The plasticity and viscoplasticity of polycrystalline materials are studied analytically in terms of lattice dislocations, with the principal effects attributed to non-extended obstacles. Non-equilibrium statistical mechanics is used to describe the evolution of the dislocation structures during loading and unloading processes. A plausible variation in the probability density function for mobile dislocations for such processes is suggested. The proposed material model is in good qualitative agreement with several observed phenomena that previously could not be quantified on the basis of the dislocation theory. Numerical examples illustrate the effect of the rate of loading, the variations in the recovery effect as it relates to the extent of load reversal, and a means for treating materials that exhibit a yield plateau. In the limit, the proposed model yields results for inviscid plasticity.


Significance Studies to date have focused on the impact of border walls on national security, transborder crime, and the environment. This study addresses how border walls affect the way a country is viewed by the citizens of other countries, all else being equal. Using an experimental design that is replicated in the United States, Ireland, and Turkey, we find that the presence of walls on borders harms countries' international image. This is especially true if the country is known to have been the builder of the wall. Walls also lower evaluations of the bordering countries' bilateral relationship. Although the presence of a wall increases perceptions of a country's border security, paradoxically it lowers the perceived security of people within the country. This study assesses the impact of international border walls on evaluations of countries and on beliefs about bilateral relationships between states. Using a short video, we experimentally manipulate whether a border wall image appears in a broader description of the history and culture of a little-known country. In a third condition, we also indicate which bordering country built the wall. Demographically representative samples from the United States, Ireland, and Turkey responded similarly to these experimental treatments. Compared to a control group, border walls lowered evaluations of the bordering countries. They also signified hostile international relationships to third-party observers. Furthermore, the government of the country responsible for building the wall was evaluated especially negatively. Reactions were consistent regardless of people's predispositions toward walls in their domestic political context. Our findings have important implications for a country's attractiveness, or "soft power," an important component of nonmilitary influence in international relations.


Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social communication difficulties, repetitive behaviors, and parochial interests. Individuals with regressive ASD (RA), a unique subtype, have poor outcomes. Moreover, there are currently no validated blood-based biomarkers for ASD, hindering early diagnosis and treatment. This study was the first to examine plasma levels of total secreted amyloid precursor protein (sAPPtotal), secreted amyloid precursor protein-α (sAPPα), and secreted amyloid precursor protein-β (sAPPβ) in children diagnosed with RA (n = 23) and compare them with the levels in age-matched children with non-regressive ASD (NRA) (n = 23) and typically developing (TD) controls (n = 23). We found that sAPPtotal and sAPPα levels were significantly higher in children with RA than in children with NRA or in TD controls. In contrast, no difference was observed in sAPPβ levels. In conclusion, increased plasma levels of sAPPtotal and sAPPα may be valuable biomarkers for the early identification of ASD regression. Prospective studies will be conducted using a larger sample to further investigate these differences.


According to a widespread norm among legal representatives, legal interpreters should translate verbatim, or at least as close to the source utterance as possible. Yet, sociolinguists have shown repeatedly that the absence of verbatim translation is not inherently problematic. Differences between source utterances and their translations may in fact facilitate understanding. On the basis of a corpus of audio-recordings from a court in Denmark, we analyse differences between a request presented by legal representatives and then the interpreters' versions. We focus on a routinised and procedural request, usually presented by the prosecutor and addressed to the judge, and very often conveyed in a highly implicit manner. We demonstrate that the interpreters tend to elaborate and add particular types of information in their translation. We argue that the additions facilitate understanding for the accused, as many inferences, based on institutional insight, are needed in order to understand what the prosecutor means. We also point to the paradox that, although interpreters are tasked with creating understanding, it is almost impossible to assess whether they succeed and what insight the accused obtains. This is due to the institutional organisation of the type of court hearing analysed.


AIM
To assess the periodontal status and number of missing teeth in patients with newly identified pre-diabetes or diabetes mellitus.

METHODS
A total of 1097 subjects with previously undiagnosed diabetes were available for study, and were categorized into normoglycaemic, potentially pre-diabetes or potentially diabetes groups based on a point-of-care (POC) HbA1c test.

RESULTS
In fully adjusted models, significant differences were observed between all groups for the per cent of teeth with at least one site with a probing depth of ≥5 mm. For bleeding on probing, there were significant differences between diabetes and pre-diabetes (p = 0.001), and between diabetes and normoglycaemic groups (p = 0.002). For missing teeth, there were significant differences between the pre-diabetes and normoglycaemic groups (p = 0.034), and the diabetes and normoglycaemic groups (p = 0.004).

CONCLUSIONS
Individuals with previously unidentified pre-diabetes demonstrate a level of periodontal destruction between that observed for normoglycaemic individuals and persons with diabetes. These data emphasize the association of oral findings to dysglycaemia, and suggest that periodontal disease and tooth loss can be early complications of diabetes mellitus.


After a brief historical discussion of the energy quantization according to quantum mechanics of the rigid diatomic dipole molecule in a static electric field, the Schrödinger equation for that system is recalled. Previous attempts to obtain the energy levels clearly indicate that there is a need for a reliable method yielding very accurate eigenvalues for all values of the electric field strength. This is accomplished with the aid of new quantization conditions obtained by means of a phase-integral method involving a general phase-integral approximation of arbitrary order generated from an unspecified base function, which is chosen in two different ways such that, when the electric field strength is equal to zero, simple limiting forms of the quantization conditions give the exact values of the energy levels. The two choices of the base function are expected to be appropriate in the cases when the absolute value of the magnetic quantum number m is sufficiently large and sufficiently small respectively. For every value of m at least one of the two base functions should be useful.


The horticultural nursery crops are today produced in large greenhouse farms with structures, equipments, machines, heavy work cycle and organization that may cause work related stress. This research has set out to assess the risk of work related stress under the italian Legislative Decree n° 81/2008 and provide parameters to activate a project of prevention and promotion of well being at work. The work was carried out in a Tuscany big greenhouse nursery. The stress assessment methodology followed the procedures mentioned in the manual INAIL (National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work - ed.2011) by use of companies and the guidelines of the Tuscany Region. Data were collected from homogeneous workers groups and the results have showed a low level of risk for all groups so this has showed that the method of preliminary evaluations is sufficient to evaluations work related stress in horticultural nursery.


Non-invasive breath analysis has been used to search for volatile biomarkers of lungs and airways infection by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, PA, in cystic fibrosis patients. The exhaled breath of 20 PA-infected patients and 38 PA-negative patients was analysed using selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry, SIFT-MS. Special attention was given to the positive identification and accurate quantification of 16 volatile compounds (VOCs) as assured by the detailed consideration of their analytical ion chemistry occurring in the SIFT-MS reactor. However, the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of the concentrations of any of the 16 compounds taken individually were found to be low. But when a linear combination of the concentrations of all 16 VOCs was used to construct an optimised receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve using a linear logistic model, the diagnostic separation of PA-infected patients relative to the PA-negative patients was apparently good in terms of the derived sensitivity (89%), specificity (86%), and the area under the ROC curve is 0.91. Four compounds were revealed by the linear logistic model as significant, viz. malondialdehyde, isoprene, phenol and acetoin. The implications of these results to PA detection in the airways are assessed. Whilst such a metabolomics approach to optimise the ROC curve is widely used in breath analysis, it can lead to misleading indications. Therefore, we conclude that the results of the linear logistic model analyses are of limited immediate clinical value. The identified compounds should rather be considered as a stimulus for further independent studies involving larger patient cohorts.


This paper attempts to describe a laser diode driver circuit using the depletion mode gallium nitride high electron mobility transistor (D-mode GaN HEMT) to generate nanosecond pulses at a repetition rate up to 10 MHz from the vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). The feature of this driver circuit is a large instantaneous laser power output designed in the most efficient way. The design specifications include a pulse duration between 10 ns and 100 ns and a peak power up to above 100 W. The pulsed laser diode driver uses the D-mode GaN HEMT, which has very small Coss difference between turn-on and turn-off states. The analysis is according to a laser diode model that is adjusted to match the VCSEL, made in National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU). A design guide is summarized from the derivations and analysis of the proposed laser diode driver. According to the design guide, we selected the capacitor, resistor, and diode components to achieve 10 ns to 100 ns pulse duration for laser lighting. The experiment demonstrated that the maximum power-to-light efficiency can be as high as 86% and the maximum peak power can be 150 W, which matches the specifications of certain applications such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR).


Geotrichum citri-auranti, sour rot of citrus, causes economical crop losses on Satsuma mandarin and lemon in Turkey. Because the usage of guazatine was restricted in packinghouses, new solutions are required to minimize these pathogens. Thirty-two isolates of G. citri-auranti were collected from packinghouses in Ege and the Mediterranean Region and tested against fungicides. In this project, we examined the old postharvest fungicides; guazatine, thiabendazole (TBZ) and imazalil against G. citri-auranti and new generation postharvest fungicides such as pyrimethanil, fludioxonil and azoxystrobin at different doses in vitro and in vivo. We also studied sensitivity of pathogen isolates against fungicides in vitro. All of the isolates were found resistant to imazalil and TBZ even high doses of fungicides. It was found that 28% of isolates were sensitive to guazatine and 72% resistant. Both in vitro and in vivo tested azoxystrobin did not affect pathogen growth and decay development. Only guazatine was effective on pathogens growth and decay development. In vivo tests conducted on Satsuma mandarin showed that a combination of sodium bicarbonate (2%) and guazatine (900 μg/ml) and their combination were the most effective treatments for disease development.


