BACKGROUND
Managing individuals with chronic health conditions in the primary care setting continues to be a significant challenge in the US health care system. This issue is further compounded for low-income individuals with both mental health and physical health chronic conditions. The Affordable Care Act provides opportunities to launch chronic disease Medicaid health homes (MHH) to address the existing health care gaps. Within a multidisciplinary team, the nurse serves an integral role as the main care manager and coordinator aimed to improve patient experiences, health outcomes, and lowering health care costs.

AIMS
The aim of this qualitative study is to assess the nurse's perception of their MHH role and how they may impact patient health care utilization patterns.

MATERIALS & METHODS
The qualitative study included a focus group of eleven nurses and individual interviews with seven nurses.

RESULTS
Six themes were identified that focus on how nurses can use a wide range of effective communication strategies and interpersonal skills to establish and maintain a nurse-patient relationship.

DISCUSSION
The six themes provided insight as to nurses' perceived role in an MHH and how they impact patient health outcomes. The overarching message addressed connecting with the patient and taking the time to find out what was important to them.

CONCLUSION
Nurses were able to impact patient health care utilization patterns.


The propagation of a spatiotemporal solitary pulse through a nonlinear semiconductor doped inhomogeneous medium has been analysed employing a variational technique. We have identified a new class of soliton which can possess the same energy but different width. Stability analysis is employed to check the robustness of the soliton, which shows that the identified soliton is stable.


A mathematical model for optimizing the 2-D potential distribution in the drift region of field-plate (FP)-assisted RESURF devices (Fig. 1) is presented. The proposed model extends earlier work [1-2] by including top-bottom dielectric asymmetry (typical in SOI devices [3]), non-zero field plate potentials VFP and grading of design parameters other than drift region doping. This generally-applicable, TCAD-verified [4], model provides a guideline for optimizing the drain extension in a wide range of FP-assisted RESURF devices.


This thesis is concerned with the problem of reliable message storage in an imperfect computer memory. We examine the type of imperfections that affect individual cells of the memory. For example, some of the cells of a binary memory may be stuck at 0 and unable to store information. A second type of imperfect memory cell is a noisy cell that is occasionally in error. The distinction between these two sources of error is that stuck-at defects are permanent while errors caused by noise are random. By testing the memory it is possible to determine the locations of the stuck-at cells. In this thesis we examine how the information that describes the state of the defects can be used to aid the encoding or decoding of messages.
First, a probabilistic model for computer memory with defects and noise is introduced. The capacity of a computer memory is defined as the largest rate at which messages can be reliably stored. We present a lower bound to the capacity when complete or partial knowledge of the location and nature of the defects is available to the encoder or to the decoder. This bound yields the capacity for several special cases including every case that involves complete knowledge of the defects. Algorithms are presented that can be used to compute the capacity of these memories. These algorithms are used to examine several examples.
Next, computer memory with stuck-at defects and additive errors are examined from an algebraic viewpoint. We examine the problem of efficiently incorporating defect information in the encoding or decoding of linear block codes. When the locations of the stuck-at cells is given to the decoder, these cells act as erasures. Thus techniques for decoding linear block codes with erasures and errors can be employed. A class of modified linear block codes is introduced to correct defects and errors when the location and nature of the stuck-at cells is given to the encoder.
The defect and error correction capability of linear block codes is characterized in terms of the minimum distances of the code. It is shown that every linear block code can assume a "systematic" form without affecting the defect and error correction capability. The capacity of a class of q -ary symmetric memory cells is derived using the information theoretic model. Two theorems are stated that are used to prove that the class of modified linear block codes achieve capacity for these memories.
Finally, the class of modified cyclic block codes is introduced. The BCH bound for these cyclic codes can be employed to construct MLBC's with specified bounds on the minimum distances. Parameters of binary codes for several block lengths are tabulated.


The polycondensation of trialkoxysilanes to PSSQs in a microreactor setup is demonstrated. While continuous-flow processes involving microreactors found various applications in chain growth polymerization, their influence on step-growth polymerization is less explored, and the polycondensation of multifunctional monomers has not been studied in detail. We found significantly increased yields and a decreased polydispersity of the obtained polymers in comparison to the batch process. By variation of the residence time molecular weights could be adjusted reproducibly ranging from M n =1900 to 11000 g · mol -1 . Thus, the microreactor setup offers for the first time the possibility to synthesize PSSO with adjustable properties.


The metamorphism on the southern side of the Tanzawa Mountains was studied in some detail (Seki and others, 1969a). In the present paper, the metamorphism and some mineralogical data of prehnite, laumontite, chabazite and stilbite in the northern part of the same mountains will be reported. Relation between tectonic movement, igneous activities and metamorphism of the Tanzawa Mountains is re-constructed by newly obtained data. Acknowledgements: The writers with to express their sincere thanks to Professor Toshio Kimura and Tokihiko Matsuda of the University of Tokyo and Professor Akira Tokunaga of Shizuoka University and Mr. Kiyoshi Ozawa of Hot Spring Research Institute of Kanagawa Prefecture for their valuable advice given in the field. They also thank Professor Akiho Miyashiro of State University of New York at Albany for his critical reading of this manuscript.


For the problem that the accuracy of the traditional the fiber Bragg grating (FBG) tactile sensor array unit is relatively low, which is caused by the lateral force. In this paper, we focused study on the small-structures of a single node of the array sensing unit, and designed the small-structures that can convert the exerted external force to the fiber axis tensile deformation. After using the finite-element analysis software to simulate and analyze the four kinds of small-structures, two kinds of small-structures were chosen for further research. In order to verify the feasibility of the chosen small-structures, a series of system performance tests were conducted. For the structure containing the arched bridge, the natural frequency is 17 Hz and the sensitivity is 0.38 nm/N. For the structure which contains a small hole and the FBGs locating in bottom position, the natural frequency is about 18 Hz and the sensitivity is 0.29 nm/N. The experimental results match the simulation results to demonstrate the good performance (high sensitivity and good linearity) of both the small-structures. In the performance tests for the FBG tactile sensor array unit based on one kind of the designed small-structure, the average positioning error is 0.057 cm2 and the average sensing force value error is 0.038 N. The array sensing unit has relatively high accuracy, which is expected to be used in the actual project.


In the device-independent (DI) approach to quantum information, correlations that are observed between separate quantum devices provide a guarantee that the protocol performs as expected. This guarantee follows independently of any assumptions on the local behavior of the quantum devices but it must necessarily rely on some specific constraints on the information that they exchange. Indeed, if arbitrary, unlimited communication is allowed between the devices, any kind of correlations can be generated, even in a scenario restricted to classical physics. In the standard DI framework based on Bell non-locality, the constraint on communication is maximal: the separate devices are not allowed to communicate any type of information, neither classical nor quantum. This no-communication constraint has the conceptual advantage of having a clear physical and operational significance. In particular, it is in principle possible to enforce it without knowledge of the internal behavior of the devices, i.e., by adequate shielding or space-like separation of the devices. However, the generation of useful, non-classical correlations in the absence of quantum communication must then necessarily rely on (loophole-free) entanglement, which presently represents a serious obstacle to practical DI applications. This difficulty has motivated the development of an alternative framework for DI applications, which is inspired by the traditional prepare-and-measure implementation of quantum key distribution and where communication is allowed between the quantum devices. As noted above, a constraint, though, must be put on this communication and it is usually formulated as a bound on the Hilbert space dimension of the exchanged quantum messages. With such a constraint, useful non-classical correlations can already be generated by restricting the communication to qubits or qutrits in a purely prepare-and-measure scenario, without the need of entanglement, which provides a clear advantage from the implementation point of view. Several protocols for randomness generation (RNG) and quantum key distribution (QKD) have been introduced within this framework, which is usually referred to as "semi-device-independent" (semi-DI). The downside, however, is that the dimension assumption, even if it represents a convenient abstraction for a theorist, is only an idealization. Carriers of quantum information, such as photons, live in an infinite Hilbert space, and assuming that information is encoded in only a few degrees of freedom is not justified without some intricate characterization of the devices (hence the terminology "semi-device-independent"). In this talk, we propose a physically better motivated approach for constraining the exchanged quantum messages in a semi-DI framework. We express the restriction on the exchanged states in terms of the mean values of some well-chosen observable, such as the energy.


conomic and social outcomes in Pakistan over the last sixty years are a mixture of paradoxes. The economic growth rate has averaged 5 percent annually since 1947—a feat achieved by very few countries. Politically, however, the interplay of religious fundamentalism, sectarianism, ethnic cleavages and regional economic disparities has made the country volatile and unstable. Various East Asian countries that were behind Pakistan in the 1960s have surged far ahead in most economic and social indicators. Pakistan has thus been unable to realize its potential.


Abstract There is considerable evidence to support the allocation of all eastern and southern African robust australopithecines to the genus Paranthropus, but the case for a polyphyletic origin is nol totally refuted. In order to assess the argument for convergence in the face of conflicting signals from the hominid remains, we have turned to evidence from patterns of geographic distribution in other monophyletic groups of larger African Plio-Pleistocene mammals. These distributions point to considerable contact between eastern and southern Africa in addition to the existence of regional representatives of other monophyletic groups. The suggestion that robust australopithecine monophyly is not an exotic interpretation is consistent with the evolutionary history of several other mammalian groups.


Abelian Sandpiles are commonly investigated on unbounded two-dimensional square lattices. Less explored is the behavior of sandpiles on three-dimensional surfaces. In this paper I investigate partially and fully closed sandpile graphs that can be wrapped around cylinders and cubes. Aside from attractive symmetries not possible on a uniform flat lattice, I am interested in the ways that bending the sandpile in on itself this way can produce novel interactions. I study how the quantity and placement of drop spots affected the final stabilized pattern aesthetically and the density of sand throughout the sandpile.


