The bell-ringer has long been an established examination tool in medical education. Moving from one gross anatomy examination station to the next at the sound of a bell is certainly a familiar memory. At the University of Ottawa Eye Institute, there existed a long-standing tradition of inviting patients with interesting findings to weekly Grand Rounds. The patients would be examined by all attendees, allowing participants to approach the examination as if they were the initial consultant. As our department has grown and technology has advanced, this practice has gradually been replaced by computer-generated slideshows with digital photographs and videos demonstrating clinical findings. The newer format is more convenient for both staff and patients, and certainly saves time. Digital images, however, are static, two-dimensional, and often of low quality. In addition, the opportunity to search for other clinical clues at the slit lamp is lost using this format. Finally, examining the patient directly affords the benefit of working through diagnostic possibilities at one's own pace, without prematurely being given the solution. Although it would be impractical in our department to resume examining patients at Grand Rounds, the bellringer format continues to be a part of our residency training program. On a biannual basis, patients with rare corneal pathologies volunteer to be examined by our residents. Following their individual examinations, the residents return as a group to each patient, and the attending staff guides them through the findings and diagnostic pearls. This affords the residents the possibility to examine many rare patients as if it were a first-time consultation and to make their own diagnosis. In a short period, residents are able to view many rare conditions that they may otherwise never have seen. As well, similar pathologies (the stromal dystrophies are a good example) can be directly compared during one session. In summary, although the bell-ringer has traditionally been an examination tool, we have also found it to be a valuable clinical teaching model. The bell-ringer session described above offers a unique clinical complement to our didactic sessions in cornea and external disease. Plans for bell-ringers in other subspecialties are currently under development.


In the field of system modelling, circuit synthesis and filter design, it is very important to approximate a given characteristic function by a rational function of an appropriate order. Pade approximation has been known for a long time and is one of the rational function approximation methods used extensively because of its simplicity. This paper proposes to investigate N-point Pade approximation which is an extension of Pade approximation, from the system-theoretic viewpoint. The N-point Pade approximation is a rational function interpolation including the derivative of arbitrary order and, compared to regular Pade approximation and rational Hermite interpolation, it can cope with more diverse demands. In this paper we discuss the following subjects on rational function approximation of given characteristic function: its explicit form, minimal order realization problem, Nuttall's compact form, its relation to continued fractions, and the numerical efficient iterative algorithm. These are more general discussions, even including regular Pade approximation. Also, we give numerical results of the approximation of a transfer function for continuous and discrete systems as an example of application of N-point Pade approximation.


Objective To explore ways in reducing hemorrhage during endoscopic sinus surgery for chronic sinusitis and nasal polyps.Methods 69 patients with chronic sinusitis and nasal polyps were operated on by endoscopic surgery and divided into two groups: combined treatment group and control group;local anesthesia group and general anesthesia group.Then compare the influence of preoperative norm-treatment and anaesthesia on the hemorrhage during endoscopic sinus surgery.Results The average amount of bleeding in combined treatment was(90.71±25.12)mL,the preoperative medication including : ① Roxithromycin capsules 0.15 Bid po,or renzylpenicillin sodium for injection 800wu,qd ivgtt.②prednisone Acetate tablets 30mg qd po.The average amount of bleeding in control group was(127.94±31.34)mL,a comparison of bleeding volume between these two groups showed that there was statistical significant difference(F=18.46,P0.05).The average amount of bleeding in local anesthesia group was(88.46±24.17)mL.The average amount of bleeding in general anesthesia group was(126.97±30.67)mL,a comparison of bleeding volume between these two group showed that there was statistical significant difference(F=23.82,P0.05),combined treatment and anesthesia methods have no crossing effect on patients.There was no statistical significant difference of the two medical treatment.(F=2.073,P0.05).Conclusions It is of great significance to be well prepared before surgery;the choice of anesthesia method is one of the most factors in the reducing of the blood loss,the amount of blood loss is much less under the condition of local anesthesia in the process of endoscopic sinus surgery than under the condition of general anesthesia.


Introduction: Hereditery multiple exostoses (HME) is a rarely autosomal dominant bone tumoral disorder; which is characterized by abnormal ossification especially at long bones. The common symptoms are bone pain, joint movement limitation, malign degeneration, vessel and neuron impression and asymmetry of extremities. Material and Methods:  A 26-year-old male patient (weight 60 kg, height 170 cm) who admitted  to Department of Orthopedics Out-patient Clinic at Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty in July 2013 had been suffering from bone pain and prominences in different parts of his body for 20 years. Other individuals diagnosed with HME were reported in his family history.  The association of a group of trace elements of the patient was analysed at the Department of Biophysics. Conclusion: Until this time there have been no investigation about the association of HME and trace elements. The level of trace elements that play crucial roles in all systems especially bone and renal metabolism should be kept in mind in evaluation of HME patients. For this purpose, familial and environmental trace element level determination would be one of our projects in this study. Key words: Hereditary Multiple Exostoses, osteochondroma, trace element.


An attachment theory lens is used to explore the models that teachers carry into their personal and professional relationships. Attachment insecurity affects a teacher's ability to effectively collaborate with teaching peers and administration. It also affects teachers' sensitivity, consistency, and empathy toward students in their charge, particularly if the students themselves are relationally insecure (Ahnert, Pinquart, & Lamb, 2006). Several scholars (Cohen, 2015; Gergen, 2009; McNamee & Moscheta, 2015) stress the importance of self-reflective practice in creating relational SUPPORTING THE SUCCESS OF ADULT AND ONLINE STUDENTS 170 171 Eckstein-Madry, & Milatz, 2012; Cassidy, 2008; Castro, Cohen, Gilad, & Kluger, 2013; Verschueren & Koomen, 2012). Attachment theorists describe attachment style as a particular way in which we perceive ourselves in relationships. If we receive sensitive, consistent, and responsive caregiving during the sensitive phases in our infancy (birth up to roughly three years of age), we develop a positive model of self and others (attachment security) based on our success in consistently eliciting the care we need. Conversely, if our caregiving is inconsistent, less sensitive, or inappropriate, we develop negative models of others as being unresponsive or overly responsive and a negative sense of self as we have not been successful in eliciting the care we need. Those with attachment avoidance aim to keep their attachment needs inactivated or dormant because in the past the caregiver had not been present for them. Those with attachment resistance/ambivalence cannot control their attachment system activation and become preoccupied with their relationship needs (Ainsworth, 1989; Bowlby, 1969/1982; Main & Goldwin, 1998). As this model of ourselves in relation to important caregivers is formed during pre-language stages of development, it stays largely in our unconscious. This working model is responsible for a particular line of movement or schema of our perception of the world and ourselves in it. We then internalize experiences with primary attachment figures and carry these internal models into future relationships. Hence, if individuals were insecure in their caregiver/child relationships, they might be insecure in their romantic relationships (Castellano, Velotti, Crowell, & Zavattini, 2014). There is evidence to suggest that this insecurity is transmitted to children (Fearon, Shmueli-Goetz, Viding, Fonagy, & Plomin, 2014) and to professional relationships (Richards & Schat, 2011) including the classroom. Attachment Security in the Classroom Many adult caregivers, including teachers, act as attachment figures for young children. Children in school will seek out their teacher as a secure base for exploration or a safe haven when frightened (Koomen & Hoeksma, 2003; Pianta, 1992), or for comfort seeking when otherwise distressed (Howes & Ritchie, 1999). There are also similar behavioural reactions in the patterns of separation-reunion behaviours between teachers/children and parents/children suggesting that the teacher/student engagement in education as it results in better student outcomes. The ability of those to engage in relational self-reflective practice, often the cornerstone of education and counsellor training, would not reach the required depths to effect meaningful behavioral change in those with attachment insecurity. An alternative professional development concept using guided book study is discussed.


This article presents a laboratory investigation on a soil sample from Bilate quarry site in relation to its use as sub base materials in low volume road connecting Keranso kebele to Langano kebele of Misrak Badwacho woreda of southern Ethiopia. Engineering tests such as, sieve size analyses, Atterberg limits, compaction and California Bearing Ratio were carried out on sample collected from the quarry site. All the analysis was carried out in line with the ASTM testing procedures. The results obtained showed that the soil investigated contains 8.96% fine, 43.71% sand 47.33gravel. The result of Atterberg limits analysis showed that the liquid limits is 46.57%, plastic limit is 35.74% and index of plasticity is 10.83%. From modified compaction test it is found that maximum dry density/MDD/ of the soil is 1.74g/cm and optimum moisture content/OMC/ is 19.16%. California bearing ratio/CBR/ value at 95% MDD is found to be 25.5% and it is less than minimum standard CBR (30%) value for sub base material. Thus the soil from quarry site does not fulfill the strength criteria for sub base material in low volume roads construction.


This study aimed to evaluate the differences between males and females on technostress dimensions, as well as possible associations with life and career satisfaction, and with work-family interaction. The sample comprised 247 users of information and communication technologies at work, and the majority of them were female (58.9%). Differences between technostress dimensions amongst males and females were found, whereas males showed greater disbelief. Regarding career and life satisfaction, and work-family interaction, different associations amongst males and females were also detected. We discuss the particularities of the variables in both groups, as well raise explanatory hypotheses for our findings. Implications for practice and limitations of the research are also presented. Keywords: technostress, life satisfaction, work-family interaction, gender differences.


Summary An account is given of some of the topics discussed during a small informal weekly open group meeting of chronic schizophrenic patients, based on occasional notes compiled over eleven years. The main feature of the patients' condition as displayed was poverty—clinical, social, behavioural, material and financial—and certain features suggested an organic aetiology. Reasons are given for considering that the patients' condition was predominantly caused by schizophrenia rather than by institutionalism.


