A variant transformed by Rous sarcoma virus (RsK4) was epithelioid and was also well monolayered. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a smooth dorsal surface on LWF cells, microvilli on the dorsal surface of LW13 cells and numerous microvilli, blebs and ruffles over the entire surface of RsK4 cells. LWF cells and LW13 cells moved with broad fan‐shaped lamellae on which lamellipodia (ruffles) arose at the leading edge. These cells showed polarized locomotion and migrated rapidly into wounds made in confluent cultures. RsK4 cells neither possessed large, fan‐shaped lamellae nor showed polarized movement. They did not invade wounds efficiently. After treatment with colcemid LWF and LW13 cells resembled RsK4 cells more closely and lost polarity of movement. On analysis of cell collisions by time‐lapse cinemicrography, the three cell types showed pronounced homotypic contact inhibition of cell locomotion, as judged by cessation of forward displacement. LWF and LW13 cells exhibited paralysis of ruffling, contraction of the leading edge, cell to cell adhesion and inhibition of pinocytosis typical of contact inhibition between fibroblasts. Paralysis and contraction were not evident in RsK4 cell collisions. Colcemid treatment did not prevent the initiation of contact inhibition but reduced the lasting paralysis of LWF and LW13 cells. In collisions between tumour cells and normal cells, cell locomotion and membrane ruffling were inhibited in the normal cells but not in the tumour cells. Such non‐reciprocal contact inhibition resulted in apparent monolayering in mixed cultures. The loss of contact inhibitory responses of neoplastic cells to normal cells appears to be more closely related to oncogenicity than are homotypic contact inhibition and cellular morphology. The contact inhibitory stimuli of certain neoplastic cells differ from those of normal fibroblasts, and may be preserved by fixation with glutaraldehyde.


Among various decoding algorithms of Reed-Solomon (RS) codes, algebraic soft-decision decoding (ASD) can achieve significant coding gain with polynomial complexity. One major step of ASD is the interpolation. The interpolation problem can be solved by the Nielsonpsilas algorithm, which involves discrepancy coefficient computation. This computation requires a feedback loop with one multiplier, one adder and one register. The maximum clock frequency of the interpolation architecture is limited by the multiplier-adder path in this loop. In this paper, we propose to employ the slow-down technique to increase the register number in the feedback loop, such that the multiplier-adder path can be divided into shorter segments through retiming to achieve higher clock frequency. In addition, input sequences to the feedback loops are interleaved. Applying the proposed interpolation architecture to a (255, 239) RS code with maximum multiplicity three, 43% higher efficiency in terms of speed/area ratio can be achieved over prior efforts.


This research studies a practical iterative algorithm for multi-class kernel logistic regression (KLR). Starting from the negative penalized log likelihood criterium we show that the optimization problem in each iteration can be solved by a weighted version of least squares support vector machines (LS-SVMs). In this derivation it turns out that the global regularization term is reflected as a usual regularization in each separate step. In the LS-SVM framework, fixed-size LS-SVM is known to perform well on large data sets. We therefore implement this model to solve large scale multi-class KLR problems with estimation in the primal space. To reduce the size of the Hessian, an alternating descent version of Newton's method is used which has the extra advantage that it can be easily used in a distributed computing environment. It is investigated how a multi-class kernel logistic regression model compares to a one-versus-all coding scheme.


The report of absent peroxisomes and distorted mitochondria in liver and kidney of Zellweger syndrome suggested that the manifestations may be secondary to disturbed function of these organelles. The associated question of persistence of peroxisomal enzyme activity in the absence of peroxisomes was equally provocative.Liver and intestinal biopsies from a patient with Zellweger syndrome were assayed for 3 peroxisomal enzymes. Catalase was present in both tissues in normal concentrations but was not sedimentable at 10,000 rpm for 30 min. Cyanide-insensitive β -oxidation of palmitoyl-CoA and dihydroxyacetone phosphate acyltransferase were not detectable in liver. Absence of the former could explain the reported accumulations of very long-chain fatty acids. The acyltransferase is essential in the synthesis of plasmalogens which are widely distributed in membranes but whose functions are poorly understood.Peroxisomes could not be found in liver or intestine by EM. Mitochondria were normal. Rare, very small bodies were noted in intestine some of which were DAB-positive (catalase-containing).These findings provide the first unequivocal evidence of a deficiency in peroxisomal enzymes in human disease. Zellweger syndrome may result from an interruption in peroxisomal formation.


