A grid is a large-scale resource sharing technology,which increases resource utilization by distributed collaboration.Grid service discovery is the basis and prerequisite for using the grid,but grid service discovery in the recall and precision rates can't reach a satisfactory level.This paper proposed the concept of service behavior,and used the semantic technology to note it.On this basis,a semantic annotation service behavior based grid service discovery algorithm was proposed.Experiments show that this algorithm is better than the traditional method.It has higher accuracy and recall rate,and stability.


A walk-through survey of Professional Medical Products in Greenwood, South Carolina was conducted in June, 1985. The purpose of the survey was to determine the feasibility of including the facility in a NIOSH industrywide mortality/industrial hygiene study of ethylene oxide. The facility used ethylene oxide to sterilize various medical products from 1962 to 1985. Ethylene oxide use was discontinued in February, 1985. The company currently used outside contractors for sterilization. The authors conclude that the facility meets eligibility requirements for the NIOSH study; it can contribute at least 400 person/years; it had adequate personnel records to indicate individual exposures; and a serious confounding exposure to a known leukemogen does not exist. Inclusion of the facility in the NIOSH study is recommended.


References 'Pugh, P.G. and Ward, L.C., "A Novel Method for the Estimation of Zero Lift Forebody Drag of Axisymmetric Non-Slender Shapes at Supersonic and Hypersonic Velocities," Aeronautical Research Council, CP 1142, 1971. Oswatitsch, K. and Kuerti, G., Gas Dynamics, Academic Press, New York, 1956, p. 203. Kaattari, G., "A Method of Predicting Shock Shapes and Pressure Distributions for a Wide Variety of Blunt Bodies at Zero Angles of Attack," NASA TN D-4539, 1968. Philpott, D.R., "A Simple Flow Model for the Calculation of the Flow Round a Blunt Axisymmetric Body at Supersonic Speeds," AIAA Paper No. 73-1356, 1978. Albone, C.M., "Blunt Body Flows at Supersonic Speeds," City University Research Report 71 /1, 1971. Philpott, D.R., " A Program for the Calculation of Axisymmetric Supersonic Flows around Blunt Bodies using a Reference Plane Method," The Hatfield Polytechnic, THP/4-73R, 1973. . 7 Engineering Sciences Data Unit (Royal Aeronautical Society), Engineering Sciences Data Item 68021, 1968. Philpott, D.R., "An Investigation into the Flow around a Family of Elliptically Nosed Cylinders at Zero Incidence at M=2.50 and M=4.00," Aeronautical Quarterly, Vol. XXIII, Nov. 1972.


The full -scale development of inte rnet technology has brought us into a n age of the internet.While we enjoy t he in-formation and opportunies provided by the convenience and speed of the in ternet,how to assuage its negative e ffects and how to enhance internet ethics for a clean and healthy"world on the net"remains an issue.This is an issue that we have to face in the construction o f socialist spiritual civilization.


The group physiological and biochemical structures and characters for yielding "15t sugar per hectare" were analyzed,and the key technological measures of planting group structure of "15t sugar per hectare" were suggested.


Identifying disease-associated miRNAs is helpful to explore the pathogenesis of diseases. However, without foreknowledge of the experimentally valid disease-associated miRNAs information, the development of promising and affordable approaches for effective treatment of human diseases is challenging. In this study, we develop DCNMDA and DJMDA, a degree-based similarity indexes methodology for identifying potential miRNAs–disease associations. We solely focused on the similarity and the degree between nodes without adopting negative samples or other external prior information beyond the miRNA-disease associations bipartite network. Trained on HMDD v2.0 and HMDD v3.0, DCNMDA achieved the highest AUCs (0.9237 and 0.9432, respectively) based on the 5-fold cross-validation and outperformed the published state-of-the-art methodologies. Moreover, case studies about breast neoplasms, lung neoplasms, and ovarian neoplasms further evaluate the reliability of the models. As a result, biological experiments can correspondingly verify 28 out of top-30 DJMDA-predicted MDAs and 29 out of top-30 DCNMDA-predicted MDAs. In summary, DCNMDA and DJMDA offer a powerful degree-based similarity index approach for identifying potential miRNAs–disease associations with superior performance.


Abstract— In the system (electron donor—pigment—electron acceptor), the photosensitising pigment transfers an electron (hydrogen) from the donor to the acceptor by converting light energy, absorbed by the pigment, into the potential chemical energy of the products. The dependence of the reaction of excited pigments with electron donors or acceptors on the magnitude of the electron affinity of the reacting molecules, the nature of the medium, and the experimental conditions was observed. The initial photo‐process was seen to involve the formation of free radicals, with the subsequent formation of compounds with saturated valencies. The reverse reaction of the photoproducts was accompanied by chemiluminescence. The study of systems containing pyridinenucleotides showed the possibility of photosensitised oxidation—reduction of these compounds by a pigment, and of direct photooxidation of reduced pyridinenucleotides by an electron acceptor of a different kind. In order to understand the specific photo‐transfer of an electron in organisms, the spectral properties of pigments in organisms were compared with the properties of model pigments in monomeric and aggregated forms. It was established that the main role in the spectroscopic properties shown by bacteriochlorophyll, bacterioviridin and chloropyll in organisms is played by various types of intermolecular interactions (aggregations). Different forms of pigment may be involved in different stages of the phototransfer of an electron.


Randomness extraction algorithms play an essential role in Quantum Random Number Generators (QRNGs), where they are used to suppress unwanted classical noise and distill true randomness from their biased output. By employing the SHA-512 hash function and Toeplitz matrix multiplication, we analyse two suitable constructions based on different principles and reach postprocessing rates of 8.69 Mbps and 3.68 Mbps, respectively. Finally, we develop a length-compatible Toeplitz-hashing algorithm able to achieve rates of 143.29 Mbps in a parallelized GPU implementation.


A well-reproducible method for the quantitative determination of tetramezine in tablets is developed. The relative error of drug determination does not exceed 3.5%.


Gonadal hormones are known to act during development to establish permanent sex differences in the anatomy and function of the vertebrate brain. They also act on the adult brain to activate reproductive behaviors. However, there are wide gaps in our understanding of how sexually dimorphic neural circuits translate into sex differences in behavior and other CNS functions. Moreover, not all sexually dimorphic properties of the adult brain can be attributed to known effects of gonadal hormones during development or adulthood, and factors other than gonadal steroids may contribute to these sex differences. This paper reviews sexual differentiation and the role of gonadal steroids and non-gonadal factors on sexually dimorphic development of the avian brain.


There are main functions of pedagogic accompaniment of formation of the organizational competence of students in this article. Great variety of forms, methods and conditions of forming future pedagogues professional interest. The article content reveals the system of formation of theoretical and practical readiness of teachers training college students.


Ecology and practice Modern perinatology is stymied by an unanswered question for conditions that imperil fetal health before term—would this baby do better in utero or should she be delivered to avoid the dreaded consequence of a stillbirth? On page 1309 Zhang and Kramer, using US administrative data, demonstrate that American obstetricians often vote for delivery. In their ecological analysis, labour induction, but not abdominal delivery, was an important cause of the observed US increase in preterm birth. For clinicians who make these decisions on a frequent basis, this association will be appreciated, but this paper will not change practice. To change practice, and do so in an evidence-based fashion, there will need to be clinical trials of immediate delivery versus conservative management. These trials are difficult to execute because of clinician and patient bias toward one strategy or the other, and hence the hesitancy for random assignment, the lack of valid case definitions, and the overall small numbers of specific scenarios that any one unit will see once cases are strictly defined. Until more of these trials are performed to inform clinical decision-making, we will continue to rely on clinical judgement and the outcome of our last decision along these lines. I would hazard a prediction that so-called medically indicated preterm birth will continue to rise until clinicians can reliably discern which are truly indicated and which are not.


Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is defined by the presence of airflow limitation which is not fully reversible, but COPD encompasses numerous phenotypes [1]. Phenotypes are the products of genetic and environmental interactions, with "environment" being broadly defined. The systematic measurement and analysis of clinical and other qualitative and quantitative traits may refine COPD phenotypes, features of which may be shared between different disease states [2, 3]. Han et al. [4] have defined clinical phenotypes in COPD as "a single or combination of disease attributes that describe differences between individuals with COPD as they relate to clinically meaningful outcomes (symptoms, exacerbations, response to therapy, rate of disease progression, or death)." Identification of such phenotypes would not only facilitate outcome prediction and "personalised" treatment, but also improve the understanding of critical biological and mechanistic disease pathways. The systemic impact of COPD has led to consideration of extrapulmonary disease manifestations in recent efforts to construct these phenotypes.

This issue of the European Respiratory Journal contains one of two recent studies that focus on cardiovascular phenotyping in COPD [5, 6]. Hurdman et al. [5] have carefully evaluated the phenotype of severe pulmonary hypertension (PH) (mean pulmonary artery pressure ≥40 mmHg) in COPD (PH-COPD) in comparison to the mild–moderate PH phenotype in a prospective cohort of patients referred to a specialty centre over almost a decade [7]. Echocardiography, spirometry and lung computed tomography (CT) imaging were performed with standardised interpretation. 59 patients with severe PH-COPD were compared to 42 patients with mild–moderate PH-COPD, with complete follow-up in all. Patients with severe PH-COPD had worse oxygenation and a lower diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide ( D LCO), but higher forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), forced vital capacity …


In the field of development of highly efficient biocatalysts, more modern methods of their production are required, for example, the selection of new carriers for enzymes. The carrier can provide resistance to various effects on the biomolecule or change the conditions of the reaction. The thesis considers a method of enzyme immobilization on modified magnetic nanoparticles capable of heating the medium under the influence of electromagnetic radiation.