P2P based topology (VoD) has become one of main technologies for video on demand(VoD). Up to date, large-scale VoD system encounters low concurrent resource sharing and VCR requirements. In this paper, we propose a trust model to incentive VoD users contribute their storing materials. And we focus on the discussions of trust component for computing and content redundant coverage in large scale VoD in this paper. At last, several measurements of trust and content coverage of pre-fetch scheme are exploited by simulations.


Abstract At present, robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) is a gold standard in radical prostatectomy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence, risk factors, and timing of occurrence of inguinal hernia (IH) after RARP. We included 427 patients with prostate cancer who underwent RARP by a single surgeon from February 2006 to August 2017. Incidence, clinical, and pathological factors were investigated to assess relationship with the development of IH. Postoperative IH occurred in 29 cases (6.79% of all RARP patients), whereas 22 cases (75.9% of all IH patients) occurred within the first 2 years. The median follow-up period was 5.2 years, and the median age of patients was 65 years. Postoperative IH occurrence was significantly associated with body mass index (BMI), smoking history, and low surgeon experience (P = .036, .023, and .048, respectively). However, low surgeon experience did not reach statistical significance after multivariate analysis. The overall incidence of IH after RARP was significantly associated with BMI and smoking history. With obvious incidence of IH within the first 2 years after operation which was not observed at the open prostatectomy, RARP itself may play a role in the development of IH.


Objective Epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (EGFR/HER1) is overexpressed in human pancreatic cancers. However, anti-EGFR therapy does not exhibit significant therapeutic activity with oncogenic K-ras mutation. We sought to assess the signaling relationship between EGFR and mutant K-ras, which is commonly detected in pancreatic cancer. Methods Pancreatic cancer cells harboring mutated K-ras were treated with EGF to assess signaling from EGFR to mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. The role of Ras family of proteins in transducing EGFR signals was assessed using short interfering RNA. Other components of MAPK and PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase) pathways were examined for their roles in EGFR signaling. Results First, EGF signaling in pancreatic cancer cells occurs selectively through HER1. Second, knockdown of all Ras isoforms failed to block EGF-mediated phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). Inhibition of Raf was observed to partially abrogate ERK phosphorylation, whereas MEK inhibition resulted in complete attenuation of EGF-mediated ERK phosphorylation. Finally, inhibition of phosphoinositide 3-kinase/AKT and CDC42/PAK pathways did not block EGFR signaling. Conclusions Our study results demonstrate that EGFR-mediated signaling in mutant K-ras pancreatic cancer cells does not follow canonical MAPK signaling. Our novel findings suggest the existence of alternate signaling pathways to downstream MAPK in the presence of mutant K-ras.


Designing navigation aids for older pedestrians could help them stay autonomous in their daily activities. Here we present a rich description of the navigation experience of older pedestrians either with visual (augmented reality glasses) or auditory (bone conduction headphones) wearable devices adapted to age-related declines. In a study with 18 participants we measured the navigation performance and applied the Explicitation Interview Technique to capture detailed descriptions of the users' experience. We highlight three main phenomena which impact the quality of the user experience with the two devices: (1) the transformation of the peripheral awareness, (2) the contextualization of information, and (3) the emergence of feelings along the route. This study adds a new understanding of the navigation experience by older people and is discussed in terms of design recommendations for navigation devices.


Previous studies have shown that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can mediate plant interactions, thereby affecting plant community structure. Little is known, however, about whether the presence of different AMF species leads to differences in plant community structure or invasion success by introduced species. To investigate the effects of AMF species on community structure and invasion, we created replicate microcosms containing soil inoculated with one of three different AMF species (Glomus spurcum Pfeiffer, Walker & Bloss, Scutellospora erythropa (Koske & Walker) Walker & Sanders, or Scutellospora verrucosa (Koske & Walker) Walker & Sanders) or a mixture of all three AMF species. Seeds of seven naturally co-occurring plant species (Ageratum conyzoides L., Cyperus compressus L., Chamaecrista nictitans (L.), Crotalaria incana L., Hyptis pectinata (L.) Poit., Sida rhombifolia L., Melinis repens (Willd.) Zizka) in Hawai'i were sown equally into these microcosms, which were placed on outdoor benches. Plant community development was monitored over a season. Mid-way through the experiment, an invader (Bidens pilosa L.) was added to the established communities to determine whether mycorrhizal species identity affected invasion success. Final aboveground and belowground phytomass were used to assess plant community differences among treatments. Although the identity of the dominant plant species (Melinis repens) remained the same in all treatments, community dominance, community productivity, plant species richness, Shannon index of diversity, and invasion success all varied with AMF species identity. Invasion success was not inversely related to species richness or diversity. Instead, increased richness, diversity, and invasion success all appeared to be related to decreased dominance by M. repens in the presence of certain AMF species. These results indicate that the composition of the AMF community belowground can influence the structure of the plant community aboveground, and may play a role in facilitating or repelling invasion.


Objective: Endovascular treatment of a patient with acute embolism of the brachiocephalic artery (BCA) is reported. Case Presentations: A 70-year-old woman presenting with weakness of the right upper extremity was transferred to our hospital due to acute embolism of the BCA. After the right brachial artery was secured by direct cardiovascular surgery, a balloon guidewire was inserted through the femoral artery and advanced near the thrombus in the BCA, and the balloon at its tip was inflated in the right internal carotid artery. Immediately after this, the thrombus in the BCA migrated to the right common carotid artery and right subclavian artery. The two vessels could be recanalized by endovascular treatment via a guide catheter and via the right brachial artery, respectively. Conclusion: In endovascular treatment for acute embolization of the BCA, the methods for thrombus retrieval and distal protection have not been established, and the concurrent direct surgery and cooperation by a cardiologist are indispensable.


Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the commonest inherited cardiac condition. Many patients have resting or provocable left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) obstruction. Symptoms treated with drugs or surgery may improve. There is a need to improve the clinical assessment in individual patients, because of the often poor correlation between symptoms and LVOT gradient, and the association with complications such as stroke, heart failure and sudden cardiac death. In addition, in a proportion of patients with significant LVOT gradients, relief of obstruction does not adequately improve symptoms. Reduced angulation between the inter-ventricular septum and the aorta is a determinant of LVOT obstruction. However, lack of a standardised method of measurement in HCM without recourse to complex 3-D imaging limits the usefulness of this parameter in routine practice. Transthoracic echocardiography is widely available, and can be used to measure aorto-septal angulation. However, data in HCM are lacking. I validated a simple measurement of aorto-septal angulation using 2-D echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and determined its relation to provocable LVOT obstruction in HCM. I showed this technique to be easy, reproducible, comparable to magnetic resonance imaging, and can be quickly calculated using standard echocardiographic software. Patients have a smaller aorto-septal angle than controls, where it is associated with higher peak LVOT gradient. A reduced aorto-septal angle is highly specific for provocable LVOT obstruction and should prompt further evaluation in symptomatic patients without resting gradients. I used a non-invasive technique for measuring cardiac output to determine the relation between LVOT obstruction, cardiac output and peripheral oxygen utilisation in patients with HCM during exercise. I demonstrated that cardiac output response to exercise is impaired, caused largely by failure to appropriately augment stroke volume. LVOT obstruction is associated with greater impairment of stroke volume at peak exercise and is an independent and modifiable predictor of cardiac output reserve. However, heterogenous responses are seen between patients who otherwise appear similar using standard clinical criteria. There is therefore a strong argument for the individualisation of therapy in patients with LVOT obstruction. Invasive therapies to reduce gradients may work better in those with genuine obstruction to the outflow of blood, rather than for example myocardial ischaemia or mitral regurgitation. The non-invasive measurement of haemodynamic indices during exercise is practical, aids understanding of the complex physiological basis behind symptoms and may help to tailor therapy for HCM, and in particular LVOT obstruction.


The introductory chapter describes the civil penalties of the time. It discusses the discipline in the churches of Ireland and England at the same period, and the work of the societies for the Reformation of Manners. The eagerness of the ministers and the hostility of their distracters is compared with the acceptance and compliance of the people. Chapter one deals with the work that was done immediately after the re-establishment of Presbyterianism planning a uniform method of disciplinary procedures. Through Assembly, Commission and committee minutes we trace the writing and editing of the Form of Process to its adoption in 1707. After the adoption of the Form, the church did not their interest in discipline, end in chapter two we discuss their attempts to develop a more comprehensive set of rules for the use of the church in problems of discipline. Chapter three deals with the special relationship that existed between the civil and ecclesiastical courts of the day. It sketches the methods of cooperation used, and the work of the civil authorities in initiating new laws, in giving advice, and in enforcing the existing laws. It also deals with the passing of the Act of Toleration and its effect on church discipline. In the fourth chapter is contained a discussion of the general procedures that were used in all cases. It illustrates' the work of the elders in investigating scandals, and other methods of discovering offences. It also deals with the use of summons, witnesses, and the oath of purgation. It concludes with a description of the many forms which the judicatory's action on a case could take from the greater excommunication to absolving the party involved. Chapter five deals with the processes against swearers, with the variety of ways in which the Sabbath could be broken, how drunkenness led to multiple offences, of the name-calling and false accusations of slander, and the fact that the minister and his elders were often the objects of both slander and physical violence, of how the scandals for fighting were dominated by family and neighbourhood quarrels, of the various other lesser scandals such as dancing, Penny-weddings, "Leichwakes", and theft. Sexual scandals took up much of the churches time, and are dealt with in chapter six. Scandalous carriage, fornication and adultery are discussed along with a variety of other family and sexual concerns. The chapter describes their frequency and how they were disciplined by the church. The next chapter on "Charming and Withcraft" describes the superstitious customs, folk medicine and mental illnesses which were such enemies of the church of the day. The skills of the sorcerers and the penalties they incurred are discussed. Chapter eight illustrates how the ministers, elders and other church officials had to liver under a discipline even more rigid than that of the ordinary church member. The concluding chapter deals with the frequency of offences and of the common sense, justness, and leniency often demonstrated by the eccelesiastional courts. A short resume of the aims and accomplishment of discipline follows. There are three appendices and a selected bibliography. The first appendix gives the complete Form of Process. Appendix "B" gives additional church papers on discipline. Appendix "C" gives a series of tables which were the basis for the statistics used in the paper.


