Background The pathophysiology of so called 'cough variant asthma' has not received a great deal of research interest and opinion lies divided as to whether it is really asthma or not. The proponents of cough variant asthma suggest a therapeutic trial of medications usually used to treat asthma Objectives To determine the effectiveness of inhaled ß2 agonists in non-specific chronic cough in children over the age of 2 years. Search strategy CENTRAL, MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched. Reference lists were checked and trial authors were contacted. 'Grey' literature including theses, internal reports, and non-peer reviewed journals were sought. Searches are current as of February 2006. Selection criteria All randomised (randomised and quasi-randomised) controlled clinical trials in which inhaled ß2 agonists were given for chronic cough in children over 2 years of age were included. Two reviewers independently assessed articles for inclusion and methodological quality. Data collection and analysis Data for trials of salbutamol versus placebo were extracted by both reviewers and entered into the Cochrane Collaboration software program Review Manager, version 4.2 Main results In children presenting with isolated chronic cough there was no significant difference between salbutamol treated group and placebo group. Authors' conclusions Salbutamol was no different from placebo in reducing the frequency of cough measured objectively or scored subjectively. P L A I N L A N G U A G E S U M M A R Y The existence of cough variant asthma (cough as the only respiratory symptom without any evidence of airway obstruction) is controversial. This review raises the appropriateness of the common practice of using inhaled ß2 agonists in the treatment of children with cough without any other evidence of airway obstruction. The review found that there is nothing at present to suggest that treatment with ß2 agonists will be beneficial in treating nonspecific isolated cough in children. 1 Inhaled beta2-agonists for non-specific chronic cough in children (Review) Copyright © 2007 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd


Foreign language teaching in China is often referred to as a 'time-consuming but low-efficient' business. Most of the students taught in this way suffer a foreign language 'deaf and dumb* disease. In answer to these complaining, this paper focuses on examining those non-linguistic factors on the results of our foreign language teaching according to Mackey's interaction model of language learning, teaching, and policy. We discover that the key to the success or failure of foreign language teaching and learning is the influence of social political and economic situations; the social demand in foreign language; national educational system, and government's foreign language educational policy. These factors govern the triangle of language teaching variables (MTI) and the triangle of language learning variables (ISL) in Mackey's conceptual framework. Therefore, we maintain that in order to improve the quality of our foreign language education, our government, first of all, should adjust our country's educational system and foreign language education policy according to the development of its economy; increase educational investment (including manpower, material resources and finance); speed up the process of "professionalization " of teachers so as to create a good social environment for foreign language education.


This paper presents a study for generate digital business reporting using the language XBRL (Extensible Business Reporting Language) and its applicability in Ecuador. XBRL is a common language for the exchange of financial information, a specialized version based on XML. This standard has been implemented in Europe, USA, Canada, Oceania, Asia and some countries in Latin America, Ecuador have not adopted XBRL standard yet. The goal of this paper is to evaluate XBRL and if its applicable to Ecuadorian SME, to achieve this purpose a software prototype was developed for generate XBRL files, using the chart of accounts published by "Superintendencia de Compañías del Ecuador" and adapting the XBRL taxonomy for SMES from Spain to Ecuador


A Wireless Sensor Network has sensor nodes which have limited computational power and memory size. Due to the nature of the network, the data is vulnerable to attacks. Thus, maintaining confidentiality is an important issue. To compensate for this problem, there are many countermeasures which utilize common or public key cryptosystems that have been proposed. However, these methods have problems with establishing keys between the source and the destination nodes. When these two nodes try to establish new keys, they must exchange information several times. Also, the routes of the Wireless Sensor Networks can change frequently due to an unstable wireless connection and batteries running out on sensor nodes. These problems of security and failure become more serious as the number of nodes in the network increases. In this paper, we propose a new data distribution method to compensate for vulnerability and failure based on the Secret Sharing Scheme. In addition, we will confirm the effect of our method through experiments. Concerning security, we compare our method with the existing TinySec, which is the major security architecture of Wireless Sensor Networks.


The extreme El Niño events, such as those which occurred in 1982–1983, 1997–1998, and 2015–2016, exerted devastating impacts in many parts of the globe. Hence, it is crucial to understand the precursors of such extreme events. Nevertheless, each El Niño event has its own characteristics even in the initiation. Here, we show that the development of early‐spring equatorial central Pacific warming forced by the increased solar radiation due to a suppressed convection was a crucial factor in developing the 1982–1983 extreme El Niño event. The central Pacific warming anomalies in the spring of 1982 were induced by atmospheric subsidence connected to the northern subtropical Pacific convection, subsequently reinforced by a reduced evaporative cooling via westerly anomalies. On the other hand, springtime warming anomalies over the equatorial central and eastern Pacific regions during other extreme El Niño events were induced mainly by oceanic dynamical processes.


1. Precombustion Technologies 2. Combustion Processes 2.1. LIFAC Sorbent Injection Desulfurization 2.1.1. Process Description 2.1.2. SO2 Removal 2.1.3. Environmental and Economic Performances 2.2. Atmospheric Fluidized Bed Combustion (AFBC) 2.3. Pressurized Fluidized Bed Combustion 2.4. Combustion Modifications to reduce NOx 3. Postcombustion Treatment 3.1. Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) 3.1.1. SO2 Removal 3.1.2. Process Description 3.1.3. Environmental and Economic Performance 3.2. Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) 3.2.1. Process Description 3.2.2. Environmental and Economic Performances 3.3. Combined NOx/SO2 Reduction 4. Coal Conversion 4.1. Overviews of Coal Conversion 4.2. Integrated Gasification Combined-Cycle (IGCC) 4.3. Integrated Gasification Fuel Cell (IGFC) 5. Research and Development of CCT Glossary Bibliography Biographical Sketch


This paper provides an acoustic description of the three Arabic vowels /i/, /a/ and /u/, and their long counterparts /i:/, /a:/ and /u:/ as produced by speakers of the two Iraqi qəltu dialects spoken in Hīt (Hīti Iraqi Arabic) and Mosul (Mosuli Iraqi Arabic), from now onwards referred to as HIA and MIA, respectively. It examines temporal and spectral acoustic characteristics between and within these two speech communities, and compares the results to relevant previous studies that have been conducted on several Arabic dialects, including Iraqi Arabic (IA) (Al-Ani, 1970). No previous acoustic analyses of this type have been conducted on HIA and MIA. Hence, this paper attempts to build on previous studies on temporal and spectral characteristics of Arabic vowels. In addition, it is expected to provide an empirical evidence to the universal as well as language-specific features of vowels and relates such evidence to regional and gender factors. Furthermore, it investigates to what extent regional and gender differences in vowel duration correlates with the spectral variations. In terms of vowel duration contrasts, MIA showed slightly greater short to long vowel duration ratio (1:2.4) than HIA (1:2.2). Gender seems to be an influential factor in Hit than in Mosul in terms of such variations. HIA men produced longer /a/, /u/ and /a:/ with statistical significance, while gender -related duration variations in MIA were statistically significant only /i/. As for the spectral differences, it has been found that MIA vowels are lower and more retracted than their cognates in HIA. Both dialects varied in F2 rather than in F1. Results show with statistically significant values that the effect of vowel quality on vowel duration is clearly greater in HIA than in MIA.


Glioblastoma is a primary brain tumor with a dismal prognosis despite comprehensive therapeutic regimens. It is characterized by diffuse infiltration of the surrounding healthy brain tissue, well-adapted to hypoxic conditions and regarded as paradigmatic for tumor-associated immunosuppression. One of the major activating receptors of natural killer (NK) cells is NKG2D. It binds to at least 8 ligands (NKG2DL) which are induced after malignant transformation and cellular stress. Regulation of NKG2DL expression may be affected by endogenous RNA molecules known as microRNA (miRNA). Here, we aimed at characterizing the role of miRNA in the control of NKG2DL expression in glioma cells. We selected 6 miRNA that were described or predicted to target NKG2DL. Three of the miRNA candidates, miR-20a, miR-93 and miR-106b, were expressed in glioma cell lines and were also detected in glioblastoma tissue specimens. Silencing of these miRNA with locked nucleic acid (LNA) molecules resulted in an up-regulation of NKG2DL cell surface levels which translated into increased sensitivity to immune cell killing. This effect was reversed by neutralizing NKG2D antibodies, confirming that enhanced immune cell lysis upon miRNA silencing was mediated through the NKG2D system. We conclude that the expression of several miRNA may contribute to the immune escape of glioma cells at the level of the NKG2D system. Therapeutic targeting of miRNA that regulate NKG2DL levels may therefore represent a promising approach to allow for more potent immune responses against glioblastoma.


In order to better solve the problem of logging lithology identification,we use fuzzy pattern recognition method to identify lithology.Combined with actual logging data of a well in the field,we select 7 main lithology identification parameters to establish the standard model of lithology identification based on the fuzzy pattern recognition method.Each sample's and the three standard model's closeness degree are calculated which contains lattice approximate degree,Hamming closeness degree,Euclid approach degree,maximum and minimum closeness and the minimum closeness degree.The closeness degrees based on the above different methods show that all the five identified results are correct.Through analysis and comparison the maximum closeness degree curve by five methods is obtained,we can see the result of Hamming closeness degree method is more stable,accurate and most suitable for lithology identification in this experiment.This study also verifies that the application of fuzzy pattern recognition method to logging lithology identification is practical and scientific.


Ficus bengalensis is an indigenous plant possessing many reputed medicinal properties, which have been described in Ayurvedic literature. The bark of this tree, in the form of an infusion is used in the treatment of Diabetes mellitus (Chopra, 1933; Nadkarni, 1954; Kirtikar and Basu, 1933) and has been investigated by Gujral et al., (1954) for its anti-diabetic action. The various parts of the tree have been studied for their chemical constituents by Sharma and Sheshadri (1953), Hussain et al., (1952), Budhiraia and Beri (1943; 1944) and Wahi (1938). The fruit, leaves and latex have been analysed, ?ut it appears that no studies have been carried out on the bark.