George E. Collins passed away on 21st November 2017 in Madison, Wisconsin at the age of 89. George left an inspiring legacy that includes publications in logic, mathematics and computer science in seven different decades. He is probably best known within SIGSAM as the inventor of cylindrical algebraic decomposition and its application to quantifier elimination.


It's no question that in today's job market there are a variety of challenges especially when it comes to managing a workforce with multiple generations. The underlying problem especially in agriculture is trying to fit an increasingly nontraditional workforce into a largely traditional workplace. Each generation has been influenced by particular experiences that create specific preferences, expectations, beliefs, and work styles. It is important to understand characteristics of each generation to be successful in today's workplace.


The existence of aberrations has always been an important limiting factor in the imaging field. Especially in optical microscopy imaging, the accumulated aberration of the optical system and the biological samples distorts the wavefront on the focal plane, thereby reducing the imaging resolution. Here, we propose an adaptive optical aberration correction method based on convolutional neural network. By establishing the relationship between the Zernike polynomial and the distorted wavefront, with the help of the fast calculation advantage of an artificial intelligence neural network, the distorted wavefront information can be output in a short time for the reconstruction of the wavefront to achieve the purpose of improving imaging resolution. Experimental results show that this method can effectively compensate the aberrations introduced by the system, agarose and HeLa cells. After correcting, the point spread function restored the doughnut-shape, and the resolution of the HeLa cell image increased about 20%.


The spin correlations of the bilayer manganite $La_{1.2}Sr_{1.8}Mn_{2}O_{7}$ have been studied using neutron scattering. On cooling within the paramagnetic state, we observe purely two-dimensional behavior with a crossover to three-dimensional scaling close to the ferromagnetic transition. Below $T_C$, an effective finite size behavior is observed. The quantitative agreement of these observations with the conventional quasi two-dimensional Kosterlitz-Thouless model indicates that the phase transition is driven by the growth of magnetic correlations, which are only weakly coupled to polarons above $T_C$.


With a Nicolet 7199B Fourier transform infrared spectrometer and the nujol mull technique, the mid-infrared spectra in the region of 600~3600cm~(-1) have been observed for triethylene glycol phthalate (phthalyl-14-c-4), 15-crown-5 (15-C-5), 18-crown-6 (18-C-6) and sym-dibenzo-24-crown-8 (dibenzo-24-c-8), and also their LiClO_4 complexes: LiClO_4·phthalyl-14-c-4, LiClO_4·l5-c-5·H_2O, 2LiClO_4·18-c-6-2THF·3H_2O and 2LiClO_4·dibenzo-24-c-8·3H_2O. Spectroscopic assignments have been made for ten different modes of vibrations (Table 1). The infrared shifts due to complex formation are interpreted as regards the location of water molecules, the coordination of Li~+ and ClO_4~- ions, frequency regions of C—O—C and C—C—O groups, splitting of the C—O peak, and the small displacement pertaining to the benzo-group. Besides, the isotopic shift of the H_2O band due to ~6Li and ~7Li amounts to about 8 cm~(-1).


International trade III and vegetables has expanded at a higher rate than trade in other agricultural commodities, particularly since the 1 980s. Not only has world trade in fruits and vegetables gained prominence, but also the variety of commodities has expanded. Over the years, three regions the European Union (EU), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) area and Asia (East, Southeast and South) have remained as both the major destinations and sources of supply. A substantial share of their trade is intraregional, particularly that of the EU. All the three regions, however, also depend on Southern Hemisphere countries for imports of juices and off-season fresh fruits, and the EU and NAFTA also depend on equatorial regions for bananas the leading fresh fruit import. In addition, Asian trade the smallest among the three has become much more important since the 1980s as incomes and populations have grown and policies changed. This chapter describes these global trade patterns in fruits and vegetables focusing on the period 1980-2001. It analyses the forces behind these trends, including the role played by changing consumer diets.


Background:
 Current guidelines recommend use of antiplatelet agents (oral P2Y12 inhibitors and/or GPIIb/IIIa inhibitors) in combination with antithrombin agents (bivalirudin or heparins) for PCI. Cangrelor, a new, intravenous, rapid on/off-set P2Y12 inhibitor reduced ischemic events vs. clopidogrel in the CHAMPION PHOENIX Trial. An economic substudy, from the perspective of the US healthcare system, was designed utilizing a sample of the US trial patients to identify the direct medical costs during index hospitalization among cangrelor vs. clopidogrel patients and the subgroup receiving bivalirudin as antithombin therapy during PCI.

 Methods and Results:
 Hospital bills were collected from a proportion of US patients in the CHAMPION PHOENIX trial. All US hospitals (n=53) were invited and 22 participated. Hospital bills were matched to clinical data from the CHAMPION PHOENIX trial endpoints including death, myocardial infarction (MI), unplanned revascularization, stent thrombosis, intraprocedural thrombotic complications, and major bleeding. Events were adjudicated by a blinded, independent committee using predefined criteria. A total of 1117 hospital bills (27.3% of US mITT population) were collected and analyzed. Patient demographics and comorbidities were similar to the overall CHAMPION PHOENIX US mITT population. Hospital costs were determined by multiplying itemized hospital charges and the cost-center specific cost-to-charge ratio obtained from hospital's Medicare cost report. Median index hospitalization costs for patients receiving cangrelor vs. clopidogrel were compared. Statistical significance was assessed using a Wilcoxon Sum-Rank test at a significance level of P<0.05. The median index hospitalization cost of patients receiving cangrelor (N=560) was $10308 vs. $10738 with clopidogrel (N=557) (P = NS), a numerical savings of $430. The median index hospitalization cost of patients receiving both cangrelor/bivalirudin (N=383) was $11139 vs. $11661 with clopidogrel/bivalirudin (N=389) (P = NS), a numerical savings of $522. There was no difference in the mean length-of-stay. MI (Δ$4675), stent thrombosis (Δ$7881), intraprocedural stent thrombosis (Δ$9342), and ACUITY major bleeding (Δ$6181) were associated with increased cost of hospitalization regardless of treatment (all p<0.05).

 Conclusions:
 This preliminary analysis of hospital bills from a subset of the CHAMPION PHOENIX US mITT population reveals a numerical reduction in direct medical costs for cangrelor patients (with or without bivalirudin). As these data represent a proportion of the population in a trial of very low event rates, further analysis is necessary utilizing multiple imputation methodology, and regression modeling to provide more robust data to identify factors associated with increased index hospitalization costs among the entire CHAMPION PHOENIX US mITT population.


Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA) occur in up to 16 patients per 100 000 of the population and are increasingly amenable to surgical correction [1]. However, low lung function is associated with poor post-operative outcomes, and a pre-operative assessment of pulmonary function is therefore important for prognostication [2]. Spirometry is safe as part of pre-operative work-up in patients with thoracic aortic aneurysms http://ow.ly/uwSe30lJ6Qn


Nuclear fuel assurance, in the face of world and political uncertainties, is interrelated with nuclear technology development plans and international safeguards considerations. This has led some countries to accelerate their commitments to nuclear commercialization faster than necessary and has made non-proliferation policies harder to enforce. Fuel assurance is described on a national basis in three time scales: short-term, or resilience to supply interruptions; mid-term, or contract conditions in which governments make commitments to purchase or deliver; and long-term, or resource adequacy. A review of former assurance problems and current trends in the enrichment and uranium markets indicates that supplier concentration is no longer the major problem so much as non-proliferation actions. The present state of unstable equilibrium is expected to move in the direction of less fuel-supply assurance for countries having a small market or not subscribing to non-proliferation criteria. The authors, while generally optimistic that the fuel-supply system will function, express concern that policies for fuel stockpiles and the condition of uranium markets need improvement. 21 references.


Two mutually exclusive theories of the effects of independence upon public policy exist: the nationalist hypothesis predicts the adoption of many distinctive policies, whereas the external determination hypo thesis, advanced by functional and Marxist writers, suggests that independence makes little practical difference to policies. These competing theories are tested by an examination of Ireland since it became independent of Britain in 1921. Three distinctive periods are covered: that of the consolidation of the regime, a subsequent era of nationalist activism in government, and the present era, emphasizing economic development. Three separate policy domains are examined: the state's defining concern with foreign affairs, law and order, taxation, national identity and representation; the mobilization of economic resources; and the provision of welfare services. In all domains and periods independence has a major effect upon public policies. This is not only a consequence of nationalist ideological aspirations but is also because the institutionalization of a regime gives politicians both incentives and opportunities to pursue national interests, and to respond distinctively to common problems of contemporary government.


The spatial structure of the semidiurnal internal tide in the vicinity of Tasmania is characterized using temperature and salinity data from Seaglider and Slocum glider deployments. Wavelet analysis of isopycnal displacements measured by the gliders was used to isolate the semidiurnal internal tide, with a solid signal observed both to the east and to the south of Tasmania. The signal south of Tasmania was attributed to local forcing, while that to the east of Tasmania was found to have propagated from the south east to the north west—a result which supports previous studies indicating the presence of an internal tidal beam originating over the Macquarie Ridge, south of New Zealand. Displacement amplitudes were observed to be amplified in the vicinity of the continental slope, with the incoming tidal beam shown to be both reflected and scattered on the continental slope and shelf, and energy transferred to higher modes.


This paper analyzes the ownership and governance of the business corporations of New York State in the 1820s. Using a new dataset collected from the manuscript records of New York's 1823 capital tax, and from the charters of the corporations, I analyze the ownership structures of the firms, and investigate the degree to which ownership was separated from control at the time. In contrast to Berle and Means's account of the development of the corporation, the results indicate that many of the firms were dominated by large shareholders, who were represented on the firms' boards, and held sweeping power to utilize the firms' resources for their own benefit. The oppression of minority shareholders was a significant problem in early corporate governance, and many of the firms configured their voting rights in a way that curtailed the power of large investors. A positive relationship between firm value and these voting rights configurations is found among the publicly-traded firms in the sample.