BCL-2 family proteins are essential regulators of cellular life and death and, when deregulated, contribute to the development, maintenance, and chemoresistance of human cancer. Anti-apoptotic members contribute to cancer pathogenesis by sequestering the α-helical BH3 death domains of their pro-apoptotic counterparts such as BAX. The anti-apoptotic groove that binds and neutralizes BH3 helices has been successfully targeted by small molecules and stapled peptides in an effort to "inhibit the inhibitors" of apoptosis. Using a Stabilized Alpha-Helix of BCL-2 domain (SAHB) modeled after the BIM BH3 helix, we previously identified a geographically distinct BH3-binding groove that mediates the direct activation of BAX, suggesting a new strategy for inducing apoptosis by flipping BAX9s "on switch". Engagement of the novel site by BIM SAHB directly activates BAX (Gavathiotis et al. Nature, 2008), unleashing a succession of key conformational changes that culminates in the formation of toxic mitochondrial pores (Gavathiotis et al. Mol Cell, 2010). Here, we demonstrate that BIM SAHB effectively overcomes the apoptotic blockades of a series of diverse hematologic cancer cells by broadly targeting inhibitory anti-apoptotic complexes and directly activating BAX. Importantly, BIM SAHB induces dose-responsive caspase 3/7 activation and the morphologic features of apoptosis. To identify a BAX-selective agent, we further performed a computational screen to identify BAX activator molecules (BAMs) capable of directly engaging the BAX trigger site. We demonstrate by competitive fluorescence polarization binding assays and NMR analyses that BAM7 engages the BAX trigger site and, as a result, promotes the functional oligomerization of BAX. Strikingly, the molecule does not interact with the canonical BH3 binding pocket of anti-apoptotic proteins and induces cell death in a BAX-selective fashion. These first stapled peptide and small molecule gain-of-function modulators of a BCL-2 family protein highlight a new pharmacologic paradigm for induction of cancer cell apoptosis through direct activation of BAX. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 972. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-972


Since December 31, 2020, the world has closely monitored the progress and outcomes of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus (COVID). This paper focuses on two goals. First, we compare time series algorithms for predicting fatalities during the COVID pandemic. Second, we examine how domain affects algorithm choice by comparing our COVID results to historical and current weekly temperature data analyses. Critical interest revolves around tracking and predicting the effects of COVID. Throughout the past three years, many researchers have created models and built visualizations to observe this disease's progression and impact, both regionally and worldwide. Researchers have recently proposed using machine learning to forecast the progression of COVID. With the increased interest in time series methods and the different algorithms available, this paper explores these techniques' accuracy and computational expense. We compare time series analysis approaches for forecasting COVID fatalities from March 11, 2020, to December 28, 2021. The time series models we include are those that can be automatically created to scale to large datasets. Statistical analysis is used to identify significant differences in performance. To investigate generalizability, we apply the same algorithms to predict temperature data, a standard example dataset due to its seasonal and trend components. An analysis is performed both for historical data (1970s) and current data (2020s). Results allow us to: (1) identify significant differences in algorithm performance versus pandemic data with different time series patterns; (2) examine the performance of time series algorithms trained on shorter, constant-length training sets; and (3) determine whether variations in temperature due to climate changes affect how temperature data should now be predicted. We conclude by discussing how domain and data patterns inform the decision of which time series algorithms to consider when predicting future events from historical or existing data. Our results illustrate that no one method is always the best. Careful consideration of the data's domain, the time period in question, and the length of time to analyze must be considered when deciding which algorithm to choose.


Cloud computing is an emerging computing premise in which consists of a virtualized pool of highly scalable computing resources and provided as an internetbased computing where many organizations store, reacquire and modify data among cloud users. Major problem in cloud computing is sharing data in a multi-owner manner, while preserving data and identity privacy from an untrusted cloud is still a challenging issue, due to the frequent change of the membership. By leveraging group signature and dynamic broadcast encryption techniques, any cloud user can anonymously share data with others. In this technique data can be uploaded in to the server after the encryption of the content by the secret group key.The main aim is to secure data sharing in dynamic groups, there is no fixed attributes whereas multi-owner attributes is possible. This poses a security challenge to the data stored inside cloud.As the result, the encryption computational cost is reduced; storage overhead and scheme are independent with the number of revoked users with rigorous proof and experiments.


It has been previously shown that Ss accurately infer communicators' levels of negative effect on the basis of communicators' levels of linguistic nonimmediacy (the degree of verbal indirectness with which a communicator refers to himself or to that about which he communicates). It was hypothesized that Ss would also rely on communicators' levels of linguistic nonimmediacy for impression formation, specifically that Ss would perceive communicators using lower levels of linguistic nonimmediacy as more authoritative and as having a more positive character than communicators using higher levels of linguistic nonimmediacy. The hypothesis was partially confirmed in a study of 12 college students who rated samples of student speeches by means of McCroskey's impression formation instrument for public speakers. The results were discussed in terms of the role of language in self-presentation and the role of interpretative procedures in social interaction.


Case Report: A suicide attempt by a 23-year-old woman involved ingestion of 1000 mL of petroleum naphtha. Early chemical pneumonitis was complicated by life-threatening, diffuse interstitial lung consolidation with pneumatoceles. Pulse steroid therapy beginning on day 17 was associated with remarkable resolution of interstitial consolidation, although an enlarging secondarily infected pneumatocele ruptured to produce a bronchopleural fistula. Thoracic surgery and antibiotic therapy resulted in improvement of the patient's respiratory condition, and she was discharged with no residual respiratory symptoms. High-dose corticosteroid therapy appears to be a useful addition to aggressive supportive treatment in late adult respiratory distress syndrome following hydrocarbon ingestion.


Biomarker molecular fossils in 2770 Ma shales suggest that the Eucarya diverged from other principal domains early in Earth history. Nonetheless, at present, the oldest fossils that can be assigned to an extant eukaryotic clade are filamentous red algae preserved in ca. 1200 Ma cherts from Arctic Canada. Between these records lies a rich assortment of potentially protistan microfossils. Combined light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy on 1500‐1400 Ma fossils from the Roper Group, Australia, and broadly coeval rocks from China show that these intermediate assemblages do indeed include a moderate diversity of eukaryotic remains. In particular, preserved cell wall ultrastructure, observed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), can help to bridge the current stratigraphic gap between the unambiguous eukaryotic morphologies of later Proterozoic assemblages and molecular biomarkers in much older rocks.


Describing the principles and applications of single input, single output and multivariable predictive control in a simple and lively manner, this practical book discusses topics such as the handling of on-off control, nonlinearities and numerical problems. It gives guidelines and methods for reducing the computational demand for real-time applications. With its many examples and several case studies (incl. injection molding machine and waste water treatment) and industrial applications (stripping column, distillation column, furnace) this is invaluable reading for students and engineers who would wish to understand and apply predictive control in a wide variety of process engineering application areas.


COPD refers to a group of chronic respiratory diseases which seriously influence the people's health and life quality. The national COPD surveillance in China has been implemented since 2014 with the goal of monitoring the prevalence and trend of COPD and related risk factors in China. The paper summarizes the item and method of national COPD surveillance in China.


The introduction of five benchmark global optimization test functions by De Jong has remained prominent in Mathematics and Computer Science for over three decades now. This paper examines the effect of the search population and the number of iterations of the Cuckoo Search and the African Buffalo Optimization in providing solutions to one of Dejong function, the Rosenbrock function, sometimes called Dejong2 function which is a unimodal non-separable function. The Rosenbrock function because of its deceptive flat landscape has proven to be a good test case for optimization algorithms since the flat surface provides very misleading information to search agents. After a number of experimental investigations using different iteration numbers and population, this study concludes that the CS provides better solutions but at a cost of more computer resources than the ABO. As a result, this study in harmony with the No Free Lunch Theorem concludes that if speed is the main consideration, the ABO is a better algorithm in solving the Rosenbrock (or a similar function), otherwise, the CS is a better choice.


With the advancements in microelectronics, interest in electromagnetic interference and compatibility in high-speed circuits has greatly increased in the engineering community, and applications of computational electromagnetics to electromagnetic interference and compatibility (EMI/EMC) engineering become an emerging technology. Termination, via, and crosstalk on interconnection lines will raise EMI problems in high-speed circuits and will therefore require more attention during the design phase for signal integrity. This paper presents signal propagation effect analysis on high-speed interconnection lines, between different parts, with the finite-difference time-domain method. The mechanisms and effectiveness of control measures are examined, which could be applied to high-speed circuit design.


