The surface polaron in the electron-ripplon system is investigated within the modified variational scheme of the Lee-Low-Pines theory which is valid for the whole range of the electron-ripplon coupling. Besides the ground-state energy, the mean number of ripplons in the cloud around the electron and the spatial localisation of the electron the authors calculated, as a function of the coupling constant, the energy barrier in the transition of the metastable free (self-trapped) state to the self-trapped (free) state.


Collective decision making often benefits both the individuals and the group in a variety of contexts. However, for the group to be successful, individuals should be able to strike a balance between their level of competence and their influence on the collective decisions. The hormone oxytocin has been shown to promote trust, conformism and attention to social cues. We wondered if this hormone may increase participants ' (unwarranted) reliance on their partners ' opinion, resulting in a reduction in collective benefit by disturbing the balance between influence and competence. To test this hypothesis we employed a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled design in which male dyads self-administered intranasal oxytocin or placebo and then performed a visual search task together. Compared to placebo, collective benefit did not decrease under oxytocin. Using an exploratory time dependent analysis, we observed increase in collective benefit over time under oxytocin. Moreover, trial-by-trial analysis showed that under oxytocin the more competent member of each dyad was less likely to change his mind during disagreements, while the less competent member showed a greater willingness to


The characteristics of formation of Jilin Zhengcha Pb-Zn deposit is of polygene,multistage and multiphase and related to Yanshan porphyry.After research on geological features,isotope geochemistry features and metallogenic mechanism,the writer believes that metallogenic substance has double sources-strata and magma.Metallogenic water is the mixture of magma and precipitate water;Metallogenic heat are from magmatism of granoporphyre;the ore deposit belongs to stratabound skarn ore deposit.


We discuss an alternative implementation of the Higgs boson within the Standard Model which is possible if the renormalizability condition is relaxed. Namely, at ene rgy scaleΛ the Higgs boson interacts at tree-level only with matter fermions, while the full gauge invariance i s still maintained. The interactions with the electroweak gauge bosons are induced at low energies throug h the radiative corrections. In this scenario the Higgs boson can be arbitrarily heavy, interacting with t he Standard Model fields arbitrarily weakly. No violation of unitarity in the scattering of longitudinal e ectroweak bosons occurs, since they become unphysical degrees of freedom at energies Λ ∼ TeV. The Higgs particle [1] is widely expected to be found in high e nergy experiments at the LHC. A theoretical motivation for the existence of such a particl e is related to a "bad" high energy behaviour of the electroweak theory with purely massive vec tor bosons. Namely, scattering amplitudes of longitudinal modes ( WL andZL) of the massive electroweak vector bosons scale (at tree level) as √ s with the center-of-mass energy ( ECoM = √ s), and thus quickly saturate the unitarity bound at about √ s ∼ 800 GeV. A relatively light (with a mass less than the unitarity b ound) Higgs boson, which couples to the electroweak gauge bosons in gauge invariantway, automatically provides cancellation of the bad energy behaviour of the tree-l ev l (and also higher order) amplitudes, regaining the unitarity of the theory. The converse stateme nt is also true: any unitary and renormalizabletheory of massive electroweak bosons must involve gauge inv ariant interactions with the Higgs particle [2]. If so, than the coupling of the Higgs p article to electroweak vector bosons is fixedby the gauge invariance. This fact is crucial in searching fo r the Higgs particle in actual experiments, e.g. in associate production of the Higgs and v ector bosons. In this paper we would like to explore an unorthodox model of s pontaneous electroweak symmetry breaking with nonstandard interactions of the Higgs p article and electroweak vector bosons, which, to the best of our knowledge, has not been discussed pr eviously. The model we are going to present is based on the observation that, contrary to a wid espread belief, gauge invariance p r se does not uniquely fix the interactions of the Higgs boson. The standard interactions of the Higgs boson with electroweak vector fields implied in the Standard Model, follow only if, in addition to the gauge invariance, one demands the renormalizabilityof the theory. However, from a modern perspective, the Standard Model is widely viewed as an effec tive low-energy theory, and thus its renormalizability perhaps is not a very well justified requi rement. If one relaxes the renormalizability requirement, one can write down an alternative to th e Standard Model theory which is also perfectly unitary and gauge invariant, but the interaction s f the Higgs boson are entirely different. The key idea behind such a theory is the following. If the coup ling of the Higgs boson to the electroweak gauge bosons is absent, then the longitudinal m odes are non-propagating degrees of freedom due to the gauge invariance in the classical theory a t a certain energy scale Λ 1. The interactions with the electroweak gauge bosons and their masses a re induced at low energies through the radiative corrections involving fermionic loops. No vi olation of unitarity in the scattering of longitudinal electroweak bosons occurs, since they are unp hysical degrees of freedom at energies Λ ∼ TeV. The remarkable thing then is that the unitarity bound is dec oupled from the Higgs boson mass. That is to say, the Higgs boson can be arbitrarily he avy, providing it interacts arbitrarily weakly with the Standard Model fields. In this regime, the Hig gs boson might not be observable at LHC. 1In [3] we have discussed the model with the explicit breaking of the electroweak symmetry where all the components of the electroweak doublet are not propagating degree s of freedom at the classical level.


Abstract : The fiscal year 2012 budget resolution forced many agencies to significantly reduce their budget spending and adhere to stricter budgetary policies. The one agency that was hit the hardest was the Department of Defense--it was forced to reduce its budget by $10 trillion over a span of 10 years. With the ongoing War on Terror, the Department of Defense estimated in 2010 that the cost of maintaining a single soldier in a wartime environment grew exponentially--to well over $1 million per soldier. The U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan started a major shift, from using manned vehicles to using unmanned vehicles, also known as autonomous vehicles. These autonomous vehicles can be controlled remotely via satellite or radio signals. Currently, the majority of unmanned vehicle usage is in autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that provide air surveillance, reconnaissance, and assault purposes across all services. This major shift to autonomous vehicles has kept a large number of troops out of dangerous environments such as Iraq and Afghanistan, has reduced the risk of losing soldiers' lives, and, at the same time, has reduced the costs of keeping soldiers in these dangerous environments for long periods of time. The purpose of this project is to provide a comparative analysis and operational efficiency evaluation of current and in-development airships, or dirigibles, to expand the UAV's capability as a viable logistic support platform. This project demonstrates that airships, manned or unmanned, can reduce costs, particularly important with the current budgetary concerns throughout the Department of Defense. The expanded use of airships for logistics could benefit all services due to their flexibility, lift capability, interoperability, and lower cost.


A pH-sensitive blend of polyurethane (PU) and poly(2-(diethyl amino)ethyl methacrylate (PDEA) with good film-forming capacity was prepared from the corresponding aqueous dispersions. The polymer matrix was first characterized by using FTIR, DSC, water vapor transmission and water swelling capacity at different pHs. The drug release profile of films was evaluated using a vertical Franz Cell and theophylline as model drug. The water swelling degree increases from 54 to 180% when the pH of the medium is changed from 6 to 2, demonstrating the pH-responsive behavior of the film. The in-vitro release studies indicate that an anomalous transport mechanism governs the theophylline release.


Purpose. Port-site metastasis has been a concern with the common use of laparoscopy in urologic oncology. We conducted this study to provide a review of port-site metastases reported after the laparoscopy in managing urologic malignancies, possible contributing factors and preventative measures. Materials and Methods. An electronic search of MEDLINE using the combined MESH key words "port-site metastasis" and "Urology". Results. 51 articles addressing port-site metastasis after laparoscopic surgery for urolo¬gical malignancy were identified. Conclusion. Port-site metastasis after laparoscopic surgery for urolo¬gical malignancy is rare. The incidence is comparable to the rate for surgical wound metastases.


Digital forensics is a multi-disciplinary applied science governed by strict and rigorous rules and regulations. Individuals pursuing a career in this discipline are required to have an interdisciplinary background drawing elements of practical experience from fields as varied as sociology, psychology, forensic science, computing and the law. Despite the above, there is no professional body or QA benchmarks that specifically govern education in this science. The subject area has proved popular and where the profession has traditionally been limited to a select circle of individuals from specific industry sectors, it is now open to all. To meet this demand, many product vendors and Higher Education establishments have developed programmes ranging from short training courses to full undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes. All these educational offerings promote the fact that individuals will be trained to an appropriate level, however without clear benchmark or regulatory guidance, students face the risk of being ill-equipped for the challenges presented in industry. The challenge faced by educators is to train individuals, many of whom have no prior theoretical or practical experience in the aforementioned fields, to become digital forensic investigators. This paper discusses the approach used at the University of Wales, Newport to overcome this challenge. It demonstrates how industry requirements have influenced and shaped the learning styles adopted by the teaching team in order to produce high calibre graduates that are ready to engage in a career in digital forensics


For Cu and α-phase Cu-Al alloys, the monovacancy formation energies which are in the linear decrease with increasing of the Al concentration have been obtained by means of the angular correlation method in positron annihilation. The results show that the formation energy in concentrated random alloys is due to the averaged potential. The formation energy of the 2nd multivacancy (divacancy mainly), E F 2 v , has been obtained using data in very high temperature: E F 2 v =2.20±0.05 eV for Cu, 2.30±0.06 eV for Cu–2.0 Al, the values of E F 2 v for other alloys are too large, do not show suitable values. The peak value curves for the substances have been obtained in the temperature under and above the melting point also.


Background: Patient counseling service is an integral component of pharmacy practice in the community pharmacy. Counseling services should be provided to patients regardless of whether the patient has the intention to buy a medication or not. Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of the conflict between ethics and business objectives in Saudi Arabian private community pharmacies on patient counseling. Methods: Eighty pharmacies were randomly selected in Madinah, Saudi Arabia, and visited by mysterious shoppers following a preplanned scenario. Clients requested information on the correct use of a dry powder inhaler for bronchial asthma. A survey form was filled in by the clients immediately after the visit. Results: seventy-five pharmacies were included in the study. Seventy-seven percent of the pharmacists gave a varying content of information although the client showed no intention to buy the medication. Only 5% of pharmacists gave the full instructions regarding the correct handling of the device and using it for taking the correct dose. Around 68% of the pharmacists focused only on how to take the dose. Four percent of the pharmacists provided insufficient information. Around 23% of the pharmacists refused to give any information and referred the shopper to other sources for obtaining the required information. Conclusions: Although most of the pharmacists provided free counseling, the amount and level of information provided were generally insufficient. This illustrates the need for introducing clear policies and guidelines for providing free professional counseling services to patients in the community pharmacy setting in Saudi Arabia.