Phase equilibria in the Ag8SiTe6–Ag8GeTe6 system were experimentally investigated by means of differential thermal analysis and powder X-ray diffraction techniques. It was established that continuous series of solid solutions with SiGe substitution are formed in the system. T–x-diagram of the title system and concentration dependence of lattice parameters of the obtained solid solutions were plotted


It is analyzed: – the actions whose effects are different stresses that can load a body or the environment; – the superposition problem of two or several loads. On the basis of critical energy principle, a relationship is established, consisting of dimensionless values, for the evaluation the stress state with respect to a value defined as admissible state. The result can be applied to loads superposition in some cases, such as: – solid bodies; – environmental pollution with a single sort of pollutant; – environmental multiple pollution: chemical, radiations and magnetic.


In the 21st Century, Competition will go along with opportunity. The competition of talents will form the main characteristics and focal points of the new century. The goal of the development of higher engineering education (HEE) consists primarily in training senior talents in engineering, who are equipped with pinioning spirit, innovative ability and flexibility to circumstance. Cultivation of innovation ability is the kernel of HEE. This is required to meet inherent needs in social development and the talents themselves. The core of cultivating innovation ability is based on the forming of creative thought.


Background: There is various pain measurement tools commonly used to measure pain intensity. However, no single standard exists for quantifying pain in post caesarean section. In our study, we have divided two groups according to use of pain scales and found one scale is more useful than the other in the post caesarean cases. Methods: The study has been conducted in upper India Sugar Exchange Maternity Hospital department of obstetrics and gynaecology, GSVM Medical College, Kanpur for the duration of 18 months starting from February 2014 to August 2015 on 100 women who were operated for lower caesarean section (LSCS) under spinal anesthesia. Women were divided into two groups according to pain scales visual analog scale (VAS) and Wong Baker facial pain scale (WBFPS). All these selected women were studied in details with regards to clinical history, general examination and local examination. Women from respective group were asked to rate their pain intensity on these pain scales. SPSS was used to analyze the data statistically. Results: Using analysis of variance, we found that there is significant relationship within the groups having different parameters at different time interval at different probability level. There is a mutual relationship between the groups at different probability level. Conclusions: The study shows that VAS is the most sensitive and reliable tool to measure post LSCS pain as compared to WBFPS and minimum consumption of rescue analgesia in VAS group to maintain minimum pain score to keep the patient pain free.


Management formalization is the basic sector to improve the level of enterprise management and it′s also the inevitable requirement of scientific management.Management innovation is the organization guarantee of enterprise innovation and the main means to individualize the management.Management formalization and management innovation are the unity of opposites.Emphasis on management formalization and management innovation should be decided according to the different categories of enterprises and the different stages that enterprises are at.When the enterprise′s organization is designed,both the requirement of management formalization and the requirement of meeting management innovation should be considered in order to seek the organic fusion of management formalization and management innovation.


In this thesis we construct a fiber-coupled DFB-laser-based frequency modulated coherent laser radar for assessment of distance and velocity of a target. The system is based on an in-fiber Mach-Zeh ...


In the last five years I have served on several national committees concerned with the contribution arts education makes to achieving the goals of education reform in K-12 classrooms. As a university graphic design educator and the only designer on those committees, I frequently must represent the issues and concerns of many design educators and professionals, including architects, industrial designers, planners, landscape architects, and interior designers. I am continually struck by the perceptions that leaders in art education hold about design and the missed opportunities to promote design as a bridge between fine arts and other areas of the curriculum, such as science, mathematics, social studies, and language arts. As someone who holds two degrees in art education, as well as one in design, I am equally concerned by the lack of design instruction in the preparation of K-12 art teachers. It is especially curious given the pervasive assumption that design is a sub-discipline of art, the frequency with which art education and design programs reside in the same academic unit in US colleges, and the exploding number of applications by high school seniors to college design programs.


Ladner's 1975 result says that any NP-complete problem – i.e., in effect, any maximally complex problem – can be reduced to solving two easier problems. This result sounds counter-intuitive: if a problem is maximally complex, how can it be reduced to simpler ones? In this paper, we provide an intuitive explanation for this result. Our main argument is that since complexity and easiness-to-divide are not perfectly correlated, it is natural to expect that maximally complex problem is not maximally difficult to divide. Our related argument is that – as this result shows – NP-completeness is a sufficient but not a necessary condition for a problem to be maximally complex; how to come up with a more adequate notion of complexity is still an open problem. 1 Formulation of the Problem Ladner's result: a brief description and why it is counter-intuitive. Ladner's 1975 result (see, e.g., [1, 3]) says that any NP-complete problem – i.e., in effect, any maximally complex problem – can be reduced to solving two easier problems. This result sounds counter-intuitive: if a problem is maximally complex, how can it be reduced to simpler ones? What we do in this paper. In this paper, we provide an intuitive explanation for this result. To provide this explanation, we first need to recall what is NP-completeness and what exactly is Lander's result. This will be done in the remaining part of this section. The next section will contain our explanation.


BABRA, DAMIEN ALEXANDER SINGH. Economic Analysis of Wood Pellet Production and Shipping in North and South America: Identifying Potential Locations in North and South America to Build Wood Pellet Mills for Export to the United Kingdom (Under the direction of Drs. Frederick Cubbage and Robert Abt). The European Union's Renewable Energy Directive has led many electricity producers in Europe to use wood pellets in place of fossil fuels. North America has become one of the primary suppliers of wood pellets to Europe. This paper is divided into two sections. In Chapter 1 critically examines literature, economic models and data, as well as the supply chain and country risk factors, related to wood pellet production to anticipate where North and South American pellet mills should be built to meet Europe's demand. Canada, the United States, and Brazil maintain the largest natural forest area, planted forest area, and industrial roundwood production; however, South American countries achieve faster plantation growth rates. The World Bank's Logistic Procurement Index and IHS's Country Risk Index were used to score and rank countries' investment climates, based on their supply chain and risk factors. In this regard, the United States, Canada, and Chile performed best, in contrast to Venezuela, Bolivia, and Ecuador. When considering both wood supply and investment climates, the United States, Canada, and Chile were the most attractive countries to build a pellet mill, while countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, and Peru present significant trade-offs between having significant wood resources and riskier investment climates. Chapter 2 develops a techno-economic model to estimate the minimum selling price required by investors to build a wood pellet mill in North and South American countries. In addition, it calculates the real internal rate of return given current market prices. Due to its low cost structure and favorable investment climate, the most ideal locations to build a large, export oriented pellet mill are in western Canada and southeastern US, followed by northeastern and northwestern US. While Argentina, Mexico and Peru offer high IRRs, an investor would have to weigh that against higher risks and poorer supply chain conditions. Brazil, Chile and Colombia are also profitable; however, their returns would likely not be sufficient to overcome their poor investment climates. Finally, the western region of Canada as well as Uruguay are the least likely to see future investments given their higher cost of production.


The 2017 Kumamoto earthquake caused damages to many stone walls of Kumamoto castle. Paper shows facing curves of deformed or collapsed stone walls can be interpreted comparing with the traditional guideline contributed to the stone piling technique. Reconstruction works are aimed to return the collapsed stone wall to the original features. The original curve of stone wall is possibly evaluated at the remained stone wall adding the existing measurement data. There were many deformed stone wall of Kumamoto castle before the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake. The stone wall is congenitally fragile to deform. Deformation level is evaluated comparing the deformed curve of stone wall and the traditional stone piling guidelinel. Stability analysis of stone wall should include deflected facings of stone wall. Paper shows the role of depth of stone wall on the base of thin skeleton model of stability analysis.


It introduces application sphere,treatment elements and application effect of several common foundation treatment methods for collapsed loess,discusses the application condition of heavy tampering method combined with practical engineering,and points out that people should sets up concrete treatment methods according to the types of building,characters of loess and construction condition.


Sport in Scotland has been a devolved area of activity since 1999. This paper seeks to examine claims that direct government expenditure on Scottish sport has been influenced by United Kingdom (UK)...


Objective To evaluate the intra-operative high-resolution ultrasound with some technological improvements as a tool of detecting residual glioma.Methods With 12 MHz high frequency sonoprobe,using technologically improved high-resolution ultrasound,37 gliomas were examined at the end of conventional microneurosurgery.Gross total resection was achieved in all patients.The biopsy specimens were matched with every positive sonographic site as well as with every negative resection cavity in 5 sites.Results With the benefits of intraoperative probe and new technique,the appearance of the sonographic signs,matched with inhomogeneous histopathologic results,had been reduced.Sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of improved ultrasound in detecting residual tumor were 65.71%(23/35),98.34% (178/181)and 93.06%(201/216),respectively.91.67%(11/12)of the ultrasonic pseudo-negative cases occurred in high-grade glioma,especially glioblastoma.Conclusion With proper technological adjustments and then high imaging quality,intra-operative ultrasound could be used as a reliable real-time imaging measure with great security for detecting residual glioma.


The implementation of the scenario approach at all levels in the modern national security process is unavoidable. As long as it is not part of the Bulgarian military practice yet, there is a need the idea to be communicated, and sound explanations provided in terms of rationalizing the defense and force planning process.


This paper explores constraints to urban land use p lanning and management in Nigeria using, Ondo State in South Western part of the country as a case study with a view to determining its effects on city development. It discusses land use planning and control mechanisms and suggests how to eliminate the constraints associated with land use planning and management to achieve sustainable urban development in the are a. The basic data set for the paper was generated b y a systematic survey of land use planning and control activities from th e eighteen council areas that make up the state. Ot her relevant materials were sourced from published sources including government departments and agencies. The paper reveals t hat although land use planning policies and mechanisms are in place i n the state, they are beset with a number of proble ms including inadequate information on uncoordinated land use pl anning and management practices and weak regulatory institutions among others. The paper recommends immediate actions to improve the situation to embrace reinvigoratio n of land use policies including amendment of the land use act an d strengthening institutions responsible for land u se planning and Management. The need to devolve planning at the local levels was emphasized in the study.