Europe in the Middle Palaeolithic would have been an unfamiliar world. The landscapes which we reconstruct for this period seem almost alien - often shrouded in ice, occupied by extinct fauna, such as mammoths and woolly rhinoceros, and moreover by people seen by many as 'not quite human'. Unlike in later periods such as the Mesolithic (see Warren this volume) analogies between modern foragers and populations in the Middle Palaeolithic, Neanderthals, are rare. Such comparisons have typically been restricted to generalised ecological models, rarely extending to the social and cultural lives of these 'strangers in strange land' (Stutz 2012). Whilst in recent years a certain blurring of the boundaries between Neanderthals and modern humans has opened up the possibility of drawing on ethnographically documented societies to understand Neanderthal sociality such analogy is far from straightforward. Wholesale application of models from modern contexts onto this distant and undoubtedly different past risks compressing the very diversity we hope to understand. Even so, not only can modern foragers potentially provide much needed insight, but the distant lives lived by Neanderthals equally present us with a possibility of bringing something new to our understanding of hunter-gatherers. Here we aim to rise to the challenge of including Neanderthals within the diversity of hunter-gatherer social existence, without imposing a modern foraging adaptation on to their way of life. We review some of the difficulties with the direct application of analogies from contemporary hunter-gatherers, and explore alternative approaches to help us to understand the nature of Neanderthal sociality.


A new closed-form solver is proposed minimizing the algebraic error optimally, in the least squares sense, to estimate the relative planar motion of two calibrated cameras. The main objective is to solve the over-determined case, i.e., when a larger-than-minimal sample of point correspondences is given – thus, estimating the motion from at least three correspondences. The algorithm requires the camera movement to be constrained to a plane, e.g. mounted to a vehicle, and the image plane to be orthogonal to the ground.1 The solver obtains the motion parameters as the roots of a 6th degree polynomial. It is validated both in synthetic experiments and on publicly available real-world datasets that using the proposed solver leads to results superior to the state-of-the-art in terms of geometric accuracy with no noticeable deterioration in the processing time.


Instagram is one social media to express themselves as well as the media for the exchange of information. With Instagram, single parent mother can freely express her activities with her child. It is seen from celebrity Ayu TingTing (@ayutingting92) who participate and share their daily activities so that she has the most followers all over Indonesia. By making herself have the most followers make writers want to know how Ayu represents the role of single parent mother in educating and protecting her child. The author analyzes through candid photographs of Ayu TingTing with her daughter who goes into educational and protective classification using Charles Sanders Pierce's semiotics and divides them into icons, indexes, symbols. To strengthen photo analysis the author uses non verbal communication theory and interpersonal. The results showed that Ayu TingTing represented the educating role with the fun of playing while learning where she was the teacher for her daughter. While in the role of protecting, Ayu represent it with a touch to keep her child's health and keep from accident.


Abstract
Purpose
The quality of strategic decisions made at the helm of corporations matters a great deal. Predominantly, research on strategic decision-making has focused on CEOs as if they decide alone. Yet in reality, even the most powerful CEO makes strategic decisions together with an executive board. This chapter offers a theoretical explanation of strategic board decision-making through the emotional contagion between the CEO and board members.

Methodology/approach
We used both previous research and qualitative material – two case studies and interviews with several dozen CEOs of large corporations as well as the board members of one of them – to build our theoretical model.

Findings
Our inBoard Emotional Contagion Model (inBECM) specifies the following individual–collective emotional dynamics: After a strategic affective event has triggered an affective discussion within the boardroom, the emotionally intelligent CEO communicates verbally in order to – through an emotional contagion – homogenize board members' emotional states leading to shared sense-making of the event and – potentially – to improved decision-making.

Research/ Social/Practical implications
Suggestions are made for the inBECM contribution to emotion theory. Implications are stated for the key role of emotion in improving board decision-making and strategizing.


We introduce an annotated corpus of 600 ophthalmology notes labeled with detailed spatial and contextual information of ophthalmic entities. We extend our previously proposed frame semantics-based spatial representation schema, Rad-SpatialNet, to represent spatial language in ophthalmology text, resulting in the Eye-SpatialNet schema. The spatially-grounded entities are findings, procedures, and drugs. To accurately capture all spatial details, we add some domain-specific elements in Eye-SpatialNet. The annotated corpus contains 1715 spatial triggers, 7308 findings, 2424 anatomies, and 9914 descriptors. To automatically extract the spatial information, we employ a two-turn question answering approach based on the transformer language model BERT. The results are promising, with F1 scores of 89.31, 74.86, and 88.47 for spatial triggers, Figure, and Ground frame elements, respectively. This is the first work to represent and extract a wide variety of clinical information in ophthalmology. Extracting detailed information can benefit ophthalmology applications and research targeted toward disease progression and screening.


Abstract : The year 2000 was the cutoff date for the Department of Defense (DoD) to have paperless processes in place. Since then, advances in computer technology have led to such paperless contracting processes as the DoD-wide Standard Procurement System (SPS), Wide Area Work Flow, and other department-specific major weapon procurement information systems. Although great strides were made by the DoD to implement paperless contracting processes, there still exists substantial room for improvement. Despite the use of all of the paperless system processes, now, seven years beyond the paperless cutoff date, many organizations still use a paper-based filing system. This thesis will explore the policy and benefits of implementing a paperless contracting filing system using a software program such as Adobe Acrobat(trade mark), provide a brief assessment of current Air Force and Navy/Marine contract filing systems, and include a real-world case study of the implementation of a paperless policy change at the Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB).


Integrative taxonomy is an evolving field of multidisciplinary studies often utilised to elucidate phylogenetic reconstructions that were poorly understood in the past. The systematics of many taxa have been resolved by combining data from different research approaches, i.e., molecular, ecological, behavioural, morphological and chemical. Regarding molecular analysis, there is currently a search for new genetic markers that could be diagnostic at different taxonomic levels and that can be added to the canonical ones. In marine Heterobranchia, the most widely used mitochondrial markers, COI and 16S, are usually analysed by comparing the primary sequence. The 16S rRNA molecule can be folded into a 2D secondary structure that has been poorly exploited in the past study of heterobranchs, despite 2D molecular analyses being sources of possible diagnostic characters. Comparison of the results from the phylogenetic analyses of a concatenated (the nuclear H3 and the mitochondrial COI and 16S markers) dataset (including 30 species belonging to eight accepted genera) and from the 2D folding structure analyses of the 16S rRNA from the type species of the genera investigated demonstrated the diagnostic power of this RNA molecule to reveal the systematics of four genera belonging to the family Myrrhinidae (Gastropoda, Heterobranchia). The "molecular morphological" approach to the 16S rRNA revealed to be a powerful tool to delimit at both species and genus taxonomic levels and to be a useful way of recovering information that is usually lost in phylogenetic analyses. While the validity of the genera Godiva, Hermissenda and Phyllodesmium are confirmed, a new genus is necessary and introduced for Dondice banyulensis, Nemesis gen. nov. and the monospecific genus Nanuca is here synonymised with Dondice, with Nanuca sebastiani transferred into Dondice as Dondice sebastiani comb. nov.


In the course of the decade spanning the late 1930s to the late 1940s, two men, one in Japan, one in India, were arrested and tried for murders it was known they did not physically commit. One was found guilty, the other was acquitted for lack of evidence. In Tokyo, Kita Ikki was found guilty of ideological contributions to the February Twenty-sixth Incident, the 1936 coup d'etat attempt that resulted in the deaths of three leading figures in the Japanese government. He was executed by firing squad in 1937. Just over ten years later, in Delhi, lack of evidence led to the acquittal of V.D. Savarkar, tried for having made ideological contributions to the assassination of Mohandas K. Gandhi.


The Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) model is widely accepted as the model of access control of workflow management system (WFMS).However, the RBAC model exist a lot of limit when it describe the authorization constraint of access control. Especially , the RBAC model cannot express the transaction character and the phase authorization constraint when the role and the user perform the task. This paper proposed an improved role-Based access control model for WFMS. The new authorization concepts for WfMS are defined respectively. The access control rules of IRBAC model are build, which can express complex access control constraints for WfMS.


Background : Varicose vein is one of the most common vascular conditions in the adult population. These are conventionally treated with surgical high ligation of Sapheno-femoral junction and stripping of Great Saphenous Vein (GSV) with multiple phlebectomy. The aim of this study was to highlight the technical considerations in performing endovenous laser ablation of varicose vein, understanding the importance and role of Duplex Machine and Tumescent anesthesia with evaluation of outcome. Methods : In this retrospective study we examined the records of 297 limbs of 220 patients operated at Vascular Care Centre at Dhaka, Bangladesh between October 2013 and October 2015. Among them 1 year follow up was performed in 118 patients. Patients were contacted through telephone calls and mobile SMSs with requests for follow up. Results : Vast majority of the patients had a smooth recovery. Significant pain was present in only 10% of patients for 1week after laser therapy and 3% of patients noted bruising in thigh for 2 weeks. Among the 118 patients who reported for follow up at 12 months, 113 (96%) showed effective persistent occlusion of GSV. Conclusion: EVLA of varicose vein is gaining popularity day by day in Bangladesh. It has become established as a safe and effective treatment option for varicosities caused by GSV incompetence. Foam sclerotherapy with Sodium tetradecyl sulphate replacing the multiple phlebectomy may be a suitable adjunct. Quick return to normal activities, fewer wound infections, less leg pain and leg bruising are strongly associated with these endovenous techniques compared with Saphenous vein stripping. Cardiovasc. j. 2018; 10(2): 140-144


separate from an integrated N.H.S. This sentiment seems to pre-empt the outcome of any inquiry. Indeed it could be thought, perhaps unjustly, that the local authorities see an inquiry as much a means of delaying Government action as a way of achieving the most effective school health service. It is quite understandable that local authority associations should wish to get in an early bid about the future of this service for by all accounts the amount of time available for discussion of the third green paper will be severely limited, a situation that everyone concerned with the future of the N.H.S. will deplore. So even though many doctors will disagree with its objective at least the recently publicized statement from the local authorities should alert the medical profession to the need to give to the Government as soon as possible its own views on the future role and organization of the school health service within an integrated N.H.S.