Personal Armour System Symposium 2014, 8-12 September 2014, Robinson College, Cambridge, United Kingdom. Due to copyright restrictions, the attached PDF file only contains the abstract of the full text item. For access to the full text item, please consult the publisher's website


Particle size distribution (PSD) in the ocean is a fundamental property that influences carbon export and food webs; however, PSD variation and its causes in oligotrophic oceans are not entirely clear. Here, we used Laser In-Situ Scattering and Transmissometry to investigate PSD (size range 5.2–119 μm) and related variables at 11 stations in the surface layer (0–20 m) of the Kuroshio region of the western North Pacific, where strong current causes dynamic hydrographic and ecological conditions. PSD slopes (range –3.2 to –4.2), derived from the power law model, were steeper at onshore stations and flatter at oligotrophic stations located offshore and at lower latitudes. Notably, slopes tended to become steeper with increasing chlorophyll a concentration, opposing the generally observed relationship between the two variables, whereas they became flatter with increasing transparent exopolymer particle (TEP) concentration. Possible explanations of the above results are localized occurrence of nanophytoplankton and TEP facilitation of particle aggregation. The results support the hypothesis that PSD slopes are controlled by a multitude of factors, including phytoplankton community dynamics and aggregation processes. To determine whether TEP-induced particle aggregation enhances or suppresses carbon export, we need a better understanding of the nature (porosity, density, and sinking velocity) of aggregates in oligotrophic oceans.


This study aims to reveal the participatory-based Islamic religious education learning system at SMA Negeri 1 Parepare. A qualitative approach with a case study research method was used to answer the research problem. Data collection techniques used participant observation, structured interviews, and documentation review. Data analysis techniques used the Miles and Huberman interactive model, namely data reduction, data presentation, and verification/ conclusion drawing. While testing the validity of the data is done through credibility (trustworthiness), dependability (dependability), confirmability (certainty), and transferability (transferability). The results of this study indicate that in the context of learning Islamic religious education at SMA Negeri 1 Parepare has been based on participatory, marked by the activeness of students by using the student centered approach paradigm which is the basis of participatory learning. In its implementation, participatory learning provides space for students to actively participate in learning by using a scientific approach using the 5-M principle of questioning, trying, reasoning, associating, and creating.


Between 1970 and 1982, soil temperature data were collected on the Bridger-Teton, Caribou, Payette, and Salmon National Forests of the Intermountain Region, U.S. Forest Service. I grouped the data into northern and southern slope aspect classes for analysis and performed linear regression of elevation with soil temperature to determine elevational ranges of the cryic, frigid, and mesic soil temperature regimes for the study area. The coefficients of determination for the regressions ranged from 0.49 to 0.68. Cryic soils were dominant, occurring at elevations greater than 1950 m on southern aspect slopes and at greater than 1080 m on northern aspects. Frigid soil temperature regimes were not extensive, assuming a 15°C mean summer soil temperature limit for cryic regimes at all sites. Sampling duration requirements for soil temperature regime determinations are 5 years for obtaining ± 10 percent precision at the 95 percent confidence level.


Downhole-to-surface electrical geophysics provides a rapid and cheap approach to determine the spatial extent of mineralisation beneath cover. In this method, sometimes known as mise-a-la-masse, a downhole current electrode provides a source, and a roving surface electrode measures the resulting electrical potential. The method is particularly applicable at brown-fields exploration sites where mineralisation or alteration has been intersected by one or more drill holes, as it indicates continuity of electrical interconnection of mineralised regions, extending exploration targets away from drill holes. To date, interpretation methods have been mostly qualitative, involving plots of gridded surface electrical potential data, with little or no processing. This CRC LEME funded study provides a quantitative means of interpreting data, through (a) a numerical approach to separate the surface potential into contributions from the source current electrode and sub-surfaces charges at resistivity boundaries in the Earth, and (b) a simple three-dimensional (3D) imaging method to determine the lateral and vertical extent of the conductive mineralisation. The methods described work in both the case where a drill hole intersects mineralisation and the source current electrode is directly connected to the conductive ore, and in the "near-miss" scenario in which the drill hole does not intersect mineralisation. Data from the Golden Grove VMS deposit in Western Australia are shown for example.


This paper analyses RD establish competitive science research funding mechanisms; promote the development of ST and establish a system to monitor, assess, and forecast technology. However, there is a need to strengthen S&T education at the elementary and secondary school level to support an expansion of science and engineering enrolment at the tertiary level. This requires an upgrading of laboratory facilities and equipment, as well as the hiring of qualified faculty. Finally, weaknesses in the planning, budgeting, and implementing processes must be addressed.


IDMAR project (Multidisciplinary Infrastructure Distributed on the Sea) deals with the construction of the largest multidisciplinary laboratory for scientific and technological marine research in Europe [1]. A dedicated quality management approach has been developed to cope with all the needs of the project and to improve process efficiency and reliability.


Age-related cognitive impairment, for instance Alzheimer's disease (AD), is a chronic, progressive, neurodegeneration disease. The concentration of endogenous formaldehyde (FA) positively correlates with the severity of cognitive impairments in AD patients. However, the FA concentrations used in the previous studies were usually higher than the physiological and pathological levels in aging people. To elucidate the relationship between FA and the pathogenesis of AD, it is necessary to investigate the effect of long-term exposure of neurons to low concentration of FA, which is consistent with the pathological FA concentration. In this study, we established a cell culture method to simulate the chronic low-concentration FA exposure by using a serial passage strategy. Murine neuroblastoma N2a cells and primary murine hippocampal neurons were exposed to a simulated pathological FA concentration referred to AD patients. During the long-term of culture, FA gradually accumulated in the medium and impaired N2a cells. High performance liquid chromatography, cell viability assay and lactate dehydrogenase assay showed that, the FA-elimination capacity of N2a cell decreases with the incubation time, accompanied with inhibition of cell growth and increase in cell death. Holographic microscopy showed that long-term simulated pathological FA exposure attenuated the cells' adhesive morphology. Cells exposed to FA became thicker, exhibiting impairment of neuronal processes. The number of primary neurites in primary hippocampal neurons were reduced by FA exposure, suggesting a decrease in the connectivity between neurons. Formaldehyde accumulation promoted Tau phosphorylation at its Thr181 and Ser396 epitopes, which may be one of the factors leading to decrease in primary neurites. Our findings indicate that accumulation of simulated pathological concentration of FA impairs neurons, induces Tau hyperphosphrylation and decreases neural connectivity, which would lead to neural dysfunction and eventually contribute to the pathogenesis of age-related cognitive impairment.


The electrical resistance of Evanohm wire has been determined as a function of hydrostatic pressure. A Teflon cell with a novel type of electrical feedthrough was used to contain the fluid medium. The resistance was found to decrease approximately linearly by 0.3% up to 27 kilobar. The remarkably small variation of its resistance with temperature and pressure makes Evanohm a suitable material for strain measurements under pressure.


Herbivory can drive rapid evolution of plant chemical traits mediating defensive and competitive ability. At a geographic scale, plant populations that escape selection from their ancestral herbivores may evolve decreased defence and increased competitiveness. While contrasts between native and invasive populations of plants lend support to this hypothesis, such experiments cannot establish causal links between herbivory and evolved invasive phenotypes. Here, we conducted geographic contrasts, and coupled these with long‐term selection experiments that directly test for evolutionary responses to herbivore exclusion. In common gardens, we contrasted Solidago altissima genotypes that were historically exposed or protected from herbivory across two experimental time‐scales: (i) a natural experiment where plant populations evolved either with native herbivory (in Minnesota and New York) or evolved relatively free from herbivory for ˜100 years in Japan, and (ii) a 12‐year manipulative experiment where plants were either exposed to ambient herbivory or treated with insecticide. In both experiments, plant populations responded to herbivore release by evolving increased production of root allelochemicals and interspecific competitive ability against Poa pratensis. While plant resistance to a beetle herbivore did not diverge between plant origins, we still observed parallel evolutionary shifts in leaf secondary metabolite and protease inhibitor production, which may confer resistance to diverse herbivore species. Synthesis. Observed evolutionary convergence for multiple plant traits, between the natural and manipulative experiments, emphasizes the role of insect herbivores as key drivers of plant adaptation and geographic differentiation.


For a knot complement of S, Heusener [H03] showed that a 1-dimensional smooth part of the space of the conjugacy classes of irreducible SU2-representations of the knot group carries a canonical orientation, and Dubois [D05, D06] constructed a canonical volume form on the part which induces Heusener's orientation via Reidemeister torsion. Later the author [K09] slightly generalized the volume form for a knot complement of a general rational homology 3-sphere, and studied compatibility with the actions by the 1st cohomology group with Z/2 coefficients and the outer automorphism group of the fundamental group. The idea of regarding non-acyclic Reidemeister torsion as a volume form on a moduli space of group representations was first considered by Witten [Wi91]. He obtained an explicit formula to compute the symplectic volumes of moduli spaces of representations of surface groups in terms of the Reidemeister torsion volume forms. The aim of the article is to construct a canonical complex volume form on a smooth part of lowest dimension of the SL2(C)-character variety of a 3-manifold group analogously via Reidemeister torsion.


With the continuous improvement of the power system and the deepening of electricity market reform, the trend of users' active participation in power distribution is more and more significant. Demand response has become the promising focus of smart grid research. Providing reasonable incentive strategies for power grid companies and demand response strategies for customers plays a crucial role in maximizing the benefits of different participants. To meet different expectations of multiple agents in the same environment, deep reinforcement learning was adopted. The generative model of residential demand response strategy under different incentive policies can be trained iteratively through real-time interactions with the environmental conditions. In this paper, a novel optimization model of residential demand response strategy, based on a deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG) algorithm, was proposed. The proposed work was validated with the actual electricity consumption data of a certain area in China. The results showed that the DDPG model could optimize residential demand response strategy under certain incentive policies. In addition, the overall goal of peak load-cutting and valley filling can be achieved, which reflects promising prospects of the electricity market.