This paper shows how to deene an operational semantics of those graphical notations that are used during requirements analysis and design. An abstract syntax using syntax graphs is given to describe the notations uniformly, followed by the formal description of a possible semantics by semantic bases. Finally, a calculus of operations is proposed to integrate the deenition of diierent notations. By describing these semi-formal notations in a formal manner the notations become more precise. Furthermore it is made possible to write tools to interpret the notations operationally.


This chapter lays out some of the problems of the biblical text concerning revelation on Sinai. It highlights the passage in Deuteronomy 5 that surrounds the Decalogue, examining how it interprets its likely sources. The central Sinai texts in the book of Exodus are extremely difficult from a source-critical perspective - it is unclear how many different sources or traditions are represented. The chapter examines nine ways in which Deuteronomy interprets its sources, including the following: 1. Deuteronomy follows one of its sources at the expense of other(s). 2. Deuteronomy conflates various sources. 3. Deuteronomy takes an idea that is found in its sources as a peripheral notion and turns it into a central notion. 4. Deuteronomy picks-up on the terminology of its sources, but uses the same word or phrase in a way that is different from Exodus. 5. Deuteronomy moves narrative material from its original place to a different place. Keywords: biblical text; Decalogue; Deuteronomy; Exodus; Sinai revelation


On 17 June 1998,17 and 26 August 1999,three juvenile birds of White eared Night Heron ( Gorsachius magnificus )were obtained within the Shixing County by scientific workers of the Chebaling National Nature Reserve in Shixing County,Guangdong Province; one specimen of male adult White eared Night Heron was collected by South China Institute of Endangered Animals on 22 March 1960 at the Huashui mountain in Yingde County,Guangdong.So far,the distribution of the endangered White eared Night Heron in Guangdong has been confirmed.The southern Guangxi and northern Guangdong are the only areas where populations of the White eared Night Heron exists were found.


The aerial parts of Carthamus lanatus (Asteraceae) afforded four new oxygenated bisabolane fucosides, 10-hydroperoxy-bisabola-2,11-diene 7-O-β-ᴅ-fucopyranoside, 11-hydroperoxy- bisabola-2,9-diene 7-O-β-ᴅ-fucopyranoside, 10-hydroxy-bisabola-2,11-diene 7-O-β-ᴅ-fucopyranoside and 11-hydroxy-bisabola-2,9-diene 7-O-β-ᴅ-fucopyranoside together with the known compounds α-bisabolol β-ᴅ-fucopyranoside, asperuloside, sitosterol 3-O-β-ᴅ-glucoside and stigmasterol 3-O-β-ᴅ-glucoside. Asperuloside appears to be the second representative of the iridoid monoterpene group found in the plant family Asteraceae, which until recently was considered to lack iridoids. The main constituent α-bisabolol fucoside exhibited noticeable antibacterial and cytotoxic activities.


The potential of a diagnostic technique to provide quantitative three‐dimensional (3D) density distributions of species in a low temperature laser‐produced plume is shown. An expanded, short pulse, tunable dye laser is used to probe the plume at a set time during the expansion. Simultaneous recording of two‐dimensional in‐line absorbance maps and orthogonal recording of laser induced fluorescence permits the 3D density mapping by scanning the dye laser frequency. Preliminary data, supported by a simple model, is presented for the case of Ba II ions in a YBCO plume heated by a KrF laser.


In order to realize digital electroplating power supply of high power,the design of the currrent-sharing control system of digital electroplating power supply based on ARM processor STM32F103 is presented.The system uses STM32F103 as the main processor and controls currrent-sharing of paralleled power modules by CAN bus to achieve high power outputs.The system has multiple work modes and peripheral interfaces and friendly man-machine interface.The application shows that this system has stable performance,and achieve the design requirement.