One winter evening in 1849 the Yangzi River caught fire. The conflagration broke out on a sampan moored between Hankou, Wuchang and Hanyang, the three sister cities known today as Wuhan.3 Here, the harbours were so crowded that observers often described how a 'forest of masts' seemed to stretch out to the horizon.4 This forest was now ablaze. The poet Ye Diaoyuan immortalised the disastrous scenes, describing a cacophony of gongs beaten to warn of the oncoming inferno, ash floating into the air, and water turning red in the flickering light of the flames. The fire consumed all vessels in its path, from humble cargo sampans to ornate flower boats (huachuan)—a euphemism for floating brothels. Those aboard were trapped 'like fish swimming in a cauldron', yet if they jumped into the river they faced the very probable risk of drowning. So many chose this latter option that Ye remarked


What's the best power source for nighttime propulsion of an airplane going to altitudes above 70,000 feet for three months without landing? The answer is fuel cells. What's the best source of power for generating lomegawatt pulses from a spacecraft? Again, the answer is fuel cells. These topics, plus many new developments in fuel cell technology, were described in 15 of the 189 papers presented at the 36"' Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conference (IECEC) held in Savannah, Georgia, July 30 to August 2, 2001. Engineers from all over the world came to attend this annual conference that dealt with subjects ranging from powering instruments in deep oil-well boreholes to supplying power for Mars-surface exploring vehicles. Important new aerospace fuel-cell related developments are summarized in the paragraphs that follow and details are available from the Proceedings of the conference. We started the IECEC 36 years ago to avoid having each technical society sponsor its own annual energy conference. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers managed the 36' IECEC. The 37"' IECEC will be held July 28 to August 3, 2002, in Washington, DC. The IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society, with the IEEE Power Electronics Society, will manage the 37"' IECEC.


States across the country are taking steps towards providing digital identities to beneficiaries of their Public Distribution System. In doing so, use of Aadhaar based biometrics seems to be the preferred choice of method. However, this method has been widely criticized for several reasons such as high implementation cost and frequent transaction failures. It is important to note that this is not the only method for providing digital identities to the beneficiaries Several other methods exist and have been adopted by different states at different points in time. States currently embarking on the journey of providing digital identities to their beneficiaries might benefit from evaluating all alternatives before making inroads into any specific method.


An 8-week feeding trial was conducted to study the effects of substitution of dietary low temperature steam-dried fish meal(LT-FM) for blended animal proteins(BAP) at two protein levels(40% and 43%,respectively) on growth performance and body composition of Japanese sea bass,Lateolabrax japonicus under the optimum digestible amino acids(ODAA) profile.In this trial,BAP was composed of poultry by-product meal,meat and bone meal(beef),spray dried blood meal and hydrolyzed feather meal at the ratio of 40∶35∶20∶5,and 0,50%,75% and 100% of LT-FM were replaced by BAP at two protein levels,respectively.Seven hundred and twenty juvenile Japanese sea bass with initial body weight of(13.1±0.1) g were randomly divided into eight groups with three replicates in each group and thirty fish per replicate.During the feeding trial,fish in eight groups were fed one of eight experimental diets,randomly.The results showed as follows:under the ODAA profile,with the dietary protein levels decreasing,the final average weight(FAW),weight gain rate(WGR) and protein productive value(PPV) of Japanese sea bass were significantly decreased(P0.05),and the feed conversion rate(FCR) was significantly increased(P0.05),while the body composition indices were not significantly different(P0.05).At the same protein level,substitution of LT-FM for BAP could significantly decrease the FAW,survival rate(SR),WGR,feeding rate(FR),protein productive value(PPV),energy productive value(EPV),viscerasomatic index(VSI) and crude protein,gross energy and crude lipid contents of fish body(P0.05),and significantly increase the FCR and moisture,ash contents of fish body(P0.05).There was no interactive effect between protein levels and substitution levels on any growth performance and body composition indices(P0.05).In conclusion,under the ODAA profile,dietary protein levels could significantly affect the growth performance of Japanese sea bass,but there was no significant effect on the body composition indices.Substitution levels of BAP to fish meal could significantly affect the growth performance and body composition indices of Japanese sea bass,and the substitution level of BAP to fish meal should be no more than 50%.


Wesley Tucker, Field Specialist, Agricultural Business; Eldon Cole, Field Specialist, Livestock; Joe Horner, Extension Specialist, Agricultural Business and Policy||New 10/18


The number and size of the cavities in a hard disc fluid and crystal are calculated in a computer simulation experiment. A cavity is a region where there is sufficient space to insert another disc. In the higher-density fluid and in the crystal the number of cavities per disc, n c, closely follows the exact one-dimensional result n c = exp(-zpV/RT), where z is the density relative to close packing, over 40 orders of magnitude. The average size of the cavities, , varies by only 3·5 orders of magnitude in the same density range, and, to within about 20%, varies as = [σ/(pV/RT - 1)]2, where σ is the disc diameter. Across the freezing transition n c is exactly constant. When the crystal melts to a fluid the number of cavities increases by about 50% and their size decreases in proportion, but their surface-to-volume ratio only decreases by 5%, showing that they have a more compact shape in the fluid. Above one-half of the close-packed density the computed values of n c and are represented pr...


A system is being tested for recovery of rf power by conversion to DC pulsed power. The system consists of a cyclotron autoresonance accelerator (CARA) and a single stage depressed collector. A 50 kV, 5 A electron beam is injected into CARA, and up to I MW of S-band rf power is absorbed by the beam with efficiency exceeding 95%. The beam then passes to a single stage depressed collector. RF to DC collection efficiencies of 73% are predicted but, due to collector breakdown above 125 kV, a maximum collector efficiency of only 41% has been observed to date.


The development of control laws for manoeuvring flight, specifically, a high amplitude velocity vector roll is addressed. The plant model has seventh order nonlinear dynamics with coupled pitch and lateral directional dynamics. Using time scale separation and pointwise linearization, a receding horizon linear quadratic optimal control law with full state feedback is synthesized online. Also online, the pilot inputs are modulated using linear programming to prevent actuator rate saturation over the optimization horizon. The nonlinear control law performance is demonstrated in a fighter aircraft simulation with a rudder failure during a loaded roll manoeuvre.


Direct seeding rice has been expanding in Heilongjiang Province year by year. In order to understand the effects of water direct seeding cultivation techniques on yield and quality of rice in cold area, Hulin City and Fuyuan County, two larger water direct seeding rice producer of Heilongjiang Province were investigated. The results showed that the effect of water direct seeding on panicle length, primary branch number and secondary branch number of Jinhe 1 were less than Longjing 31. The yield of Jinhe 1 and Longjing 31 reached 7.78 t/hm2 and 8.73 t/hm2 under water direct seeding, respectively, significantly lower than transplanted rice. The low yield of water direct seeding was due to the signficant decreased in grain weight. The milled rice rate, head rice rate and protein content of Jinhe 1 and Longjing 31 of water direct seeding rice were lower than transplanted rice. The amylose content was higher than transplanted rice, but the difference were not significant. The chalky rice rate and chalkiness degree of Jinhe 1 under water direct seeding were significantly lower than transplanted rice. The chalky rice rate and chalkiness degree of Longjing 31 were not significant among different cultivation methods. The taste score of two varieties in two cultivation methods were also not significant.


Our universe probably began as an offshoot or "bud" of the "Multiverse"; the latter, as usually envisioned, is truly eternal and infinite, the "scientific" (or "rational") substitute for typical metaphysical notions of "God". The "given" physical constants of our universe which cannot be derived from first principles (such as the value of "velocity c"), find their origins quite naturally in the Multiverse. All else (in the abiotic realm) can be explained through general considerations of energy and symmetry conservation (Noether's Theorem), or, in the biotic realm, by Darwin's Theory.


The second hal f of the 2nd mill, BC in Syria has been chronological ly labeled either in t e rms of the system of "meta l epochs" as the Late Bronze Age I and II or else labeled accord ing to a culturally and geographical ly oriented t e rminology as the "Middle-Syr ian" ' per iod (ca 1600/1530-1200/1100 BC). With regard to the strong geographical different ia t ion of mater ia l culture, especial ly pottery, within Syria to be observed in m a n y per iods , it is advisable to in t roduce a chronological periodizat ion on a regional scale. For the Syrian Jazirah, a region with very distinct ceramic repertoires th rough all phases f r o m the Ear ly Bronze to the Iron Age, the "Jazirah chronological sys tem" has b e e n defined . In this article, the Late Bronze Age will be classif ied, for the first t ime, as the "Midd le Jazirah period" . Accord ing to typological criteria that will be explained below, it can be subdivided into phases Midd le Jazirah (mJ) la , lb, Ha, l ib , and III. In addit ion, concerning the region of the Syrian Jazirah, it has always been considered possible and legi t imate to apply a pure ly historical periodizat ion system referr ing to the Mittani per iod fo l lowed by the Midd le Assyr ian period. This assumpt ion is still valid and has been strongly supported by a recent compara t ive analysis of the pot tery associated with the two periods . The polit ical enti ty of Mittani and the succeeding Middle Assyr ian Empi re are clearly ci rcumscr ibed factors in the history and chronology of the Syrian Jazirah. Fur thermore , th rough their specific political and economica l organizat ion they considerably inf luenced the material culture of the Syrian Jazirah. As a consequence , both per iods reveal a distinct ceramic repertoire. These two archaeological phases and ceramic t radit ions can thus be labeled "Mi t tan i" and "Midd le Assyr ian" . In order to avoid misconcept ions of these terms, it is important to note that the terms "Mi t t an i " and "Midd le Assyr ian ceramic per iod" do not imply an ethnic ass ignment of the pot tery concerned. They have a purely politicalgeographical significance. This is to say that any of the Late Bronze Age Jazirah popula t ion groups for example Hurrians , Assyrians , Aramaeans , etc. could theoret ical ly have been producers or consumers of the pottery f rom both ceramic t radit ions ' . The t e rm "Mi t t an i " was used in 2nd mill, BC texts first of all as a geographica l te rm to address the reg ion be tween the Middle Euphra tes in Syria and the Middle Tigris, with the Khabur region in its center. Accord ing to this meaning , the t e rm "Mit tani pot te ry" is employed for the h o m o g e n o u s group of ceramics f r o m the core region of Mittani during the t ime of the Mittani-s tate . "Midd l e Assyr ian pot te ry" is the designat ion for the ceramics in the Syrian Jazirah during the t ime of its incorporat ion into the Middle Assyr ian empire starting with Adad-Nira r i I (1295-1264 BC). The Syrian Jazirah