In this paper, the lifting factorization and structural regularity of the lapped unimodular transforms (LUTs) are studied. The proposed M-channel lifting factorization is complete, is minimal in the McMillan sense, and has diagonal entries of unity. In addition to allowing for integer-to-integer mapping and guaranteeing perfect reconstruction even under finite precision, the proposed lifting factorization structurally ensures unimodularity. For regular LUT design, structural conditions that impose (1,1)-, (1,2)- and (2,1)-regularity onto the filter banks (FBs) are presented. Consequently, the optimal filter coefficients can be obtained through unconstrained optimizations. A special lifting-based lattice structure is used for parameterizing nonsingular matrices, which not only helps impose regularity but also has rational-coefficient unimodular FBs as a by-product. The regular LUTs can be transformed to the lifting domain with the proposed factorization for faster and multiplierless implementations. The lifting factorization and the regularity conditions are derived for two different (Type-I and Type-II) factorizations of the first-order unimodular FBs. Design examples are presented to confirm the proposed theory.


We present a complete analysis of the dispersion relations for longitudinal and transverse waves in a rarefied polyatomic gas based on Rational Extended Thermodynamics (RET), which describes the evolution of a non-polytropic gas in nonequilibrium. Observability of the second mode of the longitudinal wave and the transverse wave is discussed although these waves are usually not payed much attention. The cases of CO$_2$ gas and para-H$_2$ gas are specifically analyzed as typical examples.


Background: Aggregated measures are often employed when prevalence, risk factors and consequences of alcohol use in the population are monitored. In order to avoid time-dependent bias in aggregated measures, reference periods which assess typical alcohol consumption are considered superior to reference periods assessing recent or current alcohol consumption. It is not known whether monthly variations in actual alcohol use affects self-reports of typical alcohol consumption. Using data from a large, population-based study with data-collection over two years, the aim of the present study was to examine whether reports of alcohol use fluctuated across the months of the year. Methods: Participants in the third wave of the Nord-Trøndelag Health Survey (HUNT3) answered questions regarding drinking in the last 4 weeks, typical number of alcoholic drinks consumed, typical frequency of weekly drinking and typical frequency of weekly binge drinking. The relative difference between alcohol consumption reported in January and each subsequent month of the year was examined. Results: Considerable monthly variations in self-reported alcohol use were found across all alcohol measures regardless of reference period. A general tendency was found for highest level of alcohol use being reported during the summer season, however, the highest number of individuals who reported alcohol use in the last 4 weeks was found in January. Women reported substantially larger increase in weekly binge drinking during the summer months than men. Conclusions: Monthly variations in self-reports of alcohol use should be taken into account when data from epidemiological studies is employed as aggregated measures.


In a large-format cross-cutter (11), an apparatus for pulling a gap in an imbricated sheet stream is proposed. Following an overlapping station (13) is provided a gap formation station (19) comprising a conveyor (31) which can be accelerated to a higher speed than the supply conveyor (18). A gap formation carriage (22) runs to the gap pull along a guide (23) in the conveying direction (15) shortens the gap formation conveyor (31) and extends the supply conveyor (18). A suction device (41) on the gap formation carriage is lowered slightly, and a blower (42) air is blown into the resulting gap. The gap formation carriage thus runs in front relative to the slower moving feed conveyor (18) and draws the required gap, so that it can be switched for switching to a different one of two conveying paths (47, 48) in that a switch (46).


It is our desire in the present article to call attention to two pretty well established laws of nomenclature, that with a few seconding words on our part, the laws may, "to those whom it may concern," preach the importance and necessity of their being observed and obeyed.


Objective To explore lymph node and bone marrow micrometastases(LNM,BMM) and its relationship with clinical parameters.Methods LNM and BMM in 52 cases of breast cancer with stage Ⅰwere examined by immunohistochemical staining using monoclonal anti-epithelial membrane antigen(anti-EMA).Results LNM was observed in 12 of 52 cases (23.0%) and BMM in 10 of 52 cases (19.2%).In the group of poorly differentiation,the positive rates of LNM or BMM were significantly higher than those of well differentiation (P0.01,0.05).In the group of LNM,the positive rate of BMM was significantly higher than that of negative group(P0.01).Conclusion The data suggest that immunohistochemical technique can greatly facilitate the detectability of micrometastases.The LNM and BMM may occur at the same time in breast cancer.


For solving the fusion question of expert conflict opinion in quantizing qualitative indicators of one certain result assessment system,a new method of expert opinion fusion based on improved evidence theory was proposed. Through comprehensively considering evidence certainty factor and average degree support of subset in frame of discernment,this paper efficiently solves"one vote veto"existing in fusion of highly conflict opinion,accurately reflecting the assessment opinion of expert and improving the reliability of system.


The transition to a market economy in Russia not only was accompanied by general economy crisis, but also provided wide opportunities for entrepreneurship, including technology sphere. But still, there is a void on peculiarities of technology entrepreneurship development in Russia. That is why the aim of this paper is to consider in dynamics some features of technology enterprises development in the changing context on the example of region that has favorable conditions for technology entrepreneurship. Due to exploratory character of the research, main results are based on 10 case-studies of technology enterprises established in 1990s and 2000s in the region. As a result of the study, some typical features for technology entrepreneurship in the region were found: the most important resources are people and intellectual property; inviolable principle is to minimize external financing; company development strategy is niche and based, focusing on core competencies and outsourcing non-core activities.


The present dissertation work studies compliance with the resolutions of international organizations, and more specifically the fulfillment of the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations (UN) in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Using a qualitative methodology (descriptive case study), and comparing two periods...


Terry Lovell (ed.), Feminist Cultural Studies, 2 vols, International Library of Studies in Media and Culture (Edward Elgar) Aldershot, UK, 1995. Glenn Jordan and Chris Weedon, Cultural Politics: Class, Gender, Race and the Postmodern World (Blackwell) Oxford, 1995. Rosemary Buikema and Anneke Smelik (eds), Women's Studies and Culture: A Feminist Introduction (Zed Books) London and New Jersey, 1995. Xtext, no. 1, August 1996, 'Crossing Performances'.


To evaluate the surface characteristics of the spring-like member which has been subjected to surface treatment, to determine the quality, a step of selecting the molded product is good or defective efficiently, suitably applied to the inspection and sorting of tact time is short spring-like member surface characteristic inspection sorting device can be, to provide a surface characteristic inspection sorting system and the surface property inspection screening methods. Surface characteristics inspection sorting apparatus 1, to evaluate the surface characteristics of the spring-like member M which surface treatment has been performed, to determine the quality, be a device for unloading and sorting into a molded product is good or defective based on the determination result , a surface characteristic inspection device 2, and a measurement member 40 for measuring the surface characteristics of the spring-like member M, the selection means 50 for selecting the spring-like member M to good and defective products and defective products, the. Measurements member 40 is passed configured to be able to test the detector 23 of the spring-like member M, based on the output signal outputted from the AC bridge circuit 20 while the spring-like member M is passed through the test detector 23, the surface It determines evaluate quality of the surface characteristics of the spring-like member M by characteristic test device 2.


Improvement factors up to 4 in the thermal conductivity of Niobium between 4 and 9K are obtainted by a new purification technique which removes the dominant interstitial impurity (oxygen) found in commercial Nb. In the process, surfaces of the cavity are brought into proximity with Yttrium foil at -10-5torr for several hours. A vapor deposited film of several μm thickness traps oxygen diffusing rapidly from the bulk to the surface. A single cell, 1500 MHz, elliptically shaped cavity with thermal conductivity improved by this method shows amelioration of thermal breakdown, as predicted by thermal model calculations.


Results on electrical resistivity, magnetoresistance, magnetic susceptibility, heat capacity and 155Gd Mossbauer measurements on a Gd-based intermetallic compound, Gd2PdSi3, are reported. A finding of interest is that the resistivity unexpectedly shows a well-defined minimum at about 45 K, well above the long-range magnetic-ordering temperature (21 K), a feature which gets suppressed by the application of a magnetic field. This observation in a Gd alloy presents an interesting scenario. On the basis of our results, we propose electron localization induced by s-f (or d-f) exchange interaction prior to long-range magnetic order as a mechanism for the electrical resistance minimum.


CdSe nanoparticles with well dispersion were decorated on inner and outer surfaces of 4 μm long TiO2 nanotubes through a simple direct current electrotechnique, resulting in a composite functional material with a perfect construction. The applied depositing voltage plays a determinative role during the CdSe nanoparticles formation process, getting through the breakdown potential of TiO2 and providing intense active sites for the CdSe crystal growth on the TiO2 nanotubes. The CdSe/TiO2 composite nanotube arrays exhibit high absorption in the visible light region due to the narrow band gap of CdSe, and depict sensitive photoelectrochemical response under visible light illumination. Photocatalytic degradation of anthracene-9-carbonxylic acid (ACA), one of the derivants of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), was successfully achieved on CdSe/TiO2 nanotubes when exposed to the 550 nm green monochromatic light.


The article examines the ways and forms of legal refusal of the right to receive legal assistance in criminal proceedings, examines the factors affecting the process of implementation by participants of criminal procedural legal relations of the procedural right belonging to them. The criteria of validity of unilateral refusal of the right to legal aid are analyzed.