V. Fréoura, H. Mansoura, C. Saitisa and G. Scavoneb aMcGill University, Schulich School of Music, 555 Sherbrooke St. W., Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 1E3 bComputational Acoustic Modeling Laboratory (CAML), Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Music Media and Technology (CIRMMT), McGill University, 555 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 1E3 firstname.lastname@example.com ISMA 2014, Le Mans, France


Ratnasari, Devy Kartika. 2013. Improving Speaking Skill by Using Cue Card to Class VII-B of the Seventh Grade Students of SMP 2 Gebog in Academic Year 2013/2014 (A Classroom Action Research). Final Project: English Education Department, Teacher training and Education Faculty. Muria Kudus University. Advisors: (1) Drs. Suprihadi, M.Pd., (2) Fajar Kartika, S.S, M.Hum.
Key Words: Speaking skill, Cue Card and classroom action research.
Speaking considers as the skill that has to be mastered by the language learners because it is thought as one of the indicators to measure the success of learning language. In fact, teachers has less motivation to give the students' special treatment to make them eager to participate fully in learning speaking in the class. That condition is also happened in SMP 2 Gebog. The students cannot be focus and active. It is proved by the percentage of students that get high score is only 36.6% and 63.4% gets low score in speaking in the class. After analyzing the problems, the writer assumes to use instructional media that is cue card to improve the students' speaking skill.
This final project is action research. In this study, I limited the discussion by stating the following problem: "how is the achievement of speaking skill of class VII-B of the seventh grade students of SMP 2 Gebog in academic year 2013/2014 with the use of cue card?". The aim of the study was to describe the achievement of speaking skill of class VII-B of the seventh grade students of SMP 2 Gebog in academic year 2013/2014 with the use of cue card as the teaching medium. It is expected that the result of the study will provide a deeper understanding of the use of cue card as a teaching medium.
There were four steps in conducting the Classroom Action Research i.e. planning, acting, observing, and reflecting. This action research was done in three cycles. The first cycle was how to express thanking and apologizing expression, like and dislike expression, and shopping list.
In the result, the students' speaking skill improves from cycle I until cycle III. In cycle I, the average of students' speaking skill score is 71.06, in cycle II the average of the students' speaking skill score is 75.33 and in cycle III the average of students' speaking skill is 81.46. Besides, the students and teacher's activity are improved and the problem that faced by the teacher are decreased in every cycle. Therefore, the writer can conclude that the use of cue card can improve students' speaking skill of class VII-B at the Seventh Grade Students of SMP 2 Gebog in Academic Year 2013/2014.
Referring to this action research, the writer offer several suggestions. First, she suggest that the English teacher should try to use cue card as one of the teaching media. Second, English teacher should encourage the students to improve their speaking skill by giving more practice and exercise, such as retelling story, performing speech, practicing dialogue, and so forth.


This study investigates the status of digital divide amongst Jordanian Telecentres. The objective of this study is to analyze the impact of the perceived usefulness, the perceived ease-of-use and the facilitating conditions on the behavioral intention of employees. In addition, the study investigates the effect of the three mentioned factors on the user acceptance while the behavioral intention on the user acceptance is used as a mediating factor. The proposed research model was validated by distributing 150 survey questionnaires to the Telecentres in Jordan. Structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was used to analyze the results. One of the main limitations of this study is that the results cannot be universal since the study was limited to Jordan. Similar study needs to be conducted in different courtiers to either support or negate our results.


Industrialization and modernization in now a days has made a strong demand of steel and their maintenance for a strong infrastructure for every country in the race of survival, stabilization, growth and competition. Atmospheric corrosion can aggressively accelerate the rate of degradation of steel during their manufacturing, processing, storage and transportation. In these cases, traditional methods to prevent corrosion are not suitable which provide scope of Vapour Phase Corrosion Inhibitors (VPCI) in industries, defense and daily life. Cetyltrimethylammoniumbromide (CTAB) was tested for mild steel in different aggressive atmospheric conditions by Weight loss test, Eschke test, Salt spray test, Sulphur dioxide (SO2) test at 50 o C and results of these tests were supported by Metallurgical research microscopy and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Synergistic effect of CTAB were performed with Ethylamine (EA), N,N,N,NTetramethylethylenediamine (TMEDA) and N-Ethylaniline (NEA) to enhance the percentage corrosion inhibition efficiency (PCIE).