The purpose was to use porcine blood for the preparation of peptides in mixed microorganisms fermentation. The fermentative processe by mutation B.cereus Lact5.Ⅲ.8, B.subtilis W11、N14, S.Cerevisiae were described. Various experimental conditions, such as inoculum size, time, temperature and cornmeal amount as additive were inverstigated to optimize the mixed fermentation. The result showed: the optimum mixed fermentation conditions were 2%(V∶V)Lact5.Ⅲ.8, 0.5%(V∶V)W11, 0.5%(V∶V) N14, 0.2%((V∶V)S.Cerevisiae inoculum size; 33 ℃ fermentation temperature, 60 h fermentation time; 300 g/L cornmeal.


This essay focuses on the many different perspectives on past, present and future in Against the Day to illustrate Thomas Pynchon's defence of Luddite fiction. By juxtaposing the anarchist conflicts of the early 1900s with the radically new scientific insights of the period, the novel exemplifies how the historical convergence of knowledge, capital and power in advanced industrial society has reshaped space-time into its own singular reality. The alternative views on time held by the anarchists, shamans and Quaternioneers in Against the Day illustrate how the metaphysical or irrational might serve as counterweight to the rationalized worldview of rampant capitalism. It consequently appears that Pynchon's fictional re-imagination of time and space questions our all-enveloping and self-sustaining culture by problematizing the notion of historical knowledge.


The entire electronic trigger system for a large experiment has been designed and constructed specifically for that experiment. The only commercial logic used was for monitoring, primarily scalers. This was not entirely by choice. The needed logic functions were not available, and the number of discriminator, delay, and latch channels required made using standard NIM logic modules an unpleasant solution. As built, the entire system, including power supplies, a NIM bin and a CAMAC crate for monitoring and control, fits easily in 3 relay racks. These racks are located in the experimental hall, near the experiment, and are accessible only via CAMAC when the beam is on. All functions of the system are programmed with special CAMAC modules.


Synopsis Monthly hospital admission rates (HA) for mania were classified by sex, type of admission (first, or re-admission) and by country (England and Wales or Scotland). Of the 8 classes thus created, all but one showed a statistically significant annual cycle with a peak in Summer and trough in Winter. There was no significant difference in phase or amplitude between male and female cycles. A linear increase in yearly re-admission rates was found during the 8 years of the English and the 11 years of the Scottish data. Current month's mean daily temperature (lag0) and last month's (lag1) mean day-length and mean daily hours of sunshine correlated better with admission rate than did the values for other months. In a multiple regression analysis temperature made the other 2 climatic variables redundant in accounting for variation in HA.


The objective of this study was to estimate the genotypic, phenotypic and environmental correlation coefficients in 22 half-sib progenies of rubber trees [ Hevea brasiliensis (Willd. ex Adr. de Juss.) Mull. Arg.]. The studied characters were: dry matter yield (PBS), girth perimeter (CC), petiole length (CP), petiole index (IP), leaflet length (CF), leaflet diameter (DF), leaflet length (CF), leaflet width (LF), leaf area (AF), foliar index (IF). The trial was placed at Experimental Station of Votuporanga (Sao Paulo State - Brazil) under randomized complete blocks design with five replicates and ten plants per plot. The results indicated significative differences for all studied characters. High coefficients of correlation were found. For most of the characters the genotypic correlations were higher than the phenotypic ones, indicating large influence of genetic than the environmental components of the correlations. The estimates values of genetic correlations among PBS and CC, AF, LF, DF, CF, IF, CP and IP were 0.23; -0.27; -0.48; 0.44; 0.33; 0.05; 0.32 and -0.19. The phenotypic correlations coefficient values among PBS and the same characters were 0.12; -0.05; -0.12, -0.34; 0.23; 0.54; 0.12 and -0.09. The characters AF showed positive and significative genetic correlation with CP, and DF. The high value of the genotypic and phenotypic correlation coefficient between CC and IF showed the possibility of obtaining vigorous plants through high foliar index values.


The built form contains symbols ("architectural elements") that express embedded meanings about the place and about those to whom the symbols belong. The architectural elements presented in this paper provide evidence for how deeply felt socio-cultural principles were transmitted to tangible physical objects and how those physical objects then embedded socio-cultural meanings to inhabitants. Examining the architectural element from the perspective process of making them helped to identify several concepts and principles that directly influenced the traditional Najdi built environment. The aim is to understand how the aesthetic appearance of the elements characterized the identity of traditional Najd settlements and how these elements contained multiple functions and varied meanings as understood, and as agreed to, by the local inhabitants.


This research explored links between social support, self-control, religiousness and engagement in risk-behaviors among adolescents in Palestine. Results found that higher scores on social support correlated with lower scores on risk behaviors, while higher levels of self-control were correlated with lower scores on specific behaviors including drinking, smoking and drug use. Higher scores on religiousness were correlated with lower levels of drinking, drug use and premature sexual activity. While the parameters of the factors must be discovered, the implications of these findings for research are ample and include not only the mechanism of the relationships but how to enhance the protective factors in potentially disenfranchised youth in Palestine.


This paper briefly explores the main types and basic functional properties  of potassium channels. It looks at their role in all cells, but specifically how they control neuronal excitability by establishing a resting potential and spacing and shaping action potentials


In September 2000, the US and Russia reached an agreement to jointly disposition roughly 68 metric tons of weapons usable plutonium. (Agreement 2000) In Russia, 34 metric tonnes of weapons-grade plutonium will be dispositioned by burning the plutonium as mixed oxide (MOX) fuel. In the US, 25 metric tons of plutonium recovered from pits and clean metal will likewise be dispositioned by burning as mixed oxide (MOX) fuel and about 9 metric tonnes of plutonium stored throughout the DOE complex will be dispositioned by immobilization in a ceramic which will then be encapsulated in high-level waste (HLW) glass. In all cases, the plutonium will be made equal to or less attractive for reuse in nuclear weapons than the much larger and growing inventory of plutonium in spent nuclear fuel. This threshold of unattractiveness is commonly referred to as the ''spent fuel standard.'' In the US, the final products from plutonium disposition, irradiated fuel and ceramic encapsulated HLW, will be emplaced in the Federal Waste Repository, which is assumed to be Yucca Mountain. The ceramic form selected for the disposition of plutonium is composed of a series of titanate-based phases which are generally referred to as SYNROC (short for Synthetic Rock). The particular formulation that was selected is composed of about 80 vol % pyrochlore, about 15 vol % brannerite, and about 5 vol % rutile. If impurities are present in the PuO{sub 2} feed material, about a half a dozen other phases can also form. The most common of these are zirconolite and a silicate glass. A screening process conducted in 1995, resulted in the selection of borosilicate glasses and titanate-based ceramics (e.g. SYNROCs) as the best available options for immobilization of plutonium. In 1998, a pyrochlore-rich ceramic form was selected in preference to a boro-silicate glass form. More information about the development and selection of the ceramic formulation can be found in the Plutonium Immobilization Program's Baseline Formulation report.


4048Background: Prognostic and predictive factors for metastatic EGC are important to estimate prognosis, inform clinical decision-making and design future trials. We performed a systematic review ...


A 3D model of a CBM engine was established, and the combustion modes under different injection parameters and ignition matching conditions were studied by using methane PFI+ hydrogen DI injection method. Flame propagation, flame structure and engine indication thermal efficiency under the three combustion modes were analyzed. The results show that when the interval between injection and ignition is less than 10°CA, the flame structure of plume ignition will be formed; when the interval between injection and ignition is greater than 10°CA and less than 16°CA, the flame form of concentration stratification will be formed; when the interval is greater than 16°CA, the homogeneous flame structure will be formed. The flame propagation speed of plume ignition is significantly higher than that of the other two combustion modes. Under the three combustion modes, the injection and ignition schemes are adjusted several times. When the injection time is -8°CA ATDC and the ignition time is -2°CA ATDC, the flame structure is the plume ignition structure. The indicated thermal efficiency is higher than the other two combustion modes, and the indicated thermal efficiency of the engine is up to 52.8%.


Perineal wound after delivery often causes infection. Perineal wound care can be done by washing the wound using an antiseptic solution. This study is aimed to compare the affectivity of betel leaf decoction for Perineal Wound Healing with the well-known antiseptic, 10% povidone iodine solution. We employed a quasy-experimental research design with non-randomized repeated measure with control group and post-test design. A total of thirty-four normal postpartum women with spontaneous delivery were recruited from a health centers in Banyuurip, Purworejo district, in December 2013 to February 2014, using a purposive sampling technique. The respondents were then distributed equally to control and experimental group. The normal postpartum women at the experimental group obtained betel leaf decoction for the wound recovery whilst the control group washed the wound with a 10%-povidone iodine solution. Either betel leaf decoction or a 10%- povidone iodine solution was given 20ml/day for washing the wound 2 times a day. By the result, we revealed the betel leaf decoction was effectively as 10% povidone iodine solution to heal the perineal wound regarding to the upper arm circumference (UAC), duration of perineal wound recovery, and Hg Level. As the conclusion we recommend betel leaf decoction as a natural antiseptic for perineal wound healing among the normal postpartum women


Philosophers as diverse as Socrates, Plato, Spinoza, and Rawls have sometimes argued that ethics can be an exact discipline whose propositions can match the exactness we associate with mathematics. Yet for Aristotle, knowledge of ethical matters is essentially inexact, and his perceptive criticisms of the Socratic-Platonic ideal of ethical knowledge and its metaphysical presuppositions remain of enduring interest to contemporary moral theorists. Georgios Anagnostopoulos offers the most systematic and comprehensive critical examination to date of Aristotle's views on the exactness of ethics. Combining rigorous philosophical argument and close analysis of the philosopher's treatises on human conduct, he gives form to Aristotle's belief that knowledge of matters of conduct, not unlike knowledge of most natural phenomena, can never be free of certain kinds of inexactness. He concludes that according to Aristotle, ethics constitutes a mode of knowledge that is neither totally nondemonstrative on account of its inexactness nor free of the important epistemological difficulties common to all nonmathematical disciplines.