To the Editor: In their Image in Clinical Medicine, Zalts and Hayek (Dec. 18 issue)1 describe a woman with postpartum venous thromboembolism. The patient was found to be heterozygous for a mutation in the gene encoding for 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR). The authors suggest that the mutation was most likely the source of her susceptibility to hypercoagulation. However, a recent, large-scale, prospective study involving 66,140 participants did not show an association between a homozygous or heterozygous MTHFR genotype and the risk of venous thromboembolism.2 The odds ratio for the development of venous thromboembolism was 1.01 for the heterozygous (C677CT) or homozygous . . .


Fruits of crisp peach(Prunus persica) 'Kawanakajima Hakuto' and 'Shuangjiuhong' were used to investigate the changes in fruit firmness and several mineral element contents during 20 d before and after ripening.The results showed that P,Mg,Zn and Cu contents continuously decreased while N,Fe and Mn contents increased.Correlation analysis showed that there was markedly positive correlation among the fruit firmness,P,Mg,Zn and Cu contents,and markedly negative correlation among the fruit firmness,N and Fe contents.The content of Mn had significantly negative correlation with fruit firmness of peach 'Kawanakajima Hakuto' at level of 0.01,while it had significantly negative correlation with fruit firmness of peach 'Shuangjiuhong' at level of 0.05.


August 2005 and the ensuing months saw a natural disaster, Hurricane Katrina, and a leadership disaster surrounding governmental and institutional response to the stormi¯s aftermath. An event of such monumental proportions would predictably offer numerous challenges; however, the extent of the weaknesses in preparedness and response revealed by Katrina was nothing short of astounding. Lessons learned from this experience were quickly incorporated into many organizationsi¯ planning, readiness, and response activities. This manuscript discusses salient aspects of less-than-optimal responses to Katrinai¯s effects and explores changes in and different programs for coordinating subsequent disaster response. Interestingly, many such changes were undertaken by units not directly impacted by or involved in Katrinai¯s aftermath. The authors propose the term i°vicarious leadership learningi± to describe this phenomenon. Examples from a variety of organizations are presented, and the benefits of vicarious leadership learning are discussed.


The damage rate of mangrove forests in Indonesia is considered as the fastest and largest in the world. The reduced density of mangroves can be influenced by the water quality and the organic matter content around the mangrove ecosystem, causing changes in the mangrove leaves both in the shape of the length and width. This study was conducted in the mangrove ecosystem in the western part of Dumai City, with the aim of determining the morphometric size of the leaves of Rhizophora apiculata and its relationship with the content of organic matter in the sediment. The method used in this study was survey method, where observations and sampling were performed directly in the field and some of samples were analyzed in the laboratory. Mangrove density obtained from the research results ranges from 1966.66 - 4700 ind/ha, organic matter content 10.88 -17.21%. The morphometric size of the leaf length varies from 13.03 - 15.05 cm, the leaf width varies from 4.65 - 5.42 cm, and the length of the petiole varies from 1.59 - 1.91 cm. There is no significant relationship between the mangrove leaf morphometric with sediment organic matter in the studied area.


Abstract Extract Perception of, and relief from, pain differs markedly between individual animals(1). In a humane system of animal care, this requires addressing. I have investigated the analgesic effects of different opioid agonists in male and female sheep, and the results suggest a sex-related difference in the efficacy of both kappa (𝛋) and mu (𝛍) opioids.


Theory suggests that long/short equity hedge funds' returns come from directional as well as spread bets on the stock market. Empirical analysis finds persistent net exposures to the spread between small versus large cap stocks in addition to the overall market. Together, these factors account for more than 80 percent of return variation. Additional factors are price momentum and market activity. Combining two major branches of hedge fund research, our model is the first that explicitly incorporates the effect of funding (stock loan) on alpha. Using a comprehensive data set compiled from three major database sources, we find that among the three thousand plus hedge funds with similar style classification, less than twenty percent of long/short equity hedge funds delivered significant, persistent, stable positive non-factor related returns. Consistent with the predictions of the Berk and Green (2004) model we find alpha producing funds decays to "beta-only" over time. However, we do not find evidence of a negative effect of fund size on managers' ability to deliver alpha. Finally, we show that non-factor related returns, or alpha, are positively correlated to market activity and negatively correlated to aggregate short interest. In contrast, equity mutual funds and long-bias equity hedge funds have no significant, persistent, non-factor related return. Expressed differently, L/S equity hedge funds, as the name suggests, do benefit from shorting. Besides differences in risk taking behavior, this is a key feature distinguishing L/S funds from long-bias funds.


Many realistic problem domains are composed of heterogeneous tasks distributed in a physical environment. Even though the distribution of skills among the members of a heterogeneous team has a significant influence on its effectiveness, little is known about how to design effective heterogeneous teams. In this paper, we develop a graph-search approach to tackle this team design problem in the context of multiagent routing, a generalizable domain in which heterogeneous, randomly located tasks must be completed in overall minimum time (or make span) given an a priori distribution of their heterogeneity, a fixed team size, and a limited budget. First, we develop complete and optimal search algorithms. Second, we show that dominance-based pruning significantly increases the size of problems that can be solved optimally. Third, we introduce an anytime algorithm called TD-BR that uses beam search with restarts in order to scale up to much larger problems. We evaluate our algorithms empirically in two ways: first, we predict the performance of the teams using a team performance metric called task coverage, and show that our algorithms produce high coverage teams, second, we test a subset of these teams in simulation by allocating the teams to various task sets and measuring their make span. We show that our teams perform well when compared to an ideal homogeneous team, and outperform heterogeneous teams created by other methods. Our main contributions are thus new algorithmic tools for designers of heterogeneous teams in robotics and other domains where modular construction and refitting of robots is possible.


Vocational High Schools that are located close to each other, but have not synergized in the utilization of existing resources in each school are seen as less efficient. On the other hand, several vocational schools have adequate resources and potential to expand and simultaneously improve education services to the community through various education and training programs. In connection with these conditions, the Directorate of Vocational High Schools has programmed to combine these schools in one management and increase the capacity of Vocational High Schools through various education and training programs under the name Development of Large Vocational Schools. Financial statements function as a tool to analyze financial performance that can provide information about financial position, business, performance and cash flow so that it can be used as a basis for making economic decisions. The object of this service is aimed at the Batam Business School Vocational High School (SMK) around the Sekaran Village, where the majority of Batam Business School Vocational High School (SMK) players do not have financial reports. The purpose of this service program is to provide training to Batam Business School Vocational High School (SMK) actors in the preparation of accounting standards based on Financial Accounting Standards for Entities Without Public Accountability (SAK ETAP) as well as to design simple manual and computerized accounting systems that can help and facilitate students. Vocational High School (SMK) Batam Business School actors in making financial reports based on SAK ETAP


The three major approaches to person- ality scale construction, the external, inductive, and deductive strategies, are discussed and their rationales compared. It is suggested that all scales should possess validity, communicability, and economy. The relative importance of these characteristics, however, varies with the purpose for which the instrument is being constructed. A review of more than a dozen compar- ative studies revealed no consistent superiority of any strategy in terms of validity or predictive effectiveness. But deductive scales normally communicate infor- mation more directly to an assessor, and they are definitely more economical to build and to administer. Thus, wherever there is a genuine choice, the simple deductive approach is recommended. Furthermore, self-rating scales narrowly but consistently outdo questionnaire scales in terms of validity and are clearly superior in terms of communicability and economy. There may not be many situations in which the wide- spread preference for questionnaires is justified. It is concluded that the more commonsensical approaches to personality measurement have a lot to offer.


Medical Sciences have grown as part and parcel of human civilization and had been responsible to a great extent for its development as well as some of its ills. A new chapter has been opened with the recent sequencing of 23 pairs of chromosomes of the human. Ethical and other debates created originally some problems most of which have been overruled with the new knowledge acquired. It is becoming more and more clear that the strenuous and one of the most expensive efforts was not in vein. New vistas have been opened to challenge not only the hereditary diseases but also all common diseases from which the human suffer from the dawn of the civilization. Other than that life sciences, in general, have been highly benefited from the new knowledge acquired through medical research. The reverse is also true. In that respect it can be ascertained that medical sciences have not at all gone astray. Although it has not yet been possible to conquer all the diseases, for example, cancer, yet it is expected that the battle will be over soon.


Brummett, A. L. 2020. Should positive claims of conscience receive the same protection as negative claims of conscience? Clarifying the asymmetry debate. The Journal of Clinical Ethics 31 (2):136–142. Fritz, K. G. 2021. Unjustified asymmetry: Positive claims of conscience and heartbeat bills. The American Journal of Bioethics 21 (8):46–59. doi:10.1080/15265161.2020. 1863514. Kogan, R., K. L. Kraschel, and C. E. Haupt. 2020. Which legal approaches help limit harms to patients from clinicians' conscience-based refusals? AMA Journal of Ethics 22 (3):E209–E216. doi:10.1001/amajethics.2020.209. Sawicki, N. N. 2020. The conscience defense to malpractice. California Law Review 108 (4):1255–1316. doi:10.15779/ Z380P0WR5G.


The simultaneous control of the orientation and position of organic semiconductor nanowires remains a major challenge when integrating them into monolithic devices. In this study, tris(8‐hydroxyquinoline)aluminum(III) (Alq3) molecules are self‐assembled into single‐crystalline nanowires with consistent orientation and predictable positions by selective‐area graphoepitaxial growth. The nanowire orientation is determined by parallel nanogrooves on a periodically modified faceted sapphire surface, and the position is simultaneously defined using a shadow mask. Computational fluid dynamics simulations showed that the mass flow field over the sapphire surface is tailored by the mask, resulting in preferential nanowire nucleation around the hole centers and leaving sufficient free space for the subsequent growth. Accordingly, the number, length, and density of the nanowires can be controlled by adjusting the mask layout. The good alignment and predictable positions of these nanowires facilitated their subsequent device integration, eliminating laborious assembly steps and potential damage after nanowire growth. Measurements from an in situ integrated two‐terminal device based on the Alq3 nanowires revealed that the nanowires exhibit a remarkable negative differential resistance and fast photoresponse in the UV region. Overall, selective‐area graphoepitaxial growth provides a versatile protocol for fabricating site‐ and orientation‐controlled organic semiconductor nanowires for the monolithic fabrication of nanowire‐based devices.