The paper introduces failures of housing screw fracture at driving position of the CA6DL diesel oil pump jointly designed by China and Australia,which happened many times in the sample trial manufacturing and road test.It also analyzes and diagnoses the reason of the quality failure and improves the design of driving position to achieve a better performance.


Geometric moments have been widely used in image processing and pattern recognition. However, there are still no algorithms to compute the exact geometric moments of gray level images. In this paper, a novel image presentation method, named overlapped rectangle image representation (ORIR), is firstly presented, and then, based on ORIR, an effective algorithm for computing the exact geometric moments is presented as well. The new algorithm replaces the double integrals on two-dimensional space with the single summation on ORIR list without introducing the discrete sampling error. The experimental results in this paper show that the moment values computed by the presented algorithm match the theoretical values very well.


FIELD: chemistry of polymers. SUBSTANCE: invention proposes polyurethane solvent-free reactive bicomponent system used in preparing covers showing thermal stability at temperature until 90 o C, elasticity and compatible with cathode protection. The system consists of, for example, chlorinated paraffin hydrocarbon or polychlorodibutoxybenzene as chlorinated soft resin and containing OH-groups of component, in particular, containing simple ether groups with functionality ≥3.5 and molecular mass 280-1000 Da, or their mixtures consisting of such components and polyisocyanate component. EFFECT: valuable technical properties of system. 14 cl, 7 tbl


Risk is inherent in the creative process of advertising. The research reported in this article examined how employee risk taking was influenced by creative code intensity, which consists of strongly shared values about what represents great creative work. Interviews with creative practitioners provided insight into the role of risk in advertising. A survey of U.S. agency creatives revealed that agencies with an intense creative code, or strongly shared values, also were likely to have strong risk-taking tendencies. Results suggest agency managers wishing to foster a risk-taking environment can benefit from an articulated creative identity and clear communication about the type of creative work the agency strives to produce.


Magnetic forces can adversely affect precise weighings. A systematic investigation is aimed at verifying a magnetic susceptometer and its attendant theory by measurement on a variety of weakly-magnetised objects of different materials over a range of relative permeabilities between 1.0013 and 1.2, including novel permeability standards.


Objective] To study the subchronic toxicity of quizalofop-p-ethyl to rats and obtain NEL.[Methods] According to GB 15670-1995"Toxicological test methods of pesticides for registration". [Results] The decrease in food consumption,body weight,food efficiency,testes weight and the organ coefficient of testes,the increase in the organ coefficients of brain,heart,lung,liver,kidney,were observed at the dose of 1,300 mg/kg food.The morphological changes of testes were found at the doses of 433 mg/kg food and 1,300 mg/kg food.[Conclusion] The reproductive effects of quizalofop-p-ethyl in rats was shown and its NEL is (10.42±0.65) mg/(kg·d).


HIV and P. falciparum lead to diseases with overlapping endemic areas. Both diseases are leading cause of nearly 2 millions of deaths each year, which occur mostly in developing countries. People living with HIV are more susceptible to disease progressions. It is therefore important to further understand the biology of HIV and P. falciparum coinfection. The present study sets to characterize the coinfection with regard to malaria specific antibodies and to anemia. We found that antibody and hemoglobin levels as well as CD4 counts differ significantly according to parasite load and to treatment with anti retroviral. People undergoing treatment with antiretroviral, produced specific antimalarial IgG compared to their treatment naive counterparts.