Abstract Ghana continues to rely heavily on hydropower for her electricity needs. This hydropower reliance cannot ensure sustainable development since there is a strong association between hydropower production and climate variability and change including ENSO-related lake water levels reduction. Using regression analysis this study found that rainfall variability accounted for 21% of the inter-annual fluctuations in power generation from the Akosombo Hydroelectric power station between 1970 and 1990 while ENSO and lake water level accounted for 72.4% of the inter-annual fluctuations between 1991 and 2010. There is therefore the need to diversify power production to attain energy security in Ghana.


The current approach of information hiding based on deep learning model can not directly use the original data as carriers, which means the approach can not make use of the existing data in big data to hiding information. We proposed a novel method of information hiding in big data based on deep learning. Our method uses the existing data in big data as carriers and uses deep learning models to hide and extract secret messages in big data. The data amount of big data is unlimited and thus the data amount of secret messages hided in big data can also be unlimited. Before opponents want to extract secret messages from carriers, they need to find the carriers, however finding out the carriers from big data is just like finding out a box from the sea. Deep learning models are well known as deep black boxes in which the process from the input to the output is very complex, and thus the deep learning model for information hiding is almost impossible for opponents to reconstruct. The results also show that our method can hide secret messages safely, conveniently, quickly and with no limitation on the data amount.


Fifteen references to vegetation structure from the historical land survey record for the eastern Darling Downs were calibrated with historical photographs to determine the use of the surveyors' structural terminology (Open: 'open', 'light', Dense: 'heavy', 'thick', 'dense'). Sites with less than 40% canopy cover were only described by terms included within the Open category, and sites with greater than 50% canopy cover were only described by terms included within the Dense category. These results provide calibrations of the surveyors' structural terminology indicating terms were unambiguously applied outside the 40-50% canopy cover range. The use of corner tree distances as an absolute measure of vegetation density is warned against because corner trees had to meet certain criteria and were not necessarily the nearest tree to any corner. However, the distance from allotment corners to "corner trees" provided a measure of the relative use of the surveyor's structural epithets and is consistent with standard application among their fraternity. Survey records dating from 1864-1910 were compared with the structure of existing remnants (projective crown cover measured from recent 1:25,000 aerial photography) to assess changes in vegetation structure. The analysis suggests that 88% of the 34 sites included in the analysis have not changed from the broad structural category that was assigned by the surveyors. Using the assumptions developed by this study, two sites were assessed as having thickened substantially. These results suggest that only minor vegetation thickening has occurred in the Darling Downs since the early land surveys. This conclusion is supported by direct comparison of the historical photographs with existing remnants, indicating that only one site out of 17 has thickened substantially.


The hardware design of a Fourier Transform Infrared(FTIR)analyzer was improved to realize the simultaneous and continuous measurements of greenhouse gases andδ13 CO2 values in high Precision.Firstly,the FTIR measurement system was designed and analyzed theoretically,and the temperature and pressure monitoring systems and sealed drying gas circuit were introduced into the spectroscopy.Then the process of quantitative spectral analysis was presented.Finally,thecomparative measurements were designed by using standard gases.Experimental results on CH4,CO,CO2andδ13 CO2 indicate that the Standard Deviations(STD)measured by the designed analyzer are0.01,0.011,0.239×10-6 and 0.572‰,the standard uncertainty of designed measurement system is improved about 6.3,8.45,10.54 and 14.73 times that of routine FTIR measurements,and the system errors are improved about 2.88,1.93,4.67 and 4.66 times,respectively.The comparison of the measurement results between the analyzer and the Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer(IRMS)forδ13CO2value shows that the STDs are 0.572‰and 0.171‰respectively,and the standard uncertainty of the both methods is similar.The FTIR analyzer for greenhouse gases and carbon isotope ratios satisfies the requirements of measurements for multi-species,online and high precision.


Weber's initial list of significant authors in the ascendancy runs to nineteen writers: "Edward Eggleston, Hamlin Garland, James Whitcomb Riley, Booth Tarkington, Theodore Dreiser, Henry B. Fuller, Floyd Dell, Edgar Lee Masters, Vachel Lindsay, Carl Sandburg, Zona Gale, Sherwood Anderson, Ring Lardner, Willa Cather, Sinclair Lewis, Ruth Suckow, O. E. Rolvaag, Carl Van Vechten, Glenway Wescott" (p. 3). Weber departs slightly from this list in the succeeding chapters. He drops Zona Gale (one of only three women) and adds a few other writers, including Joseph Kirkland, E. W. Howe, and the young Fitzgerald and Hemingway. But for the most part, the list represents Weber's Midwestern canon.


Fused silica micro-tubes, whose size is similar to the pore throat in a low permeability reservoir, simplify the complex and tortuous of channels and throats and are used in this study to stimulate the flow pattern with micro-scale methods. A high-pressure micro-tube holder (designed and developed independently with a patent for invention) has been used to study gas flow patterns within the pressure range of 0.1MPa-30MPa. Moreover, we establish a gas flow equation and analysis the applicability of different inlet pressure based on the experiment result. The result shows: First, the pressure drop in the micro-tube is predominantly induced by friction resistance at low inlet pressure. While under relatively high inlet pressure, the impact of kinetic energy conversion and throttling effect on pressure drop shall be considered. Second, we build up a gas-flow equation in a micro-tube considering friction resistance, kinetic energy loss, and throttling effect. We also analyze the applicability for different diameters and inlet pressure. These research achievements were enriched in microtubule flow; different conditions have been identified for a different equation which has significant meaning to gas flow regulation in tight sandstorm reservoirs.


An oscillator is connected with the light source for pulsating control of the light source. A detector detects the fluorescent radiation emanating from the surface. A filter is fitted between the surface and the detector for filtration of radiation in at least the bandwidth of the radiation emanating from the light source. A processing unit is connected with the oscillator and with the detector, where through the oscillator a reference signal is fed to the processing unit, with which from the detector signal the intensity of the fluorescent radiation is determined.


Introduction As a new non-noble metal catalyst for oxygen reduction reactions (ORRs) in acidic media, N-doped carbon has attracted much attention due to its low price and high stability in acidic media compared with commercial noble metal catalysts (e.g., Pt or Pd) [1-3]. However, alternatives of noble metal catalysts for N-doped carbon in commercial markets have limitations due to the relatively low ORR activity in acidic media.


The custom designed video processing software for analysis of B-mode and Doppler-mode ultrasound video has been proposed in this work. The software allows adjusting user-defined thresholds and tolerance levels to enhance contour detection in noisy and artifacted ultrasound images. The developed software is able to evaluate 16 hemodynamic parameters (artery diameter, pulse rate and flow velocity related parameters) in each cardiac cycle. The measurements were performed intermittently recording artery diameter (B-mode) and flow velocity (Doppler-mode). Software has validated in femoral artery measurements. The hemodynamic parameters computed by software were consistent with those obtained by experienced sonographer.


Measurements of uptake and mineralization of 14C-labeled glycolic acid by freshwater heterotrophs showed that respiration (mineralization) accounts for 69% of total uptake, and that the heterotrophic potential ( V,,,,, ) for glycolate is comparable with that for other commonly used substrates. Bacteria cultured from lake water showed uptake and mineralization patterns similar to those from the natural plankton. Enrichment of lake water with glycolic acid resulted in measured disappearance of the glycolic acid, in agreement with rates predicted by uptake kinetics, but bacterial response was slow and independent of added glycolate concentration. Under natural conditions the heterotrophic bacteria prevent glycolatc from accumulating by mineralizing most of it to CO, soon after it is released by algae. The interaction of bacteria and organic solutes represents an area of considerable importance in tracing the flow of energy and the cycling of elements in aquatic ecosystems. Recent methods using 14C have made possible the investigation of the relationships of heterotrophic microorganisms and specific organic solutes. The heterotrophic bacteria of natural waters can utilize organic solutes at concentrations of a few micrograms per liter (e.g. Wright and IIobbie 1966; Vaccaro and Jannasch 1966; Williams 1970; Robinson et al. 1973), and it seems clear that the bacteria are the major agents of mineralization of low molecular weight organic solutes in fresh and marinc waters (Wright 1974). Enrichment studies have shown that bacterial response to sudden increases in substrate is rapid, a few days being sufficient for complete removal and oxidation of glucose and amino acids artificially added at levels one to two orders of magnitude above ambient (Vaccaro 1969; Williams and Gray 1970). Lake water contains a great variety of organic solutes, some no doubt more important than others to the heterotrophic bacteria because of their concentrations and rates of production. Among the substratcs of primary importance, glycolic acid must be given serious consideration. 1 The work was supported by National Science Foundation grant GB 7741 and Science Faculty Fellowship 69210, also F.W.Q.A. program 16010 to R. Y. Morita. It occurs in lake waters (Fogg et al. 1969)) although ambient concentrations are often so low as to be undetectable by some techniques (Spear and Lee 1968). Glycolic 8Cl 'd is readily traced to its source as a major algal excretory product (Tolbert and Zill 1956; Fogg 1966; Watt 1966,1969). Excretion of glycolic acid by algae, a puzzling loss of energy, is related to the dark reactions of photosynthesis as well as to environmental conditions. In a thorough review of glycolate metabolism in algae, Tolbert ( 1974) indicated that the principal path of glycolate formation is by oxidation of ribulosc diphosphate, in a reaction that involves competition between oxygen and carbon dioxide for this substrate. After its formation glycolate is either released ( excreted) or metabolically changed to glycine and serine via glyoxylic acid. It is not readily reassimilated by most algae. Wright (1970) found that plankton in the upper layers of a lake could take up glycolic acid at low concentrations. Circumstantial evidence indicated that this uptake was bacterial. Because of the magnitude of the uptake and the apparent source in algal excretion, I suggested that glycolic acid might be the most important energy source for the epilimnetic heterotrophic bacteria. However, at the time I did not know the rate at which glycolic acid was being respired, nor did I know how the bacteria would respond to enrichment by glycolatc. IIere I would like to LIMNOLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY 626 JULY 1975, V. 20(4) Glycolic acid and bacteria 627 address these problems by presenting more recent work on glycolic acid in freshwater. I will deal with three basic approaches before attempting to give an evaluation of the role of glycolic acid. These are the uptake and mineralization of 14C-labeled glycolic acid by natural plankton, the uptake and mineralization of glycolic acid by bacteria cultured from lake water, and results of artificially enriching lake water with glycolic acid.