Let $(X, d)$ be a metric space and $\mathcal{C} \subseteq 2^X$ -- a collection of special objects. In the $(X,d,\mathcal{C})$-chasing problem, an online player receives a sequence of online requests $\{B_t\}_{t=1}^T \subseteq \mathcal{C}$ and responds with a trajectory $\{x_t\}_{t=1}^T$ such that $x_t \in B_t$. This response incurs a movement cost $\sum_{t=1}^T d(x_t, x_{t-1})$, and the online player strives to minimize the competitive ratio -- the worst case ratio over all input sequences between the online movement cost and the optimal movement cost in hindsight. Under this setup, we call the $(X,d,\mathcal{C})$-chasing problem $\textit{chaseable}$ if there exists an online algorithm with finite competitive ratio. In the case of Convex Body Chasing (CBC) over real normed vector spaces, (Bubeck et al. 2019) proved the chaseability of the problem. Furthermore, in the vector space setting, the dimension of the ambient space appears to be the factor controlling the size of the competitive ratio. Indeed, recently, (Sellke 2020) provided a $d-$competitive online algorithm over arbitrary real normed vector spaces $(\mathbb{R}^d, ||\cdot||)$, and we will shortly present a general strategy for obtaining novel lower bounds of the form $\Omega(d^c), \enspace c>0$, for CBC in the same setting. In this paper, we also prove that the $\textit{doubling}$ and $\textit{Assouad}$ dimensions of a metric space exert no control on the hardness of ball chasing over the said metric space. More specifically, we show that for any large enough $\rho \in \mathbb{R}$, there exists a metric space $(X,d)$ of doubling dimension $\Theta(\rho)$ and Assouad dimension $\rho$ such that no online selector can achieve a finite competitive ratio in the general ball chasing regime.


Background and aim: Neuropathic pain is one of the most common types of pain. Paeoniflorin (PF) is known to protect against neuronal injury, although the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Our study aims to observe the effect of paeoniflorin on pain behavior in rats with chronic constriction injury. Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into experimental groups as per the requirement. The behavior of rats was assessed by measuring the thermal withdrawal latency and mechanical contraction foot reflex threshold. We used HE staining to detect the changes in the number of neurons of the rats. Real-time PCR and western blot used to detect mRNA and protein level of Sirt1 and CREB. Results: The thermal withdrawal latency and mechanical contraction foot reflex threshold were lower in rats with chronic constriction injury (CCI) than in the sham group (P<0.05). However, the thermal withdrawal latency and mechanical contraction foot reflex threshold were significantly higher with paeoniflorin than that in the CCI group (P<0.05). The number of neurons cells in the CCI group was less than that in the sham operation group (P<0.05). Real-time PCR and western blot analysis revealed that Paeoniflorin can affect the levels mRNA and protein of Sirt1, CREB, and BDNF in the spinal dorsal horn and dorsal root ganglion, with higher concentrations of Paeoniflorin leading to better regulation effects. Conclusion: Paeoniflorin can attenuate the pain caused by neuropathic disease, possibly through upregulation of Sirt1 in the spinal dorsal horn and the dorsal root ganglion.


The disagreement among many workers as to the exact cultural characteristics of B. chauvoei has existed, to a certain extent, since Bollinger and Feser showed that the disease, blackleg, was to be differentiated from anthrax from an etiological, as well as from a clinical, point of view. Of late years this organism has been most commonly confused with two other spore-bearing anaerobic bacilli, the Vibrion septique and B. edematis-maligni. In a previous paper by one of us (Schlingman, 1924), it was shown by immunization tests that these three organisms were separate and distinct, and that blackleg immunizing agents made from pure cultures of B. chauvoei gave no protection against the other two organisms. The desire to differentiate these organisms further led to the following experiments designed to determine, if possible, some marked characteristic in culture media which would be of aid in further distinguishing one species from the other.


Given the scarcity of wireless resources, demand-side management for cellular networks is indispensable. In this paper, we investigate base station (BS) level dynamic pricing in the shared access C-RAN, such that the overall demand-supply equilibrium can be achieved. The main challenge is how to promptly and accurately determine the price for utilizing the resources of each BS, without knowing how users will behave when price changes. To this end, we adopt the deep reinforcement learning (DRL) method, which can learn from the environment and make decisions accordingly. We propose a domain-specific DRL-based dynamic pricing scheme and elaborately design the state, action and reward, as well as utilize other techniques for implementation of the dueling double deep Q-network (D3QN) algorithm. Simulations are conducted to test the trained network, and the results demonstrate the stability and performance improvement over baseline methods.


First of all, the fundamental model and operation mechanism of Particle Swarm Optimization(PSO) have been illustrated in this paper; then the effect of the parameters 1 2 , c c on particle behavior and the evolution of the algorithm has been examined through the particle displacement with iterative, the path analysis and the parameter testing of function. Further, several identified phenomena and the necessities of random selection in PSO have been discussed including the update space of the solution constantly collapses, the particle's "wandering" and "vibration", the evolution and biodiversity loss of particles. Ultimately, the causes of premature and the local convergence have been explored. Through the mentioned above, the operation mechanism of the model and the properties parameters 1 2 , c c have been well learnt.


It is known that the local cubic smoother (LC) has a faster consistency rate than the popular local linear smoother (LL). However, LC often has a bigger mean squared error (MSE) than LL numerically for samples of finite size. By extending the idea of Stuetzle and Mittal [1979, 'Some Comments on the Asymptotic Behavior of Robust Smoothers', in Smoothing Techniques for Curve Estimation: Proceedings (chap. 11), eds. T. Gasser and M. Rosenbalatt, Berlin: Springer, pp. 191–195], we propose a new version of LC by 'twicing' the local linear smoother (TLL). Both asymptotic theory and finite sample simulations suggest that TLL has better efficiency than LL. Compared with LC, TLL has about the same asymptotic MSE (AMSE) as LC at the interior points and has a much smaller AMSE than LC at the boundary points. The TLL is also more stable than LC and has better performance than LC numerically. The application of TLL to estimate the first-order derivative of the regression function and other extensions are considered.


In this work we present an investigation into nonlinear frequency veering of an elastic Euler— Bernoulli beam resting on a Winkler elastic foundation subjected to a static lateral load and hinged—hinged, with a torsional spring at one end. The beam is assumed to have an initial quarter-sine shape rise owing to a constant differential edge settlement. The beam static deflection is obtained by using a combined numerical—analytical procedure that accounts for the induced nonlinear axial force to mid-plane stretching. The harmonic balance method is used to solve for the nonlinear natural frequency of the associated nonlinear temporal problem obtained using the assumed mode method. The results are presented in the form of characteristic curves which show variation of the nonlinear natural frequency of the three modes of a selected range of system parameters. These results indicate that, depending on the system parameters, the nonlinear natural frequency of various modes can exhibit complicated behaviors not found using linear analysis.


This study aimed to make a comparative analysis of the packed and unpacked milk consumption behavior of the families living in Isparta Province of Turkey. Data were obtained from the questionnaires administered to 200 families in face-to-face interviews. Interviewed families were classified into three categories on the basis of their income level. According to the study results, mean unpacked milk consumption per capita was 6.08 liter per year while the mean packed milk consumption was 24.47 liter per year. Share of the food and milk expenditures were 28.71 and 7.87


Introduction Great Britain competed in the 2012 Olympics as the host nation, and enjoyed a highly successful Games. Recent years have brought success for British athletes across a range of sports, and interest and popularity for sport amongst the general public. Whilst not everyone in the UK would pursue sport to this professional level, everyone can obtain significant benefit through participation in regular physical activity and sport. Introducing this attitude early in the general population may improve the fitness and health of potential applicants to the military. Concerns about the physical fitness of the population and its effects on the military are not new: in the aftermath of Boer War, between forty to sixty percent of recruits for the British Army were turned down as physically unfit for service due to their low level of cardiovascular fitness (1).


A variety of di-, tri- and tetrasubstituted alkenes is prepared from the diazirines and aryl bromides and many functional groups are tolerated.


The survey described in this report was an investigation of a number of questions concerning trainers and research: what practising trainers think about research; the extent to which they are involved in or with research; the sources from which they get information about research findings and new developments; whether board‐sponsored research is getting through to them; their familiarity with a range of research tools and methods; their knowledge and assessment of a number of books, pamphlets and articles relevant to trainers and their work; and what problems trainers have with which they believe research could help them. The survey was conducted during the six months between April to September 1973.


Clear-cut monitoring is an important application for spaceborne SAR systems. With 17 ERS interferograms from the boreal forest of Sweden, obtained over a 3 year period, this paper investigates the use of coherence information for identifying clear-cuts. It is shown that coherence performs significantly better in separating clear-cuts from forest than intensity data, and can be used with a resolution about twice that possible for backscatter measurements based on a single image. The minimum area of cutting that can reasonably be detected is about 3 ha. The detection of clear-cuts tends to deteriorate with increased time between images. This is particularly significant for 13 interferograms from the rain forest of Brazil which have also been studied. These show generally lower separability than the results from Sweden.


After the fabrication of several devices showing memristive switching behavior, recently a growing interest to the realization of dynamical nonlinear circuits based on memristors has been manifested. Currently, many memristor circuits have been mostly conceived on the basis of theoretical memristor models. However, in order to analyze the dynamical behavior of memristor circuits with real components and to implement them, the characteristics of the fabricated devices have to be included in the models used. To this aim, a compact data-driven model is proposed in this paper. The model is based on neural networks and is derived starting from experimental measurements performed on printed TiO2 memristors.