This study shows a design of an artisan cultural tourism product from the perspective of the associativity, based on bibliographical references. It seeks to promote the preservation of culture, identity and tradition of crafts as well as to contribute to the improvement of community development, through economic and social links between handicrafts and tourism, by making a characterization of the different Craft and Artisans Associations in the municipalities of Morroa (Montes de Maria region) and Sampues, Colombia. The study followed the methodology proposed by the Colombian Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, together with the criteria of other authors such as Szmulewicz and the concept of interpretativity according to Zamorano. The final product was designed based on dialogues and workshops among all the actors involved, seeking from the two communities, to strengthen the unions and identifying the most culturally influential artisan attractions, such as loom weaving: hammocks, backpacks, handbags, table roads, cane weaving arrow: Headgear, "Sombrero Vueltiao", wallets and traditional folk handicrafts in tannery or tannery: traditional handmade sandals called "Abarcas".  The characterization allowed to identify that the artisans belong to the Zenu ethnic group, mothers head of family, displaced and victims of the violence, as well as mothers head of family, displaced people and some other victims of the violence. The results of the study include suggestions for the Craft and Artisans Associations of sustainability such as brand image, good practices and technical proposal with low cost architectural furniture, easy to implement, taking into account environmental regulations, mobility, exhibition, sales and tourist interaction with local artisans.


Transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) are mainly acidic polysaccharides directly or indirectly formed by phytoplankton and bacteria. These particles are often colonized by picoplankton and considered a hot spot for microbial activity. Recent studies suggested an important role of Synechococcus in TEP production found in lakes and prompted us to further investigate this issue using monoclonal xenic cultures of Synechococcus. We tested TEP production under oxidative stress in two treatments, one with hydrogen peroxide and another treated with ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and high photosynthetic active radiation (PAR), compared with an unstressed control. Our results showed a cell-normalized TEP production, ranging from 12 to 238 ng C cell-1 among strains, not only under stress but also in the control with non-limiting nutrients. Our data prove that freshwater communities of Synechococcus and their associated heterotrophic microflora, are capable of producing TEP even during growth phase. The oxidative stress induced extra production of TEP up to 400 ng C cell-1 in one of our phycocyanin-type (PC) strain. The phycoerythrin-type (PE) strains increased TEP production, particularly under UV-PAR stress, whereas the PC strains did it under H2O2 stress. This study provides new perspectives on the potential role of freshwater Synechococcus in TEP production.


Despite extensive efforts to develop chemotherapeutic drug(s) targeting mutated RAS, the successful drug discovery, especially targeting KRAS codon 12 mutation, has never been made. We have found that Pyrrole-Imidazole polyamide seco-CBI conjugate (KR12) selectively recognized mutated KRAS sequence (ACGCCT-A/T-CA) at codon 12 and significantly suppressed tumor growth specifically in human colon cancer cells with G12D or G12V mutation. KRAS expression suppressed preferentially at mutated allele and active KRAS were markedly reduced. G2/M arrest, senescence and subsequent apoptosis by activating the p53 pathway were observed in KR12-exposed LS180 cells with G12D heterozygous mutation. In LS180 and SW480 (G12V homozygous mutation) xenograft colon cancer models, KR12 treatment induced massive tumor growth suppression with low host toxicity. Collectively, our current results strongly suggest that KR12 is a specific alkylating agent against KRAS codon 12 mutations, and could become a powerful candidate compound for the unmet need of KRAS-mutant tumor treatment. Citation Format: Hiroki Nagase, Kiriko Hiraoka, Takahiro Inoue, Takayoshi Watanabe, Ken-Ichi Shinohara, Nobuko Koshikawa, Ozaki Toshinori. KRAS G12D and G12V specific alkylating agent (KR12) inhibits growth of colon cancer with those KRAS mutations in vitro as well as in vivo. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 2602. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-2602


As a contribution to the taxonomic and ecologic acknowledge of the Gerridae family in Colombia, a checklist of the known species discriminated for each biogeographic region is presented. There were16 genre and 51 species registered, distributed between 0 and 2.890 m. It was found that the gerrids have preferential habits and habitats related to sweet water (81%) and occupied other habitats in the country. A dichotomic key based in this categories is included.


The heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) chaperone functions as a protein-folding buffer and plays a unique role promoting the evolution of new heritable traits. To investigate the role of Hsp90 in modulating protein synthesis, we screened more than 1200 proteins involved in mRNA regulation for physical interactions with Hsp90 in human cells. Among the top hits was CPEB2, which strongly binds Hsp90 via its prion domain, reminiscent of the prion-like regulation of translation of Aplysia CPEB. In a yeast model of CPEB prion-dependent translation regulation, transient inhibition of Hsp90 amplified CPEB2 prion activity and resulted in persistent translation of the CPEB reporter. Remarkably, inhibition of Hsp90 was sufficient to induce a heritable change in protein translation that persisted for 30 generations, even in the absence of exogenous CPEB. Although we identified a variety of perturbations that enhanced translation of the reporter, only Hsp90 inhibition led to persistent activation. Thus, transient loss of Hsp90 function leads to the non-genetic inheritance of a novel translational state. We propose that, in addition to sculpting the conformational landscape of the proteome, Hsp90 promotes phenotypic variation by modulating protein synthesis.


Image Fusion is one of the major research fields in image processing. Image fusion process can be defined as the integration of information from a number of registered images without the introduction of distortion. It is often not possible to get an image that contains all relevant objects in focus. One way to overcome this problem is image fusion, in which one can acquire a series of pictures with different focus settings and fuse them to produce an image with extended depth of field which helps in clinical diagnosis. Image fusion techniques can improve the quality and increase the application of these data. The proposed paper uses multi-image Contrast enhancement for PCA fusion of medical images. The objective of this paper is to propose a technique for fusion of human brain MRI images based on Principal Component Analysis and to improve the visibility of medical images by applying contrast enhancement existing techniques. The PCA fusion technique adopted here improve resolution of the images. The PCA algorithm builds a fused image of several input images as a weighted superposition of all input images. The resulting images contains enhanced information as compared to individual images and also apply Contrast Enhancement technique to improve visibility of medical image details without introducing unrealistic visual appearances and/or unwanted artefacts. It also gives the quality comparison study of original medical images before fusion, after applying PCA and various existing techniques for contrast enhancement for those medical images.


We present a framework for computing generalized distance transforms and skeletons of two-dimensional objects using graphics hardware. Our method is based on the concept of footprint splatting. Combining different splats produces weighted distance transforms for different metrics, as well as the corresponding skeletons and Voronoi diagrams. We present a hierarchical acceleration scheme and a subdivision scheme that allows visualizing the computed skeletons with subpixel accuracy in real time. Our splatting approach allows one to easily change all the metric parameters, treat any 2D boundaries, and easily produce both DTs and skeletons. We illustrate the method by several examples.


This paper explores the notion of truthfulness in research on conversational remembering. It argues that people's accounts of past events, before they can be taken as data on the cognitive workings of memory, need to be examined as contextualized and variable productions that perform pragmatic and rhetorical work; no one version can be taken as a person's real memory. The consequences of this discourse-analytical perspective are examined first through a critical discussion of Ulric Neisser's study of John Dean's testimony to the senate 'Watergate' committee. The issues are then explored more deeply in an analysis of reportings of a different event, in which similar (Watergate-like) issues of memory, truth and accuracy are also at issue. It is argued that: (a) all of Neisser's three kinds of memory–verbatim, gist and 'repisodic'–involve problematical assumptions concerning their relation to some true, original event; and (b) that Dean's accounts of his memory and his displays of memory should be approached as occasioned productions oriented pragmatically to the assignment of guilt and avoidance of scapegoating. Through an analysis of newspaper reports (based on memory) of a controversial briefing given by the then British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Nigel Lawson, we then examine: (a) how discourse about what could be used as an arbiter of truth was rhetorically organized; (b) how participants' versions of events were constructed rhetorically, as parts of arguments; (c) that both sides in the dispute maintained the coherence of their positions by a form of error accounting similar to that used by Neisser with respect to Dean. It is suggested that cognitive psychologists, whether working in the laboratory or attempting to do real-world studies of everyday remembering, need to avoid simplistic notions of true original events, and can do so by addressing the rhetorical organization of participants' memory accounts.


approved: ______________________________________________________ Mei-Ching Lien Several behavioral studies have suggested that rarity is critical for enabling irrelevant, salient objects to capture attention. We tested this hypothesis using the event-related potential (ERP) component, N2pc, thought to reflect attentional allocation. A cue display was followed by a target display in which participants identified the letter in a specific color. Experiment 1 pitted rare, irrelevant abrupt onset cues (appearing on only 20% of trials) against target-relevant color cues. The relevant color cue produced large N2pc and cue validity effects, even when competing with a rare, salient, simultaneous abrupt onset. Similar results occurred even when abrupt onset frequency was reduced to only 10% of trials (Experiment 2). Experiment 3 examined rare, irrelevant color singleton cues (20% of trials). Despite being rare and salient, these singleton cues produced no N2pc or cue validity effect, indicating little attentional capture. Experiments 4a and 4b greatly increased color cue salience by adding 4 background boxes, increasing color contrast, and tripling the cue display duration (from 50 to 150 ms). Small cue validity and N2pc effects were obtained, but did not strongly depend on degree of rarity (20% vs. 100%). We argue that rarity by itself is neither necessary nor sufficient to produce attention capture.


Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) and Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), two of the most common, child onset, rare neuromuscular disorders, present a case study for the translation of preclinical research into clinical work. Over the past decade, well-designed clinical trials and innovative methods have led to the approval of several novel therapies for SMA and DMD, with many more in the pipeline. This review discusses several features that must be considered during trial design for neuromuscular diseases, as well as other rare diseases, to maximise the possibility of trial success using historic examples. These features include well-defined inclusion criteria, matching criteria, alternatives to placebo-controlled trials and the selection of trial endpoints. These features will be particularly important in the coming years as the investigation into innovative therapy approaches for neuromuscular diseases continues.


Background Early and accurate diagnosis of infection-induced osteomyelitis, which often involves increased PD-L1 expression, is crucial for better treatment outcomes. Radiolabeled anti-PD-L1 nuclear imaging allows for sensitive and non-invasive whole-body assessments of PD-L1 expression. This study aimed to compare the efficacy of 18F-FDG and an 18F-labeled PD-L1-binding peptide probe (18F-PD-L1P) in PET imaging of implant-associated Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis (IAOM). Methods In this study, we synthesized an anti-PD-L1 probe and compared its efficacy with 18F-FDG and 18F-PD-L1P in PET imaging of implant-associated Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis (IAOM). The %ID/g ratios (i.e., radioactivity ratios between the infected and non-infected sides) of both probes were evaluated for sensitivity and accuracy in post-infected 7-day tibias and post-infected 21 days, and the intensity of 18F-PD-L1P uptake was compared with pathological changes measured by PD-L1 immunohistochemistry (IHC). Results Compared with 18F-FDG, 18F-PDL1P demonstrated higher %ID/g ratios for both post-infected 7-day tibias (P=0.001) and post-infected 21 days (P=0.028). The intensity of 18F-PD-L1P uptake reflected the pathological changes of osteomyelitic bones. In comparison to 18F-FDG, 18F-PDL1P provides earlier and more sensitive detection of osteomyelitis caused by S. aureus. Conclusion Our findings suggest that the 18F-PDL1P probe is a promising tool for the early and accurate detection of osteomyelitis caused by S. aureus.


In the design of hydraulic engineering works, the estimation of project precipitation is fundamental. Rain forecasting depends on several factors, which makes estimating it simpler with stochastic processes. In this sense, the distributions of Gumbel (GUM), Log-Normal two-parameter (LN2P), Generalized Extreme Value (GEV), Frechet with two and three parameters (FRE2P and FRE3P), Weibull with two and three parameters (W2P and W3P), Gamma (GAM2P), and Pareto with two and three parameters (PAR2P and PAR3P) were evaluated to the annual maximum daily precipitation (AMDP) adjustment in the city of Caruaru (Pernambuco´s Agreste). A series of AMDP was used, based on data obtained from the National Water Agency (Agencia Nacional de Aguas - ANA). Anderson Darling (AD), Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) and Pearson Chi-square (χ2) adherence tests, and the determination coefficient (R²) were used to assess the adherence quality of the distributions. The Likelihood Method presented a better fit quality than the Moment Method. The GEV distribution obtained the best results for the AD test in both methods to estimate the parameters. Among the adherence tests used, the AD test was considered the most restrictive. To verify the quality parameters' fitness to the IDF relations, the Willmott performance coefficient was used. For all distributions employed in this study, Willmott performance coefficients presented values above 0.99, giving a perfect fit of IDF relations with determination coefficients close to 1.0.


Readers of this one-volume reference will gain useful knowledge of what travelers should and shouldn't do when in countries outside of the United States. After a general introduction, approximately 100 alphabetically arranged entries cover topics such as greeting and meeting, appearance and dress, table manners, body language, social situations and hospitality, verbal communications, business etiquette, religious etiquette, gift-giving, and even "netiquette" regarding social media.
 Sidebars and images throughout make the text more accessible and engaging, and additional readings at the end of each entry as well as the bibliography offer opportunities for further research on the subject. The content also directly supports the National Geography Standards and the AP Human Geography curriculum for high school students as they learn about the cultural differences and characteristics of people in major ethnic groups across the globe.


The article is about a "desingularization principle" common to various canonical desingularization algorithms in characteristic zero, and the roles played by the exceptional divisors in the underlying local construction. We compare algorithms of the authors and of Villamayor and his collaborators, distinguishing between the fundamental effect of the way the exceptional divisors are used, and different theorems obtained because of flexibility allowed in the choice of "input data". We show how the meaning of "invariance" of the desingularization invariant, and the efficiency of the algorithm depend on the notion of "equivalence" of collections of local data used in the inductive construction.


Abstract We examine the composition and levels of organic contaminants (PAHs, PCB, HCB) in four sediment cores collected from the Barents Sea. We assess the influence of temporal variations in contaminant supplies and post-depositional reworking on contaminant distribution. Anthropogenic levels of ∑ 12PAH reached 95 ng g−1, higher inventories dominated by BKF were observed at southern stations, while northern stations exhibited lower inventories with PHE as the dominant compound. The PCB composition was similar at all stations dominated by CB 101, 138 and 153. ∑7PCB concentrations were higher at northern stations. The observed composition and spatio-temporal pattern of organic contaminants is in accordance with long-range transport supplies.


S UMMARY . Studies have demonstrated that the size of transplanted trees has a measurable impact on establishment rates in the landscape. Larger trees require a longer period of time than smaller trees to produce a root system comparable in spatial distribution to similar sized non-transplanted trees. This lag in redevelopment of root system architecture results in reduced growth that increases with transplant size. Research has demonstrated that smaller transplanted trees become established more quickly and ultimately result in larger trees in the landscape in a few years. Additional studies dispute these fi ndings. This paper provides a review of current research on the effect of tree size on transplant establishment.


A general method is presented for constructing distribution functions for flat systems whose surface density and Toomre's Q number profile is given. The purpose of these functions is to provide plausible galactic models and assess their critical stability with respect to global non axi-symmetric modes. The derivation may be carried out for an azimuthal velocity distribution (or a given specific energy distribution) which may either be observed or chosen to match a specified temperature profile. Distribution functions describing stable models with realistic velocity distributions for power law disks, the Isochrone and the Kuzmin disks are provided. Specially simple inversion formulae are also given for finding distribution functions for flat systems whose surface densities are known.


The human gut microbiota is a complex microbial ecosystem that contributes an important component towards the health of its host. This highly complex ecosystem has been underestimated in its importance until recently, when a realization of the enormous scope of gut microbiota function has been (and continues to be) revealed. One of the more striking of these discoveries is the finding that the gut microbiota and the brain are connected, and thus there is potential for the microbiota in the gut to influence behavior and mental health. In this short review, we outline the link between brain and gut microbiota and urge the reader to consider the gut microbiota as an ecosystem 'organ' rather than just as a collection of microbes filling a niche, using the hypothesized role of the gut microbiota in autism spectrum disorder to illustrate the concept.


Geodesics in a multidimensional Universe with G-invariant metric are studied and differential equations describing the space-time projection are derived. It is shown that, when internal spaces are cosets rather than group manifolds, then, in addition to the colour charge through which the particle interacts with the gauge field, a new charge arises which couples to the scalar fields only. This new charge, called the Higgs charge, is shown to be of a nonlinear nature. For certain cosets it may contribute to the colour charge non-conservation.


In nursing practice we find different kinds of difficult situations. What is the difference between such kinds of situations? it is important to know what kind of situation one is confronting because the answer and solution depend on it. In the literature the term 'dilemma' has different meanings. I am therefore interested in what constitutes a dilemma, and have conducted a concept analysis. The defining attributes were engagement, equally unattractive alternatives, awareness of alternatives, need for a choice and uncertainty of action.


Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), with high potential for metastasis, is the most common malignant tumor of the head and neck. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are the main stromal cells in the microenvironment and aggravate tumor progression. However, whether CAFs are associated with the progression of OSCC remains unknown and the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In the present study, the role of CAFs in mediating OSCC cell migration and invasion was investigated, and the participation of exosomal miR-382-5p in this process was elucidated. In this study, according to the α-SMA staining with immunohistochemistry, 47 OSCC patients were divided into CAFs-rich and CAFs poor groups, and association of CAF density and clinicopathologic features of the OSCC patients were analyzed with Pearson χ2 test. Transwell assay was used for evaluating cell migration and invasion ability of OSCC cells after being co-cultured with NFs or CAFs, or after added exosomes. qPCR was used to detect the expression of miR-382-5p. Western blot analysis was used to measure the expression of migration and invasion-associated proteins. In the present study, the CAF density in tumor tissues was found to be relevant to OSCC lymph node metastasis and TNM stage. Furthermore, we revealed that miR-382-5p was overexpressed in CAFs compared with that in fibroblasts of adjacent normal tissue and miR-382-5p overexpression was responsible for OSCC cell migration and invasion. Finally, we demonstrated that CAF-derived exosomes transported miR-382-5p to OSCC cells. The present study confirmed a new mechanism of CAF-facilitated OSCC progression and may be beneficial for identifying new cancer therapeutic targets.


The article deals with different priorities of economic activities in the Arctic. The role and the place of extractive industry in different countries are analysed. It is shown that the main emphasis in the modern Arctic economic is shifted to socio-economic return not only economic efficiency of projects itself. To be leader in Arctic development means not to implement ambitious projects but provides solutions in line with the sustainable functioning of the fragile and unique environment of "high latitudes". The key role of activities adjusting the formerly constructed manufacturing entities in accordance with current environmental regulations is accentuated.