Hemodialysis unit for receiving the housing, comprising a housing adapted to carry for performing hemodialysis element (51), which element comprises a hemodialysis dialyzer (14), one or more blood circulation in the dialyzer a pump, a dialysate supply source, and one or more of the dialysate in the dialyzer circulating pump. The housing may have a front panel (511), connected to the blood circuit and a dialysate portion connecting portions disposed thereon, i.e., with the blood portion of the blood line connected to an access port of the patient, the reagent supply connection portion, dialyzer blood flow and dialysis liquid connection portion, and the like. The housing may include a pair of doors hinged to the vertical outside of the housing (53). When the door is in a closed state, blocking the access port connected to a dialysate portion of the patient is connected, which allows the door to retain heat within the housing adapted for sterilization during sterilization.


We discuss the discrete non-autonomous predator-prey model using the continuation theorem in coincidence degree theory.Furthermore,we derive sufficient conditions of permanence and existence of periodic solution.


A laboratory test procedure was developed to assess the relative flushing effect and knockdown activity of Dursban 4E (44.2% chlorpyrifos), XRM-4322 (44.2% chlorpyrifos, 4.4% pyrethrins, 8.8% piperonyl butoxide), Decis EC (5% deltamethrin), and Demon WP (40.0% cypermethrin). Plain water was included in the comparison as a control. Cockroach harborage was constructed from tempered masonite (4 × 4 inch) and pine strips (yi6 inch), creating a small crack (open at 2 ends) within which the cockroaches could hide. This harborage was placed sideways upon a plastic pedestal (3 cm high) within a plastic box (7 × 5 × 3.5 inch). The inside upper edge of the plastic box was greased (petrolatum-mineral oil mixture) to prevent escape. Ten adults (≤2 wk old, 5 male and 5 nongravid female) were introduced to the completed arena 24 h before testing, which always occurred 4-6 h into the photophase of 12:12 (L:D) photocycle. Test sprays were applied at the rate of 1 gal/1000 sq ft using a mechanized spray tower apparatus equipped with a stainless steel nozzle tip, Spraying Systems Tee-Jet 8001E, at a constant pressure of 25 psi. When treated, the harborage containing the test insects was removed from the plastic box and placed within the spray tower so that an open end of the harborage was positioned beneath the spray arm, parallel with the fan spray pattern. As the spray arm passed over the harborage, the sprayer was activated briefly (<1 s) to deliver the treatment to the test insects within. Immediately after being sprayed, the harborage was returned to the plastic box for 1 h of observation. Each treatment was replicated 5 times. The times necessary to flush (FT) or knockdown (KT) 50 and 90% of the test insects were the variables compared between the treatments. If, for example, 50% of the test insects were not flushed within the 1-h observation period, the time necessary was then defined as 100 min for ease of analysis. This conversion allowed for incorporation of individual replicates for which response was >60 min when others in the same treatment were ≤60 min.


The characteristic of the DC side harmonics produced by the converter in ±1 100 kV HVDC project is analyzed in this article.The DC side harmonic voltage is calculated according to the available project parameters.The calculation result and ±800 kV HVDC project are compared.The equivalent disturbing currents in DC pole lines and DC electrode lines are calculated.After many times filtering performance result for different DC filter schemes are calculated,finally one DC filter solution,which satisfies the performance limits and low-cost,is proposed.The maximum equivalent disturbing currents in DC pole lines and DC electrode lines is calculated.The maximum equivalent disturbing current: bipolar mode 2 728 mA;unipolar mode 5 882 mA.The result of this study is helpful in determining the final project DC filter solution.


A mounting is easy, and capable of angular adjustment and a fixed angle, to provide an improved spinal fixation device location. The invention relates to a spinal fixation device includes a first elongate member and the second elongate member angle adjustable with respect to each other. Each elongate member may comprise a coupling mechanism formed on its end, the connecting mechanism may be to be able to change the angle of the first and second elongated members are coupled to each other. The apparatus may also be coupled to the connecting mechanism of each of the first and second elongated members, including the locking mechanism of these elongate members are configured to lock in a fixed position relative to one another. .FIELD 1A


Disturbed subgrade soil samples were collected from five (5) different erosion sites in Anambra State, Nigeria. In-situ and laboratory tests were conducted to ascertain the biochemical, physicochemical, and geotechnical properties of these samples. The topsoil characteristics were studied differently from the subsoil characteristics. All the samples considered were non plastic (from Atterberg limit tests). The result of relative size of soil particles in Anambra state reveals a higher mean values of sand when compared to silt and clay. The maximum dry density of the soil averaged (1858.19 ± 52.257) kg/m 3 and (1866.986 ± 50.298) kg/m 3 for the topsoil and subsoil respectively indicating high compaction values. The sodicity (Sodium Absorption Ratio and Exchangeable Sodium Percentage) of the soil was used to measure the dispersiveness of the soil, and the results show that Anambra state soils are highly dispersive, especially the topsoil. Hence, it is highly related to the erodibility of the soils in the zone considered. Furthermore, correlation analysis showed that there is a considerable correlation between geotechnical, physicochemical and biochemical properties of the soils in the state with the presence of sodium playing a major role in determining the influential properties.


Chromosomal and biochemical investigations of shrews from genus Crocidura from Crete and Turkey show that C. russula monacha Thomas, 1906 and C. caneae Miller, 1909 are both members of the species C. suaveolens Pallas, 1811. C. russula zimmermanni Wettstein, 1953 is a well defined species: C. zimmermanni Wettstein, 1953.


Exploration of the type of structure the family needs in order to function effectively in contemporary society. Part one describes and evaluates the health care activities of the family and analyzes the kinds of problems that families face in dealing with the professional medical system. Part two presents a test of the energized family form. Part three: (1) applies the evidence presented in the first two parts; (2) sets forth some propositions for increasing the family's effectiveness in health care; and (3) presents some theoretical propositions about what type of structure the family needs and how the family must function if it is to remain viable in contemporary society. &dquo;The term energized family derives from the stimulation and exchange that occur between family members who interact a great deal, both within the family and with outside groups, and who generate ideas and learn to cope with the pressures and demands of contemporary society. The energized concept refers to the unleashing of people's potential so that they may develop themselves to their fullest capacities.&dquo; A field study (1969-72) was conducted to test the hypothesis that the energized family pattern fosters personal health practices, effective use of professional medical services and sound health. A cross-sectional


When the Census Bureau prepared the dataset, they incorrectly categorized children with missing poverty information as children eligible for free and reduced price meals. This coding error resulted in an overestimate of the number of children eligible for free or reduced price meals in the affected block groups.


This thesis analyses the status of legislation for the rule of prohibiting securities insider trading in China and points out its main deficiency, suggests that we should define insiders, inside information and manners of insider trading more clearly, improve related rules and make it more enforceable and increase the severity of punishment, set up a specialized institution to apply sanctions against the insider trading. In this thesis, also presents a method to calculate the damages for civil liabilities and crime quota for criminal liabilities.


The stress optic coefficient of an infrared transmitting material was measured at room temperature at a wavelength of 1550nm. This work discusses a Mueller matrix imaging experiment to measure the stress optic coefficient, observe the spatial distribution of birefringence, and quantify experimental sources of uncertainty. A one-inch diameter disk of sample material was diametrically loaded with increasing force, and linear retardance was measured in the central region. Finite element and analytical modeling was done to estimate the magnitude of stress in this central region. A Rotating Retarder Mueller Matrix Imaging Polarimeter measured the spatial distribution of linear retardance. The retardance is related to the change in birefringence with stress magnitude. The slope of this linear fit is the stress optic coefficient. The stress optic coefficient of the infrared transmitting material was measured to be 1.89 ± 0.1424 [TPa]−1. To test the precision of our stress optic coefficient measurement procedure, a 1-inch diameter N-BK7 disk was measured at a wavelength of 1550nm and compared with industry-accepted values. The stress optic coefficient of N-BK7 was measured as 2.83 ± 0.1057[TPa]−1. The published N-BK7 value measured at visible wavelengths is 2.77 [TPa]−1 ± 3%.1–3 This agreement validates the experimental Mueller matrix imaging methods and supports the common assumption of minor wavelength dependence of the stress optic coefficient.


The article examines the status and knowledge contributions of professional doctorates (PDs) undertaken by practising professionals who in most cases are not intending to join the academic community. The purpose of these doctorates is usually to research and develop an original contribution to practice through practitioner-research. Giving greater primacy to practice knowledge has caused new developments in doctoral education. The discussion is based upon a research project and an extensive literature review. Internationally, quality assurance agencies have generally embraced more work-related and practice-oriented criteria in doctoral learning. Doctoral learning that seeks to enhance practice and develop benefit to communities and organisations in professional contexts leads to different pedagogic protocols for higher education, for example a differently ordered approach to ethical issues of research, assessment and peer review. More curriculum development and understanding of the wider knowledge contributions of doctorates is needed across higher education and professional communities.


: A study was conducted to evaluate the existing furrow irrigation system of Karun Agro Industry, a sugar cane plant in Daimcheh, Iran. Although the system is only eight years old, design and operational problems have reduced its efficiency by 50 percent. Lack of skilled irrigation workers, inadequate control of irrigation water, and problems with night irrigation have resulted in substantial revenue losses for the plant.

This study evaluates the existing irrigation system, and recommends modifications and improvements to increase its efficiency. Final recommendations include the use of various irrigation methods, improvements to the existing system, and cancellation of night irrigation.