There is an increasing interest in the detection of the sentinel node in early breast cancer but the method have found more resistance than its application in melanoma. Different reasons, particularly the lack of technical consensus may explain the delay in its use. The authors describe the techniques, their limitations and advantages and some practical aspects concerning to the radioguided detection of the sentinel node.


Electronic commerce is the result that information technology applied in the economic. The combination of third party logistics and electronic commerce can push the new economic mode develop quickly. This paper analysis the different modes of electronic commerce and explain their needs for third party logistics. Finally this paper discuss the function that third party logistics in the development of the electronic commerce.


Purpose
This study aims to empirically explore the nexus between FinTech and a firm's cash holdings.

Design/methodology/approach
A panel data regression analysis is conducted on a sample of A-listed firms registered on the Shenzhen and Shanghai Stock Exchanges from 2011 to 2019. To address simultaneity issues in the study, the authors use various endogeneity tests, including lag of independent variables, generalized method of moments and two-stage least squares estimation.

Findings
Results reveal that FinTech has a significantly negative effect on a firm's cash holdings, suggesting that FinTech development improves cash management by alleviating agency costs and reducing financial constraints. The findings remain consistent across different FinTech measures and alternative cash holding proxies, demonstrating that FinTech serves as a corporate governance mechanism.

Practical implications
The findings suggest that FinTech disciplines corporate managers and alleviates agency problems regarding cash holdings.

Originality/value
This study suggests that FinTech determines a firm's cash holdings.


Theorem 1. The convolution ∗ admits a commutativity constraint making Sph into a rigid tensor category. There exists a faithful, exact tensor "fiber" functor Sat : Sph → Vect inducing an equivalence (modulo a sign in the commutativity constraint) of Sph with Rep(G) as tensor categories, where G is the Langlands dual group of the reductive group G, whose weights are the coweights of G and vice versa. More generally, there is an equivalence Satn : Sphn → Repn(G) which is monoidal for each n, respects the factorizable structures on both sides as n varies (including the Sn-equivariance), and for n = 1, agrees with Sat when restricted to each point of X.


Employing the Haldane-Rezayi periodic representation, the crystalline determinantal Hall crystal mean field solutions derived in previous works are used to construct variational wavefunctions for the FQHE at $\nu=1/q$. The proposed states optimize the short range correlations in a similar measure as the Laughlin ones, since the zero of the states when the coordinates of two particles join is of order $q$. However, the proposed wavefunctions also incorporate the crystalline correlations of the mean field problem, through a determinantal mean field function entering their construction. The above properties, lead to the expectation that the considered states can be competitive in energy per particle with the Laughlin ones. Their similar structure also could explain way the breaking of the translation invariance in the FQHE ground states can result to be a weak one, which after disregarded, produce the Laughlin states as good approximations. Calculation for checking these possibilities are under consideration.


Objective To explore a novel chromogenic medium for screening of Salmonella spp.Method The substrate of the C8 esterase was synthesized, and the chromogenic salmonella agar (CSA) for detecting Salmonella spp. was developed. 116 standard strains were used to test the CSA. 342 food samples on sale were detected by CSA and other 3 kinds of traditional selective media in order to compare their selectivities, using the method of ISO (ISO 6579∶2002). Results Salmonella spp. including S.typhi and S.paratyphi A, could be effectively detected by the CSA method. The sensitivity and specialty were 100% and 98.8%, and both were better than 3 kinds of traditional selective media.Conclusion It was concluded that the sensitivity and specialty of the CSA were greatly improved.


In searching and locating a collection of components on the Web, users require a Web browser. Since the Web libraries tend to grow rapidly, there needs to be an effective way to organize and manage such large libraries. Traditional Web-based library(retrieval) systems provide various classification scheme and retrieval services to store and retrieve components. However, these systems do not include invaluable services, for example, enabling users to grasp the overall contents of the library at the beginning of retrieval. This paper discusses a Web-based library system, which provides the efficient management of object-oriented components and a set of services beyond simple component store and retrieval. These services consist of component comprehension through a reverse engineering process, automated summary extraction, and comprehension-based retrieval. Also, The performance of an automated cluster-based classification scheme adopted on the system is evaluated and compared with the cluster-based classification scheme adopted on the system is evaluated and compared with the performance of two other systems using traditional classification scheme.


We find a zero-energy corner state in a non-Hermitian quadrupole insulator without an Hermitian counterpart, and the response of the system near zero energy can be drastically different from Hermitian systems.


ABSTRACT ABSTRACT The issues which have persisted in connection with the so-called "entire function contribution" and in connection with alternative coupling coefficient form interrelate closely with the larges asymptotic behavior in the left half plane in SEM representations. To date, no generally applicable rigorous information has been gleaned about this asymptotic behavior. On the other hand, the specific scattering geometries of the sphere and the wire loop yield analytic solutions which can be analyzed asymptotically. Further information can be discerned on a numerical basis or through a procedure based on the discretization of an integral equation. All of this evidence form a mutually-consistent picture of the asymptotic behavior in question. The principal conclusion which results is that the observed behavior taken with the Mittag-Leffler-type expansion theory for complex functions leads to SEM representations which are free from entire function constituents.


The blue shift of optical transmittance edges were observed in amorphous semiconductor Ge(S, Se)2 chalcogenide films with light illumination. The shift in well-annealed films could be recovered by annealing the films near the glass-transition temperature again. The photocrystallization was also observed in amorphous Ge(S,Se)2 films with light illumination by the transmitting electron microscope measurement. The photoinduced phenomina of the amorphous Ge(S,Se)2 films could be applied to designing some new kinds of optical storage materials.


Aim. Search for the association of polymorphisms C(-15161)T (rs10902088) and T(-12150) C(rs10794288) of the MUC2 gene and С(-344)Т (rs1799998) of the CYP11B2 gene with the increased risk of genital endometriosis development in the Slavic population. Materials and methods. The study included 85 female patients (from 19 to 44 years old) with a diagnosis of genital endometriosis and 79 healthy women (from 20 to 42 years old). Genotyping was performed by real-time PCR using a Light Cycler 480 Instrument II amplifier (Roche, Switzerland). Polymorphism determination kits, MUC2 C(-15161)T (rs10902088), MUC2 T(-12150)C (rs10794288), CYP11B2 С(-344)Т (rs1799998) (CJSC Syntol). Results. It was found that the CC genotype of the T(-12150)C (rs10794288) C polymorphism of the MUC2 gene and the C(-344)T (rs1799998) CC polymorphism genotype of CYP11B2 gene are protective against endometriosis, and the TT genotype of C(-344)T polymorphism ( rs1799998) of the CYP11B2 gene contributes to the development of this disease. Conclusion. The search for molecular genetic aspects in the development of genital endometriosis is necessary for early diagnosis and prognosis of the disease.


Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disorder that characterized by hyperglycemia. DM resulted from defects in insulin secretion, action, or both of them. The chronic hyperglycemia can lead to diabetic complication which is considered as a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Marine invertebrates, sea cucumber have an impressive profile of valuable bioactive compounds, for instance, holothurians that exhibit a wide range of biological activities and have many therapeutic effects. This review highlights the valuable bioactive saponin on the complication of diabetes.


Di Francesco introduced Aztec triangles as combinatorial objects for which their domino tilings are equinumerous with certain sets of configurations of the twenty-vertex model that are the main focus of his article. We generalize Di Francesco's construction of Aztec triangles. While we do not know whether there is again a correspondence with configurations in the twenty-vertex model, we prove closed-form product formulas for the number of domino tilings of our generalized Aztec triangles. As a special case, we obtain a proof of Di Francesco's conjectured formula for the number of domino tilings of his Aztec triangles, and thus for the number of the corresponding configurations in the twenty-vertex model.


The paper Slowacki Among Scholars is an attempt to look critically at contemporary research concerning Slowacki's work. It presents and assesses scholarly publications ordered according to the following principle: presentation of the successors and continuators of the so-called "Lublin school" of research on romantic literature (Seweryn, Pyczek, KuczeraChachulska); and then proving that re-editing old works on Slowacki (Bychowski, Slowacki and His Soul. A psychoanalytic study; Kleiner, Juliusz Slowacki, the History of His Work; Kowalczykowa, Slowacki; Treugutt, Beniowski. The Crisis of the Romantic Individualism) is appropriate. A special stress was has been put on presenting Toszyriski's book The King-Spirit Inn. The Diary of Juliusz Slowacki's Last Years and Gacowa's work Juliusz Slowacki. A Bibliography of Polish Literature. A New Korbut. Hence the present treatise assumes a metascholarly shape and is a peculiar state of research; however, it focuses only on a quite subjective choice of the presented material. Reading contemporary works on Juliusz Slowacki's works allows the statement that up till now his work has provoked a lot of controversy and polemics. Scholarly investigation most often focuses on Slowacki's mystical works. Also very often it can be noticed that the interpretative plane of Slowacki's literary works is largely influenced by his biography.


Since the report of an attempt to formulate a Unified Braille Code (UBC) was first issued in early 1992, it has been widely discussed and debated throughout the braille-oriented community in the United States and Canada. In this short time, much confusion and much misunderstanding have arisen regarding its status, design, purpose, and potential impact on braille readers, educators, and transcribers. This article debunks 10 common myths about the UBC, in an effort to shed some sober light on a serious subject.


Recruitment, retention and training of the early years workforce are issues of concern to managers across all sectors. Research carried out in 2003 showed that 42 per cent of nursery nurses and other childcare workers were aged under 30, many being in their late teens and early twenties.