The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was inspired by the world community's growing commitment to sustainable development. It represents a dramatic step forward in the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources. The IUCN Red Listing activity is the world's most comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of wild species and their links to livelihoods. Far more than a list of species and their status, it is a powerful tool to inform and catalyse action for biodiversity conservation, critical to protecting the natural resources we need to survive.


Mandibular retrognathism secondary to temporomandibular joint ankylosis has been a significant contributing factor for obstructive sleep apnea. Although several surgical methods including conventional osteotomies have been tried in the past, the intensive nature of the operation and its results which includes change in facial esthetics, occlusion and its long term effects on the TMJ preclude many individuals from undergoing osteotomy. Distraction osteogenesis, a less invasive surgical technique has been employed in our study on a routine basis in the management of sleep apnea, secondary to TMJ ankylosis, and the results have been gratifying.


During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, multiple variants escaping pre-existing immunity emerged, causing concerns about continued protection. Here, we use antigenic cartography to analyze patterns of cross-reactivity among a panel of 21 variants and 15 groups of human sera obtained following primary infection with 10 different variants or after mRNA-1273 or mRNA-1273.351 vaccination. We find antigenic differences among pre-Omicron variants caused by substitutions at spike protein positions 417, 452, 484, and 501. Quantifying changes in response breadth over time and with additional vaccine doses, our results show the largest increase between 4 weeks and >3 months post-2nd dose. We find changes in immunodominance of different spike regions depending on the variant an individual was first exposed to, with implications for variant risk assessment and vaccine strain selection. One sentence summary: Antigenic Cartography of SARS-CoV-2 variants reveals amino acid substitutions governing immune escape and immunodominance patterns.


Taking Meilihu Wetland Park in Zhongwei City of Ningxia as an example,principles and methods of planning desert wetland park based on the current situation were discussed.A thought of integrating natural ecology,regional culture,science and education to create ecological tourism in sandy area was proposed to achieve the purposes of wetland conservation in sandy land and sandification control.


I study how retirement delays in one generation affect fertility in the subsequent generation. I use administrative Dutch data and exploit the 2006 Dutch pension reform. The reform induced individuals born from January 1, 1950 onward to delay retirement while exempting those born earlier. I find that this reduced fertility among women with reform-affected mothers. The reduction is likely permanent and economically significant. I supplement my analysis with survey evidence and argue that the fertility reduction is driven by reduced grandparental child care supply. My results suggest that delaying retirement may undermine the goal of balancing pension systems through a resulting fertility reduction.


Traditionally, the problem of autonomous navigation is solved by dead reckoning navigation flight parameters (NFP) of the aircraft (AC). With increasing requirements to accuracy of definition NFP improved the sensors of the prima- ry navigation information: gyroscopes and accelerometers. the gyroscopes of a new type, the so-called solid-state wave gyroscopes (SSVG) are currently developed and put into practice. The work deals with the problem of increasing the accu- racy of measurements of angular velocity of the hemispherical resonator gyroscope (HRG). The reduction in the accuracy characteristics of HRG is caused by the presence of defects in the distribution of mass in the volume of its design. The syn- thesis of control system for optimal damping of the distortion parameters of the standing wave due to the influence of the mass defect resonator is adapted. The research challenge was: to examine and analytically offset the impact of the standing wave (amplitude and frequency) parameters defect. Research was performed by mathematical modeling in the environment of SolidWorks Simulation for the case when the characteristics of the sensitive element of the HRG met the technological drawings of a particular type of resonator. The method of the inverse dynamics was chosen for synthesis. The research re- sults are presented in graphs the amplitude-frequency characteristics (AFC) of the resonator output signal. Simulation was performed for the cases: the perfect distribution of weight; the presence of the mass defect; the presence of the mass defects are shown using the synthesized control action. Evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed control algorithm is deter- mined by the results of the resonator output signal simulation provided the perfect constructive and its performance in the presence of a mass defect in it. It is assumed that the excitation signals are standing waves in the two cases are identical in both amplitude and frequency. In this case, if the output signal of the compensating effects should coincide with the ideal signal at the most.


The effects of Fast Co-rotating Beams/HILDCAAs (High Intensity Long-Duration Continuous AE Activity) events on the Brazilian ionosphere (low and equatorial latitudes) are investigated here. The HILDCAAs events are associated with Fast Corotating Beams (following a selection criteria empirically defined by AE index) which are commonly embedded with alfvenic fluctuations originated in coronal holes of the Sun. The Fast Co-rotating Beams/HILDCAAs events are characterized by continuous activity of high intensity auroral currents for days (until weeks) in the absence of the geomagnetic storms and, moreover, some recent studies showed that the time-integrated effect of the particle precipitation can be greater than the magnitudes observed during intense geomagnetic storms. In this study, we analyze the Brazilian ionosphere dynamics during 11 Fast Co-rotating Beams/HILDCAAs events for 2003 (F10.7cm: 128.5MHz) utilizing the ionospheric parameters (hF, hmF2, foF2 and fmimF) obtained from ground-based Digisondes located at São Luis (equatorial region: 2.33S; 44.2W, dip 1.9S epoch 2003) and Cachoeira Paulista (22.41 S; 45W, dip 32.2S epoch 2003) as well as magnetic index (D ST ) and interplanetary parameters from ACE satellite (solar wind velocity, plasma temperature, plasma density and intensity magnetic field). The responses of ionosphere on the Brazilian region are widely distinct due to vast local variability of the magnetic equator and the territorial dimensions that enclose low and equatorial latitudes. In this way, such study intend to improve the understanding of the coupling processes involved in the ionosphere/magnetosphere/interplanetary environment system that is fundamental to the space weather so important at present.


Both the texture of as-deposited silver film and the same film annealed at 400℃ in vacuum atmosphere for 4 hours were investigated by XRD. The as-deposited silver film, as shown by quantitative analysis, has (111) and (100) texture component. After annealing at 400℃ for 4 hours, the (111) texture and (100) texture of the silver film attached to the silicon substrate strengthened greatly. The results were explained with the mechanism of grain growth driven by anisotropy of surface energy and strain energy.


Y{sub 3}(OR){sub 7}Cl{sub 2}(THF){sub 2} (1) (R = CMe{sub 3}) reacts with AgBPh{sub 4} to form a mixture of (Y{sub 3}({mu}{sub 3}-OR)({mu}{sub 3}-Cl)({mu}-OR){sub 3}(OR){sub 3}(THF){sub 3})(BPh{sub 4}) (2) and (Y{sub 2}({mu}-Cl)({mu}-OR){sub 2}(OR){sub 2}(THF){sub 4})(BPh{sub 4}) (3). At 0{degree}C the reaction favors 2, which can be isolated by crystallization from toluene at {minus}37{degree}C. 2 forms crystals in space group P{anti 1} (C{sub i}{sup l}; No. 2) with a = 14.131 (3) {angstrom}, b = 15.035 (3) {angstrom}, c = 18.712 (5) {angstrom}, {alpha} = 85.01 (2){degree}, {beta} = 85.02 (2){degree}, {gamma} = 81.75 (2){degree}, V = 3,908 (2) {angstrom}{sup 3}, and D{sub calcd} = 1.23 g cm{sup {minus}3} for Z = 2. Least-squares refinement of the model based on 4,692 reflections converged to a final R{sub F} = 9.1%. The three yttrium atoms in 2 form an equilateral triangle with doubly bridging alkoxide groups along the edges and triply bridging alkoxide and chloride ligands above and below the plane of metals.


The well tube at the offshore oil production platform are easily subject to corrosion.The corrosion forms and causes are studied by metallurgy analysis,SEM analysis,EDS analysis and X - ray fluorescent spectrometer,etc.The results show that the main cause of internal corrosion of tube wall in A06H Well is the combination effect of impingement erosion of turbulent flow and galvanic corrosion.


Abstract Microstructural and thermal studies on charge-transfer materials have been reported in this paper. Optical microphotographs of pure donors, acceptors and their compiexes have been obtained. Thermal analysis has been done to learn about their thermal stability and stoichiometries. Th solidification kinetics has been studied to learn about the role of heat treatment on these materials. Powder X-ray diffraction data and optical microphotographs have been obtained to evolve structure-microstructure - physical property correlations. It has been shown that these aspects, hitherto neglected, should be seriously pursued for developing a commercially viable process for organic electronic materials.


This bachelor´s thesis is about problems in non-governmental organizations. In the theoretic part describes the characteristics of this type of organization, legal forms, classification of the national economy and the sources of funding. In the practical part, a questionnaire was developed and submitted to social service providers to fill in. The next part deals with the characteristic of four non-governmental orgnanizations, whose employees filled in a questionnaire and an interview with director for SKP-CENTRUM PBO (Public Benefit Organization) was realized. This interview outlined an operation of the organization. Whole thesis is finished by a SWOT analysis. Results were compiled and evaluated in charts.