Persistent infections with human papillomavirus ( HPV ) 58 have been proved to be an important etiological factor of cervical cancer. Epidemiological study in Asia shows that HPV58 is a prevalent high-risk type , second only to HPV16 /18. Neutralizing monoclonal antibodies ( mAbs ) against HPV58 can be used in HPV58 vaccine development and mechanism elucidation of virus invasion. Female BALB / c mice were immunized with HPV58 L1 virus-like particles ( VLPs ) . Hybridoma cells were prepared and neutralizing mAb secreting cell strains were identified by VLP-ELISA and pseudovirus neutralization assay. mAbs were purified by rProtein A chromatography from hybridoma cell culture supernatants. Affinities of type-specific neutralizing mAbs were analyzed by ELISA , and properties of


What is the role of married women in immigrant households? Their contribution to the labor market has traditionally been considered of secondary importance and studied in the framework of temporary attachment to the labor force to support the household around the time of arrival. But this role has changed. Evidence from major immigrant-receiving countries suggests that married immigrant women make labor supply decisions similar to those recently observed for native-born married women, who are guided by their own opportunities in the labor market rather than by their spouses' employment trajectories.


In this study, it was aimed to examine the perceptions and attitudes of university students towards the control and vaccine of Covid-19. In addition, the differences between the perceptions and attitudes of the students according to their departments, health education status and whether they have a Covid-19 case in their environment were examined. The population of the research consists of 730 students at a foundation university. The sample consists of 304 students based on the 95% confidence interval. Differences between variables were analyzed by independent sample t-test. As a finding of the research, the average of the students' attitudes towards the vaccine was 3.09±0,68; control perception averages were determined as 2.820,53. According to the departments and health education status of the students, their perception of control towards the Covid-19 pandemic and the positive attitude sub-dimension towards the Covid-19 vaccine statistically differed significantly (p<0.05). However, it was determined that there was no statistically significant difference according to the negative attitude sub-dimension and the status of being a patient diagnosed with Covid-19 (p>0.05). As a result, It is obvious that the students of the Human Resources Management department need health information to increase their awareness of the disease and to blunt their anti-vaccination attitudes. Health information and disease management courses can be added to the Human Resources Management curriculum. Training, symposiums, and panels on immunization can be organized for students. With the help of these, unfounded information pollution against vaccination should be eliminated and students should be encouraged to vaccinate.


D.H.Lawrence was a famous English writer in the twentieth century.He created many female characters.Their disharmony with the social situation both put a great strain on their feelings and tore their personalities apart.Their life was filled with pains,perplexity and helplessness.


Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays a pivotal role in the development of cancer invasion and metastasis. Many studies have significantly enhanced the knowledge on EMT through the characterization of microRNAs (miRNAs) influencing the signaling pathways and downstream events that define EMT on a molecular level. In this study, we found that miR‐143 suppressed EMT. Up‐regulating miR‐143 enhanced E‐cadherin‐mediated cell–cell adhesion ability, reduced mesenchymal markers, and decreased cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro. In vivo, the xenograft mouse model also unveiled the suppressive effects of miR‐143 on tumor growth. Additionally, we demonstrated that up‐regulating extracellular signal regulated kinase 5 (ERK5) was associated with poor prognosis of breast cancer patients. Moreover, we observed an inverse correlation between miR‐143 and ERK5 in breast cancer tissues. miR‐143 directly targeted seed sequences in the 3′‐untranslated regions of ERK5. Furthermore, we revealed that the downstream molecules of glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK‐3β)/Snail signaling were involved in EMT and modulated by ERK5. In summary, our findings demonstrated that miR‐143 down‐regulated its target ERK5, leading to the suppression of EMT induced by GSK‐3β/Snail signaling of breast cancer. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


Most β-ray bodies emit several homogeneous groups of β-rays, and the energies of the electrons forming these groups may be found from the deflection they suffer in a magnetic field. Various experiments have shown that these groups are due to the conversion, according to the quantum relation, of γ-rays in the different electronic levels of the atom. In fact, the energy of any group is of the form E1 = hv — (absorption energy of level). Two β-ray groups due to the conversion of a γ-ray of definite frequency in the K and L levels of the atom will differ in energy by the difference in energy between the K and L absorption energies. Both in testing this equation, and in using it to deduce frequencies of the γ-rays, it is necessary to compare energies of β-rays determined in terms of a magnetic field, with absorption energies deduced from wave-length measurements of X-rays. It is thus important to obtain values of the absolute β-ray energies as accurate as possible. The most accurate previous values were those of Rutherford and Robinson.


Tlze present research asked whether 7.5-month-old infants realize tlzut an object cannot displace another ohject \v~thout contacting it. Tlze infants in E-xperiment I were asszgned to a contact or a no-contact condition. The infants in the nocontact conn'itio~? saw static familiarrzation displaj~s in which (1 tall, thin burrier stood across the bottom of a ramp, a cylinder rested ugaitzst the left side of the harrier and a wheeleci t o j bug against its right side. The infants in the contact condition saw similar cl'isp1ay.s except thut a lurge portion of the harrier's lort'er half was removed so that the qllinder rested directly against tlze bug. N e x t , a small screen wa,s placed in.fr.ont of the bottom of'the ramp; onlj, the upper portion o f the harrier was visible above the screen. The infants irl the two conditions watcheci the same test event. The cylinder was released and rolled to the bottorn of the ramp, partly disappearing behind the screen 1s left edge; next, the hug rolled do~vrz the track, us though launched by the cjdincler. Tlze infants in the no-contact condition looked reliably longer at the test event than clid those In the contact condition. This result stlggested that the infants ( a ) vic~wc~d the hug as an inert object that could move onlj ~txhen ucted uporz; ( h ) believed thut the cj.linder could not act on the bug without contacting it; ( c ) realized thut the cylinder could contact the bl4g when the hdf-harrier but not the harrier was present; ( d ) remembered after the screen rz,a.s raised whether contact co as possible b e t w ~ e n the cylinder and hug; and [ e ) ~i.c.re surprised in the no-contact condition tvhen the hug us la~rnched do~iw the track. A second experiment confirrne~ihe results of Experiment I . Previous research comparing infirnts' responses to no-contact and contact events has typic.ul!)' mude use of seIfmo11ing rather thun Inert objects. These e.uperiments have consistentlj ,found that infints do not look reliahlj lotger at no-contact tha12 at contact events. In the General Discussion, we e..;cmtni~ze tlze contrast between these prior results and the present results cznd speculate on how infants' espc~ctations about inert and self-moving objects mu^ he best characterized.


The invention relates to an automatic cleaning device for a blowout preventer. The automatic cleaning device comprises a centering device, an automatic rotating table, a mine car body, mine car hubs, a cross beam main frame, an inner chamber telescopic oil cylinder, an inner chamber cleaning spray nozzle, top cleaning spray nozzles, top transversely-moving oil cylinders, cleaning spray nozzles, up-and-down moving guide rails, a primary sedimentation tank, a water pump and a purifying tank. The centering device is welded in the center of the automatic rotating table; the automatic rotating table is mounted on the mine car body and freely rotates on the mine car body; and the mine car hubs are mounted beneath the mine car body to drive a mine car to move forwards and backwards on a track. The blowout preventer is hung on the mine car body; flanges at the bottom of the blowout preventer are centered by the centering device, the blowout preventer is driven to rotate by the rotating table, and the telescopic oil cylinder is opened so as to clean the inner chamber of the blowout preventer. The automatic cleaning device can perform quick cleaning, inner chamber cleaning and all-directional cleaning, realizes automatic monitoring of the cleaning process, and improves the cleaning efficiency and cleaning quality of the blowout preventer.


On my first day of nursing I attended a session with my personal tutor group, along with 20 other optimistic, budding nurses. We were one of ten first-year tutor groups, bringing the student intake for the year to about 200.


High-altitude illness includes acute mountain sickness (AMS), high-altitude cerebral edema (HACE) and high-altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE). Taiwan is a mountainous island and the high-altitude illness is relatively common. Actually, 28% of Jade mountain (3,952 m) climbers met the diagnoses of AMS. This article reviews recent update of phathophysiology of high-altitude illness and provides evidence in the management of high-altitude illness.(Ann Disaster Med. 2004;2 Suppl 2: S53-S60)


Countersink inspection is crucial in various automated assembly lines, especially in the aerospace and automotive sectors. Advancements in machine vision introduced automated robotic inspection of countersinks using laser scanners and monocular cameras. Nevertheless, the aforementioned sensing pipelines require the robot to pause on each hole for inspection due to high latency and measurement uncertainties with motion, leading to prolonged execution times of the inspection task. The neuromorphic vision sensor, on the other hand, has the potential to expedite the countersink inspection process, but the unorthodox output of the neuromorphic technology prohibits utilizing traditional image processing techniques. Therefore, novel event-based perception algorithms need to be introduced. We propose a countersink detection approach on the basis of event-based motion compensation and the mean-shift clustering principle. In addition, our framework presents a robust event-based circle detection algorithm to precisely estimate the depth of the countersink specimens. The proposed approach expedites the inspection process by a factor of 10$$\times $$
 ×
 compared to conventional countersink inspection methods. The work in this paper was validated for over 50 trials on three countersink workpiece variants. The experimental results show that our method provides a standard deviation of 0.025 mm and an accuracy of 0.026 mm for countersink depth inspection despite the low resolution of commercially available neuromorphic cameras. Video Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/pateqqwh4d605t3/final_video_new.mp4?dl=0.