Certain inconsistencies exist in the current measurement of aggregate inputs and productivity in agriculture. These inconsistencies result from an implicit neglect of composition, a phenomenon of aggregate production. An alternative way of measuring the components of aggregate production, which considers composition as a separate component, is proposed. This alternative affords consistent treatment of both measures of aggregate inputs and productivity and places focus on changes in the structure of production as a source of growth.


The paper presents new versions of modularity measure for directed weighted graphs with overlapping communities. We consider several approaches to computing modularity and try to extend them. Taking into account computational complexity, we suggest two parallelized extensions which are scalable to large graphs (more than 10 4 nodes).


In this study, we examined the effect of three-sector interaction on business cycles in Keynesian models. Specifically, we considered the durable, fast, and investment-goods sectors. We modified and extended Murakami's two-sector Keynesian model of business cycles to a three-sector Keynesian model of business cycles. We investigated the conditions for the existence of equilibrium points. Moreover, we studied the stability of the equilibrium points on the basis of the concept of Routh–Hurwitz stability criterion. Finally, to support the analysis and the results obtained, we performed a numerical simulation on a specific example.


Objective: To investigate the role of modified endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy.Methods: A bone pore and a large membrane flap of dacryocyst were made under endoscope,and the membrane flaps of dacryocyst and nasal cavity were sewed up and fixed to the deep surface of the inner canthus by self-made needle in 42 patients(56 eyes) with chronic dacryocystitis.Results: Followed up from 3 to 21 months,51 eyes were cured,4 released,1 ineffective.The cure rate was 91.1%,and the total response rate was 98.2%.Conclusion: Endoscopic dacryocystorhinostomy has salutary effect for avoiding long-term anastomotic aresia.


Intracellular constituents of Pythium PRL 2142 leak from the mycelium when it is placed in distilled water. The effect of cholesterol association with the protoplasmic membrane of this fungus is to...


Objective: Observe FKHRL1 triple mutant( FKHRL1-TM) for training after balloon injury of vascular smooth muscle cells( VSMCs) proliferation. Methods: In VSMCs total RNA as a template,RT-PCR amplified FKHRL1 fulllength coding sequence of the gene,and cloned into the vector pc DNA3. 1 by site-directed mutagenesis kit of three loci FKHRL1 gene mutation,recombinant plasmid pc DNA3. 1-FKHRL1-TM,and then the recombinant plasmid transfected VSMCs. RT-PCR was used to detect the expression of FKHRL1-TM gene in the cells,and by MTT,flow cytometry,testing its effect on the proliferation of VSMCs. Results: Successfully constructed the recombinant plasmid pc DNA3. 1-FKHRL1-TM. FKHRL1 plasmid transfection group was significantly more than the amount of gene expression in non-transfected group. MTT,flow cytometry results show that the expression of FKHRL1 inhibit the proliferation of VSMCs( P 0. 05).Conclusion: The transcription factors of FKHRL1 increased expression and transcriptional activity increased in the VSMCs,and it can suppress excessive appreciation of VSMCs.


Objective : Make known everything about preventing hepatitis B and their attitude,evaluate this result of health education.Methods: Carry out questionnaire survey about hepatitis B,including something ordinary,relevant knowledge and attitude for 451 rural population.Result: Correctness is increased by 1.6%-17.5% after realizing route of transmission and how to prevent it.What's more,for 8 questions such as something ordinary and attitude for the patients of hepatitis B,correctness is increased by 2%-31% after education.Conclusion : health education should be carried out,and the effect is very well,but is not enough.


The design and preliminary results for a C-band relativistic backward wave oscillator (RBWO), which is magnetically well insulated, are presented. Under an external magnetic field of 0.36 T, the RBWO generated high power microwave radiation with a power of 3.3 GW and a frequency of 4.37 GHz for a diode voltage of 870 kV and a beam current of 13.5 kA. The electric field on the surface of the cathode holder was below the emission threshold, and an inlaid graphite cathode was designed to suppress the shunting current in the diode area. The device, operating with a low magnetic field and diode insulation, is a promising candidate for use as a permanent magnet package in high power microwave systems.


Cathode rays induce steady-state conduction in amorphous dielectric films only if their energy exceeds a threshold. A comparison between values for the threshold and theoretical data for the differential dissipation of energy of fast electrons in solids shows that at the threshold the electrons penetrate only half the thickness of the films. The space charge which develops under these conditions and which is made responsible for the occurrence of the threshold is studied by experiments in which both sides of self-supporting films of arsenic trisulphide are exposed to cathode rays. The interpretation of the results is discussed.


Multiphoton entanglement plays a critical role in quantum information processing, and greatly improves our fundamental understanding of the quantum world. Despite tremendous efforts in either bulk media or fiber-based devices, nonlinear interactions in integrated circuits show great promise as an excellent platform for photon pair generation with its high brightness, stability and scalability \cite{Caspani2017}. Here, we demonstrate the generation of bi- and multiphoton polarization entangled qubits in a single silicon nanowire waveguide, and these qubits directly compatible with the dense wavelength division multiplexing in telecommunication system. Multiphoton interference and quantum state tomography were used to characterize the quality of the entangled states. Four-photon entanglement states among two frequency channels were ascertained with a fidelity of $0.78\pm0.02$. Our work realizes the integrated multiphoton source in a relatively simple pattern and paves a way for the revolution of multiphoton quantum science.


Although the smartphone brings people more convenience and entertainment, many troubles are also caused, such as smartphone addiction problem. The smartphone gives rise to severe impacts on the life, study and work of users with poor self-control ability. Especially for those under age, smartphone addiction has become a global issue and receives extensive attention from the industry. This paper analyzes addiction index calculation method of smartphone Android system and anti-addiction system design, and displays the implementation of system functions.


In the thesis author analyses innovation technologies of political propaganda in the election campaign of the president of Ukraine 2010


Neurosonographic images and postnatal clinical results in 53 fetuses with brain abnormalities which were detected after 22 weeks were studied and archived. There were identified anomalies associated with perinatal or infant loss, severe perinatal long-term morbidity, fetal macrocrania, and with favorable clinical outcomes. Ultrasoud (US) fetal brain images associated with neuroinfection and antenatal distress were detected. Based on the literature review and our own observations the criteria for perinatal prognosis and the need for postnatal follow-up monitoring, depending on the characteristics ofUSpicture of fetal brain were developed. Given the limited opportunities of a retrospective single-center study further prospective multicenter studies that determine the antenatalUSchanges of the fetal brain and their association with postnatal outcome may be considered necessary.


The role of parents in accompanying children is needed, especially when they are at home. This study aims to determine how much a parent can play in the development of the skills of children who read and write al-q ur 's. These donations are in the form of helping children read and write the Koran at home on their own. The target of this research is two families in need 02/03 of the sukoharjo baki facility. The study employed qualitative field research methods. Selection of research subjects uses data-collection methods using interviews, observations, and documentaries. Based on research, keywords that: parents play an important role in raising children, children learn more quickly when parents often instill motivation, a short but effective time better than long but less effective, reading and writing the Quran will have a significant impact on the child's personality.Keywords: Children; Contribution; Parent; Read and Write Quran


Nitrogen was the element that limited the yield of dry beans. In the plots with P alone, the responses to the side-placed organic materials were very good and increased in the order: sugar cane thrash, Melinis minutiflora hay, Glycine javanica hay, coffee tree leaves, coffee fruit hulls and peanut hulls. In the NP plots, the yields were generally higher but only peanut hulls, M. minutiflora hay and the double dose of coffee tree leaves induced small increases.


In data storage systems, the phase-locked loop (PLL) in timing recovery can be modeled as a Kalman filter. Goal of the acquisition stage is to estimate the initial phase and frequency disturbances. Kalman filter achieves linear minimum mean square error (LMMSE) estimation, but it requires knowing the exact prior information. In practice, the prior information is not precisely known. In this paper we develop closed form expressions for the mean squared error (MSE) of phase and frequency estimation by Kalman filter with imprecise prior information. With them, we can quantitatively tell how much prior information mismatch can be tolerated


The effects of two periods of rest from grazing by sheep (either April-May or May-June) on the composition of swards of both an early-flowering (Aurora) and a late-flowering (Melle) perennial ryegrass variety grown with cither a small-leaved (Kent) or a medium-leaved (Milkanova) white clover variety are described. Compared with a continuously stocked treatment, the early rest period did not affect the mass of clover in the swards (expressed as a proportion of the total) but resulted in a subsequent decrease in its population density. The late rest period doubled clover mass in the swards at the time of cutting but did not affect the subsequent population density of clover. The magnitude of the change in mass during the late rest period depended on ryegrass variety, but not on clover variety. The adverse effect of the early rest period on the subsequent population density of clover was associated with the degree of shading experienced by clover laminae at the end of the rest period. Temperature may also have had an effect here as mean temperatures were cooler during the early rest period than during the late rest period. It is concluded that the effects of the two rest periods on the clover content of the swards were primarily due to timing, and less to inherent differences between ryegrass varieties.


'Ohio 7870' tomato transplants were planted in 25-ft rows on 15 May '85. Plots consisted of a treatment row buffered on each side by an untreated guard row. The distance between rows was 64 inches and the distance between plants within the row was 12 inches. Plots were arranged in a randomized complete block design with 4 replications. The soil was a Norfolk "A" loamy sand. All spray treatments were mixed in 10 gal of water and applied with a custom built row crop sprayer. Each row was covered by 6 drop nozzles delivering 50 gal/A at 90 psi. Treatments were applied 27 May; 2, 10, 17 and 24 Jun. In evaluating the treatments phytotoxicity was recorded on 7, 14 and 25 Jun using a 0-5 scale where 0 = none, 1 = slight phytotoxicity (yellow to white spotting), 3 = moderate phytotoxicity heavy spotting or discoloration, curling of leaves) and 5 = severe phytotoxicity (plant death).