Traceability analysis is a technique that enables the verification of software requirements within the software life cycle. Within a context where there is a lack of common understanding of what must be traced, a number of methods have been proposed to implement software requirements traceability analysis, many of these methods dealing with software requirements expressed in natural language. This paper provides a graphical model to visualize software functional requirements that facilitates identifying functional traceability links. An application of the proposed model is illustrated through a case study taken from a process control system


Identifying live and dead states in an abstract transition system is a recurring problem in formal verification; for example, it arises in our recent work on efficiently deciding regex constraints in SMT. However, state-of-the-art graph algorithms for maintaining reachability information incrementally (that is, as states are visited and before the entire state space is explored) assume that new edges can be added from any state at any time, whereas in many applications, outgoing edges are added from each state as it is explored. To formalize the latter situation, we propose guided incremental digraphs (GIDs), incremental graphs which support labeling closed states (states which will not receive further outgoing edges). Our main result is that dead state detection in GIDs is solvable in $O(\log m)$ amortized time per edge for $m$ edges, improving upon $O(\sqrt{m})$ per edge due to Bender, Fineman, Gilbert, and Tarjan (BFGT) for general incremental directed graphs. We introduce two algorithms for GIDs: one establishing the logarithmic time bound, and a second algorithm to explore a lazy heuristics-based approach. To enable an apples-to-apples experimental comparison, we implemented both algorithms, two simpler baselines, and the state-of-the-art BFGT baseline using a common directed graph interface in Rust. Our evaluation shows $110$-$530$x speedups over BFGT for the largest input graphs over a range of graph classes, random graphs, and graphs arising from regex benchmarks.


The first factor of the class number of a cyclotomic number field can be obtainable by the analytic class number formula and there are some tables which show the decompositions of the first factors into primes. But, using just the analytic formula, we cannot tell what kinds of primes will appear as the factors of the class number of a given cyclotomic number field, except for those of the genus number, or the irregular primes. It is significant to find in advance the prime factors, particularly those prime to the degree of the field. For instance, in the table of the first factors we can pick out some pairs (l, p) of two odd primes l and p such that the class number of each lpth cyclotomic number field is divisible by l even if p 1 (mod l). If p ≡ (mod l) for l ≥ 5 or p ≡ 1 (mod 32) for l = 3, then it is easy from the outset to achieve our intention of finding the factor l using the genus number formula. Otherwise it seems to be difficult. We wish to make it clear algebraically why the class number has the prime factor l.


This article investigates how refugees' narratives of parental practices can be explored and conceptualised. Existing research approaches are critically discussed. Interviews are carried out with parents in 16 refugee families, resettled in Norway, and the narratives of their parental practices are analysed by applying the Bakhtinian concept of multivoicedness. Several contradictory mother- and father-voices are identified. Multivoicedness proves to be a fruitful concept for understanding the complexities of refugees' parental practices and their meaning-making in a new host country. Our analyses may contribute to less discriminatory social work practices. The analytical results are presented mainly by examining a detailed case.


The NaOH+Ni+C system has been found to lead to diamond surface recrystallization from a liquid phase at atmospheric pressure and about 800C under appropriate experimental conditions. Critical aspects of the process include the following: (a) The simultaneous dissolution of nickel and diamond-carbon in the common solvent. (b) The formation of an intermediate nickel-carbon complex which facilitates the availability of sp{sup 3} carbon for subsequent recrystallization on diamond {open_quotes}seeds{close_quotes}. The diamond formation is sensitive to experimental parameters such as pressure, temperature and time, besides nature and concentration of the chemical species involved. Preliminary results of varying some of these parameters are presented. these show variation in the overall growth morphology - from overgrowths of discrete morphology to continuous larger area deposits, under appropriate conditions.


The major goal of this article is to provide an interpretative review of the respiratory control system. First, we discuss two of the three basic elements of this system: the sensors and the contro...


It is now nearly a quarter of a century since the Supreme Court issued its opinion in the seminal utility-antitrust case, Otter Tail Power Co. v. United States.1 In that case the Court decided, by the slim margin of a 4-3 plurality vote, that a federal district court had the authority under the antitrust laws to enjoin an electric utility from refusing to sell or transmit wholesale power to municipal distribution systems for the purpose of precluding those systems from competing with the utility for retail customers.


Depth perception models are typically trained on non-interactive datasets with predefined camera trajectories. However, this often introduces systematic biases into the learning process correlated to specific camera paths chosen during data acquisition. In this paper, we investigate the role of how data is collected for learning depth completion, from a robot navigation perspective, by leveraging 3D interactive environments. First, we evaluate four depth completion models trained on data collected using conventional navigation techniques. Our key insight is that existing exploration paradigms do not necessarily provide task-specific data points to achieve competent unsupervised depth completion learning. We then find that data collected with respect to photometric reconstruction has a direct positive influence on model performance. As a result, we develop an active, task-informed, depth uncertainty-based motion planning approach for learning depth completion, which we call DEpth Uncertainty-guided eXploration (DEUX). Training with data collected by our approach improves depth completion by an average greater than 18% across four depth completion models compared to existing exploration methods on the MP3D test set. We show that our approach further improves zero-shot generalization, while offering new insights into integrating robot learning-based depth estimation.


Current developments in information technology has penetrated all sectors
of life. Many problems in various sectors that require ease, speed and accuracy
can be solved with the help of information technology. In the field of psychology,
psychologists to help diagnose developmental disorders in children. This study
makes an artificial neural network applications to be able to diagnose autistic
disorder in children with Elman Recurrent Neural Network. This application is
created as a tool for diagnosing autistic disorder based on physical symptoms
suffered by the child.
Artificial neural network method used is the method of Elman Recurrent
Neural Network, which is an unsupervised learning. This software is created using
the Matlab programming language with MySQL database. The symptoms of
autistic disorder are used as input for the diagnosis consists of 48 variables.
This study uses 75 units of neurons in the hidden layer with the
assumption that the number of these errors reached the optimum (minimum error).
This configuration produces MSE 2.96 e-21 and the iteration process runtime 510
with 161.06 seconds and the learning rate is 0.025
Testing the neural network is working well, which reached 80.83% testing
accuracy. These results show that the network has been recognized by both the
pattern that has been drilled, although there are some data that do not fit with the
target.


Coguvirus eburi is a member of the genus Coguvirus in the family Phenuviridae (Khun et al., 2020). The species Coguvirus eburi was established to include citrus virus A (CiVA), which is a negative-sense, single-stranded RNA virus that was first found infecting sweet orange in southern Italy via high-throughput sequencing (HTS) (Navarro et al., 2018). This virus was also found to infect pome fruits in France, such as pear (Svanella-Dumas et al., 2019). More recently CiVA infections have been associated with impietratura disease in citrus (Beris et al. 2021). In the summer of 2021, leaf samples were collected from a pear tree (Pyrus communis cv. Bosc, B175) in the Koue Bokkeveld, South Africa as part of a virus survey. Sample B175 displayed no visual disease symptoms. One gram of leaf petioles was used for total RNA extraction, using a modified CTAB extraction protocol (Ruiz-García et al. 2019). Ribo-depleted RNA was prepared (Ribo-Zero Plant kit) and a sequencing library constructed (Illumina TruSeq Stranded Total RNA). The RNA library was paired-end (2 × 100 bp) sequenced on an Illumina HiSeqX instrument (Macrogen, South Korea). A total of 47,750,152 reads were obtained. Raw data was trimmed for quality with Trimmomatic (SLIDINGWINDOW:3:20, MINLEN:20) (Bolger et al. 2014). De novo assembly performed with CLC Genomics Workbench 11.0.1 (Qiagen) (Default parameters) using high quality reads yielded 75250 contigs. BLASTn analysis identified two viral contigs with high nucleotide (nt) identity to apple stem pitting virus (ASPV) and CiVA. The CiVA contig was 9400 nts and on closer examination, a concatemer of CiVA RNA1 and RNA2. The concatenation occurred due to the characteristic near-identical nucleotides shared at the 5' and 3' ends of RNA1 and RNA2 of these negative-stranded RNA viruses (Navarro et al., 2018). After splitting and curation, the RNA1 contig was 6664 nts and the RNA2 contig 2686 nts. A total of 51397 and 34820 reads were used to construct these contigs resulting in an average depth of coverage of 761 and 1281 for RNA1 and RNA2, respectively. The contigs had the highest nt identity to the complete CiVA GenBank accessions MT720885.1 (95.53%) and MW148460.1 (96.03%), spanning 99.6% and 98.1 % of the genomes of RNA1 and RNA2, respectively. These contigs were submitted as partial genomes to GenBank as accessions MZ463039 and MZ463040. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to validate the presence of CiVA in sample B175. Two RT-PCR assays, directed at RNA1 and RNA2 respectively (Bester et al. (2021)) were used to generate amplicons. Amplicon sequences were confirmed with bi-directional Sanger sequencing. Twenty-one additional samples from the same orchard as B175 as well as other samples from the Koue Bokkeveld and Elgin areas, including cultivars Abate (10 samples), Forelle (10 samples), Early Bon Chretien (3 samples), Packham's Triumph (12 samples) and Rosemarie (3 samples), were all surveyed for CiVA using the same RT-PCR assays as mentioned above. Thirty-six of the 59 samples tested were positive for CiVA, which further confirms the presence and wide-spread distribution of this virus in the limited survey conducted in pears in South Africa. However, no association with any disease symptoms or specific cultivar were identified. This is the first report of CiVA infecting pear in South Africa. This study therefore contributed to investigating the distribution of this virus and will assist the South African plant material certification scheme to assess the incidence of CiVA in South Africa.


The present review deals with the Cubic liquid nanocrystal systems, in which the submicron-sized particles envelope a unique well-defined self-assembled nanostructured aqueous dispersions. Now a days such systems (reversed bicontinuous cubic and hexagonal mesophases) are attracting more attention to the formulation scientists owing to their unique structures and physicochemical properties. Various therapeutically active molecules can be solubilized in either aqueous or oil phase and be protected from enzymatic degradation, hydrolysis and oxidation. Furthermore, several researchers have proved the sustained type of release behaviour of the bioactive from the lyotropic liquid crystal systems. In this article, an outline of current advancement and status of cubic liquid nanocrystal systems, with respect to their types, fabrication methods and applications in the field of drug delivery are presented. In addition to these, the commercial potential of this system is also summarized.