[Objective] To study the therapeutic effect of combined use of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP)and cholecystolithotomy with gallbladder preserved for cholecystolithias associated with cheledocholithiasis. [Methods] 54 cases of preoperative diagnosis of common bile ductstones and gallbladder stones in patients after the first treatment of perioperative ERCP, days later, cholecystolithotomy with gallbladder preserved treatment was given. Then the surgical success rate and complications were observed. [Results] ERCP was performed in these cases with the stone clearance rate of 98.1% (53/54). Endoscopic nasobiliary drainage (ENBD) was given after endoscopic sphincterotomy(EST). All the patients were given intraoperative gallbladder-cholangiography(IOC) during endoscopic invasive cholecystolithotomy with gallbladder preserved. hyperamylesemia occurred in 8 cases. All complications were cured with nonoperating treatment. Operations were performed in 1 case because of periampullary diverticula. [Conclusion] The method of cholecystolithotomy combined with gallbladder preserved and ERCP, in cholecystolithiaswith choledocholithiasis, can give good therapeutic results and has advantages of minimal invasiveness, few complications and quick recovery.


As technology develops the need for transmission of information over long distance with no errors at faster rate increases. But the signal which carries information loosens its strength when it reaches the destination under the presence of strong background noise. Hence different weak signal detection technologies are developed to detect weak signals in the field of wired, wireless, underground and under water communication. This paper deals with the overview of different weak signal detection approaches in different fields. From the survey it is identified that some combined detection approaches may result better Signal to Noise Ratio. Keywords—Weak signal detection, Stochastic resonance (SR), Signal to noise ratio (SNR), Curvelet transform, wavelet


Appropriately designed fences prevent animal vehicle collisions on roads and railways. In France, most motorway infrastructures and all high-speed lines are fenced. Nevertheless, animals occasionally enter the right-of-way (RoW) when the fences are interrupted (fence ends, road intersections, interchanges, etc.), or in damaged areas. Some of them end up being hit by a vehicle constituting a traffic safety hazard and a wildlife protection issue. One-way emergency exits called "escape devices" and dedicated for animals that have found their way into the RoW have two converging purposes: on the one hand, safety (prevention of traffic incidents) and on the other hand, ecology (reduction of animal-vehicle collisions).


The present invention provides a method of synthesis of sitagliptin, comprising the steps of: (a) compound (2) with the compound (10) in an organic solvent, in the presence of a base in the reaction of -10 ~ 50 ℃, to give the mixed anhydride intermediate (11) in a solution; (b) compound (3) was added to the mixed anhydride intermediate (11) was then at -10 ~ 50 ℃ obtained by reacting compound (4); (c ) compound (4) under the action of an acid in deprotection reaction to give the compound (1) sitagliptin, the following reaction scheme: wherein, compound 10 and compound 11, R is selected from methyl, ethyl, n-propyl , isopropyl, n-butyl, t-butyl, trifluoromethyl, phenyl or p-tolyl. The method of the present invention avoids the prior art use of expensive reagents, increasing the yield and product purity, lower cost, suitable for industrial production.


In a constant and homogeneous magnetic background, quantum vacuum fluctuations due to axion-like fields can dominate over those associated with the electron-positron fields. Considering the framework of axion-electrodynamics, the self-energy operator for the electromagnetic field is determined with an accuracy to second-order in the axion-diphoton coupling. This outcome is utilized for establishing modifications to the propagation characteristics of photons and to the Coulomb potential of a static pointlike charge. Notably, in the magnetosphere of a neutron star, the effect of photon capture by the magnetic field, known in QED as relating to gamma-quanta, is extended in axion electrodynamics to include X-ray photons with the result that a specially polarized part of the heat radiation from the surface is canalized along the magnetic field. Besides, for field strengths larger than the critical scale associated with this theory, the modified Coulomb potential is of Yukawa-type in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field at distances much smaller than the Compton wavelength of an axion, while along the field it follows approximately the Coulomb law at any length scale. We find that at unlimitedly large magnetic fields the longstanding problem -- overcome in QED -- that the ground-state energy of a hydrogen atom is unbounded from below, is reinstated. However, in axion-electrodynamics this unboundedness is cut off because the largest magnetic field treatable within this theory is limited by the unitarity of the associated scattering matrix.


Objective
To investigate the effect of glioma associated oncogene 1 (GLI1) reduction by small interference RNAs (siRNA) on cell proliferation and glucose metabolism of U87 glioma cells.

Methods
siRNA for GLI1 was transfected into U87 glioma cells to inhibit the expression of GLI1. The non-transfected cells and cells transfected with non-sense siRNA were used as controls.The proliferation of U87 cells was assessed by MTT assay, and the cell cycle stage was detected by flow cytometry.

Results
The results of Western blotting showed that GLI1's expression was significantly down-regulated in GLI1 siRNA group compared to the two control groups(P<0.05); cell proliferation was assessed by MTT assays, cell proliferation was significantly inhibited 3 days after treatment of GLI1 siRNA compared with control groups, and declined with persistently along with the extension of the culture time (P<0.05); the results of flow cytometry showed that the cell cycle was blocked at G1 phase, and the number of cells in S phase declined significantly compared with control groups (P<0.05).

Conclusion
Interference of GLI1 expression can markedly inhibit the proliferation of U87 glioma cells, indicating that GLI1 can serve as a promising therapeutic target for glioma.

Key words:
GLI1; siRNA; Glioma


OBJECTIVE
To present a variety of techniques for providing nasal lining and discuss the application of these methods to specific nasal defects.

METHODS
Regard of the nasal defect's location, size, or depth of involvement, the approaches were used with turnover nasal skin or scar flaps (n=17), the buccal mucosal flap (n=1), the nasolabial flaps (n=5), prefabricated flaps (n=1) for lining. A formal nasal reconstruction was then carried out with use of rib cartilage grafts for support and a forehead flap for cover.

RESULTS
Necrosis of forehead flaps and lining tissues did not occur. 24 Cases have been followed for a 6-34 months period. Except some turnover scar flaps obstructed the airway and needed aggressive secondary surgical thinning, the other lining flaps remained stable from adequate restoration of form and function.

CONCLUSIONS
It is important to evaluate the exact sizes, volumes and layers missing of the nasal defects before rebuilding the lining defect. Choosing the adequate operation can provide good aesthetic and functional results. The prefabricated flap is good to be used to reconstruct nasal lining in complicated cases.


EDITORIAL COMMENT: This paper illustrates the limitations of ultrasonography and estimation of urinary excretion of oestrogen in prediction of multiple pregnancy when ovulation is induced by gonadotropin therapy. However, the reviewer of this paper wishes to point out to readers that the authors presumably still use these techniques and do not wish to imply that they are useless. During the time of this study of 380 cycles, there were 28 cycles abandoned (table 1) presumably in order to avoid the risk of multiple pregnancy but the details are not provided. It is noteworthy that figure 2 in this paper shows that multiple pregnancy resulted in 6 of the 10 conceptual cycles in which total urinary oestrogen excretion was 200 ug/24 hours or above; had these 10 cycles been abandoned the 1 quadruplet and 3 of the 6 triplet pregnancies would have been avoided.


For many years the tribes and communities of American Indians and Alaska Natives have been the subject of intense study and research in a number of disciplines, particularly anthropology, sociology, psychology, and medicine. Until recently, virtually all research was conducted by non-Indians. Only in the past 20 years have more American Indians begun to enter into the social science professions. Consequently, the majority of research questions, methodologies, and conclusions has been based solely on the interests and cultural background of non-Indians. Furthermore, the types of research funded has been and continues to be controlled by various non-Indian governmental and state agencies.


Silica nanoparticles(SiNP),amino-terminated silica nanoparticles(NSiNP),carboxyl-terminated silica nanoparticles(CSiNP) and PEG-terminated nanoparticles(PSiNP) were prepared via the synchronous modification of functional group in water-in-oil microemulsion(hereinafter referred to being modified in oil) and the modification of functional group on the well-prepared SiNP(hereinafter referred to being modified in water) respectively.The dispersibility of different functionalized silica nanoparticles in water suspension was evaluated with sediment velocity and centrifugation velocity.And further analysis of the dispersion behavior was demonstrated through the TEM imaging and hydrodynamic size analyses.The results indicat that the following order of dispersion was observed:CSiNP≥PSiNPSiNPNSiNP,when the silica nanoparticles were modified with the same method.In addition,for CSiNP and PSiNP,the dispersibility of the two nanoparticles modified in oil was superior to that of modified in water.At the same time,the nonspecific adsorption of the different functionalized silica nanoparticles modified in oil with the Hela cells was also investigated.There was almost no nonspecification with Hela cells to CSiNP and PSiNP.However,the NSiNP were adsorbed to the Hela cells extensively.These results played important roles in the preparation and further modification of silica nanoparticles that would be well suited in biomedicine.


Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are valuable tools for regenerative medicine, being capable of self-renewing in culture indefinitely while retaining their pluripotency, i.e., the ability to generate any cell of the adult organism. At the heart of these capabilities is a complex transcriptional network, which carefully guards an uncommitted state, yet permits ESCs to remain poised for differentiation. So far, many ESC transcription factors, including the core pluripotency proteins, Oct4, Sox2 and Nanog (OSN), have been identified and extensively characterized. These molecules participate in highly interrelated pathways to activate their own expression, as well as downstream self-renewal regulators, via co-recruitment to enhancer regions in the vicinity of these genes. However, we know much less about the individual roles played by each of these factors within multi-protein complexes, the identity of their potential coregulators, or how they functionally connect to the general transcription and chromatin remodeling machineries. In this context, we recently investigated the protein-protein interactions required for the function of one particular molecule, the orphan nuclear receptor Esrrb. In doing so, we uncovered novel and essential roles for the nuclear receptor coactivator Ncoa3 in pluripotent cells,1 making this the first characterization of a nuclear receptor coactivator in stem cell biology.