The present study was designed to test if different indexes of fluctuating asymmetry (FA), each comprised of traits specific to certain periods of development, could be used to test in which of these spans individuals are vulnerable to the genetic and environmental stress factors that have been associated with the onset of the symptoms of schizotypy. Three FA indexes, composed of skeletal, facial, and dermatoglyphic features, were created. The individual traits that comprise these indexes were measured either from digital photographs taken of participants, or were directly measured via digital calipers. The participants' level of schizotypal symptoms was assessed via the short form version of the Wisconsin Schizotypy scales. Two way (Sides x Individuals) ANOVA tests found that FA was significantly greater than measurement error for all traits examined. However, the presence of significant directional asymmetry (DA) led to the exclusion of several traits from the total indexes. Correlational analysis found none of the resulting indexes to be significantly associated with scores on the Wisconsin Schizotypy scales. A small sample size, exacerbated by missing data for specific traits is considered the most likely cause of this lack of association.
Keywords: Fluctuating Asymmetry, Developmental Instability, Schizotypy.


Forty one genotypes including one check were sown in a randomized block design with two replications during Kharif 2017 at experimental farm, Department of Agricultural Botany, V.N.M.K.V, Parbhani. The phenotypic coefficient of variations were higher than the genotypic coefficients of variation for all the characters. The genotypic coefficient of variation was observed for fruit borer infestation and lowest for plant height. The high heritability with high genetic advance as per cent of mean was observed for fruit borer infestation, shoot borer infestation, fruit yield per plant, fruit weight per plant, fruit per cluster and fruit length per plant indicating that these characters were least influenced by the environmental effects and these characters were governed by additive genes and selection will be rewarding for improvement of such traits.


Two techniques for restraining the use of the automobile have recently become popular in the United States: residential parking permit programs and traffic restraint devices. While both the these approaches are aimed at restraining the use of the automobile in residential areas, they have little in common as far as appearances or specific purposes. The residential parking permit programs employ a licensing technique to prevent non-residents from coming into an area and parking their cars, while the traffic restrain programs use physical devices to prevent or minimize traffic from passing through an area. The first half of the paper discusses parking policies in residential neighborhoods. The causes of the parking problem, the effects it has on the neighborhood and its residents, and the potential solutions are discussed. A summary of parking policies in forty communities is also included. The second half of the paper is devoted to the use of traffic restraint devices in residential neighborhoods. The problem of through traffic and its negative effects on a residential neighborhood are discussed as the issues related to their implementation and effectiveness. Traffic restraint devices that are being used in the United States are described and traffic restraint devices in 37 communities are summarized. Case studies are given for Berkely, California and Seattle, Washington.


A rock garden is an integrated combination of rocks and plants selected to enhance both the cultural and aesthetic quality of the garden. To satisfy both the aesthetic and cultural requirements, a plant must be relatively low growing and have a growth habit that complements the natural effect of the rocks. The first Rock garden in China could trace back to Lushan Botanical garden, which was built in 1930s. This paper aims to investigate a recent constructed rock garden in Chenshan botanical garden and explore design principle of rock garden in China. The field investigation was conducted by two graduate students of Nanjing Forestry University in June, 2013. A base map was prepared to divide the site into zones to study. And the two researchers walked the entire study area to make sure the interior reliability of all observed species. The results indicated overall the growing condition for most species are good or fair while only a limited number of species are poor. Site selection, drainage, site background, rock selection, and planting design are all important factors for design principle of rock garden. The case study suggested that as a courageous attempt for abandoned quarry renovation, the rock garden in Chenshan Botanical Garden has successfully responded to various challenges and displayed the following characteristics: restoring the ecology of quarry, creating natural and cultural experience of oriental style and applying highly-difficult construction techniques. The success of the rock garden in Chenshan Botanical Garden also illustrated a new trend of garden design in post-mining site. It is hoped that more small-scaled rock gardens are proposed with application of local rocks in the future landscape designs in China. Key-words:Rock Garden; Plant Selection; Design Principle, Planting Design Modern Landscape Architecture ISBN: 978-960-474-355-1 67


Glycerides are reacted with ammonia in an amount of at least 200 liters per kilogram of glyceride per hour, at a temperature of 220' to 300° C., and in the presence of special catalysts. Of the product mixture which is formed and removed from the reaction with the excess ammonia, and which is composed essentially of the components water, the desired glycerol and fatty acid nitrile containing fatty acid and fatty acid amide, the latter component is returned to the reaction during the glyceride reaction. After completion of the glyceride reaction, which is indicated when the product mixture contains virtually no more glycerol, all the fatty acid nitrile containing fatty acid and fatty acid amide is fur ther treated, in an after-reaction with a reduced amount of ammonia and at higher temperature, in order to con vert the fatty acid and fatty acid amide impurities into fatty acid nitrile.


A recent boom in exploring therapies for atrial fibrillation (AF) and appreciation of the greater efficacy of primary prevention at the population level have highlighted the antiarrhythmic potential of traditionally non-antiarrhythmic drugs (i.e., agents with a negligible effect on the cardiac ion channels). Intervening to treat the conditions that promote the occurrence of structural changes in the atrial myocardium (e.g., hypertension and heart failure) and ultimately, to prevent, delay or reverse atrial remodeling associated with AF has been dubbed 'upstream' therapies [1]. Targeting specific mechanisms of AF (e.g., inflammation after cardiac surgery) have also been alluded to as part of this new approach. To this end, ACE inhibitors, ARBs, aldosterone antagonists, statins, w-3 poly unsaturated fatty acids, corticosteroids, and even specific antifibrotic agents (e.g., pirfenidone) have been subjects of antiarrhythmic drug studies in the AF [2].


care is cheap, not expensive." Patient Power: Solving America's Health Care Crisis is a fascinating book, which looks at our current dilemma in three sections. The first describes the cost-plus system of health care finance and how it evolved. The second shows why this system is creating our present health care crisis. The last section describes a system that will solve the majority of our problems and how we can get to it. The book is carefully documented and richly illustrated, with 101 tables and 64 graphs. "The only way to control costs is to have someone choose between health care and money" (that is, other goods or services), the authors write. This some-


Pregnant and post-partum rats were given daily doses of 20% alcohol during days 13-21 gestation and postnatal days 3-12, respectively. Following exposure, all rat pups, were tested for balance, blood pressure, right and left cerebral hemisphere weights, and cerebellar weight. Results were grouped according to exposure and gender. The postnatal group was the only one to demonstrate difficulties with balance. The mean arterial pressure in males exposed postnatally was significantly lower than the control and prenatal males. Females exposed postnatally had a significantly higher blood pressure than control females. Within the postnatal group, males had a significantly lower blood pressure than the females. Prenatal and control females differed significantly for left cerebral hemisphere (LCH) weight with the prenatal weighing less. Male pups exposed prenatally had significantly heavier LCH than the postnatal and control males. For both males and females, postnatal LCH weights did not differ from those of the control pups. Within the prenatal group, the LCH weight in females was significantly lower than in males. Mean cerebellar weights were significantly lower in postnatal animals compared to control animals. A major finding of this study is that the effect of alcohol exposure on rat pups depends on gender and developmentalmore » age.« less


Background: Hypovitaminosis D has been associated with a number of adverse pregnancy outcomes, and has been recognised as a public health concern. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of Vitamin D deficiency on maternal complications like gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and preeclampsia (PE) among pregnant women. Methods: This was a case control study undertaken at antenatal clinics and indoor of BRD Medical College, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. Two maternal blood samples, one at <20 weeks and other at term along with cord blood at delivery were taken. Patients were classified into preeclampsia (n=60), gestational diabetes mellitus (n=35) and control group (n=180) after abstracting past medical records at delivery. Vitamin D was estimated by 25- Hydroxyvitamin D125 RIA kit and categorized according to ACOG criteria. Statistical analysis was done by using chi square test, binary logistic regression and Pearson's correlation coefficient to compare between two variables. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Out of 275 women included in the study, 78% of women were Vitamin D deficient. Mean serum vitamin D was significantly lower among preeclamptic women 11.53±6.22 ng/ml and GDM women 12.62±6.69 ng/ml as compared to controls 24.25±14.44 ng/ml (median=18.2 ng/ml) (P<0.05). Vitamin D deficiency was significantly higher in pregnant women GDM (94.28% vs 68.3%) and preeclampsia (96.67% vs 68.3%) when compared to uncomplicated group. Conclusions: Maternal vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in early pregnancy and is significantly associated with elevated risk for GDM and preeclampsia.


(Z)-Sodium enolates of two α-azido ketones are O-formylated with Me 3 CCO 2 CHO in high yield to give isolable (Z)-β-(formyloxy)vinyl azides, which are converted to 1,2,3-triazoles under the influence of triethyl phosphite. A mechanism is proposed for triazole formation involving 1,5-electrocyclization of a vinyl phosphazide intermediate


Muslim-Christian conversation has historically broken down over three Qur'anic objections to Christian doctrine. The Trinity, the Incarnation, and the Crucifixion all seem to be repudiated in Islamic scripture. Karl Rahner, one of the Catholic scholars who drove Vatican II's theological agenda, did not comment much on Islam, so putting him in dialogue with a tradition about which he was relatively uniformed might initially seem strange. Nevertheless, and perhaps because of his distance from Islam, his thought might allow fresh angles with which to approach these core difficulties. In particular, his concept of divine modalities—which for him render Christianity "radically" monotheistic—makes him a useful dialogue partner for Islam, one of whose primary tenants is that God is one and not three. His focus on Logos theology gives him an inroad to the Qur'anic explanation of Christ as "the word of God." Finally, his "theology from below" allows for an experiential rather than metaphysical understanding of God's presence amongst humanity. This paper offers a Rahnerian grounding from which to approach the doctrine of God in Muslim-Christian dialogue.