PurposeThis study investigates the extent to which, and in what ways and capacities, the incidence of adverse economic conditions burdening the masses, on the macro-level, increases the propensity for the generation of political instability/violence.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on data from a cross-section of 25 Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries for the period 2005–2019, fixed effects (FE) and generalized method of moments (GMM) estimations are used to determine the nature and significance of the independent variable (economic condition), complemented by three control variables, on the dependent WGI-defined variable political stability scored on the basis of a continuum from −2.5 (most unstable) to +2.5 (most stable). For the link between political instability and socioeconomic conditions, the study employs a construct derived from frustration-aggression and relative deprivation theory.FindingsThe study links socioeconomic adversity to political instability in the context of SSA. In addition, larger populated countries exhibit a greater propensity to political instability than smaller populated countries. In contrast, foreign direct investment (FDI) appears to have no real effect, positive or negative, on political stability.Practical implicationsPoor living conditions seem to be strongly associated with a high risk of political violence in SSA. To buoy socioeconomic status, poverty alleviation needs be elevated into a key initiative in the decision-making agenda, at all levels of governance, with real targeted strides achieved in terms of enhancement of the standard of living of the masses. In addition, policies that control population need to be inaugurated hand-in-hand with welfare measures and a more equitable balancing of the distribution of resources in the society.Originality/valueGiven the high regional incidence of civil strife and violence, combined with a dearth of research of an empirical nature on political risk in SSA, this study provides a largely ignored and useful context on SSA apart from studies on the incidence of violence that consider the developing countries as a monolithic whole.


In order to achieve secure mobile application services,a distributed authentication protocol is presented.Based on the pervasiveness of SMS(short message service),the protocol uses SMS messages to transmit authentication data.It provides the mutual authentication between any users and any application services in local area or different trusted areas.Mobile stations only need to send one short message to services.The protocol adopts the hybrid cryptography.Smart cards in it are to protect users' secret.The protocol uses hash chain mechanism to decrease protocol cost for next authentication between user and service.Hence,the user's computation cost and the communication cost fit mobile station.Furthermore,the protocol provides more security features,such as user anonymity,non-repudiation and et al.


This book is a collection of interpretive essays on two Europes and their fates. We used to call them Eastern Europe and Western Europe; sometimes we used to allow a rather obscure distinction between Eastern and Central Europe. Nowadays, we are bound to draw the new dividing line between the EU and what we call Eastern partners. In fact, this book is an attempt to show what happened to two Europes over the past two decades.


This research is to examine the marketing factors that affect student's behavior in decision making of choosing higher education institution under the Higher Education Commission in the south-northeastern region totally 7 provinces which consists of Sri Saket, Burirum, Chaiyaphum, Nakhon Ratchasima, Surin, Nongbau Lamphu and Ubon Ratchathani. The results of this study based on its objectives are as followed. 1) To study the marketing factors that affecting student's decision of choosing higher education institution in the Southnortheastern region, after testing the relationship between marketing factors and the institution type of selection tested with the chi square ( 2 χ ), found that product, price, distribution channels, people and physical evidence have relationship with institution type of selection at 0.05 significance level and promotion is associated with institution type of selection at 0.10 significance level. But process of service providing has none relationship with any institution types selection. 2) To study the personal factors; income of the parent, domicile of the family, occupation of the parents, and education level of parents of students that affect student's decision in choosing higher education institution in the Southnortheastern region, the result of testing the relationship between personal factors to institution type tested with the chi square ( 2 χ ) at 0.05 significance level, found that personal factors, which are parent income, family domicile, father's and mother's occupation, and level of education, affect the selection of institution type. Thus, in order to set institution's marketing policies and strategies, different types of institution should consider the differences between personal factors and focus on improving to differentiate marketing strategies. So that the institution will fulfill perspective student needs effectively which will enables organizations to insistent operate under highly competitive circumstance in the future.


(US) (52) U.S. Cl. ......................................... 204/461; 204/456 (57) ABSTRACT Correspondence Address: PANITCH SCHWARZE BELISARIO & NADEL An improved staining method is described for staining a LLP biopolymer Such as a peptide, a protein, an RNA, a DNA, an ONE COMMERCE SQUARE, 2005 MARKET oligosaccharide or a complex containing a peptide, a protein, STREET, SUTE 22OO 9 an RNA, a DNA, or an oligosaccharide in a matrix. The PHILADELPHIA, PA 19103 (US) method includes the step of moving a staining reagent into the 9 matrix using an electric force. The staining time can be dra matically reduced relative to conventional technologies. The (73) Assignee: GENSCRIPT HOLDINGS improved staining method can particularly be used, for (HONG KONG) LIMITED, example, to stain proteins after gel separation. Other related Piscataway, NJ (US) methods and related kits are also described.


A number of new NN'di(aryl)propene-1-amino-3-imine acid salts, their free bases and transition metal complexes are reported. Examination of the free dianils by infra-red and [1]H NMR spectroscopy shows that their alphabeta amino-imine isomer is present, at ambient temperatures, both in the solid state and in solution. The beta-diimine isomeric form has not been detected. In solution the free dianils exist in an equilibrium between the 'all-trans' and 'all-cis' geometrical isomers. The 'all-cis' isomer predominates in non-polar solvents whereas the 'all-trans' isomer is favoured in hydrogen bonding solvents. The bonding in the 'all-cis' isomer is discussed in terms of a cyclic delocalised pi electron system and a rapidly interchanging alphabeta double bond tautomeric system. Evidence is presented in favour of the latter model. Most of the acid salts reported exist wholly as the 'all-trans' isomer in solution. However, some of these,compounds are found to exist in both 'all-trans' and 'cis-trans' forms. The conditions that favour the occurrence of the 'cis-trans' isomer are reported. Monomeric bis [NN'di(aryl)propene-1-aminato-3-imine] metal(II) complexes are characterised and from a study of their electronic and infra-red spectra, and their magnetic moments, it is concluded that they have a distorted pseudo-tetrahedral stereochemistry. The electron impact mass spectra of all these compounds are described and possible fragmentation schemes are presented.


The production of several agricultural products and foods are linked with fermentation. Traditional methods used to control and monitor the quality of the products and processes are based on the use of simple chemical analysis. However, these methods are time-consuming and do not provide sufficient relevant information to guarantee the chemical changes during the process. Commonly used methods applied in the agriculture and food industries to monitor fermentation are those based on simple or single-point sensors, where only one parameter is measured (e.g., temperature or density). These sensors are used several times per day and are often the only source of data available from which the conditions and rate of fermentation are monitored. In the modern food industry, an ideal method to control and monitor the fermentation process should enable a direct, rapid, precise, and accurate determination of several target compounds, with minimal to no sample preparation or reagent consumption. Here, state-of-the-art advancements in both the application of sensors and analytical tools to monitor beverage and food fermentation processes will be discussed.


Studies black box testing and verification of large systems. Testing data is collected from several test teams. A flat, integrated database of test, fault, repair, and source file information is built. A new analysis methodology based on the black box test design and white box analysis is proposed. The methodology is intended to support the reduction of testing costs and enhancement of software quality by improving test selection, eliminating test redundancy, and identifying error prone source files. Using example data from AT&T systems, the improved analysis methodology is demonstrated.<<ETX>>


It was not until the mid-1940s that the United States was called upon to have more than a vague and gen eralized attitude toward the Palestine problem. With the end of World War II, pressures on our government to take some action with respect to the Jewish displaced persons in Europe became intense. President Truman, whose basic motivation was humanitarian, but who was responsive to Zionist influ ence, urged the British to admit 100 thousand displaced Jews to Palestine. The British countered by proposing a joint Anglo-American Committee to examine the situation, but the committee's recommendations were not accepted by either government. After a second Anglo-American effort failed, and no agreement with the Arabs and Jews was in sight, the British in 1947 referred the matter to the United Nations, where we strongly supported partition. The State of Israel was established May 14, 1948, and immediately recognized by Truman. President Eisenhower and Secretary Dulles adopted a policy of impartiality and promoted a settlement, but en countered various obstacles. In the 1956 Suez crisis, we took a strong line against Britain, France, and Israel, called for an immediate cease-fire, and put considerable pressure on Israel to withdraw from occupied territory. Our support of Israel adversely affected our interests in the Middle East, and the evenhanded policy adopted later, though an improvement, was not really impartial in practice.