Esrrb has recently been found to act both as a powerful enhancer of ESC self-renewal,1-4 a crucial downstream target of the Wnt/GSK3/Tcf3 signaling pathway3 and also able to substitute for Nanog in pluripotent cells.2 Additionally, an important role for Esrrb is apparent in the induction of pluripotency via somatic cell reprogramming.5,6 Despite these findings, however, nothing is known of the mechanisms by which Esrrb function is conferred in ESCs. To address this, we based our investigations on previous knowledge gained from studying estrogen-related receptors (ERRs) in somatic cells, where their activity canonically requires the recruitment of a protein coactivator to a conserved portion of their ligand-binding domain (LBD), termed the AF-2 region. We theorized that Esrrb might function similarly in ESCs and through a combination of mutagenesis and functional assays, demonstrated that Esrrb's ability to sustain ESC self-renewal crucially resides in its LBD/AF-2 domain.1 In turn, we demonstrated that Ncoa3 is the coactivator specifically recruited to this AF-2 region and is an essential mediator of Esrrb function in pluripotent cells.

Widely known as the oncogene, AIB1 in cancer or SRC-3/ACTR in somatic cells, Ncoa3 is reported to bind to many nuclear receptors as well as some transcription factors, where it induces the strong expression of specific target genes. Correspondingly in ESCs, we found that Ncoa3 is critical for controlling Esrrb-dependent activation of important self-renewal regulators such as Esrrb, Klf4, Nanog and Sox2. Depleting Ncoa3 in ESCs leads to downregulation of these genes and triggers differentiation,1 mirroring the effect of shRNA-mediated Esrrb knockdown itself. Through a combination of Ncoa3 ChIP-sequencing and DNA microarray techniques, we furthermore investigated the genome-wide relevance of the Esrrb-Ncoa3 partnership in pluripotent cells. Sites co-bound by these proteins alongside the OSN triad include ESC-associated genes as well as, interestingly, a high proportion of germ cell targets including some relevant to reprogramming events in the germline.7 Accordingly, depletion of Ncoa3 significantly hinders the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in vitro.1 Together, these observations suggest that Esrrb and Ncoa3 might also act in synergy during the formation and/or reprogramming of primordial germ cells (PGCs) in vivo.

Our collective findings lead onto a key question: what is the functional role for Esrrb and Ncoa3 underlying their essential nature in the ESC network? Genome-wide, both ESC and PGC-relevant target genes are also enriched for marks of active enhancers, H3K4me1/H3K27ac and p300 recruitment, suggesting a link between the presence of Esrrb-Ncoa3 and transcriptional activation. Moreover, we discovered that Ncoa3 interacts with RNA polymerase II itself and is required for the association between Esrrb and the general transcription machinery.1 Complementing our data, a concurrent study reports that Ncoa3 also recruits the chromatin-modifying proteins CARM1 and CBP to the Nanog locus,8 thus ensuring the maintenance of active histone modifications at this gene. Overall, these results point toward a crucial role for Ncoa3 in potentiating transcription in ESCs by locally facilitating an "open" chromatin state as well as providing a scaffold upon which to recruit the basal transcription machinery itself (Fig. 1A). Loss of Esrrb/Ncoa3 upon differentiation or shRNA-mediated depletion would therefore inhibit the transcription of ESC-associated genes, consequently triggering a collapse of the network and the exit of self-renewal (Fig. 1B).

Figure 1. Proposed model depicting the role of Esrrb and Ncoa3 at ESC-specific enhancers. (A) In pluripotent cells, Esrrb binds to ERR response elements (ERREs) at active enhancer regions, which also contain bound core proteins such as Nanog and ...

In conclusion, these findings establish Ncoa3 as a key member of pluripotency transcriptional circuitries, emphasizing the importance of this coactivator not just in somatic and cancer cells, but also in early developmental contexts. An interesting future avenue is to characterize the upstream signaling pathways that may regulate Ncoa3 in pluripotent cells, as this molecule is a well-known target for numerous post-translational modifications. Accordingly, increased Ncoa3 stability notably correlates with GSK3 inhibition in ESCs.8 Ncoa3 modification in response to one or more external signaling pathways could therefore alter its protein stability, cellular location or even its transcriptional activity, thus serving as an elegant way to fine-tune the cellular state of ESCs and iPSCs.


Microstamping on an activated polymer surface (MAPS) is a methodology that enables biomolecules to be patterned on polymers with micrometer spatial resolution. MAPS combines homogeneous surface derivatization of a polymer to introduce a reactive functional group followed by reactive microcontact printing (μCP) of a biological ligand of interest, linked to an appropriate reactive group. We demonstrate here that polyethylene, polystyrene, poly(methyl methacrylate), and poly(ethylene terephthalate) films can be successfully modified to introduce COOH groups on their surfaces, which can be subsequently patterned by reactive μCP of amine-terminated biotin after derivatization of the COOH groups with pentafluorophenol. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) confirmed the chemistry of MAPS at each stage of the derivatization of the polymer surfaces and reactive μCP of biotin. Micropatterned biotin surfaces fabricated by MAPS were patterned with streptavidin...


both nonprofits and state government. She owns Sharp Ideas, LLC, providing local evaluation for 21st Century Community Learning Centers, as well as training and technical assistance to support inclusion in community settings. She received a master's degree in public administration from Rutgers University in 2010 and completed a capstone project on youth leadership development and civic engagement. She can be reached at www.sharp-ideas.org. ELIZABETH RIVERA RODAS is working toward a joint Ph.D. in urban education policy and economics at Rutgers University. She received her B.A. in economics from Barnard College and her M.S. in social research from Hunter College, City University of New York. She has previously served as director of research at the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering and as a research analyst at SRI International's Center for Education Policy. ALAN R. SADOVNIK, Ph.D., is Board of Governors Distinguished Service Professor of Education, Sociology and Public Affairs and codirector of the Institute on Education Law and Policy and of the Newark Schools Research Collaborative at Rutgers University-Newark. He holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in sociology from New York University. by Jane Sharp, Elizabeth Rivera Rodas, and Alan R. Sadovnik


ABSTRACT In this study, the silicon source and aluminum source rich in stone mud were extracted, and the best alkali fusion process for different alkali fusion temperatures and alkali agent ratios was determined by the alkali fusion salt method. The surface of the material was grafted by 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane to obtain an amine grafted functionalized groups MCM-41 material (APTES/MCM-41). The APTES/MCM-41 material was analyzed and water adsorption/desorption experiment was performed. Utilizing stone sludge to obtain APTES/MCM-41, which has a high specific surface area (25.19 m2/g) and, an adjustable pore size and an easy structural surface grafted can use different functional groups for the development of new materials. The 24-h moisture adsorption capacity of the APTES/MCM-41 with 2.5 vol.% amine functional groups was 37.02 g/m2, which conforms to JIS A 1470–1 specifications and far exceeds that of diatomaceous earth and inorganic materials in humidity control coatings (18.6 g/m2). APTES/MCM-41 could be used as an alternative to mechanical dehumidifiers.


Objective:To understand drug-resistance change of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus in our hospital during the year of 2007-2008, and for reasonable control of using antibacterial and guiding clinical medication. Methods:Strains identification and drug-susceptibility test were conducted by Microscan Walkway-40 automatic microbiology analyser of American DADE BHRING company (Drug susceptivity is made by micro MIC board), and drug-resistance result of two years was carried out by statistical treatment. Results:The higher total drug-susceptibility rate of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was imipenem, amikacin and so on, and the drug resistance of ciprofloxacin varies significantly during the two years. The higher total drug-susceptibility rate of Staphylococcus aureus was vancomycin, norfloxacin, rifampicin and so on, and no drug varies significantly. Conclusion:Pay attention to the result of drug-susceptibility test in clinical practice and the strict contorl of using antibiotics.