Client-side JavaScript programs often interact with the web page on which they are included, as well as the browser itself, through APIs such as the DOM API, the XMLHttpRequest API, and the W3C Geolocation API. The continuous emergence and heterogeneity of different APIs renders the problem of reasoning precisely about JavaScript security particularly challenging. To tackle this problem, we propose a methodology for extending sound JavaScript information flow monitors. This methodology allows us to verify whether a monitor complies with the proposed noninterference property in a modular way. Thus, proving that a monitor is noninterferent after extending it with a new API only requires the proof that the API is itself noninterferent. We show how to extend an information flow monitor-inlining compiler so that it takes into account the invocation of arbitrary APIs and we provide an implementation of such a compiler. Using the proposed methodology, we present a group of monitor extensions for handling a fragment of the DOM Core Level 1 API for which we have studied information leaks not explored in previous work.


S. aureus is an opportunistic pathogen with an extensive host range, and is the etiologic agent of a wide variety of human diseases, with the ability to promote disease in most human tissues. A repertoire of virulence factors expressed during colonization and infection all contribute to the success of S. aureus as a pathogen. S. aureus is not classically considered as an intracellular pathogen, yet accumulating scientific evidence has demonstrated that this organism has intracellular survival strategies, with the ability to become internalised by, and persist within, a wide range of non-professional eukaryotic phagocytes. This phenomenon has been shown to be linked to the expression of genes under the regulation of the S. aureus quorum sensing system, agr. Specifically, S. aureus has been shown to breach the host-membrane bound endosome within which it is situated upon internalisation, a process which has been hypothesised to rely upon a switch in gene expression due to the accumulation of the agr signalling peptide within the endosome.

Many in vitro imaging modalities have been designed to investigate further the mechanisms behind S. aureus internalisation. However, in vivo systems such as bioluminescence and fluorescence reporter genes are limited by various factors including light extinction, restricting investigations to those using small animals. Additionally, as fundamentally two-dimensional modalities, useful anatomical information is minimal in these imaging techniques. At present few imaging modalities exist which enable the non-invasive in vivo detection of bacterial reporter gene expression while offering detailed anatomical information. This study aimed to address the need to develop reporter systems for the non-invasive in vivo tracking systems for the monitoring of infectious disease processes, in the context of using such a technology to investigate further the genes involved in the process of S. aureus internalisation, and more specifically, endosomal escape.

Although it is clear that agr regulated genes have a role in endosomal escape of internalised S. aureus, it is not fully clear which genes specifically are important. A number of haemolysin genes are under the control of the agr system, all of which have the ability to disrupt eukaryotic cell membranes. A β-haemolysin mutant was constructed in this study to use in conjunction with existing α-, δ- and γ-haemolysin mutants in in vitro internalisation assays. Initial experiments indicated a role for α-haemolysin in the endosomal escape of internalised S. aureus. The use of an in vivo reporter gene system would allow for further analysis of the role of haemolysins in endosomal escape, in addition to providing detailed anatomical information.

MRI bacterioferritin (BFR) reporter genes with inducible or constitutive promoters, the bfr gene and the lux operon, were constructed and evaluated in S. aureus. The reporter gene was shown to be translated in vitro, with the expression of functional BFR which collected iron. However, ICP-MS data revealed relatively low levels of BFR. Pilot in vivo studies were carried out to confirm the potential of the reporter gene for studying specific aspects of staphylococcal disease. Experiments tracking bioluminescence in a mouse tumour model demonstrated expression of the MRI reporter genes, suggesting that bacterioferritin should be successfully synthesised in vivo. However, due to plasmid instability in vivo and the relatively low levels of iron present in S. aureus samples as determined by ICP-MS, the tumours in this study were not scanned by MRI.


The MIL-STD-461F CS101 test is one of the essential conducted immunity tests for military equipment. The CS101 test includes some challenges in application. One of them is the necessity for the measurement of injected CS101 ripples under the power frequency of the EUT (Equipment Under Test). Especially for low frequencies which are very close to the power frequency, the measurement of CS101 ripples on the power frequency is almost impossible without taking some extra precautions. On the other hand, taken precautions to measure CS101 ripples must not affect the line impedance between the LISN and the EUT and must show high impedance to the test circuit. In this paper, we investigated the CS101 test and possible precautions to be able to measure CS101 ripples under the power frequency. We also focused on how to verify CS101 filters or attenuators, also an entire CS101 test system, just before starting a CS101 test for correct testing.


As we all known,the college student are in the main period of outlook and value,they are our country and nation's future and wish.The conception of livelihood of their own,which are going to directly affect the way and conception of party holding the rein of government.As for building harmony social,the important meaning can not be replace.Therefore,it is vital to tell the conception of people's livelihood in the ideological and political class,leading them to put their livelihood-conception and outlook with value together voluntary,and changing it to match with the right way.


Ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and polycarbonate pins were slid dry against continuous graphite fiber/epoxy plates in reciprocating multiple-pass wear tests for different values of virgin surface roughness, fiber orientation, and load. Scanning electron photomicrographs of the polymer wear surfaces were combined with three-dimensional graphs of wear rate versus virgin surface roughness and fiber orientation. The types of surface damage observed for UHMWPE at both an 8.9- and 35.6-N load were mild plastic deformation, fatigue of loose particles, and light abrasive cutting. The types of surface damage observed for polycarbonate at either load were massive abrasive plowing and plastic flow of material. The wear debris of UHMWPE consisted of rolled, cut, or extruded particles; for polycarbonate, clumps of transferred plateaus of polymer. The unit pressure times velocity (PV) limit for polycarbonate was reached when samples were slid against the most abrasive counterface transverse to the gra...


Noel Lohoue has studied the necessary and sufficient conditions such that the Riesz transformation on the Cartan-Hadamard manifold is summable and has showed that the summability of certain maximal function on the complex symmetric space can be reduced to the summability of‖(Δ0) -12f‖(x) and the summability of f(x). The result above wi ll be expanded to the non-compact symmetric space of rank one.


The compact Bowfell is an instant upgrade on the weedy sound and muddy dialogue that plague many slender TVs. For just £10 more, the Snowdon II is larger and puts out 120W, more than double the Bowfell's 50W power. Both deliver 2.1-channel sound and include Bluetooth music streaming.


When using ASBBR to treat the mustard tuber wastewater with high salt (Cl-of 20 g/L) and high organic concentration (COD of 8 000 mg/L) in winter,the activity of anaerobic microorganisms is suppressed by the high salt and low temperature,and the treatment efficiency is low.Aimed at this problem,betaine was added into the influent to improve the activity of anaerobic sludge,and the influence of betaine on treatment of high-salt mustard tuber wastewater by ASBBR was investigated.The results show that when the domesticated anaerobic sludge is used in ASBBR,the formed biofilm density is 50%,and water temperature is 8 to 12 ℃,addition of betaine can improve the treatment efficiency of ASBBR,and the efficiency can reach the highest with a dosage of 0.5 mmol/L.The average COD in the effluent after domestication is 4 461 mg/L.Compared with ASBBR without adding betaine,the activity of the sludge is obviously enhanced,the dehydrogenase content in anaerobic microorganisms is increased by 18.6%,and the removal rate of COD is increased by 18.1%.


This paper examines the behaviour of a group of 'street-level bureaucrats': the UK's MOT (certificate of roadworthiness) testers. We find differences in MOT failure rates across postcodes, days of the week and by car color. The postcode variation is worrying in a national test, especially as it is associated with road traffic accidents/fatalities. It plausibly arises from how these 'street-level bureaucrats' are regulated. The 'day-of-the-week' effect is also apparent in financial markets and so our evidence suggests this behavioral bias may be more widespread. The bias with respect to color is new and is unrelated to favourite colors.


This research is meant to implement the financial ratio analysis in order to predict the financial distress of PT Adira Dinamika Multi Finance Tbk. This research is limited to the fi nancial ratio analysis and bankrupcty prediction by using Z score from 2009 to 2011. The li quidity ratio is calculated by using current ratio encounters fluctuations from year to year. The activity ratio consists of total asset turn over and receivable turn over which in general indicates improvement from year to year. The solvability ratio consists of debt to total assets ratio and debt to equity which in general indicates improvement from year to year. The profitability ratio consists of profit margin, return on assets and return on equity which in general indicates the decreasing from the year to year. The Z score analysis indicates that from year to year in general PT Adira Dinamika Multi Finance Tbk indicates the decreasing financial condition from health category to bankruptcy category. The result of Z-Score analysis in accordance with the results of the analysis of the majority of the ratio which indicates the financial achievements which is getting down. The financial ratios which consist of liquidity, activity, solvability, profitability, and Z-score model are quite appropriate in order to predict the bankruptcy (financial distress) which will be encountered by the company. Keywords: financial ratio, financial distress, z-score


The purpose of this study was to determine if students' heart rate outcomes in physical education varied as a function of activity and grade. A total of 146 sixth to eighth graders participated in different activities (i.e., walking/jogging, line dancing, soccer, and catch ball). Their average heart rate (AHR) and percentage of time in and above target heart rate (PTHR) were used as outcome variables. The results yielded that students in line dancing exhibited significantly lower PTHR than other classes; no significant differences were found with AHR across the activities. Younger students (i.e., sixth graders) displayed significantly higher AHR and PTHR than older students (i.e., eighth graders). Educators must consider physiological effects that different activities may have on students when designing and implementing physical education programs.