The world-systems theory of Immanuel Wallerstein aims to see processes of social change from a macrosociological position. This means the state loses the primarily place it always had in traditional political sciences. Starting from Rokkan's theory of state-formation and nation-building, this article wants to focus upon the position of the state in world-systems theory. Wallerstein uses the concept of state in a rather constructionist way: states are viewed as institutions who are deliberately created by a certain class with the intention to affect some economic processes. Once created, the states' operations are decisively influenced by its hierarchical position in the world¬ system and its economic phase. The article concludes that world-system analysis needs a greater stress on the individual within the state and the system as a whole to cope with its current emancipational problems.


Over the last decade, interoperability of the Electronic Health Record (EHR) is becoming more of a reality. However, inconsistencies in documentation such as pain are considered a barrier to obtaining this goal. In order to be able to remedy this issue, it is necessary to validate reference models that have been created based upon requirements defined by Health Level 7 (HL7), Logical Names and Codes (LOINC) and the Intermountain Clinical Element Model using external published sources and guidelines. Using pain as an example of complex and inconsistent documentation, it was found that the reference model based upon these standards is valid because the data elements identified are broad and can meet the needs of each sub-domain within the primary domain of pain.


If two and more computers are interconnected and able to exchange data or information then we call network. We want to increase the number of PC's and exchange data or information from one to another that time we need some special PC's are called Server. So I work to basic of Linux and Networking because there are various type of work in network look like router configure basic networking IP addressing setup Switching MIKROTIK install configure firewall. If network is connected to the Internet and we want to secure your information using MIKROTIK. Step by step configuration process and simple troubleshooting of the network. Firewall Each of them works differently and without them it is impossible to maintain a network. So we should configure firewall here to protect our network And add user to know who browse internet at timely.


The purpose of this research was to gain a better understanding of perceptions about the impact of historical and current loss on Apsáalooke (Crow) people acquiring and coping with chronic illness. This study took a qualitative phenomenological approach by interviewing community members with chronic illness in order to gain insight into their perceptions and experiences. Participants emphasized 10 areas of impact of historical and current loss: the link between mental health and physical health/health behaviors; resiliency and strengths; connection and isolation; importance of language and language loss; changes in cultural knowledge and practices; diet; grieving; racism and discrimination; changes in land use and ownership; and boarding schools. The findings from this research are being used to develop a chronic illness self-care management program for Crow people.


Cue words in dialogue have different interpretations depending context and prosody. This paper presents a corpus study and perception experiment investigating when prosody causes right and really to be perceived as questioning or expressing surprise. Pitch range is found to be the best cue for surprise. This extends to the question rating for really but not for right. In fact, prosody appears to interact with semantics so ratings differ for these two types of cue word even when prosodic features are similar. So, different semantics appears to result in different surprise/question rating thresholds.


In this work the effect of ambient influence on the electrical conductivity of ZnO films has been studied. Nanostructured ZnO films (undoped and Ga, Co, Mn doped) were exposed to oxygen (1-80 vol.%) at temperature range 300-500degC. A dominant effect of ambient influence via oxygen absorption was observed: the intensity of conductivity decrease was found to be proportional with temperature and tends to saturation with time. After oxygen saturation the reversible effect of oxygen adsorption became dominant and contributed to the films conductivity. Oxygen exposed undoped ZnO films revealed high sensitivity for oxygen content change in the ambience, therefore they have been further processed for gas sensor fabrication.


To bridge the widening gap between computation requirements of terascale application and communication efficiency faced by many-core processor chips, wireless Network-on-Chip (WiNoC) has been proposed by using the recently developed CMOS ultra wideband interconnection. In this research, we propose an unequal RF nodes overlaid mesh topology design to improve the on-chip communication performance. A network capacity model is developed for fast searching of optimal topology configuration. A high-efficient, low-cost zone-aided routing scheme is designed to facilitate deadlock freedom. The simulation study demonstrates topology modeling effectiveness, routing efficiency, and promising network performance of the overlaid mesh WiNoC over a regular 2D mesh baseline.


ZnO films have been synthesized on Si(111) substrates at 650 degC by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). ZnO homo-buffer layers deposited at a low temperature of 500 degC under oxygen pressures between 15 and 60 Pa were employed for the growth. Influence of the buffer layer on the properties of ZnO films was investigated. The results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) indicate that epitaxial ZnO films can be achieved when the buffer layers are deposited at 15, 30, and 45 Pa. In photoluminescence (PL) spectra at room temperature, the ZnO film shows the strongest ultraviolet (UV) emission and the narrowest UV peak full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 97 meV, when the buffer layer is prepared at 45 Pa. The enhancement of UV emission from the film is assigned to the reduction of non-radiative recombination centers, and the detailed reasons are discussed


Background: Across societies, gender norms often allow men to hold key decision-making power within relationships, households and communities. This extends to almost all domains, consisting of family planning (FP) as well. FP programmes have largely engaged men as clients and rarely as equal partners or influencers although across lower and middle income countries (LMICs), and especially in South Asia, men hold key decision-making power on the domain of family planning. The objective of this article is to explore couple dynamics through the lens of spousal communication and decision-making and unpacking male engagement and spousal dynamics in family planning.Methods: This review presents a synthesis of evidence from two peer-reviewed databases, PubMed and Jstor, and and insights from programmatic documents to shed light on gender equitable engagement of young married men in family planning. Inclusion and exclusion criteria for both these databases was set and search strategies were finalized. This was followed by title and abstract screening, data extraction, synthesis and analysis.Results: Study participants included unmarried men (16%, n= 8), married men (19%, n= 9), married women (19%, n=9), married couples (25%, n =12) or more than two respondent categories (21%, n= 10). Almost three-fourth (71%, n=34) of the studies selected had FP as the primary area of inquiry. Other prominent thematics on which the studies reported were around norms (n=9, 16%), couple dynamics and intimacies (n=12, 22%).Conclusion: The evidence presented provides sufficient impetus to expand on gender-equitable male engagement, viewing men as equal and supportive partners for informed, equitable and collaborative contraceptive uptake and FP choices by couples.


Schaaf-Yang syndrome (SYS) is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder caused by pathogenic variants in the MAGEL2 gene. It is usually a postnatal diagnosis in infants with muscular hypotonia and feeding difficulties. There are no cases diagnosed antenatally. During pregnancy, the most common findings reported are polyhydramnios and decreased fetal movements, which are relatively common and unspecific.We present one case of fetal clubfoot and clinodactyly in a fetus postnatally diagnosed with SYS, as well as a brief review of the prenatal findings associated with this syndrome.


In the period 1985 through 1999, in the Department of General and Operative Surgery of the University Hospital "Alexandrovska" a total of 299 patients are operated for hydatid disease, with 71 of them (23.74%) subjected to combined operative interventions. Operations on the biliary system and other organs and systems, necessitated by intercurrent complications of the basic disease or other pathology, are described and thoroughly discussed. A constellation of criteria for assessment of the conditions and indications for their implementation are also presented. The early postoperative results are estimated as satisfactory.


A parametric quantum mechanical wavefunction naturally induces parametric probability distributions by taking absolute square, and we can consider its classical Fisher information. On the other hand, it also induces parametric rank-one projections which may be viewed as density operators, and we can talk about its quantum Fisher information. Among many versions of quantum Fisher information, there are two prominent ones. The first, defined via a quantum score function, was introduced by Helstrom in 1967 and is well known. The second, defined via the square root of the density operator, has its origin in the skew information introduced by Wigner and Yanase in 1963 and remains relatively unnoticed. This study is devoted to investigating the relationships between the classical Fisher information and these two versions of quantum Fisher information for wavefunctions. It is shown that the two versions of quantum Fisher information differ by a factor 2 and that they dominate the classical Fisher information. The non-coincidence of these two versions of quantum Fisher information may be interpreted as a manifestation of quantum discord. We further calculate the difference between the Helstrom quantum Fisher information and the classical Fisher information, and show that it is precisely the instantaneous phase fluctuation of the wavefunctions.


We consider semantics of Linear Logic, mainly of its multiplicative fragment. We construct a model, based on ideas of geometric quantization and semiclassical approximation, where formulas are interpreted as symplectic manifolds (phase spaces of physical systems), and proofs are interpreted as Lagrangian submanifolds (approximate localization of quantized systems in classical phase spaces). Physically this corresponds to the setting of semiclassical approximation of quantum mechanics. In our model we consider the extra structure of coherence (technically---a conic subset of the tangent bundle) on a symplectic manifold, which specifies a class of "coherent" Lagrangian submanifolds. Connectives of Linear Logic obtain very natural interpretation as operations on coherences. We show that the above category (category of coherent phase spaces) is a sound and complete in some strong sense model of the multiplicative fragment of Linear Logic. We also try to understand if our coherences and operations on them have any physical meaning.
In parallel we consider another model of the multiplicative fragment, where formulas are interpreted as compact oriented manifolds and proofs are interpreted as manifolds with boundary (bordisms or space-times). Similarly to the previous model we introduce coherences for bordisms, which allows us again to interpret logical connectives as very natural operations on coherences. Furthermore, this formalism, being essentially a generalization of the well-known formalism of proof-nets, allows us to formulate an alternative syntax of multi-dimensional proof-nets, uncovering a geometric meaning of multiplicative connectives of Linear Logic. Finally, following ideas of topological field theory, we discover interesting connections between the two models.
In the last part of the dissertation we attempt to extend the symplectic interpretation to larger fragments of Linear Logic, namely to the exponential and the unital fragments. A correct generalization is the category of coherent prequantum spaces, based on prequantum, rather than symplectic, manifolds. Although the resulting model remains, in some aspects, heuristic, as far as the unital fragment is concerned, we obtain a completely rigorous new interpretation.