Objective:To analyze the clinical and pathological characteristics of ANCA associated systemic vasculitis (AASV) with immune complex deposition in kidney.Methods:Patients with AASV,admitted in our hospital in last 5 years,were retrospectively studied.They were divided into two groups,the immune complex deposition group(group Ⅰ), and the pauci-immune deposition group (group Ⅱ).They are all treated with prednisone and immunosuppressant.The clinical and pathological characteristics and efficacy and prognosis were compared between the two groups.Results:There were fourteen patients in group Ⅰ and thirteen in group Ⅱ.There was no significant difference in age,gender,type of ANCA,interval between onset of vasculitis renal biopsy,and clinical manifestations such as fever and fatigue between the two groups.There was also no significant difference in extrarenal organ involvement at the time of biopsy, and hematuria,serum creatinine levels,and hypertension.However,patients in group I had significantly more Proteinuria.A trend was also observed for a worse efficacy and prognosis However,the differences did not reach significance.Crescentic glomerulonehpritis can be superimposed with other immune complex-mediated renal diseases such as membranous nephropathy and IgA nephropathy in group Ⅰ.Conclusion:Immunocomplex deposition was associated with a significantly greater degree of proteinuria,and maybe a worse efficacy and prognosis.Crescentic glomerulonehpritis can superimposed with membranous nephropathy or IgA nephropathy in AASV with immune complex deposition.


ABSTRACT Reliable information regarding interaction quality in preschools is essential because children's preschool experiences predict educational success. The Individualized Classroom Assessment Scoring System (inCLASS) is a new tool to assess interaction quality developed in the United States. Research on the validation of the factorial structure of the inCLASS—with the factors teacher interactions (comprising positive engagement, teacher communication), peer interactions (peer sociability, peer communication, peer assertiveness), task orientation (task engagement, self-reliance), and conflict interactions (behaviour control, teacher conflict, peer conflict)—is limited and inconsistent. This study aims to extend knowledge on the factorial validity of the inCLASS in Austrian preschools. The sample consists of 261 children (M = 49.54 months of age) from 81 preschool classes in Tyrol, Austria. Initial confirmatory factor analysis indicated negative residual variances and standardised factor loadings >1 for teacher communication and behaviour control. After modifications such as setting error residuals for teacher communication and behaviour control to zero and allowing the residuals of positive teacher engagement and peer sociability to covary the model fit was acceptable to good. The findings suggest a revision of the operationalisation of conflictual interactions and a consideration of attachment theory to explain the relationship between teacher interactions and peer interactions.


Babbage Cabbage is a new form of empathetic biological living media used to communicate social or ecological information in the form of a living, plant-based, slow media feedback display. This system provides a realtime indicator of the environmental threats derived from the careful amalgamation of data from multiple sources using red cabbages, also known as Brassica oleracea, as the output.


All students, from college freshmen to advanced graduate students, have asked themselves, "Will this decision make me happy?" The vast majority of them have been wrong. Affective forecasting, the process of predicting future feelings, is a topic of great interest to students due to its applicable and highly relatable nature. This article discusses the basic principles behind affective forecasting, explains common errors in forecasting, describes some specific applications derived from the forecasting literature, discusses and explains the connections between forecasting and happiness. It also discussed areas of application across the curriculum, particularly in the context of research methods, and considers the benefits and challenges of teaching this topic.


This study aims to describe the communication that exists in Asam Asam Coal Steam Power Plant Engineering Department, identifying problems in organizational communication, then prepare recommendations to improve the condition of organizational communication based on existing communication theory. The method in this research is descriptive with qualitative approach. Data are collected through observation, documentation, and in-depth interviews of engineering department leaders, predictive maintenance staff, system management staff, and information technology staff.  The results showed that organizational communication which is not running well implicates the performance of staff in achieving the vision and mission of the organization. The openness in vertical communication is one of the main factors affecting the effectiveness and climate of communication in achieving the vision and mission of the organization. Furthermore, to support the coordination function of Engineering Department, the structural position as supervisor is considered necessary as a command chain from Assistant Manager to subordinates in each division. Keywords: Management, Communication and Producer


Among all the four modulating modes currently available for SPR sensors,phase modulation can get highest sensitivity and has been widely used in the biochemical detection.At present,several methods including heterodyne interferometry,spatial interferometry,shear interferometry,Mach-Zehnder interferometry and ellipsometry have been developed for SPR phase detection.This paper introduces the principles,setups,properties and applications of those methods.


Diabetes is a chronic disorder caused by elevated glucose within the blood stream. The predominant indicator of diabetes include a glucose level of more 125mg/dl in addition to frequent thirst, unusual thirst, extreme fatigue blurred vision and frequent infection. Existing approach for the recognition of diabetes are to two classes (Type I and Type II) in addition to their subjective approach. This research paper proposed an objective approach utilizing soft-computing techniques for the recognition of five class of diabetes.


Because of the additional redundant sliding to 3-(2SPS) parallel machine,multiple solutions of inverse kinematic are found.It establishes the solution of kinematic equations of the machine,and studies norms of trajectory planning.Based on the norm of avoiding singularity,the simulations of trajectory planning are done.The result shows that redundant actuation can help parallel manipulator enlarge effective workspace,and eliminate the singular configurations.


The paper proposes a new mechanism for group communication which guarantees the total ordering of message delivery, especially the ordering on the members common to overlapping groups. The mechanism is based on a method which propagates messages to all destinations along trees. The approach has the following advantages over the propagation tree mechanism: (1) greater parallelism (messages can be sent to destinations by using broadcast networks); (2) less latency time (it takes less time to have a message reach all the destinations); and (3) more flexible to dynamic membership changes, (each change of process membership does not involve a restructuring of propagation trees).<<ETX>>


We discuss the possibility that baryon and lepton number violating processes in the elec troweak theory are unsuppressed at energies above 10 TeV. The relevant processes are those which involve a large number, 0(1/aw), of w±, Z, and Higgs bosons. In leading order dilute instant on gas approximation the amplitudes for processes like q + q --> 7q + 3l + nw W(Z) + nhH are very similar to point-like amplitudes and of order � n! exp(-27r / C<w ), where n = nw + nh. Both features, the locality and the n-dependence of the amplitudes, suggest that baryon and lepton number violating processes in association with multi particle production of bosons become strong, i.e. reach the unitarity limit with cross sections in the pb-range, already at parton CM energies of the order of 10 TeV with possible applications at future pp � 1 pb at an energy of the order of some tens of TeV. The results nicely fit onto the suggestions from the sphaleron picture and related energy considerations: above a threshold of the order of 10 TeV anomalous B - L violating processes are unsuppressed and associated with multiparticle production of gauge


Preface 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Examples of Time Series 1.2 Objectives of Time Series Analysis 1.3 Some Simple Time Series Models 1.3.3 A General Approach to Time Series Modelling 1.4 Stationary Models and the Autocorrelation Function 1.4.1 The Sample Autocorrelation Function 1.4.2 A Model for the Lake Huron Data 1.5 Estimation and Elimination of Trend and Seasonal Components 1.5.1 Estimation and Elimination of Trend in the Absence of Seasonality 1.5.2 Estimation and Elimination of Both Trend and Seasonality 1.6 Testing the Estimated Noise Sequence 1.7 Problems 2 STATIONARY PROCESSES 2.1 Basic Properties 2.2 Linear Processes 2.3 Introduction to ARMA Processes 2.4 Properties of the Sample Mean and Autocorrelation Function 2.4.2 Estimation of $\gamma(\cdot)$ and $\rho(\cdot)$ 2.5 Forecasting Stationary Time Series 2.5.3 Prediction of a Stationary Process in Terms of Infinitely Many Past Values 2.6 The Wold Decomposition 1.7 Problems 3 ARMA MODELS 3.1 ARMA($p,q$) Processes 3.2 The ACF and PACF of an ARMA$(p,q)$ Process 3.2.1 Calculation of the ACVF 3.2.2 The Autocorrelation Function 3.2.3 The Partial Autocorrelation Function 3.3 Forecasting ARMA Processes 1.7 Problems 4 SPECTRAL ANALYSIS 4.1 Spectral Densities 4.2 The Periodogram 4.3 Time-Invariant Linear Filters 4.4 The Spectral Density of an ARMA Process 1.7 Problems 5 MODELLING AND PREDICTION WITH ARMA PROCESSES 5.1 Preliminary Estimation 5.1.1 Yule-Walker Estimation 5.1.3 The Innovations Algorithm 5.1.4 The Hannan-Rissanen Algorithm 5.2 Maximum Likelihood Estimation 5.3 Diagnostic Checking 5.3.1 The Graph of $\t=1,\ldots,n\ 5.3.2 The Sample ACF of the Residuals


This research specifically aimed to develop the evaluation models of guidance and counseling service based CIPP in school. This research included as the kind of research and development. The used technique to collect the data in this development research of models consist questionnaire expert judgment and FGD (focused group discussion). This FGD activity involves counselor and supervisor of guidance and counseling in SMA in Semarang city. The structure model of evaluation of guidance and counseling service based CIPP to be: (a) rational, (b) definition, (c) purpose, (d) assumption, (e) intervention target, (f) steps, (g) competency and role of school counselor and (h) system support. Based on Wilcoxon analysis, Zcalculation was reach 3,18 whereas Z-table with significance level 5% got Z-table 1,96. So, the value of Zcalculation > Z-table and can be assumed that evaluation models of guidance and counseling service based CIPP was effective developed to increase the competency of counselor in evaluation service of guidance and counseling. Therefore counselor can take a decision accurately about changes which must be done in order to increase the quality of guidance and counseling in school. For the next research, socialization and training of evaluation models of guidance and counseling which is based CIPP needs to be followed-up with the program of matter refreshment and techniques in more effective implementation.