The participation of the mother in KWT Canang Sari is a real response to the activities of women in the public sphere. One important thing that cannot be separated from the participation of the mother in KWT Canang Sari is motivation.  The purpose of this study can be explained as follows: to know the motivation of women farmers who are members of KWT Canang Sari, to determine the effect of motivation on productivity KWT Canang Sari, to determine the amount of revenue KWT contribution to the family income. This study uses qualitative and quantitative analysis approach. Qualitative analysis is used to obtain in-depth information on informants who are competent to answer the issues raised. While quantitative analysis used in this research is descriptive statistics and simple regression. Results of this study are: (1) It is the motivation of women farmers who are members of KWT Canang Sari is earning extra income, the family environment in KWT Canang Sari, get some information and new knowledge. (2) Motivation positive effect on productivity KWT Canang Sari Village Peninjoan. (3) Whereas by their joining together KWT Canang Sari, they were able to increase the family.


Based on Java-Bali grid disturbance data, the 66kV transmission lines that is close to or intersect with 150kV or 500kV transmission line is often experienced earth fault due to insulator flashover. The insulator flashover can be caused by indirect lightning strike since lightning strikes tend to strike higher structure. Therefore, this paper will determine the effect of indirect lightning strike on 150kV or 500kV transmission line to 66kV transmission line by modeling and simulation using application of transient analysis. Variation of lightning peak current magnitude and gap between 66kV transmission line and transmission line with higher voltage is performed during simulation. The range of peak current magnitude follows the data from lightning detection systems, while the value of gap follows the data from actual condition. It is found that higher current peak and closer gap will cause higher transient overvoltage on insulator of 66kV transmission line thus insulator flashover may occur more frequent. Addition of earth wire on 66kV transmission line and gap between each transmission by organizing the sag of conductor can be performed to minimize the insulator flashover.


We propose a method for the motion-congruent segmentation of image sequences based on both motion field and luminance information. In order to do so, the affine motion models are determined by analyzing the motion field through a clustering procedure, while their regions of validity are determined by an MRF-based region estimator. This last block performs a pixel-wise re-assignment of a limited number of affine models (those determined via clustering).


CRISPR-Cas based genome editing technologies hold great potential for genetic research and bioengineering in trees. CRISPR-Cas9 was previously demonstrated to be a highly efficient genome editing system in poplar (Zhou et al., 2015). However, these applications only used the nuclease activity of Cas9 for targeted mutagenesis. By contrast, Cas9-derived base editors can install specific base changes in a plant genome.


Abstract The sources of interactions at an interface and in solution have been subjects which have occupied both experimentalists and theorists for some time. Several types of interactions, e.g. donor-acceptor,1–6 have been suggested to explain deviations in adhesion and solution data from that predicted from London dispersion forces. The experimentalist has employed both infrared spectroscopy and calorimetry to measure donor-acceptor interactions. It is the purpose of this note to show that X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) can be used also to detect donor-acceptor interactions in polymeric systems.


This article introduced the biological characters of Guayule,its potential market importance of exploitation and utilization as a natural rubber resource,as well as some possible effects on environment of semi-arid land.Further,some suggestions were given for some conceivable problems of exploitation and utilization.


Safety has long been a key factor in the design, manufacturing and maintenance of products that are made from composite materials. The exceptional properties these materials exhibit compared to their metal counterparts is enabling widespread adoption across civil infrastructure, oil & gas, marine, automotive, and aerospace industries. But the lack of a definitive and accurate technique to predict damage progression in a polymer-matrix composite (PMC) during their service life continues to pose a major risk and creates a gap in the long-term integrity of the structures produced. Although there is widespread consensus regarding the deleterious effects of the ingressed moisture on the overall properties of a composite, recent studies have revealed that the inevitable presence of moisture in a PMC can be leveraged for damage characterization. This work aims to employ Near-Infrared spectroscopy for quantifying molecular moisture in polymer composites for submicron scale damage detection. Prior to moisture absorption, a drop tower was used to induce a barely visible impact damage (BVID) in the center of dry E-glass/epoxy specimens. Three different specimens were subjected to 1J, 1.5J, and 2J of damage, respectively. The NIR Nano EVM Spectrophotometer was used to obtain spectral scans between wavelengths of 900-1700 nm for each of the three damaged samples, as well as an undamaged sample, in their dry state. The samples were then exposed to moisture contamination via water bath, and subsequent spectral scans were acquired at consistent intervals of gravimetric moisture gain. The spatial variation of the moisture content was evaluated from the characteristic peak for water in the damaged samples at various levels of absorbed moisture. The absorbance area obtained from the NIR spectral shows quantitative values to represent increasing damage and spatial maps indicating different states of absorbed moisture in each sample.


The discrete logarithm problem over finite fields serves as th e source of security for several cryptographic primitives. The fastest known algorithms fo r s lving the discrete logarithm problem require solutions of large sparse linear systems ov er large prime fields, and employ iterative solvers for this purpose. The published results o n this topic are mainly focused on systems over binary fields, that is, systems coming from inte ger-factoring algorithms. Solving systems over large prime fields has not yet received much rese arch attention. In this thesis, our main goal is to efficiently implement the Wiedemann method to solve large sparse linear systems of equations over large prime fields. The second phase of th Wiedemann method (computation of the minimal polynomial of a linear sequence) off ers several choices including the Berlekamp-Massey and the Levinson-Durbin algorithms. Ass es ing the relative performance of the above two variants of the second phase is another impor tant goal of this work. We first detail our optimized sequential implementation of the Wied emann method. Subsequently, we deal with shared-memory parallel implementations of the Wi demann method using a small number of cores. We have been able to achieve a speedup of abou t four sing eight cores. Our experiments also suggest that the Levinson-Durbin algo rithm in the second stage is more suitable to parallelization than the Berlekamp-Massey alg orithm.


tension guidelines, to develop a hypertension disease management plan consistent with JNC guidelines, and to achieve blood pressure control. While the CDC has yet to determine why guideline adherence is poor, George Bakris, MD, president-elect of the American Society of Hypertension, said some reasons are obvious. "There is a general lack of willingness to increase doses for patients with an asymptomatic disease, especially when the patients are telling you that theydonotwant thedrugs," said Bakris, who is also professor of medicine and the director of the University of Chicago Medical Center's hypertension center. "This kind of communication takes time. But because reimbursement for such discussions is so low, it forces physicians to see a lot of patients in a short period of time, and the discussion is cut short." Vincenza Snow, MD, director of clinical programs and quality of care for the American College of Physicians (ACP), said physicians are aware of the guidelines, but they sometimes fail to bring that knowledge to the patient encounter. "Physicians have trouble implementing the guidelines because of competing priorities, patients with multiple comorbidities, or visits for acute problems where planned chronic care gets pushed back to the end of the visit." And while acknowledging a certain lack of adherence to guidelines, Snow added that ACP data suggest adherence rates may be artificially low due to measurement methods. "When you are told that 70% of blood pressure levels in your practice are not at target, you have to remember that many times the denominator used to get that 70% is all the patients associated with your practice who haveacode forhypertension,"Snowsaid. "But some of these patients have never come to your practice—they were assigned to your practice by an insurance company and never make an appointment—and some may come in for 1 visit and never return." Snow said the ACP has implemented programstoimproveadherenceforthose patients who are truly under treatment by a physician. "What we have learned from our quality improvement program is that we train teams," Snow said. "You have to change your systems to help yousucceed.Youneedtogetothermembersofyour teaminvolved; for example, maybe someone on your staff is very interested in patient education."


The fundamental objective of this research was to develop a pipe-releasing additive based on petroleum coke distillates. For this, a soxhlet extractor was used using xylene as an organic solvent. Subsequently, the formulation of the different pipe release pills (with commercial additive and coke distillate) was established, studying the effect of these on the properties of the different plasters generated from a 100% mineral oil drilling fluid through tests quality at laboratory level, such as: lubricity coefficient, weight loss and reduction of the thickness of the plaster. An Anova was applied for an experimental design of simple randomized blocks, consisting of four blocks (pills), three treatments (quality tests) and four repetitions; and a Duncan Test (α = 0.05), showing that the treatments with coke distillate presented better 1 Ingeniero Mecánico, profesor Asociado de la Universidad de Oriente, docente investigador de la misma universidad. MSc en Mantenimiento Industrial y Gerencia Empresarial. email@example.com, 0000-0002-6331-3851 2 Universidad de Oriente, Núcleo de Monagas. Escuela de Ingeniería y Ciencias Aplicadas (EICA), Departamento de Ingeniería de Petróleo, Campus Los Guaritos. Avenida Universidad, Maturín Monagas-Venezuela. firstname.lastname@example.com, 0000-0001-6195-5917 3 Ingeniero de Petróleo de la Universidad de Oriente. firstname.lastname@example.com, 0000-0003-2092-6882


Discussion of: A contractor's viewpoint and recommendations, N.S. Smith ; Inclined plane slope failures in the Auckland Waitemata soils, G.R.W. East ; Assessment of slope stability at Poro-o-tarao tunnel south portal, I.M. Parton ; Temporary support of vertical excavation in weathered sedimentary deposits, K.H. Gillespie.


The Art of Intervention was a series of symposia and exhibitions that took place in Japan and UK between 2009 and 2010. The central topic was the legacy of Dumb Type, the radical and innovative visual Japanese performance group notorious for addressing subjects 'taboo' in Japan such as the AIDS crisis. Dumb Type's principal, Teiji Furuhashi (d. 1995), remains culturally prominent.

The symposia brought together contemporary artists Yoshiko Shimada, Bubu de la Madeleine (participant in Dumb Type) and artists and researchers from the UK and Japan. I was part of panels at two symposia and participated in the exhibition at Fleur Gallery, Kyoto, Japan ('The Art of Intervention' in 2010) and the lecture series 'The Art of Intervention' (February 2009) and 'Love Song for the Future' (November 2009).