In the mammalian central nervous system, the excitatory amino acid transmitter L-glutamate activates three pharmacologically distinguishable receptors, the Nmethyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), kainate, and quisqualate receptors. The present paper addresses the issue of whether these three receptors operate independent channels or whether they share channels that may have several conductance substates. The Xenopus oocyte provides a system for expression of exogenous mRNAs that permits detailed study of receptor structure and function. In oocytes injected with rat brain mRNA, NMDA has a stoichiometry of channel activation different from that for kainate and quisqualate. NMDA activates its own channels as indicated by simple summation or near-summation of currents evoked by NMDA with those evoked by quisqualate or kainate. Deviations from summation are ascribable to lack of selectivity in which an agonist at one receptor acts as a weak antagonist at another receptor. A further indication of separate channels is that block ofNMDA channels by Mg2+ or phencyclidine has no effect on kainate or quisqualate responses evoked during the block. Interactions of kainate and quisqualate are more complex, but they can be explained by lack of complete specificity of these agonists for their own receptors. The excitatory amino acid transmitter glutamate activates three receptors defined by the actions of the selective agonists N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), kainate, and quisqualate (1, 2). Recently, it was suggested that these receptors may be distinct recognition components coupled to a common channel (3, 4). In cultured hippocampal or cerebellar neurons, single channels were found to exhibit multiple conductance states that were preferentially activated by the different agonists. In some cases, transitions between these conductance states indicated that they were different states of a single ion channel. The subsequent observation that currents evoked by NMDA, kainate, and quisqualate failed to summate linearly in cultures of chick spinal cord motoneurons was considered support for the concept of shared channels (5), although lack of ligand specificity as demonstrated here could equally well explain the data. Evidence against shared channels was that block of NMDA responses by phencyclidine (PCP) receptor ligands, which are putative channel blockers, had no effect on kainate and quisqualate responses evoked during' the block (6, 7). The specificity of block was observed even under conditions in which the PCP receptor ligand appeared to be trapped within the channel by removal of agonist. If these ligands are indeed channel blockers, as is suggested by the voltage dependence of their block in neurons (6, 7) and in oocytes (8), then independence of NMDA-activated channels is clear. NMDA-activated responses involve permeability increases to Na', K+, and Ca2+ and are blocked by Mg2+, whereas kainateand quisqualate-activated responses involve permeability increases to Na+ and K+ but not to Ca2+ and are unaffected by Mg2+ (9, 10). Although a simple view of ion channel activity would be that different permeabilities indicate different channels, it was suggested that permeability could differ during high and low conductance states of a single molecular complex (11). The single channel study in which Mg2+ concentration was varied (3) did not test the possibility that the permeabilities differ during the extreme conductance states of a single channel. A later study of cultured cerebellar granule cells, which included both whole cell current and single channel measurements, gave evidence that the three agonists activate separate channels (12). A test of separate vs. shared channels is comparison of responses evoked by each agonist alone with responses evoked by two agonists applied simultaneously. If two ligands open the same channel, the current induced during their simultaneous application should be less than the sum of currents induced when they are applied separately, i.e., the responses should occlude. The degree of occlusion will depend on the degree of receptor occupancy and on the fraction of time that the channel is open when the receptor is occupied. If either agonist opens the channel all the time, the two agonists together would not be able to open it any more. But even with partial receptor occupancy, occlusion could be observed. For example, iftwo agonists act independently and each opens the channels half the time, application of the two agonists together would produce an open probability of 0.75 rather than 1. In chick motoneurons, linear summation of responses to NMDA and non-NMDA agonists was observed, but results with non-NMDA agonists were consistent with a single kind of non-NMDA receptor-channel complex (13). A simple system in which to assess summation is the Xenopus oocyte in which the channels in question have been expressed. The present study of Xenopus oocytes injected with rat brain mRNA indicates that channels activated by NMDA are distinct from those activated by kainate or quisqualate, since currents evoked by NMDA and the other ligands show summation (quisqualate) or near summation (kainate). Deviations from summation are ascribable to lack of selectivity of kainate and NMDA such that each acts as a weak antagonist at the other's receptor. Furthermore, selective block ofNMDA channels by Mg2+ or PCP has no effect Abbreviations: NMDA, N-methyl-D-aspartate; PCP, phencyclidine; APV, D-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid; CNQX, 6-cyano7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione. *Permanent address: Instituto Cajal, C.S.I.C., Velasquez 144, 28006 Madrid, Spain. tTo whom reprint requests should be addressed. 2083 The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page charge payment. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. §1734 solely to indicate this fact. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86 (1989) on kainate or quisqualate responses evoked during the block. A preliminary report of these data has appeared (14). MATERIALS AND METHODS RNA was prepared from the foreand midbrains of adult (300 g) male Sprague-Dawley rats by using the guanidium isothiocyanate (Fluka) and CsCl density gradient method of Ullrich et al. (15). mRNA was then selected by oligo(dT)-cellulose chromatography (16). This poly(A)+ RNA was dissolved in water and stored at -70'C until use. Ovarian lobes were dissected from anesthetized Xenopus laevis and incubated 2 hr at 220C in Ca2l-free ND96 medium (82.5 mM NaCI/2 mM KCI/1 mM MgC12/5 mM HepesNaOH, pH 7.5) (17) supplemented with sodium pyruvate at 2.5 mmol per liter, to which penicillin (100 units/ml), streptomycin (1 mg/ml), and collagenase (2 mg/ml) (Sigma, type IA) were added. After transfer to Ca2+-containing ND96, stage V and VI oocytes (18) were defolliculated and injected with mRNA (50 ng per cell). Oocytes were maintained at 16.50C in Leibovitz's L-15 medium (0.7 strength) (Sigma) supplemented with 5 mM Hepes (pH 7.6), penicillin (100 units/ml), and streptomycin (1 mg/ml). For assays, oocytes were placed in a bath with a volume of about 0.1 ml and perfused with Mg2+-free amphibian Ringer's solution (116 mM NaCl/2 mM KCI/1.8 mM CaCl2/5 mM Hepes, pH 7.2). All drugs were dissolved and applied in this medium. D2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV) was purchased from Cambridge Research Biochemicals (Cambridge, U. K.), and 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX) was from Tocris Neuramin (Essex, U.K.). All other chemicals were purchased from common commercial sources. Cells were voltage clamped at a holding potential of -60 mV with two beveled electrodes filled with 1 M KCl (1-2 MW) (19, 20). All compounds were bath-applied with an access time of <0.4 sec; solutions were washed out within 2 sec as shown by visual inspection of dye application.


This Article discusses several developments concerning the position of the Commission in the institutional structures of the European Union ("EU") that have occurred since then. It does not touch on the many other matters that influenced the debate on the draft Constitutional Treaty, leading to its failure at referendum in France and the Netherlands; these matters include the scope of the draft Treaty, questions concerning its economic, social, and political benefits or disadvantages, the working of the Stability Pact in the Eurozone and the ongoing debate on freedom of services legislation, the purposes for which the EU was originally created and their modification, further enlargement of the EU, and so on. These subjects require separate treatment. THE COMMISSION, THE "COMMUNITY METHOD," AND THE SMALLER MEMBER STATES John Temple Lang* & Eamonn Gallagher* The Institute of European Affairs in Dublin published in 1995 Occasional Paper 7 by the present authors, entitled The Role of the Commission and Qualified Majority Voting, which explained that the European Commission was designed on the basis of mediation theory, specifically to provide a safeguard for the interests of minorities that might be harmed by qualified majority voting on new policy measures.' The Commission has been given various other tasks, but this is the most important one since it concerns new measures that the Member States have not previously accepted. The role of the Commission, exclusively authorized by the Rome Treaty to propose legislative measures to the Council (and now also the European Parliament), is the key feature of what has since come to be called the "Community Method." 2 This Article discusses several developments concerning the position of the Commission in the institutional structures of the European Union ("EU") that have occurred since then. It does not touch on the many other matters that influenced the debate on the draft Constitutional Treaty, leading to its failure at referendum in France and the Netherlands;3 these matters include the scope of the draft Treaty, questions concerning its economic, social, and political benefits or disadvantages, the working of the Stability Pact in the Eurozone4 and the ongoing debate on freedom of services legislation, the purposes for which the EU was * Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, Brussels and London; Professor, Trinity College, Dublin; Visiting Senior Research Fellow, Oxford. ** Former Director General in the European Commission; former EEC Ambassador to the United Nations, New York. 1. See JOHN TEMPLE LANG & EAMONN GALLAGHER, THE ROLE OF THE COMMISSION AND QUALIFIED MAJoITY VOTING 10-15 (Inst. of European Affairs, Occasional Paper No.


This article describes a generic approach on how to federate networking domains. Network domain federation is a model for the establishment of a large-scale and diverse infrastructure for communication technologies, services and applications. A federation of network environments can generally be seen as an interconnection of two or more independent network domains for the creation of a richer environment and for the increased multilateral benefits of the users of the individual domains. The article discusses testbed federation as a concrete example for network domain federation and outlines a technical architecture framework.


The invention relates to a mobile terminal and a method for controlling a touch screen protection device. The mobile terminal is provided with the touch screen protection device, wherein the touch screen protection device comprises keys, a protection cover, a first electric rotating shaft, a first sensor, a fishing wire, a second electric rotating shaft and a second sensor. The method comprises the following steps that: the mobile terminal monitors the keys of the touch screen protection device; if an input is performed, the mobile terminal controls the corresponding electric rotating shaft to work; and when the corresponding sensor is triggered, the mobile terminal stops working. The method is simple and practical and can protect the mobile terminal touch screen from being damaged by friction to further prolong the service life of the mobile terminal touch screen.


The paper reports several outer forms of injuries and expressions of cell factor, discusses the mechanism of injuries and analyses the clinical characteristics of injuries and the effect of cell factor in injury repair and inflammation reaction. Thus the author hopes to provide a theoretical basis for preventing and curing the exercise-induced contusion.


Studies on month of birth of schizophrenic patients have consistently shown that more patients were born in the first four months of the year (January-April) and fewer in the second four months (May-August) than would be expected from the birth rate of the total population. The results reported by seven separate investigators are presented in Table 1. The fact that seven separate investigators have all found results in the same direction is statistically very conclusive. There is only one chance in 64 (P


In this article,the FCC diesel fuel is chemically treated with GZ reagent.The existent gum,insolubles after oxidation,and iodine munber are greatly reduced after chermical treatment.This method has a good effect and is simple.This method is characterized by high recovery rate of fuel(>99.7?and low cost.The property of the mixture of chemically treated diesel fuel with straight-run diesel fuel can meet the requirements of national standard GB252-2000.The color and oxidation stability of the mixed fuel after having been stored for three months were still lower than the values specified in the national standard.


Deep space and remote planetary exploration missions are characterized by severely constrained communication links and often require intervention from Ground to overcome the difficulties encountered during the mission. An adequate Ground control could be compromised due to communication delays and required Ground decision-making time, endangering the system, although safing procedures are strictly adhered to. To meet the needs of future missions and increase their scientific return, space systems will require an increased level of autonomy on-board. We propose a solution to on-board autonomy relying on model-based reasoning. Our approach integrates many important functionalities (such as plan generation, plan execution and monitoring, fault detection identification and recovery, and run-time diagnosis) in a uniform formal framework. The spacecraft is equipped with an Autonomous Reasoning Engine (ARE) structured according to a generic three-layer hybrid autonomy architecture: Deliberative, Executive and Control Layers. The ARE uses a symbolic representation of the controlled platform. Reasoning capabilities are seen as symbolic manipulation of such formal model. We have developed a prototype of the ARE, and we have evaluated it on two case studies inspired by real-world ongoing projects: a planetary rover and an orbiting spacecraft. For each case study, we have used a simulator to characterize the approach in terms of reliability, availability and performances.


Investigating of comparing and assessing forest of 14-year-old poplar, degree of 25 species of poplar infected by Valsa sordida were divided into 5 grade .Among them ,grade V was the most serious.So infectious degree of each variety of poplar were made clear,Poplar which was not easy to infect by Valsa sordida (71107,742407,Populus alba×berolinensis ,DN113)were screened out.