Purpose. The purpose of the study is (1) to describe the selection process of an international clinical guideline (CGL) for patients with low back pain (LBP) for adoption and implementation at the Physical Therapy Department at the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC), and (2) to evaluate the physiotherapists' compliance. Method. International guidelines were identified through a literature search and compared according to the AGREE instrument for selection. Quality indicators were selected. Physiotherapists were educated about guidelines' benefits and the content of the adopted guidelines during interactive sessions; patients' files were optimized and audited in order to evaluate compliance. Results. Out of six guidelines for LBP, we selected that of the Royal Dutch Association of Physiotherapy. Full adherence of physiotherapists to the educational sessions was noted. A total of 72 patient files were available. However, only 23 out of 72 files (32%) were complete to test the therapists' adherence to the new assessment forms using 13 quality indicators. A high level of compliance with a mean score of 90% was recorded for the diagnostic process indicators, and a low level for the mean score of therapeutic process indicators (42%) except the indicator for the advice to stay active (100%). The mean score for the outcome of care was very low (13%). Conclusions. Dutch guidelines for low back pain were selected for adoption and implementation. A relatively high level of adherence to guidelines recommendations was noticed in the diagnostic process and a low level in the therapeutic process. INTRODUCTION The ultimate goal of evidence-based practice (EBP) is improving the process and the consistency of care such as decreasing the variation of practice and improving patient's outcome.1 Implementation of clinical guidelines (CGL) is one way of achieving EBP. However, the literature has identified barriers to implementation related to the characteristics of guidelines to be introduced, mainly clarity and applicability, characteristics of patients (comorbidities reduce the chance to follow CGL), and physiotherapists (knowledge and acceptability of CGL) who need to change, and characteristics of organizations or environment (i.e. lack of International Clinical Guidelines at the American University of Beirut, Physical Therapy Department: Strategy of Implementation and Evaluation 2 © The Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice, 2010 support from superiors) in which the change will occur as well as patients' preferences, expectations, and behavior.2-5 On the other hand, facilitators include integrating CGL recommendations into training material, motivation of health professionals, their perception that practicing shared decision-making with patients will lead to a positive impact on clinical processes and better patient outcomes.4,6,7 The physical therapy department (PTD) at The American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC) started the process of quality improvement with CGL implementation. The population of patients with low back pain (LBP) was selected due to the prevalence of this condition locally; LBP outpatients' volume referred to the PTD accounts for 24% of the total referrals. The objective of this study was twofold: (1) describe the selection process of a CGL for LBP suitable for implementation in the AUBMC and (2) evaluate the therapists' compliance with the implementation of the selected CGL and the quality of care as measured by preselected quality indicators (QI) from the CGL in LBP. METHOD Five steps were followed for a systematic adaptation and implementation process.8 Step I, the selection of guidelines to be implemented. Step II, the selection of quality indicators (QI) based on the selected CGL. Step III, controlling the expected barriers by mainly educating physiotherapists about EBP and selected CGL in LBP applying the model developed by Grol et al; this model delineates five stages including several interventions, described in table 1.9,10 Step IV, was changing patients' management related to assessment and treatment. Step V, was the evaluation of the level of the compliance of the PTs to the implementation process by the audit of patients' files. Table 1: Strategy to be Followed by Health Professionals for Behavioral Change 9 Stages Interventions 1) Orientation Inform physiotherapists Introduction of evidence-based practice and clinical practice guidelines Promote awareness of clinical guidelines Distribution of clinical practice guidelines in low back pain and discussion 2) Insight Create understanding Provide insight into current management 3) Acceptance Develop positive attitude 4) Change Change clinical practice and patient's behavior 5) Maintenance of change Integrate change in daily routine Explain guidelines Simulate clinical and educational activities Regular repetition Include clinical practice guidelines recommendations in patients' assessment forms Use modified assessment forms for clinical practice and enhance critical thinking Change patient education material to fit evidence based practice Evaluate adherence in daily practice Monitor, send reminders, provide feedback Selection of the Guidelines (Step I) A search on Medline, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) sites was conducted.


The renewable energy source wood is particularly for heat production of great importance. To cover the increasing demand for wood, more and more wood is produced in short rotation coppices (SRC). By applying SRC on arable land there is a change from the cultivation of agricultural crops to fast-growing trees. Potential ecological consequences of SRC are shown in an actual literature survey. The survey indicates that the cultivation of fast-growing trees in SRC can lead to a number of positive environmental effects on soil and water conditions as well as biological diversity and enables a sustainable contribution to climate protection.


Background: Systemic autoinflammatory diseases (sAID) are a group of conditions with recurrent episodes of inflammation in absence of infection or autoimmune response. Its physiopathology mainly lies on mono/poligenic mutations involving genes related to the innate immune system response. Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) platformss have been a big step forward on sAID diagnosis, although a clinical and genetic correlation is still needed. Objectives: To review the sAID related gene panel variants identified using NGS sAID gene panel on a cohort of adult patients screened for sAID from a referral third-level hospital. To correlate genetic and clinical findings for sAID related variants identified in order to the clinical suspicion diagnosis of sAID. Methods: A retrospective review of a cohort of adult (≥ 16 yo) patients with available NGS sAID related gene panel (MiSeq Illumina sequencing platform including intron and exon variants from up to 17 sAID genes, with coverage depth > x100) among 2014 and 2019 was performed. Demographic, clinical and genetic data were collected in a database. Genetic variants were classified according to the American College of Medical Genetics/Association for Molecular Pathology classification as benign/likely benign/variable of unknown significance (VUS)/likely pathogenic/pathogenic. In case of polymorphisms or lack of genetic data, the variants were named as unclassified. A description of the cohort and an analysis of the correlation assessment between clinical data and genetic findings were performed. Results: 246 out of 299 (82%) patients with NGS sAID gene panel had clinical data available. 170/246 (69%) were adult patients. The medium age was 48 yo, and the M/F ratio was 2.46. 87/170 (51%) adult patients presented 122 variants involving sAID genes (60/87 patients with a single variant). All the variants out of 7 seven were heterozygous variants. Variants were classified according to ACMG/AMP as follow: pathogenic/probably pathogenic: 22/122 (18%), unknown significance: 74/122 (60.6%), benign/probably benign: 6/122 (4.91%). 20/122 (16.4%) were unclassified variants or polymorphisms. The most frequent variants identified involved MEFV (54/122), NOD2/CARD15 (18/122) and TNFRSF1A (17/122 including 12 p.Arg121Gln variants) genes. 37/122 (30%) variants correlated with the clinical picture in 33 patients, allowing to confirm the suspected diagnosis. Among the 122 variants, 7 not previously communicated variants were identified. No somatic variants were found. Conclusion: NGS sAID related gene panel is a useful tool for sAID diagnosis. In this cohort of 170 adult patients from a referral third-level hospital, genetic tests identified sAID related variants in almost half of them. 20% of patients who underwent genetic NGS sAID related gene panel studies were finally diagnosed with sAID. The identification of a genetic variant (even pathogenic / likely pathogenic variant) is not diagnostic for sAID if there is not a suggestive clinical picture. Despite genetic findings, a careful evaluation of clinical – genetic correlation is needed to confirm the suspicion diagnosis, especially for low penetrance variants like TNFRSF1A p. Arg121Gln. References: Diagnostic utility of a targeted next-generation sequencing gene panel in the clinical suspicion of systemic autoinflammatory diseases: a multi-center study. Karacan I, Balamir A, Ugurlu S, et al. . Rheumatol Int. 2019 May;39(5):911-919. doi: 10.1007/s00296-019-04252-5. Epub 2019 Feb 19. Disclosure of Interests: None declared


Objective To analyze the clinical characteristics and prognosis of children with anaplastic large-cell lymphoma(ALCL).Methods Twenty children with newly diagnosed ALCL were enrolled in the protocol of B-NHL 2001 from Jan of 2002 to Apr of 2010.Their clinical characteristics,therapy and outcome were analyzed.Results There were 9 males among the 20 children.The mean age at diagnosis was(8.7±3.4)(1.9 to 15.4) years old with the median age of 8.4 years old.Seven children were older than 10 years old.One patient was in stage II,11 in stage III and 8 in stage IV.The original tumor was found in cervical lymph node(8 cases),mediastinum(2 cases),abdomen(2 cases),groin(2 cases),axillary lymph node(2 cases),muscle(2 cases) and bone(2 cases).Fifteen patients had B symptoms.ECT showed that 6 children had bone involvement and 2 patients had bone marrow involvement.Elevated LDH and serum ferritin were respectively presented in 6 children.Pathology analysis showed that 17 were positive for T-cell markers and 16/18 patients were positive for ALK.All the patients were allocated into high risk group(R3).The estimated 5-year EFS and OS were(69.3±10.5)% and(74.0±10.1)%,respectively.According to univariate analyses,patients with more than 10 years old had higher risk for recurrence.Sex,immunophenotype,original tumor,stage,bone or marrow involvement,elevated LDH and SF were not associated with the recurrent risk.Conclusions B-NHL 2001 protocol was reasonable for children with ALCL and worth to enroll more patients.


This study aimed to know the critical thinking skills profil of senior high school students. This research using a descriptive study to analysis student test results of critical thinking skill of 40 students XI grade in one of the senior high school in Bogor District. The method used is survey research with sample determined by purposive sampling technique. The instrument used is test of critical thinking skill by 5 indicators on static fluid topics. Questions consist of 11 set. It is has been developed by researcher and validated by experts. The results showed students critical thinking skills are still low. Is almost every indicator of critical thinking skills only reaches less than 30%. 28% for elementary clarification, 10% for the basic for decisions/basic support, 6% for inference, 6% for advanced clarification, 4% for strategies and tactics.


Computer based navigated surgery assists the spatial orientation of the surgeon. Our system registers preoperative data like CT or MR with intraoperative ultrasound data to get the coordinate transformation between the preoperative and the intraoperative data. With a surface volume registration we avoid a difficult surface segmentation in the ultrasound data. To prevent radial exposure and to get more details in the soft tissue the use of MR data for the operation planning is common. Extracting the bone surface in MR data is more difficult than in CT data because MR data has no normalized gray values. To register the ultrasound with the MR data at the knee we detected distinctive anatomic regions in the ultrasound data. We selected an adequate MR sequence in which we could segment the bone surface at the specific region. We evaluate the registration with 1000 random starting positions. 99.2% of the 1000 trails reached the optimum with an error less than 1 mm.