The widely-used algorithms for motion planning and control of autonomous vehicles usually adopt a layered structure. However, consistency between the two levels is critical to obtain high control performance and maneuvering ability. Aiming at this issue, we propose a two-layer model predictive control (MPC) approach for consistent planning and control of autonomous vehicles. In the higher layer, we propose a finite-horizon convex optimization algorithm for time-optimal motion planning using obstacle convexification of non-convex obstacles. In the proposed planner, the vehicle model uncertainty was learned by a radial-basis-function-based (RBF) neural network whose weight is optimized using pre-collected motion datasets. The surrounding obstacles were detected by a radar, and a clustering algorithm was utilized to process the radar point clouds to isolate polygonal obstacles. Also, the obstacle avoidance constraints were convexified with polyhedrons. As such, the planning problem at the higher layer is transformed into a convex optimization problem to be solved. In the lower layer, a model predictive controller is designed to follow the planned trajectory using the learned dynamic model and a similar performance index to the higher layer. Consequently, the inconsistency between the higher layer and the lower layer can be highly reduced and the control performance can be improved compared with the planning scenario with a nominal model. Extensive simulated and experimental results on planning tasks of unstructured environments have been performed to verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach.


Unsteady aerodynamic uncertainty affects the critical worst-case flutter boundary directly. The modeling and bound estimation of aerodynamic parameter's uncertainty are presented in this work. The nominal unsteady aerodynamics due to modal motion is calculated by the routine doublet lattice method (DLM). Then three different aerodynamic uncertainty hierarchies under the structured singular value (μ) framework are constructed by using the linear fractional transformation technique. These aerodynamic uncertainty hierarchies are aerodynamic influence coefficients, modal pressure coefficients and general aerodynamic influence coefficients, respectively. The ANSYS/CFX commercial software is applied to compute the accurate unsteady pressure coefficients for each mode. The uncertainty bounds for pressure coefficients at different reduced frequencies are estimated by interpolating method. Consequently, the deterministic robust flutter velocity is analyzed in the frequency domain with μ method. Two numerical cases are applied to validate the above framework. One is a NACA0012 wing section. The other application is a three dimensional AGARD445.6 aeroelastic wing. Results indicate that when aerodynamic pressure uncertainty is considered, the worst-case flutter velocity decreases about 13.3% than the nominal flutter velocity in NACA0012's application. This uncertainty bound estimation method can get an actual aerodynamic bound in aeroelastic applications.


ith hindsight one of the achievements of the rich countries has been to reconcile tremendous social changes with remarkable improvements in health. For instance, the life-expectancy for French women has increased from 35 years to 83 years since the eve of the French Revolution (Appendix table 1). Despite industrialisation, urbanisation and rural de-population, which have changed the conditions of living, the environment and the economic origin of the family means, the improvement has been incredible. But this does not imply that there has been a smooth evolutionary improvement for the whole population. On the contrary, during several decades, the first industrialization led to increases in mortality (and probably increasing morbidity) among the workers and the urban poor population, especially the children. In fact, to appreciate the links between social change and health, scholars have to pay attention to different analysis scales. The chronological scale first, because the social change effects on health improvement have not been immediate, regular or constant – an increase of the mortality can even be the first consequence of a social change. The geographical scale is also important because the economic and social change occurred first at a local level, and surveys at a national or regional scale can immerse these changes. Taking into account the social scale is fundamental because specific categories, new industrial workers or women or children have been more exposed than the others, and were, at least during a first phase, the main losers of the evolution. The three dimensions, the three scales, have to be connected to each other. I propose here, after a global perspective on life-expectancies, to focus first, at a local level, on an example of the consequences for mortality and health of the 19 century industrialization. The ways in which the industrial and urban penalties have


The use of two equivalents of Bu3SnH (TBTH), in the presence of a catalytic amount of NidppeCl2, provides a new procedure for the reduction of organic azides under mild conditions. While non-sterically hindered aliphatic azides readily undergo reduction to produce primary amines in good yields, benzyl azide gives N3 displacement by the hydrido group.


The publication is a part of the cycle of our research articles on the Russian and foreign fantasy of the 20th and 21st centuries with the focus on the literary image of the universe of afterlife as a specific locus where the post-mortem human being (the human soul) dwells. In this article we shall concentrate in a more detailed way on the specifics and the role of the urbanistic (and other) landscapes of the universe of afterlife.


Generalized Betti number is introduced in this paper.The relationship between classical Betti number and generalized Betti number is obtained.It is proved that the minimal projective resolution of an induced module over a quasihereditary algebra can be induced by that of its original module over the exact Borel subalgebra.Thus these two modules have the same generalized Betti numbers.


Dr. PHILIP HUGH-JONES: This man was aged 50 years at death. His medical history starts in 1922, when at the age of 14 years he got rheumatic fever. He apparently made a good recovery from this. However, he was graded in group IV at an Army medical examination in 1940 at the age of 32, though he himself felt perfectly well. In 1943 he had a gradual onset of swelling, aching, and stiffness of the metacarpophalangeal joints of both hands and of the wrists, shoulders. knees, and ankles. This continued for five years; there was little constitutional upset, but the illness left him with a residual stiffness of his shoulders and wrists and with deformity of the hands typical of rheumatoid arthritis. From 1938 to 1949 he worked in an asbestos factory. There he felt well, but -on routine radiological examination of his chest in 1949 he was told he had asbestosis, was certified, and subsequently became a storeman. From that time onward he noticed increasing shortness of breath on exertion. In May, 1958, he got worse, had a brisk haemoptysis, and was admitted to Hammersmith Hospital for investigation. EXAMINATION AND INVESTIGATIONS He had marked clubbing of the fingers and toes; rheumatoid changes in his hands, elbows, and shoulders; enlarged axillary glands; and two small, mobile, cutaneous nodules on the medial side of the right arm. There were persistent scattered rales over both lungs. His blood-pressure was 120/65, his pulse was regular, and he had a grade 3 aortic systolic murmur, an accentuated pulmonary second sound. with an opening snap and mid-diastolic murmur at the heart apex. A radiograph of the chest (Fig. 1) showed a fracture of the sixth rib on the right, large pulmonary vascular shadows, and a reticular mottling over the lower zones of both lung fields, with a " shaggy " outline to the heart. On barium swallow there was slight enlargement of the left atrium. The changes at the right hilum could be those of an enlarged pulmonary artery, or those associated with a right hilar neoplasm. Tomography (Fig. 2) confirmed the right hilar mass. His sputum was examined on numerous occasions for tubercle bacilli, malignant cells, and asbestos bodies, but nothing abnormal was found. Bronchoscopy showed the left-hand side of the bronchial tree to be normal. The right upper lobe was normal. but there was blood-stained mucopus in the region of the right middle lobe, with a granular appearance of the right descending and lower lobe bronchi. However, a biopsy from the granular areas showed no evidence of malignant change. Biopsy of lymph glands and of the skin nodules showed only changes compatible with rheumatoid arthritis.


News that an H5N1 influenza virus was rendered into a phenotype that spreads readily between mammals startled microbiologists and infectious disease experts attending the 2011 European Scientific Working Group on Influenza (ESWI) conference in Malta last September. By configuring a virus that could attach to respiratory tract cells and passaging the infectious material in ferrets, Ron A. M. Fouchier of Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands learned that H5N1 could become increasingly transmittable. These findings challenge a long-held belief that extensive changes are needed before "bird flu" is able to jump from one human to another.


A media identification system generates reference fingerprints for known media samples and stores the reference fingerprints in a reference database. The media identification system uses the reference fingerprints to match a fingerprint generated from an unknown media sample to identify that unknown sample. When storing new reference fingerprints in the reference database, partitions of the database are selected to balance the search loads on the database when it is used by the media identification system. For example, the selected partitions may be determined based at least in part on the access rates of the partitions by the media identification system. New reference fingerprints will tend to be placed in partitions that have relatively lower access rates that the other partitions, which will tend to balance the search loads on the partitions by the media identification system.


This article reviews Infrared Astronomy—Seeing the Heat: From William Herschel to the Herschel Space Observatory. by David L. Clements  289 pp.
, Boca Raton, Fl. 2015. Price : $44.96 (hardcover). ISBN 978-1-4822-3727-6.


The main objective of this project is to develop a model that, based on the data of previously drilled wells, allows the user to evaluate the mud plan and identify the probability of a stuck pipe event occurrence. This is done, by using statistical predictive models, particularly in this case, neural network models.
 The proposed model takes the input data from the Volve's dataset. The process starts with the pre-processing of more than 24.000 rows of data from the daily drilling operation reports of 30 wells. The pre-processing of the data consists of identifying the cases where the operation ran across a section successfully or when it resulted in a stuck pipe event. Depending on whether there is or not a stuck pipe event, each row will be classified indicating the chance that a stuck pipe event occurs based on the geological and the operational conditions.
 In order to ease the processing of the 24.000 rows, the project workflow implements a Natural Language Processing model, which, based on an initial dataset of 1.200 rows, reads the remaining 22.800 identifying whether the row content is relevant or not for stuck pipe identification. Once all the rows are processed, the rows which represent a stuck pipe event, and those who identify a clean operation run are selected and integrated into the final dataset.
 Once the data is processed, the resulting dataset consists of around 600 rows. After some data transformation, this dataset will be the input for the neural network model in the training and validation phases. Once the model is built, the model is tested with the validation dataset in order to evaluate its accuracy.
 The trained model shows high accuracy, higher than 84% on the test data. After the model is trained and validated, it's implemented into a frontend which will serve as the front user interface where he can upload the mud plan parameters, and obtain a stuck pipe event chance evaluation. Having these results, the user can improve the mud plan in order to reduce the chance that an event of this type occurs.
 The main advantage of this methodology is that it allows to include historical data from the other drilled wells, this way, boosting the mud plan design with real data and reducing the chances that a stuck pipe event, that account for a high percentage of NPT's during drilling operations occur. Also, by the use of these statistical models, applied to a specific field, it will allow to intrinsically take into account variables such as geomechanics properties in the model.