In the present deregulated electricity market, power system congestion is
the main complication that an independent system operator (ISO) faces on a
regular basis. Transmission line congestion trigger serious problems for smooth
functioning in restructured power system causing an increase in the cost of
transmission hence affecting market efficiency. Thus, it is of utmost importance
for the investigation of various techniques in order to relieve congestion in
the transmission network. Generation rescheduling is one of the most
efficacious techniques to do away with the problem of congestion. For optimizing the congestion cost, this work suggests a
hybrid optimization based on two effective algorithms viz Teaching
learning-based optimization (TLBO) algorithm and Particle swarm optimization
(PSO) algorithm. For binding the constraints, the traditional penalty function
technique is incorporated. Modified IEEE 30-bus test system and modified IEEE
57-bus test system are used to inspect the usefulness of the suggested
methodology.


The invention discloses a PBO (poly(p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole)) copolycondensation modification method. The method can be used for modification to prepare a PBO copolymer and prepare polymers with higher heat stability. The method comprises the following steps: (1) titrating a NaOH solution of terephthalic acid and second dicarboxylic acid monomer mixed in any ratio into an equal molar weight of 4,6-diamino-resorcinol hydrochloride water solution, or (2) titrating an equal molar weight of terephthalic acid NaOH solution into a mixed solution of 4,6-diamino-resorcinol hydrochloride and polyamine salt monomer mixed in any ratio; and salifying, precipitating, and directly polymerizing the salt in a PPA solution to obtain the PBO copolymer. The result indicates that the heat stability of the PBO copolymer prepared by copolymerization modification of small amounts of third monomer is enhanced to some extent.


The spectrum of the z = 3.285 quasar, Q0302−003, shows a large (∼10 Mpc) void in the Lyα forest at z ∼ 3.17. By simulating the absorption spectrum of the quasar with a range of Lyα forest cloud parameters, it is found that the probability of such a void occurring by chance is ∼ 2 × 10 −4 . Since the void is near (although not centered on) the redshift of a bright foreground quasar, the possibility that the void results from ionization of the clouds by the EUV radiation of this QSO is discussed


The purpose of this study is to identify legal constraints for the digitalization and digital transformation of public administration, based on the introduction and application of breakthrough digital technologies. The research methodology is based on the distinction between the stages of informatization, digitalization and digital transformation, as well as the identification of legal barriers to digitalization and digital transformation of public administration by individual stages of the management cycle and individual public functions. As a result of the analysis, both general barriers to digitalization and digital transformation of public administration, and special barriers for each stage of the management cycle were identified and systematized. The necessity of eliminating the identified legal barriers to the digitalization and digital transformation of the public administration has been substantiated by introducing a set of changes in federal legislation and sub-legal regulatory legal acts.


Psychological Disease is a major disease in modern time.This paper focuses mainly on the analysis of the cognition and major treatments in the 19th century in order to show its development track along with the changes in understanding and the furthering of clinical practice.It has been proved that 19th century is very crucial in the development of western psychiatry and has its great influence on modern psychiatry.


The Department of Energy (DOE) is developing advanced hydrogen-fired and oxy-fueled turbine technologies that are projected to operate with turbine inlet temperatures (TIT) of 1425°C and 1760°C, respectively. At these temperatures, the airfoil will require not only internal cooling, but also stable thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) in order to achieve extended service operation in these advanced high steam-containing environments. We previously developed a computational methodology, based on three-dimensional finite element analysis (FEA) and damage mechanics, for predicting the evolution of creep in the hydrogen-fired and oxy-fueled airfoils. This methodology has been extended to fatigue damage evolution. Currently, the model allows for the interaction between creep and fatigue damage. Simulation results will be presented that visualize creep and fatigue damage for hydrogen-fired and oxy-fuel airfoils. Additionally, the influence of dynamic changes in the TBC microstructure and phase composition with operational time will be discussed relative to all projected damage mechanisms.Copyright © 2009 by ASME


Medical device comprising a protective coating containing keratin (and methods of making the medical device). The protective coating comprises a binding region and a bioactive region. The binding region comprises at least one organic silane compound containing bound silane component to the substrate surface, the bioactive region comprises an organic component that is attached to a reactive pendant group keratin. Medical device, preferably, tissue engineering construction, orthopedic implants, are selected from dental implants and the group consisting of ventricular assist devices.


The White prawn Penaeus indicus is one of the most widely distributed species of marine prawns supporting an active commercial fishery in various countries bordering the Indian Ocean. In India, this species supports the fishery significantly along the east coast from Tuticorin to Chilka lake. Along Tuticorin coast this species is exploited mainly by two types of gear viz. trawl net and gill-net. The present investigation shows that the fishery of P.indicus at Tuticorln is only moderate with an average annual composition of 8.0%. It has been proved earlier by the tagging experiments conducted by the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute that P.indicus migrates from the west coast to the east coast during the southwest monsoon. Thus, the present investigation reveals that the trawl fishery of P.indicus along the Tuticorin coast is sustained mainly by the stock migrating from the southwest coast during the southwest monsoon and the native population of the resource contributing to a minor fishery during the rest of the months.


Introduction to Mathematical Modeling Introduction What Is Mathematical Modeling? Classification of Mathematical Models Limitations Associated with Mathematical Modeling Modeling Approaches Modeling/Cyclic Processes A Modeling Diagram Compartment Models Mathematical Preliminaries Dynamic System and Its Mathematical Model Numerical Tools and Software Used Modeling of Systems from Natural Science Introduction Models with Single Population Two-Dimensional (2D) Continuous Models (Modeling of Population Dynamics of Two Interacting Species) 2D Discrete Models Introduction to Chaotic Dynamics Introduction Chaos and Chaotic Dynamics Primary Routes to Study Chaos Types of Chaos, Transients, and Attractors Methods of Investigation for Detecting Chaos Poincare Map and Poincare Section Lyapunov Exponents Chaotic Dynamics in Model Systems from Natural Science Introduction Chaos in Single Species Model Systems Chaos in Two Species Model Systems Chaos in Two Species Model Systems with Diffusion Chaos in Multi-Species Model Systems Modeling of Some Engineering Systems Introduction Models in Mechanical Systems Models in Electronic Circuits Nonlinear Circuits Solutions to Odd-Numbered Problems Index Exercises and References are included in each chapter.


We spoke to a real life 'pracademic' (n. someone working at the interface of research and practice) on the value of blogging for research dissemination. Blogging has come a long way in recent years, becoming a platform for many academics previously accused of inhabiting ivory towers, who now advertise the potential or real impact their research can have on society. Martin Webber is our 'pracademic' who has created a successful blog on the 'holy trinity' of social work-research, practice and education. Here he discusses the power of blogging as a research dissemination tool.


Wildland fires are essential in creating and maintaining functional ecosystems and achieving other land use objectives (Hardy and Leenhouts, 2001). However, biomass burning produces combustion byproducts that are harmful to human health and welfare (Hardy and Leenhouts, 2001; Battye and Battye, 2002). Guided by the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Department of Interior (DoI) through the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) mandates that some military installations and air force bases in the South-Eastern United States use prescribed burning to recreate the natural fire regimes needed to maintain the health of its native long leaf pine forestland thus protecting the habitat of the endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker (RCW). Proper management may require as much as 1/3 of the forest to undergo treatment by fire each year. These activities, however, can contribute significantly to already burdened local and regional air pollutant loads. In recognition of the conflicting requirements between the ESA and Clean Air Act (CAA) statutes, the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), supported by Department of Defense (DoD), initiated a program to determine the effects of biomass burning from military installations. As part of this effort, we focused on determining the effects of biomass burning from military reservation, Fort Benning in Georgia, to the local and regional air quality, specifically, in Columbus metropolitan area.


ONE OF THE CARDINAL CONCERNS of social science is how individual competitiveness is socially patterned. The rules of formal organizations are important in curbing competition, but competition does not often become a free-forall, even in those situations where the stakes are high and there is no formal organization that enforces order. Informal organizations must have means of coping with competition, but what are they? This question focused our attention several years ago on recording-session musicians in the commercial music industry. These skilled musicians work on a free-lance basis so that each theoretically competes with all others for the brief, demanding, well-paying, and prestigious work of playing the &dquo;background music&dquo; which augments the efforts of star performers. Our earlier study (Peterson and White, 1979) found that overt competition was slight and channeled along specific lines even m the absence of formal organizational mechanisms shaping these arrangements


Soviet-American relations from Afghanistan to Gorbachev - an overview Soviet-American relations - Reagan, Gorbachev and summit diplomacy the impact of American trade pressure on the Soviet Union 1 - the question of non-strategic trade the impact of American trade pressure on the Soviet Union 2 - the question of strategic trade assessing the political success of American trade pressure 1 - Soviet policy on human rights assessing the political success of American trade pressure 2 - Soviet involvement in the Third World and regional conflicts US trade pressure on the Soviet Union - reconsidered.


Summary We collect in this paper a synthesis of archaeological intervention developed in 2013 at the site of Tiermes (Montejo Tiermes, Soria), consisting of control consolidation works made in the Casa del Acueducto and its surroundings, as well as rock structures preserved northwest of the roman forum. Also incorporate, in our study of archaeological materials from this site, one annex with updating the epigraphic remains related to Tiermes.