I made contributions at Kyoto Seika University, Kingston University and the 2010 lecture 'Performance Art and Photography.' Lois Keidan at Live Art Development Agency and I collaborated to instigate an exchange between UK live artists and visiting Japanese artists - following this exchange, David Falkner curated a series of events, 'Louder than Bombs,' for Stanley Picker Gallery as part of Art of Intervention.


Context Emergency medical services (EMS) personnel attending out-of-hospital cardiac arrests sometimes attempt to resuscitate patients who do not want life-sustaining measures. Contribution This study involving 2770 patients with EMS-attended cardiac arrests assessed outcomes of guidelines that permitted personnel to withhold resuscitation in patients with terminal illnesses when the patients or caregivers indicated, in writing or verbally, that they did not want resuscitation. Sixteen of 35 EMS agencies in King County, Washington, implemented the guidelines. Implementation and control agencies withheld resuscitation in approximately 11.8% and 5.3% of cardiac arrests, respectively. The difference was primarily due to honoring verbal requests. Cautions In this observational study, self-selected agencies volunteered to implement guidelines. The Editors Emergency medical services (EMS) personnel arrive at a home to find an elderly, emaciated patient in cardiac arrest. Family members state that he had end-stage cancer and did not want life-sustaining measures to be taken. However, there is no formal written do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order. The emergency medical technicians (EMTs) remove the patient from bed, despite the now vehement and emotional objections of the family, and begin resuscitation. This scenario, based on an actual event, shows a predicament sometimes faced by EMS personnel who arrive on the scene and find a patient with a terminal condition who has previously expressed the wish that no resuscitation be attempted. The response of EMS personnel to such patients is often inconsistent and depends on local guidelines, patient presentation, and type of DNR order. As of 1999, 42 states had adopted formal protocols that allowed EMS personnel to withhold resuscitation efforts if the patient had a specific, state-approved prehospital DNR order (1). However, when this is lacking and when resuscitation wishes are conveyed by a different type of directive or by verbal request, EMS personnel usually begin resuscitation. An unwanted resuscitation effort may violate the patient's right to self-determination, cause suffering and emotional distress for the patient and the family, be troubling for EMS providers, and expend resources unnecessarily. Discussions with providers in our EMS system and our personal experiences underscored the importance of this issue and prompted us to develop new guidelines that gave EMS personnel greater discretion to withhold resuscitation efforts in patients with terminal conditions, even in the absence of state-approved prehospital DNR documentation. The guidelines were implemented by some, but not all, EMS agencies in our county. We hypothesized a priori that EMS personnel from agencies implementing the guidelines would probably withhold resuscitation more often than those from agencies not implementing the guidelines, specifically because the guidelines allowed EMS personnel to honor verbal requests. We also hypothesized that EMS personnel would make decisions consistent with the guidelines and that they would report little difficulty in making these decisions. Methods Study Design, Setting, and Sample This investigation was an observational study of persons having out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in King County, Washington (excluding Seattle), and incorporated historical and contemporary comparison groups (Figure). King County, excluding Seattle, comprises urban, suburban, and rural areas; has a population of approximately 1.2 million persons; and covers 2043 square miles. King County has a 2-tiered EMS response system that has been described previously (2). First-tier firefighter-EMTs are first to arrive on the scene and provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation; second-tier paramedics arrive next and provide advanced life support. Figure. Study design. The study sample consisted of all cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest to which EMS personnel responded, except those for which DNR orders would not typically be pertinent (trauma, suicide, or drug overdose). Although the term cardiac arrest is used by EMS personnel to denote persons who are unconscious and do not have a pulse, there may be cardiac, respiratory, neurologic, or other causes for the patient's condition. The institutional review board at the University of Washington approved the study. Written informed consent was not required. Verbal consent was obtained from EMS personnel before they were interviewed. Intervention Before 1998, patient care guidelines directed EMS personnel in King County to initiate resuscitation attempts in all persons having cardiac arrest, except those with signs of obvious death (lividity or rigor mortis) or those with a state-approved prehospital DNR directive. Other written directives were occasionally honored, although this was not endorsed. Verbal requests were rarely honored. In 1998, 2 of the present authors, who work as paramedics in King County, proposed new guidelines to address the situation of patients with terminal conditions who did not desire resuscitation and did not have DNR paperwork. These guidelines allowed EMS providers to withhold resuscitation if 1) the patient had a preexisting terminal condition and 2) the patient, family, or caregivers indicated, in writing or verbally, that the patient did not want resuscitation. A terminal condition was defined as one in which death was expected and for which the patient was under a physician's care. Resuscitation wishes could be communicated through a state-approved prehospital DNR directive, other directive, or verbal request. Although the guidelines were valid for both EMTs and paramedics, we expected that they would be most useful to EMTs, who are first to arrive at the scene. Physician consultation was not necessary to invoke the guidelines. Assistance in developing the guidelines and training program was provided by the King County medical director, local physicians, paramedics, EMS administrators, and a legal consultant (Johnson BR. Liability of EMS personnel for honoring or failing to honor a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) order. Legal opinion paper presented to King County Emergency Medical Services. May 1998). The guidelines and training were offered to all 35 EMS agencies in King County. Participation was voluntary, and each agency's fire chief made the final decision. Ultimately, 16 agencies chose to participate. Those that did not participate cited legal and risk management concerns. Characteristics of participating and nonparticipating agencies and the populations they serve are shown in Table 1. The 35 agencies have the same countywide medical director, continuing education program, patient care guidelines, and criteria-based dispatch guidelines. Table 1. Characteristics of Participating and Nonparticipating Agencies Personnel from participating agencies were trained in 1998. Training consisted of a printed manual, written guidelines, a 2-hour lecture and discussion, and a competency quiz. Approximately 900 EMTs and 70 paramedics were trained. Because some agencies participated and some did not, we were able to compare EMS care between these groups. We compared resuscitation decisions for 1-year periods before and after the introduction of the guidelines: preguideline (calendar year 1997, the last full year before guideline implementation) and postguideline (calendar year 1999, the first full year after guideline implementation). Cases occurring in 1998 were excluded because training took place that year. This classification generated 4 groups: preguideline nonparticipating agencies, preguideline participating agencies, postguideline nonparticipating agencies, and postguideline participating agencies. Within these groups, each case of cardiac arrest was classified into 1 of 3 categories: attempted resuscitation, no resuscitation due to signs of irreversible death, or withheld resuscitation. Withheld resuscitation consisted of cases where resuscitation was withheld on the basis of either a written DNR order or verbal request. Data Collection For each EMS response, information was collected from the medical incident report that was completed by EMTs and paramedics. After implementation of the guidelines, 1 of the authors conducted interviews to collect information on cases of withheld resuscitation. Each interview lasted approximately 15 minutes and included 30 questions about the patient, scene, family members, and actions of EMS personnel. The EMS personnel obtained most information from family members (for example, the patient's history and diagnosis and the reason for the 911 telephone call), although no standard query was used. When possible, the interview took place within 1 day of the telephone call, but there were occasional delays of 1 week or more. Interviews were conducted for 51 of 99 cases of withheld resuscitation. The EMS officer in charge of patient care for each case was interviewed. No persons declined to be interviewed. Statistical Analysis Descriptive statistics summarize the characteristics of the patient sample. A multinomial logistic regression model was used to estimate probabilities for the 3 nominal response categories of attempted resuscitation, no resuscitation, and withheld resuscitation. Independent variables included factors of time (preguideline or postguideline implementation), participating agency (yes or no), patient location (private residence, nursing home, or other), patient sex (male or female), a covariate of patient age in years divided by 100, and an interaction term of time and participating agency. Individual agency identification was not tabulated for each observation or medical incident report; therefore, a random-effects term for agency was not entered into the model. A multiple imputation method using the expectation-maximization algorithm for continuous and categorical data was used for missing data in 89 cases of age and 46 cases of sex. Chi-square tests compared


eter in 2% HNO3 with a within-run precision better than 1 ‰ and long-term reproducibility better than 2.1 ‰. The Li isotopic composition of Recent foraminiferal tests corresponds to the composition of modern ocean water (–32 ‰ δ6Li). The composition of fossil tests and their host sediments from ODP 926A varies from ca –30 to –15 ‰ and from 0 to +5 ‰, respectively. Our data suggest no significant isotopic equilibration of Li between the foraminiferal carbonate and the sediments over the period of the past 14 m.y. The variations in Li isotopic composition in planktonic foraminifers during the past 14 m.y., and especially the shift from –20 ‰ to –32 ‰ δ6Li in the last 4 m.y., are interpreted as resulting from a progressive change in the mechanism of continental weathering.


Constructivism is the most profound and extensive teaching theory nowadays.It puts forward a series of evaluation concept which can promote instruction besides its constructivism learning.Especially the angle of "evaluative central environment" can be confored to construct the instruction evaluation and the instruction process.It makes evaluation and instruction genuine and becomes a unity that cannot be divided into parts.It has important reference for the current Chinese education reform.


phygmomanometers are frequently contaminated with bacteria and are implicated in the transmission of microbes. A pilot study was conducted to determine the effectiveness and feasibility of using a physical barrier device in reducing rates of microbial contamination of sphygmomanometer cuffs. Blood pressure recordings were made with and without a disposable plastic device on healthy individuals to ensure that it did not interfere with the accuracy of readings. Baseline rates of microbial colonisation of sphygmomanometer cuffs were obtained over a six week period. For six weeks the device was applied to patients' arms before measuring blood pressure, and sphygmomanometer cuffs were recultured during the intervention period. No difference was found in blood pressure recordings with and without the device. No difference in rates of bacterial contamination was observed during the intervention phase of the study. A disposable plastic device acting as a physical barrier may not reduce surface contamination of sphygmomanometer cuffs.