An efficient five-step formal synthesis of osladin by utilizing the intact skeleton of diosgenin acetate is reported. Key features of this study include an unprecedented reductive opening of E-ring in steroidal sapogenin to give 22S-5, and an activation relay process for selective breakage of C16-O bond in furostanol to deliver 22R-17. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.


The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is currently preparing to enter its operational phase. In preparation, a risk-based management (RBM) program is being developed to ensure maximum safety and reliability of all aspects of facility operation. Training of workers, preparation of procedures, and development of emergency action plans are examples of activities currently being performed. The RBM program will verify the safety and operability of the facility prior to startup. Planned as part of the RBM is the selective application of the following risk assessment technologies: 1. operational readiness reviews, 2. vulnerability analyses, 3. safety analyses, 4. probabilistic risk assessments, 5. risk/benefit analyses. These tools provide a meaningful risk and operability analysis for startup and a useful end product for managing safety during facility operation.


Parents play a fundamental role in the upbringing of healthy and well balanced children. Sometimes these individuals whose union has bring into existence these youngsters are separated by divorce, work, death, abandonment among others leading the children to live with only a parent or guardian. This inquiry explores how the self-worth of in-school adolescents from separated families is impacted by the degree of parent education, the basis of separation and their custodians.  The researcher utilised the descriptive survey design. Simple random sampling technique was utilised to select two schools each from Ilorin, East, South and West LGAs respectively, making 6 schools all together. Three hundred respondents from separated families were purposively selected through consultation with school counsellors. The instrument used is an adapted form of Rosenberg measure of self-worth, which was validated and tested for consistency yielding co-efficient of 0.67. The study considered the flexibility of the self-worth of the in-school adolescents from separated families. Data amassed were subjected to analyses employing the Analysis of Variance. The outcomes of the inquiry revealed that the self-worth of the adolescents from separated families was undesirably affected particularly where their parents lack formal education. Similarly, the self-worth of respondents from parents whose unions have been legally dissolved was far worse. School counsellors should identify in-school adolescents from separated families particularly those from parents with no formal education and those from divorced parents and develop intervention strategies to assist them develop healthy and high self-worth. Also, counsellors should focus on refining the quality of parenting among single parents to help them lift the self-worth of their children/wards.


Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) offers the opportunity to achieve a better compromise between target volume coverage and sparing organs at risk. Used generally for prostate and head-and-neck cancer treatments, its routine clinical implementation is partially held back by the time required to perform pre-treatment quality control. The purpose of this study is to evaluate and then optimize the pre-treatment quality control in IMRT, using Statistical Process Control (SPC). For prostate and head-and-neck cancers, we retrospectively evaluated the treatment process quality using SPC tools. We found that using control charts during quality controls would have allowed us to detect deviations, such as multileaf collimator calibration, more quickly. The control charts also confirmed that our processes are only subject to random causes of variability, which means they are statistically controlled. The capability analysis showed that the treatment process is not capable for head-and-neck treatments, and is barely capable for prostate treatments. So, after identification all the factors affecting our processes, we will test their influence using the design of experiments and then try to act on those factors, to make both processes more capable. The final step is to consider reducing quality controls according to predefined statistical risks, instead of choosing them only by experience or intuition, in order to optimize the benefit/risk ratio. Key words: quality control, Statistical Process Control, radiotherapy


The target article on robust modeling (Lee et al. in review) generated a lot of commentary. In this reply, we discuss some of the common themes in the commentaries; some are simple points of agreement while others are extensions of a practical or abstract nature. We also address a small number of disagreements or confusions.


Forest products and water retention produced by forest are essential for the wellbeing of humans. Taking the subcompartment as the basic evaluation unit, based on geographic information system (GIS), we estimated the economic value of water retention by forest ecosystems in Benxi County of Liaoning province of china, and attempted to integrate evaluation and practical forestry management activity. The economic value of water retention by forest in Benxi County is estimated to be 146.57 million RMB which is about two times of the timber economic value. In addition, we analyzed the spatial distribution of evaluation results. Our work can effectively make the evaluation results into decision making in forest ecosystem management (for example, the division of forest for water retention).


There are several well-known and widely-used simulation packages. However, comparing between different simulation tools often raises controversial issues. Geant4 has rich flexibility and expansibility brought by its Object-Oriented approach, especially in adding physics processes. We can use Geant4 as a framework and plug-in the part of physics processes of other packages as Geant4 modules. In this paper, we focused on interfacing EGS4 with Geant4. EGS4 is one of the most wellknown simulation packages for electromagnetic physics. Taking advantage of the capability of Geant4 as a framework, we developed a plug-in interface for using EGS4 as a module of Geant4 physics process. This is useful and important for making comparisons between EGS4 and Geant4 especially in users' application level. In this paper, we describe our approach of design and implementation of the interface, and the results of basic benchmarks are also presented.


We study the time evolution of SU(1,1) coherent states driven by a damped harmonic oscillator as described by the Kanai-Caldirola Hamiltonian. The coherence of these states is preserved and their time evolution is described by nonlinear ``classical'' equations. The trajectories of all SU(1,1) coherent states in phase space asymptotically approach a common point as t\ensuremath{\rightarrow}\ensuremath{\infty}. In all cases, this approach is accompanied by a damping of the associated energy expectation value to zero.


Small Group evolution has been of central importance in social sciences and also in the industry for understanding dynamics of team formation. While most of research works studying groups deal at a macro level with evolution of arbitrary size communities, in this paper we restrict ourselves to studying evolution of small group (size ≤ 20) which is governed by contrasting sociological phenomenon. Given a previous history of group collaboration between a set of actors, we address the problem of predicting likely future group collaborations. Unfortunately, predicting groups requires choosing from (nr) possibilities (where r is group size and n is total number of actors), which becomes computationally intractable as group size increases. However, our statistical analysis of a real world dataset has shown that two processes: an external actor joining an existing group (incremental accretion (IA)) or collaborating with a subset of actors of an exiting group (subgroup accretion (SA)), are largely responsible for future group formation. This helps to drastically reduce the (nr) possibilities. We therefore, model the attachment of a group for different actors outside this group. In this paper, we have built three topology based prediction models to study these phenomena. The performance of these models is evaluated using extensive experiments over DBLP dataset. Our prediction results shows that the proposed models are significantly useful for future group predictions both for IA and SA.


Wearable devices, especially the smart glasses, are gaining growing attention from both academy and industry. However, the smart glasses are suffering from the lack of a safety user authentication method. In this paper, an anti-fake iris authentication mechanism is proposed. The iris recognition method combined with the consistency detection of pupil size change is used in our mechanism to ensure its robustness to fake iris attacks as well as its potential to be deployed on small devices constrained by energy and hardware. Through experiment, the effectiveness of the proposed mechanism is shown.


Abstract A novel liquid polyphosphonate polyol (DMDP) was synthesized from dimethyl methylphosphonate and 1,6-hexanediol. Reactive hot melt polyurethane adhesives with high flame retardancy (HMPURs) were prepared from poly(tetramethylene ether glycol) (PTMG-2000), two kinds of poly(1,4-butylene adipate) (PBA-2000 and PBA-3000) and DMDP or dimethyl methylphosphonate as well as tetrahydrofuran acrylate. Five specimens of flame-retardant HMPURs with different weight percent of DMDP (0, 2, 4 and 6 wt%) and dimethyl methylphosphonate (4 wt%) were obtained. The mechanical properties, thermal stability, flammability, and bonding strength of the specimens were investigated. The results show that with the increase of DMDP content, the elongation at break and tensile strength decrease slightly, and the flame retardancy of HMPURs is significantly improved with the limiting oxygen index (LOI) value increasing from 17.2 to 28.2. The incorporation of DMDP leads to a higher thermal stability of HMPURs at high temperature and more char yield at 650 °C. With the increase of DMDP content, the final bond strength of HMPURs on the same substrate changes little, but the green strength of HMPUR-6 on the same substrate is observably less than other samples. The performance of HMPUR with the reactive flame retardant is superior to that of HMPUR with the additive flame retardant. In addition, the corresponding flame-retardant mechanism of DMDP-containing HMPURs was investigated by pyrolysis-gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS). The results indicate that the pyrolysis of the HMPURs releases phosphorus-containing fragments to play a flame retardant role.


A future upgrade to the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) may be the replacement of the current regenerative cooled tube-wall nozzle with a nozzle using a regeneratively-cooled channel-wall design. The current tube-wall design represents the only major piece of SSME hardware that has not been dramatically updated throughout thc long history of the engine. There are a number of advantages to a channel-wall design including the promise of faster and lower cost fabrication and greater reliability in the field. The technical obstacles in the path of making this happen are many, particularly in the realms of metallurgy and manufacturing techniques. However, one technical area that can and should be addressed in the near term as part of the development of detailed component requirements is a systems type model of the fluid flow and heat transfer processes to which the new design will be exposed. This paper presents the results of an effort to develop a mathematical model of the internal flow for a generic channel-wall nozzle functioning as a direct replacement for the current tube-wall nozzle with a minimum of systems-level changes. Comparisons will be made to mathematical modeling results for the current tube-wall design and the results of various geometrical trade studies will be presented. It is the intent of this work to examine the feasibility of the concept of a direct replacement component with minimum systems-!eve impacts and to highlight potential areas of concern requiring further work in the future.