Abstract: The water, a precious good becomes more and more rare in North Africa, is in the middle of the challenges of future, as long on demographic plan, that of health and development. It is divided on top of that in a very unequal way in the space and in time. If it is true that all continents are unexpectedly taken by the big periods of drought, the fact remains that the management of the available "supplies" endures from a lack of flagrant know-how what draws away group of deficiencies (scarceness, wastings, pollutions of domestic and agrarian waters, hydraulic installations, etc). Furthermore today, more than ever, they must implement everything to ameliorate the management of water, in the broad sense term. It is about our survival, but also that of the generations to come. Because, it is necessary to know that North Africa appears among countries located in the red zone in the same capacity as the world Arab where the scarceness of water will be considerable by 2025. Water means is very weak in comparison with needs which are in constant increase at the same time by direct usage of populations and also with economic development. A perspective of growth: demographic and economic demands sufficient needs in water. And, the available quantities of water are deficient and aggravated by a drought which considerably reduced the water stock in dams and groundwater. The scarceness of water is a reductionist factor of economic development, an engine brake of living standard and being able to even be a source of conflict. So much realities which demand before it is too much late a management of water inserting hardly containable parameters and that are: scientific, demographic,, socioeconomic, legislative and political. In North Africa, samples in water exceed broadly the order of greatness of available means. Situation is aggravated by the surexploitation and the deterioration of means. Indeed, scarceness of water is needed to stretch and to deteriorate in next decades. They are attributable to drought (20 %), to strong growth of requests in water (10 %) and especially to lack of know-how (70 %). Water is therefore an urgent affair of competent taking care.


Online Peer-to-Peer (P2P) has become a popular way of lending in recent years. Individuals can borrow or lend money directly through an online P2P platform without the help of institutional intermediaries such as banks. It is very important for the platform to predict the credit risk on whether a potential borrower will repay the loan or not, such that the defaulting of borrowers can be avoided as much as possible to keep the platform running healthily. In this paper the machine learning is adopted to design a prediction process, to solve the credit evaluation problem of online P2P lending. A multi-stage ensemble learning model is proposed to evaluate the borrowers' credits, in which the Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT) algorithm is used for feature mapping and a special Auto-Encoder is applied to extract the best features. Furthermore, the logical regression algorithm is designed to classify the borrowers. Through computational experiments on the open data set and taking AUC (Area Under Curve) as evaluation index, the effectiveness of the proposed model and algorithms is testified.


Oxidation of para-aminophenol in supercritical water was investigated at 480-550℃, 32-38 MPa with 100%-270% H2O2 in excess. Experiments were performed in a tubular continuous flow reactor with effective volume of 13 ml. Results indicate that para-aminophenol is easily oxidized in supercritical water. The COD elimination efficiency is significantly improved as reaction temperature, pressure or residence time is increased. 98.5% COD removal was obtained in 229 s at 550℃, 38 MPa with 190% H2O2 in excess. In this case, the global kinetics for COD was 2.13 order. The activation energy was 29.3 kJ/mol.


Purpose – Family businesses represent the largest share of small-sized firms in majority of economies around the world. Having in mind the global economic situation this trend is expected to be continued. With the goal of better understanding of the process of transferring the business to the next generation, which ensures a long-term success, the purpose of this paper is to investigate expectations of student's with family business background. Design/methodology/approach – The research addresses the issue of an individual's perception of entrepreneurship and the related factors that influence individual's decision on whether to build a career as an employee, become a successor of family business or start own business as an independent entrepreneur. The authors separately analyzed West European (data from another study), East European and Slovenian senior student population for the purpose of comparative study. Students were surveyed and binominal regression was used for statistics. Findings – The results...


We report on the high-resolution patterning of III–V semiconductors through polymeric masks by a soft lithographic technique based on micromolding in capillaries. The basic study of the capillarity process and the optimization of the technological steps allowed us to transfer patterns on both GaAs and InP with resolution of 800 nm over areas up to 1 cm2 and of a few microns over areas up to 4 cm2.


The present paper describes the root systems of male, female and sucker regenerated plants of Diospyros melanoxylon Roxb. Regeneration by root-suckers, in this important tree seems to be achieved by progressive growth and decay.


Objectives: This study evaluated the anticancer activity of Entr. faecalis enterocin OE-342 by testing its direct antitumor effects on colorectal cancer cell line, as well as, its immunomodulatory effects. Methods: The anticancer potentiality of this enterocin against human colorectal adenocarcinoma (HCT-116) cells was evaluated using cytotoxicity, cell cycle analysis, apoptosis and monitoring morphological changes of the treated cells. Also the immunomodulatory effects of the tested enterocin were quantified on LPS-induced PBMCs cell model with monitoring TNF-α and IFNγ levels using flowcytometry. Results: The obtained data showed that enterocin OE342 inhibited HCT-116 cellular viability in a concentration dependant manner with somewhat high IC50 value recording 49.920 mg/ml. Upon HCT-116 treatment with this enterocin the appearance of undergoing apoptotic cells characterized by cellular rounding up, shrinkage and membrane blebbing was observed. Cytotoxicity of enterocin OE-342 was accompanied by cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase (24.66%) accompanied with an increase in the ratio of the apoptotic cells in the preG1cell cycle phase. Also, this enterocin affected the generation of TNF-α and IFNγ from LPS-induced PBMCs cell resulting in inhibition of the first by 27.3% and induction of the second by 69.5% which suggest the immunomodulatory effects of the tested enterocin. Conclusion: Taken together, our results suggest the anticancer potentialities of enterocin OE-342 against human colon cancer cells represented through its effects on both apoptotic and inflammatory pathways.


Since the 19th century, crafts for Japan have been as important for trade and the economy as they have been for national and cultural identity. The discourse of "Japaneseness" has been central to the national and public debate in the craft world. As the Japanese empire expanded into North East China in the 1930s, Japan became interested in the cultures of greater China, including Taiwan. Japan's continuous obsession with the idea of the "Japaneseness" in craft products was complicated by its effort to redefine itself in terms of its "Orientalness." This involved the location of its identity within the three-way positioning of Occident-Japan- Orient rather than the simple binary position of Japan versus the Occident. This paper firstly examines how Japanese craft and design experts confronted these multiple and different shades of the Orient and constructed the notion of "Japaneseness" as part of the Orient in the design discourse. Secondly, it will investigate the Japan centric hybrid design concept of "Greater Oriental Design," articulated by Japan as the leading power and authority of crafts in Asia. Finally, this paper will explore how this design discourse and these concepts were creatively interpreted in actual design terms and in experimentation, as well as the resulting implications for Japanese design history.


Objective: To evaluate if intravenous albumin could provide benefit in focal ischemia in stroke among humans in conditions resembling the experimental animal models. Extensive animal studies have shown human albumin in moderate-to-high doses to be a promising neuroprotectant in focal cerebral ischemia upto 4 hours of ischemia. Those experiments were performed by middle cerebral artery occlusion in Sprague-Dawley rats. Cardioembolic strokes with vessel occlusion probably would represent focal ischemia similar to animal models and are clinically relevant since they represent a major etiology of stroke. Background: N/A Design/Methods: This is a retrospective analysis for the cardioembolism group according to the TOAST classification from ALIAS 1 & 2. Results: A total of 1275 patients combined from ALIAS trials I and II were included in our analysis. We identified patients only with cardioembolic strokes (417 patients) using TOAST classification. These patients did not show benefit of albumin infusion (n= 225) over placebo (n=192) when primary outcome of mRS 0–1 and 2–6 were compared (p-value 0.250) at 3 months. These 2 groups were similar in baseline characteristics including demographics, NIHSS, comorbidities as well as the rates of intravenous thrombolysis and endovascular treatments. When we further classified these subjects with cardioembolic stroke (n=417) according to time of randomization for albumin infusion within 2 hours (n= 17) and 3 hours (n=106) of stroke onset, there was still no trend of clinical benefit for primary outcome. Conclusions: Albumin does not show any neuroprotection effect in focal ischemia related to cardioembolic vessel occlusion in humans unlike animal models. Early time of albumin infusion did not make any statistically significant difference as well in this subgroup. Careful strategy and execution of future preclinical neuroprotection therapies would be imperative to prove benefits in human Disclosure: Dr. Khatri has nothing to disclose. Dr. Afzal has nothing to disclose. Dr. Qureshi has nothing to disclose. Dr. Qureshi has nothing to disclose. Dr. Maud has nothing to disclose. Dr. Cruz-Flores has nothing to disclose. Dr. Rodriguez has nothing to disclose. Dr. Qureshi has nothing to disclose.


ABSTRACT A new non-intrusive, Instantaneous technique to monitor the creaming/sedimentation of colloidal dispersions is reported. Here the technique is used to determine the detailed concentration profiles of water-continuous emulsions as a function of height and time. The emulsions consist of hexadecane stabilised by nonionic surfactant (Brij 35) In water In the presence and absence of a polysaccharide thickener (hydroxyethylcellulose). The technique involves the measurement of the velocity of ultrasound through the emulsion, which depends simply on the velocity through the individual phases and the bulk composition of the emulsion (provided the individual droplets are smaller than the wavelength of the ultrasound). Applications of the technique may include In-line monitoring of composition during the processing of dispersions and predictive testing of dispersion stability (shelf-life).


The aim of this work was to investigate the effects of different culture conditions on the production of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme bySclerotium rolfsii and their optimization. Activity of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme was assayed by viscometric method. Culture conditionslike culture media, incubation period, temperature and pH greatly influenced the production of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme. Out of tenculture media, only six media were proved to be producer of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme. Amongst them, Elliot's medium was foundto be the best for the maximum production of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme. Analyzing the different incubation period, the production ofpoly methyl galacturonase enzyme was found rapid (3 days incubation) in Sclerotium rolfsii. Whereas, production of poly methyl galacturonaseenzyme, gradually increased with increasing the length of incubation period up to 18 days and further increase in length of incubation up to 10days, did not show any effect on the production of poly methyl galacturonase. The nine days incubation has found to be the best incubationperiod for the maximum production of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme. The Sclerotium rolfsii was also able to produce the poly methylgalacturonase enzyme at wide range of temperatures (from 15oC to 35oC), but 30oC temperature was found to be the best suitable for themaximum production of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme. Among the wide range of pH tested (pH 3.0 to 9.0), the pH 5.0 was proved to bethe best for the maximum production of poly methyl galacturonase enzyme in Sclerotium rolfsii when it was cultured in the same medium. Onthe basis of overall experimental results it could be concluded that Sclerotium rolfsii has potential to produce poly methyl galacturonase enzymeconstitutively. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijasbt.v3i1.12200 Int J Appl Sci Biotechnol, Vol. 3(1): 89-95


A communication system can establish a multimedia session between two terminals (STBA, SVB), each connected to a residential gateway (GWA, GWB), said gateways being interconnected by a telecommunications network (R), characterized in that at least a first of these gateways (GWB) communicates to the second of these gateways, via the signaling protocol of a voice session over IP (SVIP) established between terminals (VIPA, VIPB) connected to said gateways ( GWA, GWB), capacity of at least one first terminal (SVB) connected to the first gateway (ARC); the second gateway (GWA) determines at least one multimedia service offered by the first terminal (SVB) based on the capacity; and the second gateway (GWA) provides at least one second terminal (STBA) to which it is connected, the information needed to establish a multimedia session with the first terminal (SVB) to access the multimedia service if the capabilities of the second terminal ( STBA) permit.