Sri Lanka has been considered to locate inside the collision zone during amalgamation of Gondwana supercontinent (e.g. Meert, 2003). Therefore, Sri Lanka plays an important role to elucidate the process of amalgamation of the Gondwana supercontinent. However, the origin, tectonic evolution and even lithological divisions of Sri Lankan metamorphic rocks are still unclear, although many petrological and geochronological works have been carried out previously. One of the reasons is the shortage of reported zircon U-Pb ages which provide us some information about protolith formation and metamorphism. This study reports LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb ages from 45 metamorphic rocks in the high-grade complexes (Highland and Wanni Complexes), and reconsiders about the lithological boundary between these complexes and their origin. On the Basis of rock type, metamorphic grade and Nd model ages, the metamorphic rocks in Sri Lanka are subdivided into three major crustal units (e.g. Cooray, 1994), which are Wanni Complex (WC), Highland Complex (HC) and Vijayan Complex (VC). The HC is composed of interlayered granulites including charnockite, pelitic to psammitic gneiss, marble, quartzite and mafic granulite with Nd model ages of ca. 2.0-3.0 Ga. On the other hand, the WC consists of amphibolite to granulite-facies, banded orthogneiss, charnockite, pelitic to psammitic gneiss, migmatite and minor quartzite, calcsilicate rocks with Nd model ages of ca. 1.0-2.0 Ga. Geochronologically, the HC and WC are clearly characterized by > ca. 1500 Ma of detrital zircon ages with ca. 2000-1800 Ma of protolith (igneous) ages and ca. 1100-700 Ma of detrital zircon ages with ca. 1100-800 Ma of protolith ages, respectively. The age differences between them strongly indicate that their origins are different. Therefore, considering with zircon ages, rock distributions, the direction of metamorphic foliations and geography, the boundary between the HC and WC are reconsidered. Additionally, metamorphic ages of ca. 650-500 Ma are widely recognized from the HC and WC. The age distributions of metamorphic ages can be broadly divided into three age peaks of ca. 650-600 Ma, ca. 600-550 Ma and ca. 550-500 Ma. It may imply three metamorphic events for metamorphic rocks in the HC and WC. In view of field occurrence, petrography and areal distribution, ca. 550-500 Ma of metamorphic ages may be related with post-tectonic events (igneous and fluid activities). Although the lack of petrological evidences, ca. 650-600 Ma and ca. 600-550 Ma of metamorphic ages may be related with collision events among the HC, WC and VC. Finally, based on the detrital zircon ages and protolith ages, the HC and WC are clearly comparable with Trivandrum Block (TB) and Southern Madurai Block (SMB) in southern India, respectively. This suggests the possibilities of same origin between HC and TB, and WC and SMB.


Abstract Studies associated with diaspore self-burial have emphasized the role of awns and substrate surfaces to explain burial differences between species. However, limited research has been conducted to determine the effect of diaspore morphometrics on intraspecific self-burial differences. The aim of this study was to evaluate morphometric and self-burial differences between diaspores of Hesperostipa spartea growing in loam versus sandy soils. Hesperostipa spartea diaspores were collected in three black soil prairies (loam soils) and three sand prairies (sandy soils) in Illinois. Eight morphometric measurements were made from 50 diaspores per site to determine differences between diaspores from these two soil types. Two studies were conducted to determine if self-burial rate and depth of burial differed between diaspores from loam versus sandy soils. Morphometric results showed that sandy soil diaspores were smaller than loam soil diaspores. In addition, regardless of the soil of origin, diaspores were more successful at self-burial in loam soil than in sandy soil due to microtopography. Lastly, diaspores from sandy soil self-buried deeper than diaspores from loam soil regardless of soil substrate. This study demonstrates that there are intraspecific morphometric differences between Hesperostipa spartea diaspores from loam versus sandy soil prairies and that these morphometric differences affect self-burial.


A cross-sectional survey of Schistosoma mansoni was undertaken at the Rhino Camp of the West-Nile district of Uganda to establish baseline data for subsequent studies intended to compare this area (a low transmission area) with Pakwach area (high transmission). An overall prevalence of 37% of S. mansoni infection was demonstrated. There was no statistically significant difference in prevalence between males and females. Six per cent of all cases were heavily infected (400 eggs g-1 of faeces). There was no statistically significant difference in prevalence between those with pit-latrines and those with no conventional method of excreta disposal.


The Auk, Vol. , Number , pages  . ISSN -, electronic ISSN -.  by The American Ornithologists' Union. All rights reserved. Please direct all requests for permission to photocopy or reproduce article content through the University of California Press's Rights and Permissions website, http://www.ucpressjournals. com/reprintInfo.asp. DOI: ./auk.... Carl D. Marti, 1944–2010 The Auk 127(3):709–710, 2010 The American Ornithologists' Union, 2010. Printed in USA.


Housing configured attachment to the vehicle, receives rearview mirror element that displays the external scene of the vehicle which is arranged in the housing, disposed within the housing a light sensor assembly, and the electrical signal of the optical sensor, back a controller for adjusting the brightness of the image displayed by the mirror element, rearview mirror assembly is provided for a vehicle. The optical sensor comprises an optical center for outputting an electrical signal representing the intensity of light acting on the light receiving surface of the light sensor, and a secondary optical element configured to receive light, wherein the light reached secondary optical element optical sensor passes through the, the secondary optical element, comprising a colored material substantially neutral with respect to the attenuation of light passing therethrough.


Exergy is synonymous with the availability of energy and, in the context of this research, is the availability of energy generated by photovoltaics (PVs) mounted on roofs across a city. The research was carried out on Auckland City with the aim of answering the questions:
1) How much energy could be produced if a city fully utilised its rooftops in a practical and efficient manner?
2) If there is any excess energy produced, how could this best be used?
3) What implications will this have on the shape of cities?
The purpose of looking at the full potential is that it provides a starting point from which to backcast and predict the impact of PVs as they increase penetration into the building stock.

The study took a large sample (3 million sqm of floor area) of various types and uses of buildings form high rise city centre developments through to low density suburbs and everything between.


The compound 2,2‐dichloro‐1,1,1‐trifluoroethane, CF3CHCl2, has been selected in an exhaustive search as the most promising working material for potentially viable laser separation of deuterium. Highly isotopically selective absorption in CF3CDCl2 occurs near 10.2 and 10.6 μm, accessible with the normal CO2 laser. The single‐step deuterium isotopic enrichment factor attains a value of 1400 at a fluence of 10 J/cm2 for the dominant photoproduct, trifluoroethene (CF2=CFD and CF2=CFH). The probability for CF3CDCl2 dissociation into CF2=CFD photoproduct occurs with a fluence threshold near 1.5 J/cm2 and appears to saturate near 100% yield above 15 J/cm2. Liquid‐phase base‐catalyzed H/D exchange occurs rapidly with water without hydrolysis to permit redeuteration of the CF3CHCl2 working material.


Introduction . One of the directions of the state policy in the field of fire safety is the improvement of national standards in the field of protection of the population from the fire threat, which should be developed not only taking into account modern challenges and threats, but also based on the historical traditions of state management of the fire protection of Russia, including pre-revolutionary ones. The purpose of this article is to eliminate gaps in the history of the development of the fire protection of the Russian Empire at the end of the 19th century on the basis of archival data; to identify the reasons for the failed attempt of the fire reform in Russia; show the progressive ideas of Count A.D. Sheremetev to reform the fire service in Russia: the first attempt to unite firefighting teams of different types into a single fire-fighting organization, the creation of a single governing body for firefighting teams and the inclusion of voluntary firefighting teams in a unified state system of fire control. Main part . This paper presents the main provisions of the fire reform project by A.D. Sheremetev. Archival data from A.D. Sheremetev's papers in the Russian State Historical Archive (RSHA), allowing to explain little-knownchapters of the United Russian Fire-Fighting Society history, are introduced into scientific expression. The reasons for the need to implement fire reform inRussiaare explained. The discussion on the ways of reforming the fire protection of the Russian Empire is considered. The role of A.D. Sheremetev is defined not only in the formation of national firefighting voluntary work, but also in the development and discussion of reforming the country's firefighting industry. Conclusions. The fire reform project presented by A.D. Sheremetev clearly illustrates the process of filling the state function on emergency prevention and response with specific content and shows the dynamics of such specification after the registration of this function in 1853.


Recent healthcare redesign has been directed at providing more equitable, accessible, efficient and effective patient care. To support these aims, allied health assistants have increasingly been introduced into models of care. Concomitant with the increase of assistants in the workplace has been the introduction of national vocational training programs for allied health assistants in Australia. This review aimed to summarise the Australian and international evidence regarding effective and appropriate strategies for the clinical education and training of allied health assistants. A systematic search of relevant databases was undertaken during April-May 2011. No time limit was imposed, and only English-language papers were considered. Grey literature was searched, and a hand search of relevant journals was conducted. Full-text articles were screened by two reviewers for inclusion in the systematic review. Quantitative and qualitative studies were included. The literature addressing the review questions was scarce and generally of low methodological quality. The results suggest that to incorporate assistants in models of care, strategies such as collaborative education need to be implemented, and these should cover topics such as supervision, delegation and role delineation. In addition, there is a need to promote standardisation of vocational courses. These courses should be relevant for assistants, devote significant time to practical activities and include processes for recognition of prior learning and competencies. The findings of this review may inform policy and practice within Australia related to educating and building an effective allied health workforce that includes allied health assistants as an integral part of the healthcare team.


Cognitive decline and dementia are among leading chronic conditions undermining the quality of life in our aging population. Dementia is a term used to describe a variety of diseases in which the normal function of the brain gets impaired due to irreversible loss of neurons. According to expert prediction of Alzheimer Disease International-ADI-, the number of dementia patients all over the world would grow from 47 million in 2015 to 74 million in 2030 and then to 131 million by 2050 [1]. This means that in the next 30 40 years, almost each person would be affected by dementia throughout the life cycle either as a patient or as a caregiver.