In this paper the analytical and simulation modelling of the combined heat and mass transfer processes that occur in a solid desiccant wheel is carried out. Using the numerical method, the performance of adiabatic rotary dehumidifier and enthalpy wheels are parametrically studied, and the optimal rotational speed is determined by examining the outlet adsorption-side humidity profiles. A comparison of solutions for different conditions used in the air dehumidifier has been investigated according to the previously published studies. These approaches have been developed for enthalpy wheels. The simulated results have been compared with the published actual values of an experimental work. This substantiates the validity of the model. In addition, the effect of wall thickness on outlet water content and the wheels efficiency for different rotation speeds and different sorption characteristics are taken into consideration. The model accuracy with respect to the key variables (outlet and inlet temperatures and humidity) is optimized to minimize margin of error. This method is useful to study and model solid desiccant dehumidification and cooling systems.© 2005 ASME


This paper develops a comprehensive analytical model and closed-form formulas for fraud risk under the belieffunction framework by incorporating the three components of the fraud triangle implied by SAS No. 99—Incentives/Pressures, Attitude/ Rationa lizations, and Opportunities. We also include mitigating factors either internal to an entity, or imposed externally, such as those included in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The model and formulas facilitate explicit consideration of the interrelationships between fraud triangle components as well as the impact of forensic audit procedures that focus on specific fraud risks. Our analyses show that fraud risk can be underestimated if interrelationships among the fraud triangle factors are not considered. As the strength of such interrelationships increase, both fraud risk and the possibility of understatement of that risk increases. Further analyses show that for clients with identified fraud risk factors, the presence of mitigating factors alone will not reduce fraud risk to an acceptably low level. In such cases, the auditors must perform forensic audit procedures to control fraud risk to an acceptable low level.


The invention relates to a suction and fixing device of a machine tool, especially to an oscillatory suction and fixing device of the machine tool. The device comprises at least one fixing unit (12) which has at least one fixing element (18) movably arranged on a housing (14) of the suction and fixing device, and is used for fixing the housing (14) onto a housing unit (20) of the machine tool. It is suggested that the suction and fixing device of the machine tool includes at least one axial stop unit (24) enabling the fixing element (18) moving along a movement axis (26) of the fastener (18) to stop at an axial position of the fixing element (18) relative to the housing (14) in at least one decoupling state of the housing (14) with the housing unit (20).


In this paper, a new method to control an active power filter using Neural Networks is presented. Currently, there is an increase of voltage and current harmonics in power systems, caused by nonlinear loads. The Active Power Filters (APFs) are used to compensate the generated harmonics and to correct the load power factor. The proposed control design is a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) control with two blocks that include Neural Networks. Adaptive networks estimate the reference compensation currents. On the other hand, a multilayer feedforward network (trained by a backpropagation algorithm) that works as hysteresis band comparator is used. A practical case with Matlab-Simulink is presented to check the proposed control performance.


Abstract Since acquiring money is not, and is not intended to be, directly in the social interest, the economic principles suitable for capitalism must, in the long run, resolve the possible institutional conflicts between acquiring money for the business enterprise and producing real output for the benefit of society-at-large. Mainstream economic theory since Adam Smith has suppressed this structural quarrel by presuming the capitalist monetary economy operates as if it were a barter economy. Ironically, money as an institution of capitalism is presumed neutral with respect to both employment and output, but President Lincoln never believed this, and in the Mercantilist tradition of Hamilton-Adams-Clay-Carey ("The American System"), his Greenbacks institutionally effectuated the National Capitalism of the(se) United States. At issue had been whether to concentrate capital (North) or disperse it westward (South), whether to create a national bank to finance internal growth (North) or whether to oppose the system of finance-capital and paper credit (South). Throughout the Civil War, the North's non-neutral view of money versus the South's (orthodox commodity-exchange) neutral view of money proved critical to this embattled national decision of societal production (North) versus State's rights. Ultimately, the North's instituting the monetary-economic insights of the National Capitalist via Abraham Lincoln proved decisive


L10 FePt has been proposed as a magnetic medium suitable for heat assisted magnetic recording, owing to its high magnetocrystalline anisotropy and moderate Curie temperature. Carbon has previously been used as a segregant creating small magnetically decoupled grains by sputter deposition at high temperature. Here, we deposit granular, segregated FePt films having a high degree of chemical order, coercive fields of 4.8 T, high remanence, and average grain size of 7.2 nm with 17% size distribution. Magnetic characterization reveals a large intrinsic switching field distribution of 15 kOe. We incorporate the results obtained by transmission electron microscopy, magnetometry, and x-ray diffraction into a micromagnetic model to better understand the origin of the intrinsic switching field distribution. We find that the dominant contributions to the observed magnetic properties are (i) a grain-size dependent distribution in anisotropy field and (ii) small angle variations in perpendicular anisotropy axis orient...


The spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 has been widely used as an effective vaccine immunogen, although some limitations still remain. Herein, O-GalNAc glycosylated RBD (Tn-RBD) was synthesized as an antigen via in vitro glycosylation reactions. The inhibition ability against hACE2 binding of antibodies induced with Tn-RBD was 30-40% increased compared to that induced with RBD. This result implies that Tn-glycosylation might play important roles in the immunogenicity of the RBD protein, which should be considered in the design of novel vaccines to fight against COVID-19.


Objective To assess the effect of SFMDLZT on Neuro-endocrine activation of chronic congestive heart failure (CHF) rat. Methods 40 SD rats were devided into 4 groups at radom, 10 rats per group. They are normal group, model group, treating group and contrasting group. The rat model of CHF was created by injection ADR in abdomen for 6 weeks, once a week. The treating group were given SFMDLZT. The contrasting group were given Captopril. After giving drugs for 12 days (treating group and contrasting group), the circulatory level of NO, ET, AngⅡ in blood of rats were studied. Results Model group in which the NO, ET, AngⅡin serum of rats are distinctively increase, which is notably different from the normal group (P 0.01). Compared with the model group, the NO, ET, AngⅡcontent in serum of treating group and contrasting group rats are all reduced (P 0.05 or P 0.01). That proves SFMDLZT can decrease the level of NO, ET, AngⅡ in blood. Conclusion SFMDLZT is an effective drug in treating CHF.


Of all probable structural weaknesses, the absence of vibrant bondmarkets never fails to make the long list of the causes of the 1997-98 East Asian financial crisis. A year after the financial crisis, Donald Tsang, financial secretary of Hong Kong SAR, cited the failure to establish a strong and robust Asian bondmarket as one of the reasons for the financial turmoil in East Asia, asking 'how is it that we in Asia have never been able to replicate the Eurobond market success in this part of the world?'(Tsang 1998). International financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank invariably pointed to the absence of efficient domestic bondmarkets as one of the major causes of the 1997-98 financial crisis (Independent Evaluation Office, IMF 2003). Even before the crisis, East Asian countries were urged to develop domestic bondmarkets to complement their bank-denominated financial systems. After the crisis, the development of local bondmarkets has been highlighted as one of the major objectives of financial reforms proposed by the IMF, World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) for East Asian economies. Parallel to reform efforts, there have been repeated calls for the establishment of regional bondmarkets in East Asia (Bergsten and Park 2002). Responding to these calls, and as the part of the regional efforts towards financial cooperation and integration through the Chiang Mai Initiative, the ASEAN+3 have taken steps to explore possibilities and modalities of creating Asian bonds and market infrastructures. There is a growing interest in regional bondmarkets in East Asia in the literature. Several strategies for the creation of new, and the expansion of existing, regional bondmarkets in East Asia have been put forward. However, despite these proposals on the need for regional bondmarkets, there is little


Strain rate response of two Hydroxyl-terminated Polybutadiene/ Iron (HTPB/Fe) compositions under electromagnetic fields has been investigated using a Split Hopkinson Pressure bar arrangement equipped with aluminum bars. Two HTPB/Fe compositions were developed, the first without plasticizer and the second containing plasticizer. Samples were tested with and without the application of a 0.01 Tesla magnetic field. Strain gauge data taken from the Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar has been used to determine the extent of change in mechanical properties by inducing a mild electromagnetic field onto each sample. Raw data from strain gages was processed using commercial software (Signo) and Excel spreadsheet. It is of particular interest to determine whether the mechanical properties of binder systems can be manipulated by adding ferrous or Magnetostrictive particulates. Data collected from the Split Hopkinson Pressure bar indicate changes in the Mechanical Stress-Strain curves and suggest that the impedance of a binder system can be altered by means of a magnetic field.


The purpose of this article is to make a deep and comprehensive of Schumann's Violin Sonata No.1 in a minor, Op.105. The article includes five chapters. In first chapter, the author describes the purpose, content, methods and steps of this studying. Second chapter introduces Schumann's life and his compositional characteristics. Third chapter is the analysis of Schumann's Violin Sonata No.1 in a minor, Op.105. By analyzing the music form, tonality, rhythm and the motive arrangements, the author displays the comprehensive understanding of the structure. In chapter four, the author provides his interpretation perspective according to Schumann's compositional style and the analysis of this piece. The author also mentions the technique in performing this piece. The article ends in a summary of the studying of this piece.


This study examines the effect of price on the decision by older workers and early retirees to take up health insurance for which they are eligible. The analysis is based on administrative data from a medium sized employer and takes advantage of a natural experiment created by the firm's health insurance contribution policy. For retirees, the amount the firm contributes toward coverage depends on when a person retired and her years of service at that date. As a result of this policy, there is considerable variation in out-of-pocket premiums faced by individuals in the data, but this variation is independent of the non-price attributes of the health insurance plans offered, and plausibly exogenous to worker characteristics that are likely to affect the demand for insurance. We find that price has a statistically significant, but small effect on the decision to take up coverage. The implied elasticities are very similar to results found in previous studies using very different data.