The effect of ibuprofen and prednisolone on lysosomes has been studied by Lewis (1970) and Lewis, Symons & Ancill (1970). By measuring the release of pglucuronidase and acid phosphatase (A.P.) it was shown that prednisolone stabilized rabbit liver lysosomes in the concentration range 10-4-10-s~. With the less specific method of protein release ibuprofen had no effect on rat liver lysosomes. Ibuprofen inhibited free A.P. activity. We have studied the effect of these two drugs on rat liver lysosomes by measuring the release of A.P. and p-acetyl glucosaminidase (A.G.A.). The method of Lewis & others (1970) was used to determine the stability of the lysosomes at 37". The A.P. activity was assayed by the method of Caygill & Pitkeathly (1966) and the A.G.A. activity by the method of Woollen, Heyworth & Walker (1961). The effects of the drugs on free A.P. and A.G.A. activities were also determined. A suspension of lysosomes in 0 . 0 5 ~ tris-acetate buffered 0 . 2 5 ~ sucrose (pH 7.4) was freeze-thawed several times, the debris removed by centrifugation at 20 000 g for 20min at 4" and the supernatent diluted to give enzyme activities comparable to those released by the lysosomes in the control tubes in the stability experiments. Aliquots of this dilute enzyme preparation were added to flasks containing the appropriate amount of drug evaporated to dryness from portions of 1,Cdioxan solutions and were incubated at 37" for 90 min with shaking (100 oscillations/min). Activities were assayed and expressed as a percentage of those in control samples containing no drug. Ibuprofen (10-5-10-3~) had no effect on A.P. or A.G.A. activity. However,


In this paper, 2-D MIMO antenna arrays suitable for high resolution burden surface imaging radar operating in frequency band 24-26GHz are proposed. In order to eliminate the cross-range resolution degradation when the antenna beam radiates to the burden surface in nonperpendicular angle, MIMO antenna arrays with elliptical cross-section beam are specially designed. To suppress the high side lobe level of these designed MIMO arrays, two MIMO array sparse methods by symmetrically sparse the arrays with denser elements in the centre and sparse elements around are presented and analyzed. Patterns of the designed MIMO arrays are simulated, which verified the effectiveness of the MIMO arrays for burden surface imaging.


This paper studies the rationalization and identification of discrete games where players have correlated private information (i.e. types). Our approach is fully nonparametric. First, under monotone pure strategy Bayesian Nash Equilibrium, we characterize all the restrictions if any on the distribution of players' choices imposed by the game-theoretic model as well as restrictions associated with three assumptions that have been frequently used in the empirical analysis of discrete games. Namely, we consider additive separability of the private information in the payoffs, exogeneity of the payoff shifters relative to the private information, and mutual independence of the private information conditional on the payoff shifters. Second, we study the nonparametric identification of the payoff functions and types distribution under exclusion restrictions and rank conditions. In particular, we show that our structural model is identified up to a location-scale normalization in the separable case. Third, without imposing exclusion restrictions, we characterize the sharp identification region for the payoff functions and types' distribution.


Based both on an observation job occurred from 2018 to 2021 and on informal conversations with mobile agents in José Bonifácio, a municipality in the countryside of São Paulo State, this text seeks to circumscribe a research field and to point out ways for future research on mobility. The text demonstrates how mobility, subjectivity, culture, and urban space work in a small city. We observed how some changes happened in the last decades regarding the ways of moving in this city, which resulted in lifestyle and culture changed, as well. Even without claiming to be definitive, we attempted to understand how the bicycle became the most popular mode of transportation in activity. Historical advantages regarding this mode can be used in order to build a more sustainable city in tune with the new demands of climate change.


The Green Disease and Our Cosmic Connection : A Review of several books with respect to Climate Change and the accretion of carbon at the earth's formation. Namely : a). The Deep Hot Biosphere: The Myth of Fossil Fuels, Thomas Gold, Copernicus, Springer. Verlag, New York, 1999, 243 pages.b). A Journey With Fred Hoyle, Chandra Wickramasinghe 2nd edition Ed. KamalaWickramasinghe, World Scientific, Singapore, 2013, 248 pages. and c). The Search For Our Cosmic Ancestry, Chandra Wickramasinghe, World Scientific, Singapore, 2015, 196 pages. ( Quadrant – Categories Books ->Science->Politics in that order. Corrected 16 Oct 2016)


The mitigation action against a malicious website may differ greatly depending on how that site is hosted. If it is hosted under a private apex domain, where all its subdomains and pages are under the apex domain owner's direct control, we could block at the apex domain level. If it is hosted under a public apex domain though (e.g., a web hosting service provider), it would be more appropriate to block at the subdomain level. Further, for the former case, the private apex domain may be legitimate but compromised, or may be attackergenerated, which, again, would warrant different mitigation actions: attacker-owned apex domains could be blocked permanently, while only temporarily for compromised ones. In this paper, we study over eight hundred million VirusTotal (VT) URL scans from Aug. 1, 2019 to Nov. 18, 2019 and build the first content agnostic machine learning models to distinguish between the above mentioned different types of apex domains hosting malicious websites. Specifically, we first build a highly accurate model to distinguish between public and private apex domains. Then we build additional models to further distinguish compromised domains from attacker-owned ones. Utilizing our trained models, we conduct a large-scale study of the host domains of malicious websites . We observe that even though public apex domains are less than 1% of the apexes hosting malicious websites, they amount to a whopping 46.5% malicious web pages seen in VT URL feeds during our study period. 19.5% of these public malicious websites are compromised. Out of the remaining websites (53.5%), which are hosted on private apexes, we observe that attackers mostly compromise benign websites (65.6%) to launch their attacks, whereas only 34.4% of malicious websites are hosted on domains registered by attackers. Overall, we observe the concerning trend that the majority (81.7%) of malicious websites are hosted under apex domains that attackers do not own.


HE SONGS and verses in this collection were gathered for the most part between I920 and I930 by various members of the college class in folklore from natives or old residents of Dutchess, Ulster, and Columbia counties in New York on the mid-Hudson. They were taken down as recited from memory or copied from manuscript versions preserved in the family, and the tunes were in every case sung from memory and either noted directly from the singer or reproduced from a phonograph record on an old style Edison which we have found useful for fieldwork. Most of these last tunes were recorded by Constance Varney, Vassar '2I. The Dutch songs and some eight others were taken down by Harriet Stocking, Vassar '26, later Marston fellow in music at Vassar. A few were read from phonograph records by Gertrude Brown, formerly instructor here in musical theory. The notation has been checked by Professor George S. Dickinson of the department of music at Vassar, to whose cordial cooperation, as also to that of President MacCracken, we are particularly indebted. . . . The Dutch nursery songs, all too few of which are still current here on the Hudson . . . have been kindly prepared for us through the courtesy of the Netherland-America Foundation by Dr. A. J. Barnouw, Queen Wilhelmina Professor at Columbia University. Our sincere thanks are here extended to all those who have contributed so generously to the bringing together of this regional miscellany of popular verse and melody.


We present a general multiple path scattering model for multiple transmit, multiple receive wireless systems. The model is generated using physical modeling of the scatterers surrounding transmit and the receive arrays. The condition of the resulting multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transfer matrix is then examined. A key parameter that determines the channel condition is identi-ed. This parameter depends on the local scatterer radii, the separation of arrays, and the wavelength. We show that there exists a critical value for this parameter at which the channel condition changes sharply. The implication is that the promised linear growth in channel capacity may not eventuatate if the separation of the transmit and receive arrays is large (10 or 20 at 2GHz) compared with the product of the scattering radii. Monte-Carlo simulations are used to demonstrate the claims. Following the work of 3] and 4] there has been a large amount of literature 1, 5] concerning multiple transmit, multiple receive wireless systems. In 3] and 4] a linear growth in capacity is predicted, proportional to the minimum number of transmit and receive antennas. Fundamental to this work, has been the assumption that the wireless channel may be modeled by an independent random N M matrix, where N and M are the numbers of the transmit and receive elements, respectively. That is, the entries of the transfer matrix are assumed to be independent, complex random variables. These may appear as Rayleigh channel approximations or as independent Gaussian matrices 4]. The assumption of independence guarantees a well-conditioned transfer matrix (statistically) and eeectively hides the loss of capacity due to possible correlations between the channels. Besides 2] very little literature exists relating the channel model and scatterer geometries to the actual MIMO transfer matrix and few authors have addressed the physical conditions necessary for the required well-conditioned transfer matrix. The work of 2] studies a case where scatterers are placed in uniform arrays. Two classes of channel model are predicted: an \uncorrelated high rank model"-the well known i.i.d. random matrix approximation and an \uncorrelated low rank" or \pin-hole" model-where the channels are highly dependent and MIMO capacity is consequently low. These models are disjoint-the transition from one model to the other is predicted (qualitatively) to occur smoothly at large separation of arrays. This paper follows the direction of 2] but aims to provide a somewhat more detailed analysis of channel models for multi-antenna systems. More speciically, we study …


This paper designed one kind of architecture of recommendation system for e-commerce based on third-party,which aimed to conquer the problem of neglecting integrity of personalized recommendation. The architecture gathered information by RSS,realized recommending process by multi-agent system( MAS) ,expanded option sets by object-based storage within the platform of third party. Enhanced the integrity of recommendation by the collaborative application of the above methods. This architecture conquered the problem of neglecting users'outside preference which existing in popular recommendation systems.