Growth factors use reactive oxygen species (ROS) as second messengers. Exact mechanisms of how ROS trigger cell signaling are, however, largely unknown. My laboratory previously demonstrated that protein carbonylation is promoted by ligand/receptor‐mediated cell signaling. Further, ligand/receptor‐mediated protein carbonylation was found to be followed by the reduction of protein carbonyls in a process, which we named 'decarbonylation'. The discovery of protein decarbonylation suggested that protein carbonylation is reversible. For example, proline residues get oxidized and become glutamyl semialdehyde with a carbonyl group. The present study provides evidence that biological systems contain a mechanism that catalyzes the reduction of glutamyl semialdehyde to proline. Further, since an oxidative product of arginine residues is also glutamyl semialdehyde, protein arginine residues could be converted to proline residues in biological systems. Mass spectrometry analyses supported this hypothesis by showing that two arginine residues (Arg106 and Arg108) of the peroxiredoxin 6‐protein molecule can become proline residues in cultured smooth muscle cells in response to platelet‐derived growth factor. These results reveal that proteins can undergo a naturally occurring oxidant‐mediated protein engineering process, which represents a novel biological mechanism.


AIM To prepare Naooemulsion-Encapsulated MAGE1-HSP70 (NE MAGE1-HSP70) and study its character and antitumor immunity in mouse.Methods:NE MAGE1-HSP70 was prepared by the interfacial polymerization method. The shape and size of NE MAGE1-HSP70 were detected by electron microscope. The encapsulation rate, drug-carrying capacity, stability and the releasing character were tested by Sephedex-G100 gel filtration. The mouse was immunized by NE MAGE1-HSP70, and the antitumor immunity was detected by ELISPOT and LDH release assay.Results The mean size of NE MAGE1-HSP70 was (25±10) nm. The encapsulation rate was 91%. The drug content was 0.091 g·L~-1 and NE MAGE1-HSP70 had a good stability after stored in 4℃ for 6 months. The releasing profile showed that seventy percent of proteins was released during the first 24 hours in saline. The results of ELISPOT and LDH release assay showed that NE MAGE1-HSP70 generated tumor specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) to damage tumor cell.Conclusion NE MAGE1-HSP70 can generate specific CTL to kill tumor cell. it can be used as new kind of vaccine agsinst tumor.


Objective:To examine serum sIgE of allergic rhinitis patients for Candida albicans.Methods:The serum sIgE of sixty allergic rhinitis patients with positive skin test of Candida albicans were detected by RAST EIA method and CAP system.Results:The positive rates of sIgE for RAST EIA method and CAP system were 56.7% and 61 7% respectively,which were highly correlated.Conclusion:Forty percent of patients with positive skin test for Candida albicans were not genuinely supersensitive to Candida albicans.


Using Ethnography of Communication, Conversational Analysis, and surveys, Thai students' participation in group work was studied to determine how they interact with native English-speaking students. Issues discussed are: (1) behaviors Thai students display during group work; including comparisons and contrasts to native students' behaviors, (2) prejudices native students have about including Thai students in group work, (3) Thais' strengths and weaknesses in group work, and (4) perceptions native and Thai students and their professors have regarding group work and its importance to successful course completion. The study concludes by recommending ways that both Thai students and their professors can enhance the learning outcomes of courses that heavily emphasize group work.


Stress is one of the factors considerably contributing to older adult's decreasing overall health. Detecting stress in real-time could aid family members to intervene more timely and keep older adults healthier. However, many stress detection systems are not detecting in real-time, depend on multiple devices, capture a plethora of inconveniently sampled data, or use data from younger adults. In this paper, we built a real-time stress detection system for older adults using only heart beats per minute (BPM), which can be easily obtained with most single, comfortable devices. We collected data from people over 60 (N=15), evaluating the Mannheim Multicomponent Stress Test (MMST) for older adults, then built a machine learning model with a classification performance of 76% (AUC) on BPM alone and tested it in real-time in another experiment, comparing the model's effectiveness with four different heart rate devices. Detection performance decreased considerably (51%) when using the model in another experiment and could not be used successfully with other devices, while a reduced MMST induced stress comparable to the full test suite.