Abstract.
 This study describes forest cover changes and the current vegetation in the area surrounding the Joyuda Lagoon in western Puerto Rico. Forest cover increased from 22 ha to 87 ha between 1930 to 1997. This increase is the result of mangrove forest expansion and the abandonment of a former coconut plantation. Three mangrove species occupy the areas closest to the lagoon water. The abandoned coconut plantation is dominated by several exotic tree species typically planted along the coasts of Puerto Rico. Comparisons with previous accounts of the composition of this plantation and with the vegetation of another abandoned coconut plantation elsewhere in Puerto Rico suggest that this tree assemblage is still developing towards a community type that is very different than that of other areas having similar physical and climatic conditions.


One of the important factors that affects the performance of Cross Language Information Retrieval(CLIR)is the quality of translations being employed in CLIR. In order to improve the quality of translations, it is important to exploit available resources efficiently. Employing different translation resources with different characteristics has many challenges. In this paper, we propose a method for exploiting available translation resources simultaneously. This method employs Learning to Rank(LTR) for exploiting different translation resources. To apply LTR methods for query translation, we define different translation relation based features in addition to context based features. We use the contextual information contained in translation resources for extracting context based features.The proposed method uses LTR to construct a translation ranking model based on defined features. The constructed model is used for ranking translation candidates of query words. To evaluate the proposed method we do English-Persian CLIR, in which we employ the translation ranking model to find translations of English queries and employ the translations to retrieve Persian documents. Experimental results show that our approach significantly outperforms single resource based CLIR methods.


This paper presents the results of ethnoarchaeological research carried out among the Myky tribal group in Brazil. The intention of this research is to document the chaîne opératoire of the flint axes used by this indigenous group in the past. The Myky were first contacted in 1971, and knapped and used different stone tools in their daily life up until that point. This paper explores some of the reasons why the Myky used flint axes and how this allowed them to develop a horticultural economy without having a sedentary way of life. The principal value of this research is to document a specific element of this group's cultural heritage, as well as its past material culture. These are critical aspects to document, since they are likely to disappear in the space of one or two generations. Presented here are a unique set of observations of stone tool manufacture activities by a group that has not been previously studied.


In the 20th century more than 60000 torsion balance measurements were made in Hungary. At present efforts are made to rescue the historical torsion balance data; today 24544 torsion balance measurements are available for further processing in computer database. Previously only the horizontal gradients of gravity were used by geophysicists, but there is a good possibility in geodesy to interpolate deflections of the vertical, and to compute geoid heights from curvature gradients of gravity.First the theory of the interpolation method is discussed, than results of test computations are presented. We have selected a test area where all kinds of torsion balance measurements are available at 249 points. There were 3 astrogeodetic points providing initial data for the interpolation, and 10 checkpoints for controlling the results. The size of our test area is about 750 kmp2 and the average site distance of torsion balance data is 1.5–2 km. The standard deviations of geoid height and deflection of the vertical differences at checkpoints were about ±1–3 cm, and ±0.6′ respectively; which confirm that torsion balance measurements give possibility to compute very precise deflections of the vertical and local geoid heights at least for flat areas.


Auditory brain stem responses (ABR, BSR) were obtained in 16 patients with acoustic neurinoma. The pattern of ABR was studied with reference to the tumor size and the pure tone audiogram in each case.As a result, the 16 cases were classified into 4 types. In 2 patients, wave I, III and V were clearly recorded but wave III and V were prolonged in latency (type I). In 4, wave I and V were recorded but all other components of ABR were markedly obscured and wave V was more prolonged in latency than in type I (type II). In 5, only wave I was recognized (type III). No ABR response was obtained in remaining 5(type IV).The diameters of the tumors were as follows; 0.8cm and 2cm in type I, 2.5cm to 3.5cm (mean: 3cm) in type II, 3cm to 5cm (mean: 3.8cm) in type III, and 4cm to 6cm (mean: 4.8cm) in type IV.From these results, it was considered that the pattern of ABR reflects the size of the tumor to some extent. However, no definite tendency was found concerning the relationship between the pure tone audiogram and the ABR pattern.


We suggest to use the state Y (4630), which decays predominantly to ΛcΛc, as a window to the landscape of tetraquarks. We propose a simple criterion to decide whether a state is a stringy exotic hadron a tetraquark or a "molecule". If it is the former it should be on a (modified) Regge trajectory. We present the predictions of the mass and width of the higher excited states on the Y (4630) trajectory. We argue that there should exist an analogous Yb state that decays to ΛbΛb and describe its trajectory. We conjecture also a similar trajectory for tetraquarks containing strange quarks, and the modified Regge trajectories can in fact be predicted for any resonances found decaying to a baryon-antibaryon pair. En route to the results regarding tetraquarks, we also make some additional predictions on higher excited charmonium states. We briefly discuss the zoo of exotic stringy hadrons and in particular we sketch all the possibilities of tetraquark states. 1 ar X iv :1 60 6. 02 73 2v 3 [ he pph ] 6 J un 2 01 7


In the present study, a strategy for the formation of hybrid Si/VO2 nanostructures that is fully compatible with well-established standard silicon technology has been developed. The strategy is based on the selective synthesis of VO2 NCs and their arrays on three-dimensional (3D) silicon structures with nanosharp tips, edges, and scallops. The possibility of highly selective synthesis of precise arrays of VO2 nanorings on the surface of silicon cylinders, at the locations of Bosch scallops has been discovered and demonstrated. The optimum conditions for the MOCVD synthesis of high-quality single VO2 (M-phase) NCs on nanosharp Si tips and edges were determined. The obtained results provide important information regarding the synthesis of VO2 crystals on 3D Si nanostructures, and open up the possibility of the formation of a wide range of 3D hybrid nanostructures and their arrays for post-silicon optoelectronics and neuromorphic circuits and for active metamaterials and devices. The developed strategy can be easily integrated into standard silicon technology.


Form of elements around the pier of deck bridges is one of the dominant visual characteristics in bridge aesthetics. Some of historical stone arch bridges had various cut waters, balconies, holes that were made on the spandrel, orders or pilasters and so on. In this study, investigations have been conducted about the form of elements around the pier and the proportion between the pier thickness and maximum span of the bridge from Roman age to twentieth century. Some design standards in stone arch bridges were succeeded to the part of modem bridges, or some were arranged due to the difference of materials, structure and so on.


Metal jet emission and weld interface formation in impact welding were investigated for similarand dissimilar-metal lap joints. Numerical simulation of oblique collision between metal plates was performed using smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method for various plate thicknesses, collision velocities, and collision angles. Metal jet emission and formation of the characteristic wavy weld interface in impact welding were reproduced successfully. The composition of the metal jet was governed by the degree of relative density difference between two metals. When the density difference was large, such as Al/Cu and Al/Ni lap joints, the metal jet was mainly composed of the metal component with lower density, Al. On the other hand, when the density difference was small or zero, such as for Cu/Ni and Al/Al lap joints, the metal jet was composed of both metal components. Several types of lap joints were fabricated by magnetic pulse welding (MPW). Metal jets emitted from Al/Cu and Cu/Al lap joints were collected, and their components were analyzed by X-ray diffraction. The microstructure of the weld interface was also examined. The experimental results were in good agreement with the simulation results. [doi:10.2320/matertrans.L-MZ201128]


The modulation of histocompatibility antigens (HLA) expression by four different agents (gamma-IFN, LPS, PMA and 5-azaC) was investigated on a human tumor derived cell line that did not constitutively express HLA class I and class II molecules on its surface. Demethylating drug 5-azaC induced HLA class I but not HLA class II antigen expression. Gamma interferon and LPS induced HLA-DR and HLA-DP, but not HLA-DQ class II nor HLA class I antigens, while phorbol ester was unable to induce either class I or II molecule expression of the HLA system. These results suggest that HLA class I expression is constitutively inhibited by methylation of its coding genes. Treatment with 5-azaC leads to the HLA class I molecule expression, while HLA class II genes, DR and DP, seem to be under a different inhibitory mechanism as it was induced by LPS and gamma-interferon but not by 5-azaC. HLA-DQ class II antigens were not detected in response to any of the immunomodulators used.


We have studied the effect of age on washin of isoflurane and halothane by comparing end-tidal (PE') and arterial (Pa) partial pressures of the agents in young (18-32 yr) and elderly (63-82 yr) healthy patients for 20 min after introduction of the agents, before surgery. PE' was measured by infra-red analysis and Pa by gas chromatography. Washin of isoflurane occurred at the same rate in the young and elderly, with no significant difference between young and elderly in PE' or Pa as proportions of the inspired partial pressure (PI). After 20 min of isoflurane administration, mean Pa/PI in the young was 0.57 (95% confidence limit (CL) 0.53-0.62) and 0.55 in the elderly (95% CL 0.51-0.59). Washin of halothane was slower in the elderly than in the young, with Pa/PI significantly less in the elderly from 10 min after introduction of halothane. The difference between age groups, however, was small: mean Pa/PI after 20 min of halothane administration 0.45 (95% CL 0.41-0.49) in the young and 0.38 (95% CL 0.35-0.41) in the elderly. Washin of isoflurane was significantly faster than that of halothane in both young and elderly subjects. For isoflurane, the PE'-Pa gradient was small relative to Pa and did not differ significantly between young and elderly. For halothane, PE'-Pa in the young did not differ significantly from that for isoflurane. In the elderly, PE'-Pa for halothane was significantly greater than in the young and than PE'-Pa for isoflurane.