The MoMiReS is a mobile mixed reality system aimed at physical and occupational therapies. The goal of the system is to engage therapy patients by involving them in a fun to play 3D game environment through physical interactions with a wireless sensor glove. Our system offers a solution for rehabilitation of the hand, wrist originated problems with a smartphone based mobile mixed reality game that will be used in conjunction with traditional rehabilitation programs such as home treatment. The key factor in the success of the home treatment is compliance of patients to the given therapy instructions. However, therapists report that patients do not carry on their home-exercises and activities. The main reason is the lack of motivation and boredom for the given activities. These activities require patients to carry out set of repetitive movements. The lack of motivation in exercises causes discontinuity and increases the recovery time and eventually increases the cost of the treatment. Therefore, we propose a complete framework by reducing the drawbacks of the traditional therapy. Our framework has three components; hardware, smartphone game, and cloud for data storage and processing. A sensor glove was developed with plug and play motion sensors streamed in real-time to the mobile phone with Bluetooth connection. The glove is used for tracking finger pressures and motion of the fingers. The patient side smartphone based interactive game verifies compliance of the motions for assigned exercises by occupational/physical therapist. The cloud side aims at ensuring patients that the assigned exercises are carried out and also monitors patient in real-time. Cloud application keeps the record of the patients' progresses for further analysis by therapists. In order to understand the effectiveness of the proposed system, we developed games specifically for treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome. The usability and effectiveness of the systems are surveyed among the occupational therapy students. Survey results show that 92% approval rate of the system.


We present a quantum‐mechanical coupled‐channels approach for studying laser‐assisted collisional processes leading to transitions between discrete and continuum electronic states. This coupled‐channels approach is an approximate application of our more general quantum‐mechanical formalism for treating bound‐continuum collisional transitions assisted by intense laser radiation, and uses discretization procedures to deal with the continuum states, and so‐called electronic‐field representations to account for the presence of intense laser fields. We discuss in detail all approximations leading to our coupled‐channels approach. We then use our approach to calculate laser‐assisted Penning ionization of Ar by He* (1s2s,3S) for the specific cases of radiation from the 10.6 μm line of a CO2 laser of intensity near 1.6×108 W/cm2, and the 1.315 μm line of an iodine laser of intensity near 109 W/cm2. We obtain ionization cross sections (per unit emitted‐electron energy e) dσ/de as a function of e. dσ/de reflects a ...


In order to establish a protocol for induction and development of callus and somatic embryos of papaya (Carica papaya L. cv. Tainung n.1) four explant types (hypocotyl with cotiledonary leaves, hypocotyl, cotiledonary leaves and epycotyl) and two light conditions (dark and 16 h photoperiod) were used. Callus induction and development were evaluated in ½MS2, ½MS10 and HMH media, and somatic embryo induction and development in ½MS and HMH1 media. In vitro culture of hypocotyl with cotiledonary leaves in ½MS10 medium, under dark condition for 20 days, was suitable for induction (100%) and growth of embryogenic friable callus. The culture of these callus in ½MS medium, under dark condition for two subcultures of 30 days, was suitable for induction (60%) and development of papaya somatic embryos. The explant type, culture media and culture conditions were defined for papaya somatic embryogenesis.


In this text some visions and concepts on environmental quality and quality of life have been analyzed, searching for a reflection on the changes in the environmental perception and interpretation of the concepts at different times.


Although the physiological properties of the myocardium and their dynamic character have been the focus of intense research during the past three decades, the biochemical and molecular correlates underlying cardiac performance for the most part remain poorly understood. The central role of the myocardium in the maintenance of the cardiac output notwithstanding, until very recently the prevailing view of the heart was that ofa biochemically very static organ. Therefore, it did not seem either particularly interesting or suitable to address major questions of cellular and molecular biology affecting normal and pathological states. As a consequence, the impact of the newly developed techniques of recombinant DNA and genetic manipulation in transgenic animals on the understanding of cardiac cellular and molecular biology has been less significant than on other fields of biomedical sciences. With few exceptions, the power of these new techniques and approaches is just beginning to be felt in the field ofcardiovascular biology. This state of affairs is more surprising given the biomedical importance ofthe cardiovascular system in general and the myocardium in particular, as well as the large number of investigators dedicated to its study. This situation is due, at least in part, to the characteristics of the myocardium that, until recently, have made this organ a less than ideal model system for a molecular and genetic approach. Due to the essential role ofthe myocardium in the survival of the organism, most of the genetic mutations that significantly affect its development and/or function are likely to be lethal. This feature explains the very small number of mutations described so far affecting the myocardium either in human or animal models. This is in contrast with the large number of mutations affecting blood cells, the endocrine system, and metabolic pathways, among others. The existence of these mutations has provided the port ofentry for the molecu


Funding information Association Nationale de la Recherche et de la Technologie; Moët Hennessy Champagne Services; Chaire Théorie et Méthodes de la Conception Innovante Mines ParisTech "Marketing" and "design" teams often experience conflicts when cooperating on innovation projects. In luxury industries, these difficulties are exacerbated by a tension between innovation and tradition, which, in turn, causes a loss of originality and operational efficiency. Based on three case studies of a luxury champagne house, we provide evidence of the existence of a type of cognitive resource—a creative heritage—that can help marketing and design teams in luxury organizations manage these tensions, address destructive and creative tensions, and, hence, gain originality that is coherent with tradition and operational efficiency.


The renal distribution of calcium was measured at necropsy in adult subjects from populations with and without a tendency to calcium stone formation. The mean concentration of calcium in tissue from t


Objective: To observe the effect of b-FGF on the healing of II degree burn wound. Methods:Eighty, patients with II degree burn wound were randomly divided into two groups, forty-seven cases treated with b-FGF, thirty-three cases as control, all the other treatments were the same. Results: Those who reated with b-FGF recovered sooner than those in control group. Conclusion: Based on comprehensive treatments, b-FGF can promote healing of II degree burn wound.


A highly collimated mobile gamma-ray spectrometer constructed by EGandG Idaho has been calibrated for full-energy peak efficiency. This spectrometer contains a high resolution intrinsic germanium detector, and it is designed for making activity measurements inside reactor containment buildings in high radiation fields. Peak efficiencies were determined for point sources positioned on and off the detector-collimator axis over an energy range from 80 to 2800 keV. The off-axis distributions were integrated to give the isotropic disk source efficiencies. These results were compared to those obtained from directly measuring a /sup 24/Na-doped aluminum foil ''disk.'' Theoretical disk source efficiencies were calculated using the point kernel approach. These results were normalized to the on-axis point source efficiencies. The procedure is selfconsistent but it requires more detailed measurements in the future in order to provide accurate results. Once the measurements are made, however, the spectrometer system can then be used to accurately assay arbitrary distributions of surface activities. The method is also well suited for use in collimator design because leakage effects can be directly calculated.


Ticks are obligate blood feeders that parasitize a wide variety of animals. Hyalomma aegyptium, parasitize tortoises and other small wild life and livestock. This study was carried out to determine spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca) infestation to H. ageyptium in Urmia region West Azerbaijan of Iran. Methods: The study was carried out over a 16 month period from the spring of 2004 to the fall of 2005. A total of 32 tor- toises were sampled. Results: The results indicated that 14 tortoises infected with ticks. A total of 117 ticks were collected from infested animals, the minimum and maximum tick infestation was 1-60. Ticks were attached to the axilla of fore and hind legs of tortoises. All ticks were determined to be H. aegyptium. Conclusion: H. aegyptium was the most common tick species in the study area. Due to tendency of some people to keeping tortoise as pet animal, more attention must be done to tortoise's tick infestation. Due to existence of H. aegyptium on tor- toises in this region more study will need to evaluate presence of this tick on other animal species and its role on transmis- sion of diseases.


Fracture dislocations of the proximal interphalangeal joint may occur by several different mechanisms of injury and are of 3 basic fracture patterns: palmar lip fractures, dorsal lip fractures, and pilon fractures. Proper treatment of these injuries is predicated on maintenance of concentric reduction of the joint, restoration of joint stability, and institution of early motion. Anatomic reconstitution of the articular surface, though ideal, is less important. Many methods are available to treat these injuries. Understanding the fracture within the context of a stability-based classification system helps to guide in the selection of the most appropriate treatment. F racture dislocations of the proximal interphalan-geal joint are common injuries that, when inadequately understood, can be confusing for the physician to treat. Worse, inappropriate treatment can lead to a dysfunctional joint secondary to persistent pain, stiffness, and posttraumatic degenerative arthrosis. A thorough understanding of the biomechanics of the injured proximal interphalangeal joint, the principles of its treatment, and the available treatment options is essential to the proper management of these injuries. P roximal interphalangeal joint (PIPJ) fracture dis-locations can be classified into 3 types based on the fracture geometry of the base of the middle phalanx: (1) palmar lip fractures, (2) dorsal lip fractures, and (3) pilon fractures (Fig 1). These fracture patterns are the result of characteristic mechanisms of injury. Pure hyperextension may cause an avulsion fracture from the base of the middle phalanx. More commonly, however, PIPJ fracture dislocations occur as a result of an axial load, the specific fracture pattern depending on the amount of flexion of the PIPJ at the time of axial loading. Palmar lip fractures at the articular base of the middle phalanx are the most frequently encountered PIPJ fracture dislocation type (Fig 1A). With hyper-extension only, the palmar plate may rupture at its distal insertion on the middle phalanx, which can result in pure dorsal dislocation of the middle phalanx on the proximal phalangeal head. Alternatively, the palmar plate may avulse a fragment of bone from the palmar lip of the middle phalanx; these fracture fragments vary in size and displacement, but are generally not comminuted. Fracture dislocation of the PIPJ owing to axial loading of the joint in some degree of flexion results in a fracture of the category coined impaction shear fractures. 1 In this category, an axial