Side is one of the best preserved cities of Antiquity in the historical Pamphylia area of Anatolia, current Antalya, Turkey. This archaeological site shows numerous standing structures and monuments spanning from the 7th century BC to the 12th century AD. The aerial and terrestrial survey conducted in 2016 was centred on the so called Episcopal Palace and the Fountain area with a total surveyed surface of 5,900 mq. The aim of the work was to analyse and recreate the existing structures in a 3D environment to help in later research questions like architectural features, building construction design and upgrades or location of the palace within the urban area. This paper intends to highlight the value of an accurate ground control point network to record an ancient urban site and its advantages when using CAD and GIS software. Moreover, it will also focus on the methodology used to capture the data used on the area of the Episcopal Palace to create an accurate 3D reconstruction of the remaining structures (with Structure from Motion) for further analysis and interpretations; merge classic survey methods (Total Station and Global Positioning Systems) with relatively new methodologies and hardware (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle); check and test the accuracy and the derived errors (data surveying gaps, traversing adjustments, coordinate and projection systems) that arise during post-processing (ellipsoid/geoid highs differences, noise reduction, fusion between datasets). Possible uses of the created/resulting data from the georeferenced point clouds, the model as a visual tool (orthophotos and 3D Mesh) for classic planning (elevations and sections) and its utility in a GIS environment (ArcScene) are also discussed. At the end of the paper report, some questions about the utility of the 3D reconstructions and models in Heritage as well as their utility for the archaeological record will be discussed.


The enhanced body activities after taking the nutritional addendum by athletes were observed via fluctuation in the clinical biomarkers. There are some previous evidences recorded that the nutritional supplements have a benefit and side influences, hence current paper was aimed to determine the potential influences of nutritional support compounds on biochemical parameters and kidneys damage among bodybuilders people. Two subjects of sportsmen bodybuilders; first group not take the nutritional supplements (control group), whereas the second group take the nutritional supplements (users group) were included within current study and screened for their serological level of creatinine, urea, total protein and albumin with measuring urine total protein and pH. The results showed that the mean titer of serum creatinine, serum albumin and urine total protein were significantly higher among users group compared to control group, whereas the level of serum urea, serum total protein and urine pH revealed non-significant different between both groups. For subjects aware to the risks and side effects of taking the nutritional supplements, the users group exhibited a significant higher frequency % of unaware to the risks in comparison to control group. In denouement, there is prodromal defect in the kidneys of the nutritional supplements consumers, confirmed by serum creatinine, serum albumin and urine total protein increase. Many of nutritional supplements users not have enough information about the consequences and side effects of the decompounds hence exercising related with abuse of it without consulting a dietitian may be


Metabolic changes in heart homogenate of Syrian hamsters with hereditary cardiomyopathy (BIO 14.6 strain) were examined. Oxidation of labeled fatty acids and acetate by myopathic homogenates was severely depressed; CO2 production from labeled acetate was only one-fifteenth of the control value, and butyrate oxidation was suppressed to one-fourth of the control value. Although the addition of carnitine enhanced the oxidation of palmitate and octanoate by homogenates from both healthy and cardiomyopathic hamsters, the magnitude of the depression of oxidation (60–80%) in the myopathic homogenates was not influenced by carnitine. No change occurred in the rate of formation of palmitoyl-CoA from palmitoyl-l-carnitine or in the activity of acyl-CoA synthetases; similarly, the one-step oxidation of [1-14C]pyruvate, [1-14C]α-ketoglutarate, and succinate was unimpaired in cardiomyopathy, and the oxidation of [2-14C]pyruvate and [U-14C]α-ketoglutarate was maintained at a relatively high level (63–71% of control). In contrast, oxidation of [1, 4-14C]- and [2, 3-14C]succinate and [1-14C]acetyl-CoA by the myopathic homogenates was depressed to only 40% of the control values. The mechanism responsible for these defects in substrate oxidation by tissue homogenates from cardiomyopathic hearts has not been elucidated; however, significant increases in the activities of two of five hydrolytic enzymes indicate the possible involvement of lysosomes. Ventricular RNA and DNA, the ratio of RNA to DNA and the ratio of heart weight to body weight were all significantly increased, but myocardial water and triglyceride content and esterification of [1-14C]palmitate into neutral lipids showed no significant change.


This paper analyses empirically the effect of external governance effect on loan in China's listed companies during 2001-2005 periods. The results show that firms with single-large-shareholder ownership structure have not more advantage in bank loan, credit loan and mortgage loan than other firms with check-and balance ownership structure and firms with relative controlling ownership structure, law has significantly positive effect on credit loan t loan, but the relationship become significantly negative effect on mortgage loan and secured loan. There has significantly positive effect on competition in product market and bank loan. However, the relationship is not significantly about credit loan and mortgage loan and secured loan.


Adherence, metabolic burst and chemotaxis of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) were examined in 15 children before and seven days after measles‐mumps‐rubella vaccine administration. In all children, PMN functions were significantly reduced on the seventh day. Adherence, metabolic burst and chemotaxis tested in three subjects one month after vaccination had returned to normal values. Only two children presented transient hyperpyrexia. We conclude that measles‐mumps‐rubella vaccine administration suppresses PMN functions without clinical consequences. This is probably because attenuated strains of vaccine viruses do not replicate in lymphoid tissues as extensively as do wild‐type strains.


This article addresses the unique regulatory challenges that relate to crypto-assets and blockchain payment systems and explores the values and benefits that are inherently subsumed within the assets' practical use and application. The emergence of blockchain-backed technologies and its corresponding appli- cations has created an alternative financial infrastructure and caused massive disruptions to the traditional financial ecosystem. Due to the utilization of blockchain or a decentralized ledger to facilitate the decentralized exchange of value between market participants, the asset-class has attracted new actors and raised new problems. The legitimization and mass-adoption of such assets will depend on the ability of world regulators to properly manage the risks and novel issues associated with them. Pertinent regulatory interests -- including protecting consumers and ensuring a safe and efficient market -- must be balanced with the avoidance of causing harm or otherwise the stifling growth within the industry. The current «wild wild west» or «regulatory sandbox» approach is not sustainable. While the current U.S. regulatory approach has enabled many nations to bridge the gap between the early stages of blockchain to today's environment, steps must be taken to assure a safe, efficient and thriving marketplace. Crypto-assets should not be forced to fall within preex- isting categories of regulatory interest. Instead, this technology has sparked the emergence of a new asset-class, deserving of thoughtful and specifically tailored rules, standards, and regulatory consideration. The research and analysis contained within this article will provide market participants, regulators, service providers, scholars and speculators with the ingredients necessary to the achievement of a mature and developed marketplace surrounding these assets.


The purposes of this study were to analyze achievement of the Korea Agricultural Extension Specialist Association and suggest new directions for further development. The Korea Agricultural Extension Specialist Association was organized to develop competencies in specialized field for extension educators in 1996. About 47% of extension educators joined academy during the 5 year period, even though there were many difficulty in organizing extension educators, the Korea Agricultural Extension Specialist Association has achieved to increase independent learning activity, to share new information and improve agent's competency. New directions for the future development of the Korea Agricultural Extension Specialist Association activities should include the following measures; 1) Academy manages to help member's competency, 2) Every member of the Association tries to make a concrete goal of activity, 3) The Association members should find ways to enable farmers to remain informed on agricultural extension services to people.


The X-ray in-line phase-contrast imaging technique requires that the light source provides a spatially coherent X-ray beam typically generated by a microfocus X-ray tube in most laboratories. However, its small focal spot limits the lightness. An arrayed X-ray point source can overcome this drawback and provide an adequately bright spatial coherent light. However, the arrayed source will introduce artefacts to the phase-contrast image due to the point source spatial distribution. To eliminate these artefacts, an optimization-based algorithm is used to reconstruct the image as an optimization problem. An iterative method was developed to numerically solve the optimization problem by using the first-order primal-dual algorithm. The simulations demonstrate its convergence and reconstruction accuracy.


A 1949 drill site in the Naval Petroleum Reserve Number 4, Alaska, the Fish Creek Test Well 1, was examined in August 1977 to determine the disturbance caused by drilling activities and to analyze the response and recovery of vegetation, soils, permafrost, and surficial materials to that disturbance. Man-made disturbances include bladed and unbladed vehicular trails, a winter runway, excavations, pilings, remains of camp structures, steel drums and other solid waste, and hydrocarbon spills. The most intense and lasting disturbance to the vegetation, soils, and permafrost resulted from bulldozing of surface materials, diesel fuel spills, and trails developed by multiple passes of vehicles. Thermokarst subsidence and thermal erosion, caused by increased thaw of permafrost due to disturbance, resulted in the development of a hummocky topography and water-filled depressions at the drill site. Some ice wedges disturbed in 1949 are still melting. Soil disturbance ranges from minor modification to complete destruction of the soil morphology. The effects of hydrocarbon spills are still detectable in the soils. Little of the original vegetation remains in the intensely disturbed area, such as around the drill pad where a grass-dominated community prevails. After 28 years, the vegetation cover is closed over most mesic sites, shallowmore » wet sites are well vegetated, and xeric sites, areas of diesel fuel spills and areas of severe erosion remain mostly bare. Pioneering plant species on bare, disturbed areas are members of mature vegetation assemblages from the undisturbed tundra which have high reproductive and dispersal capacities. A hypothetical model of natural revegetation and vegetation recovery is proposed.« less


In this collaboration it made a revision of the scientific literature about power relations in order to show the most influential paradigms in the Mexican Political Anthropology. This work has three objectives: 1) to offer a version of the field of study; 2) to make a critical analysis of the theoretical approaches used; and 3) to establish the relevance of current analysis models used in the field of the Anthropological Sciences for the study of power relations about Mexico.