A vibration control system based on an air spring and a proportional electro-pneumatic control transducer was developed at this Institute. The system is driven by compressed air and uses a combination of feed-forward and feed-back control algorithms. A dummy system was successfully tested on a laboratory vibration simulator for use as the suspension system of driver's seat for vehicles with unsprung chassis (earth-moving machinery or wheeled tractors). The improvement of driver's seat vibration control properties due to this system, as tested under narrow-band random excitation, is of the order of 8-10 dB, e.g. threefold. The demand of compressed air is approximately 10-12 m3/h @ 8 bar. The system could be used for vibration control in various automotive applications.


Existing studies, starting from the sixteenth century, find a puzzlingly weak connection between living standards and mortality. This paper uses records of property transfers to extend estimates of mortality back to the mid-thirteenth century, and finds by contrast that deaths, from poor tenants to wealthy nobles, were strongly affected by harvests. In other words, a strong positive check operated through the spread of epidemic disease, creating clear incentives for societies to evolve institutions to mitigate the impact of bad harvests. The weakening link between harvests and deaths in England from the sixteenth century, and its disappearance in the early-seventeenth century coincide with the evolution of a national system of poor relief and increasingly effective public health measures against epidemic disease. Our analysis suggests that existing models of pre-industrial societies as passive victims of ineluctable Malthusian laws need to be supplemented by an appreciation of how social institutions could deliberately alter the link from living standards to population growth.


PURPOSE: A position adjusting device for the furniture door of a furniture hinge is provided to enable workers to finely adjust a furniture hinge by identifying the position of a door through the naked eyes and improve the fixing reliability of the furniture door. CONSTITUTION: A furniture hinge comprises a body part(110), a rotary plate(120), a fixing plate(130), and a center plate(140). A position adjusting device for the furniture door of a furniture hinge comprises an elastic piece(10), an ellipse hole(20), a rotor(30), an eccentric bolt(40), and a lengthy hole(50). The rotor is hooked onto the inner circumference of the ellipse hole during the forward or backward rotation of the eccentric bolt. The rotor fixes or moves the body part by moving forwards or backwards along the inner circumference.


We present results from new low frequency observations of two extrasolar planetary systems (Epsilon Eridani and HD128311) taken at 150 MHz with the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT). We do not detect either system, but are able to place tight upper limits on their low frequency radio emission.


the empires of Chingis Khan, Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler. Even within this circumscribed frame of reference, Dr Kagan's conclusion is at best a gross simplification of the contents of the book. Her key finding is that in all six cases there was an identifiable moment when a powerful state became an empire – the 'imperial moment' of the title. The secondary finding is that this transformation was brought about through a conscious decision on the part of the state's rulers to subordinate less powerful states to their rule. This is a decidedly metrocentric viewpoint. Rather than privileging the decision-making of rulers, there is surely a case to be made for considering the impact of those rulers' actions – manifest, for instance, in the violent conquest of territory and the dispossession or disenfranchisement of subject peoples – as the constitutive element in the 'imperial moment'. Tellingly, Kagan neglects examples that do not fit her 'paradigm' of state-to-empire transformation, for instance the long-lived Arabic caliphates and the empire of the Ottomans. Finally the rigid focus on 'states' that become empires underplays the extent to which the processes of empire-building and stateformation go hand-in-hand (early modern Britain is a case in point), while empires have frequently begotten or self-consciously made 'states' at the time of their demise and dismemberment. The final sub-section of the book is optimistically entitled 'Lessons Learned' (194). No 'lessons' are, in fact, here specified. For those who would worry that Dr Kagan might have the ear of the policy-makers, this is surely a matter for relief.


Afield trial was conducted during wet season 2010 to evaluate the effect of foliar application of boron (B) on the content of chlorophyll, amylose & boron, nitrate reductase activity and yield of rice genotypes namely, IET 20979, IET 21007, IET 21106, IET 21114, IET 21519, IET 21540 and Rasi. Boron was applied at 0.2–0.8ppm at the time ofanthesis. The results revealed that 0.4ppm foliar application of boron evoked best response from all genotypes in terms of total dry matter, biological yield, economic yield and harvest index. The content of chlorophyll, boron, amylose and nitrate reductase activity increased significantly in most of the genotypes as compared to the control. The study suggests that foliar application of boron may enhance performance of rice plant in terms of grain yield and quality.