Sophisticated analytical instruments are vital for pursuing research in many areas of modern science and technology. Confocal imaging techniques provide detailed images of coating surfaces while multi-angled spectrophotometers are ideal for measuring color differences at various angles. In conjunction with each other, these techniques have provided the ability to differentiate between coating additives and understand the effect that the molecular weight of cellulose esters has on the level of metallic flake alignment in and coatings. This understanding should enable coil producers to increase production through fewer rejects and reduce the need for re-coating while substantially improving metallic flake alignment.


Riordan arrays are useful for solving the combinatorial sums by the help of generating functions. Many theorems can be easily proved by Riordan arrays. In this paper we consider the Pascal Matrix and define a new generalization of Fibonacci polynomials called (p;q)Fibonacci polynomials. We obtain combinatorial identities and by using Riordan Method we get factorizations of Pascal Matrix involving (p;q)-Fibonacci polynomials. Keywords: Riordan Group, Fibonacci Polynomials, Factorization


In her time Charlotte Yonge (whose publications span the precise years of Victoria's reign) was as popular as Dickens. Her novels reflect her close involvement with John Keble, inaugurator of the Oxford Movement, and record every stage and detail of the Movement throughout the century at parish level, and how it was received by the middle-classes in a rapidly-changing society. In the light of recent biographical discoveries, published and unpublished letters, non-fiction material such as her articles in the "Monthly Packet", and consequent re-reading of Charlotte Yonge's novels, this study reveals the pervasiveness of the Oxford Movement in society.


The nonlinear interaction between two laser beams in a plasma in the weakly nonlinear and relativistic regime is discussed. The laser dynamics is governed by two nonlinear Schrödinger equations, coupled via the slow plasma density response. Numerical studies of the growth rates of the Raman forward and backward scattering instabilities as well of the Brillouin and self-focusing/modulational instabilities are presented. Numerical results on the nonlinear evolution of the instabilities are given. The interaction between intense laser beams and plasmas leads to a variety of different instabilities, including Brillouin and Raman forward and backward scattering [1–6], as well as modulational instabilities. In multiple dimensions we also have filamentation and side-scattering instabilities. Relativistic effects can then play an important role [1, 6, 7]. Here we consider the nonlinear interaction between two weakly relativistic crossing laser beams in plasmas. We present a set of nonlinear mode coupled equations and nonlinear dispersion relations, and an analysis for Raman backward and forward scattering instabilities as well as for Brillouin and modulation/self-focusing instabilities is given. In the slowly varying envelope approximation the evolution of the laser pulses in an electron–ion plasma is given by two coupled nonlinear Schrödinger equations [8]


Abstract : The purpose of this Joint Applied Project is to develop and field a Contracting Officer/Team Leader Handbook. Multiple factors have led to an environment that is less than optimal for the accomplishment of the acquisition mission. There has been a significant loss of corporate knowledge in the Communications-Electronics Life Cycle Management Command (CE LCMC) workforce combined with acceleration in promotions to the GS-13 level. The experience level of current Contracting Officers is limited due to rapid promotions. In the past few years the organizational culture focused more on cycle time reductions, versus the quality of the work product in order to satisfy the needs of the customer. In addition, since the supervisory role was raised to the GS-14 level, and GS-13's were relieved of supervisory responsibility, there has been increased confusion as to the role of the team leader. Initial research suggests that Contracting Officers/Team Leaders need another resource to support them in the accomplishment of their varied duties. The C-E LCMC Acquisition Center's strategic plan for the next 12-month period sets forth a vision of a new business culture one that defines competency at three different levels.


A nilmanifold is a quotient of a nilpotent group $G$ by a co-compact discrete subgroup. A complex nilmanifold is one which is equipped with a $G$-invariant complex structure. We prove that a complex nilmanifold has trivial canonical bundle. This is used to study hypercomplex nilmanifolds (nilmanifolds with a triple of $G$-invariant complex structures which satisfy quaternionic relations). We prove that a hypercomplex nilmanifold admits an HKT (hyperk\"ahler with torsion) metric if and only if the underlying hypercomplex structure is abelian. Moreover, any $G$-invariant HKT-metric on a nilmanifold is balanced with respect to all associated complex structures.


The Cell Broadband Engine provides to developers a high computational power by using the synergistic processing elements. In order to take advantage of them, the programs are partitioned manually or using user-guided automatic approaches. Consequently, developers are in charge of selecting the best partitioning scheme. Additionally, compiler optimizations are also crucial for achieving the optimal performance, i.e. exploiting data-level parallelism (SIMD). The aim of this work is to explore the synergy between the different partitioning schemes and the compiler optimizations.


Aiming at the shortcomings such as low power factor and strict manufacturing technology of traditional transverse flux permanent-magnet motor (TFPM), this paper has proposed a new topology of low power four-phase flat-type TFPM. SolidWorks was applied to build motor's 3-D model, which was used in electro-magnetic finite element analysis (FEA) in Ansys. A prototype was manufactured and primary testing was accomplished. As shown in experiment, this new topology has simplified the structure and decreased requirement of manufacturing technology. The system worked steadily and torque ripple was effectively restrained. This new type of TFPM with its control system has certain reference value to the further research of low power TFPM with its high practicability and innovation.


Blockchain technology allows the implementation of a public ledger securely recording transactions among peers without the need of trusted third parties. For both researchers and industry IoT appears a domain in which there would be extraordinary benefits if the features of Blockchain can be exploited. Indeed, the possibility that IoT devices participate in public shared transactions enables a lot of challenging applications. However, there are some aspects that may limit the use of Blockchain in IoT. These are mainly related to the low computational power and storage capabilities of IoT devices. In this paper, we propose an alternative way to implement a public ledger overcoming the above drawbacks, thus appearing more suitable to IoT applications. The proposed protocol leverages the popular social network Twitter and works by building a meshed chain of tweets to ensure transaction security. Importantly, Twitter does not play neither the role of trusted third party nor the role of ledger provider.


Achieving a high internal quantum efficiency in GaAs∕AlGaAs based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for room-temperature operation at low current-density injection is crucial for applications such as optical up-converters based on the integration of LEDs and photodetectros. We report the experimental results as well as the theoretical analyses of the internal quantum efficiency of GaAs∕AlGaAs LEDs as a function of the p-doping concentration of the active region for low current injection operation. By optimizing the doping concentration, we have achieved a close to 100% internal quantum efficiency for room-temperature operation of LEDs in the low injection current-density range, i.e., around 0.1A∕cm2. An optical up-converter was fabricated using wafer-fusion technology by integrating the optimized GaAs∕AlGaAs LED with an InGaAs∕InP photodetector. The internal up-conversion quantum efficiency was measured to be 76%.


Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) materials have been introduced recently in the construction of new structural systems, particularly in footbridge systems. Innovative systems that combine concrete with FRP materials lead to lighter and more slender structures as compared to conventional reinforced concrete structures, which can bring about vibration problems. In this work, a vibration analysis of a composite slab subjected to human activities is performed, both experimentally and numerically. The slab is composed of a concrete top laid on glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) I-section pultruded profiles. In the experimental analysis, two prototypes of 0.80 m width and 4.00 m span, representing a slab strip, were subjected to walking and jumping by several volunteers. In the numerical analysis, the slab was modeled by finite elements under dynamic loadings that simulate walking and jumping. Both the experimental and numerical results have indicated that the dynamic behavior under human activities of the composite slab must be considered in the design.


The menstrual cycle is the most evident manifestation of an extremely complex phenomenon which concerns not only reproduction but the general health of the individual. In the light of the most recent clinical acquisitions the menstrual cycle can be described as follows: 1) regular pulsatile secretion by the hypothalamus of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) which in turn liberates follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH); 2) the FSH makes possible the ovarian action of LH which in turn permits the synthesis of estradiol; 3) negative feedback of estradiol and inhibin on the hypophysis cerebri; 4) ovulation is caused by a peak level of LH but is dependent on progesterone levels; 5) synthesis of progesterone by the corpus luteum; 6) negative biofeedback of progesterone at the hypothalamic level; and 7) at the endometrial level increase in the number of estradiol receptors during the follicular phase and decrease of cytoplasmatic progesterone receptors during the luteal phase. The discovery of the mechanism of the menstrual cycle has helped women with hypothalamic disorders by using a pump releasing LH-RH in a pulsatile fashion.


The rhizostomous scyphomedusa Cassiopea xamachana of Florida lives in shallow semi-stagnant lagoons wherein the temperature, salinity, and CO2 are subject to considerable range. Thus it is one of the most favourable of marine animals for physiological studies, being so well adapted to aquarium conditions that the death rate is practically nil even though the experiments may continue for more than a month. Thus the medusa can be starved for at least 41 days in doubly filtered sea-water, its final weight becoming reduced to l/27 the original. The gelatinous substance of the bell is consumed during starvation, and there is no differential consumption of body substances as in vertebrates, but one and only one set of substances are consumed. Thus the loss of weight each day is proportional to the body weight at the beginning of that day, and


Srebrenica Fell on July 11, 1996. Requests by the Dutch battalion for air support made it all the way to UN Commander General Bernard Janvier, and four hours later two bombs landed on Serb positions, but strikes were suspended when the Bosnian Serb Army threatened to kill Dutch hostages.The executions at Srebrenica took days. Bosnian Muslim men and boys were shot beside pits and buried in mass graves. They were caught as they tried to flee through mine-infested fields and mountains. They were taken to warehouses and factories where they were executed, or gunned down in the wilderness over a period of weeks. In all, up to eight thousand were killed.Today, One of the enduring questions about the 1991–1995 wars is the extent to which Serbia and Montenegro (the successor states to "Yugoslavia" or "rump Yugoslavia") were responsible for planning and facilitating the genocide in Bosnia. In February, the International Court of Justice attempted to answer this question by ruling that Serbia failed to prevent genocide in Srebrenica but had not been directly responsible for it.